The Top 10: Delicious Memories

In the course of a year we run some 1,500 recipes in The Times’ Food section. All of them, of course, are good--but some are better than that.

Once a year we get together--lists in hand--to argue over the top 10 dishes. This is always a fairly heated meeting, and the final selection is as political as a national convention. There’s a certain amount of trading--I’ll vote for your brownies if you’ll support my pot roast--but in the end we generally manage to come up with a list of dishes that makes everybody on the staff proud.

There is one thing that is different about this year’s list: We’ve started doing nutritional analyses of our recipes. It’s gratifying--and a little surprising--to see how many of our favorite dishes are not only delicious, but also healthy.

When we put together our issue on “Dad Food,” half of us on the Food staff were forced to admit that our fathers didn’t cook. But Laura Vera was different--she proudly gave us this recipe, which her father cooked up to celebrate the birth of each new sibling. The tinga is so delicious it’s easy to see how it could become a tradition.

LAURA VERA’S TINGA

1 pound flank steak

1 whole onion

Salt

2 ounces guajillo chiles

1 large tomato, peeled

1 clove garlic

1 pound onions, sliced

2 tablespoons oil

1 to 2 chipotle chiles

Dash dried oregano

8 tostada shells

1/2 pound queso fresco, crumbled

Sour cream

Place flank steak, whole onion and salt to taste in large saucepan. Add water to cover. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer 30 to 45 minutes or until tender. Remove meat, cool slightly, then shred and set aside.

Place guajillo chiles in small saucepan. Add water to cover and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until tender. Drain chiles, discard seeds and place in blender container. Add tomato and garlic. Puree.

Saute sliced onions in oil. Add chipotle chiles and 2 teaspoons salt. Simmer 10 minutes. Add reserved meat, oregano and guajillo chile mixture. Cook 10 to 15 minutes.

Spoon meat mixture on tostada shells and garnish with queso fresco and sour cream. Makes 8 servings.

Each serving contains about:

268 calories; 502 mg sodium; 49 mg cholesterol; 16 grams fat; 17 grams carbohydrates; 15 grams protein; 0.63 gram fiber; 53% calories from fat.

When we were putting together the “Mexico in L.A.” issue, we suddenly started discovering great Mexican food all over the city. But this particular recipe came from a rather surprising place--one of the world’s best California-Italian restaurants. Eloy Mendez works at Campanile, where he has become famous among the waiters and kitchen-workers for the albondigas that he occasionally cooks up for staff meals.

ELOY MENDEZ’S ALBONDIGAS

1 1/2 onions

4 cumin seeds

1 pound ground beef

1 pound ground pork

6 whole peppercorns, freshly ground

6 whole cloves, freshly ground

5 mint leaves, chopped

2 to 3 hard-cooked eggs, coarsely chopped

2 pounds tomatillos

4 cups boiling water

5 cloves garlic

1/4 pound long green chiles, roasted and peeled

1 1/2 cups cilantro sprigs

Salt, pepper

1/4 cup oil

Chop 1 onion. Grind 2 cumin seeds to make about 1/8 teaspoon. Combine beef, pork, ground cumin, ground peppercorns and cloves, chopped onion and mint in bowl. Mix thoroughly with hands. Form into 1-inch meatballs, putting pieces of hard-cooked egg inside each meatball. Set aside.

Place tomatillos in boiling water with garlic, remaining 1/2 onion and 2 cumin seeds. Cook until tomatillos are tender. Place in blender with green chiles and 1 cup cilantro. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Puree mixture.

Heat oil in 5-quart Dutch oven. Add pureed chile sauce and meatballs. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Simmer about 20 minutes. Stir in remaining cilantro. Makes 6 servings.

Note: If all-beef meatballs are desired use 2 pounds beef.

Each serving contains about:

530 calories; 384 mg sodium; 169 mg cholesterol; 39 grams fat; 14 grams carbohydrates; 32 grams protein; 1.33 grams fiber; 66% calories from fat.

Jim Dodge is one of the world’s great bakers. One day he dropped in to The Times’ Test Kitchen to show off his latest book, “Baking With Jim Dodge.” Flipping through the pages, he casually mentioned that this Bourbon-Chocolate-Pecan Cake travels well. “It’s a cake I ship all around the country,” he said. What he failed to mention, however, is that it is one of the greatest chocolate cakes any of us has ever tasted. It contains no flour or ground nuts and it keeps well. On top of that, it’s easy to make.

JIM DODGE’S BOURBON-CHOCOLATE-PECAN CAKE

2 cups pecans

Unsalted butter

8 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

6 eggs

1/3 cup bourbon

Glaze

Spread pecans on baking sheet and toast in 350-degree oven until fragrant, about 10 minutes. Cool.

Cut circle of parchment to fit bottom of 9-inch round cake pan. Butter pan well and line with parchment circle.

Melt 1/2 pound butter and chocolate in top of double boiler over simmering water. Stir until very smooth. Cool.

Mix sugar, cocoa powder and eggs just until well combined. Add melted chocolate, stirring to combine. Coarsely chop 1 1/2 cups pecans and stir into chocolate mixture. Stir in bourbon.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Place pan inside larger pan and pour hot water to level of 1 inch in outer pan. Bake at 350 degrees until cake is firm to touch, about 45 minutes. (Cake surface may crack slightly.)

Cool cake on wire rack, then remove from pan, leaving parchment paper attached. Wrap cake in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Remove cake from refrigerator and place upside down on wire rack with sheet of wax paper underneath to catch drips. Peel off parchment circle, then drizzle spoonfuls of Glaze along sides of cake. When sides are completely covered, spoon remaining Glaze on top of cake and smooth with icing spatula.

Cover sides of cake with remaining 1/2 cup pecans, chopped if desired, pressing gently against Glaze. Refrigerate cake until 1/2 hour before serving. Makes 12 servings.

Glaze

4 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate

1/4 pound unsalted butter

Melt chocolate and butter in top of double boiler over simmering water. Stir until completely smooth. Cool about 5 minutes.

Each serving contains about:

633 calories; 36 mg sodium; 168 mg cholesterol; 49 grams fat; 48 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams protein; 0.88 grams fiber; 70% calories from fat.

To our surprise, we discovered while voting for the top dishes of the year that many of our favorites came from the vegetarian issue we did last fall. This particular dish was a universal favorite--it is quick and simple to prepare yet deeply satisfying to eat, especially when accompanied with bruschetta sprinkled with aromatic oregano. If you can’t find mustard greens, substitute a combination of spinach and radish leaves.

VIANA LA PLACE’S LENTILS AND WILD GREENS (Lenticchie Con Verdura Selvatica)

1 bunch mustard greens or other tender bitter greens, stems trimmed, leaves stripped from ribs

Salt

Extra-virgin olive oil

1 small onion, peeled and finely diced

2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped

1 celery stalk, trimmed and finely diced

1 small carrot, peeled and finely chopped

1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano leaves

1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves

2 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley leaves

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves

2 cups lentils, washed and picked over

Freshly ground pepper

3 small tomatoes, roasted, peeled, seeded and diced

3 tablespoons lemon juice

4 lemon wedges

Blanch mustard greens in water that clings to leaves after washing. Add salt to taste. Drain in colander. Chop very coarsely and set aside.

Combine 3 tablespoons olive oil, onion, garlic, celery and carrot in medium skillet. Cook, covered, over medium heat until vegetables are tender.

Stir in oregano, rosemary, Italian parsley, basil and lentils. Allow lentils to absorb flavor for few minutes. Add 4 cups water. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to boil, then simmer, partially covered, until lentils are just tender, about 35 minutes. About 10 minutes before lentils are cooked, add tomatoes.

Saute greens very briefly in 1 tablespoon olive oil. Just before serving, stir greens and lemon juice into lentil-tomato mixture.

Ladle mixture into shallow soup bowls. Grind coarse pepper to taste over top and add few drops of olive oil. Serve with lemon wedges. Makes 4 servings.

Each serving contains about:

278 calories; 109 mg sodium; 0 cholesterol; 14 grams fat; 30 grams carbohydrates; 11 grams protein; 4.11 grams fiber; 46% calories from fat.

Considering the number of recipes we run in the course of a year, it’s a little embarrassing to put something as childish as caramel corn in a small list of favorites. But this caramel corn was on almost everybody’s list--it’s the sort of stuff that turns even sophisticated adults into greedy kids.

CARAMEL CORN

14 cups popped popcorn

2 cups brown sugar, packed

1 cup butter

1/2 cup light corn syrup

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

Remove any unpopped kernels from popcorn. Place popcorn in buttered metal bowl and keep warm in 200-degree oven.

Combine brown sugar, butter, corn syrup and salt in heavy saucepan. Bring to boil, stirring occasionally. Boil, without stirring 5 minutes, or until mixture reaches 255 degrees on candy thermometer.

Removing mixture from heat and add baking soda (candy will foam). Stir well.

Pour mixture over popped corn and toss with buttered forks to distribute evenly. Spread onto 2 ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 200 degrees 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes.

Cool caramel corn completely. Break into clusters. Store tightly covered. Makes about 3 1/2 quarts.

Note: If desired, 1 cup nuts may be added to caramel mixture just before pouring over popped corn.

Each serving contains about:

290 calories; 320 mg sodium; 35 mg cholesterol; 13 grams fat; 44 grams carbohydrates; 1 grams protein; 0 fiber; 42% calories from fat.

This recipe was contributed to the potluck issue by Charles Perry, who calls it the world’s most elaborate melted cheese sandwich. Khachapuri is a traditional dish of the Republic of Georgia; it involves a certain amount of trouble, but not nearly as much as people will assume. The recipe is adapted from the Time-Life book “Russian Cooking.”

KHACHAPURI (Georgian Cheese Bread)

2 packages dry yeast

Sugar

1 1/4 cups lukewarm milk

Flour

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 cup butter, softened

Cheese Filling

Sprinkle yeast and 1/2 teaspoon sugar over milk in small, shallow bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and place in warm place until yeast blooms and mixture nearly doubles in volume, 5 to 10 minutes.

Combine 4 1/2 cups flour, 1 tablespoon sugar and salt in large mixing bowl. Make well in flour mixture and add milk-yeast mixture and softened butter. Beat vigorously with large spoon until smooth. Form into ball and place on lightly floured surface. Knead hard 10 minutes, adding more flour or water as needed to create medium stiff dough.

When dough is smooth and elastic, place in large, lightly buttered bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and kitchen towel and let rise in warm, draft-free place, such as unlit oven with pilot light on, until doubled in bulk and dough springs back slowly when gently poked with finger, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Punch dough down and let rise until again doubled, 30 to 40 minutes.

Punch dough down and roll out on lightly floured surface into circle about 22 inches in diameter. If rolling surface is too small, divide dough in half and roll into 2 half-circles 22x11 inches.

Roll dough up on rolling pin and unroll carefully over buttered 9-inch cake or springform pan or springform so that it is centered, with edges overlapping more or less evenly on all sides. If using 2 half-circles of dough, form 1-inch seam to make whole circle and moisten thoroughly to seal. Carefully press center of dough down to bottom of pan.

Place Cheese Filling on dough and bring up edges of dough over filling, forming thick, fabric-like folds. Moisten edges at top and seal.

Let stand 10 to 15 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees in center of oven, with foil underneath in case filling leaks, until golden brown, 50 minutes to 1 hour. Cool 1 to 2 hours before serving. Makes 12 to 16 servings.

Cheese Filling

1 pound Muenster cheese, shredded

2 tablespoons butter, softened

1 egg, beaten

Combine cheese, butter and egg in large mixing bowl. Knead vigorously until texture is uniform. Shape into thick round cake 8 to 7 1/2 inches in diameter.

Each serving contains about:

423 calories; 744 mg sodium; 83 mg cholesterol; 23 grams fat; 39 grams carbohydrates; 16 grams protein; 0 fiber; 48% calories from fat.

Cambria winemaker Signe Zoller contributed this recipe to our issue about the Santa Barbara wine region. She accompanies the dish with Cambria’s 1988 reserve Chardonnay because it “has a definite coconut character.”

SEAFOOD IN COCONUT MILK (Signe Zoller, Cambria Winery and Vineyard)

18 to 24 medium shrimp, shelled and deveined

1/4 to 1 pound scallops

3/4 to 1 pound red snapper, true cod or orange roughy fillets

1 lemon

2 (14-ounce) cans coconut milk

1/2 small yellow onion, thinly sliced

1 teaspoon curry powder

Few drops hot pepper sauce

Freshly ground pepper

6 cups cooked basmati rice

Clean shrimp thoroughly. Rinse scallops. Rinse fish and cut into 4x2-inch pieces. Place seafood in bowl. Squeeze lemon juice into bowl, toss gently to mix and set aside.

Place coconut milk in large skillet or wok. Add sliced onion, curry powder, hot pepper sauce and pepper. Bring to rolling boil and boil hard 5 to 7 minutes. Lower heat, add seafood and any juices from bowl. Cook until shrimp are pink and scallops and fish are done, 8 to 10 minutes. If desired, remove seafood and boil sauce to reduce slightly, then return seafood to pan. Serve over hot rice. Makes 6 servings.

Each serving contains about:

636 calories; 158 mg sodium; 66 mg cholesterol; 33 grams fat; 59 grams carbohydrates; 28 grams protein; 3.38 grams fiber; 47% calories from fat.

Another recipe from the vegetarian issue. This one looks like an awful lot of work for a sandwich, but it’s worth every minute. The rolls are crisp and delicious and absolutely unlike anything you can buy in a bakery, and the finished sandwich is spectacular.

BORDER GRILL’S VEGETARIAN TORTA

1 Bolillo, cut in half lengthwise

Butter

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

1/2 cup Black Beans

1/2 cup Cheese Mix

1/4 cup Roasted Pepper Mix

2 tablespoons sliced green olives

1/2 avocado, peeled and sliced

1/2 tomato, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons thinly sliced red radishes

Lettuce

Generously spread cut sides of Bolillo with butter. Toast on hot grill. Spread mayonnaise on both halves of bread. Spread Black Beans on bottom half. Top with Cheese Mix.

Place under broiler few minutes to melt cheese. Top with Roasted Pepper Mix, sliced olives, avocado, tomato, radishes and lettuce. Cover with top half of bread. Makes 1 serving.

Note: Commercial bolillos are also available in Mexican bakeries.

Bolillos

2 cups warm water

3 packages dry yeast

1 teaspoon sugar

2 cups warm milk

5 1/2 cups bread flour, about

5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, about

Salt

1 tablespoon baking powder

Butter, softened

Combine warm water, yeast and sugar in large mixing bowl. Whisk to dissolve yeast. Let stand until foamy. Stir in warm milk, 1 1/2 cups bread flour and 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour. Beat until lump-free. Let stand until light and foamy, about 1/2 hour.

Combine 3 cups bread flour, 3 cups all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon salt and baking powder. Add to yeast mixture, mixing well. Work in enough additional flour, up to 1 cup each, to make medium-firm, non-sticky dough. Knead 5 to 8 minutes on machine with dough hook. Let stand in warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Divide dough in 4-ounce portions. Shape into balls. Let rest briefly. Shape into 6-inch long rolls, tapering at ends. Depress long center with hand or finger and slather generously with soft butter.

Sprinkle with little flour, dumping out excess flour. Enclose butter and remaining flour by pressing sides together and rolling lightly with palm of hand. Place seam side down on parchment-paper-lined baking sheet. Let rise until doubled, about 1/2 hour.

Turn rolls over, seam side up. Stir together 1 tablespoon salt and 1/2 cup water and place in spray bottle. Spray rolls generously with salt water.

Bake at 375 degrees 10 minutes (about 7 minutes in convection oven), turn rolls upside down. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees and continue baking until rolls are crisp and brown on outside and firm inside, abut 30 minutes (20 minutes in convection oven). Cool on baking sheet. Makes about 1 1/2 dozen.

Note: Bolillos may be sprayed second time during baking, if heavier crust is desired.

Black Beans

1/2 pound black beans

2 tablespoons butter or vegetable oil

3/4 cup diced onion

Salt, pepper

Place black beans in heavy sauce pot. Add water to cover beans by 3 inches. Bring to boil. Simmer until beans are tender, about 1 12 hours, adding more water if needed.

Heat butter in separate pot. Add onion and saute over medium heat until caramelized. Add beans. Cook over low heat 15 to 20 minutes, mashing beans until creamy. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Makes enough filling for 4 to 5 sandwiches.

Roasted Pepper Mix

3 sweet red peppers

3 poblano chiles

1 teaspoon lime juice

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Salt, pepper

Place red peppers and poblano chiles over open flame or under broiler. Roast until blackened and blistered, turn chiles with tongs for even roasting. Place peppers and chiles in plastic bag. Close and allow to sweat until vegetables are cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes.

Peel off charred skins using small sharp knife. Cut chiles and peppers into 1/2-inch-wide strips. Mix with lime juice and olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Makes enough for 4 to 5 sandwiches.

Cheese Mix

1 cup shredded Manchego cheese

1/2 cup shredded fresh Panela cheese

1/2 cup shredded Cotija cheese

Mix all cheeses in bowl. Makes about 2 cups, enough for 4 to 5 sandwiches.

Note: If cheeses are unavailable, use Jack cheese as substitute.

Each serving contains about:

998 calories; 1113 mg sodium; 95 mg cholesterol; 59 grams fat; 95 grams carbohydrates; 29 grams protein; 4.58 grams fiber; 53% calories from fat.

You probably won’t want to make this peach pie right now. Minnie Bernardino and Donna Deane created it for our summer issue on local produce markets, and like everything made with peaches, this one is at its best only when peaches are at their peak. On the other hand, the pie is so unusual, and so delicious, that you might want to make it with frozen peaches while you’re waiting for the return of summer.

PEACH-MARZIPAN STREUSEL PIE

1 quart sliced peeled peaches, about 6 large

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup quick-cooking tapioca

Almond Crust

Marzipan Streusel Topping

Combine peaches, sugar and tapioca in bowl. Turn into Almond Crust. Cover filling with Marzipan Streusel Topping. Cover crust rim with foil.

Bake at 325 degrees 45 to 55 minutes, checking after 30 minutes if topping is getting too browned. Cover top with foil if necessary. Cool. Serve warm or at room temperature. Makes about 8 servings.

Almond Crust

1 cup ground almonds

1 1/2 cups flour

1/4 cup sugar

2/3 cup butter, melted

1 teaspoon almond extract

1 egg white, lightly beaten

Combine almonds, flour and sugar in bowl. Add melted butter, almond extract and egg white. Mix well. Press into 9-inch pie plate. Cover with foil, then pie weights (or rice or beans). Bake at 375 degrees 12 minutes. Cool. Carefully remove foil and pie weights.

Marzipan Streusel Topping

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup cold butter, cut up

1/4 cup marzipan or almond paste

Combine flour, brown sugar, vanilla and salt in bowl. Rub in cold butter and marzipan until crumbly.

Each serving contains about:

954 calories; 299 mg sodium; 56 mg cholesterol; 31 grams fat; 169 grams carbohydrates; 14 grams protein; 6.58 grams fiber; 29% calories from fat.

A chef’s secret from Saverio Posarelli of Gladstone’s for Fish, this stew was beloved by everybody on the Food staff. Almost all of us have made variations of it at home--it works well with chicken breast substituted for the squid, you can easily omit the chiles if you don’t like spicy food, and if you don’t feel like cooking polenta, the stew is every bit as good served over rice.

CALAMARI STEW

1/2 cup olive oil

1 large red onion, chopped

1 carrot, finely chopped

1 stalk celery, finely chopped

5 small chiles, minced

1 cup dry red wine

6 to 8 Roma tomatoes, peeled and chopped

2 pounds spinach, stemmed

2 cloves garlic, minced

Salt, pepper

1 1/2 pounds squid, cleaned and cut into rings

Polenta or cooked rice, optional

Heat olive oil in large saucepan. Add red onion, carrot and celery. Cook until vegetables are golden. Add chiles, red wine and tomatoes. Bring to simmer. Cover and cook over medium heat 5 minutes.

Add spinach, garlic and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and cook over medium heat 20 minutes, stirring frequently. Add squid and cook 1 minute or until squid turns opaque. Serve as stew over Polenta or rice. Makes 6 servings.

Polenta

2 cups cold water

Coarse salt

1 cup coarse yellow cornmeal

1 tablespoon olive oil

Heat water to boiling. Add salt to taste. Gradually add cornmeal in stream, stirring constantly with wooden spoon. Add olive oil. Continue to cook, stirring, 15 minutes or until mixture thickens. Makes 2 cups.

Each serving contains about:

450 calories; 347 mg sodium; 264 mg cholesterol; 23 grams fat; 33 grams carbohydrates; 22 grams protein; 1.32 grams fiber; 47% calories from fat.