I used to make a lot of quiches and pies. I still think they are one of the best dishes; a delicious buttery crust and almost any filling you can think of. With a mixed greens salad and some crisp tender green beans with flaky salt I'm not sure I've ever needed anything else to complete a meal. Oh wait a glass of wine. Now that there's some Deb Meal Bliss.
| Channel | Publish Date | Thumbnail & View Count | Actions |
|---|---|---|---|
 smitten kitchen | 2021-06-30 12:00:05 |  102,789 Views |
The 'I Want Chocolate Cake' Cake | Smitten Kitchen with Deb Perelman
But as you know things shift. They change. Suddenly I’m feeding three mouths instead of two and I’m hoping for leftovers and those delicate little pies aren’t stretching as far as I’d like. I want weight. I’ve made peace with not having to roll out a crust on a hurried Monday afternoon.
If you’ve been hanging around in the comments lately a guy named Ottolenghi has been popping up a lot. “Ottolenghi has aubergine soup…” “I had something like this at Ottolenghi’s restaurant in London…” or more succinctly “OMG I LOVE Ottolenghi.” It seems there’s a case of Ottolenghi fever going around and I’ve caught a bad case of it myself. Yotam Ottolenghi is the chef/owner of four self-proclaimed restaurants in London that I haven’t been to yet (sigh) but which serve up dishes that I can only describe as clever. Sure they’re all fresh healthy organic and locally sourced; all those hashtags we’re talking about today but even more so: innovative inspired by the entire Mediterranean combining ingredients that you might not have thought would work but will never think about again after you try them. Can’t make it to London? Don't worry he's got an addictive cookbook (baked beans with feta sumac and sorrel anyone?) and a weekly column in the Guardian called The New Vegetarian – an endless source of exactly what I want for dinner tonight.
Earlier this month I included this humorously named dish he calls a cauliflower pie part of his campaign to give cauliflower which he considers as versatile as the beloved potato “well-deserved fame.” With the better part of a dozen eggs it initially reminded me of many of the quiche and pie fillings I used to whip up but what sets it apart is the baking powder and the amount of flour. This is indeed a hearty omelette that slices like a cake and can serve as a hearty main course. But rather than being bland as great fried egg dishes can be there’s red onion and parmesan galore and Ottolenghi’s trademark cleverness such as a springform pan lined with black sesame seeds a little turmeric finely chopped rosemary and a generous handful of basil. It’s unusual and utterly addictive and has magical powers that will keep 13-month-olds sitting still long enough to eat the entire slice you see above.
