VTD: Always Tasting

Summer Cornbread: Fresh Corn, Browned Butter, Basil & a Peach

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 19:13:00 +0000

If you're anything like me, you enjoy a fat wedge of hearty cornbread alongside your favorite winter soup. It's even better drizzled with honey. Growing up in the wilds of Minnesota gave me insight into the cornbread experience, and it wasn't all good. Cornbread can, in fact, be awful: so gloppily thick that it's even difficult to improve with quantities of honey.

It's taken some time to perfect my cornbread recipe. My standard fare is rich with browned butter and textured with corn, usually of the frozen variety because I make it in winter. But I decided — due to the leftover cobs frowning at me from the depths of the fridge — to try creating a summer staple. (No worries, I kept the browned butter aspect.)

Fluffy and moist, this bread pairs well with a fresh salad and, as always, honey. It barely clings together and offers an intense corn-centered experience with fresh corn, cornmeal and corn flour. The peaches nearly dissolve if chopped finely, creating a hint of sweetness on the tongue, fragrant with basil. It's not a fast recipe, though it bakes up quickly enough once you're organized, but it's a nice changeup from the usual sweet corn recipes and it smacks of summer. If you love cornbread, don't miss this delicious version!

Summer Cornbread
Makes 8 wedges or one castiron skillet's worth

1/2 cup unsalted butter

2 cobs of corn, husked, kernels sliced off the cob (about 1 cup or so)
1 large peach, peeled and diced
1/4 cup basil, chopped (I used sweet purple but green is just as nice)

3/4 cup AP flour
1/4 cup corn flour (or another 1/4 cup AP)
1 cup cornmeal
3/4 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp baking powder
3 T sugar

1 cup soymilk + 1 tsp cider vinegar (or 1 cup milk)
1 egg

Note: If you have a castiron skillet, I highly recommend you use it here for both browning your butter and baking the cornbread. If not, use a saucepan for making the browned butter and an 8"x8" baker or deep dish pie plate for the cornbread. I'm going to proceed as if you own a castiron skillet.

Does your browned butter look like this? A little caramelly in color means yummy flavor.

Preheat your oven to 425º and set your skillet on the stove over medium-high heat with the stick of butter inside. It will melt as the skillet heats up. You're looking for the foaming part of the butter solids to brown and fall to the bottom of the pan, where they'll start to smell really nice for you. When this happens, take the skillet off the heat, swirl the pan to coat the sides a bit — this is for when the bread starts baking – and then pour the butter off into a glass or ceramic bowl to cool. (If this is your first time making browned butter, keep an eye on it the whole time. Once it starts to brown, the process goes quickly from browned to burnt.)

Dry ingredients mixed together with corn, peaches & basil

Measure the dry ingredients into a mixing bowl and swirl together well with a spatula. Prep your corn, peach and basil on a cutting board and then toss them into the dry ingredients. Mix lightly, until everything is coated with the flour mixture.

And into the oven you go!

Pour the soy (or milk) into a separate bowl and add in the egg. Whisk to combine and add in the slightly cooled browned butter. Pour over the dry ingredients and fold gently with the spatula, just until no clumps of dry flour remain. Smooth batter into the warm skillet and bake for 20-25 minutes. The top should be puffed, dry and golden brown, and the edges around the pan should be browned and crisp where we left that nice ring of butter.

The longer it cools, the better the slices will hold their shape. I can manage to wait about 10 minutes, however, so my first slice is more of a pudding. Mmm, corn pudding.

Ready to go outside and eat on the patio...

Breakfast Pizza

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Sun, 29 May 2011 20:17:00 +0000

You heard me.

People make all kinds of things for breakfast, and I like pizza. Not just the leftover kind all the time either.

Back when I worked at the bakery, I introduced this pizza, topped with eggs and chorizo, and everyone's nose turned up slightly as they asked "What is that?" And yet, they had to try it. Within a week, it flew off the shelf still warm. The local favorite was a vegetarian Greek variety. It's been three years since I made this pizza, and I'd nearly forgotten about it.

Then I had a plastic container of pizza dough from Whole Foods (they make excellent dough, if you are in a hurry), and my husband craved his favorite pizza buffet the night before. So I was wondering why on earth I should make another regular pizza when I finally remembered my yummy breakfast treat.

Funny thing, I had never made it at home. George turned up his nose at the thought of breakfast pizza, and I laughed with the memory. "It's made of pizza," I flung back at him confidantly, "you'll love it." And he did.

The one trick to breakfast pizza is cooking the crust a bit first so your scrambled eggs don't get overhard. But otherwise, it's just like making breakfast on top of a pizza. I cook the eggs separately, until they're barely set, and then load everything on top of a halfway cooked crust. This one in the photos is the simplest pizza you can make, just a few slices of tomatoes and cheese atop soft scrambled eggs and a salsa-tomato sauce. It's easily improved by olives, capers and feta, cooked hash browns and leftover veggie sausage — anything you can imagine on pizza. Feel free to experiment. Breakfast pizza is delicious and super easy!

Breakfast Pizza
Makes 1 large pizza for 3-4 hungry eaters

1 recipe of pizza crust or the small size Whole Foods prepped crust, at room temperature
1/2 cup pizza sauce
3/4 cup salsa
2 red potatoes, very thinly sliced
6 eggs
2 T cream
1 T butter
1-2 ripe tomatoes, thinly sliced
1-1/2 cups pepperjack cheese, or a mix of mozzarella and cheddar, shredded

Heat the oven to 450º with a pizza stone inside. (If you don't have a stone, use the back of a baking sheet instead.) Let the oven come to temperature.

Scramble the eggs into a bowl with the cream and heat a frying pan over low-medium heat with the tablespoon of butter inside.

Cover your potatoes with saran wrap and microwave for 2 minutes, until they are soft. They should be very nearly cooked through.

Once your oven's hot, roll the dough out to the size of your pizza stone, usually about 12-14" in diameter and slide it onto the stone. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until the crust is dry on top and the bottom is starting to brown.

While the crust bakes, cook the scrambled eggs, continuing to scramble them slowly in the pan. It should take about 8-10 minutes for the eggs to grow somewhat solid, still really soft, but not runny. If they seem to be setting too quickly, turn the burner down. When they're getting close to set, turn the burner off and remove the pan from the stove.

When the crust is out of the oven, slather the sauce and salsa onto the crust. Spread potato slices over the sauce/salsa. Layer the eggs over the sauce, and then the tomato slices. Sprinkle the cheese evenly over everything. I usually sprinkle a little pepper on top, too.

Bake another 8-10 minutes, until the cheese is bubbly and hot. Let it sit about 5-10 minutes to let the cheese stand up and then slice and eat. Serve with more salsa.

Hummus Dressing

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 17:30:00 +0000

Another fantastic discovery today: hummus makes exquisite salad dressing. Think about it. Don't be a-feared. Why not loosen it up and pour it over your favorite cut vegetables — things you'd otherwise be dipping in it?

I had seedless cucumbers, tomatoes and carrots on hand, but this would be delicious with some red onion, green pepper, even some whole chickpeas, tossed in. And some toasted baguette slices to sop up the dregs. What I love about these lettuceless salads is their longevity. Crisp and refreshing, they stay that way while I eat them, a bite here and there, between answering my baby's alternating cries and squeals.

Hummus Dressing
Serves 1

Use a large spoon for "measuring" and just eyeball it, then use the same spoon for stirring and eating your salad!

1 T of your favorite hummus (homemade works great!)
1 T water
1/2 T olive oil
1/2 T red wine vinegar, if desired
pinch salt + freshly ground pepper to taste

"Measure" everything into an empty jam jar and shake vigorously. Pour over 2 cups of chopped veggies, stir and eat.

Whole Orange Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 03:54:00 +0000

Yes, it's spring. I should be rhapsodizing about rhubarb or pea shoots. Just let me get this out of my system.

You see, I had to skip the entire citrus-eating season this winter. Blah, blah, baby stuff... I'll spare you. And now, with the end of my pox at hand, some friends brought me an entire bag of oranges, and a handful of lemons, FROM THEIR TREE. Now, I ask you, how do I pass that up?

A quick shuffle through some of my cookbooks gleaned a whole orange poppyseed loaf from The Sweet Melissa Baking Book that sounded amazing. Anything that uses the whole orange is worth a try. It turned out nicely, the crumb drier than I like and I used all of my poppyseeds in the first iteration, but the recipe ended up being a fantastic springboard.

Now that I live at altitude again, a few alterations are necessary to baked goods in order to avoid a floppy, sunken center. After making the recipe for the third time, I hit on the perfect combination of revisions. I reduced the sugar and weighed the oranges, since mine were small, adding an extra one and finding the cake's flavor even more pronounced. I added oil to the recipe and got a cake with the nicest crumb, soft and moist. If I had it unpacked, I would've made this into a bundt cake!

If you find, as I did, that you are not quite finished with oranges this season, grab a few lovely specimens and bake this cake.

Whole Orange Cake
Makes 2 or 3 loaves, depending on pan size
Note: You will need a food processor for this recipe!

For the cake:
2 large oranges (or 16-18 ounces of smaller oranges)
1 + 3/4 cups sugar
5 large eggs
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 cup vegetable oil
5 tsp baking powder
1 tsp kosher salt
1-1/2 cups flour (minus 3 T for high altitude baking)

For the glaze:
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
juice of half a large lemon
1/2 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 350º (or 325º for high altitude bakers) and oil or butter two 9-inch bread pans or three smaller ones. Place the loaf pans on a baking sheet — just makes it easier to slide them into the oven.

Remove the green stem from the top of your oranges and cut oranges into a few pieces. Pulse the orange pieces and the sugar in the food processor until the oranges are finely ground with no chunks larger than mustard seeds. Add the eggs and pulse until smooth, then add the oil and melted butter. Scrape the sides down and pulse several more times for good measure.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Pour the orange mixture into the flour mix, scraping the sides down to get every bit, and gently fold together with a spatula. When the batter is smooth, pour an even amount into your baking pans.

Bake 45-60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean and dry. The loaves won't necessarily brown much because of the orangey color, so you'll have to watch them near the end. You want them set, but just barely, so the center is moist. Let the loaves cool 30 minutes in the pan, and then turn them out onto a cooling rack while you make the glaze.

Mix glaze ingredients in a small saucepan and let come to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer two minutes, until thickened. Brush the glaze over the sides (start there, turning as you go) and then the top of each loaf. Pour any extra over the top and let it puddle or drip down the sides. It's really good so you don't want to waste any!

Try to let the loaf cool completely before you tuck in or you'll risk drying out the nice crumb. If you absolutely must, set the loaf onto the counter, cut side down, while it finishes cooling.

*This freezes really well, wrapped in parchment and then plastic or a tupperware.

Oatmeal Coffee Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 17:54:00 +0000

My crush on coffee cake goes back decades. At fourteen I worked as a kitchen assistant at a day camp in Brainerd, Minnesota, where a handful of cabins ringed Rice Lake in two little boy/girl half-moons separated by an evil-smelling, leech-infested lagoon. My main task was dish washing, of course, and then peeling mountains of veg or prepping salad greens. Nothing too difficult for an amateur kitchen aide. But on Saturday mornings half of the staff had the day off, while the rest of us would enjoy a free Sunday. Thanks to our reduced staff, I had to wake an hour earlier and bake the weekly coffee cake. Two glorious, buttery batches of cinnamon-scented heaven that spread over four hotel pans.

Prior to this initiation, I had thought coffee cake (a) had coffee as an ingredient and (b) was reserved for old ladies’ tea parties with those little paper lace inserts on the plate. The camp recipe was nothing special, truly, and in fact when I snuck a copy home and insisted my mother help me scale back the quantity to family-sized, she balked, not wanting me to waste good ingredients on what was clearly a simple recipe designed to feed a crowd. I made it anyway, and for most of the following winter we had coffee cake every weekend. In fact, fifteen years and countless moves later, I’m still disappointed to have lost that particular recipe.

Instead I’ve tried a plethora of cookbook recipes for coffee cake and typically alter the simple one from Martha Stewart’s Baking Handbook to suit my ingredients. Until this time.

While my mother-in-law was visiting, I had decided to make Molly’s Oatmeal Pancakes — my new favorite pancake recipe — with scads of the fresh blueberries I’ve been hoarding in the fridge. But we ended up going out instead, and so I had a puddle of oats soaked overnight in buttermilk to contend with that evening. Rather than throw them out, I decided to convert the pancake recipe into a coffee cake one. I ended up with a denser, textured coffee cake speckled with fresh fruit and a sweet, crunchy, cinnamony top. It’s less sugary than my usual version, but the crisp topping lends an extra dose of brown sugar and the fruit’s flavor shines through. I used both blueberries and peaches, fruits that I love to pair with oats, but one or the other would work fine. Or apples or raspberries. . . whatever.

Oatmeal Coffee Cake
Makes a 9”x13” pan

2 cups oats
2 cups buttermilk

Day one: mix oats with buttermilk and set in the refrigerator 24 hours or at least overnight.

3 eggs
¾ cup sugar
½ cup melted butter
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla (optional)

½ cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or more all-purpose)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
¾ tsp salt

2 peaches, peeled and diced
2 cups blueberries, washed and picked over

For the crumble topping:
6 T butter
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup whole wheat pastry flour (or more all-purpose)
½ tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt

Day of baking (day two): Proceed as usual. Heat the oven to 350º and oil a 9”x13” baking pan.

To make the topping, in a clean bowl, use your fingers to rub the butter into the dry topping ingredients until the mixture sticks together when pressed and has the texture of wet sand. Set aside.

Into the oat mixture, add the eggs, sugar, melted butter, sour cream and vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix the dry ingredients together, whisking to combine.

Prep the fruit for the filling and then mix into the dry ingredients (this helps the fruit not to settle at the bottom of the cake). Pour the wet oat mixture into the dry flour mixture, stirring to combine. Fill the baking pan with the mixture and spread evenly. Crumble the topping evenly over the batter.

Bake, uncovered, for 35-40 minutes, until the cake is set in the center and nicely browned. Let cool 15 minutes before serving.

Note: Because of the buttermilk in this recipe, please refrigerate any leftovers and reheat gently in the oven wrapped in foil.

Mexican Lasagna

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 14:32:00 +0000

No, she’s not the prettiest dish to look at, but she’s tasty and filling and she works up fast. Give her 30 minutes to bake…er, heat up, really, and dinner’s on the table.

I’ve been craving less spicy forms of Mexican food lately. After 32 weeks of enduring this pregnancy, I’m finding heartburn to be a real appetite dampener. It sucks. I’m always thinking oh that sounds good, and then my eyes narrow and visibly question whether I’ll want to keep burping it later. A grimace. Usually the answer is no (with occasional exemptions for samosas or ginger broccoli). So making my own form of Mexican food is a good compromise that lets George dump salsa over the entire thing later (he craves the extra flavor) while letting me get to sleep painlessly.

It’s a pretty simple lasagna idea: swap in tortillas for noodles and proceed as usual. I mix a splash of salsa and lots of sour cream into the cheese layer, so it gets creamy and thick. Then I use enchilada sauce for the liquid and blend a little into the refried beans and some chopped up olives so they’re easier to spread. We have lovely corn here lately, and I find the sweetness of it in this dish adds a nice contrast, but you can take it or leave it. Then I added a crisp handful of lettuce and halved tomatoes to the hot lasagna, finishing it off with a nice crunch and some texture.

Mexican Lasagna
Serves 6

12 oz can enchilada sauce (I used green chile)

8 fajita-size tortillas (can use flour or corn)

12 oz can vegetarian refried beans
6 oz can diced olives
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

2 cups fresh corn, cut off of the cob
2 T cilantro, minced
jalapeno, minced (optional for those without heartburn issues)
½ red onion, minced (optional for those without heartburn issues)

1 cup sour cream
2 cups monterey jack cheese, shredded
½ cup salsa, as spicy as you like

For serving:
4 cups shredded lettuce
1 cup diced tomatoes
sour cream
salsa

Heat the oven to 350º and oil a round baking dish, about the size of your tortillas or slightly smaller. Pour about 2 T of the enchilada sauce in the bottom and press a tortilla into it. Pour another 1 T of sauce over the first tortilla and stack another one on top. This is your lasagna base.

Shred your cheeses and reserve a large handful of each in a bowl.

Make the refried bean layer by mixing the whole can of beans, cheddar, and the whole can of olives in a bowl. Add about ¼ to ½ cup of enchilada sauce, just enough to make the beans spreadable. Layer a third of your bean mixture on top of the tortilla in the baking dish.

Blend the corn with the cilantro (and the optional onion and jalapeno) and scoop 1/3 of the mixture onto the bean layer.

Mix the jack cheese with the sour cream and salsa in a bowl. Spread a third of the mixture over the corn in your baking dish, then add a tortilla. Spread 1 T enchilada sauce evenly over it and sandwich a second tortilla over that.

Layer the beans, corn and cheese on your tortilla sandwiches twice more, ending with a tortilla layer at the top. Pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the top tortilla (there shouldn’t be much left) and sprinkle with the reserved handful of cheese. Bake, covered with foil or a lid, for 30 minutes, until the beans and cheese bubble at the edges of the dish. Remove the lid and bake another five minutes to give the cheese some color.

Serve with a handful of lettuce and sprinkling of tomatoes, and more salsa and sour cream, if desired. A side of guacamole and chips is always appreciated.

Yellow Cake (for Jello Cake)

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 19:41:00 +0000

I've had a few disappointments lately.* First and foremost was this jell-o cake gone wrong. I believe it had something to do with my overly ambitious game plan. See, first I made my own gelatin mix out of fresh blackberries that were wasting into a juice puddle in the fridge. Then I doctored up a yellow box cake (so I wouldn't have to pack it along to Denver, right?) with leftover apricot jam and reduced the oil. And lastly I didn't make nearly enough whipping cream for the top, not to mention I used every single blackberry in the jell-o, leaving none for decorating the top. That was the least of my concerns. The foremost was the taste of it.

My jello turned out okay. I know this because I had some leftover and tried it plain. I followed the package directions for those generic gelatin packets and added hot blackberry juice, from smashed, boiled blackberries that were strained thoroughly, instead of hot water. So this part I would do again.

The box cake was my primary enemy here. Overly sweet and with that gummy, box-cake taste. I shouldn't have used it. The apricot jam had a little bite of lemon to it, which helped, but overall the paired sweetness of jello with cake was too much.

Next time I will use my usual from-scratch yellow cake. It's not too sweet but also dense enough to stand up to the jello without going soggy in a day. I will also recommend loads of whipped cream on the top, dotted with fresh berries. My very favorite is raspberry jello cake, and I can eat half a 9"x 13" pan in 24 hours. Then I eat it again the following day for breakfast. When I can gather up my courage, I'll be making a blueberry version.

Yellow Cake
Makes a 9" x 13" pan or 24 cupcakes

1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1-1/2 cups sugar
2 tsp vanilla
4 eggs

3 cups + 3 T all-purpose flour
1 T baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

1-1/4 cups milk

Whip the butter and sugar together until creamy, then add the vanilla and mix in one egg at a time until light and fluffy. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the butter-sugar-egg mixture a cup at a time, alternating with a third of the milk, so that you end with the rest of the milk mixed in last. Pour into your buttered pan and bake at 350º for 30-35 minutes (18-20 minutes for cupcakes). Let cool completely.

To make a jello cake, use a straw or skewer to poke holes all over the surface of the cooled cake. It won't be pretty and it doesn't have to be even — you'll cover it with whipping cream soon enough —, but the holes let the jello soak in. Prep a package of jello or make your own, about 2 cups worth, and pour it over the cake. Cover and chill until the jello is set, about 2 hours. Make whipping cream by whisking (at least) a pint of heavy cream with 3-4 T of powdered sugar and a swig of vanilla. Spread whipping cream over the cake and garnish with berries to compliment your jello flavor. Eat cold and keep refrigerated until you've licked the empty pan clean. Wonder how long you can go without making another one. Wonder if you should add bits of fruit to the cake batter this time (you should). Wonder why you ever eat cake without jello (you didn't know any better). Practice all kinds of self-forgiveness and bake another cake.

* Note: Second was this Bon Appetit recipe for tagliatelle pasta with fresh corn pesto, which I admittedly made without the bacon. The color of it is particularly unappetizing unless you are doing a photo shoot for a magazine and tucking bits of corn and basil attractively throughout, and the flavor was just okay. Mostly the color of it grossed me out — sort of snotlike. Their recipe for Shaved Zucchini Salad with Parmesan and Pine Nuts redeemed the meal, however.

Cranberry-Date Bars

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 00:26:00 +0000

I adore those fruity, oatmeal-based dessert bars that everyone makes. No matter the filling choice, I'm always drooling over the toasty taste of baked oats. They seem to be so friendly with fruit of all kinds, so open to forming new relationships. I spent the last couple of years perfecting my raspberry oat bar recipe, and then making it about a half billion times for my farmers market booth, and now the triple-berry variation I adapted for the bakery. These are bars that I crave at home despite having baked them so frequently. Now I simply vary the fruit — peaches, blueberry-coconut, blackberries, even apples and caramel — and know I can rely on my trusty oat base to make a fabulous dessert.

When I stumbled over the Fig-Cranberry Oat Squares recipe at Dinner with Julie, I remembered the bag of cranberries I'd frozen in January, back when prices were low and my inspiration petered out (pregnancy hormones are like that). Cranberries aren't simply a holiday item, I postured, then completely forgot about their existence. I wanted to use them, especially since we're packing to move, and couldn't pass up another oat bar recipe. I tweaked the recipe a bit, me being me, and ended up in love with the sweet-and-tart, jammy flavors of cranberries and date cooked together with an apricot and a squeeze of lemon. Add in whole wheat flour for the base, and the whole thing starts to feel like it might be healthy. I assure you it's not. There's enough sugar and butter to fully satisfy your sweet tooth. But the fat, gooey ratio of fruit sandwiched between crisp oat counterpoints is a beautiful thing. Trust me.

Cranberry & Date Bars
Makes an 8"x 8" square pan

Filling:
12 oz package fresh or frozen cranberries, picked over
10 medjool dates, pitted
1 apricot, washed and pitted (optional, but it's good!)
3/4 cup water
3/4 cup brown sugar
squeeze of lemon juice

Crust & topping:
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt

In a saucepan, combine the filling ingredients and cook over medium heat until the mixture comes to a boil. The cranberries will burst in the heat, so make sure to keep the area clear! Turn heat down to medium-low and let simmer until berries crumble and dates soften. The mixture will thicken and turn a beautiful maroon shade. Take off the heat and use a potato mashed or a fork to smush up the dates into the cranberries. Set aside.

Turn oven to 350º and grease an 8" x 8" baking pan.

Measure crust/topping ingredients into a bowl and use a pastry cutter or a fork to cut the butter into the dry ingredients until crumbly. Press half of the mixture into the bottom of the baking pan, then layer the jammy filling over it, spreading to even it out. Then use your fingers to sprinkle the remaining oat crumbs over the jam, pressing down lightly. Bake for 30 minutes, until the oats at the top are golden brown and the filling bubbles at the edges. Let cool in the pan before cutting.

Grilled Corn, Smoked Almond, Goat Cheese & Tomato Salad

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 23:14:00 +0000

A few weeks ago in Denver, I ordered this amazing salad at North, an Italian bistro in the Cherry Creek shopping district. I don't normally go there, but I've had good food when I've been before, and it was hot out and I didn't feel like walking anywhere else. So that's where we went, me and my sister and our friend Wynell. I'm also not generally a salad orderer unless the thing looks particularly inspired. But it was hot out, and once I thought about it I couldn't do a warm entree. Luckily, there was a salad on the menu with baby lettuce, corn, marcona almonds, goat cheese, avocado and tomatoes that had me wishing I could clean my plate — I'm not a lightweight, it was a really large salad. So, after picking out all of those delicious almonds, I called it quits.

Then I went home and, now, a few weeks later, got to thinking about that salad again. For me, the avocado added nothing to the salad, same texture as the goat cheese, and the flavor was completely lost against the tang of the cheese, sweetness of the corn and tomatoes, the crunch of the almonds. I edited it out and didn't miss it. Then I grilled the corn, which wouldn't be necessary except this early corn isn't as sweet as it will be later in the season, so grilling brings a bit of extra flavor out of it. I swapped salted, smoked almonds for the marcona, simply because that's what I had on hand. The smoked flavor added a nice touch.

Dashed with a mustard-y red wine vinaigrette, this salad is simple, delicious and quite filling. I should also mention that I do not like my salad greens drenched in dressing. Yes, it's caloric and so it may seem I'm on a dressing diet, but that's really not the point. I like my greens to stay firm and crisp, not soggy. I under-dress salads and factor in the oozy components like halved tomatoes adding moisture to the mix. If you like more dressing, feel free to double it.

Dressing issues aside, this recent batch of salad will be the third in the past seven days that I'm eating for dinner, accompanied only by the heel of a baguette.

Grilled Corn, Smoked Almond, Goat Cheese & Tomato Salad
Big salad dinner for one or a side salad for 2

half a head of red leaf lettuce, washed and torn into bite-side pieces
1 ear corn, husked and lightly grilled, then cut off the cob
handful salted almonds (smoked if you have 'em, marcona or plain)
handful sweet cherry or grape tomatoes, washed and halved
1-2 oz fresh goat cheese, crumbled
fresh ground pepper

Dressing:
1-1/2 T extra virgin olive oil
1-1/2 T red wine vinegar
2 tsp dijon mustard
tiny squeeze of honey or agave nectar
pinch of salt & pepper

Stack your salad ingredients in a large serving bowl. To make the dressing, pour ingredients into a jam jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake vigorously until combined. Pour over the salad and toss briefly. Let sit 5 minutes to let the flavors combine and the juice from the corn and tomatoes will help dress the salad. Add pepper to the top, if desired, toss again and, if you're me, eat it straight out of the bowl.

Quick Asparagus Quiche

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 22:25:00 +0000

I don't know about you, but I love asparagus. Its bright green flavor and that snap when it's perfectly cooked, preferably grilled, is such a testament to spring. But sometimes I am greedy. Every week I worry that this will be the last of the asparagus, and I often buy too much of it. And when it starts to wilt in my refrigerator, I see the error of my ways. (Not that I repent, really, I just make quiche.)

This summer I've been particularly creative in finding ways to use my abundant asparagus, including an excellent dill-riddled asparagus & potato salad. Quiche is my favorite.

Quiche is an excellent way to use any asparagus, of course, but especially the aged, less snappy ones that aren't worthy of grilling. I'm using a store-bought crust here, but feel free to make your own or roll one out of puff pastry instead. Don't judge, people. It's summer, and the heat is making me a bit lazy.

Quick Asparagus Quiche
Serves 6

1 store-bought crust, thawed if frozen

1/2# asparagus
4 eggs
about 2 cups combination of milk and cream (details below)
2 oz dill havarti (or your favorite cheese; parmesan is also good)
salt & pepper

Preheat your oven to 300º and place the crust on a rimmed baking sheet, just in case of spillage. When the oven is ready, bake the empty crust for 15 minutes, enough time to gather the rest of your ingredients for the recipe.

Wash asparagus and roll on a kitchen towel to dry. Cut into pieces about 1" long and set aside.

For quiche, I like to use a large liquid measuring cup for the filling. My goal is to have about a cup of vegetables and then three cups of liquids. This allows you to substitute nearly any vegetable for the asparagus and still have the quiche turn out as expected. Break the eggs into the measuring cup first and then add enough milk and cream to reach the three cup mark. I add half cream and half milk, but the quiche ends up super-smooth if you're feeling decadent and use all cream. Since this is something I make often, I use 2% milk myself. Add a big pinch of salt and a generous grinding of pepper. Chop your cheese into small cubes, and now you're ready to fill the crust.

Remove crust from oven and add the asparagus pieces. Sprinkle cheese cubes over the vegetables, then slowly pour the liquids over everything. Bake for one hour.

While I'll eat quiche any time of day, in summer I usually don't start up the oven until dinnertime, if at all. A nice green salad alongside rounds out the meal.

Apologies. . .

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Fri, 07 May 2010 22:33:00 +0000

You may have noticed, if you've visited in the past four months, that I have not been here. Ever. Not even once. I'm sorry about that. Let me tell you about morning sickness: it's not pretty. Or fair-minded.

So, not only have I not been posting anything because my computer screen made me unbearably nauseated, but I have been eating little more adventurous material than cereal and crackers since January. Okay, sometimes peanut butter toast, if you require absolute honesty.

But now, secured in my second trimester of abated nausea, I have returned. More upset to come, I'm afraid. We're selling our Kansas house and moving back to Denver as soon as we can, so my time is limited at best. And I've been cooking for myself now, mostly plain, solid midwestern fare. Nothing too spicy or weird. Hearty breads and salads loaded with colorful veg, things of this nature. And cereal, always with the cereal. Now I can eat it with berries!

Do not fear, gentle readers. I am still vegetarian and I am still eating (constantly). So there will be a post in my future with a recipe and a photo involved, I swear. Sit tight (like my pants lately) and I will prove it to you.

Eat your tasty wheat. . . Gluten!

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 19:26:00 +0000

Wait, gluten? Isn't that a food that weirdo, rural vegan people made? Like, in the '70s? Prrrrobably. Indeed, my mom nabbed this recipe off a woman at church potluck. So, yep, rural weirdos converge. I know I am one of the many who shunned the packaged stuff, which looks eerily like offal in a thick gravy. Who's hungry now?

Yet, several months ago, on a visit to my parents' Missouri home, I tasted gluten for the first time, breaded with parmesan and Italian herbs. I fell in love with its texture, a surprisingly buttery softness inside a fried crust. "You made this?" I insulted my mother with the question multiple times. She admitted that, yes, she'd made it earlier that day, and that it was easy.

Gluten burbles in the pot with broth

Over Christmas, she shared her recipe, which I'd hoped she would demonstrate. Holiday timing being as it always is, we didn't get a chance. She left it with me, saying, "Really, it's easy. Just try it." And as her only caveat: "Make sure you have all the dry ingredients together before you add the wet. It comes together f-a-s-t." I didn't know what that meant. I looked over the recipe again. And yeah, there are a few weird ingredients, nothing impossible to find, though. Still, I let everything sit out on the countertop for two weeks, working up my nerve.

One day, I awoke with such a great attitude, I decided to attack the gluten first thing, prepared to spend the morning on it. But the mixture comes together in seconds, babysits itself for an hour in a steamy, stovetop bath and the recipe yields more than six pounds of yummy, high-protein product. The tapioca makes pockets in the gluten, a little texture surprise that you won't find in storebought, and the seasonings imbue the gluten with flavor. (P.S. It also freezes well.) I have to admit, that of the stewed, chilied and fried versions I've tried, I like the fried best.

Seriously, if you're looking for a high-protein vegan/vegetarian food source, try making gluten. It's incredibly cheap (about $6) and quick (budget 75 minutes for start to finish), so if you end up disliking it, no big. But if you like it as much as I do — and my husband does, yay! — you'll be quickly inventing new ways to season and serve gluten for years to come.

Amy Bryant's Mother's Gluten
Yields 5 to 6 pounds
Broth
1/2 cup soy sauce (can use Bragg's aminos instead, or half-and-half for lower sodium)
6 tsp vegetable broth seasoning or boullion cubes
2 quarts water
1 tsp olive oil
2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp garlic powder
Gluten
3 cups instant gluten flour (vital wheat gluten)
1/2 cup Minute-brand tapioca
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup brewer's yeast flakes
1/4 cup soy sauce (can use Bragg's aminos instead, or half-and-half)
3-1/4 cups water

Mix the broth ingredients in your largest stockpot on the stove. Make sure there is plenty of room left at the top of the pot. Turn the heat to high and start the gluten while you wait for it to boil.

Dry ingredients all mixed and ready

For the gluten, add all the dry ingredients to a large bowl and make a well in the center. In a separate bowl, mix the soy sauce with the water. Pour the wet ingredients into the well and use your hands to knead the ingredients together.

Ta-da! Seriously, 10 seconds after I poured in the soy/water mix.

In about 10 seconds, it will form a solid mass. Knead it lightly for a minute or so, just to make sure everything is well spread.

Can you tell this is my first time making gluten?

Pull into three pieces and roll each one into a long, skinny log. Use a sharp knife to cut each log into 1/2" thick slices. (FYI, even if you want the gluten smaller for use in tacos or chili, just keep it large here. It's difficult to fish out of the broth unless the chunks are big, and you can cut it up more later.) These slices will absorb most of your broth and grow to more than double in size.

The slices, awaiting their savory bath.

When your broth is boiling, add the gluten and bring it back to a boil. Let simmer over the stove for an hour, stirring as you happen to pass by. Let cool. Refrigerate or freeze in a bit of the liquid. If wanted, cut chops into bits for chili or stew before freezing.

This is 75% of what the recipe made for me, some chops and chili-size,
loaded into quart-size freezer bags.

Let frozen gluten thaw completely in the refrigerator before using.

Hello yummy, fried gluten.

Health(ier) Fried Gluten Breading
Makes enough for four or five batches

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup yeast flakes
1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
1 T dried basil
1 T dried oregano
2 tsp garlic or onion powder

Mix together all ingredients. I like to freeze portions of this alongside the gluten, so I can quickly assemble everything. Or you can just keep the whole batch in the refrigerator.

Cardamom-Apricot Granola

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 18:07:00 +0000

What? You're not a granola person? I'm sorry, but we can't be friends. Couldn't possibly. Huh uh. I only befriend people with the highest respect for oats, something about my Irish ancestry. So maybe you should just look away now, while I unveil perhaps the greatest feat in granoladom for quite some time. It's cardamom. As warm and spicy as cinnamon, but deeper, more potent, and the perfect counterpoint for dried apricots and maple syrup. Ah, yes, winter seems a distant, faraway land right now. Don't talk over my breakfast.

Cardamom-Apricot Granola
Makes about 10 cups

4 cups old-fashioned oats
2 cups rice cereal (I had leftover Cheerios to get rid of, so use whatever you like)
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup dried apricots, diced
1 cup raw sunflower seeds, unsalted
1 cup shredded coconut, sweetened or unsweetened
1/4 cup wheat germ, optional
2 T ground flaxseed, optional
1 tsp cardamom
1 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt

1/2 cup maple syrup (the real stuff is amazing here)
3/4 cup mild-flavored vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla

Heat oven to 250º and get out a rimmed baking sheet, 13"x 17" works great.

In a giant bowl, mix all of the dry ingredients. Go ahead and use your hands. It's easier. In a small pitcher or another bowl, mix the oil, syrup and vanilla together. Pour the syrup and oil over the oat mixture and use your hands to toss everything together. Turn the granola out onto your sheet pan and spread it into an even layer. Use your fingers to poke the bits of apricot underneath the oats. It's impossible to get them all, but try for about two minutes.

Bake the granola for one hour. Take out of the oven and use a spatula to turn it, scraping down to the bottom. Let it set on the countertop until it's fully cooled. Bag it and store.

I store granola in a clear glass cookie jar on the countertop, so cereal is always available. It stands up to this type of storage nicely in the winter. Summertime, it lasts about a week. Damn humidity. But granola also freezes nicely for months.

Mushroom Stroganoff (for reals)

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 22:27:00 +0000

No more adding cans of mushroom soup to a quick saute. I've foiled the easy version of stroganoff by making one with so much more flavor, nobody misses it. Certainly not I. I much prefer feasting on this creamy, mushroom-thick broth, oozing with sour cream and spiced with sage, ladled over soft, buttered noodles. What could be better when it's 4º outside?

Mushroom Stroganoff
Makes 6 generous servings

2 T olive oil
2 T unsalted butter
1 yellow onion, chopped
1# button mushrooms, washed or rinsed or wiped clean
6 oz baby bellas or portabellas, washed or rinsed or wiped clean
1 pkg Field Roast vegan sausages (I used the sage flavor)
1/4 cup white wine
2 cups vegetable broth (or water + broth powder)
2 T chopped sage leaves (or parsley)
2 cups sour cream (full fat, please, or you'll see specks)

1# wide egg noodles
1 T butter

In a wide-bottomed stockpot, heat 1/2 tablespoon of butter with 1/2 tablespoon of oil and brown the onions. Start to chop your mushrooms, a fat handful at a time, tossing them into the pot as you go. Let them brown, move them over with the onions, and melt a little more butter and oil. Continue chopping mushrooms and browning them until they're all in the pot. This isn't fancy, but you can take them out and set the browned ones aside if you're worried.

Pour in the white wine, stirring and scraping the bottom to get the burnt bits up. Then add the water and reduce the heat to medium-low. You want the stock to boil, but a slow, consistent boil. Chop up the sausages and add them to the pot with the sage. Let this simmer for 20-30 minutes, until most of the water reduces and the stock is fragrant and thickened. Boil the water for your noodles now and get those started.

Season the stroganoff with salt and pepper. Let sit 5 minutes, then taste again. You may need to season more than once. Mushrooms like their salt. Stir in the sour cream and turn off the heat. If you're using parsley instead of sage, add it now. Cover the pot and let the flavors meld.

Drain the noodles and set in a large bowl. Add the butter and stir to coat. I like to add pepper to the noodles, too. But, then again, I really like pepper.

Serve a large scoop of buttered noodles with the stroganoff over top. Crusty bread alongside is lovely for sopping up the plate. Sometimes I serve spinach alongside to cut the creaminess.

Breakfast of Champions

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 15:01:00 +0000

Sturdy. Steadfast. Solid. Three things this breakfast is, and then some. It will stick by you, possibly past noontime, and that's nothing to shake a stick at. Just don't buy the non-melting, freak brand of smoked gouda that I used. You can see the individual strands straddling my brekkie like toasted coconut. Ridiculous. Thankfully, they still tasted okay, a bit on the bland, American cheese front, but okay. Wish I had saved the wrapper from that hunk so I could blacklist it. But on to the good stuff. . . breakfast.

Nothing better than cooking a hearty meal full of rib-sticking goodness in a single skillet. No muss, no fuss — or very little muss at least.

Ye Olde Skillet Breakfast
Sunday breakfast for two

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 large potato, peeled
4 large eggs
1-2 ripe tomatoes, quartered
4 frozen vegetarian breakfast sausages or patties
1/2 cup grated cheese (cheddar, smoked gouda, etc.)

Turn the oven on to 400º. Choose a skillet with an iron handle, one that can go in the oven without melting anything. Put that skillet on the burner and turn it up to medium with a quarter of the tablespoon of butter inside. Warm up the veggie sausages in the pan, turning to let brown slightly.

While those warm, slice your potato as thinly as you possibly can, lining the slices on a paper towel. Press another paper towel over them and soak up as much of the water as possible. Set the veggie sausage aside and melt the remaining butter in the hot pan.

When the butter melts in your skillet, layer the potatoes around the edge in a big circle, then make a smaller circle in the center. Let them sizzle away for about 5-7 minutes, until the bottoms are starting to brown.

Shut the burner off and flip your potatoes over. Rearrange them as neatly as you can to cover the bottom of the skillet again. Sprinkle them liberally with salt. Set one veggie sausage in each quadrant of your pan, then crack an egg between them. Arrange the tomato slices somewhat artistically. More salt and pepper over the whole thing. Set the skillet in the oven to bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the eggs are just about set (I like them a little soft, but keep going if you want the yolks cooked through). Sprinkle the cheese over the top. Bake for 5 minutes more, until your cheese (hopefully) melts and maybe browns a little. Whatever you like.

Cut your breakfast into quarters and share. Or not. George thinks a little hot sauce over the top adds something extra. I like a nice piece of buttered toast on the side.

Avocado & Cucumber Soup

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 17:54:00 +0000

Maybe nobody else looks for these easy blender soup recipes. Maybe it's just me out to score a speedy, healthy lunch with little cleanup. I am okay with being alone in this. Me and my soup. I think she took about three minutes to whiz together.

In case it needs saying, please don't heat your avocado soup up. It'll brown. As it is, the smoothness of the soup has a yogurt-like mouthfeel, and it's really subtle in flavor, much like the avocado itself. If you're serving it alongside something else, drink it first or you might find it bland. The cilantro helps perk up the blandness, but if you don't like cilantro, nix it. On the upside, it also adds dark green flecks to the soup and I think they're pretty.

Avocado & Cucumber Soup
Serves 2 as a side; 1 as a light lunch

1-1/2 cups water
1 ripe avocado
1/2 cucumber, peeled
1 T lime juice
salt
a handful cilantro, optional

Blend until smooth. Season, then blend again. Let sit 5 minutes. Taste, then season again if necessary.

Prep time: 2 minutes

Blending: 30 seconds

Pouring: 30 seconds

Hummus & Veggie Wrap (Winter)

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 20:00:00 +0000

Lunch this week feels particularly inspired. I eat these wraps in phases, basically remembering them when I'm tired of dipping carrots into my hummus. But lately, I also have homegrown alfalfa sprouts kicking me to use them. To me, this combination of veggies has it all: spice, texture variety, saltiness and crunch. But you could put anything you want in a wrap. That's the beauty of it.

Hummus & Veggie Wrap (Winter)

1 wrap or burrito-sized tortilla, or two smaller tortillas
2 T hummus, any variety you like
2 cups lettuce leaves or sprouts or mixture of both
1 sliced artichoke heart
4-5 chopped kalamata olives
a small handful of red onion or shallot slices
1 T crumbled feta

Build the wrap by smearing your tortilla with hummus first, then layering the rest of your ingredients over it. Stop to admire your work. Wrap the tortilla up and slice in half. Keep a napkin close by while you're snarfing it down.

In case you're wondering, the summer variety of this wrap includes cucumbers and tomatoes, rather than olives and artichokes. But in winter, as you know, fresh ingredients are difficult to come by. I had to make a winter variation to keep myself enthused about sandwiches this season, and the artichokes and olives do a great job of letting me forget.

Have you ever grown alfalfa sprouts? It makes you feel summery and gardeny without dirty fingernails, and it's perfectly easy to do. They grow in a jar on your countertop. Just buy one of these lids (see photo, right) to go on top of any wide-mouthed canning jar or cover your jar with a clean section of pantyhose, then buy a few tablespoons of sprouts at your co-op or bulk foods store. The lid costs about$4, if you go that route, and the seeds cost 50 cents and will last you for months. Read this how-to and you're off. I have mixed sprouts, lentils sprouts and more. Yum.

Pearberry Pie with Lynn's Pie Crust

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 19:26:00 +0000

What to do with this leftover pie crust? My mom's recipe that I quadrupled for holiday baking had lots of leftover bits that I smooshed together into a large handful and refrigerated. It's not enough for a big pie, but too much to toss. I love this crust because it's straight-up pliable, even from the refrigerator, and it still bakes into a crisp crust.

Let's make a 6" pear pie! Okay, first we'll roll out our crust and pinch it cutely. Then we'll chop up a fat, moderately-ripe d'anjou pear and toss it with the juice of 1/2 a lemon, a tiny pinch of salt, a tablespoon of flour and 2 tablespoons of sugar. Let's dust it with cardamom and cinnamon, too. Great.

What about that handful of summer blackberries I froze in a way-too-big tupperware that's taking up room in the freezer? We'll throw those in too. Oh and we'll use up the last two tablespoons of ginger-pear jam that's loitering in the refrigerator by spreading it over the pie crust. Excellent. Now toss in the filling and let's bake it up. You're right, I can't toss the extra little bit of crust leftover. I'll give the pie a yamulke.

It bakes up brilliantly at 375º and after about 45 minutes I am drooling from the fragrance in my kitchen. I manage to wait until it cools to non-lip-burning levels and then eat my half of the pie seated on the countertop, leaving the dishes for another day.

Lynn's Pie Crust
Makes one 9" pie

1-1/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 T sugar
1 tsp milk
1/2 cup vegetable shortening

Mix together the flour, salt and sugar. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk and add the shortening. Cut together with a pastry cutter or a fork until mixed completely. The crust will be soft and pliable. Roll it to 1/4" thick and fill as desired. Bake at 375º for 30-45 minutes, or follow the recipe for your filling.

You can refrigerate it for two weeks or freeze indefinitely, wrapped well in plastic.

Spicy Thai Tempeh with Broccoli & Cashews, Zesty Rice & a Simple Salad

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 16:22:00 +0000

In 2009, Terry Walters penned Clean Food, sparking my culinary block with creative use of foods like tempeh. A few months after reading the book, I rose to the challenge of her Baked Maple Mustard Tempeh, and found there might be something to this ugly package of smushed seeds after all. And more than just maple, which I like to use in everything regardless. So for a while, I rode her book like some kind of food stallion, galloping through Maple Nut Granola, Coconut Cranberry Pecan Balls, Ginger Pear Butter, and Tofu Salad. Coming to an abrupt halt only when the Spicy Coconut Pumpkin Soup recipe threw me to the ground and trampled me over (something about the lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, ginger and galangal combo — yuckers). Suffice it to say, I put the book aside to let distance soften my bitterness.

I pulled it out this week, newly inspired to try more tempeh. Walters suggests the pairing with the Zesty Basmati Rice (recipe below), which sounded delicious, and truly is. I'm still not sure her method of soaking the rice grains first helped speed the cooking along, so skip that step if you're short on time or have a rice cooker. Note to self: need rice cooker.

I adapted the tempeh recipe from a quick cook to an overnight marinade — opposite of my usual methodology — simply to let the flavors infuse because I was feeding it to George for the first time. It worked. Steaming the tempeh first softens it up and allows the marinade to soak in nicely. George really liked it, though he had no idea what he was eating. I asked him and he said, "Cashews?" Ha ha. If you're a tempeh lover already, go ahead and brown the tempeh in the pot with the onion and add the marinade from there. Much faster, I know. But sometimes it's worth a little extra time if it means I can coerce George into liking something he finds questionable. And then the next time, if he hates it, I can say 'But remember it's good in that stir-fry with broccoli and cashews' so he'll try it a third time. At least this is my wiley, circuitous way. Don't question it; it works for me.

Browning the onions and tempeh, with broccoli and marinade at the ready.

Spicy Thai Tempeh with Broccoli & Cashews
Adapted from Clean Food
Serves 4

8 oz tempeh, cut into thin 1" slices
1 T EVOO
2 T maple syrup
2 tsp tamari
1/3 cup water
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1 tsp EVOO
1/2 red onion, chopped
2 cups steamed broccoli florets

1/2 cup cashews, roasted and salted, chopped

Steam the sliced tempeh for 8 minutes, then drain. Mix the EVOO, maple syrup, tamari, red pepper flakes, and water. Put the tempeh in a ziplock or tupperware with lid and pour the oil-syrup mixture over it. Let sit overnight, or longer, to marinate. To make the dish, steam the broccoli 2-3 minutes and drain, then quickly rinse the pan and let dry out over the burner. Add a teaspoon of EVOO and brown the onion. Crumble the tempeh into the pan, reserving the marinade, and let it cook just to warm through. Pour the remaining marinade into the pot and mix in the broccoli, turning everything to coat with marinade. Just before serving, sprinkle with the cashews (you can also use peanuts if you don't have cashews on hand).

*Please note that you can halve the recipe for one or two servings only. It kind-of goes to mush the next day and is much, much better eaten right away.

Midway through cooking the rice. My water didn't all absorb.

Zesty Basmati Rice with Cinnamon and Cumin
Adapted from Clean Food
Serves 4

1-1/2 cup brown basmati rice
3 cups vegetable stock
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp orange zest
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 T sesame oil, plain or toasted (can substitute peanut oil)

Soak rice for 1 hour in a bowl with water to cover. Drain and place in a stockpot with the stock, cinnamon stick, cumin, salt and zest. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to simmer, covered, until water is absorbed or the rice is tender, about 25 minutes. If rice is tender, drain off additional water and fluff with a fork. Toss with the oil and cilantro. Serve.

Simple Orange & Avocado Salad
2 hearty servings

2 cups red leaf lettuce, washed and torn into bite-sized pieces
2 clementines or 1 orange, segmented
1/2 ripe avocado
handful of cilantro leaves, washed and chopped

Dressing
2 T EVOO
1 T champagne vinegar
1 tsp agave nectar
salt & pepper to taste

Arrange salad ingredients on a bowl or plate. Mix dressing and pour over salad, gently tossing to coat. Juice from the orange will help keep the avocado from browning. (To make this salad a full meal, double the quantities and add toasted sliced almonds and thinly sliced red onions.)

Favorite Cookbooks: Jamie at Home

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 15:49:00 +0000

It's been more than a year and I'm still working through this inspirational collection of seasonal recipes. Frankly, I'm appalled it's taking me so long when everything I make turns out lovely.

Jamie Oliver, my cooking icon, uses veggies as the centerpiece in the majority of the recipes grouped here and every passthrough I find something droolworthy. One of my favorite recipes, the Asparagus and Potato Tart, has made numerous dinner appearances, despite the pitfalls of creating a filo crust. Grrr, filo. Although many recipes have meat in them, it's usually either something that's simple to leave out or something I'm inspired to make with a meat substitute. The Italian Ham and Spinach Tart, for example, I'll be making this week and leaving the ham off. Easy peasy.

All the recipes I've tried have been successes. Many have earned repeated rounds on the menu, like Sweet Pear and Apple Salad with Endive, Superb Squash Soup, Creamy Asparagus Soup, Fresh Tagliatelle with Sprouting Broccoli and Oozy Cheese Sauce, Rhubarb and Sticky Ginger Crumble, Mothership Tomato Salad and more. Top two recipes on my 'to make' list: Baked Cauliflower & Broccoli Cannelloni, Incredible Smashed Peas & Fava Beans on Toast. Note to self: plant fava beans.

I admit, I'm a sucker for Oliver's excitement over good-quality, fresh produce. Why shouldn't I be? He's absolutely right. Jamie's abstract directions (a 'good handful of parsley') may worry a more methodical cook, but I find them an opening, a verbal head-nod to improvisation and creativity. I find Oliver's recipes and his hands-on approach to home cookery continually inspiring, making this book one of the first I reach for in a pinch.

Jamie at Home: Cook Your Way to the Good Life
Jamie Oliver
Hardcover, Hyperion, 09/2008

Cranberry-Orange Scones

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 16:51:00 +0000

If 2008 was the year of the muffin and 2009 was the year of the scone, why am I already baking a batch of scones in 2010? Shouldn't I be moving on now? To cookies, perhaps, or cupcakes or brownies or croissants. There are too many bakeable lovelies, really, for me to remain so enamored with scones. Except that they're easy to pull off. Give me twenty minutes and a pint of cream, I'll be sliding a batch into the oven only to stare lovingly at them through the glass until they reach an appropriate shade of toastiness. Then, I'll eat one straight up, searingly hot and soft, which gives me the strength to wait until the remainder of the batch cools. Add a fat cloud of gently sloped frosting and then the rest of them may not last the day. Honestly, I'm not sure I can move on from the scones. Especially when I just keep getting better at making them. They may be my signature baked good, so take note: you'll be seeing plenty of scones again this year.

Cranberry-Orange Scones
Makes 18 medium-size scones

Scones
3 cups sifted flour
1/2 cup sugar
5 tsp baking powder
scant 1/2 tsp salt
zest of an orange
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold
1/2 cup dried cranberries (sweetened or plain, your choice)
3/4 cup whipping cream
1 egg, lightly beaten

Frosting
3 T butter, softened or melted
3 cups powdered sugar
1 T maple syrup
juice of an orange

Turn the oven to 350º and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or spray with nonstick spray.

Use a food processor to whirl the flour, salt, baking powder, orange zest and sugar together to mix. Add the butter, cutting it into tablespoons and pulsing until the mixture is crumbly like thick, wet sand. (You can cut the butter in by hand too.) Add the cranberries and pulse until spread throughout — this chops a few of them up which spreads them throughout the batter. Place the mixture into a large bowl and form a hole in the center. Pour the cream and egg into the hole and use a fork to stir them together, gently pulling the sandy flour into the center until everything is barely mixed. The dough should hold together when pinched.*

Shape the dough into three balls about the size of your two hands cupped together. Do this as gently and quickly as possible. Against a floured countertop, press the balls into flat rounds, one at a time, until one inch thick. Use a knife or bench scraper to cut each round into six wedges. Place the wedges on the baking sheet, at least an inch apart, and continue with the next ball. When all the scones are shaped, bake for 20 minutes then check for doneness. They may need another 5 minutes. They should be puffed to double their size and brown at the edges.

While the scones cool, whisk the frosting ingredients together, adding only enough orange juice to make the frosting fluffy and spreadable, not too loose to hold its shape. Frost when the scones are completely cooled and let set to dry or eat immediately. If you'd rather not frost your scones, simply brush the cut wedges with more cream and sprinkle with sugar before baking.

* Note: If you live in a dry climate, you may need to add more cream to get the dough to hold together. Don't be afraid to do so. Add one tablespoon at a time until the dough sticks together, then proceed.

The 'To Make' List 2009/2010 Flagged recipes from cookbooks, friends, blogs and more

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 17:58:00 +0000

Sweet Baking & Desserts
~~Banana-Macadamia Pancakes, Cook (32)~~ 1/16
Crumb Buns, GCC (168)
Lemon Cake, SK (10/09)
~~Roasted Pecan Cake with Caramel Orange Marmalade & Burnt Orange Buttercream, SMBB (107)~~ 1/10
Tarte au Fromage, SSL (75)
Pumpkin Cake with Pecan Streusel, SSL (284)
Rustic Cinnamon Walnut Horns, GCC (178)
Fresh Fruit & Bavarian Cream Tart, TART (62)
Lemon Bars on Brown Butter Shortbread, TART (149)
Sbrisolona, VEN (195)
~~Apple Cider Doughnuts, SmittenKitchen~~ 11/09
Orange Cream Cheese Muffins, GCC (106)
Croissants, TART (21)
Pumpkin Bread, MS (49)
Pear-Banana-Hazelnut Crumble, ORG (12/04)
Maple Syrup Scones, 101 Cookbooks (03/09)
Bourbon Peach Hand Pies, SK (08/08)
Peanut Butter Banana Bread, DD (11/08)

Savory Baking
Wild Mushroom Tart, TART (187)
Country Feta Pies, LBB (66)
Layered Focaccia with Cheese & Arugula, HD (238)
Gougeres, TART (183)
Tomato, Garlic & Fontina Tarts, MS (268)
Mushroom-Onion Scones, LBB (182)
~~Quiche Lorraine, Smitten Kitchen~~ 11/09
Pissaladiere on Brioche, TART (189)
Potato & Onion Tarte Tatin, MS (268)
Blue Cheese-Walnut Gougeres, MS (366)
~~Parmesan Cheese Scones, LBB (184)~~ 10/09

Breads
Quick Whole Wheat & Molasses Bread, HOW (689)
Parker House Rolls, MS (318)
Rewena Paraoa (Maori Potato Bread), GB (32)
Egg Bagels, BEB (10/09)

Soups & Salads
Avocado & Citrus Salad with Green Olives, SSL (364)
Black Bean Soup, MR (23)
Asparagus Soup with Parmesan, COOK (96)
~~Squash Soup with Parmesan Croutons, JH (361)~~ 10/09
Tangy Autumn Salad: Cherries/Walnuts/Stilton, HPS (23)
Endive Salad: Lemon/Fava/Olives, SSL (37)
Warm Wild Mushroom Salad: Herbs/Pecorino/Hazelnuts, SSL (255)

Appetizers, Sides & Mains
Spicy Fava Bean Fritters with Lemon Yogurt, JH (163)
Chipotle Mashed Potatoes, COOK (104)
Skillet Browned Broccoli & Cauliflower, HPS (129)
Baked Jerusalem Artichokes with Thyme & Lemon, NC (208)
Snap Peas in Lemon Butter, MR (90)
Goat Cheese & Chive Souffle, EB (304)
Potato-Tomato Gratin, SSL (221)
Sweet Potato & Cream Cheese Gratin, HOW (384)
Crisp-Fried Noodle Cake, HOW (469)
Tortellini of Ricotta/Lemon/Parmesan/Sage, NC (120)
Mint Asparagus Ravioli with Potatoes/Mascarpone, NC (114)
Kabocha Squash Risotto, HPS (114)
Italian Spinach Tart, JH (347)
Cauliflower & Broccoli Cannelloni, JH (25)
Braised Tofu with Eggplant & Shiitakes, HOW (650)
New Potato & Pesto Pizza, COOK (60)
Rava Dosas with Potato Chikpea Masala, Gourmet (09/09)
~~Lebanese-Style Stuffed Eggplant, SK 10/09~~ 12/13

Abbreviation Key
COOK = Cook 1.0
EB = Essentials of Baking
GB = Global Baker
GCC = Great Coffee Cakes, Sticky Buns, Muffins and More
HB = Heaven's Banquet
HD = Happy Days with the Naked Chef
HOW = How to Cook Everything Vegetarian
HPS = Homegrown: Pure & Simple
JH = Jamie at Home
LBB = La Brea Bakery
MR = Moosewood Restaurant
MRCH = Moosewood Restaurant: Cooking for Health
MS = Martha Stewart Baking Handbook
NC = The Naked Chef Takes Off
SMBB = Sweet Melissa Baking Book
SSL = Sunday Suppers at Lucques
TART = Tartine
VEN = Venezia
101 = 101 Cookbooks, www.101cookbooks.com
BEB = Brown Eyed Baker, www.browneyedbaker.com
DD = Delicious:Days, www.deliciousdays.com
ORG = Orangette, www.orangette.blogspot.com
SK = Smitten Kitchen, http://smittenkitchen.com

Black Bean Soup Nachos with Eggs

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 22:21:00 +0000

A nice plate of creative nachos never hurt anyone.

Give me a minute now to explain the weirdness. Deep breath. When my family comes to stay, I buy way, way, wah-hay too much food. It stems from the looks my mother gives me when she sees space in my refrigerator, like we might starve. And, yes, I overreact to this, despite years of visits and their aftermath, despite knowing we'll shop at some point for even more food, despite knowing we'll assemble a dinner or two from things that now exist in the cupboard and will afterwards need to be puzzled into the refrigerator. I stuff the appliance to the gills just to avoid that look. It needles me.

This holiday visit, due partly to the abundance of Christmas dinner leftovers and also to the storm that moved in, we skipped several planned meals together. Meals I had shopped for. At Costco, no less. Uh-oh. For a while, it worked out swell. George and I got stuck here too, and ate at the crowd-sized portion of veggie stroganoff that barely fit into a 9x13" casserole. Took a week to polish that off. Midway through, I started the black bean soup, which I adore and George hates. I puree it lightly, keeping it a bit on the chunky side, and then swirl some brilliant green cilantro-lime creme across the top for serving. Doesn't matter what I do to the stuff, George dislikes it. He'll eat it only once. And here I'd made a group portion, crockpot style. So I got creative yesterday, spurred by the desperate knowledge that if I didn't, I would be eating this for two more weeks. The result: eggs poached in leftover soup served nacho style over crushed (nearly stale) chips, made more appealing with cheese and cilantro-spiked sour cream. It was actually delicious. Really. Thick and filling and warm and George really liked it. Ha. Fooled him.

Black Bean Soup Nachos with Eggs
Serves 2

3-4 cups leftover black bean soup
4 eggs
2-3 large handfuls of almost stale chips (you can use fresh, but this is a perfect use for slightly stale leftovers)
1/4 cup grated cheddar
salsa
sour cream
cilantro
lime, optional

Eggs bubbling in a pot of soup? Who knew it would taste so good.

In a wide bottomed pan with a lid, reheat the soup over medium heat. When the soup starts to bubble, add in the eggs, one per quadrant, if you imagine your pan is divided into quarters. Place the lid over the top and let simmer for 5-7 minutes, depending on how well set you like your eggs. In the meantime, crush a handful or so of chips onto each plate, grate your cheddar, and get out your condiments. If you want to make cilantro creme, wash a fat handful of cilantro and whir it in a blender with 1/4 cup of sour cream and a squeeze of lime juice. Easy. Otherwise, just get everything out of the fridge and set it aside.

It doesn't look overly appetizing here, but wait for it...

When the eggs are set, use a spatula to arrange two of them on each stack of chips, then split the remaining soup by pouring it over the plates. Top with grated cheese, sour cream (or cilantro creme), salsa and another handful of chips, if desired. Eat and be amazed that you didn't think of making this before. Make a mental note that you will immediately forget. Move on.

Not bad looking, right?

What's left in the refrigerator, you might be wondering? Well, I was able to freeze a good portion of my stockpile, cheeses and tortillas mostly. Only one head of lettuce remains, and a pile of cauliflower/broccoli/eggplant/mushrooms that I'm roasting as I write this, hoping to toss it into last-minute salads. We're on the last dozen of eggs, thank goodness for holiday baking! To use the milk, we're having biscuits and gravy tonight. Maybe I'll post that later on. Mmmm, biscuits. Happy new year!

What we've been eating

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 16:51:00 +0000

These cinnamon rolls were an instant family fave...

Unfortunately, I have been following others' recipes most of this month. December doesn't bring out the most creativity in me. In part because I am responsible for feeding family members who, unlike George, tend to complain loudly if they don't like something. Takes away one's daring nature. So, aside from a few new cookie recipes I tried, I stuck mainly to tried and true menu items: mashed potatoes, baked sweet potatoes a la Rosette, mom's lefse, stuffing (can't go wrong with this no matter what), veggie meatballs, etc. I crammed handfuls of stuffing into chicken breasts to pacify the meat eaters and otherwise purchased cold cuts to keep complaints to a minimum. End of my holiday food worries. Begin handing out warmed plates of steaming leftovers with mugs of hot chocolate, apple tea and cider.

My inspired leftover squash and fennel spaghetti dish. Yum.

Leftovers, on the other hand, were a weird mix. I made this broken spaghetti bowl by mixing roasted squash and fennel chunks with vinaigrette and leftover pasta, garnished with parsley. No complaints here, though it seems too complicated to set up as a routine recipe.

Probably the standout treat we ate this year was the cinnamon rolls from The Pioneer Woman Cooks by Ree Drummond, which makes about 50 rolls. I started the dough in advance and froze them in pie tins of 8, thawing them one or two at a time as needed for breakfasts. They're pill0w-soft and delicious. I added orange zest to the recipe (because I like a hint of citrus to cut the butter) and then glazed half with the coffee icing she makes and half with a simple vanilla version (my parents and one sister are anti-coffee). I'm hesitant to write out the book's recipe, since I can't find it previously posted online and don't wish to be the first to steal it. Instead, I'm repeating her post here, with a direct link to the original, because Ree's step-by-step also has a gorgeous photo alongside it. Very easy to follow. I'm telling you, this may make a whole lot of rolls, but you WILL eat them. Or give them away so that you won't. Either way, you won't be sorry.

Pioneer Woman’s Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients

1 quart Whole Milk
1 cup Vegetable Oil
1 cup Sugar
2 packages Active Dry Yeast
8 cups (Plus 1 Cup Extra, Separated) All-purpose Flour
1 teaspoon (heaping) Baking Powder
1 teaspoon (scant) Baking Soda
1 Tablespoon (heaping) Salt
Plenty Of Melted Butter
2 cups Sugar
Generous Sprinkling Of Cinnamon

To the filling, VTD adds: zest of two oranges

MAPLE FROSTING:

1 bag Powdered Sugar
2 teaspoons Maple Flavoring
½ cups Milk
¼ cups Melted Butter
¼ cups Brewed Coffee
⅛ teaspoons Salt

This recipe makes about 50 cinnamon rolls. Or six lovely pie plates worth for all of your visiting relations. For preparation instructions with step-by-step photos, visit this Pioneer Woman Cooks original post from June 1, 2007.

Second-Wind Hazelnut Bites

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 16:10:00 +0000

Tiny bursts of energy (for what's wrong with my fingernails, see note)

I've been reading and reviewing cookbooks at a somewhat alarming pace. In order to give solid recommendations, I try to follow at least one recipe before delivering my verdict on someone's years of hard work. While I've never really been curious about raw food, Stephanie Tourles book about raw snacks hit a different note. Suppose it's possible to reap the benefits of eating raw by simply incorporating it into my snacking regimen, why, I'd have to reconsider my view. The recipes sound surprisingly delicious, particularly the energy bar and snack section. I flagged a number of pages, perused my local bulk store and came home with ingredients to test several raw snacks. Let's pretend I started with the PMS-preventative ones at random.

To my surprise, these Second-Wind Hazelnut Bars are extra sweet and chewy with just the right amount of texture. If this is how raw foods go down, count me in.

The recipe makes 24 small snack bites.

Second-Wind Hazelnut Bites
Recipe by Stephanie Tourles (as printed in Raw Energy)
Makes 24 small bites

1/2 cup raw hazelnuts
1/2 cup raw, hulled sunflower seeds
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut, finely shredded
1/4 cup raw honey
1/4 cup raw sesame tahini

Grind the hazelnuts and sunflower seeds into a medium-fine meal in a nut and seed grinder. [I used the food processor.]
Transfer the nut mixture to a medium bowl and stir in coconut, honey and tahini. Use your hands to blend the ingredients well and mash them into a small, cohesive dough ball.
Pinch off small pieces of dough and roll them into bite-size balls about 1 inch in diameter.
For the best flavor and consistenty, allow the balls to set for 24 hours before eating. Store the balls in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator and consume within 2 or 3 weeks. They may be individually wrapped, using waxed paper or plastic wrap, and taken with you to enjoy as portable energy bites.

Close-up of the final product, which resembles raw oatmeal cookie dough.

Stephanie Tourles is the author of Raw Energy: 124 Raw Food Recipes for Energy Bars, Smoothies, and Other Snacks to Supercharge Your Body, due out this month from Storey Publishing.