The Ultimate Bonac Beachplum Jelly

What an amazing year for beachplums. Even if you don't know about beachplums, chances are, you've heard someone talking about them recently. These tart little gems pop out right around labor day and tend to be prolific in cycles. Last year there was nary a plum to be found. This year, millions of them. Their earthy, plummy, tartness lends itself to great chutneys, jams and jellies. The recipe handed down to me through generations of bonac grandmas is a dense well-strained jelly, producing a jewel-like clarity and kicky tartness. Packed with vitamin A and C, antioxidants and minerals, and arguably, a little bit of magic, a batch of beachplum jelly is definitely worth the effort.

First, find the beachplums...
There are so many places to find beachplums in the Hamptons. Try Sammy's Beach, Lazy Point or Maidstone bay. I can't ethically say much more than that, but if the intent is genuine and the season is generous you will find them.
Collect a few pails of them, watching out for poison ivy and briar patches along the way.

Second, prep your fruit...
Fill your sink with fresh water and remove sticks, leaves and squishy fruit from your bounty. Don't worry about each and every stem, remember you are straining pits and skins anyway.

Third, pull out your juice...
Fill pots with fruit, add just a little water to keep them from sticking (this keeps the jelly dense and flavorful) and simmer constantly, smashing with a potato masher until the liquid is burgandy dark, the pits are separated and the flesh appears weak and orangey. Cool and strain through cheesecloth placed in a colander over big glass bowls. Squish all the remaining juice out, then strain through cheesecloth again (this ensures the most jewel-like jelly possible)

Fourth, make the jelly...
Pour all of your juice into large pots, measuring as you go. Add 1 cup of sugar for every cup of juice. Stir well and bring to a rolling boil (watch closely to prevent a boilover, contant stirring is recommended, I learned this the hard way) When boiling, add 2 packets of Certo for every 5 cups of juice, and continue to boil until the liquid coats a metal spoon thickly.

Fifth, jar your jelly...
Pour the hot jelly into sterile mason jars (sterilize in boiling water according to jar directions) cap tightly, turn upside down for 5 minutes. Turn back over and cool. You should hear the lids pop with suction over the next 24 hours which ensures a tight seal. Any jars that dont pop should be refrigerated as soon as they jell and should be used first. The others will keep for about a year safely.

Now you have the most coveted treats in town and everyone is suddenly your best friend. Enjoy the popularity. You deserve it.

Almond Fig Cake

Fragrant with the allure of warm almond croissants on a winter morning. Fresh figs glistening under a blanket of apricot rum glaze. This simple and elegant cake is the marriage of two different recipes, one by Julia Child, the other by Giada DeLaurentis. The figs and glaze are a new addition and may be replaced with apricots and glaze or simply a dusting of confectionary sugar.

Mix and set aside:

1/2 cup fine yellow corn meal or corn flour

1/2 cup cake or all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

Beat together in separate bowl:

2 sticks of unsalted butter softened

1/2 cup almond paste

Add and beat in:

1 cup sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

6 whole eggs

Continue beating until yellow, light and fluffy (about 1-2 additional minutes)

Add and beat in flour mixture a bit at a time

Pour into buttered and floured cake pan

Bake at 340 for up to an hour (40 min on convection setting) or until set and golden (toothpick comes out clean and cake doesnt jiggle)

Cook on rack, flip onto plate, brush with glaze and place figs as desired.

Glaze:

1/2 cup apricot preserves

1-2 tbsp rum

heat until thinned and brush on with pastry brush

serve alone, with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream

A Tale of Grilling: Told in Two Acts

The Caveman-esque experience of grilling is primal and satisfying, quick and simple, communally celebratory and solitarily zen. Not only are the meals we prepare on the grill incredible, but the leftovers are epic. Here, in two acts, over the course of four nights, I hope you find some inspiration for your own evolutionary grilling tale.

Act One: Night One
Fire up the grill, all the way up, hardwoods, charcoals, bask in the glory of the flame
Slather chicken parts in BBQ sauce, hot or mild, maybe A1, mmm love A1
Drizzle corn on the cob with olive oil, salt and pepper
Grill chicken and corn until cooked through and slightly blackened
Serve with a fresh spring salad of spinach, berries, lemon juice and olive oil

Act One: Night Two
Shred leftover chicken
Slice leftover grilled corn off the cobs
Warm up and serve with tortillas, sliced avocado, salsa and sour cream

Act Two: Night One
Fire up the grill again, smell those burning tidbits, leave em on for flavor, mmm...
Slather Turkey, Chicken or Pork sausages in grilling sauce
Drizzle onion and pepper slices with olive oil, salt and pepper
Grill everything until cooked through and slightly blackened
Serve sausages on crusty rolls with onions, peppers and extra grilling sauce

Act Two: Night Two
Slice up leftover sausages, onions and peppers
Mix into deli prepared red potato salad
sprinkle with fresh thyme leaves
Grill up your favorite burgers (I like A1, parmesan, garlic and parsley mixed in)
Serve with potato salad

Translate this evolutionary succession of grilling straight through the summer, grill pizzas, peaches, pineapples, shrimp kebabs, figs, tomatoes, bread for bruschetta, use leftover meats for brunches, egg sandwiches, grill your desserts and snacks and live happily ever after, or until the briskness of fall cozies up our kitchens again.

The Springing of Green

As these first few bits of spring pop their determined heads out of the cold soils, we get lost in our minds somewhere between nostalgia and anticipation. Like bleeding watercolors, the world turns new shades of green, and the possibilities of our daily routines expand. What will we find? What will we plant? What will we eat? Chances are, these things will be green. Here are a few of my favorite greens, to imbibe in now, or to anticipate and covet.

WHEATGRASS
These bright green tender sprouts of nourishment gained notoriety during the juicing craze of the 90's. While the nutritional content remains, wheatgrass has become more common as a decorative accent. You can buy full trays at nurseries and healthfood stores, cut them up with a paring knife and plant them into dishes, planters or baking tins lined with a little potting soil. Yesterday I filled 3 large bread pans and a round cake pan with one $20 tray from Wild By Nature. They look fantastic around the house. When they start to fade, snip them up and add them to your juicer.

KALE
While kale is really a cold weather green, it never loses its relevance. Kale is available year round and is a superfood, hands down. Everyone should eat it on a regular basis, and braising isn't the only way to cook it...

Easy Kale Pasta: Throw a couple handfuls of chopped kale into boiling pasta water, just 2-3 minutes before pasta is done. Drain and finish with olive oil, parmesan, kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper.

Crispy Kale: Toss potato chip sized pieces of kale with olive oil and salt. Bake at 275 for 30 - 45 minutes or until crispy. Eat as a side dish or pile onto sandwiches and paninis. Try a crispy kale, fresh mozzarella and prosciutto panini with pesto.

Storage: Kale freezes beautifully. Buy big bunches, rinse, dry and slice into 1 - 2" lengths. Pile into a ziploc freezer bag and pull out handfuls as needed. Their firm texture keeps them from freezing into a solid block, so grabbing what you need is easy.

SHELL PEAS
My great grandparents had a house on King Street in East Hampton village many years ago. My most vivid memory is wandering the back gardens in the spring, eating shell peas right off the vine. I should have been collecting them for dinner, but we all know we can't trust a 7 year old to do such things. Fresh shell peas aren't always easy to find, but when you do, they are well worth it. Try farmers markets and farm stands and make sure they are fresh. Shell and saute the peas with a bit of butter and garlic as a side, add to pasta dishes or puree steamed peas into a fresh pea soup.

PESTO
Good pesto. One word. Heaven. The best pre-made pesto in the Hamptons is made by Citarella. Prepared fresh and refrigerated this pesto is bright green and garlicky. Jarred grocery store pestos are expensive and dull, don't bother. Try making your own. All you need is a food processor or blender and a few simple ingredients (basil, garlic, pine nuts, olive oil and parmesan). Try adding parsley, spinach, mint or cilantro to the basil, reduce the oil and increase the lemon juice for a lighter brighter pesto. Just keep in mind, the oil allows the pesto to stay fresh for longer. If you are using it right away, reducing the quantity is no problem. I like lots of lemon in mine and I'll even add some zest for brightness. Cheese and nuts can be optional, if you eliminate the cheese simply add some salt.

MINT
Fresh mint grows like wildfire, needs little attention (except for maybe ripping some out), and is perennial (comes back every year). Each spring we had a patch that would pop up on the west side of our house, and as soon as it did, we had homemade iced tea with lemon and mint in the fridge all summer long. Nothing tastes quite like summer. Try making mint pestos, add mint to fresh summer rolls, thai dishes, garnish desserts and drinks, and chomp on it right off the stalk. If you don't have any, just plant a little bit someplace out of the way and watch it go. Start a new tradition to look forward to year after year.

Redux: Braising Made Easy

Oh Sunday, how I love thee. The savory aroma of slow cooked meats and vegetables can turn a house into a home, a friend into a lover, a chill into a shiver of coziness. A nostalgic, visceral comfort alluring the senses with wispy fingers of love. These incredible concoctions can be reduced into a few simple steps and a few simple groups of ingredients, leaving behind no good reason not to give it a try.

• Brown your choice of meat (5-10 minutes): a light coating of flour, salt and pepper and a nice brown crust over medium high heat adds an irreplaceable depth of flavor. Try a bottom roast, short ribs, spare ribs, pork tenderloin, chicken thighs, sausages, pork chops, whatever looks good, whatever you like. Start with a few slices of bacon if you're feeling extra indulgent. Brown your meats and veggies in the drippings and add the crumbles to your slow cooker with the browned meat.
• Pick up those brown bits (1-3 minutes): if you aren't slow cooking in the same pan you browned your meat in, make sure you grab those bits with some stock or wine and add them to your slow cooker.
• Aromatics (3-5 minutes): A classic french mirepoix is carrots, celery and onions, but feel free to add garlic if your dish has an italian or spanish edge. These fragrant veggies can be sauteed in the brown bits first or added right to your slow cooker.
• Additional veggies (3-5 minutes): Optional additions include squash, sweet potatoes, beans, white potatoes, parsnips, rutabaga, mushrooms etc. Cube them up and dump them right in. Or go completely vegetarian and skip the meat completely.
• Liquid (1-2 minutes): Braising is a method of wet/dry cooking in which the liquid comes about halfway up the meats and veggies. A mixture of stock, wine and sometimes stewed or crushed tomatoes is perfect. A splash of vinegar (balsamic, cider, red wine) can be added for a little tang. Choose beef stock and red for heavier meats, chicken stock and white wine for lighter ones. It's that simple.
• Herbs/Spices (1-2 minutes): This is the last step that takes your dish in a particular direction. Some simple cubed beef can become a burgandy (bacon, red wine, mushrooms and garlic) a goulash (sweet and hot paprika and sour cream stirred in before serving) or a simple stew. Combine white beans with squash and fresh sage, or stewed tomatoes with basil, garlic and a splash of balsamic for a red sauce. Good ancho chili powder and tomatoes transforms just about anything into mexican. Pick a direction and resist overdoing it. A couple of additonal flavors is enough, the best part of slow cooking is the complexity of flavors that naturally evolves from hours of low heat.
• Leave it alone (4 hours on high - 8 hours on low or until meat is fork tender): This is either the easiest part, if you have other things to do, or the hardest part, if you are obsessive about watching and getting hungrier and hungrier. I recommend leaving the house if you have OCD. 
• Serve: Serve stews alone, over egg noodles or with smashed potatoes and fresh parsley. Serve chilis with sour cream, chives and cheese. Serve white bean dishes on their own or with short pastas like orichiette and fresh basil. Serve red sauces with the pasta of your choice, aged hard cheeses and fresh basil. 

Slow cooking isn't just about convenience, it's about making a home smell like a home, enjoying the winter, loving your family and yourself. Make up your own combination of your favorite ingredients and watch it transform into something magical. Give your dish a name and watch as future generations ask for the recipe. This is the food memories are made from. Start your own legacy today.

Cookie Cookie Cookie!!!

I'm not interested in living in a world without cookies. But I'm also a stickler for eating nutritionally dense foods. So what do we do when pre-packaged healthy cookies leave a lot to be desired, and so many healthy cookie recipes are full of date purees, agave syrups and other mysterious ingredients we don't have in our kitchens? The answer is simple, make some easy ingredient substitutions and eat them in moderation. Think it might be harder than it sounds? Read on.

Start with your basic Toll House cookie recipe and make any or all of the following swap outs:

• Swap half the butter (1/2 cup) for yogurt or applesauce (any flavor yogurt is fine, greek plain is protein packed and low calorie, or try raspberry yogurt for a twist)
• Swap the flour for whole wheat flour
• Swap 1/2 cup flour for ground flax seeds (worth having in the kitchen if you don't already, and so easy to find, try breading chicken tenders with the leftovers, or add to muffins, cereal, yogurt etc)
• Add 1/4 cup of cocoa powder
• Swap 1/4 cup of the brown sugar for blackstrap molasses
• Add 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
• Add nuts, whichever ones you like, walnuts, hazelnuts, pine nuts etc
• Use the darkest chocolate chips you can find, semisweet counts as dark, so if you prefer not to go gourmet that's fine

Bake for 1 or 2 minutes less than directed to keep them soft

It's true, these cookies aren't quite as buttery or crisp as the originals, they are a little fluffier and cakier when you swap out the butter, but the flavors are bold so try this serving suggestion and you'll never go back...

Place one cookie in a ramekin (local tip, pick these up at a discount from Bar Boy in Hampton Bays at a great discount)
Microwave for 20 - 30 seconds
Top with vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt

The serving size is reasonable and guilt-free (eat slow and savor with a small spoon) it's a healthy home version of a chocolate lava cake. I had one last night, ok ok, i put 2 cookies in my ramekin, and it was absolute heaven, and even with two, I don't hate myself in the morning. That's always the best part.

The Breakfast Ritual

 

In this demanding chaotic world, rituals are practically extinct. Especially for those who don't prescribe to any particular religious affiliation. But rituals can be cathartic, comforting moments in our lives. We can create small rituals focusing on our heath (maybe a regular yoga practice) or around our family (such as dinners together, or Sunday trips to feed the ducks). But the simplest ritual anyone can establish is breakfast. Not only is it healthy for our bodies, but taking a few moments each morning to calmly nourish ourselves sets the mental tone for the rest of the day. We can't take care of those around us if we don't take care of ourselves first. So think about what makes you happy. A warm drink in your favorite mug, some protein, and a quiet place to rest. Add some details, like an artisanal lavender honey for your tea, or a pinch of healthy cinnamon on your toast. Inhale, savor and enjoy. 

Some Ideas:

A soft boiled egg in an egg cup and a cinnamon latte (I love the ritual aspect of cracking the egg with the back of a spoon)

Wheat toast with natural peanut butter and green tea with clover honey

Greek yogurt with fruit and walnuts and earl grey with whole milk

My Breakfast Ritual:

Simmer water for tea

Find my favorite insulated mug from Dean and Deluca

Break a banana into a bowl

Add some healthy cereal to the bowl and a teabag or teaball to the mug

Pick a honey for the tea

Dust some cinnamon on the cereal and/or in the tea

Maybe add some blueberries to the bowl if I have them

Add whistling water to mug

Add milk to both tea and cereal

Find a quiet place to sit and enjoy for 5 to 10 minutes

Begin my day

Lavender Meets Grapefruit

Why: The bittersweet acidity of grapefruit pairs so elegantly with the heady floral of lavender. Simple, cleansing, perfect. Citrus is abundant and cheap during the winter months, so now is the time to indulge in this springtime teaser.

How: Peel and segment grapefruit or slice into rounds. In a glass dish drizzle with honey (less for pink grapefruit which is sweeter than yellow) sprinkle a healthy pinch of lavender flowers. Allow to marinate for about an hour. Serve alone or top with greek yogurt and walnuts for breakfast or dessert. Spoon segments over greens or a beet salad for a first course. Grill rounds until caramelized grill marks appear, sprinkle with fleur de sel and serve with grilled fish.

Holy Beets!

Why: Practically mythical, the underutilized jewel-like flesh glistens with earthy, fuschia brilliance. Beets are simple, versatile, beautiful and delicious. With flavors reminiscent of the fertile soils of spring. The 'beeting' valentine heart of vegetables. February is an exquisite time for beets.

How: Roast whole beets for about an hour (a little longer if they're huge) slice and dress with citrus, olive oil, vinegar and salt. Serve as a side dish to grilled meat or fish, add orange or grapefruit segments if you like, or spoon over a salad of microgreens and top with goat cheese and walnuts as a first course. Beeterrific.