GRILLING TOMATOES

Posted in Pasta & Noodles, Vegetarian-friendly by sallybr

Our friends and neighbors who are also ultra-prolific gardeners went away on a trip and gave us a load of tomatoes before their departure. Some were big, heavy, and seemed very juicy, others were on a smallish side. I wanted to do something special with our gift, and went on a road never traveled before by making a grilled tomato sauce. A final touch was wilting some arugula in it. I will be traveling around this road on a regular basis from now on, this was a tasty sauce, and so simple to put together!

ORECHIETTE WITH GRILLED TOMATO SAUCE AND ARUGULA
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

8 to 10 tomatoes, preferably from a friend’s garden
a little olive oil
salt and pepper
1 shallot, finely diced
2 cups of arugula
Orechiette pasta
Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated

Rub the tomatoes with a little olive oil, sprinkle salt and pepper, and place on a hot grill until the skin gets nicely charred. Turn them every few minutes to get grill marks on all sides. Different sizes of tomatoes will be ready at different times (obviously), so remove them from the grill accordingly. Take the stem and central core out, place the flesh, skin, and seeds in a food processor and process until smooth, or retaining some chunks, if you prefer.

Saute the diced shallot in olive oil with a little salt and pepper until golden. Add the processed tomatoes, and cook for 5 to 10 minutes, until it gets the consistency you like. Season with more salt and pepper if needed, and in the final couple of minutes add the arugula, cooking gently until it wilts.

Meanwhile, cook the orechiette pasta according to the package instructions, drain, and mix with the sauce, warming everything together for a few minutes. Add to a serving bowl, and shave some Parmigiano on top.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: All modesty aside, this sauce was a perfect use for tomatoes that were not uniform in size and type, all I had to do was pay attention to the grill and remove each one as they got done. Grilled tomato sauce would work well on many venues: as a topping for pizza, bruschetta, over a mild, grilled fish, or as a basis for pasta sauces with different herbs and/or greens. Not bad as a starting point for soup, I suppose, although the idea of soup with the heat wave we are having is not very appealing. I never quite got the taste for cold soups, maybe next year I’ll explore that untraveled road. 😉

ONE YEAR AGO: Twice-baked goat cheese souffles

TWO YEARS AGO: Hearts of Palm Pie

Israeli Couscous Salad (bewitchingkitchen.com)
Got Beefsteak Tomatoes? (bewitchingkitchen.com)
Grilled Pizza (nonnaluna.wordpress.com)
Back on Track: Grill Veggies For the Week (fitsugar.com)

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.

ONE YEAR AGO: Tour de France Final Stage: PARIS

TWO YEARS AGO: Snickerdoodles with a Twist

23Jul2011

ISRAELI COUSCOUS SALAD

Posted in Pasta & Noodles, Salads, Side dishes, Vegetarian-friendly by sallybr

For a long time Israeli couscous was hard to find, and I only enjoyed it in restaurants, or by placing special orders online. Now it’s available almost everywhere! Even one store in our small town carries it in bulk, so I buy as little or as much as I want. Heads up: when you buy Israeli couscous in bulk, make sure to tie the plastic bag very well, and handle it with loving care. Those cute little balls of semolina flour travel long distances when spilled on the floor. It’s amazing the lessons a cook learns! 😉

Israeli couscous has an interesting history. It indeed originated in Israel, in the 50’s, with the name of “ptitim.” It was conceived in a time of austerity, as an attempt to deal with the scarcity of food, including the almost complete disappearance of rice. Back in Israel it remains a popular food item for kids, available in all sorts of cute shapes, like stars and hearts, to please the young audience. Abroad, Israeli couscous became a trendy gourmet ingredient, as we all know well. It’s versatile and has less tendency to form lumps than regular couscous. It can be dressed up in countless ways and it’s equally tasty warm or cold, as in this delicious salad, adapted from a recent issue of Food and Wine.

ISRAELI COUSCOUS SALAD WITH ARUGULA PESTO
(adapted from Food and Wine magazine)

6 cups packed arugula (6 ounces)
2 cups Israeli couscous (12 ounces)
2 Tbs extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup full fat yoghurt (or low fat if you prefer)
1/4 cup pine nuts
1 garlic clove, chopped
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 cup red cherry tomatoes, halved
1 English cucumber, peeled and diced

Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the 6 cups of arugula and blanch for 10 seconds. With a slotted spoon, transfer the arugula to a colander. Rinse under cold water to stop the cooking, drain well and reserve.

Add the couscous to the boiling water and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until al dente, 8 to 10 minutes. Taste to make sure you don’t overcook it. Drain, and spread on a large baking sheet, drizzling with a very small amount of olive oil (use a spray bottle if you have it) to prevent the little balls from sticking. Let it cool to room temperature.

In a small skillet, toast the pine nuts over moderate heat, tossing, until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Let cool.

Squeeze the excess water from the arugula, coarsely chop it, and place it in the bowl of a food processor. Transfer the arugula to a food processor. Add the pine nuts, garlic, cheese and the 2 Tbs of olive oil, processing until the arugula and pine nuts are chopped. Immediately add the yogurt, process until smooth, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Transfer the couscous to a large serving bowl and stir in some of the pesto, using as much or as little as you like. Gently fold in the tomatoes and cucumber pieces. Adjust seasoning, and….

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: We loved this recipe! And I’m especially happy about my modifications of the arugula pesto. Purists may roll their eyes, but I reduced the fat content of this baby to levels previously unknown to mankind! Imagine my audacity, going from 1/2 cup of olive oil in the original recipe to 2 Tbs olive oil + 1/3 cup of yogurt! That, my friends, is a drop from 954 calories down to 175. I am not a fat-o-phobe, but I’ve played with yogurt and buttermilk long enough to learn that they often substitute well for oil, as illustrated in this example: the acidity in the yogurt kept the arugula bright and it added an interesting sharpness to the pesto. Of course, you may also ignore my adaptation and use the full amount of olive oil. As Emeril Lagasse says, “…you won’t hurt my feelings.” 😉

Olive oil is one of the healthiest options among fats, but any fat packs a huge load of calories. If you struggle with weight issues (who doesn’t?), then be attentive to the amount of olive oil in your recipes and restaurant foods. Salads are deceptively high in calories. Consider asking for dressing on the side, and use it sparingly. Another dangerous option that seems healthy and light: buffet platters of grilled veggies, such as eggplant and zucchini. They are prepared with a substantial amount of olive oil, and eggplant in particular soaks it up like a sponge. Be aware, make the right choices, and exercise portion control. When you’re cooking at home try my low-cal pesto and see what you think. It’s good to splurge with the real thing sometimes, but it’s also wonderful to find an alternative that makes you feel good when you leave the table. 😉

ONE YEAR AGO: Heavenly Home-made Fromage Blanc

TWO YEARS AGO: Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce

24Jun2011

AWESOME BROCCOLINI

Posted in Vegetarian-friendly, Veggies by sallybr

Ah, the bliss, the joy, the thrill of a stove with hot burners! Stir frying, and any other cooking style that imparts a wonderful, golden brown color – promises of great flavor ahead – just can’t materialize without intense heat. I look at the powerful flame on our stove, and discreetly wipe a tear from my eye … Some things get to me. A big sink to wash dishes. An oven with three racks and the capability of 500 F. Stuff like that. But, back to food. I found some organic broccolini at the grocery store. It’s a great veggie, a perfect side dish for anything from poultry to seafood. BTW, it’s not baby broccoli, but a cross between broccoli and kai-lan, a Chinese leafy cabbage. The cross mellows the broccoli character, almost yielding the flavor of asparagus, which explains one of its alternative names: asparation (I’m glad this name didn’t stick! ;-))

My take on broccolini is a slight departure from the stove-top version of broccoli that I posted a year ago.

BROCCOLINI WITH GINGER AND LEMON
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

2 small bunches of broccolini, preferably organic
2 tsp olive oil
red pepper flakes
1 tsp grated ginger
zest and juice of half a lemon
salt and pepper
splash of water (if needed)

Heat the olive oil in a large stainless steel skillet (that will hold the veggies without crowding), when smoking hot add the red pepper flakes, swirl for a couple of seconds and immediately add all the broccolini. Do not move them around, let them get a nice brown color at the bottom. Season with salt and pepper. After a couple of minutes, add the ginger and lemon zest, and shake the pan to move the broccolini and coat well all sides with the ginger, lemon zest, and oil.

Cover the pan, let it cook for 2-3 minutes more, then add the lemon juice – test the broccolini with a fork to see if it’s done to your liking. If it’s not, and the pan is too dry, add a splash of water and cover the pan again, checking after a minute. Once it’s cooked al dente, transfer to a serving dish and…

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: If you are anti-broccoli and think broccolini resembles it too much, please reconsider! There’s absolutely none of the broccoli flavor/smell that many object to. Avoid over cooking it, and buy young broccolini, with a bright green color and a firm flesh. This recipe is low in carbs and fat, but sky-high in flavor! Lemon, ginger & red pepper flakes might very well be my favorite flavor mix right now: good on everything!

ONE YEAR AGO: Pizza! Pizza!

TWO YEARS AGO: From Backyard to Kitchen

21Jun2011

ROASTED TOMATO SOUP

Posted in Soups, Vegetarian-friendly by sallybr

This post is a bit nostalgic, as this was the last recipe I made in the nano-kitchen, but we left L.A. before I had a chance to write it up. A very simple recipe designed with the idea of using ingredients hanging around before our departure from California. It turned out so delicious! Plus, it was a nice match for the weather we were having then. Now that the thermometers are wonderfully stuck in the high 90’s, the thought of soup is not particularly appealing, but this one would work equally well chilled.

ROASTED TOMATO SOUP
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

8-12 ounces of grape and/or cherry tomatoes, cut in half
2 shallots, cut in half
1 garlic clove, unpeeled
kalamata olive oil (or another olive oil of your choice)
splash of balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper
vegetable stock (or water)
2 Tbs orange juice
1 tsp orange zest
chives for garnish

Place the tomatoes, shallot pieces and garlic in a bowl and add enough olive oil to just coat them lightly. Transfer them to a baking sheet covered with aluminum foil or parchment paper, set the tomatoes with the cut size down. Sprinkle some salt and pepper all over, and a splash with balsamic vinegar.

Roast in a 425F oven for 20-25 minutes, until the tomato skins and the edges of the shallots start to get brown. Remove from the oven, let it all cool slightly, and using gloves peel off the skin of the tomatoes (you can leave them on if you don’t mind their texture in the soup). Squeeze the garlic out of its peel, and transfer it together with the tomatoes, shallots and any liquid accumulated in the pan to a food processor. Process it until smooth, pour into a sauce pan over medium heat, and add enough vegetable stock to give a consistency you like. Let it come to a gentle boil, add the orange juice, orange zest, taste for seasoning, and serve with chives sprinkled for garnish.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I had a mixture of grape and cherry tomatoes that needed to be used, and a couple of yellow grape tomatoes went into the mix too. Feel free to improvise, nothing can go wrong with this soup: add different types of herbs, or go for a cumin or cayenne blast. I had planned to make some parmiggiano crisps to serve with the soup, but the electric burners in the nano-kitchen failed, and I was left with a big lump of cheesy mess. Once the weather cools, I’ll revisit this soup – cheese crisps included – and add some mushrooms to the roasting pan. I bet a roasted tomato & mushroom soup will be very flavorful.

ONE YEAR AGO: Turkey Meatballs

TWO YEARS AGO: Focaccia