A Real Quickie...

I'm looking for some real feedback here, so please, share your comments!  I'm searching for a new great breakfast idea.  Well, new to me, hopefully tried and true to you.

I heard of a fantastic sounding breakfast casserole from a friend yesterday, and I'm looking forward to trying it out on my next breakfast splurge as opposed to my typical poached eggs with green onions over toast.  So if you have any other ideas to share, please do!!!

Anyway, thanks in advance...

Following the Rules

A few months ago I picked up a little Italian cookbook from a clearance table for a couple bucks.  Somehow it ended up hidden away in my closet, not to be found until last week.  Hooray!

 

Each recipe has an illustration and the instructions are written simply; both good ways for a cookbook to keep my attention.  I love cookbooks, but when things get too wordy or I have no idea what something is supposed to look like I tend to lose interest quickly and use a recipe as inspiration for my own creation.  So it's been a good exercise and challenge to flip through my little clearance book and follow the rules.

The first thing I made was a Genoese Vegetable Soup.  I had a big bunch of fresh yellow and green beans and some green and gold zucchinis on hand from a friend's garden and their expiration dates were a good motivator to find a recipe that would used both.  They happily accompanied a plethora of other fresh veggies which took some prep time but would end up being worth the while.

My only regret in terms of veggies is that I was unable to find fresh peas anywhere.  Too late in the season, I suppose, but the softer canned peas added some body to the hearty soup.

After my veggie prep was complete I dumped everything into my big soup pot and added some extra virgin olive oil followed by some Swanson broth. 

The recipe calls for vegetable stock, but I have been hard pressed to find a good veggie stock or broth that I enjoy.  If you have any recommendations, please post.  I used half chicken and half beef broth.  It took away the vegetarian aspect of the soup, unfortunately, but it was still delicious.

The other workaround I used was to avoid making my own pesto.  Did I mention this soup has pesto?  Divine,  no? Anyway, I really wasn't in the mood for more prep and cleaning up the food processor (I don't have a mortar and pestle... hint hint, Christmas is coming...) so I chose ready made Buitoni Pesto with Basil.  It's not bad for store bought and usually tastes pretty fresh; I was pleased.  I'll definitely make my own next time, though...

The soup cooked for a long time which made it very thick and deadened a lot of the color.  I was concerned that there wouldn't be enough liquid to cook the pasta at the end, but no worries.  I chose  Barilla Piccolinoi Mini Farfalle which didn't soak up too much liquid and cooked in about 6 minutes.

After adding the pesto and allowing the soup to sit for a few minutes we scooped up hearty bowlfuls and topped with shredded Parmesan.  Served alongside some warm, crusty Pugilese bread it made a great, hearty meal and was FULL of flavor.  It didn't make the prettiest picture, but made up for it's lacking photogenic quality in deliciousness and frugality.

So here you go, please visit your nearest Farmer's Market and take advantage of the late season bounty before we're in full-fledged fall!

GENOESE VEGETABLE SOUP
There are many different recipes available for this soup, it looks like everyone goes by the veggies they like and are in season, but this is the one I used out of my clearance cookbook.

Ingredients for Soup

2 onions, sliced
2 carrots, diced
2 celery stalks, sliced
2 potatoes, diced
4 oz. green beans, cut into 1 inch lengths
4 oz. peas
7 oz. fresh young spinach leaves, shredded
2 zucchini, diced
8 oz. plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded and diced
3 garlic cloves, sliced thinly
4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
8 cups vegetable stalk (I substituted 4 cups chicken broth and 4 cups beef broth)
salt and pepper
5 oz. dried soup pasta (I used mini farfalle)
1 recipe of Basil Pesto (see below; I substituted with ready-made basil pesto)
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, to serve

Ingredients for Pesto
4 Tbsp fresh basil leaves
1 Tbsp pine nuts
1 garlic clove
1 oz. freshly grated Parmesan cheese (about 1/4 cup)
3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Method
Put all veggies and garlic in a large, heavy-bottomed pan.  Pour in the olive oil and stock.  Bring to a boil over medium-low heat.  Reduce the heat and let simmer gently for about 90 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the pesto; put the basil, pine nuts and garlic into a mortar and pound to a paste with a pestle.  Transfer to a bowl and gradually work in the cheese with a wooden spoon, followed by the olive oil to make a thick, creamy sauce.  (You can also do this in a food processor by adding all ingredients except the olive oil and pulsing together to combine, then run on low speed while slowly adding the oil, but they don't tell you that...).  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until needed

Season the soup to taste with salt and pepper and add the pasta.  Cook for an additional 8-10 minutes, until the pasta is tender but still firm to the bite.  The soup should be very thick.  Stir in half the pesto, remove the pan from the heat and set aside to rest for 4 minutes.  Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding more salt, pepper and pesto if necessary.  Any leftover pesto may be stored in a screw-top jar in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks (or if you're like me, you'll just keep the other half of your pesto in the container it came in ;) ).

Ladle into warmed bowls and serve immediately.  Pass around the freshly grated Parmesan cheese separately (those are the words used in the recipe, I think they're weird, but don't skimp on the cheese!)

The Fabled Bruschetta

It's been awhile since I've posted, but I've been busy with new recipes!  Before I get to those posts, though, I just want to share the pics of the AWESOME bruschetta made with those tiny, beautiful heirloom tomatoes from the previous post.

First I did a rough chop to keep hearty pieces of tomato intact.

 

 Then I dressed the tomatoes with a chiffonade of basil, some extra virgin olive oil, kosher salt and black pepper.

It was hard not to eat it right then!  But I refrained.  I laid the sliced baguette on a wire rack over a cookie sheet and scooped my precious little jewels onto the bread...

...making sure to keep the edges clear of vegetation in order to ensure crispiness.

Then I topped the little beauties with a blend of Gouda, Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses.  I also made a few pieces brushed with olive oil and topped with fresh thyme, basil and parsley and Parmesan cheese for a crispy base for some of the raw tomato mixture left over.  Here's an 'After' picture - I like the cheese to be gooey so it's lacking in typical golden deliciousness:

Yum!  Super simple supper for summer.  Don't forget to visit your local Farmer's Market.  If you're local to me, here's a good place to find one before they shut down for the winter.

Also...

I know I've already done a post about Bruschetta, but I had to share these tomato glamour shots!  They're going to be coarsely chopped and dressed with fresh basil and olive oil before adorning thin slices of baguette tomorrow...

And a landscape shot...

I seriously took, like, ten pictures of my little pint of heirloom minis, I love them so!  Thank you for the inspiration, Heidi!!!

Simple Things for Late Summer

It's September and starting to become more and more autumnal, despite the 80 degree freak weather we're having.  A perfect time to bid a fond farewell to summer and welcome the early fall.  I did so by enjoying our First Annual Welcome September Feast.

What you see here are the spoils of some lucrative cheese basket raiding from Metropolitan Market.  They have a pretty good cheese selection, but all their odds and ends from tastings and custom cutting end up individually wrapped and heaped into a big basket at the end of the refrigerator section.  Here you can find some glorious snippets for a dollar or two that will curb your craving and give you something new to try without committing to $14.99 a wedge.

Here are the selections chosen for the feasting: 

Tintern - a Welsh soft cheddar-like cheese with chives and shallots.  Very strong flavor, a known favorite of my household. 

Argentine Parma - A softer version of Parmesan from Argentina.  Not as crusty but still nice and salty. 

Mount Tam Triple Cream - An organic, creamy, earthy cheese from Cowgirl Creamery in Petaluma, CA. Good for brie lovers, not so good for noobs. 

Double Cream Gouda - From Holland, delicious, firm and creamy.  A nice break from the typical smoked Gouda, as this is sans smoke. 

Rollingstone Chèvre Cranberry Walnut Torta - I. Love. Goat cheese.  This you know from my post Cows Get All the Glory.  I try so hard not to be biased, but it was great; creamy, sweet and tangy with flecks of cranberry and little nubbins of walnut.  Yummeroo. 

Cornish Yarg - Come on, how can you pass up something called 'Cornish Yarg?!'  I had to buy it out of principle.  This one comes from the UK and is actually left to age wrapped in nettle leaves.  It was pretty mild, I was expecting more body and bite from something called 'Yarg,' but overall  it was pleasant. 

Raspberry BellaVitano - Surprisingly my favorite of the eve.  Kind of a cross between asiago and cheddar, but it's soaked in New Glarus Raspberry Tart Ale from Wisconsin to make it deliciously fruity. 

Gorgonzola - A tradish gorgonzola, nice and sweet but not a dolce. 

Circa 1926 Gouda - This was pretty amazing for a Gouda.  It's like finding out your lame cousin you see at Christmas, who sits around and talks about D&D, is a tap-dancing one-man-band on the weekends.  It was hard, but creamy, salty and sweet with a nice bite at the beginning and a smooth finish.  I was impressed.  Also, sans smoke.  This one is a Metropolitan Market exclusive from Beemster. 

Graskaas Limited Edition Cheese - Who doesn't love mystery cheese?  Plus the name reminded me of the Penny Arcade strip with Lord Skaas.  It was pretty delicious, mild and creamy.  Another one from Beemster made with the first milkings when the Beemster cows return to the fresh spring pastures after a winter without grazing. 

Point Reyes Original Blue - Another California cheese from Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Company.  Has a nice bite but doesn't leave too much of that bleu cheese sting behind.  Not as sweet or mild as the Gorgonzola.

To round out our feast we had a couple of awesome loaves from Macrina Bakery; the Giuseppe and the Fresh Herb Baguette.  Crunchy outsides, tender, chewy insides.  Delectable.  It went well with balsamic vinegar and garlic infused olive oil with fresh basil.

Plus some roasted almonds, dried cranberries, some Whidbey Wildberry Chocolate Truffle bar and a a big ol' sliced peach.

 
All together a fantastic feast for all 5 senses, worthy of the season!  There was way too much to finish, obviously, but it should make for some tasty leftovers.

The simplicity of it all was probably one of the most delicious things about the meal; slicing a peach, chopping some basil, cutting some bread and unwrapping cheese.  Voila!  A beautiful celebration for the season, honoring some delicious food in the best way possible; by doing as little as possible to it.

For Lesley

Had to make a quick post for my cousin, who was one to partake in my baking escapades a few weeks ago.  I came home with a mammoth golden zucchini and made 6 loaves of bread; three with chocolate chips and three without.  I didn't think to take a picture, but here's one of my banana chocolate chip bread that looks pretty similar, just missing the gorgeous green and gold flecks of zucchini.

I usually top my banana bread with turbinado sugar and occasionally a shot of Malibu coconut rum, but I leave my zucchini bread plain on top.  However, when they're both done they're sweet and dense and studded with chocolatey goodness.

CHOCOLATE CHIP ZUCCHINI BREAD

 (Makes 3 loaves)

• 4½ cups all-purpose flour
• 3 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1½ tsp. baking soda
• 3/4 tsp. baking powder
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 3/4 tsp. nutmeg
• 3 cup sugar
• 3 cup finely shredded, unpeeled zucchini (One BIG one)
• 3/4 cup cooking oil
• 3 eggs
• 1 bag chocolate chips

• Grease bottom and sides of 3 loaf pans. I use the disposable ones for easy gifting.
• In a medium mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients. Set aside.
• In another medium mixing bowl, combine sugar, zucchini, oil, and eggs. Add dry mixture to zucchini mixture & stir until moistened. Fold in chocolate chips.
• Spoon into pan and bake at 350 for 55-60 minutes until a toothpick comes out of the center clean. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely on rack.

Makes enough to keep one for yourself and feed two friends (or sisters!)

Enjoy!

Kick Out the Jams

Summer's abundance has visited my little apartment several times over so far this year, thanks the wonderful weather, a good, wet spring, and to Aunt Jackie and her green thumb.

Also, for the first time since I left California I saw people selling fruit on the side of the road this summer.

I bought these lovelies from a guy on the side of the road for $7.  Excellent deal in these parts, and only 3 were moldy!

The berries were my inspiration to try my hand at jam for the first time, yet another thing I've been afraid of.  I'm still not whole-hog on the idea of home canning, with all it's accoutrement, sterilizing and margin of error, but freezer jam seemed easy enough for a noob like me.

I bought some Sure-Jell pectin and followed the instructions, starting with cleaning and trimming my berries.

Next I mashed up my berries with a potato masher (jam should have fruit bits), added lemon juice, corn syrup and sugar and prepared the pectin.  It was super easy.

Isn't it pretty?  That was pretty much all there was to it.  I put it in some Ziploc containers to sit on the counter and set before freezing.

The squeeze bottle went into the freezer in the kitchen for easy access.  The three pint containers were split up into freezer safe glass jars and went into the deep freeze along with the single cup containers.  I figure the jars are for giving and the bowl are for keeping.

After a few days I tried it out.  It was a little soupy but super fresh tasting!  Not too sweet, definitely not too sour.  After another week in the freezer the squeeze bottle came out to adorn biscuits and it had set up quite a bit more.

The success of the strawberry inspired me to make some raspberry as well, with the berries my mom and I picked from my aunt's garden.  It started out a little more difficult since the instructions recommended to sieve half of the fruit (if desired) to remove raspberry seeds.  I decided half way through that I had a stronger desire to keep the seeds and not have to sieve than to go through the extra process and sacrifice a bunch of the pulp that went along with the seeds.  I like seedy jam, though, and it turned out pretty good.

With the raspberry I cut out the middle man of letting the jam rest before transferring to glass jars.  It didn't seem to make any difference in the long run in either the flavor or texture.

I will brave the heat canning sooner or later, it's about time to get out there and pick some blackberries and blueberries, if there are any left on the bushes.  We'll see how brave I feel once I get them home.

Southern Comfort

First off, I'd like to thank the closet gods that finally relinquished my camera cord; it's been missing for about 3 weeks.  I have no idea how it ended up in the closet, but I'm happy to have found it.

Anywho...

There's been a widespread hankerin' for some home cooking lately, so I feel compelled to submit.  The weather has been changing rapidly and autumn is making it's final descent into the great northwest.  Fried chicken is in order.

I've never been really interested in frying chicken on the bone; it always seems so intimidating!  I can whip out some chicken breast tenderloin strips like no other, but taking to task bone-in, skin-on chicken is daunting; the varying cooking times due to size, shape, body part (body part?!  Gross!) and the bone itself, not to mention the amount of time it sits in the oil and hence fear of burning, etc etc etc.  Cringe-worthy.

But we've entered the season of poultry and I was able to get three hind quarters with thigh and leg for $2.44.  We're in a recession, people.  I'll take what I can get.

Due to my innate fear of failure, I had to spend a little time researching how to fry chicken on the bone.  Here is what I've learned:

- Season your meat, don't just leave it up to the flour for the flavor.  I rubbed mine down with some Johnny's Seasoning Salt and Poultry Seasoning before any dredging occurred.  I prefer the Johnny's that includes MSG.  In case you don't remember from my Yankee Delights post, I am of the opinion that MSG really doesn't hurt you.

- Be liberal with the seasoning in the flour.  Because the crunchy crust should be delicious.  I went really basic with just Johnny's, I didn't want a lot of garlic or anything overpowering.  Also, I imagine dried herbs would burn in the long, hot frying process, so an aioli or dipping sauce on the side can be served it you want to 'fancy it up.'

- Give your dredged chicken some resting time to allow the flour to absorb some liquid from the skin and egg wash.  It will create an almost batter-like coating which will adhere to the chicken so you get crispy skin in each bite.  No slippery skin on your first bite, where it takes all the good crunchies off and then you're left with sad, naked chicken for the rest of dinner.

- Shortening makes a good frying fat, keeping in mind: 'Fry- life, mouthfeel, product appearance, specific product requirements, ease of handling and cost are the major criteria for selecting a frying fat for a given application.'  I learned this from an article from Oklahoma State University.  I'm telling you, I researched.  I used a mix of 2:1 regular vegetable shortening and Butter Flavored Crisco.

- Don't.  Be.  Afraid.

I seasoned my chicken, dipped it in an egg/milk wash and dredged it in seasoned flour.

I let it rest for about 10 minutes while I worked on some side dishes; corn on the cob, biscuits, mashed potatoes and gravy.  I will be the first to admit that while I put on my 'from scratch' gloves for the chicken and the biscuits, I used OreIda Steam 'n' Mash plain russets as my 'tatoes.  I'm convinced it's the most amazing product on the planet and they usually do a better job than I would, anyway.

A quick anecdote: I love corn season.  When I was growing up I spent a lot of time at my grandparent's farm in Selah.  In the late summer Grandma would walk us down to Al Calvert's; Al owned potato and corn fields.  We would get spuds and corn to bring back for dinner and we'd shuck it on the back porch and feed the husks to the neighbors horses.

Once in a while Al's wife would take us out to her pea patch in the middle of the corn field and we'd pick peas to bring home with our corn and potatoes.  They also had a creek that ran through their property that trout ran in and we'd go fishing.  My life was like a Country Time Lemonade commercial.  Good times.

Anyway, after the chicken rested and the shortening melted and was good and hot I put in the chicken and LEFT IT ALONE.

In the meantime I put together my biscuits.

Since the biscuits and potatoes only take 10 minutes to cook I got them going right after I flipped my chicken; it cooked for about 10-12 minutes on each side.  This had just about everything finishing at once, just the way I like it.  When the chicken was fully cooked, which I checked with my nifty digital meat thermometer, I let it rest and drain.  One important thing to remember is, if your oil is the right temperature (good and hot but not smoking) then your food won't absorb much oil and you aren't adding as much fat to your meal.

 I was pleased with how the chicken turned out, and of course I loved the biscuits!  I never pass up an opportunity to photograph my biscuits, because I love them.  I love making them, baking them and eating them.

Everything came together pretty well.  I would have liked to included something green, and I did make a cucumber salad with some beautiful cukes from my aunt's garden and a homemade creamy garlic dill dressing, but it was forgotten and left in the fridge.  Oh well, it will be a good lunch tomorrow.  The dinner was delicious, with some sweet tea and some freezer jam, which I'll post about soon.

For dessert, I went the quick-and-easy route with a fresh pear crisp.  Pears don't get a whole lot of glory compared to apples, but they deserve it!  The pears were fresh from my aunt's place as well (I picked them  up with some amazing peaches that ended up in crisp last week.  They were the most delicious peaches.  Ever.  The crisp went too fast to get a picture!)

The recipe was simple; just peel and thinly slice the pears, I used 7 medium-small ones.  Mix in a baking dish with a quarter cup each of white and brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg to taste (I use a lot), a teaspoon or two of vanilla, a dash of salt, 3 tablespoons of flour and a tablespoon of butter, dotted about the place.  Then top it off with some universal crisp topping (we usually double this recipe):

UNIVERSAL CRISP TOPPING (Courtesy of T.G. Nottingham and his mom)
1 cup sugar (sometimes I sub half with brown sugar)
3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg (I'll sub both of these seasonings with a full tsp. of pumpkin pie spice when I'm in a pinch)
Dash salt
1/2 cup butter
Mix dry ingredients and cut in butter until mixture is coarse, pea-sized crumbs.

Bake at 350 until awesome (Usually 20-40 minutes, depending on the fruit, until gold and bubbly ).

It turned out rich and gooey and crispy and perfect for ice cream.  All in all it was a real homey meal that makes me want to cuddle up on the couch and watch Steel Magnolias.  A great way to take advantage of the weather change.

Calling All Cars...

Just a quickie - Does anyone have a good, tried and true recipe for lumpia?  I've had a craving lately...  Also, chicken and/or shrimp adobo?

Last week was Hawaiian week at Uwajimaya.  Love!  We had some Loco Moco (Hilo side, represent!!!).  My pic didn't turn out, but it looked almost exactly like this, only with green salad instead of mac salad.  I don't like mac salad.  Sorry.

I got my Hawaii fix, but didn't think far enough ahead to pick up stuff for a good Filipino meal.  So if you have a good recipe please, send it on over! 

The Kind U Find in a Second Hand Store...

I own one of these

It doesn't get a whole lot of use; it's usually packed in the back of the some god-forsaken cupboard, the bowl has to sit in the freezer for 24 hours before it's used, it takes up a lot of counter space and by the time I remember I have it I've usually already purchased ice cream.

But it's been hot.  And I've been craving sweet treats without the heaviness of milk and cream.  Therefore I submit for your consideration Sorbet!

Sorbet, as opposed to sherbet, is generally not a dairy based frozen treat and is typically fruit reliant.  My favorite sorbet in the world was Ben & Jerry's Purple Passion Fruit.  You can see it here in their flavor graveyard.  Boo.  I settle now for Berried Treasure, but it's an expensive fix.  I haven't found many other store-bought sorbets that I like.  If you have any to suggest, please do!

(Also, for more on Sorbet vs. Sherbet, check this out.)

So, Ben & Jerry make a premium product worth the premium price, this we know.  However, they also have a book of their premium recipes that, by the grace of the gods of frozen ambrosia, I found at a yard sale for under a dollar.  You can find it here on Amazon for a decent price.

I thought I'd take advantage; the furthest we've ever really delved into the literature in our household has been the sweet cream base recipes.  They're great for re-creating some former Baskin Robbins hits that have been sent to the Deep Freeze.  It helps to have some former scoop jockeys to recreate the flavors.

I checked out the seasonal fruit at H&L and decided on raspberries.  In my opinion it's still a little early in the season for bush berries here, but I thought I'd take a chance, they looked so vibrant!  I also picked up some Izze Sparkling Blackberry Juice, because why not?  I used my Ben & Jerry's cookbook as inspiration; here is my altered version of Raspberry Sorbet:

3/4 pound fresh raspberries
1 1/2 cups sugar
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1 bottle sparkling blackberry juice

Combine berries, sugar and lemon juice.  Refrigerate covered at least 1 hour.
When ready to freeze, add corn syrup and sparkling juice and stir gently until blended.
Transfer the mixture to the ice cream maker and follow manufacturer's directions.

I'd like to add, ex post facto, that it helps to mash that sugar into the raspberries.  The ones I had were a little too sour and could have used some macerating.  Other than that, the sorbet was soft, light and smooth with a bright effervescence left on the tongue.  Also, it was a very pretty color and flecked with little ruby raspberry studs.

Refreshing, no?  I encourage you to go treasure hunting at a local second hand store for an ice cream maker, or even an ice cream ball and give it a try.  I have mine running right now, giving an encore performance with a couple cans of Hawaiian Sun.  Guava Strawberry Passion, anyone?  I'll let you know how it goes.

It's What's for Dinner

Steak is delicious.  Enough said.  When the Prime Rib Eye goes on sale at Costco, it's a happy day for all in the household.

When I get to sink my talons into a good piece of meat I like to do as little as possible to it in regards to flavor and cooking. 

With the newly sprung season we have rediscovered our outdoor grill.  Living in a apartment, there are rules about these things.  As much as the charcoal smell equates delicious picnic foods and the controlled fires of a gas grill conjures visions of flame-licked sweet and sticky chicken breasts, we must abide.  But it's not so bad, thanks to George Foreman.

I made a quick marinade with some brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, garlic, shallots and lime and let my steaks sit for about half an hour while I let the grill heat up and threw together a salad.  Then was grilling time.

Super easy.  8 minutes on each side, a quarter turn after 4 mintues to get good grill marks.  I threw the juiced lime skins on the grill, too, to get the last delicious bits of juice and pulp broken down.  I squeezed them over the steaks just before taking them off the grill to rest.

After the grilling was done and the meat rested for about 20 mintues under it's aluminum foil tent we dug in and enjoyed.  A little bit of hibachi sauce on the side and it was easy and awesome.

Hibachi Sauce

1-1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon melted butter
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon paprika
dash cayenne pepper

Using a fork or a whisk, blend all ingredients together thoroughly until well mixed and the sauce is smooth. Refrigerate overnight to allow flavors to blend. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Soup & Sandwiches

Sometimes comfort food is simple food.  Especially when your schedule is hectic and you want something delicious that you don't have to work very hard for.  Hence soup and sandwiches.

It doesn't take very much to make something that sounds so mundane a delectable masterpiece.  Just a little creativity.  Sometimes boredom helps, too.

The soup is simple; Campbell's Tomato, or in our house 'Mato Soup.  It's one of a handful of things I don't settle on generic brands for.  For every can of soup, half a can of fat free Half & Half and half a can of water (or a whole can of 1% milk, but that's too milky for me), some garlic powder, Italian seasoning, throw it in pan until it's hot.

The other thing I like to do with 'Mato Soup is something I learned working for a soup & sandwich cafe and it's super simple:

Tomato Basil Soup

1-10 3/4 oz can of condensed tomato soup

1-14 oz can of chopped or stewed tomatoes (I prefer S&W Italian Recipe Stewed)

1/4 cup butter

1 handful fresh basil leaves

1/2 handful fresh oregano leaves -or- 1 TBSP dried oregano

Garlic powder and Italian seasoning to taste

• 
  
  Julienne basil and oregano leaves (it's easy, just stack the on top of each other, roll them up and slice little ribbons).
• 
  
  Melt butter over medium heat in a small pot or sauce pan, whatever you usually cook soup in.
• 
  
  Add garlic powder, basil and oregano and cook until leaves are wilted, being careful not to scorch your garlic powder
• 
  
  Add tomatoes with their juice to butter; if using whole, halved or stewed tomatoes crush them with your hands before you put them in.  (If they're diced don't worry about it).
• 
  
  Cook tomatoes until heated all the way through, stirring occasionally.
• 
  
  Add condensed soup and stir until all is combined.
• 
  
  Bring soup to a simmer, cover and turn heat down to low.
• 
  
  Allow to simmer for 30 minutes before serving.

If the soup is too thick for your liking use a little water, veggie or chicken broth to thin it out.  It's easy to correct the flavor with a little salt or lemon juice.  It's excellent topped with some julienned basil, shredded Parmesan or provolone and some sourdough or focaccia croutons

On to the sandwich!

There is an art to making a good sandwich.  Anyone who has ever made them for a living can tell you this. 

You have to have a good spread on the bread; something that will add but not overpower flavor, that will seal the bread from getting wet from wet ingredients.  You have to have a good balance of wet to dry ingredients; usually meat and cheese to veggies.  But first you have to choose a good bread.

The way I see it, you can take some mediocre fillings, put it on a great bread and make a decent sandwich.  However, the best meat and cheese in the world put on crappy bread will make a pasty, disgusting mess.  

I usually choose either a tasty sandwich roll, like sourdough, dutch crunch or french.  I save the sliced white bread for my PB&J and the occasional old school tuna salad.

This time I made GIGANTO SANDWICH!!!

The bread is an Albertson's French loaf. For the spread I used a mix of mayo, Beaver Sweet Hot Mustard and a touch of honey thinned out with a little pickle juice. Like I said, be creative

As far as meat and cheese goes, we've got some sliced beef, brown sugar ham and honey turkey breast, some cheddar and some Swiss. For veggies some black olives, Mezzetta roasted red bell peppers and chopped peperoncini, some sweet onion and plain ol' shredded lettuce.

I tried sneak in some tomatoes, since I'm the only one that really likes them. I marinated them for about an hour in a blend of balsamic vinegar, dried oregano a little olive oil and some kosher salt. They were yummy but didn't mesh well so I saved them for a salad.

A word of caution to anyone making a sandwich that's going to be eaten by others - TASTE EVERYTHING FIRST. If there is one bad ingredient it's going to spoil the whole thing. And if it's what's for dinner it's going to piss everyone off.

I cut the heels off my loaf for two reasons; because we were hungry and wanted to eat them, and because nobody likes getting the heel end of the sandwich. Some construction tips:

• Apply spread to both sides of the bread. Don't go crazy, but make sure there's enough to cover all the way to the crusts
• Layer meat and cheese on one side and alternate. That way you don't get the gross block-o-cheese bite or the gut busting "oh god, that was all meat" bite.
• Lay your dry veggies on before your wet veggies on the opposite side of the meat. This is your bread protection
• If you're going to add a dressing like vinaigrette or tapenade or even just extra spread or mustard do it on top of your meat/cheese layer. That way it will apply to the veggies on contact but not sink into the bread.

Delicious.  A slice of that and a cup of soup and you've got a pretty simple middle of the week dinner and probably a couple lunches, too :)

Yankee Delights

9.2.13 Note - Due to mishaps in the blogosphere many pictures were deleted from this blog.  I've done my best to add them back in but, unfortunately, the ones for this post pre-date my laptop.  Please imagine everything to be perfectly mouthwatering - Jessie

Last Sunday I decided to make a super-tradish Sunday dinner for me and my peeps.  I made a beef roast and some awesome biscuits with peach crisp for dessert!  Very typical Leave it to Beaver dinner.

I like my roast to be almost steak-like when it's carved.  This is not the way I remember my mom's or my grandma's; the stringy, sometimes dry, covered in delicious gravy, awesome on a piece of white bread with ketchup roasts of my youth.  This is how my peeps recall their roast fondly as well.  So I had to do my best to not fancy anything up.  It took great restraint, but I feel I succeeded.

I chopped up some russet potatoes and fresh Thyme (I had to put a little something fancy in there!) as well as some white onions and mixed them with some baby carrots.  Then I greased up my roasting pan with a little vegetable oil and tossed all my veg in and rolled 'em around to get coated.  I shook my Johnny's Seasoning Salt all over the place, like ya do.  (For anyone who uses Johnny's, I find it's always best to get it from the regular grocery store, not Costco.  The bulk sizes they put in Costco don't have the MSG and that MSG is what makes that dependable, consistent Johnny's flavor.  And if you're one of those people who's all CRAZY about MSG, and you don't have a confirmed sensitivity to it, , perhaps you need to do a little more research on the matter.)

I took my roast, around 3 or 4 pounds of beef rump, and seared it off in a hot pan on all sides in some leftover sausage fat.  Just like grandma used to make, no?

I used a packet of McCormick Slow Cookers Savory Pot Roast seasoning for the first time ever, putting blind faith in the fact that the gravy on the front of the packet looked like my mom's.  Then I covered the whole thing super tight with about 8,000 (actually 5) layers of foil to do my best to simulate a dutch oven. 

Sidenote: I need a dutch oven.  My birthday is coming up.  I want the Le Creuset 9 quart enameled cast iron French Oven in Sonoma Green which you can only find at Williams Sonoma.  It's only a million dollars.

Once my roast was nearing its finish I whipped up some biscuits.  My method to making awesome biscuits is one part my mom, one part my mother in law, one part America's Test Kitchen and the rest Better Homes & Gardens cookbook under Biscuits Supreme.  My own contribution is using evaporated milk instead of regular milk.

I make by dough and dump it out onto a floured surface before it fully comes together.  Then I knead and fold, knead and fold until it's fully combined.  When I roll out the dough I fold it in half twice before each roll so there are lots of layers when I cut out my biscuits.  Then when I use my cutter I push straight down and do one half turn.  I pick them up and put them on my ungreased baking sheet and LEAVE THEM ALONE.  When I put them in the oven they're little disks about a quarter to a half an inch high.  The come out around two inches high and are awesome.

The roast came out delicious and stringy, slightly dry on the ends and paired well with plain ol' ketchup.

The 'tatoes and carrots were soft but not mushy after 3 hours in the oven and the onions were sweet and practically melted.  And everything was knee-deep in gravy.

Our dessert was a super-simple peach crisp.  I make crisp topping probably once or twice a year; it's basically flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and baking powder or something along those lines.  I keep it in a gallon sized Ziploc with the instructions on the front: "Mix one cup with one stick of butter.  Dump it over fruit.  Cook at 375 until done."

The fruit I chose were a couple cans of sliced peaches that have been neglected in the cupboard for million years.  I drained them and tossed them in a buttered pan with a couple teaspoons of vanilla, a shake of cinnamon and a tablespoon of brown sugar, squished everything up a little and let that sit for about an hour.  Once it was a fragrant, juicy mess, I dumped my crisp mix over them and cooked it until it looked golden and delicious.  And it was when topped with some vanilla ice cream.

A nice homey Sunday dinner for a cold late-winter evening.  And leftovers for a week!  Although, I must admit, as good and traditional and nostalgic as it was, I still can't wait for the farmer's markets to start up.  I need some non-root vegetables!

Fish Tacos... Ambrosia of the Sea

Here's me applying some lime to my little bundle of yummy, Ala Rubio's.

 Mexican food is delicious. That's a no brainer. Fake Mexican food is also delicious. Hence Qdoba, Chipotle, Taco del Mar and Chevy's. Fake Mexican food at home... it doesn't always come out right.

Luckily fish tacos came out so, so right.

I started out with some awesome cod fillets that I purchased from, you guessed it, Whole Foods. I dredged them in flour seasoned with Goya Hot Adobo and fried them in a little vegetable oil. No wet dipping, no batter, no deep frying.

As the pieces turned golden brown and crispy I put them on a wire rack in the oven over a drip tray to complete the cooking process and added fresh pieces to the hot oil. A little fish cooking assembly line.

As far as tortillas go I love love love these little corn flour ones from La Tortilla Factory. They're not brittle, don't need steaming to stay soft and they're a little thicker and more toothsome than a plain flour tortilla. We had both the yellow and white corn flour varieties.

To make the tradish taco sides (rice and beans) I am a super cheater. I use one can of Embasa Salsa Mexicana and a half cup of water for every cup of Minute Rice plus a teaspoon or two of McCormick Hot Taco Seasoning to taste.


Samesies with the beans; a can of salsa + taco seasoning and/or Taco Bell hot sauce to a can of drained black beans.

It has to simmer down a bit and it turns out pretty tasty, especially for at home fake Mexican food. By far not the best beans I've ever had, but I can't seem to find those in the states.

For fixin's we went with a mix of shredded cabbage and lettuce, some homemade salsa Rojas and salsa Verde (which will be another post), a little Tillamook cheddar jack blend and some sour cream. Oh, yes, and the oh-so-important squeeze of lime!

Yummeroo! All you need is an icy pomegranate margarita and some fried cheesecake burrito dessert and you have yourself a fake Mexican fiesta! Oh-lay!