Vegetable Curried Rice

Stop reading. Go directly to the recipe and then your kitchen. You will be making this rice for dinner tonight. Yes, it’s that good. And so easy. I made it to accompany the lackluster Crumb-Coated Red Snapper. It was the only flavorful thing on my plate.

I have to confess that I left out the veggies and nuts. Corn makes me gag. I always pick out the peas from the fried rice when I get Chinese take-out. And as much as I like almonds, I don’t like my rice to be crunchy.

But even with most of its ingredients missing and canola oil substituted for the olive oil, this rice dish was a real treat. I will be making it often.

Please ignore all of the above if you are one of those unfortunate people who hate curry. I happen to love curry, so this is the perfect recipe for me.

Verdict: Yum!! This one’s a keeper!!



Vegetable Curried Rice
(source: Taste of Home)


½ cup uncooked long grain rice
1/3 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
½ teaspoon curry powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/3 cup frozen corn thawed
1/3 cup frozen peas, thawed
¼ cup slivered almonds, toasted


In a small saucepan, cook rice and onion in oil until rice is lightly browned and onion is tender. Stir in the broth, curry powder, salt and turmeric. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 12 minutes.

Stir in corn and peas. Cover and simmer 3-6 minutes longer or until rice and vegetables are tender. Sprinkle with almonds.

Yield: 4 servings.

Recycle: olive oil bottle

Carrot with Ginger Soup

I still have some carrots from this year’s (or, more accurately, last year’s) garden, and I thought a good use for them would be to make a carrot soup for the Valentine’s dinner. Since the theme this year was “pairings”, we came up with ginger-carrot soup. But at first I had trouble finding a recipe. There are quite a few out there, but they all seemed to have one of two problems. Either they included so many other ingredients that they were actually “ginger-carrot-and-fifteen-other-things soup” and thus didn’t really fit the theme, or they had just a few ingredients but the reviews indicated that they were “bland”, “boring”, etc. Finally I found a recipe that contained few other flavor components, and that got good reviews.

As a bonus, this recipe contains detailed instructions about pureeing the soup. Follow these and you should avoid the type of disaster OldRoses suffered last Thanksgiving.

The ingredients were pretty much as in the recipe, except that I used light cream instead of whipping cream; in a recipe like this, I doubt many people would notice the difference. I also sprang for real ginger, since I also needed it for the chicken dish (more on that here).

The recipe calls for 2 pounds of carrots. I wasn’t sure I had enough of my home-grown ones, so I bought a one-pound bag and used a pound of my own. Now, I should explain that the ones I grew are a purple variety. So when the carrots were simmered, the purple color leached out into the broth. When it was all pureed (without accident, I might add - I used a blender rather than a food processor), the whole thing took on a mauve color, which was perfect for Valentine’s Day. Oh, and the garnish in the picture is a particularly pretty carrot slice that I reserved for this purpose.

When I first tasted this soup, I was disappointed. The chicken broth flavor came out more strongly than I had expected, and I didn’t detect the ginger at all. But, by a day or two later, things had improved. The chicken broth flavor had receded and a lemony flavor from the ginger was present now. If you didn’t know there was ginger in it, you might think it was lemon instead, yet there’s the hint of a bite to it. I’m wondering whether the ginger level should be upped just a bit…

Verdict: Not bad...I might make this one again.

Ginger Carrot Soup
(source: foodnetwork.com)

2 tablespoons sweet cream butter
2 onions, peeled and chopped
6 cups chicken broth
2 pounds carrots, peeled and sliced
2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
1 cup whipping cream
Salt and white pepper
Sour cream
Parsley sprigs, for garnish

In a 6-quart pan, over medium high heat, add butter and onions and cook, stirring often, until onions are limp. Add broth, carrots, and ginger. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until carrots are tender when pierced.

Remove from heat and transfer to a blender. Don't fill the blender more than half way, do it in batches if you have to. Cover the blender and then hold a kitchen towel over the top of the blender*. Be careful when blending hot liquids as the mixture can spurt out of the blender. Pulse the blender to start it and then puree until smooth. Return to the pan and add cream, stir over high heat until hot. For a smoother flavor bring soup to a boil, add salt and pepper, to taste.

Ladle into bowls and garnish with dollop sour cream and parsley sprigs.

*When blending hot liquids: Remove liquid from the heat and allow to cool for at least 5 minutes. Transfer liquid to a blender or food processor and fill it no more than halfway. If using a blender, release one corner of the lid. This prevents the vacuum effect that creates heat explosions. Place a towel over the top of the machine, pulse a few times then process on high speed until smooth.

Recycle: broth can, sour cream tub

Compost: veggie peelings/trimmings

Peas and Pearl Onions

Since the theme of our Valentine’s Day dinner was “Harmonious Pairings”, peas and pearl onions immediately came to mind. It’s a classic pairing and one that I have never made before. Naturally, I turned to Marth Stewart who featured a recipe made with red pearl onions. Perfect for Valentine’s Day! I love Martha’s recipes. They almost always work, as well as tasting delicious. But I’m discovering that there is a glaring weakness in most of them: directions.

Martha assumes a certain amount of knowledge on her readers’ part, knowledge that I don’t have. I have never taken a cooking class other than two brief semesters in junior high school*.  That’s why I have always loved Betty Crocker. Her cookbooks include tutorials with photos.**  Martha does have video tutorials on her website but they are usually illustrating advanced techniques.

I am in need of more basic stuff. Like a paragraph on peas. She calls for frozen petite green peas. There were none in my grocer's frozen food case. There were peas and baby peas. Recalling my high school French, "petite" means small and baby peas are smaller than fully grown peas, so I went with the baby peas.

Or how about telling me that I should have cut off the tops of the onions before cooking them. Because once they were cooked, I discovered that it was next to impossible to cut the tops off of them. They mooshed, they split apart, they went flying across the counter, they did everything except exhibit a nice clean cut like in the photo on Martha’s website.

I made one glaring error that I can’t blame on Martha. I was supposed to have ½ cup of small fresh mint leaves which sounded delicious. But I was very busy that week and didn’t have time to get to the store where I buy fresh mint. I figured I could substitute. Very. Bad. Idea. My idea was to add a touch of mint flavor using extract. I didn’t have any mint or spearmint extract, only the peppermint extract left over from the Peppermint Bark. I think I overdid it because the dish tasted like candy canes rather than a refreshing vegetable dish. A was polite enough not to complain.

*Middle school hadn’t been invented yet. When I was young, schools were divided into elementary (k-6), junior high (grades 7 & 8) and high school (grades 9 – 12).

**The internet hadn’t been invented yet. There were no videos. Only reels of hilarious home movies, a few of which I fervently pray will never turn up on Youtube. At least not until after I am dead and buried.

Verdict: Needs a do-over with real mint




Peas and Pearl Onions(source: Marthastewart.com) 

10 ounces red pearl onions
Coarse salt
½ ounce (1 tablespoon) unsalted butter
2 tablespoons water
2 packages (10 ounces each) frozen petite green peas
½ cup small fresh mint leaves

Cut an X in stem end of each onion. Cook in salted boiling water for 1 to 2 minutes. Drain, and peel.

Heat butter and water in a pan over medium-high heat. Add onions, and cook for 4 minutes. Stir in peas and ¾ teaspoon salt, and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in mint. Serve immediately.

Serves 8 to 10.

Compost: onion skins, mint stems

Valentine’s Day at The Wooden Spoon

Carrot with Ginger Soup

Lemon-Ginger Chicken

Roasted New Potatoes with Rosemary

Peas and Pearl Onions

Beet Bread

Orange-scented Bittersweet Chocolate Cake

We thought that our Honey themed Valentine’s dinner was going to be a hard act to follow but thanks to a colleague of A, BioBabe, who suggested a theme of “Harmonious Pairings” honoring traditional Valentine’s Day couples, we had a wide range of recipes to choose from. For each dish, we looked for a recipe with a “pair” of ingredients. We also made sure to have some holiday red with red potatoes, red pearl onions, beet bread an, thanks to A’s ingenious use of purple carrots, even the soup was a dark pink.

I think it’s safe to say that this year’s dinner easily surpasses our first menu. Thanks BioBabe!

Mediterranean Herb-Roasted Chicken

I’ve decided that an important reason why Americans are so fat these days is that every dish served in casual dining establishments as well as every recipe featured on cooking shows and recipe sites is smothered in a cream sauce or melted cheese, or fried. Sometimes it’s all three. I’ve become very conscience of my weight since joining a gym (spandex is NOT your friend) so I’ve been seeking out recipes that are not smothered in cream or cheese, or fried. They are tough to come by.

This recipe caught my eye because it fits my criteria and is my favorite kind of recipe, the one dish meal. It’s similar to the Rosemary Chicken and Vegetables recipe that I’ve made for years but with different seasonings and roasted in the oven rather than prepared on top of the stove.

Anything cooked uncovered in an oven is going to be dry so basting it or marinating it is critical. This recipe offers an “herb mixture” to spoon over the ingredients. I thought that it would be sufficient until I actually made it. It’s more “herb” than “mixture”. And two tablespoons is not nearly enough for the initial roasting time.

I chose not to use whole chicken legs simply because I don’t care for them. I used my usual boneless breasts. They have little or no fat on them. I assume that legs are fattier because there was virtually no “accumulated juices” to baste with. The chicken and vegetables came out of the oven dry, dry, dry. I also have to quibble with the size of the vegetables. Cutting the potatoes into 8 wedges was too large. They didn’t cook through. Likewise, cutting the zucchini into 2” pieces. Too big. I cut mine into ½” pieces and it cooked perfectly.

Now for the good news. The aroma while this was cooking was mouthwatering. And it looked fantastic when it came out of the oven, probably the most colorful dish that I have ever made. Topping it all off, it tasted every bit as good as it smelled.

I want to make this again. The first time, I would try baking rather than roasting. I am curious if merely covering this would seal in the juices, creating a moister dish. If that doesn’t work, I would add chicken broth to the herb mixture similar to the Rosemary Chicken recipe, adding much more than two tablespoons for the initial roasting time.

Verdict: Needs work


Mediterranean Herb-Roasted Chicken(source: Cooking Club of America)

5 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
4 teaspoons chopped garlic
½ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 ½ teaspoons dried thyme
½ teaspoon dried savory or oregano
¼ teaspoon pepper
3 medium red potatoes, cut into 8 wedges each
2 medium onions, cut into 1-inch wedges
4 whole chicken legs
1 (4-oz.) pkg. multi-colored mini sweet bell peppers, halved, or 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch wedges
1 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise, cut into 2-inch pieces

Heat oven to 375°F. Finely chop rosemary, garlic and salt together; place in small bowl. Stir in lemon juice, oil, thyme, savory and pepper.

Spray bottom of wide shallow roasting pan with cooking spray. Scatter potatoes and onions in pan; add chicken. Spoon 2 tablespoons of the herb mixture over chicken and vegetables in pan; toss to coat. Place chicken on top of potatoes and onion.

Bake 45 minutes. Remove from oven; baste with accumulated juices. Scatter peppers and zucchini around chicken; spoon remaining herb mixture over chicken and all vegetables. Bake 20 to 30 minutes or until chicken is browned and no longer pink in center.

4 servings

Recycle: lemon juice bottle, olive oil bottle

Compost: rosemary stems, garlic skins, onion skins

Baked Acorn Squash

OldRoses did a great job of posting holiday recipes in a timely fashion. 'A' has gotten behind over the holidays and is trying to get caught up...

A few weeks before Thanksgiving, I purchased an acorn squash at a farmer’s market. Before preparing it, I consulted my trusty Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. One suggestion was to bake it with brown sugar and applesauce. I tried this, and it turned out to be so wonderfully good that I decided to make this for the Nutty Thanksgiving. Hey, an acorn is a nut, right? Close enough.

I agree with OldRoses's previous comment that squash (winter squash, specifically - summer squash is pretty soft) is difficult to cut and peel. Butchering a butternut squash usually gives me sore fingers and maybe a blister. But - that's only true for RAW squash. COOKED squash is much easier to deal with. The beauty of this recipe is that your interaction with the raw squash is minimal. All you have to do is cut the thing in half and scoop out the seeds. Removing the cooked squash from its shell is relatively easy on the hands.

Although we’re dealing with squash, this dish is sweet, not savory, even though I didn’t add very much brown sugar, maybe a tablespoon per half. The flavor has a fruity quality to it. (Hey, squash actually is a fruit, technically...) You could almost serve this dish as a dessert. And it’s so easy! It's ideal to make at the same time as a casserole or meatloaf, when the oven is turned on anyway.

Verdict: Yum! This one's a keeper!

Baked Acorn Squash
(source: Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book)

1 acorn squash

1 cup applesauce

Butter

Brown sugar

Halve the squash and remove seeds. Bake cut side down in a shallow pan at 350° for 35 to 40 minutes. Turn cut side up. Brush each half with butter and sprinkle with brown sugar. Fill with ½ cup applesauce. Bake about 20 minutes longer.

Recycle: applesauce jar

Compost: squash shell

The Wooden Spoon Cooks Go Nuts!

Pureed Butternut Squash Soup

Cranberry-Orange Relish with Walnuts

Baked Acorn Squash

Nut Bread

Herbed Mashed Potatoes

Chestnut Stuffing

Dry-Brined Turkey

Pecan Pie

A and I had so much fun doing a themed Valentine’s Day Dinner that we decided to cook a themed Thanksgiving Dinner. A suggested “nuts” which is appropriate for the season as well as our state of mind. We dove into cookbooks and surfed the net looking for dishes with nuts as ingredients and/or “nuts” in their title. Stay tuned for the recipes and our reviews.

We hope that you enjoy our Nutty Thanks giving as much as we did.

Red Beans and Rice

I was raised on steak and potatoes. There was always a big slab of meat, usually beef, on our plates accompanied by a small mountain of mashed potatoes smothered in butter and gravy. That was in the 60’s. These days, we know that meat should be eaten sparingly so I’ve been trying to eat more vegetables and seafood.

When I looked into recipes for red beans and rice, I was surprised to find that there were many variations. I decided I should keep it simple for my first attempt and chose a recipe from A’s favorite site, Epicurious. It was billed as simple and easy and could be made with ingredients you already have on hand. True. All I had to buy were the beans and the tomato sauce.

As promised, this is a simple dish to make. It smelled great while it was cooking, but lacked any real flavor when I tasted it. It has heat from the spices and, but no distinctive flavor. It just tasted like beans with a kick. I think I will try some of those variations (Cuban, Cajun, etc) in hopes of finding a recipe with a unique taste.

Verdict: Not bad, but I won’t be making this again.


Red Beans and Rice(source: Epicurious July 2003)

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium onions, finely diced
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 green pepper, finely diced
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 cup tomato sauce
¼ cup water
A few dashes hot sauce (such as Tabasco)
2 (15-ounce) cans kidney beans, rinsed well in a strainer
4 cups hot cooked rice (from 1 cup raw rice
Sour cream (optional)

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, and green pepper, and sauté until the pepper is very tender, about 10 minutes.

Sprinkle in the chili powder and paprika, and cook 30 seconds. Mix in the tomato sauce, water, hot sauce, and kidney beans, and simmer about 10 minutes, or until the mixture is hot and fragrant. Serve over rice with a small spoonful of sour cream on top, if desired.

Tip: To give the beans a smoky flavor you can add 1 small chipotle pepper in adobo sauce. Mince it on a small plate with 2 knives before adding it to the beans. Omit the hot sauce.

Recycle: olive oil bottle, Tabasco sauce bottle, kidney beans cans, tomato sauce can

Compost: onion skins, garlic skins, pepper seeds and rind

Butternut Squash and Sage Orzo

While digging through my cupboards the other day, I came across a partially used bag of orzo, which is a kind of pasta that looks a lot like rice. I bought it awhile back for a recipe – I forget what now – and it’s been sitting there ever since. So I went online to find a recipe that would use it. I came across this one for butternut squash with orzo. This is the time of year for butternut squash, so I decided to try it.

The recipe says to simmer the squash about 10 minutes; to get it all cooked through required more like 20 or 30 minutes. But that was okay as it took that long to get the broth heated and the orzo cooked. It sounds like the orzo is supposed to absorb most of 3 ½ cups of broth, but that didn’ t happen. There was at least a cup of broth left when the orzo was done cooking. So if I make this again, I won’t bother adding so much. By the way, I used homemade broth instead of canned. Canned broth might be stronger, but as it was, I don't think the flavors were unbalanced.

The sage I used was some from my garden; it’s a decorative type called tricolor sage. Its flavor is not as good as the usual culinary sage, I discovered. I hadn’t picked quite enough, so I supplemented what I had with some dried rubbed sage. Some of the cooks who commented on this recipe on the Epicurious site said it was important to use fresh sage, and they are probably right.

This is a good recipe, not great, but not bad, and pretty easy. It stands up well to reheating. It also makes a generous amount; more like 6 servings than 4. It would be a good Thanksgiving side dish. Sorry I don’t have a picture of it, but imagine orange chunks of squash mixed with rice – that’s about what it looks like.

Verdict: Hmmm...I might make it again.

Butternut Squash and Sage Orzo

(source: epicurious.com)

3 tablespoons butter
1 cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1 2-pound butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 4 cups)
4 cups canned low-salt chicken broth
1/2 cup dry white wine1 cup orzo (rice-shaped pasta)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage

Melt butter in a heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until tender, about 6 minutes. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add butternut squash and stir to coat. Add 1/2 cup chicken broth and wine. Simmer until squash is almost tender and liquid is absorbed, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, bring 3 1/2 cups broth to boil in heavy saucepan. Add orzo. Boil until tender but still firm to bite, about 8 minutes. Drain orzo if necessary.

Transfer orzo to large bowl. Stir in butternut squash mixture, then Parmesan and sage. Season with salt and pepper.

Recycle: broth can, wine bottle

Compost: vegetable peelings

Carrots with Ginger and Honey

Continuing with our honey theme, here’s a recipe for glazed carrots with a little kick from ginger. I have in the past made cooked carrots with sugar, following Julia Child’s French-style recipe, so this sounded good to me. I did, however, (as usual!) make a few changes from the way this is written. For starters, I used a pound of regular-sized carrots cut into slices. Also, instead of the fresh ginger, I used ¼ tsp ground ginger. This amount was about right, or maybe a little more. The amounts of butter and honey were as written, which made a little too much glaze.

I’m not sure where Martha is getting her carrots – she probably grows her own - but I don’t think I’ve ever run across a carrot that becomes tender after only 3-4 minutes of cooking. I simmered the carrot slices for about 20 minutes, and they were still a bit crunchy at that point. Kind of al dente, which I thought was just about right. Also, I skipped the sauteing-ginger step, since I was using powdered ginger and since I don’t like dirtying any more pans than necessary. After the carrots were cooked, I drained them, dumped them onto a plate, and added the butter and ginger to the saucepan. I let that cook a minute, added the honey, stirred well, and then added back the carrots and stirred until they were coated.

This might be a good recipe to try with people who think they don’t like cooked carrots.

Verdict: Yum! This one's a keeper!

Carrots with Ginger and Honey
(source: www.marthastewart.com)

6 bunches (about 2 pounds) baby carrots
Salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 two-inch pieces fresh ginger, peeled and julienned
3 tablespoons honey

Trim stems of carrots to 1/2 inch. Peel carrots, and wash stem area.

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Salt water, add carrots, and reduce heat. Simmer until carrots are almost tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove carrots from heat, and drain. (Carrots can be prepared earlier in the day to this point.)

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add ginger, and saute, stirring, until transparent, about 2 minutes. Add carrots and honey, and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, or until carrots are glazed. Serve immediately.

Serves 8 to 10.

Recycle: honey jar

Compost: carrot peelings

Butternut Squash Soup

This dish was the soup course at our Valentine's Day Dinner. You may recall that all the recipes at this dinner had honey in them. This recipe has a lot going for it. It’s a good basic winter soup that includes a nice assortment of veggies. It would probably also be good with pumpkin instead of squash.

There’s just one problem, though, that became apparent when I got to the supermarket. The recipe calls for “1 butternut squash”. Okay….how big? The supermarket had quite a range of sizes. I went with a medium-large one – about a foot long or so. Considering the levels of the other ingredients, maybe I should have used a smaller one. But, the resulting soup had a nice thick texture.

The flavor was fine, too, except that it was almost too sweet. I tend to hold back on the salt and pepper, and in this case should probably have added the full amount called for. That I used homemade chicken broth that is low in salt, and left out the celery, which is naturally relatively salty, might have made a difference too. Or I could have cut back on the honey.

Verdict: Yum! This one's a keeper!

Butternut Squash Soup
(source: National Honey Board, www.honey.com)

2 Tablespoons butter
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 carrots, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 potato, peeled and diced
1 butternut squash, peeled,seeded and diced
3 cans (14.5 oz. each) chicken broth
1/2 cup honey
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, crushed
Salt and pepper, to taste

In large pot, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in onions and garlic. Cook and stir until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in carrots, celery, potatoes, squash, chicken broth, honey and thyme. Bring mixture to boil; reduce heat and simmer 30 to 45 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Remove from heat and cool slightly. Transfer mixture to blender or food processor; process until smooth. Return pureed soup to pot. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Heat until hot and serve. Makes 6 servings.

Recycle: broth cans, honey jar

Compost: veggie peelings

Rosemary Chicken and Vegetables

Microwave ovens are a working woman’s best friend. You can cook delicious meals when you have time and then just quickly nuke them when you get home and feed your family (or yourself!) incredible home-cooked meals. I especially love dishes that are all-in-one like soups and stews.

This recipe is a complete meal in itself. Chicken, potatoes and veggies. You can add dinner rolls if you like bread with your meals but it’s not necessary. I substitute chicken breasts for a whole, cut-up chicken. It’s easier and I prefer white meat. I also use chicken bouillon instead of the chicken broth. It works just as well and is what I have in my kitchen already.

This recipe takes a little time, but it’s worth it to be able to be able to come home on a cold day and heat up a tasty one-dish meal.

Verdict: Yum!! This one’s a keeper!!

Rosemary Chicken and Vegetables
(Source: BHG.com)

1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 2 ½ to 3 pounds broiler-fryer chicken, cut up and skinned
4 medium red potatoes, quartered
5 medium carrots, cut crosswise into thirds
3 celery stalks, cut crosswise into 2-inch-long pieces
2 medium onion, cut into wedges
1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/3 cup dry white wine or reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 tablespoon snipped fresh rosemary or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons cold water
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Fresh rosemary (optional)


In a 4-quart Dutch oven cook garlic in hot oil for 15 seconds. Add chicken pieces. Cook about 10 minutes or until chicken is light brown, turning to brown evenly. Drain off fat. Add potatoes carrots, celery, onions, chicken broth, wine, snipped rosemary, salt, and pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 35 minutes or until chicken is tender and no longer pink.

Transfer chicken and vegetables to a serving platter; keep warm. Measure cooking liquid; add water, if necessary, to equal 1 cup total. For sauce, stir together cold water and cornstarch; stir into reserved liquid. Return to Dutch oven. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more. Season to taste. Serve with chicken. If desired, garnish with rosemary.

Makes 4 to 6 main-dish servings.


Recycle: rosemary container

Compost: celery leaves, garlic, carrot and onion skins

Marinated Artichoke Hearts

A few weeks ago, I received an invitation to a Garden Party. I was delighted to be invited. The gardener who was having the party is renowned for his garden. Everyone was asked to bring a chair and finger food. I don’t own a lawn chair and I don’t cook finger food. I especially don’t cook during the summer months. But I really, really wanted to attend this event.

I learned a memory trick a long time ago. When you are trying to remember something, don’t think about it. Do something else. Your brain continues to search for the memory. Try it. It really works. In this case, I put my brain to work searching for any recipe that I had made in the past that might fill the bill. It took a day or two, but the answer did appear: marinated artichoke hearts.

Many years ago, when I was first learning how to cook, I also learned that I didn’t like cooking just for myself. So whenever I wanted to cook a nice meal, I would invite friends over to share it with me. One of the side dishes that I made fairly regularly was marinated artichoke hearts.

I hadn’t made that recipe in so many years, that I couldn’t remember which cookbook it was in. It didn’t take me long to find it though because at the time, I didn’t own that many cookbooks. I finally found it in a Better Homes and Gardens cookbook that I had bought circa 1980.

It requires no cooking and can be made ahead of time, probably why I used to make it so frequently. I made a few minor changes. I made the marinade first and then added the artichoke hearts so that it would be easier to stir the ingredients. I also cut the artichoke hearts in half to make them easier to eat.

I knew I had a hit on my hands when three different people asked me for the recipe!

Verdict: Yum! This one’s a keeper!

Marinated Artichoke Hearts(source: Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook)

2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons salad oil
Dash garlic salt
1 tablespoon sugar
¼ teaspoon dried oregano, crushed
¼ teaspoon dried tarragon, crushed
1 15-ounce can (2 cups) artichoke hearts, drained


Combine all ingredients and 2 tablespoons water in a bowl. Cover; chill several hours or overnight. Drain and sprinkle with paprika; serve with picks. Makes 2 cups.

Recycle: Artichoke can, lemon juice bottle, salad oil bottle

Squash Brownies

As mentioned in my last post, the squash harvest is starting, and I'm trying to figure out what to do with it all. I was intrigued by the recipe for zucchini brownies when I stumbled across it in a magazine. I thought, if it works with zucchini, why not with other summer squash too? Not only that, but this brownie recipe is probably healthier than most, and a good way to sneak veggies into unsuspecting kids, spouses, etc.

Anyone who makes this should be forewarned that this is one of those recipes where the batter is strange. When you mix the sugar with the oil and vanilla, you end up with something that looks sort of like a snow cone. Except of course that it's not cold and melting. Then you stir in the dry ingredients, and end up with something roughly the consistency of pie dough before you add the water. Crumbly, in other words. Don't panic. Just add the grated squash, stir for a minute or two, and voila! - the water from the squash turns it all into brownie batter (albeit rather thick brownie batter).

I didn't use a mixer when I made this, just a large bowl and large spoon. It might have been better if I had used a mixer. It would have been easier to get the ingredients thoroughly mixed, which is difficult in this case because the batter is so thick. It might also have chopped up the squash pieces a little more. I shredded the squash using a grater, and you can see little yellow streaks in the finished product - enough to make people wonder. The unsuspecting kids/spouse/etc. would know that you were Up To Something. I'm guessing this could be helped by peeling the squash first, or by chopping it up more finely using a food processor or blender. This might also make the batter a little thinner.

Oh, by the way, I got 2 cups grated squash from about 3/4 of a pattypan squash roughly 4" in diameter.

The result was, to my mind, perfectly acceptable. The consistency was moist and chewy, almost too moist (the sample I had was on the verge of falling apart, but then I was eating it warm). The flavor was fine, I thought. It could have been a little more chocolately, so maybe I can work on that. But I didn't notice an off-flavor from the squash. I suspect that the walnuts may have helped hide any off-flavor there was. By the way, if you're going to add walnuts, I would put in a little more than the 1/2 cup the recipe calls for.

Usually I don't reach a final verdict until after I've eaten a dish at least twice, but this time I decided to post this after eating only one sample, because I had some free time tonight. So if I change my mind after eating the brownies again, I'll add a comment below.

Verdict: Has serious potential; maybe could be improved a little.

Zucchini Brownies
(source: Garden Plate magazine, August/September 2007)

1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups shredded zucchini (or other summer squash)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9 x 13-inch baking pan.

In a large bowl, mix together the oil, sugar and vanilla until well blended. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; stir into the sugar mixture. Fold in the zucchini and walnuts. Spread evenly in the prepared pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until brownies spring back when gently touched.

Nutrition information (provided by the magazine):
per serving (1/18 of the recipe): 200 calories; 80 calories from fat; 2 g protein; 29 g carbs; 17g sugar; 9g total fat; 1.5g saturated fat; 0mg cholesterol; 1g dietary fiber; 230 mg sodium; 0% Daily Value calcium; 6% Daily Value iron.

Recycle: oil bottle, vanilla bottle

Compost: squash trimmings

Herbed Summer Squash and Potato Torte

I recently harvested my first squash of the season, so made this recipe again. I found it on Epicurious.com a few years ago when I was trying to figure out what to do with my squash. I like it because it's easy: no precooking required, just peel, assemble, and bake.

As originally written, the torte was made in two 8" cake pans. I make it in my 2 quart (or is it 3 quart?) round casserole dish, using the same amounts of the ingredients. This time, I used 3 or 4 (sorry, I wasn't counting) medium-sized potatoes and one pattypan squash about 4-5" in diameter. The recipe calls for yellow crookneck squash, but probably any kind of summer squash would work - maybe even zucchini? The squash doesn't need to be peeled if it's still young and tender. If it does need to be peeled, it's probably too tough to eat anyway.

Much of the flavor comes from the Parmesan cheese, so it would best to get some that's fairly good. The numerous Italians around here would probably insist on authentic Parmigiano-Reggiano, freshly grated, but I don't go quite that far. I do buy the kind that comes pregrated in plastic tubs in the deli department.

The pepper is also a major flavor component, and you might want to cut back from what's stated in the recipe, as that amount gives a pretty peppery result.

Verdict: Yum! This one's a keeper!

Herbed Summer Squash and Potato Torte with Parmesan
(Source: www.epicurious.com)

1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

2 pounds potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/8-in-thick rounds
12 ounces squash, cut into 1/8-in-thick slices
3 teaspoons olive oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Butter a casserole dish. Toss green onions, cheese, flour, thyme, salt, and pepper in medium bowl to blend.

Layer 1/3 of the potato slices in the bottom of the dish. Layer 1/2 of the squash over the potatoes. Drizzle with 1 tsp oil. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the cheese mixture. Repeat with 1/3 of the potatoes and 1/2 of the squash and 1 teaspoon oil. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the cheese mixture. Top with the rest of the potatoes. Drizzle with 1 teaspoon oil. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese mixture and press gently to flatten.

Cover pan with foil. Bake until potatoes are almost tender, about 40 minutes. Remove foil; bake uncovered until cheese begins to brown and potatoes are tender, about 25-35 minutes longer. Cut into wedges and serve.

Recycle: oil bottle

Compost: potato peelings, onion stalks, thyme stalks

Red Flannel Hash

A couple of months ago I attended a cooking class at a local supermarket. This was one of the recipes we did. I was pleasantly surprised at how good it tasted, given that it contains beets. We never ate beets when I was growing up, except for (rarely) canned ones, which I think are ghastly. I tried this recipe at home yesterday, and was satisfied with the results. I'm not sure where the "flannel" part of the name comes from, but the dish is certainly a cheery red color.

This is probably more of a wintry recipe, given that it includes potatoes, beets, and corned beef. Speaking of corned beef, another ingredient I've never used before: the recipe calls for "fresh cooked" corned beef. Does that mean you're supposed to cook it beforehand? How? I wasn't sure, and I couldn't remember what we'd done in the class that night, so I diced it and heated it through in the pan with the onions.

To reduce the number of dirty pans, I boiled the potatoes and beets in the same pan. The potatoes picked up some of the red color from the beets, so the finished product was even redder.

You're supposed to cook the hash so that it's one large "cake" with a crust on both sides. However, our instructor admitted she had trouble turning it over once it was done on one side. If she couldn't do it, I decided I wasn't going to worry about it. So, after cooking the onions and beef, I added the cooked potatoes and beets, and the other ingredients. I found that their advice to mix the ingredients in a bowl first is good; it was hard to mix everything thoroughly in the skillet, because it was so full. I pressed everything down, let it cook through well, and left it at that. It didn't brown, and probably would have been even tastier if it had.

The original recipe calls for a poached egg to be served over each section of hash, but I've left out that part.

Verdict: This is pretty good - I may well make it again.

Red Flannel Hash
(source: ShopRite Culinary Workshop)

2 tbsp butter
1 cup finely diced white onions
1 lb. fresh cooked corned beef, diced
1 1/2 cups diced cooked potatoes
1 cup diced cooked beets
1/2 cup bias-cut sliced green onions
3 tbsp. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
pinch thyme
2 tbsp oil

1. Heat butter over medium heat in saute pan until melted; add white onions and cook until soft and translucent. Remove onions to large bowl.

2. Add corned beef, potatoes, beets, green onions, parsley and thyme to bowl with cooked onions; stir carefully until well combined.

3. Heat oil in a cast-iron pan or heavy stainless pan over high heat. Add hash mixture and press it into an even layer; reduce heat to medium.

4. Cook hash until browned crust forms on bottom; turn over and repeat browning process. Remove from heat; cut into wedges and serve.

Recycle: oil bottle

Compost: vegetable peelings and trimmings

Chicken with Herbed Mustard Butter and Peas

By now, readers of this blog are probably thinking: a) Oldroses and I have both died, and b) I am (or was, if you believe a)) a vegetarian. Nope, wrong on both counts. We have both been really busy with gardening and whatnot, and those of you with gardens know that spring is actually the busiest time of year. But things are finally slowing down with that and some of my other activities, and I may have time to post some of the recipes I've accumulated in the meantime. And no, although I have posted several meatless recipes, I am not a vegetarian, and to prove it I herewith submit a recipe involving chicken.

My garden is producing lots of snow peas at the moment, and I was looking for a recipe that would use them. I found this one at epicurious.com. As usual, I made several changes. I used only 4 chicken breasts because that's how many come in a package, and I didn't bother to pound them flat. I also skipped the tarragon vinegar, though I did spring for fresh tarragon. I also left out the green onions and frozen peas, in the latter case mainly because I forgot to put them on my shopping list.

The instructions are as given in the original recipe, but they make it sound more complicated than it really is, especially if you aren't using the vinegar. In that case, all you have to do is sprinkle both sides of the chicken breasts with salt, pepper, and dried tarragon leaves, and saute them in the oil and butter. This all by itself gives a tasty result. The herbed butter is a very nice complement to the chicken; the mustard and tarragon flavors blend nicely. I made the full recipe's worth of the butter for 4 chicken breasts, and it wasn't too much, especially after putting some on the peas. This is a quick and easy recipe that turned out very well.

Verdict: Yum! This one's a keeper!

Sauteed Chicken Breasts with Herbed Mustard Butter and Duo of Spring Peas
(source: www.epicurious.com)

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature, divided
2 1/2 tablespoons tarragon vinegar, divided
2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
2 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley

6 skinless boneless chicken breast halves, pounded to 1/2-inch thickness
2 teaspoons dried tarragon

1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil

2 1/2 cups fresh snow peas, trimmed
2 cups frozen petite peas
1 1/2 cups 1-inch pieces green onions
Fresh tarragon sprigs

preparation:
Whisk 4 1/2 tablespoons butter, 1 tablespoon tarragon vinegar, fresh tarragon, mustard, and parsley in small bowl.

Arrange chicken in single layer in 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons tarragon vinegar. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes. Pat chicken dry. Sprinkle both sides of chicken with dried tarragon, salt, and pepper.

Bring large pot of salted water to boil.

Meanwhile, melt remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons butter with oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and sauté until brown and cooked through, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer to platter. Place rounded teaspoon tarragon butter on each chicken breast. Tent loosely with foil to keep warm.

Add vegetables to boiling water. Cook until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes; drain. Transfer to bowl. Toss with remaining tarragon butter; season with salt and pepper. Arrange vegetables around chicken, garnish with tarragon sprigs, and serve. Serves 6.

Bon Appétit, April 2004

compost: tarragon and parsley stems, pea and onion trimmings
recycle: mustard jar, oil bottle, vinegar bottle

Blarney Cheese and Onion Tart

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, I decided to make this cheese and onion tart. The recipe was published in the Gardener News about a year ago, and comes from the cooks with the King’s supermarket chain.

I made a couple substitutions: I used regular salt rather than kosher, and margarine rather than butter. And the nutmeg was not, alas, freshly grated. Oh, and instead of beans to weigh down the foil while baking the crust, I just use about a ¼” layer of rice. (If anyone knows why you’re supposed to weigh down the crust while baking, please enlighten me.)

Blarney cheese is available at my usual supermarket. Or at any rate, what I used is Kerrygold brand Blarney Castle cheese, which is an Irish gouda-style cheese. So if you can’t find that brand, a gouda would probably work just as well.

The dough takes awhile to make, but can be prepared in advance. I don’t have a food processor, so just made the dough the way I would make pie dough. Be cautious when you get to the water-adding stage. It says to add 3 tablespoons of water to start, but I found that only one was all that was needed. Maybe because I used margarine rather than butter. Also, I forgot to add the baking powder (the ingredients are out of order in the original recipe), but it didn’t seem to matter.

The directions are very detailed when it comes to preparing the dough, but they neglected to mention my favorite trick, which I learned from Epicurious.com: Tape a piece of Saran wrap to your counter and roll out the dough on that. Then flip over the dough onto the pan so the wrap is on top. The wrap keeps the dough from breaking apart and makes it easy to get the crust centered in the pan (or on top of a pie). When the crust is placed just right, carefully peel off the Saran wrap.

The filling is fairly thick in consistency – there’s not a lot of liquid there – but there’s not that much of it; it makes a layer only about ½” thick, so you don’t need to run the dough very far up the sides of the pan.

The result is very tasty. The cheese and onions complement each other well. The crust is a bit crunchy, presumably due to the cornmeal. The filling, or at least the eggy part between the onions, has almost a fluffy quality to it (I suppose the whisking helps). It’s also visually attractive (sorry I can’t post a picture; I don’t have a digital camera yet), with the brown onions making swirls against a light golden background.

Verdict: Yum! This one's a keeper!

Blarney Cheese and Onion Tart
(Source: The Gardener News; recipe attributed to Kathleen Hulsey and Deb Barrett)

For the tart dough:
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornmeal
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
pinch baking powder
10 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into ½ inch cubes
4-6 tablespoons ice water

For the filling:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 pound yellow onions, cut in half, and thinly sliced
1 egg
4 ounces Blarney cheese, grated on the large holes of a grater
½ cup heavy cream
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

For the dough:
1. Combine the dry ingredients in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times to mix and aerate.

2. Add the butter and pulse to break up the pieces. When the butter has been reduced to the size of small peas, stop the processor.

3. Add 3 tablespoons ice water and pulse until incorporated. Add another tablespoon and pulse. Feel the dough. If it holds together when squeezed between two fingers, it is ok. Add another tablespoon of water if it does not. Pulse to combine. Test again, adding water if necessary. The dough should just hold together. Dump the dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap and gather the ends of the wrap together to enclose the dough. Twist the ends to compact the dough into a disk. Gently flatten the disk, making sure the dough looks cohesive, not crumbly. Place in the refrigerator to rest for at least one hour.

4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Adjust an oven rack to the bottom third of the oven. Remove the dough from the refrigerator about 15 minutes before rolling out. This will warm the dough slightly and prevent the edges from cracking while rolling. If you have a pastry cloth and rolling pin sleeve, use that to help roll out the dough. If you don’t have these tools, roll out the dough on a floured work surface to fit a 9 to 10 inch loose bottomed pan. Fit and then trim the dough to the pan. Cover the dough with a piece of buttered or non-stick foil. Add baking beans to cover foil. You do not have to fill the pan to the rim. Bake for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, remove the foil and the beans. Continue baking for an additional 15 minutes. Remove and cool until ready to use. This can be done in advance.

For the filling:
1. Heat a skillet over medium high heat. Add the butter and allow to melt. Add the onions and stir to coat with butter. Season with a small amount of kosher salt. Cook the onions until they are golden brown. You may need to add a small amount of water or chicken broth if the onions stick to the pan. This will clean the pan and allow the onions to brown further. Set aside when finished.

2. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together the egg, heavy cream, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Add the onions and cheese. Pour the mixture into the prepared tart shell and smooth the surface. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the filling is set and slightly browned. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for about 10 minutes before unmolding and cutting.

Make-ahead tip: Dough can be made in advance and kept in the refrigerator; crust can be baked in advance.

Compost: onion skins, eggshells

Lentil & Bulgur Pilaf with Squash

Hi, this is A again - Oldroses decided to give me access to her blog so that I could post recipes directly. So here's a recipe I made last weekend. It's pretty easy and has an intriguing mix of flavors and textures. It's also high in fiber. I've made this with both chicken and vegetable broth, and it's just as good both ways. If you make it with vegetable broth, it's vegetarian (vegan, actually). A small can of broth is about 2 cups, so I used 2 cans and added 1/2 cup of water. If you can't find bulgur at the supermarket, try a health food store. Don't leave out the cilantro or the lemon juice (I used the zest from one lemon and its juice) - they are crucial to the flavor. You could, however, substitute one largish squash or zucchini for the two small ones. It's just more colorful if you make it with one zucchini and one yellow squash.

A's verdict: Yum! This one's a keeper.

Lentil & Bulgur Pilaf with Green & Yellow Squash
(source: Eating Well magazine, Fall 2004)

4 1/2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
1 1/4 cups brown lentils, rinsed
1 medium onion, chopped
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
Pepper to taste
3/4 cup coarse bulgur
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 small zucchini, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 small yellow squash, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 clove garlic, minced
2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro or dill

1. Combine broth, lentils, onion, bay leaf, salt, allspice and pepper in a 3-quart saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 20 minutes. Add bulgur and cook until the lentils and bulgur are tender and the liquid is absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes more. Remove the pilaf from the heat, discard the bay leaf and stir in the lemon juice.

2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add zucchini, squash, garlic and lemon zest; saute for 5 minutes. Stir in parsley and cilantro or dill. Season with pepper. Stir into the pilaf. Serve hot.

Makes 6 one-cup servings.

Nutrition information, per serving (from the source article): 259 calories; 4 grams fat (1 gram saturated, 2 grams monounsaturated); 3 milligrams cholesterol; 42 grams carbohydrate; 17 grams protein; 17 grams fiber; 189 milligrams sodium.

Nutrition bonus: 67% daily value fiber; 192 micrograms folate (49% DV), 16 milligrams vitamin C (30% DV), 4 milligrams iron (25% DV).

Recycle: broth cans, if any; oil bottle

Compost: bay leaf, vegetable trimmings

OldRoses' Chicken Stir Fry

I don't know why I suddenly got a craving for chicken stir fry. I haven't made this dish in ages. It's another one of those recipes that I had to play with a lot to get it to where I liked it. The original version was Chinese in name only. I guess because it called for soy sauce, that made it "Chinese". It's even supposed to be cooked in a frying pan!

I use a wok. Admittedly, it's a non-stick wok so it's not terribly authentic. But it is easy to clean. I ditched the veggies that were originally in this recipe and substituted canned baby corn, straw mushrooms and water chestnuts and increased the amount of soy sauce used in the marinade.

Since I am no longer cooking for a fussy eater, I made further substitutions tonight. I eliminated the water chestnuts. I've never been a big fan of water chestnuts. Instead I added bamboo shoots and bean sprouts. I prefer using the whole baby corn and just cutting it in half but I could only find the already cut up baby corn. The pieces are too small for me. I like the taste and crunch of the whole cobs. Ditto the straw mushrooms. I couldn't find my usual brand. The brand I bought had just a few HUGE mushrooms in the can. The brand I usually buy has many smaller mushrooms. I like bite-sized mushrooms.

The recipe calls for chicken breasts. Even though it's more expensive, the chicken tenders are a lot easier to cut up. Be sure to cut up the chicken into small pieces because chicken expands in size when it cooks. I prefer all the ingredients to be bite-sized so the dish could be eaten with chopsticks. Although handy with chopsticks, at home I always use a fork.

Verdict: Yum!! This one's a keeper!

OldRoses' Chicken Stir Fry
(Source: OldRoses)

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 1/4 lb skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
8 scallions, chopped
1 can baby corn, drained and cut in half
1 can straw mushrooms, drained
1 can water chestnuts, drained

In a medium-sized bowl, combine garlic, 1 tablespoon of the oil, 2 tablespoons of the soy sauce, pepper, and 1 teaspoon of the cornstarch. Add chicken and toss to coat; let stand at least 20 minutes.

Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a wok or large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add scallions and stir-fry 2 minutes. Add corn, mushrooms and water chestnuts and stir-fry 2 minutes. Remove vegetables with a slotted spoon.

Heat oil remaining in wok. add chicken and stir-fry 3 minutes, until opaque. Mix remaining soy sauce and cornstarch with 1/4 cup cold water. Add to pan.

Return vegetables and cook, stirring, 3 minutes until sauce thickens.

Recycle: soy sauce bottle, vegetable oil bottle, baby corn can, straw mushrooms can, water chestnuts can

Compost: garlic skins, scallion stems