Shrimp, fennel and quinoa pilaf

We liked the quinoa pilaf in this recipe from Rebecca Wood a lot and the shrimp is a good pairing but we felt the shrimp needed a little more flavor. Rather than let the shrimp cook by steaming in the baked pilaf once it's removed from the oven -- which is cute, economical and healthy but leaves the shrimp bland and unadorned -- we would probably saute the shrimp with some oil and garlic and add to the pilaf that way.

The pilaf is easy. Chop 2 fennel stalks (why 2?) and their fronds separately. Chop an onion and mince a clove of garlic and saute in olive oil with 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper for 10 min. Add the fennel and 1 to 1-1/3 c. washed quinoa (Wood distinguishes between imported and domestic quinoa and I forgot to look) and saute another minute or two. Then add 1 peeled, chopped tomato, 2 c. of stock or water (I used half chicken stock and half water), 2 Tbl Worcestershire sauce, and 1/2 tsp salt, bring to simmer, cover and put in 350-degree oven for 25 min. Remove from oven, fluff up the quinoa, put 1 lb peeled, deveined shrimp in and cover for 10 min. Sprinkle the chopped fronds and grated nutmeg on top of each serving.

We got medium shrimp from the Fishery and as always they were plump, fresh and shrimpy. Cooking by the pilaf steam alone did not quite finish it, so I popped it back in the oven for an extra minute or two. The pilaf had a nice little kick from the cayenne. I accompanied with Sara Jenkins' shaved fennel salad (using the bulb from those stalks) -- slice the bulb on the mandolin lengthwise on narrow side, toss with parsley leaves, then toss with lemon juice, olive oil and salt. A white Bordeaux went really well with it.

Deborah Madison

Deborah Madison, who helped start the Greens restaurant and now writes cookbooks in Santa Fe, has become our cookbook author of the month as I focus on shopping at the farmer's markets. We actually had three meatless meals last week, relying primarily on her Local Flavors.

The pasta with golden fennel was easy. Trim, quarter and (vertically) slice the fennel, saute it in butter and oil,  then add salt, toss with the juice of 1 lemon, add a cup of water and braise, adding water by the 1/2 c. until fennel is tender. Boil and drain the pasta (we used fettucine), stir it in the fennel and added a mix of minced garlic, chopped fennel greens and lemon zest. Ours came out very lemony because I used a big lemon, but it makes a nice refreshing meal.

The superstar of the week was the celery root and wild rice chowder. Boil 1/2 c. wild rice separately. Trim and peel celery root and chop into bite-size pieces. Saute in butter with the chopped white parts of 2 leeks, a diced celery rib, a thinly sliced russet potato, 1/4 c. chopped parsley, a bay leaf, a thyme sprig. Add 2 c. vegetable or chicken stock and simmer for 20 min., then add 2 c. half-and-half or milk (guess which one I used), and cook until tender. Purree 1 c. of soup and stir it back in. Serve in bowl with a mound of wild rice topped with chopped parsley and a drizzle of truffle oil. Heavenly.

We also used the endives baked with Gorgonzola from her earlier cookbook, The Savory Way, to accompany a festive steak dinner, and a recipe for winter squash and quinoa soup from Rebecca Wood's The Splendid Grain (just OK, there are better butternut squash soup recipes).

Chicken breasts braised with hard cider and parsnips

Mick's Chicks at the Sheridan School farmer's market offered bone-in skin-on chicken breasts so I ordered some of those. It turns out they were huge; I generally prefer chicken breasts that aren't so big. The 2 half-breasts weighed 2.6 lbs together, almost the 3 lbs called for in Molly Stevens' recipe for 4 halves. I also got the parsnips at the farmer's market.

This is a great recipe for parsnips and creates a nice, wintry sauce that keeps the breasts from seeming too dry. I did overcompensate too much for their size and kept them in the oven a bit too long. They were a bit tough, though I attribute that in part to their size. But these are quibbles -- the meal was delicious.

Very simple: Fry 4 slices of thick-cut bacon cut into 1/2-in strips in 2 Tbl olive oil until just crisp, about 6 min. Remove with slotted spoon and drain off all but 2 Tbl of fat. Salt and pepper the chicken breasts and brown, starting skin side down, for 4 to 5 min on each side (and a further 2 min on the fat end for big ones like this). Remove and set aside. Saute 1 large minced shallot for 1 min and add 2 c. hard cider. Deglaze and reduce to 1/2 c. Add 1 Tbl chopped rosemary and a further 1/2 c. cider and reduce to 3/4 c. Then put in 1 lb parsnips, peeled and cut into 3-in x 1/2-in sticks (cut out woody core), spread bacon pieces over that, place chicken skin side down, cover with parchment paper sticking out over pan, cover and put in 325 degree oven. After 25 min., turn chicken pieces and braise another 20 to 25 min. until breasts are cooked through. If parsnips are not tender or sauce is too soupy, remove chicken and cook further on stove.

Kabob Bazaar

I had a craving for kabobs so we tried this place in Bethesda. The kabobs were actually pretty good and the atmosphere, if not exactly cozy or ethnic, was comfortable enough. Service was good, there is a bar with wine and beer. We had a nice eggplant confection as a starter and I had the whole Cornish hen kabob, which had a very nice flavor. It's easy, quick, close, cheap and has free parking in the back, so it could become a standard in our repertory. It beats Cafe Divan on all those counts and is quite superior to Parthenon. Unlike Moby Dick or Cave Mezze Grill, it is a real sit-down restaurant.

Alternatives to Whole Foods

In the wake of Whole Foods CEO John Mackey's latest idiocy on the subject of Obamacare, I'm giving some thought to an experiment -- a couple of weeks or longer shopping exclusively at alternatives to Whole Foods.

Most immediately it would mean shopping regularly at the Co-op, which I visit only infrequently, and Chevy Chase Supermarket, which I virtually never visit. It would also mean buying more stuff at Broad Branch Market and to look more often at the Brookville Market. And it would mean being more consistent about shopping at farmer's markets, not only Sheridan School but Silver Spring and others.

It would probably mean more planning. It's easy for me to hop in the car at lunchtime, buzz down to WF and grab lunch at the salad bar and pick up whatever I decide on the spur of the moment for dinner that night. If I were to shop in different places for the things I get in one stop at WF -- vegetables, bulk items and health products at the Co-op; meat, dairy and supermarket items at Chevy Chase; meat and prepared foods at BB -- then I would have to make one trip a week to each place do.

That's why it's an experiment. The main drawback would be staying away from the salad bar at WF and the other prepared food counters. Cheese might be a problem, too, since we can hardly chase down to Cowgirl Creamery everytime we want cheese. So it's not a boycott so much as an expression of dissatisfaction with WF -- not only because Mackey is an ignorant bigoted idiot but because any chain that size has a pernicious effect on the type of food culture we need to work towards in this country.

When I lived in Princeton, I rented an apartment from a woman who ran a local health food store. She was hit by the arrival of Wild Oats, one of the health food chains that originally pioneered the idea before WF gobbled them all up. I also shopped at two family-owned supermarkets -- McCaffrey's and Pennington. I bought eggs from the farmer down the road and signed up one season for the local CSA.

So I need to give more support to local independent stores, too. There are others -- Vace's, the Women's Farmer's Market in Bethesda (some cheese there), A&H Gourmet, the Fishery. Wonder if I could go a full month with the experiment to really test it? Will update.

Prosciutto-wrapped pork loin roast

Sometimes a meal comes together just perfectly and that's what happened with this dinner that started with a smallish (2 lb) pork loin roast that we got from the Blue Rooster Farm stand at our farmer's market on Saturday. I found this nice recipe in Molly Stevens' Roasting. It actually is "with rhubarb and sage" but she notes that when rhubarb is not in season (which is most of the time) you can substitute plums or apples. The latter, of course, always go great with pork. I had a vague memory that Julia Childs has a recipe for creamed Brussels sprouts and thought that would be a great accompaniment.

The pork recipe is very easy. With the mortar and pestle, you make a paste of garlic, chopped sage, orange zest, salt and black peppercorns then stir in 2 Tbl olive oil. Spread this over the pork; you can do this ahead of time but since I had to let the roast thaw out I didn't have time for this. Then drape 3 or 4 thin slices of prosciutto over the roast, tucking the ends underneath. Drizzle with olive oil and pop in a 325-degree oven. After 45 min., spread the apples (or rhubarb) -- peeled, trimmed and cut into 1/2-in. pieces, tossed with brown sugar, a little more minced sage, optional ground pink peppercorns (I had some so I used them), a pinch of salt, and 1 more Tbl olive oil -- into the roasting pan with the pork. Roast another half hour more or less until a temperature of 140 to 145. Let it sit for 10 or 15 min before slicing. The pork was tender, moist, delicious and had an extra little zing from the orange zest. The apples were great with it.

Julia actually has a couple of recipe for creamed Brussels sprouts -- one where you leave them whole and bake them in the oven that she says is good with fowl and the other where you chop them and simmer them in cream on top of the stove, which she decided in her wisdom was preferable with veal and pork. So of course that's the one I used. I blanched 1-1/2 lbs of trimmed sprouts for just 5 min (Julia uses a lot of water and salt for blanching and I can't argue with the result. Drain, cool, roughly chop, then melt butter (needless to say she uses lots, so I cut it back a bit) in the skillet, shake the chopped sprouts around, add 1/2 c. heavy cream and simmer 8 to 10 min. Finish with a little more butter and chopped parsley. The Brussels sprouts were heavenly. They were organic sprouts from WF -- the only ones they had and I got the last two 12-oz. packages -- and turned out to be terrific.

As part of an effort to use up some of our accumulated vinegars and new olive oils I did fix up a quick salad, even though we usually skip that for weekday meals. All in all, it was real feast for a weekday and plenty of leftovers.

Olio2go

It's one thing to read about the worldwide renaissance in artisanal olive oils in Tom Mueller's Extra Virginity, and another to try to find some of the great oils he describes on this side of the Atlantic. But Luanne Savino O'Loughlin has brought Italy much closer with Olio2go, an online store with an enticing retail outlet in Fairfax.

Olio2go offers a dizzying array of Italian olive oils from every region. In an age when bulk olive oil emporia are proliferating -- the DC area has new stores in Bethesda, Alexandria and Frederick -- Olio2go adopts a different philosophy of importing only estate-bottled oils. Luanne's argument is that bulk transport means the oil goes through a number of containers before it gets to those pretty stainless steel containers in the store and then into the bottle you take it home in. Even if you believe in the integrity of every middleman involved -- and this is the last thing you believe in after reading Mueller's book -- the risk of accidental contamination or dilution is high.

There is apparently something of an argument going on among olive oil purveyors on bulk vs. bottled, but there's no arguing with the quality of the oils you can taste at the store if you are able to make the trek to the small strip just off the Beltway. We were able to taste a baker's dozen of 2011 and 2012 oils, along with some balsamic vinegars and other gourmet products. We managed to narrow our selection and bring a good sample home. We picked the ones we liked but found afterwards that two of the three oils we bought, Capezzana and Laudemio, were the first-named favorites listed by Sara Jenkins in Olives and Oranges. The third, a 2012 Sicilian oil from Frantoi Cutrera, also impressed us.

Italy is still the standard-setter in olive oil, but of course many other countries, including the U.S., produce great oils. To paraphrase, so many oils, so little time. But it is an incentive to eat more salad to dress with these great oils, or to serve ourselves some oil as an appetizer just as so many restaurants do. We like McEvoy's, a California oil sold at Cowgirl Creamery, and I will certainly try other American oils. But Olio2go is a great way to get some of the finest Italian oils and I look forward to making regular trips there.

Carbonnades a la flamande

This Julia Childs standby was a favorite of mine in Europe but I hadn't made it in a long time and it seemed perfect as cold weather comfort food. It was better than ever! Whenever I compare Julia's version to others floating around, I always come back to hers. Some cut the beef into chunks and dredge it with flour, add a carrot or other aromatics. Julia's recipe gives you unadulterated beef and onions braised in beer.

I used a 3-lb chuck roast, which wasn't easy to cut into uniform 2x4x1/2-in slices as called for in the recipe, but the odd, ragged pieces were fine, too. Brown the beef in a film of oil and set aside. Add 1-1/2 lbs of sliced onion to the skillet and cook about 10 min., until lightly browned. Remove from heat, add salt and pepper and 4 crushed garlic cloves. In a casserole, place a layer of beef sprinkled with salt and pepper, spread a layer of onion, then repeat. Heat up 1 c. of beef stock in the skillet and add to the casserole. Pour in 2-3 c. of lager beer until meat is just covered, add 2 Tbl of light brown sugar and a herb bouquet of parsley, thyme and bay leaf. Bring to a simmer on top of stove, cover and put into preheated 325-degree oven for 2-1/2 hours, taking care to keep liquid at a gentle simmer. When the meat is tender, drain the cooking liquid into a saucepan, degrease it, and stir in 1-1/2 Tbl arrowroot or cornstarch mixed with 2 Tbl wine vinegar and cook 4 to 5 min. Pour the sauce back over the meat and heat up together when ready to serve.

The first night we had buttered tagliatelle with the carbonnades and the second night, parsley potatoes from the farmer's market. The WF chuck was super tender and the rich, oniony broth set off by the vinegar and herb bouquet gave it a different flavor than a traditional brisket recipe. We had a very nice Rioja with it.

Black's Bar and Kitchen

One of our favorite small bites is to sit at the bar at Persimmon and order the fish tacos appetizer and a glass of wine. But it turns out Persimmon is closed for renovation, so we made a return trip to Black's Bar and Kitchen nearby in Bethesda.

I'm glad we did -- the food was great and a weekend night during a holiday was uncharacteristically mellow and nice. I ordered the grilled whole fish, branzino, and Andrea ordered the salmon, so we got our fish fix. My fish was perfect -- moist, tender, with the delicate branzino flavor (and presumably a good dose of butter). I ordered a side of the brown butter cauliflower with my unadorned fish and it was very nice, with some fennel stems mixed in. Andrea was very happy with her salmon.

It was a reminder of the consistently high quality of Jeff Black's restaurant group. Addie's we always like, though it's something of a schlepp. Ditto for Black Market Bistro in Garrett Park. Black's Salt is good, but a bit pricey and we'd just as soon spend the money at Pesce as a rule. But this Bethesda Black's is convenient and this will encourage us to go more often.

Pork and green chile stew

This recipe from the Pink Adobe cookbook was a big hit at New Year's when we served it with corn sticks. Because we were serving a lot of people -- I tripled the recipe -- I toned down any chance of heat. I had to use canned green chiles and got the mild chiles, and used only a fraction of the fresh jalapeno called for. So there wasn't much heat, but the meat really did melt in your mouth and the broth, based on my homemade chicken broth, was rich and delicious.

The recipe calls for 2 lbs of boneless pork cut into 1-in cubes. I used Boston butt, which is pork shoulder. The cubes are browned in 2 Tbl of olive oil, then add 1/2 c. chopped onion and 1 minced garlic clove and stir in with the meat. Add 1/4 c. flour and stir to cook for a couple of min. Then add 2 c. chopped tomatoes (I used canned, diced tomatoes) and 2 c. chopped green chiles (I used Hatch mild chiles from Amazon), 1 chopped jalapeno, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, and 1/2 tsp sugar. Mix all this together then add 1 c. chicken or beef broth. Cover and simmer for 1 to 1-1/2 hours until meat is tender. The recipe suggests serving with flour tortillas. The recipe serves 6, so tripling it gave us plenty and provided some nice leftovers. I made it a day ahead and degreased it after the fat had congealed at the top.

Keeping with the Mexican/Southwestern theme, we offered tequila shots and sangrita in addition to champagne and wine, and a velvety Mexican chocolate pot de creme for desert, with a dab of creme fraiche mixed with heavy cream -- very cinnamon-y and chocolatey.