Synopses & Reviews
The American city is thriving. In urban neighborhoods across the country you can find intriguing restaurants, gourmet and ethnic markets, farmers' markets, and artisanal breads and cheeses. In her new book,
Weir Cooking in the City, chef and teacher Joanne Weir takes readers and home cooks into our nation's ethnically diverse and vibrant culinary and cultural urban landscape.
Exploring her adopted city of San Francisco as a guide, Joanne invites readers to search their own cities for the myriad international flavors and tastes they will find there. From local ethnic neighborhoods to the butcher to the farmers' market, Joanne seeks out the best ingredients and most delicious dishes and shows how they can be re-created in home kitchens anywhere. A companion volume to her new series on public television, Weir Cooking in the City brings every city to life.
With chapters on Firsts, Soups, Mains, and Desserts, Weir includes more than 125 vividly flavored, inventive recipes, created with urban cooks in mind: those cooks with not enough time and too little space, but an appetite for creating memorable meals and social gatherings. Start your meal with Joanne's Straw Potato Cakes with Smoked Salmon and Caviar, Parmesan Flan, or Kale Soup with Pancetta and White Beans. Showcase beautiful salad greens in a Radicchio, Arugula, Golden Raisin, and Pine Nut Salad or a Duck Salad with Pecans and Kumquats, or spice things up with a Thai Beef Salad with Mint and Cilantro. Simple yet delicious main courses include Silver-Roasted Salmon with Sweet-Hot Relish; Pan-Seared Chicken Breasts with Mustard, Rosemary, and Capers; and Green Lasagna with Artichokes and Leeks. Sweets like Warm Chocolate, Cinnamon, and Coffee Tart; Plum Cake; Double Chocolate Ice Cream with Dried Cherries; and Panna Cotta with Raspberries will complete your meal. Each recipe is accompanied by wine suggestions from wine expert Tim McDonald.
Filled with mouth-watering photographs throughout, Weir Cooking in the City is the cookbook for the modern home cook, with essential information on stocking your pantry, matching wine with food, and effortless entertaining. From creating a party of Mediterranean-inspired small plates to a simple but sophisticated supper after a movie or play, from bustling neighborhood markets to Joanne's welcoming kitchen, this excursion into city cuisine will inspire you to create a weekday meal or an impromptu dinner party.
Review
Alice Waters
Chef, Chez Panisse, and author of Chez Panisse Café Cookbook
As a cook, as a teacher, and as an author, Joanne Weir has never strayedfrom her firm and unassailable convictions that cooking should be pure and simple and that ingredients should be pure and fresh.
Review
Madeleine Kamman
Author of The New Making of a Cook: The Art, Techniques, and Science of Good Cooking
Joanne inherited a long past of work in the kitchen from her European and American grandmothers. The love she has for her work is visible in everything she does.
Review
Publishers WeeklyWeir's recipes are lusty and unpretentious, emphasizing fresh, seasonal ingredients, and her lucid writing makes seamlessly accessible the few that are more complex....She pays special attention to the blending of sweet, salty, sour, and bitter, and the result is magical.
About the Author
Joanne Weir is an award-winning author, cooking teacher, and chef. She cooked for five years at Chez Panisse and has studied with Madeleine Kamman. She is the host of the popular public television series
Weir Cooking in the Wine Country. Her new series,
Weir Cooking in the City, begins in spring 2004. Weir was awarded the first International Association of Culinary Professionals' Cooking Teacher of the Year Award of Excellence in 1996. Her books
From Tapas to Meze, You Say Tomato, and
Joanne Weir's More Cooking in the Wine Country were nominated for James Beard Awards. She lives in San Francisco.
Table of Contents
Contents Preface: City!
The Essential City Pantry
Entertaining in the City
The Right Wine
Firsts
Rice Paper Shrimp Rolls
Potato Rosemary Flatbread
Phyllo Pizza with Feta and Tomatoes
Croutons with Tapenade, Orange, and Fennel
Crostini with Dried Plum Paste and Goat Cheese
Smoked Eggplant with Pita Chips
Pita Chips with Cucumbers, Feta, Dill, and Mint
Bagna Cauda, a Warm Italian Bath
Prosciutto, Parmigiano, and Pepper Breadsticks
Fiery Peppered Feta with Pita
Falafel with Tahini and Herb Salad
Tahini
Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Dried Plums Stuffed with Gorgonzola and Walnuts
Parmesan Flan
Fettuccine with Wild Mushrooms
Fresh Fettuccine
Baked Eggs with Summer Vegetables
Jalapeño-Jack Scones with Chive Butter
Five-Onion Pizza
Favorite Pizza Dough
Moroccan Shellfish Cigars
Straw Potato Cakes with Smoked Salmon and Caviar
Scallop Seviche with Tomatoes, Hot Peppers, and Cilantro
Oysters with Champagne Mignonette
Yakitori with Red and Green Peppers
Salads
Garden Greens with Tomatoes, Lime, Olives, and Cilantro
Cherry Tomato Salad with Herbed Feta
Roasted Pepper Salad with Eggplant Croutons
Autumn Cheddar, Apple, and Walnut Salad
Roasted Beet, Avocado, and Watercress Salad
Orzo Salad with Capers, Corn, Red Onion, and Peppers
Artichoke, Endive, and Arugula Salad
Warm Grilled Fennel Salad
Escarole Salad with Anchovy Vinaigrette and Garlic Croutons
Spicy Bulgur and Lentil Salad
Dried Plum, Fennel, and Manchego Salad with Prosciutto
Fennel Oil
Celebration Salad of Endive, Crème Fraîche, and Caviar
Radicchio, Arugula, Golden Raisin, and Pine Nut Salad
Asparagus Salad with Brown Butter and Meyer Lemons
Farro, Pesto, and Tomato Salad
Farro Salad with Prosciutto and Grapefruit
Thai Beef Salad with Mint and Cilantro
Shrimp, Papaya, and Avocado Salad
Shrimp Salad with White Beans, Mint Oil, and Watercress
Japanese Pickled Vegetable Salad
Gravlax with Spring Salad
Grilled Squid Salad with Winter Citrus
Duck Salad with Pecans and Kumquats
Soups
Yellow Tomato Gazpacho
Champagne Oyster Soup with Celery and Fennel
Miso Soup with Edamame
Dashi
Gratin of Tomato and Eggplant Soup
Hot and Sour Soup
Lobster, Roasted Pepper, Tomato, and Corn Chowder
Yellow Split Pea and Carrot Soup with Cilantro Yogurt
Kale Soup with Pancetta and White Beans
Summer Tomato Soup with Basil Cream
Tortilla and Tomato Soup
Tomato Rice Soup with Tiny Meatballs
Mains and a Few Sides
Pan-Seared Chicken Breasts with Mustard, Rosemary, and Capers
Spice-Crusted Chicken Breasts with Cucumber Lemon Raita
Braised Chicken with Green Garlic
Oven-Fried Potato Chips with Marjoram Salt
Truffle-Scented Roasted Cornish Hens with Prosciutto and Wild Mushrooms
Roasted Cornish Hens with Toasted Bread Crumb Salsa
Fontina, Capocollo, and Roasted Pepper Panini
Panini with Meatballs and Tomato Sauce
Panini Caprese
Risotto with Gorgonzola
Spaghetti and Meatballs, the Ultimate Comfort Food
Orecchiette with Brussels Sprouts and Bacon
Oven-Baked Penne with Wild Mushrooms and Fontina
Green Lasagna with Artichokes and Leeks
Shanghai Noodles with Chicken, Cashews, Cilantro, and Mint
Herb-Crusted Tuna Skewers with Tomato Aïoli
Halibut Parcels with Capers and Lemon Thyme
Olive Oil-Poached Salmon with Asparagus and Sugar Snap Peas
Silver-Roasted Salmon with Sweet-Hot Relish
Cedar-Planked Lemon Salmon with Dill
Salmon with Lemon-Shallot Relish and Crispy Prosciutto
Salmon Burgers with Mustard Mayonnaise
Pepper-Salt Crabs
Clam and Mussel Boil with Corn and Red Potatoes
Cioppino with Crab, Clams, and Shrimp
Pork and Tomatillo Burritos
Fiery Green Salsa
Pan-Seared Pork Medallions with Riesling and Apples
Lamb Tagine with Artichokes, Preserved Lemons, and Olives
Preserved Lemons
Grilled Lamb Chops with Green and Black Olive Salsa
Roulade of Herbed Lamb with Stewed Garlic
Olive Oil-Mashed Potatoes
Minted Sugar Snap Peas
Spiced Lamb Sausage with French Lentils
Golden-Sautéed Veal with Arugula and Tomato Salad
Braised Veal Shanks with Olives and Lemon
Orzo
Napolitan Braised Beef Ragu in Two Courses
Soy-Marinated Flank Steak with Asian Pesto
Wasabi-Mashed Potatoes
Desserts
Individual Warm Raspberry Soufflés
Panna Cotta with Raspberries
Warm Polenta Custards with Grappa-Soaked Golden Raisins
Caramel Pot de Crème
Caramelized Orange and Rice Custard
Caramelized Chocolate Almond Budino
Summer Fruits in Sweet Spiced Wine
Watermelon, Mango, Blueberries, and Lime "Salad"
Little Almond and Plum Galettes
Dried Plum and Walnut Caramel Tart
Prebaked Short Crust Tart Shell
Warm Chocolate, Cinnamon, and Coffee Tart
Flakiest Apricot and Raspberry Tart
Plum Cake
Cranberry Upside-Down Cake
Triple Ginger Pineapple Cake
Walnut Torte with Maple Cream
Maple Leaf Cookies
Ginger Crisps
Italian Lemon "Milkshake"
Miss Judy's Sienese Almond Cookies
Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti
Apricot, Meyer Lemon, and Cardamom Triangles
Crispy Moroccan Phyllo with Orange Custard and Almonds
Nectarine Sorbet with Blueberry Compote
Rose Petal Sorbet
Pear Granita
Double Chocolate Ice Cream with Dried Cherries
Butter Pecan Ice Cream
Chestnut Honey Ice Cream with Riesling Poached Fruit
Bellinis
Conversion Charts
Acknowledgments
Index