Bites and Pieces: FroYo Ho Ho

Posted on July 28, 2012 by Fairlington Blade

Hi all,

I’ve been fairly quiet, mainly due to a change in my commute. Replacing a 20 – 25 minute drive with a 65 – 70 minute bike ride has been fun, but pretty much left me with no spare energy but to make dinner, watch a bit of TV or a movie, and go to bed.

WIth the summer heat in full swing, I thought I’d post a summertime recipe. Frozen yogurt places have been popping up like summer dandelions. Nearly all the pleasure of ice cream and half the guilt. A Crave popped up in the shopping center next to my place. It’s fun, but can be expensive. So, we (well, my wife) picked up an ice cream maker at Costco. It ran a bit over $30 and has already paid for itself.

You can find many ice cream and frozen yogurt recipes on line, so there’s no need to go into all that. Last week, I heard a story on NPR’s The Splendid Table about how to make frozen yogurt. Jeni Bauer owns a number of ice cream shops in Ohio and wrote a book on making ice cream and frozen yogurt with home equipment. She bought a few home ice cream makers and experimented until she found a way to produce great ice cream. I’ve liked the FroYo we’ve made at home, but this stuff takes it to another level.

There are a couple of tricks to her method. First, bring the milk and sugar up to a boil and add a cornstarch slurry. Boil for a minute longer until it thickens. Second, add this mixture to two ounces of whisked cream cheese. Add the yogurt and flavorings to this base and chill in an ice water bath before using the ice cream maker.

The recipe published on Splendid Table is a lemon frozen yogurt. I modified Jeni’s recipe slightly. Hers calls for putting a quart of yogurt in a sieve, letting it drain for 6 – 8 hours, and then using 1 1/4 cups of the drained yogurt. We keep Greek yogurt at home and I think that works just fine. The original recipe calls for including the lemon zest in the main mixture and picking it out. Such a pain! I’ve long made lemonade syrup by boiling lemon juice, sugar, and lemon zest. The original recipe called for 3/4 cup of sugar and 1/4 cup of corn sugar. We don’t keep corn syrup around at home, so I omit the corn syrup and used a bit more sugar in the lemon syrup.

Lemon Frozen Yogurt

Excerpted from Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Homeby Jeni Britton Bauer. (Artisan Books, 2011)

Lemon Syrup

  • 2 – 3 lemons (sufficient for 1/2 cup of juice)
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • Zest from 1 lemon (or all if you like)

Yogurt Base

  • 2 – 3 cups of plain Greek yogurt
  • 1 1/2 cups whole milk
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream (or omit cream and use two cups milk)
  • 2 ounces (4 tablespoons) cream cheese, softened
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 5/6 cup sugar

Method

Remove zest from one lemon in strips. Juice lemons to make 1/2 cup of lemon juice. Combine zest, lemon juice, and sugar in small sauce pan and bring to a boil. Set aside.

Whisk cream cheese in medium bowl until smooth.

Add two tablespoons of milk to the corn starch and mix to make a slurry. A fork is fine for this.

Combine remaining milk, cream, and sugar in 4 quart nonstick pot and bring to a boil. Boil for about 4 minutes, stirring, then whisk in the cornstarch slurry. Cook until the mixture thickens, about one minute. Stir the mixture into the cream cheese and whisk until smooth. Add the yogurt and lemon syrup (after straining out the zest) and chill in an ice water bath. [I used nested bowls, but you could also pour the mixture into a freezer bag.] Put in the cannister of the ice cream maker and spin until thick and smooth. Pour into a container, cover the surface with wax or parchment paper, and freeze for at least four hours to set up.

Chocolate Frozen Yogurt

Chocolate Syrup

  • 1/3 cup cocoa powder
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup water

Yogurt Base

  • 1 quart of plain Greek yogurt
  • 1 1/2 cups whole milk
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream (or omit cream and use two cups milk)
  • 2 ounces (4 tablespoons) cream cheese, softened
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1/2 cup sugar

Method

Combine cocoa powder, sugar, and waterin small sauce pan and bring to a boil. Whisk smooth and set aside.

Whisk cream cheese in medium bowl until smooth.

Add two tablespoons of milk to the corn starch and mix to make a slurry. A fork is fine for this.

Combine remaining milk, cream, and sugar in 4 quart nonstick pot and bring to a boil. Boil for about 4 minutes, stirring, then whisk in the cornstarch slurry. Cook until the mixture thickens, about one minute. Stir the mixture into the cream cheese and whisk until smooth. Add the yogurt and chocolate syrup and chill in an ice water bath. Put in the cannister of the ice cream maker and spin until thick and smooth. Pour into a container, cover the surface with wax or parchment paper, and freeze for at least four hours to set up.

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Saturday Bites & Pieces: Southern Comfort

Posted on June 30, 2012 by okiegirl

I’m baaaack!  There has not been time yet to catch up on all the ATiM posts and comments, but at a glance you certainly had some interesting discussions that I very much look forward to reading more thoroughly.  Thanks to all of you for that gift.

Mexico was fabulous, although I only got out of the resort for one excursion so unfortunately don’t feel like I experienced any of the local culture.  The food at the resort was plentiful but IMHO so-so in quality, with a few notable seafood exceptions, and obviously off-the-charts in sodium content.  So I’m happy to get back to my regular low-sodium diet, and this recipe is both quite healthy and very low sodium (fairly rare on both counts for a “comfort food”).

While shopping today at my local farmers market, I was overwhelmed by the gorgeous and inexpensive produce.  I wanted everything, so it took some self-discipline not to buy too much.  The local okra is coming in plentifully, and it inspired me to make one of my favorite southern-style comfort foods.  I love okra.  If this summer is as hot as last summer, I’m sure it will be another bumper crop.  I grew up eating a version of this (proportionately much more chicken) served over grits, but it’s just as good or better served over rice.  The original recipe (for the below, not for what I grew up eating) calls for twice the amount of chicken and half the amount of okra I’ve included below, but my modification lowers the calorie and fat content significantly.  If you are not particularly fond of okra, you probably would still like this in the original proportions or you could substitute squash or another veggie for the okra.  I hope you’ll give it a try.

FB, this is another “one-pot” meal (except for the grits or rice), but I have no idea if your boys will eat okra, especially considering the texture issues many people have with okra.  And it takes at most 30 minutes to prep and cook.

CHICKEN WITH OKRA AND TOMATOES

Makes 2 servings, 1 ½ cups each

Ingredients

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels

4 ounces boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of fat and cut into 1-inch chunks

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon paprika

Pinch of cayenne pepper, or to taste

1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes, preferably no salt added

2 cups fresh or frozen sliced or chopped okra

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/8 teaspoon salt

Preparation

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and corn and cook, stirring often, until lightly browned and softened, about 4 minutes. Add chicken and cook, stirring often, until browned, about 2 minutes.  (The chicken just needs to be browned, not cooked through because it will be cooked later.) Add garlic, paprika and cayenne and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add tomatoes and okra. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Add pepper and salt.

Nutrition

Per serving: 175 Calories; 4 g Fat (1 g Sat); 33 mg Cholesterol; 23 g Carbohydrates (8 g Sugar, 6 g Fiber); 13 g Protein; 173 mg Sodium

P.S.  I STILL  l.o.v.e  the Thunder.  They had a great year.

_______________________________________________________________________________

Old Fashioned Sweet Cherry Conserves

From The Joy of Cooking, 75th Anniversary Edition

Makes enough for about eight 1/2-pint jars

  1. Wash and cut 2 oranges into very thin slices, discarding any seeds.
  2. Barely cover with water in a large saucepan, about 1/4 cup, and cook until  very tender.
  3. Wash, stem, pit (see Note below) and add 1 quart cherries.
  4. Add 6 tablespoons bottled lemon juice, 3 1/2 cups sugar, 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, and 6 wholes cloves tied in a cheesecloth bag.
  5. Simmer the conserves, stirring frequently until thick and clear.
  6. Discard the spice bag and ladle the hot conserves into hot 1/2-pint jars, leaving 1/4-inch of headroom.  Process for 15 minutes.

Note:  To pit the cherries, I treat them like olives.  First put on an old t-shirt (one that you use for painting would work well), then take the cherries, a chef’s knife, and a cutting board outside to an area that will clean up easily (a pool deck is probably perfect).  Using the flat side of the blade, whack a couple of cherries at a time and remove the pit(s).  Once all of the cherries are pitted, go back inside and finish the conserves.

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Bites and Pieces: Perfect Chicken

Posted on June 25, 2012 by Fairlington Blade

I’ve mostly been on the road this week. My sons finished kindergarten (yay!) on Wednesday, which happens to be the day that my wife was starting a week long job for the US Forest Service. I’m transferring to a new job in July, so a family break seemed warranted.

I found a surprise along the way. There’s a pretty decent Italian place in Lewisburg, WV, of all places (Giovanni’s). I ordered lasagna for Secondo, pasta with greens and sausage for Primo (he’s on a health kick), and a roasted veggie salad for myself. I figured I could hoover up what they left behind. Well, the salad was terrific. A good balance of veggies and the roasted squash really added heart. The pasta and greens didn’t look like much, but looks can be deceiving. They used broccoli rabe for the greens and a mild sausage that balanced the dish. The pasta was penne and cooked al dente. The lasagna was simple–a couple layers of noodles with ricotta in the middle and marinara on top. I took a bite of it and got a surprise. The noodles were tender and the ricotta is as good as anything I picked up at the Italian Store in Arlington. Turns out they make everything in house. This is the kind of restaurant everyone wishes they had in their neighborhood. The total was $37, including two sodas.

But that’s not important right now. I’m writing about chicken. The day after I arrived at the lake, my brother made a beer can chicken. I’d never tried it before. It was quite good, but he misjudged the timing (we didn’t have a thermometer) and so the inner portions were undercooked. That’s the eternal problem with roasting a chicken. Undercooked meat or dried out breast meat (or in the worst of all cases, both). How to solve it?

One of my sons was wanting chicken and I know my parents enjoy it. So, what to do? On a whim, I decided to try a butterflied chicken. Cut out the backbone, flatten the thing, and roast it. As a bonus, you can use the wings and the back to make a nice mini batch of stock. I did a bit of hunting about and came upon Kenji Alt’s blog. He used to appear on America’s Test Kitchen. The method seemed straightforward and dispensed with turning the chicken. The ideal is 150 degrees for breast meat and 170 for dark meat. I was shocked when the meat thermometer registered the perfect temperature both times. And the chicken was perfect! 

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2. Take a 3 1/2 – 4 lb. chicken. Brine it if you like (I do) and air dry. Cut out the backbone with some kitchen shears. Flatten the beastie. Spread a tablespoon of vegetable oil (sesame oil is tasty) over the top and season with salt and pepper. I shoved a couple tablespoons of butter between the skin of the breasts and the meat. It may be gilding the lily, but what the hey.

3. Slide up a half dozen small (1″) potatoes. Toss with oil and put in the bottom of a roasting pan. Put a flat rack on top and place the chicken on it. [Note: don’t use a V-rack for a butterflied bird. If you don’t have a flat rack, just put it right on the potatoes.]

4. Roast the bird for about 45 minutes, until the breast meat registers 150 degrees and the thigh registers 170 degrees. As I noted above, it worked perfectly for me.

5. Let the bird rest for 5 minutes and then enjoy!

 

BB

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Bits and Bites: Stir Fry

Posted on May 26, 2012 by Fairlington Blade

My wife and I are fans of Cooks Illustrated. We bought a boxed set of the first ten years of bound volumes after getting back from our honeymoon back in 2003. Since then, we’ve added most of the individual volumes. I’ve always found their approach appealing as it strikes me as the way a scientist would go at a problem. Cooking as chemistry rather than art. It’s a good grounding in cooking. I’ve learned to indulge my creative side too.

One criticism of CI is that the recipes can be ridiculously involved. We have some vegetarian friends and so I make a vegetarian friendly stuffing for Thanksgiving. The vegetarian stock in CI is over the top. Two pounds of veggies and an hour of cooking to produce one quart of stock. REALLY??? I’ve simplified it a bit and double the amount of stock that I get out of it.

One of our favorite books is The Simple Recipe, from the same folks. The idea is to take the ridiculously complicated recipes and simplify them for every day cooking. It still takes time, but works for a weeknight meal. When it comes to throwing together a balanced meal, my most serious failing is in not making a side dish to balance out the meal. It’s too easy to just serve the main course with a starch. One pot meals have a nice way of handling this problem. Veggies included!

This brings me to my recipe of the week: stir fry. Everything is in one pan, so there’s no need to do anything on the side. Get some rice going, chop up some meat and veggies (or use a bag of frozen veggies), and you’re good to go. This does not, however, mean throw everything into a pan. Different veggies take different cooking times. Plus, if you crowd the pan, those veggies are going to throw off enough liquid to drown your meal. What I really like about the Quick Recipe approach is that it’s broken up so that everything has a chance to cook, not too much, and you throw it all together in the end. The meat marinates while you get everything else ready.

Here’s the general approach.

Step 1. Cut up ¾ of a pound of meat (or tofu) into bite sized pieces and combine with 2 teaspoons each of soy sauce and sherry. Not being English, I don’t often have sherry on hand, so I use white wine (if I don’t have it on hand, I’ll run over to Unwined).

Step 2. Combine a tablespoon of minced ginger, another of minced garlic, some chopped green onions (white parts), and a couple teaspoons of oil. Peanut oil is really good for stir fries as it has a high smoke point. Safflower and sunflower oils are a good alternative.

Step 3. Chop up 1 ½ pounds of veggies. They’ll need to be separated by how they cook. Spinach is going to get added in at the last moment. Carrots and onions go in early.

Step 4. Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a 12” nonstick skillet (another thing I love about this method—no wok) until smoking. Add the marinated protein and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned. It’ll probably take 2 – 3 minutes. Less for shrimp (unless you’re a fan of chewing polyurethane). Transfer to a clean bowl.

Step 5. Cook the veggies. Add a bit more oil to the pan and heat until shimmering (not smoking!). Add the slower cooking veggies to the pan and cook until nearly done (tender, but a bit crisp). Move the veggies to the side, add a bit more oil, and add the quick cooking veggies.

Step 6. Clear out the center of the pan and toss in the garlic/ginger mixture. Cook for about a minute, mashing a bit, and then stir all the veggies together. Add the protein back in and stir to combine. Toss in ½ cup of sauce and serve over rice.

It’s time for me to add a note regarding sauces. This should be step 2.5. But hey, there’s some decent sauces that you can buy in the supermarket. This is, after all, supposed to be a weeknight meal. Their sauces are pretty easy to put together. One common theme is cornstarch as a thickener. In case you’re obsessive like me, here’s a few of my favorites.

Garlic Sauce

3 T. dry sherry

3 T. chicken broth

2 T. soy sauce

½ t. sesame oil

1.5 t. minced garlic

1 t. cornstarch

½ t. sugar

Hot and Sour Sauce

3 T. rice wine vinegar*

2 T. chicken broth

2 T. dry sherry

1 T. soy sauce

1 T. chili paste

1 t. sesame oil

1 t. sugar

1 t. cornstarch

*You can sub other vinegars, but cut it back as the rice wine vinegar is pretty low in acidity

Lemon Sauce

Zest and juice from one large lemon

2 T. chicken broth

2 T. dry sherry

1 T. soy sauce

2 t. sugar

1 t. cornstarch

½ t. black pepper

I’ll throw in a couple of my favorites. The basic template is adaptable to whatever you’ve got in the crisper. Okie and I chatted recently. She had a few ingredients available, but was lacking in inspiration. That had me going stir fry!

One of my favorites is beef and broccoli. I didn’t realize until well into my 40s that broccoli stalks were something you should enjoy. I figured you cut off the florets and discarded the rest. Here’s a recipe that I hope might convince you likewise.

Beef & Broccoli in Garlic Sauce

¾ pound thinly sliced flank steak

1 ½ pounds broccoli—florets broken into bite sized pieces; stalks peeled and cut into ¼” thick pieces

¼ cup of coarsely chopped walnuts

Garlic sauce (see above)

All the other stuff I mentioned above

1. Combine the beef with soy and sherry

2. Combine garlic, ginger, scallinos and oil (see above)

3. Toast the walnuts in that same 12” skillet you’ll be using. Set aside.

4. Add 2 t. oil to the skillet, heat until smoking, and toss in the beef. Cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned and transfer to a clean bowl.

5. Add another 2 t. of oil to the skillet and heat until shimmering. Add the broccoli, ½ cup of water, and cover. Cook until the broccoli turns bright green , 1 – 2 minutes. Uncover and cook, stirring, until the water evaporates and the broccoli is ready, About another 2 – 4  minutes.

6. Clear the center of the pan, add the garlic/ginger mixture and cook for about a minute. Stir it all together, add the beef and combine with the sauce. Toss the walnuts on top and dig in!

Shrimp and Peppers in Garlic Sauce

You may notice a theme, as I love the Garlic Sauce

1 pound of large shrimp

2 med. red bell peppers, diced

1 cup of scallion whites, coarsely diced

1 ½ cups of scallion greens, chopped

Garlic sauce

Other stuff as noted above

Note: If you don’t feel like spending awhile chopping scallions, use a medium white or yellow onion for the whites and some spinach for the greens.

Pretty much, you follow the same protocol. Marinate the shrimp and prep the other stuff. Cook the shrimp in smoking oil until browned. I’d say shrimp require a bit more attention Don’t worry if they’re undercooked, because they’ll continue to cook while set aside and go back on heat later. Cook the onions/white parts, toss in the bell peppers, and then add the green parts (or greens). Make some space, cook the ginger/garlic mix, throw everything together and eat!

May you all have a Memorable weekend. I’m taking my sons to visit their great aunt’s grave in Arlington National Cemetery and then we’re going to watch Rolling Thunder going over the Memorial Bridge.

BB

Filed under: 2012, Bites and Pieces, recipes | 18 Comments »

Bites and Pieces, A Quiet Saturday Edition

Posted on May 19, 2012 by Michigoose

Most of you who have heard of Steven Raichlen will have heard of him in his roll as BBQ guru, but I first came upon him as the author of a series of “High Flavor Low Fat” cookbooks, in which he espouses the use of spices–and lots of them–to make food satisfying and comforting. Some of his substitutions are more successful than others, but these three recipes from his “High Flavor Low Fat Vegetarian Cooking” book are some of my favorites, especially as the weather starts getting hotter and gardens start ripening (I think Lulu’s going to love the third recipe–I bet she’s got everything except the saffron and noodles growing in her garden!)

Peking Tacos

  • 10 flour tortillas
  • 2 cups mung bean sprouts
  • 10 scallions, thinly sliced into rounds
  • 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into 2-inch matchsticks
  • 2 1/2 cups red-cooked beans
    • 1 cup Chinese rice wine or sherry
    • 1 cup water
    • 4 T soy sauce
    • 1/4 cup light brown sugar
    • 2 star anises
    • 1 cinnamon stick
    • 3 pieces dried tangerine peel or 2 strips fresh tangerine or orange peel
    • 2 cloves garlic, peeled
    • 2 1/4-inch-thick slices fresh ginger
    • 3 scallions, trimmed and finely chopped
  • 1/2 cup hoisin sauce

To make the red-cooked beans, combine all of the glaze ingredients in a large heavy saucepan and bring to a boil.  Boil the mixture until thick, glazy, and reduced to about 1/2 cup.  Stir occasionally to keep it from boiling over.  Strain the mixture into a large nonstick frying pan and add 2 1/2 cups cooked beans, then cook over medium heat until the beans are thickly coated with glaze, 3 – 5 minutes.  Correct the seasoning, adding soy sauce or sugar as needed so that the beans are sweet, salty and aromatic.

Place the bean sprouts in a strainer and pour boiling water over them; drain well.  Soften the tortillas by heating, then assemble the tacos by brushing some hoisin sauce onto a tortilla, sprinkle scallion rounds and some bean sprouts on, then top with red-cooked beans and some cucumber matchsticks.  Fold (or roll) and enjoy!

Crusty Millet Cakes with Feta Cheese

  • 1 1/2 cups millet
  • salt
  • 1 T EVOO
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 4 scallions, finely chopped
  • 1/2 red bell pepper, diced as finely as possible
  • 1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced as finely as possible
  • 3 T finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
  • 1/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
  • Freshly ground black pepper

Cook the millet in 3 cups rapidly boiling, lightly salted water for 20 – 30 minutes, or until tender.  Drain in a strainer and let cool; do not rinse.

Heat 2 teaspoons EVOO in a nonstick skillet; add teh garlic, scallions, bell peppers and parsley and cook over medium heat until soft but not brown, about 3 minutes.  Combine these vegetables and the millet, cheese, salt and pepper in a large bowl and mix well; correct seasoning if needed.

Note: This is where I depart from Steven’s recipe: he has you fry them in oil over medium low heat, but I could never turn them without them falling apart. . . so I bake them.

Preheat an oven to 425 degrees; form the millet mixture into 12 3-inch patties and place them on a baking sheet.  Bake 10 – 15 minutes, until heated through, then brown by placing under the broiler for a minute or two 1″ from the heat.

Grilled Zucchini Lasagna with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

For the Red Pepper Sauce:

  • 4 large red bell peppers
  • 1 T olive oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 3/4 cup bread crumbs
  • 1 T balsamic vinegar
  • 1/4 t saffron, soaked in 1 T hot water
  • 2/3 cup vegetable (or other) stock
  • salt, freshly ground black pepper and a pinch of cayenne pepper

To finish the lasagna:

    • 6 medium zucchinis cut lengthwise into 1/3-inch slices
    • 1 to 2 t EVOO
    • 9 lasagna noodles
    • 21 basil leaves

Make the red pepper sauce by roasting, peeling, and coring/seeding the red peppers.  Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet and cook the onion and garlic over medium heat until soft but not brown.

Combine the peppers, onion mixture, and bread crumbs in a food processor and puree to a smooth paste.  Add the vinegar, saffron and enough vegetable stock to obtain a thick sauce (the mixture should be the consistency of soft ice cream.)  Correct the seasoning, adding salt, pepper, cayenne and vinegar to taste: the sauce should be very highly seasoned.  Preheat your grill to high (this is where Brent and Brian can get excited about this recipe!)

Lightly brush each zucchini strip with olive oil and grill until limp(2 – 4 minutes/side) or, if you must, broil or oven-roast the strips.  Cook the lasagna noodles in 4 quarts rapidly boiling salted water for 8 minutes or until al dente; drain the noodles and rinse with cold water.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly oil an 8 x 11-inch baking dish; spread 3 lasagna noodles over the bottom, then arrange 1/3 of the zucchini strips over the noodles, 1/3 of the basil leaves, and 1/3 of the sauce.  Repeat for layers two and three.  The lasagna can be prepared up to 24 hours ahead to this stage.

Bake the lasagna for 30 – 40 minutes or until thoroughly heated.  Enjoy!

Note: I usually make about twice as much sauce when I’m doing this, since it also is a great dip/spread for veggies and good bread.  Bon appetit!

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Bites and Pieces: Build a Better Burger

Posted on May 12, 2012 by Fairlington Blade

Gourmet burgers have become all the rage in the DC area. The Five Guys burger chain has its origins at the intersection of Glebe Road and Columbia Pike in Arlington, not too far from where I live. Rays Hell Burger was locally famous before it became a favorite place for President Obama to take visiting dignitaries. Their burgers really are THAT good. BGR is another favorite of mine. The worst burger I ever ate was at a greasy spoon off campus of the University of Missouri. I was interviewing for a faculty position in the Physics Department. I ordered a burger for lunch, took one bite, and realized that the center was raw. My guess is that it hadn’t completely defrosted when they put it on the grill. My choices were to send it back, potentially causing an awkward moment, or to choke it down. I choked it down and probably was fortunate to not get sick. I didn’t get the job; they gave it to a former grad student of the chair of the search committee. On the plus side, we went to a wine dinner that night at a local shop that was worth the trip.

A good burger is a thing of beauty and a great base for whatever you want to do. In Santa Fe, New Mexico, it’s going to be topped by green chili. Treat it like a steak and top with bernaise sauce. When you come down to it, basic is best. Few things are finer than a simple cheese burger on a good bun. Perhaps some fried onions or ketchup. Keep the mustard and relish away from my burger, please. Waiter, if me and the boys wanted to eat a hot dog, we would have ordered a hot dog. [Credit to Humphrey Bogart]

So, why on earth am I going to waste a valued slot of Bits and Bites on burgers. We all know how to make a burger. Take some ground beef, make some patties and grill them. Simple, no? Well, it’s time for me to go all Alton Brown on you. I want to focus on the critical ingredient: ground beef. If you’re buying it from a supermarket, you are either paying too much or don’t know what you’re using. I’m not talk about pink slime, simply that the stuff sold as “ground beef” in supermarkets might as well be mystery meat. It’s all the trimmings ground together, adjusted for fat content, and thrown out there for $4/pound. Good for the bottom line, but not the making of a great burger.

I ground my own beef for the first time a few years ago. We were one of a half-dozen families who were getting together for a picnic and I was assigned burgers. One of our copies of Cooks Illustrated had an easy way of making ground beef using a food processor, so I decided to give it a go. The burgers were great, even if the picnic wasn’t. One of my sons had an extended crying jag and I had to leave around the time that enough people finally arrived for the grilling to commence.

Thereafter, there has been a repeated refrain when it comes to E Coli contamination: ground beef. Does anyone remember when E Coli hit Jack in the Box. I remember a suggested slogan for them after the scare. “Jack in the Box: We cook the shit out of our burgers.” The best way to have a burger is medium rare and the only way you can be sure of it is to know where the beef comes from or trust the source. As long as you’re going to make your own burger, why not take a bit of extra time on the most important ingredient?

What meat to use? I have two ways to make ground beef. Chuck roast is perfect for making ground beef, which is why you often see it listed as ground chuck. One gets about 20% fat, perfect for burgers. We have a Costco membership, so I pick up some chuck roast every so often. I can get it for about the same price as ground meat in the grocery store. Oh, but the quality is so much better. I sometimes use flank steak, which is flavorful, but quite lean. I pair the flank steak with boneless short ribs to get the right fat level. Other folks like sirloin. Hey, do what you want to do! I’ve read about using a cheap cut of relatively lean beef and adding in lard to kick up the fat level. You could go full gourmet and add duck fat.

How to make the ground beef? We bought a stand mixer a few years ago via Craigslist and the owner threw in a pasta making attachment (useless) and a grinding attachment (wonderful). So, I use that for making ground beef. A food processor works just fine. Cut the meat into 1” – 2” chunks, put it in the freezer for about 15 minutes to firm it up, and pulse it until you get the right consistency. It’s easy! Process it in batches and freeze the excess. I wrap the ground beef in plastic wrap, followed by a barrier layer of aluminum foil. It’ll keep and there’s no freezer burn.

How do you make a better burger? A great burger needs three things: ground beef, salt, and pepper. If you’re adding bread or onions or whatever else, you’re making meat loaf, not a burger. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good meat loaf. This, however, is about burgers. I do think that the salt and pepper should be mixed it. The entire burger should be seasoned. Otherwise, there’s a hit of seasoning on the crust, and nothing inside. So, mix in the salt and pepper. I like ½ teaspoon of salt and ¼ teaspoon of black pepper for a pound of ground beef. Once it’s mixed, divide the beef into about 5 oz. for each patty. Cook how you like. It’s hard, ok, impossible, to beat the grill. On the stove, I use a cast iron skillet. Avoid non-stick at all cost.

Now, sauce time. I can hardly fault the combination of grilled onions and cheese. I mentioned the New Mexico penchant for green chile sauce on burgers, so I thought I’d share my favorite salsa verde. It comes from Rick Bayless, the chef with a number of Mexican restaurants in the Chicago area, including Topolobampo and Frontera Grill.

1 pound of tomatillos
1 head of garlic, separated into cloves with skin on
8 Serrano peppers
1 lg. white onion
1 bunch cilantro
2 – 4 limes (depending upon how juice they are)
salt and pepper to taste

Remove outer wrap from tomatillos and wash. Rub with vegetable oil and put into oven (a toaster oven is great for this) on broil until skins blacken. Set aside to cool and remove skins. Don’t worry about getting it all. When skins are removed, toss into the bowl of a food processor.
Meanwhile, thoroughly coat Serrano peppers and garlic cloves with vegetable oil and put in medium sized pan. Cook over med-high heat, shaking occasionally, until skins of peppers blister and the garlic slightly blackens. Remove from heat, cover and let cool. Remove the skins from the garlic cloves and Serrano peppers. The steaming action while cooling makes removing the skins easy. Depending upon how spicy you like your salsa, you can remove some, all, or none of the seeds from the peppers. Toss the peppers into the bowl of the food processor.

Chop white onion and briefly blanch in hot water (I boil a bit, but very hot tap water works too). Drain and put in food processor. Rinse cilantro and coarsely chop. Keep the stems in as they’ve plenty of flavor. Blend everything and pour into a bowl. Add salt, pepper, and lime juice to taste.

I’m also moving Okie Girl’s tomato salsa as it’s a great ketchup alternative. [Hope you don’t mind me moving it up into the main post, Okie!]

ORIGINAL TOMATO SALSA

This recipe came via one of the old regulars at a neighborhood dive bar I used to frequent to play shuffleboard. His nickname is “Lumpy” as a result of a serious car accident in which his neck was broken. He published the recipe in a cookbook the bar patrons all contributed to many years ago. Another regular patron who owned a local restaurant then began serving it in his restaurant and reported it was a huge success. I made some modifications that I’ll describe after the original recipe and began giving it as holiday gifts. It has been so popular I am now up to giving away 4-6 pint cases every Christmas.

Ingredients

6 lbs plus 3 oz canned chopped tomatoes
¾ C dried onion
½ C sugar
1 ¼ C white vinegar
3-4 jalapeno peppers (to taste)
1/8 C pickling salt
¾ Tbs chili powder
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp cumin
½ tsp alum
1 small can green chilies

Preparation

Mix all ingredients together in large pan. Bring to a boil, then remove from heat. After it cools, pour into jars and keep refrigerated. Makes about 8 pints.

Modifications

I use fresh chopped onion instead of dried, reduce the sugar a bit, and use a mix of canned and fresh tomatoes. This tends to make a rather thin salsa, so I use half fresh tomatoes and half canned crushed tomatoes to add some body. I also add a couple of cloves of minced garlic, a large chopped bell pepper, and about a half bunch of chopped cilantro. If I’m going to be using the salsa immediately, I reduce the vinegar a bit (to about 1C) but leave vinegar as is if I’m canning it.

Since this makes a more liquid salsa than I typically prefer, I frequently strain off some of the liquid and use it as seasoning in other dishes (such as using it for part of the cooking liquid for rice).

So, what’s your better burger?

BB (for beef burger of course)

Filed under: Bites and Pieces, Bits and Pieces, food, recipes | Tagged: , | 26 Comments »

Bites and Pieces. Cinco De Mayo edition

Posted on May 5, 2012 by Brent Nyitray

I don’t know if I shared my carne asada recipe, but I just did it for everyone tonight, and it is a perfect summer grilling dish.  I always kick off the camping season by doing this over a campfire.

1.5 lb skirt steak

Marinade:

1 white onion diced

3 fresh jalapenos

1 bunch cilantro

1 jar minced garlic

1 plastic lime of lime juice

1 tb salt

2 tb oilive oil.

Salsa:

2 tomatoes, diced

1/2 white onion, diced

1 tsp minced garlic

1 fresh jalapeno, with seeds and membrane removed

fresh cilantro.

Put marinade ingredients in a food processor and mince.  Marinade skirt steak for 3 hours.

Assemble salsa. Cut and mix

Grill skirt steak.  Cut to 2-inch strips against the grain.

Grill flour tortillas briefly to warm up.

Serve with beer, grated cheese, salsa, guacamole, and cholula sauce.

Filed under: Bites and Pieces, recipes | 6 Comments »

Bites and Pieces, Irish Style

Posted on May 5, 2012 by okiegirl

In honor of the Irish backdrop to Suite Harmonic (thanks, Emily!), here is a colcannon recipe that came to me as an authentic County Mayo recipe.  This has long been one of my favorite comfort foods.

Ingredients

1 pound cabbage [can substitute kale in whole or part]

1 pound potatoes

2 leeks

1 cup milk

salt and pepper to taste

1 pinch ground mace or 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 cup butter, melted

 Directions

In a large saucepan, boil cabbage or kale until tender; remove and chop or blend well. Set aside and keep warm. Boil potatoes until tender. Remove from heat and drain.

Chop leeks, green parts as well as white, and simmer them in just enough milk to cover, until they are soft.

Season and mash potatoes well. Stir in cooked leeks and milk. Blend in the kale or cabbage and heat until the whole is a pale green fluff. Make a well in the center and pour in the melted butter. Mix well.  OR spoon colcannon into bowls and make a well in the center of each and pour in the melted butter.

Anybody else have a good Irish recipe?  Or maybe a recipe in honor of Cinco de Mayo?

GO THUNDER!

okie

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Cinco de Mayo fresh tomatillo salsa [Mark]

1 lb. tomatillos, husked
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 C red onion, finely chopped
1/2 C fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
2 dried chipotle chiles
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt

With foil covered baking sheet 6 inches from flame, broil the tomatillos for 15 min.
turning at 5 min and 10 min. Tomatillos will darken in spots.
Remove from the broiler, cool [I stick in freezer for 5 min when I am in a hurry]. Then chop.

Warm the olive oil in a skillet. Add the onion and sauté until softened.
In a bowl, combine the onion and tomatillos. Stir in all remaining ingredients.
Refrigerate and serve cold.    2 C

Filed under: 2012, Bites and Pieces, recipes | 15 Comments »

Bites & Pieces OR Do Alpha Males Eat Quiche?

Posted on April 29, 2012 by lmsinca

I have a basic quiche recipe that can be adapted for all sorts of dietary restrictions and preferences.  I’m trying to gradually add a few pounds back on that I misplaced this year and I can make this once a week and add a few calories to my diet.  On the other hand, it can be made with lower fat/calorie ingredients and still be delicious.

Basic Ingredients:

3 whole eggs, you can substitute egg whites for part of them or all, two egg whites equals one whole egg

1 can evaporated milk, you can use low fat or non fat and honestly you won’t be able to tell the difference

2 1/2 TBS of flour

Salt, pepper and other spices depending on the rest of your ingredients.  I use thyme, parsley, basil and herbs de provence  pretty frequently, but please experiment.

Additional Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups cheese, again low fat versions are fine and I frequently use a combination of mozzarella, parmesan and feta.  Of course you can use cheddar, swiss or really any kind of cheese.

5 to 6 diced green onions

2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped

1 to 2  cups of veggies.  I generally use a combination of broccoli/cauliflower or a variety of summer squash.  Experiment.

1 cup of  meat (cooked).  If you use meat, cut back on the veggies.  For a breakfast quiche the obvious meats are ham, bacon or sausage.  For dinner, chicken would probably work fine.

Directions:

Beat the eggs, milk, flour and spices until well blended.  Sir in the other ingredients, adding the cheeses last and pour into greased 9″X9″ baking dish and bake for about 45 minutes at 350 or until center is set.

By the way, my husband loves this recipe.

****************************************************************

And from okiegirl, who is still finding gorgeous asparagus at an even more gorgeous price, a couple of faves.

Asparagus with Curry Butter

Ingredients

2 teaspoons butter, melted

1 teaspoon curry powder

1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 shallot, finely diced

1 bunch asparagus, (about 1 pound), trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces

Preparation

Combine butter, curry powder, lemon juice and salt in a small bowl.  Omit salt if your curry powder has salt in it already.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add shallot and cook, stirring, until softened, about 2 minutes. Add asparagus and cook, stirring, until just tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir the curry butter into the asparagus; toss to coat.

Yummy with grilled salmon!

Spring Pizza

Ingredients

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

3 cloves garlic, minced (or to taste — this is a lot of garlic)

2 medium tomatoes, sliced

1 bunch asparagus (about 1 pound)

1/2 cup snipped fresh chives, divided

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 pound whole-wheat pizza dough

1 cup shredded fontina or mozzarella cheese

Preparation

Position rack in lower third of oven, place a pizza stone or large pizza pan on the rack and preheat oven to 450°F for at least 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine 2 tablespoons oil and garlic in a small bowl; set aside. Trim asparagus spears to about 6 inches long; slice any thicker stalks in half lengthwise. Toss in a bowl with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, 1/4 cup chives, salt and pepper.

Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to about a 14-inch circle.  (I cheat and buy ready made pizza crust.)

Carefully remove the pizza stone or pan from the oven and set on a heatproof surface, such as your stovetop. Place the dough on the stone or pan and brush with the reserved garlic-oil mixture. Cover with a layer of tomato slices.  Arrange the asparagus in a circular pattern on the dough with the tips facing out (like spokes). Top with cheese and the remaining chives.

Carefully return the stone or pan to the oven and bake the pizza on the lower rack until crispy and golden and the cheese is melted, about 15 minutes.

This makes a lovely spring supper, but also is a nice (if unusual) side dish.

Filed under: 2012, Bites and Pieces, cooking, diet, food, recipes | Tagged: | 16 Comments »

Bites & Pieces (Appetizers)

Posted on April 22, 2012 by lmsinca

We’re having a small party next Saturday and so I’ve been thinking about the menu and what kind of appetizers to serve.  I’ve asked a few family members for suggestions and all of them requested this one.  It’s not the healthiest dish on the planet but since it’s one of those things I only make on rare occasions it falls into the eat in “Moderation” category.  Below I’ll jot down another recipe for an eggplant dip that’s quite a bit more nutritious although Michi may have already given us a similar one.

When I was growing up the popular appetizer at cocktail parties was Rumaki (chicken liver, water chestnut, bacon) so I guess mine isn’t any worse than that.  My father was the Rumaki King and so my sister and I helped make and serve a lot of it…………………………….yuck.

Fried Artichoke Hearts (serves 4 to 6)

Ingredients:

1 can artichoke hearts, not the marinated variety, you can buy them whole or quartered.  Quartered are more work but go further with a crowd.

3/4 cup flour

salt and garlic powder added to flour (dash of salt, 1 tsp garlic powder)

2 eggs lightly beaten

3/4 to 1 cup panko bread crumbs

oil for frying

2 to 3 tablespoons butter

juice of 1/4 lemon

Parmesan, freshly grated or Kraft

Directions:

Drain artichoke hearts.  Measure the seasoned flour and bread crumbs into individual bowls and likewise the eggs.  First coat the hearts with flour, then dip into the eggs coating thoroughly and last, roll in bread crumbs.  I generally do three or four at a time and use a separate fork for each bowl to keep my fingers from building up with all the sticky ingredients.  Place in a single layer on a plate and cover.  Refrigerate for several hours as they are best fried when really cold.

I generally fry them in a hot pan with just a 1/4″ layer of oil on the bottom and flip them several times until they turn a golden brown, but you can deep fry them it you want.  Drain on paper towels for a few minutes and while they’re draining melt the butter and add lemon juice.  Place the hearts into a serving dish and drizzle with lemon butter and sprinkle the top with Parmesan cheese………………Voila!!!!!

Eggplant Dip (Serves 4 to 6)

Ingredients:

5 large eggplants

5 cloves garlic

Juice of 1 large lemon

1 to 2 tablespoons tahini

5 green onions, chopped

salt and black pepper

Directions:

Heat the oven or grill to 400.  Roast whole eggplants on a baking sheet in the oven or directly on the grill for 40 to 50 minutes until soft and let cool.  Scoop out the insides of the eggplants and put them into a bowl, discard the peels.  Mash the eggplant and then let stand for about 30 minutes.  Discard any accumulated juices.

Add the garlic, lemon juice, tahini and green onions to the eggplant and mix together.  Add salt and pepper.  Keep refrigerated until serving.  Serve with crackers, cut vegetable or bread cubes.

And lastly, this piece from the Nation might clarify a few things for the girls here, or at least the ones who used to be here.  I’m not trying to start another fight please, just thought the girls might find something useful from this perspective.

Filed under: 2012, Bites and Pieces, cooking, food, recipes | 17 Comments »

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