On the continuing theme of repenting one’s mistakes before the Jewish New Year begins, I give you the somewhat original recipe that I call Chickpea Mistake. But, in this case the lesson is not recognize the mistake and repent, but to recognize, as a certain major Judeo/Christian deity did in the story of Abraham/Sarah/Hagar/Ishmael told at this time of year (you may look it up on Wikipedia), the mistake will serve a purpose later on and it may not be worth mentioning at all. Plus, your mistake can be eaten.
The ingredients: chickpeas (one can, canned), rice (cooked, about 1 cup, of sticky Asian variety), herbs (mint and parsley), garlic (smelly and diced), tomatoes (crushed, also canned), peas (a handful, frozen and microwaved), cumin (dusty) and olive oil (yummy, and only a teaspoon or two because we're not making falafel).
Make the meatless meatball mash by pulsing the chickpeas in the food processor with mint and parsley, salt and pepper, remove to a bowl and mix with the rice.
If you make the first attempt to form balls at this stage, as I did, the balls will dry and fall apart when heated in the olive oil with garlic (browned). Please eat the first mistake, if you make it.
Before attempting again, add about two teaspoons of crushed tomatoes to the mixture of until it is the consistency of chopped meat, form into balls, set aside. Heat your pan, add oil and the diced garlic. Now, add the balls to the hot, garlicky oil. This will give you a fried mash that may settle into a state that is not quite a ball, not quite a patty, but that's good enough.
When nicely browned, put the chickpea “mistake” in a bowl. Scrape all the crunchy mix of browned garlic and stray rice off the bottom of the pan and dump it over the mistake. Ignore any sudden concern that the husband/significant other/food critic will not want to eat this. Soldier on, please. Add peas, a dollop of crushed tomato and sprinkle of cumin. Reheat in the microwave when the husband/significant other/food critic comes in the door. Serve with side salad.
When the husband/significant other/food critic asks you what it is say “Bukharan Vegetarian Meatball” because references to Uzbekistan always throw people off. When he asks if you made this, as opposed to your best friend Trader Joe, say yes. When he asks you if the recipe is so and so’s, claim it as your own. It will turn out that he likes Bukharan Vegetarian Meatball and will want you to make it again.
P.S. Chickpeas are a food traditionally served for the Jewish New Year. The shape and color of the ball/patties are, coincidentally, symbolic of coins, to bring wealth and happiness. If you like this recipe, go ahead and serve it. Your guests who may be following vegetarian/vegan diets will love it.
Showing posts with label Recipe. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Recipe. Show all posts
Monday, August 23, 2010
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Daniel Vs. Luther - A New Year's Reflection
Mistakes. We all make 'em. As the Jewish New Year draws closer (and yours truly, Clever Gretel, celebrates this holiday, usually with a few stiff drinks before dealing with the menu) we ponder our sins and, ultimately, ask forgiveness. I have committed many sins. One of them is relying too often on the pizza man or, worse, a guy named Bob Evans, to provide food for my family. However, I was busy adding another member to said family, the Lovely Baby Named Phoebe, whom we will call Winnie, for short. This curtailed my desire to think about food, eat like a normal person or cook for the better part of the past two years (has it really been that long?).
But there are other sins out there I ask you to consider. For me, this one would have been impossible to write about in my formerly pregnant state. In recent weeks, there's been much hooplah about The Doughnut Burger, currently being served at state fairs around our country. In the spirit of culinary equanimity I ask you: how big a sin is it? Is it contributing to the scourge of obesity besetting our country? Or is it merely a low-brow version of a burger on a brioche? Famed Chef Daniel Boulud stuffs his with assorted fillings, such as foie gras, short ribs, truffles etc., so what about an indulgent burger for the rest of us?
Consumers of The Doughnut Burger (also called The Luther, as in Vandross) said, in USA Today, they liked the sweet/salty combination of meat and sugar. Doesn't everyone? So, I ask you, what is American barbecue enjoyed with cornbread if not sweet/salty plus spicy? What is a delicious dim sum without a savory/sweet pork bun? Isn't that just bacon in a cupcake?
A quick look at the nutrition facts and exercise estimates via the Calorie King reveals that you only have to walk a bit further to burn off the doughnut burger than the burger on brioche. Here are the stats:
A brioche from the Breadsmith has 140 calories, Total Fat 8g, Sat. Fat 4.5g, Trans Fat 0g, Cholesterol 55mg, Sodium 150mg, Total Carbs. 15g, Dietary Fiber 0g, Sugars 2g, Protein 3g, Calcium 10mg. Time needed to walk off brioche: 39 minutes.
Now add the burger: A 3.5 oz. burger contains: Calories 250, Total Fat 9g, Sat. Fat 3.5g, Fat 0.5g, Cholesterol 25mg, 520mg, Total Carbs. 31g, Dietary Fiber 2g, Sugars 6g, Protein 12g Calcium 100mg. Time needed to walk off burger: 69 minutes.
Here's the data for one Krispy Kreme Glazed Original Doughnut: Calories 200, Total Fat 12g., Sat. Fat 6g, Trans Fat 0g, Cholesterol 5mg, Sodium 95mg, Carbs. 22g, Dietary Fiber 0.5g,
Sugars 10g, Protein 2g, Calcium 60mg. Time needed to walk off doughnut: 55 minutes.
But, here's the rub, The Doughnut Burger is made with two, I repeat, two, doughnuts. So, double all of the nutrition data above and add another 55 minutes of walking. You can walk off the Doughnut Burger in around 3 hours, as opposed to around 2 for the brioche burger. You can easily burn that walking around the State Fair. Granted, I am not including any burger toppings, such as cheese or bacon or State Fair calves liver (that was a joke, but, really, why not? Daniel would do it). I also suspect I am making a large assumption on burger size. Who eats a 3.5 ounce burger anymore?
Still, hypothetically, even if the burger is a six-ouncer, if The Doughnut Burger is the ONLY food you eat at the State Fair and you visit every exhibit, resting only to watch the little girls in 4H march with their sheep, you aren't committing so grave a sin. You could even, in theory, ask for the burger to be served on just one doughnut, cut in half, like the brioche. This would reduce the penance of walking by an hour. You might even get to skip the sheep viewing.
And speaking of walking as penance, bear in mind that Clever Gretel resides in Cincinnati, where local Catholics walk the steps of Mt. Adams as penance on Easter, after or before eating a meal of Goetta (a loaf of steel cut oats and hamburger meat, sliced and fried, over which one might, if one so chooses, pour syrup. Ah ha! There's that sweet/salty thing again, but now with a hint, of dare I say, the divine?).
In conclusion: I can condemn the sins of sloth and gluttony. I can rail against the lack of produce in less affluent neighborhoods and abundance fast foods, poor school nutrition and lack of preventive care for Type Two diabetes, for these represent the sin of not caring for ourselves and our neighbors. Yet, I cannot entirely condemn The Doughnut Burger. It is a choice, like so many others, that can be managed have we the will to do so. Therefore, I place it on the ever-expanding continuum of indulgence our society is known for and move on, perhaps to something more palatable. Fried butter anyone?
But there are other sins out there I ask you to consider. For me, this one would have been impossible to write about in my formerly pregnant state. In recent weeks, there's been much hooplah about The Doughnut Burger, currently being served at state fairs around our country. In the spirit of culinary equanimity I ask you: how big a sin is it? Is it contributing to the scourge of obesity besetting our country? Or is it merely a low-brow version of a burger on a brioche? Famed Chef Daniel Boulud stuffs his with assorted fillings, such as foie gras, short ribs, truffles etc., so what about an indulgent burger for the rest of us?
Consumers of The Doughnut Burger (also called The Luther, as in Vandross) said, in USA Today, they liked the sweet/salty combination of meat and sugar. Doesn't everyone? So, I ask you, what is American barbecue enjoyed with cornbread if not sweet/salty plus spicy? What is a delicious dim sum without a savory/sweet pork bun? Isn't that just bacon in a cupcake?
A quick look at the nutrition facts and exercise estimates via the Calorie King reveals that you only have to walk a bit further to burn off the doughnut burger than the burger on brioche. Here are the stats:
A brioche from the Breadsmith has 140 calories, Total Fat 8g, Sat. Fat 4.5g, Trans Fat 0g, Cholesterol 55mg, Sodium 150mg, Total Carbs. 15g, Dietary Fiber 0g, Sugars 2g, Protein 3g, Calcium 10mg. Time needed to walk off brioche: 39 minutes.
Now add the burger: A 3.5 oz. burger contains: Calories 250, Total Fat 9g, Sat. Fat 3.5g, Fat 0.5g, Cholesterol 25mg, 520mg, Total Carbs. 31g, Dietary Fiber 2g, Sugars 6g, Protein 12g Calcium 100mg. Time needed to walk off burger: 69 minutes.
Here's the data for one Krispy Kreme Glazed Original Doughnut: Calories 200, Total Fat 12g., Sat. Fat 6g, Trans Fat 0g, Cholesterol 5mg, Sodium 95mg, Carbs. 22g, Dietary Fiber 0.5g,
Sugars 10g, Protein 2g, Calcium 60mg. Time needed to walk off doughnut: 55 minutes.
But, here's the rub, The Doughnut Burger is made with two, I repeat, two, doughnuts. So, double all of the nutrition data above and add another 55 minutes of walking. You can walk off the Doughnut Burger in around 3 hours, as opposed to around 2 for the brioche burger. You can easily burn that walking around the State Fair. Granted, I am not including any burger toppings, such as cheese or bacon or State Fair calves liver (that was a joke, but, really, why not? Daniel would do it). I also suspect I am making a large assumption on burger size. Who eats a 3.5 ounce burger anymore?
Still, hypothetically, even if the burger is a six-ouncer, if The Doughnut Burger is the ONLY food you eat at the State Fair and you visit every exhibit, resting only to watch the little girls in 4H march with their sheep, you aren't committing so grave a sin. You could even, in theory, ask for the burger to be served on just one doughnut, cut in half, like the brioche. This would reduce the penance of walking by an hour. You might even get to skip the sheep viewing.
And speaking of walking as penance, bear in mind that Clever Gretel resides in Cincinnati, where local Catholics walk the steps of Mt. Adams as penance on Easter, after or before eating a meal of Goetta (a loaf of steel cut oats and hamburger meat, sliced and fried, over which one might, if one so chooses, pour syrup. Ah ha! There's that sweet/salty thing again, but now with a hint, of dare I say, the divine?).
In conclusion: I can condemn the sins of sloth and gluttony. I can rail against the lack of produce in less affluent neighborhoods and abundance fast foods, poor school nutrition and lack of preventive care for Type Two diabetes, for these represent the sin of not caring for ourselves and our neighbors. Yet, I cannot entirely condemn The Doughnut Burger. It is a choice, like so many others, that can be managed have we the will to do so. Therefore, I place it on the ever-expanding continuum of indulgence our society is known for and move on, perhaps to something more palatable. Fried butter anyone?
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
An Old Stand-By
I was reminiscing with Lincoln the other day about how we are not strangers to financial pressure and scary unemployment figures. It just seems so long ago...the turn of the century, when cell phones were a bit thicker, a twitter was the sound of a bird outside your window and on-line communities were still posting text to Usenet. He reminded me that our experience with hard times goes way back - as children, we witnessed the recession of the 80s and were job seekers during the sink hole of the early 90s. I reminded him that despite the hefty weight of student loans, we managed to have a lot of fun on no money. We both remembered the proud moment we paid off Lincoln's J.D. in three years (faster than Barack and Michelle Obama, by the way) and our financial adviser asked us, "How did you do it? Did you live on macaroni and cheese?" No, but we did eat a lot of meals like this one:
Pasta Al Tonno (Tuna Pasta)
I originally learned this recipe from Cucina Ebraica by Joyce Goldstein, but over time, have adapted it to my own taste. You can play around with it. Leave the tomato paste out or use garlic instead of onion. Omit the red wine and use canned tomato instead to make it more sauce-like than solid. This is a recipe that will let you find your own way.
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 cup of parsely, chopped
1 can of tuna - I use solid white in water, but you can use Italian tuna in oil.
About 6 anchovies or to your taste
1 teaspoon capers
2 teaspoons of tomato paste
1/4 cup of red wine
2 cups rigatoni, penne or linguine noodles
Follow directions for cooking pasta, drain and place in large bowl. While pasta is on the stove, heat a frying pan and add olive oil. Sautee the chopped onion and parsely until soft. Add tuna, anchovies and capers and mix together. Add tomato paste and wine and stir mixture. Add to pasta and blend thoroughly. Garnish with parsely. Serve with crusty bread and salad.
Pasta Al Tonno (Tuna Pasta)
I originally learned this recipe from Cucina Ebraica by Joyce Goldstein, but over time, have adapted it to my own taste. You can play around with it. Leave the tomato paste out or use garlic instead of onion. Omit the red wine and use canned tomato instead to make it more sauce-like than solid. This is a recipe that will let you find your own way.
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 cup of parsely, chopped
1 can of tuna - I use solid white in water, but you can use Italian tuna in oil.
About 6 anchovies or to your taste
1 teaspoon capers
2 teaspoons of tomato paste
1/4 cup of red wine
2 cups rigatoni, penne or linguine noodles
Follow directions for cooking pasta, drain and place in large bowl. While pasta is on the stove, heat a frying pan and add olive oil. Sautee the chopped onion and parsely until soft. Add tuna, anchovies and capers and mix together. Add tomato paste and wine and stir mixture. Add to pasta and blend thoroughly. Garnish with parsely. Serve with crusty bread and salad.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Miscellaneous/Privacy Is Dead?
If you haven't noticed, lately, Facebook seems to be taking over the world. I suspect that it has something to do with the fact that Generation X is 20 years out of high school and getting ready for its class reunions. At least, that's how most people I know got sucked into the thing. Lincoln followed, and I haven't seen him since (ladies, he's taken!).
If you are on facebook, you can import JuicyChiken and read my posts from there. If you do that, why not go viral and share the articles with your friends?
If you know my secret identity, you can also get some recipes that I've posted in my notes page as an experiment to see which gets me more posts -- this blogosphere thing or the facebook. So far, facebook is winning.
For those of you cringing and crying that I'm even bringing this up, I assure you that in ten years, this too will pass. I also want to say that no one will judge you harshly for not friending or unfriending your ex-boyfriends after the morbid curiosity phase has passed.
If you are on facebook, you can import JuicyChiken and read my posts from there. If you do that, why not go viral and share the articles with your friends?
If you know my secret identity, you can also get some recipes that I've posted in my notes page as an experiment to see which gets me more posts -- this blogosphere thing or the facebook. So far, facebook is winning.
For those of you cringing and crying that I'm even bringing this up, I assure you that in ten years, this too will pass. I also want to say that no one will judge you harshly for not friending or unfriending your ex-boyfriends after the morbid curiosity phase has passed.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Some Foods Are Better With Friends And Without Smoked Meat
Recovering from a severe stomach illness that rendered me unable to eat anything except broth for a week, I've had time to reflect on my last great cooking adventure with my friend Anna. When she came down for a visit last month, we took on The New Spanish Table and made three courses for friends. Our meal was Potato Soup with Fried Almonds, Salad with Hazelnut, Apricot and Sherry Vinegar Dressing, Lamb Meatballs With Mint and an Orange Tart for dessert. All three dishes were great, although the tart was problematic.
What struck me most was the quality of our cooking time together. These days, with Lincoln busier than ever and me holding down the house on the hill, I mostly cook alone, although with Bartleby capering about in the background. I didn't even know when Anna proposed cooking together if I was capable of it. Would I have to explain things to her? Find things in the kitchen? Be a big crank? I am so used to talking myself through trouble spots, finding solutions in mere seconds, coming up with the big ideas for meals, burning my thumbs when no one can hear me scream...I just didn't know if there was room for someone else in my kitchen. To my great relief, the recipes naturally divided themselves into a fair division of labor based on skills. Anna took the soup and dessert, I did the meatballs and the salad. We frequently consulted the book and each other. We also accomplished all of our cooking in a mere four hours. It was harmonious and so pleasing to show off these dishes to friends. It felt like we had stepped out of a Gourmet Magazine photo spread.
Foodwise, I would change little. The soup, on a second trial, tastes better without smoked meat and with an all vegetable stock. The tart really needed the oranges peeled - unless you really like bitter.
Sopa De Patatas Y Almendras
Source: The New Spanish Table, Anya Von Bremzen, published by Workman
Meat eaters note: You can substitute whole smoked turkey leg (sliced) for the ham or...
Vegetarians and vegans note: You can an all veggie version with a vegetable stock, like I am today.
Sticklers note: From the original, I edited out the cumbersome cutting method for the potatoes. It works if you cube them.
Food Obsessives note: I suspect if you use marcona almonds from Spain, this recipe will be even better. Turmeric may substitute for saffron.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 Lbs Yukon Gold potatoes
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup blanced almonds
6 large garlic cloves, peeled
1/3 cup (about 2 ounces) finely diced serrano ham or prosciutto
4 cups chicken stock or broth, or more if needed
Coarse salt (kosher or sea) and freshly ground black pepper
1 medium-sized pinch of saffron, pulverized in a mortar
2 teaspoons sherry vinegar, preferably aged, or more to taste
2 tablespoons minced fresh flat-leaf parsley (to garnish)
Dense country bread, for serving
1) Cut the potatoes into cubes
2) Heat the olive oil in a heavy 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the almonds and garlic and cook, stirring, until golden, 4 to 5 minutes, adjusting the heat so the oil doesn't burn. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the almonds and garlic to a bowl. Add the ham or turkey to the pan and stir for 1 minute. Add the potatoes and cook, stirring, for another minute. A dd the chicken stock and bring to a boil, skimming. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer the soup.
3) Meanwhile, place the almond and garlic mixture in a mini food processor and grind it. If you like almond bits in your soup, grind the mixture somewhat coarsely; otherwise, grind it fine. Add all but about 2 tablespoons of the ground nut mixture to the saucepan with the potatoes, Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4) Steep the saffron in a few tablespoons of the simmering soup for 2 minutes, then add it to the pan. Simmer the soup, partially covered, until about half of the potatoes have disintegrated, about 35 minutes. Skim the soup a couple of times as it cooks and add a little more chicken stock if the soup seems too thick.
5) When ready to serve, check the texture of the soup. If you'd like it creamier, break up some of the potatoes with a sturdy spoon; if you'd like it thinner, add a little more chicken stock. Add 2 teaspoons almond mixture and stir it into the soup. Add the parsley and cook for another minute. Taste for seasoning, adding a little more vinegar if necessary. Serve the soup with bread.
SERVES 4
What struck me most was the quality of our cooking time together. These days, with Lincoln busier than ever and me holding down the house on the hill, I mostly cook alone, although with Bartleby capering about in the background. I didn't even know when Anna proposed cooking together if I was capable of it. Would I have to explain things to her? Find things in the kitchen? Be a big crank? I am so used to talking myself through trouble spots, finding solutions in mere seconds, coming up with the big ideas for meals, burning my thumbs when no one can hear me scream...I just didn't know if there was room for someone else in my kitchen. To my great relief, the recipes naturally divided themselves into a fair division of labor based on skills. Anna took the soup and dessert, I did the meatballs and the salad. We frequently consulted the book and each other. We also accomplished all of our cooking in a mere four hours. It was harmonious and so pleasing to show off these dishes to friends. It felt like we had stepped out of a Gourmet Magazine photo spread.
Foodwise, I would change little. The soup, on a second trial, tastes better without smoked meat and with an all vegetable stock. The tart really needed the oranges peeled - unless you really like bitter.
Sopa De Patatas Y Almendras
Source: The New Spanish Table, Anya Von Bremzen, published by Workman
Meat eaters note: You can substitute whole smoked turkey leg (sliced) for the ham or...
Vegetarians and vegans note: You can an all veggie version with a vegetable stock, like I am today.
Sticklers note: From the original, I edited out the cumbersome cutting method for the potatoes. It works if you cube them.
Food Obsessives note: I suspect if you use marcona almonds from Spain, this recipe will be even better. Turmeric may substitute for saffron.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 Lbs Yukon Gold potatoes
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup blanced almonds
6 large garlic cloves, peeled
1/3 cup (about 2 ounces) finely diced serrano ham or prosciutto
4 cups chicken stock or broth, or more if needed
Coarse salt (kosher or sea) and freshly ground black pepper
1 medium-sized pinch of saffron, pulverized in a mortar
2 teaspoons sherry vinegar, preferably aged, or more to taste
2 tablespoons minced fresh flat-leaf parsley (to garnish)
Dense country bread, for serving
1) Cut the potatoes into cubes
2) Heat the olive oil in a heavy 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the almonds and garlic and cook, stirring, until golden, 4 to 5 minutes, adjusting the heat so the oil doesn't burn. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the almonds and garlic to a bowl. Add the ham or turkey to the pan and stir for 1 minute. Add the potatoes and cook, stirring, for another minute. A dd the chicken stock and bring to a boil, skimming. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer the soup.
3) Meanwhile, place the almond and garlic mixture in a mini food processor and grind it. If you like almond bits in your soup, grind the mixture somewhat coarsely; otherwise, grind it fine. Add all but about 2 tablespoons of the ground nut mixture to the saucepan with the potatoes, Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4) Steep the saffron in a few tablespoons of the simmering soup for 2 minutes, then add it to the pan. Simmer the soup, partially covered, until about half of the potatoes have disintegrated, about 35 minutes. Skim the soup a couple of times as it cooks and add a little more chicken stock if the soup seems too thick.
5) When ready to serve, check the texture of the soup. If you'd like it creamier, break up some of the potatoes with a sturdy spoon; if you'd like it thinner, add a little more chicken stock. Add 2 teaspoons almond mixture and stir it into the soup. Add the parsley and cook for another minute. Taste for seasoning, adding a little more vinegar if necessary. Serve the soup with bread.
SERVES 4
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Cowboy Beef and Black Bean Chili
It's the time of year when nothing beats a bowl of chili. In my town, here at the crossroads of the Midwest and the South, chili means a sweet, runny mash of ground beef, tomato (with or without red chili beans) served over spaghetti and topped with a mountain of cheddar cheese. The last time I tried to order it with half a mountain of cheese, the waitress told me I was skinny enough and could "afford" to eat the whole mountain. I still asked for half because eating the whole mountain is just...gross. Bartleby likes the lame little hot dogs with cheddar cheese at our local chili outfit. Ugh.
Here's a great recipe for anyone longing for something warm and spicy with a stew-like consistency. The source is The Healthy Beef Cookbook published by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association with the Americn Dietetic Association.
Cowboy Beef and Black Bean Chili
Makes 8 Servings. Total preparation and cooking time: 2 hours
2 lbs. ground beef (95% lean)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onions
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 medium yellow bell peppers, chopped
1 large jalapeno pepper, seeded, finely chopped
1/4 cup chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, crushed
1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, crushed
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes, undrained
1 can (141/2 ounces) chili-seasoned or zesty-style diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (14 to 14!/2 ounces) ready-to-serve beef broth
12 ounces dark beer
1/3 cup tomato paste
1 tablespoon honey
2 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, rinsed, drained
Salt and black pepper, as desired
Chopped fresh cilantro (optiona)
1) Brown ground beef in stockpot over medium heat 8 to 10 minutes or until beef is no longer pink, breaking up into 3/4-inch crumbles. Remove fromstockpot with slotted spoon. Set aside. Pour off drippings.
2) Heat oil in same stockpot over medium heat until hot. Add onions and garlic; cook and stir 3 to 5 minutes or until onions are tender. Add bell peppers and jalapeno; cook and stir 4 to 5 minutes or until peppers are tender.
3) Return beef crumbles to stockpot. Add chili powder, cumin, oregano, thyme, and red pepper; cook and stir for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, broth, beer, tomato paste, and honey; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; covera nd simmer 45 minutes. Uncover stockpot; continue simmering 30 minutes or until thickened to desired consistency, stirring occasionally. Stir in beans; cook 5 to 10 minutes or until beans are heated through. Season with salt and black pepper, as desired. Garnish with cilatro, if desired.
Here's a great recipe for anyone longing for something warm and spicy with a stew-like consistency. The source is The Healthy Beef Cookbook published by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association with the Americn Dietetic Association.
Cowboy Beef and Black Bean Chili
Makes 8 Servings. Total preparation and cooking time: 2 hours
2 lbs. ground beef (95% lean)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onions
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 medium yellow bell peppers, chopped
1 large jalapeno pepper, seeded, finely chopped
1/4 cup chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, crushed
1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, crushed
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes, undrained
1 can (141/2 ounces) chili-seasoned or zesty-style diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (14 to 14!/2 ounces) ready-to-serve beef broth
12 ounces dark beer
1/3 cup tomato paste
1 tablespoon honey
2 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, rinsed, drained
Salt and black pepper, as desired
Chopped fresh cilantro (optiona)
1) Brown ground beef in stockpot over medium heat 8 to 10 minutes or until beef is no longer pink, breaking up into 3/4-inch crumbles. Remove fromstockpot with slotted spoon. Set aside. Pour off drippings.
2) Heat oil in same stockpot over medium heat until hot. Add onions and garlic; cook and stir 3 to 5 minutes or until onions are tender. Add bell peppers and jalapeno; cook and stir 4 to 5 minutes or until peppers are tender.
3) Return beef crumbles to stockpot. Add chili powder, cumin, oregano, thyme, and red pepper; cook and stir for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, broth, beer, tomato paste, and honey; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; covera nd simmer 45 minutes. Uncover stockpot; continue simmering 30 minutes or until thickened to desired consistency, stirring occasionally. Stir in beans; cook 5 to 10 minutes or until beans are heated through. Season with salt and black pepper, as desired. Garnish with cilatro, if desired.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Bartleby's Favorite Snawidge
My son, Bartleby, well, I had such high hopes for him culinary-wise. His beloved Ethiopian babysitter had him eating shiro (chickpea mash), lentils and her rice (see recipe posted to this blog) when he started eating solids. Mommy and Daddy took him everywhere in Little Italy, Greektown, Pilsen and Chinatown and he ate. But as he approaches three years this month, his eating habits have transformed from Global Baby to Typical Kid. He still likes dumplings and black olive pizza, but that's all that remains of our once adventurous eater.
Here's a recipe for his favorite "snawidge":
Peanut Butter And Apricot Jelly On Waffle
Toast a frozen waffle.
Per Bartleby, "Jelly first, then peanut butter"
Cut in half and make a sandwich
Place on your good, everyday china in your favorite Dansk pattern ever (because he won't eat off his plastic dishes anymore)
Serve
Have wet sponge handy for cleanup.
Here's a recipe for his favorite "snawidge":
Peanut Butter And Apricot Jelly On Waffle
Toast a frozen waffle.
Per Bartleby, "Jelly first, then peanut butter"
Cut in half and make a sandwich
Place on your good, everyday china in your favorite Dansk pattern ever (because he won't eat off his plastic dishes anymore)
Serve
Have wet sponge handy for cleanup.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
It's A Mad, Mad Cow World
In honor of this week's record-breaking beef recall, I am posting my friend Debs' recipe for Oxtail Soup. We should all do as Debs has done. Get to know your meat purveyor, buy half a cow and cook your own food. If she can manage it from the depths of the urban jungle of Chicago, so can you. I will be calling the organic farm down the street to find out what's in their freezer. To keep your diet balanced, Debs also sends her recipe for kale.
A Few Notes Before You Start...
Debs says:
"I find this is something best to do when you're at home for a while because it requires cooking on the stove for several hours. Perhaps it can be retrofitted for a crock pot, but I haven't figured that out yet."
Clever Gretel replies:
"Yes, you can do this in a slow-cooker (Crock-Pot is a brand from Rival). It will need to cook about seven hours total, with a break for skimming fat after five hours. But, check it periodically because oven cook times and slow cooker times will vary. We will be posting more about slow-cookers this week. We just bought one and our initial response is that they rock."
A Few Words From Debs About Beef Soup Bones:
"Beef soup bones are best bought from a butcher, I think, as I've never really seen them for sale at a grocery. The soup bones usually are meaty and the nice thing is that you can use that meat in a beef soup, which of course, was the original intention of soup bones (hence the name). If you have leftover bones from roasts or steaks, throw those in (or freeze them until you get enough.) Same thing here, the meatier, the better. I've learned that throwing in a tablespoon or two for any stock, like chicken, pulls more of the calcium and magnesium from the bones, which we can all use!"
Beef Stock
Makes 4-5 quarts.
4 lbs beef bones
2 large carrots, cut into large chunks
3 ribs celery, cut into large chunks
2 onions, peeled and quartered
7 quarts of water
3-4 sprigs thyme
3-4 sprigs oregano
3 cloves garlic, unpeeled and crushed
1 tomato, coarsely chopped (or use a 14-oz can of diced tomato w/juice)
2 tsp salt
2 tblsp vinegar
Preheat oven to 450 F
Place the bones and carrots, celery and onions in a large roasting pan and roast for 40 mins, or until, the bones are thoroughly browned. Periodically turn them over, basting the bones and the vegetables w/any drippings. Pour the bones and vegetables in a very large stock pot. If you don't have a large enough stock pot, you can always divide it evenly between two of your largest pots. Set the roasting pan on the stovetop and pour in 2 cups of the water. Scrape up any of the browned bits and add to the stock pot with any other drippings. Tie the thyme and oregano sprigs together and add to the pot, along with the garlic, tomatoes, salt and remaining 6 1/2 quarts of water and vinegar. Let sit for 30 mins. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for at least six hours. The longer it cooks, the richer the stock. If you like, you can cook the stock all day, refrigerate it and then cook it further.
At this point, if you are using a slow-cooker, transfer the stock to the cooker, set the cooker on high and cook for five hours on low, skim the fat off the top and then switch the cooker to high and cook for two more hours. However, you must keep the slow-cooker on the entire time. DO NOT turn it off and try to re-heat the stock to continue cooking. Slow-cookers are not designed for re-heating foods.
Remove the vegetables, the bones and the herbs. Completely cool the stock before pouring it into freezer containers. What I do is put it in the fridge, then the fat rises to the top and it comes off easily.
Now you're set with a lot of stock. Here's a away to use it!
Oxtail Soup With Meatballs
One oxtail, cut in to chunks, trimmed of excess fat
1 bay leaf
1/4 to 1/2 half tsp red pepper flakes
1 onion minced
noodles and vegetables of your choice.
MEAT BALLS
1lb ground beef
1 egg white
bread crumbs - about 1/4 to 1/3 cup, enough to bind togther.
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 tsp Maggi (or Worstechesire sauce)
Mix every thing together and form into small balls
Get out your stock pot again. Cover oxtails with a 1/2 and 1/2 stock and water combination so that there is 2" of liquid on top. Add onion, bay leaf and pepper flakes. Bring to boil and simmer 4 to 5 hours till tails are done. At this point you can also add the meatballs and cook about 15 minutes until meatballs are done. Refrigerate overnight. The next day, remove fat from top. Here it's up to you if you wish to take the meat off the bones, or leave it in there for contrast. Add 6 to 7 cups of stock to oxtails. Bring to a boil. At this point you can add noodles and any vegetable you wish (i'm partial to carrots and celery). Simmer, stirring occasionally for a half hour or until noodles and vegetables or done.
At this point, check the spices, since the noodles and vegetable take some of the flavoring away. If you wish, you can add a beef bouillon cube, but keep in mind the amount of sodium this adds. Separately you can cook your vegetables and noodles and add to soup when done.
Further Notes From Debs:
I know this is a lot of time and it can take about two days if you made the stock, then the oxtails, but you could make the stock, freeze it, and then make the oxtails. This is really winter comfort food at its finest. This recipe will make at least 10-12 servings, so keep it in mind that you can make it and then freeze it for whenever you need some beefy goodness.
Obsessive Compulsive Kale Or Kale ALa Debbie
Debs Says:
"Have I told you of my newest vegetable obsession? It's the humble kale.
I discovered it at my farmers market last summer when I went to a dinner benefit for the farmers market in early October. The restaurant prepared meals using only local ingredients, and one of them was kale, with a free-range roasted chicken. Truly I was amazed at the flavor and texture. Plus it's very healthy for you! It's loaded with calcium and I think it's part of the cabbage family, This is the perfect time of year to eat it, as I found it's a fall-winter-early spring vegetable that is one of those amazing crops that taste better when touched by frost. I've found the easiest way to cook it is to simply saute it. I also found using a nut oil, like peanut, or sesame, really enhances it. But, if your guest has a food allergy, olive/canola works just as well."
Makes six (or 3 if you really dig kale)
2 lbs dark green kale, stemmed and coarse chopped.
1 tblsp sesame oil
1 tblsp olive oil
1 tblsp sesame seeds (optional)
2 small cloves garlic, minced
salt & pepper taste
Rinse kale, but do not completely dry. Put kale in large pot. Cover and cook over low heat in the water that clings to the leaves after washing, until the kale wilts and is tender, about 4-5 mins. Drain in colander. Heat oils in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Stir in the garlic and cook for 10 seconds. Add the kale. Cook the kale, tossing with a fork or tongs, until cooked through, about 3-4 mins. Season with salt & pepper. Serve very hot, sprinkled with sesame seeds.
A Few Notes Before You Start...
Debs says:
"I find this is something best to do when you're at home for a while because it requires cooking on the stove for several hours. Perhaps it can be retrofitted for a crock pot, but I haven't figured that out yet."
Clever Gretel replies:
"Yes, you can do this in a slow-cooker (Crock-Pot is a brand from Rival). It will need to cook about seven hours total, with a break for skimming fat after five hours. But, check it periodically because oven cook times and slow cooker times will vary. We will be posting more about slow-cookers this week. We just bought one and our initial response is that they rock."
A Few Words From Debs About Beef Soup Bones:
"Beef soup bones are best bought from a butcher, I think, as I've never really seen them for sale at a grocery. The soup bones usually are meaty and the nice thing is that you can use that meat in a beef soup, which of course, was the original intention of soup bones (hence the name). If you have leftover bones from roasts or steaks, throw those in (or freeze them until you get enough.) Same thing here, the meatier, the better. I've learned that throwing in a tablespoon or two for any stock, like chicken, pulls more of the calcium and magnesium from the bones, which we can all use!"
Beef Stock
Makes 4-5 quarts.
4 lbs beef bones
2 large carrots, cut into large chunks
3 ribs celery, cut into large chunks
2 onions, peeled and quartered
7 quarts of water
3-4 sprigs thyme
3-4 sprigs oregano
3 cloves garlic, unpeeled and crushed
1 tomato, coarsely chopped (or use a 14-oz can of diced tomato w/juice)
2 tsp salt
2 tblsp vinegar
Preheat oven to 450 F
Place the bones and carrots, celery and onions in a large roasting pan and roast for 40 mins, or until, the bones are thoroughly browned. Periodically turn them over, basting the bones and the vegetables w/any drippings. Pour the bones and vegetables in a very large stock pot. If you don't have a large enough stock pot, you can always divide it evenly between two of your largest pots. Set the roasting pan on the stovetop and pour in 2 cups of the water. Scrape up any of the browned bits and add to the stock pot with any other drippings. Tie the thyme and oregano sprigs together and add to the pot, along with the garlic, tomatoes, salt and remaining 6 1/2 quarts of water and vinegar. Let sit for 30 mins. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for at least six hours. The longer it cooks, the richer the stock. If you like, you can cook the stock all day, refrigerate it and then cook it further.
At this point, if you are using a slow-cooker, transfer the stock to the cooker, set the cooker on high and cook for five hours on low, skim the fat off the top and then switch the cooker to high and cook for two more hours. However, you must keep the slow-cooker on the entire time. DO NOT turn it off and try to re-heat the stock to continue cooking. Slow-cookers are not designed for re-heating foods.
Remove the vegetables, the bones and the herbs. Completely cool the stock before pouring it into freezer containers. What I do is put it in the fridge, then the fat rises to the top and it comes off easily.
Now you're set with a lot of stock. Here's a away to use it!
Oxtail Soup With Meatballs
One oxtail, cut in to chunks, trimmed of excess fat
1 bay leaf
1/4 to 1/2 half tsp red pepper flakes
1 onion minced
noodles and vegetables of your choice.
MEAT BALLS
1lb ground beef
1 egg white
bread crumbs - about 1/4 to 1/3 cup, enough to bind togther.
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 tsp Maggi (or Worstechesire sauce)
Mix every thing together and form into small balls
Get out your stock pot again. Cover oxtails with a 1/2 and 1/2 stock and water combination so that there is 2" of liquid on top. Add onion, bay leaf and pepper flakes. Bring to boil and simmer 4 to 5 hours till tails are done. At this point you can also add the meatballs and cook about 15 minutes until meatballs are done. Refrigerate overnight. The next day, remove fat from top. Here it's up to you if you wish to take the meat off the bones, or leave it in there for contrast. Add 6 to 7 cups of stock to oxtails. Bring to a boil. At this point you can add noodles and any vegetable you wish (i'm partial to carrots and celery). Simmer, stirring occasionally for a half hour or until noodles and vegetables or done.
At this point, check the spices, since the noodles and vegetable take some of the flavoring away. If you wish, you can add a beef bouillon cube, but keep in mind the amount of sodium this adds. Separately you can cook your vegetables and noodles and add to soup when done.
Further Notes From Debs:
I know this is a lot of time and it can take about two days if you made the stock, then the oxtails, but you could make the stock, freeze it, and then make the oxtails. This is really winter comfort food at its finest. This recipe will make at least 10-12 servings, so keep it in mind that you can make it and then freeze it for whenever you need some beefy goodness.
Obsessive Compulsive Kale Or Kale ALa Debbie
Debs Says:
"Have I told you of my newest vegetable obsession? It's the humble kale.
I discovered it at my farmers market last summer when I went to a dinner benefit for the farmers market in early October. The restaurant prepared meals using only local ingredients, and one of them was kale, with a free-range roasted chicken. Truly I was amazed at the flavor and texture. Plus it's very healthy for you! It's loaded with calcium and I think it's part of the cabbage family, This is the perfect time of year to eat it, as I found it's a fall-winter-early spring vegetable that is one of those amazing crops that taste better when touched by frost. I've found the easiest way to cook it is to simply saute it. I also found using a nut oil, like peanut, or sesame, really enhances it. But, if your guest has a food allergy, olive/canola works just as well."
Makes six (or 3 if you really dig kale)
2 lbs dark green kale, stemmed and coarse chopped.
1 tblsp sesame oil
1 tblsp olive oil
1 tblsp sesame seeds (optional)
2 small cloves garlic, minced
salt & pepper taste
Rinse kale, but do not completely dry. Put kale in large pot. Cover and cook over low heat in the water that clings to the leaves after washing, until the kale wilts and is tender, about 4-5 mins. Drain in colander. Heat oils in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Stir in the garlic and cook for 10 seconds. Add the kale. Cook the kale, tossing with a fork or tongs, until cooked through, about 3-4 mins. Season with salt & pepper. Serve very hot, sprinkled with sesame seeds.
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Bro-In-Law's Chili
As promised, I am posting my brother-in-law's chili recipe. A few things you should know about said bro-in-law (who we will call Moe): he is a born Midwesterner raised on deli in St. Louis, but somehow he acquired a tolerance for spicy food more commonly found among Thai people. I think he might be missing the part of the brain that registers HOT food.
Not satisfied with the flavor profile of his coma-inducing chili, customarily served during the Super Bowl, he undertook a quest for something more authentically Southwestern. His research uncovered a recipe that uses ancho chilies to produce a smokey/spicy red chili with a stew-like texture. Please be sure to read the notes at the end of the recipe as they contain information on variations and some valuable cooking tips. Serve this chili with your favorite toppings. I like dipping blue corn chips into it and scooping it up.
Texas Red Chili
Ingredients:
2 # coarse ground beef OR
2 # chuck roast, cut into 1/4” pieces OR
2# stew meat, cut into 1/4” pieces
3 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 large green bell pepper
1 large Texas yellow onion
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
3 heaping tablespoons Gebhardt chili powder
2 tablespoons fresh garlic, chopped fine
1 green pickled jalapeño pepper
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon coarse ground black pepper
6 cups water
3 ancho chili pods
1 tablespoon ground cumin (comino)
1/2 cup all purpose flour
Directions:
Heat the 6 cups of water in a saucepan. While this is heating,
roast the ancho chili pods under a hot broiler for 10 seconds on
each side. Warning: Be very careful as smoke from the chilies contains oils that can irritate your eyes. Keep small children away while doing this step. While protecting your hands with gloves or a towel, remove the pods and, when cool enough to handle, remove the stem and shake out any seeds inside. Place the pods in the water that has come to a boil, cover and remove from the heat. Let ‘steep’ until later in the recipe.
In a large ‘stew’ or ‘chili’ pot, add the oil and butter. When
hot, add the meat. Brown the meat on a medium high heat, stirring often. Cook through until all of the pink has disappeared. While the meat is cooking, peel the onion and dice into 1/4” pieces and remove the stem, seeds, and membrane from the bell pepper. Also
dice the remaining outer skin into 1/4” pieces.
If using ground beef, remove from pot, and drain in a colander, then add back in to pot. Add the onions and bell peppers and stir in well. Add the chili powder, cumin, salt, garlic and black pepper. Again stir well.
Add the flour, a little at a time and stir to mix well. Reduce the
heat to medium and let cook for 5 minutes. It will be normal
for some of the flour to stick to the bottom of the pan. Add the
broth that has the ancho chili pods in it SLOWLY. Scrape the
bottom of the pot with a spatula and now add the tomato sauce
and the jalapeno pepper (remove seeds for less heat).
Stir to mix well, reduce to medium low and cook uncovered
for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until the meat is very tender. Check and
stir every 30 minutes, making sure to scrape the bottom of the
pan with a spatula to keep from burning. Remove and serve
in a large ‘soup’ bowl with crackers and/or jalapeno cornbread.
Optional toppings are finely grated, longhorn cheddar cheese and
fresh, raw, chopped yellow onion.
Moe's Notes:
Moe says: This is the basic recipe. I modify it as follows. The guy who gave it to me (from www.texmex.net) encouraged me to modify it. He sees the basic recipe as a starting point. I double the amount of tomato sauce and bell peppers. I also find that the chili is best by combining meats: 1/2 course ground chuck and 1/2 sirloin steak cut into small cubes. If you combine meats, cook the ground beef first and drain it. Add a small amount of oil to the pot and cook the sirloin, then add the ground beef back in to the pot. To make the chili richer (spicier, but not hotter), I do the following: 1) make sure the ancho peppers steep in the hot water for one hour 2) scrape the flesh from the inside of ancho peppers from the peppers' skin and add the flesh to the chili.
For spicier chili do one or more of the following:
1. add some of the juice from the pickled jalapeño
2. add 1-2 fresh jalapeños in addition to the pickled jalapeño
3. make 3-4 long incisions in each jalapeño (this allows the spicier section of the pepper to seep into the chili)
Not satisfied with the flavor profile of his coma-inducing chili, customarily served during the Super Bowl, he undertook a quest for something more authentically Southwestern. His research uncovered a recipe that uses ancho chilies to produce a smokey/spicy red chili with a stew-like texture. Please be sure to read the notes at the end of the recipe as they contain information on variations and some valuable cooking tips. Serve this chili with your favorite toppings. I like dipping blue corn chips into it and scooping it up.
Texas Red Chili
Ingredients:
2 # coarse ground beef OR
2 # chuck roast, cut into 1/4” pieces OR
2# stew meat, cut into 1/4” pieces
3 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 large green bell pepper
1 large Texas yellow onion
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
3 heaping tablespoons Gebhardt chili powder
2 tablespoons fresh garlic, chopped fine
1 green pickled jalapeño pepper
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon coarse ground black pepper
6 cups water
3 ancho chili pods
1 tablespoon ground cumin (comino)
1/2 cup all purpose flour
Directions:
Heat the 6 cups of water in a saucepan. While this is heating,
roast the ancho chili pods under a hot broiler for 10 seconds on
each side. Warning: Be very careful as smoke from the chilies contains oils that can irritate your eyes. Keep small children away while doing this step. While protecting your hands with gloves or a towel, remove the pods and, when cool enough to handle, remove the stem and shake out any seeds inside. Place the pods in the water that has come to a boil, cover and remove from the heat. Let ‘steep’ until later in the recipe.
In a large ‘stew’ or ‘chili’ pot, add the oil and butter. When
hot, add the meat. Brown the meat on a medium high heat, stirring often. Cook through until all of the pink has disappeared. While the meat is cooking, peel the onion and dice into 1/4” pieces and remove the stem, seeds, and membrane from the bell pepper. Also
dice the remaining outer skin into 1/4” pieces.
If using ground beef, remove from pot, and drain in a colander, then add back in to pot. Add the onions and bell peppers and stir in well. Add the chili powder, cumin, salt, garlic and black pepper. Again stir well.
Add the flour, a little at a time and stir to mix well. Reduce the
heat to medium and let cook for 5 minutes. It will be normal
for some of the flour to stick to the bottom of the pan. Add the
broth that has the ancho chili pods in it SLOWLY. Scrape the
bottom of the pot with a spatula and now add the tomato sauce
and the jalapeno pepper (remove seeds for less heat).
Stir to mix well, reduce to medium low and cook uncovered
for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until the meat is very tender. Check and
stir every 30 minutes, making sure to scrape the bottom of the
pan with a spatula to keep from burning. Remove and serve
in a large ‘soup’ bowl with crackers and/or jalapeno cornbread.
Optional toppings are finely grated, longhorn cheddar cheese and
fresh, raw, chopped yellow onion.
Moe's Notes:
Moe says: This is the basic recipe. I modify it as follows. The guy who gave it to me (from www.texmex.net) encouraged me to modify it. He sees the basic recipe as a starting point. I double the amount of tomato sauce and bell peppers. I also find that the chili is best by combining meats: 1/2 course ground chuck and 1/2 sirloin steak cut into small cubes. If you combine meats, cook the ground beef first and drain it. Add a small amount of oil to the pot and cook the sirloin, then add the ground beef back in to the pot. To make the chili richer (spicier, but not hotter), I do the following: 1) make sure the ancho peppers steep in the hot water for one hour 2) scrape the flesh from the inside of ancho peppers from the peppers' skin and add the flesh to the chili.
For spicier chili do one or more of the following:
1. add some of the juice from the pickled jalapeño
2. add 1-2 fresh jalapeños in addition to the pickled jalapeño
3. make 3-4 long incisions in each jalapeño (this allows the spicier section of the pepper to seep into the chili)
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Craving Craisins
So who doesn't like Craisins - those sweetened dried cranberries from Ocean Spray? Bartleby, my two-and-a-half year old son, just dumped a bag of them on the floor today. Ok, he did it twice today and I made him pick them up and throw them out after the second time because that was a clear violation of the 30 second rule. He happily tripped over to the garbage can because it was a task from heaven - he's obsessed with Craisins and the kitchen garbage can. But did you know that here in the heart of the Midwest Craisins are considered gourmet food? It's true.
Lincoln and I were invited to an affair at a spiffy place in the modest downtown area of our modest Midwestern city. A few weeks before the event, the menu selection was sent around. The choices for entree: fish or steak. Dessert: creme brulee or the local brand of ice cream (which is excellent, by the way) Starter: lobster bisque or salad with goat cheese and Craisins. I had to read it twice. Craisins! Who announces they put Craisins in a salad? Michigan-dried cherries - yes! But Craisins?!
It's almost impossible to take a dining experience seriously when you know that Craisins will be featured. I spent two weeks strategizing my clothes, makeup and hair because I think it's been a year since I went to anything requiring me to put on pantyhose. But every time I purchased something for the event (blouse, new bra, eyeliner, said pantyhose) I thought, "I'm getting all dressed up to eat Craisins." What a buzz kill.
The event was lovely, although totally mediocre from a food standpoint, starting with the Swedish meatball appetizers (might have guessed) and the unknown thing-in-a-puff that tasted oddly like baked Craisin. When it arrived, I discovered the Craisins were discreetly buried in the salad leaves and were treated as a completely separate component from the goat cheese. They didn't even try to make them exciting. At least the salad had goat cheese, unlike 99 percent of Midwestern salads which have shredded cheddar sprinkled on top.
Unlike Michigan dried cherries, Craisins are pretty inexpensive. They add tang to a salad and are not devastating from a nutrition standpoint. Craisins are, as Ocean Spray claims, naturally free of fat and cholesterol, are real fruit (1/3 cup serving is equal to one serving of fruit) and can help keep you regular. Basically, they are carbs (33g per serving) of fruit and added sugar with fiber (3g). Calorie-wise you're looking at 130 per serving.
To make Craisins dress to impress, try a JuicyChiken spin on Craisin and goat cheese salad:
1 bag of mixed greens, washed and dried
1/3 Cup of Craisins
1/4 Cup Sherry vinegar
2 T Sesame oil
1/2 tube of Trader Joe's Light Goat Cheese
Add the Craisins to the greens. In a small bowl, whisk together the sherry vinegar and sesame oil, add pieces of goat cheese and break up with whisk. Combine goat cheese so that mixture is clumpy. Pour over greens and mix.
Lincoln and I were invited to an affair at a spiffy place in the modest downtown area of our modest Midwestern city. A few weeks before the event, the menu selection was sent around. The choices for entree: fish or steak. Dessert: creme brulee or the local brand of ice cream (which is excellent, by the way) Starter: lobster bisque or salad with goat cheese and Craisins. I had to read it twice. Craisins! Who announces they put Craisins in a salad? Michigan-dried cherries - yes! But Craisins?!
It's almost impossible to take a dining experience seriously when you know that Craisins will be featured. I spent two weeks strategizing my clothes, makeup and hair because I think it's been a year since I went to anything requiring me to put on pantyhose. But every time I purchased something for the event (blouse, new bra, eyeliner, said pantyhose) I thought, "I'm getting all dressed up to eat Craisins." What a buzz kill.
The event was lovely, although totally mediocre from a food standpoint, starting with the Swedish meatball appetizers (might have guessed) and the unknown thing-in-a-puff that tasted oddly like baked Craisin. When it arrived, I discovered the Craisins were discreetly buried in the salad leaves and were treated as a completely separate component from the goat cheese. They didn't even try to make them exciting. At least the salad had goat cheese, unlike 99 percent of Midwestern salads which have shredded cheddar sprinkled on top.
Unlike Michigan dried cherries, Craisins are pretty inexpensive. They add tang to a salad and are not devastating from a nutrition standpoint. Craisins are, as Ocean Spray claims, naturally free of fat and cholesterol, are real fruit (1/3 cup serving is equal to one serving of fruit) and can help keep you regular. Basically, they are carbs (33g per serving) of fruit and added sugar with fiber (3g). Calorie-wise you're looking at 130 per serving.
To make Craisins dress to impress, try a JuicyChiken spin on Craisin and goat cheese salad:
1 bag of mixed greens, washed and dried
1/3 Cup of Craisins
1/4 Cup Sherry vinegar
2 T Sesame oil
1/2 tube of Trader Joe's Light Goat Cheese
Add the Craisins to the greens. In a small bowl, whisk together the sherry vinegar and sesame oil, add pieces of goat cheese and break up with whisk. Combine goat cheese so that mixture is clumpy. Pour over greens and mix.
Friday, December 7, 2007
Where's The Mystery?
Lincoln and I have been married for six years, yet I can still make his day....
Well, that way too, but I'm talking about cooking. For sex, go find another blog.
My point is, in the kitchen as in the bedroom, the same set of related marital problems can crop up, namely, Where Is The Mystery?
When Lincoln looks up from dinner and says, "That was great! What's in it?" I always feel like saying what my mother, Isabelle, used to say to me when I was a kid (or maybe it was the last time I had dinner at my parents' house), "Poison!" But, knowing that's the kind of remark that lands you in marital counseling, I hold my tongue. Yet, there's always a tinge of defensiveness as I answer, "Well, obviously, squash and...turmeric...well, it's really all in the spices and I won't bore you." "No, really," he says, "I want to know." "Chickpeas and leftover rice..." When he crows, "Leftover rice! The rice we had last night! You're brilliant!" I really, really want to thump him on the head when I should want to kiss him. It's because the mystery is gone.
True, appreciative husbands are hard to come by. But so is mystery. Everything these days is transparent, open source...including this blog (and that other one you're reading). So, as long as there is no more mystery, here's the recipe for Acorn Squash With Chickpea Stuffing:
A Note: For those of you who think it's too hard to make squash, this recipe will prove that you are just being wimps. I, too, was a wimp, until a recipe for Butternut Squash Risotto in Martha Stewart's Everyday Food magazine set me straight. I have to give credit where it's due, even if it's to the Martha-media-juggernaut. Squash is healthy and you should eat it regularly.
2 acorn squashes, cut in half
1 Tablespoon shallot, chopped
1 Teaspoon olive oil
1 can of chickpeas, drained
1 1/2 tsp. turmeric
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. red chili powder
1/2 cup of chicken broth
1/4 cup of white wine
1 cup cooked rice
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Scoop the seeds out of the squash halves. Place squash on a foil-lined baking sheet. Brush cut sides with olive oil and sprinkle a pinch of turmeric. Bake until soft, about 45 minutes. While the squash is baking, heat a pan, add olive oil and sautee shallots until soft, about a minute. Add chickpeas and coat with spices. Add chicken broth and white wine. Simmer chickpeas until soft and stir in the cooked rice. When the squash is done, fill the indents with the chickpea mixture. If the indents in the squash are not deep enough, scoop out some squash, add the chickpea mix and put the extra squash on top. Serve as an entree or side, but do it with an air of mystery.
Well, that way too, but I'm talking about cooking. For sex, go find another blog.
My point is, in the kitchen as in the bedroom, the same set of related marital problems can crop up, namely, Where Is The Mystery?
When Lincoln looks up from dinner and says, "That was great! What's in it?" I always feel like saying what my mother, Isabelle, used to say to me when I was a kid (or maybe it was the last time I had dinner at my parents' house), "Poison!" But, knowing that's the kind of remark that lands you in marital counseling, I hold my tongue. Yet, there's always a tinge of defensiveness as I answer, "Well, obviously, squash and...turmeric...well, it's really all in the spices and I won't bore you." "No, really," he says, "I want to know." "Chickpeas and leftover rice..." When he crows, "Leftover rice! The rice we had last night! You're brilliant!" I really, really want to thump him on the head when I should want to kiss him. It's because the mystery is gone.
True, appreciative husbands are hard to come by. But so is mystery. Everything these days is transparent, open source...including this blog (and that other one you're reading). So, as long as there is no more mystery, here's the recipe for Acorn Squash With Chickpea Stuffing:
A Note: For those of you who think it's too hard to make squash, this recipe will prove that you are just being wimps. I, too, was a wimp, until a recipe for Butternut Squash Risotto in Martha Stewart's Everyday Food magazine set me straight. I have to give credit where it's due, even if it's to the Martha-media-juggernaut. Squash is healthy and you should eat it regularly.
2 acorn squashes, cut in half
1 Tablespoon shallot, chopped
1 Teaspoon olive oil
1 can of chickpeas, drained
1 1/2 tsp. turmeric
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. red chili powder
1/2 cup of chicken broth
1/4 cup of white wine
1 cup cooked rice
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Scoop the seeds out of the squash halves. Place squash on a foil-lined baking sheet. Brush cut sides with olive oil and sprinkle a pinch of turmeric. Bake until soft, about 45 minutes. While the squash is baking, heat a pan, add olive oil and sautee shallots until soft, about a minute. Add chickpeas and coat with spices. Add chicken broth and white wine. Simmer chickpeas until soft and stir in the cooked rice. When the squash is done, fill the indents with the chickpea mixture. If the indents in the squash are not deep enough, scoop out some squash, add the chickpea mix and put the extra squash on top. Serve as an entree or side, but do it with an air of mystery.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Chicken On The Cutting Edge
You know you're on the cutting edge of your local culinary community when the check-out clerks at the grocery store down the hill (which didn't smell the last time I visited, so it's proving to be a viable place to shop) don't recognize most of the produce you have placed on the conveyor belt.
At least the store has shallots, ginger, fennel, Boston lettuce and radiccio, which was not the case when we moved here six months ago.
And you will need these ingredients to make the following chicken recipe, which is truly divine, with a little green salad. The chicken tastes like you braised it for many hours, which you did not because it takes less than two, and it looks so festive you could serve it for Thanksgiving instead of that other bird. Or, you could take the dried out pieces of the other bird and revive them with the nectar-y glaze from this recipe:
Chicken with Yams, Fennel and Ginger
From D’Artagnan’s Glorious Game Cookbook, by Ariane Daugin, George Faison and Joanna Pruess
Serves 4
2 tablespoons clarified butter
1 tablespoon fruity olive oil
4-6 chicken pieces, skinned, washed and dried
1/2 cup Armagnac or cognac
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 cups very thinly sliced fennel
3 tablespoons sliced shallots
2 tablespoons sliced garlic
1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch thick slices (about 3 cups)
1 cup loosely packed dried apricots (preferably whole pitted apricots rather than apricot halves) cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 tablespoon peeled, finely sliced, fresh gingerroot
5 4-inch rosemary sprigs
2 4-inch thyme sprigs
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1/3 cup toasted sunflower seeds (optional garnish)
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
In a large skillet, heat the butter and oil over medium-high heat until hot, but not smoking. Add the chicken pieces and brown on both sides, 5 to 7 minutes per side. Transfer to a large Dutch oven.
Pour off the butter mixture into a small bowl and set aside. Deglaze the pan with Armagnac or cognac, stirring up any browned bits from the bottom. Add the broth and wine, increase the heat to high, and boil until the liquid is reduced by one-fourth. Pour the broth mixture over the chicken in the casserole.
Wipe out the skillet and heat 2 tablespoons of the reserved butter mixture over medium heat. Add the fennel, shallots, and garlic. Cover and sweat until softened, 5 to 6 minutes; add to casserole.
Add remaining ingredients except the seeds to the chicken and mix. Cover and bake for 1 3/4 to 2 hours, or until the meat falls off the bones. Sprinkle with seeds, if desired, and serve.
At least the store has shallots, ginger, fennel, Boston lettuce and radiccio, which was not the case when we moved here six months ago.
And you will need these ingredients to make the following chicken recipe, which is truly divine, with a little green salad. The chicken tastes like you braised it for many hours, which you did not because it takes less than two, and it looks so festive you could serve it for Thanksgiving instead of that other bird. Or, you could take the dried out pieces of the other bird and revive them with the nectar-y glaze from this recipe:
Chicken with Yams, Fennel and Ginger
From D’Artagnan’s Glorious Game Cookbook, by Ariane Daugin, George Faison and Joanna Pruess
Serves 4
2 tablespoons clarified butter
1 tablespoon fruity olive oil
4-6 chicken pieces, skinned, washed and dried
1/2 cup Armagnac or cognac
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 cups very thinly sliced fennel
3 tablespoons sliced shallots
2 tablespoons sliced garlic
1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch thick slices (about 3 cups)
1 cup loosely packed dried apricots (preferably whole pitted apricots rather than apricot halves) cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 tablespoon peeled, finely sliced, fresh gingerroot
5 4-inch rosemary sprigs
2 4-inch thyme sprigs
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1/3 cup toasted sunflower seeds (optional garnish)
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
In a large skillet, heat the butter and oil over medium-high heat until hot, but not smoking. Add the chicken pieces and brown on both sides, 5 to 7 minutes per side. Transfer to a large Dutch oven.
Pour off the butter mixture into a small bowl and set aside. Deglaze the pan with Armagnac or cognac, stirring up any browned bits from the bottom. Add the broth and wine, increase the heat to high, and boil until the liquid is reduced by one-fourth. Pour the broth mixture over the chicken in the casserole.
Wipe out the skillet and heat 2 tablespoons of the reserved butter mixture over medium heat. Add the fennel, shallots, and garlic. Cover and sweat until softened, 5 to 6 minutes; add to casserole.
Add remaining ingredients except the seeds to the chicken and mix. Cover and bake for 1 3/4 to 2 hours, or until the meat falls off the bones. Sprinkle with seeds, if desired, and serve.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Dinner In Twenty Revival
Feeling guilty about not feeding yourself or your man right? Got those empty fridge blues? Heal yourself. Lift yourself. Buy fresh fish.
Yes, I was feeling bad about not cooking most of last week (except for the homemade pizza on Wednesday night) because I was mooching off my mom's excellent brisket (recipe pending)...
Yes, I felt low about the previous week's leftovers (Thai Curry Noodles, recipe pending) rotting, uneaten in the fridge...
but I raised myself up.
I got myself into my minivan and drove to the new grocery store down the hill that is just starting to smell a little, but only in the meat department, and I found some wild-caught halibut steaks (because I'm just green enough to only eat wild caught fish) on sale (because I'm budget conscious) and I bought two...
Two fish steaks, ten bucks and yea, I knew I could feed us in about twenty minutes (because I was going out with the girls later).
So I drove back home to my kitchen and, lo, I did not have to use a cookbook because the recipes were so easy as to be inscribed on my heart and I did not have to waste time reading or thinking about how to make the poached fish from Jean George Vongerichten and Mark Bittman's collaborative cookbook, Simple to Spectacular: How to Take One Basic Recipe To Four Levels Of Sophistication (give a hand to my sister, Maris, who read the book and passed on the recipe!) or how to make soul-shaking Brussels sprouts (yes, I said Brussels sprouts), which I ate at Erwin Drechsler's restaurant, Erwin, in Chicago, and reverse engineered (though he is so nice I could probably have just asked for the recipe).
Here they are:
Cayenne Fish Jean George/Mark Bittman
Take two halibut steaks, rinse and sprinkle lightly with cayenne pepper. To a heat-proof glass pan add a cup of white wine and juice of half of a lemon. Place fish in pan and cook fish on a high heat for about ten minutes on the stove top, turning fish steaks at the five minute mark. If the liquid reduces too much before the fish is done, add more wine to the pan. If you aren't used to cooking fish, it's done when the meat is opaque and flakes when you insert a fork.
Note: I don't believe in serving fish "rare" at home, I leave that to the professionals, so don't comment any arguments to me about fish done-ness. Unless it's sushi, cook it through.
Reverse-Engineered Brussels Sprouts from Erwin
Take about twenty sprouts and wash them. If they are large, peel off the outside leaves so that you are only working with the sweeter interior. Cut sprouts into halves. Wash, peel and cut up two small red apples (I like sweet Honeycrisps for this recipe, but Fuji or Galas are nice too). Warm a tablespoon of olive oil in a pan and add sprouts and apples. Cook, turning sprouts and apples with a spatula until the sprouts are bright green and browned a bit and the apples are soft, about five minutes. Coat with a teaspoon of sesame oil and cook briefly, another minute. If you have another minute to spare, toast some sesame seeds or almond slices and toss those in.
Now you are saved!
Yes, I was feeling bad about not cooking most of last week (except for the homemade pizza on Wednesday night) because I was mooching off my mom's excellent brisket (recipe pending)...
Yes, I felt low about the previous week's leftovers (Thai Curry Noodles, recipe pending) rotting, uneaten in the fridge...
but I raised myself up.
I got myself into my minivan and drove to the new grocery store down the hill that is just starting to smell a little, but only in the meat department, and I found some wild-caught halibut steaks (because I'm just green enough to only eat wild caught fish) on sale (because I'm budget conscious) and I bought two...
Two fish steaks, ten bucks and yea, I knew I could feed us in about twenty minutes (because I was going out with the girls later).
So I drove back home to my kitchen and, lo, I did not have to use a cookbook because the recipes were so easy as to be inscribed on my heart and I did not have to waste time reading or thinking about how to make the poached fish from Jean George Vongerichten and Mark Bittman's collaborative cookbook, Simple to Spectacular: How to Take One Basic Recipe To Four Levels Of Sophistication (give a hand to my sister, Maris, who read the book and passed on the recipe!) or how to make soul-shaking Brussels sprouts (yes, I said Brussels sprouts), which I ate at Erwin Drechsler's restaurant, Erwin, in Chicago, and reverse engineered (though he is so nice I could probably have just asked for the recipe).
Here they are:
Cayenne Fish Jean George/Mark Bittman
Take two halibut steaks, rinse and sprinkle lightly with cayenne pepper. To a heat-proof glass pan add a cup of white wine and juice of half of a lemon. Place fish in pan and cook fish on a high heat for about ten minutes on the stove top, turning fish steaks at the five minute mark. If the liquid reduces too much before the fish is done, add more wine to the pan. If you aren't used to cooking fish, it's done when the meat is opaque and flakes when you insert a fork.
Note: I don't believe in serving fish "rare" at home, I leave that to the professionals, so don't comment any arguments to me about fish done-ness. Unless it's sushi, cook it through.
Reverse-Engineered Brussels Sprouts from Erwin
Take about twenty sprouts and wash them. If they are large, peel off the outside leaves so that you are only working with the sweeter interior. Cut sprouts into halves. Wash, peel and cut up two small red apples (I like sweet Honeycrisps for this recipe, but Fuji or Galas are nice too). Warm a tablespoon of olive oil in a pan and add sprouts and apples. Cook, turning sprouts and apples with a spatula until the sprouts are bright green and browned a bit and the apples are soft, about five minutes. Coat with a teaspoon of sesame oil and cook briefly, another minute. If you have another minute to spare, toast some sesame seeds or almond slices and toss those in.
Now you are saved!
Friday, November 2, 2007
Halloween Chili
What makes this chili spooky is that I made it from whatever was in the pantry. Lincoln said it was more like the "sweet" chili they serve here in the Midwestern mid-sized city where I live (and if that doesn't give away my location, nothing will). I found this somewhat offensive as I think the local version of chili is vile. In general, I think chili is lame unless you make my brother-in-law's recipe with ancho chiles. I will try to pry the recipe from him, but until then, let this suffice:
Lame-Ass Halloween White Bean Chili
1 Lb. ground meat (98% lean)
1 tsp. olive oil
1 Onion, finely chopped
1 Fresh tomato, chopped
1 tsp. Cayenne pepper
3 Tbs. tomato paste
1 Can white beans, drained
1 Can corn, drained
1 Can diced tomato
1 Cup water (I told you this was not the best chili ever made, but truth in journalism requires I reveal all)
2% Greek yogurt or low-fat sour cream
Egg noodles, spaghetti or macaroni, whatever you have in the pantry
Heat pan, add olive oil and coat pan, add onion and cook until golden and soft, add ground beef. Cook beef until completely brown. Add cayenne pepper and tomato paste and stir until meat is coated. Add beans, fresh tomato, corn, diced tomato and water. Simmer over low to medium heat until liquid is almost cooked off and the chili has the texture of, well, chili. Make noodles. To serve, top noodles with chili and a dollop of 2 percent Greek yogurt or low-fat sour cream. Answer the door for trick or treaters and give them lots of candy!
Lame-Ass Halloween White Bean Chili
1 Lb. ground meat (98% lean)
1 tsp. olive oil
1 Onion, finely chopped
1 Fresh tomato, chopped
1 tsp. Cayenne pepper
3 Tbs. tomato paste
1 Can white beans, drained
1 Can corn, drained
1 Can diced tomato
1 Cup water (I told you this was not the best chili ever made, but truth in journalism requires I reveal all)
2% Greek yogurt or low-fat sour cream
Egg noodles, spaghetti or macaroni, whatever you have in the pantry
Heat pan, add olive oil and coat pan, add onion and cook until golden and soft, add ground beef. Cook beef until completely brown. Add cayenne pepper and tomato paste and stir until meat is coated. Add beans, fresh tomato, corn, diced tomato and water. Simmer over low to medium heat until liquid is almost cooked off and the chili has the texture of, well, chili. Make noodles. To serve, top noodles with chili and a dollop of 2 percent Greek yogurt or low-fat sour cream. Answer the door for trick or treaters and give them lots of candy!
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Warm Green Tomato Salad Dressing
I think Lincoln really wanted me to make Fried Green Tomatoes when he picked up a bag full at the last farmer's market this Sunday. Instead, I made a Warm Green Tomato Salad Dressing:
2 Large green tomatoes, sliced
1 Teaspoon lemon juice
1/8 Teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 Tablespoon cooking oil
Heat a pan and, when pan is warm, add oil. Cook the green tomatoes until they are lightly browned and very soft. Puree on a food processor. Stir in lemon juice and cayenne pepper. Pour over greens and serve warm.
2 Large green tomatoes, sliced
1 Teaspoon lemon juice
1/8 Teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 Tablespoon cooking oil
Heat a pan and, when pan is warm, add oil. Cook the green tomatoes until they are lightly browned and very soft. Puree on a food processor. Stir in lemon juice and cayenne pepper. Pour over greens and serve warm.
Monday, October 29, 2007
Red Rice
This is a recipe from my Ethiopian friend in Chicago. Samuelsson's book contains a similar recipe that uses shrimp paste. My friend usually made it with a spicy pepper, but I use plain red pepper.
Notes: This recipe yields enough for six or more people. I learned it directly from my friend, so measurements are only guesses.
INGREDIENTS
Fresh dill
Fresh parsley
One pepper (hot or mild, green or red, it's up to you!)
2-3 Carrots
1 Yellow onion
2 Small tomatoes
4 Cloves garlic (or to your taste)
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
2 Cups Basmati rice uncooked
2 Tablespoons corn oil
1 Tablespoon cinnamon (or more, to taste)
Salt (to taste)
In a food processor, combine a handfull of dill and a handfull of parsley on their stalks, continue pulsing the processor as you add onion, carrot, pepper, tomatoes, garlic and tomato paste. Pulse until the ingredients are well combined and chunky. It should be a brick red color.
Wash rice. Boil 4 cups of water for the rice. In a separate pot or in the microwave, heat an additional 1 1/2 cup of water. When the rice water is boiling, add the vegetable mix, rice, oil, cinnamon, salt and then the extra hot water. Bring back to boiling, reduce to simmer and cover until done, about 30 minutes.
Notes: This recipe yields enough for six or more people. I learned it directly from my friend, so measurements are only guesses.
INGREDIENTS
Fresh dill
Fresh parsley
One pepper (hot or mild, green or red, it's up to you!)
2-3 Carrots
1 Yellow onion
2 Small tomatoes
4 Cloves garlic (or to your taste)
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
2 Cups Basmati rice uncooked
2 Tablespoons corn oil
1 Tablespoon cinnamon (or more, to taste)
Salt (to taste)
In a food processor, combine a handfull of dill and a handfull of parsley on their stalks, continue pulsing the processor as you add onion, carrot, pepper, tomatoes, garlic and tomato paste. Pulse until the ingredients are well combined and chunky. It should be a brick red color.
Wash rice. Boil 4 cups of water for the rice. In a separate pot or in the microwave, heat an additional 1 1/2 cup of water. When the rice water is boiling, add the vegetable mix, rice, oil, cinnamon, salt and then the extra hot water. Bring back to boiling, reduce to simmer and cover until done, about 30 minutes.
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Dinner Meetings
Here's a topic of discussion for the multitudes reading my blog. Dinner meetings. Could there be any more annoying addition to corporate life than the dinner meeting? Client dinners, office holiday dinners, dinner with colleagues for fun, these make sense. But now, apparently there's the dinner meeting. My husband has one tonight. Oddly, it was scheduled by a colleague who has a family, not some corporate tool with no life. I put up with the Blackberry, I'm patient about working on the weekends or late or (worst of all) while on vacation, but I think I might have to draw the line at dinner meetings. Your comments are welcome.
Here are two easy ideas for pizza, one of which is kid-friendly, for when you're stuck at home while the spouse is eating at a fine restaurant or country club and you don't want to call The Pizza Man, but have a craving:
Onion Pizza With Gorgonzola
Thanks to the availability of fresh pizza dough from the grocery store (I shop regularly at Trader Joe's), fresh, delicious pizza is at your fingertips. I won't call it healthy, but, it will have less cheese and calories than delivery pizza.
Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees. Follow the directions on the dough for bringing to room temperature, rolling crust and placing it on a pan or pizza stone. Slice an onion, heat a frying pan, add 2 tablespoons of butter or 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Cook the onions, stirring every few minutes, until they are golden and soft. Pour onions and melted butter/oil onto crust. Crumble gorgonzola, probably about a half cup (I don't like too much cheese on anything, but you might be from Wisconsin, which necessitates tripling the cheese in all recipes or cooking it into soup) and sprinkle on pizza. Bake until pizza is crispy, about 10 minutes.
Pizza With Mushrooms
Sounds boring, but not when you make it with a 2-year-old. Pizza is a great way to introduce kids to cooking. I let my son play with dough and put on toppings. Tonight we made a whole wheat crust with jarred tomato sauce, pre-sliced mushrooms and very finely shredded mozzarella.
Here are two easy ideas for pizza, one of which is kid-friendly, for when you're stuck at home while the spouse is eating at a fine restaurant or country club and you don't want to call The Pizza Man, but have a craving:
Onion Pizza With Gorgonzola
Thanks to the availability of fresh pizza dough from the grocery store (I shop regularly at Trader Joe's), fresh, delicious pizza is at your fingertips. I won't call it healthy, but, it will have less cheese and calories than delivery pizza.
Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees. Follow the directions on the dough for bringing to room temperature, rolling crust and placing it on a pan or pizza stone. Slice an onion, heat a frying pan, add 2 tablespoons of butter or 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Cook the onions, stirring every few minutes, until they are golden and soft. Pour onions and melted butter/oil onto crust. Crumble gorgonzola, probably about a half cup (I don't like too much cheese on anything, but you might be from Wisconsin, which necessitates tripling the cheese in all recipes or cooking it into soup) and sprinkle on pizza. Bake until pizza is crispy, about 10 minutes.
Pizza With Mushrooms
Sounds boring, but not when you make it with a 2-year-old. Pizza is a great way to introduce kids to cooking. I let my son play with dough and put on toppings. Tonight we made a whole wheat crust with jarred tomato sauce, pre-sliced mushrooms and very finely shredded mozzarella.
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Minimal Tuesday
We have to tell the ugly truth around here. That's what public diaries on the Internet are for, right?
Here it is: No one in my house really likes leftovers. They just sit in the fridge in little tupperwares where they then proceed to decompose. If there is a very tasty leftover, such as one from a restaurant, it may be eaten before dawn, vampire style, by my spouse. Otherwise, it's more or less history. The solution: don't make more than two meals worth of any given dish and be prepared with simple recipes that can be made in mere minutes.
While it sounds like more work to make yet another weeknight meal, the upside is that you get to eat a variety of foods and don't need to be afraid of the rotting guacamole monster that grew legs about a month ago when you open the fridge. Plus, you won't be tempted to call The Pizza Man because there's "nothing good in the fridge."
So, that brings us to tonight's recipe for Beets With Shrimp Over Pasta. This is a recipe from Mark Bittman, the New York Times food columnist who writes The Minimalist series. I really like Mark's flavorful, easy recipes. Plus, he looks and sounds like my cousin, Hank, who is a good cook, too.
Over the summer, Mark published a list of 100 quick recipes, including Beets With Shrimp Over Pasta, that could be made with little effort from on-hand or readily available ingredients. Most of them can be expanded into more robust meals. If company is coming, you can whip up a duo or trio of these recipes in minutes for an impressive spread. It was downright inspiring. Nerd that I am, I made a matrix of all the ingredients so that when I went grocery shopping I could stock up.
Beets With Shrimp Over Pasta became a family favorite. Even my twenty-something babysitter who is a self-described picky eater loves it. Many of us live in doubt of beets because of bad experiences in early childhood. My first exposure to beets was jarred borscht (a beet juice of sorts with shredded pieces of beets floating frighteningly in it). I did not eat beets until I was 29 and then it was unforgettable. I had a roast beet salad (at Erwin in Chicago) on my first date with the man I married. From then on, I was a fan. I think the salad is still on the menu.
If you can't try the salad at Erwin, this recipe will change your attitude about eating beets. It has a beautiful purple color, although tonight I'm using yellow beets so it will be a beautiful gold color (I hope) and a creamy texture. The creamy texture is the result of a good application of butter, but if you want to cut back on the saturated fat, do a 50/50 blend of butter and olive oil.
Here are my instructions for Mark Bittman's recipe:
Thaw a bag of cooked shrimp and pat dry with a paper towel. Peel and thinly slice two medium-sized beets and cut into strips. Or, use precooked beets from the produce section or canned or jarred beets. Just make sure they aren't pickled. Or maybe not. This could be good with pickled beets and maybe some capers. Haven't tried it.
Anyway, heat a frying pan, melt two tablespoons of butter in a pan (or one tablespoon each of butter and olive oil). Add the beats and let cook, stirring now and then. In the meantime, heat water to boiling and make the pasta. I use angle hair because it cooks in three minutes.
When the beets are soft, transfer them to a bowl and make sure you get all that buttery goodness in there with them. Drain the pasta and mix it with the beets. In the pan that had the beets, cook the thawed shrimp until they are warm. Toss with beets and pasta. Serve with a little salad and bread.
This recipe will make you feel virtuous for having used one of the healthiest (and still trendy) ingredients around.
Here it is: No one in my house really likes leftovers. They just sit in the fridge in little tupperwares where they then proceed to decompose. If there is a very tasty leftover, such as one from a restaurant, it may be eaten before dawn, vampire style, by my spouse. Otherwise, it's more or less history. The solution: don't make more than two meals worth of any given dish and be prepared with simple recipes that can be made in mere minutes.
While it sounds like more work to make yet another weeknight meal, the upside is that you get to eat a variety of foods and don't need to be afraid of the rotting guacamole monster that grew legs about a month ago when you open the fridge. Plus, you won't be tempted to call The Pizza Man because there's "nothing good in the fridge."
So, that brings us to tonight's recipe for Beets With Shrimp Over Pasta. This is a recipe from Mark Bittman, the New York Times food columnist who writes The Minimalist series. I really like Mark's flavorful, easy recipes. Plus, he looks and sounds like my cousin, Hank, who is a good cook, too.
Over the summer, Mark published a list of 100 quick recipes, including Beets With Shrimp Over Pasta, that could be made with little effort from on-hand or readily available ingredients. Most of them can be expanded into more robust meals. If company is coming, you can whip up a duo or trio of these recipes in minutes for an impressive spread. It was downright inspiring. Nerd that I am, I made a matrix of all the ingredients so that when I went grocery shopping I could stock up.
Beets With Shrimp Over Pasta became a family favorite. Even my twenty-something babysitter who is a self-described picky eater loves it. Many of us live in doubt of beets because of bad experiences in early childhood. My first exposure to beets was jarred borscht (a beet juice of sorts with shredded pieces of beets floating frighteningly in it). I did not eat beets until I was 29 and then it was unforgettable. I had a roast beet salad (at Erwin in Chicago) on my first date with the man I married. From then on, I was a fan. I think the salad is still on the menu.
If you can't try the salad at Erwin, this recipe will change your attitude about eating beets. It has a beautiful purple color, although tonight I'm using yellow beets so it will be a beautiful gold color (I hope) and a creamy texture. The creamy texture is the result of a good application of butter, but if you want to cut back on the saturated fat, do a 50/50 blend of butter and olive oil.
Here are my instructions for Mark Bittman's recipe:
Thaw a bag of cooked shrimp and pat dry with a paper towel. Peel and thinly slice two medium-sized beets and cut into strips. Or, use precooked beets from the produce section or canned or jarred beets. Just make sure they aren't pickled. Or maybe not. This could be good with pickled beets and maybe some capers. Haven't tried it.
Anyway, heat a frying pan, melt two tablespoons of butter in a pan (or one tablespoon each of butter and olive oil). Add the beats and let cook, stirring now and then. In the meantime, heat water to boiling and make the pasta. I use angle hair because it cooks in three minutes.
When the beets are soft, transfer them to a bowl and make sure you get all that buttery goodness in there with them. Drain the pasta and mix it with the beets. In the pan that had the beets, cook the thawed shrimp until they are warm. Toss with beets and pasta. Serve with a little salad and bread.
This recipe will make you feel virtuous for having used one of the healthiest (and still trendy) ingredients around.
Monday, October 22, 2007
Monday's Stew
Oh, gosh, it's Monday. Again. And the fridge is desolate, leaving an opening for the dreaded Pizza Man. No! Motivate! Go hit the giant, shiny new grocery store that just opened a week ago, which means it doesn't smell (yet), and get some groceries!
As mundane as it sounds, I am making stew because it's the day I spend the most time with my toddler son and I can easily make stew while maneuvering around him and watching his Thomas video for like the millionth time. I swore I wouldn't rely on videos, but anything to keep the Pizza Man at bay, right?
Stew is also a perfect recipe for the first part of the week because I know, like me, you have a lot of wine around that you didn't get around to drinking (because you are too shredded to drink or you got ambitious on the weekend and opened too many bottles).
If you did your shopping in advance, cut up the vegetables the night before you plan to make the stew. It sounds so "Becky Home-Ecky" to say that, but it will make you feel so hugely competent you won't believe yourself. At least, I never believe it's really me when I do something that efficient.
Because I work from home (or the nearest coffee shop) I can cook while my son is napping. But, if you work full-time use a crock pot (it's NOT cheating) or carve out time on the weekend to cook. Ha. Ha. Good one. Ok, so just carve out fifteen minutes to cut up the vegetables Sunday night after you do your shopping.
Here's what was in this week's stew:
As mundane as it sounds, I am making stew because it's the day I spend the most time with my toddler son and I can easily make stew while maneuvering around him and watching his Thomas video for like the millionth time. I swore I wouldn't rely on videos, but anything to keep the Pizza Man at bay, right?
Stew is also a perfect recipe for the first part of the week because I know, like me, you have a lot of wine around that you didn't get around to drinking (because you are too shredded to drink or you got ambitious on the weekend and opened too many bottles).
If you did your shopping in advance, cut up the vegetables the night before you plan to make the stew. It sounds so "Becky Home-Ecky" to say that, but it will make you feel so hugely competent you won't believe yourself. At least, I never believe it's really me when I do something that efficient.
Because I work from home (or the nearest coffee shop) I can cook while my son is napping. But, if you work full-time use a crock pot (it's NOT cheating) or carve out time on the weekend to cook. Ha. Ha. Good one. Ok, so just carve out fifteen minutes to cut up the vegetables Sunday night after you do your shopping.
Here's what was in this week's stew:
- About a pound and a half of beef for stew, dredged and browned, patiently, as above, and removed from the pot.
- One smallish onion, a cup of carrots, a cup of celery, a parsnip, chopped. Put about a tablespoon of oil in a warm pot, add vegetables dried oregano, black pepper, salt and a bay leaf, stir, and cook until soft. Then, add the beef back.
- Add a bottle of red wine. I used an open cote du rhone that I had left from Friday night. Cover the beef completely in liquid.
- Add about a cup and a half of cut potatoes. I like Yukon Golds or other small yellow potatoes.
- Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cover and leave it the Hell alone for about two hours.
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