Recipes to Rival

Hello and Welcome

2012-06-04T12:18:00.000-07:00

Below is a list of our members. Click on the links to check out our bloggers!

2012-02-26T11:22:00.000-08:00

Allspice, Asparagus, Anchovies

Kat of A Good Appetite
Lan of Angry Asian Creations

2012-02-25T15:20:00.000-08:00

Beau Monde, Butter, Bay Leaf

Liz of Bits "n" Bites
Michelle of Big Black Dogs

2012-02-24T15:26:00.000-08:00

Coriander, Chutney, Carrots

Jessica of Chubb
Jeanette of Cooked from the Heart
Andrea of Cooking Books

2012-02-23T15:27:00.000-08:00

Dill, Daikon Radish, Danish

Bronwyn of Doctoring, Dancing and Delectables (on Hiatus)

2012-02-22T15:32:00.000-08:00

Epazote, Eggs, Eel

Esther (a future blog author)

2012-02-21T15:33:00.000-08:00

Fennel, Fish, Fire

Maybelle's Mom of Feeding Maybelle (on Hiatus)
Lauren of Fried Pickles and Ice cream

2012-02-20T15:35:00.000-08:00

Galangal, Grater, Gruyere

Natalia of Gatti Fili e Farina
Shawnee of Green Grass Living

2012-02-19T15:37:00.000-08:00

Herbs de Provence, Horse Radish, Ham

Debyi of The Healthy Vegan Kitchen
Temperance of High on the Hog

2012-02-18T15:38:00.000-08:00

Italian Seasonings, Ice Cream Maker

Lauren of I'll Eat You
Sara of Imafoodblog

2012-02-17T15:49:00.000-08:00

Jasmine, Jam, Jelly, Juniper Berries

Meg at Meggles' Meals

2012-02-16T15:58:00.000-08:00

Knives, Kitchen, Kalamata olive

2012-02-15T15:45:00.000-08:00

Lavender, Lemon, Lettuce

Natashya of Living In The Kitchen with Puppies

2012-02-14T12:32:00.000-08:00

Mandolin, Melon, Mushroom

Jessica of Mango Missives
Madam Chow of Madam Chow's Kitchen

2012-02-13T12:33:00.000-08:00

Nutmeg, Nuts, Naan

2012-02-12T12:41:00.000-08:00

Orange, Oregano, Omelet

Olga of Olga's Recipes and Las Recetas De Olga
Mary of One Perfect Bite
Chris of Our House In the Middle of the Street

2012-02-11T12:43:00.000-08:00

Pineapple, Pepper, Pear

2012-02-10T12:54:00.000-08:00

Quail, Quince, Quinoa

2012-02-09T13:05:00.000-08:00

Rutabaga, Rosemary, Raspberries

Becky of Random Musings of a Deco Lady
Heather of Randomosity and the Girl

2012-02-08T13:07:00.000-08:00

Swiss Chard, Sieve, Sifter

Peter of Seat Food
Karen of Small Town Journey
Katherine of South Bronx Foodie
Teanna of Spork or a Foon

2012-02-07T13:08:00.000-08:00

Tumeric, Tangerine, Tomatoes

Kavita of The Girl Next Kitchen
Laurie of The Kitchn Kronicles

2012-02-06T13:09:00.000-08:00

Ugli Fruit, Unleavened, Udon

2012-02-05T13:11:00.000-08:00

Vinegar, Vanilla, Veal

2012-02-04T13:12:00.000-08:00

Whisk, Wine, Wasabi

Whitney of What's Left On The Table

2012-02-03T13:13:00.000-08:00

Xantham... any ideas?

2012-02-02T13:15:00.000-08:00

Yellow Fin Tuna, Yarrow, Yogurt

2012-02-01T13:16:00.000-08:00

Zest, Za'tar, Zucchini

Beef Wellington

2009-06-29T16:45:00.000-07:00

This months host is Mz Kitchen of Madame Chow's Kitchen. (The pictures through out this post are from Lori of Lori's Lipsmacking Goodness and Temperance of High on the Hog.) She is helping us launch our new website and celebrate our 1 yr Aniversary with this great recipe!

According to wikipedia, Beef Wellington "is a preparation of beef tenderloin coated with pâté (often pâté de foie gras) and duxelles, which is then wrapped in puff pastry and baked."

After doing quite a bit of research and experimentation, I put this recipe together. It's based on the Ultimate Beef Wellington by Tyler Florence, but I added a couple things and eliminated a couple others.

What is required: using the puff pastry (I've heard that there are vegan versions on the market, but I haven't found them), a protein, and the duxelles. You don't have to use beef, you can use chicken, or fish. If you're a vegetarian (I was a strict one for over 20 years), I recommend that you use tempeh or seitan as your protein. Why? Because moisture is the enemy here! Even pressed tofu will be too moist, and you will end up with extremely soggy pastry. Ultimately, though, it's up to you what protein you choose for the dish.

Cook the duxelles on low heat so that you have a chance to evaporate the liquid, but so that you don't burn the mushrooms and shallots. If you like your meat rare or medium rare, I suggest keeping the seared beef in the refrigerator until just before you put everything together - it took so long to brown my puff pastry, that the beef was well done. Fortunately, my husband said it was still moist, but using cold beef means that it will take longer to cook, giving your puff pastry the time to brown.

Here is a helpful Gordon Ramsey video. Please note that the recipe below does NOT include the ham that Ramsey is using in the video, but if you like the idea, go for it and use it! You can also make individual servings, but remember that you will have to adjust the cooking time accordingly - try 20 to 25 minutes to start, but be sure to check because cooking time will vary because of the thickness of the meat, the type of meat you are using, your brand of puff pastry, and your oven.

Beef Wellington

For the Duxelles:

3 pints (1 1/2 pounds) white button mushrooms
2 shallots, peeled and roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
2 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the Beef:

1 (3-pound) center cut beef tenderloin (filet mignon), trimmed
Extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves only
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
Flour, for rolling out puff pastry
1 pound puff pastry, thawed if using frozen (follow directions on the package)
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
8 ounces mousse pate, available in specialty cheese and appetizer cases of larger markets (optional)

Directions
To make the Duxelles:

Add mushrooms, shallots, garlic, and thyme to a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add butter and olive oil to a large saute pan and set over medium heat. Add the shallot and mushroom mixture and saute for 8 to 10 minutes until most of the liquid has evaporated. Season with salt and pepper and set aside to cool completely.

To prepare the beef:

Tie the tenderloin in 4 places so it holds its cylindrical shape while cooking. Drizzle with olive oil, then season with salt and pepper and sear all over, including the ends, in a hot, heavy-based skillet lightly coated with olive oil - about 2 to 3 minutes.

Using a rubber spatula cover evenly with a thin layer of duxelles. Season the surface of the duxelles with salt and pepper and sprinkle with fresh thyme leaves. When the beef is seared, remove from heat, cut off twine and smear lightly all over with Dijon mustard. Allow to cool completely.

I made the duxelles and seared the tenderloin about 10 hours in advance, and refrigerated both of them. It is important that these items are cold because you will be working with puff pastry, and if they're warm, they may cause the dough to melt before you get it in the oven.

About an hour before you plan to serve the Beef Wellington,preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

On a lightly floured surface, roll the puff pastry out to about a 1/4-inch thickness. Depending on the size of your sheets you may have to overlap 2 sheets and press them together.

Spread the duxelles mixture down in a column down the middle of the rolled out puff pastry. Thinly slice the mousse and cover the duxelles with it - every square millimeter doesn't have to be covered, but you're trying to make sure that every serving gets beef, duxelle, and mousse.

Remove beef from refrigerator. Set the beef in the center of the pastry and brush all the edges of the pastry with egg wash. Fold the longer sides over the beef, and seal. Trim ends if necessary then brush with egg wash and fold over to completely seal the beef - saving ends to use as a decoration on top if desired. Place the beef seam side down on a baking sheet.

Brush the top of the pastry with egg wash then make a couple of slits in the top of the pastry using the tip of a paring knife - this creates vents that will allow the steam to escape when cooking. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until pastry is golden brown and beef registers 125 degrees F (rare) on an instant-read thermometer. Remove from oven and rest before cutting into 3/4-inch thick slices

From the Forums:

It was like the most succulent bite of beef with all the layers of flavor. I am not a big beef fan either. So for me to say this- it means a lot. Lori of Lori's Lipsmacking Goodness

I made this for my husband using a truffle mousse from Whole Foods, and he LOVED it. At first he wasn't sure, but then changed his opinion as he made his way through the dish. Mz Kitchen of Madame Chow's Kitchen

Chickpea Fries and Falafel

2009-06-03T09:51:00.000-07:00

The hosts for May was Lori of Lori's Lipsmacking Goodness (The pictures through out this post are from Lori of Lori's Lipsmacking Goodness and Mary of One Perfect Bite. ) Here is Lori's post.

Beans, beans, the magical fruit... You know the rest, right? If not I will be happy to sing it for you.

This month the challenge is all about choice and chickpeas. And as luck would have it, chickpeas are pretty inexpensive. Here are a couple dishes that will not challenge your pocketbook but may challenge you.

Mark Bittman has some amazing ideas and amazing cookbooks. I have chosen Chickpea Fries for this months recipe. But if that does not sound appealing to you I have also chosen Falafel. You can live on the edge and make both, your choice.

Beans have such benefits. They help reduce cholesterol, cost relatively little, offer more fiber in your diet and are environmentally friendly. By that I mean, people don't realize that there is quite a cost in eating beef for instance. They are pretty heavy animals that have to be cargoed around to graze or be moved before and after slaughter. So for this reason it is quite expensive and detrimental to the environment. Now, before all you beef lovers get up in arms, I want to say that beef is great. I could write a whole post on it's virtues too. I just want to suggest that we have a meal once in a while, if not weekly, consisting of beans.

CHICKPEA FRIES
Mark Bittman, How To Cook Everything; John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

neutral oil, like grapeseed, corn, for greasing and frying
1 cup chickpea flour, sifted
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Finely grated Parmesan cheese for garnish

1. Grease a baking sheet or pizza pan with a rim and set aside. Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a medium pot. Gradually add the chickpea flour with a large pinch of salt and pepper, whisking constantly to prevent lumps from forming. Reduce to a gentle bubble, stir int he olive oil and cook for just a minute.

2. Scoop the chickpea mixture onto the prepared pan and spread into an even layer. Let cool for a few minutes and then cover loosely with parchment or plastic. Refrigerate until chilled through, about 30 minutes (but up to a day, covered tightly, after it's completely cool).

3. Put 1/8 to 1/4 inch oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Meanwhile, cut the chickpea flour mixture into 3 x 1/2- cutter). Gently put batches of the fries into the hot oil, rotating them gently for even cooking and browning on all sides, about 3 to 4 minutes.

4. Drain the fries on paper towels and immediately sprinkle with salt, lots of pepper and a good dusting of Parmesan if you like. Serve hot or at room temperature with lemon wedges.

Falafel: Chickpea Patties
Recipe by Madelain Farah, Lebanese Cuisine, Four Walls Eight Windows, 2001

* 1 pound dried chickpeas
* 1 small onion, coarsely chopped
* 2 cloves garlic, crushed
* 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon ground coriander
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
* 1/4 teaspoon red chile flakes, optional
* Salt and pepper, as needed
* 1/2 cup vegetable oil

Sandwiches:

* 6 to 8 pitas, tops sliced open and lightly toasted
* Shredded lettuce, as needed
* Tomato wedges, as needed
* Sliced red onion, as needed
* Sliced cucumbers, as needed
* Tahini Sauce, recipe follows

Directions

Make the Falafel: Soak the chickpeas in cold water in the refrigerator overnight.

Drain the chickpeas and place them with the onion in the bowl of a food processor. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the oil. Mix well. Process the mixture a second time. Form the mixture into walnut-sized balls and deep-fry or pan-fry in hot oil.

Make the Sandwiches: Stuff the pitas with lettuce and nestle the falafel patties inside. Top with the rest of the ingredients and drizzle with the tahini sauce. Serve immediately.

Tahini Sauce:

1 clove garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup tahini
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup lemon juice

Mash the garlic and salt together. Add the tahini, mixing well. The sauce will thicken. Gradually add the water, blending thoroughly. Then add the lemon juice. Blend well.

Note: This can be a thin or thick sauce, depending upon the use and preference. Simply adjust with lemon juice and water. This can be used with vegetables or in combination with other recipes.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

TIPS
Here are some tips for the falafel:

In regards to falafel, I have made it many times and it has always fallen apart on me. I usually end up putting an egg in it as a binder. This time I am not, come what may because I know others have had success without egg. I will say if you do not want to go the deep fry route, you can place little mounds in a muffin tin and do it up in the oven at about 375F. But the oil really does something magical to them. Again, your choice. Don't you just love all the choices this month?

Also the chickpea flour can be found at Indian Markets (called Besan there) and Italian Markets and Health Food Stores.

Coq Au Vin, April's Challenge

2009-04-23T04:00:00.000-07:00

Coq au vin is a peasant recipe, As Anthony Bourdain has said "Coq au vin is an old, tough bird you have to drown in wine to get it to taste good. That'll be $28.95 please."

This is one of those recipes that is deceptively hard, with a little prep work it is easy as pie, maybe even easier. The secret is the mise en place. do it all ahead, stuff it in the fridge, and throw it all together when you are ready.

Excerpt from the Les Halles Cookbook, by Anthony Bourdain...

"Another easy dish that looks like it is hard. It is not in fact, this is the kind of dish you might enjoy spending a leisurely afternoon with. There are plenty of opportunities for breaks. It’s durable, delicious, and the perfect illustration of the principles of turning something big and tough and unlovely into something truly wonderful. Knock out your prep one thing at a time, slowly building your mise en place. Listen to some music while you do it. There’s an open bottle of wine left from the recipe, so have a glass now and again. Just clean up after yourself as you go, so your kitchen doesn't look like a disaster area when you start the actual cooking. You should. with any luck, reach a Zen-like state of pleasurable calm. And like the very best dishes coq a vin is one of those that goes on the stove looking, smelling and tasting pretty nasty, and yet later, through the mysterious alchemical processes of time and heat turns into something magical."

Coq au vin
from the Les Halles Cookbook, by Anthony Bourdain, Serves 4

1 bottle/1 liter plus 1 cup/225 ml of red wine
1 onion, cut into a 1-inch/2.5 cm dice
1 carrot, cut into ¼-inch/6-mm slices
1 celery rib, cut into ½ inch/1-cm slices
4 whole cloves
1 tbs/14 g whole black peppercorns
1 bouquet garni
1 whole chicken, about 3.5 lb/1.35 kg, “trimmed” – meaning guts, wing tips and neckbone removed

salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tbs/28 ml olive oil
6 tbs/75 g butter, softened
1 tbs/14 g flour
¼ lb/112 g lardons
½ lb/ 225 g small, white button mushrooms, stems removed
12 pearl onions, peeled
pinch of sugar

Equipment:
3 large, deep bowls
plastic wrap
fine strainer
large Dutch oven or heavy –bottomed pot
tongs
wooden spoon
small sauté pan
small sauce pan
1 sheet parchment paper
whisk
deep serving platter

DAY ONE
The day before you even begin to cook, combine the bottle of red wine, the diced onion (that’s the big onion, not the pearl onions), sliced carrots, celery, cloves, peppercorns, and bouquet garni in a large deep bowl. Add the chicken and submerge it in the liquid so that all of it is covered. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

DAY TWO
Remove the chicken from the marinade and pat it dry. Put it aside. Strain the marinade through the fine strainer, reserving the liquids and solids separately. Season the chicken with salt and pepper inside and out. In the large Dutch oven, heat the oil and 2tablesppoons/28 g of the butter until almost smoking, and then sear the chicken, turning it with the tongs to evenly brown it. Once browned, it should be removed from the pot and set it aside again. Add the reserved onions, celery, and carrot to the pot and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until they are soft and golden brown. That should take about 10 minutes.

Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and mix well with the wooden spoon so that the vegetables are coated. Now stir in the reserved strained marinade. Put the chicken back in the pot, along with the bouquet garni. Cook this for about 1 hour and 15 minutes over low heat.

Have a drink. You’re almost there…

While your chicken stews slowly in the pot, cook the bacon lardons in the small sauté pan over medium heat until golden brown. Remove the bacon from the pan and drain it on paper towels, making sure to keep about 1 tablespoon/14 g of fat in the pan. Saute the mushroom tops in the bacon fat until golden brown. Set them aside.

Now, in the small saucepan, combine the pearl onions, the pinch of sugar, a pinch of salt, and 2 tablespoons/28 g of butter. Add just enough water to just cover the onions; then cover the pan with the parchment paper trimmed to the same size of the pan. (I suppose you can use foil if you must.) Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook until the water has evaporated. Keep a close eye on it. Remove the paper cover and continue to cook until the onions are golden brown. Set the onions aside and add the remaining cup/225 ml of red wine along with salt and pepper and reduce over medium-high heat until thick enough to coat the back of the spoon.

Your work is pretty much done here. One more thing and then it’s wine and kudos…

When the chicken is cooked through – meaning tender, the juice from the thigh running clear when pricked – carefully remove from the liquid, cut into quarters, and arrange on the deep serving platter. Strain the cooking liquid (again) into the reduced red wine. Now just add the bacon, mushrooms, and pearl onions, adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper, and swirl in the remaining 2 tablespoons/28 g of butter. Now pour that sauce over the chicken and dazzle your friends with your brilliance. Serve with buttered noodles and a Bourgone Rouge.

Tips
1. An old bird is best, hard to find though. Ideally you are looking for a stew chicken or an old rooster, I recommend a Kosher or Halal meat market (remember they have no pork though).
2. Bouquet garni is a bundle of herbs usually tied together with string, most recipes include parsley, thyme and bay leaf
3. Lardon may refer to different pork products cut from a pig's belly and used for larding in French cuisine. In this case you are looking for slab or country bacon, cut into small oblongs (lardons) about ¼ by 1 inch. I used salt pork, which did not smell like bacon cooking but tasted pretty good. Either way a good thick bacon with alot of nice fat and not alot of additives is what you are looking for.
4. the wine should be red, other than that pick what suits your pallet and wallet. But here is a helpful guide as well, Wine With...Coq au Vin

Quotes:

Natalia of Gatti Filie Farina said, "I made this great chicken for Easter and everybody loved it ! It became even better the next day !!"

Lauren of I'll Eat You Delish said "Just ate ours for dinner- quite tasty!"

Picture #1 Temperance of High on the Hog
Picture #2 Kat of A Good Appetite
Picture #3 Lori of Lori's Lipsmacking Goodness

Steak Diane Flambé

2009-03-23T17:49:00.000-07:00

The hosts for March was Temperance of High on the Hog and Shawnee of Delishes Delishes. (The pictures through out this post are from Shawnee of Delishes Delishes, Mary of One Perfect Bite, and Debyi of Healthy Vegan Kitchen she did portabella steaks. ) Here is Temperance's post.

For this months challenge we decided to play with fire. My co-host Shawnee of Delishes Delishes came up with this recipe for us to try. As Shawnee said 'I've never purposely set fire to my food before (besides marshmallows)'. You know what, neither have I, about time wouldn't you say?

Steak Diane Flambé
recipe by Frank Bordoni from Great Food Live.
Ingredients

For the steaks
4x85g beef medallions
1 tsp Dijon mustard
freshly ground salt and pepper

For the sauce
1 tsp Butter, clarified
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp Shallots, finely chopped
50g button mushrooms, finely sliced
1 tbsp lemon juice
125ml double cream
1 tbsp Chives, snipped
50ml Brandy

Method
1. Rub the medallions of beef with the mustard, season with salt and pepper and set aside.
2. Heat a large frying pan over a medium heat and when hot, add the clarified butter and Worcestershire sauce.
3. Add the shallots and mushrooms, and push to the centre of the pan. Arrange the medallions around the edge. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring and tossing the mushroom mixture as you go. If you prefer your steak well done, give it an extra minute or 2.
4. Add the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper.
5. Turn the steaks over and pour in the cream and chives. Tilt the pan slightly (away from you) and pour in the brandy at the far end. Now turn up the heat to high so that the brandy ignites. Swirl the sauce around in the pan and turn off the heat.
6. Put the medallions on 4 plates, pour over the sauce and serve.

Disclaimer:
We do not require that you flambé, if you choose to flambé and burn down your kitchen, don't sue us. If you choose to flambé try and get a picture (I recommend getting someone to help). Remember when playing with fire keep a fire extinguisher close and never use water on a cooking fire.

Here are some links to help, an Online Conversion Calculator , and a Guide to Flambéing.

From the Forum:

I completed this month's challenge and everyone loved it! I wasn't too crazy about the cream sauce, but everyone else did so that's all that matters
JMom of Cooked From the Heart

My boy loved the taste of the sauce.
Olga of Las Recetas de Olga

The recipe is very easy and everyone (all 6 of us) enjoyed it very much. The mushrooms I flambe'd were wonderful. Don't know how much I attribute to the flambe and how much to my mad cooking skills! But they were carmelized and yummy.
Shawnee of Delishes Delishes

Ricotta Cheese

2009-02-26T11:38:00.000-08:00

Our host for February was Lauren of I'll Eat You. (The picture in this post KatBaro of A Good Appetite. ) Here is Lauren's post.

I have been making soft cheeses at home for about a year now. They are surprisingly simple, and there are many that don't require special equipment. While I would love for us all to go out and buy cheese molds and cultures and age our own Gouda, we are going to be making fresh ricotta, which can be made in your own kitchen with things you already own. (Bon Appetit kinda stole my thunder on this, but whatever).

Fresh Ricotta

you'll need:
1 gallon milk (you can use 1 percent on up, remember that the more fat in the milk, the more cheese it will yield.)
1 quart buttermilk

-cheesecloth (a good, tightly woven one, not the kind you buy at the supermarket)- If you don't have one of these, you can get by with a slotted spoon, but you may lose some of the cheese.

-a thermometer (mine is for oil and candy)

Place buttermilk and milk in a pot, heat on med-low heat until it reaches 185 degrees.

It will begin to separate into curds and whey. Be sure to stir occasionally to make sure no curds stick to the bottom and burn. You will see that as the temperature approaches 185, the whey becomes clearer as the curds coagulate more.

Pour the curds into a cheesecloth lined colander. Tie the ends of the cheesecloth together and hang for 10-15 minutes. Remove from cheesecloth and place in an airtight container.

Voila! Cheese!

Here is a link to a post about making ricotta, with pictures.

Some tips:

use can use milk that has been pasteurized, but not ultra-pasteurized. Ultra pasteurization heats the milk too much, and de natures the proteins that form curds. You will not get cheese from ultra pasteurized milk. Sorry.

make sure your pots and other equipment are very clean before starting

you can make any amount as long as you stick to a 4 parts milk to 1 part buttermilk ratio.

From the Forum:

The ricotta was great. I had it drain longer, so it was drier. I personally like it drier. I used unsweetened soy milk, but there was still a hint of sweetness in some of the bites
Debyi of Healthy Vegan Kitchen

can't believe how simple it was especially when we've been paying 18bucks a pop for cream cheese
Kavs of The Girl Next Kitchen

I did my cheese on Saturday and tastes the same as a fresh cheese we have in Spain called Mató.
Olga of Las Recetas de Olga

Beet Leaf Holopchi

2009-02-01T16:04:00.000-08:00

Our hosts for January were KatBaro of A good Appetite and Giz & Psychgrad from Equal Opportunity Kitchen. (The pictures through out this post are from Temperance of High on the Hog and Psychgrad of Equal Opportunity Kitchen. ) Here is KatBaro's post.

Happy New Year everyone. This month I am hosting the challenge with Giz & Psychgrad from Equal Opportunity Kitchen. For this month's recipe we chose a Ukrainian dish called Holopchi. It's a big like a cabbage roll but its not. It seemed like a good comfort dish for winter.

Here's the recipe along with some notes from Giz

Beet Leaf Holopchi
from The Keld Community Ladies Club in Ashville, Manitoba. The last publishing of this cookbook was 1976 and I doubt it's even in circulation anymore.

This is not your usual cabbage roll - can you imagine a bread dough wrapped in beet leaves and baked in a creamy, garlic, onion and dill sauce.

Bread Dough:

2 pkgs. yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 tsp sugar
2 cups scalded milk
4 cups warm water
1/4 cup melted butter
8 cups flour
3 eggs, beaten
2 Tbsp salt
1 Tbsp Sugar
6 1/2 cups flour
a couple bunches of beet leaves

Note: When I first saw this recipe I thought it was wrong - how many recipes need THAT much flour. I used the recipe and indeed had to add more to get the right consistency. AND I ran out of dough before I ran out of beet leaves.

Directions

1. Dissolve 1 ts. sugar in 1/2 cup tepid water, sprinkle with yeast and let stand for 10 minutes.
2. To the milk-water liquid add the melted butter, dissolved yeast and 8 cups of flour. Let rise in a warm place until double in bulk (about 1 hour)
3. Add salt, beaten eggs, sugar and remaining flour.
4. Knead well until dough is smooth and top with melted butter or oil.
5. Place in a warm place and let rise until double in bulk. It will take about 2 hours. Punch down . When dough has risen to double in bulk, place a piece of dough, the size of a walnut on a beet leaf and roll up (leaving sides open)
6. Place holopchi loosely in a pot to allow for dough to rise to double in bulk again.
7. Arrange in layers, dotting each layer with butter.
8. Cover tightly, bake in a moderate oven of 350 F for 3/4 to 1 hour. Serve with dill sauce or cream and onion sauce. (I like to cook the holopchi with the sauce but you don't have to. You can add it later - just make sure you have enough butter in roasting pan before layering your beet leaf rolls.)
I baked mine longer - about 1 1/2 hours and was happy with the result

Sauce

1/2 cup butter
2 cups whipping cream
8 small onions (I used chives)
2 handfuls of chopped fresh dill (this makes the whole dish)
2-4 large cloves of garlic, chopped fine

Melt butter in saucepan. Add onions (chives) garlic, dill and cream.
Let it come to a boil and then turn down the heat.
I like to cook the holopchi with the sauce but you don't have to. You can add it later - just make sure you have enough butter in roasting pan before layering your beet leaf rolls.

This is not a 5 minute recipe. When you commit to making it - it's an adventure - most definitely a worthwhile one. This recipe filled an open roaster and a turkey sized roaster.

From the Forum:

Even though I thought this was a very strange concept, I am reporting back to you all that it was quite good.
Lauren of I'll Eat You

It was wonderful! This was my first R2R and a 'keeper' recipe for sure.
Snapper of Our House In The Middle Of The Street

I tucked some pork chops under the holopchi and boy were they great, they came out so tender.
Temperance of High on the Hog

Appetizer Trio

2008-12-30T12:37:00.001-08:00

Our hosts for December were Temperance of High on the Hog and Jen of Delightful Delicacies. (The pictures through out this post are from Temperance of High on the Hog and Jen of Delightful Delicacies) Here is Temperance's post.

When appetizers won our poll for the holidays I knew just what I wanted to do Gougères, I am a cream puff fiend and a savory version just had to be good. For my second choice I wanted something with lots of meaty goodness. I went thru alot of different options before settling on Oysters en Brochette (angels on horseback). Ironically these are the first two things I ever bookmarked on Foodgawker.

Gruyère Cheese Gougères
Copyright 'The French Laundry Cookbook' By Thomas Keller, November, 1999
Makes about 4 dozen gougères

Gougères are a classical preparation often served at wine tastings in France. The puffs are made from a savory pâte á choux, or cream puff dough-flavored here with Gruyère. They are best served hot out of the oven, offering that creamy-dough gratification. Don't add the cheese, and the puff is a base for a dessert.

1 cup water
7 tablespoons (3-1/2 ounces) unsalted butter
1 tablespoon kosher salt, or more to taste
Pinch of sugar
1-1/4 cups (5 ounces) all-purpose flour
4 to 5 large eggs
1-1/4 cups grated Gruyère (5 ounces)
Freshly ground white pepper

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with Silpats or parchment paper.

In a medium saucepan, combine the water, butter, salt, and sugar and bring to a boil. Add all the flour at once, reduce the heat to medium, and stir with a wooden spoon for 2 minutes, or until the mixture forms a ball and the excess moisture has evaporated (if the ball forms more quickly, continue to cook and stir for a full 2 minutes).

Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle and beat for about 30 seconds at medium speed to cool slightly. Add 4 eggs and continue to mix until completely combined and the batter has a smooth, silky texture. Stop the machine and lift up the beater to check the consistency of the batter. The batter in the mixing bowl should form a peak with a tip that falls over. If it is too stiff, beat in the white of the remaining egg. Check again and, if necessary, add the yolk. Finally, mix in 3/4 cup of the Gruyère and adjust the seasoning with salt and white pepper.

Fill a pastry bag fitted with a 3/8-inch plain pastry tip with the gougère batter. Pipe the batter into 1-tablespoon mounds on the baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between the gougères as the mixture will spread during baking. Sprinkle the top of each gougère with about 1/2 teaspoon of the remaining grated cheese and bake for 7 to 8 minutes, or until they puff and hold their shape. Reduce the heat to 350 degrees F. And bake for an additional 20 to 25 minutes. When the gougères are done, they should be a light golden brown color. When you break one open, it should be hollow; the inside should be cooked but still slightly moist. Remove the pans from the oven and serve the gougères while hot.

Notes:
These were good hot or cold. I did two different sizes (Tablespoon and Teaspoon) and had a slight preference for the smaller ones. Feel free to try using a different cheese, it makes a big difference in the taste. You can make them up in advance and stick them in the freezer, let them thaw for 10 minutes and then bake in oven as usual and you have warm fresh Gougères. I also thought that stuffing them would be a really good idea.

~~~~~~~~~~~

From Wiki: Oysters en Brochette is a classic dish in New Orleans Creole cuisine. Raw oysters are skewered, alternating with pieces of partially cooked bacon. The entire thing is then breaded (usually with corn flour) and then either deep fried or pan sauteed. The traditional presentation is on triangles of toast with the skewer removed and topped with a Meuniere sauce. When done right, the dish should have a crispy exterior and a soft savory center with a textural contrast between the bacon and the oyster. It was usually offered on restaurant menus as an appetizer; but was also a popular lunch entree.

At one time it was a ubiquitous option on menus across the spectrum of New Orleans restaurants. Today it is rarely seen (no doubt owing to health concerns over the combination of fried oysters, fried bacon, and butter). An exemplary version can still be found at Galatoire's.

A variation served as an hors d'oeuvres is Angels on Horseback. Single oysters are wrapped in partially cooked slices of bacon, each skewered with a toothpick. They are floured and deep fried and then passed on cocktail platters with a dipping sauce.

Galatoire’s Oysters en Brochette
Copyright New Orleans Times-Picayune December 21, 2000
Serves 4 as an appetizer or two as main course

12 strips bacon, cut in half
2 dozen oysters, raw
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
Salt and pepper to taste
Flour
Oil for deep frying
Toast point and lemon wedges for serving

Fry bacon until not quite crisp. Alternate six oysters and six half strips of bacon folded on each of four 8-inch skewers. Make a batter with egg and
milk and season well with salt and pepper. Dip each skewer in batter.
Roll in flour and deep-fry in hot oil until golden. Serve on toast points
with lemon wedges.

Meuniere Sauce:
Copyright Tom Fitzmorris's 'New Orleans Food: More than 225 of the City's Best Recipes to Cook at Home (New Orleans Cooking)'

2 sticks butter
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

1. Start the sauce before the Oysters en Brochette. Place the butter in a small saucepan over very low heat. Let it melt, then let it bubble until it stops. Skim the foam off the top. Keep the butter over the lowest possible heat on your stove top. (you want it to brown)

2. Add the lemon juice and the Worcestershire slowly to the butter sauce just before serving. Careful! This may make the butter foam up again and perhaps splatter!

Notes:
For a GF option leave off the breading and stick it under the broiler. If Meuniere isn't your sauce of choice there are alot of other options out there. To prevent wooden toothpicks and skewers from burning soak them in water first.

~~~~~~~~~

For our last appetizer, we wanted to be courageous and try something we thought we’d never really try otherwise. There’s always been hype for the combination of blue cheese, walnut, and pear; so we decided gorgonzola and pear crostini would be perfect. Neither of us necessarily like bleu cheese, but after this, who knows?

WARNING: If you or any of your guests are expecting, or might be expecting, there is danger in eating un-pasteurized cheeses/other dairy products. There may also be a threat in eating any ‘blue-veined’ cheese. It may be a smart idea to buy pasteurized blue cheese, or study up on it, and decide if this is the appetizer for you and yours. Just to be safe.
Which cheeses are safe to eat when you're pregnant, and which aren't?
Week 13 of Pregnancy: Foods to Avoid
Eating Right When Pregnant

This recipe is easily altered to be gluten free; just use any gluten free bread of your choice for the crostini.

Blue Cheese, Pear and Walnut Crostini:

a baguette, thinly sliced about ½ inch each
olive oil
mascarpone, for spreading (optional)
any type of bleu cheese (gorgonzola, Roquefort, stilton), thinly sliced, or crumbled
freshly hulled walnuts
a few pears, peeled and sliced into small cubes

1. Brush your bread slices with olive oil, line on a baking sheet, then toast in a hot oven for a few minutes until browned and crispy. You can broil them as well, if you prefer.

2. Remove from heat and spread each toast with some mascarpone.

3. Lay bleu cheese slices, or spread some crumbles, on each toast and add walnut pieces on top. Return to a 375-400°F oven for a few minutes, just until the cheese is melted.

4. When the cheese is nicely melted, take the crostinis out of the oven and top with a few cubes of pear. Serve soon after.

Notes:…If you don’t use the mascarpone, just go straight to melting the bleu cheese step.
…Of course, it’s always a great idea to use the freshest ingredients you can find.
…You can even mix all the ingredients together and just dollop a spoonful on and melt, or keep it as a sort of dip.
…Feel free to add ingredients, it’d be interesting to see what you pair with it.
…Obviously there are no specific measurements, this is because it’s all according to what you fancy. You can even make just one, just to try. Who know, you may just love it!

There are numerous types of bleu cheese. See here: Blue Cheese from Wiki
The most common types, that I found at most every one of my markets, were bleu, stilton, Roquefort, gorgonzola and ‘amish bleu’. The cheese man at my market told us that gorgonzola is a bit milder than regular bleu. Of course, they both smelled like feet to me, so who knows. Jen

Some pictures and other helps for inspiration:
Pear, Walnut and Gorgonzola Bruschetta from FX Cusine
Search results from Epicurious
Recipe from Hunt County Wines

From the Forum:

Being Christmas time we were all very busy and saved our writing for our journals, so no quotes this month. It was all good though, trust me :) Temperance

Squash Soup with Vanilla Crème Fraiche

2008-11-28T22:03:00.000-08:00

Our host for November was Meg of Joy Through Cooking. (The pictures through out this post are from Kavs of The Girl Next Kitchen, Temperance of http://hoghigh.blogspot.com/ and Maybelle's Mom of Feeding Maybelle.) Here is Meg's post.

When I saw our fabulous hosts were looking for a soup recipe for November I JUMPED at the chance. You see… I love soup. Creamy or clear… warm and cozy this time of year it just warms you from the inside out. I have a few different soup cookbooks and have had fun experimenting over the last few years.

Temperance and Lori encourage hosts to choose something new to us, as well. Then I remembered… there WAS a recipe that I had been wanting to try. It was challenging, and had a twist but was still safe with lovely flavors.

You see, we love watching Bravo! Reality shows. For our members abroad, this channel has some skill-based reality shows… a fashion designer show, a hairdressing show, and… a cooking show. Top Chef. In my humble opinion, the best of the bunch (new season starts next week!). In the last season set in Chicago there was a challenge set at Second City Comedy Club where the audience threw out theme words that the chefs were to use as inspiration for their challenge dish. Each team had a color, a food or flavor, and an emotion. One team, the team that eventually won the challenge had the words: Yellow, Vanilla, Love.

They made a soup. A squash bisque with a dollop of vanilla crème fraiche. And they put love in it as they layered flavors, tasted, and perfected it. To me, a rich warm thick soup is all about love… it is a dish that just loves you right back!

So this is the Challenge: Squash Soup with Vanilla Crème Fraiche

Main “requirements” for this soup: Make your own stock. You can use the recipe given or play with the flavors. The given stock is a vegetable one. If you want to go with a chicken stock you are welcome to, but it must be homemade. This part can be done ahead.

Incorporate a creamy vanilla element. You can use whipping cream if crème fraiche is cost-prohibitive. For those with allergies/food restrictions of course please substitute as needed but for those who do not have those restrictions, please incorporate a creamy vanilla garnish.

For the soup it should be a squash soup. I used a mix of Butternut, buttercup, and acorn squash but you can use your favorites (or what is available). You can pre-cook the squash as well.

Beyond that, please use your creativity. As we know, much of cooking is about feel and taste. So taste your soup as you are cooking it, often. Taste your stock. Adjust your seasonings as you see fit. I really enjoyed the flavor the miso brought to the soup – it was something a little different, but you can play with herbs, spices, fruit, etc that you think will be right for you. The more you cook, taste, season, cook, taste, season… the more layered your flavors will become. Whatever you choose to do, please cook your soup with LOVE.

The recipe given is huge. It would serve more than 8, easily. Go with the full recipe if you plan to serve this for your holiday dinner. I cut it in half and had a ton or leftovers still.

Suggestion: make more stock than the recipe calls for. You will want the flexibility to keep adding to the soup to achieve desired consistency. And you can certainly use any extra stock in your cooking.

Also, I highly recommend making the stock and cooking the squash ahead (and stick in the fridge). Then making the mirepoix and pulling the soup together will be much quicker… and since you do not want to rush soup, this is a good thing.

The recipe called to cheesecloth straining. You can do that, or use an immersion blender, or whatever other tools you may have on hand.

Squash Soup with Vanilla Creme Fraiche
Please see the original inspiration here.
Prep Time: one hour and 30 minutes
Serves: more than 8 (I estimate about 20)
Spike & Andrew's recipe:

Mirepoix:

3 sliced leek bottoms (rinsed)
4 carrots (peeled and sliced)
10 shallots (peeled and sliced)
1 clove garlic
1/2 lb butter
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup miso stir
Salt and pepper

Squash:

5 acorn
5 butternut
Oil for rubbing
Sage leaves
Salt and pepper

Vegetable Stock:

4 quarts water
2 white onions
4 carrots, peeled
2 leeks
6-8 button mushrooms
Bouquet garnish (parsley, bay leaves, peppercorns)

Vanilla Creme Fraiche:

Creme fraiche
2 vanilla beans

Additional Ingredients:

Salt to taste
Cayenne to taste

DIRECTIONS:
Mirepoix:
Sweat all of the vegetables with butter. Sweat down and deglaze with honey. Stir and add miso. Season with salt and pepper.
Squash:
Cut squash in half, scoop out seeds and reserve one butternut head for garnish. Rub squash with oil and season with salt and pepper. Place one piece of sage under every piece of squash. Place squash face down on a sheet tray and roast at 350 degrees until done. Scoop flesh out and pass through a ricer.
Vegetable Stock:
In a pot, boil all ingredients together with the exception of the bouquet garnishes. (NOTE:allow to simmer for at least 1 hour)
Vanilla Creme Fraiche:
Whip creme fraiche and scrape vanilla beans and fold in.
Soup:
Combine squash and vegetable stock to desired consistency. Add mirepoix and cook. Blend with a vita prep and strain through a chinois. Season with salt and cayenne.
To Plate:
Add 6 ounces of soup in bowl and spoon in creme fraiche. Garnish with bouquet garnishes.

Quotes From the Forum:

Oh my gosh was this yummy!! I loved what the vanilla creme fraiche did for this dish! It was so fragrant, so flowery- it reminded me that vanilla comes from an orchid.
Lauren of I'll Eat You

The soup is awesome, and I have to say it gets even better every day.
Kathrine of South Bronx Foodie

Oh my! Just made the soup tonite everyone said it was amazing. This was a fantastic pick. I never would have put miso with squash but it was ABSOLUTELY delicious.
Lori of Lori's Lipsmacking Goodness

Beef Rendang

2008-10-30T19:46:00.000-07:00

Our hosts for October were Rayrena of Happy Cows and Belita of Culinary Adventures. (The pictures through out this post are from Rayrena of Happy Cows, Liz of Bits 'N Bites and Maybelle's Mom of Feeding Maybelle.) Here is Rayrena's post.

Since this is my birthday month, I figured what better gift than being able to choose the recipe for our October challenge

Almost two years ago I listened to a podcast on The Splendid Table that featured James Oseland, who is now the Editor in Chief of Saveur magazine. The recipe he described and shared with them was for Beef Rendang. I've been haunted by this dish and was excited to give it a try.

I received permission from the author to reprint this recipe and an accompanying pickle recipe. I am also posting a vegetarian/vegan option just to this forum but we do not have his permission to post it publicly. I am looking forward to trying the vegetarian option since it sounds delicious!

If you are interested, you can listen to the author's interview at The Splendid Table and view the recipe there as well.

Excerpted from Cradle of Flavor: Home Cooking from the Spice Islands of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore by James Oseland (W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2006) Copyright 2006 by James Oseland.

Beef Rendang (Rendang Daging Sapi)
Makes 4 to 6 servings

This extravagantly rich, dry-braised beef curry is a signature dish of the Minangkabau highlands of West Sumatra, Indonesia. It's a triumph of flavor, with lime leaves, nutmeg, and cloves. The dish is cooked by a process that inverts normal braising. The beef is slowly simmered in a spiced coconut-milk broth until the broth evaporates and the meat is left to sauté in the intensely flavored rendered coconut and beef oils left in the pot.

This recipe comes from Rohati, my cooking guru in Padang, West Sumatra. She offered me a few sage words of advice when she gave it to me. First, she said, allow plenty of time to make it. Rendang has its own lethargic cooking rhythm, so that the more you try to rush it, the longer it seems to take. I know what she means. I've often underestimated how long it takes to cook and have left hungry dinner guests waiting while it continued slowly to simmer away. Second, she said, use a shallow, wide pan, such as a skillet, rather than a deep soup pot. The less enclosed the cooking space, the easier it will be for the liquid to evaporate—in other words, the opposite of how you want to cook a curry. And third, Rohati advised me always to use the best-quality beef I can get. In America this means avoiding precut stewing beef, which is of inconsistent quality. Instead, choose boneless chuck or bottom round laced through with bright white fat and cut it into cubes yourself.

"Rendang is sacred food in West Sumatra," Rohati said. "If you skimp on ingredients, you risk upsetting Allah."

If you decide to use the maximum number of chiles this recipe calls for, you may need to use a standard-sized food processor, rather than a small one. An excellent garnish for this dish is a tablespoon of very finely sliced fresh or thawed, frozen kaffir lime leaves. Be sure to remove the center stem of each leaf before slicing it.

For the Flavoring Paste:

* 1 whole nutmeg, cracked open with a nutcracker or a heavy, blunt object such as the bottom of a glass measuring cup
* 5 whole cloves
* 6 shallots (about 5 ounces), coarsely chopped
* 3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
* 5 to 20 fresh red Holland chiles or other fresh long, red chiles such as Fresno or cayenne, stemmed and coarsely chopped
* 1 piece fresh or thawed, frozen turmeric, 2 inches long, peeled and coarsely chopped (about 2 teaspoons), or 1 1/2 teaspoons ground turmeric
* 1 piece fresh ginger, 2 inches long, peeled and thinly sliced against the grain (about 2 tablespoons)
* 1 piece fresh or thawed, frozen galangal, 2 inches long, peeled and thinly sliced against the grain (about 2 tablespoons; optional)
* 5 candlenuts or unsalted macadamia nuts

For the remainder of the dish:

* 2 pounds well-marbled boneless beef chuck or bottom round, cut into 2- to 2 1/2-inch cubes
* 2 1/2 cups unsweetened coconut milk
* 3 thick stalks fresh lemongrass, each tied into a knot
* 1 piece cinnamon stick, 4 inches long
* 7 whole fresh or thawed, frozen kaffir lime leaves
* 5 whole daun salam leaves (optional)
* 1 teaspoon kosher salt
* 1 tablespoon very finely shredded fresh or thawed, frozen kaffir lime leaves (optional)

1. To make the flavoring paste, place the nutmeg and cloves in a small food processor and pulse until ground to a dusty powder, about 2 minutes.

2. Add the shallots, garlic, chiles, turmeric, ginger, galangal (if using), and candlenuts to the ground spices. Pulse until you have a chunky-smooth paste the consistency of cooked oatmeal.

3. In a 12-inch skillet (nonstick works best), mix the beef and the flavoring paste until well combined. Add the coconut milk, lemongrass, cinnamon, whole lime leaves, daun salam leaves (if using), and salt. Stir well to combine and bring to a gentle boil over medium heat. Immediately reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer uncovered at a slow, steady bubble, stirring every 10 to 20 minutes with a spatula to prevent the meat and coconut milk from sticking and scorching. You'll probably need to adjust the heat periodically to maintain an even simmer.

4. The meat, coconut milk, and flavoring paste will now go on a fascinating journey. At first, the broth will be thin and gorgeously bright orange. As it cooks, the coconut milk will reduce, its fats (as well as the fat the meat renders) separating from the solids. It will become progressively thicker and darker, eventually turning brown. Continue to simmer gently until the liquid has reduced by about 95 percent, stirring every 15 minutes or so to prevent sticking. Only the meat, oils, and a bit of very thick sauce will remain in the pot. This will take anywhere from 2 to 3 hours, depending on the skillet that you use, how hot the fire is, and the richness of the coconut milk. Test the meat; it should be tender enough to poke easily with a fork. Taste some of the liquid for salt, and add a pinch more if needed.

5. When all the liquid has evaporated, reduce the heat to low (the meat and the remaining sauce are prone to burning) and allow the beef to brown slowly in the rendered fat. (The fat may be foamy at this point, but it will settle down when the cooking stops.) Stir every 5 minutes or so to prevent sticking and scorching, being careful not to break the beef apart. Continue sautéing the beef until it's the color of roasted coffee beans, 5 to 10 minutes longer. The surface of the beef should be barely moist and have an appetizing oily sheen. (If there is too much oil in the pan for your liking, skim some of it off with a spoon and set aside for later use; it's wonderful for sautéing potatoes.)

6. Remove and discard the cinnamon, lemongrass, lime leaves, and daun salam leaves (if used), and then transfer the beef to a serving dish. (Alternatively, serve this dish with all the aromatics, for a more rustic presentation.) Garnish with the shredded lime leaves, if using. Allow the beef to rest for at least 30 minutes before serving. Slightly warm room temperature will best show off its intensely aromatic flavors. This dish will taste even better the next day.

My testing notes:

1) For the nutmeg and cloves, I pounded in a small mortar. The threw the remaining paste ingredients in a food blender. I used some of the coconut milk to get it all moving, then poured it all over the meat before cooking.
2) For the lemongrass, remove the first couple outer leaves, trim away the dry tips and pound the stalk with the handle of your knife or a meat mallet, then tie into a knot.
3) The first time I used dried turmeric, didn't use the galangal or lime leaves and it was very good.
4) One time I used 8 cayenne chiles and it was fairly spicy, the next time I used 6 Fresno chiles and there wasn't much heat.
5) Both times I had a hard time getting the meat tender. Both times I ended up adding a can of chicken stock towards the last 1/2 hour and cooking until tender, then cranking up the heat until it evaporated.
6) Definitely use a nonstick pan. And be watchful towards the end, the resulting paste can brown quickly!

Following is the recipe for the accompanying pickle dish:

Javanese Cucumber and Carrot Pickle (Acar Timun)
Makes 4 servings.

* 3 small Kirby (pickling) cucumbers (about 10 ounces), unpeeled, stemmed, cut into matchsticks about 2" long and 1/4" wide
* 1 large carrot (about 5 ounces), peeled and cut into matchsticks about 2" long and 1/4" wide
* 3 shallots (about 2 1/2 ounces), thinly sliced lengthwise
* 1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
* 2 cups boiling water
* 2 heaping tablespoons sugar
* 2 tablespoonspalm, cider, or rice vinegar
* 2 fresh green Thai chiles, stemmed and cut on the diagonal into slices 1/4" thick

1. Combine the cucumbers, carrots, shallots, and salt in a heatproof, nonreactive bowl. Pour the boiling water over the vegetables and stir well. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and let the vegetables rest for 15 minutes.

2. Drain the vegetables in a colander, gently squeezing out excess water with your hands. They should be fairly dry, but they need not be bone-dry.

3. Transfer the vegetables to a nonreactive bowl. Add the sugar, vinegar, and chiles and stir well to combine. Taste a cucumber. It should have a balance of saltiness, sourness, and sweetness. Keep in mind that it is a condiment and should be fairly strongly flavored. Adjust the seasonings, including the salt, accordingly.

4. Allow the dish to rest at least 15 minutes, to give the flavors time to settle. Serve the pickle at room temperature, never cold, which would mute the flavor. This pickle should be eaten within hours of making it. If left longer, it will lose its perkiness and robustly sweet-tart flavor.

My testing notes:

1) I just used a plate to cover the bowl while the pickle and hot water mixture.
2) I forgot to add the Thai chiles and it was still good.
3) Play with it, I preferred a more sour pickle so added more vinegar.

Quotes From the Forum:

I made it for dinner tomorrow but had a few bites tonight. delicious. and the smell was heavenly. Maybelle's Mom of Feeding Maybelle

The pickles were really nice. Such an easy recipe too. I can't wait to try it next summer with vegetables from my garden Liz of Bits 'N Bites

I made it today Rayrena. We loved it. The flavor was amazing. As I was adding all the spices I was thinking oh my will this be good all together. Lori of Lori's Lipsmacking Goodness

Chinese Dumplings

2008-09-19T17:05:00.001-07:00

Our hosts for September were Heather of Randomosity and the Girl and Temperance of High on the Hog. (The pictures through out the post are from Judy of Culinary Escapades, Rayrena of I Love Happy Cows and Kat of A Good Appetite. Here is what Heather posted.

I have long been a fan of Chinese food and the recent Summer Olympics in Beijing have made me crave the delicious dishes even more. One dish that I have always loved to eat is dumplings. While I love dumplings at restaurants, I had never been able to make a decent looking or tasty dumpling at home. So my co-host, Temperance, and I thought this would be a perfect challenge for us in September.

Chinese dumpling or Jiaozi, generally consists of minced meat and chopped vegetables wrapped into a piece of dough. Popular meat fillings include ground pork, ground beef, ground chicken, shrimp, and even fish. Popular mixtures are pork with Chinese cabbage, lamb with spring onion, leeks with eggs, etc. Jiaozi are usually boiled or steamed. Jiaozi is a traditional dish for Chinese New Year's Eve. Family members gather together to make dumplings. (1)

The recipe we have chosen is simple but it allows for variation. If shrimp and turkey isn't your thing, pork and chicken are other options. Or you can go straight vegetable filling if you prefer. You can also pan fry the dumplings instead of steaming. I've tested the recipe both ways and each way is delicious.

Shrimp Dumplings
Prep Time: 20 min, Cook Time: 20 min, Makes 24

Dumplings
4 large shiitake mushrooms
3 scallions
1/2 garlic clove
8 ounces shrimp, peeled and deveined
6 ounces ground turkey
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
3 dashes of hot red-pepper sauce
24 dumpling wrappers (see recipe below)

Dipping Sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon dark sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh ginger or 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger

1. Coat a steamer basket with a non stick cooking spray and set aside. In a small saucepan, soak the mushrooms in boiling water to cover for 15 minutes, then drain. Remove and discard the stems; cut the caps into quarters.

2. In a food processor, combine the mushroom caps, scallions, and garlic and whirl until coarsely chopped. Add the shrimp and whirl until finely chopped. Transfer to a medium bowl and stir in the turkey, soy sauce, oil, and red-pepper sauce.

3. Place 1 tablespoon of the shrimp mixture in the center of each dumpling wrapper. Dampen the edges with water, the fold up the sides around the filling, pleating the edges. Place in the steamer basket, leaving 1/2 inch of space between the dumplings for the steam to circulate. Set over boiling water, cover, and steam for 15 minutes.

4. For the dipping sauce, in a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, vinegar, honey, oil, and ginger. Serve the dumplings hot with the dipping sauce.

Personalize it!
For a different flavor, use ground pork in place of the ground turkey. You can also drop a pinch of chopped scallions into the dipping sauce if you like

HOT WATER DOUGH:

4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups boiling water

In a stainless steel bowl mix flour and salt. Slowly add hot water to flour in 1/4 cup increments. Mix with chopsticks until a ball is formed and the dough is not too hot to handle. On a floured surface, knead dough until it becomes a smooth, elastic ball. Place back in bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Allow to rest for at least 1 hour. Working on a floured surface with floured hands, roll out dough to form a long 'noodle', 1-inch in diameter. Cut 1/2-inch pieces and turn them over so the cut sides are facing up. Flatten with your palm and roll out thin using a rolling pin. The dumpling wrapper should end up about 3 inches in diameter. (2)

Source: Extraordinary Meals from Ordinary Ingredients, ©2007 The Reader's Digest Association, Inc.
(1) Wikipedia link for Dumplings
(2) Ming's Dumpling Recipe

Quotes From the Forum:

Although I do love the pre-packaged skins from Chao's... Less preparation and cooking time, more eating time! I am glad that I can say I tried it from scratch though, my yeye and mama L would be proud.
Jen of Delightful Delicacies

I subbed tofu for the shrimp and turkey, and they tasted great! I ate way too many of them, and was uncomfortably full for awhile, but they were worth it. Great pick!
Debyi of Healthy Vegan Kitchen

All and all these were quite a treat and easier than we expected. We made a little dim sum feast that night that also included chive pancakes and sesame beans.
Kat of A Good Appetite

Tamales

2008-08-20T12:36:00.000-07:00

Our hosts for August were Debyi of Healthy Vegan Kitchen and Lori of Lip Smacking Goodness. (The pictures through out the post are from Nikki of Canary Girl, Kat of A Good Appetite and Jen of Delightful Delicacies.) Here is what Debyi posted.

"For the August Challenge, I was trying to decide what was one thing I love to eat, but have never really made. A couple of things came to mind, but there was really no obvious choice. My favorite food that I can't seem to eat out, because of my food allergies, is Tamales! I love tamales, I can never get enough of them. Served with refried beans and Spanish rice, or topped with chili. In my pre-vegan days, I would serve them with scrambled eggs and salsa. There are so many possibilities. You can make them full fat or low fat, vegan or not, although I would challenge you to make them vegan as a great challenge! You can choose your own filling, though I have included some fillings to give you some ideas. Feel free to cut the Basic Tamale recipe in half since it does make a lot, but they freeze well, so if you make the full recipe, you can easily freeze them for tamales anytime. Don't be afraid by how many pages this is. It's long because there are filling options at the end.

I was able to find corn husks in the bulk spice section and the Hispanic aisle of my local chain grocery stores (Fry's and Safeway). Hopefully you will be able to find all the ingredients easily. Bob's Red Mill makes masa harina which I found in the health food section of my grocery store, but I know it is also available on the Hispanic aisle as well. "

Please visit people on the blog roll for their interpretations. Lots of inspiration and ideas out there.

Basic Tamale Recipe
by Chef Jason Wyrick of The Vegan Culinary Experience
Serves: 24 Time to Prepare: 1 hour

12 cups of masa harina flour
10 cups of water or veggie stock (see below for some tasty stock options,
this amount may also vary depending on the type of masa you use)
1 tbsp. of salt
3 cups of vegetable shortening (Option: 2 cups of oil or margarine
instead of the shortening)
24 dried corn husks
Water to soak the husks
Option: 1 tbsp. of baking powder

1. Warm the stock. Combine the masa harina flour with the salt (and optional baking powder.) Stir the vegetable shortening rapidly until it is creamy.
2. Pour the stock into the masa mix and stir until it is thoroughly combined. Beat the moist masa mix into the shortening until you have a paste that will spread with a knife without breaking apart. You should end up with a semi-thick paste. If you do not have this, you can add more stock in ¼ cup amounts to the mix until you have the right consistency.
3. To check the consistency, spread the masa on a corn husk and if it spreads easily while staying together, you have the right consistency.
Option: If you use oil instead of the shortening, add it to the dry masa and then add the stock to the masa.
4. Soak the corn husks for at least 2 minutes. (Some husks may still have the silks in them, make sure you remove them before using)
5. Spread masa paste over the top half of a corn husk (the top half is the wide half.) Spoon a line of your filling of choice in a line on one side of the masa paste. Roll the tamale from the filling side to the other side. You will end up with one half of the roll that has masa paste and one that does not. Fold the half that does not have the masa paste against the tamale, folding it in towards the flap of the roll.
6. Repeat this process with the rest of the ingredients.
7. Steam the tamales for 45 minutes. If you have a lot of tamales and a tall steamer, you can place the tamales vertically in the steamer.

Stock Options:

*Boil 2 dates and a pinch of salt with each cup of water for 10 minutes & then remove the dates.
*Simmer one dried ancho, chipotle, or other chile of your choice per 3 cups of water for 10 minutes and then remove the chile (use the rehydrated chile in your filling.)
Use veggie stock instead of water.
*Simmer 6 cloves of garlic per cup of water for 15 minutes, removing the garlic when you are finished.
*Simmer 1 tbsp. of peppercorns and 1 cinnamon stick per 2 cups of water for 10 minutes,straining the stock when you are done.

Whichever stock you use, allow it to cool down to a warm temperature before you use it or else the heat will cook the masa.

Low-fat Version:
Tamales obviously have quite a bit of fat in them, even with the large amount of carbohydrate heavy masa. You can cut the fat content down by about ¼ by adding in about half the amount of stock as removed fat. Thus, if you remove 1 cup of fat, add in ½ cup of stock. Play with this until you get the smooth paste consistency. Keep in mind that the fat binds the masa together, so you may find that your tamales fall apart more often without the traditional amount of fat.

For another low fat option:(from Dr. John McDougall)
Tamale Batter:

12 cups masa harina
2 tsp salt2 tsp pepper
2 tsp oregano
2 tsp baking powder
9 cups water, soymilk, vegetable broth or a combination of all three
4 tsp cider vinegar
24 dried corn husks

1. Stir together the masa harina, salt, pepper, oregano, and baking powder in a large bowl. In a small bowl, stir together the water (soymilk, vegetable broth) and the vinegar.
2. Make a well in the center of the dry mixture and pour the wet mixture into the dry. Stir togther using your hands or a wooden spoon (you can also use a stand mixture).
3. Open a corn husk and spread the batter over it. Spoon 1 to 2 tablespoons of the filling of your choice in the center of the corn husk. Wrap the batter around the filling, then wrap the husk around it. Tie or twist the ends of the husk closed.
4. Steam for 30 minutes. Serve immediately, plain, or with enchilada sauce spooned on top. (I did half the recipe and still came out with 24, but mine were a little on the small side)

Some people had a hard time finding Corn Husks to wrap there Tamales in. So our host Debyi came to the rescue with this.

Tamal wrappers:
Fresh corn husks are used, chiefly, to wrap fresh corn tamales, which are an especial delicacy of the State of Michoacan, and are called uchepos. Read Diana Kennedy in her Art of Mexican Cooking to find out about them. In Mexico they are made from fresh field corn (dent, flint, or flour corns), and the kernels contain sufficient starch to hold together when they are steamed. Here, using our sweet corn, you need to toss in a bit of cornstarch to bind them together. The fresh corn masa is dropped into the husk in the curve at its base, and they are then basically rolled up, as they naturally rolled around the ear of corn. They are steamed just like dried corn masa tamales. I don't know that you absolutely couldn't put dried corn masa in a fresh husk and successfully steam a tamal, but typically you see fresh corn/fresh husk, dried corn/dried husk. Tamales are also wrapped in Swiss chard leaves, and the leaves of other edible plants. There is another tamal, the corunda, or ash tamal (the masa is made by boiling diluted wood ash with the corn instead of cal, or calcium hydroxide). They are pyramid shaped, with rounded sides, and they are wrapped in the fresh leaf of the corn plant[i].

Avocado leaves are hard to come by here - you can buy dried ones in the spice and herb section of a Mexican grocery, and use them with, say, black beans, for flavoring. But the big, fresh leaves required for tamal making are scarce - I have never found them here in the States.

Banana leaves are really easy to work with ... if you've got a good source for them. Some markets sell them in packages frozen. They must be 'blanched' by passing them over a flame (stove burner, electric or gas), and as you move the leaf back and forth, you will see it soften, and taken on a gloss. Place the leaf on a flat surface and, using a very sharp knife, cut the central stiff vein out of the leaf. Then cut it crosswise into 10" segments, and you are ready to roll.
Sharon Peters aka "theabroma"

Presentation:
Rolling tamales takes a little practice, but not much, so don’t worry if your first few don’t look good. Just keep rolling! If you want a totally enclosed tamale, you can leave enough room when you spread the masa for a fold on both sides of the husk instead of just one half. You can also take strips of corn husks and make a nice tie around the tamales to help keep them together. Note that if you use the baking powder, they will get slightly fluffy and will break apart easier. Finally, allow the tamales to rest for at least five minutes before unwrapping them. The steamed tamales will be delicate when they first come out of the steamer. Allowing them to rest tightens up the masa.

Time Management:
Tamales have a reputation for being time consuming, but once you get the masa paste, filling, and corn husks prepped, you can make them very quickly. To speed up the time, you can make the filling the day before. The masa paste and the soaked husks take a minimal amount of time to prep. Tamales can be frozen and kept for up to a year.

Complementary Food and Drinks:
Horchata, a sweetened rice milk and cinnamon drink, is a wonderful complement to most tamales.

Where to Shop:
All of the ingredients for the basic tamale can be purchased at any store that caters to Mexican cuisine and may even be available in your local market depending on where you live. When buying the masa, look for finely ground corn flour and only purchase as much as you think you will use within the week. Corn flour has a good amount of oil and that means it will go rancid if stored too long.

How It Works:
The stock is added to the masa instead of the other way around so that the masa does not clump. It is then beat into the shortening, which is used to bind the masa together and make it spreadable, for the same reason (yes, shortening can clump when added to dry or moist ingredients!) They are then steamed so that they stay moist and the masa can finish binding together.

Chef’s Notes:
I use the baking powder option as I prefer my tamales to be just slightly fluffy. When I make them, I generally prepare at least 3 fillings so that I can have a variety of tamales with very little extra work. These are best to make in a large batch and then frozen so that you have tamales ready for a long time to come!

Interesting Facts:
Tamales are a traditional celebration food, especially for Christmas. The more proper form of tamale is actually tamal, with tamales being the plural form.

Black Bean Chipotle Tamale Recipe
by Chef Jason Wyrick of The Vegan Culinary Experience
Serves: 24 Time to Prepare: 1 hour 15 minutes

1 batch of tamale dough (see Basic Tamale recipe)
16 oz. of black beans, rinsed
½ cup of shredded carrot
½ of a red onion, minced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp. of chipotle powder
1 tbsp. of mild New Mexico chile powder
1 tsp. of whole cumin seeds
2 tsp. of whole coriander seeds
½ tsp. of salt
1 tsp. of olive oil
Option: 1 cup of soy chorizo

1. Shred the carrot. Mince the onion and garlic. Rinse the beans. Combine all of these together in a bowl.
2. In a small pan, toast the cumin seeds and coriander seeds on a medium heat in the 1 tsp. of oil until the coriander seeds start to pop or the cumin seeds turn a deep brown color, whichever comes first.
3. Mix the chipotle powder, New Mexico chile powder, cumin, coriander, and salt together. Toss this into the veggie mix.
4. Prepare the Basic Tamale dough according to the Basic Tamale recipe.
5. Prepare the Basic Tamale recipe adding about 1 tbsp. of filling per tamale.
Option: Mix the soy chorizo into the veggies after the spices have been added.

Presentation:
This would look nice atop a bed of Spanish rice garnished with black sesame seeds.

Time Management:
The bean mix can be made quickly, so concentrated on making that first and then make the tamale dough.

Complementary Food and Drinks:
Serve this with a side of grilled corn on the cob that has been tossed in a mild chile powder mix. The smokiness of the grilled corn will complement the chipotle flavor quite well.

Where to Shop:
All of these ingredients should be fairly easy to find.

How It Works:
The smoky richness of chipotle powder greatly enhances the depth of flavor that black beans have. The red onion and carrot give it a touch of sweetness. New Mexico chile powder is added so that the tamale can have more chile flavor without being overwhelmed by the heat of additional chipotle powder. The cumin and coriander seeds are toasted to darken their flavors, which helps them stand out amongst all of the other strong flavors in the recipe.

Chef’s Notes:
It’s hard to go wrong with black beans, onions, and chipotle powder, all which go together to make a great chili, which itself was the inspiration for this filling.

Interesting Facts:
The chipotle is a dried, smoked jalapeno and can be purchased whole or in powdered form. Black beans are very high in iron.

Shredded Seitan and Ancho Tamale Recipe
by Chef Jason Wyrick of The Vegan Culinary Experience
Serves: 24 Time to Prepare: 1 hour 10 minutes (add 45 minutes if you make your own seitan)

1 batch of tamale dough (see Basic Tamale recipe)
2 cups of seitan
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 dried ancho chiles, crushed
3-4 cups of water
4 bay leaves
1 tsp. of freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp. of cumin
1 tsp. of Mexican oregano
1 tbsp. of chile powder
¼ cup of raisins
2 tbsp. of pepitas

1. Shred the seitan in a food processor by pulsing it several times.
2. Mince the garlic and crush the dried ancho chiles.
3. Bring 3-4 cups of water to a simmer, add in the ancho chiles, the shredded seitan, and the bay leaves. Simmer this for ten minutes.
4. While it is simmering, prepare the tamale dough according to the Basic Tamale recipe.
5. Combine the black pepper, cumin, Mexican oregano, and chile powder together.
6. Drain the water from the simmering seitan and ancho peppers and toss these in the spice mix.
7. Mix in the garlic, raisins, and pepitas.
8. Follow the Basic Tamale recipe for preparation.
Option: If you want to take some extra time, you can use the water from simmering the seitan and ancho peppers as part of the stock for the tamale dough.

Presentation:
If you want to get extra fancy with this tamale, you can make a roasted yellow tomato sauce with cumin, salt, and lime juice. Place a small amount on the bottom of a rectangular plate and then place the finished tamale along the length of the plate. Finish by garnishing it with a wedge of lime and a stuffed green olive. Of course, you can always pile these on a platter and they will be gone soon enough without the fancy plating!

Time Management:
The longer this filling sits, the better it will get. Consider making the filling the night before you plan on using it.

Complementary Food and Drinks:
Serve this tamale with a side of smoked paprika rice and beer glazed onions with mashed black beans. The roasted yellow tomato sauce mentioned above would also go quite well with this one.

Where to Shop:
If I don’t feel like making my own seitan, I’ll usually purchase the White Wave brand from Wild Oats or Whole Foods. The anchos can be purchased at most stores that have a heavy Mexican food section, gourmet markets, and spice stores. If you can’t find them, you can substitute any large dried pepper of your choice. The Mexican oregano can be purchased at the same locations. If you can’t find it, you can substitute a like amount of fresh thyme leaves. Pepitas are green pumpkin seeds and can be found in bulk at most stores that have bulk bins, such as Sprouts.

How It Works:
Simmering the seitan with the bay leaves and crushed anchos infuses it with those great flavors while rehydrating the ancho peppers at the same time. The anchos are crushed before they simmer because they become too hard to chop once they are rehydrated. The pepitas (green pumpkin seeds) are there for texture and bit of soft flavor while the raisins balance the heat of the chiles.

Chef’s Notes:
This most closely resembles a traditional tamale filling, using shredded seitan instead of pork and adding in the traditional peppers. The raisins were inspired by my mom, who used to make tamales with her aunts. One of those aunts would add raisins into the masa and I thought that would work very well in the filling, which it did!

Interesting Facts:
Seitan was created in the 7th century B.C.E. by Buddhist monks in China. Ancho is the Spanish word for “wide.”

Green Corn Tamales Recipe
by Chef Jason Wyrick of The Vegan Culinary Experience
Serves: 24 Time to Prepare: 1 hour (add 30 minutes if you roast your own chiles)

½ batch of tamale dough (see Basic Tamale recipe)*
½ cup of sugar
12 ears of corn
2 cups of roasted chiles in strips (fresh roasted Hatch chiles work
best)
*Substitute 5 cups of soy creamer for 5 cups of the liquid in the Basic Tamale recipe

1. Remove the corn from the cob (or you can use frozen corn kernals if you need to). Grind the corn in a food processor until it is coarse.
2. Prepare the tamale dough according to the Basic Tamale recipe, substituting 5 cups of soy creamer for 5 cups of water.
3. Combine the tamale dough with the ground corn and cut the chiles into strips.
4. Prepare the tamales using the Basic Tamale recipe and adding in 1-3 strips of roasted green peppers for the filling. Unlike the Basic Tamale recipe, however, the spread should be 1/3” to ½” high.

Option: Roast the corn before removing the kernels from the cob.

Presentation:
This looks nice on a plate with a few dots of sweet agave nectar and sprinkles of toasted pepitas.

Time Management:
If you roast your own peppers (I highly suggest this,) get them on the grill and then work on the dough while they are roasting.

Complementary Food and Drinks:
These go well with a crisp beer and a bowl of tortilla soup featuring poblano peppers and zucchini. Those flavors seem to combine quite well with the sweet masa and the roasted green chiles.

Where to Shop:
Soy creamer (Silk is the most popular brand) can be purchased at Sprouts, Whole Foods, Central Market, and other stores of that ilk. It can even be found at some of the newer stores of more common chains like Fry’s. For the peppers, I usually head to my local market and see which green ones look the best.

How It Works:
The soy creamer, sugar, and ground corn combine to make the masa quite sweet, which balances the spicy roasted pepper. Because this masa has a lot more flavor than a regular masa, more of it is used so that it becomes a featured ingredient. The corn is ground so that its fresh sweetness and crispness is evenly distributed throughout the tamales.

Chef’s Notes:
I enjoyed the simplicity of this recipe, which yields incredible results without having to do a lot of fancy work. Sometimes the most elegant recipes are the best ones.

Interesting Facts:
Zacahuil is another name for tamale in southern Mexico. Teosinte is thought to be the genetic parent of maize (corn.)

Quotes From the Forum:

its REAL easy. I cant believe I have put off making them out of fear for 12 years. Ah yeah, thats what I said, twelve years.
Lori of Lip Smacking Goodness

Oh my good golly miss molly these were fabulous!
Every time Hub ate one of these (even days after) he would say "wow".
Jen of Delightful Delicacies

how could you not love anything wrapped in masa? the hardest part for me is waiting for them to cook thoroughly!
Lauren of I'll Eat You

Thank George's Banks

2008-07-20T09:32:00.000-07:00

This months challenge was hosted by Belita of Everyday Culinary Adventures and Lori.

When Lori and Temperance were asking for hosts, I knew just where to turn, and thank you to Lori, my fabulous co-host this month for agreeing to do this recipe!

It's summer where I'm from and one of my favorite things to do in the summer is spend some time on Cape Cod and the Islands [Martha's Vineyard (Amity Island for JAWS lovers!) and Nantucket]. I live close enough to do day trips. One "must do" when visiting the Vineyard is to stop at The Black Dog, a restaurant right on the beach in Vineyard Haven, near where the ferries drop you off. You can't go 5 minutes without seeing someone wearing Black Dog memorabilia when you're on the Cape or Islands!

I thought it would be fun to try a breakfast recipe...so I present to you "Thank George's Bank."

According to The Black Dog this recipe is to honor George’s Bank, a bank on the outer continental shelf of the Gulf of Maine. For hundred’s of years, fishermen have gone there for cod, haddock, flounder, scallops, swordfish, tuna, etc… The fishing is now strictly controlled so the fish stocks can recover. “This recipe is not for the faint of heart.”

To prepare this dish, you will first need to prepare some fishcakes and hollandaise sauce.

Black Dog Fishcakes
(this says 4 patties, but even with wasting a lot on mistakes, I still got 6. I think this more closely yields 12)

These fishcakes are a popular Black Dog alternative to bacon or sausage. These are excellent for using up leftover potatoes!

2 cups cooked potatoes, mashed
1 pound skinless and boneless codfish
1 cup diced yellow onion
1 tablespoon fresh chopped thyme (1 teaspoon dried)
1 teaspoon white pepper
1-2 teaspoons salt
1 egg, beaten
½ cup cream
2 tablespoons butter

1. If you don’t have leftover mashed potatoes, peel and dice two large potatoes. Boil in salted water for about 20 minutes or until soft. Mash and set aside.
2. Place fish in a steamer, cover with diced onion and seasonings. Cover and steam for 10-15 minutes or until the onion is cooked.
3. In a medium bowl, combine cooked fish and seasoned onions with the mashed potatoes. Mix in the egg and cream, divide into four patties.
4. Sauté the fishcakes in a sauté pan in butter over medium heat until browned.

Easy Hollandaise Sauce
(yields ½ cup)

2 egg yolks
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
¼ pound (1 stick) butter, melted
splash Tabasco sauce
dash cayenne pepper
dash salt

1. Combine egg yolks and lemon juice in the bowl of a food processor.
2. Turn on the food processor and slowly add the melted butter.
3. Allow to run until the sauce emulsifies.
4. Add Tabasco, salt, and cayenne pepper.

Alternately, you may use this hollandaise sauce from The Joy of Cooking (yields 1 cup) (for those without a food processor):

10 tablespoons (1¼ sticks) butter
3 large egg yolks
1½ tbsp cold water
½-2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
dash of hot pepper sauce
salt and white pepper to taste

1. Over low heat, melt the butter.
2. Skim the foam off the top and keep warm.
3. In a double boiler (or a bowl on top of a saucepan), place the egg yolks and water.
4. Off the heat, beat the yolks with a whisk until they are light and frothy.
5. Place on top of saucepan or double boiler and whisk continuously until eggs are thickened, 3-5 minutes, making sure the eggs don't get too hot.
6. Pour into a separate bowl to cool, and while whisking continuously, slowly add the butter, omitting the milk solids.
7. Whisk in the lemon juice, hot pepper sauce, salt, and white pepper.
8. If sauce is too thick, add a few drops warm water.
9. Serve immediately or you can keep it warm up to 30 minutes by placing the bowl in warm water.

Thank George’s Bank
(serves 2)

4 Black Dog Fishcakes
2 teaspoons white vinegar
4 eggs for poaching
½ cup hollandaise sauce
toast or breakfast bread of choice

1. Prepare fishcakes and hollandaise sauce.
2. Fill a large saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Add white vinegar and reduce the heat to a simmer.
3. Crack and gently drop in the eggs.
4. Simmer about 3-5 minutes or until whites are firm and yolks are done to your likes.
5. To serve: place each poached egg on a fishcake, cover with hollandaise sauce. Serve with your favorite breakfast sides.

Quotes from the Forum:

I made it yesterday and it must be good 'cause I'm making the rest of the patties today
JMom of Cooked from The Heart

I didn't initially get how the combination of fish, poached egg and hollendaise would go together. But, when I ate it, it made sense.
Psychgrad of Equal Opportunity Kitchen

I wasn't to optimistic when it came time to put everything together but it was delicious! The poached egg and the sauce did it for me. The cod cake was good but in combo with the others, the dish was so tasty!
Heather B of Randomosity and the Girl

Confit Byaldi

2008-06-24T09:11:00.000-07:00

We chose Ratatouille for the beginning of Recipes to Rival. It's a great recipe to have for this time of the year as these vegetables are starting to come into season.

Ratatouille - Definition
A popular dish from the French region of Provence that combines eggplant, tomatoes, onions, bell peppers, zucchini, garlic and herbs --all simmered in olive oil. The vegetables can vary according to the cook. They can be cooked together, or cooked separately and then combined and heated briefly together. Ratatouille can be served hot, cold or at room temperature, either as a side dish or as an appetizer with bread or crackers.
---Epicurious.com

There are several versions of Ratatouille out there but we thought we would go with the recipe that the movie, RATATOUILLE used. According to Revolution Health the following recipe is the official recipe of the movie.

CONFIT BYALDI
from NY TIMES

INGREDIENTS
FOR PIPERADE
1/2 red pepper, seeds and ribs removed
1/2 yellow pepper, seeds and ribs removed
1/2 orange pepper, seeds and ribs removed
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 cup finely diced yellow onion
3 tomatoes (about 12 ounces total weight), peeled, seeded, and finely diced, juices reserved
1 sprig thyme
1 sprig flat-leaf parsley
1/2 a bay leaf
Kosher salt

FOR VEGETABLES
1 zucchini (4 to 5 ounces) sliced in 1/16-inch rounds
1 Japanese eggplant, (4 to 5 ounces) sliced into 1/16-inch rounds
1 yellow squash (4 to 5 ounces) sliced into 1/16-inch rounds
4 Roma tomatoes, sliced into 1/16-inch rounds
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/8teaspoon thyme leaves
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

FOR VINAIGRETTE
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oi
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
Assorted fresh herbs (thyme flowers, chervil, thyme)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

METHOD
FOR PIPERADE
1. Heat oven to 450 degrees. Place pepper halves on a foil-lined sheet, cut side down. Roast until skin loosens, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let rest until cool enough to handle. Peel and chop finely.

2. Combine oil, garlic, and onion in medium skillet over low heat until very soft but not browned, about 8 minutes. Add tomatoes, their juices, thyme, parsley, and bay leaf. Simmer over low heat until very soft and very little liquid remains, about 10 minutes, do not brown; add peppers and simmer to soften them. Season to taste with salt, and discard herbs. Reserve tablespoon of mixture and spread remainder in bottom of an 8-inch skillet.

FOR VEGETABLES
3. Heat oven to 275 degrees. Down center of pan, arrange a strip of 8 alternating slices of vegetables over piperade, overlapping so that 1/4 inch of each slice is exposed. Around the center strip, overlap vegetables in a close spiral that lets slices mound slightly toward center. Repeat until pan is filled; all vegetables may not be needed.

4. Mix garlic, oil, and thyme leaves in bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle over vegetables. Cover pan with foil and crimp edges to seal well. Bake until vegetables are tender when tested with a paring knife, about 2 hours. Uncover and bake for 30 minutes more. (Lightly cover with foil if it starts to brown.) If there is excess liquid in pan, place over medium heat on stove until reduced. (At this point it may be cooled, covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days. Serve cold or reheat in 350-degree oven until warm.)

FOR VINAIGRETTE
5. Combine reserved piperade, oil, vinegar, herbs, and salt and pepper to taste in a bowl.

TO SERVE
6. Heat broiler and place byaldi underneath until lightly browned. Slice in quarters and very carefully lift onto plate with offset spatula. Turn spatula 90 degrees, guiding byaldi into fan shape. Drizzle vinaigrette around plate. Serve hot.

Yield: 4 servings

Quotes from the Forum:

My boyfriend now wants to go vegetarian because of this dish
Robyn of Culinary Adventures

I think the piperade would be good just on a sandwich as well, instead of putting slices of peppers and tomatoes on it. YUM!
Debyi of Healthy Vegan Kitchen

When I gave a lil' plate of it to AJ (hub) he said, "All that work for this? It's like steamed veggies!" hehe then he tasted it. He didn't say much else after that except how yummy it was.
Belle Boulangère of Delightful Delicacies

holiday poll

1998-06-17T14:02:00.000-07:00

The November / December Challenges
	Appetizer
	Side Dish
	Soup
	Salad
	Main Dish
	Other, specify in post

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