Lolita Review: Continued, forays into cooking

Restaurant review: Lolita; Cleveland, Ohio

Posted by Nate

Having made the journey to Cleveland to see ABT do Le Corsaire, I, my wife, my co-blogger, and another friend ate before the show at Lolita.  The restaurant is located in Tremont, an artsy little section a bit outside downtown, and we were all very, very impressed with every aspect of the meal.  Read on for my impressions, to which I'm certain my counterpart on this blog will wish to add--so as to not rain on her parade too much, I'll leave out any comments about service and skimp a bit on her vegetarian options :).

Our reservations were at 5:30, early for a Friday, since we wanted to have plenty of time before the ballet.  Lolita offers loosely Mediterranean-themed cusine, as well as a very frequently-changing menu.

A unique aspect of the Lolita menu is the "small plates" section.  The little dishes, ordered similarly to tapas (but they are not, for the most part, finger-foods), are $5 each or 3 for $14.  Between the four of us, we tried 5:

Tuna omo, with olives, almonds, and celery leaves
Phyllo pies, with spinach, feta cheese, and pine nuts
Crispy artichoke and fennel, deep fried, with parsley, lemon, and olive oil
Lobster grape leaves
Country sausage, with frisee and yogurt

Each of the dishes were extremely tasty, but by far everyone's favorite was the crispy artichoke and fennel.

Another unique feature of Lolita is their in-house salumeria, where they cure their own sppresatta, lomo, and pancetta (the varieties probably change occasionally, too).  I got an order of their pancetta, which was served with shaved fresh horseradish root, olive oil, and mustardo...the meat was perfect, and the mustardo was unexpected and very, very delicious.

A more standard appetizer, we also ordered grilled flatbreads with three dips, each of which were excellent: eggplant (not really baba gannouj, but similar), olive tapenade, and cucumber yogurt (not really tsatsiki, but similar).

With our appetizers, we ordered a bottle of Greek wine that sounded interesting: 2004, Kir-Yianni, Samaropetra, which is a blend of the indigenous Greek varietal roditis.  It was delicious, and accompanied our food flawlessly.  I'm not a fan of long lists of the smells and tastes contained in particular wines, so I'll leave it at "dry, subtly fruity, not-so-subtle mineral flavor."  A very good--and not outrageously priced--white.

We decided to forego salads and go straight to entrees.  I ordered the pork saltimbocca ($19: cutlets of pork wrapped in sage leaves and prosciutto, sauteed and served with sweet potato gnocchi and walnuts); the others ordered roasted salmon ($20: served with braised leeks and salsify), butternut squash ravioli ($16: with brown butter, walnuts, and sage), and mac & cheese ($18: with chicken, goat cheese, and rosemary) without the meat.

The saltimbocca was flawless: moist and flavorful.  The gnocchi had been sauteed along with the pork rather than boiled separately, which was very pleasant.  I tried a bite of the mac & cheese and ravioli, both of which were excellent; I didn't try the salmon, but my wife said it was perfect.

Dessert is served in the same manner as the small plate appetizers, with 3 for $12 or $4.50 each.  We shared three selections: crispy lemon meringue with fresh blueberries, dark chocolate creme on crostini with olive oil and fleur de sel, and Greek yogurt panna cotta with a mellon relish and fresh mint.  I don't think I have to go much past the descriptions to communicate that it was a perfect end to a great, great meal.

Overall, I am quite beyond impressed with Lolita.  The bill was surprisingly low for the four of us, and the food was the best I've had at that kind of price.  Combined with great wine and great friends, it was definitely a 10/10 experience.

Baking Extravaganza!

Posted by Nate

While I'm pretty good in the kitchen, particularly when cooking, my baking chops are still not the greatest.  Of course I can handle anything from a box, and my from-scratch brownies and angel food cake are pretty darn good, the overall pastry technique is really something best learned from a pro rather than figured out, and I've never taken the opportunity to be taught.

Last night, I made several things to be consumed by my wife and her colleagues in the University of Cincinnati Classics Department at their weekly gathering of food and conversation occurring this afternoon.  Some of it turned out great, some of it turned out all right.  Recipes to follow later today (they're at home), here's a basic run-down:

Scones.  Pretty basic pastry somewhere between biscuit and pie crust, these turned out the worst of everything (although they are still decent--certainly more than edible with the accompaniment described below).  The reasons, as I see them, are these:
1. My butter-cutting (pressing cold butter into flour) is pretty bad.  I just haven't done it enough, hopefully it will get better, as this is arguably the most important technique in pastry.
2. I have no freaking counter-space.  This becomes a serious problem when you're making many different things as well as having just prepared dinner; I definitely lack the necessary space to deal with rolling out a medium-sized mass of dough.
3. Related to #2, I think I rolled the dough out too thinly. 
4. Hey, it's my first try at scones...I admit I'm not a professional. :)

Ingredients:
-3 cups flour
-4 Tbsp sugar
-2.5 tsp baking powder
-0.5 tsp baking soda
-1 tsp salt
-1.5 sticks cold butter
-1 cup buttermilk

Instructions:
-Preheat oven to 425º F
-Sift flour sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into mixing bowl.
-Add butter, cut into flour until the mixture looks like small peas.
-Add buttermilk, gently combine until dough just forms together.
-Roll out on floured surface, cut with round biscuit cutter (yields about 16)
-Place on lightly greased cookie sheet and bake for 13 minutes or until lightly browned.

At any rate, the mock Devonshire cream that I made to go with the scones was really, really good.  A wonderful dairy flavor with just a hint of sweetness; I've never had "the real thing," so I have no clue how the two compare, but it was very tasty.

Ingredients:
-3 oz. cream cheese
-2 Tbsp sugar
-1 cup heavy (whipping) cream

Instructions:
-Using stand mixer, beat cream cheese until smooth, add sugar.
-Gradually add cream, and beat until desired consistency (I like it pretty stiff).

The jury is still out on the cupcakes (from scratch) (insert played out SNL "Chronic of Narnia" reference here).  There weren't very many of them, so we saved them all for tomorrow.  They looked, smelled, and felt good, though.  The article I read in Cooks Illustrated recommended a "haphazard" approach to mixing, so don't worry if the instructions seem a bit disorganized.

Update: The cupcakes were a huge success.  Go to town!

Ingredients:
-1.5 cups flour
-1 cup sugar
-1.5 tsp baking powder
-0.5 tsp salt
-1 stick butter (unsalted)
-0.5 cups buttermilk
-1 large egg
-2 large egg yolks
-1.5 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions:
-Preheat oven to 350º F.
-In stand mixer (use the paddle), mix flour, baking powder, and salt.
-Add butter, buttermilk, egg/yolks, and vanilla, beat everything at medium speed for about 30 seconds.
-Scrape bowl with spatula and mix by hand, eliminating any remaining flour pockets.
-Put in lined/greased muffin tins (makes 12, average-sized) and bake for 20 to 24 minutes (tops will be light gold and a toothpick inserted into the center of the centermost cupcake should come out clean).  Cool, frost, and eat!

I made a simple chocolate ganache, which I had done before, to frost the cupcakes.  I encourage anyone with an electric mixer to try it sometime... two ingredients, 5 minutes or less active time, how can you beat that for the rich chocolate goodness?

Ingredients:
-8 oz semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
-1 cup heavy (whipping) cream

Instructions:
-Bring cream to a boil.  Pour over chocolate pieces, whisk until smoth.
-Cover bowl and refridgerate for 1 hour.
-Whip with electric mixer until desired consistency.  Be careful not to overwhip--this will cause ganache to curdle.

Orange cream cheese tea cookies were the real successes of the evening.  They are simple, and the flavor doesn't knock you over the head.  The subtle hint of cream cheesey texture makes them stand out a bit from most of the cookies like them I've had in the past.  You could also do lemon cookies, replacing the zest and juice concentrate.

Ingredients:
-1 stick butter
-0.5 cups sugar
-1.5 oz cream cheese
-1 large egg yolk
-1 tsp vanilla (optional)
-1 Tbsp frozen orange juice concentrate
-Zest from 1 orange
-1.5 cups flour
-0.25 tsp salt
-0.5 tsp baking powder

Instructions:
-Preheat oven to 350º F.
-In stand mixer (use the paddle), beat butter and sugar until creamy.
-Beat in cream cheese and egg yolk.
-Add vanilla, orange juice concentrate and zest.
-Sift together flour, salt, and baking powder, mix gently (lowest speed).
-Chill dough for 1 hour (I skimped on this, and chilled it for about 20 minutes)
-Drop onto cookie sheet and bake for about 10 minutes.

Tips, Tricks, Techniques, and other fun T-words: Risotto

Posted by Nate

If you've ever had risotto prepared well in a restaurant, you know how amazing it can be.  It can be intimidating, for many people, because it is attention-intensive and some aspects of its preparation take the cook outside of his or her comfort zone.

This post is all about breaking down risotto so that you can get REAL results (not the "just add water and make it like normal rice" boxed results).  In the end, you'll have a very tasty and potentially impressive dish, and with the standard technique down, there are innumerable permutations of variety you can apply.

The first sections are general, and at the end I will provide a basic recipe along with suggestions for variation.

Equipment you'll need
-Pan for keeping stock warm.  Any cheap-o 1.5-2 quart saucepan will work just fine.  No lid required.
-Pan for risotto.  A traditional "risotto pan" looks like a dutch oven that was cut in half horizontally.  However, just about any pan will do: I prefer either a very large saute pan, or a large saucepan/saucier.  No lid required.
-Measuring cups & spoons
-Stirring utensil

Ingredients you'll need
-Arborio rice (1 cup uncooked = 2 servings as main course, 4 as side).  This is very important.  No other grain of rice will produce the creamy, starchy, al dente risotto you're looking for.  It is more expensive than regular rice, but worth it, and can be found in any decent supermarket.
-Stock/broth (3 - 3.5 cups).  Any kind will do, but avoid the cheaper and hence saltier kinds; I typically use chicken stock, but you can change the flavor according to your theme.
-Wine.  I like the flavor produced when the first 1/2 cup of liquid is a dry white wine instead of stock.
-Oil (1 - 2 Tbsp).  Regular olive oil (not extra virgin) or safflower oil are my favorites.
-Theme ingredients.  More on this later.
-Cheese (about 0.25 cups grated/shredded).  More on selections later.

How much time you'll need
-Prep time will vary according to your theme, but will generally run under 10 minutes.
-Cooking time is 30-40 minutes, moderately active.  You don't need to give it your undivided attention, but it is not a "cover and forget" dish.

Cooking stages
Stage 1: Saute.  Most of the theme ingredients go in here.  If you're using meat, brown it first, then add vegetables.
Stage 2: Rice & herbs.  The rice and any fresh herbs you're using are added and sauted until the rice begins to turn translucent.
Stage 3: Liquid.  Stock (and possibly some wine) is added one half cup at a time, and allowed to absorb, until the allotted amount is reached.

Cooking notes
-Stock must be kept very warm: not simmering or boiling, but hot to the touch.  This is extremely important, because warm stock allows the risotto to keep cooking steadily while it is added bit by bit.
-Use medium-low, not extra-low heat.  Risotto is different from regular rice.  When standing, there should be a significant simmer, but not spitting liquid.
-Stir judiciously.  Over-stirring will mix in too much outside air and hinder the simmering process that lets the rice absorb the liquid.  Under-stirring will cause a gross crust to form on the bottom of the pan.  Find your inner chef and strike a balance between the two extremes.

A simple risotto recipe

Ingredients:
-1 cup arborio rice (uncooked)
-1 Tbsp olive oil
-1 small onion, diced
-3 Tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley
-1/2 cup dry white wine, room temperature
-3 cups chicken stock
-Salt and pepper
-1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Instructions:
-Put the stock in a pan on low heat to allow it to warm.
-Turn stove to medium heat.  Heat the oil for a minute, add onion, saute until it starts to become soft (about 3-4 minutes).
-Add parsley and rice, saute until rice is about halfway translucent (about 2 minutes).
-Add wine, reduce heat slightly.  Simmer, stirring every minute or so, until liquid is absorbed.
-Repeat, with 1/2 cup of stock instead of wine, 6 times, until the stock is all absorbed.
-Salt and pepper to taste, stir in cheese.

Really, risotto isn't that difficult.  It is also a great dish for those who really enjoy cooking, because it takes care and dilligence: you have to "baby" your risotto, guiding it properly and constantly.  The potential for variety is also a very appealing aspect, and I will discuss that now.

Themes
Risotto is a dish that is delicious prepared even as simply as above; however, it also allows the creative side (and individual tastes) of any cook to shine.  Google can probably give you any number of recipes for risotto with just about any ingredient you can imagine, but here are some ideas:

Shrimp (or lobster!)--add 2 cloves of garlic to the saute stage; change chicken stock for 1 cup seafood stock, 2 cups vegetable stock; cook shrimp separately and add with the final 1/2 cup of liquid.

Chicken--use an extra Tbsp of oil.  Brown chicken first, then add onion and/or any other veggies you want.  The chicken doesn't have to be cooked through before moving on, because it will have plenty of opportunity while simmering.

Vegetables--any veggies will work great!  Just add them in the saute stage, but don't saute them for too long or they will be overcooked in the end.  I would stay under 2 cups of veggies for every 1 cup of rice.  Suggestions: asparagus tips, zucchini, red peppers (or roasted red peppers, which you could just add with the second to last 1/2 cup of liquid), chopped or baby spinach (if using frozen, make sure to thaw and drain first), bean sprouts (add with last 1/2 cup of liquid or at the very end, with cheese), portabella and/or crimini mushrooms (add in saute stage, along with 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar at the very end, with cheese), frozen peas, etc...

Cheese--feel free to use more cheese.  Parmesan is a solid choice (and parmesano-reggiano is sublime), but just about any cheese would work, especially if you're a cheese lover.  Don't be afraid of gorgonzola!

Herbs--I am a fresh parsley fanatic, but feel free to experiment here, too: perhaps fresh dill with smoked salmon added with the last 1/2 cup of liquid, or maybe even cilantro, with frozen corn, diced tomatoes, and a mild jack cheese for a rather interesting "fusion" risotto.

Restaurant Review: Sushi Rock, Cleveland, Ohio

Posted by Leah

Last night I was given the opportunity to sample the food at Sushi Rock, a Cleveland hotspot located in the trendy Warehouse District.  Despite a lackluster reputation in terms of cuisine, it's certainly a see-and-be-seen locale on the weekends and therefore impossible to get a table on a Friday or Saturday night.  It being a Monday night, however, enabled us to be seated right away.

The restaurant is decorated....bizarrely.  The walls are all backlit in what appear to be red LED lights, illuminating murals depicting skylines of a Gotham-esque city.  The sushi bar is located on a platform in the very back of the restaurant and is intended to be the focal point....but the red lighting everywhere distracts significantly. 

I ordered edamame and an arugula salad.  The edamame was perfect…lightly steamed with the shells still crisp.  They were coated in fleur de sel and served slightly warm from the steamer.  Excellent flavor and texture.  The arugula salad was definitely….interesting.  It consisted of fresh arugula leaves, chunks of mango, sliced strawberries, whole blackberries, and firm goat cheese.  This was drizzled in a “strawberry-lime vinaigrette.”  The salad itself was of excellent quality…very fresh ingredients that provided excellent texture contrast to one another.  I did, however, find the choice of arugula, typically a very peppery, spicy green, to be unusual but was willing to give it a fair shot.  The arugula was good….the dressing was lackluster.  More of a cream base than a vinaigrette, it tasted like a Snapple reduction…overly sweet and fruity, with not enough lime to temper the intense strawberry flavor.  Next time I’ll ask for it on the side with a ramekin of rice vinegar, which I think would be the ideal condiment to thin the dressing out and provide an acid counterpart to the sweet.  Overall not a bad experience…I’ll probably go back again for their famous half-priced martinis….and more edamame!