Little Puffs of Heaven

If you need an absolutely delectable appetizer or finger food, I have an easy and simply lavishing recipe for puffy Asiago cheese straws. I originally gleaned the concept of cheese straws from Ina Garten on the Barefoot Contessa television show. Of course, when I went to make them recently it had been upwards of a year since I had watched them being made and I forgot nearly everything, so I had to improvise a little. Needless to say, they came out better and more luxurious than I ever remember Ina’s looking. Maybe one of my little tweaks actually improved them.

What you end up with is a golden, flaky “straw,” with deliciously nutty Asiago cheese melted throughout. They are a little on the rich side, but you can cut them into hunks or cubes and serve more people from them. Or you can enjoy an entire straw yourself! They are as tender and buttery as you can imagine, and the girls I served them to could not stop oo-ing and ah-ing.

You need a few ounces of Asiago cheese, shredded with your grater, Micro planer or food processor. You also need one sheet of thawed, store-bought puff pastry. As Ina would say, get the “all-butter” variety (read: no trans fat, but this is no health food). Truthfully, that is all I remember from her recipe. I rolled out the puff pastry a little bit so it was thinner than the standard sheet. I then drizzled a little extra virgin olive oil over the top and rubbed it in with my hands, so that it lightly covered the entire sheet. Then, I sprinkled the cheese evenly over the surface and sprinkled just a little salt and pepper. I sliced it into four “straw”-like pieces length-wise and twisted the puff strips like a ribbon as I laid each down next to one another on a cookie sheet. Most of the cheese side ended up covered, on the inside of the ribbons. That was just fine. I sprinkled a little more grated Asiago over the tops and then stuck them in a 400 degree oven for 12 minutes.

I took them out and was simply wowed by how puffy and soft and crispy they were. I let them cool for 5-10 minutes and then we all dug in. They were gone in a finger-licking blink of an eye, but they were so easy that these fan favorites will be made again very soon!

Mark the Markets

Since moving to the DC/NoVa area, Julia has become quite the aficionado on local produce. Namely in the form of weekly farmer's markets in the area. She has been to The Ballston on Fridays, The Clarendon on Wednesdays, The Dupont on Sundays and The Foggy (Bottom) on Wednesdays. Don't they sound even more intriguing with these fancy names I made up? Well okay, so maybe that's just me. But the names need not persuade you, it's the content that should, and in my opinion, will.

While I've only been with her to The Foggy (located in the park next to FB Metro Station), the content sure won me over quite quickly. How about a table of huge, fresh beefsteak tomatoes? Or tubs overflowing with fresh edamame? Or huge, juicy peaches that taste like descriptions from James and the Giant Peach? Or a guy hoarding his fresh feta and goat cheese in coolers of enigma as if he's smuggled it straight from Greece? Actually it's been driven from Pennsylvania where it was made fresh at a creamery, and the covert ops? That's purely a testament to how dang good and popular the stuff is. All these treasures to be found. And that's not even taking into account the fresh baked loaves of bread, like a whole grain loaf with whole pitted kalamata olives or a white loaf with only four total ingredients. It’s not taking into account the countless varieties of farm-fresh jams, some green, some bright red, some black. Or maybe I didn't mention the luscious apples on display, that are just coming into season. In Julia's own very true words, “these actually taste like apple-picking, orchard apples.” And boy did they! There was a whole booth with fresh flowers, a table with enormous bell peppers, hot cerranos and poblanos and patty pan squashes that were over 6 inches in diameter. And this was just one farmer's market. Apparently, each one has its own uniqueness. Perhaps fresh honeys of different varieties like sage honey, that Julia experienced at a different market. Or fresh pastries. Or fresh juices. Or big beautiful berries, which are quickly fleeting out of season.

I know you are all at least somewhat familiar with these delights. A rare confluence of local culture and economy in one. So why support such things? Why seek out your local farmer's markets and make it a habit to go? Why work with local groups to increase their presence and popularity in communities with less frequent or numerous farmer's markets as the DC Metro Area? Why get excited about them? I mean I'm sure you don't like fresh, delicious and unique produce. I'm sure you don't like getting most of your week's fresh food for nary $15 rather than getting it for $50 at the grocery store. I'm sure you hate giving back to your community and you local economy in a time when local economies really don't need any of our help. I'm also positive that you really dislike going outside, relaxing and interacting with others. And I certainly am sure that you prefer ugly, sprayed, older produce to fresh-picked, natural, unique produce.

If for some reason, by some freak of nature, you happen to like any of those things I just mentioned you definitely NOT liking, then you should be running, jumping, flying to support your local farmer’s markets. And hey, those farmers would be very happy with me, if there were only just a few people willing to eat/shop/live/interact outside the (big) box and actually like any of those things I just mentioned up there. Yah you. It’s perfectly okay.

For DC-Virginia-Maryland folks, here’s a list of many of the farmer’s markets in the area and their schedules. But not all, so always be on the lookout!

Greekly & Godly

Sometimes the most innovative foods you can discover are some of the oldest and most classic. That is why you need to discover Greek yogurt if you have not already. This stuff will blow your mind with its taste, health, cost and versatility. And even if you have discovered it already, perhaps I can add a few tips to advance your repertoire even further.

So what did I promise you? Taste. Greek yogurt is like a thicker, creamier and slightly less tangy version of plain yogurt. It doesn't seem to have as much of the “cultures” taste, yogurt's usual twang that sometimes is aversive to people, especially when used in their food. Yes, so Greek yogurt is a little milder, and along with the added richness, turns yogurt into an ideal culinary ingredient. Almost more like a mild sour cream than a mild yogurt.

You scream, “but you said this would be healthy, right?” And it is! There is a full fat version and a skim version available at most stores now, and the nonfat version is incredible. The full fat version is actually not even that unhealthy, but when there's a nonfat version that is better than the full fat version, I would rather just ignore the latter. But nonfat can be a misnomer or still be hiding other negative health aspects. Nope. Not here. It is completely free of all fat and simultaneously only has a small amount of sugar in it -- far far less sugar than in skim milk or other nonfat plain yogurts. And it is also very low in sodium as well. So buy the nonfat version and go crazy -- it's nearly guilt free. And while I'm mentioning “buying,” I'll discuss cost. It's cheap! Less expensive than sour cream or regular yogurt. So go even crazier!

“Go crazy,” you ask. “But how the heck do I use this stuff?” Well if you haven't gotten my hints thus far, you can start by using this how you would want to use sour cream. Put a dollop in your soups, have some with tacos or burritos, use it as the base for a French onion dip. Heck, you could eat it on a cracker! But it goes farther than that. You can use it to make some Greek specialties like the famous tzatziki cucumber-lemon-yogurt sauce, but that is what Greek yogurt is known for. I'm about what it's not known for as well. Use it to thicken sauces and soups that need a little extra rich flavor and texture but no extra fat. Or use it to fill some wontons, mixed with scallion and shredded, cooked chicken. Or as my friend suggested recently, use it as a lower fat white cream sauce base with pasta. Or you can mix it with lemon juice, or chipotle, or basil, or cilantro, or even chocolate in a sweet application and get creative to your heart’s content.

But you want the absolute best use for Greek yogurt? Concentrate it and turn it into the best nonfat cheese you can imagine. All you need to do is line a colander with a layer or two of paper towel and place the colander over a large bowl. Empty a container of Greek yogurt into the paper towel and cover it. Leave it at least 24 hours in the fridge. What will result is an incredibly thick version of the yogurt, as all the water seeps out overnight, so much so that it is like a rich, soft cheese. You can crumble it on salads, dip pitas into it, spread it on a sandwich, even top bread rounds and toast it under the broiler (yes, it even browns like cheese). It tastes terrific and allows you to cut out fat and sodium in so many places and still allow for a similar, if not better, replacement for cheese, sour cream, spreads, dips and the like.

This is a food fit for the Greek goddesses and gods. And who knows, they may have created it!