All of That and A Bowl of Soup

Friday night after a meal of pasta prepared by my fabulous mother-in-law, I had not yet gotten to the dishes and my son was playing at the stove, as if he was cooking.  He was using the dirty pots and pans that were sitting there.  He told me he was making soup.  He was adding every ingredient he could find.  I started showing him different spices.  He crushed up some Mexican Oregano.  He dropped a pinch of salt.  He ground some fresh black pepper.  He went to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of soy sauce and he added all these components into a pan of "noodle water," as he called it, from the left over pasta.  It was acres of fun watching him try a little of this and try a little of that making a culinary masterpiece from the shadows of his infinite 6 year old imagination.  I couldn't have been more proud of him.  My heart vibrated through my soul when he called to me over his shoulder, as he was stirring his broth with a wooden spoon, "I'm a good cook too.  Just like you daddy."  Life truly doesn't get any better than that.

It instantly transported me to those priceless moments when I was his age; standing on a stack of phone books, as my grandmother, hand over hand, guided my wooden spoon through a pot of beans for supper.  The aromas that floated from Meme's cast iron skillet still waft through my consciousness to this day.  With tears welling up in my eyes my son looked at me and said "taste."  And while my taste buds objected my heart knew I will never encounter a more beautiful plate of food.

When I finished sampling the nector of my 6 year old, he suggested that we make Chicken Noodle Soup together.  Well, now he's speaking my language.  I had made some dark chicken stock earlier in the week, so this was the perfect chance to use it for the greatest of all purposes, my son wanted to. 

Life has come full circle with me guiding my son's spoon this time.  New aromas are filling the kitchen and implanting themselves into his memory. 

There are no recipes for this entry.  Honestly, how can you measure out imagination and love in quantifiable steps, because that is what our soup tasted like.  We couldn't buy those ingredients at Whole Foods.  No these ingredients were simply cultivated deep under the rich soil that allows my family to grow. 

We've had some rough seasons, even times of famine and drought where our survival wasn't always certain.  Some could look at our history and it would look to many like 'yucky' old left-over noodle water that has been seasoned with childish affronts to the conventional.  To me, it is the affirmation that we may have scars in this life, but these scars are the souvenirs collected along the shores of our better nature.  These scars remind us.  They haunt us.  They hide us.  Bult ultimately they ornament us.  And that is the freshest thing produced from the fickle earth under my family; "us."  We are more than the sum of our parts.  There is more than my wife and son and me.  There is who we are together.  There is  who we are in the breathless cackle of my son as I tickle him in the morning to wake him up.  There is who we are in the cups of tea left for my wife every morning as she heads off to work.  There is who we are in the moments shared with my wife, looking at the sky from our back patio smelling the air ten minutes before it rains.  Its all of these things.  Its all of that and a bowl of soup. 

Little Kneck Clams Steamed in a Habanero Chive Broth

Growing up my parents were not great fans of sea food so we didn't partake.  We grew up on the smells of pot roasts braising in the oven for Sunday dinner.  My grandmother who I called Meme, would occassionally fry up some catfish  that my grandfather and my brothers, father and uncles whould catch in the Lake at Fort Cobb.  She would serve it up with a side of red beans and corn bread.  But that was the extent of my sea food palate. 

My wife grew up on the Jersey shore where she was exposed to an array of ocean critters and it has been through her that I have expanded my sea food horizons.  Most of the meals I cook are for her and this first entry is my nod to her and her coastal roots.  She was the one who encouraged me to put this blog together and so it is only fitting that the firsts dish be in her honor.

I wanted to use one of her favorite foods, clams and I wanted to fuse it with influences from one of my favorite chefs Mario Batali.  I had the pleasure of eating at his flagship restaurant, Babbo a few months ago and have never tasted yummier food.  This is a simple Babbo inspired dish of Little Kneck Clams that I steamed in a broth of white wine, habanero, tomato and chives. 

Clams have a flavor that is truly like breathing in the briny Jersey shore air.  The little knecks that I got at Whole Foods are reminiscent of those Jersey Clams my wife introduced me to at some dive in her home town.  But beyond that I'm a Texan who loves a little heat so kicking these clams up a level with a habanero seemed in order.  I'm slowly trying to introduce my wife to the wonders of a little heat.  I try not to overpower her by keeping balance in mind and I think this dish does just that. 

If you've never worked with habaneros before, be careful, they pack a wallup.  Parsimony is required.  By all means wear kitchen gloves and for God's sake don't touch your eyes after handling one, they will burn like you've just been shot with mace. 

Alright, enough chit chat.  Let's get to it.

What you will need:

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 red onion finely chopped
4 garlic cloves sliced
1 habanero finely diced
1 bunch of chives cut in 1 inch pieces
2 lbs of Little Kneck Clams
2 cups dry white wine
1/2 cup of Mario Batali's basic tomato sauce (recipe follows)
Kosher Salt
Finely cracked black pepper to taste

1. In a 3 quart sauce pan, heat the olive oil on high until just about smoking (keep a keen eye on this, olive oil has a pretty low smoke point if it reaches the smoke point it becomes upalatable).  Add the onions and garlic and cook for 5 minutes, or until soft and lightly browned. (Do not over brown the garlic as it will become bitter; sauteing until just golden gives the garlic a nuttiness that provides more complexity to the overall dish). 

Add the chile, half of the chives, the clams, wine and tomato sauce and bring to a boil. 

Cover and cook until all the clams steam open, about 5 minutes.  Discard any clams that do not open.

2. Season the broth with salt and pepper.  Divide the clams and broth evenly among four warmed bowls, top with remaining chives, and serve with your favorite bread.

Mario Batali's Basic Tomato Sauce

If you don't have this recipe you will do yourself a big favor by having it as one of your staples.  It is simple and is an ingredient you can add to mountains of recipes.  You can use it as part of your braising liquid for pot roast along with stock and a good wine.  You can use it for spaghetti as the base for a bolognese.  It makes about 4-6 cups; you can freeze it and use it as needed.  By the way, when you make this the aroma will make everyone in your house homicidal with hunger.  Take out a good insurance policy. 

What you will need:

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

1 spanish onion, finely diced

4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced

3 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme (or 1tsp dry)

½ medium carrot, finely shredded (sounds weird for tomato sauce, but this adds sweetness without adding sugar)

2 23-ounce cans of San Marzano peeled whole tomatoes

Kosher salt, to taste

In a 3-quart saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the onion and garlic and cook until soft and light golden brown, 8-10 minutes.  

Add the thyme and carrot and cook for 5 minutes more, or until the carrot is soft. 

With your hands, crush the tomatoes and add them with their juices.  Bring to a boil, strirring often,

 and then lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes, or until the sauce is as thick as hot cereal. 

Season with salt and serve.  If you prefer a smoother texture you can puree it in a blender or food processor.