"Pure Gadget Luxury"!!!

Check out this gift guide video featuring the Fissler CookStar Induction Pro, plus a lot of other great gadgets. I like how she talks about how it keeps the kitchen cool. Did you know that 2009 has been the year of the foody geek, thanks to Julie and Julia?

New Blog: Pressure Cooking with Lorna Sass

Our friend and Very Important Fissler Foodie Lorna Sass has hit the blogosphere. Over at Pressure Cooking with Lorna Sass, the legendary Queen of Pressure Cooking is posting everything you ever needed to know about using your “pc,” as she affectionately calls it.

Those new to “pc” cooking should head straight for the About page, which features a video of Lorna explaining how she came to reign over pressure cooking. (Lorna may be a queen, but she’s equal parts down-home just folks. To wit: there’s a Facebook group named after her. Become a groupie at Lorna Sass is my Homegirl – Pressure Cooker Users Unite.)

Beginning and experienced cooks will find joy aplenty in the wide variety of recipes Lorna has posted. If you think they may be complicated and time-consuming, think again. Using Vegan Fava Bean Mushroom Soup as an example, Lorna explains her unfussy methodology:

“I make all of my soups in the pressure cooker because when I want soup, I want it fast. To put it another way, I’m not one who enjoys hovering over the stove. No, when I’m hungry, I’m good for about 5 minutes of prep. Then, after 10 minutes under pressure and the natural release (another 10 minutes or so), I have a delicious coarsely pureed soup. 30 minutes MAX from start to finish–that’s my style.”

As author of numerous cookbooks (see next post below), Lorna possesses an inspiring repertoire of healthy, luscious recipes. Your only problem will be choosing which to cook first.

Here’s to a merry “pc” dinner, Lorna-style.

Cooking Under Pressure, 20 Years Young

The classic book "Cooking Under Pressure" is out now in an updated 20th anniversary edition. Author Lorna Sass happens to be a Fissler fan. In fact, she used Fissler's Blue Point pressure cookers in a class she taught this past year. If you've been hesitant about pressure cooking, get Lorna's book to guide you, and an easy-to-use Fissler pressure cooker. Fissler makes pressure cooking safe and fast, and Lorna's cookbook makes it delicious. Food Politics author Marion Nestle (second from the right in the group shot in our previous post from New York) said that, "“Anything Lorna Sass writes is a pleasure to read…She makes the cooking methods seem so easy that anyone who doesn’t own a pressure cooker will want one right away".
Here's a preview recipe courtesy of Lorna the "Queen of Pressure Cooking"!

RISOTTO WITH SUN-DRIED TOMATOES AND SMOKED MOZZARELLA
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon oil from sun-dried tomatoes
1/2 cup finely minced onion
1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
3 1/2 to 4 cups vegetable broth
1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, drained and coarsely chopped
1 cup tightly packed, grated smoked mozzarella (5 ounces)
Salt to taste, if desired
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil or 2 tablespoons minced Italian parsley (optional but pretty and delicious)
Heat the butter and oil in the cooker. Sauté the onion until soft but not browned, about 2 minutes. Stir in the rice, making sure to coat it thoroughly with the fat. Stir in 3 1/2 cups of the broth (watch for sputtering oil).
Lock the lid in place and over high heat. Bring to high pressure. Adjust the heat to maintain high pressure and cook for 4 minutes. Reduce pressure with a quick-release method. Remove the lid, tilting it away from you to allow any excess steam to escape.
The risotto will be fairly soupy at this point. Set the cooker over medium-high heat and boil uncovered, stirring vigorously every minute, until the mixture thickens and the rice is tender but still chewy, 3 to 5 minutes. Add a bit more broth if the mixture becomes dry before the rice reaches the desired consistency. When the rice is ready, turn off the heat. Stir in the tomatoes and mozzarella, and add salt to taste and basil, if you wish. Serve immediately.
SERVES 6 AS AN APPETIZER, 4 AS A MAIN COURSE
Copyright, 2009, Lorna Sass, all rights reserved

The Mac Attack Cook Off

We attended the Mac Attack Pot Luck and Cook-Off recently, put on by our favorite (is there another?) Macaroni and Cheese blog: We Heart Mac and Cheese. Since our macaroni and cheese was going to be one of at least a dozen, we figured that hostess Hilary Havarti could use an extra warming plate to keep the casseroles toasty so we brought along the Fissler CookStar Induction Pro. After baking in the oven in an old Le Creuset enamel on cast iron pan (yes, cast iron is induction compatible) we set the induction pro on "keep warm" and for the next two hours the competition for best mac and cheese was on. Well, this Fissler Foody's mac and cheese didn't make the cut for flavor but it sure looked good sitting on the induction pro. Click here for the winning recipe. And check out the old Roper Scientific Cooking Chart in Hilary Havarti's oven. Quite a contrast technologically to the new Induction Pro.

A Fissler Foody goes to New York

I was in New York last week and attended a panel discussion at New York University, called WHO'S WHO & WHAT'S WHAT: The Evolution of the Food Cognoscenti in America. Restaurant consultant Clark Wolf moderated the distinguished panelists, which included Mitchell Davis, Author and VP of the James Beard Foundation; Barbara Haber, Food Historian, Author, Curator & Chair of the James Beard Foundation's Who's Who Committee; Daniel Humm, chef at Eleven Madison Park, The New York Times' newest four star restaurant; Marion Nestle, Author of Food Politics & NYU Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies & Public Health; and Bob Spitz, author of an upcoming bio of Julia Child. These people ARE the food cognoscenti in America, or at least a small but significant piece of it. A fascinating conversation on food and nutrition policy, the changing role of women in food, the competitive New York restaurant scene and the continuing influence of Julia Child (back on the best-seller lists long after her death) was followed by a reception featuring the amazing goat cheeses from Laura Chenel's Chevre. Moderator Clark Wolf wrote a book on American Cheeses so we knew the cheese would be good.

John Alan Wine Tasting Dinner at The Foundry on Melrose

We've been writing about good food here at Fissler Foodies for a while now. But don't you want some good wine to go with your meal? Click on the title of this post to get the details on an incredible tasting dinner in Los Angeles, featuring wines from John Alan Winery. Renowned chef Eric Greenspan will match his unique and creative dishes with a series of John Alan wines at The Foundry on Monday Oct. 26 (323.651.0915 to reserve your seat!)
*Five wines
*Five courses
*$85 per person
Seating is limited

**MENU**

Seared Scallops
garlic cream / caramelized pears
-- 2007 Viogner --

Duck Confit Risotto
mushrooms / dried cherries / blue cheese
-- 2005 Malcontent --

Breast of Duck
currant mole / crispy masa
-- 2006 East Bank Cuvee --

Duo of Beef
caraway carrot puree / golden raisins
-- 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon --

Artisinal Cheeses
-- 2006 Bonne Terre Rouge --

Rooftop wok spot

Fissler Foody Mike sends us this report direct from a Los Angeles rooftop:
"I just used the Cookstar Induction Pro with the Original Pro Collection Wok this weekend. I went to the farmer's market with my friend
Travis, bought a bunch of fresh veggies, mushrooms, brussel sprouts,
tofurky and seitan and made a stir-fry right on the table on his rooftop!
It was awesome. We cooked and ate lunch right there."
Fissler Induction Pro+wok+ingredients+Fissler Foody=A fabulous meal in the great outdoors. Oh, don't forget the extension cord.

Tarts are tops

My friend Andrew Wilder (owner of Svenska Mobler) had a potluck at his place a few weeks ago. His friend Matthew MacIntyre brought what I thought was a store-bought fruit tart. It looked so perfect that I assumed it came from a bakery, but lo-and-behold, Matthew's very talented mother baked it herself. Everybody loved it.
I have a surplus of quickly ripening peaches, after going peach picking for the last peaches of the season at Yingst Ranch (contact info about halfway down this page), so, inspired by Matthew's mother, I baked a peach tart. I cheated a little bit and used Arrowhead Mills Organic Chocolate cookie mix for the crust. Arrowhead Mills offers the chocolate cookie mix around Valentine's day, but you can use their sugar cookie mix in the same way. As we get closer to the holidays that one should be easy to find. Since peaches are no longer in season try apples, pears or even persimmon slices for your tart. Mine looked great when it came out of the oven and I was all ready to take a picture of it sitting on a Fissler Magic Trivet, but then I found that the camera batteries had died. I couldn't wait for the batteries to recharge to taste it so you don't get to see it in it's whole perfection, but even with a slice out I think it looks pretty good. Though not as good as Mrs. MacIntyre's!

Celebrating the Julienne cookbook

For over 25 years, the families of San Marino and their neighbors in Pasadena have been Celebrating with Julienne. Whether they brought Sue Campoy and her catering staff into their lovely homes, or if they’ve come to the brasserie on Mission St. to be served by the restaurant staff, Julienne has been a part of the special occasions in their lives. Holidays, anniversaries, birthdays and engagements have all had their unique menus and their beautiful settings. For all those years Sue Campoy was on hand to tell you what was new in the pastry case and to share the news of the neighborhood. The place overflowed with the abundance of the good life in Southern California. Although Sue Campoy passed away in March, the legacy of her beautiful restaurant, and now an equally gorgeous cookbook, keep that abundance alive.
Sue Campoy built Julienne’s foundation on the catering business she started in 1980, and she quickly became known for her innate understanding of the way food brings people together. Julienne’s food was always luxurious but accessible: the kind of food that makes an occasion special but not stuffy. After experiencing the Sue Campoy magic at their parties and celebrations, catering customers started demanding it every day, which was when Julienne, the restaurant was born.
From the day Julienne opened it has always been filled with happy customers. The talent expressed in Sue’s food could put a smile on anyone’s face but Sue also had the good fortune of finding a gorgeous setting to frame her culinary art. Invariably, visitors compare it to that place they discovered in the south of France, under an arcade, by the morning market. Like a brasserie by the Mediterranean, Julienne is a perfect example of the complete congruence of place and purpose, drawing the community to gather under its protective arches. It’s a place where customers feel both nurtured and indulged.
On a typical Southern California day animated customers flow in and out under the three high arches that shield Julienne from the heat of the sun. Canvas umbrellas guard groups of ladies who chat at white-cloth covered tables while a young couple sips ice tea at a cool marble slab. The pot of herbs between them scents the space, until a breeze sends the aroma of jasmine from a planter by the sidewalk. Mothers pass through the furthest arch, into the gourmet market to pick up tonight’s dinner while businessmen get ready to brave the speedway that is the 101, fortified with the brace of an espresso and encouraged with the sweetness of a scone. This is Julienne, the place, and it is also Julienne, the book.
For those who love Julienne and want to bring some of the magic home, but for those too, who will never have the opportunity to sit under those arches, Sue, her daughter Julie, photographer Emily Brooke Sandor, writer Colleen Dunn Bates and designer Joseph Shuldiner, crafted a book that uses exquisite images to recreate how Julienne looks, and practical recipes to recreate how Julienne tastes. Like Julienne, the enterprise, the book is divided into sections that represent the brasserie, the gourmet market and the catering business, with a little autobiography and history mixed in. It’s a delightful book that expresses Sue Campoy’s joie de vivre in sincere words, elegant images and, most importantly, doable recipes.

Yes, we can...make healthy mac & cheese

My friend Hilary has this amazing single subject blog that's all about macaroni and cheese: http://www.weheartmacandcheese.com/
She posted a review of a healthy mac and cheese recipe, and since she subscribes to macaroni and cheese orthodoxy, it was not glowing with praise. Okay, she's not really that orthodox; the recipe just wasn't very good.
So for those who want their mac and cheese and don't want the calories too, I provide here my friend Felecia's mother's Healthy Macaroni and Cheese recipe. Parthenia Aldrich is a retired dietitian. She did a good job with this recipe. I tweaked it a tiny bit.

Parthenia Aldrich's Macaroni and Cheese
1 T mustard
1 cup low fat plain yogurt
2 T reduced fat cream cheese (American Neufchatel)
1.5 cups shredded, fat reduced cheddar cheese
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese plus 2 Tbsps
1.5 cups whole wheat elbow macaroni (cooked seven minutes)

Stir all ingredients, except 2 Tbsps parmesan, into hot cooked macaroni
Pour in casserole and sprinkle with 2 T parmesan
Bake uncovered in 375 degree oven for 20 minutes or until lightly browned
Makes 4 to 6 servings

All Meat: No Tofu

I've been posting mostly vegetarian recipes, but here's a good one for brisket (click on title), cooked in a pressure cooker, from food writer Jessica Harlan. She wrote a glowing review of the Fissler Blue Point Pressure Pan.

What's for breakfast?

Scrambled tofu is one of my breakfast standards for which I find a non-stick pan indispensable. I use the Fissler Protect Alux pan. This dish is so easy to make and is really tasty. You can use any mixture of spices you like, but I find that I use turmeric and nutritional yeast consistently because of the color and the flavor they add. Penzey's has a great selection of spice mixtures. I got their Ozark style seasoning at their Santa Monica store but you can order it online. It gives the scramble a sausage flavor.

Scrambled Tofu
half of a 1 lb block of firm tofu (If you want the scramble drier, press tofu under a few plates for ten minutes, discard water)
1 Tbsp oil
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 heaping tsp nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp Penzey's Ozark style seasoning
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, or paprika (if you don't want it too hot)
Salt to taste

Heat oil in non-stick pan. Crumble tofu with your fingers or a fork then add to pan. Saute for five to ten minutes. Just like with eggs, the longer you cook, the firmer and dryer it will get. When heated through and cooked to your liking, add spices, stir and turn off heat.
Serve with whole wheat toast or grits or other hot cereal.