Archive for June, 2008

grilling vegetables 101

Published by mel on June 30, 2008 in random and sides & bites.

grilled vegetables 101

Grilling season is officially on and it’s time for burgers, sausage and kebabs. But while you’re at it, make some room on the grill for fresh vegetables. Here are some tips for making perfectly grilled eggplant, zucchini, mushroom and red peppers.

First off, you want to make sure you have thick slices when grilling eggplant or summer squash. If they’re too thin, they’ll get mushy and will be harder to manipulate with your grillin’ tools. If you’re dealing with peppers, I’d say grill them whole, then let them cool before removing the seeds. Some people like to remove the skin of the peppers as well, but I don’t recommend it because you’ll lose a lot of the char-grilled flavor. If you’ve got mushrooms, you’ll want to stick with portabellos since they’re big and meaty. Otherwise, you’ll have a lot mushroom casualties falling through the grate.

Next up, marinate for the best flavor. I like to mix some oil, vinegar or citrus juice and fresh herbs with salt and pepper and let the vegetable slices marinate for at least 2 hours, even overnight. The marinade will prevent them from sticking to the grate will give you more flavorful results.

Controlling your temperature is also very important. For quick-cooking summer squashes and eggplant, high heat is fine, even preferable so that you’ll get a nice char. For mushrooms, stick with medium temperature, but don’t overcook them. More on that in a minute. You’ll want to keep the heat on medium-low for peppers until they’re tender, then up the heat to high until the skin blisters.

grilled vegetables 101

Finally, don’t overcook your vegetables. You want them to be slightly browned, charred in places and have nice, defined grill marks. This means resisting the urge to move them or flip them constantly. Just throw them on and flip them once halfway through. For eggplant, summer squash and mushrooms, 3 – 4 minutes on each side is plenty. Peppers will need a bit more time, 6 minutes on each side, plus 1 – 2 minutes over high heat.

I love a grilled vegetable sandwich with jamon serrano (see photo), or on top of flatbread. They also make a perfect addition to an antipasto or charcuterie plate. Read on for marinade recipes.

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black mission fig & prosciutto pizza

Published by mel on June 27, 2008 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.

black mission fig & prosciutto pizza

The end of June is one of the best times of the year. The sun rises early and sets late, the 4th of July is just around the corner and black mission figs are finally in season! I love figs, and while I’ll never pass up dried figs, there’s nothing like a fresh one. I think people are scared off my their weird appearance, or maybe they’re just traumatized by Fig Newtons. Whatever the case, nobody seems to buy them at my local grocery store, which just leaves more for me.

black mission figs

I love them caramelized, grilled, drizzled with honey and especially on a pizza. They add just enough sweetness to complement the salty prosciutto and cheese without being cloying. Delicious! Go get them now before they’re gone for the summer. A tip on storing them: Keep them in the fridge. They grow mold quickly if it’s hot an humid out.

Now put the mold out of your mind and go get your fig on…

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chunky oatmeal almond chocolate chip cookies

Published by mel on June 25, 2008 in dessert, recipe and sides & bites.

chunky oatmeal almond chocolate chip cookies

I think people are finally starting to change their minds about what’s considered healthy. At least, I hope they are. For me, it’s not about low-cal and low-fat and no-fat, but more about keeping refined and processed foods to a minimum. This means that I no longer keep white flour or refined sugar in the house. Also, no margarine or other artificial fats. Instead, I’ve got organic butter and olive, walnut, peanut, sesame and canola oils. Whole wheat or grain flours are infinitely more satisfying than their bleached counterparts — there’s just no way you can eat 10 whole wheat cookies. Those 100-calorie packs? Well, I bet you can eat more than 10.

Since white flour’s out, I usually have to tweak cookie recipes. My favorite substitute is oat flour, which I make at home by running some rolled oats through the food processor. It gives cookies that chewy, homey oatmeal flavor that I absolutely love with dark chocolate chips. For this recipe, I also mixed in some grated chocolate which melts nicely throughout, and some chunky almond butter for crunch and, um, nuttiness.

chunky oatmeal almond chocolate chip cookies

The result is a healthier cookie. Yep, cookies can be healthy even if they’re made with a stick of butter. Since they’re more nutritious, you only need a couple to satisfy your sweet tooth. And I promise no one will know they’re “healthy.” I actually gave these cookies to a big, burly fireman for his birthday and he gobbled them right up. I only told him they were good for him afterward.

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arepas w/crab & avocado salad

Published by mel on June 23, 2008 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.

arepas w/crab & avocado salad

Wikipedia says that “The arepa is a corn-based bread from the northern Andes in South America …” In reality, an arepa is more similar to a savory corn pancake, and depending on who’s making it, it’s sometimes filled with gooey cheese. Down here, every street festival has an arepa cart which sells very greasy, very cheesy Colombian-style arepas. There’s even a semi-permanent arepa stand at Hobie Beach on Virginia Key that I’m sure gets lots of business from the multitude of hungry cyclists, runners and beach-goers that crowd the area during the summer.

Anyway, there are infinite recipes out there, all using different amounts of butter, cheese, milk and oil. I opted for a lighter version of the original, omitting the butter and cheese and keeping it as simple as possible to let the corn-ness (is that a word?) really shine. The result was just as flavorful, but way less greasy than the arepa cart.

Since I was trying to keep this meal light — it was lunchtime after all — I served my warm arepas with a refreshing crab and avocado salad. I loved the crab salad as an alternative to tuna and egg salads for the summer months. It would make a perfect lunch with some whole grain toast and leafy greens. It also elevates the arepas from small and snack-like to a full-blown meal, perfect for hot and humid evenings.

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chickpea & bulgur salad w/soft boiled egg & breadcrumbs

Published by mel on June 20, 2008 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.

chickpea & bulgur salad w/soft boiled egg & breadcrumbs

You know those days when you open your fridge and find that there isn’t much in there. Or, there’s plenty of food, but you’re not in the mood for any of it. Steak? Nah. Sausages? Nope. Pasta? Not again…

So you turn to your pantry and start poking around for something, anything, that seems appetizing. Last night, that happened to be a can of chickpeas, some bulgur and a bag of greens. Ah, a perfect summer salad. But I didn’t want a simple salad – that wouldn’t do. I wanted a salad that felt like a meal. Something hearty, but also refreshing.

The result was a chickpea and bulgur salad topped with a soft boiled egg and fresh, homemade breadcrumbs. I mashed half the can of chickpeas so that they’d hold together with the bulgur. Otherwise, those little suckers are impossible to get on your fork unless you chase them around your plate. Too much effort for a weeknight, really.

The breadcrumbs were a sort of ode to croutons. For some reason, whenever I try to make homemade croutons, I cut enormous chunks of bread and the salad ends up more like a panzanella. These breadcrumbs added a much more subtle crunch. And the soft boiled egg was perfect, coating everything with a glossy yellow richness that made the salad feel substantial and just a bit indulgent.

Cilantro and a lemony shallot vinaigrette brightened it all up for a delicious summer dinner.

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oat risotto with shrimp, asparagus & pecorino

Published by mel on June 18, 2008 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.

oat risotto with shrimp, asparagus & pecorino

While I was away on a girls’ weekend in Maine, Tom was attending the annual Asparagus Festival in Western Michigan. Every year, Michiganders celebrate the harvest with a parade, plenty of beer-battered fried asparagus and the crowning of Miss Asparagus. Good times were had by all from what I hear, and I got a spanking new “I <3 Asparagus” T-shirt. Because I do in fact heart asparagus, Tom brought a couple pounds home. Even after 14 hours of travel, they arrived fresh and crisp.

So what to do with them? I decided on a risotto, and in my quest to try out risottos with all varieties of grains, I used steel cut oats. Yes, oatmeal. Savory oatmeal for dinner. I was a little wary at first, but it turned out pretty and delicious. Creamy, but not mushy. Tangy and decadent as its traditional counterpart, I love that I’ve added a new grain to the risotto roster.

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jerk chicken, nectarine & goat cheese salad

Published by mel on June 16, 2008 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.

jerk chicken, nectarine & goat cheese salad

I just got back from a weekend away in beautiful Maine. I was hoping to post this before I left, but never got around to it. Here it is in all of its delicious glory.

Summer’s here and the stone fruits are starting to appear in huge quantities. I love nectarines and often bring them to work for my mid-morning snack. Although tasty, they’re really not ideal for eating at your desk. Usually, I end up bent over the trash can as the juices run down my fingers and drip everywhere. Not very attractive.

If you want to avoid creating such a scene at work, another way to eat those nectarines that I’m sure are piling up in your fruit bowl (aside from a delicious crumble) is to use them in a salad. They provide a nice substitute for the juicy tomatoes which have unfortunately disappeared from stores nationwide, lest we all become infected with salmonella.

The jerk chicken is a nice compliment for the sweet nectarines and goat cheese and vinaigrette give it enough of a bite to curb the fruit’s sweetness. Just add some walnuts for crunch and you’ve got a perfectly well-rounded summer salad.

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andouille-stuffed poblano peppers

Published by mel on June 11, 2008 in entree and recipe.

andouille-stuffed poblano peppers

Ah, stuffed peppers. They’re so good! They’re especially good when stuffed with spicy, Andouille chicken sausage, corn and brown rice. It’s a delicious little package of protein, vegetables and whole grains.

I’ve made stuffed peppers before, but had never used poblano peppers because the ones at my grocery store are usually sad dried up, dusty-looking things. I found some fresh, shiny ones this week and then spotted some freshly made Andouille sausages in the meat case and knew they’d be perfect for each other.

andouille-stuffed poblano peppers

The stuffed poblanos were topped with Cotija cheese, baked and served alongside a lime-spiked watercress and cilantro salad. I could probably eat these every day and be happy. I’m sure Tom wouldn’t mind. In fact, he’d probably love it. Next time, I want to try a breakfast version stuffed with scrambled eggs, diced potatoes and onion (maybe bacon)…a perfect brunch!

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whole wheat skillet flatbread

Published by mel on June 9, 2008 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.

whole wheat skillet flatbread

I spied a sort of recipe for skillet flatbread over at Mark Bittman’s blog a few weeks ago and bookmarked it immediately. It peaked my interest because of its simplicity, its use of Whole Wheat flour and because it doesn’t take yeast. My impatient self loves that. Apparently, it’s also impossible to mess up. The author (Kerri Conan) says you can substitute any kind of whole grain flour and can play with the measurements of the flour and the water depending on whether you want something soft and “custardy” or nice and crisp. I went with the crisp. This kind of improvised, non-exact recipe is exactly how I like to cook!

And the flatbread was wonderful. Simple, hearty and ridiculously easy to make. Five ingredients and 45 minutes is all you need before you’re enjoying the crisp, warm pita-like bread. We topped ours with some freshly grilled and marinated graffiti eggplant, feta cheese and oil-cured black olives. Very delicious on a hot Sunday afternoon. Especially when eaten on a paper towel pool-side.

whole wheat skillet flatbread with eggplant, feta and olives

You can also pile it with pizza toppings and put it under the broiler for a few minutes. It’s not quite as soft and chewy as regular pizza dough, but works well if you have no time or patience for the dough to rise. I also think this would make a beautiful appetizer for guests simply topped with cheese, fresh produce and herbs and cut into pretty squares. Or a simple, sweet snack with cheese, figs and honey.

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chicago-style deep dish pizza

Published by mel on June 6, 2008 in entree and recipe.

chicago-style deep dish pizza

I’m going to start off by saying here and now that I know this isn’t the most authentic Chicago-style pizza. I know how protective people are about local specialties. At least, I know I am. So I thought I’d just throw this little disclaimer out before I begin.

And so, I’ve been thinking about deep dish pizza for awhile. Ever since the Top Chef contestants made it for their first Quickfire Challenge. And so has Tom, who has been asking when I’d make it for him ever since. Chicago-style deep dish is like a regular pizza, but kind of backwards. You press the dough into the pan like a pie or tart, layer the cheese first, then the toppings, then the sauce. Oh, those crazy Chicagoans!

I was worried I didn’t have the right pan or that the crust would be soggy or that it would just be a big, sloppy mess. But it actually turned out pretty well. Since I was out of mozzarella, I used some sheep’s milk cheese and Havarti, which were nice and melty under the sauce and toppings, and added roasted garlic sausage and leeks for the traditional, hearty feel. Top it all off with a nice spicy pizza sauce and you’re done.

It’s a little messier than a New York-style pizza, but was delicious in its own way. Don’t be scared off if you don’t have a deep-dish pizza pan or even the right-sized cast iron skillet. I used a cast-iron sauce pot and it was fine. I just had to be a bit more careful when I took it out. I suspect a 9-inch cast iron skillet would be perfect.

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