baby bok choy stir-fry w/tofu

Lighten up with Salmon

Salmon with Tomato Citrus Vinegrette

                  1 pint(s) grape tomatoes, halved

                  1  (medium) shallot, thinly sliced

                  3 tablespoon(s) drained capers

                  6 tablespoon(s) citrus champagne vinegar

                  4-6 tablespoon lemon juice

                  1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

                  4  (7-ounce) center-cut salmon fillets with skin

                  Freshly ground pepper

                  1/8 teaspoon(s) ground cumin (to taste)

                  1 tablespoon(s) minced parsley

                  1 tablespoon(s) chopped basil (fresh)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. In a bowl, toss the tomatoes with the shallot, capers, parsley, basil, vinegar/citrus juice, olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon of salt.

In a medium ovenproof skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Season the salmon with salt and pepper and add it to the skillet, skin side up. Cook over moderately high heat until well-browned on the bottom, about 4 minutes. Carefully flip the fillets and transfer the skillet to the oven and roast until the salmon is cooked through, about 6 minutes. Transfer the fish to plates and pour off any fat in the skillet. Cover salmon w/ foil to keep warm.

Place the skillet over moderate heat and add the tomato mixture and cumin. Cook, scraping up any bits stuck to the skillet, until the tomatoes just soften, about 2 minutes. Pour the sauce over the salmon, sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve right away.

Serve with wild rice or a toasted baguette.

This never fails to be fully consumed by even the most hard core carnivores.

Hoppin' John for New Year's!

(top img src: http://www.amazon.com/My-Dear-New-Years-Day/dp/B000P5FHGM)    (bottom img: http://www.hoppinjohn.org/

Ingredients:

• 1 pound dried black-eyed peas
• 2 small smoked ham hocks or meaty ham bone 
• 2 medium onions, divided
• 3 large cloves garlic, halved 
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cup long-grain rice (brown for love or white for looks)
• 1 can (10 to 14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes with chile peppers, juices reserved
• 1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
• 3 ribs celery, chopped
• 1 jalapeno or serrano pepper, minced
• 2 teaspoons Cajun or Creole seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• salt to taste
• bunch green onions, sliced

Preparation:

Soak the dried beans in water over night, refreshing the water twice prior to cooking (they say it helps reduce the "enzyme effect".)

Line a tray with foil and roast the hocks in a 350F oven for 25 mins. Remove and pat dry. (I prefer roasted hocks for the taste and reduced fat content.)

In a large Dutch oven or kettle, combine the black-eyed peas, ham bone or ham hocks, and 6 cups water. Cut 1 of the onions in half and add it to the pot along with the garlic and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer gently until the beans are tender but not mushy, 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Remove the ham bone or hocks, cut off the meat; dice and set aside. Drain the peas and set aside. Remove and discard the bay leaf, onion pieces, and garlic.

Add 2 1/2 cups of water to the pot and bring to a boil. Add the rice, cover, and simmer until the rice is almost tender, about 10 to 12 minutes.

Mince the remaining onion then add to the rice along with the peas, tomatoes, and their juices, red and green bell pepper, celery, jalapeno pepper, Creole seasoning, thyme, cumin, and salt. Cook until the rice is tender, 5 to 8 minutes. Stir in the sliced green onions and the reserved diced ham. Serve with hot sauce and freshly baked cornbread.

Some recipes for Hoppin' John contain tomatoes or okra, and the swap in of okra for the beans makes it a Limpin' Susie. (LOL!)

I also enjoy including chopped mustard and kale greens; I cook them separately to use as a bed on the plate.  that seems to keep them more fresh than including them in the one pot method such as suggested at MyRecipes.com
(http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1687663)


Another great source of early American cookbooks for inspirational and traditional recipes:
http://www.foodbooks.com/facsimil.htm


And for my vegetarian friends, GroupRecipes has a classic version:
http://www.grouprecipes.com/44137/vegetarian-hoppin-john.html
Or, if you're not up to it, just buy this:

Recipe Exchange

Seasons Greeting People!

I recently became part of an email recipe chain. Generally I deposit any suspected goofiness into the trash, even from friends.

I decided out of curiosity since a restaurant owner started it and all the participants I could see were definitely 'foodies'.

But in this case, I am experimenting. It is the season of 'sharing' after all...

My first response came today:

Roasted Olives with Almonds and Lemon Rind

"Rinse and drain a cup or so of olives with pits, (I like to mix Kalamata and some type of green olive). 

Toss them in a bowl with some blanched almonds (whole or sliced, those Marcona Almonds are the best), enough olive oil to coat it all, little bit of red chili flakes and strips of lemon rind. I like lots of lemon rind because it is so delicious roasted. 

Once these ingredients are all tossed together transfer to a baking dish, it is best if the dish base is big enough so that the olives are not stacked on top of each other. 

Bake for about 10 minutes at about 400 degrees. They are a delicious appetizer."

-Dana C.

danacadesign/Metal Crafting Center

Thanks Dana!

Paella

The beauty of Paella is that it is so versatile: it's basically a stovetop casserole with local ingredients. Regional specialties

influence the flavors. I love the seafood/pork flavor combo common in a Portuguese Cataplana and thought to be inspired during the Inquisition. More traditional would be a single protein flavor with a vegetable (ie:rabbit/artichoke or squid/scallion)

But my favorite restaurant growing up was La Bodega in North Beach, which served 'Paella Valencia' a combination chicken, shrimp and pea.  My version is heavy on tomatoes and I always add booze

Lisa b.'s Basic Paella
Yield 4 Servings 

Measure/Ingredient 

½ lb. Chorizo or other spicy sausage 

½ lb. mussels-- live 

1lb. Chicken -- - cut up 

⅓ cup Olive oil 

2 large Shallot - chopped 

16 oz Diced tomatoes (drain if canned) 

1 med Red pepper ¾ chopped, ¼ sliced thin for garnish 

1 bulb Garlic - whole (my preference so to flavor only) 

¼ tsp Saffron - spanish 

2 tsp Sea salt /pepper

2 cups Aborio rice 

Up to 6 cups Hot broth (chicken or fish) 

1 cup Green beans-in season 

Brown and slice sausage, set aside. Wash and trim beans, set aside.

Scrub mussels in several baths of cold water to be sure all the sand is washed away. Do not open shells.

Pour 1/2 of the olive oil into a frying pan and slowly brown chicken pieces. Set aside.

Into a shallow Dutch oven pour the remaining olive oil and saute' the shallot and garlic until tender but not brown over low heat. Add  tomatoes and peppers and simmer on med heat, stirring until the sofrito reduces to @ 1 cup.

Add the rice and stir, coating the rice with the sofrito. (this seals the grain, so it does not break down while cooking.  (This is the main difference between making a paella vs. a risotto, where the starch breaks down.)

Add the sausage.

Add broth stirring until the rice mixture is covered.

Arrange the chicken pieces, gently pressing them into the mixture.

Add the mussels and bean around the chicken.

Turn to low and simmer gently, uncovered, until the rice is cooked. About 35-45 mins.

When the rice has absorbed most of the liquid and the shellfish are open, remove from heat and cover with a towel.

If it becomes too dry before the rice is cooked, a little more water may be added, but DO NOT stir. If some moisture remains when rice is done, put pan into a oven to dry out.  

Arrange strips of peppers on top and serve in the pan in which it was cooked.

It is important to carefully plan your cooking vessel. I have a collection of 2 ,4, 8 and 10 serving size pans I use for paellas and braised meals. My stove is too small for the 10, but I can use it on a grill!

sources:

Paella! by Peneolope Casas

The New Spanish Table

by Anya von Bremzen

La Tienda

The Spanish Table

Caphalon (my pan)

Lil' Punkin'

Its Pumpkin Time!

     I've never really gotten over the year I had the flu and barfed up Thanksgiving's Pumpkin Pie.  Every season, I graciously pass on anything pumpkin, feigning fullness.

      Recently I seem to be slowly getting over my aversion; it may have to do with making good (PC)  use of all the prop gourds and squash decorating the abode.

  My friends over at Cookus Interruptus have posted a tasty looking Pumpkin Pecan Muffin recipe.  I'm sure its delicious and healthy and won't make anyone barf.

 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1 cup unbleached white flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon cloves

½ teaspoon cardamom

½ cup unrefined cane sugar or brown sugar

 ½ cup melted butter

¼ cup molasses

¼ cup honey

1 cup mashed, cooked pumpkin or winter squash

½ cup milk or water

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

½ cup pecans, chopped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Lightly oil muffin tins or line with paper muffin cups.  Mix together flours, baking powder, salt, spices, and unrefined cane sugar in large bowl; set aside. 

Put butter in a small sauce pan to melt.  Add molasses and honey to warm butter and stir together.

 Place cooked pumpkin or squash in blender, add butter-sweetener mixture and blend.  Add 1/2 milk or water (or more) to get a smooth, pourable consistency - like pancake batter.  Add eggs and vanilla and pulse to blend. 

Add wet ingredients to dry mixture and fold gently, using a minimum of strokes. Fold pecans into batter.  Fill muffin cups full with batter.  Bake 25-30 minutes.

 

Preparation time: 45 minutes

Makes 12 muffins

Reprinted from Feeding the Whole Family by Cynthia Lair (Sasquatch Books, 2008)

Cauliflower on my mind...

This soup looks steamy tastylicious even IF it IS cauliflower-checkit!
Dirty Kitchen Adventures
And so does this step-by-step version-Thanks to Pioneer Woman! 

Add some Cheese on that.....parmesan crispies... Thanks Mom-Mom!

Wholly Cruciferous! Check out this Amazing list of cauliflower options at 101Cookbooks!

and at CDkitchen

Cauliflower heaven, yum. You already know they're good for you and now you can learn how good they taste. 
Really. 
Test is this: When you roast some up and take it to a 'pot-luck' and its the first dish empty, well then something is right. Right?