More sources and resources (or inspire yourself toward veggies)

Recipes: Goat cheese souffle, Sauteed chard with lemon and hot pepper, Summer tomatoes with fresh herbs, Apple crisp  

I'm definitely not a vegetarian, but quite often I choose to cook a meatless dinner. Maybe I feel like something lighter than usual. Maybe it's just that I believe there's value in moderation in almost everything, with the possible exception of vegetables and fruits (and pasta!). They're so good for you, it's safe to say "the more the better."

There are three cookbooks I use most often when I want inspiration and new ideas for vegetables and fruits. I'd put them right up next to the five I mentioned in an earlier post called Sources and Resources, because these books get a lot of use in my kitchen. As I've mentioned, I like to read cooking books front to back, especially the introductory parts in the front. That's where you learn the philosophy of the teacher, and the tips and tricks that will make your interpretation of his or her recipes fabulous.

Today we're making a beautiful and delicious dinner for two that happens to be meatless, with recipes taken from each of the books below. Plus I've included an easy Apple Crisp recipe of my own that I've made for at least 30 years. I hardly ever make desserts at home anymore (who needs the calories?), but I'm making an exception here because this is one of my faves. Besides, apples and cheese go together. Maybe I'll make it tonight too, for a special treat.

Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison. This is a huge book, with over 1400 recipes that are all vegetarian or vegan. It's a really comprehensive collection of delicious and nutritious ways to cook vegetables, grains, fruits, and other non-meat foods whether that's a way of life for you or whether you are just cooking side dishes for a meat main course. More on Deborah Madison below.

The Greens Cookbook by Deborah Madison with Edmund Espe Brown. This is now a classic book. It has been around since the late 1980s, but it's still available and it's just as good as it was when it first came out. Deborah Madison and Edmund Espe Brown were among those who started the famous vegetarian restaurant Greens in San Francisco, and this is a collection of some of their most dazzling, elegant, and yet simple dishes using farm-fresh produce in creative ways.

Chez Panisse Vegetables by Alice Waters. Chez Panisse is Alice Waters' amazing and ground-breaking restaurant in Berkeley CA. Alice pioneered the use of ingredients grown locally by small farmers using organic and sustainable methods. Her cooking is very simple, and bring out the most delicious qualities of the vegetables and fruits you're using. I just love the way everything tastes that I make from this book.

OK, now we have our arsenal of sources and resources, let's cook dinner! Here's the order of cooking that I'd suggest: Make the Apple Crisp first, so that's out of the way and cooling. Then make the Goat Cheese Souffle, and while it's cooking in the oven (30 minutes), make the chard and slice and arrange the tomatoes with herbs. Be sure the table is set and ready to go, as the souffle must be served the minute it comes out of the oven.

Apple Crisp

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

• 4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 cup raisins (optional)
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Mix all the above ingredients in a baking dish.
Make the topping:

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup rolled oats (not quick cooking)
• 1/2 cup sugar (white, or half and half white and brown sugar)
• 1/4 cup butter, cut in small pieces

Mix flour, oats, and sugar together and cut in the butter with knives or a pastry cutter.
Sprinkle topping over apples. Bake for 45 minutes.

Goat Cheese Souffle

From Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone
Words to the wise: Be sure to read this recipe through carefully before starting, so you have a feel for the general flow of events. This isn't hard at all to make, but you'll find it's much more successful if you have everything out and measured and ready to use before you start.

• 3 tablespoons butter, plus a tablespoon soft butter for buttering the baking dish*
• 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan for the baking dish
• 1 1/4 cups whole milk
• 1 bay leaf
• several fresh thyme sprigs
• 2 thin onion slices
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• Sea salt and white pepper
• Pinch of cayenne
• 4 egg yolks
• 1 cup (4 ounces) crumbled goat cheese
• 6 egg whites

*About the baking dish: You can use a classic souffle dish (as in the photo below), but it's also fun to use a larger shallower gratin dish, even something like a deep pie dish. It still looks great, it bakes a little more quickly, and it makes more crust if that happens to be your favorite part of a souffle.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Butter a 6-cup souffle dish or an 8-cup gratin dish and coat the inside lightly with the Parmesan.

Heat the milk in a small saucepan with the bay leaf, 3 or 4 thyme sprigs, and the onion slices until it nearly boils. Be sure to watch it, as it can boil over very easily. Turn off the heat and set the milk aside to steep for 15 minutes, then strain the aromatics out of it.

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Whisk in the flour and cook, whisking, over low heat for 2 minutes. Whisk in the milk all at once and stir vigorously for a minute or so as it thickens, then add 3/4 teaspoon sea salt, 1/2 teaspoon white pepper, and the cayenne. Remove it from the heat. Beat in the egg yolks one at a time until well blended, then stir in the goat cheese. Don't worry if it's not completely smooth.

In a standing mixer fitted with the whisk, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until they form firm peaks. Then stir 1/4 of the beaten whites into the egg and cheese base to lighten the mixture. Fold the rest of the whites into the base gently with a rubber spatula. Transfer it to the prepared dish and place it in the center of the oven. Lower the heat to 375 degrees F.

Bake for 30 minutes, or until golden and just a bit wobbly in the center. Remove and serve immediately.

Sauteed Chard with Lemon and Hot Pepper

From Alice Waters' Chez Panisse Vegetables

One large bunch of chard (or two small) will be enough for two, even though it cooks down quite a bit. Stem the chard, wash and drain the leaves, and cut them into rough strips. Saute in a bit of olive oil, covered, for 5 minutes or so, until the leaves are wilted and tender.

Remove the cover and cook away the excess moisture. Season at the last minute with a pinch of red pepper flakes, and with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Squeeze fresh lemon juice over just before serving.

Late Summer Tomatoes with Fresh Herbs

Adapted from The Greens Cookbook

• 2 or 3 juicy ripe tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon fresh herbs, chopped. Basil is a natural with tomatoes - tarragon, Italian parsley, mint are also delicious.
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Balsamic vinegar to taste (usually a few drops)

Use a serrated knife (steak knife or bread knife) and slice the tomatoes. Arrange them on a plate.
Pour some olive oil over the tomatoes, a scattering of herbs, and salt and pepper.
Add a little vinegar.
*If the tomatoes are going to sit longer than a few minutes, wait to add the salt until just before you serve them. Salt draws the juice out of tomatoes, and diminishes the flavor.

Buon appetito!

World's Best roast chicken (or how to be famous)

Recipes: Alice's roast chicken, Sweet corn, Greek salad

Roast chicken is something everybody thinks they know how to make. Easiest thing in the world. Why is it then that roast chicken tends to be
. . .not cooked enough
. . .dry, especially the breast
. . .tasteless
. . .boring?

Well, roasting a chicken is not quite as straightforward as just turning on the oven and putting a chicken in for an hour, although it's almost that easy.  I'd love to be able to say I invented this truly never-fail roasting method myself, but no. It comes right out of Alice Waters' book The Art of Simple Food, with a minor tweak in the cooking time that's the only part that belongs to me. Here's how you do it.

Alice's Roast Chicken

If possible, have a whole chicken thawed and patted dry the day before you plan to roast it. Be sure to remove the giblets and neck from inside the chicken. Freeze them for another use, or discard them as you wish.

Salt and pepper the outside of the chicken all over, including the back and legs. Also salt the cavities of the chicken. You'll want to use about 2 tablespoons of sea salt in total, and as much freshly ground black pepper as your taste dictates. Put the chicken in a dish or bowl, cover it with cling film, and  refrigerator it overnight.

If it's not possible to do this the day before, any time you can leave the chicken to "marinate" in salt and pepper will be beneficial, whether it's an hour or several hours. If it's more than two hours, refrigerate it until an hour before cooking time.

On the day you plan to roast and serve it, take the seasoned chicken out of the refrigerator an hour before you roast it, so it can come to room temperature. This allows for more even cooking.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

I usually stuff the main cavity of the chicken with a big handful of fresh herbs - rosemary, perhaps, or some sage leaves and fronds of oregano. You could also stuff it with separated and unpeeled garlic cloves, which you can squeeze out over the chicken when it's done. Or you can stuff it with halves of lemons or limes, or a combination. Or you can decide not to stuff it at all. It will still be delicious.

I'd caution you not to stuff the chicken with a regular bread-based stuffing. It's too dense and would keep the chicken from cooking evenly. Save this kind of stuffing for large birds like turkeys that are cooked for a longer time, or, even better, bake bread-based stuffing in a separate baking dish next to the bird you're roasting.

Put the seasoned and stuffed chicken, breast side up, in a baking dish with sides that fits the chicken pretty closely. When the oven reaches 400 degrees, put it in the oven and set the timer for 25 minutes.

After 25 minutes, take the chicken out of the oven and turn it with tongs or forks so the back side of the chicken is up. Remember to be cautious as the pan will be very hot. Put it back in the oven and set the timer for 25 minutes.

When the next 25 minutes are up, take the chicken out of the oven and once again turn it so the breast side is up. Put it back in the oven and set the timer for 25 minutes.

After the last 25 minutes, take the chicken out of the oven and let it rest in the pan or on a cutting board for 15 minutes. This allows the juices to redistribute themselves and the bird to finish cooking.

You're done, and your beautiful succulent roast chicken is ready to carve.

I like to serve roast chicken with traditional accompaniments. Since it's summer, sweet corn and a salad using the season's fresh tomatoes and cucumbers will be perfect, and will add color and beauty to your table.

Sweet Corn

I'm not a huge fan of cooking in the microwave. That said, this is the best way to cook sweet corn that I know of. Strip the husk off 2 large ears of sweet corn down to the last leaves next to the corn itself. Pull out some of the silk that hangs out of the husk.

Lay both ears together in the microwave and cook on High for 2 minutes. Turn the ears a third of the way around and cook them on High for another 2 minutes. Repeat this one more time for a total of 6 minutes (3 minutes per ear).

Pull the rest of the husk off the corn using hot pads, and clean off as much of the silk as possible. Serve with butter and sea salt. If you can get smoked sea salt, that's even better!

If you don't have a microwave or don't want to use it, here's an alternative. Strip all the husk and silk off 2 ears of corn. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil, and put the corn in. Boil for 5 minutes. Turn the heat off, add 1/2 cup milk, and cover the pot. Let it stand for 5 or 10 minutes. Serve with butter and sea salt.

Greek Salad

Cut out the stem from 1 ripe tomato and cut it into wedges. Season it with sea salt.

Peel 1 medium cucumber and slice it thickly. Cut in half lengthwise first if it is very fat.

Thinly slice 1/2 small red or yellow onion.

Arrange these attractively on a plate and sprinkle 2 oz. crumbled feta cheese over them. Add a few olives, if you wish - Greeks would probably use black olives, but I've found any kind I have is good.

Make a vinaigrette: Mix together 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice, 1 teaspoon fresh chopped oregano, and sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Whisk in 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil. Note: If you use dried oregano instead of fresh, use only 1/2 teaspoon.

Just before serving, sprinkle a little salt over the vegetables you have arranged on the plate and then spoon the vinaigrette over all. Serve with lemon wedges for squeezing.

Buon appetito!