The Voices in My Head

Allow me to invite you into my head for a bit.  No, it’s ok.  Come closer.

Closer.

Scared yet?

So, I just thought I’d share a bit of the ‘journey’ I go through in coming up with a recipe.  Or a meal plan.  Whatever.

I’d say by and large my meal planning comes from either a recipe (or recipes) I’ve run across, or by pulling from old standards.  But there are times when I have this vague notion of what I’m looking for, and that’s usually when the voices in my head lead me down a meandering path.

Sunday I decided that I wanted to keep things pretty basic – steak and potatoes.  So there I was, clipping coupons (my Sunday afternoon ritual) and watching The Cooking Channel.

Cue the brain voices:

“So…  steak and potatoes.  But something more exciting than just mashed potatoes.  Maybe a root veggie mash?  Mmm, that would be tasty.  Oh, my gosh.  Is it REALLY almost March?  What the hell happened to FEBRUARY??  St. Patrick’s Day…  maybe a colcannon/root veggie mash?  Kale.  I really need to try kale.  I should make spinach more often.  Only 25¢ off on toilet paper?  Seriously??  Do these idiots have any idea what a package of toilet paper costs these days?  Oooh, what’s in the basket?  I could seriously compete on Chopped.  Well, unless they gave me cow’s tongue.  Not touching that stuff with a ten-foot pole.  Coconut, huh?  Wonder if I have coconut milk?  Hmm…  something a bit spicy in a sauce over steak.  With spinach.  I should try a root veggie mash with coconut milk.  Do I have any sweet potatoes?  I’m sure I don’t.  Ok, rice it is.”

And thus my steak and potatoes became a garlic/ginger marinated steak with sautéed spinach and garlic and a coconut sauce over coconut ginger rice.

The voices made me do it.

Garlic and Ginger Marinated Flank Steak

1 flank steak, trimmed
2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1 tsp fresh ginger, finely minced
1 tsp sesame oil
2 Tbs canola oil
½ cup soy sauce
1 tsp black pepper

Combine marinade ingredients in a gallon sized freezer bag.  Add steak and turn until covered in marinade.  Close bag and allow to sit in fridge for about an hour.  Remove and allow to come to room temperature.  Cook as desired (I cooked mine on the stove with my cast iron grill pan).  Allow to rest before cutting across the grain into strips.

Spicy Coconut Sauce

1 Tbs canola oil
1 shallot, finely minced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 serrano pepper, thinly sliced (leave seeds in for extra heat if you’d like)
½ tsp crushed red pepper
½ tsp turmeric
1 cup coconut milk (use the rest of the can in your rice)
2 Tbs soy sauce
½ cup chicken stock
2 kaffir lime leaves (optional – found these in the spice aisle)

Heat oil over medium heat.  Add the shallot, garlic and peppers.  Sauté just until shallot and pepper are cooked through.  Add turmeric and continue to cook and stir another minute.  Add remaining ingredients.  Bring to a simmer and allow to cook about 5 to 10 minutes until mixture begins to thicken slightly.  Serve immediately.

* * *
I have a feeling I may have posted this recipe before.  And I swear, every time I make it, it’s like I have an epiphany that says, “Why don’t I make this more often”.  Obviously, it’s crazy good for you, takes almost no time to make, and is delicious.  Color me forgetful.

Garlicky Spinach

1 Tbs canola oil
1 tsp sesame oil
3 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
6 cups fresh baby spinach (I used a 10 oz bag)
½ tsp freshly cracked black pepper
2 Tbs soy sauce

Heat oils over medium-high heat.  Add the sliced garlic and sauté just until the garlic turns golden.  Add all of the spinach.  Using a pair of tongs, cook and turn the spinach until it is almost wilted.  Add the soy sauce and season with black pepper.

Away

Er… Hello…

I know. It’s been a while. The last month has been just… busy. Mostly adjusting to having this little guy in the house…

Now, as long as I prefer pumps to orthopedics, I flatly refuse to be referred to as ‘Grandma’. Mostly because that term will always be reserved (in my mind) for my own dear grandmother, who I am so sad that I lost so early in life.

But because I really don’t feel like a ‘grandma’, I have coined the name ‘Amma’, a combination of my maternal great-grandmother, who was called ‘Avo’ and ‘Gramma’. My mother insists that I have no control over what I will be called, even though I pointed out that although her first grandbaby (O1) substituted ‘Bubba’ because she couldn’t say ‘Grandma’, the remaining three grandchildren have all followed suit and called her ‘Bubba’. Therefore, it’s just what the child hears.

And besides, he can call me Fred for all I care.

Anyway, most of the food I’ve been making has been revisiting old (and quick) recipes. That, and I seem to have developed some kind of mental block about taking food photos - probably because the camera is usually in his face and not in the kitchen.

But I did make these recently. Kind of an Asian take on meatballs. Didn’t really want to go the sweet/sour route with pineapple. Instead, these are infused with coconut milk, and they’re very tender. I served them with a ginger-scented rice and sautéed asparagus and bell pepper. They were both light and hearty.

Try ‘em.

Lion’s Head Meatballs

1 lb ground beef
1/4 cup coconut milk
2 Tbs soy sauce
1/2 tsp curry powder
1 shallot, finely minced
1 Tbs flour
1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 Tbs sesame oil
1/2 tsp ground ginger
Salt and pepper to taste

Remainder of the can of coconut milk (about 1 1/2 cups?)
2 Tbs soy sauce
2 Tbs cornstarch

In a large mixing bowl, combine the first 11 items.  Working quickly, mix the ingredients just until well combined.  Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add about 2 Tbs of cooking oil.  Roll the meat mixture into golf-sized balls and place in the hot oil.  Cook, turning to brown all sides until cooked through.

Combine the remaining coconut milk, soy sauce and cornstarch together and slowly add to the meatballs, cooking and stirring just until the mixture thickens.  Serve over rice.

Happy Birthday, Mom

There are really two versions of this dish. The first time I made it, wanting to impress my guest, I started a few days in advance, roasted a chicken, then used the carcass to make my own stock, then made my own crème fraîche. The result, while basically an amped up mac & cheese with chicken, was really pretty terrific. And it received such high scores that I immediately put it into a mental catalog of good dishes to serve to company.

The second time I made this, I used a rotisserie chicken from the store, but basically that was my only shortcut. I also changed the cheese to a more economical Gouda. It was still outstanding.

I guess what I’m trying to get to in a very roundabout way is that you shouldn’t let the steps involved deter you from making this dish. Buy an already cooked chicken. Use store-bought chicken stock. And if you can’t find crème fraîche, or don’t want to pay the astronomical amount of money that they usually charge for it (and making your own is SO simple and SO MUCH MORE economical, that I highly recommend going that route), you can always substitute sour cream.

I suppose if you’re doing a mental calculation of the number of calories per serving in this, then you could also substitute various low-fat products.

But then you’d have a different dish, wouldn’t you? J

Pasta and Chicken Gratin
Adapted from Epicurious.com

1 fully cooked chicken, meat removed and diced
4 cups good quality chicken stock (or make your own)
1 stick (1/2 cup) + 2 Tbs unsalted butter (use wrappers to grease baking dish)
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups milk
1 cup crème fraîche (8 oz) *recipe below
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/2 lb Gruyère, coarsely grated (3 cups), or substitute Gouda or another semi-soft cheese
1 cup Parmigiana-Reggiano, finely grated
1 lb penne rigate or other short tubular pasta (I prefer the ‘mini’ version)
3 cups bread crumbs torn from a sourdough baguette

Preheat oven to 400°. Grease an oblong baking dish (9 x 13” works well).

Heat butter (1 stick) in a 4-quart heavy pot over moderate heat until foam subsides, then add garlic and cook, whisking, 1 minute. Add flour and cook, whisking, 1 minute. Add milk and stock (4 cups) in a slow stream, whisking, then bring to a boil, whisking. Reduce heat and simmer, whisking occasionally, until sauce is slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in crème fraîche, salt, pepper, cayenne, 2 cups Gruyère, and 1/2 cup Parmigiana-Reggiano.

While sauce simmers, cook pasta in a 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling salted water, according to package directions, then drain in a colander. Return pasta to pot, then add chicken and sauce, tossing to coat.

Pour pasta mixture into baking dish.

Melt 2 Tbs butter and toss with bread crumbs and remaining cheeses, then sprinkle evenly over pasta mixture. Bake gratin until crumbs are golden brown and sauce is bubbling, 20 to 30 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.


Crème Fraîche

1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream
½ cup buttermilk

Pour whipping cream into a non-reactive bowl, add buttermilk and stir. Loosely cover with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature 12 to 24 hours, or until mixture thickens. Stir well and refrigerate until ready to use.

My mom loves coconut cream pie, so I thought it would be fun to make a slightly more upscale version for her big day. In this rendition, I used a coconut pastry cream and sandwiched it between two light and crispy coconut meringues, then topped it with whipped cream and toasted coconut. Really very simple, but it definitely elevates the original version a notch.

Coconut Pastry Cream

2 cups milk
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg
2 egg yolks
2/3 cup granulated sugar
3 Tbs flour
¼ cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

Place both kinds of coconut in a food processor and pulse until the mixture becomes about the size of a course meal.

In a bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar, vanilla and flour until well combined.

Combine milk and coconut in a medium saucepan. Place over medium-high heat and stir occasionally, until mixture just starts to simmer.

Temper egg mixture by pouring about a cup of the milk mixture into it, whisking at the same time. Add the warmed egg mixture to the saucepan of milk and coconut. Whisk until pastry cream thickens and begins to bubble, about 5 minutes. It should be very thick at this point.

Remove from heat and whisk in butter until it’s melted. Stir every few minutes until it cools enough to place a piece of plastic wrap or wax paper over the surface (to keep it from forming a skin). Cool to room temperature and then move to fridge and store until needed.


Coconut Meringues

2 egg whites
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
3/4 cup confectioners sugar
1/4 cup finely shredded coconut
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 250°.

Add egg whites and cream of tartar to bowl of a stand mixer. Beat on high speed until soft peaks form. Turn speed down slightly and add sugar a tablespoon at a time until mixture forms stiff, glossy peaks.

Turn off mixer and stir in coconut and vanilla.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. For each round, drop 2 heaping tablespoons onto the baking sheet and form into a circle, making sure they are of uniform height and width and spaced about one inch apart.

Bake about 1 hour, rotating sheet halfway through the baking, until they are dry in the middle. Remove to rack to cool.

Pretty Healthy

I always laugh when I hear things like “I have the body of a 20-year-old”. Well, I have the back of an 85-year-old. Now and then it just decides to wreck me for a few days, thus curtailing things like exercising and… cooking.

Luckily, before I got hit with Vertebrae.Fail I had a chance to make these bars for Offspring #1. She has thrown off all vestiges of her mother’s way of cooking and opted for a more totalitarian healthy approach. Ok, so maybe not totally wheat grass and lentils, but at least a more wholesome approach to food, which I applaud her for.

Anyway, I thought I’d help out in my own way and get a handle on granola bars, which I intend to eventually morph into more of an all-out health-food-centric energy type of bar for her. But I wanted to at least be able to get proportions down correctly for everything before getting too crazy with bee pollen and wheat germ add-ins.

And actually, I will have to say that I ate a few of these myself. What I really like is how completely customizable they are.

Now, I did use actual butter in these. Like I said, I was looking for proportions, and I had butter on hand. You can feel free to substitute whatever canola-oil-whipped-into-a-solid-form-and-sold-as-butter product you prefer. There’s also a decent brown sugar substitute out there if you’re looking to cut back on sugars.

Go crazy.

I used all of her favorites in these, and they were a huge hit. They will most definitely be on the list of things to make the next time we camp or go on any lengthy car trips. And I’ll keep you posted on any bee pollen/wheat germ renditions in the future.

Strawberry Coconut Mac Bars

1 ½ cups old fashioned oats
½ cup macadamia nuts, chopped
½ stick butter (or equal amount of butter substitute)
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ cup honey
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup Rice Krispies
½ cup yogurt covered pretzels, chopped into small pieces
¼ cup dried strawberries, chopped
½ cup unsweetened dried coconut flakes
½ package white chocolate chips
2 tsp butter
1 Tbs milk

Heat oven to 350˚. Spread oats and nuts evenly out on baking sheet and toast in oven, just until oats begin to turn golden, about 10 minutes. Lightly butter a 9 x 13” glass baking dish.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add brown sugar and honey and allow to come to a simmer. Continue to simmer about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Allow to cool slightly.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the oats and nuts, Rice Krispies, pretzels, strawberries and coconut flakes. Slowly pour butter mixture over the top. Using a spoon, mix slowly to combine.

Pour mixture into baking dish. Press down firmly with hands (it might help to use a little butter on them, too!).

Allow to cool. In a microwave safe bowl, combine chocolate chips and 2 tsp butter. Microwave about 30 seconds, stir, and microwave another 30 seconds. Stir until chips are completely melted. If mixture is too thick, add a little milk. Drizzle chocolate mixture over bars and allow to set. Cut into bars.

Cake and a Rant

No particular reason why I’m putting these two pieces together. As far as the cakes go, I’ve been wanting to make something like this for a while. And I’ve used my usual testing grounds… the office. So far, they’ve been pretty popular. Although next time I’ll make more glaze, make it more liquid (in other words, not completely reduce it to a syrup), and allow the cakes to stew in their own juices, so to speak, for a while. The glaze didn’t really soak in the way I wanted it to, in spite of everything being warm (cakes and glaze) and my helping them along a bit by poking little holes in the them.

Now for the rant. I find it disturbing how many ‘celebrity’ chefs are lending their names and faces to endorsing products that are just total crap. Almost as disturbing are the number of people who will blindly purchase said products without doing one bit of research because they firmly believe that these celebrities would not endorse products that they wouldn’t dream of using themselves.

Oh, I beg to differ.

I don’t tend to go for endorsed products. Don’t want to be told by someone else what I should do/like/buy/use. But I had been asked by a friend if I had any knowledge of a particular brand of cookware. I didn’t, but I told them I’d check into it for them. Didn’t take much digging to find out that this chef should be ashamed of themselves for attaching their name and face to something so inferior. This stuff was aluminum based, made in China, and distributed by, where else, Wally World (ick ptooey).

There’s your first clue.

Did some reading, and the “don’ts” associated with this particular brand reads like one of those commercials for a prescription drug whose potential side effects sound worse than the original condition in the first place.

My favorite one was that it didn’t recommend using them over a high heat.

Pots and pans.

Really???

By the way… I made the glaze for these cakes in a saucepan over high heat.

See how I tied it all together there at the end? Impressive, eh??

Coconut Rum Glazed Cakes
Adapted from Epicurious.com

3 cups sifted flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 1/2 cups sugar
6 large eggs, room temperature
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups canned unsweetened coconut milk

Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously butter mini Bundt pan or muffin pan (I made two batches of the mini bundts and still had enough for full batch of mini cupcakes as well); dust pan with flour. Sift flour, baking powder and salt onto a sheet of wax paper. Beat butter in stand mixer on medium until fluffy. Gradually add 2 1/2 cups sugar, beating until well blended. Beat in eggs 1 at a time, then extract. Beat in flour mixture in 4 additions alternately with the coconut milk. Transfer batter to prepared pans.

Bake cake until top is golden brown and tester inserted near center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool cake in pan 5 minutes. Turn cakes out onto rack.

Meanwhile, prepare glaze.

Coconut Rum Glaze

1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup water
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup coconut rum

Bring butter, water and sugar to a rolling boil in a saucepan over high heat.  Reduce heat and allow to simmer until mixture thickens slightly.  Remove from heat and add rum.  Stir well.

Spoon glaze over warm cakes, making several passes as the cakes soak up the liquid.  Allow to cool.

A Milestone Birthday

Offspring #1 turned 21 today.  Oy.  I'm still trying to wrap my head around the entire concept and the idea that she'd rather have top shelf vodka than Barbie dolls (although, to be truthful, she was never really a huge fan of those).

Anyway...

Over the weekend we had a family get-together for her.  And I was so wrapped up in getting everything together that I managed to only snap a few pictures.

At her request, I made Shrimp Wraps with Mango Salsa.  And in addition to her birthday 'cake', which was actually a key lime pie, I made her White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Fudge.  There were many other things there as well, but alas, no photos.

The wraps had a number of components, including a revisit to the Toasted Parmesan Flatbread from the previous weekend.  Just thought they'd make a nice substitute for tortillas.

I had eleven people to feed, so I made double batches of everything.  The amounts can be cut down for smaller numbers of servings.  Once the flatbread was ready to go, the next component was a coconut rice flavored with a bit of cumin.

Gingered Coconut Rice

2 Tbs olive oil
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp freshly grated ginger
2 cups long-grained rice
1 14 oz. can unsweetened coconut milk
1 14 oz. can low-sodium chicken broth (or substitute water)
1 tsp salt

In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat.  As soon as oil gets hot, add cumin and ginger and sauté just until fragrant.  Add rice and stir to coat with oil.  Continue to stir and cook for a minute or two and allow the rice to toast slightly.

Add coconut milk and chicken broth, plus enough water to bring the total amount of liquid to 4 cups.  Add salt.  Turn heat up to medium-high and stir a couple of times to completely incorporate the liquid.  Allow to come to a boil, then lower heat to medium-low, cover and cook for 16 - 18 minutes.  Let stand for 5 minutes, then stir to incorporate the coconut milk solids, which will settle on the top.

Garlic Shrimp

2 lbs peeled and deveined shrimp (I used small 55 - 60 count to better fit in the wraps)
2 Tbs olive oil
1/2 tsp dried chili flakes
3 - 4 large garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
Salt and pepper to taste (I like to use a course salt here)

In a large frying pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat until it starts to smoke.  Add chili flakes and garlic.  Sauté just long enough for the garlic to start toasting.  Immediately add shrimp (if your pan is small, do this in a couple of batches so the shrimp flash fries and doesn't steam).  Cook and stir until shrimp is just cooked through.  This will only take a couple of minutes.

Mango Salsa

1/2 red onion, finely chopped
2 ripe mangos, cut into small cubes
1 small jalapeño, seeded and finely diced
1/2 small red bell pepper, diced to the same size as the onions
1 lime
Salt to taste
(you can also add some finely chopped cilantro to this)

Combine the first four ingredients in a bowl.  Zest the lime and add to the mixture, then add the juice from the lime as well.  Season.


** We set up a buffet and allowed everyone to assemble their wraps according to their own specifications.  Also had avocado and olives on hand to add to the mix.

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Fudge

3 cups sugar

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter

1 small can (5 oz.) evaporated milk (about 2/3 cup)

1- 12 oz. pkg. white chocolate chips

1 jar (7 oz.) Marshmallow Creme

1 cup chopped macadamia nuts

1 tsp. vanilla

Line a 9-inch square pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides of pan; set aside. Place sugar, butter and evaporated milk in large heavy saucepan. Bring to full rolling boil on medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil until a candy thermometer reaches 234° (about 4 minutes), stirring occasionally to prevent scorching. Remove from heat.

Add chocolate chips and marshmallow creme; stir until completely melted. Add nuts and vanilla; mix well.

Pour immediately into the prepared pan; spread to form even layer in pan. Let stand at room temperature 4 hours or until completely cooled; cut into 1-inch squares. Store in tightly covered container at room temperature

Hello, Fall.

I think it’s safe to say that soon our crisp, cool mornings and sunny, warm afternoons will make way for long, dreary days of rain and more rain.  It’s the price we Oregonians pay for the spectacular Springs and early Falls that we have.

I honestly don’t mind the rain, mainly because it signals the return of one of mine and Offspring’s favorite dishes - risotto!

The making of risotto has become a mother-daughter bonding time for us.  While I run around the kitchen tossing ingredients into the pot and putting together other dishes, she stirs.  Sometimes the conversation focuses on serious matters.  Mostly we laugh and goof around.

This year we decided to usher in Fall with something a little different.  Something spicy.  Something… exotic.  We opted for Jerk Chicken and a Coconut Risotto.  It was definitely a hit.

Jamaican Jerk Chicken

6 Spring onions
1 large ripe mango
2 Scotch bonnet (habeñero) peppers, seeded and chopped (use gloves!)
2 tbsp dark rum
1 tbsp Thyme, chopped
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tsp ground allspice
2 tsp dried sage
1 tsp ground cloves
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp nutmeg, grated
2 tsp brown sugar
1 ½ tsp Salt
1 tsp freshly ground pepper
2 Tbsp white vinegar
1 tbsp oil

4lbs chicken pieces (use your favorite chicken pieces, thigh and legs work great)

Place the ingredients for the jerk seasoning into a blender and blend to a thick paste. Pour marinate into a shallow baking dish or sealable plastic bag. Add chicken and turn to coat. Cover and place in refrigerator to marinate in jerk seasoning for between 4 hours to overnight.

Roast chicken in 2 large shallow (1-inch-deep) baking pans in upper and lower thirds of a 400°F oven, switching position of pans halfway through roasting, 40 to 45 minutes total. Crisp under broiler if needed.

Coconut Risotto

1 can coconut milk
3 cups chicken stock, homemade or low sodium in a carton
1 1-inch piece of ginger, peeled
1/2 stalk lemon grass
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 leek, trimmed, washed, and sliced
1 cup Arborio or Carnaroli rice
½ cup sake
salt & pepper to taste

Combine the coconut milk, chicken stock, lemon grass and the piece of ginger in a pot. Bring to a simmer. Next, in a heavy bottomed skillet, add the olive oil and sauté the leeks and garlic until soft, about 3 minutes (medium heat). Add the rice and stir to coat with the oil. Continue to sauté for 1 minute and then deglaze with sake. Stir until sake evaporates. Begin to add the simmering liquid in 1/2 cup portions, stirring until all the liquid is absorbed before adding more. Continue until liquid is gone. Discard ginger and lemon grass from pot. Season rice with salt and pepper.

Garnish rice with chopped chives or cilantro. Serve immediately.