Molasses Raisin Bran Muffins
These bran muffins have a noticeable molasses flavor and a moist crumb. Based on a recipe from AMA family cookbook.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Coat 12 muffin cups with vegetable oil spray or line with paper liners.
In a large bowl, whisk together:
- 1 1/4 cups wheat bran
- 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
- 1/2 cup white flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/4 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt (a little too salty?)
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
In small bowl whisk together until smooth:
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
Whisk in:
- 1/4 cup honey (use the same cup you measured the oil in)
- 1/4 cup molasses (ditto)
- 1 cup nonfat buttermilk
When well mixed, stir in
- 1/2 cup raisins
Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until no specks of flour remain. Do not overmix. Spoon into the muffin tins, filling them about 3/4 full.
Bake until the muffins are a dark brown, 18 to 22 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature. These muffins can be refrigerated for 1 day or frozen for 2 weeks.
My Notes
I didn’t have buttermilk so I substituted 3/4 cup nonfat yogurt and 1/4 cup unsweetened soymilk. I skimped just a bit on the 1/2 tsp. salt as well. The muffins are small but make a pretty nice snack. I like the bran texture, and the taste is pretty good. These aren’t the ultimate bran muffins but I enjoy them. They’re not quite decadent enough for dessert, unless they were served maybe with an icing or compote or side of fruit or something. They’d be a nice addition to breakfast as well, except they’re pretty low in protein (only 9% of the calories are from protein, and almost 30% are from fat, plus they have 3.5g fiber).
For slightly larger muffins, it might be worth multiplying this recipe by 1.25…. or going the other way and making them smaller in a mini-muffin tin. I’d like to try making these vegan sometime, using flax seeds.
Rating: B
Warm Apple Compote
My friend Shakti gave me this recipe. She said it’s “really, really good.”
3 apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2 inch thick slices
1 cup apple juice
2 Tbs maple syrup or sucanat
1 tsp minced orange zest
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 ground allspice
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp minced fresh ginger
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1/4 tsp sea salt
In a large non reactive saucepan, combine all the ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until the liquid reduces to a light syrup, about 15 min.. Serve warm. Store in airtight container in fridge up to 4 days.
Makes 2 cups.
My notes:
This is kind of like a spicy, soupy applesauce. Of course, I didn’t peel the apples since I love the peels. I’m not sure it needed the maple syrup–apples and apple juice are sweet enough I think. I thought the ginger in this recipe overpowered the other flavors a bit, although maybe I mismeasured. I think if I make it again I may just use 1-1.5 tsp. of minced ginger. I didn’t have an orange so I threw in some dried orange peel. I also used cider instead of regular apple juice. I enjoyed this with some plain yogurt, but in the end I’m not sure I liked it all that much more than my simple peel-delicious applesauce with cinnamon.
Rating: B
Pear and Parmesan Drizzled in Honey
Jack Bishop in his Italian Vegetarian cookbook suggests a dessert in which pears are cored and sliced thinly, topped with ribbons of parmesan cheese (ribbon the cheese using a vegetable peeler) and drizzled with warm honey. Maybe my pear wasn’t ripe enough, but honestly, this recipe didn’t do much for me.
Rating: C
Sambar
Sambar is a traditional soup that is eaten daily in South Indian, although the vegetables vary. It has a dark, dusky, roasted flavor that is very satisfying on a cold winter day.
- 3/4 cup toovar dal, washed in several changes of water and drained
- 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
- 2 Tbs. thick tamarind paste (see notes below)
- 2 Tbs. sambar powder (see below)
- 1 1/2 tsp. salt
- 4 Tbs. oil
- 1/2 medium zucchini, cut into 1 x 1/2-inch fingers
- 1 tsp. finely chopped fresh hot green chili
- a generoud pinch of ground asafetida
- 3/4 tsp. whole brown mustard seeds
- 1/2 tsp. whole urad dal
- 3 whole, hot dried red chilies
- 10 to 15 fresh curry leaves, if available
- Combine the dal, turmeric, salt, and 2 1/2 cups of water in a 4-5 quart saucepan, stir, and abring to a simmer. Partially cover with a lid, reduce the heat to low, and simmer gently for 1 hour, or until tender.
- Mash the dal with a wooden spoon and add the tamarind paste, sambar powder, and 2 cups of water. Stir to mix.
- Pour 3 Tbs. of the oil into a large pan and set over medium high heat. When the oil is hot, put in the zucchini and green chili. Stir for 5 minutes, or until the zucchini is slightly browned. Pour the contents of the frying pan into the pan containing the dal. Stir to mix. Bring to a simmer and cook gently for 5 minutes.
- Pour the remaining Tbs. of oil into a small frying pan and set over medium high heat. When the oil is hot, put in the asafetida, mustard seeds, urad dal, and red chilies. As soon as the mustard seeds begin to pop and the urad dal turns reddish, crush the curry leaves lightly in your hand and throw them in. Now quickly pour the contents of this small pan over the sambar.
Tamarind: Break off 1/2 pound from a brick of tamarind and tear into small pieces. Put into a small pot and cover with 1 cup very hot water, and set aside for 3 hours or overnight. (You could also simmer the tamarind for 10 minutes or put it in a microwave for 3-5 minutes). Set a sieve over a bowl and empty the tamarind and its soaking liquid into it. Push down on the tamarind with your fingers or the back of a wooden spoon to extract as much pulp as you can. Put whatever tamarind remains in the sieve back into the soaking bowl. Add 1/2 cup hot water to it and mash a bit more. Return it to the sieve and extract as much more pulp as you can. Some of the pulp will be clinging to the underside of the sieve. Do not fail to retrieve it. This quantity will make about 12 fl oz of thick paste. Whatever paste is leftover can be put into the refrigerator where it will keep for 2-3 weeks, or it can be frozen. It doesn’t freeze very hard, so it’s easy to measure out Tablespoons from a container in the freezer.
Sambar powder:
- 1 tsp. vegetable oil
- 5 Tbs. coriander seeds
- 1 tsp. whole mustard seeds
- 1 tsp. moong dal
- 1/2 tsp. chana dal
- 1/2 Tbs. urad dal
- 1 tsp. fenugreek seeds
- 1 tsp. black peppercorns
- 1/4 tsp. ground asafetida
- 1 tsp. cumin seeds
- 20 fresh curry leaves, if available
- 12 hot dried red chilies
Heat the oil (yes, only 1 tsp.) in a large, heavy frying pan or wok over medium heat. Put in the coriander seeds, mustard seeds, moon dal, chana dal, urad dal, fenugreek seeds, peppercorns, asafetida, and cumin. Stir and roast for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the curry leaves. Stir and roast for a further 5 minutes. Add the drired chilies and continue stirring and roasting for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the chilies darken. Empty the spices into a bowl to cool, then, in small batches, grind as finely as possible in a coffee grinder. Store in a tightly closed jar, away from heat and sunlight. You can also buy sambar powder at an Indian grocery store, but I haven’t tried it myself.
My Notes
This sambar is delicious. It tastes just like what you’d get in a good South Indian restaurant. My parents loved it when we made it together.
I didn’t exactly follow the instructions for preparing the tamarind paste. Mine must have been a bit too thick because 2 Tbs. of it made the soup too sour. The second time I used a bit less and the soup was much improved. The salt level is also too high I think: 1 tsp. should be sufficient. The second time I didn’t have zucchini so used green bell peppers and green beans, which were just as nice I thought. The author also says white radish, kohlrabi, and eggplants are all common additions to sambar. The vegetables sit in the soup and quickly become overcooked and mushy–which is fine. However, given that they just end up mushy, I don’t quite see the point of frying them in 3 Tbs. of oil. I think 4 tsp. of oil for frying the spices is plenty, and the vegetables can just be thrown in the soup directly. That also saves a step.
If you have to prepare the sambar powder and the tamarind, this is a time-intensive recipe. Otherwise, if you have the sambar and tamarind ready to go, and you just throw the veggies in rather than frying them, this is a very quick dish once the beans are cooked.
Rating: A-
South Indian Green Beans (B)
This is a recipe from the cookbook From Curries to Kabobs: Recipes from the Indian Spice Trail by Madhur Jaffrey. She says that the seasonings here are typical of India’s southeastern coast.
Serves 4.
- 1 Tbs. salt plus 1/2 to 3/4 tsp.
- 12 ounces green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces
- oil
- 1/8 tsp. ground asafetida
- 1 tsp. whole mustard seeds
- 1/2 tsp. urad dal
- 2 dried, hot, red chilies
- 8 to 10 fresh curry leaves, if available
- 1 1/2 tsp lemon juice
- 1//4 to 1/2 tsp cayenne powder
Bring 2 quarts of water to a rolling boil. Add 1 Tbs. of salt and the beans. Boil rapidly for 4 minutes, or until the beans are cooked through. Drain, and if not serving straight away, rinse under cold running water and drain. Set aside.
Just before serving, pour the oil into a large frying pan and set over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, put in the asafetida, mustard seeds, urad dal, and chilies. As soon as the mustard seeds pop and the dal turns reddish, put in the curry leaves and then the beans. Turn off the heat. Toss the beans and mix well. Add the lemon juice, cayenne, and 1/2 to 3/4 of the remaining salt. Mix again. If the beans have not heated through, put them on very low heat until warmed through.
My Notes
This recipe, like many in this cookbook, has an error. She doesn’t include oil in the ingredient list. I used just a little. I steamed my beans rather than boiling them, left out the asafetida, and added more lemon juice. The dish was quite nice. The bright lemon flavors contrasted well with the dark roasted taste of the mustard seeds and urad dal. The curry leaves added their strong floral note. I’ll definitely try this again.
Rating: B
Product review: prepared foods
First of all, I bet many of you are wondering, what is a cook like her doing eating frozen dinners? I know, I know, I feel guilty when I do it. All that energy to keep them frozen, all that plastic packaging (which is probably terrible for me), all that salt and weird artificial ingredients… But despite the guilt sometimes I’m just too busy or lazy to cook, or I’m sick of my own cooking. Going out is more expensive, takes more time, and you have less information about what you’re eating, so I sometimes resort to frozen dinners. If you supplement them with a vegetable side or salad they make an okay dinner. Here are my thoughts on the ones I’ve tried.
Amy’s cheese enchiladas (Frozen): The first ingredient in these enchiladas is cheese, and there’s almost no vegetables. The ingredient list is mostly organic, and mostly whole foods. The taste isn’t bad–a bit powdery from the chili powder and the texture is a bit soft but otherwise they’re not bad. They’re high in calories: 220 calories for each very small enchilada. These enchiladas have 24g of fat and 12 of saturated fat, and not much fiber. They do provoide 50% of calcium, vit A, and vit C however, as well as 12% iron. Overall I’d say these would make a reasonable calorie-controlled treat, especially if you add some beans or veggies, but they aren’t healthy enough to be a regular meal.
Trader Joe’s Corn and Black Bean enchiladas (Frozen): These enchiladas are composed almost entirely of almost-whole foods: corn tortillas, tomatoes, tofu, beans, zucchini… Strangely, however, black beans are not close to the top, and I actually had to check the ingredient list to see if they were really there or not. The taste isn’t bad–less powdery than the Amy’s sauce, but both the tortillas and sauce are quite gooey (which I attribute to the rice and tapioca flours). The sauce wasn’t quite chili-y enough for me, but they weren’t bad. And it’s only 260 calories for two enchiladas, compared to 440 for Amy’s. That’s quite a difference for the same amount of food. These enchiladas have only 8g of fat and no saturated fat, but not a lot of fiber. They do provide 20% of calcium and iron, and some vit A. They’re surpisingly low in protein (only 12%), which I attribute to the dearth of black beans. Overall I’d say these would are an okay food to keep in the freezer at work for emergency food, but they’re not quite tasty enough or wholesome enough for a regular choice.
Alexia Sweet Potato Julienne Fries (Frozen): Derek bought these fries but never got around to baking them. They’re tasty–breaded in some kind of potato starch and corn flour and pre-fried, then you just heat them up. They never really got crunchy, and they are not very salty, but still pretty good in my opinion. Of course, a very small serving has 150 calories, but I’m guessing that’s pretty average for sweet potato fries, and at least this way you actually know what a reasonable serving size is. I don’t think I would buy these again unless I had an unstoppable hankering for sweet potato fries, but they are tasty. The ingredient list is a bit processed (modified food starch, corn dextrin,…), but mostly it’s just sweet potatoes. Alexia makes other fries and appetizers, which are probably pretty high quality based on this product.
Dr. McDougall’s Curry Brown and Wild Rice Fruited Pilaf (Dehydrated cup): I liked the raisins, almonds, and wild rice in this dish a lot. The seasoning was a bit strong and salty, and although I thought I stirred it very well I got some pretty salty, nasty bites. The bulk of this dish is rice, so the nutritional content isn’t terribly high (1% calcium, 3% iron, 8% vit C, and 24% vit A, 4g protein, and 2g fiber), but it was very filling at least. Not a bad thing to keep in the desk for emergencies. If I make it again I might only use 1/2 or 2/3 of the seasoning packet.
Nile spice potato leek soup (Dehydrated cup): Non-vegan, mostly potatoes and milk and various other veggies. At 120 calories per cup (3g fat, 17g carbs, 5g prot), it’s a snack not a meal, but a pretty satisfying one. I enjoyed it more than I expected. It has a lot of salt though (600mg!).
Seeds of Change Creamy Spinach Lasagna (Frozen): This is a tomato-sauce-less lasagna, with only a small amount of spinach, but it’s quite rich-tasting and enjoyable. The portion is small (only 340 calories total), but I think it’s relatively filling. It’s got a reasonable amount of calcium and iron from the cheese and pasta, it’s high protein (24%), but it’s not terribly healthy (mostly white flour and dairy, little vegetables and no beans). At least the saturated fat isn’t too high (6g), and everything is organic. I’d get this again for when I’m in the mood for a treat (such as pizza). This way I can have my treat, stay organic, and keep the portion size small.
Boca Lasagna with Chunky Tomato and Herb Sauce and Meatless Ground Burger (Frozen): I liked the Seeds of Change Lasagna so I thought I’d try another. The taste of this one isn’t as good, however. The tomato sauce was fine, but although the “ground burger” pieces were tasty, their texture was kind of weird and rubbery. They’re made partly from wheat gluten but also from soy protein concentrate, which I try to avoid. Also, the cheese isn’t organic so I don’t think I’ll buy this again. It’s pretty filling though, and the stats are better than the Seeds of Change lasagna: it only has 290 calories and 2g sat fat, while having plenty of calcium, iron, protein, and even some fiber (5g).
Trader Joe’s South Indian Sambhar (Jar): I’ve been enjoying my homemade sambar so much, I was curious to see if TJ’s version was as good. Turns out it’s not very good at all. It has a very faint whiff of that canned soup taste I abhor, but mostly that’s covered up by the curry spices. Although the ingredient list is quite nice, almost all just beans and vegetables, and the nutritional content is quite good (if high salt), the flavor is terrible. It doesn’t taste anything like sambar, and doesn’t even taste like a nice dal. Avoid this one.
Trader Joe’s Pizza Olympiad (Frozen): Very good flavor, especially the olives and feta. The outer crust was nice and crisp, but the center was still soggy. One pizza has 450 calories–not bad. The ingredient looks mostly normal, except for a few items, but the cheese isn’t organic.
Trader Joe’s Garden Vegetable Lasagna (Frozen): The sauce was good but the lasagna tastes strongly of broccoli, and when I inspected ingredient list, indeed it’s the first vegetable on the list. Blech. Somehow broccoli and lasagna just don’t go together. I’d try another Trader Joe’s lasagna though. Everything but the cheese is organic.
Rising Moon Organics Feta Hazelnut Ravioli with Butternut Squash (Frozen): Great flavor–much more complex and subtle than I expected. They don’t taste like feta or hazelnut or butternut exactly, but more a balanced combination of all three. The ingredient list is all organic, and very all natural. One package is 540 calories, with lots of vitamin A and iron. They’re low fiber though, and mostly carbs.
Rising Moon Organics Spinach Florentine Ravioli (Frozen): I was disappointed in this flavor–they tasted kind of green and muddy. I wouldn’t have even finished them except I was starving. On the plus side, they’re vegan, and mostly organic. One package is 440 calories.
Trader Joe’s Thai Vegetable Gyoza (Frozen): These little dumplings taste quite fresh and healthy. They’re not exactly delicious, but not bad tasting either. The first 7 ingredients are all vegetables. They make a tasty little snack, but aren’t terribly filling. Each dumpling has only 35 calories, but not much nutritive value. Also, the dough is made with partially hydrogenated oil, and they’re handmade in Thailand, which means the environmental cost of shipping the frozen dumplings must be high. I probably won’t get them again.
The Fillo Factory Spinach and Cheese Fillo Pie: I was desperate for Spanokopita, so bought this “all natural” version at Trader Joe’s. I baked it in the oven for 40 minutes, and it crisped up quite nicely. The flavor was good, but it had a lot of dill in it, which I don’t normally associate with Spanokopita. Derek *loved* it. The stats aren’t bad. A third of the pie has 417 calories, 66% of vit A, 41% of calcium, and 25% of iron. It’s 14% protein, 47%! percent fat, and 22% of calories from sat fat, 26% of your daily sodium, and only has 3g of fiber. But this is Spanokopita we’re talking about–what did you expect? It made a very nice, portion-controlled treat. The ingredients are pretty natural looking, with spinach as the first ingredient. The only problem is the cheese and butter are not organic. I would buy it again except for the non-organic dairy.
Cedarlane Spinach and Feta Pie: Can you tell I’m on a Spanokopita kick? This one wasn’t quite as tasty I think, although to tell you the truth I don’t remember it as well. I think it was less cheesy, and more vegetable-y. One package has 520 calories, and provides 60% vit A, 41% calcium, 50% vit C, and 40% iron. It has more protein (19%) and less fat (17%) and sat fat (14%), and 5g of fiber. So it’s healthier, no wonder it’s not as tasty! It does has very high sodium, though (54% of daily needs). The feta is not organic but the mozzarella is (but who puts mozzarella in spanokopita?). I don’t think I’ll be buying this again.
Moosewood Southwest Cornbread and Red Beans (Frozen): I really love my homemade cornbread pie, and it seems like a hard thing to screw up. But Moosewood managed it. The package says the beans are infused with chipotle, garlic, cumin and lime. The only thing I tasted was tomato and sweet. Indeed, when I looked at the ingredients tomatoes were listed first. This doesn’t have any nice spicy chile flavor. The cornbread was okay, maybe a little too sweet. It also came with white rice, which was totally gratuitious. Derek tried it and thought it was bad as well, although not as bad as he expected. And he’s the one who bought it! Not recommended.
Creamy Rice and Greens Casserole (B)
This is a great comfort-food kind of recipe, inspired by my mom’s suggestion. Although the taste is very good, the presentation is a bit lacking. The amounts below are a first guess. I will measure more carefully next time I make this recipe.
- 1 cup short grain brown rice, dry (about 3 cups cooked)
- 2 tsp. olive oil
- 2-3 Tbs. minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp. red chili flakes
- 2 bunches of chard or collards, washed but not shaken dry
- 2 tsp. soy sauce
- 3-4 Tbs. nutritional yeast
- 2-4 Tbs. soy mayonnaise
- Cook the brown rice in 1.75 cups of water for 40 minutes. (See my recipe for brown rice if you don’t know how to do this.) Let stand covered for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, wash the greens well, and slice them into ribbons.
- Chop the garlic. Heat the oil in a 3-4 quart pan. When garlic turns a very light brown, add the chili flakes and greens and stir to get them all wilted. Cook them for about 4 minutes (for chard), or until they’re not too chewy. You’ll need longer for the collards, maybe 8 minutes? Add some water to the pan if they’re starting to stick. Add the soy sauce to deglaze the pan.
- When the rice is done, add it to the greens, along with the yeast and mayo. Stir to mix. Serve hot.
Rating: B
South African Curried Kidney Beans
This South African dish from a Gujarati cook is supposedly sweet and sour feast food. I didn’t detect much sweet or sour but the flavors were well-balanced and delicious. Based on a recipe from the cookbook From Curries to Kabobs: Recipes from the Indian Spice Trail by Madhur Jaffrey.
- 1.5 cups dried red kidney beans
- 3 Tbs. vegetable oil
- 3 whole dried hot red chilies
- 1/2 tsp. whole brown mustard seeds
- 1/2 tsp. whole cumin seeds
- a generous pinch of asafetida
- 10 to 15 fresh curry leaves, if possible
- 3 medium tomatoes (about 1 pound), grated on the coarsest part of the grater
- 1/4 tsp. ground turmeric
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 to 2 fresh hot green chilies, finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic, crushed
- 1 tsp. peeled fresh ginger, grated to a pulp
- 1 tsp. sugar
- 1.5 tsp. salt
- Cook the beans in 6 cups of water until tender with 1 tsp. of salt. (I used my crockpot.)
- When the beans are cooked, pour the oil into a small pan (1.5-2 quarts) and set over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, put in the red chilies, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, and asafetida. As soon as the mustard seeds begin to pop, add the curry leaves and tomatoes. Stir once, then add the turmeric, coriander, cumin, green chilies, garlic, ginger, sugar, and remaining 1/2 tsp. salt. Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Pour the spiced tomato mixture into the pan with the beans. Bring to a simmer, and cook, uncovered, on a very low heat, for 20 minutes.
My Notes
These seemed quite bland at first, but got tastier after they sat a while. I didn’t measure my water out carefully, which I think was the problem. Next time I’ll be more conscientious. But there will definitely be a next time, as I like kidney beans but don’t have any recipes for them and because this dish has an excellent, authentic Indian flavor. I left out the asafetida and cut down on the oil and salt. My beans weren’t quite salty enough though.
Update January 2008: I used the correct amount of water this time, cooking the beans in my crockpot. I added the asofetida as well, and it wasn’t noticeable to me in the final dish. I didn’t have crushed tomatoes so I used 1 pound of crushed canned tomatoes, but I thought the final dish tasted a bit too tomato-y. I’d use whole tomatoes next time I think. I thought the final dish was too watery; next time I’d cook the beans in only 4-5 cups of water, or as little as I could get away with while keeping them covered while cooking. Again, I found this dish underseasoned, with not enough sweet or sour. Was their tamarind in the original recipe that I left out here? I need to go back and check, but if not, I think I’d add it. I’d also increase the amounts of all the spices, probably double them. Derek really liked this dish. He didn’t think it was bland at all.
Rating: B-
Derek: B+
Summer Squash Zataar (B)
I’ve had a bottle of zatar in my pantry for a while now, but never really know what to do with it. Inspired by a recipe on RecipeZaar for zucchini and zataar, I threw together this dish using the last of the summer squash.
- 1 yellow summer squash
- 1 zucchini
- 1 small onion, sliced (about 1/2 cup)
- 1/2 Tbs. olive oil
- salt
- 1 tsp. zataar
- 1 Tbs. grated parmesan cheese
This dish was quite delicious. Definitely worth the last of the summer squash.
Rating: B
Zatar is a mixture of spices that originated in the Middle East. The red zatar I have is made from sumac, thyme, and sesame seeds. Zatar is traditionally used to season meats and vegetables, sprinkled on hummus or yogurt, and mixed with olive oil as a spread. The spelling of zatar is not standardized. Google page hits:
- zataar 635
- zahtar 11,000
- za’atar 29,200
- zaatar 61000
- zatar 190,000
Molasses Yogurt
I like blackstrap molasses, but have trouble finding non-dessert recipes that call for it. Last night I put 1/2 Tbs. molasses in 1/2 cup nonfat organic plain yogurt. I enjoyed it. In the past I have added lemon juice as well, which added a pleasant acidity.
Dr. Michael Greger in his anti-cancer talk said that we should never eat a citrus fruit without using the zest. So I thought I might add the zest from my grapefruit to 1 cup of molasses yogurt…. Woah. That’s intense. A whole grapefruit’s worth of zest makes it pretty bitter. The combination of the sour yogurt, the minerally molasses, and the bitter zest makes it taste almost alcoholic. Maybe half a grapefruit’s worth would be better.
I’m still looking for other non-dessert blackstrap recipes. If you have one to recommend please post a comment!
Quick Cauliflower Curry
This is my mom’s lightening-fast cauliflower curry, which uses almost entirely pantry and freezer ingredients (e.g. no fresh ginger or garlic or onions). Despite its simplicity, it’s an excellent version of a traditional Americanized cauliflower curry. I like it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, plain or served with dal or a grain. This recipe is quite forgiving, so if you’re missing a spice or vegetable, you can probably just leave it out without changing the flavor of the dish substantially.
Yields: 4 cups
Serving size: 2 cups
Servings: 2 main-dishes or 4 side-dishes
Heat over medium heat in a large, heavy pot with lid:
- 2 Tbs. oil
When hot add:
- 1.5 tsp. dark mustard seeds
When the mustard seeds starts to pop (it should be just a few seconds), take the pan off the heat and stir in:
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. coriander, ground
- 1/2 tsp. cumin, ground
- 1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
- 1 tsp. curry powder
Add, and stir until coated:
- 3/4 cup diced, red potato (1/3 inch cubes) [about 1 medium red potato]
Meanwhile prepare the cauliflower and add to the pan:
- 1/2 head medium cauliflower (about 1.25? lbs after removing leaves and core), sliced
- 1/4 cup water
Stir to mix, then cover and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, adding more water if needed. Add and cook for 1 minute:
- 1 cup frozen peas
Shake on:
- 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
- a shake or two of crushed red pepper
- 1.5 Tbs. lemon juice
Stir in:
My Notes
The colors of the peas and tomatoes contrast beautifully with the golden cauliflower, and they add some sweetness. The potato adds its own great earthy flavor. I sometimes add two or three potatoes and decrease the cauliflower amount, but the recipe calls for only one potato so that the cauliflower is really the center of attention. The cauliflower is “sliced” into pieces rather than being broken into florets, because when you slice it you’ll cut through the cells, and the cauliflower will absorb the spices better.
There are still a number of question marks in this recipe, since my mom tends not to measure things. I need to double check all the amounts, but the basic recipe is an excellent quick vegetable dish.
After I posted this my mom emailed me that this isn’t quite the recipe she uses nowadays. She said she uses 1 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. turmeric, and no coriander or cumin. She always precooks the potato and adds it after the cauliflower is cooked, then the peas last.
Regarding curry powders, I find that there’s a huge variation in quality among different brands. Lately I’ve been using Penzey’s, which is very good. If you’re not liking the one you have, try some different brands.
Rating: B
Derek: B+
Curried Cauliflower “Bhaji” (B+)
This is a quick, everyday dish, from the cookbook From Curries to Kabobs: Recipes from the Indian Spice Trail, by Madhur Jaffrey.
Serves 3 to 4
- 1 tsp. ground coriander
- 1 tsp. ground cumin
- 1/4 tsp. ground turmeric
- 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
- 3/4 tsp. salt
- 3 Tbs. olive oil
- 1/2 tsp. whole brown mustard seeds
- 1/2 tsp. whole cumin seeds
- 2 whole, dried, hot, red chilies
- 1-inch piece of fresh ginger, first cut into thin slices, and the slices then stacked and cut into thin slivers
- 4 heaped cups cauliflower florets, 2 inches in length and no wider than 1 1/2 inches (about 1 pound after removing core and leaves)
- 1/2 cup peeled and finely chopped tomato
Pour the coriander, cumin, turmeric, cayenne, and salt into a small bowl. Add 4 Tbs. of water and mix. Set aside.
Pour the oil into a large, lidded pan and set over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, put in the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, and chilies. As soon as the mustard seeds begin to pop, a matter of seconds, put in first the ginger and then the cauliflower. Fry the cauliflower, stirring at the same time, for about 2 minutes, or until it picks up some brown spots.
Reduce the heat to low. Stir in the spice paste, cover, and continue to cook over low heat for about 6 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes. Replace the lid, and cook for a further 6 minutes, or until the cauliflower is just tender.
My Notes
This tastes a lot like the cauliflower recipe my mom used to make all the time, except it uses individual spices rather than curry powder. We used less oil, added frozen peas to add some nice green color, and I was too lazy to peel my tomato. I also used some grated ginger I had around, rather than the julienne slices, and kosher rather than fine salt.
It was delicious. I could have eaten the whole pan. My mom and I polished it off easily. If I make it again I will use the whole head of cauliflower, as this dish reheats well. I might make a few changes, such as slicing the cauliflower rather than breaking it into florets, and adding a bit of lemon juice at the end. It was also good with a bit of masala chaat powder.
I made it again with a relatively small head of cauliflower, and it was about 7 cups of florets, which made quite a lot of curry, but it’s good as leftovers and it all got eaten. I also added a few roasted potatoes, lots of peas, and canned dice tomatoes. I used 2 Tbs. of oil, and it wasn’t oily, but tasted rich.
Update Sept 2009: I made this with 1.5 Tbs. oil, 1 pound of cauliflower, and no ginger (I was out). I added 1 cup of green peas, and 1 tsp. of lemon juice. It was very good, and not too oily, although perhaps just a tad salty. My 12-inch skillet wasn’t completely full.
Rating: B+
Derek: B+
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Nut Cookies (B+)
This recipe is modified from a chain email about a $250 Neiman Marcus cookie recipe which is apparently an urban myth. Regardless, the recipe is great. Blended oats replace some of the flour in this recipe, and give the cookies a hearty flavor and toothsome texture.
Cream together:
- 1 cup butter
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
Add and mix well:
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp. Vanilla
Add to wet:
- 2 1/2 cups whole oatmeal, blended to an almost flour
- 2 cups flour
- 1/2 tsp. Salt
- 1 tsp. Baking powder
- 1 tsp. Baking soda
- 3/4 lb. Chocolate chips
- 1 1/2 cups toasted nuts
Bake at 375 degrees for 9 minutes.
My Notes
The first time I made these cookies they turned out perfect. The last few times however, the dough was quite dry and the chocolate chips and nuts would barely stay in the dough. I’m not sure what I did differently. My mom makes these vegan, by substituting 2/3 cup canola oil for the butter, and 1/2 cup applesauce for the eggs. She usually just makes half the recipe though. This weekend we tried instead substituting 2.5 Tbs. blended flax seeds mixed with 3 Tbs. water for the one egg, and 1/4 cup of canola oil + 1/4 cup applesauce for the 1/2 cup of butter. The cookies came out tasty, but very crispy, almost hard.
Rating: B+
Chickpea and Spinach Curry (B)
After Derek returned from Australia he suggested I check out “Bill’s” cookbooks. Apparently he ate at Bill’s restaurants a number of times in Sydney, and really enjoyed the food. This recipe is from Bill’s Open Kitchen by Bill Granger.
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 red onion, finely sliced
3 garlic cloves, finely sliced
2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
1 or 2 green chillies, seeded and finely chopped (optional)
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup water
2 14 oz cans chickpeas, drained
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon tumeric (optional)
freshy ground black pepper
500 g cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
100 g (3 1/2 ounces) baby spinach leaves
Serve with: plain yogurt
Heat a large deep frying pan over a medium to high heat. Add the oil, onion, garlic, ginger, chilli and salt. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes, or until the onions are soft. Add the chickpeas, 1/4 cup water, cumin, tumeric and pepper and cook for 5 minutes, or until the water evaporates. Add the tomatoes and cook for another 2 minutes to soften. Remove from the heat and taste for seasoning. Stir through the spinach and top with yogurt.
My Notes
Derek really loved this dish, and I thought it wasn’t bad. This curry is very fast and easy to make if you use canned chickpeas and pre-washed spinach.
I made this last night, using only 1 Tbs. olive oil, and regular mature spinach from my CSA. I didn’t have fresh tomatoes so used one 14 ounce can of diced tomatoes, juice and all. I was also out of ginger. Despite my deficiencies, the curry was pretty good–and it even with less oil it was certainly rich enough in my opinion. I though it could use slightly more spinach, since is seemed to be mostly chickpeas. Also, I think the yogurt (or something creamy and bland) is essential to balance the flavors.
After making it a few more times, I recommend the following modifications. Use 1 Tbs. olive oil, 8 ounces of spinach, 2 green chilies with seeds, more garlic, and a full Tbs. or more of ginger. Also, depending on how salty your chickpeas are, you may want to cut the salt down to 1/2 tsp or 3/4 tsp. This makes about 4 main course servings.
This recipe makes about 4.5 cups and I found that 1.33 cups with 2/3 cup of nonfat yogurt makes a filling dinner. Together with the yogurt, using 1 Tbs of oil, it has 412 calories (18% fat, 21% protein, 61% carbs), and also 47% of calcium, 33% of iron, 43% of vit A, 67% of vitamin C, and 15.4g of fiber.
Rose: B
Derek: A-
Grilled Millet and Butternut Squash Cakes (B)
This recipe is from Rebecca Wood’s The Splendid Grain.
Toast over high heat until the first seed pops:
- 1 cup millet
then wash, drain and set aside (I skipped the washing step).
Toast for 1 minute, or until aromatic:
- 1 tsp. mustard seeds (change to 1 Tbs?)
- 1 tsp. curry powder (change to 2 tsp.?)
Combine in a medium saucepan the millet and spices, and:
- 2.5 cups water
- 2 cups peeled and diced butternut squash
- 1 tsp. fresh ginger (change to 1 Tbs?)
- 1/2 tsp. sea salt
Bring to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 25 minutes, or until the millet has absorbed all the water. Remove from the heat and let cool.
Preheat the grill. Add to the millet mixture:
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro (increase to 3/4 cup?)
Wet your hands and blend the millet mixture to a fairly uniform consistency. Form into 12 cakes. Place on the grill and grill for about 3 minutes on each side until golden. Serve hot.
My Notes
I liked the texture and flavor of these “cakes”, but the flavor is very mild (my coworker snagged one then claimed they tasted like rice cakes). My favorite part was the outside, crispy, browned part. Wood says to grill them or pan-fry, but I baked them on a sprayed cookie sheet. I think if I was going to make this again I’d up all the seasonings a bit. Nonetheless, they’re very low calorie and make a pretty satisfying and healthy snack.
Rating: B
Nutrition Info for 1 Patty (with original ingredients):
Calories 67
Total Fat 1.4g
Saturated Fat 0.1g
Cholesterol 0mg
Sodium 99mg
Carbohydrate 14.4g
Dietary Fiber 1.1g
Sugars 0.6g
Protein 2g
Vitamin A 60% Vitamin C 7%
Calcium 1% Iron 8%
Quack’s Salsa (B+)
Captain Quackenbush’s Intergalactic Dessert Company and Espresso Café (commonly known as Quackenbush’s or just Quack’s) was Austin’s first coffeehouse and an excellent example of the laid-back style of old-school Austin. In college, I used to eat lunch there occasionally, always getting their black bean burrito with verde sauce and a side of their excellent tomato salsa. It was a great deal: three and a half bucks for a tasty, filling, healthy burrito and salsa that couldn’t be beat. Unfortunately, Starbucks and other newer, trendier coffee shops soon showed up on the drag, and Quack’s was eventually closed down in the face of reduced business and rising rents. Before they closed, however, I made a desperate plea for their salsa recipe. It’s restaurant-sized, but so good you won’t have trouble getting rid of a gallon at a time (right?).
Stir together:
- 10 pounds of whole tomatoes, broken up with a wooden spoon
- 1 yellow onion (1/2 lb.), diced
- 3 jalepenos, minced
- 1 poblano, diced
- 1/2 cup whole garlic, minced
- 1 bunch cilantro, chopped
- juice of 1 lime
- 1 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. black pepper
- 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
- 1 cup water
My Notes
When I made this for fast food at the co-op, it would all disappear in twenty four hours.
Rating: B+
Equipment Review: Messless Measuring
I’ve been posting a lot of recipes lately, but I’ve been wanting to give some recommendations for kitchen items as well. I’m going to start with measuring utensils.
Measuring spoons are probably the most commonly used utensils in my kitchen. I think the Cuisipro Oval Stainless Steel measuring spoons are the most perfectly designed spoons ever. I love these spoons for a number of reasons:
- They’re oval, so they fit into narrow spice jars.
- Their handles are curved so that the spoons lie upright when you set them on the counter, i.e. they don’t tip when you set them down.
- They’re made of a very thick, solid metal, so they never bend.
- They come in odd but handy sizes like 1.5 tsp.
My only complaint is that I wish the measurements were a little more visible. I’ve accidentally grabbed the 1.5 teaspoon a number of times rather than the one teaspoon measure. Another small annoyance is that the smallest spoon falls through the holes in the cutlery drawer in my dish rack.
Someday I’m going to put a bunch of nails in the wall right above my cutting board, and hang all my measuring spoons up on the wall within immediate reach, with very visible labels posted above them.
I’m less picky about dry measuring cups, but I do look for cups with medium long handles, and that don’t tip when empty. Ideally, I’d prefer measuring cups that don’t have a crack between the handle and the base (which always gets full of flour), but they’re difficult to find.
Another favorite measuring item is my mini (or multi) measure: a shot glass sized pyrex cup for measuring 1 tsp. to 2 Tbs. of liquids. I use it all the time to measure oil, vinegar, soy sauce, lemon juice, or any other liquids that used to get my measuring spoons all messy. No more! I have two of these glasses, and they minimize the mess. If you don’t have one I’d strongly recommend buying one. They’re only a few dollars. The only downside of these glasses is that if you put them in the dishwasher the markings will eventually come off.
I also have pyrex liquid measuring cups: two cup, four cups, and eight cups. The eight cup one is pretty large and heavey. I would prefer to have one 2 cup and one 6 cup, but I can’t find a 6 cup one anywhere.
Finally, I love having a digital scale. Eventually I’d like to have weight measurements for all my recipes, especially for vegetables. I mean, how much is three cups of shredded cabbage anyhow? Mine is the Soehnle model 65055, recommended by Cook’s Illustrated. It’s relatively small and stylish, and it’s pretty easy to read since the display extends forward of the weighing platform. If I try to weigh something in a large bowl, however, it’s sometimes difficult to see the display. The Soehnle has the essential tare function, and it’s easy to switch batch and forth between grams and ounces. It also can weigh relatively small amounts, down to 1 gram or 0.05 ounces. It h
as an auto-off feature, which is generally helpful but sometimes annoying. I’m not sure what the maximum weight it can read is, but I don’t think I’ve ever reached it. That said, my main gripe is that for some reason if you put something heavy on the scale, then turn it on, it doesn’t register. You have to turn it on, let it register zero, then put the heavy item on and then tare it. I don’t know what the problem is, but I don’t have this problem with light items, only heavy ones. I thought when I bought the scale that the weighing platform is removable, but I’ve never figured out 
how to take it out. I used to have the Salter Housewares Aquatronic Baker’s Dream, but I like my Soehnle better because it’s nicer looking, it’s easier to read, and it can weigh smaller increments. Also, Cook’s Illustrated recently posted a new favorite scale, which I’d like to check out.
One last measuring item I own is one of those Wonder Cups that Alton Brown loves, but I use it rarely, and I wouldn’t recommend getting one. Supposedly it’s really useful for measuring sticky things like peanut butter or molasses, but I’d rather have fewer tools and just measure those items in an oiled measuring cup.
Cranberry Pumpkin Bread (B+)
This is a great fall dessert. The pumpkin and cornmeal give this bread a great texture and the cranberries are marvelously tart. I made it last year for Thanksgiving and everyone liked it. This is based on a recipe in the AMA Family Health cookbook. I’ve decreased the sugar, tripled the amount of cranberries, and made it vegan. It was good to start with, and now I think it’s even better! The traditional look is to bake this in a loaf pan but I think it holds together better and has a better texture when baked in a round cake pan.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat a 9? inch round cake pan with vegetable oil spray.
In the work bowl of a food processor, process
- 2 cups whole raw cranberries, fresh or frozen
Remove and set aside (do not wash the work bowl). Add to the bowl and process briefly to blend:
- 1.5 cups white flour
- 0.25 cups cornmeal
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 + 1/8 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/4 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
In a large mixing bowl, mix together until smooth:
- 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
- 5 Tbs. vegetable oil
- 2 tsp. grated orange rind (from one? orange)
- 3 Tbs. water
Add in the dry ingredients and cranberries using the muffin method (e.g., do not overmix). Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until the bread has shrunk slightly away from the sides of the pan and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean (about 45-50? minutes, 55-60 if using a loaf pan). If you cool it in the pan briefly (for about 5? minutes) it will be easier to remove it from the pan, but do not leave it sitting in the pan too long or it will get soggy on the bottom. Turn onto a rack to cool completely before putting in a airtight container, where it will keep for about 4? days until it begins to dry out.
My Notes
There are still a few questions marks in the instructions. I’ll fill these in eventually. I may try this sometime with slightly less salt and/or oil.
Rating: B+
2
Refried pinto beans (B+)
Back in college, when I lived in a housing co-op, one of my jobs was to make “fast food”–food to have in the fridge for lunches, or when someone wanted a quick snack. I made a lot of hummus, and tofu salad, and since this was Texas, massive quantities of salsa and refried beans. I’ve reduced my recipe down so it no longer makes a gallon!
- 2 cups dry pinto beans (or 5 cups cooked, drained beans, juice reserved)
- 7 cups filtered water (I need to double check this amount)
- 1-1.5 tsp. salt
- 1 Tbs. olive oil
- 1 large red onion, chopped (about 1.5 cups)
- 1 large jalepeno, partially or completely seeded, minced (optional)
- 2 Tbs. minced garlic
- 1 Tbs. cumin
- 1.5 tsp. chili powder
- 1.5 tsp. oregano
- 1-2 cups of cooking water from the beans
- 1 Tbs. tomato paste
- 2-3 Tbs. of lime juice
Instructions
- Cook 2 cups of dry pinto beans with 1 tsp. of salt and 7 cups of water in a crockpot on the low setting overnight. This should take about 8 hours, and the beans should be very soft, almost falling apart, when done.
- Saute the oil, onion, and jalepeno together until soft. I use a 9 inch cast iron skillet, but any heavy-bottom pan will do. Add the garlic and cook for a few more minutes, then add the cumin and chili powder and toast briefly.
- Add the drained beans, the oregano, the tomato paste, and 1 cup of the bean cooking liquid. Use a potato masher or a fork to break the beans down into a rough paste. If you prefer your refries chunky, reserve a cup of whole beans and add them at the end.
- Off heat, and add the lime juice. Taste and adjust the salt if needed, adding up to another 1/2 tsp. salt. Either serve immediately, or if you’re going to store it in the fridge add another 1 cup of the bean liquid. The beans get very thick and dried out after a night in the fridge, so they should be pretty soupy going in.
Yields 5 cups of refries, about 6-10 servings.
My notes
It’s funny, I went looking for a recipe for refried pinto beans in my cookbook collection and didn’t turn up much–not even in my bean book! AMA has one fat-free recipe where you add raw onions and garlic and the beans to a blender, but I’m scared to try it. Berley has a more normal looking recipe, but I think I tried it a while back and it was incredibly bland.
Regarding cooking the beans. It’s important to cook the beans with the salt for the best flavor. You could also throw in kombu, a bay leaf, or other seasonings at this stage if you want. I’d like to experiment with this and see if adding the cumin and other spices at this point improves the recipe. This recipe also works fine with canned beans, but you may have to reduce the salt.
Other ingredients I have added to my refries at one time or another include coriander, chipotle powder, garlic powder, salsa, tomato sauce, cilantro, pickled jalepenos, green bell peppers, poblano chiles, and lime zest. I still want to futz with this recipe a bit more to recall if any of these ingredients should make it into the final recipe, and maybe experiment with some other ingredients. There’s a very popular recipe on RecipeZaar that calls for black beans and a bottle of beer? I’m open to other suggestions as well. Just post a comment!
In any case, I do think the essential ingredients are salt, cumin powder, something spicy, something tomato-y, and lime juice. Everything else is secondary.
10/22/06 I served these for brunch today and Derek said they were “delicious, wonderful, everyone loved them. Perfect.”
Rating: B+
Derek: A
Nutritional Stats
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Serving Size: 1/2 cup |
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| Amount Per Serving | |||||
| Calories | 154 | ||||
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| Total Fat | 2.1g | ||||
| Saturated Fat | 0.3g | ||||
| Cholesterol | 0mg | ||||
| Sodium | 363mg | ||||
| Carbohydrate | 26.6g | ||||
| Dietary Fiber | 6.7g | ||||
| Sugars | 2.2g | ||||
| Protein | 8.7g | ||||
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Percent calories from: fat 12%, protein 22%, carbs 66%. I prefer to keep my beans low fat because I like to add cheese or avocados or olives to my burritos. If you’re not going to have any added fats, you might want to increase the amount of olive oil to 2-3 Tablespoons.
I recently tried the refried bean recipe in Cook’s Illustrated Best Light Recipe Cookbook:
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1. Process water and beans in food processor until smooth, about 15 seconds, scraping sides of bowl with rubber spatula if necessary.
2. Heat 1 tsp. olive oil in large saucepan over medium-low heat, add the onion and jalepeno, cover and cook for 10-12 minutes, until the vegetables have softened. Add the garlic and cumin; cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the beans and stir. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring frequently, until beans are thick and creamy, about 10 minutes. Stir in final Tbs. of olive oil and cilantro is using, and serve.
My Notes:
It’s weird, I looked up the original (non-light) recipe on C.I. and it called for salt pork, chicken broth instead of water, a poblano chili, and 1 Tbs. fresh lime juice. I can understand nixing the salt pork and chicken broth, but why do away with the poblano and lime juice? Also it called for kidney beans rather than pintos?? I had some home cooked lightly salted pintos in the fridge, so used those, and substituted the bean juice for the water, but used slightly less than called for since I hadn’t drained the beans perfectly. I also withheld some of the beans from the food processor (as is suggested in the original but not the light recipe) since I didn’t want a total puree. I think I actually should have withheld about 1/3-1/2 of the beans, since I like quite a chunky puree. I didn’t add the cilantro but I did add a Tbs. of lime juice, which I think is essential. I also increased the cumin to 1.5 tsp., and upped the garlic a bit. I didn’t stir in the final Tbs. of olive oil since I actually thought they tasted quite good, and I was planning on eating them with guacamole anyhow.
Overall I thought these refries turned out pretty well (given my modifications)–better than other recipes I’ve tried. Althought they were tasty, they were still missing something. I think they would be improved by adding a bit of some tomato product for acidity and roundness, and some type of chili powder for more darkness/depth.
Okay, I just went back and compared it to my recipe above. The difference is that it calls for a bit less liquid (1 cup vs. 1-2 cups), less salt (although canned beans are salted so that might be why), less garlic (about 2 tsp. vs 2 Tbs.), less cumin (1 tsp. vs. 1 Tbs.) and less lime juice (1 Tbs. vs 2 Tbs.) Plus I use oregano, tomato paste, and chili powder. After comparing them I can see why I like this recipe. It’s basically a toned down version of my recipe. Maybe the ideal recipe is somewhere in between? Mine is probably a bit overspiced, and theirs is a bit underspiced.
Equipment Review: Sharp Kitchen Gadgets
I am a picky peeler, so it’s saying a lot when I tell you that I love my vegetable peeler. It’s a Kuhn Rikon Double Edged (or Double Blade) Swiss Peeler. I find it extremely comfortable to hold, and it never seems to get dull even though I’ve had it for years. The only downside is that it rusts easily, so I always dry it immediately after washing it. Also, it doesn’t work well on really round, ridged squashes, but other than that it’s great. I highly recommend it!
Another gadget I’m very fond of is my microplane zester. It comes in two versions: one with a plastic handle and one without. I much prefer the one with the handle. I love these zesters because they don’t get any of the bitter white pith, they yield a very fine zest, and the way the metal is folded over (see below), the zest gets collected in the folds of the zester, and doesn’t fall out.
Every kitchen needs a pair of scissors. I’ve always just bought whatever brand is cheap and has long blades and big handles. I don’t have a particular brand recommendation, but if you don’t have a pair in the kitchen–get one!
Knives
Sizes and styles: Many people say you only need three knives: a large chef’s knife, a serrated knife, and a paring knife. I have many more, but I think I could get by with three. If you always cook alone, then you can just get one large chef’s knive, but if you ever cook with someone else, then it’s really nice to have two large knives. I think that one should be a long 8- or 9-inch chef’s knife. The extra length comes in handy occasionally, like when splitting a butternut squash or large cabbage in half. For my second main knife I like to use a short 6-inch santoku knife. Some people find even a 6-inch knife too big; for example, when my sister came to visit, she kept asking if I had any smaller knives. I do have a paring knife, but I use it infrequently, and I don’t tend to use medium-sized knifes, except that I have a cheap, small and thin serrated knife for cutting tomatoes. For cutting bread, I like to have a long, quite thin bread knife. This can also be used for cutting tomatoes, but I prefer something smaller.
I have cheap knives and expensive knives, but I don’t love any of them. The key is to find a knife with a handle that feels comfortable, and then keep it sharp. I have a diamond steel I use on my knives, but when they get dull I take them in to be professionally sharpened someplace that uses a real sharpening stone, not some electric knife sharpener.
Other sharp kitchen gadgets I own:
- A mandoline. I’ve always looked at mandolines with excitement and trepidation. I’ve read so many mixed reviews on Amazon I just didn’t know what to think. I received an Oxo mandoline as a present recently, however, and will write up a review when I get a chance.
- Julienning peeler. I’ve tried two different brands and neither worked very well. They julienned soft vegetables like cucumbers moderately well, but they completely failed to julienne hard vegetables like carrots.
- Grapefruit knife. Get a curved, serrated one. I’ve also heard good things about a double grapefruit knife, but haven’t tried it yet.
- Microplane grater or other handheld grater.
- Box grater.
Sharp electrical appliances:
- Food processor.
- Blender.
- Stick blender.
- Spice grinder.
Celery Root Salad with Apple and Parsley (C)
Rick at the Oakland Farmer’s Market had one lovely celeriac this week, with the beautiful dark greens still attached. When I put it in my bag the green tops sprung forth out of the bag—I got strange looks on the bus, and when I got back to the office Jacob asked if I had just come back from a farm.
I made a celery root salad from the French Vegetarian cookbook this summer that was interesting. I would have tried it again, but this one from Cook’s Illustrated has apples and parsley, both of which I got in my CSA basket this week.
Serves 4 to 6 as a side dish
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For the Dressing
1. In medium bowl, whisk together lemon juice, mustard, honey, and salt. Whisk in oil in slow, steady stream. Add sour cream; whisk to combine. Set aside.
For the Salad
2. Remove the top and bottom of the celery root and then use a paring knife to remove the outer layer of flesh from top to bottom. If using food processor, cut celery root and apple into 1 1/2-inch pieces and grate with shredding disc. (Alternatively, grate on coarse side of box grater.) You should have about 3 cups total. Add immediately to prepared dressing; toss to coat. Stir in scallions and parsley (and tarragon, if using; see note above). Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes. Serve.
Although not always available, fresh tarragon complements the flavor of celery root. If you can find it, stir in 2 teaspoons minced fresh tarragon along with the parsley. Add a teaspoon or so more oil to the dressed salad if it seems a bit dry.
My Notes:
Cook’s Illustrated makes a big deal about how to peel the celery root. I don’t know what they’re fussing about; I just used my vegetable peeler (which I love, and deserves its own post) and it worked fine. They also say they tried different ways of cutting the celery root to maintain it’s crisp crunch, and liked grating it the best. I’m don’t agree. I liked the julienne of the other celery root salad much better than the grating. The hand-grated pieces seemed softer and less crisp. When you eat this salad you have the disconcerting sensation of grinding your teeth. It’s weird. I used a not too tart apple from my CSA, which I couldn’t really taste it the final salad, although maybe it made it a bit sweeter. I’m not sure I could taste the scallions either. I couldn’t cough up the $2.50 for the tarragon.
For the dressing, I used only 1 Tbs. olive oil and used nonfat yogurt instead of sour cream. It came out pretty well. I don’t think I like it as much as the lemon and mustard dressing I use for Berley’s green bean salad, but it wasn’t bad. It actually tastes pretty similiar to the dip I always improvise when I make baked tofu, except I add garlic, and leave out the olive oil. Altogether this salad was tasty, but not exciting. I think the dressing overwhelmed the celery root a bit?
Update from the next day. I could not eat the leftovers. One bite was all I could stand. Strange.
Update January 2008: I made this recipe for Derek, following the original recipe except for adding an extra apple since mine were small. I even added the tarragon, and grating the celery root in my food processor. Grating in the food processor helps since the pieces are larger and thicker, almost like julienne rather than hand grating. Despite the large amounts of fat in the recipe, I didn’t think it tasted super-rich, and I didn’t think it tasted like the traditional French dressing, I’m not sure why. Certainly the mustard seemed to dominate too much. Perhaps I didn’t use a very good dijon, or Derek added a bit too much when he measured it. The tarragon wasn’t very noticeable. I didn’t really care for this salad, but ate the leftovers at lunch the next day simply because I was hungry and it was what I had. Derek, on the other hand, liked the salad, saying “it’s refreshing.”
Rating: C
Derek: B
Cook’s Illustrated has a number of other variants I want to try. One that is very similiar to this one has you add to the salad:
| 1/2 | teaspoon caraway seeds |
| 1 1/2 | teaspoons prepared horseradish |
Other variants include pear and hazelnuts, and a version with mint, orange and fennel.
Update Dec 29: I had one small celery root (about the size of a large apple). I julienned it and tossed it with 1.5 Tbs. lemon juice, about 1 tsp. horseradish, 1 tsp. dijon mustard, and 1 Tbs. lowfat sour cream. It was pleasant, and well-dressed.
Acorn Squash Stuffed with Carrots and Rutabaga (B-)
I got acorn squash this week from my CSA. I like them stuffed, but I never know what to stuff them with. So I went scouring for recipes. This one is actually called Suzie Pryor’s “Perfectly Delicious” Stuffed Acorn Squash, from the cookbook Passionate Vegetarian by Crescent Dragonwagon. When I saw the rutabaga in the ingredient list I had to make it, as I had a rutabaga languishing in the fridge, and just the one rutabaga recipe in my repetoire.
- 4 small-to-medium or 2 medium-large acorn squash, prepared for stuffing
- 2carrots, chopped
- 1.5-2 cups chopped rutabaga
- 1 Tbs. butter
- 1 Tbs. brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
- a few gratings of nutmeg
- 1 cup peeled, finely diced apple
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Slice a 1/2 inch top hat from the stem end of each squash. If the bottom of the squash is not flat, remove a very thin slice so the squash can stand upright. Scoop the inner seeds and stringy pulp from the cavity.
- Spray a 13-by-9 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- Place the squash, cut side down, in the prepared baking dish. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and check if the squash are tender. If not, turn the squash right side up, re-cover, and bake for another 20 minutes or so. Remove from the oven and carefully scoop out most of the squash flesh, keeping the outer shell intact. Place the flesh in a mixing bowl. Setboth the squash halves and the flesh aside. Do not turn the oven off.
- As the squash cook, bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the carrots and turnips. Simmer until tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain (reserve the water for use in stock, if desired). Add the vegetables to the bowl with the squash flesh.
- Using an electric mixer, whip the three cooked vegetables together with the butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt to taste. Stir in the apples. Divide the stuffing equally among the squash shells. Return the stuffed shells to the baking dish.
- Bake, uncovered, until heated through, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve hot.
My notes
When I poured out the carrots and rutabaga they smelled an awful lot like turnips. I snagged one of the rutabaga pieces to taste it, and thankfully it didn’t taste like a turnip. It was more sweet and yellow tasting. The idea of using a handheld mixer to combine the vegetables into an almost smooth mash is interesting. However, the turnips and carrots weren’t cooked quite enough for this to happen. They stayed rather lumpy. I’m not sure my squash was cooked even after 50 minutes; maybe I didn’t have my tin foil sealed well enough? The final mixture wasn’t bad. The addition of the carrots was nice, but it was still a bit turnipy perhaps. Plus it needed more cinnamon and a little more butter I think. The results weren’t worth the rather complicated recipe, unfortunately. I’m still looking for a good, healthy, stuffed acorn squash recipe. Any suggestions?
Rating: B-
Chilaquiles (B+)
This was always one of my favorite dishes growing up, and now it’s one of Derek’s favorites too. Whenever I ask him “What should we make” his answer is invariably “chilaquiles.” They’re great for brunch, and along with a vegetable or salad make a great last-minute dinner. Even though my mom gave me her recipe, hers are still always better than mine. I’m hoping to someday learn her secret!
Servings: 2 main dish or 4 side servings
If using corn tortillas, place three in toaster oven to lightly brown. Be careful, they burn easily!
Heat in pan on medium:
- 2 tsp. oil
When hot, add and cook for about ? minutes, until vegetables start to soften.
- 1/4 onion, diced
- 1/2 green pepper, diced
Add in and cook for another few minutes, until tofu starts to brown:
- 8 oz firm tofu, crumbled (1/2 pound)
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp chipotle powder (optional, check this amount)
Spread on top of tofu mixture:
- 5 oz corn chips, crumbled or 3 toasted corn tortillas, torn into bite-sized pieces
- 1/2 cup tomato sauce
- 1/3 cup hot picante sauce
- 2 Tbs water (or picante sauce, if using corn chips)
Stir to mix. Serve hot.
My notes:
This recipe is one of my favorites, and deserves more than a B+, but I still have to fix the proportions.
I made this today, just as posted, using corn tortillas but no chipotle powder, except I used a Anaheim chili instead of the green pepper. The flavors were perfect, but they were too wet. Maybe it’s because chips need more sauce than corn tortillas? Maybe I should try 4 corn tortillas instead of just three. Also, next time I want to try it with 1/4 cup picante sauce and 3/8 cups tomato sauce. Also, since both the salsa and tomato sauce are already salted, this recipe is quite salty. It might be better to reduce the salt to 1/8 tsp.
I keep a pack of corn tortillas in the freezer so that I can always make this dish. I’ve only ever made this with Pace picante sauce, so I’m not sure how it tastes with other brands.
Background: Chilaquiles were originally created to use up stale tortillas. With a good sauce, the tortillas come back to life, take on all the flavors, and provide a wonderful textural contrast. The least intuitive but apparently preferred spelling is chilaquiles, with an A, but I’ve also seen them spelled with an I and an E (i.e. chiliquiles, or chilequiles). Traditionally this dish is just chips and a red or green sauce, or sometimes meat, eggs, or cheese are added–but I love the very non-authentic tofu version! Of course, if you’re really inspired these would be even better with a more authentic Mexican sauce, but the tomato/salsa combo works okay and is fast.
Rating: B+
Derek: A-
Nutritional stats for a main dish serving, using corn tortillas and chipotle powder:
| Calories | 236 | ||||
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| Total Fat | 9.1g | ||||
| Saturated Fat | 0.6g | ||||
| Cholesterol | 0mg | ||||
| Sodium | 656mg | ||||
| Carbohydrate | 26.6g | ||||
| Dietary Fiber | 3.5g | ||||
| Sugars | 4.9g | ||||
| Protein | 11.1g | ||||
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Percent calories from: fat 35%, protein 19%, carbs 56%. A little high on fat, but not bad ratios for me for breakfast.
Stuffed Hashbrowns (B+)
When I was a kid I always asked my mom to make me “hashbrowns.” She’d tell me to grate a potato, and then she’d make either a simple paper-thin pancake of grated, lightly fried potatoes, or more often a “omelet” filled with steamed vegetables and folded in half. I could never get enough, and neither could any of my siblings. Stuffed hashbrowns make a delicious (and healthy) breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
Serves 1
- 2 tsp. oil.
- 1 medium unpeeled high-starch potato, washed, dried, and grated coarse (about 6.5 ounces, should be just over one cup of tightly packed grated potato)
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup lightly steamed vegetables of your choice. I prefer broccoli, cauliflower, and mushrooms. Other good choices are chard, spinach or other greens, and red bell pepper. Maybe also grated zucchini or squash, or grated carrots?
- optional: 1.5 avocado, sliced OR 1/2 ounce grated cheese OR 5 kalamata olives
- Prepare the veggies and grate the potato. Set a steaming basket over boiling water, and start the veggies cooking.
- Heat a large, heavy skillet (I use a 9-inch cast iron pan) on high. Add the oil, then scatter the grated potatoes evenly over the entire bottom of the pan. Use a spatula to firmly press the potatoes to flatten. Sprinkle on the salt and pepper.
- Reduce heat to medium-high and cook for about 3? minutes or until browned and crisp. Flip the hashbrowns, and place the cheese and steamed vegetables over the potatoes.
- When the bottom of the hashbrown begins to brown, fold it in half like an omelet and serve immediately.
My Notes
This dish is very fast and easy to make, but requires some technique. It takes a bit of experimentation to get the right temperature and timing. I still have not mastered the art of flipping it in one piece, even though my mom can do it almost every time. Every stove and pan and potato are different, and it’s a fine line between undercooked potatoes and mushy, overcooked ones. You’ll just have to experiment a bit. Also, avoid very low starch potatoes like Red Bliss. Cook’s Illustrated says
All-purpose potatoes worked well enough, and Yukon Golds, another medium-starch potato, were still better, with their buttery color and flavor. Best of all, however, were high-starch russet (baking) potatoes. They adhered well, browned beautifully, and had the most pronounced potato flavor. Raw grated potatoes held together while cooking and had a more textured interior as well as more potato flavor. We also liked the way the raw shreds of potato formed an attractive, deeply browned crust.
Also, dry your potatoes well before grating them. Watery potatoes tend not to fry up as nicely.
It’s definitely not necessary to salt the vegetables–salting the potatoes is sufficient. I actually think the salt should maybe be reduced. Even using kosher salt, at least with the cheese, this was pretty salty.
1/2 an ounce of cheese doesn’t sound like much, but use a sharp cheddar and it’s plenty to give the “omelet” good flavor and a very rich mouthfeel.
I’m still trying to figure out the exact amounts. Cook’s Illustrated uses 1 pound potato and 1 Tbs. butter per person. They use 1/2 the butter at the beginning. They have you invert the potatoes onto a plate, and add the second half of the butter before return the potatoes to a pan. Also, they have you wring the potatoes out in a towel. I haven’t tried this. It sounds like a pain.
Rating: B+
Nutritional stats including 1/2 ounce of sharp cheddar cheese, 3 florets each of broccoli and cauliflower, and 3 crimini mushrooms:
| Calories | 306 | ||||
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| Total Fat | 14g | ||||
| Saturated Fat | 4.3g | ||||
| Cholesterol | 15mg | ||||
| Sodium | 699mg | ||||
| Carbohydrate | 37.7g | ||||
| Dietary Fiber | 5g | ||||
| Sugars | 3.3g | ||||
| Protein | 10.4g | ||||
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I think these stats aren’t bad for a large and filling breakfast (fat 40%, protein 16%, carbs 44%). Also, since I’m already getting the steamer out I usually steam a couple cups of extra veggies and eat them on the side after I’m done with my hashbrown. This helps clear the palate, and reduces the strong but superfluous desire for a second helping.
Mom’s Tofu Salad (B+)
This is an old farm recipe that my mom used to make all the time when I was a kid. I loved to eat it with tortilla chips. I haven’t been making it much lately because I thought it wouldn’t be as good without the tortilla chips. But I made it today and ate it with pitas that I baked until they were very crisp, and I think it was actually just as good as the chips.
This list of ingredients is long, but it’s extremely fast to make, maybe 5 minutes or so. And all the various seasonings come together to create (in my opinion) the ultimate tofu salad. I think the farm folks designed it to be sort of like an egg salad, or something you’d take to a picnic, but I don’t really see much resemblance. I prefer to eat it as a dip, and my mom uses it on sandwiches, although they can get soggy quick since it’s pretty wet.
Stir together:
* Tofu 1.5 lbs, crumbled
* yeast 1 Tbs.
* salt 1 tsp.
* pepper 1/8 tsp.
* garlic powder 1 tsp.
* paprika 1/4 tsp.
* basil 1 tsp.
* parsley 1 tsp.
* oregano 1 tsp.
* mustard powder 1/8 tsp.
* cayenne 1/8 tsp.
* soysauce 1 Tbs.
* onion powder 1 tsp.
* vinegar 1/2 Tbs.
* lemon juice from 1/2 lemon (about 1.5 Tbs.)
* mustard 1.5 Tbs.
* chopped celery, onions, scallions (optional, about 1/2 cup?)
* olive oil 2? Tbs. (optional, adds to the mouthfeel, but isn’t necessary IMHO)
This yields about 2.5 cups.
Other’s Opinions
A coworker of Derek’s really liked this–he must have eaten two cups of it in one sitting! I brought it to a picnic, and served it at lunch recently though, and no one seemed to care for it much.
Rating: B+
Red Lentil Pate (B-)
This recipe for red lentil pate is from the cookbook The Modern Vegetarian Kitchen by Peter Berley.
1 cup large or small red lentils, sorted and rinsed
1 bay leaf
3 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
1 small onion, finely diced
1/3 cup pine nuts
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 Tbs. tomato paste
1 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. ground caraway seeds
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 tsp. coarse sea salt
freshly squeezed juice of 1/2 a lemon
1. In a 3-quart saucepan (I used a 2 qt pan) over medium heat, combine the lentils and 4 cups water and bring to a boil. Skim and discard any foam and add the bay leaf. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes, or until the lentils are tender. Drain.
2. While the lentils simmer, in a small saute pan, warm the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and pine nuts and saute for 5 to 7 minutes, until the onion softens and the pine nuts begin to color. Stir in the garlic, tomato paste, coriander, caraway seeds, cumin, cayenne, and salt. Continue to saute for 5 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice to deglaze the pan.
3. In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine the cooked lentils and onion mixture and puree until smooth.
4. Transfer to a serving bowl and serve at once or chill in the refrigerator and serve cold.
My Notes
I admit, I didn’t follow the recipe completely. I only used 1 Tbs. olive oil and 2 Tbs. pine nuts. The dip was so thin I added maybe 1/2 cup chickpeas to thicken it up.
I tasted it after it was done and the lentils had a nice subtle sweet flavor, but otherwise I thought it was very bland. So I added a bit more caraway a bit more tomato paste, the zest from the whole lemon, and the juice from the other half of the lemon. It ended up very lemon-y tasting. I still wasn’t that fond of it, personally, but others seemed to like it quite a bit.
Rating: B-
