Friday, March 21, 2014

my zucchini Provencal

A fancy way of saying a mix of vegetables with tomatoes and topped with parmesan

(remember: don't shoot the picture taker (you notice how I didn't say Photographer!)


In the fridge, I had a variety of veggies I had to use up:  I had extra mushroom/onion mixture from Jacques Pepin's Kiev style chicken, zucchini, tomatoes, red pepper, basil that I had to use up. My family really likes it (even when mixed with pasta)

Saute: zucchini, chopped onion, mushrooms, and red pepper (or use what you have) in butter and olive oil (so the butter does not burn)... when tender to where you like it...

-move veggies over and saute 1 or 2 minced garlic cloves (less than a minute so it does not burn) (garlic burns very fast).  Mix the garlic with the rest of the sauteed vegetables...

Add about a tablespoon or less of tomato paste, maybe 1/2 tsp... dried basil, salt/pepper for taste and mix well... let the tomato paste caramelize for a few minutes, add 1/4 cup of red wine and let the wine cook down, add chopped tomato or canned italian tomatoes and let cook for about 5 to 10 minutes for flavors to meld.  top with parmesan and serve.  (if you have fresh basil I would add it when you add the tomatoes)

I sometimes add chives and parsley depending what is left over in the fridge!









following Jacques adventures

I have been busy trying out some of Jacques Pepin's recipes from his Essential Pepin cookbook to our repartee of meals through out our week. Unfortunately my photo taking on my cell phone and my writing ability are about the same... so I guess you know what that means... photos that are barely visible, (no one would choose to make the dish based on my pictures) or non existent.

(please note: because of peanut allergies in my home - I use canola or olive oil for cooking rather than the peanut oil suggested in his recipes) 



lets start with the barely visible/not tasty looking (even though it was):

  Chicken Supreme Kiev Style - well not exactly the right picture... I made the family Jacques recipe that calls for butter, onion, mushrooms chopped, garlic and cilantro (which of course I didn't photograph) but for my youngest who does not like mushrooms I filled hers with left over spinach, onions, a bit of cream cheese, parmesan, garlic, salt/pepper and cilantro which she loved.  

Most bread crumbs used in other kievs and other breaded chicken tend to be overly crusty but in this dish the bread crumbs Jacques uses are from fresh bread that is blended with cilantro, crumbs, olive oil, s/p.  I found the bread crumbs to be very tender.  I did have to make additional bread crumbs for this dish as I was very messy while coating the chicken.  

The chicken was also very tender. I definitely will make this again and probably will make the chicken rolls ahead, refrigerate and then dip in egg and bread crumbs before baking. 

What I liked about this... I didn't have to first parboil the chicken rolls in oil to seal it before baking.  


Jacques Pepin: Fast food my way - not this recipe above but filled with tapenade. I love his tapenade

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Tomato Chowder with Mollet Eggs and croutons (I did make the croutons but in this picture my family had eaten all the toasted french bread painted with olive oil - then toasted- then rubbed with a cut piece of garlic) - in other words Tomato Chowder with Mollet Egg sans courtons.  (in other words a pretty boring picture).  Essential Pepin page 8/9 (loved his way of making mollet eggs soft inside and firm whites... works every time).



http://blogs.kqed.org/essentialpepin/2011/09/18/tomato-chowder-with-mollet-eggs/
-----
other dishes I have made:  
No picture:  

Braised sweet and sour Red cabbage. page 417 Essential Pepin-  I can say it was very good... I doubled the recipe and was happy I did.  We ate the red cabbage the next two days.  Changes I made: we only used 20 raisins (1 small child's box of raisins for a double recipe- why... I felt like it... :o) - Really good and easy to make. 

Steamed Cauliflower with Chives:  page 421 in Essential Pepin - excellent and simple

Cauliflower au Gratin: Picture does not show how good it really was. 
Its simple and tasty.. I had to add a bit more salt because I forgot to salt the water when cooking the cauliflower. 


below: Jacques Pepin's photo... they way it is supposed to look... Oh well... 

----
Quick Ratatouille page 461 Essential Pepin very good and easy (have veggies cup up earlier in the day will make cooking and clean up easier. 

Classic Ratatouille very good! page 462 Essential Pepin (loved in pasta) 

All the dishes above are simple and tasty and have become part of my families meals in the future. 







Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Product review: William Sonoma Garlic slicer/mincer

A month ago I went looking for an easier/faster and less sticky and smelly way to mince or slice garlic.  I found a garlic mincer and slicer at Williams Sonoma for $19.95, that I have come to really like.

The name of the product in the catalog online is wrong (as of 3/11/14)  - The site shows the product listed as a vegetable chop and measure however the correct pictures of the chop and measure are in lower pictures.


What I like about this product:

I can slice or mince many cloves of garlic fast
My hands no longer have the ode to garlic perfume
I know find it easy to clean in my dish washer or by hand
The cuts of the garlic are uniform

what I didn't like at first:

At first the comb that goes through the tines to clean out the garlic skins was not all easy because the tines were very tight.  The more I used this product, the easier the it was to clean -  especially in the dishwasher.
I did not use the little plastic collector that was given- I tossed it - to me it was one more dish to wash.

Over all - I give it 4-1/2 out of 5 stars and I would definitely buy this product again.
As I cook quite a bit I find this product invaluable in making the cooking process easier - If you are chopping a lot of garlic on a regular basis; this product is then for you.



Saturday, March 8, 2014

tapenade tonight

I am not a writer or a photographer (as you can see most times from my phone camera) but I am a happy home cook enjoying life!) 

I may love to try sometimes complex recipes (for me lol) but I always love a simple recipe that can add to a meal.

Last night it was Tapenade - simple, a bit salty and very tasty and super easy with the help of a food processor.


Ingredients for Tapenade:


-a good jar of kalamata olives (no stones) drained
-2 peeled garlic cloves chopped rough
-3 T rinsed capers
-a squeeze of anchovy paste (some people like the anchovies from a jar but I never use the anchovies up and so for me it's a waste).
-pinch of pepper
-couple (2 normally - depending on size) I had really skinny ones so I had to use 3) sliced fine




(anchovy paste that is available at my store) * please note... when I first started learning how to cook I wouldn't have thought of using anchovies but I find the anchovy can really add to the taste of a dish without over powering the dish with its flavors. 

Using the food processor 
:put all the above ingredients in a food processor and chop to a consistency you like - a couple pulses should do.  

What we love in our home:  adding tomato paste to the tapenade.                                                  (no exact amount - probably 1 T)

You can buy tapenade in a jar that is really great... 

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

March 5, 2014: Martha Stewart's Irish Stout and beef stew

(I am not a write, just a home cook having fun) 

I love Martha Stewart and Jacques Pepin because they show their audience how to cook; sharing their knowledge through their video's and tv shows.  So many chefs choose to limit their audience by guarding all their recipes, which is understandable because it is the way they earn their money.  But I have found my self buying all of Martha Stewarts and Jacques Pepin's books (for Pepin I love his videos),  because they choose to teach instead of keeping their recipes a secret. My own young adults have taken to learning to cook because they have and example to work off of.  To me, the chefs that choose this path have a win win situation...they teach not just the cook book fan but the family as well.   I, myself, have become a better cook because of Julia (the original), Jacques, Martha, Ina, and others.

Well I did make one major mistake on this recipe before I even started... I bought $17.00 worth of chuck roast cut into 2" pieces and tossed it in the freezer.  I put the frozen meat in my bottom drawer and was surprised the meat felt frozen two days later - so I let it set another 2 days and the meat still felt frozen... I opened it this morning and the meat was rotten. I had been feeling the center bone all this time... My dear husband had to go out and spend another $16 for replacement meat.  So my family meat went from about $25 for a family meal to $41.  Maybe this is a sign!  (Still cheaper than eating out). 


Martha Stewarts link to her recipe  http://www.marthastewart.com/318983/stout-and-beef-stew-served-over-egg-nood

 picture from Martha Stewart's website.. you can also find it in cooking school cook book (highly educational)

My review of the recipe for "us".  I know I cooked it well... I and most of the family did not like the stout taste in the broth/gravy.  The problem with my cooking this recipe could be that the stout I bought was a darker stout by Guinness (the only one I could find at our local store).  I have cooked with beer/ale in recipes before that have worked out well and from my take, this recipe should have the regular Guinness not the extra stout. My youngest daughter liked the vegetables and the meat, my other family members and myself like the tender beef but didn't like the after taste that the darker stout gave to the dish.  

Will I try it again with regular stout... probably not... but I am sure it will make the taste nicer for someone who wants to try.  I love Martha's recipes and I am sure that the stout that was available for me was too "stout" to make the dish enjoyable for my family. 
bacon _ she makes 1 inch strip lardons but I like the cubes. 
drain the bacon and keep the bacon grease in a bowl  - add 2 Tablespoons back to the pan for cooking the onions, garlic and then mushrooms - I ran out of bacon grease when cooking the mushrooms and added extra beef stock as suggested. 

remember not to tear the meat off the pan - the meat will seal when browned and should be easy to move - cook the meat in batches and then put them in a bowl (you want the juices from them meat) 


She has you add beef stock to the pan to deglaze the pan... let it boil a minute and then pour the liquid from the pan to the bowl of meat. Set aside
\

Add 2 Tablespoons of bacon fat in the pan and cook at medium high (I didn't have enough bacon fat so I added a little more oil to make the 2 T required). 


Saute the onions then garlic to a translucent (watch your garlic as it can burn) 
if the pan gets brown add 1/4 cup of stock so that the veggies don't burn)
After the mushrooms/onions/garlic are tender add the flour and dijon let it cook a minute (or until flour disappears) 


When veggies are done, add the beef and juices with stock to the pan and mix... add the remaining stock she suggests and the 2 cups of guinness or other stout. 
Bring to boil and then down to simmer for about 1-1/2 hours, then add the potatoes and follow the remainder of the recipe. 




My oldest daughter was an Irish Dancer for years - It was always so much fun to see her enjoying dancing... Back then we had to curl her long hair because the competitions didn't allow wigs like they do now.  I still can't figure out how she slept with a hundred small plastic curlers in her hair! My dear mom in law has the Irish on her side of the family. Her own mom Angela was an Irish dancer in her youth.

Feis: a traditional Gaelic festival or cultural event..

Gillies: soft shoes (my youngest, then at age 2 wanted her own pair of gillies - I  still have a pair of those small shoes. I am not sure how many of those shoes she wore out because she wanted to wear them every day.  So cute. I have been blessed with wonderful children - I could relive it all over again but then I would miss the lovely people they have become today.

 
                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                hard shoes
                                

_____________________________________________________

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Eggs Mollet Florentine by Jacques Pepin

Tonights Meal: Eggs Mollet Florentine by Jacques Pepin

What a nice way to use boiled eggs!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8QIDHla6iA

Chef Pepin uses whole eggs in this video - I used chopped boiled eggs in individual ramekins.


recipe: http://blogs.kqed.org/essentialpepin/2011/09/10/mollet-eggs-florentine/

My dear mom in laws zucchini pie

(I am not a writer - just a home cook enjoying her family and life)

I have to admit I have become a bit of a Foodie snob.  I don't know when it exactly happened. Most likely it happened when I wanted to choose healthier options for my family because one of my children, now a young adult, started having allergy issues with certain foods. I also wanted to increase my culinary skills in the process of cooking my grandmother's recipes but I have to admit it was also for my ego.

Prepackaged foods turned out to have unpredictable affects on some of my family members. I started only cooking from scratch.  I don't make airs about things out loud but I noticed a little of a snobby attitude towards items prepared by companies. I don't think that is a bad thing but I let my ego as a home cook get in the way.  I forgot that some recipes ,that were part of my lovely family (I am blessed on both sides of my family!!!) , had merit even though they used pre-made company products.


Last night I made for my dear mom-in law, her recipe for zucchini pie as I thought that she might like to revisit some of her favorite recipes.  I forgot that my family really liked this dish!  The only problem I had with making the recipe for zucchini pie was that  "my foody sensitive palate",  do you hear snob snob... nose rising in air...",  used crescent rolls, yellow mustard and dried herbs rather than fresh
pastry and "dijon".

(do you poupon?)


     BUT OF COURSE!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkbyaazyD1U

The dish doesn't sound cohesive, but it works.  Is it gourmet... NO... but is it a family meal - yes; and its good.  I forgot how many times my d mom in law had made this dish and how it "had" been part of my dear husbands, my own and my children's back ground.  I also forgot, cooking for my family didn't need to be frou frou at all.  A family meal is just that - a meal that brings all of the family together.. no stress... just conversation and happy eating.

enjoy

My mom-in-laws zucchini pie


Her card


sautéing the zucchini and onion


Okay I will still cook from scratch as it makes me feel better as well as I know what is in it (keeping those allergic reactions at bay); but I realized I was missing a whole bunch of good tasting food for sometimes snobby reasons.

Keeping my foodie ego in check and enjoying a slice of delicious zucchini crescent roll pie as I write! It's okay that it had pillsbury crescent rolls, yellow mustard and dried herbs! Yes, this recipe is very tasty!

Monday, March 3, 2014

times are a changing ...

I am not a writer - just a home cook that is always learning.

The other day I was fortunate enough to dine out with people I love very much.  Conversations flowed from family events, things happening in the world and finally to the trend of juicing.  Juicing, it seems, has become a normal part of eating for many in my family as a way to get healthy; especially after documentaries showed remarkable changes that the juice diet brought*. Last year kale and quinoa changed the culinary palette and now juicing (which I love) has made it's way into the American ideal for healthy eating and it got me thinking about other food trends.**


Fads and trends are always changing.. there is the good and then the bad... does anyone remember the cabbage diet.

I see food trends and fads as fluid - all depending on who brings the food items to the forefront.

The good:
- Cooking shows and cooks share lovely cultural foods from around the world. Immigration has always brought in the family recipes to share in our national diet- French, African, Indian of different areas, Pakistani, Jewish, Italian, Arabic, Scandinavian, Irish, Polish, Russian and so many more.
-Other trends come around because of health reports.
-Anything that makes us eat our fruits and veggies and makes us feel great.

The bad:
Food industries lobbying to get their industry noticed.
Advertising by certain food companies or farm supporting companies with false advertising.
 Food industries try to predict and motivate our food choices - it's a big business (1).  Is it healthy.. maybe or maybe not. It takes an educated public to know the difference. But I have noticed even the smart sensible individuals I know have fallen into following a new trend once in a while; my self included.



Looking into to the past:

I don't remember my grandmother following most food trends. She seemed comfortable with her idea of what food was supposed to do.  The older tante (aunts) and uncles and my grandparents seemed to have such a common sense to food; food was to feed the body and feed the soul of their families.

My grandmother  learned to cook first by family members and then at 17 years old, the woman that she went to work for in Paris gave her a cook book and said "cook"; so she cooked.  I remember her laughing when she told me this story. She said "I had no idea what I was doing" but again she became one of the best natural cooks I have ever met.  She didn't have a food pyramid but knew from her parents what was important, what was too much - (my grandfather would say "enough is too much", .  They didn't have meat daily but had so many vegetables and fruits - spring, summer, and fall all the items were fresh and in winter canned and stored foods were stored in the caves where wine was held.  I can't imagine how I could have my family survive, especially during world war II, if I had to grow and store food all summer.

My grandmother Bernadette - 2nd from right back row, my sweet mother (she may be small but she is mighty!)sitting in her grandmothers Lina's lap. My sweet aunt Arlette on the stone and my other dear aunt in the plaid dress  standing next to my Great grandmother and many cousins who are still in France.  

I think sometimes media and advertisements have helped us loose our common sense about food - what is good and what isn't.  Definitely myself!  I think that is why I have learned to be wary of the "super food" of the moment and trying to bring common sense and balance into my cooking so that my children learn that trends and fads are just popularity pushes in the food industry.


 My goal: Balance, good food, and lots of common sense!

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304360704579417170806726140?mod=e2fb
debate about cleanses etc.

a Wish I have: that someway that food deserts have fresh fruit and vegetables are made available to the people in those communities at a decent price on a regular basis and that abandoned building can be torn away and new community gardens are given financial and expert support.

*Documentary: Fat, Sick and nearly Dead by Joe Cross http://www.fatsickandnearlydead.com

**http://www.foodtimeline.org/food1.html


http://www.canadiangrocer.com/top-stories/cauliflower-set-to-be-the-new-kale-in-2014-36138

(1)    http://www.foodnavigator.com/Market-Trends/What-key-trends-will-be-driving-the-food-and-drink-industry-in-2014

http://www.dairyreporter.com/Markets/US-dairy-industry-lobbying-2012-Who-spent-what-and-why

Potluck - when you need a lot of food - Ree Drummond's ziti.(really mostaccioli)

The day before yesterday I made Ree Drummond's baked ziti.  It makes A LOT of food which is perfect for a large crowd with minimal amount of work.  It was tasty especially and even better the next day.  It's a family easy dish but isn't that what it's all about.. having fun with your family and friends rather than being stressed or stuck in the kitchen.

I think it is better made the day before and baked the next day. I also added tomato paste at after I drained the meat and let that cook for a few minutes, then added about 1/4 cup red wine and let that absorb.  

 Ree Drummond's picture. 

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2012/11/baked-ziti/

Ree Drummond