cooking – Page 4 – Peaceful Reader

Chilly weather makes me think of soup!

Last week as the temperatures dropped down, giving me a reason to don gloves and my winter coat as I headed off in the morning, I dreamed of soup. I had lentils in my pantry and vegetables in the crisper. I have a usual lentil soup recipe but I wanted to try something different.

I pulled down Soup; A way of life by Barbara Kafka, one I don’t use often even though I love soup.

I found a delicious soup and I had most of the ingredients on hand.

Lentil Soup

(adapted)

1 T olive oil

2 strips of bacon, sliced into small pieces

3 large stalks of celery, chopped

3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into small chunks

1 small yellow onion, diced

3 cloves of garlic, smashed, peeled, and minced

1 T cumin seeds, ground

1 1/2 tsp chili powder

3 cups vegetable stock (it called for beef but I still only ever have veg. on hand)

1 1/2 cup brown lentils, rinsed

1/2 cup coarsely chopped parsley

2 tsp fresh lemon juice

Freshly ground black pepper

In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil and bacon over medium high heat. Stir in the celery, carrots, and onions and saute a little to soften. Add garlic, cumin, and chili powder and stir to coat veggies.

Stir in the stock, 3 cups of water, and the lentils. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 40 minutes, or until the lentils are soft.

Remove from the heat. In a food processor, puree about half the lentils. Stir the puree back into the pan, add the lemon juice, and black pepper. Heat thoroughly. Top each bowl with parsley sprigs. Can be served with soar cream dollop. Served with big chunky bread to dip.

The soup was delicious…for my husband and I. The kids noticed the kick right away and Teenage Boy managed to finish his bowl using the bread to absorb the heat but Groovy Girl, even after stirring in several heaps of sour cream, still couldn’t make it through. She ate two more slices of the fresh bread to compensate.

The recipe originally called for bacon rind with an explanation of what that was, but I had good, farm fresh bacon in my freezer so I used that instead which pleased the teenager a lot as he has come to believe that every meal should include meat. So much for his vegetarian start to life. He is very much in the growing stage though. Hungry all the time.

I made this one day and served it the next and so somehow completely skipped the blender part of this recipe. Next time I will do it because I know it would add a nice thickness to the soup. I also thought this would be wonderful over brown rice.

Now it is much warmer out and it may stay that way for the next couple of weeks but I’ll be ready when it decides to get cold on me again.

This post is linked to Weekend Cooking at Beth Fish Reads. Click on her link and find many other wonderful food-related posts. I’m not going to think about soup though again until the weather takes another dive.

Weekend Cooking: Random Eating

All five of us were together this past week as Kaylee came to stay in between her NY internship and the beginning of her junior year at Oberlin. I tend to go an extra mile, culinary-wise, while she is here. We have happy hour with lots of tomato-based appetizers; like bruschetta and tomatoes layered with fresh mozzarella and basil clipped fresh from the garden.

Tofu stir-fry

This week I made a frittata, quesadillas with lots of toppings, and an Asian stir fry with peanut sauce. The stir-fry is Groovy’s Girl’s dish-she honestly said to her older sister-“it’s my signature dish” sounding a bit like a nine-year-old Martha Stewart as she brought the big bowl to the table. We made a quick peanut sauce, tossed it with stir-fried veggies and tofu and mixed it up with Asian rice noodles. She loves to whip it up.

The quiche was beautiful also but I failed to get a picture-people were hungry. I used a recipe from Super Suppers Cookbook; More Everyday Family Recipes by Judie Byrd.

Frittata with Spinach and Tomatoes

Makes 4-6 servings

4 large eggs, beaten

1 cup milk

1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

1/2 cup slivered fresh basil

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper

1 cup chopped onion

1 T. vegetable oil

1 10-oz bag prewashed spinach

3 medium tomatoes, sliced

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375*F. In a large bowl combine eggs, milk, Monteray Jack cheese, basil, salt, and pepper; set aside.

In a large ovenproof skillet cook onion in hot oil over medium-high heat until tender. Gradually add spinach to skillet; cook just until wilted. Stir in egg mixture. Cook until eggs are almost set but still moist, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Arrange tomato slices on top and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Transfer to preheated oven. Bake frittata for 5-6 minutes until set in center.

Serve right out of the skillet. This was such an easy meal to whip up after school, serve with a tossed salad, and orange juice. Groovy Girl said it looked disgusting and refused to eat more than three bites but the older kids ate it up.

She did finish these cupcakes though…

We had Williams-Sonoma Sweet Treats checked out from the library and Groovy Girl chose Sweet Lemon Cupcakes to make. They are delicious and this is a wonderful kid’s cookbook. It gives detailed descriptions so she really understood the steps. It also has problem areas included for some recipes to look for and the cupcake example was about overfilling your cupcake tin. Science corner also pops up in a few recipes so kids (and adults) can understand ingredient combinations like vinegar and baking soda. Beautiful photography shows a diverse population of both boys and girl baking and creating through the steps of each recipe.

It was a great week for eating at our house. It’s not even the weekend anymore but I’m still in my pajamas and it is afternoon here-it’s a lot like a weekend day! I love a three-day weekend…

Weekend Cooking; Breakfast for dinner!

Meal planning has gone out the window during this busy summer but I’ve still crafted some inspiring dinners.

I had a bag of organic potatoes and some gorgeous farm eggs from my teaching friend John. Put them all together and you can make a wonderful crustless quiche! I sliced the potatoes and cooked them with a mix of unsalted butter and olive oil in my ever-so-useful Lodge cast iron skillet. I sauteed them for about 10-15 minutes, making sure to stir a few times. You can see the whites of the potato change color as it cooks. Once you think they’ve cooked enough then your ready for the eggs.

While the potatoes cooked I cracked a dozen eggs into a large bowl and whisked them with a big splash of milk. I added large sprinkles of sea salt, freshly ground pepper, and a seasoning salt from Penzey’s.

I was so into egg whisking I forgot to snap a photo but look at those beautiful shells.

I added some sour cream to the egg mix but you could also add cream cheese or goat cheese. I poured the egg mixture over the nicely browned potatoes in the skillet and let it bubble up all together. I let it sit on a low burner for a few minutes to cook underneath and then popped it into the broiler to finish off the top. Half way through I pulled the rack out and sprinkled grated mozzarella cheese on top.

This is what it looks like after sitting on the broiler. Watch it so it doesn’t get too brown. I sprinkled more cheese on it before taking it to the table. I used my pie cutter and a spatula and it came right out of the pan in nice pie pieces. There it is all dressed up with salsa, sprouts, a dab of sour cream on the top and a slice of toasted sour dough bread on the side. Should have had a slice of bacon on the side but it was probably already eaten! The four of us ate more than half of this for dinner with just a few slices for leftover lunch the next day. Salud!

These post is linked to Weekend Cooking at Beth Fish Reads. Click on her link about Dinner; A Love Story and see what other fantastic food-related posts she has linked to this Saturday.

What's for dinner?

I dislike that question from my children. Don’t you? I want them to like what ever is set before them. Really I do. They rarely do. It is one way for them to take ownership of their little corner of the world. “But Mom….remember I don’t like onions [insert food of choice, rotates on a daily basis]”and said in a somewhat whiny voice. It’s okay, whatever I make is good for you and you’re going to eat it, said with a smile is my general response.

(Two Lodge skillets with pizza dough)

Pizza is one universal food they can agree on. Teenage boy has said he could eat it every night of the week without fail. His second choice of daily meals: buttered pasta. I know, right. So lacking in imagination. What happened to my boy who loved veggies, and tofu, and ate what I put down on the table ‘cuz he loved me!

I woke up this morning with pizza on my mind, even though I’ve cut WAYYY back on bread/gluten items. Over the winter I’d read an article in MS’s Living magazine about making pizza in a cast iron skillet. I didn’t make it then but it’s been jiggling in the back of my mind ever since. Today was the day.

(The big pizza got a sprinkling of black olives and sauteed portebellos)

I didn’t have a chance to make the dough this morning because I’ve been religiously going through my yoga routine first thing and then I had to get to my husband’s performing arts camp to help out. That was alright though as I thought when I bring Groovy Girl home she and I can make the dough and it can have half a day to sit. Not the best but okay. I can be flexible. I regretted this later as the dough was very sticky.

(Just out of the oven)

I used the Mel’s Kitchen Cafe dough I’ve used the last 5-7 times I’ve made pizza. How many times does one use someone else’s recipe before it becomes their own? Maybe never! I then googled pizza in cast iron skillet thinking I would come up with Martha’s article but nope I got King Arthur’s recipe instead. I like KA products and as I read through the recipe it sounded good. The skillets were slick. The pizza slides right out I added a garlic olive oil drizzle to the pan before I pressed the dough. The kids loved it, especially the thick Chicago-style crust. It was a little two deep dish for me and I limited myself to one slice but the flavor was great. Making the little one for Groovy Girl without the mushrooms and olives was perfect. She likes crust and red sauce with just a dusting of cheese. Using the skillet made it less of a production, which makes me think I could whip out a little one for her for lunch.

I did something revolutionary this week!

(photo courtesy of Chez Us)

Don’t you get tired of buying cans, boxes, jars or cubes of veggie, beef or chicken stock? On my ongoing quest to bring less “stuff” into my house, especially the kitchen, I started to re-evaluate my constant need for stock. While searching through my favorite crock pot book, Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker by Robin Robertson I ran across an easy recipe for stock and thought I should give it a try.

Maybe some people do this all the time but it was a revelation for me-how ding dang easy it was to make and how great it made my house smell. It made enough for me to use for the next two weeks with some to freeze.

Give it a try-here’s the recipe. I no longer have to worry about purchasing too salty or expensive boxes of organic stock. Thank heavens. I also set up my mise en place for this recipe which made me feel extremely cooking cool.

Light and Easy Vegetable Stock

A 5 1/2-to 6-quart cooker is best.

8 to 10 hours cook time

Low setting

Makes 8 cups

1 T. olive oil

2 medium-size yellow onions, quartered

2 large carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 celery rib, cut into 1-inch pieces

2 or 3 garlic cloves, left unpeeled and crushed

Peels from 2 large well-scrubbed potatoes (I actually used the whole well scrubbed pots)

1/3 cup coarsely chopped fresh parsley leaves

1 large bay leaf

1/2 tsp black peppercorns

8 cups water

2 tsp tamari or other soy sauce (might be nice to make sure it is wheat-free)

1 tsp salt (I kind of thought this was unnecessary and didn’t add it)

1. Drizzle the oil in the bottom of a the slow cooker. Add the onions, carrots, celery, garlic, potato, parsley, bay leaf, and peppercorns, pour in the water, and add the tamari. Cover and cook on Low for 8 to 10 hours.

2. Allow the stock to cool slightly, then strain it through a fine mesh sieve into a pot or bowl, pressing the vegetables against the sieve to release all the juices. Store the cooled stock in tightly sealed containers where it will keep for 3 to 5 days in the refrigerator or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

As I came down the stairs that morning there was a delicious smell filling the house. Now I’m ready to make the several soup recipes from Moosewood that I was interested in as well as the No Hurry Vegetable Curry on my menu for this week.

How ’bout you? Do you make your own or buy the box, cube, jar or can of stock? Do you have a favorite stock recipe?

Weekend Cooking; Gluten-Free Girl and the Chef and other menu ideas

I browsed the new nonfiction shelves of my local library and came up with two cookbooks and two parenting books in under two minutes. I had to quickly walk away after that because I go on these binges and bring armloads of nonfiction home only to let it sit and sit and sit until I return it two days late.

This time one recipe stuck out like a yummy thumb just waiting to be cooked. I had a beautiful small pie pumpkin from the last farmer’s market and I didn’t know what to do with it; no one here really likes pumpkin pie. So I thought what the hey, I’m sure they’ll love pumpkin soup. Ha.

I’ve enjoyed reading Gluten-Free Girl’s blog a few times on my recent quest to explore and understand celiac disease so her name popped out at me as my neck twisted sideways at the new cookbook spines. I would own this book if I were to indeed become gluten-free just for the stories splattered among the recipes. I’ve enjoyed understanding more about Shauna’s journey and their sweet love story.
How can you resist headings like; Grocery Shopping as Foreplay and Honey, remember to eat.

Many of the recipes are too complicated for me or include ingredients unavailable to me in my sleepy small town but there is much more to this cookbook than just recipes. In a small section at the front Daniel explains the importance of “mise en place”-a perfect three paragraph summary of my cooking life. He describes Shauna in the beginning like this “she’d put a hot pan on the burner and then start chopping her onions with the oil getting hot in the pan. She’d run from the stove to the refrigerator while a dish was simmering, always a bit frantic.” (14) That’s me-most of the time. I do not set up ingredients first. I want to be that organized and now I can name it; mise en place. Daniel gently reminds the reader that is why the ingredients list tells us what to do; chop, dice, cups, tsps so it can be there ready! I feel enlightened.

If you are gluten-free this book would make a great holiday gift to yourself!

I made pumpkin muffins last night while I put the finishing touches on the soup and on Wednesday afternoon I had a brownie craving and made a pan of them just like my mother used to. I thought her recipe was magic when I was growing up. She admitted to me just a few years ago that she peeled that recipe from the back of the Hershey chocolate can. How deflating. I’ve cleaned it up a bit and made it my own.

Click for recipes:

Pumpkin Soup
Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins
Judy’s Chocolate Brownies
Butternut Couscous (tonight’s menu with salmon from the co-op)

p.s. my kids disliked the soup but loved the muffins even though I told them (after the fact) that the muffins also had pumpkin in them. They didn’t care. It’s all about the dark chocolate! My husband, with a more discernible palate, had several bowls of soup and then, three muffins.

I discovered a new foodie blog this week while searching for the above butternut and Israeli couscous recipe. Meet Peter and Keith at Feast. I scrolled through a few recipes and they all look wonderful. I hope they keep going.

This post is linked to Weekend Cooking. Click over to Beth Fish Reads for more food-related posts. Happy eating!

Weekend Cooking; Weekly Menu

Tomato Pie

Oh so many recipes to share! This week my menu planning for has been very exciting. We ate leftovers (garbanzo pesto soup) from last week’s guest menu two days out of the week. Then I made a Sweet Potato Soup inspired by this post at one of my favorite new blogs, Sweet Mama Jane’s. On Thursday night I made this amazing Tomato Pie that I discovered on Janssen’s Everyday Reading and she via Perry’s Plate. This pie was delicious and because I didn’t think my kids would really enjoy the combination of flavors I made them something else and served the pie just to my husband and I, date style, after he got home from a late meeting. He loved it and I shared a piece with my co-worker, Janice, and she asked for the recipe. This pie was quite perfect as it was but I could imagine it with sprinkles of local bacon under the cheesy/mayo topping. The pie had a BLT quality and this got my mind thinking about bacon.

It is a virtual cornucopia of recipe sharing out there. It is so easy to pick and plan when there are such a wide variety of recipes around! I find much of my inspiration on the internet, googling ingredients to find a recipe or from blog posts but I’ve also turned inward toward my own cookbook collection to new and favorite recipes. Friday night, with a little extra time on my hands, I used the last of Janice’s cherry tomato bounty, which she shared with me, to make Giada’s Cheeca Sauce and tossed it with spiral pasta. Shocking was the fact that Groovy Girl hated it. She said the orange cherry tomatoes taste funny to her. Seriously.

I found this Potato Pancake with Cinnamon Apples in a Tyler Florence book from my own cookbook shelf and I plan to make it this coming week. I love apple season.

Weekend Cooking is hosted by Beth Fish Reads-pop over and see many other food related posts.