Welcome October!

Two sure-shot signs that autumn is here: I see flags out for football teams, and my father shows up with moon cake. This is by far my most favorite of the seasons, even more than the light of spring as temperatures warm up. Something about the colors of the leaves, the sense of students getting back to school, and the occasional smell of smoke in the air that grows in occurrence week by week always brings warmth and recovery to my soul.

And at the end of this month, I'm looking forward to enjoying homecoming back at my good ole Penn. By far, there is no other sign that I can think of, that tells me more directly than this annual celebration, that we're heading through the heart of autumn. Hey - it makes each cheesesteak just that much more enjoyable.

So as I've basically been cooking food that we adults can eat, and then hoping that Baby2 will eat it too without just spitting it back out (Baby1 was SO much better than him at trying new foods!!). Tonight, I tried a little kale. It's admittedly not the smoothest of vegetables (remember the spinach he loved in the crespelle?), and it holds its texture even after cooking - so I knew I was taking a chance trying to feed this bit of food to Mr. Picky. But, surprise of surprises, he enjoyed it, enough so that I was even able to sneak in little snippets of raw spinach. Go figure.

So here's to a good fast (just about as long as it'll take you to boil the water and cook the pasta) recipe with these big thick green leaves.

Bowtie pasta with garlic kale

Bowtie pasta
Olive oil
Garlic cloves (I used 4, crushed and minced)
3 large leaves of kale, finely sliced
1T tomato paste
s/p

1. Boil water.
2. While water boils, heat up about 4T of olive oil in a shallow cover-able sauce pan, and mix with garlic cloves.
3. Wash and slice your kale. No need to dry the leaves.
   
4. As soon as garlic cloves start to give off their pungency, add sliced kale. Cover, and let steam on low heat.
5. When water boils, add bowtie pasta and sea salt. Cook until just al dente, about 6 minutes.
6. Mix pasta well with tomato paste and garlic kale sauce (and a bit of the cooking water from the pasta - it lends some thickening to your sauce). Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

I just love simplicity.

Crespelle

Friday nights are this dichotomy of emotions and characteristics for me, ever since I became a member of the systemic machine of which we all play some part. Friday nights, I'm excited for the weekend and more time during the day to catch up on everything from A to Z. Friday nights, I'm exhausted from the day-to-day drama of moments of the week and want nothing more than to curl up with a good book in front of a crackling fire with absolute silence around me. Friday nights I want to breathe with the freedom of infinity, but I know that I can't until dinner is ready, the kids are in bed, and I find a moment to recenter and take that breath. And yet, Friday nights, I find the fumes to burn while my mind reshifts to let the creative juices roam free.

So tonight, I found myself wondering about what to cook up for dinner, running solo with the kids this last exhausted evening before the action-packed weekend ahead. A recent recipe for crespelle (Italian for crepes) I read in a book a good friend of mine got me was the catalyst, coupled by a craving for Nutella that started the day I first tasted the despicable nectar. However, my taste buds run on the savory side of the fence, so I took the crespelle with me to the truffles, tomatoes, and spinach garden of eden. And then coupled with wonderful parmesan reggiano from Roma and a delectable bechemel sauce came a little creation so good that Baby1 took two servings and Baby2 kept pointing and even attempted picking up with his fork. And mind you - he was pointing at the spinach in this wonderful crespelle we had tonight. My fears and war with his non-vegetable and fruit eating self reached a truce this evening, and it was in this unexpected moment, one of many these days, that I found my breath.

(granted, there was enough bechamel in our dinner tonight that cows complained - but hey, I'll take my little victories however best I can)


Crespelle
1c milk (I used nonfat)
3/4c flour, sifted
2 eggs
Pinch of salt

Butter for the pan

Red: Tomato sauce (I used Rao's Marinara, for lack of homemade)
White: Bechamel sauce (I seasoned my bechamel with truffle salt), premade grated Italian 4-cheese mix, freshly grated parmesan reggiano
Green: Spinach, steamed, dried, with a pinch of sauce

Making the crepes (can be done ahead of time):

1. Starting with milk in a large bowl, add the flour a little at a time, whisking to smooth our any lumps.
2. Add the two eggs, whisking after each addition to make sure the batter is smooth and consistent.
3. Add the salt. Mix well.
4. Heat a crepe pan (or any pan where you can use a large spatula to pick up the 6" crepes without having to go too much at an angle)
5. Add a touch of butter to the pan to season it initially.
6. Using a ladle, ladle onto the pan about 2T of batter. Pour the batter in the middle of the pan, and use the back of the ladle to spread the batter out to a thin and even round.
   
7. The crepes cook really fast - be ready to flip the crepe in 30 seconds. By the time I had spread the batter out, the crepe was ready to flip. If your crepe has a crisp bottom when you turn it over, turn the heat down. It should be soft, not crispy. Additional butter on the pan can help as well.
8. Stack the finished crepes on a warm plate.
   

While I was making the crepes, I also cooked the spinach. Simple: spinach, cleaned of dirt and still damp, in a covered saute pan with just a sprinkle of salt. The spinach cooked in very little time, and by keeping the heat on low once the water slowed down in coming out of the spinach, I was able to dry the spinach substantially for the final assembly.

Layering the crespelle:
Start with the largest of your finished crespelle on the bottom. Now ration your tomato sauce, cheese, and bechamel to allot through all layers of crespelle, alternating between tomato sauce/cheese (some layers I used tomato sauce/parmesan, and other I used tomato sauce/4-cheese mix) and bechamel. I fit the layer of spinach in the center layer, and continued layering until I laid on the top layer of crespelle. I topped off our layered crespelle with some bechamel and some 4-cheese mix.

Broil on high for 10 minutes, about 6" from the heat source. Bake at 400 degrees for 5 minutes.

Cut into wedges and enjoy.


In case you don't know how to make bechamel - about 2T olive oil, 1T flour, and 1.5-2c milk. Roux using olive oil and flour over medium heat, taking care to not burn the flour and to maintain the light color of the roux. Add milk slowly - I usually mix about an equal volume of milk to the roux initially to start off the sauce and bring everything to a half-way temperature between the hot roux and the cold milk. Once this "starter" is well mixed, I add the remaining milk as well as a touch of salt, whisking constantly to prevent lumps from forming. Do not let the bechamel get thick for the crespelles recipe - you want to keep it light and soft, similar to sour cream. If you end up making the bechamel before you finish the crepes, undercook the bechamel knowing that as it cools, it will lose its water content and get thicker. And just give the sauce a thorough stir just before using, to make sure you don't end up with lumps.


Having made these crepes with so much ease tonight - there is reason behind the fact that the crepes pan is still on the stove tonight. I plan to make some crepes for breakfast, this time with Nutella on hand.

Buon appetito!