Published by mel on March 27, 2008 in entree and recipe.
Growing up in Miami I had very little access to Asian food (greasy Chinese takeout was pretty much it) and I never really knew what Vietnamese cuisine was until I moved to Boston. The first time I had a noodle salad, I was blown away. It came in a big, deep bowl with tons of fresh herbs and vegetables and a slightly sweet, acidic dressing. As with most noodle bowls, I felt like I could eat tons and tons of it in one sitting. (I didn’t.)
I finally decided to take a stab at recreating it at home and the results were really good! I took a shortcut by using broccoli slaw, which can be found at most markets. I also added savoy cabbage and scallions for a more authentic flavor and some cashews for crunch. The salad was light and healthy and the mint, cilantro and basil lent a fresh, summery taste to the dish. I also added slices of flank steak that had been rubbed with brown sugar and chile powder for a sweet and spicy protein. For me, it’s the perfect summer salad.
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Published by mel on March 25, 2008 in breakfast, entree and recipe.
Monday nights are always late ones. I always do my weekly shopping after work and usually get home pretty late. That’s why Monday dinners must take 20 minutes or less, start to finish. That usually means we’re having eggs in one form or another. I wish I would have made this a bit sooner as it would have made a lovely Easter brunch dish, but I’m sure you all have leftover eggs from the weekend that need some cooking.
Leftover polenta, roasted asparagus, Manchego cheese and poached eggs are all neatly stacked for this simple meal. I love the play of textures between the coarse polenta, crisp asparagus and rich egg yolk.
While you could certainly use the polenta that comes in a tube if you’re pressed for time, real slow-cooked and coarse polenta is healthier and more interesting if you’ve got the time. I would also encourage you to experiment with the ingredients. I’m a firm believer that everything tastes better with an egg on top, so switch the asparagus for watercress, ham or sausage - whatever’s in your fridge will probably taste amazing topped by an egg.
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Published by mel on March 24, 2008 in dessert and recipe.
Tom and I were at the supermarket Saturday night because we were running low on milk for our Sunday morning coffee. We had made an early dinner of seafood sausages, burgers and beer, but no dessert. Our sweet tooth got the better of us when we were picking up the milk, and we started foraging for some snacks.
Every package of cookies I picked up was laden with refined flours, HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) and too many ingredients I couldn’t pronounce. So, instead of buying a box of chemical cookies, I pulled out my iPhone and sought out a recipe I knew I had bookmarked somewhere - Heidi’s Triple Chocolate Espresso Cookies. So much better than anything store-bought, they’re delicious and wholesome, though decidedly not dietetic.
I made the whole batch, but froze 2/3 of the dough because neither of us can stop ourselves around fresh baked cookies. Most of all, I was delighted to discover that the base dough was easy and versatile. I’m already thinking about interesting mix-ins like dried cherries, pinenuts and and pretty much every other nut under the sun.
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Published by mel on March 21, 2008 in dessert and recipe.
It’s not exactly stone fruit season here, but it is in Chile. And while I know it’s not exactly environmentally friendly to buy fruit that’s traveled from another continent, my grocery store seemed to be overflowing with nectarines this week. If I didn’t buy them, they’d just shrivel up and get thrown away right?
Anyway, I ended up with 2 pounds of nectarines and decided to make a crumble with them. They were just ripe enough, but not so ripe that they’d turn to mush in the oven. This crumble is healthier than most because I didn’t use a whole lot of sugar and the crumble is made with white whole wheat flour, rolled oats, Greek yogurt and about half the traditional stick of butter.
The crumble is tangy, crunchy, refreshing and just feels like summer (it always kind of feels like summer here in Miami, though). If you’re sick of winter and tempted by the foreign nectarines at your market, this just might make the perfect Easter dessert.
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Published by mel on March 20, 2008 in entree and recipe.
I’ve mentioned before that I’m mildly obsessed with Sriracha. It’s not just a hot sauce of the eye-watering, nose-running variety, though it is pretty darn hot. It has a subtle garlicky flavor that adds a unique flavor to almost anything. Last night, I mixed it into apricot preserves along with some shoyu and Worcestershire sauce and made sweet and spicy glaze for pork cutlets. I let the glaze bubble and brown and the chunky pieces of caramelized apricot were deliciously addicting.
The cutlets were sweet, juicy and spicy and paired really well with the griddled cheesy polenta and simple salad of fennel and greens I made. I suspect this glaze would be just as tasty on chicken, shrimp or even lamb.
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Published by mel on March 19, 2008 in entree and recipe.
I love plantains. They can be prepared both green (startchy) or over-ripe (sweet). They’re rich in fiber and potassium which makes them a nutritious vegetable, but the sweet ones taste like an indulgent carb.
For dinner last night, I simply peeled and halved a few over-ripe plantains and baked them. I also made a quick sautee of shrimp, lime juice, Thai red curry paste and basil. The spicy and tangy shrimp were a nice contrast to the sweet basil and plantains and the whole meal came together in under 25 minutes.
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Published by mel on March 18, 2008 in entree and recipe.
Tom thought I was insane when he opened my order from Rancho Gordo. He pulled bag after bag of heirloom beans from the DHL box, laughing the entire time. He lined them all up on the counter, poked fun at me and took a picture. That was before he tasted them and admitted they were the best beans he’s ever had. So there.
On Sunday morning, I left some Anasazi beans soaking while I went to the beach. Unlike the beans you buy at the grocery store, Rancho Gordo beans are really fresh and start to plump up right away. I let them simmer for a few hours and simply added some salt, raw garlic and sauteed onions. The raw garlic is my grandmother’s secret to amazing beans. She always crushed them in a mortar and pestle until the cloves turned into a paste. If you just mince the garlic, it won’t melt into the liquid and if you sautee the garlic with the onions, the beans will take on a slightly bitter flavor. Her beans are legendary among the family.
The Anasazis made an excellent “pot liquor” and I served them simply with a squeeze of lime, cilantro leaves and queso fresco. They were so meaty and satisfying that I almost forgot I hadn’t added ham or chorizo as is the tradition with most Cuban and Spanish bean dishes.
I imagine these would make a fantastic base for rice and beans or tacos. I’ve got 7 other varieties stacked neatly in my pantry that I can’t wait to get into!
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Published by mel on March 14, 2008 in entree and recipe.
Sometimes the best meals are the ones you have to invent. I haven’t been to the grocery store since well before my trip to Austin and the fridge and pantry were looking a little sparse. I always keep some chicken sausages in the fridge for emergencies like this and I knew I had some corn tortillas, cilantro and frozen maize in the fridge. Once I know I’ve got tortillas and cilantro, I know tacos are on the menu.
Last night, the tacos were stuffed with habanero and green chile chicken sausage that I sauteed with frozen maize kernels. Maize (or Choclo) are pretty much giant, white corn kernels. They’re usually found in Chilean or Peruvian cooking, and are often served with Ceviche. Maize is also used to make hominy by soaking or cooking in lime-water. These kernels are not as sweet as regular corn, and have a starchier texture. I buy mine frozen off the cob (Goya Choclo Desgranado) in the frozen section of my grocery store. If you can’t find them at a Hispanic market, I’d use diced potatoes as a substitute to achieve a similar texture and flavor.
A dollop of plain Greek yogurt, a squeeze of hot sauce and dinner was done. I really loved the play of textures between the sausage and maize kernels and although the meal was unplanned, I can’t wait to make it again.
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Published by mel on March 13, 2008 in entree and recipe.
I was in Austin the past few days for the SxSW Interactive Festival and I’m exhausted! I had 5 days of panels and networking and 5 nights of beer and parties. I learned a ton, met a billion people and ate a whole lot of delicious food, but I was so glad to be home last night. I really missed home-cooked meals and my big, soft bed.
Since we got home at 9pm last night, I wanted to make something quick and healthy. I sauteed some peppered turkey bacon and sliced brussel sprouts with a bit of Shoyu and maple syrup and topped them off with a couple of poached eggs. It was slightly sweet and savory and so satisfying after week straight of eating out. A lovely weeknight meal.
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Published by mel on March 6, 2008 in entree and recipe.
Weeknights usually mean shortcuts. For example, I love meatballs but don’t have time to make them, then brown them, then let them simmer unless it’s a lazy Sunday. So, I look for shortcuts. A few years ago, I experimented with skipping the browning stage. Browning the meatballs gives them a more meaty flavor and allows them to keep their spherical shape. I found that if you cook the meatballs in one layer on the bottom of a large pot, you’ll still get a browning effect over time. I almost prefer this method because the marinara sauce also browns slightly, adding a more complex meaty and tomato-y flavor. As for them keeping their shape, they will as long as they’re stirred only once or twice.
I also took some extra shortcuts like using store-bought marinara sauce. (Gasp! I know!) As long as it’s a good brand that uses no preservatives, you’ll be okay. I used Gia Russa brand, which is all natural and I’ve found to be consistently top-quality. To get some sausage-y flavor in there to compliment the Artichoke marinara, I used ground pork instead of ground beef and added some fennel seeds. The meatballs were tender and flavorful and the fennel seeds were there, but not overwhelming.
While weeknight meatballs still take quite some time to cook, it’s not active time. I made them in the morning while I was getting ready for work and only had to make some pasta when I got home. They were deliciously hearty and the leftovers made my co-workers jealous.
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