recipes – Page 2 – Sam’s Food Blog

Chick o’ Stick Cookies

Recipe makes 8 cookies

1 cup peanut butter

3/4 cup light brown sugar

1 egg

1 1/4 cups desiccated coconut (separated into 3/4 cup and 1/2 cup)

1/2 cup Turbinado sugar

Equipment: hand mixer, mixing bowl, baking sheet, parchment paper, oven

with a hand mixer cream together the peanut butter, brown sugar and 3/4 cup of the coconut until it’s light and airy
add the egg and blend until smooth
with clean hands, roll the dough into 8 equal sized balls
mix the rest of the coconut and the turbinado sugar together and roll the dough balls in that mixture
bake the cookies 1 inch apart on a parchment lined baking sheet at 350℉ for 10-15 minutes, or when the edges just start to darken

best enjoyed with coffee or tea

Vegetarian Cabbage Frittata

Frittata:

3 tbs olive oil

1/4 of a head of cabbage diced

1/4 a small yellow onion diced

2 stalks of celery sliced 1/4 inch thick

1 tsp salt

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

2 tsp chipotle chili powder

8 eggs, scrambled thoroughly with a fork or whisk

3 oz feta cut into small cubes (1/2 inch)

3 oz smoked gouda cut into small cubes

Crema:

1/2 cup sour cream

juice from 1 lemon

1/2 a bunch of dill, chopped

2 scallions, sliced very thin on a bias

Equipment needed: chef knife, cutting board, flexible spatula, fork/ whisk, pan with nonstick capabilities (I recommend a well-seasoned carbon steel pan but regular nonstick is fine), plate for flipping

In a nonstick pan of your choice, preheat 2 tbsp of your oil over medium heat. Once shimmering, sauté the prepped vegetables until the edges just start to brown.
Add your spices and cook for 30 seconds, then turn the heat down to medium-low.
Add the rest if your oil to the pan and pour the eggs on top of everything. Evenly distribute the ingredients in the pan with your spatula.
Add the cubed cheese and let the whole thing cook, undisturbed for 10 minutes. Be careful to keep your eye on it in case the heat is too high.
Once the eggs are cooked most of the way through and there is very little liquid egg sitting on top, flip the frittata over using a plate turned upside-down on top. With your hand firmly pressed on the plate, turn the pan over with the plate and slide the frittata back into the pan once it’s flipped.
Let it cook for another minute or two and remove it from the pan and let it rest on a non-plastic cutting board.
While the frittata rests and cools slightly, make the crema. Mix together the sour cream with the chopped dill and lemon juice.
Cut the frittata into wedges and serve with the crema dolloped on top and the sliced scallion sprinkled over the plate.

For some extra protein, sauté some dry Spanish chorizo with the vegetables and leave out the 3rd tbsp of olive oil.

I hope you enjoy my recipe!

Restaurant Review: The Dutch on 131 Sullivan St.

On June 8th 2024, I dined at the restaurant with a few of my colleagues from my day job. We had a 7 pm reservation and sat until just after 9:30.

The space was dimly lit with a large bar and small tables. Our server was fantastic, always checking on us and keeping our drinks from being dry for too long. The bathroom was beautiful.

Dutch gets a 6.5/10

Here’s what I drank:

Fort Copper cocktail ($20): rye, sweet vermouth, aperitivo

A great start to the meal, this cocktail was well balanced. It had 1 large cube of ice and was served with an strip of orange peel that was imprinted with their logo. The taste was equally as orange-y as it was herbaceously bitter. Aperol Spritz’s manly sibling, if you will.

Torch and Crown ‘Bat Flip’ Spring Ale ($11): draft beer

This draft was freshly juicy and hoppy, slightly bitter and quite refreshing. It was a perfect pair for many of the dishes that we enjoyed. This is the type of beer that you dream of after a long and hot day.

Saratoga still water for the table

Nicely chilled and we never went without for too long.

Here’s what we ate:

Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail (shared, $25 for 4 pcs)

Shrimp cocktail is one of the things I can’t resist ordering when I eat at a restaurant that’s new to me.

The shrimp came out on the same ice tray as the oysters. I’m not sure which garnish specifically came with which items, but they all sort of went with each other. There was cocktail sauce, mignonette, fresh grated horseradish and what appears to be either ketchup or mild cocktail sauce.

The red shrimp were cooked nearly to perfection. I prefer my cocktail sauce to have a bit more of a kick that what came out in the ramekin, but the extra horseradish helped compensate.

1/2 dozen Blue Pool Oysters (shared, $5 per pc)

This was their only west coast oyster. I’m guessing this was to prioritize more locally sourced selections, which I respect. Having said that, I tend to prefer the smaller, sweeter taste of west coast oysters and these did not disappoint. These bivalves were very clean with little to no grit, coming across the palate with a lot of fresh flavors. Think creamy oceanic cucumbers on petite half shells. The mignonette that came with it was pretty classic and delicious, shallots in vinegar.

House-Made Scallion Chipotle Cornbread (shared, $9 for 1 pc)

A rather small portion in my opinion. A litlle dry, which was compensated for by the whipped butter it was accompanied with. The butter was light yet decadent.

Crab-Stuffed Devilled Eggs (shared 2 orders, $9 per order of 2 pcs)

Delicious, but needed a little salt. Also a little light in portion size, I would like to have seen the same amount of crab split between 3 eggs.

Beef Tartare Cones (shared 2 orders, $16 per order of 2 pcs)

This was the best thing I ate all night. The Keller-esque snack was presented as crispy cone shaped tuiles filled with beef tartare garnished with caviar and one hazelnut. I would arrange the prevalence of flavors within this dish in this order: hazelnut oil, caviar, leen beef. Though I tend to prefer beef tartare where the beef shines first and foremost, this was a scrumptious couple of bites. The hazelnut oil came across my tongue very truffle-like. It was either that or they used truffle oil and just didn’t list it on the menu. I wouldn’t assume this to be the case since it was one of the most clear-to-taste components of the dish, and one would assume that what you taste the most of would be listed in the menu description.

“Chef’s Garden” Lettuces (shared 2 orders, $12 per plate)

Salad is an essential part of a balanced meal in my opinion, and this “chef’s garden” example checked all of my boxes. High quality greens with a lot of texture dressed lightly with a little extra lemon on the side and a garnish of grated parmigiano on top for a balanced finish. No bells and whistles because none were needed; I love salads like this.

14 oz Smoked Pork Chop with Mustard Jus ($45)

I was pretty excited for this pork chop, however I ended up a bit disappointed. There was nothing too exciting about it. The “Mustard Jus” was fine, its accompanying mashed potatoes were fine. It all needed just a bit more salt.

Honestly the sauce itself came across as bland. Given how heavy the char was on the outside of the chop, maybe the flavors cancelled each other out. I adore a good char on meat, but in this case it tasted shallow. With the dim lighting of the restaurant, it looked almost black all over.

The mashed potatoes were good, but there was so little of it I had to damn near ration it throughout eating the dish. It was definitely not a bad plate of food, but what was there almost felt like each component was not quite seen to its most delicious state.

The other gents I was with had their own drinks and entrees, totalling to approximately $456 before tip.

All in all I had a nice time at The Dutch. The food was good, not great. Everything was certainly on the higher end price-wise, which I guess I should’ve expected given the neighborhood where it’s located. My most prevalent critique throughout the meal was the mildness of seasoning on most of the dishes.

If you eat here, prioritize the raw bar, small plates and cocktails since that’s where you’ll get the most satisfaction.

Vegan Beans

makes approximately 1 gallon of beans

2 quarts dried beans

1/2 cup olive oil (plus enough to sear the aromatics)

2 large shallots, halved pole-to-pole and root “hairs” trimmed

1 head of garlic, halved orbitally

1 poblano pepper

1 lemon, halve

2 packets of Sazon Goya

1 tbsp dried mexican oregano

1 tbsp Aleppo chili flakes

1 tsp smoked paprika

2 tbsp mustard oil (or 2 tsp dried ground mustard)

water

salt and pepper to taste

2-3 tbsp apple cider vinegar

Equipment: 6-8 qt pot, chef knife, broiler/ torch

Start by preheating a large pot with 1/4″ of oil over medium heat until the oil shimmers. With their cut sides facing downward, place the shallots, garlic and lemon into the oil. Cook until thoroughly browned. Remove everything from the pot and reserve.
Char your poblano pepper under your broiler or with a butane torch. Your end result should have all of the chile’s skin black, blistered and starting to separate from its flesh. Place the freshly charred poblano in a metal bowl and cover with a pot lid or plastic wrap and let it steam for 10 minutes. At this point, rub the burnt skin off using a dry paper towel. Cut off the stem and remove as many seeds as possible. Place aside with the other seared aromatics.
After checking your beans for debris, add them to the pot along with the 1/2 cup of olive oil, Sazon, oregano, chili flakes, paprika, four 4-finger pinches of salt and 10-12 cranks of freshly ground black pepper (approximately 2 heaping tsp). Fill the pot with water so that the beans are covered by at least 2 inches.
Add your reserved fruit and veg to the top and bring the whole thing to a boil. At this point, reduce the heat to a gently bubbling simmer.
The beans will need to cook between 2.5-4 hours, or until they are tender all the way through. Be sure to keep your eye on the water level, making sure to cover the beans in water whenever needed.
Remove the aromatics from the beans. At this point, you have 2 choices: you can dispose of the aromatics to keep your broth clearer and thinner, or you can blend them in a food processor (careful to de-seed the lemons beforehand) and add them back to the beans. The latter makes your broth thicker and more unctuous. All the flavor has been cooked out of the aromatics, so this step is primarily for texture and appearance.
Turn the heat off on your burner and add your apple cider vinegar and mustard oil. Mix thoroughly and taste your beans. At this point you want to add more salt/ pepper/ vinegar a little at a time until they are seasoned to your liking.
Enjoy with rice or alone as a delicious vegan protein source!

Sam’s Coconut Sablé

makes 16 cookies

75 g unsalted butter, room temperature

50 g extra virgin olive oil

80 g white sugar

25 g fine dry coconut

55 g egg yolk

5 g dark rum (optional)

3 g salt

5 g baking powder

50 g powdered coconut milk

130 g all-purpose flour

Mix the butter, olive oil, sugar and dry coconut until the mixture is fully incorporated and slightly fluffy.
Add the egg yolk, rum and salt and mix thoroughly.
Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until no dry bits of flour remain. Chill the dough for at least 1 hour.
Once fully chilled, preheat the oven to 300℉. Roll the dough into 16 balls, each one approximately weighing 30 grams. You should end up with 16 dough balls.
Space the dough balls out on 2 parchment lined baking sheets and bake for 10-12 minutes. The edges of the sable should be just barely starting to brown.
Cool for 5 minutes on the sheet trays, then remove the cookies from their trays and finish cooling on the counter until they’re no longer warm to the touch.

The Demonization of Washing Meat

It’s funny to see so many chefs that are blown away by the concept of people washing their meat. “If you’re buying chicken that seems like it needs to be washed, you’re already fucked” is what I heard most recently, and it got me thinking; Not about why people wash chicken, but why so many people have a problem with it. Though food standards are good enough at this point in time that washing chicken is technically unnecessary, the tradition still holds strong for many households of color.

The reason behind this is an unfortunate one, but one that more people aught to know. For decades, there has been fear in colored communities that the people that don’t want them to live where they do sabotaged products and services in their communities to get them to relocate. In sociology there is a concept that states “if one defines situations as real, they are real in their consequences,” and that means whether these communities were sabotaged or not, they believed that they were, and acted accordingly. Washing chicken is a byproduct of overcoming adversity and doing what one needs to keep their family as healthy as they can. Not to mention the fact that many don’t have access to cushy Whole Foods meat sections with their corporate-friendly overly sanitized kitchens and meat cases.

So let me ask all the chefs that scoff at home cooks for washing their meat: If generations of your family felt that they had to wash their chicken so it would be safe to eat, and there wasn’t a trusted-by-you food-handling professional there to tell you not to and explain the reasoning, wouldn’t you wash your meat too? “That’s unsanitary, it spreads chicken particles everywhere” I hear so many cry as they judge behind their smartphone screens. Has noone ever heard of a wipe down? Surface cleansing wipes for the surfaces around the kitchen? If kitchen cleanliness in these situations leads to people getting sick, the cook probably would’ve made a similar mistake in the case that they didn’t wash their chicken.

It’s time to stop assuming and start letting people prepare food how they and their families have prepared it for generations. It seems many are mistaken believing that it was a “trend” around the mid 20th century, and that big names like Julia Child, Betty Crocker and James Beard were doing It in their own kitchens based on antiquated food cleanliness practices. This whitewashes the early struggles of a marginalized America, which is a regular practice in the US’s culinary zeitgeist. This information is out there, we just don’t see enough white chefs acknowledge this practice as traditional and not foolish.

Wash your chicken if you want. Simply pat down the meat with a paper towel if you want. But whatever you do, don’t demonize a whole culture of people just because you don’t get it.

Grape Parfait

This recipe is simple, yet delicious. It delivers a lot with a little, and is a go to for me on hot days. This recipe makes 3-4 servings

2 cups rinsed red grapes

1/2 cup full fat greek yogurt

2 tbsp maple syrup

1/3 cup toasted roughly chopped pecans or walnuts

2 4-finger pinches of brown sugar

Pinch of salt

Mix the yogurt with the maple syrup, salt and nuts
Add the grapes to the yogurt mixture
garnish with the brown sugar, only on top to preserve its texture

Twigs in a Blanket

24 asparagus spears

multipurpose dough (1 batch of dough can make 8 Twigs in a Blanket)

1 stick of butter, melted

2 tsp dried sage

1 tsp ground nutmeg

1 tsp mace (optional)

2 tbsp freshly ground Black pepper

Preheat your oven to 400℉
Roll out some dough (about 1/8th of the recipe) without flour until about 1/2″ thick and wrap around 3 asparagus spears. Be sure to press the dough together once wrapped to keep them sealed.
Once you’ve rolled up all the asparagus, brush the asparagus with half of your melted butter.
Mix together your ground spices and sprinkle onto the buttered asparagus.
Proof your twigs in a blanket under a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap until the dough slowly bounces back after a gentle poke, approximately 30 minutes.
Bake at 400℉ for 20 mins, or until nicely browned all around.
Brush the dough with the remaining butter and sprinkle on some flaky salt. Cool under a clean kitchen towel once baked to keep them soft.

Multipurpose Dough (double batch)

300g warm milk

200 g warm water

9g/ 2 tsp active dry yeast

88 g/ 7 tbsp sugar

18 g/ 3 tsp salt

100 g/ 7 tbsp fat (olive oil or clarified butter for the best taste)

904 g/ 2 lbs/ 7 cups flour (bread pref, ap works well enough)

1-2 Tbs olive oil (for oiling the bowl)

Stand Mixer

Countertop for shaping

Add the ingredients in the order that they appear above to the bowl of a stand mixer with the dough hook attached. Mix on low speed until all the flour is incorporated with the liquid; be sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl just to be sure there isn’t any dry pockets.
Detach the dough hook and leave It in the bowl with the dough. Let the dough rest for 2 hours covered in plastic or a damp, clean linen tea towel.
Replace the bowl on the mixer and reattach the dough hook. Mix on low/ medium speed until the dough looks much tighter and smoother than it started.
Rest the dough for 20 minutes and repeat step 3.
Once the dough is very smooth and stretchy, place the dough on the counter and flatten it out. Grab and pull each side to the middle of the dough, firmly attaching these arms to itself. Flip the dough over and roll the dough in circles against the counter until you have a perfectly smooth ball of dough. Oil the bowl up and add the dough back, seam side down, and make sure oil has coated the dough. Ferment covered on the counter until doubled in size.
From this point, I like to cut the dough in half and freeze one of the halves to use later. You can use this dough for a loaf of white bread, pigs in a blanket, pizza pockets, or anything that you can think to use dough for!

Bomb-Ass Pork Chili con Carne

I like to think about what is available to most home cooks, so I try my best to adapt my recipes to be widely accessible. Always feel free to contact me with any questions!

2 lb Boneless pork butt, cubed into 1 inch pieces

3 Yellow Onions, diced

2 Poblano peppers, diced with seeds removed

1 can of diced, charred tomatoes

2 T of tomato paste

4 each of 3 different dried chili peppers (I used ancho, mulato and guajillo for mild spice, smokiness and sweetness)

4 leaves of fresh Sage

3 sprigs of fresh oregano

1 can of Black or white beans

2 cups beef stock (or water with a tbsp of beef Better Than Bullion)

1 cup of Coffee

2 oz of chili infused mexican chocolate or 70% dark chocolate

1/2 cup white Vinegar

112 fl oz can of a Beer (look for something full flavored like Modelo and avoid light beers)

2 tsp Ground Cumin

2 tsp Coriander seed

2 tsp Celery salt

2 T Garlic powder

2 packets of Sazon (for the pork)

Neutral oil

Garnish with shredded cheddar, scallions, sour cream and Fritos

Equipment: blender, 5 qt pot/ dutch oven, a few bowls to hold prepped ingredients, 1 sheet pan for roasting the dried chilis, oven bits

The morning you want to make this chili, season the chunks of pork with all of the Sazon seasoning and let it sit in a plastic bag in the fridge
4-8 hours later you want to get your pot/ dutch oven preheating over medium on the stove with 2 Tbsp of a neutral oil.
Once hot, sear each piece of meat on 2 sides in 3-4 batches. If you overcrowd the pot it will steam rather than sear the bottom of the meat. Once all the meat is seared, reserve it on the side to be re-added later.
With the heat still on medium, add another 2 T of oil and then the onions and poblano peppers. Stir occasionally.
While the vegetables sauté, lightly toast the dried chilis in an oven set to 400℉ for 5 minutes. Flip the chilis and return them to the oven for another 5 minutes. If they start to smoke or burn at all, remove them from the oven.
When the vegetables in the pot are lightly browned around their edges, add all of the ground spices, mix and toast for 30 seconds. Add the tomato paste and a T of oil and fry that for another minute or two, or until the paste is fragrant and has darkened slightly. Add the canned tomatoes.
After the chilis are toasted and fragrant, remove the stems and seeds. Add the chilis to the jar of your blender with the vinegar, beer, coffee, stock/ better than bullion and water and let soak until the dried chiles have softened. Blend until completely smooth.
Add the meat, chili puree, fresh herbs and chocolate to the pot with the vegetables and simmer the whole thing for at least 3 hours, checking every 30 mins or so. You can do this on the stove over medium/ low heat, but the best way to do this is to out your pot into a 350 ℉ oven with an oven save lid cracked slightly.
After the meat is tender enough to cut with a fork and the sauce has thickened and reduced slightly, add the beans of your choice. Let the beans heat through for about 15 minutes and serve with preferred garnishes.