one good dish. david tanis.

For years I used Heart of the Artichoke and A Platter Of Figs, religiously. They are amongst my very favorite cookbooks. So you can imagine how over the moon we were to collaborate with Chef David Tanis on his most recent book One Good Dish .We ploughed through almost two solid weeks of shooting, in the darkest hours of winter. We arrived each morning as the sun rose and finished each day long after dark It was a marathon of shooting and eating and eating some more... David patiently put up with us taking over his entire space.

 Thank you David. Thank you Artisan. Thank you Samin for the introduction! 

Below are a few favorites. 

quail eggs with flavored salt

kale

real garlic toast

blood orange and persimmon

mussels on the half shell 

 gorgonzola and walnut crostini 

 sweet and salty nut brittle

 gunpowder and fresh mint tea

very green fish stew

 .well charred-endive with anchovy butter

save your life garlic soup

 remnants of mussels on the half shell

Save-Your-Life Garlic Soup

Recipe by David Tanis

 From One Good Dish.

said to prevent and cure hangovers...

2 heads garlic, preferably new crop[

separated into cloves (about 16 medium cloves) and peeled

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

12 sage leaves

salt and pepper

6 cups of water

4 eggs

4 slices of bread, lightly toasted

chopped parsley, scallions or chives.

slice or roughly chop the garlic cloves

warm the oil in a heavy pot over medium heat.

add the garlic and the sage and let siszzle a bit without browning ( about 2 minutes)

season with about 1 teaspoonsalt and a few grinds of pepper

add the water and bring to a boil over high heat, then lower to a brisk simmer.

Cook for 10 to 15 minutes

Taste and adjust the seasoning

Ladle about an inch of the soup into a skilliet and bring to a brisk simmer over medium heat

Carefully crack the eggs into the pan and poach for about three minutes.

To serve, place a slice of toast in each soup bowl and top with a poached egg. 

Ladle the soup over the eggs and sprinkle with a little parsley.

where the wild things are. the blue pearl.

One afternoon, a couple years ago, around a tiny fire outside their farmhouse in Southern Vermont, Les Hook and Nova Kim cooked up some wild mushrooms we had gathered that morning nearby. In a  large cast iron pan, they seasoned them with nothing more than a little butter or olive oil and some salt and pepper. It had just begun to snow steadily when we set out to gather. Large fat flakes  floated around us amd landed on our eyelashes.Les pulled over in his red Subaru, flashers glowing in the wild flurry of white. He deftly put up a twenty-foot ladder against a slippery maple tree and quickly climbed up. He pulled of the biggest Blue Pearl Oyster Mushrooms I have ever seen off that tree. We drove back to their place and lit the fire. It was then that Nova told us about her non-turkey, perfect for vegetarians on turkey day or for any feast any time of the year for that matter. You must start with a large fan of a mushroom, as you can see from the photo it kind of sweetly resembles a turkey's tail! Though I have roasted many a mushroom from them, it took me two years to get to this post. I asked Nova to save me a large Blue Pearl that I would pick up from the New Amsterdam Market. Luckily my snail mail reached her in time and I was able to get a beauty from them the Saturday before Thanksgiving. I kept in a paper bag on my fire escape until cooking day. Now I know I have sung their praises before but people, if you have not been to the market on a day when they are there then you are SERIOUSLY missing out. If you are interested in finding out when The Vermont Wild Food Gatherer's Guild will be in town go to The New Amsterdam Market website and check the vendor and calendar listings! They always have something special and if you have never been to the market then what are you waiting for? It is every Sunday from 11-4pm.

Back to the mushrooms...

The mushroom I got from Les and Nova was held together by a stretch of bark. I left the piece of bark on the mushroom while I roasted it.

I brushed the mushroom with a generous amount of olive oil and sprinkled it with French sea salt cracked black pepper and thyme.

I put in my largest Cast iron pan...this was a BIG mushroom 14 inches across at least. I threw it in the oven at 350 degrees for a slow roast and when it started to brown at the edges I put about a 1/4 cup of water in the pan and covered it with tin foil to add a little more moisture. Mushrooms are essentially like sponges so they soak up all that moisture. I may not have needed to do this if I had roasted it right away but since I had waited a few days I thought it might help to add the additional moisture.. I took the tin foil off for the last five minutes or so of cooking. I can't give you a specific cooking time because it depends on how big or small the mushrooms are that you are roasting. So use your intuition. You want it to be moist and almost meaty when you slice it.

We loved this so much that we could almost forego the turkey next year and just eat this!

It was really good with gravy... 

Thank you Nova for this brilliant idea!

Roasted Wild Blue Pearl Mushroom Tail

Set your oven to 350 degrees 

1 large Blue Pearl Mushroom fan approx 12-14 inches in length

1/4- 1/2 cup olive oil brushed and drizzled on the mushroom

Seas salt to taste

Cracked black pepper to taste

Sprigs of Fresh Thyme

Gently brush any dirt or debris off the mushroom with a small mushroom brush or a small pastry brush

Place the mushroom upright in a large roasting pan or cast iron skillet

Brush and drizzle with olive oil. Mushrooms really soak it up so be generous with your application.

Sprinkle with sea salt and cracked black pepper

Add some fresh thyme leaves and a sprig or two for looks

Place in the preheated oven and roast for 15-20 minutes depending on the size of our mushroom.

Put about a 1/4 to 1/2 cup of water in the pan and cover with tin foil

When the water is all evaporated the mushroom will be done. 

Uncover for the last five minutes or so.

The mushroom should be moist and easy to slice along the grain.

Cooking time really depends on the mushroom size so keep and eye on it!@ You don’t want it to be too tough!!!

As always, a word of caution where wild mushrooms are concerned. Leave the gathering to an expert!!

where the wild things are. no.15. eggs and ramp. easter breakfast.

What a gorgeous day it was here in New York! Spring has finally arrived and ramp season is in full swing both in the city and the forest. We celebrated by making poached eggs over rosti with sauteed ramp greens. (the greens were left over after making pickled ramps. The greens have a soft woodsy taste. I don't find ramps to be especially strong in flavor despite their intense onion aroma) The Green Market at Union Square this week was such an inspiration. I couldn't help but to pick up these beautiful organic eggs to accompany the ramps we gathered on our land upstate.

 Sauteed ramp Greens

1 bunch of ramps

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Sea salt

Cracked black pepper

Rinse the ramps under cold water to remove any dirt or debris.

Gently peel back the  lower outer most layer of the ramp and discard.  If the roots are on the ramps the outermost layer can be a bit transluscent and slimy, this is what you want to get rid of!

Cut the hairy root ends off the cleaned ramps and discard.

If you are using the bulb end of the ramps for pickling, cut them just above the pink stem, This will give you the bulb end for pickling and the green for sauteeing. You could opt to just sautee the whole cleaned ramp if you wish. I did it this way because I was using the bulbs for pickling.

Pat the greens dry and and plop them ino a large cast iron skillet.

Add a drizzle of olive oil.

Toss the greens over low heat until JUST wilted. do not overcook.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve over rosti with a poached egg or on any grain or toasts. Eat them any way you would a wilted spinch.

 organic eggs

 wild ramps

sauteed ramp greens

poached eggs over rosti with sauteed ramp greens 

 poached eggs over rosti with sauteed ramp greens and pickled ramps

where the wild things are no.14. stinging nettle and mint tea.

This morning we made a fresh stinging nettle and mint tea. A fresh tea or a tisane is really easy to make. A tisane is a herbal or plant infusion made from the leaves, fruits or roots of a plant other than a traditional tea bush. When we were in Sweden last summer we had a different tea every morning at the restaurant Faviken Magasinet. Herbal infusions like this one can be served either hot or cold. One of our favorites at Faviken was a cold juniper infusion.

As with any wild plant, make sure you properly identify it before eating it. Nettles are available this time of the year at greenmarkets or in the wild. They are definitely available at the Union square Greenmarket here in New York. If you choose to harvest them yourself, wear gloves and long sleeves and pants! Always make sure you are harvesting from a pesticide free area.

2 loosely packed cups of stinging nettles. ( wear gloves when handling.)

1 cup fresh mint leaves.

 Set tea water to boil.

Place the mint and nettles in your teapot. You can chop the nettles and the mint if you wish or use them in their whole form.

When the water is boiling, pour over the nettles and mint leaves and leave to steep for 8 to 10 minutes. The boiling water and the steep time erradicate the sting in the stinging nettles, so be sure to leave it to steep for the entire time!

The tea will take on a beautiful soft green color and subtle grassy woody flavor.

Drink it straight or add a little milk and honey.

where the wild things are no. 14. nettle and ramp butter.

I have declared it nettle week in our house. So, while shooting a job at our place yesterday, I decided some nettle snacks were in order. We roasted some ramps with olive oil and sea salt and slathered some finish rye bread with some homemade nettle and ramp butter and topped it with the roasted ramps. It was the perfect afternoon treat, maybe the most perfect sandwich ever!

Recipes to follow on the weekend! (BUTTER RECIPE COMING SOON!)

Roasted Slightly Charred Ramps

1 bunch ramps

olive oil

sea salt

cracked black pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degree.

Rinse the ramps under cold water to remove any dirt or debris.

Gently peel back the  lower outer most layer of the ramp and discard. Sometimes if the roots are on the ramps the outermost layer can be a bit transluscent and slimy. This is what you want to get rid of!

Cut the hairy root ends off the cleaned ramps and discard

Pat the ramps dry with a paper towel and lay them out on a roasting sheet. Thye can overlap one another.

Drizzle them with  extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt and cracked black pepper.

Roast the ramps until just tender. 12-15 minutes at the most. Some of the leaves will brown and crisp a bit but don't worry! They still taste fantastic even when a bit charred!

Serve them with scrambled or poached eggs or on buttered toasts. If you feel iinclined and you pobably will; eat them straight off the baking sheet because they are just that good!