Dinners with Grandpa by Nilda Brooklyn

My friend Nilda shares a wonderful story about having dinners with her grandfather. A great recipe follows but do listen to the Podcast here…GP.

Nilda’s voice is beautiful to listen to as she cooks and talks to her grandfather.

My grandfather, Carl German, has lived an incredible life as a professor, sailor, wrestler and engineer. He always shared with me that the biggest influence on his life and on how he viewed food was growing up during the Depression. He savored every meal because food was not to be taken for granted. His favorite food story is the first time he tried sashimi. He was sailing to England and a Bluefin tuna jumped on the boat. He said it was one of the best meals of his life.

Fettuccine with Clams

1 pound fettuccine
1 Tablespoon olive oil
2 strips of bacon, cut into small pieces
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 shallot, minced
Zest of 1 lemon plus the juice
Pinch of red pepper flakes
Oregano or thyme or both (small pinch)
¼ cup clam juice
1pound clams
1Tablespoon butter
Handful of chopped parsley
Salt & pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta (make sure water is very salty). Heat olive oil and render bacon. Remove and drain on paper towel. Reserve bacon bits for finishing the pasta dish.

Add shallots to bacon fat and olive oil and cook until translucent, then add the garlic and cook until garlic is fragrant. Add ½ lemon zest, red pepper flakes, oregano and thyme. Cook until herbs become fragrant. Keep heat on low-medium so the garlic and herbs do not burn. Add the lemon juice and clam juice and simmer to let it reduce and the broth becomes rich. Add clams and cover the pot cooking until all the clams have opened (discard clams that do not open). Add one ladle of pasta water.

Drain pasta and add 1tablespoon butter and half of the parsley. Salt and pepper the dish to taste.

Top with clams and clam broth, parsley, bacon bits and grated Parmesan cheese.

Serves 4

Eggs for fashion designer Andrea Cammarosano

Andrea and his egg.

I catered a party this week for the amazingly talented Andrea Cammarosano, an Italian-born, Antwerp-trained fashion designer. He had an exhibition, demonstration and fashion show in Hayes Valley at the cutting-edge store Modern Appealing Clothing, a pioneer in promoting avant-garde fashion, showcasing his Spring / Summer Menswear 2012 Collection.

He has been inspired by two cultures – Western and Japanese. And, has magically meshed the two together in some very inspiring ways.

Andrea Cammarosano Collection 2012

When we originally sat down to talk about a menu, Andrea was quick to want spaghetti served with chopsticks. Though the idea was a perfect match to his creatively inspired collection  – it posed an issue in a store full of gorgeous expensive clothes. And, it just so happened that we were sitting down to lunch eating noodles and they were slurping all over the place. Our second thought was eggs – which should have been our first. Andrea is true lover of eggs! And thus the menu began. One of my favorite things of the night was the Meyer Lemon Deviled Eggs – they were a hit and such a lovely surprise.

Meyer Lemon Deviled Eggs
12 large eggs
2/3 cup creme fraiche or sour cream
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3/4 teaspoon finely grated Meyer lemon zest – plus more for finishing
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

Place eggs in a pot of water covered by 1 inch. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat, covered, for 13 minutes. Drain, and crack the outsides of the shell and drop into an ice bath of cold water.

Peel eggs. Halve crosswise, and remove yolks. Mash yolks with creme fraiche, mustard, olive oil and Meyer lemon zest. Pass through a sieve. Add more creme fraiche if needed. Season with salt and pepper. Place a dollop of the egg mixture into the centers of your egg whites. Grind some fresh black pepper on top and grate more Meyer lemon zest.

Carrot Cake

There are many great carrot cake recipes out there. This one isn’t the easiest or quickest to make – but it packs a lot of flavor. I’ve added brown sugar to the cream cheese frosting along with a little orange zest – it really makes this cake sing.

Carrot Cake

Carrot Cake w/ Brown Sugar Frosting

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans

1 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour

1 pound large carrots, peeled & grated small

3 large eggs, room temperature

1/3  cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 cups sugar

1 1/2  cups vegetable oil

1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger

2  teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1  teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon cloves

Heat oven to 325°. Cut out two 9-inch rounds of parchment paper. Butter two, 9 X 3-inch round cake pans, add parchment rounds to bottom of pans and butter. Dust pans with flour, and tap out any excess. Set pans aside.

Using the smallest holes (less than 1/4 inch in diameter) of a box grater, grate carrots, yielding 2 1/2 cups. Place carrots, eggs, buttermilk, vanilla, sugar, vegetable oil, and ginger in a large bowl; whisk until well combined.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cloves and cinnamon. Using a rubber spatula, fold the flour mixture into the carrot mixture until combined.

Divide batter between the two cake pans, and bake until a cake tester inserted into the middles comes out clean, about 1 hour. Remove pans from oven, and transfer to a wire rack to cool, 15 minutes. Turn cakes out onto rack; let stand until completely cool. Refrigerate cakes at this point to help when frosting.

Using a serrated knife, slice each layer in half horizontally. Place a layer on a cake stand or cardboard round, and spread 3/4 cup frosting over top. Place a second cake layer on top, and spread with another 3/4 cup frosting. Repeat with third layer and another 3/4 cup frosting. Place last cake layer on top, and spread the remaining frosting over the top and the sides of the assembled cake. Transfer to refrigerator, and chill 3 to 4 hours.

Frosting

3  8-0unce packages cream cheese, room temperature

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

1 1/2 sticks butter, room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Grated rind from one orange

1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger

Pinch of salt

1 1/2     cups toasted chopped pecans

Heat oven to 375. Spread pecans in a single layer on an un-greased baking pan, and toast in the oven until lightly golden, about 5 – 7 minutes. Remove pan from oven, and let stand until completely cool. Finely chop pecans, and set aside. Place butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and beat on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add cream cheese, and beat until well-combined and fluffy, about 2 minutes more. Add the remaining ingredients, and beat 5 minutes more. Use immediately, or store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to two days. Pat the chopped pecans to the outside of the cake.