41 recipes. Page 1 of 2
As an Amazon Associate, we may earn from qualifying purchases.
This South Tyrolean version wraps the apples in a sweet, buttery shortcrust instead of hand-stretched strudel dough or puff pastry, so the outside eats more like tart pastry. Inside are raw sliced apples with sultanas, pine nuts and rum, plus fine breadcrumbs toasted in butter that catch the apple juice as it bakes.
Black soybeans cooked soft and blended with their cooking water turn the rice porridge a deep purple-black, with a toasty, nutty bean aroma throughout. The beans and rice each need at least 4 hours of soaking before cooking begins.
Juak trace back to Gaeseong in the Goryeo period and still appear on Korean wedding tables. Small rounds of glutinous rice dough, each pressed with a thumb to leave a dip in the middle, cook through at 150 degrees before the oil goes up to 170 for a light brown color, then roll in warm honey and rice syrup for a glossy coat.
Ginger and black peppercorns steep first and are strained out, and the pear poaches in that liquid, so the punch carries their warmth without a single peppercorn in the cup. Before any honey goes in, the sweetness comes from the pear itself. It can be drunk warm right away, but for a chilled holiday table it is made the day before and rested overnight in the fridge, with pine nuts floated on just before serving.
A sauce of yuja cheong (Korean citron marmalade) and soy sauce, brushed into the gills of fresh shiitake caps and left for ten minutes, seeps between the folds and stays on after grilling as a sour-salty glaze.
Pine nuts and sesame are ground into an ivory broth that is poured over shredded chicken breast and topped with fine strips of cucumber. Milk and the chicken poaching liquid set the thickness, and it is served cold or just warm. The dish comes down from banquets at the Joseon court.
Small flat rounds of glutinous rice dough get edible petals pressed into them while the top is still slightly sticky, so the flowers set into the surface instead of sitting loose. The flower changes the character: azalea gives a faint floral note, chrysanthemum a quieter herbal one, rose a soft sweetness. The dough itself has no sugar, so honey on the side brings sweetness and pine nuts add a resinous richness to the last bite.
Blended with cold water, pine nuts release their fat into a milky, dairy-free broth with a quiet sweetness. Salt is the only seasoning, leaving the nuttiness uncovered, while cucumber and thin slices of Korean pear bring crunch and fruit against the richness. A smooth blend and a pass through a strainer before chilling prevent the oily film and gritty feel of under-blended broth.
The pesto never touches a hot pan. Spaghetti goes from the pot into a large bowl and the sauce is tossed through it there, away from the stove, keeping the basil's raw aroma and bright green color. The processor is the other source of heat, and short pulses with the sides scraped down keep long runs from warming the inside and dulling the basil. Pine nuts are toasted dry only to a light gold, and the olive oil goes into the processor in two or three additions, stopping when the pesto is thick yet still drops slowly from a spoon.
Dried persimmon cut into rounds shows a chewy, almost jammy center that contrasts with soft spoonfuls of ricotta. Bitter chicory and peppery arugula balance its concentrated sweetness, and walnuts and pine nuts toasted in a dry pan add a warm, nutty smell. When the persimmon is especially sweet, a little more balsamic vinegar brings the plate back into balance.
Swiss chard in a sweet pie sounds unlikely, but the leaves are mixed with apple, rum-soaked raisins, pine nuts, and brown sugar under a double crust. A dusting of powdered sugar once the pie has cooled through makes it read as a dessert from the first look.
Sweet rice flour, not grains of rice, thickens this kabocha porridge, so it stays smooth all the way through. A teaspoon of ginger juice stirred in at the end leaves a warm, sharp note behind the squash and sugar.
A little glutinous rice flour mixed into the plain rice flour gives this mild steamed cake a slight chew. Cinnamon goes into only half the flour, and the white and brown layers are spread alternately and never pressed down. Cut, the side shows stripe after stripe.
The jujubes simmer until soft and are pressed through a sieve so only their pulp goes back into the tea, which makes it thick rather than clear. Once the pulp is in, it catches on the bottom of the pot quickly and needs constant stirring over low heat. There is a little ginger in it, and each cup gets a few pine nuts on top.
Thick red bean broth, salted first and only lightly sweetened, turns knife-cut wheat noodles into a filling winter meal rather than a dessert. The beans are boiled twice, with the first water thrown out entirely, which strips their astringent edge and gives the broth a cleaner color. Glutinous rice flour thickens the strained puree just enough to hold the noodles without turning stodgy, and the pot needs frequent stirring because the bottom scorches easily. Cooking the noodles in a separate pot and rinsing them keeps their starch from thinning or clouding the broth. Chestnuts and pine nuts on top add a firmer bite against the smooth puree.
Well-fermented napa kimchi brings sourness and depth, and burrata answers with mild, milky cream. The kimchi is shaken free of excess seasoning and spread wide across the plate, so no single bite ends up too salty. Perilla oil and olive oil share the dressing, pine nuts add a buttery note, and arugula keeps the whole plate from feeling heavy. Halved cherry tomatoes scatter fresh, fruity acidity in between. Burrata left out for 10 minutes before serving is soft enough that, torn open at the table, its creamy center runs into the kimchi juices.
Steamed kabocha is pureed and thickened with glutinous rice flour, so the porridge is completely smooth, with no grains of rice. Milk rounds out the sweetness, and a few pine nuts go on top.
Flat slices of jeolpyeon, a plain Korean rice cake, are pan-fried in sesame oil until a thin skin forms, then a soy, honey, and sugar sauce goes in and the heat drops to low for just two or three minutes of turning until they shine. The glaze burns quickly, so the heat goes off as soon as almost no syrup is left in the pan, and sesame seeds and pine nuts go on top.
Licorice root and pear do most of the sweetening in this simmered tea, and only a little honey is stirred in at the end. Licorice turns cloying in larger amounts; about 3g per person is enough. The pear goes in late and cooks only until it turns translucent.
Pine nuts ground smooth with water turn plain rice porridge rich and silky. That pine nut liquid goes in after the rice has simmered on its own for about 10 minutes, and salt is the only seasoning. A few strips of jujube on top add a little sweetness and color.
Sujeonggwa, the Korean cinnamon-ginger punch sweetened with dark brown sugar, is frozen in a tray and raked with a fork into icy crystals that each carry a clear hit of spice. Leave too long between scrapes and it sets into a solid slab, which is why the raking continues at steady intervals after the first pass. Thin strips of dried persimmon and pine nuts on top are the same garnish traditionally floated in the drink.
Goji berries left to boil too long darken the tea but turn it bitter. Jujubes and ginger get fifteen minutes on their own first, and the berries join only for the last five, just long enough to plump up and tint the water red.
The rice is ground only coarsely and cooked in water first, and the porridge keeps a little more texture than a smooth gruel. Milk goes in two or three additions, and only after the rice starch has thickened the pot, or it may split. Topped with pine nuts and a pinch of cinnamon, this milk porridge appears in Joseon-era court records.
Dried gujeolcho, a Korean chrysanthemum that flowers in the ninth lunar month, steeps for just five minutes in water around 90°C, since boiling weakens its scent. Fine shreds of pear go into each cup and soften slightly in the hot tea.