Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Monday, December 27, 2010
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
dinner date
Heather offered to make me a nice dinner for my birthday a few weeks ago, and we finally scheduled some time last weekend for our dinner date. We decided on steak a la Julia Child, with a red wine/butter/shallot sauce that was fantastic. I don't have the recipe at the moment, because I didn't do the cooking (awesome!), but I thought I needed to say something about how delicious it was.
SO DELICIOUS.
Also, I revisited the roasted brussels sprouts, which were a huge hit. I am pretty certain that Heather said the brussels sprouts changed her life. At any rate, it was the perfect meal to share with a friend over a bottle of cotes du rhone!
making use of thanksgiving/csa leftovers
Pie is something I can bake pretty well, at this point. It is easy enough for me to throw one together if I need to bring something to a dinner, and they give my apartment such a delightful aroma that I'll use any excuse to put one in the oven.
In this case, I used leftover turkey, and veggies from my CSA box (community supported agriculture) to bake a turkey pot pie. I've already talked about pie crust, and pie filling is more about what you like than anything else, but one key ingredient to a turkey or chicken pot pie made in my family is that it must have hard-boiled egg in it. I don't know how or where this started, but if you haven't tried it--you should. Hard boil two or three eggs, coarsely chop them, and add to your pie filling.
In addition, I had: celery, parsnip, turnip, potato, onion, carrot, and cauliflower. If I could go back in time and do it all over, I would love to put sweet potato in the pie, but I am extremely partial to sweet potatoes and pretty much all other root vegetables right now. Add a delicious turkey gravy, salt & pepper, and anything else you wish (celery salt? roasted garlic?), bake for about 40 minutes (until the crust is golden brown and your kitchen smells divine), and enjoy!
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
sweet potato pie
I've never had sweet potato pie before this year. I'm not sure why--but I suspect that it just simply isn't a northwestern tradition, because many of my friends said the same thing when I baked this pie. We usually eat pumpkin pie at our family thanksgiving get-togethers. Some are homemade, some are store-bought, but the pumpkin pie is always there. It is delicious, comforting, and always the same. Part of holiday traditions is the traditional food, creating a link in your mind between Thanksgiving 2010 and many, many Thanksgivings in the past. I am the sort of person who thrives on that connection. This Thanksgiving, I had to work during the day, and my mother came over to my apartment to cook a feast for the two of us to enjoy when I got off work. I wanted to contribute to the meal, but had such limited time in the days preceding that I only managed to accomplish cranberry sauce and pie.
This pie, however, was worth it. I came across the recipe during my daily perusal of the New York Times--Mark Bittman's Minimalist column directed me to this recipe, which I took one look at and knew I had to make.
I should point out that I did not use any dried coconut in the crust. I can't stand the stuff, and it reminds me of fingernail clippings when I look at it, so I tend to eschew dried coconut entirely. Fresh coconut, coconut milk, coconut cream, and coconut water are all fair game, though!
Ingredients:
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 1/3 cups graham cracker crumbs, made from one package graham crackers (which has 9 full cracker sheets according to the NYT recipe)
1/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut (or not, if you are like me!)
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, melted
3 eggs
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Pinch ground cloves
Large pinch salt
1 cup coconut milk.
Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees. Place sweet potatoes in a medium-sized saucepan, and fill with water to cover them. Cook for 15-20 minutes, or until they are very tender, then drain the water and mash the sweet potatoes.
While the sweet potatoes are cooking, put the graham crackers in a food processor and pulse a few times to crumble them. Add 2 tablespoons of the sugar and 1/4 teaspoon each of the ginger and cinnamon (and the coconut, if you choose to use it), and pulse once or twice; add the melted butter* and pulse just enough to combine.
Press the crust mixture into a 9-inch pie plate and bake for about 7 minutes, just long enough to lightly cook the crust before adding your wet pie filling to it.
In your food processor, combine the eggs with the leftover sugar, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt; pulse until well combined. Add the coconut milk and pulse to combine, then add the sweet potatoes and pulse until smooth. If you are a renegade baker who doesn't fear salmonella poisoning, this mixture tastes delicious.
Pour the sweet potato mixture gently into the pie crust, and bake it for 40-45 minutes, until the pie is set on top but still moist.
The recipe suggests serving the pie warm, which would surely be delicious, but if you are planning in advance, as I was, it is also quite tasty cold or room temperature, for dessert or breakfast (it was the morning after thanksgiving, so I get a free pass), for holiday party or seasonal dinner party. I have made two of these pies this year already, and have managed to capture a single photo, pre-baking.
*I used 6 tbsp of butter in my crust only. I tried using Anna's gingersnaps for my crust instead of graham cracker on my first try, and it didn't work out so well. There was SO much butter, and the crust just wasn't structurally sound. When I made the graham cracker crust as a second try, I was a little gun-shy, and cut back on the amount of butter. I definitely couldn't tell it was missing 2 tbsp of butter. Perhaps next time I will be daring and use all 8.
This pie, however, was worth it. I came across the recipe during my daily perusal of the New York Times--Mark Bittman's Minimalist column directed me to this recipe, which I took one look at and knew I had to make.
I should point out that I did not use any dried coconut in the crust. I can't stand the stuff, and it reminds me of fingernail clippings when I look at it, so I tend to eschew dried coconut entirely. Fresh coconut, coconut milk, coconut cream, and coconut water are all fair game, though!
Ingredients:
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 1/3 cups graham cracker crumbs, made from one package graham crackers (which has 9 full cracker sheets according to the NYT recipe)
1/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut (or not, if you are like me!)
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, melted
3 eggs
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Pinch ground cloves
Large pinch salt
1 cup coconut milk.
Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees. Place sweet potatoes in a medium-sized saucepan, and fill with water to cover them. Cook for 15-20 minutes, or until they are very tender, then drain the water and mash the sweet potatoes.
While the sweet potatoes are cooking, put the graham crackers in a food processor and pulse a few times to crumble them. Add 2 tablespoons of the sugar and 1/4 teaspoon each of the ginger and cinnamon (and the coconut, if you choose to use it), and pulse once or twice; add the melted butter* and pulse just enough to combine.
Press the crust mixture into a 9-inch pie plate and bake for about 7 minutes, just long enough to lightly cook the crust before adding your wet pie filling to it.
In your food processor, combine the eggs with the leftover sugar, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt; pulse until well combined. Add the coconut milk and pulse to combine, then add the sweet potatoes and pulse until smooth. If you are a renegade baker who doesn't fear salmonella poisoning, this mixture tastes delicious.
Pour the sweet potato mixture gently into the pie crust, and bake it for 40-45 minutes, until the pie is set on top but still moist.
The recipe suggests serving the pie warm, which would surely be delicious, but if you are planning in advance, as I was, it is also quite tasty cold or room temperature, for dessert or breakfast (it was the morning after thanksgiving, so I get a free pass), for holiday party or seasonal dinner party. I have made two of these pies this year already, and have managed to capture a single photo, pre-baking.
*I used 6 tbsp of butter in my crust only. I tried using Anna's gingersnaps for my crust instead of graham cracker on my first try, and it didn't work out so well. There was SO much butter, and the crust just wasn't structurally sound. When I made the graham cracker crust as a second try, I was a little gun-shy, and cut back on the amount of butter. I definitely couldn't tell it was missing 2 tbsp of butter. Perhaps next time I will be daring and use all 8.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
curried butternut squash red lentil soup
I can't seem to eat enough lentils these days. I've been making lentil soup of various types almost once a week! It's a good thing lentils are so healthy.
This time, I had an itch to make a soup that incorporated one of my favorite winter vegetables--squash! I tweaked a recipe from Gourmet magazine (February 2009) to suit me, with delicious results. Not only did this soup turn a beautiful shade of orange, but it was richly flavored, filling, and perfect for a crisp fall day. If I were better prepared, I might have garnished it with roasted spiced pumpkin seeds or served it with a nice grainy loaf of bread, but it stands on its own beautifully.
I should mention that the original version is not a blended soup, but I wanted a puree, so out came the immersion blender!
Ingredients:
3 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 lb butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 large onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp minced peeled ginger
1 tbsp curry paste (I used yellow)
1 cup red lentils, picked over and rinsed
2 qts water (I substituted vegetable stock)
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice, or to taste
1/4 tsp black pepper
Heat oil and butter together in a pot over medium heat until the butter is fully melted and the foam subsides. Add squash, onion, carrot, garlic, ginger, and 1 teaspoon salt, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened and beginning to brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Add curry paste and pepper, cook for a couple of minuted longer to allow the vegetables to absorb the curry flavor. Next, add vegetable stock (or water if you prefer), lentils, and simmer for 30-40 minutes, until lentils are tender. Blend soup until smooth, add lemon juice, and give it a good stir before serving. The original recipe also suggests drizzling the soup with cilantro oil before serving. If this is to your taste, you can make cilantro oil by pureeing 1/2 cup chopped cilantro and 1/2 cup vegetable oil with a pinch of salt in a blender.
This time, I had an itch to make a soup that incorporated one of my favorite winter vegetables--squash! I tweaked a recipe from Gourmet magazine (February 2009) to suit me, with delicious results. Not only did this soup turn a beautiful shade of orange, but it was richly flavored, filling, and perfect for a crisp fall day. If I were better prepared, I might have garnished it with roasted spiced pumpkin seeds or served it with a nice grainy loaf of bread, but it stands on its own beautifully.
I should mention that the original version is not a blended soup, but I wanted a puree, so out came the immersion blender!
Ingredients:
3 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 lb butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 large onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp minced peeled ginger
1 tbsp curry paste (I used yellow)
1 cup red lentils, picked over and rinsed
2 qts water (I substituted vegetable stock)
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice, or to taste
1/4 tsp black pepper
Heat oil and butter together in a pot over medium heat until the butter is fully melted and the foam subsides. Add squash, onion, carrot, garlic, ginger, and 1 teaspoon salt, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened and beginning to brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Add curry paste and pepper, cook for a couple of minuted longer to allow the vegetables to absorb the curry flavor. Next, add vegetable stock (or water if you prefer), lentils, and simmer for 30-40 minutes, until lentils are tender. Blend soup until smooth, add lemon juice, and give it a good stir before serving. The original recipe also suggests drizzling the soup with cilantro oil before serving. If this is to your taste, you can make cilantro oil by pureeing 1/2 cup chopped cilantro and 1/2 cup vegetable oil with a pinch of salt in a blender.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
brussels sprouts
I have successfully convinced at least two people this year that they do, in fact, like brussels sprouts. When I was a kid, I didn't like them either, but this winter... I eat them constantly. Right now, my favorite way to eat them is roasted--Ina Garten's recipe is ridiculously easy and SO good.
ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs brussels sprouts, cut in half lengthwise
3 tbsp good olive oil
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
Preheat your oven to 400F.
Toss brussels sprouts with the olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread on a sheet pan and roast for 30-40 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally to ensure the brussels sprouts brown evenly. Sprinkle with more kosher salt if desired, and serve! I have eaten them hot out of the oven and also cold as leftovers and liked them immensely both ways. Even if you are a non-believer, I think you should give this a try... It is worlds different from the icky boiled brussels sprouts you may be familar with.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
ginger cookies
However, cookies are portable and delicious, they are good for potlucks and game night and bringing to work, and most of the time you can make the dough ahead of time by at least a day, which is great if you don't have a lot of time.
I stumbled across the following recipe for ginger cookies last week when I was yearning for a warm apartment filled with the delicious perfume of baking cookies. I adore ginger, and the prospect of a cookie with crystalized, fresh, AND ground ginger? Too delicious to ignore.
(Bon Appetit 2009)
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups flour
1/3 cup minced crystalized ginger
2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup (1 & 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
1/4 cup light/mild molasses
1 1/2 tsp grated peeled ginger
1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cloves
Preheat your oven to 350F, and move the oven racks (if you are fancy and have more than one--my tiny oven does not) to the top third and bottom third of your oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, and set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and crystalized ginger.
Cream butter and brown sugar together in a large bowl using an electric mixer or elbow grease, if your mixer has gone a bit off it its old age like mine has. Add egg, molasses, ginger, cloves, and cinnamon. Beat this mixture together to blend, then add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients gradually--mix until blended.
Measure about 1/3 cup of white sugar into a bowl, then roll tablespoon-sized scoops of dough into balls and coat with sugar before placing them on the baking sheet. Place the cookies approximately 1 1/2 inches apart, and bake for about 15 minutes, or until the edges crack but the center remains slightly soft.
These cookies stayed fresh for the few days after baking that they survived--I will definitely make these again, and perhaps pack them with even more ginger next time! They were gingery and delicious for fall, but could be given a little added bite if that's your style.
These cookies stayed fresh for the few days after baking that they survived--I will definitely make these again, and perhaps pack them with even more ginger next time! They were gingery and delicious for fall, but could be given a little added bite if that's your style.
Ps-I wasn't planning to make a pun via photo, but it just happened.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
I love gin.
I really love this gin. It's from Oregon, and has a lovely cardamom flavor. www.ransomspirits.com/spirits.php
Just thought people should be aware.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
minty pea spread!
Inspired by an episode of Mad Men when deciding on what to bring to, appropriately enough, a Mad Men watching party, I decided that the best thing to do would be to make dip and bring chips--the host graciously provided a chip and dip for the occasion. No one brought an air rifle.
Now, I have never been a big chips & dip person... I'll buy a bag of tortilla chips and some salsa for a party, but that's about as far as it goes. I'm not sure if it is because dip has gone out of fashion in home entertainment, or because I am poorly equiped to entertain, but I didn't know more than one recipe for dip, and had to do some investigating before I settled on this one.
The recipe (Jamie Oliver's, found on http://www.dinneralovestory.com/) is actually a spread for delicious bread, and in full disclosure is best suited for this purpose. We ate it with pita chips, which were delicious, but the consistency of the dip is not well suited to being scooped up by the chipful.
I loved that it included fresh mint--I can't get enough mint when it is in season! Also, peas are so deliciously fresh tasting that I couldn't resist trying this out.
Ingredients:
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
a handful of fresh mint leaves
2 tbsp fresh parmesean cheese
juice from 1/2 lemon
1/3 cup olive oil
salt to taste
Everything goes into a food processor, where you blend it into submission, or until it is smooth. I stopped to taste mine and ended up adding more lemon juice--mint, parmesean, salt, and lemon juice can all be tweaked depending on your tastes. Serve on a nice crusty bread, drizzle a little olive oil, and grate some fresh parmesean over the top, and you won't be disappointed. Even though it didn't work as well for dip as for a spread, my friends really enjoyed this and I will definitely make it again!
Now, I have never been a big chips & dip person... I'll buy a bag of tortilla chips and some salsa for a party, but that's about as far as it goes. I'm not sure if it is because dip has gone out of fashion in home entertainment, or because I am poorly equiped to entertain, but I didn't know more than one recipe for dip, and had to do some investigating before I settled on this one.
The recipe (Jamie Oliver's, found on http://www.dinneralovestory.com/) is actually a spread for delicious bread, and in full disclosure is best suited for this purpose. We ate it with pita chips, which were delicious, but the consistency of the dip is not well suited to being scooped up by the chipful.
I loved that it included fresh mint--I can't get enough mint when it is in season! Also, peas are so deliciously fresh tasting that I couldn't resist trying this out.
Ingredients:
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
a handful of fresh mint leaves
2 tbsp fresh parmesean cheese
juice from 1/2 lemon
1/3 cup olive oil
salt to taste
Everything goes into a food processor, where you blend it into submission, or until it is smooth. I stopped to taste mine and ended up adding more lemon juice--mint, parmesean, salt, and lemon juice can all be tweaked depending on your tastes. Serve on a nice crusty bread, drizzle a little olive oil, and grate some fresh parmesean over the top, and you won't be disappointed. Even though it didn't work as well for dip as for a spread, my friends really enjoyed this and I will definitely make it again!
Saturday, August 28, 2010
crepestravaganza
I've already written about crepes--I love them. Once you get the hang of it, they are easy to make, and it's a nice breakfast to whip up if you're having people over or if you just want to spoil yourself a little. I use Julia Child's crepe recipe, which, if you haven't tried... you should. The gold standard, in my humble opinion. I had an extremely successful brunch with a lady friend over the summer, and I just thought I'd share some pictures... Our crepe fillings were particularly successful: melon & prosciutto, fresh strawberry, blackberry, and golden raspberry with triple sec whipped cream and shaved dark chocolate, seared scallop, spinach, and hollandaise sauce with bacon... We were stuffed, and pretty impressed with our crepe accomplishments.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
a lighter potato/leek soup
I seem to have several recipes for potato leek soup. I happen to be quite a fan of leeks, and soup is one of my favorite things to make—but the recipes I looked at all seemed too heavy for a warm summer day. I searched around for some summery soups to enjoy, and just happened upon a spring recipe for potato leek soup with no milk or butter in it to make for a lighter dinner while still making use of the leeks I had my eye on. This recipe from http://chicagoist.com looked fairly simple, which appealed to me as a low-key weekend dinner option that wouldn’t take up a lot of my time. I of course ended up making it a major project, as I chose this time to also make homemade vegetable stock to use in the soup, but it really was worth it.
Ingredients:
1 clove of garlic, diced
½ cup diced pancetta
1 tbs olive oil
2 large leeks, chopped (the white/pale green parts)
1 pound of yellow potatoes
1 cup vegetable or chicken broth
1 cup water
flat leaf parsley and green onions (for topping)
In a medium-sized pot, boil potatoes until slightly soft. I put mine in the refrigerator to cool off, as they need to be cut into 1 inch cubes and I didn’t feel as though second-degree burns would go all that well with my soup. This also frees up the pot to use for the next steps, which means less dishes for me to wash! Next, heat the olive oil in your medium-sized pot, then add the garlic and diced pancetta.
I should note here that I am never convinced that there is enough garlic in ANY recipe, and I often double or triple (in this case) the recommended amount of garlic. If you are a nonbeliever, you can stick to 1 clove of garlic, but I will say that the extra garlic was an excellent choice in this particular recipe. The garlic and pancetta should sizzle merrily away until lightly browned. The leeks are the next addition and should be cooked on medium heat until soft—you don’t want to brown them. Add the cubed potatoes, water, and broth (I added an extra ½ cup of broth to mine), and cook until the potatoes are soft—approximately 20 minutes. Blend about 1 cup of soup in a small food processor (or alternately, use an immersion blender to smooth out the texture of your soup a bit), and add back to the pot. Serve, using the green onions and parsley as garnish.
A word about parsley: I don’t really like it all that much. I might be alone in this, but I almost never buy parsley unless I think it is vital to the integrity of the meal, or if I am entertaining and want the presentation to be especially nice, OR if I have several other things to use parsley in before it goes bad. None of those things were the case in this instance, but I love green onions and can nearly always find an excuse to use them, so I garnished my soup with green onion and fresh ground pepper, which was lovely.
Summer is an excellent time to enjoy a nice chilled glass of rosé, and, incidentally, rosé pairs quite well with this soup. I am a bit of a neophyte when it comes to rosé, I must admit, but I spent a bit of time exploring the selection at Metropolitan Market and I chose La Vielle Ferme Côtes du Ventoux 2009 rosé, which was a lovely deep pink in color, and was dry with a fruity bouquet. It was also affordable—I believe it was under $9 on sale. I will definitely be drinking more rosé as our summer heats up!
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
raw beet salad
I have loved beets since I was a little girl. They are sweet and earthy, brightly colored, and I will always happily gobble them up. I am learning that beets are one of those vegetables that many people just don't like. I'm not sure why--they are the candy of the vegetable family!
A recent article in the New York Times listed beets as #1 of the 11 best foods you aren't eating, as a great source of folate and potentially cancer-preventive antioxidants. To highlight that article, they have recently posted some great beet recipes--one of which I made last night and loved.
ingredients:
1/2 lb beets
3 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp minced chives, mint, parsley, or a combination of the three
2 tbsp minced chives, mint, parsley, or a combination of the three
salt to taste
leaves of 1 romaine heart (I left these out this time)
This salad is easy and very quick to make. First, scrub the hell out of the beets, trim any gross-looking bits off, and then grate them into a medium/small bowl. Toss the minced mint, parsley, chives, or the mix with your grated beets. Add olive oil, juice, and mix well. I added just a dash of salt to my salad, mixed it again for good measure, and refridgerated it for about half an hour before serving to allow the juices to mingle.
I used fresh mint this time. I think if I had used chives or parsley instead, I might have used a tad more lemon juice than orange juice as a complement to the more savory herbs.
This mixture was awesome. I completely forgot to buy the romaine, but it stands alone quite well. It is a great summer salad and I had visions of grilled salmon served alongside. I would definitely bring this to a barbeque or summer potluck!
This mixture was awesome. I completely forgot to buy the romaine, but it stands alone quite well. It is a great summer salad and I had visions of grilled salmon served alongside. I would definitely bring this to a barbeque or summer potluck!
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Vegetable stock
In an effort to live more sustainably and to make more things from scratch, I have begun making my own stock--usually I will make chicken stock for soup the same day and use all or most of it, but I am constantly needing vegetable stock for different soups I am making, and thought I should learn how to make stock without meat.
A friend of mine gave me the excellent idea of storing waste vegetable scraps in a container in my freezer, which I dutifully did for a little over a month. This is perfect for someone like me, because I always feel so wasteful when a bit of onion starts going wilty in my fridge and gets thrown out--scallions especially tend to get tossed when they aren't used up right away, as they have such a short shelf life. By the end of my vegetable scrap hoarding period, I had squirreled away broccoli, onion, scallions, celery, shallots, (washed) potato peelings, rosemary, zucchini, wilted salad mix, and more!
The day of, I bought a few carrots to add to the stock, and was cooking with leeks, so I added the dark green part of the leeks, and a couple of tomatoes in my fridge that were going soft. I tossed a few turkish bay leaves on top for good measure, and filled the pot with water. In general, no matter how much stock you are making, you should have enough water to cover, or in the case of floaty vegetables, mostly submerge the stock ingredients. Adding the standard mirepoix (celery, carrots, onion) is, in my book, a requirement--if you don't already have these items on hand, you'll want to pick them up before making your stock.
In addition to these things, you can add wine to the stock, though I did not in this case. Generally, with stock, you want to just cook it for a long time to really ensure that the flavor (and nutrients!) are thorough. I brought the pot to a simmer, and let it cook away on medium heat for a little less than 2 hours covered, then uncovered and reduced for about an hour and a half. The stock that I ended up with was a lovely light brown color, and tasted great! I got about 6 cups of stock from my recipe, and put it in the freezer in 2-cup portions.
Depending on what you'd like to use the stock for, you could put any number of things into your stock. You might want to add more herbs, use fresh ginger, tons of garlic, add colorful beets or beet greens for a brightly colored stock... you name it. I look forward to more stock experiments in the future!
A friend of mine gave me the excellent idea of storing waste vegetable scraps in a container in my freezer, which I dutifully did for a little over a month. This is perfect for someone like me, because I always feel so wasteful when a bit of onion starts going wilty in my fridge and gets thrown out--scallions especially tend to get tossed when they aren't used up right away, as they have such a short shelf life. By the end of my vegetable scrap hoarding period, I had squirreled away broccoli, onion, scallions, celery, shallots, (washed) potato peelings, rosemary, zucchini, wilted salad mix, and more!
The day of, I bought a few carrots to add to the stock, and was cooking with leeks, so I added the dark green part of the leeks, and a couple of tomatoes in my fridge that were going soft. I tossed a few turkish bay leaves on top for good measure, and filled the pot with water. In general, no matter how much stock you are making, you should have enough water to cover, or in the case of floaty vegetables, mostly submerge the stock ingredients. Adding the standard mirepoix (celery, carrots, onion) is, in my book, a requirement--if you don't already have these items on hand, you'll want to pick them up before making your stock.
In addition to these things, you can add wine to the stock, though I did not in this case. Generally, with stock, you want to just cook it for a long time to really ensure that the flavor (and nutrients!) are thorough. I brought the pot to a simmer, and let it cook away on medium heat for a little less than 2 hours covered, then uncovered and reduced for about an hour and a half. The stock that I ended up with was a lovely light brown color, and tasted great! I got about 6 cups of stock from my recipe, and put it in the freezer in 2-cup portions.
Depending on what you'd like to use the stock for, you could put any number of things into your stock. You might want to add more herbs, use fresh ginger, tons of garlic, add colorful beets or beet greens for a brightly colored stock... you name it. I look forward to more stock experiments in the future!
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Plátanos Maduros
I had never eaten a plantain until I tried plátanos maduros at a Puerto Rican restaurant. It was love at first bite, and every once in a while I find myself craving them. Plantains are a cousin of the sweet banana that we eat as a snack, baked into bread, sliced over cereal in the morning, etc. However, a plantain is NOT a banana. Plantains are extremely versatile--they can be cooked while green or yellow as a starchy component to a meal (the potato of the caribbean!) or they can be cooked when black, the starches within having converted to sugars. I have had plantains both ways, but I must admit that my sweet tooth points me towards this recipe whenever I have plantains on hand.
It's pretty easy to make plátanos maduros. Basically, you just buy some plantains, and forget about them. For a week, for a month, whatever. The riper they are when you get around to using them, the better. I should have waited a little longer to make these for optimum deliciousness, but I am not a patient woman.
This is how it goes down--it is ridiculously easy and unless you hate plantains, you won't regret it. If you hate plantains, I question the logic behind your desire to read this blog entry.
Slice your plantain the same way you might slice a banana to put it into your cereal. My plantain slices were on the thick side, which I how I like them. Clearly, if your slices are thinner, you will need to be more careful about watching them while they fry to avoid overcooking.
Heat a frying pan filled with oil--it should be enough to at least partially submerge the plantains while they fry.
I don't fry a lot of things, so this process grosses me out a bit. Tons and tons of hot oil that I am submerging fruit in? Weird. If it grosses you out too, get past it. It's worth it.
Toss the sliced plantains in what should, by now, be VERY hot oil ready to fry them up. They should turn a lovely, caramelized-looking golden brown color. Cook both sides, remove from oil, and allow to cool a bit on a paper towel (to suck away some extra oil).
You can eat the plátanos as is, or, as I did this time: with a bit of cinnamon and sugar sprinkled over the top. YUM.
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