Blackened Green Beans

19 02 2010


Brussels sprouts are everywhere. In recent weeks I've had them roasted, boiled with butter, even tossed in a compound butter with anchovies. I love them but not everyone does, making them perfect for a restaurant (where you can choose your own side) but a bit risky to serve for company. This is especially true if some of your guests are kids, who are known to be even more sprout-averse than the average adult.

A much safer choice is green beans. Whether served cold and crisp in vinaigrette or tossed warm with blue cheese and walnuts, they can play up or down, casual or fancy. Unfortunately, frozen green beans are much less lovable than fresh. I learned this the hard way, when I pulled from the freezer one of the bags I'd blanched and frozen last summer. They were waterlogged and flabby, and my heart sank when I thought of the eight other bags remaining in the freezer from last year's CSA.

I couldn't just reheat and serve these floppy things. Crossing my fingers, I threw them in a very hot skillet with a few teaspoons of oil and seared them until blackened in places. As soon as they were done I sprinkled them with kosher salt and served them immediately. No one but me would've guessed their miraculous transformation.

Blackened Green Beans
Wash and trim 6-8 ounces of green beans. Blanch in boiling salted water until crisp-tender, then put in an ice bath to stop the cooking. Drain and dry well. Heat a large saute pan over high heat for a few minutes, then add 2-3 teaspoons of olive oil. When the oil is hot, carefully add the beans (if they’re wet, they’ll spatter) and cook, stirring, until blackened in spots. Toss with salt and serve immediately.


Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: ,
Categories : In Winter, Recipes, Uncategorized

Roasted Almonds, Local Cheese & Wine

16 02 2010

If you like to eat locally and seasonally, you’re probably going a little stir crazy at this point in the winter. Unless, of course, you live in Florida, California or Texas and have access to fresh greens and other non-storage crops. In that case, count yourself lucky — and don’t rub it in!

The rest of us envy you, and are making due with things like leeks, carrots, potatoes, onions and squash, all of which were grown last season and put in storage for the winter. I’m part of a winter CSA and thankful to get these vegetables from a local farmer, but still, I’m looking forward to spring.

In the meantime, I’m eating locally in other ways. Like last week, when we put together the kind of picnic we would take to an outdoor concert, only we were at the kitchen table instead. Some of the ingredients came from far away, like the Maille cornichons from France and the Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. But others were local, like the seeded baguette from Udi’s, which we topped with MouCo ColoRouge cheese and ultra-thin granny smith apple slices drizzled with Colorado honey. While you may not be able to enjoy this exact cheese, chances are good you can find another delicious local cheese in your area. Not sure where to find one? Try a local specialty market, cheese shop or even Whole Foods.

The beauty of a picnic is you nibble on what you like, while your friends nibble on what they like. For me, that means mixed olives, good cheeses and nuts. Which is why the only dish I cooked — not even a “dish” really — was Roasted Almonds with Rosemary Fleur de Sel from Bon Appetit (December 2003). I started the almonds first, and by the time I’d washed the grapes, arranged the cheeses, spooned out the olives and mounded the shaved Black Forest ham, the nuts were done. If you decide to try this recipe, I suggest reducing the cooking time from 40 to 25 minutes. Also feel free to substitute the more readily available kosher salt for the fleur de sel, but use less than the recipe calls for. I started out with just 1/2 tsp, down from the 1 1/2 tsp stated in the recipe, and they did not seem undersalted.

Click here for the recipe for Roasted Almonds with Rosemary Fleur de Sel .


Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: , , , , ,
Categories : In Winter, Recipes, Uncategorized

Today’s Tips: Kitchen Safety

13 02 2010

Several months ago, a SeedtoSpoon reader wondered if she should rinse raw chicken prior to cooking. I was taught to do so, and so was she. But we both wondered if we weren’t, in fact, spreading around possible contamination. I didn’t have a definitive answer for her, until now.

In characteristically exhaustive form, Cook’s Illustrated tackles this issue and many others in “Keeping a Cleaner, Safer Kitchen” in the February issue. Their advice? Don’t wash raw meat or poultry. The exception is when the meat has been brined, in which case it does need a bath. If you rinse, make sure to clean the sink and counter with hot soapy water. I use a paper towel to do this, so I can throw it away and prevent cross-contamination.

In addition, at least twice a month I disinfect my sponge — whether or not I’ve used it to clean up raw meat — by boiling it for 10 minutes. Cook’s Illustrated says 5 minutes is fine, but in Denver water boils at a lower temperature due to the altitude, so I add the extra minutes for good measure.

If you’re curious about the science behind this, here are two good links: the USDA’s sheet on High Altitude Cooking and Food Safety and High Altitude Cooking, with a helpful chart listing the boiling point of water at various altitudes.


Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: , , ,
Categories : Food News, In Winter, Uncategorized

Instant Banana Pudding

9 02 2010

What I’m writing about today is something for folks too young to diagram a sentence, drive a car, or cook over a double-boiler. It’s also for the grown-ups who hang out with them.

Last week I shared a recipe for blancmange, an eggless pudding thickened with cornstarch instead of the who-knows-what in boxed instant puddings. Here’s a pudding recipe that my kids like just as much, mostly because they make it all by themselves. Note that this is not something I would ever make for me. I think my kids know this, and that’s part of the appeal.

To start, grab a banana. Sorry that it requires a banana, since bananas don’t grow anyplace local and I’m usually an avid proponent of local food. This is one area where I make an exception, especially in winter when the fresh fruit isn’t local anyway. Let your little one peel it, then mash it in a bowl with a fork or a masher. Then give them a tablespoon and let them measure and stir in 3-4 tablespoons of applesauce (preferably unsweetened organic) and 1 or 2 tablespoons of organic vanilla yogurt. Plain works well, too; you can always add a drop of vanilla extract. I know a friend who makes a similar dessert with her kids, only she adds crushed graham crackers.

Remember this recipe/project A) on snow days when you don’t know how you’re going to get through the next few hours until dinner; B) you have extra bananas, but not enough for banana bread; or C) you want to see your children grin proudly as they devour their oh-so-healthy dessert.


Comments : 2 Comments »
Tags: , , ,
Categories : In Winter, Kids in the Kitchen, Recipes, Uncategorized

Celery Root Gratin

6 02 2010

Celery root is one of those vegetables you can avoid your whole life without even trying. Its ugly exterior — all those brownish tendrils sticking out of the odd-shaped bulb — all but guarantees its placement in the back of the produce section. That is, if it’s there at all. I cooked happily for years before I brought celery root into my own kitchen, and then only because it was from my CSA and I didn’t want to waste it.

What we call celery root (or celeriac) is the root of a special variety of celery, so it’s not like farmers grow celery and then at the end of the season dig up the root. In taste, celery root is usually described as a cross between strong celery and parsley, but I’ve found our farm-share celeriac to be milder than regular celery, and thus a better choice for picky eaters. The texture is more like a flabby potato, so if you like celery but don’t like the strings, celery root might be a good vegetable for you to meet.

The first time I cooked it, I pureed it and added it to mashed potatoes. The celery root perked up the starch, but my kids objected to the intrusion, both in texture and flavor. I’ve also gently sauteed it with butter as a side dish, and the result was good but not worth repeating.

So I’ve continued to look for new preparations, and last week experimented with a Celery Root-Wild Rice Gratin. Normally, gratins have breadcrumbs on top but this one doesn’t. However, it does have a delicious white sauce to bind the ingredients together. Definitely a step up from the other recipes. A friend who came over for lunch the day after I made it liked the leftovers so much she’s already requested the recipe. My version is adapted from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, by Deborah Madison.

Celery Root-Wild Rice Gratin

3 cups cooked wild rice, or brown and wild rice mix
1 small leek, washed well and sliced into very thin rings
4 T butter, divided
2 T white flour
1 1/2 cups whole or 2 % milk, heated in the microwave or over the stove until hot
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1 celery root, washed, peeled and grated
1 lemon, juiced
3 T chopped parsley
3/4 cup grated Swiss cheese
1/4 cup parmesan

First, cook the rice according to package directions and set aside. (I like to make extra so I have leftovers for fried rice or salads later in the week.)

Next, make the white sauce. Melt 3 T butter and cook leeks for a few minutes over low heat, then add flour and cook, stirring, for two minutes. Add the hot milk and whisk out any lumps. Keep stirring and cook over low heat until thick, about 20 minutes. Add nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Butter a round or oval baking dish. Melt 1 T butter over medium and add garlic. Cook for 30 seconds, then add grated celery root, half the lemon juice and parsley. Continue cooking until tender, about 7-10 minutes. In a large bowl, mix celery root, rice, white sauce, Swiss cheese and parmesan. Taste and add remaining lemon juice if desired, plus salt and pepper and additional nutmeg if necessary. Spoon into prepared dish and bake about 25 minutes.


Comments : 1 Comment »
Tags: , , , ,
Categories : In Winter, Recipes, Uncategorized

Kids in the Kitchen: Soup

4 02 2010

The more kids help in the kitchen, the more likely they are to eat well. Vegetables won’t seem so weird once they’ve been selected, scrubbed and nibbled. Flavors won’t seem so foreign if they’ve been sampled far from the high-stakes dinner table. When kids are allowed to help, meals stop being cause for suspicion and turn into an object of pride. (As in, “Look what I made, Mommy!”)

Still, it’s hard to let kids help. Flour ends up on the floor. Eggshells wind up in the batter. When we do let them sit on the counter, we often give them bit parts like dumping in the sugar. But last night, my kids and I reversed roles. They were in charge and I helped. My five-year-old declared the dinner that followed to be “the best dinner ever, by a million, trillion, billion!”

What was the object of such raves? Nothing other than — get this — stone soup.

If you’re a teacher, librarian or parent of young kids, you might know Marcia Brown’s Stone Soup about three soldiers and the war-weary French peasants who are reluctant to share their food. One by one, the villagers hide their goods and then lie to the hungry soldiers, telling them they have nothing to eat. So the soldiers offer to make stone soup, and command a kettle to be filled with water and a few stones. If only there were some carrots, they say, then this good soup would be even better. Mysteriously, one villager finds a few carrots. Then another finds cabbage, then potatoes, beef and barley, until the soup is fit for a king. Soldiers and villagers end up feasting together well into the night, a classic case of generosity, of something from nothing.

My son loves this story. So when he discovered a turnip and two carrots we’d overlooked in our tiny garden, he excitedly asked if we could make stone soup. Why not? The littlest one scrubbed potatoes. The middle one cut them with a butter knife. The oldest grabbed the peeler and the sharper knife.


My five-year-old, hard at work scrubbing the stone.

The pot eventually got so full it was more like thick stew than soup, but the kids didn’t notice. They were too proud of their new scrubbing, peeling and chopping skills to care that the potatoes were overcooked, that the broth was under salted. I didn’t care, either. All I saw were their huge smiles and their pride at being the Big Kids Who Cooked Dinner for Mommy.

Stone Soup

First, find a smooth stone and wash it well. We let ours boil for 15 minutes, too, just to make sure it was clean. Put at least 32 ounces of chicken broth in a saucepan, and add the stone. Then, depending on their age, let your children wash, peel and cut a variety of vegetables and add them to the pot. An onion, carrots and potatoes make a good base. The rest is up to you: turnips, cabbage, spinach, zucchini, green beans, whatever you have. Cook until tender, season to taste, and add parmesan cheese at the table for extra flavor. You can make this project even more fun by letting kids choose their own Stone Soup vegetables at the grocery store.


Comments : 2 Comments »
Tags: , , ,
Categories : In Winter, Kids in the Kitchen, Uncategorized

Ravioli with Chicken, Walnuts and Butternut Squash

2 02 2010

Normally when I make dinner, I don’t think much about reception. I cook what is fresh and seasonal and healthy. I trust my kids will like it, or will like it enough to get through the meal without too much fuss.

But yesterday was a busy day. Errands. Flu shots. Ballet. I simply wasn’t in the mood for negotiations over how much more they needed to eat before getting dessert. So I took a moment to think about what everyone would like, and built a meal out of that.

I knew it had to have pasta, because that’s a crowd-pleaser for sure. Butter and parmesan, too. Chicken for protein, and a veggie or two from our farm share. That’s how I hit on Ravioli with Chicken, Walnuts and Butternut Squash. When we all finally assembled at the table, my youngest polished off her ravioli before the rest of us had even finished saying grace. My son had thirds. My oldest was already staking a claim to the leftovers for her lunch tomorrow. I’ll count that as victory. And I’ll leave the battles over celery root and mushrooms for another day.

Ravioli with Chicken, Walnuts and Butternut Squash
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated The Best 30-Minute Recipe

2-4 chicken breasts, depending on how much chicken you want
Olive oil for spreading on chicken
Salt and pepper
1 butternut squash, peeled and small diced — you need about 4 cups
4 tablespoons butter, divided
1 leek, washed well and sliced into thin rings
18 ounces whole-wheat cheese ravioli
1/3 cup chopped walnuts, toasted for 5-10 minutes at 350
1/2 cup grated parmesan
Cream or Half & Half (optional)

Turn on the grill. Rub chicken with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and set aside while the grill heats up. In a large non-stick saute pan, melt 1 T butter over medium-high heat. Add butternut squash and cook without stirring for 5 minutes. Stir and cook another 5-7 minutes, or until squash is browned and tender. Remove from pan. Add in leeks and saute about 5 minutes, then add squash back in and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Meanwhile, boil 4 quarts of salted water and cook ravioli according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, put chicken on the grill and cook until done. Cut into bite-sized pieces. When noodles are tender, reserve 1/2 cup cooking water and drain. Add ravioli to the butternut squash, then add chicken, a tablespoon or two of the reserved cooking water, 3 tablespoons butter, parmesan, walnuts and a tablespoon or two of cream. Heat on low until the noodles are coated, and add more parmesan, cream and/or cooking water to taste. Sprinkle with more parmesan at the table.

Variations: Rather than adding the chicken to the ravioli, you can serve it as a side dish to the grilled chicken, or you can leave it out altogether for a vegetarian meal. You can also leave out the cream and just use the cooking water, or you can leave out the cooking water and just use the cream!


Comments : 6 Comments »
Tags: , ,
Categories : In Winter, Recipes, Uncategorized

Pudding, a Healthy Dessert for Kids

30 01 2010


Pudding thickening over a double boiler.

Dessert is a tricky subject for many parents. Should we serve one or not? How much do they have to eat before they get it? And so on. I used to find a happy middle ground with pudding. Yes it’s dessert, but it’s got to be good because of all that milk, right?

Not if you’re serving instant pudding. Just look at the ingredients. Disodium phosphate. Tetrasodium pyrophosphate. Diglycerides. BHA (a preservative). The day I stopped serving it was the day I took a page out of Michael Pollan’s playbook and asked myself, “Is this something my great-grandmother would have recognized as food?” Of course not. My spell check didn’t recognize it either, also a bad sign.

Now I make something called blancmange, a yummy concoction of milk, sugar and vanilla thickened with cornstarch. I discovered it years ago in my old Fannie Farmer Cookbook. Unlike custard, blancmange doesn’t contain eggs and it doesn’t have to bake. You do have to stir it while it thickens, but you can always do this while asking your children about their day at school, or if they’re old enough, you can enlist their help.

Note that the original recipe doesn’t call for maple syrup, but I’ve found that without it, the pudding gets gummy as it sits. A tablespoon or two keeps the pudding smooth without affecting the flavor. However, if you’re concerned about the extra sweetness, just leave it out and eat the pudding quickly.

Homemade Pudding
Adapted from The Fannie Farmer Cookbook
Makes 4 servings

3 tablespoons cornstarch
4 tablespoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 cups organic milk, divided (whole is best, but use what you have)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1-2 T grade A maple syrup, if desired

First, get out your double-boiler. If you don’t have one, make your own by finding a metal bowl that fits over your saucepan. It shouldn’t just rest on the top; it needs to dip into the saucepan just enough that it won’t slip off while you’re stirring, but not so much that it comes close to the water. Put an inch or so of water in the saucepan and let it come to a simmer (not boil) while you’re preparing the other ingredients.

Stir the cornstarch, sugar and salt together in your metal bowl and add 1/4 cup of the milk. Place the bowl over the simmering water and gradually add the remaining 1 3/4 cups milk, stirring constantly until thickened. This will take about ten minutes. Keep stirring another 15 minutes. Resist the urge to cut corners; this gentle cooking improves the flavor. Remove from heat.

To speed up the cooling process, place the bowl in an ice bath. If you’ve never done this before, make one by closing the drain in your sink, filling it with a few inches of ice cubes, nestling the bowl into the ice, then adding a bit of cold water. The pudding will cool quickly. Now add the vanilla and almond extracts and maple syrup, if desired. If you’re making it ahead, cover it with plastic wrap placed directly against the pudding to prevent a skin from forming.

Three Variations: For plain vanilla, leave out the almond extract. For chocolate pudding, leave out the almond extract and stir in 2 ounces of unsweetened chocolate or a handful of semi-sweet chocolate chips when you add the 1 3/4 cups milk. For maple pudding, leave out the almond extract, decrease sugar to 2 tablespoons and increase maple syrup to 4 tablespoons.


Comments : 3 Comments »
Tags: , , , , , , , ,
Categories : In Winter, Recipes, Uncategorized

White Cake with Buttercream Frosting

28 01 2010

I just heard from a mom whose son will be turning 1 next week. Hooray — such a big day! She said she’s looking for a good cake and was wondering if I’d share my recipe for white cake with buttercream that I mentioned in an earlier post.

When I looked it up just now, I paused to read my notes in the margin. (I always write down the date when I make a recipe, and any changes I’d make next time.) In the margin, I read that I made this cake for my own 30th birthday, my oldest daughter’s 8th birthday, my son’s 4th birthday, and my youngest daughter’s 1st birthday. Definitely a family favorite. So to the mother who wrote in, I wish your son a happy day and an even happier year! Maybe it will become a favorite in your family, too.

P.S. I frequently cut back on sugar when I’m making quick breads, but it’s not a good idea to do that here. The sugar is necessary to tenderize the cake.

White Cake

1 3/4 cups cake flour (you can also use white flour, but it won’t be as tender)
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
10 tablespoons butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 egg whites
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup cold water

Preheat oven to 325. Lightly grease and flour two 8-inch cake pans. I like to cut aluminum foil to fit inside the pan. Then I put it in the pan, shiny side up, and grease and flour the foil and sides like normal. It takes a little more time, but you’ll thank yourself when it’s time to remove the cakes from the pans.

Mix the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl and whisk until well combined. In a large bowl, cream the butter for 2-3 minutes (believe me — this is what makes the air bubbles in the cake). Gradually add the sugar and beat another 2-3 minutes. Add the egg whites, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine the vanilla extract with the cold water and add half of it to the butter-sugar mixture. Beat well. Then add half the flour mixture and beat well. Repeat, adding in the remaining water and vanilla and beating well, then finishing with the remaining flour. Pour into pans and bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating pans halfway through the cooking time. Cakes are done when a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Let cool for 5 minutes, then remove from pans and let cool on a cooling rack. Don’t frost until completely cool.

Buttercream Frosting

2/3 cup butter, softened but not melted
1/8 tsp salt
4 cups powdered sugar
4-8 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
1 tsp vanilla extract, or more
1/2 tsp almond extract, or more (optional)
Food coloring, if desired

Cream the butter and salt together, then slowly add in the powdered sugar. Add 4 tablespoons whipping cream, and vanilla and almond extracts. Beat on high, adding more cream until you reach the desired consistency. Keep beating on high for 3-4 minutes, far longer than you might think is necessary. The longer you whip, the lighter and fluffier your frosting will be. Taste, and add more vanilla and/or almond extract to suit your taste. We like plenty of almond extract because it cuts the sweetness (though of course the frosting is still very sweet!)

* Note that you can also make the above cake recipe as cupcakes. If you do, you can pipe on the frosting in swirls with a large tip. Inexpensive Wilton decorating bags and plastic tips can usually be found at Hobby Lobby and Michael’s. Cupcakes are great for kids’ birthdays because you can divide up the frosting and tint it different colors. Multi-colored sprinkles and add-ons like gummy bears are also a big hit with kids, though I wouldn’t put anything but sprinkles on a young child’s cake.


Comments : 7 Comments »
Tags: , , , , , ,
Categories : In Winter, Recipes, Uncategorized

Food Storage and Freezing Tips

26 01 2010

A friend is reading the Young Readers Edition of Omnivore’s Dilemma with her daughter and just wrote in asking for advice on what freezes well and what doesn’t. A city dweller, she doesn’t have the luxury of extra space for a stand-alone freezer and is also wondering how to use the precious space she does have.

Questions like this make my day. If I can help her on this journey, she’ll affect others (her daughters, her friends, etc.) and they’ll affect others, until there’s a butterfly effect on the way that food in our country is produced, packaged and consumed. We’re part of a community, after all, and we all succeed when one person succeeds.

To answer her first question, I recommend a paper by the National Center for Home Food Preservation called Foods that Don’t Freeze Well. Potatoes, celery and sour cream are listed, along with other items that come out of the freezer worse for the wear. Many foods that do freeze well (corn, green beans) should be blanched, cooled and dried before freezing. Others, like diced tomatoes or onions, can be put in raw. Berries should be frozen, unwashed, in a single layer on a cookie sheet, then transferred to another container; this prevents them from clumping together. Just remember to wash them when you take them out. Always mark the date on the container or bag, and use all produce within a year.

For more info, check out a post I wrote earlier this month called Summer in January, aka Freezing 101. There’s also a link to a helpful article in The Washington Post on the do’s and don’ts of freezing.

When you talk about freezing, you can’t help but talk about what to freeze in. Last year, SeedtoSpoon readers debated the problems of freezing in plastic bags, given the potential hazards of the plastic. I still use Ziploc bags, but I put the contents in after they’re cool and don’t thaw them in the microwave or in hot water. If you take the plastic bag route, remember to double bag your food and squeeze out the excess air. To find this string of posts and comments, click here.

Her second question — what to devote your small freezer to — deserves an answer all its own. More on that later this week. In the meantime, any advice for my friend? Has anyone frozen something that didn’t come out well?


Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: , ,
Categories : Food News, In Winter, Uncategorized

« Previous Entries Next Entries »


Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 81 other followers