P is for Paella

Ever heard that rule about eating shellfish?  Some people say that it's best to eat clams, mussels, scallops, and oysters in months spelled with the letter R.  Basically, don't eat filter feeders during the warmest summer months.  Why is it better to order a dozen blue points in January rather than in June?  What happens to clams in July?  Why can't I serve steamed mussels in August?  I'd heard this rule before and Peter and I have generally followed it when it comes to buying oysters on the half shell, but I never understood why summer was a bad time for shellfish.  Until today.

I did a bit of online research and learned that filter feeders can become toxic to humans during summer months if they are harvested from areas affected by algal blooms.  Warm coastal waters overcome with algae are sometimes called "red tide" because the water turns a reddish brown color.  Harmful toxins build up in filter feeders and can be poisonous to humans and animals if eaten.  Most shellfish you would get from a fishmonger has been tested for harmful toxins, so it should be safe to eat them year round.  However, if you like to rake for oysters on your summer vacation, watch out for local warnings and beach closures due to algal blooms.

It being January, a month with an R, I decided to add paella to my menu this week.  I was craving a culinary challenge and I wanted to try using a few new ingredients: poblanos and saffron.  I've watched many episodes of Mexican Made Easy on which Marcela Valladolid prepares dishes with poblanos, but I've never attempted a recipe with them in my kitchen.  It was time!  I received a vial of saffron threads in my stocking this year, along with white truffle oil and vanilla beans, so I have been anxious to use some of my epicurean gifts.  Thank you, Santa...er...Peter!      

I found this paella recipe easy to follow and relatively simple.  The toughest part is just waiting for the rice to cook and the clams to open up!  Peter helped me soak the clams in cool salty water so they'd expel sand or debris and that part isn't mentioned in the recipe, but I'd recommend it.  I don't have a snazzy paella pan, but I think my Analon skillet worked nicely.  Perhaps I'll ask Santa for that gift next year, but for for my next paella attempt, I'll probably try one of my cast iron dishes.  I was surprised how much moisture accumulated in the pan after I added the corn, tomatoes, and clams; I'd say the last few minutes on the stove top are crucial for evaporating much of the cooking liquid.  Be patient!  While you're waiting (and not stirring!), busy yourself by preparing crusty bread and a salad to accompany this wonderful dinner.
                      

Paella with Poblanos, Corn, and Clams
adapted from Cooking Light magazine

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 c. chopped onion
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 poblano chiles, seeded and chopped
• 1 1/4 tsp. kosher salt, divided
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper, divided
• 3/4 c. uncooked short-grain brown rice 
• 1/4 tsp. saffron threads, crushed
• 2 c. water
• 1/8 tsp. ground red pepper
• 1 1/2 c. corn kernels
• 1 c. halved cherry tomatoes 
• 2 lbs. littleneck clams
• chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• lemon wedges
• 
  
• Preheat oven to 450°.  Heat oil in a 12-inch ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, garlic, poblanos, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper; sauté 3 minutes. Add rice and saffron. Cook 2 minutes; stir constantly. Add 2 cups water, 3/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, and red pepper; bring to a boil.  Bake at 450° for 50 minutes or until rice is done. Stir in corn and tomatoes. Nestle clams into rice mixture. Bake at 450° for 12 minutes or until shells open, and discard unopened shells.  Return the pan to medium-high heat, and cook without stirring 10 minutes or until liquid evaporates and rice browns. (It should smell toasty but not burned.) Top with parsley and serve with lemon wedges if you'd like.

G is for Green Pasta

Now that I've learned to make fresh pasta, it's getting much easier to whip up a batch.  Homemade pasta is truly delicious and I enjoy making it, but I need to figure out a better way to store it because my go-to recipe from Epicurious makes so much.  I'm still surprised by the sheer quantity of pasta I get when I decide to roll out some pasta sheets, so I need to work on halving the recipe or find an alternative.

My most recent adventure with pasta included a bit of spinach.  I know green pasta makes some people a bit wary, but I love it!  I took about half a bag of baby spinach and pureed it in the food processor.  Then I added my regular pasta ingredients and used the food processor's pulse function to mix everything to a kneadable consistency.  It turned out great!  

Peter and I bought some clams and mussels and made a wine sauce to steam them in from Smitten Kitchen.  We served the mussels and clams over my spinach pasta and enjoyed our meal out on the porch.  Delicious!  

Spinach Fettucini

adapted from Epicurious

1/2 bag baby spinach leaves

3 c. unbleached all-purpose flour, plus additional for dusting
4 large eggs
1 tsp. salt
2-3 Tbsp. water
A pasta machine 

Puree the spinach leaves in a food processor, scraping the sides of the work bowl with a spatula to ensure all the leaves are evenly chopped.  Add the flour, eggs, and salt and pulse several times to mix.  Add water 1 Tbsp. at a time through the feeder tube until it begins to form a ball.  If the dough is too dry, add water a little bit at a time and stop when it is firm and not sticky.  Process the dough for about 15 seconds more to knead it and then transfer it to a floured surface to let it rest.  Cover the dough with an inverted bowl for about 1 hour so the gluten can relax and rolling will be easier.  

To roll the pasta, divide your dough into 8 equally-sized pieces.  Flatten each piece into a rectangle and cover the remaining pasta pieces while you work with one at a time to flatten it.  You do not want them to dry out.  Lightly dust 1 rectangle with flour and feed it through the rollers of your pasta machine.  On my Kitchenaid mixer attachment, I set it to 1 (the thickest setting) first and took it through several times to make long, even rectangles.  The mixer speed was set on the lowest speed and I thought that was as fast as I would really want to work.  I ran each pasta sheet through on setting 1 about 5-8 times, sometimes folding it in half length-wise to avoid getting sheets that were excessively wide.  Turn the dial to the next narrower setting and feed the dough through the rollers without folding.  Continue to feed the dough through each level once without folding until you reach your desired thickness.  I took my pasta through each setting and stopped at 5 or 6.  Don't skip levels of rolling because the pasta will crumble out into your hand instead of sticking together and thinning out.  Your pasta sheets should end up being about 3 feet long and roughly 4 inches wide.  Cut the sheets shorter if you like and lay them on a lightly floured surface to dry while you roll the remaining rectangles.  You can also lightly dust them with flour and hang them over the backs of chairs, a broomstick, a pasta tree, or a drying rack.  When your pasta sheets are leathery but still pliable, it's time to cut them.

To cut the pasta, I changed the attachment on the mixer from the roller to the fettucini cutting tool.  I carefully led each pasta sheet through the cutter and caught the fettucini underneath with my hands.  I put the cut pasta on a rod to dry overnight.

Mussels in White Wine Sauce

from Smitten Kitchen

2 c. white wine

1/2 c. minced shallots

handful of parsley, chopped

1 bay leaf

1 tsp. thyme

1 tsp. pepper

6 Tbsp. butter

2-3 lbs. mussels, scrubbed 

2 lbs. clams, scrubbed 

Add all the ingredients to boil in a dutch oven or large pot.  Boil for 2-3 minutes and then add the clams. Let the clams steam with the lid on for about 3 minutes and then add the mussels to the pot.  Cover and boil for 4-5 more minutes.  The shells will open up when the mussels and clams are done.  Ladle the clams, mussels, and broth into soup bowls and sprinkle with parsley.  You can serve this over pasta or with hearty bread to soak up the delicious broth.