duck and potatoes

pre-heat the oven to 450 F (230 C). At the same time, heat some water to boiling. Par-boil two (or more) medium potatoes, cut into pretty small pieces, in the boiling water for, say, 5 minutes. While the potatoes are par-boiling, put a cast-iron pan (or two if necessary) into the oven to heat with the oven. Drain the potatoes and put them, olive oil (plenty) and salt (plenty) into the pan and put it back into the oven. Toss these with a spatula every 5-ish minutes.

Meanwhile, cut diagonals into the fat on a duck breast and paint it with molasses (or maple syrup, or nothing sweet) and salt. After the potatoes have been going in the oven for 20 minutes, push potatoes aside and put the duck into the pan, fat side down. Do 12 minutes that way, and 6 the other. Pull it all out, let it sit for 5 minutes, then slice the duck thin and serve. Preferably with cranberry sauce and a salad or green vegetable. Serves 2 to 3, depending on appetites.

dutch baby

Here is my text-message recipe for dutch baby, our go-to weekend breakfast. The recipe is identical to that of Yorkshire Pudding. Serve with maple syrup, or else lemon juice mixed with powdered sugar to make a lemon glaze! Oh and bacon or duck bacon.

fresh corn soup

I sliced fresh, very sweet corn off a few cobs into a pot, added water just to cover and salt, and threw in the (denuded) cobs too. I boiled it for 20 minutes or so, pulled out the cobs, blended part of it and mixed it back in. I finished it with a bit of cream, and adjusted salt and pepper at the end. It was ridiculously sweet. So sweet the family asked if I had added sugar. This is somehow related to PMC's soup algorithms.

creamy macaroni and cheese

Quite a few years ago I published a brutal recipe for mac and cheese, which sustained us for many years. This week I am under doctor's orders to eat nothing but soft food and nothing acid (don't ask). So I decided to fire up a super-soft mac and cheese.

While a one-pound (dry weight) boxful of macaroni is boiling in the pot, make a roux by cooking a few tbsp of flour in a few tbsp of butter until it just starts to change color. Add milk slowly, whisking to keep the roux from forming clumps. Then add about a pound (maybe less) of grated cheese. The milk-to-cheese ratio sets the texture of the dish; use your judgement. And you can use any cheeses you like here; I sometimes even use this recipe to clear the fridge of remainders of cheeses (as I did today). Heat the roux-milk-cheese sauce and add in the macaroni, preferably slightly before the pasta is truly done, with lots of pepper and salt to taste. Either eat it immediately (as I did today), or else top it with more cheese (and maybe breadcrumbs?) and put it in a 400 F (200 C) oven to finish the top.

Interesting fact though: When you bake it, it becomes far less creamy! I think it's probably because the macaroni absorbs some of the milk. So if you want it super-creamy, either don't bake it, or else go with way more milk than you think is sensible.

pasta sauce from fresh tomatoes

It being end of summer and all, and me being over-confident in my no-recipe kitchen skills, I did the following today: I softened up two chopped onions and a bit of red pepper (because it was there) in a stick of butter. I then filled the pot with halved tomatoes (maybe 15 tomatoes) that the 'fuzz brought me from the Union Square Farmer's Market. I didn't peel the tomatoes first because (a) it isn't rocket science, and (b) I know I will be able to fish out the peels later. I added two cloves of garlic (smacked), 1 tbsp of red-wine vinegar, some fresh basil, some sprigs of fresh thyme, and a lot of salt and pepper (and a bit of that Japanese hot spice I have for ramen).

I started this all cooking. The tomatoes immediately released a lot of water and their skins, which I fished out (easily). I then executed the ultimate total-neglect move: I put the pot, uncovered, into a 275 F (135 C) oven and waited, stirring once an hour.

After 3 hours I pulled it out, pulled out the thyme sprigs, mashed the rest (with a potato masher) and then put it on the stovetop to reduce it further. That is, it wasn't thick enough (for my taste). Next time I'll do it at 300, not 275, with the hope that it will come out thicker. But it tastes great!

Recipes on the internet say you should peel and then seed the tomatoes before starting. I'm not sure why.