Dahl Mahkani - Black Lentil Curry

This is one of A's specialties, and I don't know his secret recipe, so I'll have to be patient with him to be a guest blogger here, as he's busy now with his own blog, coming soon on Facebook. 

Warm Asparagus Salad

I bought asparagus the other day when it was on sale and for some reason I had no idea what to do with it. I would usually make some kind of risotto, but that's the oldest recipe in the book. So I referred back to my ever handy Homestyle Vegetarian and found just what I was looking for. 

Starting with 2 red bell peppers, heat the oven to 200C and while waiting for the oven to preheat, cut the peppers into flat long pieces, discarding the seeds and core. Lay the pepper skin facing up on a baking sheet and place the baking sheet in the oven on the highest rung. It should take anywhere between 10-15 minutes for the skin of the red peppers to bubble and blacken, depending on the heat distribution in your oven. At this, take the peppers out and allow them to cool under a damp, clean kitchen towel. 

While the peppers are baking, you can prepare the bunch of asparagus. First, cut of the stumpy ends. These are usually a bit white-ish in color and very tough to chew through, even when cooked. Usually this is about 1-2 inches off the bottom. You can either cut them in half, or boil them whole. I cut them in half and put the bottom halves of the asparagus in the boiling water a few minutes before the tops, so that both halves reach the same softness and the tops aren't soggy when the bottoms are finally ready. Drain the asparagus and rinse with cold water after about 7 minutes. 

Mix together in a bowl a few cloves of crushed garlic, 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, the juice of one squeezed lemon (or two tables spoons of white wine vinegar) and 2 tablespoons of prepared pesto. Salt and pepper to taste. Whisk together. By now, the peppers should be cool enough, and you can remove the skin and dice the peppers. If you have baked the peppers long enough, the skin should peel off without much fuss. 

Place the aparagus on a serving plate. Sprinkle the chopped pepper on top, add some kalamato or black olives, and pour about half of the dressing on top, more later if you like.  A said this was restaurant quality, so I'm adding it to my list of favorites, and I'll never wonder what to do with asparagus again :)

Meringues

About twice a month, I treat myself and my sweetie to Eggs Benedict for breakfast. The Hollandaise sauce leaves me with a lot of leftover eggwhites. Being that I won't waste anything perfectly usable, and that egg whites present the perfect excuse to experiment, I kept them in the freezer for a week before I figured it out. Meringues. Let me just forewarn now, that the recipe I followed will not be used again, but the tips I learned in the process for beating egg whites was invaluable. Something I have struggled with for the last several years, without a stand mixer, I have finally avowed my revenge by doing it right. The tips were partly gathered by the Baking911 website on beating egg whites. If you don't have the patience to read through these, I'll give you the few vital basics: when separating the egg whites, don't allow even the teeniest bit of yolk into the mixture. The fat from the yolk will contaminate and impede the fluffing. Further, the egg whites should be at room temperature when beating. And third, start slowly and work your way up in speed. You don't want your arm to fall off, but slowing down after reaching soft peaks may ruin the loft. Save your arm speed for the end and give it a good burst of energy.

Meringues are a tricky thing, and a common tried and true recipe is elusive. For whatever reason, no two recipes are alike. I made these by whisking 4 egg whites with half a cup of plain granulated sugar, a tablespoon of vanilla sugar, and a teaspoon of lemon juice, until stiff peaks were formed.

The trouble is, according the recipe I followed, baking at a low temperature for about an hour, the meringues come out with a grainy texture. Let's just say, that in my opinion, a higher temperature and less time in the oven would have been more desirable. Say, next time, I may try a similar recipe, but leave it in the oven at 180 for 45 minutes. I'll let you know how that works out.

Next time I might be bolder and try macaroons, baked alaska, or chocolate covered meringues. David Lebovitz even made an icecream volcano!