My "Tasteful" Holiday Greeting Cards

Monday, December 29, 2008

This year, for the very first time, we sent out some holiday cards. I have to admit that the impulse was primarily driven by a desire to make potato block prints (though I also like the idea of keeping in touch with people, of course.)

It had been at least 10 years since I had picked up a potato to practice this incredibly simple yet surprisingly challenging art form. I bought several large, inexpensive russett baking potatoes (no need to go organic for this project...) and we spent hours creating our designs and printing them in different configurations on card stock.

Although you can use a knife or razor blade to create your design, I found that my old set of linoleum block cutting tools (from my high school art class!) worked wonders for cutting out the design, along with a paring knife that I used to clear out bigger sections of potato. We printed with watercolor paints though you can also use tempra paint or acrylics. The end result was cheerful and fun - each one unique.

Potato Print Holiday Cards


Although we made a bunch of different prints (including a peace dove, lady bug and bee), I'm including photos only of these two since they seemed the most Garden of Eating appropriate. I'd started with the tomato since the colors were so Christmasy but then could not resist the lure of the carrot...

Potato Block Print of a Tomato


Carrot Potato Print

Happy New Year to you all!

How do you feel about your kitchen?

Friday, December 19, 2008

I love to cook but am often frustrated by the kitchen in my apartment. I have a long litany of complaints (you can stop reading whenever you get sick of my complaining):

Nowhere near enough space. My husband and I run into each other constantly and have to coordinate our usage of the sink and stove with the opening of drawers and use of countertops like a careful ballet (though ballet implies something graceful and lovely which our little dance is not.)

Not enough light. The little room does have one window but it is located underneath the deck of our upstairs neighbor so very little light makes it in. My husband added some lights on top of the cabinets which help a little bit but it's not ideal, particularly when trying to take pictures of food for this here blog.

No connection to the rest of the house. Our kitchen is a little box off of a hallway which means that when we have guests they either have to stand (or sit on a tiny stepstool) in the hallway to chat with us or go hang out in the living or dining room and talk amongst themselves while we finish cooking. We once had an even tinier kitchen (the kind with a half-sized stove) which was open to the living room with a counter top between them -- that one feature pretty much made up for all its other shortcomings, though.

Tiled countertop. This might not sound bad but the tiles are old ones with very uneven surfaces which means that everything - cutting boards, plates, bowls, pans-- wobbles unmercifully and makes a lot of noise. At one point when the counters were new, the large strips of grout between them were probably smooth and full but now they are worn down, pitted and coated in years of grime (I have tried to clean them out.)

Ants. In the wintertime, the kitchen routinely gets invaded by armies of ants (luckily, the little sugar ants, not the big ones...) We think that they are driven in by either the cold or the rain but there is something very unpleasant about trying to cook on a surface covered by a river of little creatures. And it also feels bad to have to kill so many of them (who wants to begin their morning by wiping out hundreds of tiny lives, after all?)

But there are a few good points, too. For a small space, our kitchen has a surprising amount of storage so all our pots and pans and whatnot fit. It also has a gas stove (thank God!) and a full Photo of Mark Bittman cooking in his NYC kitchen by Kelly Doesized refrigerator that does NOT require defrosting. In retrospect, we have had much worse kitchens so perhaps I really should not complain.


I thought this recent blog post by Mark Bittman, the New York Times food blogger/critic and cookbook writer about his own tiny kitchen (see photo of him cooking braised turkey at right) was great. Although it has in NO way dampened my desire for a bigger and better kitchen, it was sort of nice to know that other people who take food seriously can and do cook in less than ideal circumstances and with good results.

Although I agree with Bittman that the size of a kitchen should not affect the quality of food you're able to prepare (though perhaps the volume...), I do think that a kitchen can affect the way you feel while cooking. My dad is a designer-builder and the houses he built for us always had big open kitchens with a good connection to the rest of the house. I find that it just is more enjoyable to cook in a well-designed space with room for two people to walk around.

So how do YOU feel about your kitchen? (Please respond via comments!)

Quinoa & Spinach Gratin - Hearty Comfort Food, Yet Light...

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Quinoa by Eve Fox, Garden of Eating blog, copyright 2008.

I found this recipe while browsing the Recipes for Health section of the New York Times site a few weeks ago. Something about it appealed to me - maybe the fact that it melded quinoa, a food I still think of as the kind of uber-healthy grain favored by vegans with Gruyère cheese which conjures up a very different set of associations.

We tried this out a few nights ago and loved it! The result was part comfort food, part health food, and 100% tasty and satisfying.

Sauteeing spinach with herbs and garlic for the harvest lasagna by Eve Fox, The Garden of Eating, copyright 2014

It does not take too long to prepare (you can cook the quinoa ahead of time which helps a bit) and tastes great reheated. My husband and I were practically fighting over the leftovers the next day...

Quinoa Spinach Gratin - Pre-Baking by Eve Fox, Garden of Eating blog, copyright 2008

My recipe below includes a few small changes to the original by Martha Rose Shulman. In addition to adjusting the amounts a little, I've suggested cooking the quinoa with some stock or bouillon as it gives it a richer flavor (though you can just use water.) I've also increased the amount of cheese the recipe calls for (though you could scale back if you want to err on the side of lower fat, lighter dairy, etc.,) as we both felt it would have been even tastier with a little more melty goodness. And since Gruyère is a pretty pricey cheese, I've suggested substituting cheddar for the additional cheese. It's a very flexible recipe, though, so feel free to adjust.

Quinoa Spinach Gratin by Eve Fox, Garden of Eating blog, copyright 2008

Enjoy!

-- print recipe --Quinoa & Spinach Gratin
Serves 6

Ingredients

* 1 large bunch of organic spinach, washed, dried and torn into manageable-sized pieces
* 2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
* 1 large onion, chopped
* 4 garlic cloves, minced
* 1 1/2 cups quinoa, rinsed in several changes of water and drained
* 3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
* 3 large organic eggs
* 3/4 cup Gruyère cheese, grated
* 3/4 cup cheddar cheese, grated
* 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
* 1 1/2 tsps fresh sage, chopped
* 2 tsps Italian parsley, chopped
* 1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
* Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Oil a 2-quart baking or casserole dish.

2. Prepare the quinoa. Bring the stock to a boil in a pot and add the quinoa with a pinch of salt. Stir and return to a boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 12-15 minutes or until the quinoa is tender but still firm. You'll know it's done when you see its unique little curlicue of a "tail" come out of the grain. Drain the quinoa in a fine strainer or sieve and set it aside.

3. Heat a medium frying pan or a wide saucepan over medium-high heat and add 2 Tbsps of the olive oil. Add the onion and cook, stirring often, until translucent and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir with the onion until fragrant, 1-2 minutes. Add the spinach and stir to wilt it well (you may need to add it in batches to make it easier to deal with as it cooks down since it always starts out so bulky). Season generously with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Remove from the heat.

4. Beat the eggs in a large bowl and add 1/2 teaspoon sea salt and some more pepper. Stir in the quinoa, the onion and spinach mixture, the Gruyère and cheddar cheeses, and the herbs. Stir to combine well. Scrape the whole thing into the oiled gratin dish. Sprinkle the Parmesan over the top and drizzle on the remaining tablespoon of olive oil.

5. Place in the oven and bake until nicely browned on top, about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let sit for about 5 minutes, then serve.

Makes tasty leftovers! This would go well with a hearty salad or soup.

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An Important Decision - Secretary of Agriculture

Saturday, December 13, 2008

In the next few days, President-elect Obama will be naming a new Secretary of Agriculture. This is a very important decision -- whoever Obama appoints will have a lot of influence over the policies that affect our farms and our food.

Will it be agribusiness and factory farming as usual or real change that supports family farmers and advances a healthier, more sustainable way of feeding our population and caring for our land?

Please sign the short petition at http://www.fooddemocracynow.org/ to urge him to choose one of six great candidates (they've been endorsed by all the right people, in my opinion.)

And please sign it now, before it's too late to influence Obama's decision.

I know I have not provided much background info so if you'd like more details, check out the recent New York Times op-ed by Nicholas Kristof on this topic at: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/11/opinion/11kristof.html

Thanks!
-Eve

Hearty Winter Salad: Roasted Delicata Squash & Caramelized Red Onions with Farro

Friday, December 5, 2008

I've decided that delicata is my new favorite squash. I just love its sweet, mildly nutty flavor and its versatility. So when I saw this yummy-sounding roasted pumpkin salad on 101 Cookbooks a few weeks ago, I decided I would create my own version using roasted delicata squash and farro in place of wild rice. I also found these lovely little purple cipollini onions at the farmers market on Thursday (though a regular red onion would also work just fine.)


Cipollini Onions
I won't lie to you, this dish did take me nearly 2 hours of solid work to prepare. But the end result was this gorgeous and hearty winter fare.


Roasted Delicata Squash Salad With Red Onions & Farro

Next time, I might try roasting the onions with a splash of pomegranate molasses in place of balsamic vinegar to add yet one more note of complexity and sweetness. I also think this would go nicely with some goat cheese though I had none on hand so I made a creamy balsamic vinegar dressing. You could also roast a butternut squash in place of delicata if you prefer the flavor.


Roasted Delicata Squash Salad With Red Onions & Farro

Roasted Delicata Squash & Caramelized Red Onions with Farro
Serves 4 (as a side dish)

Ingredients

* 2 large delicata squash, peeled, seeded and cut into chunks or strips (your choice)
* 6 small cipollini onions or 1 really large red onion, peeled and cut into decent-sized wedges
* 1 1/2 cups semi-pearled farro, rinsed in several changes of water
* 3-4 cups stock or salted water (using vegetable or chicken stock will lend a richer flavor to the farro)
* 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
* 1 Tbsp fresh thyme, washed and chopped
* 3 tsps Italian parsely, washed and chopped
* 3 Tbsps olive oil
* 2 tsps walnut oil
* Sea salt
* Freshly ground black pepper
* Goat cheese (optional)

* I bunch arugula or watercress, washed and dried (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375. Toss the squash and onions with the thyme, olive oil and balsamic vinegar and spread in a single layer on a heavy baking sheet. Sprinkle everything with sea salt and roast, turning often, for 15-20 minutes or until soft but still toothsome (you don't want the squash to fall apart in the salad.) Remove from the oven and cool a bit.

2. While you're roasting the veggies, cook the farro (please note that these directions are for the semi-pearled variety which takes about half as long to cook as the other kind.) Add the rinsed and drained farro to the stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until tender but still firm, about 15-20 minutes. Drain any excess liquid from the farro and place in a large bowl or on a platter (whatever you intend to serve the salad on/in.)

3. Add the parsley to the farro and toss with the walnut oil and a pinch of seal salt and a few grinds of black pepper. You can either toss in the squash and onions or serve them on top of the farro. If you're using goat cheese, dot the salad with it now. You can serve with or without greens - my recommendations would be either arugula or watercress for a little peppery bite.


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Ginger Syrup, A Gift from the Kitchen Gods

Sunday, November 30, 2008

I've had a bad cold all week. The only balm I've found for all the coughing is a delightful lemon ginger tea made from ginger syrup, fresh squeezed ginger syruplemon juice, and steaming hot water.

At this point, I have drunk more mugs of it than I care to remember and I still like it. The bottled ginger syrup makes it really easy to make this tea and the result is very tasty - lemony, mildly spicy, and a little sweet.

My mom-in-law introduced us to ginger syrup when she visited last and she left a bottle of it in our fridge when she left. She'd heard about it from her sister, Katy, who sells it in her
wonderful store in Burlington, Vermont and is a huge fan of the stuff.

In addition to making teas, it would be good in other drinks (hot and cold and alcoholic and non-alcoholic), for poaching pears, citrus, and other fruit in, and as an ingredient in marinades, glazes and salad dressings. You could try mixing some with seltzer to make your own ginger ale, too. And ginger is supposedly helpful if you're feeling nauseated.

Although I'm sure it's not very hard to make your own ginger syrup, it is even easier to buy a bottle of it (particularly if you are feeling sick...)


Although I'd like to find an organic option, the bottle we have (made by The Ginger People) lists just two ingredients - ginger and cane sugar - so there do not seem to be any yucky additives or preservatives.

Give it a shot. I think a bottle costs between $4-$5 and should last you a while. You can buy it at upscale markets and coops or online.

Zesty Cranberry Sauce With Lots of Orange

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Though cranberries are decidedly NOT local when you buy them here in northern California, there was no way I was going to skip the cranberry sauce at our Thanksgiving dinner. I consider that bowl of sweet, tart goodness to be the jewel on the Thanksgiving table. Food miles be damned this once!

Cranberries beginning to simmer

I had never made cranberry sauce before and was pleasantly surprised by how simple it is. After looking at a bunch of recipes online and in cookbooks, I settled on one that is a mix of a recipe from Elise at Simply Recipes and the good old standby, The Joy of Cooking. Although it's pretty simple, this one sounded the best to me as I always like the zesty orange flavor and I don't personally care for nuts, raisins or spices in my cranberry sauce (though go for it, if you do!)

I'm afraid the photos don't do the beautiful, jewel-like quality of the cranberries or the resulting sauce justice at all. I was hoping for sun today but it's been rainy and dark all day so flash photography it is... Luckily for my family, the lack of natural light won't affect the taste at all...


Happy Thanksgiving!

Bowl of cranberry sauce on the table

Zesty Cranberry Sauce
Makes 2 1/4 cups


Ingredients
* 1 cup sugar
* 1 cup water
* 4 cups (1 12-oz package) cranberries
* 2-3 Tbsps orange zest
* 1/2 cup orange juice (just juice the orange you've zested)
* Handful of orange peel, cut into thin strips (I'd use an organic orange in the hopes of avoiding both pesticides and wax)

Directions

1. Wash the cranberries and pick through them to get rid of any that are soft or damaged. Bring the water and sugar to boil in a saucepan and stir to help the sugar dissolve.

2. Add the cranberries and orange zest and simmer (reducing the heat) for 7-10 minutes or until all the cranberries have burst.

3. Add the strips of orange peel. You can also add other things at this point if they sound good to you - dried currants, crystallized ginger, nutmeg, allspice, etc.

4. Remove from heat. Cool completely at room temperature and then chill in refrigerator. The sauce will thicken as it cools.

Thanksgiving Recipes For Your Tables

Friday, November 21, 2008

I thought a round-up of some recipes might be helpful as you're planning your Thanksgiving dinners. I will likely be adding a few more good recipes after I post this so just check the Thanksgiving section on my holiday foods page to get the up-to-date list.

Hope everything turns out delicious!

Baked Macaroni and Cheese
Serves 4-6 as a main dish

Although mac 'n cheese is not typically a dish I'd prepare for Thanksgiving, this is for those of you who celebrate T-day Southern-style.

Homemade baked mac n cheese

Ingredients

* 2 cups (8 oz) macaroni (elbow mac is the classic but you can use whatever you like)
* 2 1/4 cups grated sharp cheddar or Colby cheese
* 2 tbsps butter (plus an additional tbsp for the breadcrumbs)
* 2 tbsps all-purpose flour
* 2 cups milk
* 1/2 large onion, minced
* 1 bay leaf
* 1/4 tsp sweet paprika
* Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
* 1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 1 1/2 quart deep baking dish.

2. Bring 6 cups water to a boil and then add the macaroni. While the macaroni is cooking, grate the cheese. Cook the pasta until al dente then drain and move to a bowl or put back in pot.

3. Melt the 2 tbsps butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat then whisk in the flour and cooking, whisking, for three minutes.

4. Gradually whisk in the milk then stir in the onion and add the bay leaf and paprika. Simmer gently for 15 minutes, stirring often. Remove from heat and stir in 2/3 of the cheese then season with the salt and pepper to taste.

5. Add the macaroni and stir to combine. Pour half the mixture into the baking dish and sprinkle it with half of the remaining cheese. Add the rest of the macaroni mixture and top with the rest of the cheese.

6. Melt 1 tbsp butter in a small skilet and add the breadcrumbs. Toss to coat and cook for 30-60 seconds. Sprinkle the buttered breadcrumbs over the top of the macaroni in the baking dish and bake until the breadcrumbs are lightly browned, about 30-35 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.


Cider Glazed Delicata Squash with Sage
Serves 4-6


These sweet, buttery chunks of squash basically melt in your mouth... Everyone will love this dish, including little ones.

Photo of two delicata squash from the farmers' market.

Ingredients

* 2 medium delicata squash (about 2 pounds) or other firm winter squash
* 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
* 1/4 cup very coarsely chopped fresh sage
* 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped fresh rosemary
* 1 1/2 cups fresh unfiltered apple cider or juice
* 1 cup water
* 2 teaspoons sherry vinegar
* 1 teaspoon sea salt
* Freshly ground black pepper


Directions

1. Squash. If using delicata squash, peel it with a vegetable peeler, cut it lengthwise in half, and scrape out the seeds with a spoon. Cut each piece lengthwise in half again, then crosswise into 1/2-inch -thick slices. Other types of squash should be peeled with a chef's knife, seeded, cut into 1-inch wedges, then sliced 1/2-inch thick.

2. Herb Butter. Melt the butter in a large (12-inch) skillet over low heat. Add the sage and rosemary and cook, stirring, until the butter just begins to turn golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Do not brown the herbs. Cooking the herbs in butter mellows their flavor and improves their texture.

3. Cooking the squash. Add the squash to the skillet, then the apple cider, water, vinegar, and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, over medium heat at an even boil until the cider has boiled down to a glaze and the squash is tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Taste and season with pepper, and additional salt if needed.



Herbed Chestnut Stuffing With Cranberries
Serves 8-10

Peeling fresh chestnuts is a huge pain in the ass! At first I thought it was odd that all the chestnut stuffing recipes called for canned chestnuts (eww, right?) but after wrestling with the hairy little bastards for over an hour, I now understand why. So there is absolutely no judgement from me about using the canned ones...

Fresh chestnuts - difficult but beautiful and tastyAny white bread will do. Some people like the lighter sandwich type bread and others go for slightly crustier loaves. I used two sweet (as opposed to sour) baguettes. And don't skimp on the herbs! I threw a ton of fresh parsley, sage and thyme in and it lent a lovely herby flavor. The thyme is particularly wonderful-smelling.

I used a combination of chicken stock and egg to achieve the desired moistness level. I also did a vegetarian version for my brother-in-law who does not eat dairy and my sister-in-law who does not eat meat! The only changes were that I sauteed the celery and onions in olive oil, wet the stuffing with vegetable stock, instead of chicken, and did not dot the top with butter before baking. The veggie version is very good and a little healthier for you, too.

Herbed chestnut stuffing with cranberriesIngredients

* 1 lb white bread cut into one inch cubes
* 1 cup coarsely chopped roasted or boiled chestnuts
* Half a stick of butter (4 Tbsps)
* 1 - 1 1/2 cups of chicken stock
* 2 small to medium sized onions, chopped
* 4 ribs of celery, finely chopped
* 2 eggs, well beaten
* 1/2 cup dried cranberries or other fruit - currants, etc.
* 1/2 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
* 2 tsps chopped fresh thyme
* 2 tsps chopped fresh sage
* Sea salt
* Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut a large X on the flat side of each chestnut (be sure to go all the way through the protective shell) then place the nuts on a thick baking sheet and pour a cup or two of water on the tray. Bake the chestnuts, flipping them over once, for 15-20 minutes. Leave them in the oven and shell and peel a handful at a time (they will be hot and a bit hard to handle). Chop the chestnut meats coarsely.

2. If you don't have time to let the bread cubes get stale by sitting out, place them in a single layer on a thick cookie sheet or two and bake at 300 degrees for 10-15 minutes, until golden.

3. Melt the butter in a frying pan or saucepan and add the onions and celery. Cook on medium heat until softened - 4-5 minutes. Turn off the heat and fold in the herbs, mixing well to combine.

4. Add salt and pepper to taste. Fold in the chestnuts and dried cranberries. Pour this mixture into the cubed dry bread and stir to combine.

5. Add the stock to the stuffing mixture and stir well until it is moist all over but not soggy. Add the egg if you want to give the cooked stuffing a bit more substance.

6. Pour the stuffing into a buttered casserole pan or baking dish and dot the top with butter. Bake until the top gets crusty - 30-45 minutes.

* If you bake the stuffing in the bird, you must be sure that it reaches 165 degrees (the temperature at which bacteria are killed) before you serve it. This may require additional cooking outside of the bird, hence the removable cheesecloth bag.


Pumpkin Pie
Makes one 9-inch pie, 8 servings

Photo of Sunday night's pumpkin pie - my first ever attempt!

A few things to note:

* You'll need to pre-bake the crust, otherwise it will get soggy from the soupy squash/custard mixture.

* In addition to pre-baking, you'll need to brush the entire crust with a mixture of egg yolk and salt to "seal" it from the wetness and help prevent sogginess.

* The crust should be warm/hot when you fill it with the pumpkin mixture.

* Use two eggs for a firmer, more pumpkin flavored pie or three eggs for a softer, more custard-like pie.

* For some odd reason, prepared pumpkin comes in 15 oz cans. The Joy Of Cooking recipe called for 2 cups (16 oz) but one can should be plenty - I ended up having extra filling that I could not fit in the crust.

Ingredients

* Prepared pie crust (see recipe)
* 2 to 3 large eggs
* 2 cups (1 can) canned pumpkin puree - I used an organic one from Trader Joe's. (You can also prepare your own freshly cooked pumpkin to make the filling but I am just not that hard core.)
* 1 1/2 cups light cream or mix 3/4 cup heavy cream and 3/4 cup milk
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 1/3 cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
* 1 tsp ground cinammon
* 1 tsp ground ginger (I didn't have this so I left it out but it sounds good)
* 1/2 tsp freshly grated or ground nutmeg
* 1/4 tsp ground cloves or allspice
* 1/2 tsp salt

Directions

1. Position rack in the center of the oven. Preheat oven to 400.

2. Make pie crust and bake at 400 for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

3. Remove the crust, brush thoroughly with a mix of egg yolk and a pinch of salt and bake for another 2 minutes to set the egg wash.

4. Turn oven down to 375. Whisk the eggs together in a large bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and whisk together thoroughly until combined.

5. If the crust has cooled, warm it in the oven until it is hot to the touch.

6. Pour the pumpkin mixture into the crust and bake until the center of the filling seems set but quivery - like jello - when you nudge the pan. Should take roughly 45 minutes but this varies by oven (as I said, mine took a bit longer).

7. Remove the pie and let cool completely on a wire rack, then refrigerate for up to 1 day. Serve cold or at room temperature with whipped cream.


Roasted Brussel Sprouts

This is a remarkably easy and delightfully tasty recipe. I have not included any amounts as it's simple enough to adapt to however much or little you want to prepare - just use enough oil to coat the sprouts on all sides.

Ingredients

* Brussel sprouts, bottom ends trimmed and any brown or yellow leaves removed, and washed
* Olive oil
* Salt & pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400.

2. Toss the sprouts with the olive oil, salt, and pepper, and spread them in a single layer on a baking sheet or in a baking dish.

3. Roast for 45-50 minutes, turning them every 15-20 minutes.

4. Eat!


Roasted Carrots With Maple Syrup

This is a simple and delicious way to prepare carrots. The seasoning is flexible, add herbs or spices as you see fit. Likewise, the amounts are adjustable - just cook as few or as many as you think people will eat - no need to be exact.

Ingredients

* Carrots, cut into pieces or slices
* Coconut oil, butter, or olive oil
* Coarse sea salt
* Freshly ground black pepper
* A spoonful of maple syrup or honey
* Splash of water
* Sprinkle of ground ginger (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450. Clean the carrots and cut off the ends. Cut them into manageable sized pieces, depending on the size of the carrots.

2. Grease a baking dish with either coconut oil, butter or olive oil (I think I actually like the coconut oil best - it lends a subtle sweetness to the end product and is supposedly also really good for you!). Toss the carrots in the dish and add a bit more fat (dot with the butter or coconut oil or throw in a splash of olive oil). Add salt and pepper to taste and drizzle with a bit of maple syrup or honey (you can omit the sweetener if you prefer).

3. Cover with tin foil and bake for 15-20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 10 minutes or until nice and tender.

Roasted Root Vegetables With Maple Sage Glaze
Serves 4

Savory and sweet, this mix of roasted root veggies is a hearty and filling "wintry mix."

Roasted root veggies with maple sage glaze

Ingredients

* 1 rutagaba, peeled and diced
* 1 turnip, peeled and diced
* 1 sweet potato, peeled and diced
* 1 parsnip, peeled and diced
* 2 carrots, peeled and diced
* 1 tbsp olive oil
* Sea salt and several cranks of freshly ground black pepper
* 3 tbsps pure maple syrup
* 1 tbsp butter
* 1 tbsp chopped fresh sage

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. In a medium bowl, toss diced vegetables with olive oil, salt, and pepper.

3. Spread vegetables in a single layer on an aluminum lined baking sheet (for easy clean up). Roast for 20 minutes.

4. Stir and continue roasting for another 20 minutes.

5. Meanwhile in a small pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the maple syrup and sage to the melted butter and stir until combined. Pour over the vegetables, and stir until well coated.

6. Roast for another 15-20 minutes or until maple syrup becomes bubbly and vegetables are tender when pierced with a fork.

7. Garnish with more chopped fresh sage before serving.


Shoestring-Style Brussel Sprouts
With Garlic & Mustard
Serves 4

This recipe is pretty flexible -- you can adjust it by adding dried or fresh herbs (thyme, savory, etc.) to the dressing if you like, going heavier or lighter on either garlic or mustard, skipping the cheese or using a different kind, etc.

Shoestring-Style Brussel Sprouts

Ingredients

* 2 lbs brussel sprouts, washed and trimmed of any yellow leaves and browned bottoms
* 4 tbsps olive oil
* 4 tbsps whole grain or Dijon mustard
* 4 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
* Sea salt
* Freshly ground black pepper
* Pecorino cheese, grated (I actually forgot to add the cheese and the sprouts were delicious without it, so those of you with "lactards" in your families need not worry about omitting this ingredient to make this dish edible for all.)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Chop the brussel sprouts into 1/4-inch slices with a knife or cuisinart disc attachment. Try to chop “with the grain” (from the top of the sprout to the bottom) so that the slices stay together, rather than slicing across the top or across the base.

3. Prepare the dressing: Mix equal parts mustard and olive oil with the garlic, add salt and pepper to taste, and stir well. Give it a taste to see if it needs adjusting or if it seems well-balanced as is.

4. Toss the dressing with the sprouts in a big bowl to coat thoroughly. Try to toss them gently so the sprouts don’t break apart too much.

5. Spread the dressed sprouts in a thin layer in a large roasting pan. If you'd like to use the cheese, grate a bit of pecorino on top, using the largest holes in the grater. Press the grated cheese strips down with an oiled spoon or your fingers – the more they’re in contact with the sprouts, the less they’ll become too brown or burn.

6. Roast for 15-20 mins or until the sprouty shreds get soft and carmelized and the cheese is starting to brown.


Simple Mashed Potatoes
Makes 4-6 servings

Ingredients

* 2 1/2 pounds potatoes (about 6 large potatoes), preferably a combination of russet (baking) potatoes and large Yukon Golds, or all Yukon Golds
* 4 tablespoons butter, more for dotting
* 1/3 cup whole milk
* Sea salt

Directions

1. In a large pot, bring a gallon of water and 2 tablespoons salt to a boil over high heat. Peel and quarter potatoes and keep in cold water until ready to cook (this can be done up to 4 hours in advance). Add potatoes to boiling water and boil about 15 to 20 minutes, until soft; a knife should go in with almost no resistance. (It is better to overcook than to undercook.)

2. In a saucepan or a microwave oven, heat butter and milk together until butter melts and mixture steams. Drain potatoes well and return to pot. Using an extruding masher or a ricer, mash hot potatoes until smooth. Lightly mix in about half of hot butter mixture, just until blended. Taste for salt and add more butter mixture until seasoned to your liking.

3. Stop here for fluffy potatoes. For creamy potatoes, keep stirring potato mixture, using a sturdy spoon to press it against sides and bottom of pot. Mix until dense and thick. For whipped potatoes, use a stand mixer to mash hot potatoes just until smooth, about 30 seconds. Add all the butter mixture and salt to taste, pulsing machine in short bursts at medium speed. When light and creamy, stop mixing immediately (potatoes can quickly become sticky).

4. To keep hot until ready to serve, transfer to serving bowl, dot top with butter, cover tightly and keep in a warm place, like the back of the stove. Potatoes will stay hot for at least 30 minutes. To keep longer, place covered bowl in a pan holding about an inch of gently simmering water. Before serving, mix well.


Wilted Kale Salad With Balsamic Vinegar & Orange Zest

Serves 4

This salad makes a great Thanksgiving side dish. The kale provides a solid base to which the onions and vinegar lend sweetness and the zest gives a nice little zip.

Close up of wilted kale salad with balsamic vinegar and orange zest
Ingredients

* 1 large bunch of kale (I like the russian kind or some other purplish variety for this, rather than the dinosaur kale)
* 2 cloves of garlic, minced or thinly sliced
* 1 small onion, thinly sliced
* 2 Tbsps olive oil
* 1/4 cup organic currants
* 1 tsp orange zest
* 2 tsps balsamic vinegar or balsamic vinegar glaze
* Sea salt
* Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Wash the kale well and then chop into large pieces.

2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and onions and sautee until translucent. Add the kale and cook until completely wilted.

3. Remove from heat and let cool. Add the vinegar, currants, zest, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss well to combine and serve.

The Skinny On Low-Fat Milk

Thursday, November 20, 2008

I'd really never questioned the wisdom of buying low-fat milk before. Although I dislike the watery flavor of skim milk, I've always found 2% to be plenty creamy so that was my nod to the cultural pressure to cut fat out of our diets.

But I had also never looked at the ingredients on the carton of organic 2% milk before reading Michael Pollan's newest book,
In Defense of Food. I'd always just assumed that there would be only one ingredient -- milk...

So you can imagine my surprise to find that there are FOUR ingredients in my 2% milk!

Low-fat (2%) milk ingredients

Here's the skinny. Any time food producers take something out of a food product (even one as seemingly simple and pure-sounding as milk) they have to put something else back in to replace it to keep the product looking and tasting like the original, unadulterated version did.

Pollan also points out that the very fat we're so desperate to remove from our dairy products actually helps our bodies absorb a whole bunch of fat-soluble vitamins in the milk.

I purchased my first half gallon of whole organic milk (from Strauss Creamery, our amazing local dairy - you can
read my earlier post on which organic dairy companies are good and which are bad if you want to learn more about your options) a few days ago. I did check the ingredients before I headed to the check out line and found only one -- organic whole milk.

Whole milk ingredients

Shoestring-Style Brussel Sprouts

Monday, November 17, 2008

My co-worker, Marc, made up this recipe about a month ago. Our small office filled with yummy smells when he heated up the leftovers he'd brought in for lunch. I followed my nose right into the tiny kitchen where, luckily, Marc was very happy to share his recipe with me.

Shoestring-Style Brussel Sprouts

We finally tried them out last night with a baked ham and some sweet potatoes. The result? Addictively delicious. If you're thinking about your menu for next week's Thanksgiving dinner, this would make a great side dish -- quick and easy to prepare and hearty and savory to eat. The only trouble I anticipate is that you may have a hard time finding space in the oven on Thursday...

This recipe is pretty flexible -- you can adjust it by adding dried or fresh herbs (thyme, savory, etc.) to the dressing if you like, going heavier or lighter on either garlic or mustard, skipping the cheese or using a different kind, etc.

Sliced sprouts awaiting dressing

Shoestring-Style Brussel Sprouts
Serves 4

Ingredients

* 2 lbs brussel sprouts, washed and trimmed of any yellow leaves and browned bottoms
* 4 tbsps olive oil
* 4 tbsps whole grain or Dijon mustard
* 4 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
* 2 tbsps white wine
* Sea salt
* Freshly ground black pepper
* Pecorino cheese, grated (I actually forgot to add the cheese and the sprouts were delicious without it, so those of you with "lactards" in your families need not worry about omitting this ingredient to make this dish edible for all.)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Chop the brussel sprouts into 1/4-inch slices with a knife or cuisinart disc attachment. Try to chop “with the grain” (from the top of the sprout to the bottom) so that the slices stay together, rather than slicing across the top or across the base.

3. Prepare the dressing: Mix equal parts mustard and olive oil with the garlic and wine, add salt and pepper to taste, and stir well. Give it a taste to see if it needs adjusting or if it seems well-balanced as is.

4. Toss the dressing with the sprouts in a big bowl to coat thoroughly. Try to toss them gently so the sprouts don’t break apart too much.

5. Spread the dressed sprouts in a thin layer in a large roasting pan. If you'd like to use the cheese, grate a bit of pecorino on top, using the largest holes in the grater. Press the grated cheese strips down with an oiled spoon or your fingers – the more they’re in contact with the sprouts, the less they’ll become too brown or burn.

6. Roast for 15-20 mins or until the sprouty shreds get soft and carmelized and the cheese is starting to brown.

Back To The Root Cellar

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Last week I read Little House in the Big Woods, the first in the series of Little House on the Prairie children's books (I realize that I'm about 20 years behind the curve on this but I figured better late than never...)

To my delight, a great deal of the book is devoted to descriptions of the family's preparations to grow, catch, kill, prepare, and store enough food for the long snowy winter.

I particularly loved reading about how Laura and her big sister Mary help their Ma and Pa bring in the harvest from their crops of oat and wheat, store the pumpkins, squash, onions, and peppers from Ma's garden, preserve the pig they butcher and the deer Pa shoots, and smoke the mess of fish Pa catches in Lake Pepin. Here is a quote from the story - winter has just begun in earnest and the girls are housebound but the house is packed with good food and all is snug and cozy.

"The attic was a lovely place to play. The large, round , colored pumpkins made beautiful tables and chairs. The red peppers and the onions dangled overhead. The hams and the venison hung in their paper wrappings, and all the dried herbs, the spicy herbs for cooking and the bitter herbs for medicine, gave the place a dusty-spicy smell."

The one downside to this literary pleasure was that it reignited my desire for a home of my own, complete with a cool, spacious root cellar, a commodious chest freezer, and a nice dry attic in which to store the summer's bounty long into the bitter cold of winter. I've fantasized about this ever since I left home and my longing grew even stronger last year when I read Barbara Kingsolver's book, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.

Unfortunately, since I live in a small apartment in Berkeley with neither attic nor cellar (and certainly no room for a chest freezer), it seems this dream of mine will probably just have to wait a bit longer. Luckily, winters here are mild, rainy affairs and one can always find fresh fruits and veggies at the local farmers markets.

But I was pleasantly surprised this afternoon when I stumbled on a NYTimes article about the rebirth of root cellars in New York City and beyond! Viva la root cellar! Here is the link if you're curious: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/06/garden/06root.html

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Saturday, October 25, 2008

Homemade baked mac n cheese

The weather here in Berkeley has been unseasonable for the past few weeks - a string of dazzlingly sunny, hot days. But before Indian summer began, we had a brief spate of fall-like weather with crisp, windy days and very chilly nights.

Homemade mac n cheese - close up

It was during this "cold" spell that I got the urge to make mac 'n cheese. Oddly enough, I had never made real mac 'n cheese before. I checked out several recipes online and consulted a few cookbooks before I ended up settling on this classic recipe from the Joy of Cooking

The result was delicious -- creamy, melty pasta with a hint of sweetness from the onions topped with crispy browned fresh breadcrumbs. This classic comfort food is also quite addictive -- my husband and I both went back to the stove for seconds and thirds and so on...

Forkful of mac n cheese

-- print recipe --Baked Macaroni and Cheese
Serves 4-6 as a main dish
Ingredients

* 2 cups (8 oz) macaroni (elbow mac is the classic but you can use whatever you like)
* 2 1/4 cups grated sharp cheddar or Colby cheese
* 2 Tbsps butter (plus an additional tbsp for the breadcrumbs)
* 2 Tbsps all-purpose flour
* 2 cups milk
* 1/2 large onion, minced
* 1 bay leaf
* 1/4 tsp sweet paprika
* Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
* 1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 1 1/2 quart baking dish.

2. Bring 6 cups of water to a boil and add the macaroni. While the pasta is cooking, grate the cheese. Cook the pasta until al dente then drain and move it to a bowl or put it back in the pot.

3. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat then whisk in the flour and cook, whisking constantly to remove lumps, for three minutes.

4. Gradually whisk in the milk then stir in the onion and add the bay leaf and paprika. Simmer gently for 15 minutes, stirring often. Remove from the heat and stir in 2/3 of the cheese. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

5. Add the macaroni and stir to combine. Pour half the mixture into the baking dish and sprinkle it with half of the remaining cheese. Add the rest of the macaroni mixture and top with the rest of the cheese.

6. Melt 1 tbsp butter in a small skillet and add the breadcrumbs. Toss to coat and cook for 30-60 seconds. Sprinkle the buttered breadcrumbs over the top of the macaroni in the baking dish and bake until the breadcrumbs are lightly browned, about 30-35 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

You might also like:
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Hummus With Caramelized Onions & Garlic Topped With Beets, Pine Nuts & Greek Yogurt

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Hummous with caramelized onions & garlic topped with golden beets, pinenuts and greek yogurt

Hummus is one of those wonderfully earthy, satisfying foods. It can be simple or sophisticated and it can serve as the heart of a basic meal or a tasty component of a complicated one. Best of all, it's easy to make.

I'd made hummus half a dozen times before I found this recipe by chef Ana Sortun (though I have made a few small modifications on her original.) Previously, my hummus recipe had included a small amount of raw garlic and lots of cilantro in addition to the usual chickpeas, tahini, olive oil, lemon juice and salt. And it was good! But now I am so partial to this version that I may never go back...


Rinsing the chickpeas by Eve Fox, Garden of Eating blog, copyright 2011

The thing that makes this hummus special is the big dose of caramelized onions and garlic it includes. It does take a little more time to prepare since you have to add in an extra peeling and cooking step but I think the sweet, mellow taste (and the fact that you will not reek of garlic for half a day after eating it) are well worth the extra 10 or 15 minutes of prep time.


Sauteeing onions, garlic & ginger by Eve Fox, The Garden of Eating, copyright 2015

As Nadia and I planned the menu for our
Mediterranean feast, including this hummus seemed like a no-brainer, even though it is technically Middle Eastern.

You can make extra hummus if you like. Kept in an airtight dish in the fridge without the toppings, this will keep for several days and makes an awesome snack with some pita or flat bread.


Hummous with caramelized onions and garlic topped with golden beets, pinenuts and greek yogurt

-- print recipe --Caramelized Onion & Garlic Hummus with Golden Beets, Pine Nuts & Greek Yogurt
Serves 6

Ingredients

Hummus
* 2 cans organic chickpeas, rinsed and drained (you can also use 1 cup dried but I never leave enough time for all that soaking and cooking)
* 6 tbsp organic olive oil, plus more for caramelizing the onions & garlic
* 3 large garlic cloves, minced or pressed
* 2 large or 3 small yellow onions, chopped
* 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
* 2 tbsp tahini
* Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Toppings
* 4 large beets, preferably the golden or chioggia varieties
* 2 tbsp pine nuts
* 1/4 cup thick greek yogurt

Directions

1. Prepare the beets: remove the beet greens (you can reserve them for some other purpose if you like) and place the beets in a small saucepan. Cover with water by one inch and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to simmer gently. Cook until the beets are tender when pierced with a fork, about 35-45 minutes, depending on the size of the beets. Drain and peel once they are cool enough to handle (the skins will slip off in the most satisfying way.) Cut the beets into a 1/4 inch dice. Toss with 1 tbsp olive oil and set aside.

2. Caramelize the onions and garlic: heat 2-3 tbsp olive oil in a medium frying pan or skillet until medium hot. Add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring often, until the onions are very soft and a rich caramel color, about 25 minutes total. Season with salt and pepper.

3. In the bowl of a Cuisinart (you can use a blender if that is all you have but I warn you that it will be quite challenging), combine the drained chickpeas, caramelized onions and garlic, tahini, lemon juice, a tsp or 2 of salt, and several tbsps of olive oil. Process on medium speed, stopping to add more oil as needed. Taste as you go and adjust the amounts - you can add more lemon juice, tahini, salt, pepper or olive oil, depending on the taste and texture that appeals most to you (some people like their hummus chunky, others prefer it smooth and silky.)

4. Toast the pine nuts in a small skillet, turning often, until light brown (watch closely or they will burn - it does not take very long.)

5. Turn the hummus into a shallow, wide bowl and top with the yogurt, cubed beets and pine nuts (I included some sprigs of cilantro, as well).

You might also like:
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Lemon-Scented Quinoa With Tahini & Chickpeas

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

You simply cannot live in Berkeley without running into quinoa (pronounced keen-wah) at every turn. But popular as it is with my hippie brethren, I did not want to like this scrappy little grain everyone was so in looooove with (probably because everyone was so in love with it...) So I avoided eating quinoa even though it meant I was often forced to go hungry at potluck dinners. And I certainly did not cook the stuff!

But after reading several glowing posts about it from other food bloggers that I respect, and hearing
my friend Nadia's warm endorsement, I decided I was ready to cast my prejudice aside and give it a try. Nadia and I decided to include this recipe for Lemon-Scented Quinoa that I'd seen on 101Cookbooks in our Mediterranean feast. Happily, it was delicious - hearty, flavorful, and interesting. I was sold!

Lemon-scented quinoa with tahini and chickpeas

Like farro, quinoa is an ancient grain. It was first cultivated in the Andean region of South America by the Incas over 6,000 years ago. So crucial was quinoa to their civilization that they called it "chisaya mama," the mother of all grains.

It is even more nutritious than farro, earning it a well-deserved designation as a "Super Grain." Not only is quinoa high in protein, it also contains all 8 essential amino acids, making it a complete protein which is very rare in vegetarian foods, not to mention large doses of fiber, folate, magnesium and iron. And for those who are allergic to wheat, it is happily gluten-free.


Close-up of uncooked quinoa grains

If you do not buy a boxed version, you may need to soak it for several hours to remove its protective coating of bitter saponins that keep the birds from devouring the crop before it can be harvested. However, boxed quinoa has generally been processed in this way already so it only needs to be rinsed before cooking. 

You'll notice that a funny little tail or curlicue appears outside the grain during cooking - this is a surefire way to tell that it's done. The cooked grains have a mild, slightly nutty flavor that goes well with both savory and sweet accompaniments.

-- print recipe --Lemon-Scented Quinoa With Tahini & Chickpeas
Serves 4

Ingredients

* 1 cup quinoa
* 2 cups water
* 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
* 1 can garbanzo beans, or dried equivalent
* 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
* 1/2 red onion, chopped

Tahini Dressing:
* 1 garlic clove, smashed and chopped
* 1/4 cup tahini
* Zest of one lemon
* 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 2 tablespoons hot water
* 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt

Directions

1. Rinse the quinoa in a fine-meshed strainer.

2. In a medium saucepan heat the quinoa and water until boiling. Reduce heat and simmer until water is absorbed and quinoa fluffs up, about 15 minutes. Quinoa is done when you can see the curlicue in each grain, and it is tender with a bit of pop to each bite. Drain any extra water and set aside.

3. While the quinoa is cooking make the dressing. Whisk together the garlic, tahini, lemon zest and juice, and olive oil. Add the hot water to thin a bit and then the salt.

4. Toss the cooked quinoa, beans, cilantro, red onion, and half of the dressing. Add more dressing and season with more salt to taste. Serve garnished with a bit of cilantro.

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Spiced Lamb Kabobs With Tomato Jam

Sunday, October 12, 2008

I came across this recipe when I was on vacation in Hawaii two years ago. We were staying in a little condo on Molokai, a very beautiful and very tiny island. The owners of the condo had left a pile of books and magazines for their renters to enjoy. Among them was an issue of Met Home that included an article with lots of tasty-sounding Middle Eastern-style recipes.

I had never cooked lamb (ground or otherwise) before I tried these kabobs and was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to manipulate and how yummy the end result was. These kabobs are simple and easy to prepare and only take a few minutes to cook on the grill.


Lamb kabobs on the barbie

I had also never heard of tomato jam before finding this recipe. Oddly enough, just two days after Nadia and I cooked our Mediterranean feast, Mark Bittman did a piece about tomato jam in the NYTimes. What a coinkydink! I actually liked Bittman's recipe better than the one from Met Home so I've substituted it here.

Tomato jam

Spiced Lamb Kabobs
Makes 12 kabobs (serves 6)

Ingredients

* 12 six-inch bamboo skewers
* 2 tbsp cinnamon
* 1 1/4 freshly ground black pepper
* 3/8 tsp grated nutmeg
* 3/8 tsp ground coriander
* 2 tsp salt
* small pinch of cayenne pepper
* 1 tbsp tomato paste or red pepper paste
* 2 egg whites
* 2 lbs ground lamb (use organic, free range lamb if at all possible)

Directions

1. Soak the bamboo skewers in water to prevent them from charring on the grill (you can do this overnight or a few hours before you're planning to grill.)

2. Combine all the ingredients in the bowl of a cuisinart and mix until completely blended (you want it to break down so that it becomes almost creamy.)

3. Divide the mixture into 12 equal portions. Shape each portion into a short, thick sausage and push onto the bamboo skewer.

4. Prepare the grill and grill the kebabs on all sides until done to your taste.

Tomato Jam
Makes about 1 cup

Ingredients

* 3/4 pound good ripe tomatoes (Roma are best), cored and coarsely chopped
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 1 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
* 1/2 tablespoon fresh grated or minced ginger
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
* 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* a pinch of ground cloves
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 a jalapeño pepper, stemmed, seeded and minced, or a pinch of red pepper flakes or cayenne to taste.

Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients in a heavy medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often.

2. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the mixture has the consistency of thick jam, about 1 hour 15 minutes.

3. Taste and adjust seasoning, then cool and refrigerate until ready to use; this will keep at least a week.

A Mediterranean Feast (In Several Installments)

Saturday, October 4, 2008

I have a few friends with whom I love to cook. Luckily for me, one of them came out to Berkeley for a visit recently. I had not seen Nadia in a long time but once we'd covered the basics, we spent a lot of time talking about food.

Nadia's interesting heritage (her mom is from Italy and her dad is an Armenian from Syria) has exposed her to a wide range of flavors and spices and her enthusiasm about food is infectious. We decided to wind up her visit by making a big mediterranean feast for dinner.


After spending some time leafing through my voluminous recipe files, we settled on:

We shopped in the morning and then prepared the quinoa, hummous, tomato jam, and tzatziki, saving only the salad and kabobs for the evening. I had made all but the tomato jam and quinoa dishes before so I was pretty sure the results would be good.

But I was pleasantly surprised by how delicious everything turned out. The combination of flavors was perfect (luckily, we had enough for leftovers for the next day, too.) And, of course, the company (Nadia and her boyfriend, Martin) was a big part of what made the meal so good!

Mediterranean Feast, sorry the pic is not great - we were all REALLY hungry by this time.

Since this meal includes far too many recipes to post in one fell swoop, I'll leave you with this taste of the meal and will post each recipe separately (minus the tzatziki, since I've already written about that - you can find the recipe here, the green salad, since it was so straight-forward, and the pita, since it was store-bought) over the next week. I will also link to the recipes from this post once they've been posted to make your browsing easier.

Here's to good friends and good food!

Garlic-Rich at Harvest Time

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Back in March, I wrote a post about planting your own garlic crop.

This garlic clove will become a whole head!

Well time has done her proverbial thing and we've harvested a fine crop of garlic - about 40 heads in all. Hopefully, it will be enough to last us the whole winter.

It was deeply satisfying to pull their papery purple and white heads from the ground, all covered in clingy black dirt. And it is truly luxurious to cook with this new garlic -- so tender, so fragrant, so delicious.

Here are some pix. If you are not already addicted to growing your own garlic, I'd suggest giving it a whirl next year - it's ridiculously easy and the rewards are rich.

Our crop of garlic plants early in the season

Once we'd planted the cloves, the plants shot up quickly - almost overnight!

Heads of Garlic From Our Harvest by Eve Fox copyright 2008

Just a few months later, they were ready to harvest. A close-up of the heads just after being yanked out of the ground.

Our Garlic Harvest (Unwashed) by Eve Fox copyright 2008

The bounty!


Garlic Drying On Outdoor Table by Eve Fox copyright 2008

Drying on the table on our deck after washing.

Garlic Drying On Outdoor Table by Eve Fox copyright 2008

A close-up of the drying heads of garlic.

Gift From The Kitchen Gods: Soft Skin Peeler

Saturday, September 20, 2008

Zyliss Soft Skin Peeler
It's been a while since a kitchen gadget has rocked my world but have I got a good one for you!
My darling cousin Nina (of Healthy Living fame) introduced me to this lovely little peeler last month while she was giving me a tour of the new store.

Made by Zyliss, this peeler lets you part a tomato, peach, plum, kiwi, piece of ginger, etc., from its skin with minimal effort and without taking off much of the fruit underneath.
Apparently, the secret to its success is a dual-edged serrated blade that is supposed to work equally well for righties and lefties (though I have not yet tortured myself by trying to peel anything left-handed.)

We tried it out on a peach crisp right away and I can attest that it works remarkably well. I am also partial to red so, naturally, I love the color.

And as it retails for just $7-$12, it won't break the bank, either. Enjoy!

Peeling a peach for crisp

Check out more Gifts From The Kitchen Gods:

Monday, December 29, 2008

My "Tasteful" Holiday Greeting Cards

This year, for the very first time, we sent out some holiday cards. I have to admit that the impulse was primarily driven by a desire to make potato block prints (though I also like the idea of keeping in touch with people, of course.)

It had been at least 10 years since I had picked up a potato to practice this incredibly simple yet surprisingly challenging art form. I bought several large, inexpensive russett baking potatoes (no need to go organic for this project...) and we spent hours creating our designs and printing them in different configurations on card stock.

Although you can use a knife or razor blade to create your design, I found that my old set of linoleum block cutting tools (from my high school art class!) worked wonders for cutting out the design, along with a paring knife that I used to clear out bigger sections of potato. We printed with watercolor paints though you can also use tempra paint or acrylics. The end result was cheerful and fun - each one unique.

Potato Print Holiday Cards


Although we made a bunch of different prints (including a peace dove, lady bug and bee), I'm including photos only of these two since they seemed the most Garden of Eating appropriate. I'd started with the tomato since the colors were so Christmasy but then could not resist the lure of the carrot...

Potato Block Print of a Tomato


Carrot Potato Print

Happy New Year to you all!

Friday, December 19, 2008

How do you feel about your kitchen?

I love to cook but am often frustrated by the kitchen in my apartment. I have a long litany of complaints (you can stop reading whenever you get sick of my complaining):

Nowhere near enough space. My husband and I run into each other constantly and have to coordinate our usage of the sink and stove with the opening of drawers and use of countertops like a careful ballet (though ballet implies something graceful and lovely which our little dance is not.)

Not enough light. The little room does have one window but it is located underneath the deck of our upstairs neighbor so very little light makes it in. My husband added some lights on top of the cabinets which help a little bit but it's not ideal, particularly when trying to take pictures of food for this here blog.

No connection to the rest of the house. Our kitchen is a little box off of a hallway which means that when we have guests they either have to stand (or sit on a tiny stepstool) in the hallway to chat with us or go hang out in the living or dining room and talk amongst themselves while we finish cooking. We once had an even tinier kitchen (the kind with a half-sized stove) which was open to the living room with a counter top between them -- that one feature pretty much made up for all its other shortcomings, though.

Tiled countertop. This might not sound bad but the tiles are old ones with very uneven surfaces which means that everything - cutting boards, plates, bowls, pans-- wobbles unmercifully and makes a lot of noise. At one point when the counters were new, the large strips of grout between them were probably smooth and full but now they are worn down, pitted and coated in years of grime (I have tried to clean them out.)

Ants. In the wintertime, the kitchen routinely gets invaded by armies of ants (luckily, the little sugar ants, not the big ones...) We think that they are driven in by either the cold or the rain but there is something very unpleasant about trying to cook on a surface covered by a river of little creatures. And it also feels bad to have to kill so many of them (who wants to begin their morning by wiping out hundreds of tiny lives, after all?)

But there are a few good points, too. For a small space, our kitchen has a surprising amount of storage so all our pots and pans and whatnot fit. It also has a gas stove (thank God!) and a full Photo of Mark Bittman cooking in his NYC kitchen by Kelly Doesized refrigerator that does NOT require defrosting. In retrospect, we have had much worse kitchens so perhaps I really should not complain.


I thought this recent blog post by Mark Bittman, the New York Times food blogger/critic and cookbook writer about his own tiny kitchen (see photo of him cooking braised turkey at right) was great. Although it has in NO way dampened my desire for a bigger and better kitchen, it was sort of nice to know that other people who take food seriously can and do cook in less than ideal circumstances and with good results.

Although I agree with Bittman that the size of a kitchen should not affect the quality of food you're able to prepare (though perhaps the volume...), I do think that a kitchen can affect the way you feel while cooking. My dad is a designer-builder and the houses he built for us always had big open kitchens with a good connection to the rest of the house. I find that it just is more enjoyable to cook in a well-designed space with room for two people to walk around.

So how do YOU feel about your kitchen? (Please respond via comments!)

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Quinoa & Spinach Gratin - Hearty Comfort Food, Yet Light...

Quinoa by Eve Fox, Garden of Eating blog, copyright 2008.

I found this recipe while browsing the Recipes for Health section of the New York Times site a few weeks ago. Something about it appealed to me - maybe the fact that it melded quinoa, a food I still think of as the kind of uber-healthy grain favored by vegans with Gruyère cheese which conjures up a very different set of associations.

We tried this out a few nights ago and loved it! The result was part comfort food, part health food, and 100% tasty and satisfying.

Sauteeing spinach with herbs and garlic for the harvest lasagna by Eve Fox, The Garden of Eating, copyright 2014

It does not take too long to prepare (you can cook the quinoa ahead of time which helps a bit) and tastes great reheated. My husband and I were practically fighting over the leftovers the next day...

Quinoa Spinach Gratin - Pre-Baking by Eve Fox, Garden of Eating blog, copyright 2008

My recipe below includes a few small changes to the original by Martha Rose Shulman. In addition to adjusting the amounts a little, I've suggested cooking the quinoa with some stock or bouillon as it gives it a richer flavor (though you can just use water.) I've also increased the amount of cheese the recipe calls for (though you could scale back if you want to err on the side of lower fat, lighter dairy, etc.,) as we both felt it would have been even tastier with a little more melty goodness. And since Gruyère is a pretty pricey cheese, I've suggested substituting cheddar for the additional cheese. It's a very flexible recipe, though, so feel free to adjust.

Quinoa Spinach Gratin by Eve Fox, Garden of Eating blog, copyright 2008

Enjoy!

-- print recipe --Quinoa & Spinach Gratin
Serves 6

Ingredients

* 1 large bunch of organic spinach, washed, dried and torn into manageable-sized pieces
* 2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
* 1 large onion, chopped
* 4 garlic cloves, minced
* 1 1/2 cups quinoa, rinsed in several changes of water and drained
* 3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
* 3 large organic eggs
* 3/4 cup Gruyère cheese, grated
* 3/4 cup cheddar cheese, grated
* 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
* 1 1/2 tsps fresh sage, chopped
* 2 tsps Italian parsley, chopped
* 1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
* Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Oil a 2-quart baking or casserole dish.

2. Prepare the quinoa. Bring the stock to a boil in a pot and add the quinoa with a pinch of salt. Stir and return to a boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 12-15 minutes or until the quinoa is tender but still firm. You'll know it's done when you see its unique little curlicue of a "tail" come out of the grain. Drain the quinoa in a fine strainer or sieve and set it aside.

3. Heat a medium frying pan or a wide saucepan over medium-high heat and add 2 Tbsps of the olive oil. Add the onion and cook, stirring often, until translucent and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir with the onion until fragrant, 1-2 minutes. Add the spinach and stir to wilt it well (you may need to add it in batches to make it easier to deal with as it cooks down since it always starts out so bulky). Season generously with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Remove from the heat.

4. Beat the eggs in a large bowl and add 1/2 teaspoon sea salt and some more pepper. Stir in the quinoa, the onion and spinach mixture, the Gruyère and cheddar cheeses, and the herbs. Stir to combine well. Scrape the whole thing into the oiled gratin dish. Sprinkle the Parmesan over the top and drizzle on the remaining tablespoon of olive oil.

5. Place in the oven and bake until nicely browned on top, about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let sit for about 5 minutes, then serve.

Makes tasty leftovers! This would go well with a hearty salad or soup.

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Saturday, December 13, 2008

An Important Decision - Secretary of Agriculture

In the next few days, President-elect Obama will be naming a new Secretary of Agriculture. This is a very important decision -- whoever Obama appoints will have a lot of influence over the policies that affect our farms and our food.

Will it be agribusiness and factory farming as usual or real change that supports family farmers and advances a healthier, more sustainable way of feeding our population and caring for our land?

Please sign the short petition at http://www.fooddemocracynow.org/ to urge him to choose one of six great candidates (they've been endorsed by all the right people, in my opinion.)

And please sign it now, before it's too late to influence Obama's decision.

I know I have not provided much background info so if you'd like more details, check out the recent New York Times op-ed by Nicholas Kristof on this topic at: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/11/opinion/11kristof.html

Thanks!
-Eve

Friday, December 5, 2008

Hearty Winter Salad: Roasted Delicata Squash & Caramelized Red Onions with Farro

I've decided that delicata is my new favorite squash. I just love its sweet, mildly nutty flavor and its versatility. So when I saw this yummy-sounding roasted pumpkin salad on 101 Cookbooks a few weeks ago, I decided I would create my own version using roasted delicata squash and farro in place of wild rice. I also found these lovely little purple cipollini onions at the farmers market on Thursday (though a regular red onion would also work just fine.)


Cipollini Onions
I won't lie to you, this dish did take me nearly 2 hours of solid work to prepare. But the end result was this gorgeous and hearty winter fare.


Roasted Delicata Squash Salad With Red Onions & Farro

Next time, I might try roasting the onions with a splash of pomegranate molasses in place of balsamic vinegar to add yet one more note of complexity and sweetness. I also think this would go nicely with some goat cheese though I had none on hand so I made a creamy balsamic vinegar dressing. You could also roast a butternut squash in place of delicata if you prefer the flavor.


Roasted Delicata Squash Salad With Red Onions & Farro

Roasted Delicata Squash & Caramelized Red Onions with Farro
Serves 4 (as a side dish)

Ingredients

* 2 large delicata squash, peeled, seeded and cut into chunks or strips (your choice)
* 6 small cipollini onions or 1 really large red onion, peeled and cut into decent-sized wedges
* 1 1/2 cups semi-pearled farro, rinsed in several changes of water
* 3-4 cups stock or salted water (using vegetable or chicken stock will lend a richer flavor to the farro)
* 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
* 1 Tbsp fresh thyme, washed and chopped
* 3 tsps Italian parsely, washed and chopped
* 3 Tbsps olive oil
* 2 tsps walnut oil
* Sea salt
* Freshly ground black pepper
* Goat cheese (optional)

* I bunch arugula or watercress, washed and dried (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375. Toss the squash and onions with the thyme, olive oil and balsamic vinegar and spread in a single layer on a heavy baking sheet. Sprinkle everything with sea salt and roast, turning often, for 15-20 minutes or until soft but still toothsome (you don't want the squash to fall apart in the salad.) Remove from the oven and cool a bit.

2. While you're roasting the veggies, cook the farro (please note that these directions are for the semi-pearled variety which takes about half as long to cook as the other kind.) Add the rinsed and drained farro to the stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until tender but still firm, about 15-20 minutes. Drain any excess liquid from the farro and place in a large bowl or on a platter (whatever you intend to serve the salad on/in.)

3. Add the parsley to the farro and toss with the walnut oil and a pinch of seal salt and a few grinds of black pepper. You can either toss in the squash and onions or serve them on top of the farro. If you're using goat cheese, dot the salad with it now. You can serve with or without greens - my recommendations would be either arugula or watercress for a little peppery bite.


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Sunday, November 30, 2008

Ginger Syrup, A Gift from the Kitchen Gods

I've had a bad cold all week. The only balm I've found for all the coughing is a delightful lemon ginger tea made from ginger syrup, fresh squeezed ginger syruplemon juice, and steaming hot water.

At this point, I have drunk more mugs of it than I care to remember and I still like it. The bottled ginger syrup makes it really easy to make this tea and the result is very tasty - lemony, mildly spicy, and a little sweet.

My mom-in-law introduced us to ginger syrup when she visited last and she left a bottle of it in our fridge when she left. She'd heard about it from her sister, Katy, who sells it in her
wonderful store in Burlington, Vermont and is a huge fan of the stuff.

In addition to making teas, it would be good in other drinks (hot and cold and alcoholic and non-alcoholic), for poaching pears, citrus, and other fruit in, and as an ingredient in marinades, glazes and salad dressings. You could try mixing some with seltzer to make your own ginger ale, too. And ginger is supposedly helpful if you're feeling nauseated.

Although I'm sure it's not very hard to make your own ginger syrup, it is even easier to buy a bottle of it (particularly if you are feeling sick...)


Although I'd like to find an organic option, the bottle we have (made by The Ginger People) lists just two ingredients - ginger and cane sugar - so there do not seem to be any yucky additives or preservatives.

Give it a shot. I think a bottle costs between $4-$5 and should last you a while. You can buy it at upscale markets and coops or online.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Zesty Cranberry Sauce With Lots of Orange

Though cranberries are decidedly NOT local when you buy them here in northern California, there was no way I was going to skip the cranberry sauce at our Thanksgiving dinner. I consider that bowl of sweet, tart goodness to be the jewel on the Thanksgiving table. Food miles be damned this once!

Cranberries beginning to simmer

I had never made cranberry sauce before and was pleasantly surprised by how simple it is. After looking at a bunch of recipes online and in cookbooks, I settled on one that is a mix of a recipe from Elise at Simply Recipes and the good old standby, The Joy of Cooking. Although it's pretty simple, this one sounded the best to me as I always like the zesty orange flavor and I don't personally care for nuts, raisins or spices in my cranberry sauce (though go for it, if you do!)

I'm afraid the photos don't do the beautiful, jewel-like quality of the cranberries or the resulting sauce justice at all. I was hoping for sun today but it's been rainy and dark all day so flash photography it is... Luckily for my family, the lack of natural light won't affect the taste at all...


Happy Thanksgiving!

Bowl of cranberry sauce on the table

Zesty Cranberry Sauce
Makes 2 1/4 cups


Ingredients
* 1 cup sugar
* 1 cup water
* 4 cups (1 12-oz package) cranberries
* 2-3 Tbsps orange zest
* 1/2 cup orange juice (just juice the orange you've zested)
* Handful of orange peel, cut into thin strips (I'd use an organic orange in the hopes of avoiding both pesticides and wax)

Directions

1. Wash the cranberries and pick through them to get rid of any that are soft or damaged. Bring the water and sugar to boil in a saucepan and stir to help the sugar dissolve.

2. Add the cranberries and orange zest and simmer (reducing the heat) for 7-10 minutes or until all the cranberries have burst.

3. Add the strips of orange peel. You can also add other things at this point if they sound good to you - dried currants, crystallized ginger, nutmeg, allspice, etc.

4. Remove from heat. Cool completely at room temperature and then chill in refrigerator. The sauce will thicken as it cools.

Friday, November 21, 2008

Thanksgiving Recipes For Your Tables

I thought a round-up of some recipes might be helpful as you're planning your Thanksgiving dinners. I will likely be adding a few more good recipes after I post this so just check the Thanksgiving section on my holiday foods page to get the up-to-date list.

Hope everything turns out delicious!

Baked Macaroni and Cheese
Serves 4-6 as a main dish

Although mac 'n cheese is not typically a dish I'd prepare for Thanksgiving, this is for those of you who celebrate T-day Southern-style.

Homemade baked mac n cheese

Ingredients

* 2 cups (8 oz) macaroni (elbow mac is the classic but you can use whatever you like)
* 2 1/4 cups grated sharp cheddar or Colby cheese
* 2 tbsps butter (plus an additional tbsp for the breadcrumbs)
* 2 tbsps all-purpose flour
* 2 cups milk
* 1/2 large onion, minced
* 1 bay leaf
* 1/4 tsp sweet paprika
* Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
* 1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 1 1/2 quart deep baking dish.

2. Bring 6 cups water to a boil and then add the macaroni. While the macaroni is cooking, grate the cheese. Cook the pasta until al dente then drain and move to a bowl or put back in pot.

3. Melt the 2 tbsps butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat then whisk in the flour and cooking, whisking, for three minutes.

4. Gradually whisk in the milk then stir in the onion and add the bay leaf and paprika. Simmer gently for 15 minutes, stirring often. Remove from heat and stir in 2/3 of the cheese then season with the salt and pepper to taste.

5. Add the macaroni and stir to combine. Pour half the mixture into the baking dish and sprinkle it with half of the remaining cheese. Add the rest of the macaroni mixture and top with the rest of the cheese.

6. Melt 1 tbsp butter in a small skilet and add the breadcrumbs. Toss to coat and cook for 30-60 seconds. Sprinkle the buttered breadcrumbs over the top of the macaroni in the baking dish and bake until the breadcrumbs are lightly browned, about 30-35 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.


Cider Glazed Delicata Squash with Sage
Serves 4-6


These sweet, buttery chunks of squash basically melt in your mouth... Everyone will love this dish, including little ones.

Photo of two delicata squash from the farmers' market.

Ingredients

* 2 medium delicata squash (about 2 pounds) or other firm winter squash
* 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
* 1/4 cup very coarsely chopped fresh sage
* 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped fresh rosemary
* 1 1/2 cups fresh unfiltered apple cider or juice
* 1 cup water
* 2 teaspoons sherry vinegar
* 1 teaspoon sea salt
* Freshly ground black pepper


Directions

1. Squash. If using delicata squash, peel it with a vegetable peeler, cut it lengthwise in half, and scrape out the seeds with a spoon. Cut each piece lengthwise in half again, then crosswise into 1/2-inch -thick slices. Other types of squash should be peeled with a chef's knife, seeded, cut into 1-inch wedges, then sliced 1/2-inch thick.

2. Herb Butter. Melt the butter in a large (12-inch) skillet over low heat. Add the sage and rosemary and cook, stirring, until the butter just begins to turn golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Do not brown the herbs. Cooking the herbs in butter mellows their flavor and improves their texture.

3. Cooking the squash. Add the squash to the skillet, then the apple cider, water, vinegar, and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, over medium heat at an even boil until the cider has boiled down to a glaze and the squash is tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Taste and season with pepper, and additional salt if needed.



Herbed Chestnut Stuffing With Cranberries
Serves 8-10

Peeling fresh chestnuts is a huge pain in the ass! At first I thought it was odd that all the chestnut stuffing recipes called for canned chestnuts (eww, right?) but after wrestling with the hairy little bastards for over an hour, I now understand why. So there is absolutely no judgement from me about using the canned ones...

Fresh chestnuts - difficult but beautiful and tastyAny white bread will do. Some people like the lighter sandwich type bread and others go for slightly crustier loaves. I used two sweet (as opposed to sour) baguettes. And don't skimp on the herbs! I threw a ton of fresh parsley, sage and thyme in and it lent a lovely herby flavor. The thyme is particularly wonderful-smelling.

I used a combination of chicken stock and egg to achieve the desired moistness level. I also did a vegetarian version for my brother-in-law who does not eat dairy and my sister-in-law who does not eat meat! The only changes were that I sauteed the celery and onions in olive oil, wet the stuffing with vegetable stock, instead of chicken, and did not dot the top with butter before baking. The veggie version is very good and a little healthier for you, too.

Herbed chestnut stuffing with cranberriesIngredients

* 1 lb white bread cut into one inch cubes
* 1 cup coarsely chopped roasted or boiled chestnuts
* Half a stick of butter (4 Tbsps)
* 1 - 1 1/2 cups of chicken stock
* 2 small to medium sized onions, chopped
* 4 ribs of celery, finely chopped
* 2 eggs, well beaten
* 1/2 cup dried cranberries or other fruit - currants, etc.
* 1/2 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
* 2 tsps chopped fresh thyme
* 2 tsps chopped fresh sage
* Sea salt
* Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut a large X on the flat side of each chestnut (be sure to go all the way through the protective shell) then place the nuts on a thick baking sheet and pour a cup or two of water on the tray. Bake the chestnuts, flipping them over once, for 15-20 minutes. Leave them in the oven and shell and peel a handful at a time (they will be hot and a bit hard to handle). Chop the chestnut meats coarsely.

2. If you don't have time to let the bread cubes get stale by sitting out, place them in a single layer on a thick cookie sheet or two and bake at 300 degrees for 10-15 minutes, until golden.

3. Melt the butter in a frying pan or saucepan and add the onions and celery. Cook on medium heat until softened - 4-5 minutes. Turn off the heat and fold in the herbs, mixing well to combine.

4. Add salt and pepper to taste. Fold in the chestnuts and dried cranberries. Pour this mixture into the cubed dry bread and stir to combine.

5. Add the stock to the stuffing mixture and stir well until it is moist all over but not soggy. Add the egg if you want to give the cooked stuffing a bit more substance.

6. Pour the stuffing into a buttered casserole pan or baking dish and dot the top with butter. Bake until the top gets crusty - 30-45 minutes.

* If you bake the stuffing in the bird, you must be sure that it reaches 165 degrees (the temperature at which bacteria are killed) before you serve it. This may require additional cooking outside of the bird, hence the removable cheesecloth bag.


Pumpkin Pie
Makes one 9-inch pie, 8 servings

Photo of Sunday night's pumpkin pie - my first ever attempt!

A few things to note:

* You'll need to pre-bake the crust, otherwise it will get soggy from the soupy squash/custard mixture.

* In addition to pre-baking, you'll need to brush the entire crust with a mixture of egg yolk and salt to "seal" it from the wetness and help prevent sogginess.

* The crust should be warm/hot when you fill it with the pumpkin mixture.

* Use two eggs for a firmer, more pumpkin flavored pie or three eggs for a softer, more custard-like pie.

* For some odd reason, prepared pumpkin comes in 15 oz cans. The Joy Of Cooking recipe called for 2 cups (16 oz) but one can should be plenty - I ended up having extra filling that I could not fit in the crust.

Ingredients

* Prepared pie crust (see recipe)
* 2 to 3 large eggs
* 2 cups (1 can) canned pumpkin puree - I used an organic one from Trader Joe's. (You can also prepare your own freshly cooked pumpkin to make the filling but I am just not that hard core.)
* 1 1/2 cups light cream or mix 3/4 cup heavy cream and 3/4 cup milk
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 1/3 cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
* 1 tsp ground cinammon
* 1 tsp ground ginger (I didn't have this so I left it out but it sounds good)
* 1/2 tsp freshly grated or ground nutmeg
* 1/4 tsp ground cloves or allspice
* 1/2 tsp salt

Directions

1. Position rack in the center of the oven. Preheat oven to 400.

2. Make pie crust and bake at 400 for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

3. Remove the crust, brush thoroughly with a mix of egg yolk and a pinch of salt and bake for another 2 minutes to set the egg wash.

4. Turn oven down to 375. Whisk the eggs together in a large bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and whisk together thoroughly until combined.

5. If the crust has cooled, warm it in the oven until it is hot to the touch.

6. Pour the pumpkin mixture into the crust and bake until the center of the filling seems set but quivery - like jello - when you nudge the pan. Should take roughly 45 minutes but this varies by oven (as I said, mine took a bit longer).

7. Remove the pie and let cool completely on a wire rack, then refrigerate for up to 1 day. Serve cold or at room temperature with whipped cream.


Roasted Brussel Sprouts

This is a remarkably easy and delightfully tasty recipe. I have not included any amounts as it's simple enough to adapt to however much or little you want to prepare - just use enough oil to coat the sprouts on all sides.

Ingredients

* Brussel sprouts, bottom ends trimmed and any brown or yellow leaves removed, and washed
* Olive oil
* Salt & pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400.

2. Toss the sprouts with the olive oil, salt, and pepper, and spread them in a single layer on a baking sheet or in a baking dish.

3. Roast for 45-50 minutes, turning them every 15-20 minutes.

4. Eat!


Roasted Carrots With Maple Syrup

This is a simple and delicious way to prepare carrots. The seasoning is flexible, add herbs or spices as you see fit. Likewise, the amounts are adjustable - just cook as few or as many as you think people will eat - no need to be exact.

Ingredients

* Carrots, cut into pieces or slices
* Coconut oil, butter, or olive oil
* Coarse sea salt
* Freshly ground black pepper
* A spoonful of maple syrup or honey
* Splash of water
* Sprinkle of ground ginger (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450. Clean the carrots and cut off the ends. Cut them into manageable sized pieces, depending on the size of the carrots.

2. Grease a baking dish with either coconut oil, butter or olive oil (I think I actually like the coconut oil best - it lends a subtle sweetness to the end product and is supposedly also really good for you!). Toss the carrots in the dish and add a bit more fat (dot with the butter or coconut oil or throw in a splash of olive oil). Add salt and pepper to taste and drizzle with a bit of maple syrup or honey (you can omit the sweetener if you prefer).

3. Cover with tin foil and bake for 15-20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 10 minutes or until nice and tender.

Roasted Root Vegetables With Maple Sage Glaze
Serves 4

Savory and sweet, this mix of roasted root veggies is a hearty and filling "wintry mix."

Roasted root veggies with maple sage glaze

Ingredients

* 1 rutagaba, peeled and diced
* 1 turnip, peeled and diced
* 1 sweet potato, peeled and diced
* 1 parsnip, peeled and diced
* 2 carrots, peeled and diced
* 1 tbsp olive oil
* Sea salt and several cranks of freshly ground black pepper
* 3 tbsps pure maple syrup
* 1 tbsp butter
* 1 tbsp chopped fresh sage

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. In a medium bowl, toss diced vegetables with olive oil, salt, and pepper.

3. Spread vegetables in a single layer on an aluminum lined baking sheet (for easy clean up). Roast for 20 minutes.

4. Stir and continue roasting for another 20 minutes.

5. Meanwhile in a small pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the maple syrup and sage to the melted butter and stir until combined. Pour over the vegetables, and stir until well coated.

6. Roast for another 15-20 minutes or until maple syrup becomes bubbly and vegetables are tender when pierced with a fork.

7. Garnish with more chopped fresh sage before serving.


Shoestring-Style Brussel Sprouts
With Garlic & Mustard
Serves 4

This recipe is pretty flexible -- you can adjust it by adding dried or fresh herbs (thyme, savory, etc.) to the dressing if you like, going heavier or lighter on either garlic or mustard, skipping the cheese or using a different kind, etc.

Shoestring-Style Brussel Sprouts

Ingredients

* 2 lbs brussel sprouts, washed and trimmed of any yellow leaves and browned bottoms
* 4 tbsps olive oil
* 4 tbsps whole grain or Dijon mustard
* 4 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
* Sea salt
* Freshly ground black pepper
* Pecorino cheese, grated (I actually forgot to add the cheese and the sprouts were delicious without it, so those of you with "lactards" in your families need not worry about omitting this ingredient to make this dish edible for all.)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Chop the brussel sprouts into 1/4-inch slices with a knife or cuisinart disc attachment. Try to chop “with the grain” (from the top of the sprout to the bottom) so that the slices stay together, rather than slicing across the top or across the base.

3. Prepare the dressing: Mix equal parts mustard and olive oil with the garlic, add salt and pepper to taste, and stir well. Give it a taste to see if it needs adjusting or if it seems well-balanced as is.

4. Toss the dressing with the sprouts in a big bowl to coat thoroughly. Try to toss them gently so the sprouts don’t break apart too much.

5. Spread the dressed sprouts in a thin layer in a large roasting pan. If you'd like to use the cheese, grate a bit of pecorino on top, using the largest holes in the grater. Press the grated cheese strips down with an oiled spoon or your fingers – the more they’re in contact with the sprouts, the less they’ll become too brown or burn.

6. Roast for 15-20 mins or until the sprouty shreds get soft and carmelized and the cheese is starting to brown.


Simple Mashed Potatoes
Makes 4-6 servings

Ingredients

* 2 1/2 pounds potatoes (about 6 large potatoes), preferably a combination of russet (baking) potatoes and large Yukon Golds, or all Yukon Golds
* 4 tablespoons butter, more for dotting
* 1/3 cup whole milk
* Sea salt

Directions

1. In a large pot, bring a gallon of water and 2 tablespoons salt to a boil over high heat. Peel and quarter potatoes and keep in cold water until ready to cook (this can be done up to 4 hours in advance). Add potatoes to boiling water and boil about 15 to 20 minutes, until soft; a knife should go in with almost no resistance. (It is better to overcook than to undercook.)

2. In a saucepan or a microwave oven, heat butter and milk together until butter melts and mixture steams. Drain potatoes well and return to pot. Using an extruding masher or a ricer, mash hot potatoes until smooth. Lightly mix in about half of hot butter mixture, just until blended. Taste for salt and add more butter mixture until seasoned to your liking.

3. Stop here for fluffy potatoes. For creamy potatoes, keep stirring potato mixture, using a sturdy spoon to press it against sides and bottom of pot. Mix until dense and thick. For whipped potatoes, use a stand mixer to mash hot potatoes just until smooth, about 30 seconds. Add all the butter mixture and salt to taste, pulsing machine in short bursts at medium speed. When light and creamy, stop mixing immediately (potatoes can quickly become sticky).

4. To keep hot until ready to serve, transfer to serving bowl, dot top with butter, cover tightly and keep in a warm place, like the back of the stove. Potatoes will stay hot for at least 30 minutes. To keep longer, place covered bowl in a pan holding about an inch of gently simmering water. Before serving, mix well.


Wilted Kale Salad With Balsamic Vinegar & Orange Zest

Serves 4

This salad makes a great Thanksgiving side dish. The kale provides a solid base to which the onions and vinegar lend sweetness and the zest gives a nice little zip.

Close up of wilted kale salad with balsamic vinegar and orange zest
Ingredients

* 1 large bunch of kale (I like the russian kind or some other purplish variety for this, rather than the dinosaur kale)
* 2 cloves of garlic, minced or thinly sliced
* 1 small onion, thinly sliced
* 2 Tbsps olive oil
* 1/4 cup organic currants
* 1 tsp orange zest
* 2 tsps balsamic vinegar or balsamic vinegar glaze
* Sea salt
* Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Wash the kale well and then chop into large pieces.

2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and onions and sautee until translucent. Add the kale and cook until completely wilted.

3. Remove from heat and let cool. Add the vinegar, currants, zest, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss well to combine and serve.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

The Skinny On Low-Fat Milk

I'd really never questioned the wisdom of buying low-fat milk before. Although I dislike the watery flavor of skim milk, I've always found 2% to be plenty creamy so that was my nod to the cultural pressure to cut fat out of our diets.

But I had also never looked at the ingredients on the carton of organic 2% milk before reading Michael Pollan's newest book,
In Defense of Food. I'd always just assumed that there would be only one ingredient -- milk...

So you can imagine my surprise to find that there are FOUR ingredients in my 2% milk!

Low-fat (2%) milk ingredients

Here's the skinny. Any time food producers take something out of a food product (even one as seemingly simple and pure-sounding as milk) they have to put something else back in to replace it to keep the product looking and tasting like the original, unadulterated version did.

Pollan also points out that the very fat we're so desperate to remove from our dairy products actually helps our bodies absorb a whole bunch of fat-soluble vitamins in the milk.

I purchased my first half gallon of whole organic milk (from Strauss Creamery, our amazing local dairy - you can
read my earlier post on which organic dairy companies are good and which are bad if you want to learn more about your options) a few days ago. I did check the ingredients before I headed to the check out line and found only one -- organic whole milk.

Whole milk ingredients

Monday, November 17, 2008

Shoestring-Style Brussel Sprouts

My co-worker, Marc, made up this recipe about a month ago. Our small office filled with yummy smells when he heated up the leftovers he'd brought in for lunch. I followed my nose right into the tiny kitchen where, luckily, Marc was very happy to share his recipe with me.

Shoestring-Style Brussel Sprouts

We finally tried them out last night with a baked ham and some sweet potatoes. The result? Addictively delicious. If you're thinking about your menu for next week's Thanksgiving dinner, this would make a great side dish -- quick and easy to prepare and hearty and savory to eat. The only trouble I anticipate is that you may have a hard time finding space in the oven on Thursday...

This recipe is pretty flexible -- you can adjust it by adding dried or fresh herbs (thyme, savory, etc.) to the dressing if you like, going heavier or lighter on either garlic or mustard, skipping the cheese or using a different kind, etc.

Sliced sprouts awaiting dressing

Shoestring-Style Brussel Sprouts
Serves 4

Ingredients

* 2 lbs brussel sprouts, washed and trimmed of any yellow leaves and browned bottoms
* 4 tbsps olive oil
* 4 tbsps whole grain or Dijon mustard
* 4 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
* 2 tbsps white wine
* Sea salt
* Freshly ground black pepper
* Pecorino cheese, grated (I actually forgot to add the cheese and the sprouts were delicious without it, so those of you with "lactards" in your families need not worry about omitting this ingredient to make this dish edible for all.)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Chop the brussel sprouts into 1/4-inch slices with a knife or cuisinart disc attachment. Try to chop “with the grain” (from the top of the sprout to the bottom) so that the slices stay together, rather than slicing across the top or across the base.

3. Prepare the dressing: Mix equal parts mustard and olive oil with the garlic and wine, add salt and pepper to taste, and stir well. Give it a taste to see if it needs adjusting or if it seems well-balanced as is.

4. Toss the dressing with the sprouts in a big bowl to coat thoroughly. Try to toss them gently so the sprouts don’t break apart too much.

5. Spread the dressed sprouts in a thin layer in a large roasting pan. If you'd like to use the cheese, grate a bit of pecorino on top, using the largest holes in the grater. Press the grated cheese strips down with an oiled spoon or your fingers – the more they’re in contact with the sprouts, the less they’ll become too brown or burn.

6. Roast for 15-20 mins or until the sprouty shreds get soft and carmelized and the cheese is starting to brown.

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Back To The Root Cellar

Last week I read Little House in the Big Woods, the first in the series of Little House on the Prairie children's books (I realize that I'm about 20 years behind the curve on this but I figured better late than never...)

To my delight, a great deal of the book is devoted to descriptions of the family's preparations to grow, catch, kill, prepare, and store enough food for the long snowy winter.

I particularly loved reading about how Laura and her big sister Mary help their Ma and Pa bring in the harvest from their crops of oat and wheat, store the pumpkins, squash, onions, and peppers from Ma's garden, preserve the pig they butcher and the deer Pa shoots, and smoke the mess of fish Pa catches in Lake Pepin. Here is a quote from the story - winter has just begun in earnest and the girls are housebound but the house is packed with good food and all is snug and cozy.

"The attic was a lovely place to play. The large, round , colored pumpkins made beautiful tables and chairs. The red peppers and the onions dangled overhead. The hams and the venison hung in their paper wrappings, and all the dried herbs, the spicy herbs for cooking and the bitter herbs for medicine, gave the place a dusty-spicy smell."

The one downside to this literary pleasure was that it reignited my desire for a home of my own, complete with a cool, spacious root cellar, a commodious chest freezer, and a nice dry attic in which to store the summer's bounty long into the bitter cold of winter. I've fantasized about this ever since I left home and my longing grew even stronger last year when I read Barbara Kingsolver's book, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.

Unfortunately, since I live in a small apartment in Berkeley with neither attic nor cellar (and certainly no room for a chest freezer), it seems this dream of mine will probably just have to wait a bit longer. Luckily, winters here are mild, rainy affairs and one can always find fresh fruits and veggies at the local farmers markets.

But I was pleasantly surprised this afternoon when I stumbled on a NYTimes article about the rebirth of root cellars in New York City and beyond! Viva la root cellar! Here is the link if you're curious: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/06/garden/06root.html

Saturday, October 25, 2008

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Homemade baked mac n cheese

The weather here in Berkeley has been unseasonable for the past few weeks - a string of dazzlingly sunny, hot days. But before Indian summer began, we had a brief spate of fall-like weather with crisp, windy days and very chilly nights.

Homemade mac n cheese - close up

It was during this "cold" spell that I got the urge to make mac 'n cheese. Oddly enough, I had never made real mac 'n cheese before. I checked out several recipes online and consulted a few cookbooks before I ended up settling on this classic recipe from the Joy of Cooking

The result was delicious -- creamy, melty pasta with a hint of sweetness from the onions topped with crispy browned fresh breadcrumbs. This classic comfort food is also quite addictive -- my husband and I both went back to the stove for seconds and thirds and so on...

Forkful of mac n cheese

-- print recipe --Baked Macaroni and Cheese
Serves 4-6 as a main dish
Ingredients

* 2 cups (8 oz) macaroni (elbow mac is the classic but you can use whatever you like)
* 2 1/4 cups grated sharp cheddar or Colby cheese
* 2 Tbsps butter (plus an additional tbsp for the breadcrumbs)
* 2 Tbsps all-purpose flour
* 2 cups milk
* 1/2 large onion, minced
* 1 bay leaf
* 1/4 tsp sweet paprika
* Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
* 1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 1 1/2 quart baking dish.

2. Bring 6 cups of water to a boil and add the macaroni. While the pasta is cooking, grate the cheese. Cook the pasta until al dente then drain and move it to a bowl or put it back in the pot.

3. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat then whisk in the flour and cook, whisking constantly to remove lumps, for three minutes.

4. Gradually whisk in the milk then stir in the onion and add the bay leaf and paprika. Simmer gently for 15 minutes, stirring often. Remove from the heat and stir in 2/3 of the cheese. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

5. Add the macaroni and stir to combine. Pour half the mixture into the baking dish and sprinkle it with half of the remaining cheese. Add the rest of the macaroni mixture and top with the rest of the cheese.

6. Melt 1 tbsp butter in a small skillet and add the breadcrumbs. Toss to coat and cook for 30-60 seconds. Sprinkle the buttered breadcrumbs over the top of the macaroni in the baking dish and bake until the breadcrumbs are lightly browned, about 30-35 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

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Saturday, October 18, 2008

Hummus With Caramelized Onions & Garlic Topped With Beets, Pine Nuts & Greek Yogurt

Hummous with caramelized onions & garlic topped with golden beets, pinenuts and greek yogurt

Hummus is one of those wonderfully earthy, satisfying foods. It can be simple or sophisticated and it can serve as the heart of a basic meal or a tasty component of a complicated one. Best of all, it's easy to make.

I'd made hummus half a dozen times before I found this recipe by chef Ana Sortun (though I have made a few small modifications on her original.) Previously, my hummus recipe had included a small amount of raw garlic and lots of cilantro in addition to the usual chickpeas, tahini, olive oil, lemon juice and salt. And it was good! But now I am so partial to this version that I may never go back...


Rinsing the chickpeas by Eve Fox, Garden of Eating blog, copyright 2011

The thing that makes this hummus special is the big dose of caramelized onions and garlic it includes. It does take a little more time to prepare since you have to add in an extra peeling and cooking step but I think the sweet, mellow taste (and the fact that you will not reek of garlic for half a day after eating it) are well worth the extra 10 or 15 minutes of prep time.


Sauteeing onions, garlic & ginger by Eve Fox, The Garden of Eating, copyright 2015

As Nadia and I planned the menu for our
Mediterranean feast, including this hummus seemed like a no-brainer, even though it is technically Middle Eastern.

You can make extra hummus if you like. Kept in an airtight dish in the fridge without the toppings, this will keep for several days and makes an awesome snack with some pita or flat bread.


Hummous with caramelized onions and garlic topped with golden beets, pinenuts and greek yogurt

-- print recipe --Caramelized Onion & Garlic Hummus with Golden Beets, Pine Nuts & Greek Yogurt
Serves 6

Ingredients

Hummus
* 2 cans organic chickpeas, rinsed and drained (you can also use 1 cup dried but I never leave enough time for all that soaking and cooking)
* 6 tbsp organic olive oil, plus more for caramelizing the onions & garlic
* 3 large garlic cloves, minced or pressed
* 2 large or 3 small yellow onions, chopped
* 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
* 2 tbsp tahini
* Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Toppings
* 4 large beets, preferably the golden or chioggia varieties
* 2 tbsp pine nuts
* 1/4 cup thick greek yogurt

Directions

1. Prepare the beets: remove the beet greens (you can reserve them for some other purpose if you like) and place the beets in a small saucepan. Cover with water by one inch and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to simmer gently. Cook until the beets are tender when pierced with a fork, about 35-45 minutes, depending on the size of the beets. Drain and peel once they are cool enough to handle (the skins will slip off in the most satisfying way.) Cut the beets into a 1/4 inch dice. Toss with 1 tbsp olive oil and set aside.

2. Caramelize the onions and garlic: heat 2-3 tbsp olive oil in a medium frying pan or skillet until medium hot. Add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring often, until the onions are very soft and a rich caramel color, about 25 minutes total. Season with salt and pepper.

3. In the bowl of a Cuisinart (you can use a blender if that is all you have but I warn you that it will be quite challenging), combine the drained chickpeas, caramelized onions and garlic, tahini, lemon juice, a tsp or 2 of salt, and several tbsps of olive oil. Process on medium speed, stopping to add more oil as needed. Taste as you go and adjust the amounts - you can add more lemon juice, tahini, salt, pepper or olive oil, depending on the taste and texture that appeals most to you (some people like their hummus chunky, others prefer it smooth and silky.)

4. Toast the pine nuts in a small skillet, turning often, until light brown (watch closely or they will burn - it does not take very long.)

5. Turn the hummus into a shallow, wide bowl and top with the yogurt, cubed beets and pine nuts (I included some sprigs of cilantro, as well).

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Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Lemon-Scented Quinoa With Tahini & Chickpeas

You simply cannot live in Berkeley without running into quinoa (pronounced keen-wah) at every turn. But popular as it is with my hippie brethren, I did not want to like this scrappy little grain everyone was so in looooove with (probably because everyone was so in love with it...) So I avoided eating quinoa even though it meant I was often forced to go hungry at potluck dinners. And I certainly did not cook the stuff!

But after reading several glowing posts about it from other food bloggers that I respect, and hearing
my friend Nadia's warm endorsement, I decided I was ready to cast my prejudice aside and give it a try. Nadia and I decided to include this recipe for Lemon-Scented Quinoa that I'd seen on 101Cookbooks in our Mediterranean feast. Happily, it was delicious - hearty, flavorful, and interesting. I was sold!

Lemon-scented quinoa with tahini and chickpeas

Like farro, quinoa is an ancient grain. It was first cultivated in the Andean region of South America by the Incas over 6,000 years ago. So crucial was quinoa to their civilization that they called it "chisaya mama," the mother of all grains.

It is even more nutritious than farro, earning it a well-deserved designation as a "Super Grain." Not only is quinoa high in protein, it also contains all 8 essential amino acids, making it a complete protein which is very rare in vegetarian foods, not to mention large doses of fiber, folate, magnesium and iron. And for those who are allergic to wheat, it is happily gluten-free.


Close-up of uncooked quinoa grains

If you do not buy a boxed version, you may need to soak it for several hours to remove its protective coating of bitter saponins that keep the birds from devouring the crop before it can be harvested. However, boxed quinoa has generally been processed in this way already so it only needs to be rinsed before cooking. 

You'll notice that a funny little tail or curlicue appears outside the grain during cooking - this is a surefire way to tell that it's done. The cooked grains have a mild, slightly nutty flavor that goes well with both savory and sweet accompaniments.

-- print recipe --Lemon-Scented Quinoa With Tahini & Chickpeas
Serves 4

Ingredients

* 1 cup quinoa
* 2 cups water
* 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
* 1 can garbanzo beans, or dried equivalent
* 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
* 1/2 red onion, chopped

Tahini Dressing:
* 1 garlic clove, smashed and chopped
* 1/4 cup tahini
* Zest of one lemon
* 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 2 tablespoons hot water
* 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt

Directions

1. Rinse the quinoa in a fine-meshed strainer.

2. In a medium saucepan heat the quinoa and water until boiling. Reduce heat and simmer until water is absorbed and quinoa fluffs up, about 15 minutes. Quinoa is done when you can see the curlicue in each grain, and it is tender with a bit of pop to each bite. Drain any extra water and set aside.

3. While the quinoa is cooking make the dressing. Whisk together the garlic, tahini, lemon zest and juice, and olive oil. Add the hot water to thin a bit and then the salt.

4. Toss the cooked quinoa, beans, cilantro, red onion, and half of the dressing. Add more dressing and season with more salt to taste. Serve garnished with a bit of cilantro.

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Sunday, October 12, 2008

Spiced Lamb Kabobs With Tomato Jam

I came across this recipe when I was on vacation in Hawaii two years ago. We were staying in a little condo on Molokai, a very beautiful and very tiny island. The owners of the condo had left a pile of books and magazines for their renters to enjoy. Among them was an issue of Met Home that included an article with lots of tasty-sounding Middle Eastern-style recipes.

I had never cooked lamb (ground or otherwise) before I tried these kabobs and was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to manipulate and how yummy the end result was. These kabobs are simple and easy to prepare and only take a few minutes to cook on the grill.


Lamb kabobs on the barbie

I had also never heard of tomato jam before finding this recipe. Oddly enough, just two days after Nadia and I cooked our Mediterranean feast, Mark Bittman did a piece about tomato jam in the NYTimes. What a coinkydink! I actually liked Bittman's recipe better than the one from Met Home so I've substituted it here.

Tomato jam

Spiced Lamb Kabobs
Makes 12 kabobs (serves 6)

Ingredients

* 12 six-inch bamboo skewers
* 2 tbsp cinnamon
* 1 1/4 freshly ground black pepper
* 3/8 tsp grated nutmeg
* 3/8 tsp ground coriander
* 2 tsp salt
* small pinch of cayenne pepper
* 1 tbsp tomato paste or red pepper paste
* 2 egg whites
* 2 lbs ground lamb (use organic, free range lamb if at all possible)

Directions

1. Soak the bamboo skewers in water to prevent them from charring on the grill (you can do this overnight or a few hours before you're planning to grill.)

2. Combine all the ingredients in the bowl of a cuisinart and mix until completely blended (you want it to break down so that it becomes almost creamy.)

3. Divide the mixture into 12 equal portions. Shape each portion into a short, thick sausage and push onto the bamboo skewer.

4. Prepare the grill and grill the kebabs on all sides until done to your taste.

Tomato Jam
Makes about 1 cup

Ingredients

* 3/4 pound good ripe tomatoes (Roma are best), cored and coarsely chopped
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 1 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
* 1/2 tablespoon fresh grated or minced ginger
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
* 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* a pinch of ground cloves
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 a jalapeño pepper, stemmed, seeded and minced, or a pinch of red pepper flakes or cayenne to taste.

Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients in a heavy medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often.

2. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the mixture has the consistency of thick jam, about 1 hour 15 minutes.

3. Taste and adjust seasoning, then cool and refrigerate until ready to use; this will keep at least a week.

Saturday, October 4, 2008

A Mediterranean Feast (In Several Installments)

I have a few friends with whom I love to cook. Luckily for me, one of them came out to Berkeley for a visit recently. I had not seen Nadia in a long time but once we'd covered the basics, we spent a lot of time talking about food.

Nadia's interesting heritage (her mom is from Italy and her dad is an Armenian from Syria) has exposed her to a wide range of flavors and spices and her enthusiasm about food is infectious. We decided to wind up her visit by making a big mediterranean feast for dinner.


After spending some time leafing through my voluminous recipe files, we settled on:

We shopped in the morning and then prepared the quinoa, hummous, tomato jam, and tzatziki, saving only the salad and kabobs for the evening. I had made all but the tomato jam and quinoa dishes before so I was pretty sure the results would be good.

But I was pleasantly surprised by how delicious everything turned out. The combination of flavors was perfect (luckily, we had enough for leftovers for the next day, too.) And, of course, the company (Nadia and her boyfriend, Martin) was a big part of what made the meal so good!

Mediterranean Feast, sorry the pic is not great - we were all REALLY hungry by this time.

Since this meal includes far too many recipes to post in one fell swoop, I'll leave you with this taste of the meal and will post each recipe separately (minus the tzatziki, since I've already written about that - you can find the recipe here, the green salad, since it was so straight-forward, and the pita, since it was store-bought) over the next week. I will also link to the recipes from this post once they've been posted to make your browsing easier.

Here's to good friends and good food!

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Garlic-Rich at Harvest Time

Back in March, I wrote a post about planting your own garlic crop.

This garlic clove will become a whole head!

Well time has done her proverbial thing and we've harvested a fine crop of garlic - about 40 heads in all. Hopefully, it will be enough to last us the whole winter.

It was deeply satisfying to pull their papery purple and white heads from the ground, all covered in clingy black dirt. And it is truly luxurious to cook with this new garlic -- so tender, so fragrant, so delicious.

Here are some pix. If you are not already addicted to growing your own garlic, I'd suggest giving it a whirl next year - it's ridiculously easy and the rewards are rich.

Our crop of garlic plants early in the season

Once we'd planted the cloves, the plants shot up quickly - almost overnight!

Heads of Garlic From Our Harvest by Eve Fox copyright 2008

Just a few months later, they were ready to harvest. A close-up of the heads just after being yanked out of the ground.

Our Garlic Harvest (Unwashed) by Eve Fox copyright 2008

The bounty!


Garlic Drying On Outdoor Table by Eve Fox copyright 2008

Drying on the table on our deck after washing.

Garlic Drying On Outdoor Table by Eve Fox copyright 2008

A close-up of the drying heads of garlic.

Saturday, September 20, 2008

Gift From The Kitchen Gods: Soft Skin Peeler

Zyliss Soft Skin Peeler
It's been a while since a kitchen gadget has rocked my world but have I got a good one for you!
My darling cousin Nina (of Healthy Living fame) introduced me to this lovely little peeler last month while she was giving me a tour of the new store.

Made by Zyliss, this peeler lets you part a tomato, peach, plum, kiwi, piece of ginger, etc., from its skin with minimal effort and without taking off much of the fruit underneath.
Apparently, the secret to its success is a dual-edged serrated blade that is supposed to work equally well for righties and lefties (though I have not yet tortured myself by trying to peel anything left-handed.)

We tried it out on a peach crisp right away and I can attest that it works remarkably well. I am also partial to red so, naturally, I love the color.

And as it retails for just $7-$12, it won't break the bank, either. Enjoy!

Peeling a peach for crisp

Check out more Gifts From The Kitchen Gods: