A Look Back At Cooking In 2020 | Columns - CapeNews.net

A few weeks ago when I wrote about the new community cookbook, Neighborhood Falmouth, I called it the “lemonade” cookbook. When life gives us lemons, we then have the option of making lemonade. And thus it is with today’s column: let’s look back on our cooking in 2020, before and during the pandemic, and see what we can come up with.

With the pandemic upending our world, devastating our restaurants, more and more of us turned to cooking at home. In fact, the best recipes of 2020 could be called “cooking as therapy,” as many people explored baking with sourdough and growing scallions in water as a symbol of hope. As I look back over the columns of the past year, I am struck with how resilient people are.

Often when I asked what’s cooking, I came face to face with that unique New England practicality. I was told that many home cooks took a realistic approach. They told me that they were making a dish that set them up for the next meal. Cook some rice, make stock from leftovers, have bread for toasting—these were popular answers to my question.

As I review the year, I have to chuckle at my first column of 2020. I remember feeling optimistic: new year, new decade, let’s look at this new book, called “Cooking for Good Times.” I even thought it sounded propitious. Ah, the ups and downs of food writing.

But wait (there’s more!). Here’s the advice I published for you back in January, as suggested by the author and chef Paul Kahan: “how to cook amazing food at home, while everyone, including the cook, is hanging out in the kitchen. He shares his secrets for low-stress cooking for family and friends, including the following:

• There is no particular order food needs to be served in, and no set menu you need to create or follow;

• There is no special wine you need to serve;

• Food can absolutely go straight from the oven to a trivet on the table;

• You want to make as much as possible in advance;

• You will be most successful if you have a small collection of can’t-miss dishes (along with small changes you can make to them)

Truer words were never spoken, except for the part about having everyone hang out in the kitchen. Nowadays we don’t even do that with masks on. But that doesn’t mean we can’t have good food. Here’s the recipe from that book; I am including it here because 1) it’s absolutely delicious 2) it’s very flexible and 3) I received a positive feedback on this particular winter dish.

Panzanella With Hearty Greens, Honey-Roasted Squash And Pear

2 cups torn and toasted bread

1 recipe apple cider vinaigrette

1 recipe honey roasted squash

½ cup thinly sliced red onion

1 cup sliced pear (you choose what kind)

2 cups hearty greens such as kale, sturdy spinach or dandelion greens, cut into bite-sized pieces

½ cup shaved Parmigiano cheese

1 tsp kosher salt

6 cranks black pepper

Make the toasted bread:

One half-loaf day-old good bread

1 TBSP each: butter and olive oil

½ tsp each: minced garlic, herbes de Provence or thyme leaves, and kosher salt

Tear the crust off the bread and set it aside; tear the inside into rough, shaggy, one-inch pieces, then tear up the crust and measure (should be 2 cups) out into a salad bowl. In a small saucepan, melt the butter with the oil, garlic, herbes de Provence, and salt; mix well, then pour over the bread and toss, squeezing the bread to absorb all the oil and butter. Spread the mixture on a rimmed baking sheet in a single layer and toast for 10 minutes in a preheated 350°F oven; shake the pan and continue toasting until bread is golden brown and crispy, but not hard. Return the bread to the salad bowl.

Make the vinaigrette:

2 TBSP apple cider vinegar

¼ cup olive oil

2 tsp minced shallot

1 tsp each: Dijon mustard and fresh thyme leaves

½ tsp each: honey and kosher salt

Combine all ingredients in a small jar and shake to combine; this recipe makes more than what you will need for this particular salad.

Make the honey-roasted squash:

½ lb winter squash (butternut, delicata, or acorn)

1 TBSP each: olive oil and honey

½ tsp each: kosher salt and fresh thyme leaves

¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper

Cut off the ends of the squash and slice it in half lengthwise; remove the seeds and cut it into one-quarter-inch slices. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss all the ingredients together until evenly coated; place in a preheated 350°F oven for 8 minutes, until the squash starts to sizzle. Stir the squash and roast another 5 minutes, until the squash is golden brown and tender, but not falling apart. Remove and let cool.

Put it together and serve:

Toss the bread pieces with a quarter of the vinaigrette and let them sit for a few minutes to soften slightly; add the squash, onion, pear, greens, cheese and salt and pepper and give the salad a good but gentle toss, being careful not to break up the squash too much. Taste and add more vinaigrette if desired, or serve the dressing on the side.

Last winter was also the time to explore techniques with the Instant Pot, which many folks had received as holiday gifts. We explored dishes such as rice pudding with cardamom and barbecued brisket, nice winter-y comfort foods. As we moved from a debate about chocolates versus berries for Valentine’s Day, February ended and I started to write about the Meet the Chefs series I was teaching at Highfield Hall & Gardens. I covered just the first class. Then the rest were cancelled as March progressed, and along with it, our governor’s mandate to stay at home.

That, of course, led to pandemic cooking and, of course, sourdough baking. Skillet cooking, one-pot meals, “STRESSED IS DESSERT” spelled backward, and other timely topics were my focus. I devoted an entire column to wacky cakes (that’s how stressed I was). In May, I was a little weary:

“Speedy, uncomplicated dinners. That’s what I’m ready for. As much as I love cooking (and reading about and writing about food), I find myself a bit weary these days. I don’t mind the limited choices at the supermarket; in fact, I sort of enjoy them—a challenge! But coming up with dinners that are simple, and flexible, has tired me out.

“That’s where the sheet pan comes in. And chicken. Seasoning the chicken, adding some aromatics and vegetables, cooking it all together in a hot oven—what’s not to like? Chicken, whole or cut up, seems to be relatively easy to come by. If you have a small family, use a large skillet instead of a sheet pan.” Or use a half or even a quarter-sheet pan, and try this recipe, definitely a winner based on the comments I received in May..

Sheet Pan Pasta Bake

With Chicken And Kale

12 ounces short pasta, such as gemelli or penne, cooked and drained (reserve ½ cup cooking water)

1 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)

1 cup grated Parmesan (about 3 oz), divided

4 TBSP olive oil, divided

1 bunch curly kale, ribs and stems removed, torn into bite-sized pieces

1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

1 cup sour cream or crème fraîche

1 TBSP Dijon mustard

4 cups shredded cooked chicken

1½ cups shredded mozzarella (about 6 oz), divided

Arrange a rack in top of oven; preheat to 450°F. Meanwhile, mix panko, one-quarter cup Parmesan, and 2 TBSP oil in a small bowl; season to taste with salt and pepper. Toss kale and tomatoes with a little more salt and remaining oil on a rimmed baking sheet. Mix the pasta with the sour cream, mustard, a quarter-cup of the cooking liquid from the pasta, and the remaining Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper to taste and stir in the chicken and 1 cup mozzarella, adding more pasta cooking liquid if needed, until evenly coated. Transfer to sheet with kale and tomatoes and toss to combine; top with panko mixture and remaining mozzarella. Roast pasta mixture until cheese is melted and top is lightly browned, 5–7 minutes; serve hot.

As we moved through spring into summer, grilling became the technique du jour as we could be outside. I explored mayonnaise—so much information, it covered two columns. And got me a LOT of mail about Hellman’s vs Duke’s vs Sir Kensington’s. Who knew about Sir Kensington mayonnaise? Now I see it in our local supermarket, along with Duke’s.

Here are just a few ideas from those summer days when we could lounge on the deck while basting our food on the grill. It doesn’t mean we can’t do it now—just throw on a vest and pull on the boots for warmth.

Salmon fillets—with mayonnaise and chopped fresh dill.

Garlic bread—with mayonnaise, chopped fresh oregano, garlic and Parmesan cheese.

Chicken breasts—with pesto-flavored mayonnaise.

Steaks—with mayonnaise,

and Montreal Steak Seasoning.

Pork chops—with mayonnaise and toasted, ground fennel seeds.

Lamb chops—with mayonnaise, flavored with mint, rosemary and anchovy.

Sliced fingerling potatoes—with mayonnaise, garlic and thyme.

Grilled onions—with mayonnaise flavored with sherry vinegar and fresh thyme.

I learned quite a bit about grilling, both at home and at Highfield, where we held our classes on the porch, with masks and social distancing. We had a good time figuring out ways to showcase the “bounty of the garden meets the sizzle of the grill.” But by September, there were a lot of us who would agree with Sam Sifton, food editor of the New York times, when he said: “ I’m kind of sick of cooking. Not every day, and not all of any day, but sometimes lately, yes, for a moment or two, cooking is a drag. There’s the tyranny of it, for one thing: three squares…same as yesterday, same as tomorrow.”

But he ended on a hopeful note, one that carried this writer through the last few months of 2020. “Here’s what to do. Cook anyway. Cook something new, even if you don’t have all the ingredients. Cook to surprise yourself and maybe you will be surprised.” I like that.

I like it even better than starting the year with “Cooking for Good Times.” Let’s call it Cooking for Now, and wait to see what 2021 will bring us. Happy New Year to all of you, my readers; may this year surprise us as we continue to cook—both new dishes and the comfortable familiar ones. Pandemic cuisine or not, we still need to eat!

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2020-12-31 02:30:00Z
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