French Fries

I understand why people love, and depend on, fast food--I really do. But if they knew how simple it is to make healthier homemade versions at home, they may just eat out less often.

Slice up some red-skinned potatoes (you could really use any kind you like, but I enjoy the waxy potatoes with the skin on for added fiber and nutrition), toss with a touch of extra-virgin olive oil, salt, freshly ground black pepper, and dried oregano. Spread out onto a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and roast in a 425-degree oven for 45 minutes, or until dark golden brown and crispy.



What merits these potatoes as fries, instead of simply roasted potatoes, is the crispness, which is achieved by the thin slices and high heat. Dip them into ketchup and you're likely to never crave fast food French fries again.

From Chicken Stock to Avgolemono

Today I had off from work, and I thought it was high time I made a meal that consumed most of the day to prepare. Not always something I seek, but when there's nothing better to do than sit around and watch Food Network, I might as well make the day count and contribute to my culinary chops.

Inside my refrigerator were chicken drumsticks, celery, carrots, and onions--perfect ingredients for a slow-cooked meal. I am ready to make stock.

First cook the chicken; you can use any part of the bird, so long as there are bones involved. (Stock is made from bones, broth from meat.) I roasted the drumsticks in a 425-degree oven for 25-30 minutes. Let them cool, pull the meat off the bone and set it aside for later use. Put the bones back in the oven for another 20 minutes or so, until they are well browned.

Meanwhile, cut the onion, carrots, and celery into big chunks. (Don't bother to peel anything; the stock will be strained once it's finished cooking.) Place the vegetables in a big pot and throw in some garlic cloves, parsley, and a sprinkle of peppercorns. At this point, you can get as creative as your kitchen cabinets and refrigerator allows. Once the chicken bones are done, add to the pot and cover everything with cold water.

Bring the water to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and let everything get friendly for a while. A pretty long while. This process could last up to eight hours; even though I have a lot of time on my hands, I can't wait that long to eat. For me, after about four hours, the stock tasted delicious enough to move onto phase two. Strain the stock through a fine-mesh strainer or cheesecloth, and it'll come out looking something like this:

Avgolemono, I have learned, is a Greek soup that uses egg yolks to thicken the stock, and lemon juice to brighten the flavors. To make it, pour about four cups back to the pot, bring to a boil, add about 1/4 cup orzo and cook until the pasta is al dente, about seven minutes. Turn the heat off.

While the pasta is cooking, whisk together three egg yolks and a few tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice.

Now it's time to temper the eggs: incorporate some of the hot stock into the lemon-egg mixture, and whisk whisk whisk. Add some more stock, little by little, and continue to whisk until the eggs have reached the temperature of the stock. Pour the mixture into the pot, give it a good stir, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and it's done!

For the first bowl I added the reserved dark meat from the chicken that I made earlier:

I added frozen spinach to the second bowl, which I actually enjoyed the best:

This is now officially one of my favorite soups! If you're as obsessed with citrus as I am, this is definitely a recipe you need to try. It is simple, yet a complexity shines through thanks to the homemade stock and creamy egg yolks.

Here's the recipe that I used as a guide to make the avgolemono: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Avgolemono-352269

The Story of the Tortilla Espanola

Don't worry, this won't be a history lesson on the spanish omelet. Instead, this will be a narcissistic documentation of my relationship with this dish.

Flashback to six years ago. It's freshman year and I'm at Marist College, studying to be a spanish teacher. I do not recall the assignment for Spanish class, but I know that my friend and I were attempting something dangerous: cooking in the upperclassmen dormitory kitchen. At this point in my life, I do not cook. In fact, I do not like to cook. But when my professor tells us how difficult it is to create a tortilla espanola, we take it as a personal challenge to succeed.

We fail.

The recipe advised us to flip the omelet once cooked on one side. The recipe made it appear so simple--anyone can do it! We could not. We wound up with thick slices of potatoes and chunks of onions poking out of a both dry and runny egg composite. Although the tortilla espanola defeated us, we still presented our experience to the class, and pulled an A.

Years later, for a tapas party with my girlfriends, I had decided to revisit the tortilla that continued to haunt me. At this point in my life, I do cook. In fact, I sort of like it. I knew that I was not going to allow history to repeat itself--not in my kitchen!--and so I avoided the flipping step completely. Instead, once the omelet was cooked on one side, I placed a lid on the pan and allowed the eggs to steam.

I succeed.

Back to the present. Tonight. I am hungry, I had a terrible day at work, and I do NOT want to cook. Not one bit. But I definitely do not want to order in food. And I'm not interested in leftovers. So I rummage through the refrigerator and see eggs. I like eggs. And I notice the potatoes that are going to rot very soon. And there's always an onion or two in the crisper.

An epiphone.

Dice the potatoes and onions fairly small and saute gently in a non-stick pan with olive oil, salt, and black pepper. Whisk together eggs.

Once the vegetables are tender, add frozen spinach and stir it around until it gets warm (this is not a typical ingredient in this dish, but hey--I am a dietitian). Pour the eggs into the pan, while gently moving the mixture with a fork to allow the eggs to soak in and hold everything together.

When you see the omelet browning on the sides, cover the pan (you could also use aluminum foil if you don't have a lid that fits). The dish is finished once the eggs solidify.

Well, there's my story. Now go make this dish!