We had some tasty quesadillas tonight. One of the good things I did was use Cubanelle peppers. I have been unable to tolerate bell peppers for some time now, and a friend whose husband has a similar problem told me that he is able to eat Cubanelles with no trouble.
Stuff you need:
Half a butternut squash
package of tortillas (we used sun-dried tomato ones, but use what you've got)
2 Cubanelle peppers, sliced
1 onion or 1 bunch scallions, chopped
Cheddar cheese (or whatever your favorite kind is, you'll need ~2 cups)
garlic
cumin
pepper
salt
sour cream
First, steam or bake the squash until it's tender. Remove the rind and mash it up, adding salt and garlic to taste. You can use pre-cooked frozen squash, or the pre-cut frozen squash if it's easier. You can also find pre-cut, peeled butternut squash in the produce department these days.
Next, spread some squash over 1/2 of a tortilla. You will want it to be a thin but even layer.
Put chopped peppers and onion on top of the squash, and sprinkle pepper and cumin on top.
Put about 1/4-1/2 (depending on size and taste) cup cheese on top of the peppers and onions.
Fold the quesadilla in half and bake at 350F for about 7 or 8 minutes (until the tortilla is crispy and the cheese is melted). Serve with sour cream on the side.
Friday, August 31, 2007
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Organizing Your Recipes
This idea was part Catt's, part mine. When she is looking at a magazine, and she sees a recipe that she likes, she'll tear out the page(s) containing the recipe rather than keep the whole magazine. Or, she'll cut out the recipe if it's small.
The result was a pile of snippets and pages, so I tamed the pile by hole-punching the whole pages and sticking them in a binder, then taping the snippets to either a full size sheet of paper that I hole-punched, or to an index card. I know that a lot of people intend to write the whole recipe out on the index cards, but who really has the time for that, especially if it's one that you haven't tried yet? Taping it to the card works just as well--you can wrap it around the side of the card if it's a long snippet.
The next step is to keep track of the ones you try. If it's a keeper, move it to a different binder marked "Keepers". If it was indifferent or crappy, rip the page out, throw it in the recycle bin, and be done with it.
Also, if you're trying stuff out in a cookbook, feel free to take a pencil to that sucker. I am merciless with my cookbooks, marking the recipes in a star-rating system, and commenting with adjustments or alternative ideas. I can never leave a recipe well-enough alone, so making notes right in the book helps me keep track of what I've done, what's worked, and what I shouldn't bother with again.
The result was a pile of snippets and pages, so I tamed the pile by hole-punching the whole pages and sticking them in a binder, then taping the snippets to either a full size sheet of paper that I hole-punched, or to an index card. I know that a lot of people intend to write the whole recipe out on the index cards, but who really has the time for that, especially if it's one that you haven't tried yet? Taping it to the card works just as well--you can wrap it around the side of the card if it's a long snippet.
The next step is to keep track of the ones you try. If it's a keeper, move it to a different binder marked "Keepers". If it was indifferent or crappy, rip the page out, throw it in the recycle bin, and be done with it.
Also, if you're trying stuff out in a cookbook, feel free to take a pencil to that sucker. I am merciless with my cookbooks, marking the recipes in a star-rating system, and commenting with adjustments or alternative ideas. I can never leave a recipe well-enough alone, so making notes right in the book helps me keep track of what I've done, what's worked, and what I shouldn't bother with again.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Mashed potatoes. So simple, so filling, and a traditional comfort food. Yet, it's possible to have boring, bland, gluey mashed potatoes if you're not doing a few simple things.
The first important matter is to select the right potatoes. I prefer russets or Yukon golds--they mash very well and make light, fluffy mashed because of their high starch content. Red-skinned potatoes are NOT good for this because they will become gluey; if you really like the flavor, use red-skinned potatoes for potato salad or scalloped potatoes instead. Generally, go with a "high starch" potato; there are some weird varieties out there like Caribe potatoes that might work too, so just research your varieties before trying something different.
So now, you've got your potato variety in order. Now you have to decide: Peel on or peel off? I usually scrub them down pretty hard with a potato brush, using the tip to nick out the eyes (yes, that's what the point at the end of your potato brush is for)*. and chop them up with the peels on. I have better things to do than peel potatoes, and I like having the peels in anyway. Yukon golds have a thinner, more delicate peel than the russets, so if you're a peel-on kind of cook, those are a better choice.
How are you going to cook them? You can throw them in a big pot and boil them, like most people do. I still occasionally do that, but mostly I use my steamer to cook them. I've burned my hands too many times trying to pour a big pot of potatoes through a colander, and the steamer leaves the stove free for other things. I use the steamer for all kinds of other foods, too, so it's a pretty good investment.
Now, during the cooking process, I usually use some kind of herb to infuse the potatoes. The steamer has a "scenter basket", while I use a giant tea ball in a boiling pot. The herbs are usually whole rosemary and bay leaves, but fresh thyme wouldn't be a bad idea either. I don't put them directly into the pot because rosemary is a craptastic thing to get stuck in your throat, and it's impossible to pick it out like you would a bay leaf. Infusing the flavor this way works very well, and you'd be surprised at how far a little rosemary goes to flavor a lot of potatoes!
Another sneaky trick I use is to chop up a parsnip (or two) and steam/boil it right along with the potatoes. It will mash up nicely with the potatoes, blending in due to its color, and will impart a bit of nutty flavor.
Now, for the mashing, you can do whatever you want. Some people like to mash up the old fashioned way with a handheld potato masher. I can't really do that without pain, so I toss the potatoes into my stand mixer and use the paddle attachment to mash them. You can also use an electric hand mixer; they're a little cheaper than stand mixers. Use what you've got. Butter/margarine are tossed in during this process, along with your liquid (milk, cream, sour cream, soy milk, whatever you prefer), along with salt and fresh-ground pepper. Be gentle with the pepper; it's very easy to overpower potatoes with it. Give the potatoes several taste tests to get the salt just right. Everybody has a different preference, so it's up to you to sort out the amount you want. If you want to make it a little more interesting, use some seasoned salt instead of regular stuff.
I prefer not to have gravy, but if you must, Tofurky's giblet gravy is absolutely delicious and totally vegan. Enjoy!
* Potato brushes that have cute little potato shaped designs are adorable, but they lack the eye-gouger; they are less useful than the more utilitarian design linked below.
The first important matter is to select the right potatoes. I prefer russets or Yukon golds--they mash very well and make light, fluffy mashed because of their high starch content. Red-skinned potatoes are NOT good for this because they will become gluey; if you really like the flavor, use red-skinned potatoes for potato salad or scalloped potatoes instead. Generally, go with a "high starch" potato; there are some weird varieties out there like Caribe potatoes that might work too, so just research your varieties before trying something different.
So now, you've got your potato variety in order. Now you have to decide: Peel on or peel off? I usually scrub them down pretty hard with a potato brush, using the tip to nick out the eyes (yes, that's what the point at the end of your potato brush is for)*. and chop them up with the peels on. I have better things to do than peel potatoes, and I like having the peels in anyway. Yukon golds have a thinner, more delicate peel than the russets, so if you're a peel-on kind of cook, those are a better choice.
How are you going to cook them? You can throw them in a big pot and boil them, like most people do. I still occasionally do that, but mostly I use my steamer to cook them. I've burned my hands too many times trying to pour a big pot of potatoes through a colander, and the steamer leaves the stove free for other things. I use the steamer for all kinds of other foods, too, so it's a pretty good investment.
Now, during the cooking process, I usually use some kind of herb to infuse the potatoes. The steamer has a "scenter basket", while I use a giant tea ball in a boiling pot. The herbs are usually whole rosemary and bay leaves, but fresh thyme wouldn't be a bad idea either. I don't put them directly into the pot because rosemary is a craptastic thing to get stuck in your throat, and it's impossible to pick it out like you would a bay leaf. Infusing the flavor this way works very well, and you'd be surprised at how far a little rosemary goes to flavor a lot of potatoes!
Another sneaky trick I use is to chop up a parsnip (or two) and steam/boil it right along with the potatoes. It will mash up nicely with the potatoes, blending in due to its color, and will impart a bit of nutty flavor.
Now, for the mashing, you can do whatever you want. Some people like to mash up the old fashioned way with a handheld potato masher. I can't really do that without pain, so I toss the potatoes into my stand mixer and use the paddle attachment to mash them. You can also use an electric hand mixer; they're a little cheaper than stand mixers. Use what you've got. Butter/margarine are tossed in during this process, along with your liquid (milk, cream, sour cream, soy milk, whatever you prefer), along with salt and fresh-ground pepper. Be gentle with the pepper; it's very easy to overpower potatoes with it. Give the potatoes several taste tests to get the salt just right. Everybody has a different preference, so it's up to you to sort out the amount you want. If you want to make it a little more interesting, use some seasoned salt instead of regular stuff.
I prefer not to have gravy, but if you must, Tofurky's giblet gravy is absolutely delicious and totally vegan. Enjoy!
* Potato brushes that have cute little potato shaped designs are adorable, but they lack the eye-gouger; they are less useful than the more utilitarian design linked below.
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Essential tools: The Rice Cooker
I received my first rice cooker as a wedding gift nine years ago (yes, my first wedding). Now that I have one, I can't imagine how I managed life without it. I put in rice, water, and possibly seasonings, put the lid on, and flick the switch. No stirring, no watching the pot, just perfect rice every time with almost no effort. Doubly good is that, to clean it, I just soak the pan for a little while, and anything stuck to it comes right off.
Rice is a perfect companion to many of my dishes, and I keep at least a couple types of rice on hand. We buy basmati rice in large cloth bags at the Indian grocery, and we buy jasmine rice in large quantities at the Asian grocery.
Because these wonderfully scented rices are fantastic on their own, I usually leave them plain while cooking. Sometimes, however, I toss in a bay leaf, or I sprinkle in some cardamom. Either one can lend a little something to the rice.
If I have a lot of leftover rice, I will sometimes use it to make rice pudding, or store it for the next day's meal. There is no such thing as "too much" rice. It's too versatile to go to waste!
I would like to impart one piece of advice for use of the rice cooker: Use a little bit of extra water than you would normally use for stovetop cooking. This will prevent the rice burning on the bottom. My general rule of thumb is an extra half cup of water, but if you've got a really large cooker, you may have to use more. I have our formula tacked up on the fridge:
Another bonus of rice cookers is that they usually can also steam vegetables. So, you can cook your rice in the bottom while steaming a basket of carrots and broccoli up top! Very easy, no stove needed, and you can work on things other than standing over a hot stove!
Some are fancy and digital, while others are simple. Ours is simple, and it works just fine. You don't have to spend a lot to get good results! Also, please note the size of the cooker that you're getting. If you have more than two to feed, a larger cooker is a good idea, but if it's just for two, a smaller quantity of rice tends to burn in the bigger cooker--so you'd want to go for the three cup model. The links below are just an example of what's out there; search for rice cookers to see all kinds of them. Read the product reviews carefully, too, so you don't end up with a dud. There are a few out there that are very cheap, and you should avoid them. Expect to spend about $20 for a simple 3-cup cooker that works pretty well. I wouldn't trust anything that costs less than that.
Finally, if you do get a rice cooker, I'd love to hear about it--what brand, what model, whether it's really good or too cheaply made. Good luck, and enjoy :)
Rice is a perfect companion to many of my dishes, and I keep at least a couple types of rice on hand. We buy basmati rice in large cloth bags at the Indian grocery, and we buy jasmine rice in large quantities at the Asian grocery.
Because these wonderfully scented rices are fantastic on their own, I usually leave them plain while cooking. Sometimes, however, I toss in a bay leaf, or I sprinkle in some cardamom. Either one can lend a little something to the rice.
If I have a lot of leftover rice, I will sometimes use it to make rice pudding, or store it for the next day's meal. There is no such thing as "too much" rice. It's too versatile to go to waste!
I would like to impart one piece of advice for use of the rice cooker: Use a little bit of extra water than you would normally use for stovetop cooking. This will prevent the rice burning on the bottom. My general rule of thumb is an extra half cup of water, but if you've got a really large cooker, you may have to use more. I have our formula tacked up on the fridge:
W = 2R + .5
The quantity of water is equal to twice the amount of rice, plus a half cup. So, if you are cooking one cup of rice, you will need two and a half cups of water.
Another bonus of rice cookers is that they usually can also steam vegetables. So, you can cook your rice in the bottom while steaming a basket of carrots and broccoli up top! Very easy, no stove needed, and you can work on things other than standing over a hot stove!
Some are fancy and digital, while others are simple. Ours is simple, and it works just fine. You don't have to spend a lot to get good results! Also, please note the size of the cooker that you're getting. If you have more than two to feed, a larger cooker is a good idea, but if it's just for two, a smaller quantity of rice tends to burn in the bigger cooker--so you'd want to go for the three cup model. The links below are just an example of what's out there; search for rice cookers to see all kinds of them. Read the product reviews carefully, too, so you don't end up with a dud. There are a few out there that are very cheap, and you should avoid them. Expect to spend about $20 for a simple 3-cup cooker that works pretty well. I wouldn't trust anything that costs less than that.
Finally, if you do get a rice cooker, I'd love to hear about it--what brand, what model, whether it's really good or too cheaply made. Good luck, and enjoy :)
How I do what I do
Much of my cookery is "spoonful of this, pinch of that" sort of stuff. I find that, with a few very simple ingredients, I can make a number of different meals taste really good. Some of the essentials:
- a jar of minced ginger (cheap at the Asian or Indian grocery)
- a jar of minced or crushed garlic
- Tamari soy sauce
- lemon juice
- lime juice
- orange juice
- sea salt (the gray stuff at the co-op is fabulous)
- thyme (dry or fresh; dry's easier, but they make a paste in a tube now, of all things!)
- olive oil
Seriously, a combination of most of the above, with your choice of one of the citrus juices, makes a very basic but very tasty "sauce" for cooking vegetables. Some favorite combinations:
- Zucchini and mushrooms, with chopped tomatoes thrown in at the very end (and sometimes a can of chick peas). The tomatoes can be fresh or canned--canned ones are best if you can't get garden-fresh ones. The tastless, grainy, painfully acidic things that pass for modern tomatoes in grocery stores are NOT worth your time. Cherry or grape tomatoes, however, are the exception. You toss them in at the end of cooking so that they don't get too mushy; you want them hot, slightly seared, with the skin wrinkling just slightly.
- green beans (or other fresh beans, including the yellow wax beans and dragon beans), chopped into 2-inch segments, with sliced almonds
- snow peas, broccoli, carrots, and cashews.
We generally serve the vegetables over rice; our preference is basmati rice, but jasmine rice is also wonderfully aromatic and delicious. I love it when the basmati fragrance fills our home. It's doubly good when I've put a pinch of cardamom powder in the rice cooker.
- a jar of minced ginger (cheap at the Asian or Indian grocery)
- a jar of minced or crushed garlic
- Tamari soy sauce
- lemon juice
- lime juice
- orange juice
- sea salt (the gray stuff at the co-op is fabulous)
- thyme (dry or fresh; dry's easier, but they make a paste in a tube now, of all things!)
- olive oil
Seriously, a combination of most of the above, with your choice of one of the citrus juices, makes a very basic but very tasty "sauce" for cooking vegetables. Some favorite combinations:
- Zucchini and mushrooms, with chopped tomatoes thrown in at the very end (and sometimes a can of chick peas). The tomatoes can be fresh or canned--canned ones are best if you can't get garden-fresh ones. The tastless, grainy, painfully acidic things that pass for modern tomatoes in grocery stores are NOT worth your time. Cherry or grape tomatoes, however, are the exception. You toss them in at the end of cooking so that they don't get too mushy; you want them hot, slightly seared, with the skin wrinkling just slightly.
- green beans (or other fresh beans, including the yellow wax beans and dragon beans), chopped into 2-inch segments, with sliced almonds
- snow peas, broccoli, carrots, and cashews.
We generally serve the vegetables over rice; our preference is basmati rice, but jasmine rice is also wonderfully aromatic and delicious. I love it when the basmati fragrance fills our home. It's doubly good when I've put a pinch of cardamom powder in the rice cooker.
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