Best Vege Stock Ever!

I had never made my own vegetable stock and was also underwhelmed with the flavor of store bought stock. I bought One Bite at a Time by Rebecca Katz and was intrigued with her Magic Mineral Broth. Warning: it is quite a bit of work so make it separately and freeze in glass jars so you can pull it out and use it to add to her other recipes. And, I love this cookbook and her other recipes including a poached coconut ginger salmon that uses this vege stock.

I do make modifications to her recipe using what I have from my CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) box. I used red onions, purple potatoes, fennel instead of celery, and cilantro instead of parsley as a result. And no kombu because I haven't been able to find it where I regularly shop. Try to use organic produce in season if possible - it will taste better. I promise!

Wash and chop in chunks the following. I admit to peeling which is part of why it takes me longer to whip this up.

Mineral Broth

• 1 bunch carrots with tops (I wash and include green tops)
• 2 small to medium onions
• 1 leek, both white and green parts
• 1/2 fennel bulb with stocks/greens
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1/2 bunch flat leaf parsley or cilantro
• 3 potatoes
• 3 sweet potatoes
• 2 bay leaves
• 12 red and white peppercorns (or black. I've been trying different peppercorns which I purchase in little boxes by Spicely. I combined red and white peppercorns together. I enjoy their flavor which is milder to me than black peppercorns.)
• 5 whole juniper berries
• 1/2 tablespoon sea salt 

Again, rinse and scrub everything well and place in a 12-quart or larger stockpot, add all ingredients, and fill pot with water to 1-2 inches below the rim. Bring to a boil. Simmer for at least 2-3 hours. Strain stock using a large mesh strainer and bring to room temp before freezing/refrigerating.

I modified one of Rebecca's a tomato soup recipes that includes this stock and will post next so you can take advantage of tomatoes now and freeze the soup for chilly fall days that are just beginning.

Bon Appetite!

Creating complex flavor using watermelon

Watermelon is delicious as is. It can also be made to be more complex when other ingredients are added. My good friend, Kristie, shared this recipe with me years ago and when I read the ingredients, I thought "This sounds like a really odd combination." Normally I can read a recipe and figure out the taste in my imagination. This one was beyond me.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. It was created by Chef David Richards, Sweets & Savories, in Chicago, IL. I don't know whether or not he is still there. He prepared this salad at the Chicago Botanic Gardens for one of their Summer Chefs programs.

I know the 1st day of Fall recently passed but I'm still purchasing amazing seedless watermelon at Trader Joe's so enjoy while you can!

Summer Tomato & Watermelon Salad

• 1 small seedless watermelon cubed
• 1-2 cups mixed chopped tomatoes (I wash and cut into cubes keeping skin and seeds)
• 1/4-1/2 cup Basil, Cilantro, Mint washed and sliced in strips
• 1 cup Arugula
• 1-2 teaspoons honey
• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• 1 Tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar
• Dash chili flakes or paste
• Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

Mix honey, olive oil, vinegar and chili paste. In a large mixing bowl combine watermelon, tomato, arugula and herbs to your liking. Gently toss with prepared dressing. Adjust seasoning. I think this salad gets even better the next day too.

Bon appetite!

Summer Flavors on Winter Days

I really don't like winter. I don't like being cold. I don't like the gray, gloomy, short days. And, I'm not that wild about winter produce. Since I try to purchase what's in season to eat, I feel limited by the greens, oranges and browns of winter produce.

Last winter, I found a workaround so I'm now roasting and blanching like a crazy woman. While sunny corn, bright tomatoes and fragrant peppers are in abundance, I'm blanching and roasting and freezing for winter. Our grandma and great granny did this with pickling. What I'm proposing takes a lot less time and is pretty darn delicious.

Note: Try not to over blanch vegis. You want them crispy since you'll be cooking them again when you reheat or add to soups.

Green Beans, Carrots, Broccoli

To blanch, add about 1 teaspoon of kosher salt to a pot of cold water, turn on high until boiling. Gently add washed and sliced broccoli, green beans, or carrots for 1-2 minutes and remove while still bright and fresh with color and still crispy. Drain in a colander and stop the cooking process by rinsing with cold water or tossing with ice cubes.

Once drained of excess water, place in clean glass jars, cool to room temp and freeze. Allow 1/2 to 1 inch at top of jars to allow room for expansion when vegis freeze.

Thaw and add to soups or saute with olive oil, nuts and dried fruit for an added splash of bright color with your pork chops or roasted chicken.

Red Bell, Jalapeno, Pablano PeppersBroil and rotate or toast in a toaster oven until almost completely blackened. Remove from heat and place on a glass plate and cover with a paper or cloth towel to steam skin. Once cooled, place on a cutting board and skin, seed, and slice. Please in small glass jars - I use old herb and baby food glass jars. Allow 1/2 to 1 inch at top of jars to allow expansion when frozen.

These can all be added to other dishes in winter. One of my favorites: puree roasted bell pepper with sweet cream butter and some kosher salt. This is great on a baked potato or added to roasted corn (that you've also frozen and are bringing out in winter.)

Corn

I clean corn of husks and wash well to remove corn silk and roast on a cookie sheet at 425 degrees for 25 minutes. Corn may also be blanched following previous directions above. Once cooled, I cut the corn from the cobs into a large bowl and then freeze for winter use.

Tomatoes

Clean and slice in roughly 1/4 inch slices tomatoes and roast on a cookie sheet at 425 degrees for 25-35 minutes with 1-2 tablespoons of orange or lemon olive oil or extra virgin will also work. You'll love how the citrus olive oil adds a beautiful complexity when you add these roasted tomatoes to soups, on top of homemade pizza or in stews later in winter.

Cool and place in clean glass jars for freezing allowing 1/2 to 1 inch for expansion.

So enjoy the bounty and prices at your farmers market now for your future winter lunchs.

Bon Appetite!

Not to be beat with beets

I think it's genetic. My mom doesn't like beets but my dad loves them. I know some people have expressed to me that they taste like dirt to them. No they're not eating dirt, but we've all had a taste of it thanks to eating produce that hasn't been thoroughly washed. The best remedy for this is NEVER eat them canned. Canned beets are comparable to eating canned peas - Yuck!

Also, I peel mine first and wash thoroughly before cooking.

A favorite and easy beet salad of mine.

• One bunch of beets - peeled, washed, and sliced
• 2-3 tablespoons Cecchetti orange olive oil (you can use regular olive oil, but a citrus flavor is preferable since it becomes part of the dressing)
• 1/4 cup good balsamic vinegar

Place beets, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and cool. Once at room temperature, place in a bowl (roasted oil, juices, all that magic goodness) and add the following:

• 1 orange, peeled and chopped into chunks
• 1 bulb fennel, washed and sliced thinly
• dash of kosher salt

The salad is ready to serve. You can add feta or goat cheese. I like this salad as a side dish for both beef and poultry.

Enjoy!

1-2-3 Easy Peasy

My friend Robin was visiting from Chicago and she told me about this easy salad she saw on Master Chef. I still can't believe it doesn't have dressing on it.

1. 1 small seedless watermelon, peeled and chopped (I got mine at Trader Joe's)
2. 3-4 ounces feta cheese packed in water if possible, drained (Farmers Market or Trader Joe's)
3. 1/2 bunch of Basil leaves, washed and sliced 

This is delicious and refreshing. Great salad to make and take for neighborhood BBQ or lunch with girlfriends.

Tip: This makes a lot so you can halve the recipe if you're only feeding 2-3 people because it's very perishable - although I think it gets even better on the second day!

Bon appetite!

Best thing great grandma taught me

Baked bread + Cuisinart = Breadcrumbs

OK, maybe not the best thing she taught me, but definitely in the top 5. If you're throwing away your leftover bread now, stop. Homemade breadcrumbs taste so much better than store bought and are super easy to make. (Going into fall, this can really make a difference between good meatloaf and great meatloaf.)

I usually accumulate leftover bread over a couple of months and freeze it in the paper wrap in came in, in zip lock bags. You need to freeze it before it starts getting moldy. Once a have a few bags of frozen leftover bread, thaw and place on a baking sheet. You don't need to add anything else. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until it's crusty. Cool to room temp. Then place chucks of bread in a food processor with the sharp bottom base blade and process until it's the consistency of sand. Freeze is glass jars for up to 4-5 months.

Homemade breadcrumbs are now handy to add to homemade meatloaf, mac & cheese, and all the other wonderful comfort fall dishes that made great leftovers to take to work for lunch!

Bursting with flavor

Photo taken before blossoms were cooked

A friend at work has been sharing squash blossoms with me from her mother and grandmother's gardens. It's a real treat to have an abundance of blossoms to cook with.

This appetizer or side dish needs six ingredients (2-3 servings):

• 12-13 Squash blossoms, washed, remove stems and long center pistols 
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, peeled and grated
• 2 teaspoons washed and chopped cilantro (or use Italian flat leaf parsley)
• 1/2 - 2/3 cup crumbled good soft cheese (Humboldt Fog, Cowgirl Creamery Mt. Tam)
• 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (I use Cecchetti)
• 1 Tablespoon Sweet Cream Butter

Stuff each blossom with 1-2 Tablespoons of cheese, ginger, cilantro mixture until their very plump. Twist petals together. Heat skillet and add butter and olive oil on medium heat. Gently place blossoms in the pan. Cook 5-7 minutes until cheese is melting and blossoms are browning. Do not over cook since they will continue to cook a bit more even after you remove them from the pan.

I served these with two other salads and a blush wine. Bon appetite!

[Beef stock versus chicken provides richer flavor and gives taupe color. I should have used a green bowl for this. It would have looked prettier. It does taste yummy - if I may say so! :-)]

Spicy Latin Soup - makes approx 8 servings. 

1. ¼ - 1/3 cup Meyers lemon juice
2. ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil (I like Cecchetti)
3. 3 tablespoons butter
4. 1 red onion, peeled and diced
5. 1 large potato, peeled and diced
6. 2 zucchini, sliced and chopped
7. 1 teaspoon each cumin, coriander, Ca. dried chili
8. 1 each poblano and jalapeno peppers, roasted, skinned, seeded and chopped
9. 2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
10. Kosher salt

Sauté and cook the above ingredients until veggies are tender approx. 15-20 minutes on medium to medium-high heat. Stir periodically. Use an emulsifier to puree. Add:

11. Chicken free range cutlets, rinsed and cut into bite size pieces. Cook another 20 minutes until chicken is no longer pink. (I like the free range Trader Joe's. The chicken smells fresher and tastes better to me) Add:

12. 1 box beef stock (I use Trader Joe's)
13. 1 cup ½ and ½

Cook another 5-10 minutes until hot and bubbly. Stir periodically. Add:

14. 2 ears of corn, husked, kernels cut from the cob
15. 15 squash blossoms, cleaned, stems removed. Use your fingers to break loose the long pistils in the center of each flower and discard. Cut the blossoms cross-wise into 1/4-inch strips, including the bulbous base. These can be expensive so you can use 3-5. They do add a distinct and delicate flavor.

Cook another 10 minutes on simmer. Serve with sour cream. You can garnish with fresh cilantro. From start to finish including chopping and slicing, it took me about 1 hour and 15 minutes to make this. I was drinking wine at the time which may have slowed me down a bit. 

This soup freezes beautifully in glass jars for individual lunch munch servings. Reheat in microwave or on the stove top and serve with 1-2 Tablespoons of sour cream. Garnish with fresh cilantro if you have it, squash or nasturtium blossoms.

Don't recycle...

...your used peanut butter, mayo, Kimchi jars. Run them through your dishwasher to thoroughly deodorize them and they're ready for leftovers to freeze or refrigerate.

Use summer's bounty of stone fruit (peaches, nectarines, apricots) and produce like broccoli and corn to blanch and roast and freeze for winter use. I love surprising guests in December with a 'fresh' fruit cobbler made with summer sunshine treats.

Have you wondered why the food you've frozen doesn't taste so good after a couple of months in the freezer? If you've stored it in plastic containers or plastic bags, the plastic has leeched into the food mingling with the flavor for not-so-fresh smells/tastes. Freezing in clean glass jars eliminates this from happening.

How do you dress-up a chicken?

I love to cook, but sometimes I want something quick and easy. You know those roasted chickens they sell at Costco, Whole Foods, and even my Farmers Market? They can be dressed up to make a beautiful, colorful, tasty salad that’s fast and pretty darn easy to assemble.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 1 roasted chicken, skin and bones removed and shredded with your fingers (Or if your family ate most of the bird the night before, this is a great way to use up any chicken meat leftovers)
• 1 fennel bulb, washed and sliced thinly
• 1 handful of mushrooms (I like a mixture to add complexity), brushed and sliced
• 1 bag mixed greens preferably organic and from your Farmers market (Why? They won’t taste like plastic. They’ll be super fresh and should taste sweet. And, you’re supporting your local area economy and farmers.)
• 1 handful of nasturtium blossoms – or sometimes you can buy edible flower blossoms in the baby green mixes. These will add color and a peppery, spice to your salad. 

Combine in a glass salad bowl.

Dressing

• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil. I prefer Cecchetti Olive Oil because of the buttery flavor. (I even use it on my popcorn instead of butter!)
• ½ small sweet red onion
• 1-2 garlic cloves
• ½ cup balsamic vinegar or sherry vinegar
• 1-2 teaspoons honey
• dash of kosher salt and fresh ground pepper

Using an emulsifier, food processor, or slicing/dicing/wire whisking, blend the dressing ingredients together. Pour over salad and toss and serve.  Bon Appetite!

P.S. Add berries

If you want to get really fancy with your ice cubes, add berries with your juice and freeze in ice cube trays. I just did blueberries in fresh line juice for a Tequila Pellegrino cocktail.

This trick is also helpful if you have a lot of fresh fruit that may perish that you're not going to be able to eat now.

What a treat to have seasonal summer fruit in your cocktail in November on a cold rainy day. Cheers!

Cool down with a summer beverage that's light & tasty

I'm always looking for ways to feel like I'm eating and drinking well, without spending a fortune. While 'Whole Paycheck' offer convenience and 'whole foods,' it's easy to walk out spending $100+. Yikes! If you have a family, you're looking at spending way more so what's an idea for a cool beverage that won't cost $$$?

Buy fruit juice at Traders Joes and also juice lemons, limes, oranges and grapefruit and use your ice cube trays. Once frozen, toss in a plastic bag or glass jar in the freezer. I use these fresh juice ice cubes in bubbly water like Pellegrino, but they're also delicious in plain and simple tap water. This is also a lot less expensive than purchasing flavored waters.

For an adult cocktail on a hot summer eve, in addition to the juice cubes and Pellegrino, add Tequila or Vodka. Yum!