Blood Orange Curd
I realized yesterday that our living room is just about about the size of the island in Chris’s aunt’s kitchen. Granted, her kitchen is super-sized, but that still tells you something, doesn’t it?
Currently, a huge piece of surface material is taking up about a quarter of the total space, smack in the middle of it all. It makes getting around the apartment challenging. You have to shimmy around it, but mind the wires!, because you might trip like I did this morning, knocking over a speaker that had been playing Lykke Li. (I don’t think it’s broken.)
Chris likes to joke that the entire apartment has become my studio, and he’s not kidding. Lining one wall are foamboards and reflectors and all kinds of surfaces. Lining the opposite wall are stacks of bowls, plates, jars, glassware, silverware, pots, pans, and other props. It’s a delicate situation.
The kitchen is no exception, both in the fact that it’s tiny (I’ve touched on this before), and that I treat it as an extension of my studio. Open any drawer and you’ll discover the tricks of my trade: a rolling pin balanced precariously atop a couple mortars, pestles off to the side, an entire drawerful of random shiny gizmo-gadgets: biscuit cutters, the candy thermometer, a milk frother. And watch out if you want to grab a baking sheet: you’ll have to dig through a mountain of metallica, maneuvering your hand through tiny crevices and odd corners.
Oh, the life of a food blogger.
The truth is, despite having all this stuff lying around, I still find myself gravitating towards simple recipes, today’s being no exception. I like using ingredients that are in season (well, I guess that’s true of many of us), and I like being able to really taste their essence.
Maybe that makes me lazy. Or maybe it makes me a faux-Alice Waters in training? I’ll let you decide.
To tell you the truth, being newly open to baking with citruses and all, I had planned on preparing something a little more ambitious for today. In my head, I envisioned perfect mini tarts filled with silky caramel and topped with this blood orange curd, glistening of course. I really intended to stun you all away with my baking prowess.
But: a) and mostly importantly, I have no baking prowess, and b) there are bills to pay (also very important, come to think of it), so I let my intentions dwindle into this blood orange curd, which ended up being a real treat.
I’m with Kate on this one. The word ‘curd’ just doesn’t do it for me. It rhymes with ‘turd’ for one thing, and ugh, the tongue seems to linger on that ‘r,’ drawing it out so it sounds like you’re insulting someone.
Anyway, as you can see, the citrus obsession continues. (Amy! I’m filling your plate with more citrus!) Please don’t let its name detract from what it is, because that would be doing a great disservice to this recipe.
Though the butter and egg yolk have the effect of mellowing out the acidity of the orange, the citrus flavor really comes through. I like how blood oranges aren’t super sweet; it really helps keep the sweetness factor in check. And I like how the curd is creamy, like a buttery jam. It tastes really good on plain toast (in particular, it pairs really well with this poppy seed bread we have in the house).
I was surprised with how the color turned out, because the juice was such a vivid coral, but again, mellowing occurred and the pinkish-red turned into a pretty pastel orange. Don’t you love lovely-looking food?
Other ways in which to use your curd (ugh, that sounds so dirty):
These shortcakes via Bon Appétit
This chiffon cake via Eat the Love (gorgeous photos!)
These bars via White on Rice Couple (with a brown butter crust, yum)
In other words, you can pretty much do whatever you feel like with the stuff. So go, go and make your blood orange caramel tarts, see if I care!
BLOOD ORANGE CURD
Makes about 1 pint
Ingredients:
- 12 egg yolks
- 3/4 cup freshly-squeezed blood orange juice (from around 3 blood oranges)
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup butter (8 Tbsp), cut into Tbsp pieces
Directions:
Place the egg yolks, sugar, blood orange juice, and lemon juice in a medium saucepan and turn the heat on to low. Whisk constantly (or the yolks will curdle), for about 10 minutes. At this point, the curd should become really foamy, then thicken up. When it’s thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, run the ingredients through a sieve into a medium bowl. Immediately stir in the butter a little at a time until it all melts and becomes incorporated. Let cool and refrigerate.
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Honeycrisp Apple Salad With Walnuts And Pumpkin Seeds
Hello November. Your arrival marks the end of the surrealness that was the last half week. Subways are once again open with limited service, supermarkets are operating in full swing, fallen trees are finally being cleared from roads that have been mostly empty for the last few days.
While those of us living in the Brooklyn area were lucky enough to experience very little damage from the hurricane, the pictures tell a different story. I think they’re what lends to the unrealness of the situation: the incongruity between what we witnessed firsthand and the chaos documented elsewhere. Most of you saw a coast that was being battered by unrelenting forces of nature. On the other hand, many of us sat around all of Tuesday night waiting for the power to go out, which didn’t happen, and trees to topple, which did, but only a little.
I feel fortunate that I could tell our friends and family that we were fine. I know that many weren’t as lucky, and my thoughts go out to them.
As soon as the markets re-opened today, I rushed out and bought fresh produce. Because in our rush to pick up emergency supplies, like bottled water and canned beans and vienna sausages (which are dirt cheap compared to Spam—why is that?), we’d forgotten that what we would probably need the most was food to get us through the next couple days.
Hahaha, riiiight.
So, hello November. Let’s start you out right. With a salad, because salads usually do the trick. Especially ones that contain bits of fruit.
Have you ever had a honeycrisp apple? I don’t know how I’ve never heard of them before, because they’re lovely. Maybe because I’ve never been an apple connoisseur; Fujis have always suited me just fine. But I’m seriously digging the crisp/tart/perfect flesh of the honeycrisp. Paired with arugula, walnuts, and pumpkin seeds, not to mention a cider vinegar, honey, and poppy seed dressing, the salad is light and fresh and perky.
For many who were shaken by the storm, light and fresh and perky may be way to start out on the right foot.
HONEYCRISP APPLE SALAD WITH WALNUTS AND PUMPKIN SEEDS
Adapted from The Cozy Apron
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients:
For the vinaigrette:
- 6 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 Tbsp finely chopped walnuts
- 3 Tbsp honey
- 2 tsp poppy seeds
- pinch cumin
- salt & pepper to taste
- 6 Tbsp olive oil
For the salad:
- 2 cups arugula
- 4 cups escarole, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 honeycrisp apple, sliced into thin matchsticks
- 1/2 cup roasted pumpkin seeds
- 1/2 cup roasted walnuts
Directions:
For the vinaigrette, mix all the ingredients but the olive oil together well in a jar with a lid. Pour in the olive oil, close the jar, and shake it until the dressing is emulsified.
For the salad, in a large bowl, combine the arugula, escarole, half the apples sticks, and half the pumpkin seeds and walnuts. Lightly drizzle with the dressing. Serve the salad onto individual serving plates, and garnish each with the remaining apples, pumpkin seeds, and walnuts. Drizzle on more dressing as desired.
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