A Glorious Cake for Mother’s Day

Posted on May 7, 2014 by brosbottom

Years ago as a fledging syndicated columnist, I created a delectable genoise cake with pineapple rum buttercream icing. I didn’t worry for a minute that this dessert called for a hefty 3 sticks of butter and that it included multiple steps. Since this gateau has remained a personal favorite, I recently gave the recipe a facelift for Mother’s Day, reducing the butter, and streamlining the directions.

Genoise (from French for Genoese referring to Genoa) is the name of a sponge cake made with eggs, sugar, and vanilla. These ingredients are warmed over a pan of simmering water, then beaten in an electric mixer for several minutes until they have tripled in volume. Flour and melted butter are folded in next. When baked, this style of cake is golden and feathery light. For my genoise, I created an extra special buttercream icing with fresh pineapple. To make it, a pineapple sugar syrup is gradually beaten into egg yolks and then bits of softened butter are whipped in until the mixture is silken smooth. A touch of dark rum adds even more flavor. Continue reading →

Spring Cooking—Delicious Risotto

Posted on May 1, 2014 by brosbottom

Will spring ever arrive?” is the question on everyone’s mind in our small New England town. After one of the longest and harshest winters in years, we are desperate for the season of renewal to begin in full force, but temperatures are way below normal and rains seem to be never ending.

There are glimmers of hope— daffodils are blooming, yards have returned to a verdant hue, and in the markets there are stately bundles of asparagus, gorgeous peas, and bunches of tender spring onions, all harbingers of the season (even if not all local). This produce has been heartening and prompted me to cook lighter, vegetable-inspired dishes like spring risotto studded with sliced sugar snaps and fresh peas. Continue reading →

Using those Easter Leftovers for Delicious Panini!

Posted on April 24, 2014 by brosbottom

Last week I wrote glowingly of my suggestion that our family make racks of lamb the centerpiece of our Easter dinner. As it turned out, I was outvoted, and our clan decided on baked ham instead. My son chose a Niman Ranch spiral-cut one that was delicious with grilled asparagus and baby Yukon Golds roasted with garlic and rosemary. I confess, though, that what I liked best about this Easter ham was using the leftovers for inventive sandwiches like the ham and cheese panini with apple slaw featured here.

For these panini, I used a nice crusty bread and topped slices with thinly cut ham, some shaved Munster, and a simple apple slaw. (I don’t own a panini maker, but a stove top grill pan filled in easily, and if you don’t have either, a heavy skillet will work too.) It was the apple slaw that gave these sandwiches their panache. Finely julienned Granny Smith apple was paired with shredded cabbage and then tossed in a cider vinegar dressing. A hint of cayenne and some chopped basil added extra flavor. Continue reading →

Easter Lamb with a Twist

Posted on April 16, 2014 by brosbottom

Photo by Susie Cushner

My son and I have been on the phone several times this week planning Easter dinner for our family. We’ve been back and forth about what should anchor the meal—baked ham, roast lamb, or even grilled steaks. Even though not all of our family is crazy about lamb, I’ve been campaigning for delectable racks of lamb served with whipped goat cheese and roasted cherry tomatoes.

This recipe, which I created several years ago for my book, Sunday Roasts, is elegant, yet simple. The racks are marinated in a classic mix of olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic, then quickly browned and roasted until rosy pink inside. What sets this dish apart from others, though, is its unusual garnishes. Roasted cherry tomatoes and dollops of creamy whipped goat cheese scented with lemon and fresh dill make perfect partners for the chops. Continue reading →

Hungry For France—A New Book for Foodies who Travel!

Posted on April 10, 2014 by brosbottom

For several years now I’ve harbored a special culinary fantasy, and that is for my husband and me to dine our way around the perimeter of France, and then through its interior. In my dreams we’d start in Normandy and Brittany, then drive along the southern Atlantic coast to Provence. We’d cross through Burgundy, then into Alsace, and finally wend our way through the Loire Valley and beyond. A Francophile since forever as well as a part time resident of Paris, I knew such a trip could take hours of research and planning. But, when my husband surprised me with a copy of Alec Lobrano’s new book, Hungry For France: Adventures for the Cook & Food Lover, I found that he had done all the work for me!

Normandy Cheeses

Beautifully photographed and illustrated, this colossal work is organized into 13 chapters, each of which highlights a special region. Passionately and articulately, the author who has lived and eaten in France for almost thirty years, takes you on a culinary journey through every one, pointing out a well-edited selection of bistros, restaurants, cafés, food markets, and specialty ingredients. He gives you a cheese primer in Normandy so that you can move beyond its celebrated Camembert, shares his favorite crêperies in Brittany, leads you to the best boeuf bourguignon in Burgundy, and makes certain you don’t overlook out-of the way places like La Merenda, a petit restaurant serving Niçoise specialties on the Côte d’Azur (and one of my favorites). Continue reading →

Red Quinoa Is So Cool!

Posted on April 5, 2014 by brosbottom

Last week we drove into Boston to take advantage of the city’s annual Dine Out Boston. For this event, many of the town’s best restaurants offer $38 three-course menus. We opted for Zebra’s Bistro in the western suburb of Medfield and were joined by our son and his wife, food lovers par excellence. Wontons stuffed with braised short rib on sriracha cole slaw and crispy falafel garnished with beet yogurt were winning starters. Braised lamb stew with homemade pasta was a delectable main, but my favorite dish of the night was pan-seared trout atop a warm red quinoa salad.

I rarely cook with quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah), but this dish made me a convert. An ancient, nutrient-packed grain that is gluten-free, quinoa comes in varied colors (the most common is beige). My red quinoa salad, prepared with small burgundy-hued grains, was a perfect visual foil for coral-tinted trout, and was the inspiration for the recipe that follows. Continue reading →

A Weeknight Supper with Pizzaz

Posted on March 28, 2014 by brosbottom

Several weeks ago during a “phyllo workshop,” my students prepared five different dishes with phyllo dough. The class loved all the night’s dishes, from the cheese-filled phyllo triangles to a glorious apple and date strudel, but they were most enthusiastic about the golden pyhllo cups (baked in muffin tins) filled with a simple tomato, artichoke, and shrimp ragù.

Although they thought the crisp, flaky pastry shells were delicious, it was the robust, vividly-hued sauce that really got their attention. “This would be perfect over pasta,” one of the cooks exclaimed, while several others nodded their approval. Well, that got me curious so a few days later, I tried the sauce over fettuccine noodles, and was delighted with the results. Continue reading →

Cooking Indian and Vegetarian–Delicious!

Posted on March 19, 2014 by brosbottom

I’ve often told my students that I could easily become a vegetarian if I lived in India. I love the way that country’s cooks turn humble ingredients like okra, potatoes, eggplant, spinach, and much more into irresistible temptations. They season vegetables with fragrant spices, combine them with cheeses like paneer, or enrich them with cream, to ensure that they are packed with flavor.

So, I was intrigued while in Paris this January by an article that I spotted in a popular French magazine on Indian dishes made with dahl. The story included basic directions for using red lentils in soups, stews, and side dishes. I tucked the article into my suitcase, and once home, tried some of the recipes. Over the past month I’ve made the red lentil stew with winter squash and cauliflower at least a half dozen times, tweaking it at each try. Continue reading →

My Favorite Irish Coffee

Posted on March 12, 2014 by brosbottom

Photo by Lara Hata

The food world is always updating classic dishes and drinks, adding new twists to make them more contemporary, but some recipes are best left untouched. That’s the way I feel about my recipe for Irish coffee, given to me more than two decades ago by a teacher friend whose specialty was Irish literature. I’ve included the directions for this special brew in my first book, Betty Rosbottom’s Cooking School Cookbook, and in the more recent Coffee, and it’s been featured on this blog previously.

Irish coffee has an interesting history that starts in Ireland and finishes on the west coast of the U.S. As the story goes, the drink was created in the Shannon airport in the mid-twentieth century where it was a restorative offering served to weary passengers. The recipe arrived in the States with a San Franciscan who shared it with his hometown’s Buena Vista Bar. The rest is history. The hot, strong coffee infused with Irish whiskey became the signature drink of that California bar, and eventually its popularity spread around the globe. Continue reading →

Simple Little Appetizers for Cold Nights

Posted on March 6, 2014 by brosbottom

No one in our small New England town wants to commit to entertaining this winter! After countless storms and resulting cancellations, people are wary of planning too far ahead. My husband is a social animal, though, so I’ve figured out a way to issue some last-minute invites. It works like this. I wait until the local weather team gives the all clear, and then ask a few friends to come over for wine and nibbles. Afterwards, we all go out for dinner together. Simple and stress-free, this has become my social m.o. for the season.

Along with bowls of olives and toasted nuts, I’ve been serving some delectable cheese-filled Greek phyllo triangles. The classic filling for these savory pastries usually includes feta, sometimes cottage or other cheeses plus eggs. I opted for a mixture of creamy chèvre, grated Parmesan, chopped hazelnuts, and fresh mint. A dollop of this flavorful mélange is placed on a corner of a strip of buttered phyllo. Then the phyllo strip is folded Continue reading →

Betty Rosbottom

Food Writer, Cookbook Author, Cooking Teacher

Category Archives: Food News