Tomato & Sharp Cheddar Focaccia

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Tomato & Sharp Cheddar FocacciaSince good, ripe tomatoes have become available in these parts, I’ve more or less been living on various combinations of tomatoes and bread.   There have been a lot of panzanella salads in my life recently, not to mention fattoush, BLTs, tomato and cheddar sandwiches, toasted bagels with cream cheese and tomatoes, tomato bruschetta…

…so couple of days ago, I decided to cut to the chase and just bake my tomatoes right into the bread.  

This bread is focaccia that’s really bordering on pizza.  It’s soft and light in the middle, a little crispy around the edges.  Sweet, sun-ripened tomatoes are countered by slices of sharp red onion and cheddar cheese.  Warm from the oven, a hunk makes a perfect afternoon snack or you can pair it with a green salad and a glass of wine for a satisfying lunch or dinner.   That’s what I did and it’s likely what I’ll continue to do until I reach the other side of the loaf/the other side of tomato season.

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Lamb Stew with Artichokes, Olives & Mint

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Spring Lamb Stew with ArtichokesOne of the joys of writing a blog is having an online record of how often I contradict myself.  Last week, I stood up here on my soapbox and declared myself officially stewed out.  And then, naturally, 2 days later, I hauled out the old Dutch oven and made a lamb stew.

What can I say–coming up with dinner this time of year can be tricky.  Your heart aches for spring produce, but your chilled bones still crave heartier dishes.   Even though emotionally you might be ready to trade beets and squash for peas and asparagus, hefty meat-based mains for light fish dishes and salads, physically you’re still battling cold weather and want to eat something warm and satisfying.  

Thankfully, this stew gives you the best of both worlds.  It’s a hearty, but not heavy, celebration of in-between seasons eating.  Chunks of lamb shoulder are braised until fork-tender in a bath of white wine and tomatoes.  Artichoke halves and green olives share the spotlight with the lamb, keeping it from being nap-inducingly heavy and a handful of mint scattered over the top keeps it fresh and lively.

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Poached Cod with Tomatoes & Escarole

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Poached Cod with Tomatoes and EscaroleEvery time I make fish this way, I find myself asking why I don’t make dishes like this more often.  It’s incredibly simple, quite healthy, and way quick.  And, don’t worry, it’s also totally delicious–I still have my priorities straight.

This is cod that’s been poached in a tomato and white wine broth with garlicky sautéed escarole.  The fish cooks up moist and flavorful, flaking apart in buttery chunks.  The broth will amaze you with how good a can of tomatoes can taste with just a few nudges.  You’ll be slurping it up with a spoon and contemplating just how soon you’ll make it again.

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Braised Celery with Tomatoes, Chickpeas & Bacon

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Braised Celery with Tomatoes, Chickpeas & BaconIn December, cooking demands a lot of you.  You’ve got to plan ahead, come up with elegant menus for holiday entertaining.  You’re making a million trips to a thousand different grocery stores for just the right ingredients and forcing yourself to bake cookies uniform and cute enough to be giftable.  

Then January rolls around and it’s time to start demanding a lot of what you’re cooking.  You want a dinner that provides comfort from the cold while being relatively healthy, something simple that won’t require dirtying a stack of pots and pans or hours of time in the kitchen, and meals that can be thrown together without a trip to the supermarket.

Believe it or not, this dish fulfills all of our needs!  It’s an adaptation of Marcella Hazan’s recipe for braised celery I saw a while back, that stuck in my head.  It sounded odd to me at first–celery braised with tomatoes and bacon until tender–but I was intrigued and found myself making it one night when fridge was nearly barren, but I couldn’t bear the thought of running to the store.  It ended up being everything that I wanted: warm and comforting, pretty healthy, 1 pot, very little hand-on time, and made with staple ingredients I almost always have even when it seems like I have nothing.  

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Traditional Bolognese Sauce

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Bolognese SauceBolognese sauce ranks pretty high on my list of favorite things to cook in the dead of winter.  It’s the ultimate comfort food–hearty, homey, and warming.  Plus, it requires you to spend a slow-paced afternoon in a toasty kitchen with an open bottle of wine.  What more could you ask for?

This recipe makes a big batch of Bolognese sauce that will keep you warm for several winter nights.  It’s a combination of beef, pork, and veal that is slowly simmered with wine and tomatoes until it becomes unbelievably rich and luxurious.   I used half of the batch in the lasagna I served on Christmas Eve and there are 2 small containers of it squirreled away in the freezer that will dress pasta or top polenta some time later this month when I’m snowed in and need nourishment.

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