The Cozy Winter Kitchen

Coriander and cumin seeds, fried in oil then stewed with tomatoes, garlic and green olives add a vaguely Moroccan touch to baby new potatoes. Good as below with fish and stir-fried broccoli.

Halibut baked in a quasi-harissa sauce. The following recipe employs the general seasonings of the ubiquitous condiment of North African cuisine, but is much thinner in texture and ideal for marinating or as a baking sauce.

CAFE DRAKE'S QUASI-HARISSA ROASTING SAUCE

Soak 4 dried chipotle peppers and 4 Ancho chile peppers in boiling water to cover. After 30 minutes puree peppers and water in a blender along with: 2 cloves of chopped garlic, some salt and black pepper and 1 T. each of coriander and caraway seeds. Season with a bit of sugar, more salt if needed and add 1/2 cup of olive oil. Blend until very smooth and slightly thickened.

Marinate chicken or fish in sauce and then bake till cooked through, basting with plenty of sauce and serving more on the side.

Cafe Drake roasts just about everything in the winter months; we're addicted to the resulting deep and concentrated flavors and, being housed in a 100+ year old building, appreciate the heat in our drafty Brooklyn kitchen. Above we sliced up 3 or 4 of the slender, smaller eggplants and tossed with honey, olive oil and 2 sliced green chilies. We then roasted for 35 minutes at 425 degrees and seasoned with salt and pepper for an astonishing side dish. Do not salt until the end to prevent the eggplant from releasing too much water during cooking, thereby steaming and not roasting the vegetable. With eggplant . . . not a pretty picture.

Apricot and Red Pepper, Pear Cardamom with Red Chilies and Blueberry chutneys from The D P Chutney Collective spiced up a recent dinner party at Cafe Drake.

Ethically concerned carnivores need no longer pine for veal! The good news is many small farms are now raising the calves in a humane fashion without the traditional (and barbaric) method of crating. Search your local butcher and better supermarkets for veal labeled "humanely raised". Whole Foods is a good, reliable source.

BRAISED BREAST OF VEAL WITH WHITE BEANS

It's no secret that veal is a pricey protein choice and even more so when purchasing humanely raised meats. The breast is the cheapest of all cuts but also among the most flavorful. Downsides include a disproportionately large amount of bone and fat, however long and slow cooking renders the meat delicate and supremely tender. Don't fret over the cooking times below as the veal breast requires no effort . . . put it in the oven and forget about it for a few hours.

Start by pre-heating your oven to 350 degrees. Take a 3-4 lb. piece of veal breast (bone in) and season it well with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Now brown the veal on all sides in 2 T. of olive oil. If done properly this will take 15 minutes or longer.

Once the meat is well browned and nicely colored place it in a large baking dish. In the same oil used for browning, in the same skillet, fry 2 chopped carrots and 1 chopped onion for 2-3 minutes. Add 3-4 cloves of garlic and cook for another minute or so. Now add 1 14-oz can of whole tomatoes to the skillet, using all the juices to deglaze the bottom of your pan. Pour all of this around the veal breast in the baking pan. Sprinkle veal and veggies with thyme and basil and marjoram, cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 3 hours.

After 3 hours remove foil, add 1 can of navy beans to baking dish and stir well. Cover again with foil and bake for 45 more minutes.

When done, serve veal sliced in wide bowls alongside beans, veggies and plenty of the delicious broth. Cafe Drake likes this with a scoop of brown rice but a crusty, whole wheat baguette is also superb.

Quick & Healthy Mid-East Meatballs

Combine 1 lb. of ground turkey with a cup of seasoned breadcrumbs, some chopped onion and garlic, a handful of chopped cilantro, 1 egg, salt and cayenne pepper and healthy dashes of ground coriander and cumin. Mix well, shape into balls and simmer for 30 minutes in a mixture of tomato sauce, honey, cinnamon and a bit of apple cider vinegar to taste. Serve drizzled with plain yogurt.