Lasagna

SAUCE:
2 Tbs olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped (ok, I do more)
28 oz can crushed tomatoes
16 oz tomato sauce
6 oz tomato paste
3/4 cup chicken broth
3/4 cup water
SEASONINGS:
3 tsp dried basil
2 1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp celery seed
pinch of ground red pepper
1 tsp salt
MEATS & VEGS (if desired):
1/2 lb ground beef, browned and drained
1/2 lb pork sausage meat, browned and drained
1 package frozen spinach
1 package sliced mushrooms
2 Tbs butter
BINDING MIXTURE:
1 egg
1 tsp salt
1 lbs ricotta cheese
1 Tbs finely chopped parsley
2 Tbs freshly grated parmesan cheese, plus more serving
freshly ground black pepper
PLUS:
1 lbs lasagne noodles
1 lbs mozzarella cheese, grated

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over med-hi heat. Add onion and garlic and cook until onion is softened. Add crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce and tomato paste, broth and water - stir until combined. Stir dry seasonings thoroughly into the sauce, then cover and simmer 30 minutes.

Start water to boil lasagna noodles.

While sauce simmers, brown and drain the meats. Run meats briefly through a food processor just until it reaches a coarse pebble texture. If you want to add vegetables to your lasagna, prep them now. Microwave the frozen spinach, according to directions, then wring out as much liquid as possible with paper towls. Brown the mushrooms in butter over med-hi heat. Add the spinach, plus mushrooms and pan juices to the sauce. Add meats and vegetables and simmer sauce another 30 minutes.

While meat sauce simmers, preheat oven to 350, and prepare binding mixture: lightly beat egg in a medium bowl. Add ricotta, parsley, parmesan, pepper and one tsp salt. Stir well until combined, then keep refrigerated until you are ready to assemble the lasagna.

Follow package directions to cook your noodles until al dente - don't overcook. When they are done, drain the hot water off, rinse with cold water, and keep in cold water until ready to assemble lasagna.

To assemble: coat the bottom of a 9x12x2 baking dish with sauce. Cover sauce with noodles, then spread ricotta mixture evenly over the noodles. Coat ricotta with sauce, then layer mozzarella on top. Repeat: noodles, ricotta, sauce, cheese until you end with cheese. Sprinkle top with additional parmesan. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until the edges of the top layer are beginning to get crispy. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

You can double the sauce recipe and jar half for later use. One lasagna feeds 2 for a week of dinners and lunches.

Pork and Tomatillo Stew

Hands on: 45 minutes. Total: 1 hour, 20 minutes. 4 servings.
2 Tbs vegetable oil
1 1/2 pounds boneless pork loin, cut into 3 inch chunks
salt & pepper
2 large celery ribs, finely diced
1 small red onion, finely diced
1 anaheim chile, seeded and finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp mild chile powder
1 Tbs ground cumin
pinch of dried oregano
2 cups chicken stock (or low sodium broth)
1 cup 1/2-inch diced carrots
2 6-oz russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch dice
1 28-oz can diced tomatoes
1 lb tomatillos, husked, rinsed and cut into 1-inch dice
hot sauce
cilantro for garnish
tortilla chips for serving

1. In a medium casserole or dutch oven, heat oil. Season pork with salt & pepper and cook over high heat until browned on 2 sides, about 2 minutes per side. Add celery and onion and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened about 7 minutes. Add the diced chile, garlic, chile powder, cumin and oregano and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add the carrots, potatoes, tomatoes and tomatillos, cover and simmer over low heat until pork is cooked through, about 25 minutes.

2. Transfer pork to plate and shred with 2 forks. Meanwhile, simmer stew over moderate heat until thickened, about 10 minutes. Stir shredded pork into stew and season with salt, pepper and hot sauce. Ladle into bowls, garnish with cilantro and serve with chips.

Stew can be made ahead. Refrigerate overnight and reheat gently. Recipe from Food & Wine.

Judith's Poke Roast

1 rolled pork tenderloin
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 Tbl minced garlic
1 Tbl sugar

Add water to dry ingredients to make a watery paste. Coat meat with paste. Roast on rack at 350 degrees until meat thermometer inserted at mid-most point registers done for pork (about one hour).

Beer Can Chicken, aka the perfect roast chicken

I think Tom said this came from his brother, Dennis. Meat so tender and moist, it falls off the bone.

2-3 onions, cut into thick slices (basically, you should have 4 slices from each onion)
4 carrots
6 lb chicken
2-3 Tbs butter
salt & pepper
2-3 sprigs of thyme
lemon
beer or white wine (some people use beer - hence the name - I prefer wine, but you can also use water or OJ)

Preheat oven to 425. Butter roasting pan, then line with onion slices. Lay carrots in pan, and put chicken in pan, resting on the carrots and onions. Remove giblets and save them for some other (gravy - eventually I'll post some) recipe. Rinse chicken inside and out, then pat dry. Place chicken in pan, on top of the onion and carrots. Use spoon to smoosh butter liberally under the skin. Season liberally inside & out with salt. Season outside with pepper. Cut lemon in half and squeeze juice in cavity. Peel the leafs of thyme off the stalks and crush them lightly, then sprinkle over the top of the chicken. Drape a piece of cheesecloth over the chicken, tucking it down and around the legs, etc. Pop the top on a can of beer/coke, empty/drink contents, and fill it back up halfway with white wine. Turn can so that it's horizontal, but with the tab-hole up - now shove the can into the cavity. Squeeze the other lemon half over the top of the chicken, then stick the lemon into the end of the chicken.

Roast chicken for 90 minutes, basting it quickly with pan juices every 20-30 minutes. Check for doneness by inserting a meat thermometer into the breast, then the thigh. The breast temperature should read 180 degrees, and the thigh should be 190 degrees.

When it's done, remove the can and lemon halves with tongs, then let the chicken rest for 10 minutes before carving.

Mac and Cheese

First Published in Martha Stewart Living, February 1999. My modifications in italics.

To begin, you still need to make a white sauce. A generous amount of butter is melted in a large saucepan, and then flour is stirred into it to make a loose paste. After the flour has cooked in the hot butter, hot milk is whisked in. The starch from the cooked flour expands in the milk, creating a thick, creamy sauce. The starch binds the sauce, so that when the cheese is stirred in, the result is creamy and smooth, not stringy and curdled.

It is important to use pungent cheeses, such as sharp cheddar, mixed with a little Gruyere or pecorino Romano for extra bite, since the white sauce and pasta will absorb a lot of flavor. The type of cheese used will also affect the sauce's texture: Sharp white cheddar produces the smoothest result; yellow and extra sharp cheddars can become grainy.

A good Italian brand of dried elbow macaroni will have the best consistency. Undercook your pasta so that it is the slightest bit crunchy (very al dente) in the center, then rinse it under cold water. This stops the cooking and washes off the excess starch. You might think that starch would be useful in further thickening the casserole, but it isn't; as it bakes, that extra starch merely expands and lends a mealy texture to your sauce.

The pasta will finish cooking as it bakes. The sauce will bubble, seeping into the hollows of your macaroni. When the smell of butter and browning cheese makes your stomach growl, you'll know the dish is ready to eat.

You can easily divide this recipe in half; use a 1 1/2-quart casserole dish if you do.

Serves 12
6 slices good-quality white bread, crusts removed, torn into 1/4- to 1/2-inch pieces (I admit it: in a pinch, I have used unflavored stuffing cubes)
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for dish
5 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 1/2 cups (about 18 ounces) grated sharp white cheddar
2 cups (about 8 ounces) grated Gruyere or 1 1/4 cups (about 5 ounces) grated pecorino Romano (I like to use both cheeses - about 6 oz Gruyere and 6 oz pecorino, or more and adjust the quantity of cheddar)
1 pound elbow macaroni
Optional:
1 cup cubed ham
1-2 cups broccoli tops

1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 3-quart casserole dish; set aside. Place bread pieces in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Pour butter into the bowl with bread, and toss (Why dirty a pan - just nuke the butter in a coffee cup - I also use more butter - up to 1 stick. And, I like to use a bowl that has a lid so I can toss the crumbs and butter so the butter is evenly distributed). Set the breadcrumbs aside.

2. In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, heat milk. In a high-sided skillet, melt remaining 6 tablespoons butter over medium heat. When butter bubbles, add flour. Cook, stirring, 1 minute. Slowly pour hot milk into flour-butter mixture while whisking. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until the mixture bubbles and becomes thick. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in salt, nutmeg, black pepper, cayenne pepper, 3 cups cheddar, and 1 1/2 cups Gruyere or 1 cup pecorino Romano. Set cheese sauce aside.

4. Fill a large saucepan with water. Bring to a boil. Add macaroni; cook 2 to 3 fewer minutes than manufacturer's directions, until outside of pasta is cooked and inside is underdone. (Different brands of macaroni cook at different rates; be sure to read the instructions.) Transfer the macaroni to a colander, rinse under cold running water, and drain well. Stir macaroni into the reserved cheese sauce.

5. Pour the mixture into the prepared casserole dish. Optional: mix in ham and broccoli. Sprinkle remaining 1 1/2 cups cheddar and 1/2 cup Gruyere or 1/4 cup pecorino Romano; scatter breadcrumbs over the top. Bake until browned on top, about 30 minutes. Transfer dish to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes; serve.

Klau Family Brisket

Yeah, it uses onion soup mix instead of some homemade marinade, but it's very flavorful and moist.

Preheat oven to 275 degrees.

Rub the entire contents of a Lipton Onion Soup Mix packet over the entire brisket. Then, tightly seal the brisket in tinfoil: Overlap the long edges of two sheets, and fold a couple of times to make an airtight seal, put the brisket in, overlap and seal the remaining long edges, then roll the ends to make an airtight seal. Put brisket in a baking dish and bake at 275 degrees for 4 hours.

After 4 hours, leave the brisket in the baking dish, but remove the tinfoil, saving all the juices in the dish. Take the brisket out of the dish, slice it up, and return the slices to the juicy dish. Bake another 1-2 hours, depending on the size of the brisket and desired tenderness.

If you need more sauce, add white wine and ketchup, or white wine and beef bouillon.

Spaghetti Arnoldfini, aka Father's Famous

The eponymous father is Arnold Klau, who created this delish dish. Use good anchovies and olive oil. It's sort of like caesar pasta.

Boil water and cook 1 lb thin spaghetti.

While spaghetti cooks, mix in blender:
1 tin flat anchovies
3 cloves garlic
3 hard boiled egg. yolks only
4 1/2 oz extra virgin olive oil

Bring sauce to a boil in small saucepan for one minute, stirring to avoid burning. Take off stove.

Add to sauce:
1 handful chopped parsley
juice of half a lemon
season generously with fresh ground pepper

Pour sauce over spaghetti and serve with grated parmesan cheese.

Shrimp with Charred Red Peppers

One of my absolute favorite recipes from Tom. Well, he got it from..."Good Food of Szechuan," I think.

3/4 lb cleaned shrimp (he and I both usually round up to a pound)
1 cup cold water
1/2 tsp salt

Marinade:
1 tsp cornstarch mixed with 4 tsp water
1/2 egg white (just use the whole egg white and drain excess at end)
1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp green onion chopped (I usually chop 4-5 stalks)
1 tsp finely chopped ginger (Tom usually uses at least 1 Tbs - I usually slice up an inch and a half of ginger and put it in the cuisinart with the garlic)
1 tsp finely chopped garlic (Tom says he uses more - I usually throw 6 cloves in the cuisinart with the ginger)

Seasonings:
1 tsp cornstarch mixed with 2 tsp waters
1 1/2 Tbs soy sauce
1 tsp vinegar (rice, cider, white - but not wine or balsamic)
2 tsp rice wine or dry sherry (look for Shao Xing Rice Wine in a brown bottle with a red label at your local asian market)
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt (Tom and I often skip the salt at this stage)
1/2 tsp black pepper (try to use fresh ground pepper)

Approx 6 Tbs oil (peanut or vegetable)

Put cleaned shrimp in bowl with 1/2 tsp salt and cold water. Let stand 2 minutes, then rinse with cold water until shrimp start to turn slightly white (about 1 minute). Add egg, cornstarch-in-water, and salt to drained shrimp. Let stand for 20 minutes.

Chop onion, ginger, garlic. Clean red peppers (that's what the book says - I don't do this: what's to clean? I use dried red chili peppers). Set aside.

Mix seasonings and set aside.

To cook: Heat 3-4 Tbs oil in wok over high heat. Drain excess marinade from shrimp, then add shrimp to wok and stir-fry only 8-10 seconds (Tom says go a bit longer - I say don't overcook - cook just long enough for the whole exterior of the shrimp to turn pink). Remove immediately, drain and set aside.

Add oil to wok to equal 4 Tbs. Heat, then stir-fry red peppers over medium heat until peppers begin to char and are almost black (Joan sez: if they've turned black by now, remove them to the shrimp bowl). Add green onion, ginger and garlic and stir fry briefly. Return shrimp to wok, stir. Re-stir the seasonings before adding to the wok. Stir-fry just long enough to coat the shrimp with the seasonings - by which time, the shrimp should be fully cooked. Remove and serve hot with rice.

Joan's notes: I like to wash the rice first, then while it drains, clean the shrimp. Rice usually takes about 20 minutes, so take a load off - or do all the prep work and have it all lined up for cooking quickly.

Mark's Tri-Tip Roast

This comes courtesy of Mark C, who got it from someone in Salinas. Anyhoo, we cook this on the grill.

One 2-3 lb tri-tip roast (pref High Choice grade)
3 garlic cloves (I use at least 6, and cut each clove in half length-wise)

For the marinade, mix together:
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2/3 cup soy sauce
2/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 cup chopped green onions (you can't use too many - I use 5-6 green onions head to tail)
1/2 cup grated fresh ginger

Trim all the fat from the roast. Make slits in the roast and slip in slices of garlic. Put roast and sauce in a bowl, turning it several times before refrigerating 24 hours. Turn meat occasionally.

Prepare a large wood or charcoal fire in a barbecue. When you can no longer hold your hand over the goals to a count of 10, remove the meat from the bowl (reserve the marinade) and put it on the grill. Cook 20 minutes, basting often with the marinade, then turn meat and grill another 25 minutes, for a total of 45 minutes on the grill. If necessary, add more charcoal.

Transfer the roast to a heated platter, cover loosely with foil, and let stand for 10 minutes before carving. To serve, cut against the grain into thin slices. Serves 6 to 8.

Margaret's Curried Chicken

Margaret gave me this recipe from "AnneMarie's Personal Cookbook," which is a total throwback to late 1950s, early 1960s "entertaining" dinners.

4 chicken breasts, skinned and boned
salt and pepper
1 Tbs curry powder
2 Tbs butter
2 Tbs finely chopped shallots
1 cup chicken broth
3 Tbs finely chopped almonds
1 tsp cornstarch
1/4 cup heavy cream
finely chopped parsley (this is a garnish, which I personally never use)

Cut the chicken breasts in half and then into 1 inch strips. Season with salt, pepper and curry powder.

Melt 1 Tbs butter over medium high heat. Stir fry the chicken until nearly done - DON'T overcook (you'll return them to sauce later to finish cooking). Set chicken aside (use pan lid to keep chicken warm).

Melt other 1 Tbs butter over medium high heat, and cook shallots until soft. Add broth, bring to a simmer. Mix cornstarch into heavy cream, then add slowly to broth. Return chicken to pan, and bring to a simmer. Add almonds for last minute.

Serve with rice. Margaret always served this with condiment bowls of banana slices, shredded coconut, chopped green pepper, peanuts and/or almonds.

Salmon and Green Onions

I'll have to ask Tom for the exact recipe from "Good Food of Szechuan," but here's how I make it:

2 - 8 oz salmon filets
2 Tbs butter

In a small bowl, mix and set aside:
2 Tbs soy sauce
2 Tbs rice wine vinegar
2 Tbs mirin
2 Tbs sugar

Chop 4-6 stalks of green onions into 1/4 inch slices from white bulb to green tips.

Melt one Tbs butter over medium high heat to coat bottom of the pan. Place filets skin side down. Cover and cook 4 minutes - start checking every 2 minutes. About 6 minutes in, add the other Tbs of butter and flip filets. Don't overcook - the fish will continue to cook when you take out of the pan to finish the sauce, so remove as soon as it's close to done (almost all the raw is gone in the middle - you might have to poke a knife in the fish to tell). Set the filets aside on a warm plate and use the pan lid to cover them.

Into the pan, add the sauce. Raise the heat slowly, bringing the sauce to a boil and reduce it. It reduces quickly (1-2 minutes over high heat), so don't go far. For the last 30 seconds, add the green onion.

In those 30 seconds, plate the fish. Pour the onion sauce piping hot over the fish, and serve immediately with rice (I prefer white, but I've had other types of rice with it, and it's fine). I also like to serve/plate it with asparagus.

This is a really easy dish to make for company: you can prep much of it, so it doesn't take a lot of time away from hosting company, it's super tasty, and looks good. If you can serve it sizzling hot from stove to table, people ooh.