Why Vegetarian?

Recently I was invited to an event to meet blogger (http://herbivoracious.com/), food photographer, and cookbook author Michael Natkin.  His new, first book, "herbivoracious", published by the Harvard Common Press, is a beautiful, useful, practical, and aspirational collection of his recipes and philosophy that vegetarian cooking is very special while still accessible.

Melissa's Jalapenos + Lemon Grass

The recipe I chose to cook from the book, Aromatic Tofu Packets (p. 221), is not only composed of ingredients I already love, but it gave me the perfect reason to try the Paper Chef brand culinary parchment paper that was in my Camp Blogaway swag bag.  It's kind of amazing that you can put some tofu, veggies, chile peppers, sauces, and spices in a square of magic paper and end up with a steamy, incredibly fragrant, neatly wrapped packet of fantastic flavors.

In "herbivoracious" Michael asks the simple question "Why vegetarian?" then answers "Because vegetarian meals are good for you, tread more lightly on our planet's resources, and are kinder to animals."  Whether you agree with this 100% like I do, or if you just want to have more variety and healthful ingredients in your diet, you will surely be inspired by "herbivoracious".

Salads - Simply Sensational

Fruit Salad Fixins from Camp Blogaway

Salads are sensational, on so many levels.  They can be light or substantial, combining raw and cooked, cold and warm, savory and sweet, local and exotic.  All vegetable, all fruit, or a combo?  You can leave them au naturale, or dress them up any which way.  From hundreds of greens, grains, vegetables, beans, protein (vegetarian, of course), cheese (easy does it), nuts, crispy bits, herbs, fruit, seeds, oils, vinegars, fruit juices, wine, and spices, you can create thousands of combinations for every occasion, special or du jour.  Something classic done exactly according to tradition, or maybe with a twist; something with ethnic inspiration to evoke exotic places; what's on hand; what's at the market; whatever.  

For lunch, a snack, as a dinner starter, or main course, a salad could be just what you need to fill up, and not out.  A nice salad, without high calorie/high fat embellishments, eaten at the start of the meal, has been proven to result in consuming less calories overall.  And nearly all of salads' plant-based ingredients have health benefits like vitamins, antioxidants, and/or fiber.  While it's sure nice to have all of these benefits, even without them, salads are so darn delicious I'd eat them anyway.

Actual Bloggers, not actors, 'Created by Diane' and 'Liz the Chef'

Whether it's supper for one or enough to please a crowd, as in the two dinner salads I created and served at Camp Blogaway (fresh air, fun, food) recently, if you haven't already elevated the salad from what you think you should eat when you're on a diet, to what you want to eat as often as possible, let the ingredients and your imagination be the guide to your own sensational salads.

Camp Blogaway Friday Night Salad
Spring mix salad greens
shelled, cooked edamame
ready-to-use beets, diced
shredded or diced carrots
fresh mint leaves, torn into small pieces
shallots, minced
crumbled feta cheese
garden herb croutons
dressing: seasoned rice vinegar,
grapeseed oil, fresh lemon, pepper

To make the dressing: whisk 1 part vinegar to 1 part oil, add as much lemon juice as you like, and add pepper to taste.

To make the salad, toss together the greens and veggies (in whatever proportion you like), add dressing, toss, add cheese, toss, add croutons, toss, maybe add more dressing, toss and serve.

Camp Blogaway Saturday Night Salad
Spring mix salad greens
baby heirloom tomatoes
mini cucumbers
shredded or diced carrots
fresh basil leaves, torn into small pieces
shallots, minced
pine nuts
shredded Parmesan cheese
tomato & basil croutons
dressing: extra virgin olive oil,
seasoned rice vinegar, pepper

To make the dressing whisk 1 part oil to 1 part vinegar, and add pepper to taste.

To make the salad,  toss together the greens and veggies (in whatever proportion you like), add dressing, toss, add nuts and cheese, toss, add croutons, toss, maybe add more dressing, toss and serve.

Thanks Melissa's for Sponsoring Camp Blogaway!

Cinco de Mama

At our latest Los Angeles Food Bloggers' potluck we were asked to bring a recipe that represented something from our mother's repertoire.  After hearing from several bloggers that their mothers didn't cook, heated-up tv dinners, or ordered out, I realized again how lucky I was to have a mother who cooked every night, and as a bonus, her cooking was really good.   Maybe that's why I cook almost every night, and really good too I think.

While my mother was able to embrace a variety of cuisines, so there was spaghetti, chop-suey, and many "American" dishes on the menu, her specialty was and is Moroccan food, and my favorite has always been her Tomato and Preserved Lemon Salad.  I loved the other salads too, and there were usually at least 4-5, but I'd be happy if there was just T&PLS, with hunks of bread for scooping, dipping, and sponging.

Since this salad has some of the best qualities of a really, fresh tomato salsa and since Cinco de Mayo is coming up, I thought I'd cross-purpose the salad to accompany some easy, delicious Tamales, with a Moroccan twist.  Starting with Melissa's Tamale kit, I added some ground cumin to the masa mix, set this aside, and then roasted strips of sweet potatoes and zucchini sprinkled with cumin, cinnamon, sea salt, fresh ground black pepper, and olive oil.  The beauty of this kit is that the masa mix is made by simply adding water, and is already very tasty just that way but will gladly except any flavor you'd like.  The corn husks are pre-soaked, pliable, and after adding a nice amount of the masa mix, they can be topped with anything you can imagine - in this case, the roasted, spiced veggies.  No cheese was added because a. not Moroccan, and b. not necessary - the roasted sweet potato added an almost cheesy texture.

In about 1 1/2 hours (30 minutes to roast the veggies, 1 hour to assemble and cook the tamales) I had a dozen, hot, steamy, creamy, flavorful tamales to be deliciously embellished by my mother's wonderful tomato salad.



So for those of you celebrating Cinco de Mayo and/or Mother's Day (whether your mother cooked or not),  I take my sombrero off to you all!

Marie's Moroccan Tomato & Preserved Lemon Salad
8 ripe Roma tomatoes, diced
10 pepperoncini peppers, stems and seeds removed, diced
1/4 of a preserved lemon, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
handful of fresh parsley, minced
extra virgin olive oil
salt/pepper to taste

1.  Mix everything together.  You may not need salt because the preserved lemons are salty, but you decide.
2.  See #1.

Serve this salad as an appetizer alongside chunks of French bread or equivalent, use as a salsa, or any other way you'd like.  It's really good. 

NY, NY, It's A Wonderful Town!

When I found out several months ago that this year's International Association of Culinary Professionals Conference would be held in NYC I started psyching myself up for the challenge.  You see, I didn't have a New York state of mind, never understood why so many people did, and second and third-guessed my opposing opinion.  Previous trips had for various reasons left me with certain negative impressions, but I decided that this trip would be different.  I'm thrilled to report that a very positive attitude, an excellent conference on a professional level, pretty good weather, and spending quality time with old and new friends more than did the trick and I'm now on board the I heart NY ABC/1-2-3 trains.

For the food and fun portion of my trip, several destinations stood out:

Cheesecakes at Pasticceria Rocco

Pasticceria Rocco on Bleecker Street for the most amazing Pistachio Merringue cookies, cafe' latte, and Italian pastries - https://www.facebook.com/RoccosPastry 

Raffetto's Nona Ramona

Raffetto's on Houston Street in Greenwich Village for extraordinary handmade pasta, sauces, and Italian groceries - http://www.yelp.com/biz/raffettos-new-york

Grandaisy Bakery on Sullivan Street for NY-modern, European-style pizza, bread, and more - http://www.grandaisybakery.com/products/pizza/pizza-pecorino/

Grandaisy's Butternut Squash Pizza

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

None of This My Mac's Better Than Your Mac

There was a really fun insider's tour of the Test Kitchen at Meredith Publishing, with the food editors of  Family Circle, Ladies Home Journal, Everyday with Rachel Ray, and Better Homes & Gardens, with each magazine's version of a Mac & Cheese for tasting.  These accomplished women showed exactly how sharing one kitchen works to make each of their magazines better.

DP's Doughnut Pillow Wall

And now, for the recipe portion of this post, I'd like to share with you a very important pilgrimage I made.  I walked (with my new friend Teresa) from Times Square to Chelsea (I think it was kind of far if you're from California but not so much if you're a native) to pay homage to the Doughnut Plant (http://www.doughnutplant.com/).  For years I've seen DP featured on various food TV shows and day dreamed about going there one day.  Visit Doughnut Plant - check.

Of all the delicious food NY had to offer, my inspiration for this post was the fillings and glazes at DP.  I decided to fill my doughnuts with a Cactus Pear, Mango & Ancho Chile Jam that I preserved a few months ago, and top it with a simple glaze starring Melissa's Ojai Pixie Tangerines http://www.melissas.com/Products/Products/Ojai-Pixie-Tangerines.aspx, with a crushed Pepita garnish.  I'm pretty sure DP uses only the finest, best, purest, organic, ingredients for their dough, but I am not so noble.  So I used a trick I picked up a couple of years ago of using frozen yeast bread dough to make really pretty amazing doughnuts.  I know doughnuts are a nough-nough where healthy eating is concerned, but I never said anything about healthy, did I?  Plus really, the glaze and fillings are made with fresh fruits and there's only a short dunk in hot vegetable oil to make these doughnuts worth every ounce of evilness.

Best Doughnuts Ever  - Mine!
1 loaf frozen bread dough (out of a 3-pack)
vegetable oil for frying
your favorite jam
2 Melissa's Ojai Pixie Tangerines
powdered sugar
pepitas (crushed)

1. Defrost the loaf in the fridge overnight.  Cut the loaf into 6 sections, form each section into whatever shape you want, then put each piece on a cooking oil sprayed, parchment paper lined baking sheet, and cover with cooking oil sprayed plastic wrap.  Put the pan in a warm place (I use my oven) and let dough rise at least 1 hour - longer is even better.

2. Then take each piece of dough, gently punch it a bit, reshape, and again place on the baking sheet, cover, and let rise another hour or so.

3. Using a pretty deep pan that is wide enough to fit one doughnut at a time, fill the pan with vegetable oil  about 3" or so deep, and heat at medium-high about 10-15 minutes until oil sizzles when you stick a wooden skewer into it.

4.  Gently place one doughnut into the hot oil and cook one one side about 20 seconds then turn over with the wooden skewer and cook on the other side  20 seconds.  Then flip the doughnut back over and cook another 10 seconds or so on each side until golden brown.  Use a spatula to remove the doughnut to a parchment lined baking sheet, then repeat with remaining 5 doughnuts, one at a time.

5.  Make the glaze with the juice of one pixie tangerine and powdered sugar blended together until smooth and glazey.  Add the zest of one tangerine into the glaze.  Reserve the zest from the other tangerine.

6.  When the doughnuts are cool enough to handle, take a metal skewer and poke a small hole into the side of each doughnut, twisting the skewer slightly to create a pocket for the filling.  Put your jam into a squeeze bottle or piping bag and fill each hole with the jam.  Lay the doughnuts back on the baking sheet.

7.  Take the glaze and put a heaping spoonful onto the middle of the top of each donut.  It will drip on its own but help it out if necessary.  Sprinkle each glazed doughnut with the crushed pepitas and some tangerine zest.

Cyber Seder 2012

Historians Uncover Lost Fifth Passover Question:  Why is a cyber Seder different from all other Seders? The answer is when six separate food bloggers graciously offer a complete Passover Seder menu, each recipe a personal favorite, representing diverse family backgrounds and dietary preferences, that's new version Passover 2012 - Internet style.  This Passover potluck demonstrates how any type of community can come together for this special holiday meal to share the effort and share of themselves. We're so glad you could join us.

 

I grew up in Chicago, with a father of Eastern European descent and a mother from North Africa.  This was my good luck in general, but especially for Jewish holidays when each culture's culinary traditions were enjoyed in at least one meal or another.   

My contribution to Cyber Seder 2012 is the soup course, and while matzo ball is classic and much beloved on most Ashkenazim Seder tables, it's my mother's Sephardi fresh fava bean and potato soup that represents the holiday and season best to me.  It turns out our ancestors were ahead of their time when it comes to seasonality.

After I became a vegetarian, my mother easily replaced the meat-based soup stock in the original version of her soup with a veg-friendly one, and my Seder continues to be off to a very good start.  After the prayers of course.

Marie's Fresh Fava Bean & Potato Soup

1/2 cup yellow onion, diced

Faux Matzo Balls aka baby potatoes

1/2 cup fresh celery, diced                                                              

olive oil for sauteing

2 cups medium white or yellow potatoes, peeled, cut in half

1 1/2 cups fava beans, peeled/shucked

1 Tbsp. turmeric

1 1/2 tsp. saffron

1 32 oz. container Wolfgang Puck All Natural Vegetable Stock

2 cups water

Seasalt & fresh ground pepper

handful of fresh cilantro, chopped

1.  Put about 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a stockpot, and when it's hot add the onions and celery.

     Saute until the onions are golden, about 5 minutes or so.  Add the turmeric and saffron and stir to coat.

2.  Pour in the stock, water, potatoes, and fava beans, bring to a boil, and then turn heat to medium-simmer.

3.  Cook for 30 minutes then test potatoes for tenderness.  What you want in the finished soup is some potato chunks and some mashed.  Adjust seasoning, and continue cooking until potatoes reach the right consistency.  The longer this soup cooks the better it tastes. 

4.  Towards the last 2 minutes of cooking add the fresh cilantro.  

 
The other courses for Cyber Seder 2012 are provided by my blogger pals in the links below.  If you feel you'd also like a salad (which is a must at our dinner) please use this link http://adventureswithnancyrose.blogspot.com/2012/03/pixie-tangerine-and-massaged-kale-salad.html to my last post.  This salad would make a beautiful addition to any Seder table, with or without the garbanzo beans depending on your own cultural traditions.

Please visit my blogger friends for the rest of our Cyber Seder dinner:

http://stayathomefoodie.com/
Roasted Spring Vegetables

http://eatwelllivefree.com/
Charoset & Sweet Potato Latkes with Apple Butter

http://foodiegoeshealthy.com/
Flourless Chocolate Cake

http://www.theurbanbaker.com/
Claire's Briscuit

http://www.insidethekaganoffkitchen.com/
Matzo Strata with Zucchini and Tomatoes

I'd also like to send a very special "Happy Passover" to my friend Faye Levy, who with the help of her husband Yakir, has inspired and brought so many wonderful, meticulously researched and thoroughly tested recipes to aspiring and seasoned chefs everywhere.
http://www.amazon.com/Faye-Levy/e/B001IR3M7W

Pixie Tangerine and Massaged Kale Salad

With bags of glorious Ojai Pixie Tangerines from Melissa's perched on my kitchen counter I put on my thinking cap on how to best present these to the world.  Not to be lazy, but seriously these little balls of sweet tangerine juiciness are best eaten au naturale, i.e., peel + eat.  But since that doesn't make a very exciting food blog post, I turned back to my 1/2 Mediterranean/Middle Eastern roots and decided to do a contemporary twist on a classic salad combination of oranges, black olives, and red onions.  With massaged kale....

Another massaged kale salad recipe?  Really?  Actually, no, not just another m/k/s but the first one I've ever made myself.  Like you, I've eaten many m/k/s's and marveled at how delicious they were, every one of them, mainly due to the perfect texture and eatability of the kale. Well the secret to that tasty tenderness, as many of you already know, is to give your kale a brief, Swedish-type massage prior to composing your salad.

Basically you put your kale, de-ribbed and torn to small pieces, or use the Earthbound Farms organic mixed baby kale that I found FOR 99 CENTS AT THE 99 CENTS STORE, OH NO YOU DIDN'T, in a bowl.  Lightly drizzle with oil/citrus/seasalt and massage with both hands for about 2-3 minutes (baby kale goes limp pretty quickly).  Then place the relaxed leaves in a serving bowl to await the embellishments.

(For your musical pleasure while massaging your kale, here's Tommy Dorsey & his orchestra:: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-JDUnZv1N0&feature=related

Pixie Tangerine & Massaged Kale Salad
4 cups baby kale
11/2 Tbs. olive oil
1 1/2 Tbs. pixie tangerine juice (these babies are super juicy)
2 pinches seasalt
2-3 pixie tangerines, peeled and sliced into circles
4 red pearl onions, blanched, peeled, cut in half
1/4 cup raw, blanched, slivered almonds
1/3 cup roasted chickpeas* (optional)
additional dressing:
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp. pixie tangerine juice
pinch of seasalt
2 pinches ground cumin

1.  Massage your kale as instructed above in paragraph 3 and place in serving bowl or platter.
2.  Embellish kale with juicy slices of pixie tangerines, sliced salty black olives, and red pearl onions.
3.  Sprinkle almonds and chickpeas, aka faux croutons, over the salad.
4.  Drizzle with additional dressing.

* Roasted Chickpea recipe: http://cheaphealthygood.blogspot.com/2011/05/wayback-machine-roasted-chickpeas-right.html 

P.S.  I sure hope all my links work.

Food Shopping with Faye

Faye & I Strategizing

My friend Faye Levy is not only an award-winning food writer and cookbook author (http://www.cookstr.com/users/faye-levy/profile), but she is also the best source for the best prices on the best food products sold in our local supermarkets. On a recent shopping excursion, Faye found us 4 lb. (64 oz.) containers of grade A, low-fat, plain yogurt, with all the desirable live and probiotic cultures you'd ever want, for the ridiculously low price of $3.69!

Parfait du Jour

So with this abundance of creamy, culture-rich goodness I decided to finally try making yogurt cheese, with plenty of yogurt left over for morning parfaits du jour, etc. Now I know this isn't really "cheese" but more like a smooth, thick, spreadable Greek-style yogurt substance, though cheese-ish in its ability to accept sweet or savory embellishments whilst sitting on crackers, bagels, or other edible platforms.




Yogurt Cheese
3 cups plain yogurt

cheesecloth or coffee filters
strainer
bowl
plastic wrap

1.  Place the strainer over the bowl and line the strainer with 2 layers of cheesecloth or coffee filters.
2.  Put 3 cups of plain yogurt in the lined strainer.
3.  Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least 24 hours (I did mine for 48).
4.  Lift strainer from the bowl (excess liquid from the yogurt will have drained out) and put the yogurt "cheese" in a storage container to await flavors, savory or sweet, e.g., herbs, spices, marmalade, chutney.

I took some of the cheese and blended it with Melissa's Sun Dried Tomato Pesto http://www.melissas.com/Products/Products/Sun-Dried-Tomato-Pesto.aspx to make a creamy and tangy sandwich spread.  Along with some fresh arugula, on 12-grain bread, garnished with sliced almond "nails", these fun, finger sandwiches were the perfect complement to my teapot sugar cookies at a recent get together with my artsy, craftsy gal pals.

Thanks again Faye for your shopping expertise and culinary inspiration!