Long overdue: Oscars Night

In pure procrastination fashion, I've neglected my dear blog. Rohit has promised to guest appear, hopefully moving from a supporting role to a co-starring one, since he is the cook of the two of us, though I am the writer. Together, I hope to tackle this blog, bringing it to the forefront of cooking and eating literature. One step at a time.

Many a meal has been bypassed, but one of them is one of my favorite nights of the year: Oscar Night. I love movies and I love the red carpet, but truly, the best part of all is theming the meal with the Best Pictures that are nominated each year. Normally, I have one dish, drink or dessert only for the Best Pictures, because I have to limit it to something and I can't have something for every actress, actor or best soundtrack nominated. This year, I have to thank to Academy for nominating not 5 or 6 movies, but TEN. Rumored to be an effort to get people off the couches and back into the movies, 10 movies were selected in the running, making my job a little more intense than I was used to. Nevertheless, the show must go on. And with a larger group than ever before (23 of us!) we cooked all weekend long.

And the nominees were:

UP IN THE AIR: A movie spent mostly in airports, airline lounges and hotel rooms, we served packaged pretzels while the appetizers came out, as well as mini liquor bottles at the bar.

PRECIOUS: The quintessential scene shows Precious bolting out of the M&G Diner in Harlem with a bucket of fried chicken under her arm. Natch, friend chicken was the option, and a clear hit with the guests.

INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS: Though I couldn't bring myself to watch this movie (the first 25 minutes of it show a brutal scalping which happens repeatedly throughout the movie and I can't stand the sight of blood, ketchup-ed or not), I was told that there was a particularly gripping scene where the ultimate villain eats a piece of apple strudel suggestively in front of the woman he has been seeking. Though I'd never made it before, Apple Strudel it was.

Elsie's Apple Strudel

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, divided
6 Granny Smith apples (about 3 pounds), peeled, cored, chopped
1/2 cup plus 11 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup raisins
1 1/4 cups walnuts, toasted; 1/4 cup coarsely chopped, 1 cup finely chopped
6 (17x13-inch) sheets phyllo pastry or twelve 14x9-inch sheets phyllo pastry, thawed if frozen
Powdered sugar

Melt 1/4 cup butter in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add apples and sauté until tender, about 10 minutes. Add 1/2 cup sugar and salt; stir until sugar is dissolved, about 1 minute. Add raisins and cook until almost all liquid is absorbed, about 2 minutes. Stir in 1/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts. Spread apple mixture in rimmed baking sheet; cool.

Line another rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Melt remaining 1/2 cup butter. Transfer 1 large phyllo sheet to baking sheet (if using small phyllo, place 2 sheets of phyllo on baking sheet, overlapping slightly). Brush lightly with melted butter. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons sugar and 3 tablespoons finely chopped walnuts. Repeat with 4 more large phyllo sheets (or 8 more small sheets), melted butter, sugar, and walnuts. Top with remaining phyllo sheet; brush with butter.

Spoon cooled apple mixture lengthwise down phyllo, starting 3 inches in from 1 long side and leaving 2-inch border at short sides. Using parchment paper as aid, roll up strudel lengthwise. Place strudel, seam side down, on parchment. Tuck in ends to enclose filling. Brush strudel with butter; sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar. DO AHEAD Can be made 4 hours ahead. Chill.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Bake strudel until golden brown, about 40 minutes. Cool 15 minutes. Using serrated knife, cut into 8 slices.

AN EDUCATION: Although most of the movie takes place in the UK, the main character yearns to visit Paris, so I made a cheese souffle for the vegetarians and had guests bring bottles of French red and white wine for the bar.

Classic Cheese Soufflé

This recipe was adapted from a version in The Way to Cook by Julia Child.
Yield: Makes 4-6 main course servings

2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup whole milk
2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons unbleached all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pinch of ground nutmeg
4 large egg yolks
5 large egg whites
1 cup (packed) coarsely grated Gruyère cheese (about 4 ounces)

Preparation

Position rack in lower third of oven and preheat to 400F.Butter 6-cup (1 1/2-quart) soufflé dish. Add Parmesan cheese and tilt dish, coating bottom and sides. Warm milk in heavy small saucepan over medium-low heat until steaming.

Meanwhile, melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and whisk until mixture begins to foam and loses raw taste, about 3 minutes (do not allow mixture to brown). Remove saucepan from heat; let stand 1 minute. Pour in warm milk, whisking until smooth. Return to heat and cook, whisking constantly until very thick, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat; whisk in paprika, salt, and nutmeg. Add egg yolks 1 at a time, whisking to blend after each addition. Scrape soufflé base into large bowl. Cool to lukewarm. DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 hours ahead. Cover and let stand at room temperature.

Using electric mixer, beat egg whites in another large bowl until stiff but not dry. Fold 1/4 of whites into lukewarm or room temperature soufflé base to lighten. Fold in remaining whites in 2 additions while gradually sprinkling in Gruyère cheese. Transfer batter to prepared dish.

Place dish in oven and immediately reduce oven temperature to 375F. Bake until soufflé is puffed and golden brown on top and center moves only slightly when dish is shaken gently, about 25 minutes (do not open oven door during first 20 minutes). Serve immediately.

DISTRICT 9: One of this year's strangest picks, I didn't expect to like this sci-fi creepfest, but the baby prawn grew on me, and since the movie was set in South Africa, we made Prawns Peri-Peri.


Prawns Peri-Peri
Yield: Makes 3-4 servings

18-24 large prawns (large shrimp)
200 g (3/4 cup) butter
10 ml (2 teaspoons) crushed garlic
30 ml (2 tablespoons) lemon juice
30 ml (2 tablespoons) peri-peri sauce (recipe below)
salt, milled black pepper

Peri-peri sauce
50 g (1 1/2 ounces) red chillies, very finely chopped
5 cloves garlic, crushed
500 ml (2 cups) olive oil
pared rind of 1 small lemon (use a vegetable peeler to remove the skin in thin strips)

Preparation:

Sauce: Mix the ingredients together in a bottle and shake well. You can make the sauce ahead and store it in the fridge; the flavour improves with age, reaching its peak at two weeks.

Slit prawns down their backs and devein. Leave heads on, or remove them if you prefer. Depending on the size of your frying pan, cook them in one or two batches.

Heat the butter gently and add the garlic and lemon juice. Don't let the garlic burn. Add prawns and peri-peri sauce. (Shake first to make sure you get some of the chilli and garlic as well.)

Sizzle for 4-5 minutes, turning frequently, until cooked. Season with salt and pepper and tip into a warm serving bowl. Garnish, if you wish, with chopped fresh parsley. Serve with rice or bread and butter.

THE BLIND SIDE: Julie was kind enough to make her infamous deviled eggs, a perfect tailgating food, and we stocked the bar with good old fashioned Coors Light.

THE HURT LOCKER: The ultimate underdog, this film was made with a tiny budget and directed by Kathryn Bigelow, the ex-wife of James Cameron, the arrogant director of Avatar. Taking place in Iraq, we made homemade banaganoush with toasted pita bread, as well as a tabbouleh salad for the dinner table.

Baba Ghanouj
Yield: Makes about 5 cups

3 medium eggplants (about 1 pound each)
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup red-wine vinegar
8 garlic cloves
1 cup well-stirred tahini (sesame seed paste)
1/2 cup sour cream
Olive oil for drizzling

pita triangles
chopped onion
chopped drained bottled peperoncini (pickled Tuscan peppers)
chopped pitted Kalamata olives

Preheat broiler or prepare grill.

Prick eggplants in several places with a fork. On a broiler pan or in a shallow baking pan broil eggplants about 3 to 4 inches from heat, turning every 10 to 15 minutes, 45 to 55 minutes, or until charred all over and very soft. (Alternatively, grill eggplants on a well-oiled rack set 5 to 6 inches over glowing coals in same manner.) Cool eggplants until they can be handled and peel off and discard skin, Transfer pulp to a colander set over a bowl. Let eggplant pulp drain 20 minutes and discard any liquid on bowl.

In a food processor blend lemon juice, vinegar, garlic, and salt to taste until smooth. Add eggplant pulp and pulse until a coarse purée. Add tahini and sour cream and pulse just until combined well.

Transfer baba ghanouj to a shallow bowl and drizzle with oil. Serve baba ghanouj with accompaniments.


"Overnight" Tabbouleh
Prepare a day ahead, and chill overnight. Look for bulgur (also called cracked wheat) in natural foods stores and supermarkets.
Yield: Makes 6 servings
2 1/2 cups bulgur (about 1 pound)
1/3 cup chopped green onions
3 1/2 cups (packed) fresh parsley leaves
2 large carrots, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces (about 2 cups)
1 large red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces (about 1 cup)
2 cups tomato juice
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme

Preparation
Place bulgur and onions in large bowl. Finely chop parsley in processor. Add to bulgur. Finely chop carrots in processor; add to bulgur. Finely chop bell pepper in processor; add to bulgur. Add tomato juice and next 5 ingredients; toss. Cover; chill overnight. Mix thyme into tabbouleh. Season with salt and pepper; serve.

A SERIOUS MAN: A seriously strange movie. I don't know the Bible all that well. Nor did I understand most of this movie, a Coen Brothers original. But there were Jewish people in it. So my mom graciously brought a noodle kugel, a dish she isn't very fond of, but that I, as an honorary Jew, have grown to love at Thanksgivings since the Blumms began joining us.

AVATAR: The favorite that everyone thought would win, naturally the option was to make everything blue. Which we did: we served Cool Blue Martinis, basically vodka with a splash of blue curacao. But we also needed some greenery so Ro made this spectacular salad in honor of the Navi forest, using plenty of colors and textures reminiscent of the film.

Cool Blue Martini
Yield: Serves 2
Ingredients
3 oz (about 1/3 cup) gin or vodka
1/2 oz (1 tablespoon) dry vermouth
1 teaspoon blue Curaçao
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice, strained
Garnish: 2 lemon twists

and finally, my favorite part of the show:

UP: This adorable movie made me cry in the first 15 minutes, and continued to make everyone fall in love with the silly, yet extremely realistic characters. An old man flies his house to South America using thousands of balloons. Pretty cool, huh? What else would you make, but this lovely cake? I made a coconute cake, food colored the coconut and then shaped marshmallow clouds and used Dum Dum lollipops for the balloons.

Fresh Coconut Layer Cake

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups cake or pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup coconut milk, regular whole fat milk, or a combination of coconut milk and regular milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup fresh grated coconut
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
10 tablespoons butter
3 large eggs


Fluffy Coconut Frosting
2 large egg whites
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 to 2 1/2 cups fresh grated coconut

Preparation:

Grease two 9-inch round cake pans; line the bottoms with rounds of parchment paper or waxed paper. Grease and flour the paper and sides of the pans; set aside. Heat oven to 350°.

Heat the coconut milk or milk with 1/2 cup coconut and the 1 teaspoon vanilla until hot. Put in blender and process until coconut is finely chopped. Set aside.

Sift the cake flour into a bowl with the baking powder and salt; set aside.

In a bowl of electric mixer, beat butter until light and creamy. Gradually add the 1 1/2 cups sugar, a few tablespoons at a time, scraping the bowl and beating for about a minute after each addition.

Add the 3 eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition, scraping sides of the bowl frequently.

Slowly add about one-third of the flour mixture to the creamed mixture along with half of the milk/coconut/vanilla mixture. Beat on low speed until blended. Scrape the bowl and repeat with another one-third of the dry mixture and the remaining milk mixture. Scrape the bowl and repeat with remaining flour mixture. Scrape the bowl and continue beating on low speed for a few seconds.

Spoon batter into the two baking pans, spreading evenly. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until browned and sides pull away from the sides of the pans. Cool in pans on racks for 15 minutes. Invert onto racks which have been sprayed with a little nonstick coating to cool completely.

Frosting:
Bring the 1/2 cup water and 1 cup sugar to a boil; cover and cook without stirring for 1 minute. Uncover and boil, stirring frequently, until mixture is hot enough to spin a thread when a little is dropped from a spoon, or to about 230°. Remove from heat and set aside. In the bowl of electric mixer -- with whisk attachment if available -- beat the eggs until fluffy and soft peaks form when you lift the beaters or whisk. Still beating on high speed, gradually add the sugar syrup in a thin stream. Continue beating until the frosting is fluffy and holds peaks.

Invert one of the cakes onto a serving plate; frost top and sides with frosting. Place the second layer atop the first and frost the top and sides liberally. Sprinkle fresh grated coconut over the top of the cake and toss coconut gently onto the sides.

It was a lovely evening. And the winner was...

THE HURT LOCKER!