Masa cookies, Ukrainian stew and Bengali shrimp: 3 recipes from best new fall cookbooks

This is Part 1 of a 3-part series.

The autumn cookbook publishing season has just kicked off, and it’s a particularly exciting one — especially for cooks who enjoy exploring the world in their kitchens. There are highly anticipated titles from revered pros, enticing debuts from beloved bloggers and everything in between. This fall’s new crop represents cooking cultures and cuisines from all around the globe.

The season is just getting fully underway; not all the books are released at the same time, so this series will be spotlighting favorites in three installments through the fall, with one recipe featured from each.

Budmo! Recipes from a Ukrainian Kitchen

By Anna Voloshyna (Rizzoli, $39.95)

If you’ve been wondering how to celebrate Ukrainian culture, this book’s for you. Author Anna Voloshyna’s exuberance expresses itself in the exclamation-pointed title (which means “let us be!” — the Ukrainian equivalent of “cheers!”) Born and raised in Ukraine, now living in San Francisco and working as a chef, blogger and cooking instructor, Voloshyna is the ideal guide to the cooking of the country known as the Breadbasket of Europe. Memorable recipes include pickle-happy Vegetarian Russian Potato Salad, Georgian Eggplant Rolls drizzled with pomegranate molasses, and soulful, delicious Crimean Beef Stew with Chickpeas (recipe below).

Kolkata: Recipes from the Heart of Bengal

By Rinku Dutt, photographs by Steven Joyce (Smith Street Books, $35)

Author Rinku Dutt grew up in London. Her parents came from Kolkata — the Indian city that was known under colonial rule as Calcutta — and she frequently visited family there. She fell deeply in love with the city, its culture and yes, its food, leading her to leave behind a career in banking and become a chef. Today she, her father and her brother have a London food truck, Raastawala, featuring Bengal cooking. Dutt’s beautiful cookbook leans toward the personal. It’s filled with family recipes that are gorgeously layered with spices, and it includes an excellent description of how meals are served in the region, so we have some expert guidance when planning dinner.

Masa: Techniques, Recipes, and Reflections on a Timeless Staple

By Jorge Gaviria; photographs by Graydon Herriott (Chronicle Books, $35)

For lovers of serious Mexican cooking, whether in restaurants or at home, Jorge Gaviria is a behind-the-scenes hero: As founder of Masienda, he masterminded the “third-wave masa movement” that puts heirloom corn (and the dough made from it) in the limelight. His debut cookbook is an encyclopedic, authoritative work detailing everything chefs and passionate home cooks need to know, including masa’s fascinating history; detailed instructions on how to cook kernels in a culinary lime solution to make nixtamal and grind it into masa; and how to operate and maintain a molino (mill). Most important for home cooks, it shows and tells how to make the perfect tortilla, and how to form masa into 28 other shapes, from arepas and huaraches to tetelas and tlacoyos. Actual recipes come at the end in the form of “Modern Masa Explorations” — 10 dishes involving masa from chefs around the country associated with the movement.

Former Dallas Morning News restaurant critic Leslie Brenner, now a restaurant consultant, writes about cooking at her award-winning website Cooks Without Borders. There you can find full-length reviews of the books above and additional recipes from them.

Crimean Beef Stew

Adapted from Budmo! by Anna Voloshyna

1 cup dried chickpeas, rinsed and picked over

2 pounds boneless beef chuck, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons canola oil or sunflower oil, or more as needed

1 large yellow onion, diced

1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes, with their liquid

1/4 cup dry white wine

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon ground fenugreek

1/2 teaspoon red chile flakes

6 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves, plus more for serving

Pickled red onions for serving (recipe follows)

Put the chickpeas into a medium bowl, add 4 cups of water and leave to soak at room temperature overnight.

The next day, pat the meat dry with paper towels and season generously with salt. In a large Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Working in batches to avoid crowding, add the meat and brown, turning as needed, until golden brown on all sides (or even just most of them), about 1 or 2 minutes on each side. (Note: Don’t feel like you need to sear them hard; they’ll be more tender if you don’t.) Transfer to a large plate, medium bowl or small sheet pan and repeat with the remaining meat, adding more oil if needed.

When all the meat is browned, add the onion to the pot, lower the heat to medium, and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent and soft, about 10 minutes. Return the meat to the pot and add the tomatoes, wine, and 1 cup water. Raise the heat to high, bring the stew to a boil, and then lower the heat to medium-low. Stir in the sugar, coriander, fenugreek and chile flakes and season with 1 teaspoon salt and 9 or 10 grinds of black pepper. Cover and simmer until the meat is very tender, about 1 1/2 hours.

Meanwhile, drain the chickpeas, transfer them to a medium saucepan, and add water to cover by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium so the chickpeas simmer without boiling over. Cook until soft but not mushy, about 40 minutes. Drain and reserve.

When the meat is very tender, add the chickpeas and garlic to the pot, stir well and simmer for 5 more minutes to merge the flavors, adding more water to the pot if needed to thin to a good stew consistency. Stir in the cilantro, then taste and adjust the seasoning, adding salt and pepper as needed. Simmer for just 3 more minutes to blend the flavors, then remove from the heat. Serve the stew topped with the pickled onion and cilantro.

Pickled Red Onions: Cut 1 large red onion into thin half-moons. Tightly pack the onion slices into a heatproof 1-pint glass jar with a lid. In a small saucepan, combine 1 cup water, 1/2 cup red wine vinegar, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt and fresh thyme sprigs and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from the heat and pour the brine over the onion to completely submerge. Let cool to room temperature. Serve right away, or cover the jar and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Makes about 2 cups.

Source: Budmo!

Shrimp with Poppy Seeds (Chingri Posto)

Adapted from Kolkata by Rinku Dutt

1 pound, 2 ounces raw shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 1/4 teaspoons salt, divided use

1 teaspoon ground turmeric, divided use

3 tablespoons white poppyseeds

1 teaspoon black mustard seeds

2 teaspoons English mustard powder (ground mustard)

1 tablespoon dried unsweetened shredded coconut

1 tablespoon Greek-style yogurt, divided use

1 teaspoon sugar, divided use

2 tablespoons mustard oil or canola oil

1 medium potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (7 ounces)

1 bay leaf

1/2 teaspoon fenugreek seeds

1 medium white onion, finely chopped

2 teaspoons grated ginger

1 dried red chile

Put the shrimp in a bowl, sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon each of the salt and turmeric, and mix well to make sure all are coated. Set aside for 10 minutes.

Put the poppy and mustard seeds in a spice grinder and grind to a semi-coarse texture. Pour into a small bowl, and combine with the mustard powder, coconut, 1/2 tablespoon of the yogurt, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and turmeric and 1/2 teaspoon of the sugar. Add 3 tablespoons water and mix well to a paste. Set aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a karai (Indian-style wok), a Chinese wok or a large, slope-sided skillet over medium heat. When it’s hot, add the potatoes and cook for about 5 minutes, turning occasionally, until they’re lightly browned. Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate and set aside.

To the same pan, add the shrimp, and sauté just until they turn pink, 2 or 3 minutes. Quickly transfer them back to their bowl (no need to wash it first; the shrimp will cook again).

Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the pan over medium heat; when the oil is hot, add the bay leaf and fenugreek seeds and cook, stirring, until the aromas release, about 2 or 3 minutes. Stir in the onions and cook for about 2 minutes, then add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of sugar and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions caramelize and become translucent. Add the ginger and dried chile and cook another 2 minutes, stirring so the mixture doesn’t stick to the pan.

Add the spice paste to the pan, stir well, and cook about 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of yogurt, the remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt and 150 ml (2/3 cup) water, increase heat and bring to a simmer. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and cook for 5 to 7 minutes, until the potatoes are cooked through and the water has mostly been absorbed. If the mixture becomes too dry, add a few tablespoons of water. Stir in the shrimp, increase the heat to high and cook for a final 3 or 4 minutes, until all the water has evaporated. Remove from the heat and cover until ready to serve.

Makes 4 servings.

White Chocolate Chip Cookies

Adapted from Masa: Techniques, Recipes and Reflections on a Timeless Staple by Jorge Gaviria. Gaviria credits pastry chef Jess Stephens with the recipe. Heirloom corn masa harina is available at Masienda.com or through Amazon’s Masienda store.

1 cup white chocolate chips or chopped bars

2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup masa harina (preferably made from heirloom corn)

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2/3 cup chopped macadamia nuts

Flaky salt (optional)

Heat the oven to 325 F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat. Spread out the white chocolate on the sheet, keeping it all together but pretty much in one layer. Bake the chocolate for 5 minutes, or until you see some browning along the edges. Stir the chocolate and return to the oven. Repeat several times, until all the chocolate is the color of light amber honey. This happens slowly at first, and then quickly, so keep an eye on the oven; it shouldn’t take more than 15 or 20 minutes. Allow the caramelized chocolate to cool completely, then break it up into chunks for the cookies. If it isn’t hardening enough to break into chunks, place it in the freezer a few minutes until it’s hard.

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, masa harina, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar together until it’s fluffy and pale. Add the eggs, one at a time, with a stand mixer running continuously, or pausing just to add the egg if using a hand mixer, and then add the vanilla. Mix until just combined. Beat in the flour mixture in increments until it is evenly incorporated. Fold in the chopped macadamias and caramelized white chocolate chunks. Press a piece of plastic film onto the top of the dough and refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes.

Heat the oven to 375 F and line a baking sheet with parchment. Scoop the dough onto the prepared baking sheet in 2-inch clumps, spaced evenly, with at least 3 inches of space between them. Top each cookie with a little flaky salt, if you like. Bake for 6 minutes, then rotate the sheet. Bake for another 6 minutes, or until the cookies are slightly brown on the edges and just set in the middle. Let them sit on the baking sheet 3 minutes, or until firm enough to transfer to a rack, and let them cool on the rack before serving.

Makes 2 dozen cookies.