THE WHEAT BERRY TRANSMOGRIFICATION

Posted in Side dishes, Vegetarian-friendly, Veggies by sallybr

A post dedicated to “The Big Bang Theory” fans… 😉

Wheat berries are an amazing ingredient. You can use them for breakfast, desserts, salads, risotto-type dishes, you can add them to soups and stews. Since I am always searching for side dishes to incorporate in our menu, wheat berries are a great alternative to give some rest to the usual suspects: rice, pasta, and couscous. The other day I was feeling adventurous, and decided to create my own recipe for them. Problems started right away. A search on my cookbooks and online sources left me surprised (and quite puzzled) at the many different methods used to cook the grain. Some people swear you must soak them overnight. Some insist you need a pressure cooker. I threw caution to the wind, didn’t soak them, didn’t invite the pressure cooker to play, but simply cooked them in salted water as if preparing pasta. It took a little over 1 hour to get them the way I wanted: tender but not mushy. After that, I incorporated them with two veggies I adore, and… side dish mission accomplished!

WHEAT BERRIES WITH BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND CELERY
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

1 cup wheat berries
1 medium butternut squash, cut in medium dice
olive oil
salt and pepper
smoked paprika
1 large celery stalk, cut in slices

Heat the oven to 420F.

Cook the wheat berries in plenty of salted water until al dente (depending on the brand, it might take from 1 to 2 hours). When cooked to your taste, drain, and reserve. If not using immediately, add just a little drizzle of olive oil to prevent the grains from sticking too much. Can be prepared a couple of days ahead.

While the wheat berries are cooking, place the diced butternut squash in a bowl, and drizzle olive oil just enough to lightly coat the pieces. Season the squash with salt, pepper, and smoked paprika. Add them in a single layer over a rimmed baking dish. Roast in the hot oven until cooked, and the edges start to brown (25 to 35 minutes).

Mix the cooked wheat berries with the roasted squash, add the raw celery, incorporate everything together gently. Adjust seasoning, and serve.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

We both loved this recipe! Roasted butternut squash has a special place in my heart, and now stores in our neck of the woods carry those cute little bags with the cut veggie, so I often cave and bring those home to make my life easier.

We are also quite fond of raw celery. In this recipe, it gave the needed “crunch factor” to oppose the chewiness and softness of the wheat and squash. The squash, when roasted, tastes a little sweet, so the smoked paprika and the celery help cut through that.

We enjoyed this dish with grilled pork tenderloin, but of course it goes well with all sorts of main dishes, standing also on its own if you add a hearty salad.

Hope you try it!

ONE YEAR AGO: Curried Zucchini Soup

TWO YEARS AGO: Roasted Onion and Asiago Cheese Miche (an outstanding bread!)

24Feb2012

CAULIFLOWER STEAKS

Posted in Side dishes, Veggies by sallybr

If you love roasted cauliflower, you will go crazy for this recipe, a nice variation that keeps the crunchy, roasted bits on the outside, but provides a bit of a textural contrast in its smooth center. I found this recipe in the book “You Can Trust a Skinny Chef”, by Allison Fishman. Nice cookbook, by the way, full of little tips to reduce the calories of recipes without compromising flavor. Plus, she’s got a great sense of humor, I love that in a cookbook author. Actually, I love that in anyone! 😉

CAULIFLOWER STEAKS
(adapted from Allison Fishman)

1 head of cauliflower
2 Tbs olive oil
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
smoked paprika

Heat the oven to 425 F.

Remove the tough outer leaves of the cauliflower. Cut the base so that it can stand up without moving around. With a sharp knife, carefully cut slices to have ‘steaks’ that are about 1/2 inch thick. Lay them without touching on a baking sheet covered with aluminum foil or parchment paper.

In a small bowl, whisk the olive oil and lemon juice. Brush each side of the cauliflower slices with a very thin coating of the mixture. Season with salt, pepper, and smoked paprika (or use other spices you like).

Place the baking sheet in the oven and roast for 15 to 20 minutes. Turn the slices around, and roast for 10 more minutes, or until the edges start to brown.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

(click to enlarge)

Comments: One head of cauliflower will be enough for two. If I am not sitting at your dinner table, you might even have a couple of slices leftover. But, if I happen to be your guest, forget it! I love the stuff… 😉

You can vary the dry spices sprinkled on top, cauliflower goes well with many flavors: curry, cumin, chili pepper, coriander… just use whatever matches the rest of your meal, and appeals to your taste buds.

ONE YEAR AGO: Stir-Fried Chicken with Creamed Corn

TWO YEARS AGO: Puff Pastry for the Party

17Jan2012

EVERYDAY FOOD TO THE RESCUE

Posted in Pasta & Noodles, Pork, Side dishes by sallybr

Last week, on a very busy day in which I had zero inspiration for cooking dinner, the daily email from Martha Stweart’s Everyday Food was a life saver. It arrived mid-morning as usual, and featured a grilled pork tenderloin with a simple soy-citrus marinade. I had a tenderloin in the fridge, and all ingredients needed for the marinade. Side dish? Orzo sounded great, so I searched for recipes on the same website, and one of the top choices was “Toasted Orzo with Olives and Lemon”. The clouds left the horizon, blue skies announced that my dinner blues were gone. And you’ll get both recipes in a single post! 😉

PORK TENDERLOIN WITH SOY, GINGER, AND LIME
(adapted from Everyday Food)

1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (I used grapeseed)
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 pork tenderloin (about 1 pound), trimmed of excess fat and silver skin

In a medium bowl, combine soy sauce, vinegar, lime juice, oil, and ginger. Add pork to the marinade, turning to coat well on all sides. Marinate in the fridge for several hours to overnight.

Remove meat from marinade, and pat it dry. Season it very lightly with salt, and grill for 7 minutes on a hot grill. Turn the meat to grill the opposite side, and grill for 6 minutes more. Without opening the grill, turn the heat off and let the meat stay inside for 5 minutes. Remove the meat from the grill, tent it with foil, and let it rest for 5 minutes before slicing.

to print the recipe, click here

TOASTED ORZO WITH OLIVES AND LEMON
(adapted from Everyday Food)

1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 pound orzo (1 + 1/4 cup)
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
Salt and ground pepper
1/4 cup slivered black olives
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a medium pan over medium-high heat. Add the orzo and cook for 5 minutes, stirring often. Add 2 cups of water and lemon zest, season with salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium; cover, and simmer until orzo is al dente and liquid is absorbed, 10 to 15 minutes.

Remove from heat. Stir in olives, parsley, lemon juice, and remaining tablespoons of olive oil, if desired (I omitted this step).

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: What a great dinner this was! Ready in less than 30 minutes, all I had to do was make the marinade at lunch time (but you can do it in the morning, if you don’t go home for lunch), and by the time we came home from work, dinner was a cinch to make.

I used the 7-6-5 grilling method for the pork tenderloin, because it works well with pretty much any type of marinade or dry rub. It is easy to take care of the rest of the meal when all you have to do is set a timer and move the meat around when it goes off.

Toasting the orzo is what makes this side dish so special. I’ve used a similar method before in one of the simplest and greatest recipes I’ve made last year, the “Carrot Nib Orzo”. If until now you’ve only treated orzo as a normal pasta, boiling in salted water, please try either of these recipes, you will be more than pleasantly surprised by the improvement in taste and texture.

ONE YEAR AGO: Weekend Pita Project

TWO YEARS AGO: Mandioca Frita 101 – Fried Yucca Root (Brazilian Food at its best!)

22Oct2011

A MUST-MAKE VEGGIE PUREE

Posted in Side dishes, Vegetarian-friendly, Veggies by sallybr

Those who are familiar with low-carb diets know that cauliflower is the number one choice as a substitute for potatoes, and even rice. Indeed, I’ve seen recipes in which the florets are grated and used in what it’s called “cauli-rice.” I don’t think it would fool me, though, I love rice way too much! 😉 Now, back to puree…

Potatoes have enough starch to produce a creamy and smooth texture when cooked and mashed. Other veggies like cauliflower, broccoli, even parsnips, end up with a more watery and grainy texture. For that reason, most recipes will coach you into adding a lot of butter, heavy cream, or some type of cream cheese. Sally Schneider, author of “The Improvisational Cook,” came up with a very clever twist: she cooks the veggie in milk (low fat is fine), and adds to the cooking liquid an apple and a little bit of pasta (like angel hair). The result is amazing. Never in a million years I expected Phil to urge me to blog about a cauliflower recipe. His exact words were: “make sure you really pump this recipe up, it’s awesome”!

CAULIFLOWER AND APPLE PUREE
(adapted from “The Improvisational Cook“)

1 medium cauliflower, core and leaves removed
1 small apple, peeled and cored, chopped
1/2 quart low fat milk
1/2 quart water
1/2 ounce angel hair pasta, broken in pieces
1 tsp salt
pinch of sugar
ground white pepper

Cut the cauliflower florets and stems roughly into pieces. Add the pieces to a pan with the milk/water, apple, bring to a gentle boil. Add the pasta, salt, and sugar. Cook, stirring every once in a while, until the cauliflower is tender (25 minutes).

Remove 1/4 cup from the cooking liquid and reserve. Strain the vegetables (the rest of the milk/water can be used for soups later), place them in a food processor and puree for a couple of minutes, until completely smooth. Make sure to stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl once or twice. If too thick, add some of the reserved cooking liquid.

Return the puree to the pan, place it over very low heat, add white pepper, taste, and adjust the seasoning with more salt and pepper.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Schneider’s book is perfect for those who like to use recipes as a starting point instead of a rigid set of rules. She opens each subject with a section called “Understanding,” explaining the reasoning behind the recipes in that section. Finally, she offers suggestions to improvise on your own.
I absolutely love this approach!

This puree is silky-smooth, you won’t taste the apple, but it really does something to “tame” the cauliflower flavor, so even those with “cauliflower issues” will be pleased. Of course, because there’s a small amount of pasta in it, this dish won’t be as low in carbs as a pure cauliflower version, but it is still much lighter than mashed potatoes. Sometimes, it’s exactly what we crave…

ONE YEAR AGO: Vegetarian Lasagna

TWO YEARS AGO: Brazilian Pao de Queijo (Cheese Breads) – a classic!

25Jul2011

GOT BEEFSTEAK TOMATOES?

Posted in Side dishes, Vegetarian-friendly, Veggies by sallybr

Got 10 minutes to spare? Here’s a side dish to awe your taste buds. The latest Fine Cooking magazine has a full article about tomatoes, perfectly timed when farmers markets are overflowing with those in all shapes and sizes. Normally I don’t buy beefsteaks, favoring smaller types like Campari, grape, and cherry. But this recipe called my name loudly.
GRATIN OF BEEFSTEAK TOMATOES
(slightly modified from Fine Cooking, August 2011)

3 beefsteak tomatoes
1/4 cup Panko bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated Asiago cheese
2 Tbs fresh parsley, minced
1 tsp Herbes de Provence
slight drizzle of olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Cut the tomatoes in 1/4 inch thick slices, and place them with a little overlap on a broiler-safe type of dish.

Mix the bread crumbs with the cheese and the herbs and sprinkle all over the tomatoes. Season them with salt and pepper (Asiago cheese is salty, use less salt than you normally would); drizzle a small amount of olive oil over the tomatoes (use a spray bottle if you prefer), place the dish under the broiler for 3 minutes or until it starts to get golden on top. Serve right away.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: This recipe may very well change my mind about keeping beefsteak tomatoes around the house. They stand up to the broiler nicely, and the salty/cheese crust on top is a nice complement to the juiciness of the tomatoes underneath. Phil said that he could imagine this dish on the menu of an American steakhouse, next to a substantial T-bone steak, grilled medium rare. We took a more humble route, and served them with flank steak, and grilled zucchini slices. Summer dining: simple, light, and quick to put together.