LIGHT AND HEALTHY ORZO SALAD

Posted in Salads, Vegetarian-friendly by sallybr

We are sometimes on a mission to cut calories or fat, and this holiday season was one of moderation for us, perhaps because cooking in a tiny kitchen forced us to minimize the excesses. ;-). With this goal in mind it doesn’t get any better than a light and healthy lunch, and this salad feels like a complete meal that will satisfy you until dinner. The inspiration is from Tyler Florence’s book, Tyler’s Ultimate. It was originally made with rice and served with a lemony, oven-baked chicken curry. However, my Brazilian genes resisted the idea of serving cold rice as a salad, so instead I used orzo, and I also modified the seasoning. Make a large batch and you’ll enjoy it for several days!

MANGO-ORZO SALAD WITH GREEN BEANS
(adapted from Tyler’s Ultimate)

1 cup orzo pasta
1/2 pound green beans
1 mango, diced
2 T fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 cup roasted, lightly salted cashews
1 T olive oil
zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
salt and pepper to taste

Cook the orzo in plenty of boiling water, drain and place on a baking sheet to cool quickly. Drizzle a little olive oil and lemon juice to prevent it from sticking.

Trim the green beans and cut in 1 inch pieces. Cook in boiling salted water for 4 minutes, then drain and plunge in ice water to stop cooking and set the vibrant green color.

Make the dressing by whisking the olive oil with lemon juice, season lightly with salt and pepper, and reserve. Assemble the salad by mixing in a large bowl the cooled orzo, green beans, cashews, and diced mango. Add the minced cilantro leaves, drizzle the dressing all over, adjust seasoning, and serve.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: In many regions fresh mango may not be easy to find right now, but if you can locate it then don’t miss the opportunity to try it in a salad like this. The mango we bought was not as ripe and juicy as the best examples from my childhood in Brazil, but in this recipe it worked just fine.

This salad has it all: carbs from the orzo, vitamins and fiber from the green beans and mango, omega oils from the cashews, that together with the green beans, add a pleasant “crunch.”

Some people even enjoyed it heated in the microwave as a side dish with their steak. 😉 It was also delicious that way. If you want to serve it hot, consider adding the diced mango and the cilantro at the very end.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

ONE YEAR AGO: Beef Wellington (when you have romance in your mind…)

28Dec2010

GOUGERES

Posted in Appetizers, Vegetarian-friendly by sallybr

Cover of "Around My French Table: More Th...

Cover via Amazon

The classic amuse-bouche from Burgundy, gougeres, is not very complicated, and even better, it can be prepared in advance and frozen. When it’s time to entertain just heat the oven and bake them straight from the freezer. This recipe from Dorie Greenspan‘s masterpiece, “Around my French Table,” brings fond memories of Paris with every page. Her love for French food and culture echoes my own feelings.

GOUGERES
(adapted from Around my French Table)

1/4 cup water (2 oz)
1/4 cup whole milk (2 oz)
1/2 stick butter (4 T / 2 oz)
1/4 tsp salt
black pepper to taste
1/2 cup all purpose flour (2.2 oz)
2 large eggs
3/4 cup grated Gruyere cheese (3 ounces)

Heat the oven to 425 F.

Place the water, milk, butter, salt and pepper to a boil in a heavy saucepan. When boiling and the butter is fully dissolved, add the flour all at once, stirring with a wooden spoon until the whole mass is homogeneous. Keep over medium heat, stirring often, until you notice a light coating forming on the pan as you move the dough around.

Remove from heat, transfer the dough to a bowl and allow it to cool for 5 minutes. Have a hand held mixer ready, and add the first egg to the dough, beating well. Once the egg is incorporated, add the second egg and continue beating until a very smooth dough forms. Add the grated cheese and mix well. Drop tablespoons on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (or a silicone mat), and bake for 12 minutes, reducing the oven temperature to 375 F as soon as you place them in. After 12 minutes, switch the tray position in case of uneven browning, and bake for 12 to 15 minutes more, until they are well puffed and golden brown. Serve immediately.

(makes 18 gougeres)

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: The original recipe makes a double batch, with 3 eggs. When I halved the recipe, I tried to use two and a half eggs (admittedly, it is tricky), but the consistency of the dough was too soft. Instead, 2 large eggs will be perfect, so that’s how I wrote it down. Since my dough wasn’t dense enough I used a mini-muffin tin and placed 1 tablespoon of dough in each spot. It worked great: the gougeres baked as nice, well formed balls, airy inside and gooey with melted cheese. Pure heaven!

Because I’m cooking in a small kitchen, I made them early in the morning, froze and baked them right before our Christmas dinner. That’s definitely the way I’ll make them in the future.

Around my French Table goes on my list of all-time favorite cookbooks! Not only do the recipes fit our cooking style, but her presentation, with comments and stories about her time in France, makes this book ultra special. If you’re on the fence about buying it, jump over to the sunny side and GET IT right away! You won’t be disappointed.

ONE YEAR AGO: Pumpernickel Bread

receita em portugues na pagina seguinte

25Dec2010

SOURDOUGH FOCACCIA, WITH A TWIST

Posted in Breads, Vegetarian-friendly by sallybr

(version updated on Dec 28th, to correct a mistake in the recipe)

This past week I got a very special gift: a jar of homemade chili jam, made by my stepson’s girlfriend Carly, a gorgeous actress, who is also smart, witty, and a great cook. Yeah, some people have it all! 😉 She made the jam by adapting a basic recipe from Nigella Lawson, that you can find here. It is very flavorful, and looks quite dramatic as you hold the jar against the light revealing red speckles dispersed throughout the jam. I wanted to make something special with it, and my first “experiment” turned it into topping for a sourdough focaccia. A successful experiment all the way!

SOURDOUGH FOCACCIA WITH CHILLI JAM
(adapted from Chilli and Chocolate)

for the sourdough sponge:
195 g liquid starter (3/4 cup at about 100% hydration)
125 g warm water (1/2 cup)
25 g olive oil (2 T)
10 g honey (1 + 1/2 tsp)
50 g flour (1/2 cup)

for the final dough:
all the sponge made as described
50 g olive oil (1/4 cup)
200 g all purpose flour (2 cups)
1 tsp sea salt

to bake the focaccia:
4 T olive oil
herbs of your choice, minced
2 T chili jam, preferably homemade
coarse or flake salt

Mix all the ingredients for the sponge in a medium size bowl, cover and let it ferment at room temperature for 1-2 hours, until the surface is covered with small bubbles.

Add the ingredients for the final dough and mix until they form a shaggy mass. Let it rest for 15 minutes, then knead quickly folding the dough on itself 10 times (no need to remove from the bowl). Let the dough rest 15 minutes, and repeat this quick kneading process. Repeat for a total of 4 cycles of kneading, each with 15 minutes rest. Shape the dough into a smooth ball, place in a lightly oiled bowl, and let it rise until almost doubled (1.5 to 2 hours).

Alternatively, place it in the fridge overnight, transferring to room temperature 2 hours before baking.

Cover a 9 x 13 baking sheet with parchment paper, and add 2 T olive oil to the paper, spreading it well. Put the dough in the pan and press gently until it covers the whole surface. If the dough is resisting your attempts to stretch it, wait for 5 minutes until the gluten relaxes, and do it again. Cover lightly and let it rise for 30 minutes, while you heat the oven to 450F.

Using the tip of your fingers, make indentations all over the dough, spread the remaining 2 T of olive oil all over, sprinkle herbs of your choice on half the focaccia. If your chili jam is too thick, thin it slightly with a little olive oil, and spread on the other half of the focaccia. Add salt all over the dough, and bake until golden brown on top, about 25 minutes. If the jam seems to be burning,
reduce the temperature slightly.

Let it cool over a rack before you slice it in squares, and…

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I’ve blogged before about my favorite focaccia, very quick to put together. This version, leavened exclusively with wild yeast, takes longer to prepare, but the flavor is exactly what I was hoping for to go along with the chili jam. I had a few unexpected commitments during the preparation, so the dough went to the fridge overnight, no harm done. The focaccia, even baked in our small electric oven, turned out delicious! The chili jam (thank you, Carly!) is hot, but not overly so, and the contrast of the slight sourness of the bread with the sweet heat of the jam made this simple focaccia quite addictive. Make sure to add salt on top right before baking, it will intensify all flavors.

By the way, chili and chilli are both accepted spellings for the word. Pick your favorite spelling, but whatever you choose, make this focaccia, it’s a winner!

I am submitting this post to Susan’s Yeastspotting…

ONE YEAR AGO: Merry Christmas!

9Dec2010

PEPPERY CASHEW CRUNCH

Posted in Appetizers, Vegetarian-friendly by sallybr

Last weekend I made these spicy nuts for a get-together in our nano-house, to watch the Oklahoma x Nebraska college football game. A nail-biter of a game, fortunately with a happy ending for us OU fans. Anxiety is a lot easier to take if you have something to munch on… 😉

The pepper coating gives this nuts an unusual look, but once you grab the first one, you will be going back for more, deliciously addictive they are. You can substitute almonds, walnuts, in fact the original recipe called for whole, blanched almonds, but they did not have them at the store, I went with cashews instead. Extremely simple to prepare, with just the right balance of salty, hot, and sweet. Great recipe!

BLACK PEPPER CASHEWS
(adapted from Bon Appetit, 1997)

1/4 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
4 tsp water
2 cups whole cashews
1 Tbs ground black pepper
2 tsp salt

Cover a large baking sheet with aluminum foil and butter the foil to prevent the nuts from sticking. Heat the oven to 350 F.

Melt the butter in a skillet, add the brown sugar and water, mix until the sugar dissolves. Add the cashews, mix them carefully to coat with the butter/sugar, lower the heat and cook, stirring often, for a few minutes, until the coating thickens slightly. Meanwhile, mix the ground pepper and the salt in a small bowl.

Add half of the pepper/salt mixture to the cashews, mix gently. Working quickly, transfer them to the prepared baking sheet, pressing with a spatula to keep them in a single layer. Sprinkle the rest of the black pepper/salt all over, and bake for 10-15 minutes, until golden brown. Let it cool over a rack, then break the nuts apart, storing them in an air-proof container (they won’t last very long, they tend to mysteriously disappear).

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: Folks in the cooking forum Eat.at raved about this recipe, and their enthusiasm was what made me try it. Plus, I tend to like contrasting flavors, so the idea of mixing brown sugar, salt, and pepper immediately perked my interest. I imagine other seasonings could work too: a little hot paprika, ground cumin… definitely worth experimenting.

ONE YEAR AGO: Ossobuco Milanese (one of my favorite dishes!)

23Nov2010

SOBA NOODLES: LIGHT AND HEALTHY

Posted in Pasta & Noodles, Vegetarian-friendly by sallybr

My two previous posts featured substantial pasta dishes, one loaded with meat, one packed with cheese. Very naughty of me! To compensate, here is a recipe that should bring my polls a little higher with the health-conscious, as these noodles won’t make you feel guilty once the meal is over. Soba noodles are one of my favorite types of “pasta,” I love the hearty taste of buckwheat, its toothsome texture, and the way soba pairs so well with veggies and soy-based dressings. The recipe, called otsu, comes from Heidi Swanson’s Supernatural Cooking, a cookbook I use so much that I bought three more as gifts for (very special) friends! If that’s not a huge endorsement, I don’t know what would be… 😉

OTSU
(adapted from Heidi Swanson’s Supernatural Cooking)

For the dressing:
zest of 1 lemon
1 Tbs fresh ginger, grated
1 tablespoon honey
3/4 teaspoon cayenne
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 Tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/3 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

for the noodles:
12 ounces soba noodles
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cucumber, peeled, cut in half lengthwise, seeded and thinly sliced
1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds

Make the dressing by combining the lemon zest, ginger, honey, cayenne and salt in a small bowl, mixing very hard with a whisk (you can use a small food processor, if available). Add the lemon juice, rice vinegar, and soy sauce, and continue mixing (or processing) until smooth. Drizzle the olive oil and the sesame as you mix, to form an emulsion. Reserve.

Cook the noodles in boiling salted water for 3 to 4 minutes (do not overcook), drain, and rinse briefly in cold water. Transfer to a bowl, add 3/4 cup of the prepared dressing, then add the cilantro, green onions, cucumber, and combine. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds, and serve. Add more fresh cilantro if you like.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: Heidi adds sauteed tofu to the noodles, I kept them simple, serving some grilled shrimp alongside. Leftovers are AWESOME served cold. Remove from the fridge, leave standing at room temperature for an hour or so, and amaze your taste buds at how delicious these noodles can be. The cucumber offers a pleasant crunch, the sesame/soy flavor always makes me feel healthy. A very “zen” dish… Make it, and you will be making it again, and again!

ONE YEAR AGO: Potato-Rosemary Bread