This is so simple it hardly qualifies as a recipe, but the seasoning mix was good enough to recommend, and I wouldn't have thought of it.
We picked up some baby squash (zucchini and pattypans) at the farmer's market last week. We'd never seen such a thing, although it turns out they're pretty common. Who knew?
And on the internets I found a recipe for them that turned out real nice. Basically you trim the ends off then put them in a roasting pan. Pour enough olive oil over them to coat them, but not enough that they're swimming. Then add chopped tarragon and chopped thyme leaves (I used dried from a bottle, but fresh would probably be even better) and salt and pepper to taste. Mix them all together so that the herbs and spices and oil are evenly distributed. Put them in the oven at 350 for 15-30 minutes, until they're tender. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar when you serve them.
This was really, really good.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Friday, July 30, 2010
Radishes
Does anybody have any good ideas for radishes? I am talking about your standard red radish. I have been putting them in salads and realising that I like them more than I used to, but I don't really know anything else to use them for. So, radish advice? Anyone?
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Egg Update
So I asked for egg suggestions like a week and a half ago and then I never told anyone what happened. And what happened was that I made quiche. Which makes Taryn's the winning suggestion, I guess. ;) But I still have eggs left, so omelets or dashimaki may still be in the works. I haven't decided.
But anyway, I kind of looked up quiche in my Fanny Farmer (my favorite basic cookbook) and then winged it from there, but here's what I basically did:
Even though I've actually made pie shells before that didn't entirely suck, this time I just bought some frozen ones.
Most of the Fannie Farmer quiches seem to consist of filling on the bottom, cheese in the middle, and egg-and-cream mix on top (which actually seeps down through all the other layers). So I put in some leftover mushrooms and broccoli and covered them with a ton of cheddar and smoked gouda. Then I mixed together about 2 cups of half-and-half with four eggs (all the Fannie Farmer quiches called for 4 eggs) and some salt, pepper, and chipotle powder and poured it over the top.
Then I cooked it all for 15 minutes at 425 degrees and then turned down the oven to 350 and baked for 30 minutes more.
It turned out pretty well, but I could have totally put more spices in the egg-and-cream stuff. If I try the dashimaki I'll tell everyone how that goes.
But anyway, I kind of looked up quiche in my Fanny Farmer (my favorite basic cookbook) and then winged it from there, but here's what I basically did:
Even though I've actually made pie shells before that didn't entirely suck, this time I just bought some frozen ones.
Most of the Fannie Farmer quiches seem to consist of filling on the bottom, cheese in the middle, and egg-and-cream mix on top (which actually seeps down through all the other layers). So I put in some leftover mushrooms and broccoli and covered them with a ton of cheddar and smoked gouda. Then I mixed together about 2 cups of half-and-half with four eggs (all the Fannie Farmer quiches called for 4 eggs) and some salt, pepper, and chipotle powder and poured it over the top.
Then I cooked it all for 15 minutes at 425 degrees and then turned down the oven to 350 and baked for 30 minutes more.
It turned out pretty well, but I could have totally put more spices in the egg-and-cream stuff. If I try the dashimaki I'll tell everyone how that goes.
Monday, July 26, 2010
Kewpie Potato Salad
I learned how to make this salad in elementary school in Japan. It's my go-to dish for taking to potlucks and barbecues. We took it to one Friday night, and it was kind of a hit.Ingredients:
4 big potatoes, peeled (white is good, but any kind is okay as long as they're big)
1-2 handfuls of baby carrots (depending on how much you like carrots)
1 cucumber, half-peeled (unpeeled is okay; "half-peeled" is peeling strips down the side so it looks like it's striped)
4 eggs
Kewpie Japanese mayonnaise (see illustration)
Fresh-ground pepper (to taste)
Salt
1. Boil the eggs.
2. Dice the potatoes into 1 inch cubes - not too small. Cut baby carrots into halves or thirds. Dump potatoes and carrots into large pot, fill with water, and bring to boil.
3. Boil potatoes and carrots until they're soft enough that you can easily pierce them with a knife, but not so soft that they crumble.
4. While you're waiting for the potatoes and carrots to boil, but the cucumber into thin slices. Sprinkle a little salt over the sliced cucumber. Then wrap the sliced, salted cucumber in a paper towel and squeeze. The idea is to get as much moisture out of the cucumber as you can, so that when you put them into the salad it doesn't get soggy.
5. Drain potatoes and carrots and return them to the pot you boiled them in. Keep the stove on high heat and hold the pot over the burner so it's not touching (if it's electric) or slightly high over the flame (if it's gas). Shake the pot so that the heat dries the potatoes and carrots completely, but don't let them burn. You'll know you're done when the sides and bottom of the pot turn whitish from potato starch, and when the corners of the potato cubes get rounded.
6. Dump potatoes and carrots into large mixing bowl. Squeeze some Kewpie over the top. You'll be using as much Kewpie as you feel you need - there's no set measurement to this. Add some, then mix, then add some more, mix some more, until you're satisfied. You may need to mash the potatoes and carrots a little while you mix, but don't mash them smooth. By squishing them a little, the taste of the potatoes and carrots mixes well with the Kewpie, but if you squish them too much the whole thing turns into a heavy paste. You want to keep it fluffy.
7. Using an egg slicer/dicer thingie, dice three of the boiled eggs and add to the mix.
8. Add cucumber and mix. Cucumbers should be added last, not long before eating, because they'll make the salad soggy. So, if you're making this in the morning to take to someone's barbecue in the evening, keep the cucumbers out and add them right before you leave in the evening.
9. Season to taste with pepper; mix.
10. Cut remaining boiled egg in half and remove the yolk. Crumble half the yolk (or all of it, depending on your preference) over the salad as a garnish. Voila!
This potato salad is better if it's not refrigerated, so if possible make it close enough to serving time that it's still a little bit warm.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Falafel
Here's another bean recipe, inspired by the fact that I'm making them tonight. The name "falafel" here is used in its loosest sense--not super authentic, but easy and tasty.
Falafel:
1 15-oz can chickpeas (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 Tbsp onion powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
dash cumin
2 cloves garlic, minced
pinch of parsley
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1 egg
oil for frying (you can actually deep fry them, but I just saute in a little oil)
1. Boil chickpeas for 3-5 minutes to soften them up, then drain and rinse them with cold water (if you don't do the cold water they'll be too hot to hand-form--I've made this mistake).
2. While beans are boiling, mix all dry ingredients together in small bowl.
3. Mash chickpeas, lemon juice, garlic and egg in large bowl (a fork works just fine for mashing). Once that's mashed to your liking, add dry mixture and stir until well-coated and sticking together.
4. Heat oil in frying pan on medium. Form mixture into four to six patties and saute 3-4 minutes a side, or longer if you want them crispier.
The great thing about this recipe (besides the quickness) is that all the spices are totally negotiable. I gave you the list that came with the original recipe, but I never really follow it. Often I skip most of the spices and chop up a bunch of sun-dried tomatoes instead (you jus throw them in with the wet stuff). My other favorites are Italian style (garlic, onion, oregano, basil, what-have-you) or spicy southwest style (once I pick up some chipotle powder as per Taryn's suggestion, I bet it will go great in these).
Sometimes I use these as hamburger patties, sometimes we just make them and eat them with veggies on the side.
Falafel:
1 15-oz can chickpeas (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 Tbsp onion powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
dash cumin
2 cloves garlic, minced
pinch of parsley
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1 egg
oil for frying (you can actually deep fry them, but I just saute in a little oil)
1. Boil chickpeas for 3-5 minutes to soften them up, then drain and rinse them with cold water (if you don't do the cold water they'll be too hot to hand-form--I've made this mistake).
2. While beans are boiling, mix all dry ingredients together in small bowl.
3. Mash chickpeas, lemon juice, garlic and egg in large bowl (a fork works just fine for mashing). Once that's mashed to your liking, add dry mixture and stir until well-coated and sticking together.
4. Heat oil in frying pan on medium. Form mixture into four to six patties and saute 3-4 minutes a side, or longer if you want them crispier.
The great thing about this recipe (besides the quickness) is that all the spices are totally negotiable. I gave you the list that came with the original recipe, but I never really follow it. Often I skip most of the spices and chop up a bunch of sun-dried tomatoes instead (you jus throw them in with the wet stuff). My other favorites are Italian style (garlic, onion, oregano, basil, what-have-you) or spicy southwest style (once I pick up some chipotle powder as per Taryn's suggestion, I bet it will go great in these).
Sometimes I use these as hamburger patties, sometimes we just make them and eat them with veggies on the side.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Brother Momonjii's Japanese Curry, Variation #1 (Summer)
Curry, Japanese-style, was probably the first thing I learned how to make on my own when I was learning how to cook. And it's still a staple around the Momonjii house - we make it about once every couple of weeks, probably more often in the winter. Since the "curry" aspect of it is store-bought, it may not count as "cooking," at least not in polite company, but at the very least it's "meal preparation," and it's kept us alive and happy. I've worked out a number of variations that we find pretty satisfying, and here's the most recent.
Caveat: It should probably go without saying that Japanese-style curry doesn't really belong in the same category as Indian cuisine. But I'll say it anyway. If it helps, we can call Japanese curry "kare" instead.
Summer Curry #1
Ingredients:
1 large box Java brand curry roux, medium hot (Java is one of the brands of curry readily available at Asian groceries in the US, so it shouldn't be too hard to find)
2 medium-smallish potatoes (Yukon gold)
1 zucchini
1 summer squash
1 bunch scallions (sometimes called spring onions: the kind with the bulb at the end)
frozen peas
1 boneless pork chop (optional)
white pepper
herb de Provence
sunflower seeds (shelled, unsalted)
Parmesan cheese
rice
Note: meat is optional in this recipe. If you're not using it, just follow the directions but ignore the meat.
1. Cut all your veggies into largish chunks. Cut the pork chop into smallish chunks.
2. Melt a little butter in a large soup kettle and sautee the pork over medium-high heat just until it starts to turn whitish-brown. Grind a little white pepper over the pork while you're sauteeing it. Add the potatoes and sautee just a little while. Sauteeing in a soup kettle, you're going to get things burning very quickly, so the object here isn't to cook the items through, but just to sear the outsides of the pork and potatoes.
3. Add a couple of cups of water, turn heat up to high and bring to a boil.
4. When the water's boiling, add the zucchini, summer squash, onions and some frozen peas, as many as you like.
5. Now you'll probably need to add more water. The one thing about Japanese curry that's hard for me to quantify is the amount of water. You can follow the directions on the box, if the importer has translated them for you, but they usually call for 5-6 cups of water, and I find that's way too much. I usually use about half, but I judge by eye rather than measure. Here's how I do it. I aim for enough water to cover the veggies, but not enough so that that they're bobbing around freely. If in doubt, err on the side of too little water. You can always add water to a curry that's too thick, but if you make it too thin there's nothing you can really do about it.
6. Add a couple of dashes of herb de Provence to the water.
7. Boil everything until the pork is done and the veggies are soft.
8. Turn the heat down to medium-low. Add the whole box of curry roux. Stir until the curry is completely dissolved.
9. Let it simmer for five or ten minutes. As soon as the curry is dissolved it's basically done, but letting it simmer for a while helps the taste blend. If you find the curry too thick for your liking at this point, you can always add a little water. If you find it too thin at this point, you can boil it at a low temperature for a while and it will thicken up a little.
10. While simmering, toss in a handful of sunflower seeds.
11. Serve over white rice. Garnish to taste with fresh-grated Parmesan cheese.
Notes: We prefer slightly spicy curries in the summer. Java Curry tends to the spicy side anyway, and with the white pepper and stuff it gets nice and tangy... This recipe will make a lot of curry; just refrigerate whatever's left and eat it the next day. Japanese curry tastes even better the second day... Parmesan cheese may sound like an odd addition to Japanese curry, but it really sets off the flavor of a tangy, summer-veggie curry like this quite nicely.
Caveat: It should probably go without saying that Japanese-style curry doesn't really belong in the same category as Indian cuisine. But I'll say it anyway. If it helps, we can call Japanese curry "kare" instead.
Summer Curry #1
Ingredients:
1 large box Java brand curry roux, medium hot (Java is one of the brands of curry readily available at Asian groceries in the US, so it shouldn't be too hard to find)
2 medium-smallish potatoes (Yukon gold)
1 zucchini
1 summer squash
1 bunch scallions (sometimes called spring onions: the kind with the bulb at the end)
frozen peas
1 boneless pork chop (optional)
white pepper
herb de Provence
sunflower seeds (shelled, unsalted)
Parmesan cheese
rice
Note: meat is optional in this recipe. If you're not using it, just follow the directions but ignore the meat.
1. Cut all your veggies into largish chunks. Cut the pork chop into smallish chunks.
2. Melt a little butter in a large soup kettle and sautee the pork over medium-high heat just until it starts to turn whitish-brown. Grind a little white pepper over the pork while you're sauteeing it. Add the potatoes and sautee just a little while. Sauteeing in a soup kettle, you're going to get things burning very quickly, so the object here isn't to cook the items through, but just to sear the outsides of the pork and potatoes.
3. Add a couple of cups of water, turn heat up to high and bring to a boil.
4. When the water's boiling, add the zucchini, summer squash, onions and some frozen peas, as many as you like.
5. Now you'll probably need to add more water. The one thing about Japanese curry that's hard for me to quantify is the amount of water. You can follow the directions on the box, if the importer has translated them for you, but they usually call for 5-6 cups of water, and I find that's way too much. I usually use about half, but I judge by eye rather than measure. Here's how I do it. I aim for enough water to cover the veggies, but not enough so that that they're bobbing around freely. If in doubt, err on the side of too little water. You can always add water to a curry that's too thick, but if you make it too thin there's nothing you can really do about it.
6. Add a couple of dashes of herb de Provence to the water.
7. Boil everything until the pork is done and the veggies are soft.
8. Turn the heat down to medium-low. Add the whole box of curry roux. Stir until the curry is completely dissolved.
9. Let it simmer for five or ten minutes. As soon as the curry is dissolved it's basically done, but letting it simmer for a while helps the taste blend. If you find the curry too thick for your liking at this point, you can always add a little water. If you find it too thin at this point, you can boil it at a low temperature for a while and it will thicken up a little.
10. While simmering, toss in a handful of sunflower seeds.
11. Serve over white rice. Garnish to taste with fresh-grated Parmesan cheese.
Notes: We prefer slightly spicy curries in the summer. Java Curry tends to the spicy side anyway, and with the white pepper and stuff it gets nice and tangy... This recipe will make a lot of curry; just refrigerate whatever's left and eat it the next day. Japanese curry tastes even better the second day... Parmesan cheese may sound like an odd addition to Japanese curry, but it really sets off the flavor of a tangy, summer-veggie curry like this quite nicely.
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