[2] Homemade cheese draining in cheesecloth (photo © The Pines | Brooklyn).

This recipe, from Alice Waters via Good Eggs in San Francisco, illustrates how much fun making fresh cheese can be. It’s much easier than mozzarella, so it’s a good “first cheese.”

Prep time is just 25 minutes, but the curds need to drain for 12 to 24 hours, depending on how soft or crumbly you like your farmer’s cheese. Alice Waters drains hers for 16 hours, at which point the cheese is still soft enough to spread, but dry enough to crumble onto salads.

The cheese should be flavored with a bit of salt, but can be made salt-free. Go gourmet with added chives, black pepper or other favorite seasonings. It can also be sweetened, for something like cannoli cream or ricotta cheesecake.
 
 
RECIPE: HOMEMADE FARMER CHEESE

Ingredients For 1-1/2 Cups Cheese

 
Preparation

1. POUR the buttermilk into a 1-quart canning jar and put the lid on tightly. Place the jar in a pot and cover with enough water to keep it submerged. Heat over medium-high heat until little bubbles appear on the jar and in the water, but before the water reaches a boil.

2. TURN off the heat and let the buttermilk cool in the pot until the water reaches room temperature. Meanwhile…

3. LINE a nonreactive* sieve with a few layers of cheesecloth, or a single layer of butter muslin, and set it in a nonreactive bowl deep enough that there is an inch or two between the sieve and the bowl. Once the water has cooled, remove the jar of buttermilk and pour the contents into the sieve. You should have firm white curds. You can add a pinch of salt or salt substitute to the curds at this point.

5. SPREAD and enjoy, or top it with yogurt.

 
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*Reactive vs. Non-Reactive Cookware: Aluminum, cast iron and copper are popular for cookware because of their superior heat-conducting properties. However, these metals can react with acids in a recipe (citrus, tomato, vinegar, etc.), imparting a metallic taste and discoloration of light-colored foods. This is also true with mixing bowls and utensils. Non-reactive materials include enameled metal, glass, plastic and stainless steel.
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WHAT IS FARMER CHEESE OR FARMER’S CHEESE

Farmer cheese or farmer’s cheese is a fresh (unaged), simple, cow’s milk cheese that’s the “child” of cottage cheese (see below), and a relative of paneer, queso blanco (more solid, like feta) and queso campesino (Spanish for farmer’s cheese, more like cottage cheese with curds). The texture is much dryer and the curd is tiny, such that it is molded into loaves and sliced.

It is so versatile, we could eat it twice a day!

Farmer cheese is made by pressing most of the moisture from cottage cheese. It can be flavored with herbs or puréed fruits. In fact, mixed with purée and baked, it is similar to ricotta cheesecake. Another variety is paneer, or Indian farmer cheese, which is easily made at home. It should be consumed fresh, as it goes stale if kept too long, and becomes brittle and useless with refrigeration. In Canada, the term “farmer’s cheese” refers to a different type of white cheese that does not have a rind and is firm but springy in texture. It is mild, milky and buttery in flavor. Canadian “farmer’s cheese” may be used in a similar fashion to Colby or Cheddar.

Once a staple of Middle European cuisine, farmer cheese was made in the U.S. by Ashkenazi Jewish immigrants; but any cheese maker can make it; but not many do. It can be hard to find outside of strongholds of Jewish cuisine.

 
 
SIMILAR BUT DIFFERENT FRESH CHEESES

 
 
WHAT IS CHEESECLOTH?

Cheesecloth is a loosely woven cloth used for lining colanders and other purposes in home cheesemaking (photo #1). It is used for draining, bandaging cheeses and covering air-drying cheeses.

Butter muslin is a more tightly woven cloth used for draining, pressing, and bandaging both hard and soft cheeses. It is better for holding in small, soft curds and for making fresh cheeses and soft cheeses, because the tighter weave keeps some of the necessary moisture in.

Here are more tips for using cheesecloth and butter muslin.
  

Why do we only get pitches for slimmer versions of food in spring, before “bathing suit weather?”

After an especially tasty month visiting restaurants, for everything from fried skate sandwiches to duck confit mac and cheese, we noticed that clothes were getting snug.

As if on cue, we got this list of tips from Warren Honeycutt’s new book, Comfort Food without the Calories: Seven Delicious, Healthy Substitutes for Cold-Weather Favorites. The author of Get Lean for Life: 7 Keys to Lasting Weight Loss shared these tips with us.

Given the upcoming calorie fests of Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas, we can’t think of bathing suit weather, but we can think of fitting into something for New Year’s Eve.

Our tip today is: Plan ahead for all the great holiday fare ahead. Here’s advice from Honeycutt, who starts off by reminding us that “flavorful” and “nutritious” aren’t always mutually exclusive. Here are seven guilt-free substitutes for some classic comfort foods:

To save calories, make your own hot chocolate recipe instead of a mix. Photo courtesy OpenSky.com.

Spaghetti squash instead of spaghetti noodles. Spaghetti squash isn’t nearly as carb-heavy as noodles, and it contains nutrients like vitamins A, B-6, and C, as well as omega-3 essential fatty acids. When baked or microwaved, this veggie can be shredded into spaghetti-like strands with a fork and enjoyed with any tasty sauce of your choosing. Top with lean chicken breast or seafood for a healthy and delicious boost. Alternative #2: zucchini noodles. Alternative #3: a half-and-half mix of spaghetti and zucchini noodles.

Sweet potatoes instead of white potatoes. Sweet potatoes are filling and delicious, rich in vitamin A, and contain more vitamin C and fiber than white potatoes—with fewer carbs and calories. But that’s not a license to eat sweet potato fries. Enjoy them baked.

Tea instead of hot chocolate. Tea is full of antioxidants and may, according to several studies, help lower the risk of diseases ranging from Parkinson’s to many different kinds of cancer. It’s also great for weight loss, especially when sweetened naturally with stevia or xylitol (we admit to using Splenda). What, you say: How is tea a substitute for hot chocolate? We agree with you, not with Mr. Honeycutt. If you just have to have a cup of hot chocolate, make your own a healthy recipe (unsweetened cocoa powder, nonfat milk, noncaloric sweetener, peppermint extract) without the sugar and corn syrup of commercial hot chocolate mixes.

Thinly sliced zucchini or eggplant for pasta-free lasagna. Layer all that delicious low-fat ricotta cheese and tomato sauce between zucchini or eggplant slices to cut down on the carbs in this classic comfort food. Both zucchini and eggplant are low in calories and full of nutrients and antioxidants, making them healthy replacements for pasta.

A NIBBLE favorite is a microwave chip maker. These chips go fast, so buy several (they stack in the microwave).

Health-conscious homemade soups instead of salty store-bought brands. There’s nothing that says comfort like a warm bowl of soup, but the condensed canned soups you buy at the supermarket are often loaded with cream and sodium. When making soup at home, use low-sodium stock, plenty of herbs and spices for flavor, and cauliflower puréee in place of cream. Add nutritious, low-calorie veggies like spinach, kale and carrots, as well as beans and chunks of lean meat for protein. You may never buy a can of soup again!
  

For National Pasta Month try this “spaghetti sundae” inspired by a dish from VP3 Restaurant in Jersey City, New Jersey.

RECIPE: SPAGHETT & MEATBALL SUNDAE

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. COOK the spaghetti according to package directions and drain, reserving a few tablespoons of the pasta water. While the pasta cooks, heat the sauce and the meatballs.

Spaghetti and meatball “sundae.” Photo courtesy VB3 Restaurant | Jersey City.

3. MOLD the spaghetti into a tower. You can do this freehand with tongs and a large fork, or use whatever mold you have. We used a chinois (SHEEN-wah—French for “Chinese,” referring to the Chinese-style strainer). You can also try a large funnel, jumbo martini glass or a sundae dish.

4. ADD the meatballs, sprinkle with the grated cheese and top with the mozzarella ball. For a final touch, add the basil “sprinkles.”

The easiest way to differentiate them: Spaghetti is round, linguine (the proper Italian spelling–linguini is an incorrect Americanization) is flat. It is sometimes referred to as flat spaghetti.

All pasta evolved regionally into different shapes and sizes.

For the “cherry on the sundae,” you want a mozzarella ball, not a slice. Fortunately, mozzarella balls are made in several sizes, from perlini, the size of pearls, to bocconcini, large bites. They are sold fresh in water by Bel Gioso, Lioni and other companies.

You can use any size with this recipe. We prefer the largest, bocconcini, because it will sit on the top of a mound of pasta, as in the photo at the top of the page. But even the smallest size, perlini, can be scattered around the base of the plate.

From left to right: perlini, perle, nocciolini, ciliegini, bocconcini, ovoline, half pound, one pound. Image courtesy Lioni Mozzarella. Visit their website for a greater description of the different sizes of mozzarella.

The Brussels sprouts in this photo were grown at The Chef’s Garden in Huron, Ohio. But you can look for stalks with leaves at your local farmers market. If the leaves have already been removed, ask the farmer to bring stalks with the leaves intact next time.

In our house, buying a handsome stalk of Brussels sprouts from the farmers market is a rite of fall. But even if you buy the sprouts already trimmed from the supermarket, you can make the delicious Balsamic Brussels Sprouts recipe below.

Using the leaves of cruciferous vegetables for presentation is a free way to add interest to food. Beyond serving as a bowl or plate, the leaves can be torn into a salad not dissimilar to the now-ubiquitous kale (which is also cruciferous), julienned and stir-fried, and otherwise cooked.

And of course, you can use the leaves to hold other foods.

Even the stalk of the plant has culinary uses. Use Brussels sprouts stalks as you would use broccoli stalks.
 

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the oven to 425°F. Trim the cores of the Brussels sprouts and cut them in half vertically. Save any loose leaves that fall off and cook them as well.

2. TOSS the Brussels sprouts in a large bowl with the pancetta, olive oil, balsamic, garlic, salt, and pepper. Spread in an even layer on a rimmed baking sheet, place in the oven and roast until deep golden brown (30 to 35 minutes), tossing once during roasting.

3. REMOVE from the oven and toss with the optional ingredients. Transfer to a serving plate and serve hot.

The Brussels sprouts plant (Brassica oleracea) is a beauty: A stalk that grows to about four feet tall, crowned with large, wide graceful leaves. The sprouts, edible buds which resemble tiny heads of cabbage, grow from the bottom of the stalk to the top, in a charming progression from smallest to largest.

If Brussels sprouts look like tiny cabbages, it’s because both are members of the cruciferous family of vegetables. Other members include arugula, bok choy, broccoli and broccoli rabe, cabbage, cauliflower, cress, daikon/radish, horseradish/wasabi, kale, kohlrabi, mizuna, mustard greens, rutabaga, tatsoi and turnips.

While they are thought of as a cool-weather crop, Brussels sprouts can be found in markets year-round. The peak season is September through February.

Few foods are more unpleasant than overcooked Brussels sprouts. The same is true with other cruciferous members: Excessive heat releases an unpleasant-smelling and -tasting chemical compound. But cook them lightly, and they are bites of pleasure.

Brussels sprouts are exceptionally rich in protein, dietary fiber, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, including glucosinolate, a phytochemical and an important cancer-fighting phytonutrient. All cruciferous vegetables contain glucosinolates, but Brussels sprouts are especially loaded.

They are also cholesterol-fighters. Steamed Brussels sprouts actually have a have better cholesterol-lowering effect than raw brussels sprouts. The plant fibers do a better job of binding when they’ve been steamed.

Brussels sprouts are an excellent source of vitamin C; one cup provides more than your daily requirement. Vitamin C, along with vitamins A and E, also found in the sprouts, protect the body by trapping harmful free radicals. Brussels sprouts are one of the best vegetable sources for vitamin K, which strengthens bones and helps to prevent, or at least, delay the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.

Is there a better reason to eat them often?
 
 
MORE BRUSSELS SPROUTS RECIPES

As strange as “Brussels sprouts pizza” sounds, it is delicious. Other cruciferous members, like broccoli and arugula, often find themselves topping a pizza. Consider adding some fresh goat cheese in addition to the mozzarella and tomato sauce.

Or, try these:

 
TIPS

What are lionfish? You’re about to find out (and with a lionfish ceviche recipe, too). With the demand for Chilean seabass, halibut, swordfish, wild salmon, and other popular fish, retail prices for premium fish are so high that you might as well go to a restaurant for it.

 
We recently wrote about how trash fish, once discarded when netted along with more popular varieties, are becoming popular with restaurateurs and home cooks who want more affordable options. A fish restaurant in New York City, Seamore’s, recently opened with exactly that type of menu.

Now there’s nuisance fish: invaders that are upsetting the local ecology. The “poster fish” is lionfish.

Though beautiful to look at, they are the bane of the Caribbean.

A recipe for lionfish ceviche is below, but you can substitute any fish.
 
 
WHAT ARE LIONFISH?

Voracious predators native to the Pacific and Indian Oceans, lionfish were brought (or tagged along) to the Caribbean, where they happily hang out among the coral reefs.

 
 
TAKE A BITE

The only good news is that, once the lionfish is cleaned and the venomous spines are removed, the meat is lovely. It is a delicate, white flaky fish, firmer in texture than halibut, with a flavor profile somewhere between grouper and mahi-mahi. It readily accepts any flavor and technique a cook wishes to use.

With a new name, lionfish could become as popular as the Patagonian toothfish (renamed Chilean seabass for marketing purposes) and mahi-mahi/dorado (dolphinfish).
 
Any suggestions?  
 
RECIPE: LIONFISH CEVICHE

Ingredients

[2] Lionfish have 18 venomous spines: 2 pelvic spines, 3 anal spines, and 13 dorsal spines (photo © Jayhem | photos #1, #2 and #3 via Wikipedia).

[3] A red lionish. Lionfish are also called firefish, turkeyfish, tastyfish, or butterfly cod (photo © Alexander Vasenin | Wikipedia).

[4] Lionfish tastes like a cross between grouper and mahi-mahi. You can cook it or use it raw, in ceviche or sushi (photo courtesy Euro USA).

1. CUT the lionfish, peppers, onion, avocado, and scallions into small cubes. Mix all ingredients together and marinate for at least two hours before serving.

2. GARNISH with fresh herbs and serve.
 
 
SEEK OUT THE UNFAMILIAR

When you see an unfamiliar fish at the market, don’t hesitate to try it, especially if it’s well priced. Retailers wouldn’t sell it if it didn’t taste good—and the fresher, the better.
 
 

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