By now, it must be only a cliché that people dislike Brussels sprouts. Most people know that these miniature green cabbages are one of fall’s most delicious vegetables. They realize that the reason Brussels sprouts get a bad rap is because too many generations of cooks boiled them to death, turning the sprouts into smelly mush. But sautéed or roasted these beauties are addictive, a delicious truth that has finally made its way into the mainstream. Right?
Well, based on the reactions of numerous passersby at the Tribeca Greenmarket today who were offered samples of my delicious Brussels sprouts I would sadly say no. Yes there were a few wonderful folks who proclaimed their love for Brussels sprouts, but most of their fellow shoppers were openly skeptical.
This particular Greenmarket draws an interesting mix of people – mostly office workers and moms/nannies with strollers. Unlike my neighborhood market, this one isn’t set apart from foot traffic. Instead, it occupies part of the sidewalk for an entire block, so a lot of people walking through aren’t necessarily interested in the Greenmarket per se; they’re just trying to get from Duane St. to Chambers St.
As the Greenmarket’s demo chef I consider myself an ambassador of sorts, someone who can introduce delicious vegetables to eaters, and encourage them to prepare the veggies themselves. I pushed hard on the Brussels sprouts today, cajoling people to try samples, and I think this simple recipe won a few converts.
EASIEST AND BEST BRUSSELS SPROUTS
Brussels sprouts often get a bad rap, but when cooked properly they are a savory, addictive fall and winter vegetable.
Ingredients: 2 TB butter
1 TB minced shallot
4 cups thinly sliced Brussels sprouts
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup water
pepper
1. Heat the butter in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Once the butter is melted and the foam subsides add the shallot and cook for about a minute.
2. Add the Brussels sprouts and salt to the pan. Stir and continue to cook until the sprouts are bright green, about two minutes.
3. Add the water to the pan, cover and cook for three minutes. Test for tenderness; if sprouts are nearly tender uncover pan and continue to cook until remaining water evaporates, about two minutes. (If sprouts aren’t yet tender cover and continue to cook for another couple minutes.)
4. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Yield: 4 servings
Showing posts with label recipe. Show all posts
Showing posts with label recipe. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 07, 2009
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Happy Moms
This morning I worked with four terrific women on the Upper West Side who wanted to expand their kid-friendly, yet adult-appealing, dinner repertoire. One of the moms, Lauren Slayton, is a nutritionist who has her own company, Foodtrainers, and her own blog. Click here for her review of our class. We prepared spinach-basil pesto, turkey-herb meatballs, ham and white bean soup, and a few other dishes.
One of my favorite recipes is for the spinach-basil pesto. Pesto is a favorite in our household, on pasta, chicken, or even fish. While basil is traditional, pesto can be made with other leafy herbs, and this summer I decided to incorporate some baby spinach as well. The experiment succeeded, and spinach-basil pesto has become one of my favorite teaching recipes. It tastes great, and moms (including me) love that it's a vehicle for getting spinach into our kids! The pesto is also exceedingly simple to make and can be stored in the freezer for up to three months. I like to freeze small amounts in ice cube trays to defrost at a moment’s notice.
SPINACH-BASIL PESTO
Ingredients: 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cups moderately packed baby spinach leaves
2 cups moderately packed basil leaves
1 small garlic clove, roughly chopped
1/2 cup walnuts
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup grated parmigiano cheese
1. Pour the olive oil into a blender or food processor. Add the spinach, basil, garlic, nuts, and salt. Blend until smooth.
2. Add the parmigiano cheese and blend until combined.
3. Check seasoning. Add more salt if necessary.
Yield: scant one-cup
One of my favorite recipes is for the spinach-basil pesto. Pesto is a favorite in our household, on pasta, chicken, or even fish. While basil is traditional, pesto can be made with other leafy herbs, and this summer I decided to incorporate some baby spinach as well. The experiment succeeded, and spinach-basil pesto has become one of my favorite teaching recipes. It tastes great, and moms (including me) love that it's a vehicle for getting spinach into our kids! The pesto is also exceedingly simple to make and can be stored in the freezer for up to three months. I like to freeze small amounts in ice cube trays to defrost at a moment’s notice.
SPINACH-BASIL PESTO
Ingredients: 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cups moderately packed baby spinach leaves
2 cups moderately packed basil leaves
1 small garlic clove, roughly chopped
1/2 cup walnuts
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup grated parmigiano cheese
1. Pour the olive oil into a blender or food processor. Add the spinach, basil, garlic, nuts, and salt. Blend until smooth.
2. Add the parmigiano cheese and blend until combined.
3. Check seasoning. Add more salt if necessary.
Yield: scant one-cup
Friday, July 10, 2009
Greenmarket Love, Part II
When I shop for my family at the Greenmarket, I stick mostly with fruits and vegetables, ordering our proteins and dairy from Fresh Direct. But, when I was planning my Tribeca Greenmarket demo a couple of weeks ago I decided to make use of the wonderful, fresh seafood on offer there. Behold Sauteed Scallops with Salsa Verde -- a light, simple, and delicious dish. My favorite part of this recipe is how nicely the punchy lemon flavor of the salsa verde complements the richness of the scallops. And after tasting the impeccable freshness of the Greenmarket seafood I am vowing to expand my Greenmarket horizons.
This salsa verde is also one of my favorite ways to get vegetables into my toddler. A variation on pesto, it also works mixed into orzo or rice or served over roasted chicken.
SAUTEED SCALLOPS WITH SALSA VERDE
Ingredients: 1/2 cup, plus 2 TB extra virgin olive oil
2 cups greens and/or herbs, e.g., spinach, arugula, basil, parsley
1 TB lemon juice
1/2 tsp. salt, plus more for sprinkling
pepper
16 large scallops
1. In a blender or food processor, blend together _ cup olive oil, the greens, lemon juice, salt, and a few grinds pepper. Taste for seasoning and add more salt, pepper, or lemon juice if necessary. This sauce should be loose enough for drizzling.
2. In a large saucepan, heat 2 TB olive oil (or canola oil). Season the scallops on both sides with salt and pepper. When oil is hot add the scallops and cook.
3. When the underside of the scallops are well-browned, about two-three minutes, flip the scallops and cook four more minutes, or until just cooked through.
4. Serve scallops drizzled with salsa verde.
Yield: 4 servings
I have another Tribeca Greenmarket demo coming up on Wednesday, July 15. I’m testing recipes this weekend… I think something with peaches is on the horizon.
This salsa verde is also one of my favorite ways to get vegetables into my toddler. A variation on pesto, it also works mixed into orzo or rice or served over roasted chicken.
SAUTEED SCALLOPS WITH SALSA VERDE
Ingredients: 1/2 cup, plus 2 TB extra virgin olive oil
2 cups greens and/or herbs, e.g., spinach, arugula, basil, parsley
1 TB lemon juice
1/2 tsp. salt, plus more for sprinkling
pepper
16 large scallops
1. In a blender or food processor, blend together _ cup olive oil, the greens, lemon juice, salt, and a few grinds pepper. Taste for seasoning and add more salt, pepper, or lemon juice if necessary. This sauce should be loose enough for drizzling.
2. In a large saucepan, heat 2 TB olive oil (or canola oil). Season the scallops on both sides with salt and pepper. When oil is hot add the scallops and cook.
3. When the underside of the scallops are well-browned, about two-three minutes, flip the scallops and cook four more minutes, or until just cooked through.
4. Serve scallops drizzled with salsa verde.
Yield: 4 servings
I have another Tribeca Greenmarket demo coming up on Wednesday, July 15. I’m testing recipes this weekend… I think something with peaches is on the horizon.
Monday, July 06, 2009
Greenmarket Love
A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure to demo recipes at the Tribeca Greenmarket. It was a beautiful day. My friend Cara came and took a few photos (see above), and I got to meet farmers, shoppers, and several moms and their kids who stopped by to watch the demo.
I have been absolutely in love with the Greenmarkets (NYC’s system of farmer’s markets) the last few weeks. Every Saturday morning Rosa and I head up to Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn as early as we wake up, usually by 7:30 AM. The weather then is perfect -- warm, but not hot -- and I'm always surprised and impressed by how many other people are awake and starting their day at that hour. We buy enough fruits and veggies for the week, sampling as many of the berries as possible, and head home for coffee (for me) or milk (for Rosa), the paper, and then breakfast with some of the foods we've purchased. It's a lovely start to the weekend.
This year, more than ever, I have been very attuned to the week-by-week changes in the market’s offerings. One week the strawberries are sweet, perfect jewels. The next week they’re a little mushier, and I know that I won’t be eating many fresh strawberries for another 10-11 months. That’s a long time! And it makes each bite of strawberry, when they are in season, even sweeter. As I'm getting older I'm trying to hold on to time, and it's really not possible. The fleeting seasons of my favorite foods only reinforce that. We must appreciate them while they're around and then let go.
At the Tribeca demo I prepared two dishes: Sugar Snap Pea Salad with Arugula and Pan-seared Scallops with Salsa Verde, two simple, delicious dishes that really capture the flavors of early summer. Here is the Sugar Snap Pea salad recipe; the scallops will come in an upcoming post.
SUGAR SNAP PEA & ARUGULA SALAD
Sugar snap peas usually rank high on kids’ vegetable list – not nearly as egregious as other veggies. For even more takers, try calling arugula by one of its other names: “rocket”.
Ingredients: 3 TB extra virgin olive oil, divided
1 TB fresh lemon juice
1 TB minced shallot
1 tsp. salt, plus more for sprinkling
pepper
1 pound sugar snap peas, trimmed
1 cup baby arugula
1 cup other baby lettuces, like a mesclun mix
1/2 cup crumbled soft cheese, like chevre or ricotta salata
1. Heat 1 TB olive oil in a medium sauté pan. When hot, add the sugar snap peas and sprinkle with salt. Cook until sugar snap peas are bright green, one to two minutes, stirring frequently. Set aside.
2. In large bowl, whisk together 2 TB olive oil, lemon juice, shallot, salt, and a few grinds of pepper.
3. Add the sugar snap peas to the dressing and mix.
4. Add the lettuces to the sugar snap peas and toss gently.
5. Add the cheese and toss gently.
6. Taste for seasoning and add more olive oil, lemon juice, salt, or pepper as necessary.
Yield: 3-4 servings
Variations:
• Replace the arugula with more baby greens, or vice versa (my favorite).
• Omit the green entirely and serve only the sugar snap peas.
• Omit the shallot or cheese if they’re unavailable or unpopular in your household.
I’m still thinking about what recipes I’ll prep at my next Greenmarket demo on Wednesday, July 15. I think peaches may be mandatory – I made a tasty peach relish to serve over T-bone steaks on the 4th of July. Perhaps that will go on the menu -- we still have a few more weeks to eat all the peaches we can get our hands on before they disappear for another year.
Monday, May 18, 2009
The Muffin Quandary
A year or two ago I attended and enjoyed a taping of the The Martha Stewart Show. Before the taping I got a short tour of the kitchen and the set. One of the guests was chef Tom Colicchio and Annie Lennox was there to sing a song off of her new album. After the show taped Martha took a few questions from the audience. One woman asked for a picture with Martha, a request that was politely nixed. Another asked how Martha kept in such good shape. The last one was from a lovely and slightly fragile looking woman from New Jersey. She wore a skirt and pearls and looked to be in her mid-30s. Her question was earnest and her voice was hopeful; finally she’d be getting the answer to her pressing domestic question: “How do I keep muffins fresh and delicious for a day or two after I bake them?”
Martha stammered about following the recipe, saying you really should just eat them right away and rambled on a bit more, about what I don’t remember. Overall, it was a lame answer, muddled and slightly impatient.
I’ve often thought about that woman from New Jersey and how disappointed she must have been in Martha’s answer. In my musings, the woman was a devoted Martha follower who is now confusingly disillusioned with her idol. If Martha couldn’t speak clearly about how to keep muffins fresh then what did that say about Martha?!
But, the thing is, Martha was right. She just should have been clearer about it. Muffins really should be eaten the day they’re baked, preferably within a half-hour after they come out of the oven. And that’s just the way it is. Wait much longer and they'll lose their enticing warmth, crisp top and tender interior texture.
But the good news is that while the muffins should be baked just before serving, the batter can easily be mixed the night before and stored in a container in the fridge. I do this all the time for blueberry muffins, stirring in the fruit just before I bake.
I also have a favorite muffin recipe from my mother (via Susan Berkey, a neighbor in Logan, Utah circa 1980) that claims the batter, enough for two-dozen muffins, can be kept in the refrigerator for five weeks. That seems like a long time to me. But, I do feel comfortable keeping the batter for several days, and I did just that last week. I prepped the batter Friday afternoon, baked a dozen muffins on Saturday morning and then baked the other dozen before work on Wednesday. If I’d wanted I could have baked four muffins a day for three days or any other combination I desired.
I still eat one or two-day old muffins, of course. But it’s nice to know how easy it is to have fresh, warm, healthful muffins any day of the week.
Here is Susan’s recipe with a few tweaks:
Raisin Bran Muffins (originally called Refrigerator Bran Muffins for obvious reasons)
3 cups whole bran cereal (like All-Bran)
1 cup boiling water
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup molasses
2 cups low-fat buttermilk
1/2 cup canola oil
1 cup raisins
2 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1. In a large bowl pour the boiling water over the cereal. Stir to moisten evenly, and allow to cool for a few minutes.
2. Add the eggs, molasses, buttermilk, canola oil, and raisins to the cereal. Stir to combine.
3. In a medium bowl stir together the baking soda, salt, sugar, all-purpose flour, and whole wheat flour.
4. Add flour mixture to cereal mixture and stir until just combined.
5. Store in a tightly covered container in the refrigerator.
6. When ready to bake, spoon the batter into greased or papered muffin cups and bake in a 425º oven for 20 minutes.
Yield: 24 standard-sized muffins
Martha stammered about following the recipe, saying you really should just eat them right away and rambled on a bit more, about what I don’t remember. Overall, it was a lame answer, muddled and slightly impatient.
I’ve often thought about that woman from New Jersey and how disappointed she must have been in Martha’s answer. In my musings, the woman was a devoted Martha follower who is now confusingly disillusioned with her idol. If Martha couldn’t speak clearly about how to keep muffins fresh then what did that say about Martha?!
But, the thing is, Martha was right. She just should have been clearer about it. Muffins really should be eaten the day they’re baked, preferably within a half-hour after they come out of the oven. And that’s just the way it is. Wait much longer and they'll lose their enticing warmth, crisp top and tender interior texture.
But the good news is that while the muffins should be baked just before serving, the batter can easily be mixed the night before and stored in a container in the fridge. I do this all the time for blueberry muffins, stirring in the fruit just before I bake.
I also have a favorite muffin recipe from my mother (via Susan Berkey, a neighbor in Logan, Utah circa 1980) that claims the batter, enough for two-dozen muffins, can be kept in the refrigerator for five weeks. That seems like a long time to me. But, I do feel comfortable keeping the batter for several days, and I did just that last week. I prepped the batter Friday afternoon, baked a dozen muffins on Saturday morning and then baked the other dozen before work on Wednesday. If I’d wanted I could have baked four muffins a day for three days or any other combination I desired.
I still eat one or two-day old muffins, of course. But it’s nice to know how easy it is to have fresh, warm, healthful muffins any day of the week.
Here is Susan’s recipe with a few tweaks:
Raisin Bran Muffins (originally called Refrigerator Bran Muffins for obvious reasons)
3 cups whole bran cereal (like All-Bran)
1 cup boiling water
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup molasses
2 cups low-fat buttermilk
1/2 cup canola oil
1 cup raisins
2 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1. In a large bowl pour the boiling water over the cereal. Stir to moisten evenly, and allow to cool for a few minutes.
2. Add the eggs, molasses, buttermilk, canola oil, and raisins to the cereal. Stir to combine.
3. In a medium bowl stir together the baking soda, salt, sugar, all-purpose flour, and whole wheat flour.
4. Add flour mixture to cereal mixture and stir until just combined.
5. Store in a tightly covered container in the refrigerator.
6. When ready to bake, spoon the batter into greased or papered muffin cups and bake in a 425º oven for 20 minutes.
Yield: 24 standard-sized muffins
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Basic Risotto
In my last post I mentioned risotto as a “culinary blank slate”, and I’ve been making it more frequently for just that reason. The basic recipe is delicious, but it’s also a convenient, inexpensive palate for numerous ingredient combinations, i.e., whatever I have left over in the fridge or pantry.
Before I started making risotto regularly, I was daunted by the much-ballyhooed 30-40 minutes of constant stirring the dish “requires”. Note the quotation marks – risotto does just fine with frequent, as opposed to constant, stirring.
This change from constant to frequent makes all the difference for me. I can’t leave the kitchen altogether (to watch the Yankees game for example) while the risotto is cooking, but I can do other cooking tasks in between stirs. My results may not be quite as creamy as constant stirring would produce, but for me the trade-off is worth it since the risotto is still fantastic.
I’ve found that the most important thing to do when cooking risotto is to taste it periodically. There will come a point when it is perfect – tender, but with a bite. Cook it any longer and it will become mushy – still edible but missing the essence of what makes risotto so special.
The basic recipe is straightforward.
For two servings:
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 TB olive oil
1 cup short-grained rice, like Arborio
1/2 cup white wine
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano cheese
1 TB butter
salt and pepper to taste
1. Heat the broth in a small saucepan. Keep it over a low flame near the risotto pan.
2. Heat the olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the rice and toast it gently for about five minutes.
3. Add the wine to the rice and simmer until the wine has virtually evaporated.
4. Add a 1/2 cup of broth to the rice, stirring to incorporate it. The broth will gently simmer, and the mixture will get thicker as the rice absorbs the liquid. Stay close to the stove, but feel free to do a few dishes, or trim asparagus or the like. Stir again a few times, and when the liquid is mostly absorbed, add another 1/2 cup broth. Repeat the process until the rice is al dente – tender, but with a bite. (The rice may be perfect before you use all the broth. Don’t force the rest of the broth in; your rice will become too mushy. Or, you may use up all the broth and still have hard rice. In that case, add a 1/4 cup of water at a time and incorporate it just as you did the broth. In my experience the risotto is usually ready before I’ve used all of the broth.)
5. Turn off the heat. Stir in the butter and Parmigiano cheese. Taste for seasoning; add salt and pepper if desired.
Once you’ve got the basic method down, you can vary it in all sorts of ways. Omit the butter and cheese if you want. Add any number of other ingredients: sausage, shrimp, blanched asparagus pieces, shallots, garlic, butternut squash puree, nuts, blue cheese, baby greens…wherever your refrigerator and imagination take you. Sunday night I made porcini mushroom risotto, and it was creamy, earthy, and deeply flavored. Recipe to come in my next post.
Before I started making risotto regularly, I was daunted by the much-ballyhooed 30-40 minutes of constant stirring the dish “requires”. Note the quotation marks – risotto does just fine with frequent, as opposed to constant, stirring.
This change from constant to frequent makes all the difference for me. I can’t leave the kitchen altogether (to watch the Yankees game for example) while the risotto is cooking, but I can do other cooking tasks in between stirs. My results may not be quite as creamy as constant stirring would produce, but for me the trade-off is worth it since the risotto is still fantastic.
I’ve found that the most important thing to do when cooking risotto is to taste it periodically. There will come a point when it is perfect – tender, but with a bite. Cook it any longer and it will become mushy – still edible but missing the essence of what makes risotto so special.
The basic recipe is straightforward.
For two servings:
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 TB olive oil
1 cup short-grained rice, like Arborio
1/2 cup white wine
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano cheese
1 TB butter
salt and pepper to taste
1. Heat the broth in a small saucepan. Keep it over a low flame near the risotto pan.
2. Heat the olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the rice and toast it gently for about five minutes.
3. Add the wine to the rice and simmer until the wine has virtually evaporated.
4. Add a 1/2 cup of broth to the rice, stirring to incorporate it. The broth will gently simmer, and the mixture will get thicker as the rice absorbs the liquid. Stay close to the stove, but feel free to do a few dishes, or trim asparagus or the like. Stir again a few times, and when the liquid is mostly absorbed, add another 1/2 cup broth. Repeat the process until the rice is al dente – tender, but with a bite. (The rice may be perfect before you use all the broth. Don’t force the rest of the broth in; your rice will become too mushy. Or, you may use up all the broth and still have hard rice. In that case, add a 1/4 cup of water at a time and incorporate it just as you did the broth. In my experience the risotto is usually ready before I’ve used all of the broth.)
5. Turn off the heat. Stir in the butter and Parmigiano cheese. Taste for seasoning; add salt and pepper if desired.
Once you’ve got the basic method down, you can vary it in all sorts of ways. Omit the butter and cheese if you want. Add any number of other ingredients: sausage, shrimp, blanched asparagus pieces, shallots, garlic, butternut squash puree, nuts, blue cheese, baby greens…wherever your refrigerator and imagination take you. Sunday night I made porcini mushroom risotto, and it was creamy, earthy, and deeply flavored. Recipe to come in my next post.
Monday, March 02, 2009
Not breaking the bank
It’s not even that I’m trying to cut our grocery bills as much as I’m trying to maintain them. As you can imagine, I could spend a FORTUNE on food. If Dave would let me, I would have a dinner party (at least) once a week. I would buy gobs of fresh herbs and exotic spices. Twenty-three-dollar-a-pound fish and porterhouse steaks would be regulars in our kitchen. And, don’t get me started on the expensive cheeses I would buy.
Since emptying our accounts to buy food is not the ideal scenario (in any economy) I’m working hard to maintain our standards of eating without breaking the bank. Think less prosciutto de Parma, more mortadella. One strategy I’ve been employing is to prepare more vegetarian meals, ideally two or three a week. Dried beans and tofu have become my kitchen friends. I’m also working more whole grains like farro and quinoa into my repertoire. Besides saving money, vegetarian meals are healthier for us (less cholesterol, saturated fat, and usually calories) -- and the planet. In a Salon.com article
about Mark Bittman, Laura Miller explains the environmental toll of industrial meats and crops:
In brief, our current meat-heavy system of food production is unsustainable, a waste of resources and a source of pollution in the form of pesticides and hormones as well as methane gas from livestock manure. Our overreliance on a few big crops (especially corn and soy) [JH note: to feed the animals] depletes the soil, demanding the use of ever greater quantities of chemical fertilizers, whose manufacture requires massive amounts of fossil fuel. The foods produced by agribusiness, in the form of highly processed flours, fats and -- above all -- high-fructose corn syrup, have little nutritional value and foster a host of health problems, including diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure as well as obesity. The industries fabricating these foods have bought and paid for American politicians and government agencies, costing taxpayers billions of dollars per year in subsidies and other benefits paid to businesses who profit while eroding the public's health.
In keeping with my budget-friendly vegetarian goals I made homemade refried beans this weekend, and they were phenomenal! We wrapped them in flour tortillas with rice, avocado, and salsa and ate like (thrifty, healthy) kings.
I don’t have a specific recipe for the beans, but here’s a general method:
1. Cook a pound of dried beans according to package directions. I soaked mine overnight and then boiled them in water with minced onion, garlic, and green pepper. (Once cooked, I froze half of the beans in their cooking liquid for another meal and used half for the refried beans.)
2. Drain the beans.
3. In a nonstick pan, heat about a tablespoon of canola oil over medium-high heat. Add a diced onion and sauté it until it softens. Add a teaspoon of cumin, a healthy pinch of salt, and a dash of cayenne pepper to the onion and stir for about 30 seconds.
4. Add the beans to the pan, stir to coat. Using a potato masher, mash the beans to the desired consistency. Heat through. Taste for seasoning and add more salt and pepper if necessary.
There was also an interesting article in the Times today about how cooking magazines are reacting to the economy and providing more articles to their readers focused on “budget cooking”. Click here to read it.
(As you can see from the articles I link to online, I love NYTimes.com. If they ever required a subscription fee to read their articles as they once did, I would comply in a second. Some things are worth the money.)
Since emptying our accounts to buy food is not the ideal scenario (in any economy) I’m working hard to maintain our standards of eating without breaking the bank. Think less prosciutto de Parma, more mortadella. One strategy I’ve been employing is to prepare more vegetarian meals, ideally two or three a week. Dried beans and tofu have become my kitchen friends. I’m also working more whole grains like farro and quinoa into my repertoire. Besides saving money, vegetarian meals are healthier for us (less cholesterol, saturated fat, and usually calories) -- and the planet. In a Salon.com article
about Mark Bittman, Laura Miller explains the environmental toll of industrial meats and crops:
In brief, our current meat-heavy system of food production is unsustainable, a waste of resources and a source of pollution in the form of pesticides and hormones as well as methane gas from livestock manure. Our overreliance on a few big crops (especially corn and soy) [JH note: to feed the animals] depletes the soil, demanding the use of ever greater quantities of chemical fertilizers, whose manufacture requires massive amounts of fossil fuel. The foods produced by agribusiness, in the form of highly processed flours, fats and -- above all -- high-fructose corn syrup, have little nutritional value and foster a host of health problems, including diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure as well as obesity. The industries fabricating these foods have bought and paid for American politicians and government agencies, costing taxpayers billions of dollars per year in subsidies and other benefits paid to businesses who profit while eroding the public's health.
In keeping with my budget-friendly vegetarian goals I made homemade refried beans this weekend, and they were phenomenal! We wrapped them in flour tortillas with rice, avocado, and salsa and ate like (thrifty, healthy) kings.
I don’t have a specific recipe for the beans, but here’s a general method:
1. Cook a pound of dried beans according to package directions. I soaked mine overnight and then boiled them in water with minced onion, garlic, and green pepper. (Once cooked, I froze half of the beans in their cooking liquid for another meal and used half for the refried beans.)
2. Drain the beans.
3. In a nonstick pan, heat about a tablespoon of canola oil over medium-high heat. Add a diced onion and sauté it until it softens. Add a teaspoon of cumin, a healthy pinch of salt, and a dash of cayenne pepper to the onion and stir for about 30 seconds.
4. Add the beans to the pan, stir to coat. Using a potato masher, mash the beans to the desired consistency. Heat through. Taste for seasoning and add more salt and pepper if necessary.
There was also an interesting article in the Times today about how cooking magazines are reacting to the economy and providing more articles to their readers focused on “budget cooking”. Click here to read it.
(As you can see from the articles I link to online, I love NYTimes.com. If they ever required a subscription fee to read their articles as they once did, I would comply in a second. Some things are worth the money.)
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Snickerdoodles
I admit, I was a Facebook holdout, dreading the time it would suck from my life. And, yes, it has… somewhat. But one of the true pleasures of Facebook has been connecting with people who were once very dear to me. One of those people was Kelly, my wonderful friend that kept me sane and happy during middle school and high school.
A couple of days after we reconnected Kelly asked me if I still made snickerdoodles, the cinnamon-sugar cookies that used to be a mainstay in my extremely limited repertoire. I’m not even sure where this recipe came from, although I think it is of the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook genre. It was one of my mother’s favorites, and she actually made the cookies with Rosa recently.
In fact, I hadn’t baked snickerdoodles in years. But Kelly’s question made me eager to try the cookies again. I baked them this afternoon, and fresh out of the oven they were divine: meltingly soft, cinnamon-touched, and with a bite from the cream of tartar. Once cool they became crisp on the outside, but still a bit chewy inside, and very good.
Snickerdoodles
Makes about 4 dozen
2 3/4 cup flour
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup butter at room temperature (two sticks)
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
Topping:
2 TB sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
1. Preheat the oven to 400º.
2. In medium bowl whisk together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt.
3. Cream together the butter and sugar. Beat in eggs.
4. Blend the flour mixture into the butter mixture.
5. Stir together the sugar and cinnamon for the topping.
6. Roll dough into 1-inch balls and roll in the topping mixture.
7. Place the dough balls on a baking sheet, a dozen per sheet.
8. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the cookies are lightly golden.
9. Let them cool for five minutes on the baking sheets and then remove the cookies to a rack to cool.
These cookies get hard all too quickly. My mom would put a slice of bread in the container and the cookies would become blissfully soft again.
Monday, December 29, 2008
Dinner for a Buck
The New York Times' Well blog ran a column today featuring 20 healthy foods that can be had for under $1 a serving - not a bad price in this day and age (especially for someone like me who could spend hundreds of dollars on groceries each week). The list originated on the Divine Caroline site and features foods like eggs, tofu, broccoli, and chickpeas (garbanzo beans). Click here for the entire list.
I loved this list (although I could quibble with a few of the choices), and it was both a good reminder to eat some foods I don't use very often and a good affirmation of some of the foods we eat regularly. I try to always keep a can of beans in the pantry, usually chickpeas, cannellini beans, or black beans. They save me whenever I'm looking for a side dish or a super quick lunch to take to work. And they're endlessly customizable. Making something Latin flavored? Spice up black beans with red onion, cilantro, and lime juice. Italian? Stir in olive oil, fresh sage or parsley, scallion, and lemon juice. If you have it on hand, add in tuna canned in olive oil for a great tuna salad on its own or between bread.
You can pretty much taste your way to deliciousness with beans and their seasonings, but here's the recipe for the black bean salad to get you started:
LATIN BLACK BEAN SALAD
Serve with tacos, quesadillas, chicken or pork tenderloin.
Ingredients: 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 TB canola or vegetable oil
1 TB lime juice, freshly squeezed
2 TB red onion, finely chopped
2 TB cilantro, finely chopped
1/4 tsp. salt
1. Mix all ingredients in medium bowl.
2. Adjust seasoning if necessary.
Variation:
• For French chickpea salad, stir together chickpeas, olive oil, white wine vinegar, shallot, fresh thyme and salt.
I loved this list (although I could quibble with a few of the choices), and it was both a good reminder to eat some foods I don't use very often and a good affirmation of some of the foods we eat regularly. I try to always keep a can of beans in the pantry, usually chickpeas, cannellini beans, or black beans. They save me whenever I'm looking for a side dish or a super quick lunch to take to work. And they're endlessly customizable. Making something Latin flavored? Spice up black beans with red onion, cilantro, and lime juice. Italian? Stir in olive oil, fresh sage or parsley, scallion, and lemon juice. If you have it on hand, add in tuna canned in olive oil for a great tuna salad on its own or between bread.
You can pretty much taste your way to deliciousness with beans and their seasonings, but here's the recipe for the black bean salad to get you started:
LATIN BLACK BEAN SALAD
Serve with tacos, quesadillas, chicken or pork tenderloin.
Ingredients: 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 TB canola or vegetable oil
1 TB lime juice, freshly squeezed
2 TB red onion, finely chopped
2 TB cilantro, finely chopped
1/4 tsp. salt
1. Mix all ingredients in medium bowl.
2. Adjust seasoning if necessary.
Variation:
• For French chickpea salad, stir together chickpeas, olive oil, white wine vinegar, shallot, fresh thyme and salt.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Holiday Baking Results - Pumpkin Bread
For baking novices it’s hard to believe that a gently sweet, tender bread studded with plump, chewy raisins can be simple to make. But, it is! Basically you just mix a bunch of ingredients in a bowl, pour it into loaf pans, and then bake it. The bread is delicious spread with peanut butter for breakfast and makes a great hostess gift. (I’ve decided that this is my new hostess gift strategy – bringing them something to eat for breakfast the next day.)
Here’s the recipe, and I highly recommend it:
Pumpkin Bread
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 cups or 1 can pumpkin
1 cup raisins (or cranberries or a mix of the two)
1/2 cup chopped nuts (I like pecans but walnuts would also work)
1/2 cup coconut
1 egg
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1. Preheat the oven to 350º. Grease four small loaf pans.
2. In a large bowl stir together the dry ingredients (flour through baking soda).
3. Add the remaining ingredients and stir until the dry ingredients are just incorporated.
4. Divide the batter evenly between the four loaf pans and place in the preheated oven. Bake for approximately 50 minutes or until the tops of the bread are firm and golden and a toothpick inserted into the breads comes out relatively clean.
5. Cool for 10 minutes in the pans. Then remove the loaves from the pans and cool them completely on a wire rack.
P.S. These loaves freeze extremely well. Once they’re completely cool, wrap them in aluminum foil and then place them in a zip-top plastic bag. Thaw on the counter.
P.P.S. Check out the great four-loaf pan above -- they're all connected! From New York Cake and Baking.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Tofu Recipe
Last time I wrote about the yummy tofu dish I made I forgot to include the recipe. It's from Bon Appetit and here's the link.
Saturday, September 06, 2008
Olive Lamb Burgers
A few weeks ago I blogged about the olive lamb burgers Dave and I were raving about. I tested the recipe for Leite's Culinaria (I am a volunteer tester for the site) and, for someone who doesn't adore lamb, I strangely loved them. I couldn't link to the recipe, though, since it wasn't for public consumption. But, it's up now; here's the link. You'll also see my comment below the recipe.
Monday, September 01, 2008
Happy September
Because Labor Day is on September 1 this year, I have to admit, I feel like we were cheated out of a few days of summer.
But happily the end of summer does bring some wonderful culinary pleasures. I promised Dave that over the next week or two he would grow so sick of heirloom tomatoes that he wouldn’t want to look at another one until next August. And I’m gorging Rosa on the “peachy peachy”s that she loves since she won’t have another one until next summer.
Another annual end of summer treat for us is zucchini bread. My mom made this quick bread when I was a kid, and my brother and I always loved it. It's sweet with a hint of cinnamon and a brown top crust that adds a bit of crunch to the chewy, almost gooey interior. But looking over the recipe a few years ago I was frankly APPALLED at how much sugar there was in it. I’ve made a few tweaks over the years (subbing in some whole wheat flour, reducing the sugar, and cutting back on the oil), but it’s just as good as I remember. I’ve made two batches so far and have enough zucchini for at least another two.
So clear a little room in your freezer and spend 15 minutes putting together the ingredients for this yummy zucchini bread.
Mom’s (Healthier) Zucchini Bread
3 eggs, well beaten
3/4 cup canola oil
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 cups grated zucchini
2 cups white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp nutmeg
1 TB cinnamon
1 TB vanilla
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease three small loaf pans. I use PAM.
3. Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl. Spread into the loaf pans.
4. Start checking the bread after 35 minutes. It may take up to 15 minutes more. It’s finished when a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean. Try not to overbake though!
5. Cool the breads in their pans for 15 minutes, then take them out of the pans and let them cool completely on a wire rack.
It’s a great snack and delicious for breakfast. I especially like it smeared with a little peanut butter (then again I like pretty much anything smeared with a little peanut butter).
So enjoy some now and thaw some later in the fall to taste summer again.
But happily the end of summer does bring some wonderful culinary pleasures. I promised Dave that over the next week or two he would grow so sick of heirloom tomatoes that he wouldn’t want to look at another one until next August. And I’m gorging Rosa on the “peachy peachy”s that she loves since she won’t have another one until next summer.
Another annual end of summer treat for us is zucchini bread. My mom made this quick bread when I was a kid, and my brother and I always loved it. It's sweet with a hint of cinnamon and a brown top crust that adds a bit of crunch to the chewy, almost gooey interior. But looking over the recipe a few years ago I was frankly APPALLED at how much sugar there was in it. I’ve made a few tweaks over the years (subbing in some whole wheat flour, reducing the sugar, and cutting back on the oil), but it’s just as good as I remember. I’ve made two batches so far and have enough zucchini for at least another two.
So clear a little room in your freezer and spend 15 minutes putting together the ingredients for this yummy zucchini bread.
Mom’s (Healthier) Zucchini Bread
3 eggs, well beaten
3/4 cup canola oil
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 cups grated zucchini
2 cups white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp nutmeg
1 TB cinnamon
1 TB vanilla
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease three small loaf pans. I use PAM.
3. Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl. Spread into the loaf pans.
4. Start checking the bread after 35 minutes. It may take up to 15 minutes more. It’s finished when a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean. Try not to overbake though!
5. Cool the breads in their pans for 15 minutes, then take them out of the pans and let them cool completely on a wire rack.
It’s a great snack and delicious for breakfast. I especially like it smeared with a little peanut butter (then again I like pretty much anything smeared with a little peanut butter).
So enjoy some now and thaw some later in the fall to taste summer again.
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