placing in fridge. To store a cut onion, wrap tightly in plastic and place in fridge.
Clare’s Note on Wondra Flour: If you’ve never used Wondra flour, look for its blue cardboard canister in the same grocery store aisle that shelves all-purpose flour. It’s a handy little helper for thickening gravies and making quick sauces. You can make an easy white sauce with it, too. The recipe is right on the side of its cardboard container.
Caramelized Bacon Bits These bits of carmelized bacon make a delicious salty-sweet topping for cheesy casseroles. (No kidding. They’re a perfect complement for mac ’n’ cheese.) Just spread them across the top of the warm casserole before serving or present them on the side to your guests for do-it-yourself sprinkling.
Makes about 1 cup
1 pound bacon (regular cut, not thick), cut into small bite-size pieces
½ cup dark brown sugar, packed
Step 1 — Slice and sauté: On medium-high heat, sauté the bacon bits in a large skillet, stirring often, until half cooked (still soft and flexible with fat just beginning to change color) . Drain the rendered fat from pan.
Step 2 — Caramelize: Reduce the heat to medium. Add the brown sugar to the pan and stir until dissolved. Continue cooking and stirring until the bacon crisps up. Remove from heat. Drain and cool in a single layer on a sheet pan or another clean, flat surface. (Do not dry bacon bits on paper towels or they will stick! Use paper towels only to dab away the excess grease.) The longer you allow the bacon to cool and dry, the crisper it will become.
James Noonan’s Triple-Threat Firehouse Penne Mac ’n’ Cheese This is the best recipe for macaroni and cheese I’ve ever tasted. It’s a “triple threat” of cheeses that work together in delectable harmony to serenade your palate. And forget the typical elbow macaroni, which simply does not hold a candle to the penne macaroni. When cooked to an al dente texture, the larger penne pasta allows this chewy, cheesy casserole to linger on your taste buds that much longer. This one’s an absolute joy to eat.
Makes 8 servings (fills a 3-quart casserole dish)
1 pound dry penne macaroni
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese
1 cup grated queso blanco or mild cheddar, grated
5⅓ tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
¼ cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 cups whole milk
Caramelized Bacon Bits (page 336), optional
Step 1 — Cook the penne pasta: First, preheat the oven to 375° F. Coat a 3-quart, ovenproof casserole dish (or Dutch oven) with cooking spray. Cook the penne according to directions on the pasta package; do not overcook. You want the penne al dente (still chewy, not soft). Drain the penne well, removing all water, and pour into the casserole dish.
Step 2 — Make the cheese sauce: Mix the three cheeses together in a large bowl and set aside. Melt the butter over low heat, in a large saucepan. When butter is completely melted, remove the pan from heat. (Note: To prevent the cheese sauce from breaking on you, make absolutely sure you remove the pan from heat before adding these next ingredients!) Stir in the salt, pepper, flour, and the Worcestershire sauce until smooth. Gradually add in the milk. Now return the pan to the stove. Stir constantly over medium heat until the mixture comes to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until thickened. Add in half of the cheese a little at a time, stirring with each addition.
Step 3 — Assemble and bake: After the cheese sauce is warm and well blended, pour it over the macaroni. (Note: Do not mix in the cheese sauce! Just pour it over the top. The sauce will slowly ooze down during cooking. If you mix it in at this stage, too much of the cheese sauce will end up on the bottom of the dish instead of throughout.) Cover with the remaining half of the cheese. Bake for 20-25 minutes. If using Caramelized Bacon Bits, sprinkle them across the top of the casserole just before serving.
James Noonan’s Firehouse Non-Beer Batter Onion Rings Beer is often added to onion ring batter for flavor, lightness, and crispness. But if you’re not a fan of beer (like James Noonan) and still want your rings light and crisp, there are two things you can do: (1) use cake flour because it has a lower gluten content, which makes for a crispier fry batter, and (2) substitute cold carbonated water for beer. You’ll get all the lightness of the bubbles without the taste of hops.
Makes 4 servings
2 large Vidalia onions (or another sweet onion), cut into ¼-inch-thick rings
1¼ cups cake flour (¼ cup for dusting; 1 for the batter — be sure it’s cake flour!)
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon garlic salt
Vegetable, peanut, or canola oil (enough for deep frying)
6-8 ounces cold seltzer, club soda, or carbonated water (be sure it’s cold!)
Step 1 — Prepare onions: Toss the raw onion rings in ¼ cup of the cake flour and set aside.
Step 2 — Mix dry batter ingredients: Note: For best results, do not make the batter in advance. Finish the batter just before you are ready to fry the onion rings. In a large bowl, mix 1 cup of the cake flour, cayenne pepper, baking powder, and garlic salt. Heat the oil to 350° F. Only when the oil is hot and ready for frying should you move to the next step and finish the batter.
Step 3 — Finish the batter and fry: Add enough cold carbonated water to the dry ingredients to make a loose batter. Coat your onion rings and cook at once. Fry until golden brown, 2-3 minutes. Serve hot!
Clare Cosi’s Doughnut Muffins Tender and sweet, these muffins taste like an old-fashioned cake doughnut, the kind you’d order at a diner counter with a hot, fresh cuppa joe.
Makes 12 muffins
For the batter:
12 tablespoons unsalted butter
