Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.7
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Pea Planting Time is Upon Us!
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Black Truffles
An exciting farmer's market find! Truffles have a unique earthy flavor that give the simplest dishes power. These funghi are famous for being hunted by specialized pigs in France and Italy, but as it turns out there are plenty to be found in Washington and Oregon. Northwestern truffles are considerably less expensive as well. I've heard they can cost a fortune or your life in France, but I paid less than $10 for 6. Which is a lot, but for the novelty they provided, it seems pretty worth it.
They are kind of a pain to clean as they have quite a bit of dirt caked on them and you don't really want to water them down much if you can avoid it. Fortunately I had just picked up a free toothbrush at the dentists :). Truffles can be stored in cornmeal, in the fridge for up to a week. What's great about this is that when you are done storing them, you can still cook up the polenta.
The same holds true for eggs. Omlette is one of the classic truffle preparations, and keeping truffles in the same container helps the aroma permeate the egg.
In the end, I just went with these two preparations - truffled polenta and scrambled eggs with truffles. Both were delicious - you just shave the truffles into the polenta or scrambled eggs while they cook, add salt, pepper, and parm and you are golden!
They are kind of a pain to clean as they have quite a bit of dirt caked on them and you don't really want to water them down much if you can avoid it. Fortunately I had just picked up a free toothbrush at the dentists :). Truffles can be stored in cornmeal, in the fridge for up to a week. What's great about this is that when you are done storing them, you can still cook up the polenta.
The same holds true for eggs. Omlette is one of the classic truffle preparations, and keeping truffles in the same container helps the aroma permeate the egg.
In the end, I just went with these two preparations - truffled polenta and scrambled eggs with truffles. Both were delicious - you just shave the truffles into the polenta or scrambled eggs while they cook, add salt, pepper, and parm and you are golden!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Spanish Tortilla
Basically a potato frittata, this dish is simple, satisfying and versatile. You can enjoy it for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It can be eaten hot or cold. And it is also commonly served at tapas - Spain's version of happy hour - with romesco sauce. You will get a lot of leftovers from the dish, so it's nice that it works well for so many occasions.
I loosely followed Mark Bittman's recipe to make this. But basically you slice potatoes thinly, saute them in what seems like too much olive oil until they are nearly done cooking, remove them and then saute thinly sliced onions in the olive oil not absorbed by the potatoes for several minutes. Salt and pepper liberally, then combine it all in one oven proof pan (I used a cast iron skillet for the whole thing. Bittman does the potatoes and onions together, but I just couldn't fit it all in my pan. Now that you have the onions and potatoes combined in the pan, pour your eggs over the top so that you have enough egg to mostly cover the vegetables. I used a pint of egg beaters instead of whole eggs. I have been trying not to eat so many yolks, so I reserve whole eggs for when I want them fried or poached and not scrambled. Mark Bittman cooks his on the stove top and flips it to cook it evenly. I am just not that skilled, so I cook mine in the oven at 350 for 20-30 minutes or so. You can see from the detail below that I've done it this way because my vegetables stick up out of the egg mixture.
We ate it plain, practically straight from the oven the first time, but later enjoyed it slightly warm with some homemade romesco sauce - which I made by tossing half a cup of sundried tomatoes, a quarter of a cup of sliced almonds, a generous sprinkle of smoked Spanish paprika and a roasted red pepper into the food processor until I had a nice paste. There are more complicated and smoother versions of romesco out there, but this was really good and used some stuff we had hanging around in our fridge. I could have added more olive oil to smooth it out, but I was happy with the texture as is.
I loosely followed Mark Bittman's recipe to make this. But basically you slice potatoes thinly, saute them in what seems like too much olive oil until they are nearly done cooking, remove them and then saute thinly sliced onions in the olive oil not absorbed by the potatoes for several minutes. Salt and pepper liberally, then combine it all in one oven proof pan (I used a cast iron skillet for the whole thing. Bittman does the potatoes and onions together, but I just couldn't fit it all in my pan. Now that you have the onions and potatoes combined in the pan, pour your eggs over the top so that you have enough egg to mostly cover the vegetables. I used a pint of egg beaters instead of whole eggs. I have been trying not to eat so many yolks, so I reserve whole eggs for when I want them fried or poached and not scrambled. Mark Bittman cooks his on the stove top and flips it to cook it evenly. I am just not that skilled, so I cook mine in the oven at 350 for 20-30 minutes or so. You can see from the detail below that I've done it this way because my vegetables stick up out of the egg mixture.
We ate it plain, practically straight from the oven the first time, but later enjoyed it slightly warm with some homemade romesco sauce - which I made by tossing half a cup of sundried tomatoes, a quarter of a cup of sliced almonds, a generous sprinkle of smoked Spanish paprika and a roasted red pepper into the food processor until I had a nice paste. There are more complicated and smoother versions of romesco out there, but this was really good and used some stuff we had hanging around in our fridge. I could have added more olive oil to smooth it out, but I was happy with the texture as is.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Caprese
Mozzarella Tomato Basil. Need I say more?
Enjoy it slightly warmed on grilled bread
Or as a salad, no bread necessary to enjoy this scrumptious combo
Enjoy it slightly warmed on grilled bread
Or as a salad, no bread necessary to enjoy this scrumptious combo
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Have I Mentioned this Pizza?
As soon as you get the chance, go to Carmelita for happy hour. The pizzas are so amazing, you will not be disappointed, nor will you be able to stop thinking about them. Ever since my first visit, I have been constantly trying to recreate them and while none of these are quite as good as theirs, we've been enjoying the results of my aspirations.
This is a Newman's Own Spinach and Cheese with the additional toppings of cremini mushrooms, pecans, roasted garlic, and wild arugula tossed with truffle oil, salt and pepper
The same store bought pizza again, but with some treats from the forager - porcini mushrooms and fiddlehead ferns, pecans, and green garlic slices.
Once it's out of the oven, I topped it again with the arugula tossed in truffle oil with salt and pepper.
Once, I was brave enough to make my own pizza whole wheat pizza dough. So good. This one is topped with roasted delicata squash, delicata seeds, kale, mushrooms, roasted onions, roasted garlic and a little parmesan. Love winter squash on pizza.
This is a Newman's Own Spinach and Cheese with the additional toppings of cremini mushrooms, pecans, roasted garlic, and wild arugula tossed with truffle oil, salt and pepper
The same store bought pizza again, but with some treats from the forager - porcini mushrooms and fiddlehead ferns, pecans, and green garlic slices.
Once it's out of the oven, I topped it again with the arugula tossed in truffle oil with salt and pepper.
Once, I was brave enough to make my own pizza whole wheat pizza dough. So good. This one is topped with roasted delicata squash, delicata seeds, kale, mushrooms, roasted onions, roasted garlic and a little parmesan. Love winter squash on pizza.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Creative Tacos
Since giving up meat, I've discovered that most vegetables/vegetarian dishes make delicious tacos. Though I am still occasionally wistful for carnitas, trying everything else in a tortilla has been a satisfying endeavor. Here are some great combos you can try at home.
Sauteed Zucchini, Basil, and Parmesan - this actually has yellow squash and squash blossom as well, but I just happen to have that. If you don't mind a little half and half, it coalesces the mix nicely, but is not necessary.
Banh Mi taco - we had some banh mi fixings left over and no bread, so I popped this into a corn tortilla instead. Charlie walked into the room as I was spreading the mayo on the tortilla and said "I like where this is going." We were still laughing as we ate.
Paneer curry with edamame, green beans, and carrots. The sauce I used is the coconut curry costco sells. You can also use any curry simmer sauce from trader joe's or make your own. This could be made vegan by subbing in tofu or potato for the paneer cheese. I had planned to only serve this over rice, but I remembered my odd taco successes of late and served it with tortillas as well, which really isn't a far cry from the round Indian flatbread Roti. When we were in Malaysia, a very popular street food dish was Roti Canai - which was basically a curry taco with Roti. This turned out so good that in future I'd make this for lunch without the rice.
Nearly every Mark Bittman post is irresistible to me, so after he posted about fava beans as an untraditional breakfast, I swooped into The Spanish Table to get some. I knew from experience at The Phoenicia restaurant on Alki, that ful madammes could not be made with fresh fave from the garden, but was a product of dried cooked beans and given how laborious it is to prepare fresh fave, I figured I would just pick up a can. Later, I read a blog post from a couple who tried doing the dried beans themselves and I am seriously glad I went for canned! Ful madammes is usually served with flatbread or pita, so why not a breakfast taco? Delicious!
Yet another variation of the Marination Mobile's "Sexy Tofu." Love this. Marinated tofu grilled up with some creamy slaw.
Sauteed Zucchini, Basil, and Parmesan - this actually has yellow squash and squash blossom as well, but I just happen to have that. If you don't mind a little half and half, it coalesces the mix nicely, but is not necessary.
Banh Mi taco - we had some banh mi fixings left over and no bread, so I popped this into a corn tortilla instead. Charlie walked into the room as I was spreading the mayo on the tortilla and said "I like where this is going." We were still laughing as we ate.
Paneer curry with edamame, green beans, and carrots. The sauce I used is the coconut curry costco sells. You can also use any curry simmer sauce from trader joe's or make your own. This could be made vegan by subbing in tofu or potato for the paneer cheese. I had planned to only serve this over rice, but I remembered my odd taco successes of late and served it with tortillas as well, which really isn't a far cry from the round Indian flatbread Roti. When we were in Malaysia, a very popular street food dish was Roti Canai - which was basically a curry taco with Roti. This turned out so good that in future I'd make this for lunch without the rice.
Nearly every Mark Bittman post is irresistible to me, so after he posted about fava beans as an untraditional breakfast, I swooped into The Spanish Table to get some. I knew from experience at The Phoenicia restaurant on Alki, that ful madammes could not be made with fresh fave from the garden, but was a product of dried cooked beans and given how laborious it is to prepare fresh fave, I figured I would just pick up a can. Later, I read a blog post from a couple who tried doing the dried beans themselves and I am seriously glad I went for canned! Ful madammes is usually served with flatbread or pita, so why not a breakfast taco? Delicious!
Yet another variation of the Marination Mobile's "Sexy Tofu." Love this. Marinated tofu grilled up with some creamy slaw.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Oven roasted cauliflower
This is a totally amazing, easy low-calorie side dish. Chop your cauliflower into florets as you wait for the oven to hit 400. Toss the florets onto a greased pan (I find metal caramelizes it best) and sprinkle with smoked paprika, salt, and pepper, and roast it for about 20 minutes or so. I never can hold back enough to have left overs, but I bet that they would be good in quesidillas, pasta or topped with a fried egg :).
Thursday, March 3, 2011
I miss the Green Cat Cafe
The Green Cat Cafe was a fabulous vegetarian restaurant on lower capitol hill's Olive Way. I loved everything on their menu, but two things I've had some success in replicating are the Buddha Bowl and the Tofu Scramble.
Buddha Bowls are a classic veggie meal - stir-fried tofu and vegetable atop brown rice with some peanut sauce. I've seen a billion variations on this with different sauces and vegetable combos, and being creative is totally the way to go with this. Still, pictured below is a classic combo that you can't go wrong with.
Green Cat's tofu scramble was special in a few ways. It was made heartier by being served on top of delicious roasted potatoes and the combination of curried tofu, broccoli, carrot and onion was simple and satisfying. The secret to good tofu scrambles is to add a tablespoon of nutritional yeast to the tofu. Nutritional yeast is one of my favorite things right now - it provides good protein and B12 to vegetarians, plus it tastes like nutty Parmesan cheese. It's umami amazing.
Buddha Bowls are a classic veggie meal - stir-fried tofu and vegetable atop brown rice with some peanut sauce. I've seen a billion variations on this with different sauces and vegetable combos, and being creative is totally the way to go with this. Still, pictured below is a classic combo that you can't go wrong with.
Green Cat's tofu scramble was special in a few ways. It was made heartier by being served on top of delicious roasted potatoes and the combination of curried tofu, broccoli, carrot and onion was simple and satisfying. The secret to good tofu scrambles is to add a tablespoon of nutritional yeast to the tofu. Nutritional yeast is one of my favorite things right now - it provides good protein and B12 to vegetarians, plus it tastes like nutty Parmesan cheese. It's umami amazing.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Eggs with Fines Herbes
Scrambled eggs are fantastic with the Fines Herbes combo. This is an awesome reason to grow some herbs. The combination is chervil, parsley, tarragon, and chive. Yum. I've never found chervil in the store, but if you can't grow your own, you can still try this. I noticed eggs with fines herbes on the menu at Toulouse Petit when we went there for the delicious breakfast happy hour with Jill and Morgan. You don't want to miss it!
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Spanakopita
Spanakopita is a substantial vegetarian dish readily available in Greece, particularly during Lent. This is a great dish to make when you have too many leafy greens, especially if you have a combination of different types. During Lent this is made with sauteed leafy greens, oregano, dill, mint, onions, and garlic in a phyllo crust. During the rest of the year, eggs and feta are often added to the greens mixture. When I don't have feta, I've made a great Americanized version with cottage cheese.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Morels and other Spring Treats from the Farmer's Market
I am so looking forward to our farmer's market opening back up. I am especially keen to visit the forager again. In another life, I think that could be a great job, but in this one I am afraid of bears, so it's not happening. Instead I will buy my morels from our brave forager and his lovely dog Jasper.
Morels pair especially well with peas and salmon. This is a lovely brown rice risotto - I make it in a cheat way, instead of the laborious adding of broth one cup at a time, I just use left over rice added to sauteed vegetables, some half and half (or non-dairy creamer), and some madeira. This works just fine and takes half the time. I topped the salmon with a roasted scape from the garden. And the risotto is topped with delicious sage blossoms, a little trick I learned from eating at Jerry Traunfield's Poppy restaurant. Delicious!
Ahh fresh English Peas from the market. We are only a few months away from enjoying you again.
Spring onions and green garlic, the bottom half of whips and scapes, are wonderful farmer's market treats - the milder flavor of these two are perfect for spring dishes.
Same again, but with gnocchi instead of rice.
Morels pair especially well with peas and salmon. This is a lovely brown rice risotto - I make it in a cheat way, instead of the laborious adding of broth one cup at a time, I just use left over rice added to sauteed vegetables, some half and half (or non-dairy creamer), and some madeira. This works just fine and takes half the time. I topped the salmon with a roasted scape from the garden. And the risotto is topped with delicious sage blossoms, a little trick I learned from eating at Jerry Traunfield's Poppy restaurant. Delicious!
Ahh fresh English Peas from the market. We are only a few months away from enjoying you again.
Spring onions and green garlic, the bottom half of whips and scapes, are wonderful farmer's market treats - the milder flavor of these two are perfect for spring dishes.
Same again, but with gnocchi instead of rice.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Beans and Greens: Vegetarian Iron
Beans and greens don't seem to photograph well, but they taste fabulous and are an excellent source of vegetarian iron. Plant sources of iron can be difficult for the body to absorb, but something about the bean and the green together makes it happen. Go team!
Kale and White Beans - this is a classic Tuscan combo, though I suppose in Tuscany they use cannellini and lacinato kale, where as I've just used great northern beans and regular kale. Saute your kale with garlic and onion in olive oil, then add cooked beans and parm at the end with some salt and pepper to taste. Perfect comfort food.
This was a bit of an experiment on the same theme and it turned out fairly well though I won't rely on it as I do the kale white bean combo. This is Gumbo z'Herbs, popular in Louisiana during Lent when many Catholics traditionally abstained from meat. There are some really complicated recipes out there, but mine is just mustard greens, sauteed with onions, garlic, smoked paprika, some Tony Chachere's creole seasoning with black eyed peas and vegetable broth.
Kale and White Beans - this is a classic Tuscan combo, though I suppose in Tuscany they use cannellini and lacinato kale, where as I've just used great northern beans and regular kale. Saute your kale with garlic and onion in olive oil, then add cooked beans and parm at the end with some salt and pepper to taste. Perfect comfort food.
This was a bit of an experiment on the same theme and it turned out fairly well though I won't rely on it as I do the kale white bean combo. This is Gumbo z'Herbs, popular in Louisiana during Lent when many Catholics traditionally abstained from meat. There are some really complicated recipes out there, but mine is just mustard greens, sauteed with onions, garlic, smoked paprika, some Tony Chachere's creole seasoning with black eyed peas and vegetable broth.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Banh Mi
So I disappeared for awhile there. Sorry! I think trying to do two blogs was too much. Plus the camera that I used for the blog died on our vacation. And has anyone else noticed how annoying picasa is? I should probably migrate this over to a word press/flicker thing some day, but I don't really want to bother to learn that either. Anyway I've got dozens of old posts that I started and never posted - but I think they are all good eats, so I will just spend a little time getting caught up and re-learning how to do this before you see some new stuff.
In the meantime - here are two banh mi sandwiches we enjoyed this summer. Banh mi are Vietnamese sub sandwiches. If you've never had one, I recommend finding a spot immediately and buying the best $2 sandwich you'll ever find. Lately Charlie and I have been going to Seattle Deli - he gets grilled pork and I get tofu. So good. $5 for both. This is our new treat before going to costco, which has the added benefit of not having us shop hungry at a store where it is difficult to spend less than $100.
The vegetables in banh mi are usually daikon radish and carrots, slightly pickled in rice vinegar with cilantro - in my version below i used french radish, carrot, cucumber and basil.
I have no idea how they make their tofu so magical at Seattle Deli, but for my home version I marinated some tempeh in teriyaki, which I later grilled up on my cast iron pan. I sauteed my snap peas in some teriyaki for a healthy side.
The sandwich is constructed with layers of veggies and tempeh with mayo and siracha. That lovely flower is a borage blossom from the garden.
In the meantime - here are two banh mi sandwiches we enjoyed this summer. Banh mi are Vietnamese sub sandwiches. If you've never had one, I recommend finding a spot immediately and buying the best $2 sandwich you'll ever find. Lately Charlie and I have been going to Seattle Deli - he gets grilled pork and I get tofu. So good. $5 for both. This is our new treat before going to costco, which has the added benefit of not having us shop hungry at a store where it is difficult to spend less than $100.
The vegetables in banh mi are usually daikon radish and carrots, slightly pickled in rice vinegar with cilantro - in my version below i used french radish, carrot, cucumber and basil.
I have no idea how they make their tofu so magical at Seattle Deli, but for my home version I marinated some tempeh in teriyaki, which I later grilled up on my cast iron pan. I sauteed my snap peas in some teriyaki for a healthy side.
The sandwich is constructed with layers of veggies and tempeh with mayo and siracha. That lovely flower is a borage blossom from the garden.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)