Joyce Goldstein’s useful, even valuable, “Kitchen Conversations” (Morrow, $25) is a good example of the right author finding the right subject.
Goldstein is a born teacher. She also is a nurturer, having played den mother to countless California cooks during long stints as the chef of the upstairs cafe at Chez Panisse in Berkeley and her own Square One restaurant in San Francisco.
Here Goldstein, author of the award-winning “The Mediterranean Kitchen,” presents a panorama of 160 flavorful recipes from that region. The longest chapters cover poultry and meat, fish and shellfish, salads, pasta and grains, and desserts. Simply presenting these recipes, most of which have a modest number of ingredients and brief but clear directions, would justify the book. But Goldstein has something more in mind.
In a phrase already widely quoted, she observes, “Most recipes turn people into robots.” So she has decided to hang around the stove and chat with you (in print, that is) as you prepare–and, most important, taste–her creations.
She achieves this intimacy by adding a warm title and “kitchen conversation” to each offering, turning the preparation from a by-the-numbers military exercise into a seminar.
“Can counterpoint and balance be taught?” she asks in her introduction. “Can tasting be trained?” Her answer: “Yes!”
Addressing Italian parsley salad with pecorino cheese and walnuts, she comments: “It is parsley and it’s delicious, isn’t it? Clean, crisp, only slightly bitter but nicely assertive. The pecorino adds an interesting element of salt; the walnuts add bitterness and texture … .”
Or, discussing roast duck with braised quince, a Balkan-inspired recipe: “In Brooklyn, where I grew up, I didn’t see too many quinces in my supermarket. If you can find quinces, or have a tree, lucky you. If you can locate quince preserves, use apples for the sauce and stir in enough quince preserves for taste. Or just use apples. It won’t taste the same, but it will be good.”
She’s on your side. You’ll enjoy her company. Here are two recipes with highlights from the accompanying “conversations.”
BEZELYE CORBASI (TURKISH SPLIT PEA SOUP WITH MINT)
Preparation time: 35 minutes
Cooking time: 35-40 minutes
Soaking time: Several hours or overnight
Yield: 4-6 servings
8 ounces split peas
2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 carrot, peeled, thinly sliced
1 bay leaf
5 to 6 cups chicken stock or water
3 teaspoons paprika
1/2 pound spinach, well washed and finely chopped
Milk, for thinning
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 tablespoons chopped mint, for garnish
1. Cover the split peas with cold water. Soak for a few hours or overnight.
2. Melt the butter in a saucepan over moderate heat. Cook the onion until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the split peas, carrot, bay leaf and stock or water to cover, and bring up to a boil. Simmer, covered, until the peas are very soft. If the mixture seems dry, add more stock or water as needed.
3. Remove the bay leaf. Add the chopped spinach and 2 teaspoons of the paprika, and simmer until the spinach wilts.
4. Puree the soup in the blender or processor. Add the milk, water or stock to thin. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot, sprinkling with chopped mint and remaining paprika.
Conversation: “If the peas are still starchy and the soup seems flat, add a bit of lemon juice. Did you put in enough salt? … Note how the spinach adds a tart undertone and how the mint and paprika add sweetness for an interesting interplay of flavors.”
Nutrition information per serving:
Calories …… 220 Fat …………. 6 g Cholesterol .. 10 mg
Sodium … 1,080 mg Carbohydrates .. 29 g Protein ……. 15 g
SHRIMP, RADICCHIO, SPINACH, RAISINS, AND PINE NUTS WITH WARM BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
Cooking time: 4 minutes
Orange balsamic vinaigrette:
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2/3 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons grated orange zest
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Salad:
2 large heads radicchio, cut in half and then sliced into about 1/2-inch strips
4 cups small spinach leaves
1 pound shrimp, 20 to 24 per pound, peeled and deveined
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts or almonds
1/2 cup golden raisins, plumped in sherry or Marsala, see note
1. Assemble the vinaigrette by whisking together all of the ingredients in a bowl. Transfer the vinaigrette to a large saute pan. Place the torn salad greens in a large bowl. Sprinkle them lightly with salt.
2. Sprinkle the shrimp with salt and saute over moderate heat in the vinaigrette until barely cooked, about 3 minutes. Add the pine nuts and plumped raisins, and toss with the shrimp for a minute longer. Add to the greens and mix well. Serve at once.
Test kitchen note: To plump raisins, combine raisins and about 1/4 cup sherry or Marsala in small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat; remove from heat and let cool.
Conversation: “…Sweet flavors dominate; the orange juice and sweet wine used for plumping the raisins accentuate the sweetness of the balsamic vinegar as well as permeate the shrimp with their perfume. However, the vinaigrette needs the deep flavor of the sherry vinegar so that it isn’t too sweet and light to temper the greens…”
Nutrition information per serving:
Calories …… 600 Fat ………… 45 g Cholesterol .. 220 mg
Sodium ….. 315 mg Carbohydrates .. 26 g Protein …….. 30 g
