Witchy Kitchen

Tag: eggs

  • Apple Tansey with Goat Cheese Cream

    Apple Tansey with Goat Cheese Cream

    Wouldst thou like the taste of butter? A pretty dress? Wouldst thou like to live deliciously?

    It’s #Witchtober, hosted by Fiction Food Café. Check the tag on social media for wickedly witchy recipes!

    The Witch (2015), a “New-England Folktale” written and directed by Robert Eggers, is haunting, unsettling, and painstakingly historically accurate. From the dialog to the clothing to the Puritanical hysteria, the colonial ambience is on point. I’ve read several times how it’s not very scary, however (light spoilers) with actual baby-smashing witches, creepy twins, writhing possession and a goat which is terrifying even in its most mundane state – I respectfully ask what more do you want?

    The family dynamic in this movie is refreshing. It could have easily been a story about religious authoritarian parents repressing their daughter who is on the cusp of womanhood. Instead, though devout, they are a family who truly cares about one other and are trying their best both to live righteously and survive in a harsh new land. The parents are both Game of Thrones alums, Ralph Ineson of the low booming voice, and Kate Dickie who has the market cornered on disturbing breastfeeding scenes. Anya Taylor-Joy as Thomasin, the oldest daughter, is fresh and earnest in the face of unknown evil. Bonus points to Black Phillip for exceptional goat acting.

    I made a classic colonial dish, Apple Tansey, based of a recipe that can be found in The Compleat Housewife, first published in London in 1727 and the first cookbook to be published in the United States. A tansey is basically an egg-based dessert, and this one contains apples (and apple butter) which the children in the movie reminisce about eating back in England. The apples are cooked in plenty of butter of course, the luxury so unctuously uttered into Thomasin’s ear, and served with a lightly sweetened goat cheese cream to honor our king of sky and land, sea and sand, Black Phillilp. Wouldst thou like to live deliciously? Read onward.

    Apple Tansey with Goat Cheese Cream

    For the tansey

    • 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, halved and sliced
    • 3 tablespoons butter
    • 4 eggs, separated
    • 3 tablespoons sour cream
    • 1 tablespoon sugar
    • 1/4 cup apple butter, store bought or homemade
    • 3 tablespoons brown sugar

    Heat the broiler. On the stovetop in a cast iron skillet or other deep oven-proof pan, melt butter, and cook apple slices on medium until softened (7-10 minutes). Meanwhile, whisk egg yolks with sour cream and sugar, whip egg whites until white and frothy and fold into the egg mixture. Lower heat to medium low and stir egg mixture into apples with a spatula and smooth on top. Swirl in the apple butter and cook for 4-5 minutes until set. Sprinkle with brown sugar and place under the broiler until brown and bubble. Cool slightly before serving with goat cheese cream.

    For the goat cheese cream

    • 4 ounces goat cheese, room temperature
    • 1/4 cup heavy cream
    • 1 tablespoon sugar

    Whip goat cheese until smooth. Separately, whip cream to soft peaks, then blend with goat cheese and sugar until smooth. Serve with the tansey.

  • Kuku Kadoo

    Kuku Kadoo

    Under the Shadow is the story of Shideh (Narges Rashidi, brilliant) and her daughter Dorsa who become haunted by a djinn. It’s currently on Netflix, I enjoyed it a lot and suggest checking it out!

    Under the Shadow

    As a 2016 mother-child horror movie, it’s comparable to The Babadook, but whereas Amelia in the Babadook is haunted by her internal grief, the djinn that haunts the collected, ambitious, and modern Shideh seems to compound the ways she’s already being suffocated in her everyday life – ways there are no shortage of in 1980s Iran. Her dreams of becoming a doctor have been crushed, she and her neighbors live almost casually with the daily threat of missiles, and the morality police are more concerned with how she’s scandalously uncovered when she bolts outside in fear than by her and her child’s safety.

    Add to that the folkloric element of the tricky and unnerving djinn, who seems to target Shideh’s deepest insecurities. I cried hot tears as it takes the form of her husband telling her what a horrible mother she is, and almost applauded its pettiness as it destroys the only thing that seems to relieve her frustration: her beloved Jane Fonda workout video. So 80s. So culturally forbidden.

    Shideh doesn’t seem like a character that cares much about cooking, but at one point in the film, she’s seen in the kitchen chopping what looks like zucchini and potato, and then sweeps it into a pot. I took this as opportunity to try kuku kadoo, sort of an Iranian frittata which uses those ingredients. It’s a portable dish that works at all temps, so it’s good to take either to the apartment basement during an attack or as a road snack while on the run from supernatural forces.

    Kuku Kadoo

    Adapted from the defunct Lucky Peach

    • olive oil
    • 12 eggs, lightly beaten
    • 1 pound zucchini, grated and squeezed of moisture
    • 3/4 pounds potatoes, parboiled, cooled, and grated
    • 1 bunch green onions, sliced
    • 2 tablespoons yogurt
    • 2 tablespoons flour
    • 2 teaspoons baking powder
    • 2 teaspoons coarse salt
    • 1 handful parsley, chopped
    • 2 cloves garlic, grated
    • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
    • black pepper to taste

    Heat oven to 400°. Line a baking pan with parchment and grease with olive oil.

    With a spatula, combine eggs, zucchini, potatoes, green onions, yogurt, flour, baking powder, slat, parsley, garlic, tumeric, and black pepper. Spread into the baking dish an dback for 35 minutes, until top is golden. Check that it’s cooked through by inserting a knife into the center, should come out clean.

    Cool, remove from dish and slice into squares to serve.

  • Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese Quiche

    This origin story of this quiche came from a time when both my friend and I were fresh off breakups; we were both in the bumming around phase, but were making the best of it by setting up camp on the pull out couch in her living room, knitting, and watching Sex and the City. In other words, being aggressively single. We made this for a fantastic lunch, along with a avocado and grapefruit salad with Dijon dressing, another combo I still make all the time.

    It’s the classic French velvety custard with a salty bite, brightened up with lemon zest. Perfect for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, or, as I most recently made it, for a trip to the vineyard! I sliced this into squares to take with – and can confirm it pairs well with North Carolina whites.

    Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese Quiche

    • 1 pie crust, homemade or store-bought

    I made the press crust from The Joy of Cooking. The texture will be crumbly vs. flaky, but it is so, so easy to make. Quick instructions: in food processor, combine 1 1/2 c flour, 1 stick unsalted butter, pinch of salt and 2-3 tbsp milk. Press into a pie plate or 9 inch cake pan, crimp the edges if you can be bothered (I prefer mine rustic!) and bake for 18-22 minutes at 400. Brush with an egg yolk and return to oven for 2 min.

    • 4 oz cream cheese, softened
    • 3 eggs
    • 1 cup milk
    • 1/2 cup half and half or cream
    • zest of 1/2 lemon
    • 1 teaspoon coarse salt
    • 4 ounces smoked salmon, cut into slivers
    • 1 teaspoon dried dill
    • 1 tbsp capers, coarsely chopped

    Preheat oven to 350°

    Blend the cream cheese with a hand mixer, until creamy and smooth. Add eggs and blend until combined (cream cheese might be just a little lumpy, that’s ok). Blend in milk, half and half or cream, lemon zest and salt. Fold in salmon, chives, and capers. Pour into pie crust, stir so that the salmon is evenly distributed, and bake for 30-40 minutes, until edges are set and middle is just a little jiggly. Cool for 30 minutes and serve warm or room temp.

  • Devilish Eggs

    Devilish Eggs

    I’m still a Southern girl…of course I have a deviled egg plate.

    For deviled eggs, most use a sprinkle of paprika or aleppo pepper as a garnish, but the hedonistic and excessive use it by the spoonful. Since the flavors are otherwise subtle, the aleppo pepper shines – or smolders.

    A couple gathered tips: Virginia Willis’s deviled eggs in Bon Appetit, Y’all contain her French secret ingredient: butter. I never miss an opportunity to hide butter in things, and it really does take these to the next level (of hell! muhahaha). Also, for easy-to-peel eggs, use eggs that have been in the fridge a week or so. Much recommended – mine were super fresh since we go through eggs like chickens were going extinct, so they were annoying hard to peel.

    Edit: I have a new hard boiled egg technique, which I saw on The Kitchn (replacing my previous method of just boiling them to hell). It works perfectly (as I instagrammed in my excitement).

    Devilish Eggs

    (recipe can be doubled)

    • 6 eggs
    • 1 scant tablespoon aleppo pepper (or an equal amount using 3 parts paprika to 1 part cayenne)
    • generous pinch or two cayenne
    • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
    • 1 tbsp butter, softened
    • 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
    • coasre salt and fresh cracked pepper
    • green onions, chives, or other herbs for garnish

    Hard boil eggs. Technique of perfection: put in a pot and cover with an inch of cold water. Bring the water to a rolling boil, then remove from heat, cover and let stand for 10 minutes. Remove to a bowl and cover with cold water for a couple of minutes. When they are cool enough to handle, peel.

    Slice in half and remove yolks to a medium bowl. Smash yolks as smooth as you can get them. (Alternately you can use a food processor and mix with the other ingredients).

    In a dry pan, lightly toast spices to wake them up a bit. Add to yolks, plus mayonnaise, butter and salt and pepper to taste. Combine thoroughly.

    Spoon mixture back into eggs (piping is lame), garnish with greenery.