Jan

Chickpea Yogurt Soup (Toyga Corbasi)

Two weeks ago, I was luckily enough to attend a Turkish cooking class at the Turkish Cultural Center in Sunnyside, Queens. Run by a sassy mom of three named Sila, we learned in rapid succession how to make tender and succulent chicken shish kebabs, semolina roses, and yogurt chickpea soup, also known as toyga corbasi.

Toyga soup was the clear winner of the night for me – it was incredibly quick and easy to make, tasty, rather healthy, and somehow greater than the sum of its parts. Another great plus is that none of the ingredients are hard to track down, and can most likely be found in the comfort of your own larder. Yea, I said larder. I don’t know how to explain this any further than I’ve been bundled to the nines all day and have felt like my own episode of Little House On the Prarie.

The following is from the recipe from the Turkish Cultural Center’s blog, with some notes that I found helpful in the making of said soup. I’ve also made my version with just a little more heft, as it’s been bitterly cold outside.

INGREDIENTS:

1 3/4 cup chickpeas (Canned is fine, washed and drained. Otherwise, if you’re a smartypants, you might have some precooked dried chickpeas lying in wait.)
2 cup water
1 cup yogurt
1 cup water
1 egg yolk
2 tbsp. flour
1/2 cup frozen spinach, thawed and drained (If using fresh, a bunch should do.)
1 garlic clove, mashed with salt (Add more garlic to taste…so I made mine with 3…or was it 5?)
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
Salt
Pepper

OPTIONAL GARNISH
2 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. dry mint

Place the chickpeas with water in a medium pot. Check to make sure that the chickpeas are tender – sometimes the canned versions can be a little unevenly crunchy and can use a little more cooking time. Bring everything to a boil over medium-low heat.

Whisk the egg yolk, flour, spinach and yogurt together in a small bowl.

This is the point to proceed with caution. We will need to temper this mixture (basically evening out the temperature between the hot cooking chickpeas and cold yogurt mixture) to keep it from curdling in the soup.
So. Turn down the heat on the stove.
Take a few large spoons of liquid from the pot and mix into the bowl. You may see some worrisome bits at first, but then everything should blend together smoothly. Then slowly, SLOWLY pour the mixture into the pot on the stove while stirring very slowly.

If everything goes as planned, the soup should be milky and smooth.
Simmer for 15 minutes over medium-low heat, while stirring occasionally. The soup should gradually become thicker.
Add the spinach, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper, then stir and turn the heat off. The lemon in the soup worried me initially but no, it doesn’t make things curdle and also just served to brighten up this simple soup without any overt sour notes.

FOR THE GARNISH:
Place the butter in a small saucepan. When it begins bubbling, stir in the dried mint and let it sizzle for a few seconds. Pour over your soup. If pouring butter into soup isn’t your thing (it should be), a drizzle of good olive oil instead would also do the trick.

This soup was a lifesaver after a cold evening of running errands all over the neighborhood. (Toilet paper and Q-tips. Least glamorous girl ever.) It took less than 1/2 hr to prepare and for a vegetarian soup with a non-broth base, was deliciously warming and filling served alongside some buttered slices of miche from the newly opened Bien Cuit. I am obsessed with this place.

Ahem, hem. Hello, is this on? Bring me a ham and brie croissant. Please.

(Also, the next class at the Turkish Cultural Center is on February 6th. The classes are capped at 15, and is sold out for the next session, but Session 7 tickets are still available at a very reasonable $25 here.)

120 days ago Short URL 3 Comments

Food/Made

Chickpea/quick vegetarian soup/Soup/Yoghurt

Jan

Brunch for All!

I love, love, love having people over, whether it’s for some food, tea, board games, or tragic whiskey drinking. To me, it’s a landmark of finally living in my own place with only my own schedule to accommodate, wrapped in a little bit of smug satisfaction at having brought the party to my doorstep.

This past Sunday, I had some friends over for brunch, which was organized partially because I hadn’t thrown a holiday party, but mostly because I desperately wanted to make the cinnamon toast French toast recipe out of my newly acquired Smitten Kitchen cookbook. Blogger power!

Entertaining, especially in the cramped quarters of New York City, can be daunting. There are so many sane reasons not to have people over – the preparation, the inviting, the pestering for RSVPs, the menu, the shopping. And once you get the group together, there’s the figuring out how to serve everyone, the squishing, making sure everyone has what they need, the music (!) and then, oh yea, being able to enjoy it without running around like a chicken without a head.

Or like Lola.

Remember Lola? I’ve been feeling like her all week.

I digress.

—

THE SIMPLE BUT SAVORY MENU

Piles of soft scrambled eggs - easy to cook in bulk, and incredibly forgiving

Assorted sausages from Faicco’s – cut into bite sized pieces for easy self-service and eating

Oven baked smoked bacon – also from Faicco’s – good and cheap at $5.99/lb

Cinnamon toast French toast - we made our way through two pans of the stuff, with some happy guests carrying off the leftovers.

Cheese plate - the stoic but noble standby for those eating lulls, and post-event chats

Plenty of coffee

Mimosas cobbled together from guest offerings

: Baking the cinnamon toast.

: Piles of completed toasts.

: An unexpected exercise in creative geometry.

: Pre-poached sausages.

: The spread.

: A cheese plate.

A few things I’ve learned about entertaining in living quarters the size of a pea that are worth passing along?

#1 – Keep the atmosphere relaxed and casual.

A multiple course sit-down dinner is probably not the way to go. I’ve had people over game night, brunch, tea and snacks - scenarios that encourage comfortable interaction in close quarters, while also leaving guests feeling free to come and go during the course of the gathering. Since there is comfortable seating for about 6 people in my living room (8 if you’re feeling cozy and optimistic) having guests rotate through over the course of a few hours allows for more people to attend. More people, more fun. Write that down. There will be a test.

#2 – Keep last minute prep to a minimum.

In my small combined living room/kitchen, activity in the kitchen is activity everywhere. If your place is anything like mine, pick recipes that allow for minimal last minute preparation to keep the frenzy to a minimum, but also to free yourself up for the fun part…hanging out with your guests. Recipes get extra points if they are resilient enough to taste great when they’ve cooled down and/or have spent a few minutes neglected on the stove. Any little item that can be prepped beforehand should be.

For this past Sunday’s brunch, I lightly poached the sausage to keep frying time to a minimum, prepped the crowd-friendly French toast recipe an hour before guests were due to arrive, and laid the bacon out on a baking sheet, ready to be slipped into the oven.

#3 – The guest list is all.

Let people know what to expect. Cramped quarters? Flights of stairs? Animals? Your carefully edited group of guests should include zero high-maintenance friends, and your list of yes-es will be a self-selected group of people ready to have a good time come hell or high water.

Any other ideas from you smarties out there?

134 days ago Short URL Comments

Food/Made

Brunch/cinnamon toast/French toast/french toast recipe/game night/New York City/party preparation/small spaces/Tips for entertaining

Jan

Welcome to the future.

Dear loyal readers,

For the longest time, 2012 just sounded like the distant future, and I had to keep reminding myself it was the now. Now we’re in 2013, and we might as well be strapping on our jetpacks. (Btw, have you heard this band? I am heads over heels over their name. )

The last half of this year has just blown by, with barely a post from me in the last few months. I’ve missed you so. I’ve changed jobs, gone to India, got stranded in Austria, found myself waist deep in a relationship, gained some friends and misplaced some others, and generally have been lucky enough to be good, happy and healthy. I hope you have too.

First, guys and girls, thank you, thank you, thank you for reading. It means so much to me that you read Smartest Cleverest. Second, I’ll be making some exciting changes to the site. In the process of writing on a more regular basis for Smartest Cleverest in the past year, I’ve noticed that the posts that I get most excited about writing are the recipes. They are fun. (Please say you think so too.) For a while there, I had a pretty big mental block against being a food blog. “The world is awash in food blogs.” “Who doesn’t have a food blog?” “No one one cares about what you ate last night.” (That was my brain mocking itself, by the way.) But I’ve decided it will be fine, this is what I’ll be doing. Check out my new About page and the slight name change. New categories, and posts will follow shortly. Stay tuned!

Love,

Grace

****

And to make up for the recent temporary lull, a list of things that have inspired me in the last year. May it spark a light in you.

Have you read Steal Like An Artist by Mr. Austin Kleon? The bit about how blogging is learning what you want to write about? And yea, all those other really brilliant bits.
Penelope Trunk. Yes, she’s craaazy and arrogant, but damn smart. And also unapologetic about cutting to the chase. Like this. And this. And this.
This quote by Woodrow Wilson, a reminder to look above the fray: “You are not here merely to make a living. You are here in order to enable the world to live more amply, with great vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement.”
Jiro and his bone-deep commitment to his craft.
This poem by Kathleen Lynch I ran into on Swiss Miss. It is currently being transferred from my (paper!) planner 2012 to planner 2013.
Beyonce at the United Nations belting out ‘I Was Here.” Girlcrush forever.

142 days ago Short URL Comments

Food/Miscellany

Austin Kleon/Creativity/food/india/Woodrow Wilson/writing

Nov

Goat Cheese and Herb Gougères

In the next booze and junk food-ridden weeks, having a crowd-pleasing contribution to bring to the party puts at least five million points into the grownup jar. Might I suggest something that looks and tastes complicated, but actually can be made in less than a hour? How about something that can be made in bulk, stored until needed, and is easily transported without any special carrier/insulation/juggling/weightlifting skills? Behold gougères, also known as fancy cheese puffs.

These little things have never met anyone they couldn’t win over. With cookies and candy predominating the holiday eating season, a little something savory can be a welcome break for everyone’s palates. I’ve adapted this from a New York Times recipe, which I think makes for a slightly sturdier version than the Alain Ducasse recipe. This is the version I made for the family Thanksgiving, but this recipe is infinitely tweak-able.

You’ll need:

4 tablespoons (½ stick) butter
½ teaspoon salt
1½ cups (about 7 ounces) all-purpose flour
3 eggs
2 1/2 cups grated goats milk cheddar (I got this at Trader Joe’s)
1 cup grated Parmesan
2 Tbs fresh thyme
1 tsp finely chopped fresh sage

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Combine one cup water, butter and salt in a medium sized pot and bring to a boil. Stir over medium heat until the butter melts.

With the stove still going, add the flour all at once and cook, stirring constantly, until dough holds together in a nice, smooth ball. You can use a mixer, but the going gets tough for some appliances. A little hard work never hurt anyone.

Once the ball comes together, turn off the stove and transfer the dough into a mixing bowl. Add eggs one at a time, letting each one incorporate fully until you add the next. (Fair warning, this part tends to look gross.)

Keep mixing until the dough looks glossy. This will happen, really and truly it will.

Stir in the cheeses, herbs and a healthy dash of freshly ground black pepper.

Drop teaspoonfuls onto lightly greased or nonstick baking sheets and bake until puffed and lightly browned, 10 to 15 minutes.

Serve hot, warm or at room temperature.

If you want to store them, wait until they’ve cooled completely before putting them into the freezer. When you’re ready to use them, just pop them into a 350 degree oven for 5 minutes. Magic!

A few tweaking notes:

You can substitute pretty much any cheese that will melt. The Times recipe uses a mixture of softer cheese (either Emmenthal, Gruyère, Cantal or Cheddar) and Parmesan for the harder cheese. Regular cheddar makes the gougères taste exactly like Cheese Nips, which never held any appeal for me. I usually prefer to use the more traditional Gruyère.

The original recipe uses a cup each of the cheeses. I say more cheese never hurt anyone, so I’ve upped the quantity substantially.

Herbs are nice, but definitely not necessary.

(By the way, I just found this super smart pepper mill. Seems like a great idea for people who have less hand dexterity. And like very logical ways of refilling their mills. And $20.)

Recipe: New York Times’ Gougères

179 days ago Short URL 1 Comment

Food/Made

Alain Ducasse/Cheddar cheese/Cheese/easy party snacks/Flour/Gruyère/holiday party recipes/New York Times/Parmigiano-Reggiano/Trader Joe's

Nov

Overachiever Oatmeal

#1 – Not to point any fingers, but oatmeal for me (and most likely you) growing up was Quaker Oats and its similarly lumpy, glue-y brethren. The nice, friendly looking man on the cardboard canister always seemed so friendly, so jolly – I wanted desperately to love his oatmeal. Then in college, I discovered steel cut oats and breakfast in the wintertime was never the same again. Texture. Flavor. Heartiness. Good.

#2 – I will pick savory over sweet any day, especially for breakfast. If you want to win in a fight, just throw a whipped cream and strawberry syrup covered waffle at my face and I will shrivel and die. For the longest time, I was just adding fruit and nuts to my oatmeal. I’m sure it was very healthy, but did make me feel distinctly like a ruminating farm animal. Then on cold day in 2009, Mark Bittman talked about savory oatmeal, a light dawned, and oatmeal got much, much better.

The great thing about oatmeal is that it forms a great base for almost anything you can throw at it. I like to cook a larger batch of steel cut oatmeal and store it in the refrigerator to be parceled out during the week, sometimes even for dinner. (McCann’s has some good time-saving options to peruse.) To reheat without a microwave, throw a portion or two into a pot with a little bit of water to rehydrate and heat up for a few minutes on the stove.