Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Hummus, again!

Soak, then boil in veg stock til soft, 3/4 c. dried chickpeas. Drain. (Reserve stock in case you want to lighten the hummus.)
Process with 1/3 c tahini, 1 1/2 t. salt, 1/4 t. sweet paprika, juice of 1 1/2 lemons, 4 minced cloves of garlic, about 1/4" of a jalapeno, minced, 1 t. cumin, and 1T. or more sherry vinegar.

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Going Lean with Quinoa

I'm trying to reduce the amount of olive oil I use in cooking, so as better to follow the mandate of a book Anne recommended to Reeves. To this end I adapted a back-o'-the-box recipe from Ancient Harvest Inca Red Quinoa, making 4 substantial (or 6 medium) servings:

Halve, clean out somewhat (save the innards) and roast 2 (or 3) big tomatoes - - in 450 degree oven for 15 min.

Mince and saute 1 big shallot (or 2 med) in minimal oil until soft; use 2 qt.+ saucepan.

Boil 2 c. veg stock with 1 c. quinoa and the tomato innards until the stock is absorbed. Transfer quinoa to saucepan and let it saute with the shallot. (The recipe called for 1/2 lb crimini mushrooms to be sauteed first.) When it starts to stick a bit to pan, add 1/4 c. marsala wine (can get this as cooking wine; alternatively, could use strong red or port). Add 1 T. soy sauce (recipe called for 2 T. Tamari). Stir in 1/2 t. crushed fennel seed and 1 t. basil. (I used 1/2 c fresh basil from the windowbox.)

Top the tomatoes with the mixture.

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Our 200th! Cabbage Chez Panisse

Suzanne and I collaborated on this one for last night's dinner, courtesy of the book Jody gave me. We both independently thought of cloves as a worthy addition; the allspice was a substitute for that brainstorm. I made it in my biggest skillet.

Thinly slice an onion and sautee it in roasted almond oil for 3 - 5 min.
Core and thinly slice a head of red cabbage and add it to the pan. Add 2 T. sherry vinegar, 1/2 cup water, pepper (& salt) if desired and cook covered for 20 min. Core and thinly slice an apple; add it to the pan and cook for 5 more min. We also added 3 ground allspice. Michael suggested topping with roasted sesame seeds.

The tastes were pretty subtle. We may have had a cabbage head bigger than the one intended for the recipe. I thought it was a nice treatment of the cabbage. There's another recipe for slaw in the book using roughly the same ingredients that I'd like to try.