A few notes on the paradox of recipe writing and reading

Writing recipes can be a very tough thing.
Why do we do it?
Ideally it’s a template that can be recreated over and over with perfect consistency, but nature doesn’t give us perfectly consistent ingredients to work with. So in reality it’s just a guideline, a rough draft of a dish that one must edit.

In writing recipes, I try hard to find the best middle ground. Giving the cook enough info for inspiration, but with room for preferential variation. Please know that I think of my recipes as foundations on which to build. Read them knowing that I hope you take license, and let me know if it works (or if it doesn’t). My goal with Grill-A-Chef is to encourage people to cook, and that takes a little experimentation and awareness. As the cook it’s your job to adjust for nature’s inconsistency.

Back to the recipes:
The trickiest part is in the quantities. They’re where every recipe starts, but how does one decide whether to list a whole ingredient or a processed (cut, cooked, grated, etc.) ingredient?
One recipe might say “4 medium potatoes”. In this instance, the quantity used can vary greatly with the size of the potato. Not to mention the problem that the word “medium” poses. How big is medium potato? And is that relative to all potatoes in the world, or just in the pile of potatoes at your market?
Another recipe might say “3 cups of potatoes, cut into ½ inch cubes.” This is a much more specific quantity, but how many potatoes will this require? And what do I do with the extra potato?
You may have noticed that my recipes vary completely in how they are written. How I choose to write it is purely circumstantial. If I say “4 medium potatoes” the required amount is somewhat elastic, though I’ll usually follow that up with an approximation of volume. If I say, “3 cups of potatoes, cut into ½ inch cubes,” then you need that amount.
**** I realize that I sometimes stray from my own rules.

Next on my list of peaves is the ingredient that you have to buy a whole bottle of for just one teaspoon. I’m a cook, so my pantry has a plethora of rare items that I use regularly. Still, I try to recognize these when they come up and isolate them as optional.
In other words, I try to avoid putting the cook in a position where she has buy something she’ll never use again.

Execution of a recipe can vary exponentially. People have different stovetops, different pots and pans, even different lighting under which they see the food. Over time my goal has become describe what the final product of each step should be, and then lay a map of how to get there. Including times and heat ranges that are only approximate.

I usually end a recipe with some ideas for substitutions, interesting additions, and general advice. Which I hope is helpful.

Please let me know an thoughts or questions on this subject.

Holiday Series

Hey there readers,
In the next few weeks I'm gonna execute a Holiday series. Covering individually the major bits and pieces of a holiday meals.
Some traditional, and some not so traditional.
If there are any requests, please hit me up.
thechefs@grillachef.com

I need a good pumpkin gnocchi recipe, any ideas?

Funny you should ask. A few people have hit me up for something like along these lines this season, so I finally broke down and whipped something up.

I have to say, I’m a huge fan of gnocchi for people who want to take the leap into fresh pasta making. (yes, they fall under the category of fresh pasta) They're easy and fun to make; a great project for kids.

They’re certainly not foolproof, but they are pretty forgiving.

I have one beef with gnocchi though, it requires a tool that only performs one job: a potato ricer. I don’t have enough room in my one bedroom apt. for uni-tasking gadgets, but there really isn’t another way to get great gnocchi so I make a rare exception.

Sure, you can use a food mill, but they have a tendency to somehow agitate the starch in the potato by stirring it while crushing it, making them gummy. A ricer just crushes it, resulting in lighter gnocchi.

And let me tell you, there is nothing like those tasty little pillows. When they are light and fresh, there is no substitute.

4 Russet (Idaho) potatoes

1 Kabocha squash (butternut, acorn, or just plain ole pumpkin would be fine too)

3 eggs

2½ cups Flour sifted. (+ more for dusting in production)

1 ½ tbsp Nutmeg, Freshly grated.

1. Roast the squash by halving length wise, coating it with oil, salt, and pepper. Place cut side down on a sheet tray and cook at 400 degrees until tender. Aprox. 25 min. Scoop out the flesh and set aside.

This is a sunshine kabocha.

2. Rinse the potatoes, and drop them into boiling salty water. Cook them until a pairing knife is easily inserted (around 25 min.). Allow to cool enough to handle.

*This step is key, DON’T overcook your potatoes, if they bust open and absorb too much water it will kill your gnocchi.

3. Using a paring knife, peel the skin from your potatoes, and squish them through the ricer into a large bowl. Next pass the squash.

4. Add the eggs, nutmeg, a hefty pinch of salt and the flour. (I also added a splash of amaretto liquor) Mix lightly with your hands until it comes together, Add more flour if needed. This is really where the margin for error comes into this recipe. The dough should be dry enough to roll out (see pic), but you cannot overwork it, or it will become dense and chewy. It is good to have a small pot of boiling water on so you can taste a sample. It shouldn't fall apart, and hopefully it's not too dense.

5. Now the fun part, in bunches, work the dough into long rolls (about the diameter of a dime) and cut into little dumplings. Being sure to keep everything well floured, or they will stick together.

Now you have gnocchi, you can refrigerate them for a few hours until meal time. They freeze pretty well too, which is why I usually make them in large batches. Gnocchi should keep frozen for about 4-6 months.

With my pumpkin gnocchi I made a simple brown butter and sage sauce.

For four people I put about 3 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Once melted dropped in a small handful of sage leaves. They should sizzle and pop and smell amazing. As the butter browns, you'll notice they bubble less, that's because the they're running out of moisture and getting crispy. Remove the sag from the butter once they stop bubbling completely.

I know this pic sucks, but I wanted you to see roughly what the butter looks like.

Note the foam that forms on top, and the browned milk fats that settle on the bottom.

Now I dropped my pumpkin gnocchi into boiling water. Fortunately gnocchi come with a built in timer. When you drop them in they all sink to the bottom, give them a very gentle stir, and as they cook they will rise to the top. Once they're all sitting on the top, they're ready to go. It happens pretty quickly relative to pasta, so don't drop them until your sauce is ready!

I added the gnocchi to the browned butter along with a good splash of chicken stock and two more tablespoons of butter and some grated Parm to bring it together.

To finish, I topped it off with a little more Parm and the fried sage.

Freakin' delicious.

Will my bread rise?

Q: I am making the famous no-knead bread from the NYTimes /Jim Leahy adaptation published a few years ago. I'm doing a variation with multi-grains, and I can see it is rising very very slowly. I had questioned the yeast, in the past it was ok, from another unrisen loaf. But the dough seams warm - I do think SOMETHING is happening, just not fast. I put it together at 10pm last night, so it's been 13 hrs now. How long can I leave it to continue to rise? the recipe calls for 18-20 hrs. If I leave it overnight a second night - totaling more like 36 hrs - will it become rotten or rancid or otherwise toxic? If not I'm happy to let it go and see what happens. Could a person add yeast at any point, or would that be too hard to mix in? Does yeast need to be thoroughly mixed to work correctly, since it's actually a chemical process?


A: I think a few things about this, but I want to preface all my thoughts with the fact that while I have baked bread, I am not a bread baker (like Jim Leahy, whose bread is incredible). It's a very specific arena.
That said, I'll tell you what I know.
1. whole grains are much heavier, so: a) it takes more force/energy to make them rise, and they may never rise as much and b) yeasts, which are tiny organisms, process all grains differently(and some not at all). so that could slow the process, and/or just limit it.
2. sometimes part of the yeast in a packet/block will die and recipes will depend on all the said yeast in a recipe being active. However, because yeast is essentially a bacteria, it actually reproduces while eating the protein in the flour, and releasing the gas that in-turn makes your bread rise. So, if there is any active yeast at all in what you added, the population will eventually get there. It just may take time. Of course this is one of the real skills of a bread baker, knowing when bread has risen the correct amount (or when the yeast is at the correct population).
This also means that you don't have to add yeast late in the process, but if it did come to that I would advise just starting over.
3. The extra time this may take exposes you to some variables. There are good yeasts ad bad yeasts. molds are also bad. If you see any weird colors, or smell any really funky sour, acrid or rancid smells, toss it. Strong yeast aromas, and slightly sour smells are ok. In short, it should smell good, and don't doubt your judgment, if it's bad you will know, if you have a bad feeling about it trust your instinct.
4. Having said all that. There is a serious science and skill to bread baking. Where the recipe is a specific equation that equals a delicious loaf of bread. When you futz with components of that equation, the result will be different, for better or for worse.

I'd say give you bread a little more time, and then, even if it hasn't risen as much as you'd like, bake it anyways.
(as long as it hasn't gone bad) I'd love to hear how it turns out.