Beet Dip

This beet dip is taken from Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian, where it is called Pantzarosalata II, or Pureed Beet Salad (in Greek).  I usually change it in some/several ways, but her original recipe is tasty, so I'll write it here.

• 1 good sized beet (about 6 oz) or two smaller ones
• 4 T chopped walnuts
• 1 slice stale white bread, or you could use a small boiled potato
• 1 clove garlic, coarsely chopped
• 6 T olive oil
• 2 T red wine vinegar
• 1/2 t salt, or to taste

Boil the beet in its skin until soft, about 40 minutes.  Drain, peel, and let cool.  Chop coarsely.  Throw everything in a food processor and blend until smooth.

That's what Madhur says to do.  I've done all that and almost none of it.  Sometimes I don't have bread- it is just fine left out, although it has a more "vegetable" texture instead of a starchier one.  I've never used a potato. I've also left the walnuts out, but they make it really good.  I've added cumin and cilantro, lemon juice instead of vinegar, parsley and chives.  I'm pretty sure I used a touch of tahini once instead of walnuts, with good results....  Just play around and see what happens.  Serve with a nice crust bread or handmade crackers by Ashley.

Eggplant "Involtini" and Pimento Cheese

This recipe was taken from this really great cookbook Tartine Bread by Chad Robertson.  Tartine is a wonderful bakery and cafe in San Francisco that we visited while in that very city.  The cookbook is worth having, if just for the recipes towards the back.  Most of the book involves very detailed recipes for wonderful professional tasting bread.  The back end of the book shows creative and tasty ways to use up leftover professional tasting bread.  This one is called "Involtini" which is an Italian word for "little bundles" of something yummy.  The Italians are very good at using up old bread, as it is very important to not waste a crumb of anything that was made with love.  Ask Carlo Petrini about his grandmother's dish of stale bread and tomato sauce....

The recipe called for a few things I didn't have, or weren't in season so here's what I did:


for the tomato sauce:                                                                 

• 1 small onion, finely chopped                                                                           
• about 10 roma tomatoes, peeled
• 3 cloves garlic
• a little olive oil 
• salt to taste

Saute onion in olive oil over medium heat until transparent.  Add the garlic, saute for a minute, and then throw in the tomatoes.  Cook, stirring every now and then about 20 minutes, crushing the tomatoes as they soften.  You want it to be a little chunky and also a little runny- a lot of liquid will evaporate when you bake it.

for the stuffing:

• Bread crumbs from 4 slices of ciabatta (make croutons by tearing the bread into pieces, tossing them in oil and a little salt, and then toasting them at 400 til browned.  Then crush them under a rolling pin to make bread crumbs)
• 1 1/2 cup grated Sequatchie Cove's Cumberland cheese
• 1/2 cup homemade "kefir cheese"  (Tartine calls for 2 cups ricotta and the grated zest and juice of one lemon.  I had neither so those were my substitutes)
• 1 t thyme leaves
• 1/4 t salt

Combine all and set aside while you prepare the fun part:

Slice 2-3 medium sized globe eggplants lengthwise into roughly 1/4 inch slices.  I actually used some asian-style eggplant, which worked, I just had very teeny little bundles.  If you own a mandoline use that.  If you don't, like me, practice your handy dandy knife skills.  I am lucky enough to own a small Shun, which has a very thin blade and is perfect for delicate slices.  Soak the eggplant in salt water for about an hour to draw out the bitterness.  Then blot the slices dry with a clean kitchen towel and heat some olive oil in a large skillet or wok til hot- about 360 degrees F if you have a thermometer (which I don't). Fry each slice for a few minutes, a few at a time, until they take on a little color and then set aside to drain on paper towels or bags while you fry the rest.  

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  Pour tomato sauce in the bottom of a medium-sized baking dish.  Put a small spoonful of filling on the end of each slice and roll it up.  Place seam down in the dish.  Repeat with all the rest.  Sprinkle a small amount of cheese on top and bake about 20-25 minutes, until the sauce is dark and bubbling and the rolls are nice and brown.  Tartine spoons cream over the rolls before baking and then sprinkles with Asiago after.  I didn't have those either so I just reserved some Cumberland and used that before baking.  Serve warm.

and.....

Kinda Sorta Frank Stitt's Pimento Cheese

My grandmother sends me clipping from the Wall Street Journal's food pages when she sees something I might find interesting.  I drool and muse over them and then stick them in a drawer after recreating and embellishing a few of the recipes.  Padgett had just traded me a wheel of Cumberland when a whole page about pimento cheese arrived in the mail.   I found it to be fate when I saw Frank Stitt's own recipe on the menu.  Frank is a chef and restaurateur from the great city of Birmingham, Alabama.  He and his wife Pardis are doing some wonderful stuff down there, as well as making fabulous pimento cheese...  Frank uses sharp cheddar and adds white pepper, a teeny touch of sugar, some Worcestershire sauce, cream cheese, and some hot sauce.  I did none of those but the rest I followed...

• 1 pound sharp cheese, shredded and let come fully to room temp.  (Cumberland is wonderful but you could cut it with some less pricey cheddar if you wish. 
• 3 sweet red peppers, roasted, skinned and deseeded, chopped small
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise (I bought it only for this purpose, but it's easy to make if'n you wanna)
• very teeny piece diced fresh cayenne (or more to taste)
• 1 t paprika powder

Blend everything but the peppers until just about smooth in a food processor.  Fold in peppers and serve at room temp with crackers, cucumber strips, sungold cherry tomatoes, toasted bread,  fresh pepper slices, or whatever you most desire.  Its creamy saltiness does go well with raw vegetables though, so at least try it.  I like to put a dab on a basil leaf, wrap the leaf around a sungold cherry tomato and eat the whole thing just like that.

Eating in the Dark and Other Such Tales of Winter

Although it is cold and dark outside most days, most of the day, there are still those out there who are digging in the frozen soil, checking on the roaming pigs, and milking the cows through rain, snow, ice,  and mud.  I have tried very hard to not break down and buy any vegetables this winter from anywhere but the Main Street Farmer's Market and so far have succeeded.  There was one week though where we got awfully tired of cabbage.  Fortunately there is a nice supply of various kimchees in the fridge and pickles, sauces, and relishes in the freezer and on the shelf.  There is still cheese, grits, bacon, honey, sorghum, and pecans at the market.   And every now and then, if we're lucky enough, there is lettuce for salads, sweet crunchy carrots, beets, turnips, kale, and even tender brussel sprouts.  The produce in my fridge is confined to the produce drawers instead of sprawling everywhere, but sometimes it's nice to have an empty spot to stick a pot of chili.

This meal took me maybe 20 minutes and is most comforting and delicious.

For two very hungry folks:

Williams Island Carrots and Lemon-Orange Tahini Dip

I was lucky enough to receive a case of biodynamicly grown oranges and grapefruit for my birthday in November.  Even if you aren't that lucky it's kinda locavorily allowed to buy citrus this time of years,  tis the season after all.

• 1 cup tahini
• juice of 1 orange and 1 lemon
• 1 teaspoon, more or less, ground cumin
• pinch of cayenne
• 1 tablespoon or so chopped ginger
• 1 close garlic, chopped
• Salt to taste- about a big pinch

Puree everything in a blender til super smooth.  Taste for seasoning and add juices, salt, or spices as desired.  Serve with super fresh and crunchy carrots.

Steamed Kale with Muscadine Vinegar and Sorghum

I am also lucky enough to have a (vinegar making) crazy father.  He recently blessed me with a growler full of muscadine vinegar.  It tastes of the clear blue skies of autumn and a twang of muscadine goodness.   Sorghum, I am realizing, goes well with everything.  It has a rich earthy sweetness that almost isn't sweet anymore and compliments almost every flavor in the world.

• 1 bunch kale, coarsely chopped or torn
• Splash of vinegar, muscadine or otherwise
• Drizzle of sorghum syrup
• Dash or pinch of salt

Steam the kale with the vinegar and salt in a bit of water til wilty and tender.  This time of year greens start getting much tougher and more bitter.  Sometimes, although it is not in vogue, it is nice to steam them a little longer. Drizzle in the sorghum at the very end.  Serve warm.

Udon Noodles with Homemade Miso and a Little Bit of Beets

Of course I am not crazy enough to make my own noodles, I buy them at the Asian Food Store on Hixson Pike.  I AM crazy enough to make my own miso, but one fit of insanity can last you several fruitful years.  I made black bean miso over three years ago and it is still doin' me good.    The recipe I used was from Sandor Katz's Wild Fermentation- the best "cookbook" in the world and there is no excuse not to own it.

• 1 bundle udon noodles
• 1 beet, grated
• 1 tablespoon miso, handmade or otherwise
• 1 teaspoon minced ginger
• Splash of tamari
• 1 teeny tiny drop of sesame oil

Bring a pot of water to boil, and add the noodles.  Make sauce by diluting miso with hot noodle water and then adding ginger, tamari, and sesame oil.  Add a bit more water to make a thin-ish sauce that can coat the noodles.  Toss noodles with grated beet and sauce.  Serve warm.

Recipe- Mayonnaise

I never, ever buy mayonnaise.  I  don't really use it that often.  I use it in deviled eggs or egg salad, and sometimes I get a hankering to use it on a sandwich or two.  So when I need it I just make it.  I have no idea why it is a terrifying thing to make- I think that legend must have come from people who don't buy good, fresh, truly free range eggs.  If you have those eggs then all of your wildest egg dreams are possible.  If you don't, well, just don't try to make any "tricky" egg dish or sauce.  In fact, just don't use eggs at all.  It's not worth it.

• 1 whole "good egg" from any farmer at Main Street Farmer's Market -room temp
• 1 egg yolk -room temp
• 1 teaspoon good mustard (homemade mustard is really super easy to make; I just use my friend Ashley's homemade stuff)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice (or any kind of acidic liquid will do- like vinegar)
• 3/4 - 1 cup olive oil OR a mixture of olive oil and vegetable oil of your choice- sunflower is good
• nice pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon herbs, garlic, or whatever you want to flavor it with (optional)

Place a medium sized bowl on a wet-ish dish towel (this will keep the bowl from spinning obnoxiously around while you try to whisk).  Whisk the eggs, mustard, salt, lemon juice, and flavorings together until they are combined.  Slowly, slowly add the oil, whisking all the while.  If you accidentally add too much, just whisk it in until it is all combined.  You never want to see any oil pooling up anywhere.  Keep whisking and adding until all of the oil is emulsified into the eggs.  If it is not thick enough (it will never be as thick as the "store bought" junk), whisk a bit longer, and add a bit more oil.  It will also firm up in the fridge. If you mess up and have scrambled eggs with oil instead you can add another yolk or even a touch of water- adding slowly like you did the oil.  But I seriously have never messed it up.  Don't be afraid.

Supposedly this can be done in the blender even more easily.  I don't have a blender so I couldn't tell you....

When I was at Ballymaloe Cookery School part of our 'semi final exam' was exhibiting the cooking skills we had learned over the past three months.  The night before I studiously/anxiously sharpened my filleting and boning knives, worried that I would be requested to fillet a round fish (landlubber that I am I had only filleted about five round fish in my life) or bone a leg of lamb.  Lucky for me I ended up having, in a very quiet room and carefully watched by three teachers, to make pie pastry, mayonnaise, and a poached egg.  If I can make mayonnaise while being scrutinized then anyone can.  I have terrible stage fright.

Recipe- Basil "Pesto"

Since I do not "really" have access to any traditional pesto ingredients (I say "really" because today I actually saw that kind of "Parmesan cheese" that is in the plastic container and mixed with granulated sawdust and have also seen some olive oil that most probably is rancid by the looks of the dust on the bottle- not to mention the lack of origin label.  Nuts of any kind, besides peanuts, I have yet to see) other than basil (very sweet and succulent from the vast amount of rain), garlic, and salt I had to kind of improvise.  The best substitute for fat I've found is pumpkin.  It has a earthy, complex, sweet flavor and gets nice and creamy when whipped or blended.  This would also be good to make right before the first frost- when the pumpkins are in and you have to use up all that basil (and you don't feel so rich enough to buy Parmesan and olive oil)

Sweet Basil "Pesto" 

• A chunk of pumpkin- maybe enough for a cup- about the size of a smallish woman's fist (in this case me)
• One onion- chopped
• Salt and pepper
• One rather large bunch of sweet basil (maybe about a cup if you smashed it down in there)
• Two cloves garlic- crushed (use just one if you don't like it raw a whole lot)

I chopped up the pumpkin and cooked it with the onion in a little water til the pumpkin was falling apart.  But that's because I was in a hurry.  I like to roast it whenever I can- just throw it in the oven on a pan with a little water.

Blend the pumpkin and onion (if you roast the pumpkin just saute the onion til soft) with enough water to make a thinish paste.  It would be a good idea to cool it off before you do this but I only did a wee bit (I was in a hurry).  Add the basil leaves and garlic.  Check with your Super Sense of Taste to see if it needs "something"- salt is a good place to start but anything else would be just fine.

Blend until smooth and creamy and throw over pasta and a few chopped tomatoes on top.

Tostones With Pumpkin Eggplant Dipping Sauce

I had hardly heard of tostones before I came here- I'm sure I've eaten them a few times (namely the the week before I left at my cousin's plotluck) but now I can't understand how I've lived this long without them.... They are salty, sweet, chewy, crispy, and fried. 

Tostones for two people

Take about 2 plantains- I've found that slightly yellow is the best kind, there is enough sugar in them to caramelize and turn them nice and brown but not so much that they get black and fall apart-  Score the skin from top to bottom in about three places and pull off the strips and throw them in the compost (there is something really satisfactory about skinning a plantain- something about the sound it makes I suppose)

Slice the plantains on the diagonal into 1/2 inch slices and soak the slices in salt water for about thirty minutes.

Fry them in oil that is not-as-hot- as you would for potato chips (probably around 325 degrees if you use a thermometer) until they are golden brown (this is not the last step so they shouldn't be done looking).  Drain on a paper bag or towel or whatever you have to drain things on.

Pound out the slices gently between wax paper with whatever you have to pound things with (I used an empty guava jelly jar) until they are thin enough to be chip-like (you can't get them super super thin because they will just fall apart)

Fry them in hot oil (I use brown coconut oil with a little olive oil mixed in) until they are dark brown and look delicious.  My friend Ashley puts salt in the oil as she fries things (mainly potato or other root/tuber chips).  I've never heard of this before but it works so I now do it as well.  It doesn't dissolve in the oil but it sticks to things just enough and you don't have to worry about spillage when you try to evenly sprinkle clumpy humid salt after frying.

Pumpkin Eggplant Rosemary Dipping Sauce

Take one reasonable sized eggplant, split it, and put it on a baking sheet.  Then cut a hunk of pumpkin about the same size as half an eggplant and put it on the baking sheet. Also add  four whole garlic cloves- unskinned.  Drizzle a little coconut oil on everything and throw the baking sheet in an oven preheated on medium heat. Bake until soft (about 30 minutes, depending on the heat of the oven)

Put the soft inside of the eggplant and the pumpkin in a blender or food processor (you can also just smash it up by hand but doing it this way makes it nice and fluffy and smooth). Pop the garlic out of it's skin throw that it. Add a sprig's worth of rosemary, a clove of minced garlic, half a lemon or lime's (I used lime) worth of juice (or more if you like), salt, pepper, a drizzle or so of oil, and enough liquid to make it like a really thick soup.  If I were at home I would have added some tahini but I don't have any here.  I just added a little water.

Blend it all up until it is light and fluffy- taste before you pour it out to make sure it doesn't need anything (a bit of hot pepper, more salt, black pepper, lemon or lime juice....).  Serve with warm tostones and a nice cabbage-green papaya- carrot slaw. 

Or maybewith an avocado-tomato salsa seasoned with hot peppers and lime juice....