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Eat Your Way to Prosperity in 2015

Here's the dish you have to eat on New Year's Eve: cotechino sausage with lentils. For Italians, this combination is a must to attract prosperity during the coming year.

The photo at the top shows how Marino Ristorante in Los Angeles presents it, with airy, crisp, cheese-topped bread alongside.

If you can't get to Marino New Year's Eve, go as soon as possible to make sure you'll have good fortune in 2015.

Not taking any chances, I've already eaten the lucky dish as part of a five-course tasting menu that Marino puts together using daily specials and your requests from the regular menu. 

First up was a vegetable antipasto platter (above), each vegetable cooked and seasoned separately. This combination includes three kinds of eggplant, cipollini onions in sweet and sour sauce, carrots, beets, sweet red peppers and zucchini. 

The zucchini had been sliced thin, place on top of the pizza oven to dry slightly and then sauteed in extra virgin olive oil. Mint is one of the seasonings. Another plate held carciofi alla giudia--artichoke hearts with garlic, black olives and capers, an Italian-Jewish dish.  

Next came this beautiful, light salad--sliced pears with burrata, buffalo mozzarella and walnut vinaigrette. That's organic arugula on top.

You can't have an Italian dinner without a pasta course, and here it is--scallops with linguine, garnished with cherry tomatoes. 

Next came the fish course--pan-seared wild caught Scottish salmon with shrimp in scampi sauce seasoned with rosemary and parsley.

New Year's demands luxury, and what better than veal in black truffle sauce, with truffles shaved onto the meat at the table?  Creamy mashed potatoes are on the left. 

Marino's ricotta cheesecake is so light you won't believe it's cheesecake. Bits of candied fruit are mixed in, and the ricotta is house-made. If you've already used up the five dishes from the tasting menu, be sure to add this at the end.  

A sumptuous New Year feast demands wine, and Mario Marino will suggest what to order. For this menu he chose a dry pink Mionetto prosecco, Villa Raiano Greco de Tufo, a dry white wine from Campania; Coppo L'Avvocata Barbera d'Asti, Erste + Neue Sauvignon Blanc Alto Adige, a Villa Raiano Aglianico from Campania and, not to leave out California, a Summerland Pinot Noir.  

It may seem like a lot of food and wine, but the New Year deserves an all-out celebration, a last holiday fling to enjoy before your diet starts next month. 

Marino Ristorante,  6001 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90038. Tel: (323) 466-8812.

A Bargain Wine To Look For in 2015

It's refreshing to meet a winemaker who isn't out to convince you that his wines are super fantastic.

"All of our wines are very good wines," says Jim Kimmel of Kimmel Vineyards in Mendocino County (above). "I'm not going to tell you they're the best wines." And he even adds, "Not everyone's going to like my wine." 

Yet the 2013 North Coast Chardonnay, which will be the first wine issued in Kimmel's new Illuminate line, might convince you otherwise. And this at a planned price tag of $8.99.

Unfortunately, the wine won't be available in California until possibly late spring. It's unsettling to find it will go to other states first. 

"California is very competitive," said Kimmel, who had plenty to say about how wine business types control what we get and when but prefers not to be quoted on these issues. 

Illuminate will be pitched at mass market consumers who, says Kimmel, are still reeling from the recession and looking for low-priced wine. 

Just 3,000 cases of the Chardonnay were produced. It's bright and fresh, fermented in stainless steel. Paired with lunch at the Wilshire in Santa Monica, it was perfect with slightly spicy tuna tartare with a seaweed salad and yuzu vinaigrette. On the other hand, the 2012 Kimmel Mendoncino County Chardonnay,  a pricier, oakier wine, faded away with this particular dish.

As Kimmel himself said, "There are times when you want to drink a fresher Chardonnay." Like all Kimmel wines, it was fermented 100% dry. 

A wine writer at the lunch observed that the Illuminate Chardonnay could command a higher price. Kimmel answered that this would defeat his objective, which is to serve the under-$10-a-bottle consumer. 

"We're trying to get wine into the hands of people so they can enjoy it, " he says, "but also to make money." 

All the grapes for the Illuminate Chardonnay came from Kimmel Vineyards, but since this wine is headed toward mass production (you may eventually find it in Walmart), he'll have to buy grapes for future vintages. Also coming are an Illuminate Sauvignon Blanc and a red blend.

Kimmel Vineyards started out as a cattle ranch, went into viticulture in 1986 and in 2007 established its own wine brand. The vineyard has been certified sustainable by the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance.

Of the 1,100 acres, 37 are planted to grapes. The remaining acreage is maintained as a natural habitat for wildlife. This is not always beneficial. Kimmel tells how bears once raided the vineyard. "They seem to have a preference for Malbec," he says. And they ate it all. 

Those bears would probably love the 2013 Kimmel Four Blocks Collection Cabernet Sauvignon, which includes a dash of Malbec along with Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Other reds poured at the lunch were the 2010 Cabernet Franc--only 40 cases of this were made--and three Merlots, the 2011 Merlot, from a rainy year, and the 2010 Merlot, which shows how a sunny year can bring out fruit flavors.

The final wine was Kimmel's first Merlot, from 2007. Poured from a decanter, it's what Kimmel is drinking in the photo above. But the wines to watch out for now are those from 2013. That was a good year for all reds in California, Kimmel said. "Every red from 2013 is amazing."

Getting a Hand from the Buddha

These weird, scary yellow hands aren't going to attack you. Instead, you can attack them--with a knife--and slice off peel and zest that you're likely to find addictive.

This isn't a demon but a fruit, named Buddha's hand. It's a citron, according to "Melissa's Great Book of Produce" by Cathy Thomas, and valued in China as a symbol of good fortune.

Don't try to eat it. The slim fingers are composed only of pith and peel. But wait until you taste that heady, aromatic peel. Substitute it for orange or lemon zest, and it will work magic in baked goods and desserts.

Or slip it into a cocktail, which is what L.A.'s top mixologists are doing. The Melissa's book (Melissa's is the produce company that distributes the fruit) suggests putting a single washed and dried Buddha's hand in a wide-mouthed jar, then covering it with vodka and letting it stand in a dark place, sealed, for 4 to 5 days. Strain off the liquid and, voilá, you have your own citron vodka.

Or try a cocktail like this rum drink I worked out. To extract the flavor from the peel, I muddled thin shavings with sugar. 

Then I added the juice of another trendy fruit, the blood orange (above). You could use ordinary orange juice, but that wouldn't yield the vibrant color that really jazzes up a drink. A squeeze of Mexican lime juice adds still more bright flavor.

And what else could I call this but Buddha's Bliss?   

BUDDHA'S BLISS

1 teaspoon finely shaved Buddha's hand peel
1 teaspoon sugar
2 ounces light rum
2 ounces blood orange juice
1 ounce orange flavored liqueur
Juice of 1/2 Mexican lime
Lime slice for garnish

Combine the  peel and sugar in a sturdy cocktail glass. Muddle thoroughly. Add the rum, orange juice, orange liqueur and Mexican lime juice. Stir to mix, then add ice cubes. Garnish with a lime slice on the rim.

Makes 1 serving.

Chutney: It's Perfect for the Holidays

Had your fill of cranberry relish after Thanksgiving? Then switch to something  different that you can also serve with turkey--or chicken, barbecue, fried shrimp and many other dishes. 

It's spicy-sweet plum chutney, as red as cranberry sauce, but so different in flavor. I took it to a Thanksgiving dinner, and it fit right in with the cranberry relishes that others had brought.

The recipe couldn't be easier. I learned about it when Farhana Sahibzada gave a cooking demo at C-CAP LA's recent Sweet & Savory Spectacular in Santa Monica. From Pakistan, Sahibzada is the author of "Flavorful Shortcuts to Indian/Pakistani Cooking" (the recipe is in the book) and is well known for her cooking classes.

At C-CAP, she showed the chutney as an accompaniment to samosas. You can see a dash of it just below the samosa in the photo above. Keep it in mind if you want to add a dash of spice to a holiday menu.

PLUM CHUTNEY
From "Flavorful Shortcuts to Indian/Pakistani Cooking" by Farhana Sahibzada

3 medium sized plums, seeds removed
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup water
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, lightly toasted and ground
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Puree the unpeeled plums in a food processor or blender. Place them in a large saucepan and add the lemon juice, water and salt.  Bring to a boil and cook over medium high heat for about 5 minutes, stirring as the mixture boils.

Add the sugar, cumin and cayenne and continue to cook for another 7 to 8 minutes, until the mixture has the thickness of an egg white. Cool completely before serving.

Makes about 4 cups. 

How to Spice Up Butternut Squash

Everybody's cooking butternut squash these days, but not this way, with Bengali spices and fresh sage.

I took this dish to a potluck, where it was a great hit. So thank you, Rinku, for what has become one of my favorite recipes. 

Rinku is Rinku Bhattacharya, who has written a wonderful cookbook called  "The Bengali Spice Chronicles."  Now she has a new book, "Spices & Seasons: Simple, Sustainable Indian Flavors" (Hippocrene Books; $35). And that's where you'll find this recipe.

The unique seasoning is Bengali panch phoron. Panch means five, and so it's a blend of five spices--a teaspoon each of fennel seeds, cumin seeds, nigella seeds, black mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds (recipe courtesy of "The Bengali Spice Chronicles"). You'll find this mixture readymade in Indian markets. 

The new book hits on today's concerns. There are separate indexes for gluten-free, vegan and vegetarian. It is not, however, a special diet book, because it contains lots of interesting recipes for meats, poultry, fish and eggs. And breads such as naans and puris that require flour.

Bhattacharya is, however, an advocate of fresh, unprocessed, natural foods, sustainability, and cooking that is practical for a busy household.

Choosing one recipe from this book was a challenge, because it is full of great-sounding  dishes. Nevertheless, here is the squash, because I've had such success with it. 

WHOLE SPICE-ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH WITH SAGE
From "Spices & Seasons" by Rinku Bhattacharya

1 large butternut squash
2 tablespoons oil
1 teaspoon Bengali five spice blend (panch phoron)
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon ginger paste
Salt to taste, optional
1 tablespoon melted butter
15 fresh sage leaves

Heat the oven to 375 degrees.

Peel the squash, remove the seeds and cut it into 2-inch chunks.

Heat the oil in a skillet. Add the five-spice blend, and when it crackles, mix in the black pepper and ginger paste and mix well. Add the squash and stir well to coat. Place the seasoned squash on a greased baking sheet.

Roast the squash in the oven for about 35 minutes. It should be soft and beginning to get flecks of golden brown in spots. Taste to check if it needs salt.

Heat the butter in a small skillet on low heat for about 2 to 3 minutes, until it melts and gradually acquires a shade of pale gold. Add the sage leaves and cook until they turn dark and almost crisp. Pour over the squash and mix lightly. Serve on a flat plate to showcase the spices and sage.

Makes 6 servings.