The Bitten Word

Raspberry Clafoutis

Food & Wine (April 2010)

Pop quiz!

"Clafoutis" (pronounced kla-foo-TEE) is:

A. The name of our dog.

B. An exclamation of surprise in the South.

C. Fruit in batter, baked.

The answer, of course, is C. (We don't even have a dog. But we do sorta like the idea of exclaiming, "Well, kla-foo-TEE!" when we're surprised by something.)

A clafoutis is a French dessert traditionally made with cherries, in which the fruit is placed in a dish, covered in batter, and then baked. 

We'd never had a clafoutis, so we can't speak to how it tastes with cherries. We were, however, intrigued by this version of the dessert from Food & Wine that uses raspberries. Their photo, which you can see below, was so beautiful and spring-like, we had to make it when friends came over for dinner last week.

Olive Oil Poached Salmon with Indian Spices

Fine Cooking (April 2010)

 

We eat at Indian restaurants fairly frequently. So far, though, we've never seen salmon on the menu. But the next time we're at our favorite Indian place, we just might have to suggest it to the waiter.

We were drawn to this recipe precisely because it sounded so unique -- a very familiar fish with some very unexpected spices. And the idea of poaching fish in olive oil sounded so great to us -- infusing the salmon with a new flavor.

Well, we were one for two. The spices? Delicious! The olive oil poaching? A bust.

Your Questions: What to Do With Leftover Easter eggs?

Here's another of our "Your Questions" posts, in which we try to answer readers' queries about recipe ideas, kitchen gadgets and what the deal is with "Lost" (just kidding! [But seriously, our money's on Desmond, who we believe is locked in Widmore's sub, as the candidate to take replace Jacob in the fight against the Man in Black]).

Got a question?  Email us!  We'll be happy to share our thoughts, and we'll do our best to find the answers for you.

Today's question comes from Gina in Northport, Long Island, New York:

I'm tired of the ordinary egg salad. With Easter coming up and the abundance of hard cooked eggs we all get stuck with,  do you have a unique and/or different recipe we could all try? Thanks!

Great question, Gina!  After the jump, we'll share some ideas of what to do with hard-boiled Easter eggs.

But first, we've just got to talk about the amazing Easter eggs in the April issue of Martha Stewart Living.

To be honest, we actually haven't dyed Easter eggs in years. But the gorgeous eggs in the latest issue of Living might convince us to do it this year. Using overlaid decals, cut-outs and electrical tape, Martha has created elegant eggs that are like little works of geometric pop-art.

Amazing, right? You need to pick up the April issue of the magazine to see all the great ideas and get the full how-to. But the whole feature just made us smile!

Now, on to Gina's question!

Tuna Noodle Casserole with Leeks and Fresh Dill

Bon Appétit (March 2010)

One of the great things about writing The Bitten Word is that we're often encouraged to select items from food magazines that we wouldn't otherwise make. 

Case in point: Tuna Noodle Casserole.

You see, we're not really casserole people. We never make them. Perhaps it's the way they remind us of lackluster potluck dinners of our Southern youths. Or perhaps it's memories of making bad ones ourselves in our childhood forays into cooking.

Or should we say, we weren't really casserole people. Bon Appétit's upscale take on this dish may have just converted us.

Kentucky Mimosas

Southern Living (March 2010)

As you may know, Clay is from Kentucky. And there's one aspect of Kentucky life that's always really intrigued us: the Honorable Order of Kentucky Colonels. And by "intrigued us," we mean that we've been dying to become Colonels for several years. The organization is a social group that has granted the title of "Kentucky Colonel" since 1813. Here's how the society describes itself on its Web site:

Many people think of the Kentucky Colonels as a group of people that enjoys the good life, has an enviable social calendar and, during Kentucky Derby week, consumes mint juleps as if they were iced tea.  Well, that’s us! 

With a description like that, who wouldn't want to be a Colonel?

You're definitely familiar with the most famous colonel, but there have been lots of famous Kentucky Colonels through the years.

Anyway, as we said, we've always thought it would be fun to be Kentucky Colonels ourselves. So this past Christmas, as a surprise to Clay, Zach nominated him to become a member (nominees have to be sponsored by an existing Colonel, so Zach enlisted the help of our friend Ed).

Meanwhile, Clay was secretly working with a different friend to nominate Zach into the Order!  It was all very "Gift of the Magi," minus extreme haircuts or trips to the pawn shop. When the certificates arrived, we had a good laugh -- we'd each thought it would be the perfect surprise gift for Christmas.

At any rate, we're now both card-carrying Kentucky Colonels! 

So yesterday, the first really gorgeous Sunday we've had so far this year, we decided the sunny morning called for drinks, Kentucky-style. So we made up a batch of these Kentucky Mimosas.

Caramelized Pears and Red Onions

Martha Stewart Living (February 2010)

"Pears are not side dishes." That was our first thought upon reading this recipe. 

Sure, they're fantastic snacks, great as a salad component and work in any manner of desserts. But as a side?  We just didn't see it.

Leave it to Martha to show us the error of our ways!

Korean Fried Chicken

Saveur (March 2010)

Attention, Korean Residents of Washington, D.C.: Why have you been holding out on us?? How is it that we've never heard of Korean Fried Chicken? And how soon can we make it again?!

We've already mentioned how much we enjoyed Saveur's Los Angeles issue this month. It's full of amazing food finds from L.A., including Evan Kleiman's Pollo Arrosto, which just blew us away when we made it.

But there was one other recipe in this issue of Saveur that had our tongues wagging: Korean Fried Chicken.

Spicy and sweet with the promise of a crispy, crackly skin? We were sold!

Lemony Sugar Cookies

A Bitten Word Recipe

When he was growing up, Clay's great-grandmother Annie made wonderful sugar cookies. Different from your run-of-the-mill cookie, Annie's were crisp and extremely thin. Those cookies always seemed to be around in Annie's kitchen, little discs of sugary comfort just waiting for you.

Wanting to make cookies recently for a friend's birthday, we dug up Annie's recipe to give it go. Her secret to a thin cookie? Using a spatula to flatten them in the final moments of baking. Pretty nifty.

We were excited to make Annie's sugar cookies, but we also want to add our own spin: a lemony twist on her classic recipe.

Sauteed Brussels Sprouts with Sriracha and Cashews

A Bitten Word Recipe

Not that long ago, we wrote about our love for roasted Brussels sprouts with bacon and apples. And it's true -- we absolutely love that dish. Roasting the sprouts really brings out their nutty flavor, and it gives them a caramelized, crunchy finish that's really delicious.

But there's one drawback to roasting: It takes a long time. True, we're not talking active time, which is one of the reasons we like roasting so much.  But still, it's about an hour from start to finish.  And let's say you leave the office, go to the gym, maybe run a couple errands:  Suddenly, you're getting home at 7:30. And the thought of waiting an hour for dinner just won't do.

That's why, one night earlier this winter, we tried an experiment. What if we simply sauteed the sprouts, like a stir fry?  And what if we played up the idea of stir-frying by adding some Asian flavors? What if we threw in a spoonful of the Sriracha Chili Sauce we had in the fridge?

We came up with a dish we really, really love. And we've made it several times again over the past few months. It's got a terrific spicy kick, and it transforms the sprouts into something different and something really cool.

And the best part? The whole thing takes less than 10 minutes, start to finish.

Your Questions: Looking for Lima Bean Ideas

We're kicking off a new feature today, called "Your Questions." From time to time, people write to us asking for recipe ideas, advice on what to do with a particular ingredient, whether a given kitchen gadget is worth the hype, or what they should name their baby (just kidding! [But seriously, "Cecelia"]).

Got a question?  Email us!  We'll be happy to share our thoughts, and we'll do our best to find the answers for you.

Our first question comes from Katie & Scott in Lexington, Kentucky:

Dear Bitten Word Boys:

 

My husband and I are totally obsessed with lima beans these days.  Although some people might find lima beans repulsive, we personally think their starchy flavor and mushy consistency is delightful.

Anywho, I'm getting a little bored with plain, cooked-from-frozen lima beans every other night.  Any suggestions?  Have you seen any interesting lima bean recipes in your foodie magazines?  Thanks!

We love Limas, too!  After the jump, some of our best Lima bean advice.