Tuesday, June 30, 2009

flatbread

The father's day quiche reminded me how much I love quiche and decided to make another. I had some leftover crust and decided to roll out, slice, sprinkle with salt and sesame seeds. It made a good little flatbread for some humus or soft cheese.

Friday, June 26, 2009

salmon quiche

My dad loves, loves, loves salmon so I made a salmon quiche for father's day brunch. It is really delicious and I think even better as leftovers (can that be?). I ate it for lunch with some beets and raspberries.

Salmon Quiche
Prepare one olive oil whole wheat crust. I used the C&Z recipe with fresh oregano and rosemary in the crust. Blind bake crust (10 minutes at 350 deg F).

Filling:
1 1/2 c. chard, chopped (or other green)
1-2 T. shallots, sliced thinly
1 T. butter
1 c. feta cheese, crumbled
3 eggs
1 1/2 c. whipping cream
2 t. Worcestershire sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 t. sea salt
1/8 t. black pepper
3/4 c. salmon, crumbled (mine was pre-cooked, but cut into small pieces if raw)

In small skillet, cook chard and shallots in butter, over medium heat until soft. In a large bowl combine remaining ingredients. When chard is cool add to mixture. Pour into tart shell. Try to distribute filling evenly.* Bake for 40 minutes or until knife inserted into center comes out clean. Remove and let stand for 5-10 minutes before serving.

*Because I prepared this several days in advance for ease on father's day I covered the quiche and placed in freezer. The night before serving I moved to the fridge and baking time was similar to fresh made. If you're moving straight from freezer to oven expect to increase baking time by at least 20 minutes.

Thursday, June 25, 2009

golden beets

I love roasted beets. I usually buy golden beets because they don't dye your hands (or urine!) the same way red beets can. You can sometimes find them at the grocery, but I can always find them at the farmers market. Summer is beet season and they are making their way to the farmers markets around me.

To roast beets, cut away greens (reserve and eat separately). Place beetroot in a baking dish with a small amount of water. Cover dish. Place dish in 375 deg. F oven for about 45 minutes until knife easily pierces beet. (Cooking time will depend on size of beet...). If you're not eating right away, place in fridge. When ready to eat, slip off skins under cool running water. Slice and drizzle with vinegar and sprinkle with salt and pepper. I usually roast in advance and eat beets cold.

*Try beets even if you don't like them... pickled beets aren't very good (what you usually find in salad bars) and they are better roasted than boiled (IMO), although boiling is a common preparation method.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Beet Greens.

This past weekend I bought some golden beets at the farmer's market. I love roasted beets (and all of you beet haters, try them. They're great). On top are these great beet greens which you should eat too (they are especially rich in vitamins A & K and anti-oxidants beta carotene and lutein). Young greens can be eaten raw, but older greens should be cooked. When buying, look for fresh, healthy looking greens, much like with any other green/lettuce. The greens can substitute for spinach in any recipe.

Beet Greens
~10 cups of beet greens, well washed
3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 T. ginger, chopped
1 T. oil
1 t. fish sauce
1 t. soy sauce
1 t. rice vinegar
sesame seeds
red pepper flakes

Wash greens well and chop them. Include stems. Dry well. Heat oil in wok and cook garlic and ginger for 30 seconds. Add greens and stir well. As the greens cook add fish sauce, soy sauce, and rice vinegar. Cook until greens are wilted. Serve with sesame seeds and red pepper flakes.

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Happy Father's Day!

My parents and brother are visiting me, which has made me a less mindful of this blog than normal... today my brother and I are preparing a delicious brunch for our dad. Expect to see some dishes from the brunch this week!

Monday, June 15, 2009

small things: ice cubes

Sometimes it the small things that make you über-excited. In this case it's these tiny ice cubes. I was at a friend's house and she had these great tiny ice-cubes and I commented on them, she promptly stated that it is the best $4 she has ever spent. To be fair, she has celiac and therefor has fewer chocolate choices. But I agree $4 well spent. I love the noise they make in a soda, iced-tea, cocktail, or seltzer.

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Curtido and Pupusas

In one of those crazy attempts to use some cabbage in the fridge I found a cole slaw recipe that then led me to a tortilla making recipe... and it all turned out delicious. Now I'm tempted to learn to make better tortillas - they are very simple. These dishes are El Salvadoran and apparently very traditional.

Curtido (El Salvador cabbage salad)

1/2 head green cabbage, cored & shredded
1 carrot, grated
1 qt. water, boiling
3 green onions, sliced
1 c. distilled white vinegar
1/2 c. water
1/2 t. salt
1 jallapeno/serano pepper, minced (& seeded), opt.

Combine cabbage and carrot in a bowl. Pour boiling water over mixture and allow to steep for 5 minutes. Drain well. Meanwhile, combine green onions, white vinegar, water, salt and pepper. Dress salad and refrigerate for a minimum of 20 minutes.

Pupusas de Queso (cheese filled tortillas)

2 c. masa harina* (Maseca brand is easy to find)
1+ c. water
1 c. queso fresco**, crumbled

Combine water with masa harina and knead until a moist, smooth dough. Cover for 5-10 minutes. Divide the dough into 1/4, and form into balls. Roll out a ball***. Sprinkle cheese in middle and fold over. Seal edges. Cook on medium-high heated skillet for about 2 minutes per side. Repeat for following 3 tortillas.

Eat the Pupusas de Queso with the Curtido by tearing chunks off the tortilla and using that to grab the slaw or by whatever method you feel comfortable. Take care as the cheese may be very hot. Add salsa

Variation: experiment with the fillings - add jalapeno, salsa, beans, meat, etc.

* DO NOT substitute with corn meal or regular flour. Maseca is found even in my local mass grocery store (and our hispanic food selection is pitiful). Look for it in the baking aisle.
** You can substitute farmer's cheese or mozzarella but this is even in my local grocery and sold under the store brand.
***For a more authentic technique, don't roll but toss between two hands until make a round. Use masa and water to facilitate.

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

surprise packages.

Upon coming home from an exciting outing at the laundromat I found a package in my mail. A friend sent me some teas! She thought I might enjoy them and she's right! I'm having my first cup right now (English Breakfast). She also included some recipes - I am most excited about the eggplant spread right now - when is eggplant in season?

Monday, June 8, 2009

woods.

Weekend hike with friends, although a little misadventure-ous still a blast. It's great to be back out on the trail - hike on!

Friday, June 5, 2009

Juana Molina

I recently fell in love with Juana Molina's music. It is classified as folk, but I might refer to it as cocktail music. Of course, that is my own classification. Or 'bubble jazz' another singular classification.

Juana is an Argentinean native who spent part of her adolescence in Paris and is well known as an actress in Latin America. Most of her lyrics are sung in her native dialectal spanish - so I don't understand a word. She is compared to Bjork, amongst others, probably due to her mix of ambient and electronica. She usually mixes tracks, writes, and performs on her own.

(photo from www.ny.remezcla.com)

Thursday, June 4, 2009

heat wave

This week is hot. Today it has hit 90* deg F (the last several have tapered out at 88 deg). The only thing to do is pull out my paper fans. My small collection consists of one from my childhood (my favorite souvenirs!), one that belonged to a great aunt (the gold fancy one with images on both sides) and 4 from my brother. About 5 years ago, he gave me a bunch of butterfly paper fans. Why? Who knows. It is these butterfly fans that I pull out on hot days. They are less precious, but still hold the charm and elegance and cooling effect of the others. They suffer from small tares in their pleats, which was the fate of many of mine from childhood (more often a separation from the handle); I repair the damage with tape and continue to cool myself. I also enjoy a quantity of popsicles.

* Average high for June is 69 deg. F. The hottest month, August's average high is 76 deg. F. An absolute record high for Seattle of 100 deg. F was set in late July 15 years ago. So this is REALLY hot for us.

UPDATE: It eventually reached 92 deg.

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

spinach salad with candied nuts

Last week I got the prettiest spinach I have ever seen in my csa box. It comes from a farm not too far away and looks perfect. I thought such special greens deserved a special preparation and I decided to make candied nuts. During family celebrations it is not uncommon to have candied nuts on a salad - usually pecans or slivered almonds. I had walnuts so that is what I used. For the salad I added feta and wanted to add fresh apricots, but they didn't seem quite ripe so I substituted dried cranberries. Any seasonal fruit works well with spinach, the beauty is found in the contrast of the bitterness of spinach and the sweetness of the fruit. I dressed the salad with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Candied nuts for salads

2 T. sugar
1 c. nuts

Place sugar and nuts in large sauce pan (large enough for only 1 layer) with heat on med-high. Continually stir the sugar and nuts. In a few minutes the sugar will start to melt and coat the nuts. When sugar is all melted, pour mixture onto waxed paper to cool. If nuts are whole, you may way to chop before or after sugaring. Enjoy on your salad!

Monday, June 1, 2009

mock moroccan mint tea.

When in Morocco you will drink mint tea, also known as Moroccan whisky, at least three times a day. It is drunk with each meal and during most social encounters.

The tea is a delight. The heat, the refreshing mint, and the sugar. When it is extremely hot, hot drinks are actually refreshing (making the air around you feel cooler) and you also need a lot of sugar (and salt) to compensate for all the sweating. When you're in the cool pacific northwest you don't need all that sugar or the heat so this is an iced and lightly sweetened version of the mint tea found in Morocco.

mock moroccan mint tea
makes 2 quarts

3-4 c. water, boiling
4 black tea bags, tied together with tags removed
1-2 sprigs of mint (about 4")
2 cubes of sugar
1 tray ice cubes

Place tea, mint, and sugar in 2 quart pitcher. Pour boiling water over mixture and let steep for 5-10 minutes. Remove tea bags and mint. Add ice to tea and fill pitcher with cold water. Stir and place in fridge. Enjoy with ice!