Old-Fashionned Strawberry Shortcakes

At last, at last, we have a summer worthy of it's name! There is lots of sunshine, it's wonderfully hot and sticky (I happen to love warm weather, even if it means covering my pasty skin in about an inch of sunscreen), terraces are full, people brought out their barbecues and ice cream parlors are sprouting like mushrooms.

It is not the ideal weather to bake fancy stuff, unless you have a really powerful air conditioning in your house (I don't), but a simple shortcake is very forgiving and almost impossible to mess up, even during a heatwave. It is a traditional Southern sweet, after all! It is also a very versatile, easy to assemble dessert that will look fancy and impressive when you serve it at your next garden (or balcony, whatever the case may be) party.

A shortcake is basically a layering of sweet biscuit, fruits macerated in sugar and whipped cream. It can be made as one big cake, but I find much cuter (and more practical) to make little individual shortcakes: you can prepare the biscuits in advance, freeze them and then garnish them as you need. Let's face it, shortcakes are tricky to slice, so a huge one is more likely to become messy than a bunch of small ones your guests can destroy as they see fit. This recipe will give you enough dough for 8 little helpings of happiness.

It's also a dessert that can be easily converted to a vegan treat: use a non-hydrogenated margarine instead of butter, non-sweetened almond milk and coconut milk whipped cream (this is my favorite recipe for the stuff), and voila! All the decadent, buttery pastry and the fluffy, dream-like whip... and none of the dairy!

The local strawberries are in season, so that's what I used, but any kind of berry or fruit can be used in a shortcake. You could also mix and match your favorite fruits, or be really naughty and add chocolate chips to your shortcakes!

Biscuits:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick butter), chilled
2/3 to 3/4 cup milk

Filling:
1 quart strawberries
1/3 cup sugar 

Garnish:
1 1/2 cups whipping cream

Rinse the berries under cold water; drain well. Hull and slice the berries and put them in a bowl. Sprinkle with the sugar, cover and let stand at room temperature for about 1 hour. This will sweeten the berries and also make them release some moisture, which will give you a lovely strawberry syrup at the bottom of the bowl.

Whip the cream (add 2 or 3 tablespoons of sugar, if desired) until it holds a soft peak. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Set the rack at center level. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar in a large bowl or food processor. Cut the butter into about 8 pieces and add to the mixture.

Pulse in a food processor (or work with a pastry cutter or clean fingertips - I personally prefer to prepare my dough completely by hand) until the mixture resembles coarse meal, but with few pea-size chunks of butter left in the mixture.

If you were using the food processor, transfer the mixture to a large bowl and make a well in the center. With a fork, stir in the milk, until the dough is just moist. Be very careful not to overwork. The dough doesn't have to hold together well at this point. Let the dough stand for a minute. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough 4 or 5 times, until it is holding together and is less sticky, sprinkling with flour as needed.

 
Gently pat the dough into a 6 by 12-inch rectangle about 3/4-inch thick and cut into 8 (3-inch) biscuits with a floured round cutter (you can use an old-fashioned glass if you do not have a cookie cutter). This can be tricky if your dough is not holding together well. Don't be shy to work it a little bit more until you can cut out your biscuits properly.

Carefully transfer to a cookie sheet lined with parchemin paper. Brush on a little milk and sprinkle with some sugar. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until the biscuits have risen and are golden brown. Remove to a platter and split each biscuit horizontally with a serrated knife.

Once the biscuits have cooled, top the lower half of each with a generous tablespoon of the berry mixture and a dollop of whipped cream. Replace the tops and finish with a tablespoon or so of berries and more whipped cream.

The pastry was light and buttery, but firm enough to be the vessel for piles of sweet strawberries and luscious whipped cream. We drizzled a bit of the strawberry syrup on top of each shortcake and they were stunning!

These are messy to eat, but messy in the best possible way! Home-made whipped cream is so easy to make, and the decadent taste and texture is totally worth the trouble. With the light, delicious pastry and the fresh fruit, this is quite a heavenly end to a nice summer meal. It's the perfect dessert to make for those who feel like they suck at baking and can't do fancy icing flowers: a shortcake should not look too perfect. The rustic look is definitely part of the charm, in my opinion.

Butter Chicken or Murgh Makhani

I adore butter chicken. And I can't think of anyone (in my omnivorous acquaintances, anyway) who doesn't. Thick, creamy, spicy sauce and tender pieces of chicken... This stick-to-your-ribs richness is addictive and universally satisfying, all year-round. For some reason, Indian food and hot weather go very well together, and I had a craving.

My friend Marie (who is the cutest mommy in the world) made me realized I had never bothered to make some from scratch before; I used to commit the mortal sin of jarred-sauce with butter chicken. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. In order to redeem myself, I got to work!

Despite the name, there is not that much butter involved in this recipe. I am guessing the name comes from the intense, buttery texture of the sauce. However, that doesn't make it diet food! To get that texture, you can't skimp on the cooking cream, but you can do minimal damage by using the 15% stuff. There are a few steps to making this classic Indian treat, but it's nothing very complicated. The recipe was originally created to use up leftover tandoori chicken, so you need to marinate and cook yourself some chicken and THEN, make the sauce. If you have a tandoori chicken recipe you like, try making some extra next time you whip up a batch, or simply give my marinade a shot; it's delicious!

But really, the trickiest thing about butter chicken is mostly getting your hands on all the spices, some of which may require a bit of hunting (I am looking at you, cardamom and fenugreek!). I was lucky to find all the spices I needed pre-ground at the bulk store where I usually shop, but having a mortar and pestle comes in handy if you want to be authentic about it and make a paste out of some of the ingredients and spices. But if you don't have a mortar and pestle, you can always use a food processor.

4 skinless boneless chicken breasts

Marinade:
1 cup plain yogurt, preferably Greek or balkan style
1 lemon, juiced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper, or to taste
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
2 tablespoons minced fresh garlic (or ground to a paste)
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger (or ground to a paste)
1 teaspoon kosher salt

Sauce:
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 yellow onion, finely sliced
1 to 2 tablespoons fresh ginger, finely chopped
4 to 5 garlic cloves, finely chopped
4 to 5 cardamom pods, or 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon garam masala
2 teaspoons dry fenugreek leaves, crushed, or 1 teaspoon ground fenugreek
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup cashews or almonds, ground to a paste
1(28 ounces) can crushed tomatoes
1 cup water
1 cup cooking cream

Combine the yogurt, lemon juice, cumin, coriander, cayenne, garam masala, turmeric, garlic, ginger and salt in a medium bowl. Put the chicken in a freezer bag and cover with the marinade. Toss around to cover the chicken with the yogurt mixture and refrigerate, from 2 hours to overnight.

When ready to cook, preheat the oven 425 degrees. Place the chicken on a rack over a roasting or baking pan (line your pan with aluminum foil, cuz that marinade can be a biatch to clean up) and roast for 25 to 30 minutes, until cooked through. Set aside, and when the chicken is cool enough to handle, cut into bite-sized pieces.

Put all your spices together in a small bowl. Ground your garlic and ginger together with a mortar and pestle or small food processor to form a paste.

Preheat a large pan over medium heat. Melt the butter, add the onions, and cook until softened, 7 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger and spices and cook until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and the cashew or almond paste. Add the water, stirring, until the sauce has the desired consistency. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for about 10 minutes.

Add the pieces of chicken, and simmer for another 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the cream.

Serve hot, over basmati rice and naan bread.

If you have nut allergies, skip the almond or cashew paste; you can always add 1 or 2 tablespoons of tomato paste, to give your sauce the proper "body".

Whew! It's a lot of work but tender chicken in this subtly spicy sauce is totally worth it! Wash it down with dry white or rosé wine, served very cold.

Pasta with Creamy Chicken and Mushroom Sauce

Even when one is blessed with a great man, awesome friends, a good job and a cute cat, life can get a little hectic and leave one's brain feeling like mashed potatoes. Comfort food and vodka-limes are perfect for such occasions. This is usually more of a fall and winter meal, but hey, I had a craving for a rich plate of comfort food. When the world feels like a Kafka novel, sometimes the answer is a big bowl of pasta in a creamy sauce.

I made this sauce with cremini mushrooms, but portobello or shiitake would also be gorgeous with the cream and chicken. Add the Parmigiano Regginao to taste, and use the freshly grated stuff: that’s what takes this dish to a whole new level of yummy.

1 package dry farfalle pasta

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into small strips

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 container fresh mushrooms, thinly sliced

1 small onion, finely diced

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 teaspoon dry thyme

1/2 teaspoon crushed pepper flakes

A splash of white wine

1 cup cooking cream (15%)

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano Regianno (or to taste)

A few leaves of fresh basil, chopped

Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste

Fresh parsley, chopped (for garnish)

Preheat the olive oil in a large pan, over medium heat. Cook the pieces of chicken until they are no longer pink, about 5 to 7 minutes. Set aside and keep warm. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, and cook the pasta according to package instruction. Add a bit of oil to the pan in which the chicken was cooked, and sauté the garlic until fragrant, for a minute or two. Add the onions, and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook until they released their liquid and brown, about 5 or 7 more minutes. Deglaze the pan with the white wine. 

Wait a couple of minutes for the alcohol to evaporate, then add the cream. Bring to a low boil, and cook until the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Reduce the heat to low, add the chicken, Parmigiano Regianno and basil, and blend well. 

Add the pasta and mix with the sauce. Serve generously sprinkled with freshly cracked black pepper and chopped parsley.

If your cream is not heavy enough and won't thicken, add some flour, a scant tablespoon at the time, mixing well between additions until the sauce has the desired consistency. You can also make it saucier by adding a cup of whole milk along with the cream (in which case you will have to add flour).

To turn it into an even more extreme comforting dish know as pasta tetrazzini, transfer the pasta mixed in with the sauce in an oven-proof dish,generously sprinkle with grated mozzarella and put under the broiler until the cheese is melted and golden. The calorie-coma a helping will put you in will make you forget all your worries!