Celebrate serendipity with a savory bread pudding and more

Published 12:01 am Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Being a biologist, my husband is constantly pausing to question or observe all of the little things occurring under our noses that tend to go unnoticed.

Backpacking with Steve isn’t just walking from point A to point B with a lot of heavy things on your back. It’s stopping at every stream to peer under rocks to see who’s living there.

Once, while gardening, he lured me outside to observe a weed in action. When I got there he was on all fours, peering into a patch of weeds.

“Come down here and watch,” he said, his hand motions indicating that I was to mirror his fanny-skyward position. “It isn’t a trick, I promise.”

“What am I watching,” I asked.

“Just wait, you’ll see.”

I felt something graze my jaw. Then another flick was felt against my forehead. But I couldn’t spot the attackers.

“Look at all those white specks,” he said.

At first they weren’t visible. Then suddenly, like hitting the correct adjustment with the lens of my camera, they all came into view. There had to be hundreds of teensy little white seeds blanketing the ground and foliage.

Steve ruffled the leaves and a wild series of barely audible pops and crackles accompanied the display of little seeds that were literally exploding from their pods.

“Look at that,” he said, making another pass with his hand over the surface of foliage and inciting another burst of activity. “This plant’s just waiting for a critter or wind to come along to unleash its seeds.”

The fact that he had turned such a mundane activity as weeding into a National Geographic special shouldn’t have surprised me. But I couldn’t get it out of my mind as I headed back into the kitchen. And then it struck me. Cooking has its serendipitous moments as well.

You set out on an activity that’s supposed to take you from point A (a lot of produce that you feel you must take advantage of because it’s in season) to point B (dinner).

But along the way, if you’re lucky, you get side-tracked. With very little additional effort, this dutiful exercise in economics begins to relax you (in a perverted, up-to-your elbows in sticky, dirty dishes sort of way). The heady aromas and vivid colors of the different foods assault your senses.

With Steve’s curious nature in mind, consider approaching the following recipes with the same open-mindedness: There are plenty of options for changing direction. No local asparagus? Go with leeks. Fontina not your preferred cheese? Use one that is.

Savory bread pudding with asparagus, fontina and mixed spring herbs

16 thick slices bread (use a fairly dense-textured French or Italian style, or an egg bread, such as Challah or brioche)

3 cups half-and-half (low-fat or whole milk is OK)

1 pound very fresh asparagus, trimmed, with lower third of stalks peeled

5 eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup shredded Fontina cheese

1 cup shredded Swiss cheese

1/2 cup chopped mixed fresh herbs, such as chives, parsley and tarragon, or sage, thyme and marjoram

1 tablespoon butter, cut into small bits

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Place the bread in a single layer in a shallow baking dish. Pour the half-and-half or milk over the top. Let soak until the bread has absorbed the liquid and becomes soft, about 30 minutes. Press the bread slices against the dish to extract the milk. Measure the milk; you should have 1/2 cup milk left after squeezing. If not, make up the difference by adding a little more milk as needed. Set the milk and bread aside.

While the bread is soaking, trim the asparagus. Cut the stalks on the diagonal into 2-inch long pieces. Arrange the asparagus on a steamer rack and place over gently boiling water. Cover and steam just until barely tender, 2 or 3 minutes. Immediately place the asparagus under cold running water until cold to stop the cooking and set the color; drain and set aside.

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 3-quart baking dish.

In a bowl, beat together the eggs, salt, peppers and the 1/2 cup milk until well blended. Layer one third of the bread in the prepared dish. Set 6 to 8 asparagus pieces aside and top the bread layer with half of the remaining asparagus and half of the mixed herbs. Strew one third of each of the Fontina and Swiss cheeses over the asparagus.

Repeat the layers, using half of the remaining bread, all of the remaining asparagus and herbs, and half of the remaining cheese. Arrange the remaining bread on top, strew the remaining Fontina and Swiss cheese over it, and garnish with the reserved asparagus slivers.

Pour the milk-egg mixture over the top, then dot with the butter and sprinkle on the Parmesan.

Bake in the preheated oven until the top is crusty brown and a knife inserted in the middle of the pudding comes out clean, about 45 minutes.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Rosemary-green peppercorn sauce for leg of lamb

1 cup red wine

2 shallots, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 cups beef broth

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary

1 teaspoon green peppercorns, drained and chopped

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

To prepare the sauce, put the wine, shallots, and garlic in a heavy saucepan and reduce over high heat until about 1/4 cup of wine remains. Add the broth and reduce over high heat until about 1/3 cup of liquid remains. Add the cream and reduce again over high heat until just about 1 cup of liquid remains. Add the rosemary and chopped green peppercorns and season to taste with the salt and pepper.

Keep warm until needed. Serve the sauce alongside a lamb of lamb.

Makes 4 servings.

Margy’s best potatoes

2 1/2 pounds russet (baking) potatoes, peeled and diced into 1/2-inch chunks to measure 6 cups

2 cups cottage cheese (low-fat is OK)

1 cup sour cream (low-fat is OK)

4 green onions, with tops, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon seasoning salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

3 tablespoons flour

1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese (set aside)

Partially cook the diced potatoes in boiling, lightly salted water, just until they’re starting to become tender but are still on the firm side. Drain well and return to the pot. While the potatoes are still warm, combine them with the cottage cheese, sour cream, green onions, garlic, salt, seasoning salt, pepper and flour.

Scrape the potato mixture into a 9- by 13-inch greased baking dish and bake, uncovered, in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with the cheddar cheese and continue baking until the sauce is bubbly and the top is golden, about 10 or 15 more minutes. Remove from oven and let sit for at least 5 to 10 minutes to firm up so it won’t be too saucy during serving.

This recipe serves 6 to 8 hungry people. But you might want to double it, because the leftovers are great.

Makes 8 servings.

Make ahead hints from Jan: This dish can be assembled up to 24 hours ahead. One hour before serving, bake as directed, but the initial baking time of 20 minutes will be lengthened to about 45 minutes since the potatoes are starting cold instead of warm.

Jan Roberts-Dominguez is a Corvallis, Ore., food writer, artist, and author of “Oregon Hazelnut Country, the Food, the Drink, the Spirit,” and four other cookbooks. Readers can contact her by email at janrd@proaxis.com, or read her blog at www.janrd.com.