Rise and Shine

Vegan Cheese

How's that for an oxymoronic post title?  Since having to be careful about eating diary and gluten, I have, of course, been craving both to the point of relentlessly inventing and experimenting with weird substitutions.  I have had a few successes and many failures.  Substituting other grains and ground nut meals for wheat has been ok.  Using nut milks has worked well in place of cow's milk.  Finding a cheese substitute has been more challenging. 

I really wanted to make lasagna a couple of weeks ago.  I bought the no-boil brown rice lasagna noodles.  They aren't bad.  I also thinly sliced some zucchini as an added layer of "noodles".  I made tomato sauce.  Then, I went on a mission to recreate ricotta, mozzarella, and parmesan cheeses.  I was tempted to skip all that and make an authentic Italian bechamel based lasagna.  But, that seemed too easy when what I really wanted was the deep dish, bubbling hot, cheesy Italian-American version that we used to get on Friday nights in Chambersburg, the Little Italy of Trenton, NJ.  It was layered with tomato sauce, ground meat, pasta, ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan, herbs, and then done all over again 3 times.  It arrived at the table piping hot with a thin film of tasty oil released from the cheese on top.

I tried a tofu ricotta recipe that combines the bean curd with plenty of fresh herbs and spices and mashed into what is best described as a chunky, not creamy, ricotta.  Adding almond milk to it didn't help.  I was able to restore the texture by mixing in a little store bought shredded rice cheese, which seemed a bit like cheating.  Then, I tried a tofu based "chevre" recipe that took days to make.  It involved draining the tofu, then adding herbs and lemon juice, then rolling it up and refrigerating it, then coating it with herbs, then baking it, then...........well, I can't even remember.  It all fell apart when I tried to slice it.  It looked nothing like the photo in the magazine.  I made the lasagna with these cheeses and ate about 1/4 and froze the rest in case my nephew comes to visit from college and is hungry enough to try it.  Poor kid.

Just because I was still determined to make a vegan cheese, I took my "The Native Foods Restaurant Cookbook" off of my endless shelves of cookbooks and decided to try the Native Chi's recipe that has NO TOFU in it.  The result was better than I anticipated, though it still isn't cheese and might not work well in lasagna.  Here is my version.

 

Ingredients

1.5 cups water

1/3 cup agar flakes

1 cup raw cashews

1/8 cup lime juice + 1/8 cup apple cider vinegar (or all citrus juice)

1 Tbs tahini

1 Tbs nutritional yeast flakes (Whole Foods carries it)

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp onion powder

1.  In a small pot, combine the water and agar.  Boil, then simmer for 5 minutes.  Whisk often, until it thickens.

2.  Meanwhile, grind the cashews into a pretty fine powder in a food processor.

3.  Add in the acid, tahini, and seasonings. Blend again.

4.  Add the agar mixture and blend until all ingredients form a smooth paste.  I had to scrape down the sides a couple of times to achieve this.  It should be creamy.

5.  Oil a baking dish or small loaf pan and pour the mixture into the pan.  Refrigerate.  It will firm up.

6.  Remove from the pan and slice like cheese.

This vegan version of cheese has a nice texture, resembling Edam or Gouda.  The flavor is not very intense, which I want to work on.  But, the texture is nice.  I have used it on an antipasti platter, and have added it to my turkey and vegetable meatloaf as a great filler and binder, crumbled.  I think it would hold up well on a sandwich.  It isn't cheese, but it doesn't taste like tofu, like most cheese substitutes. 

 

 

Sweet Potato and Adzuki Bean Hash

It's been a long time since I have written on my blog.  Truth is, I haven't had many interesting culinary adventures to write about for a few months because my diet has been pretty restricted, as I described in my last post.  My doctor asked me this morning, "So, what DO you eat"?   Having spent many years living a macrobiotic lifestyle, it really isn't a stretch for me to enjoy whole grains, legumes, local vegetables, and fruits as the mainstay of my diet.  I do intend to include some more protein, such as fish and maybe some meat, as my constitution improves.  For now, beans and quinoa are my preferred protein pantry staples.

I really like sweet, little, red adzuki beans.  And, starchy sweet potatoes are so full of vitamins and bulk to help fill me up quickly.  This recipe is a variation on a much simpler adzuki bean and yam hash recipe that is a popular macrobiotic dish.  You can vary the greens and seeds.  You can also serve this with brown rice or as a side dish with another protein, like fish.  I like it with quinoa.

Ingredients

2 TBS olive oil

1 diced onion

1 clove of garlic chopped

2 TSPS dried thyme

1 TSP curry powder

2 sweet potatoes cut into 1/4" cubes (or close)

2 cups cooked adzuki beans

6 leaves of kale chopped (or collard greens)

small handful of raw sunflower seeds

drizzle of sesame oil

1 TSP tamari or soy sauce

black pepper to taste

Soak adzuki beans in a bowl of water overnight.  Boil beans in water until soft - about an hour +.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet.  Add the onions with a little salt + the thyme and curry powder.  Saute until almost soft.  Add garlic and saute another minute.

Add the sweet potatoes to the pan and saute for about 15 minutes, stirring often.

Add greens, beans, and sunflower seeds.  Saute until greens are tender, but still bright.

Season with pepper, tamari and sesame oil.  Heat through.  Add salt if needed.

Chopped Kale

Serve with cooked quinoa or brown rice.  I am working on more gluten free and vegan recipes. 

Hortopita or Greens and Cornmeal Crust Pie

I haven't blogged in a couple of months because I got a wicked case of food poisoning and my diet has been quite restricted of late.  For anyone who has had food poisoning, you know how nasty you can feel and how unappetizing most food is while recovering.  Poultry, dairy, gluten, raw foods, and coffee are a few of the things that I have had to avoid.  The first 4 have been easy compared to going without my one cup of mostly decaf java in the morning.  I love the smell of coffee and those first few hot sips.  I did cheat while on vacation.  this week I started to feel a bit more adventurous about food.  In fact, I was craving greens and whole grains.  So, I went to the local farmer's market to see what local organic produce was in season.  I picked up some beets with beautiful greens still attached, some pristine hydroponically grown watercress, and a giant bunch of flat leaf parsley that could pass more as a veg than a garnish.

When I returned home I leafed through some of my cooked greens recipes and came across a Mario Batali cornmeal & wild greens pizza recipe that I had tried and wasn't that successful with.  Avoiding gluten, but craving pizza, I wanted to try this recipe again.  I then watched a PBS program called "The Cooking Odyssey" that I had DVRed.  Chef Yani traveled to his homeland, Greece, where he had a cornmeal crusted pie with spinach and feta cheese.  When he took a bite you could hear the crunch of the crust and his eyes closed as the greens hit his mouth.  I figured this hortopita was probably the original cornmeal crusted "pizza" with greens.  in my recipe, the ingredients are a little different, but the results were great.  The beauty of this savory pie is that you can make it with whatever greens are in season.  I did put a little cheese in, although Yani's recipe calls for lots more.  I think the dairy is needed.

Ingredients

Crust:

1-1/2 cups of course cornmeal

1 cup of water (divided into two 1/2 cup measures) + more if needed

1/4 cup really good olive oil

1/2 tsp course sea salt

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

Filling:

4 - 5 cups of chopped greens & herbs, I used beet greens, watercress, flat leaf parsley, & basil leaves from my garden

I small red spring onion or 3 scallions, sliced thinly

3 ounces of chevre cheese or feta

2 tbs really good olive oil

salt & pepper to taste

Olive oil and course salt for top crust

 
This photo is of the greens on top of the bottom crust

Instructions

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Or, you can do this in an iron skillet on a charcoal grill with the lid on, the authentic way.

2.  Mix the crust ingredients together in a bowl using your hands.  Yes, this is a rustic, get your hands in there, dish.  Make sure the ingredients come together enough so that you can easily pat the crust into the bottom of a pie plate.  Add a little more water, if needed.  It should hold together and press firmly into the plate.

3.  Coat a round pie plate with olive oil on the bottom.  Place 1/2 of the cornmeal mixture into the pie plate & up the sides.  Put the other half of crust aside.

4.  Chop all of the greens into bite size pieces, but not minced.  Thinly slice the onions.  Add all this to a large bowl.  Add the olive oil, salt & pepper, and crumbled cheese.  Toss this with your hands.

5.  Place the greens over the bottom crust and press down.

6.  Take the remaining cornmeal mixture and thin it with a little water so that it is spreadable with a rubber spatula or the back of a large spoon like thick icing over the greens to cover.  Not too thin!

7.  Spread the top layer of cornmeal, sealing the pie as best as you can.  Remember, this is rustic, so imperfections and greens showing through are ok.  Flavor is what matters.

8.  Drizzle olive oil on top.  Sprinkle course salt on top of that.

9.  Bake for 50 - 60 minutes.  Top crust should be a little crunchy and golden brown.  Overbaking this is not a sin.

 
My broken wild greens pie

Ok, so my pie cracked when I took it out of the pie plate.  I wanted it on my favorite cutting board for the photo-op.  If you are serving guests, maybe leave it in the pie plate and cut from there into wedges.  I just tore handfuls off while it was still hot.  In the end, the pie tastes the same, no matter how you serve it.  I ate 1/3 & kept nibbling on it for a couple of days.  It stores well in the fridge and reheats well.

 

 

Fennel Salad

 

This Spring the fennel bulbs are so large and there is a striking contrast between the white bulbs and green fronds.  I am usually disappointed when I see grayish or yellowing bulbs and tough, unfeathery (is that a word?) stalks.  I love a crisp, tight bulb and lots of anise flavored leaves to use as a tasty garnish. 

I played around with a few recipes.  The first was a roasted root vegetable medley that completely dried out the fennel and made it a little tough.  The second was a version of a Greek pasta dish that has tomatoes and feta cheese.  the fennel fell flat in this recipe.  The feta was the star ingredient.  In the end, my fennel and grapefruit salad paid homage to the strong flavor and texture of this unusual, licorice flavored vegetable.  The grapefruit softens the dish but demands bold flavors to accompany it.  The addition of arugula salad greens and red onion seemed to work.  This salad does not need a highly seasoned vinaigrette.

 Ingredients

1 Fennel bulb + a few reserved feathery leaves for garnish, rinsed

1 Pink grapefruit

1 Medium red onion

2 Large handfuls of arugula salad leaves, rinsed 

(they are smaller and prettier than regular arugula leaves)

Juice of 1 lemon + a little zest if desired

1/4 Cup of olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1. In a large bowl whisk together the lemon juice and olive oil.  Season this with salt and pepper to taste.

2. Trim the fennel by removing the green stalks down to the bulb.  Just slice them off.  They are too tough to eat, but can flavor a vegetable broth nicely. Slice the bulb in half and cut out the dense tough core at the base of the bulb.  Cut each half in half again, lengthwise.  Slice the bulb quarters thinly, as though slicing an onion to make 1/2 rings.  Add the fennel to the bowl.

3. Cut the onion in half and remove the skin.  Place each half flat side down and slice as thinly as possible.  Add the slices to the bowl.

4. Cut the grapefruit in half.  With a small sharp knife, cut around the edge of the fruit to separate the flesh from the white pith.  Then, run the tip of the knife against the membrane that sits between each segment of fruit.  You want to cut each little piece of fruit out leaving the pith, rind, and membrane behind.  A serrated grapefruit spoon works almost as well.  Remove each half segment of fruit with a teaspoon and add to the bowl.

5. Add arugala leaves and gently toss to coat all ingredients with dressing.  Place on individual salad plates and top with fennel leaves.  Eat as soon as possible.

 

I think I need to play around with more fennel recipes.  The flavor always takes me pleasantly by surprise.  It reminds me of backpacking through Europe after college and settling into the slow pace, tons of sunshine, and fresh vegetable salads on the Island of Corfu, Greece.  Every meal started with a cold glass of cloudy licorice flavored ouzo. 

 

 

Fava Beans mean Spring

I get pretty excited when I go to the market and see fava beans, asparagus, and fiddle head ferns.  Seeing any one of these lets me know that Spring is really here. 

The tender young asparagus shoots of early Spring are vibrant in color, make a crisp snap sound when broken, and can be eaten down to the base without peeling or cutting off that milky, dry, tough base of the winter stalks.  I try to avoid buying asparagus in Winter.  It disappoints me.

Fiddle heads only appear at the market in Spring.  These are the tightly wound heads of the ferns that will eventually open up into leggy leaves.  They are mostly harvested by hand from the floor of a forest.  In fact, I don't know that I have ever seen cultivated or hot house fiddle heads.  Their season is short.  Sauteed with olive oil & red pepper flakes, then finished with a squeeze of lemon juice is how I like them.

Fava beans are, by far, my favorite Spring find in the market.  I used to shun the bulky pods, purely from inexperience.  I then watched Lidia Bastianich incorporate these legumes into a dish that looked so good, I decided to try them.  I have been cooking fava beans every Spring for years now.

 
Fava beans are not for the rushed.  Forget about cooking them if you are trying to get food on the table fast.  Favas are a labor of love.  I find the process of preparing them to be meditative.  I look forward to it, but don't have the time to prepare them often.  Nor do I have the patience to prepare more than a few at once.  I add favas to salads or pasta.  As a stand alone side dish, too much time is required.  The effort put into preparing fava beans is worth the reward in flavor, taste, and color.

The first step is to remove the beans from the long pods.  You have to break off the top of the pod, and if you are lucky, pull the string down the spine of the pod.  Then, split it open with your thumbs.  Otherwise, just dig your thumbs into the spine and pull the pod apart.  It won't give cleanly.  Inside are about 4 or 5 bean sacks.  pop those out with your thumbs.  (see picture of pods and bean sacks above).

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil.  Drop the bean sacks into the water and simmer for 4 - 5 minutes.  Remove the sacks to a colander and rinse under very cold water to stop cooking.

 
You aren't finished yet.  Remove the outer shell of each little sack to extract the bright green, edible, fava beans inside.  The beans have 2 halves and will usually split when shelling.  I find this to be a bonus - 2 for 1.

Last night I added the beans, and some asparagus, to a bowl of 1-1/2" rough chunks of boiled potato with olive oil, garlic, basil, sage, thyme, salt, and pepper.  I dusted that with parmesan cheese, and that was dinner.  My day had been busy and long.  This bowl of Spring goodness was exactly what I wanted on a rainy night with a fire in the hearth.  The warmth of the fire, the damp chilly air, the bright green of my Spring veg...........what better way to say goodbye to Winter and welcome in Spring. 

Taking a Breath

I woke up before 4:00 AM this morning.  My monkey mind started thinking about the day to come.  Ugh.  I just wanted another hour of sleep.  Then the birds started chatting with or to one another.  What the heck?  It was drizzling and dark.  Why were the birds up?  I put a pillow over my head and tried to fall back into a light pre-dawn nap.  Aaaaah.........those birds.  Then I remembered that this happens every year when the uber pregnant females are hungry (maybe hormonal) and are nagging their husbands to finish building the nurseries.  I haven't really researched which gender puts on the additions, but it made sense in the wee hours.  I decided to get up, make a cup of tea, and do some editing on a project.  While the water was boiling, I glanced outside and saw a daffodil waking up.

I planted these bulbs at least 15 years ago.  They bloomed once and never since, until this Spring.  This single flower made me stop and breathe.  I had thought of taking the non-flowering plants out of my garden.  No, that won't happen now.  I was calmed by this rebirth in my garden.  My brain slowed, my tea tasted good, and I decided to go to my weekly group meditation practice.  I put the work day on hold for an hour and just sat, listened, and breathed. 

Cabbage Flatbread

Do you ever buy a head of cabbage and then wonder what you could possibly do with that soccer ball of pale greeness?  I always have way more than I can use before I tire of it.  I am drawn to dense heads of cabbage because they are a great value and packed with fiber and nutrients.  I remember going on The Scarsdale Diet in the late 70s, where I ate cabbage soup almost every day.  I didn't die (nor did I kill anyone).  In fact I was well sustained by the cabbage.  But, I lost weight because, well, it didn't stay in my system for very long.  Cabbage in insane quantities is very cleansing.   It is a good vegetable to eat a few times a month.  When I am really pressed for time with work, I will run down to the local deli and get a sandwich of turkey breast and home made red & green cabbage slaw on rye.  The crunch of the slaw makes up for the chips I really want.  So, what can you do with excess amounts of cabbage?  I found a recipe for Cabbage-Poblano Flatbreads a few years ago that I can't get enough of.  I can't remember where it is from - my apologies to the author.  I believe it was in the NY Times.  Here is my variation.

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup unbleached white wheat flour

1-1/2 tsps curry powder

1/2 tsp kosher salt

2 cups shredded green cabbage (this recipe has savoy)

2 tbs minced fresh ginger

2 tbs minced poblano pepper (I used chipotle, minus the fiery seeds)

2-1/2 tsps black sesame seeds (white are ok)

3/4 cup of water

2 tbs veg. oil + more for frying 

In a large bowl, mix the dry ingredients.  Add the cabbage and mix with your hands.  Add in the wet ingredients and mix well with a wooden spoon.  Knead this mixture on a lightly floured board for at least 5 minutes.  Cover with a towel and let rest for 15 minutes.

Separate the dough into 12 equal sized balls (pictured).  On a floured board, roll out each ball to +/_ 1/8 inch thick circle, using a floured rolling pin.  Turn between rolls to get as close to a circle shape as you can.  Imperfect circles add to the rustic quality of this bread.

Heat a flat skillet or griddle pan (or whatever you have) to medium heat.  Place enough vegetable or olive oil in the skillet to just coat the bottom.  Fry each flatbread until golden on one side.  Flip and fry to color on the other side.  The recipe says 1 minute per side, but I think it takes longer.  Taste the first one so you can find the right timing for doneness.  You will have to add a little oil for each batch.

 

These breads are like tortillas - fabulous for piling veggies or shredded chicken on and eating with your hands like a soft taco.  They are also good by themselves with a sprinkle of salt.  The best part is that they freeze really well.  I make batches of them with my excess cabbage and freeze them in packets of 2 or 4, ready to pull out when I have impromptu guests, or for a quick weekday lunch with leftovers rolled up inside.

Chicken with Prunes & Olives

Another of my favorite cookbooks is the classic original Silver Palate Cookbook by Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins, published in 1979.  I got my first copy in 1983.  I read this book from cover to cover.  It is arranged by meal course, with seasonal dishes noted, and a sidebar that includes references to corresponding recipes to complete the entire meal.  It also has authors' notes that range from lessons in culinary terms to whimsical quotes about an ingredient or a holiday meal.  It is a practical cookbook, as well as a good read.

 
There is one particular recipe in this book that I, and most of my friends who cook, have made more than once.  It is the Chicken Marbella recipe.  The ingredient list is strange and intense upon first glance.  But, reading the recipe stimulates your brain in such a way that you tilt your head back and imagine that it might just work really well.  And, it does. 

I have my own spin on this recipe.  The original recipe calls for brown sugar - a lot of it.  This is an ingredient I rarely have in my pantry.  Actually, I take that back.  I have it, but it is as hard as a rock and used only at Thanksgiving when my mother makes sweet potatoes in my kitchen.  I don't care for white sugar, or white sugar with molasses.  That said, I always have blackstrap molasses on hand, as well as honey or agave nectar.  That is what I use.  I find it helps the marinade to stick to the chicken and offers a nice finish glaze with a golden color.  And, of course, it is a slightly healthier spin.

 
Ingredients

1 organic chicken quartered

(double entire recipe for more people)

2 cloves of garlic minced

1Tbs dried oregano

course sea salt & pepper to taste

2 Tbs red wine vinegar or raw cider vinegar

2 Tbs olive oil

4 pitted prunes

4 large pitted Spanish olives

1Tbs capers + some juice

2 bay leaves

1/4 cup honey

1 Tbs molasses

1/4 cup white wine

chopped fresh parsley for garnish

Mix all of the ingredients, except the parsley, in a large bowl.  Add the chicken & coat well.  Marinate in refrigerator for at least 8 hours, turning once.

Take chicken out about an hour before roasting.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Arrange chicken, skin side up, in a shallow baking dish or black iron skillet.  Spoon marinade over chicken.  Bake for 50 minutes, basting with marinade 3 times.

Transfer to a platter and allow to rest for at least 10 minutes, or even to room temperature.  Spoon the remaining pan juices over the chicken, sprinkle with parsley, and serve.

Last night I served this with quinoa that was simmered in vegetable stock with onions, golden beet greens, and zucchini.  The bitterness of the greens went really well with the sweet and savory chicken.

Green Tea

I drink a cup of herbal tea with lemon most mornings, especially in winter.  I wake up to a cold house. So, I heat the tea kettle while brushing my teeth.  I steep some tea in a mug or small pot, add lemon & then crawl back into bed while I wait for the heat to kick in so that the tile floor in the bathroom is bearable to walk on without getting frostbite.  This morning ritual of drinking tea while wrapped in a down blanket is my little personal meditation time.  The sun starts to rise while I am sipping.

 

 

  Often, my tea of choice is green, bancha (roasted green tea twigs), or ginger.

A couple of days ago I went to my twice weekly morning group meditation practice.  Our host prepared a lovely pot of green tea from Kyoto, in honor of the recent Japanese earthquake and tsunami victims.  We drank sake sized cups of the fragrant tea and then did our meditation.  For 45 minutes I could think only of the situation in Japan and how good that tea was.  It was a bittersweet meditation for me that morning. 

When I returned home I saw the two boxes of fresh green tea leaves that my sister had given me as a gift.  There was something both sad and comforting about seeing them on my kitchen counter.  That afternoon I steeped a pot of tea.

Green tea is light in color, but hardy in flavor, nutrients, and energy.  Green tea does have caffeine, which I don't really mind when I hit that 2:00 PM work day low.  Green tea has poly-phenols, vitamin C, and a variety of essential minerals.  The bancha, or twig, tea is said to contain calcium.  Research claims that green tea can lower the risks of heart disease and can assist with weight loss.  And, it has no calories.  Drinking green tea is a no-brainer for me.  My octogenarian mother loves her green tea frappucino from Starbucks.  Hmmm.......need I say more?

The tea pot in the picture belonged to my grandmother, and probably her grandmother.  It is perfect for one person, but I would share. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Creamy Curried Broccoli Soup (without cream)

Two days ago I was awakened by the sparrows that nest in-between the exposed ends of the roof rafters.  By July, when I sleep with the windows wide open, I usually find this chatter to be annoying at 4:30 AM.  But this time it was music.  It reminded me that Spring will be here soon.  While cooking up a pot of amaranth for my morning gruel, I started thinking about what I would plant in my garden this Spring, even though snow still covers the tiny plot in the back yard. 
Last Spring I planted broccoli early.  I had never grown broccoli, as it can be temperamental if planted too late in the season.  Broccoli likes the coolness of late Spring and early Autumn.  If planted timely it will grow sturdy roots and will produce all Summer.  If trimmed and harvested properly, you will have more than you bargained for.  I had big crowns early on and tender young stalks for months.  I ran out of broccoli recipes by October.

My sister, MB, visited this past weekend and picked up some beautiful organic broccoli crowns at the market.  As the weather is still cold, I decided to make a warming broccoli soup.  I love curry, and decided that would be my vehicle to making the soup even warmer.  I have never married the two.  This soup turned out well.

Ingredients

1 Medium onion, chopped

1 Clove of garlic, chopped

1 Tbs coconut oil

2 Tbs curry powder

1 Bay leaf

1 Pounds or 3 crowns of broccoli, chopped

2-1/2 Cups vegetable or chicken stock

1/2 Tsp paprika

4 Oz. unsweetened coconut milk

Salt & pepper

Preparation

In a 2 quart pot, saute the onion, garlic, curry powder, and a pinch of salt in the coconut oil until soft over medium heat.  This will take from 4 - 8 minutes

Add the bay leaf, broccoli, paprika, stock, and a pinch of each salt & pepper. Bring this to a boil.  Lower heat, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes.  Set aside to cool until just warm to the touch.

Remove bay leaf.  Puree in a blender. 

Return pureed soup to the pot over medium/low heat & whisk in the coconut milk.  Taste and add salt & pepper to your liking.  Heat through until steaming, maybe 10 minutes.

I served this with a dollop of plain yogurt and croutons made from slices of whole grain baguette that I toasted in a grill pan with olive oil and garlic.

 

The broccoli pictured is, indeed, from my garden - late Spring.

Whole Wheat Baguette

I cut a long weekend short due to forecast of, yet another, snow storm.  On my way home I stopped at Whole Foods and picked up some chicken to roast and some vegetables to maybe make a soup.  I wanted comfort food on hand in case I was snowed in.  When I got back home I decided to bake bread.  The yeasty smell of rising bread, followed by the earthy smell of it baking, always makes my house feel warmer.  I use whole grains, which don't make a sexy, airy, light bread.  My breads are denser, crunchier, and deep in flavor.  When I take the bread out of the oven I can't wait for it to cool long enough.  I have to cut into the warm loaf, steam rising out of that first end slice.  I put butter or olive oil and garlic on it and am very happy.  My recipe is simple, but you do need to stick around and be patient.  It is worth it.  You need to use a flour with gluten for this recipe to work.

1.  In a large bowl place 1 cup of very warm water, I packet of active dry yeast, 1 tsp. raw sugar.  Let this rest for 5 minutes, or until it starts to bubble.

2.  Add 1 tbs. vegetable or olive oil, 1 tsp. sea salt, 1 cup of whole wheat flour.  Mix this well and place the bowl in your air-tight microwave to rise for 1 hour (don't turn the microwave on).

3.  Stir in another cup of flour until well mixed.  Then work in a third cup of flour until you can work the dough into a ball.  It should still be slightly sticky.  Knead this for 5 minutes, adding a little more flour if needed, but not too much. 

4.  Oil the bowl and place the ball of kneaded dough back into it, making sure a little oil coats the ball.  Place this back in the microwave for another hours of rising.  

5.  Remove the bown and punch down the dough in the center.  Divide the dough in half and form into small oblong baguettes.  Allow these to rise for 40 to 60 minutes on a pizza peel or baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal.

6.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees with a pizza stone in it.  If you don't have a pizza stone, just bake on the sheet pan.  Score the risen loafs and brush with water for a crunchy top.  Or, you can oil the tops and sprinkle course salt and/or seeds on top.  Bake for 50 minutes.  Let cool.  Enjoy.

Soft Boiled Eggs

 

We have had so much snow this winter.  It reminds me of winters when I was a little kid living a couple of miles down the road from a small ski run in NJ.  It snowed a lot in NJ back in the 60s, or so I thought.  On weekends my Dad would take me, and whomever else woke up, down the road to our one trail, single rope-tow "mountain".  I had no trouble waking up early on those Saturday mornings, unlike my pattern on school days.  I loved skiing.  I equally loved those early morning breakfasts that my father would make for those of us who got up when he did.  Dad woke up REALLY early.  His menu options were limited, but always tasty.  One of my favorite breakfasts consisted of 1/2 a grapefruit with each section carefully cut so that a special serrated spoon would slip in against the rind and unearth a clean 1/2 section of sweet ripe cirtus (in the dead of winter).  While I ate my fruit, Dad would toast some bread and soft boil a few eggs to silky warm perfection.  He broke the toast into small pieces in a parfait glass, peeled the eggs, dropped them into the glasses and gently broke them so that the warm yolk ran down the glass and mixed with the toast.  With a pinch of salt, this was a perfect pre-ski breakfast. Looking out my window yesterday, and seeing 50 inches of snow, I craved a soft boiled egg.

I think there is something very sensual about a perfectly soft boiled egg.  I also think my shirred egg cup is pretty sexy.  ;-)  Soft boiled eggs aren't difficult to make.  What is difficult is handling them while they are hot, without getting shells into the egg.  I don't know how my father did it, but his eggs never had shell fragments in them.  For the egg pictured, I brought the egg to room temperature (just let it sit on the counter while I showered), then boiled a small pot of water - enough to cover the egg.  I added a little salt, only because I do that when I hard boil eggs to keep the shells from cracking.  I gently spooned the egg into the water and let it simmer for 4 minutes.  I extracted the egg right into my airplane cup.  I took a very sharp knife and tried to slice the top of the shell.  That did not work!  So, I tapped the shell delicately all the way around and was able to remove the top.  I like the imperfections.  The steam, smell, and color were all so intoxicating that I didn't wait to add a pinch of salt.  I took a small spoon and went in.  I was amazed at how easily the egg came away from the shell.  But, I was more amazed with that first silky, warm mouthful.  It hit most of my senses and calmed me at the same time.  Perhaps it was the memories?  No, I think soft boiled eggs are just that good.

I think I prefer my father's preparation of this simple dish.  though, I still don't know how he peeled the eggs while hot.  That is because he would make a cup of coffee with milk and sugar and let me take sips of his sweet caffeinated concoction while he prepared my egg.  I was distracted.  There was something really special about that experience - Mom still asleep, Dad giving me forbidden coffee, eggs that made me go limp and beg for more, skiing all day and falling into bed completely exhausted, dreaming of soft boiled eggs with toast.

Vegetarian Burgers

I love a good veggie burger.  I have had some really good ones eating out and some pretty bad ones that I am sure came right out of the freezer filled with soy and gluten products and tons of sodium.  I am not saying that soy and gluten are bad, but really, haven't we had our fill of "texturized" or "modified" soy and wheat gluten to make our food hold together and appear like real meat?  When I eat vegetarian dishes, I actually want them to taste like vegetables, grains, and legumes.  If I want meat, I'll order a hamburger. 

My sister and I were at a vegan restaurant not too long ago for lunch.  She ordered the black bean burger and I ordered the falafel.  Both were good dishes, but her burger was amazing.  I have shyed away from trying to relicate the black bean burger, for fear of it not being as tasty, and because my attempts at veggie burgers in the past have resulted in soupy messes that don't resemble a sturdy burger at all.

While staring into my pantry last week, I saw the jar of dried black beans.  There was so much snow outside that I knew I wasn't going anywhere any time soon.  I had the time to soak the beans overnight and cook them the next day.  I just wasn't sure what I would do with them after.  I had parboiled ears of corn in my freezer and several heads of garlic.  Before going to bed, I soaked the beans, took the corn out of the freezer, and put a head of garlic on the counter.  I had good intentions of making a black bean & corn salsa with roasted garlic.  I woke up with more ambitious plans.  This black bean burger holds up like any hamburger in a bun.  Mine is pictured with homemade oat bread.  I think I conquered my fear of veggie burger making.

Black Bean Burger

Before making this recipe you will need to soak dried black beans overnight, then boil them in plain, unsalted water until tender.  Or use rinsed and drained canned beans.  Also, you will need to roast a head of garlic:  Slice a bit of the top off.  Coat with olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Wrap in foil.  Roast in a 350 F oven for 45 minutes.  Or, you could pan roast 2 cloves in a little olive oil until nicely browned and soft.

Process into a course flour (in a food processor):

1/3 cup gluten free (or any) rolled oats

1/3 cup of raw pepitas or pumpkin seeds

Place the above ingredients in a large bowl and add:

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp sea salt

Pinch of black pepper

Set this aside and then process the wet ingredients into a course paste:

1/3 cup fresh or frozen corn

2 cloves roasted garlic

1-1/2 cups of cooked and well drained black beans

1 large egg

Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix well.  Coat hands with flour of choice and form patties.  Keep coating hands as needed so the patties don't stick to your hands.  If the patties don't form well, add a little flour to the mix.  Refrigerate the patties for 30+ minutes. 

Heat a skillet to medium high.  Add some olive oil, or coconut oil, or both to coat the pan well.  When the oil is hot.  add the burgers and cook through like a well-done hamburger.  I think that would be 3 - 5 minutes per side.  You could also oven bake these, but I haven't tried that yet.  This recipe will make 4 burgers.  I only ate one and froze the rest after cooking.  They hold up well in the freezer.  Serve with whatever you like on a burger.  I like lettuce, tomato, avocado, and regular old ketchup.

Beets

 I found myself staring blankly at  the produce selection in the market the other day.  The citrus fruits from Florida looked good, so I grabbed a pink grapefruit and some limes.  But, the vegetables left me wondering "where did these come from"?  On closer inspection, almost everything was shipped from Mexico or Chile.  I started aching for summer and the all that the local farmer's markets have to offer.  The vegetables in the store smelled faintly of refrigeration, not freshness.  And then I saw the array of beets.  They were labeled "local" and looked fresh enough to be so.  There were red, yellow and pink ones.  I grabbed a large bunch of red beets.

Beets are packed with flavor, sweetness, and nutrition.  They are high in folate, manganese, and potassium, and are reported to be very detoxifying, especially for the liver.  My favorite way to prepare beets is to wash them, rub with olive oil, salt and pepper, wrap in foil, and roast in a 375 degree oven for 45 - 60 minutes.  Let them cool and then rub the skins off and trim the tops.  I usually serve them cold in salads.  But, don't forget about the leaves.  They are spectacular eaten raw or crisped up like chips in the oven.  The two recipes below are for both the greens and the roots.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Beet Greens Salad

Dressing:

1/4 cup of fresh, strained grapefruit juice

1 Tbs of raw apple cider vinegar

1 tsp grapefruit zest

2 cloves of roasted garlic mashed

1/2 tsp honey

3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Salt & pepper to taste

Wisk all of the ingredients together and set aside while assembling the salad.

Salad:

1/3 cup walnuts toasted & chopped

1 head of romaine lettuce hearts or 1 large endive, broken into bite size pieces

Leaves from 1 bunch of beets (3) washed well, trimmed, and torn into smaller pieces

Sections from 1/2 grapefruit

2 thin slices of red onion separated into rings

Assemble salad in a bowl and dress. 

Beet and Feta Salad

1 head of greens of your choice, washed and torn into smaller pieces

3 roasted beets cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1/2 a brick of feta crumbled (or more, if you like)

2 or 3 handfuls of raw or toasted walnuts

3 Tbs balsamic vinegar

7 Tbs extra virgin olive oil

Salt & pepper

Place greens in a salad bowl.  Top with beets, cheese, and nuts.  Dress with vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper.  This salad is so easy and even children will eat it.

Flesh from 1/2 an avocado cut into 1/2 inch pieces

"The Seasonal Kitchen" (books I love)

With all of the snow we have been getting this winter I find myself going through my bookshelves in search of good reads for cold weekend afternoons by the fire.  I was looking through my cookbooks, of which I have many, and came across a few that I hadn't looked at in a very long time.  Some of them brought back memories of great meals with friends.

After college my friend, Karen, and I were between apartments in NYC.  We temporarily moved into her parents house in Westchester and commuted into the City for work.  Karen's mother and grandmother cooked lots of southern style meals with foods I had never eaten, like stewed greens and pigs feet.  I never really got used to the pigs feet.  We sat down at the dinner table every night when we got home.  It was a big change from the way I ate in college.  I had lived in apartments most of my time in college and had to prepare my own meals.  My diet was mostly grains and vegetables because they were affordable and because I had a roommate who was a vegetarian.  But, we didn't often sit down at a table to eat.  We were just "too busy" all the time.

I learned a lot about cooking while living with Karen's family.  Meals were an important part of the day where we all gathered around the table and talked about the day we had.  I also think I put on 10 pounds in those 3 months in.  The food was much heavier than what I was used to, but it tasted good.

I got Perla Meyer's first cookbook during this time.  I can't remember if it was a gift or if I actually paid the $4.95 for it.  The book is neatly organized by season.  That was a new concept at the time, in the late 1970s.  It was the first farm to table cookbook I had come across.  It was also appealing because Perla looks thin, beautiful, and healthy on the cover.  The book is heavy on vegetables combined with meats or fish, with a European style of cooking.  Karen's mother, Clivetta, and I made a dish together from the book called "Pork Chops Abazia".  Clivetta liked her pork, an ingredient I had not cooked often.  This recipe pleased both of us, as it has less fat than the southern dishes she was accustomed to, and it has vegetables, and tons of flavor.  It calls for center cut pork chops simmered with shallots, garlic, tomatoes, green peppers, red peppers, chili peppers, white wine, tomato paste, rosemary, and paprika.  It is served with rice pilaf with mushrooms and eggplant.

This book is so dogeared and the pages have spills of whatever I was making while using it.  It brings back lots of memories of my early days of teaching myself how to cook.  I am pretty sure I gave a copy of it to Clivetta as a departing gift when karen and I moved out.  My copy is going back on my shelf until the next snowstorm.

Whole Grain Soda Bread

I love warm bread right out of the oven.  That first steaming slice (because I can't ever wait for it to cool) is so good with a little butter or dunked in olive oil with garlic and sea salt.  When I make bread for guests I try to time it perfectly to come out of the oven as we are sitting down to our meal.  The smell alone is enough to call everyone to the table.  No dinner bell is needed.

My family will attest to the fact that I have had some serious bread disasters (bricks) in the past.  I credit those partially to my stubborness when it comes to ingredients.  I have tried for years to perfect bread baking using only whole grains - no bleached white flour.  That is not easy, as white flour seems to be superior when it comes to the essential wheat glutens needed to help bread rise properly.  Still, I press on in my quest for the perfect whole grain loaf.

The other day I was reading one of my favorite foodie blogs http:/www.101cookbooks.com.  Heidi is a master blogger, cookbook author, and vegetarian chef/cook.  She posted a recipe that she had seen on another blog for Oat Soda Bread.  I was instantly intrigued, as yeast breads can be temperamental, especially with whole grains.  Heidi's (& Jennifer's) recipe does call for unbleached all-purpose flour.  I don't have that in my pantry.  I do have rolled oats, whole grain flours, seeds, yogurt, and all the other stuff that is in this adaptation of the recipe.  I did find white unbleached whole wheat flour at Whole Foods.  And so it goes...........

 

Preheat oven to 400 defrees F

1 cup rolled oats pulsed into flour in a food processor or chopper (or use oat flour)

1-1/4 cups white whole wheat flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tesp sea salt

1 cup of milk (of your choice) mixed with 1 Tbs plain yogurt

1 tsp each of raw sesame seeds, caraway seeds, course sea salt

Another tsp of yogurt

Vegetable oil for pan

8" round black iron skillet (or another oven proof skillet)

Preheat the oven with one rack in the middle and another at the top.  Oil the skillet.

Mix the first dry ingredients together.

Make a swimming hole in the middle of the dry ingredients and add all of the wet ingredients.  Work those in with a spoon, then get your hands in there to knead it all together into a sticky ball.

Push the ball of dough into the oiled skillet.  With a sharp knife, make an X slice in the top.  Spread the extra yogurt over the top.  Sprinkle with the seeds and salt.

Bake on the middle rack for 35 minutes.  Move up to the top rack for The last 5 - 10 minutes, until the top of the bread is crunchy & browned & the seeds have some color, but not burned.

If you do this in a loaf pan, double the ingredients to fill the pan.

 

 

 

Brown Rice Paella

 

Organic brown rice is a weekly staple in my diet.  I prefer the nutty flavor and tooth of this rice to that of white rice.  And, it is nutritionally superior.  I wanted to try to make paella with brown rice in a fairly traditional manner so that the grain was just slightly al dente and a little crunchy on the bottom, without overcooking the other ingredients.  Traditional paella cooks for approximately 20 - 25 minutes uncovered.  Brown rice requires at least 40 minutes to cook through.  This recipe seemed to achieve the results I was looking for.  And, the ingredients are higher in fiber and lower in fat than your typical chicken, shellfish and chorizo paellas.  That said, feel free to use those ingredients.  I think the results will be similar.  In fact, you can use almost any combination of proteins and vegetables to make paella.

1/8 tsp saffron crushed

1/4 cup warm water

20 small shrimp, peeled and cleaned (save shells)

2 Tbs vegetable or seed oil

4 ounces of tempeh cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1/2 tsp paprika

1 small onion chopped

1/2 red field or bell pepper seeded and chopped

1 clove of garlic minced

2 Tbs olive oil

1 cup long grain brown rice

1 medium tomato diced

1 bay leaf

2-3/4 - 3 cups of hot stock (I made it from the shrimp shells)

20 green beans trimmed and cut in half

1/2 cup defrosted frozen green peas

Salt and pepper

Good olive oil for drizzle

Chopped flat leaf parsley for garnish

Place the saffron threads in the warm water and set aside.

Heat a paella pan or iron skillet to medium high heat.  Add vegetable oil, tempeh and paprika.  Fry tempeh until each piece has a crunchy brown finish, 8 - 10 minutes.  Remove tempeh and place in a dish to the side.

Add onions, pepper, garlic and a pinch of salt to the hot pan.  Saute for 6 minutes.

Add 2 Tbs of olive oil to the pan and the rice.  Stir to coat the rice with the oil and bring it up to temperature.

Add the tomatoes, bay leaf, stock, saffron with water, and a little more salt to the rice.  Simmer this at a low constant boil for 25 minutes.  Don't stir.

Adjust heat to low, add green beans and cook for another 10 minutes.

Add the shrimp, tempeh, and peas.  Cook until liquid is gone and shrimp are just pink, about 10 minutes. 

Turn off the heat and cover the pan.  Let it sit for another 5 minutes. 

Taste for seasoning.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Drizzle with good olive oil and garnish with parsley.  This is best served hot right out of the pan.

I used sweet wild caught Maine shrimp for this recipe.  They have a nice ocean flavor and are bite size.  I also used a pretty strong flavored Spanish olive oil that I received as a holiday gift.  I can't say enough good things about high quality, extra virgin olive oils.  There are so many varieties and flavors.  I am tempted to drink some of them out of a champagne flute.  Here is a picture of one of the newest additions to my evoo collection.

 
 

 

Brussels Sprouts

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have vivid memories of pale green, stinky brussels sprouts being served to my father when he requested them, and when my mother (reluctantly) agreed to make them for him.  Mind you, these were not fresh.  They were frozen and pre-cooked.  Somewhere in the process of making these smelly little cabbages a fast food they lost their bright green color.  My sisters and I turned our noses up when they arrived at the table, despite being drowned in butter.  Actually, we held our noses.

I believe I saw my first fresh brussels sprout in a market in NYC after graduating from college.  Being on a tight budget, I bought the less expensive, less desirable vegetables to fill me up.  The first time I cooked brussels sprouts I boiled them to death and put butter and salt on them.  They were mushy and bitter.  But, this seemed normal to me.  It wasn't until I tried Ina Garten's roasted brussels sprouts recipe that I realized how good these could be.  Still, they made the kitchen smell nasty.

My sister bought me a pound of fresh sprouts last week.  I figured I better cook them up before they go bad.  I am still working on this recipe, but I think it almost works.  The sprouts are caramelized and crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.  They are broken down enough so as not to cause that intestinal (um) air.  After I made them, I found myself popping them in my mouth like a snack.  they never made it on the dinner plate with my salad.  Try this out and please give me some feedback so I can tweak the recipe.

1 pound of brussels sprouts, brown bottoms trimmed & discolored leaves removed

Juice from 1/2 lemon or lime

1-1/2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil

1 clove of garlic minced

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp dried oregano (optional)

1/2 tsp dried rosemary (optional)

1 cup very hot water

Preheat the oven to 450 F.  (Experiment with temperature).  In a shallow baking dish or cast iron skillet, toss the sprouts, oil, and seasonings.  Add the water.  Bake for approximately 35 minutes until the outer leaves start turning brown and crisp and the center is soft.  You will have to taste test to get it just right.  Season with a little more salt and maybe a pinch of red pepper flakes.  Serve, or just snack on them while making the rest of dinner.  They will shrink up to bite size.  I think these make a great healthy nosh.

 

Raw Food Recipes

I received a raw foods "cookbook" for Christmas.  Despite the obvious oxymoron, I do use my oven when preparing certain raw foods.  I owned a dehydrator a few years ago, but it wasn't very sturdy and went to the Goodwill dumpster rather quickly.  I have found that my oven works better.  I set it on the lowest temperature, which is 170 F, and leave the door slightly ajar for moisture to escape.  Dehydrators run at around 135 F.  The results are the same, but the "cooking" time is approximately 2 hours less using the oven.

Jicama Chips

This recipe is adapted from "The Raw Transformation" by Wendy Rudell.  Wendy calls the recipe Garlicky Bread.  These little appetizers are much more like garlicky chips than bread.  I have changed the proportions a bit because the original recipe had more garlic than I liked, especially if serving to guests.  These will disappear quickly.

1 medium jicama

1 red bell pepper

1 ripe tomato

5 cloves of garlic

1 tsp sea salt

1/3 cup olive oil

1 tsp basil

 

 

 

 

Peel the jicama and slice as thinly as possibe.  In a food processor, mince the garlic, pepper and tomato.  Strain this mixture to remove excess liquid.  Place in a bowl and mix in the other ingredients.  Place the jicama slices on a wire baking rack on a sheet pan.  Spoon the paste mixture onto each slice of jicama.  Dehydrate in the oven for 8 hours, or until almost crisp. Store in an airtight container (if they last).

Chocolate Macaroons

1-1/2 cups dried unsweetened shredded coconut

 3/4 cup raw cacao powder

1/3 cup agava nectar

 1/8 cup of coconut oil

 1 tsp vanilla extract

 pinch of sea salt

 1/4 tsp cinnamon

 

 

Mix all of the ingredients together.  Spoon onto a baking sheet and dehydrate in the oven for 8 hours. 

This recipe came from my friend Christina's sister.  It is adapted from Pure Food & Wine in New York.  Christina's sister says she freezes them rather than dehydrating, and claims they are "melt in your mouth" good.  I like the crunchy texture I achieved from dehydrating. 

I try to eat coconut and coconut oil often.  It contains high concentrations of lauric acid, a compound that is naturally anti-fungal.  Raw cacao is pure chocolate, a rich antioxidant.  You can't really go too wrong with these sweet treats.

Candle 79

 
Over the weekend I met my sister in NYC for a girl's night.  We had good intentions of making a nice home-cooked meal and just hanging in and catching up.  We decided to go for a walk to a boutique wine shop around the corner and then to the market for provisions.  We both love to walk, especially in New York.  However, I was wearing some ridiculously slippery boots and nearly did a face plant on the sidewalk several times.  This was of great amusement for my, less than compassionate, little sister.  It was annoyingly stressful for me. 

The more we (carefully) walked, the less we felt like cooking.  We had tried before to get a table, on the fly, at Candle 79, where I had eaten before with another sister, and really enjoyed.  As we rounded the corner of Lexington Avenue & 79th Street, we decided to duck out of the cold and see if they had a table available.  They did not.  My sisters and I are not shy about bellying up to a bar to enjoy a meal.  I always enjoy having conversation with a stranger, the bartender or fellow bar stool diners, when we do this.  It adds an element of surprise to our meals.  There were 2 bar stools available, so we grabbed them.  I should say that this is not a dive with hard wooden stools sticky with old beer.  Candle 79 is an upscale dining establishment.

Candle 79 is vegan, which excites my palate, if done well.  We each ordered 1 glass of wine to start.  A complimentary amuse bouche arrived shortly after that.  We decided to share 2 dishes.  I was very happy with the grilled kale salad that had figs and spelt berries.  The figs were perfectly ripe and burst in your mouth.  We also had a guacamole timbale with homemade tortilla chips.  The chunky guac sat on a bed of tasty black bean salsa.

Vegan restaurants are not always good.  They are heavy on seitan, which I find tasteless and chewy.  Candle 79 has lots of seitan dishes as well.  However, they do have a gluten-free menu of really tasty non-seitan dishes.  If you can get a reservation in this tiny establishment, check it out.  Or, belly up to the bar.