What's Cooking With Kim O'Donnel

Calling all foodies! Join us Tuesdays at noon for What's Cooking, our live online culinary hour with Kim O'Donnel.

A graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education (formerly known as Peter Kump's New York Cooking School), Kim spends much of her time in front of the stove or with her nose in a cookbook.

For daily dispatches from Kim's kitchen, check out her blog, A Mighty Appetite. You may catch up on previous transcripts with the What's Cooking archive page.

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Kim O'Donnel: Hello! Glad to be with you on this spectacularly beautiful day. I'm running on leftover West coast time, so pardon me if the brain is a little fuzzy. I had a restful visit in Seattle and environs last week, soaking up the sun and enjoying the local vittles. I'm told that it's raining today out there, so I guess we got out just in the nick of time. I'm eager to hear how you've been and what you've got cooking in this new month of September. Tell me...

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Alexandria, Va.: Submitting early because I'm really hoping someone can help me. I need a good recipe for hummus. In general I know what goes into it, but I want to make it for a party this Saturday and don't have the time to experiment to detrmine the ratio of ingredience for a recipe that will wow them. Can Kim or the peanuts help? Thanks a bunch!

Kim O'Donnel: Hummus is one of my favorite go-to dishes that takes less than 10 minutes to whip up. Here's what you need: 1 can garbanzos, 3 tablespoons tahini paste, 1 clove garlic and about 1/2 cup lemon juice (about 2 lemons' worth). Salt to taste. It's that simple.

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Avocados: Help! How do I buy a good avocado? I keep buying relatively hard ones, and leaving them on the counter to ripen. But even when they appear to be soft, they are too hard to mash up.

Kim O'Donnel: I would stop buying those relatively hard avos and instead buy one that's tender to the thumb, like that squishy part right underneath your thumb.

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Washington DC: Hi Kim! Love your chats!! I'm trying to get the last of the summer corn on the cob and have always been gun shy about grilling it. Can you tell me the best way to do that? I have a gas grill if that makes any difference. Thanks!

Kim O'Donnel: It doesn't make a difference if you've got gas grill, no prob. One easy way to do it is to soak your corn, still cloaked in husked, in water for say 20 minutes, then drain and grill as is. The outer layers come right off when ready to eat, and the water bath helps keeps things from drying up. Really easy. Serve with olive oil and/or butter and lime.

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Bethesda, Md.: Hi Kim,

I need new ideas for marinating flank steak. I've done a brown sugar, lime, soy marinade and a few Asian ones. Is there anything new left to try?

Kim O'Donnel: There are enough marinating tricks to keep you entertained for a month, at least. Have you dijon, olive oil, orange and rosemary? Who else has a grand marinade idea?

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Hummus tip: To avoid large bits of garlic, chop the garlic before adding it to the food processor.

Kim O'Donnel: Thanks much for adding to this thread!

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Dayton, OH: Hi Kim - wanted to let you know about a fabulous variation on Salad Nicoise that I put together the other day. I realized I didn't have any tuna, but I had a can of smoked salmon fillets that I didn't know what to do with. Awesome together - didn't even need any dressing, just an extra dribble of olive oil to moisten the beans & potatoes.

Kim O'Donnel: I thoroughly enjoyed some ad hoc smoked salmon moments myself last week while in Seattle, from rice and cukes to scrambled eggs and homemade English muffins. I agree, it's a goodie.

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New England: Kim, I have to tell you what a winner your Vietnamese marinade is! I have been using it on extra firm tofu and putting that (or veggies) on the charcoal grill with some smoker chips added, and then cutting it up afterwards to add to salads, pizzas, whatever. It's not a vegetarian recipe because of the fish sauce, but it's so amazing and easy to use on many things. I also tried bone-in chicken thighs with it and they too were delish.

Kim O'Donnel: Wow, another use for that killer marinade! I taught my friend Leslie how to use it last week, and she too was impressed. I have also had great luck using it on shrimp, if that's of interest. Thanks for chiming in. I may have have to try tofu this way.

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Arlington, VA: We got a big butternut squash in our CSA this week and I need to use it up ASAP. Any easy recipe suggestions? Something that I could freeze for later would be even better. Thanks!

Kim O'Donnel: If you want to freeze, I'd make a puree that will be handy for lunches later this fall. You can peel and cut up squash, place in a saucepan, with water or stock, a leek or quartered onion, plenty of fresh thyme, a garlic clove. Cook til squash is fork tender. Remove herb sprigs and puree. Add a little honey or chipotle chile for good measure. No dairy necessary. Season with salt and pepper and reheat as necessary.

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Flank Steak Marinade: You might want to try to add a little bit of bourbon to that brown sugar, soy and lime juice.

Kim O'Donnel: Excellent idea. I also like me a little tequila or rum in marinades.

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Silver Spring, MD: Just had to let you know you've created a monster! Found great garlic scapes at the Roots market in Olney, MD (which BTW is fantastic - they sell wine!). I made your garlic scape pesto, just substituted the traditional toasted pine nuts for your walnuts. Served over four-cheese tortellini with Italian sausage. (Thought about using chicken, then realized it probably wouldn't stand up to such strong flavors in the sauce. The sausage was perfect.) Anyway, thanks for such a wonderful and unusual recipe. The only problem is, my boyfriend and I -crave- the pesto now, and I'm told Roots won't have any more scapes until next spring. What can two addicts do - can we make a similar pesto with plain old garlic?

Kim O'Donnel: So glad you are scarfing up the scapes. Yes, they are a seasonal treat and won't be back til next year. You may want to play with different kinds of pesto -- with fresh sage, cilantro or mint...it won't be the same, but herby pestos are terrific on pasta as well.

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Arlington, VA: Hi Kim and welcome back! I missed you last week, but I'm hoping since you're fresh off the plane from Seattle you can give me a few tips on places to visit as I'll be there next week. It'll be my husband's first trip there (and it looks like the weather will be glorious!) so I'd like to show him the best of the city. Thanks!!

Kim O'Donnel: Check out today's blog for some ideas...and I'll have some more tomorrow as well. What kinds of stuff are you guys interested in?

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Annandale, VA: Hi Kim-

A friend just brought a bottle of cocoa vinegar back from France as a gift. Do you have any suggestions on what I can do with it?

Thanks!

Kim O'Donnel: I've never heard of cocoa vinegar. Interesting. Tell me more.

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I keep buying relatively hard ones, and leaving them on the counter to ripen.: I've learned that in the summer, I just can't get avocados or banannas to ripen right. My window AC is not enough to keep a normal temp and the hotter kitchen messes up the ripening process. I just wait til fall.

Kim O'Donnel: Hmm. Maybe that's why our bananas act weird, too...

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Alexandria, VA: Hi Kim! I love steak fajitas but rarely make them at home. It seems that it should be pretty easy but I don't know what type of steak to use or what to marinade it in. Any ideas?

Kim O'Donnel: Would use something thin and striated, like a flank, London Broil or tri-tip. For Mexican, I might marinate in lime, tequila, a wee bit of oil, with some cumin, coriander, cayenne and oregano rubbed in.

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Attleboro MA: Hi Kim - for the person interested in making hummus, I've used black beans instead of garbanzos, and also added part of a can of artichoke hearts. Delicious. Thanks for all your information and the great Blog..

Kim O'Donnel: Nice going, Attleboro. This sounds like a tasty variation.

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Butternut Squash: I like to cut it in half and bake it, put on some butter, salt & pepper, then cover with sauteed veggies.

I also do a puree like you suggested, but freeze it for soup. Great in the fall with homemade croutons - sauteed in some butter and sage.

Kim O'Donnel: Yes and yes. And soon, I'll have to dig up that butternut squash lasagne, which makes a great veggie entree for thanksgiving. Cheers.

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Silver Spring, MD: Hi Kim.

I enjoy cooking, but during the week I just don't find time for elaborate recipes. I'd like to shave off some time by using store-bought Rotisserie Chicken. Could you recommend any good cookbooks that contain recipes using it?

Kim O'Donnel: You know, Nancy Silverton came out with a book earlier this year on using store-bought products to help zip up cooking time at home. You may want to check that. I know there are other titles with shortcuts in mind; any of you have thoughts?

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Hummus recipe: I recently tried a recipe for hummus that calls for plain yogurt instead of the tahini paste. Since I was out of tahini paste anyway I was happy to try it. I used about 2 tbsps and it came out just fine! (However, I started off with too much liquid from the beans, so 2 tbsps might not be enough to get the right consistency normally.)

Kim O'Donnel: Interesting. Yogurt instead of tahini? Did you miss the richness?

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Cocoa Vinegar: I've looked online, but the manufacturer of this particular vinegar (Weiss) has no information, and a reference to a Swiss company which apparently made cocoa vinegar is no longer a working site. I'm imagining using it in a mole or similar? The bottle says it can be used on anything basically, but I'm looking for a bit more guidance than that.

Kim O'Donnel: So is it made from cacoa beans?

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NoVA Gal: Hey Kim- At the Courthouse Farmers Market I got some baby eggplants- about the size and shape of fingerling potatoes. Thoughts on cooking them in a Mediterranean-type way? I'd prefer to bake them over sauteeing. Thanks for the help, as always.

Kim O'Donnel: A bit of fresh rosemary and/or oregano, olive oil, salt, garlic. Those little babies will roast up in no time, at 375 or so. You could serve with fresh chopped tomatoes, for an ad hoc ratatouille.

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Hummus: What? No olive oil? I have also found that adding water helps to smooth it out if it's a little chunky.

Kim O'Donnel: I learned this method from a Lebanese home cook. No olive oil, really!

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Seattle visitor again: The Ballard Farmer's market sounds fun. I always like to find sites/restaurants/experiences that you can only find in that particular city - or what makes it stand out. One thing I've enjoyed in the past is renting a canoe from UW and canoeing on Lake Union - so much fun!

For the person who can't get avocados to ripen, I don't know if this helps, but I usually leave mine in a paper bag on the counter until they're soft then use them immediately or put them in the fridge for a few days.

Kim O'Donnel: And that reminds me -- had a fun Mexican lunch at Aguaverde, right on Lake Union...you can't go wrong at any of Seattle's farm markets. They really do it right out there.

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Washington, DC: Cocoa Balsamic Vinegar

Tender cocoa nibs soaked in Italian balsamic vinegar giving it a rounded flavour with the distinctively earthy, chocolate flavour notes of pure cocoa. For superb dressings, sauces, bread dipping with olive oil and marinades with a delicious twist.

http://www.hotelchocolat.co.uk/cocoa-vinegar-P1670/

Kim O'Donnel: Interesting. Yes, I'd def. try it in mole...and I might use it as part of a marinade for steak...or what about in a dressing with oranges??

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Arlington: Do you drain/rinse the garbanzos for the hummus? How many roasted red peppers would be appropriate to add? Thanks!

Kim O'Donnel: I usually drain the 'banzos but not always. One roasted pepper would be a lovely addition.

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Hummus, take 2: Hi Kim,

I've been making hummus for a while but I am not happy with the texture I'm getting. It always turns out grainy. I've tried fixing it by not draining the beans entirely, but it still isn't right.

Any way I can perfect it? Is it my food processor?

Thanks!

Kim O'Donnel: How long are you pureeing? Add a little water -- about 2 ounces -- to help things along...and that goes for original hummus poster.

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Metro Center: Perhaps the avocado problem is that you're leaving them out to ripen. They ripen better in a paper bag (concentrates the ethelyne gas that they give off as they ripen, hastening ripening.)

Kim O'Donnel: You're not the first one to say that today. Thanks for chiming in. OR....maybe we should all board a plane for Puerto Rico, where the best avos in the world are at the ready....

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Silver Spring, MD: Karen tells us the pods are picked and split open, and the cocoa beans are removed. The cocoa beans are put in a box, covered with banana leaves and left to ferment for six to eight days. The juice is collected and used to make cocoa vinegar. The beans are spread out on big drying racks and left to dry in the drying shed for two to three weeks.

http://www.theoceanadventure.com/CS2000/CS20.html

Kim O'Donnel: Nice! Thanks, and I've learned something today.

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Washington, D.C.: Kim, love your chats and daily blog. They inspire me to cook every time I hit the cooking doldrums! I have a question for you about making yogurt at home. I've been making homemade yogurt for years and my last batch of yogurt went bad after being in the fridge too long. Since I had to throw away all of my yogurt culture, I decided to try making a new batch using a yogurt from the store as my culture (a plain buffalo's milk yogurt from Whole Foods). I was able to successfully make yogurt, but the consistency is totally off. Instead of a thick and creamy but flowable consistency, it is very globby and an almost rubbery texture. It almost has a bounce to it as you pour it into a bowl. When you scoop some with a spoon, it barely coats the spoon. It tastes okay, but the consistency is very off-putting. I know I used the exact same method I always use, so I did not make any changes myself. Do you or any chatters have any idea why that might have happened? This has happened to me before when using store-bought yogurts as a culture. I thought it may be due to emulsifiers/gelatins they use to keep the yogurt together, but this culture had no extra ingredients besides milk and various live cultures. For next time, I'm getting the culture from my mom (from an Indian kitchen) again. Thanks for your help!!

Kim O'Donnel: I'm going to throw this out to our veteran yogurt makers. Do check the label for additives...any yogurt-y thoughts to add?

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Metro Center: The avocado person - stop buying them at the mainstream grocery stores. They are not stored well and will never be as good as they could be. Get them at a Salvadoran or Mexican store. You should be able to find them ripe, or almost ripe, and that will be a LOT softer than you expect.

Kim O'Donnel: And another thought on buying avos...

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Silver Spring, MD: Do you know of a source for pumpkin oil? I had it in Austria and I think it would be a wonderful addition to my autumn pantry. Thanks.

Kim O'Donnel: Interesting question. Are you sure it wasn't pumpkin seed oil? Holler if you're still online.

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Triangle, VA: Kim, Do you know if "naturally raised" beef means the cow was grass-fed for his/her entire life or does "grass-finished" count as naturally raised too? Also, does grass-fed means the cow was grazing in a pasture or can it mean grass in a trough at a CAFO too?

Kim O'Donnel: Labels, particularly in the supermarkets, can be so tricky. Naturally raised USUALLY means no growth hormones or antibiotics. It implies grass-fed but doesn't guarantee. It also implies pasture-raised but the only way to get definitive information is to buy locally from the person who raised the animals..or to a smaller shop carrying local goods. What's the closest farm market to you? I can help direct you with a list of Virginia farms selling at markets, if that's of interest.

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Arlington, VA: I have found that reserving the garbanzo liquid and adding a little at a time helps to smooth out the hummus. It also holds a little more flavor than just water.

Kim O'Donnel: Another tidbit for hummus...

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Silver Spring, MD: Yes, the oil is made from the pumpkin seeds, but on all the menus it's just pumpkin oil. Thanks!

Kim O'Donnel: You may want to try Takoma Park farmers' market on Sunday, for starters. I might also try smaller shops, like My Organic Market, Roots Market in Olney or Clarksville...specialty markets like Dean & Deluca and Whole Foods likely to carry it.

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Yogurt Maker: I love the Buffalo milk yogurt but it is not flowable but sort of thick like pudding and could that be the reason that your consistency is off on the homemade yogurt? By the way the Blueberry Woodstock Buffalo Milk Yogurt is absolutely declicious and I love the thick pudding-like consistency.

Kim O'Donnel: ah. the buffalo milk factor. excellent point. Thanks for chiming in!

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sweet and sour pork: We want to try a sweet-and-sour sauce on stir-fried pork tonight. Any thoughts on making the sauce? I had a hemmorage when I read the label on the bottled sauce, which lists HFCS as the first ingredient.

The pork will marinate in a bit of soy-ginger-garlic-sherry, then saute. I am thinking to make the sauce from what I remember (vaguely) my mom doing: mix of equal parts cider vinegar, castsup, granulated sugar, splash of soy, and a bit of the juice from pineapples... does it need anything else? Any other thoughts?

Thanks. We're experimenting, so it it doesn't turn out spectacular, we'll try again.

Still not sure what veggies I am going to do. Might just do them separately, as I have brocc on hand and am not sure how that will fly with the sauce.

Kim O'Donnel: Add a little heat, dear. Something chile- sesame oil, too. I like your style, doing the improv thing over the bottled HFCS thing. Good luck, and keep me posted.

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PUmpkin Seed Oil: Outside of Austria, I have found it at Wegmans.

Kim O'Donnel: Excellent! Thanks much.

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Triangle, VA: It's the cow questioner again...I think the closest farmer's market might be in Dale City (Prince William county). Although we live in PW, our weekend travels span from Old Town Alexandria to Springfield, to Stafford, to Fredericksburg. Thank you so much Kim! I finished reading The Omnivore's Dilemma (as you might have guessed from my question!), and am a bit shocked and freaked out by what I learned.

Kim O'Donnel: Don't know how close it is to you, but Smith Fresh meats is in Berryville, and they've got a store right on their farm. If that's not convenient, you can find them at various markets: Del Ray, Courthouse, Columbia Pike, Falls Church and the one in Fairfax at the new Whole Foods. Also at Falls Church is Cibola Farms, from Culpeper or Loudoun county...and there's Polyface at Courthouse and Dupont circle...

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Looking for Knives: Kim,

I feel that it is about time to graduate to a real set of kitchen knives. I have a budget of around $200 to get started...will that let me get some pieces worth having? What purchase order would you recommend? Thinking about santoku, boning, chef, utility, but can use other suggestions.

Kim O'Donnel: boning knife is optional. Chef knife critical, as is a sharpening steel. I'd get a good paring knife as well. Try them on, like you might a baseball bat or golf club. Good luck, keep me posted...

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Washington DC: Where can you buy tahini? I was just at Trader Joe's in Georgetown, and I couldn't find any! Can I make hummus without tahini, or should I wait until I can find it? Thanks!

Kim O'Donnel: Oh gosh -- you can find it at Middle Eastern shops (Med Bakery, Leb Tav market, for starters), Harris Teeter, Wegmans, Whole Foods...

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Atlanta GA: As for flank steak, I like to marinate it in balsamic vinegar, red onion, capers, and oregano for 30 minutes.

Kim O'Donnel: And here's one for the road. Thanks Atlanta! And thanks to all of you checking in and offering your good vibrations. I'm signing off, but am back in the daily blog saddle at A Mighty Appetite. Stay swell.

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