Oven-Marinated Olives, Mushrooms & Artichokes

These are simple vegetable appetizers you can do ahead in the oven by combining various bite-sized edibles with herbs, spices, citrus peel and flavored oils.  They are nice warm or room temperature though they taste best if allowed to sit overnight to soak up all the flavorings.

Our olives get flavor from olive oil, orange peel, fresh thyme and red pepper flakes. Use two cans for a crowd with 2 tablespoon oil, peel of 1/2 an orange, 4-5 sprigs thyme and 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes.  Feel free to adjust amounts to suit your tastes.  This makes a fairly spicy olive.

We use small frozen artichokes that are defrosted before being mixed with olive oil, lemon peel, juice of 1/2 lemon, fresh parsley and fresh thyme.  Canned artichokes do not hold up as well in the oven.  If you only have canned ones, marinate them at room temperature after rinsing them with a strainer.  You will need at least a day in the refrigerator to marinate.

Our mushroom have a secret ingredient, fish sauce*.  A little goes a long way.  Mix a few drops with a squeeze of lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of oil oil for every cup of mushrooms.  Also add oregano and black pepper.

Wrap each mixture tightly in aluminum foil and bake at 400˚F for 15-20 minutes.  Allow them to cool in their packets then open and serve with toothpicks.  Store leftovers covered in refrigerator.

*Use soy sauce in place of fish sauce for strictly vegetarian.  There are one or two vegan Worcestershire sauces that can be used as well.


Happy New Year!

Salad Caprese To Go

Individual Salad Caprese is the perfect side to bring to gatherings if you just know you are going to forget the serving utensil.  The stiff romaine lettuce leaf underneath allows diners to pick up a single serving with their hands and move on down the buffet.

Salad Caprese requires only a few ingredients and begs to be served when tomatoes and basil come into season. 

Individual Salad Caprese
Yield- 10 servings

Ingredients
10 Romaine lettuce leaves
3 ripe tomatoes, medium size
1 ball mozzarella cheese (fresh recommended)
handful of fresh basil
Extra Virgin Olive Oil or vinaigrette dressing
salt and pepper
optional: roasted red pepper (try a variation with red pepper and no tomatoes when tomatoes are not yet ripe), baguette slices

Method:

1. Lay lettuce leaves on a serving tray
2. Lay alternating slices of tomatoes and mozzarella on each leaf. Tuck a few basil leaves in between the layers.
3. Cover and refrigerate until read to serve
4. Just before serving, drizzle with olive oil or dressing and finish with a sprinkle of salt and freshly ground black pepper
5. Serve as is or with sliced baguette or country loaf

Use medium sized romaine leaves that have a little backbone.  These salads can even be eaten without a fork.  Smaller leaf versions are a nice option for passed hors d'oeuvres.  Use the inner leaves of the lettuce to collect enough or break larger leaves in two. 

Snow-Capped Stuffed Mushrooms for Ski Weekends

Make-aheads meals are the skiing cook's best friend.  These hearty sausage-stuffed mushrooms satisfy big appetites after a day on the slopes and can be made using smaller mushrooms for excellent apres ski hors d'ourvres.  The "snow" cap is a sour cream-roux that creates a lush sauce for each mushroom.  Diced jalepeño or freshly chopped herbs contribute a touch of greenery. 

Serve 2-3 medium large mushroom to each diner as a main course with a side of pasta or pair the mushrooms with green beans and mashed turnips.  Make smaller ones to put out a bountiful platterful to sample with a limited edition, specialty winter beer shared with friends.

You can make Snow-Capped Stuffed Mushrooms ahead and store them uncooked or cooked for 2-3 days. Either way, the sausage filling is cooked before it is goes into the mushroom so you have a safe, easily transported dish.  Keep the dish cold if traveling (to a ski house, for example) and refrigerate until ready to bake and serve piping hot.

Snow Capped Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms
Serves 4 (or 12 as hot hors d'ouvres)

Ingredients
12 medium mushroom (1 1/2 to 2 inch diameter) or 1 pound small Bella mushrooms
1 pound breakfast sausage
4 ounces cheddar cheese
4 ounces cream cheese
1 teaspoon marjoram or oregano

Sour Cream 'Snow' Topping
2 tablespoons flour
1/2 cup sour cream
1 jalepeño, seeded and diced or fresh herbs (marjoram, chives, parsley)

Method

1. If baking mushrooms now, preheat oven to 400˚F. 
2. Saute breakfast sausage in a wide skillet over medium heat.  Drain any fat.  Place drained, cooked sausage meat in a medium sized bowl and allow to cool slightly.
3. While sausage cooks, prepare mushroom caps.  Wipe away any dirt on the mushrooms.  remove stem and if using larger mushrooms, use a spoon to scrape out the gills.  Place mushroom caps in a lightly oiled foil-covered baking pan and set aside.
4. Grate cheddar cheese.  When meat is cool enough to touch it without burning yourself but it is still warm, add cheeses and oregano.  Stir with a wide spoon or spatula to mix thoroughly. 
5. Fill mushrooms caps generously using a spoon and/or your hands to form round tops. Place on prepared baking pan.  If making ahead, stop at this point and cover dish with aluminum foil.  refrigerate until ready to bake, up to 2 days.
6. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 400˚F.
7. Bake mushrooms for 10-15 minutes, longer if mushrooms have been refrigerated.  
8. While mushrooms bake, make sour cream 'snow' topping.  Mix sour cream and flour.  Add jalepeños or herbs.  Top each mushroom with a dollop of 'snow' and return to oven for another 6-8 minutes.  Let cool a minute before removing from baking dish to serve.
 

Parmesan Pepper Pinwheels

It's almost worth making something with puff pastry sheets just to have some leftover strips that can be turned into these cheese-filled pinwheels.   They make a very cute amuse-bouche offering with a glass of red wine.  The ones shown here were made leftover puff pastry scraps from a larger puff pastry project, a turnover stuffed with roasted fall vegetables. 

Here's the recipe for Parmesan Pepper Pinwheels using a full sheet of puff pastry.  Once you see how easy they are to assemble, you can make up little batches from pastry scraps wihtout measuring.  Just grate a small amount of cheese onto leftover strips and finishing with a bit of black pepper or any other spice you like.  Roll up, bake and enjoy. 

Parmesan Pepper Pinwheels
Yield: 24-26 pinwheels

Ingredients
1 sheet puff pastry (store bought is fine, defrost an hour ahead if frozen)
2/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon black pepper
water

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400˚K.  
2. On a floured board or counter top, roll out puff pastry so that it measures about 14" X 14" or so.  (Exact measure is not crucial; just get the pastry a little flattened out.)  Brush away any excess flour.  
3. Leaving about 1/2 inch of one edge uncovered, sprinkle cheese over pastry to coat evenly.  Repeat with black pepper.  
4. With a pizza cutter or butter knife, cut pastry into strips no wider than 1/2 inch.  (You can cut thinner strips for more delicate and more pinwheels.) 
5. Roll each strip up to form a wheel, starting from the coated edge and rolling toward the un-coated edge.  
6. Wet the un-coated edge of pastry to seal the pastry to itself.  
7. Place pinwheels on a baking sheet --no need to grease-- and bake for 12-15 minutes until pinwheels are crisp and pastry at center of each is cooked through. 

French Pizza

Not French bread pizza, French Pizza!  Oil-cured black olives, tiny strips of anchovy, ripe roasted tomatoes top a slab of puff pastry smeared with soft cheeses.  If, like me,  you cannot get to Nice in the south of France this summer, get a taste with this beachside favorite picked up the local patisserie. 

French Pizza
Makes one medium pizza that serves 4 for lunch, 8-9 as an appertizer

Ingredients
one sheet puff pastry (10" X 15")
egg wash*
4-6 ounces soft cheese (combo of goat cheese, blue cheese, cream cheese)
3-4 medium tomatoes (or 8-9 small tomatoes)
1/4 cup oil cured olives
optional: anchovies, extra grated cheese like Parmesan, Asiago or even Gruyere

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400˚F.  
2. Place defrosted puff pastry sheet on a cookie sheet.
3. Using a butter knife, cut a strip about 1/3-1/2 inch wide from the long sides of the sheet.  Brush the long edges with egg wash and place the strip on top to form an edge.  Do the same with the shorter sides of the pastry.  
4. Spread a thin layer of the cheese on the interior of the puff pastry.
5. Slice the tomatoes no thinner than 1/4 inch and lay out over the cheese.  If using small tomatoes, cut them in half and arrange on top of the cheese.  (Note: if using roma or plum tomatoes, you may roast them in a 400˚F oven for 10-12 minutes before topping the pizza.)
6. Finish the pizza by arranging olives and anchoives between the tomatoes.
7. Brush the raised edges of the pizza with more egg wash. 
8. Bake pizza at 400˚F for 15 minutes until the crust turns golden brown.  
9. Optional: Grate some hard cheese over the pizza to finish. 

Enjoy French Pizza right out of the oven or room temperature as a light lunch or hearty first course over salad greens.

 * an egg wash will "glue" the pastry to itself and create a nice shine to the pizza edges.  Mix a beaten egg with a few tablespoons of water to create an egg wash.  If you do not want to use an egg, a light brushing of water will help stick the strips of pastry to the base. 

Basil Mayo, Bacon and Tomato on Potato Chips

The title of this post is pretty much the recipe.  Basil Mayo, Bacon and Tomato on Potato Chips.  A simple twist on the classic BLT and sharable. 

The basil mayonnaise takes under a minute to make, starting with a good quality store-bought mayonnaise, some fresh basil leaves and a little lemon juice.  Per person, figure on about 2 strips of cooked bacon and ½ cup of grape tomatoes.  We used kettle chips but any thick chip you like will work.

It’s fun to let everyone assemble these mini hors d’ouevres themselves.  We liked the full set up best—a thick potato chip dipped in spring-green mayonnaise and topped with some bacon and half a grape tomato.  The mayonnaise helps the other ingredients hang onto the chip.  We did a taste test with our friend, Heidi, who created a simple variation with a grape tomato half smeared with basil mayonnaise.  Basil loves tomato and tomato loves basil back. 

Once you make these, you’ll start to think about adding flavored mayonnaise to rev up regular sandwiches.  This basil version goes well in a regular BLT and compliments any sandwich with lots of veggies or sliced chicken.  You could even mix basil mayonnaise into egg or tuna salad. 

Green Basil Mayonnaise
Makes a little over 1 cup

Ingredients
1 cup fresh basil leaves (tightly packed)
3/4 cup mayonnaise
¼ cup plain whole yogurt
juice of ½ lemon
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. In a small food processor (or my hand) finely chop basil leaves.
2. Add mayonnaise and yogurt and blend well.  
3. Add lemon juice and olive oil. Blend together and taste.  
4. Add a pinch of salt and taste again. Add pepper if desired. 

Place a small bowl of basil Mayonnaise on a platter and surround with dippers.   Bacon and  sliced grape tomatoes. with chips or sturdy baby romaine lettuce leaves.   Refrigerate leftover dip and use within 2 days.

Many thanks to Heidi, our hand model for this post.  In real life Heidi protects us, the land and its creatures as a Law Enforcement Ranger with the National Park Service.  

Roasted Zucchini Feta Salad

Some occasions like spring birthday parties and wedding showers need a side dish with a little sex appeal.  It should be easy and bridge the seasons since the temperature can really roam at this time of year.

Roasted Zucchini Salas completes the assignment.  It can be served warm or cold, can be prepared in advance or served up straight out of the oven and it holds beautifully.  It looks and tastes pretty special too.


Roasted Zucchini Feta Salad
Serves 4, recipe can be doubled

Ingredients
4 medium sized zucchini
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt & pepper
4 heaping tablespoons crumbled feta cheese (low fat is fine)
1/4 cup fresh herbs, roughly chopped (dill, mint, parsley, thyme)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 450˚F.  
2. Lightly oil a sheet pan.  Canola oil works well here.  
3. Slice the zucchini on a extreme angle to get nice wide angled strips.  
4. Lay zucchini slices on oiled and and turn to coat lightly with oil. Sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides. 
5. Roast Zucchini at 450˚F for 15-20 minutes, turning once.  The zucchini will be crisp if you have sliced it in thin slices and  melting-tender if you have sliced it into thicker (1/2 inch strips).  Both are excellent.  
6. Serve zucchini with crumbed feta cheese and chopped herbs like dill and mint.  Drizzle with a little oil or lemon juice- your choice.

Bonus: these roasted treats can be quickly turned into little hors d'ouevres served on thinly sliced baguettes.  

Super Bowl Taquitoes

After the holidays we made a stellar chili from the leftover meat at the edges of a standing rib roast.  The next day we gilded that lily by rolling the remains of the chili with cheese in corn tortillas for taquitoes worthy of an occasion like the Super Bowl. 

Actually, many fillings are Super Bowl worthy from secret recipe house chilis and shredded leftover chicken to the simple ground meat mixture below.  Try some vegetarian options like bean and cheese or cooked potato and cheese. 

Years ago, while visiting the Oaxacan province in Mexico, I fell in love with a chopped potato and chorizo taco filling that is so tasty it defies its simplicity.  You just heard the recipe—just cook the potatoes and chorizo before rolling the taquitoes. (Mexican chorizo sausage requires cooking.   If you are using Spanish style cured chorizo just dice it and toss with cooked potatoes.)

Our home taquitoes are baked rather than fried so they are a lot less greasy than what you order out.  The secret is to lightly coat them with cooking oil and then to bake at high heat to get the desired crispness.  The filling should be tender to contrast with the crisp exterior. 

Super Bowl Tacquitos
Makes 24, recipe may be halved

Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds ground beef, turkey, pork or a mixture
1 cup salsa (something natural please)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
24 corn tortillas
cooking oil spray or vegetable oil

To dip/garnish tacquitos:
Plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
Guacamole (a ripe avocado chopped up with a few tablespoons of that all-natural salsa above makes a really easy guacamole)
squeeze of lime

Method

1. Brown meat in a skillet until cooked through.  If using ground turley, you may need to add a little vegetable oil to the pan to prevent sticking.  When cooked, drain the meat.    Let meat cool a bit.  
2. Stir in salsa and shredded cheese.  Filling may be made a day ahead.
3. Line a baking pan with foil and lightly brush or spray with cooking oil.  Preheat oven to 450˚.
4. Loosely wrap half the tortillas in paper towel and microwave on medium 30 seconds+ until pliable.  (This step prevents them from breaking when you roll them.) 
5. Put 2 tablespoons of filling onto each tortilla in a strip– don’t over fill.  Roll tortilla and secure with a toothpick.  Don’t worry if they are not perfect.  
6. Place rolls on prepared baking pan and brush or spray lightly with oil.  Repeat with second half of tortillas.
7. Bake for 10-12 minutes, uncovered, until taquitos are crisp.  
8. Remove the toothpicks before placing on a serving platter! Serve with a squeeze of lime, greek yogurt, guacamole or extra salsa as dips. 

You can make extra and reheat these.  They even freeze well.  Reheat at 350˚ 12-15 minutes.

Mushroom Appetizers

The focus is on simple holiday appetizers.  I like ones that come together quickly or can be frozen and reheated when needed so the cook and the kitchen can stay focused on the main meal or other party matters.

I created a tasty mushroom appetizer that can be hand-held, made ahead and even frozen.  It’s instant party food. 

And it does not require any pastry skills so I’m hoping all my friends will give it a try.  Think if it as a simple mushroom sandwich with a cheesy top layer. When it’s cut in squares, the mini-sandwiches turn into toothpick-worthy puffs.

Mushroom Minis
Makes 30-36 squares
Ingredients
8 slices firm bread
4 tablespoons butter, softened and divided
1 tablespoon olive oil
10 ounces mushrooms, finely chopped
1 shallot, peeled and  finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh herbs (your choice, parsley, dill, thyme)
3 ounces cream cheese, divided
1/2 teaspoon anchovy paste (optional)
2 ounces finely grated Parmesan cheese

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 400˚F.
2. Remove crusts from bread and butter four slices with 2 tablespoons of butter.  
3. Lay butter side down in a 8”X 8” baking pan (metal preferred).  
4. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat.  Add shallots and mushrooms and cook over low heat stirring occasionally until mushroom juice has begun to evaporate.  Stir in herbs, anchovy paste if using and half of cream cheese then remove from heat.  
5. Spoon warm mushroom mixture over  bread in baking pan.  
6. In a small bowl , mix remaining butter and remaining cream cheese together.  Butter last four slices of bread with cream cheese mixture and lay, buttered side up over mushroom layer.  
7. Sprinkle top layer with Parmesan cheese.  
8. Bake at 400˚K for 12-15 minutes, until top cheese layer has begun to brown and edges of pan are showing that bread lining pan is browning.  You can peak by lifting the edge with a spatula.  (Repairs are easy with a little extra cheese.) 
9. Remove from oven and let rest 10 minutes before cutting into squares.  

To freeze: Cool completely, wrap in aluminum foil and freeze.  To reheat, places frozen squares on a plain baking sheet and bake in a preheated oven at 325˚F for 15 minutes.  Garnish with a roasted red pepper strip or sliced olive to serve. 

Clam-Stuffed Mushrooms

Sometimes you want stuffed clams but the amount of breading holds you back.  This recipe for clams stuffed in mushroom caps with garlic, oregano and red pepper can satisfy your craving.  And if you want to add a few breadcrumbs sprinkled on top with the Parmesan cheese, you’ll hear no argument from this household.  Either way the dish is fit for company.

Clam Stuffed Mushrooms
Ingredients
12 mushroom caps (baby bella or button)
1 can clams, drained (reserve juice)
2 T cream cheese
2 T diced red pepper
2 green onions, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 teaspoons dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 Tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400˚F while you prepare the mushrooms.  Line a small baking sheet with tin foil.  
2. Clean off any dirt from the mushrooms using a light touch with a paper towel or a mushroom brush.  
3. Chop the clams a bit more finely that they come from the can so that they pack well into the mushrooms.  
4. In a small bowl mix together the cream cheese with red pepper, green onions, garlic and herbs.  Stir in the clams. Moisten with clam juice as needed.  The mixture should hold together.  
5. Divide clam mixture among mushroom, mounding each cap with filling.  Sprinkle a little Parmesan cheese over each stuffed cap.  
6. Bake for 12-15 minutes until mushrooms are cooked and cheese is melted.  Serve hot. 

Your Own Dried Parsley
Drying your own herbs is no big deal. Next time you buy a big bunch of fresh parsley for a specific dish, take half and dry it.  You will notice right away that it is greener than what you normally purchase.  
Here’s how:
Wash the parsley and pick out any dead leaves or damaged stems.  Roll in a paper towel to dry.
When dry, tie stems together with kitchen twine (cotton) leaving one long end so that you will be able to hang the herb with the leaves facing downwards.  Hang the herbs out of direct sunlight in a dry spot that gets a little ventilation. 
If you do not have a convenient rafter or empty closet rod, tie the long end of the string to a dowel (or ruler) and place the stick on a shelf, nestled between a few books in a little traveled area of the house. 
Check the herbs as they dry (a few days depending on room temperature) and when leaves are dry store the bundle in a paper bag or pull dried leaves from the stem and store in a small airtight bottle. 

When using dried herbs, always allow time for the herb to absorb moisture to develop fullest flavor.  Use dried parsley in pasta sauces, potato salad, egg dishes, meatloaf and even cottage cheese. 


Note: This is the first blog post following Sandy, the storm that hit the east coast at the close of October, 2012.  This entry was planned a few weeks ago and today it seems odd to write about the joys of a simple appetizer while we wait to have power restored to all affected areas and hope for viable recovery for the most hard hit among us.  This blog's purpose is to make suggestions on how to eat more pure foods within our fast paced food environment.  The ability to prepare healthy food as well as to obtain it is part of the solution to feeding our country better. During the power outage we were grateful to have healthy fresh food on hand, a well-stocked pantry and the skills to cook on a camp stove.  Helping out a nearby shelter last week, we met people who were not so lucky.  At these times, we are reminded that to sit with one another at the table is warming and nourishing as well.

Baked Jalepeño Poppers

I thought I’d miss the fried version of jalapeño poppers but I think I like these better.  The baked topping has all the crunch I crave in a bar snack and baking them means I can make lots and reheat them.  They even freeze well after the first bake.

We make two basic fillings- one with veggie cream cheese mixed with grated cheddar and the other with equal parts soft goat cheese and cream cheese topped with crispy bacon pieces.  Try the goat cheese version using a nice aged goat cheese like Pico or le Boucheron to pass these around at a grown up cocktail party like a wedding rehearsal dinner.  Add the cheddar version to a Cinco de Mayo celebration.

Here’s the basic recipe for 12 jalapeño poppers using 6 whole jalapeños.  The recipe can be doubled and tripled. 

Baked Jalapeño Poppers
Ingredients
6 jalapeño peppers, split lengthwise
3 oz cream cheese, softened
3 oz soft goat cheese (try an aged version, rind and all)
2 strips cooked bacon, chopped in large pieces
1 egg + 1 tablespoon water
1/4 cup flour + salt and pepper
1/2 cup bread crumbs

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400˚F.  
2. Prepare peppers.  Seed and de-vein the jalapeño halves.  The curve of a serrated grapefruit knife makes this easy or use a regular serrated knife.   
3. Place pepper halves in a lightly oiled metal baking dish (like a cake pan or 8X8 brownie pan).  Bake at 400˚F for 10 minutes while preparing filling.  
4. Mix cream cheese and goat cheese together with a fork.  Turn off oven and remove peppers from oven.  Allow peppers to cool a few minutes so they are easy to handle.  When cool, fill each pepper with about 1/2 ounce filling (a little under a tablespoon) and press a few bacon pieces into each.  
5. Cover and refrigerate for about an hour (or overnight).  Cooling stuffed jalapeños makes easier breading them before baking easier.   If you are in a hurry, skip this step.  A touch messier but it won’t ruin the final result. 
6. Preheat oven to 400˚F.  
7. To bread chilled peppers, set out three small dishes.  Place flour mixture in the first, egg/water mixture in the second and bread crumbs in the third.  Have your metal baking pan ready (lightly oiled).  
8. Dip the filled side of each pepper into flour, egg and then bread crumbs.  Place in baking pan.  
9. Bake at 400˚F for 20 minutes, checking halfway through to make sure filling is not oozing out of peppers.  Poppers are ready when top is crisp and cheese is soft and melty. 

Alternate filling:
4 ounces plain or veggie cream cheese plus 2 ounces grated cheddar or Monterey jack cheese.  Bacon optional.

Handling Hot Peppers
The oils from cutting and prepared any hot pepper can linger on your hands and give you a jolt if you rub an eye hours later if you do not wash (not rinse) your hands including nail beds with hot soapy water after you are finished prepping them.  Once roasted, jalapeños retain very little volatile oil and handling requires less concern.  If you are very sensitive, wear food safe gloves when working with peppers.

Last Minute Mushroom Dip

Hours before the game and you are suspecting you don’t have quite enough food on the buffet.  Or maybe someone just arrived with bags of chips and forgot the dip.  To the rescue, a pure dip recipe  that competes with any store bought version.  Because you are eating and consuming it today (or this week) it's easy to stick with ingredients that are all natural and skip the preservatives.

The secret is mushroom powder.  Not in your pantry?  Look for dried mushrooms and pulverize them in a spice or coffee bean grinder --or food processor.  (We have a separate grinder we use just for spices.)  You only need about 1/4 cup of mushrooms (makes 2 tablespoons of powdered mushrooms) for this recipe.  Porcini, shitake, oyster mushrooms or a combination will work.

Last Minute Mushroom Dip
Ingredients
1/2 cup sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 ounces cream cheese
2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons mushroom powder
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
optional: 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill or a few shots or hot sauce

Method

1. Mix all ingredients together.  
2. Let sit at least 15 minutes to allow mushroom powder to be absorbed by dip base.  Dip can be made up to a day ahead.  
3. Serve with chips, crackers, sliced vegetables. 

More Mushroom Magic
What’s that you say?  You think mushroom powder would also make a mean instant mushroom soup?  You are right. 
Heat 3/4 cup milk (low fat is fine) and 3/4 cup chicken, beef or vegetable broth and stir in 1/4 cup mushroom powder.  Simmer a few minutes.  Add salt and pepper to taste and fresh herbs (dill, chives, thyme would all play nicely).  Serve with a dollop of sour cream, yogurt or a splash or real cream.  Thinly sliced sautéed  mushrooms are also nice if you have a few extra minutes.  Fast lunch, really nice first course.

Holiday Cheez-ies

The Lee Brothers of southern cooking fame made goldfish crackers a pure thing—all natural ingredients.  From there bloggers everywhere saw the potential for cheez-its. Before Cheez-its were boxed up by a corporate kitchen they were mini cheese crackers baked up with real cheese and lots of it.

Here’s my version, made holiday ready with mini-cookie cutters in snowman, tree and star patterns (as well as the traditional square with center hole).  Pick a cookie cutter pattern that benefits from little holes poked into the dough with a skewer.  It helps the cheese puff more evenly and provides an artistic touch to your work. 

This is an easy dough to make and work with.  Kids will enjoy helping.  If the dough stays out a while and becomes too pliable put it the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes. This dough is like pie pastry and likes to be kept chilled.  You can also cut out the cheez-ies then chill the cut-outs on the baking sheet in the freezer for about 5 minutes or for a few hours.  Bake as usual. 

Homemade Holiday Cheez-ies
Yield: never enough

1 1/2 (6 ounces) cups grated hard cheese*
4 ounces unsalted butter
3/4 cup flour (all purpose or whole wheat)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon tumeric
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1-2 tablespoons milk (or light cream)

Method

1. Preheat  oven to 350˚F. 
2. Place cheese, butter, flour, salt and spices in a food processor. Pulse until the mixture is just combined and the flour mixture looks a bit crumbly.  
3. Add milk, a little at a time and pulse again.  Add more milk until dough just comes together. 
4. Place dough on a floured surface or wax paper. Use lightly floured hands to form the dough into a flat disc, about 1 inch thick.  Refrigerate dough for 15 minutes or overnight.  
5. When ready to bake cheez-ies, place dough on a floured surface and roll into a rectangle, about 1/16 inch thick. Use mini cookie cutters to cut dough into shapes and transfer to a cookie sheet.  (You can also cut the dough into 1-inch squares using a knife or pasta wheel.) 
6. With a skewer, poke a few holes into each cheez-ie either in the center or create a pattern that matches the shape.  (Buttons for the snowman, garland for the tree, etc.)
7. Bake cheez-ies for 15 minutes, or until the edges begin to brown.  Cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a cooling rack. 

Cooled cheez-ies should be stored in an air-tight container. They can be frozen and reheated in a warm oven (under 200˚F).
Cheez-ies are a grown-up cocktail snack but still kid friendly. They go well with soup and can even stand in as croutons in salads. 

Pie Dough Samosas

Samosas are an appetizer from India.  Triangular dough pockets are filled with mild mixture of cooked potatoes and peas and are served with yogurt based sauces like cucumber raita or mint chutney for dipping.  When you order samosas at Indian restaurants they are fried.  At home, you can make these with pie dough and bake them, avoiding the fryer. The difference is subtle and your stomach will thank you because it’s hard not to eat a bunch of these. 

One complete recipe for pie dough (top and bottom) will yield 10-12 samosas.  You can use a prepared pie dough from the store if you are not a regular on the baking scene.  The triangles are formed from 5" rounds cut out from rolled out dough.  I use a small bowl—about 5 inches across as my template.  The potato and pea filling can be very mild or a spiced up curry version.  Cooked cauliflower can be mixed in or replace the potatoes.  Cooked sweet potatoes, butternut squash or pumpkin can also be used and are really fun around Halloween and Thanksgiving.  Here’s how:


Pie Dough Samosas
Makes 10-12 pieces. Serving size: 3 samosas
Pie dough-enough for 2 12-14 inch discs rolled out

Filling
1 tablespoon canola
1/2 white onion
4 medium boiling potatoes, peeled , boiled and diced
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
1-3 teaspoons curry powder*
1/2 cup water
egg wash (1 egg mixed with 1 tablespoon water.

Method

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  While oil heats, peel and chop onion.  
2. Saute onion in oil until it is tender and just beginning to color.  
3. Add cooked potatoes,  frozen peas, curry powder and water.  Stir to combine.  Lower heat and cover partially.  Cook down,  about 3 minutes until peas are heated through and potatoes have soaked up curry mixture.  
4. Remove cover and continue to cook on low until the sauce is thickened and coats vegetables.   Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature before proceeding. (Filling may be prepared ahead and chilled overnight.)
5. Preheat oven to 425˚F.  
6. To make samosas, roll out pie dough to 1/8 inch thickness.  Use a small bowl or 5”diameter round cookie cutter to cut out 4 rounds from each disc.  Knead leftover dough together and place in refrigerator to keep chilled.  
7. Place a scoop (2-3 tablespoons) of the cooled filling in the center of each round.  Paint the edges with egg wash and bring up the sides of each dough circle from 3 sides so they meet at a point at the top.  Press together the dough along the three seams.  It is fine to leave a small opening at the top to allow steam to escape when baking.  
8. Place samosas on a baking sheet as they are made.  Roll out the remaining dough to get 2-3 more round discs.  When samosas are assembled, you may leave them plain or paint them with leftover egg wash to help the dough brown.  
9. Bake at 425˚F for 18 minutes, until dough is cooked. 
10.  Serve immediately or cool and refrigerate overnight.  Reheat in a 400˚F oven for 15-20 minutes. 

Serve samosas with Indian condiments including mint or mango chutney, hot sauce and cooling yogurt raita.

To make Raita:
1 cup plain yogurt  (whole, low-fat, nonfat or Greek are all OK)
1/4 cup grated cucumber (peel cucumber if not waxed)
1/2 teaspoon cumin (start with a 1/4 if you are not used to Indian foods)
1/8 teaspoon salt, coriander and mint
Stir it all together and let sit about 30 minutes for herbs and spices to blend.

Raita is one of those things you can really customize to suit your tastes.  With samosas you are going for a cooling effect but if your tastes veer toward spicy, you can add grated onion, a bit or fresh garlic, cayenne, etc.

*Curry Powder
In my Massaman Curry  (Three Curries, March 1, 2010) I discuss curry blends and how to make your own.  For samosas you can use a blend sitting on your shelf or make it fresh. To make your own for this recipe combine: 1 teaspoon tumeric, 1/4 teaspoon cumin, 1/8 teaspoon each cayenne, oregano, paprika, cinnamon.  To make this spicy, add a good pinch of cayenne.

Spanish Brunch

Menus inspired by Spanish tapas are ideal for breakfast and brunch and you probably already know tapas make great cocktail party fare.  What I like about a Spanish brunch is that most of it can be prepared ahead, like Italian antipasti, so host and guests can enjoy a leisurely morning.  This mix and match menu works well for vegetarian and meat-eating guests as well as picky younger eaters.  Here’s the menu:

Spanish Tortilla 

(egg-based torte with potatoes and parsley)
Spanish cheese platter with Jamon Serrano and Fresh & Dried Fruits
Meson Mushrooms
Pan Tomat
Patatas Bravas (fiery potatoes)
Assorted Pastries

Cava or Sangria

Orange Juice, Coffee, Tea, Hot Chocolate

Spanish Tortilla
Spanish tortilla, closely related to the frittata, is the brunch centerpiece.  Infused with potatoes, onion, parsley and sometimes  chorizo sausage,  it can be made a day ahead.  If you are not confident making one yourself, you can easily make it as a frittata by making a big egg scramble that is finished in the oven instead of flipped pan to pan in the old style to finish it.  Or if you have a Spanish restaurant in town, order one or two and reheat them.  (You can even order one from LaTienda.com.) 


Tortilla tastes good hot but is very at home room temperature or just warmed through.  Slice the round torte the classic way—in bite-sized squares and serve with toothpicks or slice into wedges like a quiche or pie. 

Another way to get the flavors of Spanish tortilla is to bake mini crustless quiches in large muffin cups or 1/2 cup ramekins.  For each mini-tortilla  combine 1 egg, 1/4 cup diced boiled potatoes, two tablespoons chopped onion sautéd in olive oil and a teaspoon of chopped fresh parsley.  Add a bit of salt and pepper and pour into well-oiled muffin cups.  Bake in a 325˚F oven for 15 minutes until egg is cooked through (not jiggly as in quiche).  Don’t skimp on the oil in the muffin cup since it is part of the tortillas’ distinctive flavor and will allow the mini-tortilla to slip out easily. 

If you have unsalted potato chips in the house, follow famed Spanish chef Ferran Adrià's method (popularized here by Chef Jose Andres) and replace the cooked potatoes with lightly crushed chips.  Let the mixture sit 10 minutes before baking to allow the eggs to soften the potato chips.   Ever since I tried this method, it is my go to tortilla ingredient.  

Spanish Cheese Platter
A platter of ham and cheese is an easy accompaniment now that Spain’s Jamon Serrano (dried ham) and Manchego cheese are widely available.  Chorizo sausage is also a good fit on a platter if not used in the tortilla.  Be sure to get the cured type that requires no cooking.  Set out small bowls of olives and Marcona almonds and garnish the platter with dried or fresh figs.  Fresh sliced cantaloupe would not be out of place here also.

Meson Mushrooms
I learned to make grilled mushrooms the Spanish way by watching the grill master at a meson (tapas house) beneath the Plaza Mayor in Madrid.  He would not give out the recipe but I think I got the gist of it pretty well via many enjoyable repeat visits.  Meson mushrooms are simply grilled mushroom caps with a chunk of cured chorizo in the center cavity.   When they come off the grill, finish them with a good squeeze of lemon juice and fresh parsley.  Don’t skimp on the parsley. And make sure it is fresh not dried. The herb is much loved in Spain and once you taste it in tortilla and meson mushrooms you will appreciate the terrific pop of “green” flavor it brings to more subtle egg and mushroom dishes.   These mushrooms can be prepped ahead and baked instead of grilled in a 400˚F degree oven for 12-15 minutes.  Finish with lemon juice and parsley as with the grilled version.

Pan Tomat
Pan Tomat is a specialty of the Barcelona and the Catalan region of Spain.  Guests can prepare these themselves from a shared plate.  Set out slices of lightly toasted rustic bread, halved fresh garlic cloves and halved small tomatoes.  Guests rub the garlic and tomato over the rough surface of the toast (warm or room temperature) to infuse the bread with a light, fragrant coating of juice and pulp.  Full flavor extra virgin olive oil is drizzled on top.  Be sure to use a Spanish olive oil for a robust olive flavor in these dishes.  You may be lucky enough to have a wide selection in your market but if not, I like Goya extra virgin olive oil for most Spanish dishes.  Pan tomat is Spain’s answer to garlic bread and it goes perfectly with tortilla and platters of ham and cheese.

Patatas Bravas
Of all the items on the menu, this one may show up again at your next Super Bowl party.  These are for every hash brown and steak fry lover in the house.  They get their name from the spicy tomato-based dipping sauce.  Use small new potatoes or larger ones cut in quarters and halves. First boil a batch until just tender.  Drain and toss with olive oil then roast in a hot oven (alongside the mushrooms) turning occasionally until all sides are crisp.  Serve lightly salted with a simple tomato sauce (not marinara) and a  shot of hot sauce.  (If you’d like a sweeter version, mix ketchup with hot sauce.)  Make them as hot as you and your family likes.  The potatoes can also be dipped in a good mayonnaise spiked with sherry vinegar.

Beverages
Any combination of the list below will match the meal:
Cava (Spain’s sparkling wine)
Orange juice
Sangria—white or red
Hot chocolate, coffee, tea

Fruits
Oranges—sliced on a platter
Sliced cantaloupe
Dried fruits

Pastries
Churros are fried tubes of dough rolled in sugar and are sold on street corners in Spanish cities.  They are beginning to be seen here but the pre-packaged ones are not fresh tasting.  An alternative is to pick up fresh donuts.  Cream-filled ones are very Iberian but small donut holes coated in simple cinnamon sugar are also a good (and lighter) choice. 

New Year’s is a nice time to throw an impromptu cocktail party or a brunch.  Or perhaps a leisurely breakfasts with just family.   Happy 2011^

Pumpkin Dip

I’ve been playing with variations of pumpkin dip that are savory enough to serve with pita chips, crackers and carrot sticks but also taste good with sliced apples and grapes.   The first version used a traditional sour cream and mayonnaise base and got some subtle sweetness from a home-made pear chutney.  It needed a bit more sophistication to make it to the grown-up table but is a fun way to include a kid-friendly food with the appetizers on Thanksgiving.  The next version added roasted red pepper and was, well, not good.  The last version used fewer ingredients and balanced simple sweet and spicy flavors with the fresh pumpkin taste.  This final recipe can be adjusted for sweeter palettes or fired up for those it like a little heat. It is not very heavy (no eggs or mayo) so won’t ruin any appetites but will keep any growling stomachs quiet before the main meal. 

Pumpkin Dip
Makes a little over 1 cup

Ingredients
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (canned fine)
1/3 cup cottage cheese
2 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons apricot fruit spread (or jam)
1 tablespoon sour cream
large pinch dried red pepper flakes (more to taste)

Method

1. Combine all ingredients in a small food processor or blender. The cottage cheese will whip up into a smooth and light dip base for the other ingredients.  If you do not have a small appliance to really whip it, substitute ricotta cheese.
2. Pour into a small bowl.  Cover and chill until needed.  
3. Serve with grapes, sliced apples, carrots, celery, crackers or chips.

Every recipe developer needs an audience.  I give thanks to my tasters who gamely sampled several dips and gave excellent comments and tasting notes.  Enjoy, and feedback welcome.

Summer Antipasti

Antipasti allows you to create your own platter of favorites.  This grouping takes me back to the antipasti bars at restaurants in Italy that provide cool mid-day shelter and a terrific first course.
You can create this yourself from store-purchased, pre-made items and it will be as good as the quality of ingredients you can get your hands on.  Lately I find marinated artichokes in jars too sharp and the olives at supermarket antipasti bars a bit dull.  My husband despairs that too many shoppers have coughed all over these antipasti bars and once your mind goes there, you are done.  It’s time to make your own.   The good news is antipasti is easy and it’s a delightful way to contribute to a shared dinner.   Individually, any of these will make a nice little hostess gift as well, especially the house roasted mixed nuts or house marinated olives.  

Our platter, which served eight, included:
Marinated mushrooms
Salami horns with red peppers and baby artichoke quarters
Polenta triangles with sage
Sliced cantaloupe melon
House marinated olives
House roasted mixed nuts

A basic vinaigrette is the key to easy preparation.  Mix a batch and divide into several smaller batches.  Add herbs to match the vegetables you are marinating (oregano, basil or tarragon for mushrooms, thyme, dill or fennel seed for artichokes). 

Basic Vinaigrette
2 ounces apple cider vinegar
6-8 ounces olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Mix all ingredients together and taste.  I like to use a screw-top jar for this quantity.  For marinades, I keep the vinegar more prominent and use the lesser quantity of oil but go by your own tastes.  You can also try different oil and vinegar varieties. 

Marinated Mushrooms
1 10-oz package Portobello mushrooms, medium size
1 tablespoon olive oil
3-4 ounces basic vinaigrette
1/2 teaspoon each dried oregano and basil
garnish: fresh oregano

Cut mushrooms into bite-sized haves and quarters.  In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium high heat and sauté mushrooms until just softening.  Remove to a bowl and pour vinaigrette and herbs over hot mushrooms.  Allow to cool for about 1/2 hour then refrigerate until serving, allowing mushrooms to sit at least 2 hours to absorb marinade.  Serve cold or at room temperature. 

Salami Horns with Red Peppers and Artichokes
1 red bell pepper (or a small jar roasted whole peppers
1 package frozen artichoke hearts
3 oz basic vinaigrette
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/3 pound thinly sliced salami (your favorite kind)

If using a fresh bell pepper, roast skin under a broiler or on an open flame.  If using a broiler, cut pepper into sections (and remove stem and seeds)so they will lay flat on a foil lined roasting pan.  Broil 10-15 minutes until skin is well charred.  If using an open flame, use caution and tongs.  Place charred bell pepper in a paper bag to rest a few minutes during which time steam will help loosen the skin.  Peel away skin and slice pepper into long pieces.  Defrost artichokes using a microwave or over a steamer.  Toss with vinaigrette and thyme.  Set aside in refrigerator at last 2 hours.   To assemble horns, cut salami rounds in half and place a red pepper or artichoke quarter on the half.  Roll to create a horn and lay horn a serving platter seam side down.  You may stick a toothpick in horns to help them retain their shape and keep guest fingers neat.  Horns can be assembled hours ahead.  Lay a damp paper towel over platter and refrigerate. 


Polenta Triangles with Sage
3 cups water
1 cup medium grind corn meal
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried sage
1 tablepoon unsalted butter
olive oil
garnish: fresh sage leaves

Make polenta.  Bring water or broth to simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heart.  Stir in cornmeal and stir well to prevent lumps.  Once mixture begins to thicken (about 10 minutes on low heat), you will only need to stir occasionally.  Polenta is ready when corn meal is fully expanded and soft and all liquid is absorbed.  Thinly coat a 9” X 13” baking pan with oil and pout polenta into pan.  Cover lightly and refrigerate until firm, about 2-3 hours.  Cut into wedges, squares or use a cookie cutter to cut our specialty shapes.  Garnish with some fresh sage if desired. 

House Marinated Olives
2 jars olives in brine, any variety
large peel of lemon and orange (no white pith)
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
2-3 springs fresh thyme, rosemary and/or oregano
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
optional:1 dried arbol pepper or 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1-2 tablespoons olive oil

Preheat oven to 375˚F.  Toss all ingredients together and place in a small roasting pan or pie plate.  Cover tightly with aluminum foil.  Bake 20 minutes.  Remove foil and let cool about 20 minutes before serving.  Remove any large stems from herb sprigs but leave remaining flavor ingredients. They are edible and create a pretty, rustic look.  These olives keep refrigerated for up to a week and taste best at room temperature. 

House Roasted Mixed Nuts
2 cups of your favorite nuts, whole or havles
2 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon each: paprika, black pepper, dried rosemary, salt
pinch sugar

Preheat oven to 375˚F.  Mix all ingredients together and place in a shallow roasting pan.  Roast, watching nuts carefully to prevent burning.  Some nuts, like pecans, burn more easily than others.  Check every 3-4 minutes and toss nuts so that they are well coated each time.   Nuts need only cool a few minutes before serving and also hold up well at room temperature.  Store extras in an airtight container.

Sliced Cantaloupe Melon
1/2 cantaloupe, seeded and rind removed, cut in long, bite-sized slices
Serve plain with toothpicks or drizzle limejuice and/or a bit of honey on top.  Some people like freshly ground pepper on their melon.  Melon tastes superb nestled alongside chacuterie (witness prosciutto and melon). 

Antipasti ingredients can make dinner easy on hot nights.  Serve it along with a platter of cold pesto noodles, crusty rustic bread slices and a glass of an Italian white wine like Pino Grigio or Gavi or a red with the Sangiovese grape. (See June 20th entry for pesto recipe.)

It's Freezer Month

Clean up your freezer and restock it to make it easier to eat pure on busy days.  (That would be every day, right?) As we make the move from highly processed foods to more pure alternatives,  it is still convenient to have prepared meals in the freezer. Every household is different but it is not hard to make double recipes of favorites and eat part this week and freeze the rest in family- and individual-sized portions.  Here are five frozen favorites we like to have on hand:

Top 5 Freezer Foods  (recipes below)
Soup or Chili: try Southwestern Chicken Soup
Homemade cookie dough: try Dried Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies
Quick bite: try Rice and Bean Burritos
Pasta- or grain-based casserole: try Muscle Memory Creole Spaghetti
Party food that can also go with soup: try Cheese Crackers

We also store frozen homemade bread and pizza dough, filo, plain vegetables and fruits, nuts and seeds for salads and baking, meats and ice.  Items get stored by category.  They are easier to find and, by storing like items together,  I can prevent  cross-contamination in the event of a power  outage.  I store uncooked foods like raw chicken and beef on colder shelves at the bottom and ready to eat breads and cooked soups on higher shelves.  The temperature of a freezer should be zero degrees.  A hanging freezer thermometer  allows me to check the temperature.  I move it around to different areas to check any temperature differential.  My stand-up freezer is not large and I rarely see much fluctuation but I still check it.  

ServeSafe food safety guidelines used by the National Restaurant Association instruct restaurants  to refuse deliveries of frozen foods that have partially thawed or have thawed and refrozen.  Indications are fluids of frozen liquids on package bottoms and ice crystals on the package.   Follow this advice for your family and check for these indications at the store.  Pick up frozen items last and if you have a long drive home consider bringing a cooler with a frozen pack in your car’s trunk to prevent "milage meltage." (I do this in the summer.  It’s so darn cold here other times that placing frozen foods in the trunk is sufficient at other times of the year.)

What is not in my freezer?
No frozen prepared pizza,  no HFCS-sweetened pop-sicles,  no pre-processed frozen foods like sauced vegetables,  no whipped dessert topping, no French fries.  Yet we can put on a great meal fast and concoct a pretty great dessert with little notice with the supplies at hand.  No frozen prepared pizza could compete with our simple Neopolitan version, pop-sicles and ice cream take little notice to create from scratch, vegetables with olive oil, butter or even a little cream just plain taste better and oven baked fries are simple enough already.  If you feel guilty about eating real whipped cream, whisk it by hand and get a free bicep and deltoid workout. 

Top Five Freezer Foods - Recipes
(Double recipes to have freeze half and
enjoy half now.)

Southwest Chicken Soup
By varying a few ingredients, you can give chicken soup a southwestern identity. 

Ingredients
2 quarts low-sodium (or homemade) chicken broth
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 stalks celery,  sliced
1 medium zucchini, sliced
1 small onion, diced
2 plum tomatoes,  cut in large chunks
optional: 1 tomatillo, diced
1 jalepeno pepper, seeds and veins removed and diced
juice of 1/2 lime
hot sauce to taste
1 cup shredded cooked chicken
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 14-oz can low-sodium black beans, drained
Optional garnishes: avocado slices, fresh cilantro and strips of crisped corn tortillas (Slice corn tortillas into strips with a pizza cutter and heat in toaster oven at 350˚F for 5-6 minutes turning once.)

Method

1. Cook carrots, celery, onion, zucchini and tomatoes in simmering chicken broth until carrots are tender, about 15-20 minutes.  
2. Add remaining ingredients and heat through.  If serving immediately garnish with  thinly sliced avocado, fresh cilantro and tortilla strips.  
3. To freeze, allow soup to cool and refrigerate.  Once cool, package in smaller servings and freeze.  Thaw before reheating and add finishing garnishes. 

Dried Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies
Dried cranberries are also good in these classic cookies.

Makes about 4 dozen cookies
Ingredients
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 cup chocolate chips (dark or semi-sweet)
1 cup dried cherries, chopped if larger than the chips
optional: 1 cup chopped nuts

Method

1. Sift flour, baking soda and salt into small bowl. 
2. In a large bowl, combine softened butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract and beat by hand or with an electric mixer until mixture is light and creamy. 
3. Add eggs, one at a time, incorporating well before proceeding to next step.  
4. Stir in flour mixture, about 1/3 at a time.  
5. Stir in morsels, dried cherries and nuts until distributed throughout the dough. 
6. Divide dough in half and roll each half into a log.  Wrap in wax paper or plastic wrap.   
7. If baking immediately, refrigerate for 30 minutes.  If freezing, place rolls in a freezer bag and store. 
8. To bake immediately preheat oven to 375° F. while dough rests in refrigerator.   Slice roll into 1/2-inch-thick pieces and place on an ungreased cookie sheet.  Space dough about two inches apart. 
9. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes before removing to a wire racks with a spatula.   Cooled, baked cookies can also be frozen.

Allow frozen cookie dough to thaw to a slicing consistency and bake as above from step 8.

 
Rice and Bean Burritos
Makes 12 burritos
Ingredients

2 cups cooked rice
2 14-oz cans black beans, drained
1/4 teaspoon each cumin and oregano
1/2 cup fresh salsa
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 –1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
12 whole wheat flour tortillas
optional: 1 cup cooked ground meat,  sliced olives

Method

1. Place black beans in a small pot and add cumin and oregano.  Warm beans and if using cooked ground meat, stir into beans.  Remove from heat. 
2. Warm tortillas so that they do not crack and break during rolling. Tortillas can me warmed in a toaster oven for a few minutes on 300˚F or placed in toweling in the microwave  on medium for 15-20 seconds.  Have some tin foil or wax paper sheets on hand to wrap the burritos in for freezing.  
3. Place a warm and flexible tortillas on a sheet and scoop a few tablespoons of rice and bean filling down center leaving a 1-2 inch border at either end.  
4. Add remaining ingredients: salsa, cheese , cilantro and olives if using.  Fold the sides up over the filling.  
5. Roll the bottom edge over the filling and folded sides and continue to roll, packing the filling in tightly until the opposite edge is reached.  Roll the burrito in foil or wax paper to seal completely.   Repeat process until all tortillas and filling is used.  
6. Place wrapped burritos in a resealable plastic bag and refrigerate until firm and cold.  Label and freeze.  
7. To reheat from frozen: if wrapped in tin foil you can place individual burritos in a toaster oven or oven at 350˚ for 20 minutes or until hot in the center.  If wrapped in wax paper, reheat in microwave for 5-7 minutes at high power.   These burritos are good plain or add a dollop of sour cream and hot sauce when warmed.

Muscle Memory Creole Spaghetti
Poor school lunches have been in the news lately.   This recipe is my adult memory of a baked pasta made every week at my grammar school that is pure and tasty.  It is an enduring favorite among alums across decades and discussed fondly at reunions.  No one in my northern school knew why it was dubbed  “creole” but I suspect the “exotic” green peppers had something to do with it. This is a robust grown-up version of what I suspect was a fairly healthy dish compared to today’s school fare.  I doubt the most excellent lunch ladies at Julian Curtis School added wine to their recipe, but this makes the sauce a bit more complex.  Skip it if you prefer to cook without alcohol. 

Serves 4
Ingredients
1lb ground beef or turkey
1medium onion, diced
1 cup green pepper (canned OK)
1cup roasted red pepper
1/4 cup red wine
1/2 cup fresh, chopped parsley
1 teaspoon each basil, oregano
salt, black pepper and red pepper to taste (good pinch of each to start)
1 28-oz can  plain, low-salt tomato sauce
1 & 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (OK to add in some jack cheese)
12 oz whole-wheat rotini  or #8 spaghetti

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350˚,
2. Boil water for pasta and cook according to package directions. 
3. Meanwhile, saute onions over low heat until translucent and quite soft. Add peppers and cook down until tender.  Remove to small bowl with parsley.  
4. Cook ground meat and drain any excess fat.  Return onion-pepper mixture to skillet and add wine.  Allow wine to cook down to half the liquid then add herbs, salt, pepper, red pepper and tomato sauce.  Bring heat down to low and stir while sauce thickens and pasta finishes cooking.  
5. Drain pasta and add to meat sauce.  Combine completely and remove from heat.
6. Spray a casserole dish spray oil.  
7. Layer half pasta and meat sauce into casserole.  Cover with half of the grated cheese.  Layer remaining pasta and meat sauce over cheese and finish with a layer of cheese.  
8. Bake uncovered at 350˚ for 15 minutes.  Check to see if heated though (thermometer at 165˚F).  Turn oven to broil and broil 3-5 minutes until cheese begins to brown. Remove from oven and let pasta sit for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Muscle Memory Creole Spaghetti and other cooked pasta dishes can be frozen before or after being baked.  If baked, it must cool completely in refrigerator before being wrapped for freezing.  Many people freeze a casserole in its baking dish, then remove the frozen meal from the dish to wrap and store.  When ready to reheat,  remove wrapping and replace meal in original dish to cook.  This allows you to use your dishes instead of taking them out of commission in the freezer.  To reheat a pasta casserole, lightly cover and place in a preheated 325˚F oven for 1-1 1/2 hours until hot at the center, at least  165 ˚F.  If you would like a crisped crust, remove top during last 15 minutes and sprinkle with some grated cheese. 


Easy Cheese Crackers
This dough handles like a pie or rolled cookie dough.  In fact, you can roll it like a refrigerated cookie dough and cut slices to bake or roll it out with a bit of extra flour and cut out shapes. 

Makes about 36 crackers
Ingredients
1 1/2  cups all purpose flour (try white whole wheat flour)
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons chilled butter (cut in 6 pieces)
6 oz hard cheese like cheddar or swiss, grated
2 tablespoons ice water
1 egg

Method

1. Place flour, salt, cayenne, and butter in a food processor.  Pulse until just blended and pea-sized crumbs develop.   
2. Add cheese and briefly pulse to combine.  
3. Add egg and 1 tablespoon ice water.  Pulse to pull dough togethr into a ball.  Add more ice water, a teaspoon at a time until ball forms. 
4. Divide dough in half and roll into two  discs or two long rolls.  Dough can be frozen at this stage.   
5. To bake immediately preheat oven to 400˚F.   Either slice a roll into 1/2 inch slices or roll a disc of dough out to 1/2 inch thickness on a floured board and cut out shapes with cookie cutters.  You can also use a pastry roller to cut dough into squares. 
6. Bake at 400˚ for 10-12 minutes until crackers begin to brown.  
7. Cool on wire racks.  Store in an airtight container or freeze. 

To bake from frozen, allow dough to thaw in refrigerator several hours or overnight.  Proceed from step 5.

Pure freezers can make the switch to pure eating really easy.  Be smart about labeling, wrapping, cooling and thawing (nothing new) and enjoy your very own pure food even more (more frequently that is).

Chicken Nachos

Nachos have fallen rather low on the nation’s culinary respect scale.   Now consumed mindlessly at movie theaters and bars while gazing off at a screen or spilled out of paper containers at a ball game, nachos were once a treat made with real ingredients like freshly grated cheese, fresh tortilla chips and a salad of toppings.

If this is a distant memory, try making your own for a fun lunch of light dinner.  Yes, they make appetizers that everyone loves too, but these are so good you may not get one so have your own private nacho fest.  These are light and healthy and easy enough to make every week. 

You can sift through a bag of chips for unbroken ones to make nachos, but making your own tortilla chips is easy and a good way to get a sense of portion size. We make baked tortilla chips from corn tortillas.  They taste like restaurant ones, warm and toasty.  The fact that they are cheap and it keeps bags of chips out of sight and out of mind are bonuses. 

Now that you know you are starting with a corn tortilla, figure out how many you’d normally eat if you were making tacos for lunch.   For me two is about right. Using a pizza cutter, cut each tortilla into 6 wedges.  Nachos for two uses 4 tortillas cut into 24 wedges.   (I won’t argue if you use three per person but try it with less than you think.  The complex carbohydrates and protein toppings are filling and satisfying.) 

Lay the wedges on a tin foil lined baking sheet and spray lightly with spray oil. Turn the wedges over and repeat with a light coating of oil.  (Hold the oil at least 10 inches from the chips to get a light even coating.)  Place the chips in a 450˚F oven for 6-7 minutes.  Turn chips over with tongs and continue to cook another 6-7 minutes.  Chips are ready when they begin to crisp and can be bitten into cleanly.  They will still be a little flexible in the center.   Now pile on the toppings:

1 cup cooked shredded chicken breast
1/4 cup sliced back olives
1 tablespoon pickled jalepeño slices
3 oz shredded cheddar cheese

Scoop a few teaspoons of chicken on each chip, top with olives slices and a jalepeño chip.  Give each nacho a thin layer of cheese.  Put the tray of nachos back in the oven (still at 450˚F) and cook until chicken is hot and cheese is melted. 

These are great plain or with a drop of hot sauce (we like Cholula) and chopped fresh cilantro.  Good balancers will enjoy a bit of salsa, sour cream (or Greek yogurt), shredded lettuce and a small slice of avocado. 

Vegetarian readers have already figured out that they can have plain cheese nachos or substitute rinsed canned black beans for the chicken.  Chicken nachos and bean-and-cheese nachos make a nice combo platter.

Raclette Night

                              After a day on the ski slopes or bundled up by a cozy fire, try this sophisticated dinner that combines the practical elements of a grilled cheese sandwich with the convivial atmosphere of fondue.

My father did business in Switzerland when I was a teenager and he frequently brought back new culinary treats and techniques for us to try, chief among them, Raclette.  Raclette means to scrape in Swiss dialect and on wintry nights around Lake Geneva and along the eastern border of France, shepherds melted their buttery, fruity local cheese and scraped it over potatoes and pickled vegetables.  All three components keep well during the winter, as do cured meats, which also came to be part of the dish known for its cheesy main ingredient, Raclette. 

When my parents announced we were having a Raclette Night, we knew we were in for a fun evening.  Each of us would concoct our own meal suited to our individual tastes matching melted Raclette cheese with an array of delicacies.  The smallest waxy potatoes my mother could find were boiled with their delicate skins left on.  An expensive jar of French pickles, cornichons, with little onions stuffed alongside the gherkins was opened.  Cured meats, grilled mushrooms, a hearty baguette and some sliced pears filled out a platter and the melted cheese experiments began.

Fondue has been back in style in the U.S. for a few years now and perhaps those electric non-stick pots with matching multi-colored skewers were never really put away. Now that Raclette is far easier to find at your local grocery than it used to be, try a Raclette Night of your own.  It’s quite easy to put together and is not a bad way to use up a few leftovers (like ham) and pantry hangers-on (break open that jar of giant caper berries).

In restaurants on the continent, half and quarter wheels of Raclette are brought to the table and the cut side is melted under a hot burner or under an electric grill.  (To see some of the professional equipment follow the links at the bottom of this post.)  Each diner scrapes the melted, bubbly cheese onto potatoes while the next layer of cheese cooks.  Diners keep scraping until everyone has had their fill.  Some restaurants use a specialized grill with individual pans to melt and serve the cheese to guests.  These are available for home use but suffer from the one-use appliance curse. 

My mother came up with a method that was easy and used equipment most of us have in the kitchen.  She cut away the rhind and placed slabs of sliced Raclette on stainless steel steak platters and melted the cheese in a very hot oven, 450˚F for 2-3 minutes. The cheese is so buttery that it stays melted on the hot plate with time to toss cooked hot potatoes and cornichons on the side.  She was able to serve up to eight people at the same time.  Use a fajita or steak pan that can withstand high oven heat and has a matching holder or wooden plate to avoid scorching the dining room table.  Metal pie plates (event the disposable ones), roasting pans and cookie sheets also work.  Don’t worry about whether you pans are not “non-stick;” Raclette is high in fat and will slide off of most surfaces. 

Either a Swiss or French Raclette is perfect for Raclette Night and available at markets that house a specialty cheese department.  Several brands are made from raw milk and aged a minimum of 60 days to kill off any harmful pathogens.  Raw milk versions have an excellent taste however , if you can’t find Raclette, try Swiss Emmenthal and Gruyere cheese.

Raclette is a buttery cheese with a fruity flavor that is complimented by smoked and sweet-salty foods.  Along with the de rigueur boiled potatoes and cornichons pickles served with the melted Raclette, lay out cured meats like prosciutto, spec, bresaola plus pickled onions and to compliment the fruity notes, add some sliced pear to your platter.  There is room for some experimentation as well so check your cupboard for ideas.  Other pickled vegetables like okra, asparagus, green beans, caper berries, marinated artichoke hearts and olives are options.  Grilled mushrooms and even sweet grilled onions (like tiny cippolini cooked whole) and roasted peppers.  French bread doused with a bit of black pepper also compliments the cheese. 

Wine, Beer and Non-Alcoholic Matches
Experts and Raclette fans seem fairly evenly split over red or white wines with the meal so experiment and try one of each.   Beers and sparkling wines also fit the category and can be chosen based on what you are serving at your Raclette Night.  Lots of cured meats and smoked fish may point you towards beer or perhaps an Alsace or Riesling kabinette. 

A paired down pure Raclette Night with potatoes and cornichons calls for a local wine that plays off the cheese’s fruity nature or cherry kirsch, which is not sweet. Try a white that is moderately fruity with a mineral twist.  Whites made from the chasselas grape (called fendant in Switzerland) are a specialty of the regions that produce Raclette (the Savoie in France and the region around Lake Geneva on the Swiss side).   Look for a Vin de Savoie for a great pairing.
A classic red is often enjoyed with Raclette.  Cabernet Franc, Beaujolais or even Bordeaux that bend toward a merlot blend is a nice match if you are serving grilled meat and earthy vegetables like mushrooms. 

Beer
Belgian pale ale like Duvel and if you can find it, a cherry beer.  At our house a wheat beer is the beer of choice.

Non-Alcoholic
For the children of the household, apple cider served hot or cold will provide a complimentary note to the meal. If the elders are enjoying something sparkly, serve a  sparkling grape juice with a shot of pomegranate juice to bring out the fruity flavors of the cheese.

Dessert?
Continue dipping pears and other sliced fruit into melted gooiness. Try a chocolate and butterscotch dip then roll your fruit in chopped nuts.  Or serve a dessert of fresh cherries drizzled with a little Swiss chocolate.

For more on Raclette:
This Raclette Suisse website (http://www.raclette-suisse.ch/fr/meta/home.html) is based in Berne in Switzerland.  Even if you don’t speak French or German (Swiss German), the languages on the site, you’ll enjoy the videos of people at Raclette parties. Clips show how the cheese melts, even the ideal thickness of the cheese slices and many foods to serve alongside.  There is also a substantial recipe section with photos for other ways to use Raclette cheese, melted or not, in appetizers, main dishes and desserts.  A fun site.

To see the melting equipment restaurants along the Swiss/French border territories use, check out Raclette Corner at http://www.raclettecorner.com/melter.