Easy that will Cook Vegetarian Recommendations (early education)

Vegetarian recipes have grown yummy, healthy and tend to be normally hassle-free in plans, as these take less time in cooking. Various vegetarian recipes can be bought on the earth providing ample for choices to buy one together with relish any recipe.

Many Crunchy, impressive and contemporary, vegetarian appetizer recommendations consume significantly less time and tend to be ideal for you if you do not want to spend more time during the kitchen. Baked plates also calls for less time and tend to be very straightforward cook. Soups together with various Italian and Far eastern vegetarian dishes can be prepared rapidly. Various vegetarian recipes that can be easy that will cook happen to be: Vegan Hummus, Mushroom Barley Soup, and many noodles, pasta, macaroni together with pizza recommendations.

The butter or simply cheeses can be utilised with assorted types of loaf of bread available as they definitely are easier to generatte. Cheese can be utilised as a good topping over the cookies or simply biscuits professionals who log in relish those combinations in conjunction with sodas, drab water, dinner, coffee or simply wine. Cheeses consist of various choices and methods; you can implement them utilizing other something to eat available. Cheese are usually cut during slices or are usually grated as per the point in time and liking. You will stock cheeses professionals who log in serve him or her plain or simply with an item.

Various different kinds of noodles, pastas or simply macaroni are usually boiled quickly and may also be mixed with various vegetarian formula. Ready constructed sauces are usually poured regarding these together with various meal spreads is usually mixed and may also be served towards your guests.

With potatoes it's also possible to make a timely recipe such as they can be baked or simply boiled and different kinds of sauces or simply mayonnaise, or butter can be utilised as a good topping. Mashed taters with butter is usually served or simply the potatoes are usually put during the gravy presently prepared together with frozen. Snacks, cookies, nachos are usually served utilizing various dips. Dips composed of butter, mayonnaise, cheeses are usually made during minutes.

Thus using commonsense together with easy ingredients you can try cooking within a uncomplicated manner and may also save point in time and really enjoy different recipes all at once. Thus you could offer mouth watering, easy together with quick recipes towards your guests. There isn't limit that will easy vegetarian recommendations. You can search online and may also make cooking non problematic. There happen to be many forms of the vegan recipes for any meals in a day, you may earn according towards your guest's solution.

A chafing dish is a dual tray made of stainless steel that is mounted in a frame, with a lid, and is used to keep food warm during a buffet or party. cookingdishes The outside tray holds heated water (to evenly heat the inner tray) while the inner tray holds food.

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Roasted Butternut Squash and Carrot Soup

I love chickpeas and I love that I've found something new to do with them. Not a starring role this time, but a solid supporting role.

Many soups that are purèed call for a potato to thicken the soup. The potato serves that purpose nicely without adding too much flavor that affects the taste of the main ingredients. Well, I don't cook potatoes at home and never have them in my pantry. I'm not anti-potato, I just love them too much, you know?

In this soup, I used chickpeas to thicken the soup and it works beautifully. They aren't quite as neutral tasting as a potato but they work beautifully and add protein and additional fiber to the soup. There is one important element to getting a silky  purèed  soup: you must use a blender to purèe the soup if you want it to be silky smooth. A food processor or stick blender just won't do the trick. Just as you must use a blender if you want to make silky smooth hummus (you do, you know - really), it's necessary to this soup, too. When it comes to hummus, some would say that you can't make a silken hummus without rubbing off the skins but I swear by the blender method.

...but I digress. I replaced the "one medium russet potato" called for in several recipes I reviewed with 1 cup cooked chickpeas in the recipe I ended up with. You could use canned but did you know that when you use canned chickpeas or other beans, unicorns cry? It's true!

ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND CARROT SOUP

Makes: approximately 2 quarts.

If you are using stock that is salted, take that into consideration and modify the salt you add in the other steps.

Equipment: 

• Blender. If you don't have a blender, you can use a food processor, but the soup will not be as silky smooth. Do you know how to safely blend warm or hot liquids? If not, please read Step #6 of the recipe before you purèe the soup in the blender. 
• Parchment paper to line your baking sheet when roasting the carrots and squash. You do it without, or use foil, or a silpat (silicone) liner, but I prefer parchment paper.

Ingredients

• 2 lbs washed, trimmed carrots and butternut squash (peeled and de-seeded). Cut the carrots into 2" long chunks, splitting the thick pieces into half vertically (you want these pieces cut side down when you roast them) and cut the butternut squash into 1.5 to 2" square chunks. I used two medium carrots with the remainder of the weight coming from the butternut squash. It's not necessarily what you use, it's that you end up with 2 lbs of prepared vegetables.
• 2 tablespoons olive oil (extra virgin or regular), divided
• 1 medium onion, medium dice
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 medium cloves garlic, peeled and thoroughly smashed.
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika - sweet or hot, it's your choice
• kosher salt
• fresh ground black or Aleppo pepper
•  1 cup cooked chickpeas
• 2 teaspoons sherry vinegar
• 1 cup water
• 1 quart vegetable stock
• Garnish (optional) herb or garlic infused olive oil, croutons

Preparation

Preheat oven to 425F, rack in the upper third of the oven. Prepare a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

1. Toss the prepared carrot and butternut squash chunks with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon kosher salt and a few grinds of black or Aleppo pepper and toss again to distribute the salt. Distribute the carrot and squash chunks on the baking sheet in 1 layer, spreading them out as much as possible. If they are crowded too much, they won't brown properly. Check them at 20 minutes. Roast in the oven for 20-30 minutes until the bottoms are browned. Remove and set aside.
2. While the carrots and squash are roasting, heat a heavy bottom dutch oven - at least 4 quart capacity - for about 4 minutes over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and when it shimmers, add the onions and the bay leaf  - season this with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of freshly ground black or Aleppo pepper and cook until the onions are translucent but not browned, adjusting the heat as necessary. Add the garlic and cook for about 1 minute.
3. Add the chickpeas and 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt and cook them together with the onion mixture for 5 minutes stirring occasionally. You don't want to take on too much more than a golden color on the onions, so adjust the heat as necessary. Stir-in the smoked paprika and combine well with the other ingredients, cooking for another minute. Add the 2 teaspoons of sherry vinegar and cook for another  one to two minutes, or until the sherry vinegar liquid is gone - or nearly so.
4. Add the quart of vegetable stock plus the 1 cup of additional water. Bring the soup to a boil and reduce the heat so that it is simmering. Cook covered, and at a simmer for 30 minutes. 
5. Take the soup off the heat and cool until it is tepid. You could even put it in a bowl, cover it and store it in the refrigerator for a few hours or over night. In any case, cool it down to a tepid temperature before you blend it.
6. If your soup is warm, ladle it into your blender, filling the container no more than halfway and hold down the lid with a folded kitchen towel. Pulse 2 or 3 times and then open the lid to let any steam escape for a few seconds. Replace the lid and hold it down with the kitchen towel. Start the blender on a low speed and then increase it to the purèe setting and blend for one minute. Remove the lid and scrape down the sides. Purèe the soup for an additional 30 seconds. Pour the purèd batches into a clean 3-4 quart heavy bottom sauce pan. Continue the blending process until all of your soup is purèed.
7. When the process is complete and all of the purèed soup is in the clean sauce pan, bring it to a simmer. Taste for seasoning and adjust to taste. Drizzle a little infused extra virgin olive oil on top or float a toasted slice of baguette that has been brushed with olive oil.

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Sweet, Sour and a Little Bit Hot: Stir-Fry Cabbage and Greens with Sesame Seeds

In an attempt to get my refrigerator cleared out, in preparation for stuff I'm acquiring, cooking or baking for Thanksgiving, I considered the head of red cabbage and a bag of pea greens in my crisper. Generally, I use cabbage in the fall and winter versions of Spoon Salad and I like to finely chop up pea greens as an add-in, but I knew I was not going to get to that in the next few days.

I also had some, garlic and ginger. Add soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sherry vinegar, agave nectar (alternately use honey), chili garlic sauce, sesame seeds and a little sesame oil and you can make a slightly sweet, sour and a little bit hot stir-fry. I also had some previously baked, marinated tofu cubes that I sliced up to add as a protein. For a prep-junkie like me, all the slicing, dicing and mincing is a rush but for those of you who don't get happy goosebumps at the thought of that, your pay-off is that the dish cooks in about 15 minutes.

This isn't so much a recipe as an example of really using the pantry, the spice cupboard and the crisper and winding up with something good. All sorts of substitutions can be made - from the type of cabbage or greens to the basic seasoning and liquids to the nuts. I really wish I'd had some cilantro, or chives and green onions, and I absolutely recommend those additions.

Pea greens, not to be confused with pea shoots which are more like micro-greens

I used pea greens - because that's what I had - but would recommend using another type of greens in this dish. When you quick cook pea greens, the vertical fibers of the (essentially hollow) stems, while pretty tender raw, do not break down. I occasionally buy pea greens and have always used them raw in salad, removing the tendrils and then chopping them up. If I did use them again in a dish like this, I'd pre-steam them in the microwave (sprinkled with a little water in the covered bowl) until they were wilted, but not completely cooked, and then chop them up very fine. De-stemming pea greens is kind of a pain and unlike chard or kale, the stem is not less fibrous as you move up to the top of the stalk.

Fortunately there are pages and pages of types of greens you can use, or you can leave them out. For the greens that have a slightly longer cooking time, you may wish to steam them in the microwave so that they are half-cooked and ready to finish off in the stir-fry.

If you're working by hand, it's easiest to thinly shred cabbage by separating some of the outer leaves
from the inner fold-y leaves. Flattening the outer leaves, placing them curved-side up
makes them easier to cut in long, crosswise strips.

I'm not including the recipe for the baked, marinated tofu (yet) but just about any protein would do whether vegan or omnivore: left-overs from your home-cooked, or a good purchased roast chicken, or pork, thin-sliced steak, etc - you get the message, yes? After the high-heat stir-fry and short braise in the liquids, the cabbage doesn't taste at all cabbage-y. It's tender but with a little residual crunch. It could be served on its own, or over rice or noodles.

Sesame seeds: from raw and white to toasted and caramel-colored, in the microwave. If you want to burn sesame seeds, it's dead easy to do so cooking them on the stove-top. You have to work harder to ruin them in the oven, but it can be done. I found that toasting them in the microwave removes the agony of defeat and acrid smell of burned seeds when cooked on the stove-top, but is the easiest (for me) if I actually want a tasty batch of toasted sesame seeds. You still have to pay attention to them but the whole process takes 5 or less minutes, depending on your  microwave's power and the transition from "almost toasted" to "perfect" is a little easier to control. On the other hand, if you've never had a problem toasting them in the oven or on the stove-top, I salute you!

RECIPE: HOT AND SOUR STIR-FRY CABBAGE and GREENS with SESAME SEEDS

Serves: 4 (generously) as part of a main dish or 6-8 as a side.
Accompaniments: If desired: rice or grains or noodles, previously prepared protein (tofu, chicken, pork, beef, etc.) if you wish to make it a main dish.
Equipment: 1 heavy 12" skillet with a lid (or a wok, or dutch oven with a heavy bottom), preferably without a non-stick coating. I like to preheat the pan without any oil in it. 1 microwave-safe glass or stoneware bowl (like a cereal bowl) to toast the sesame seeds in the microwave. The glass bowl in which you toast the seeds ends up getting pretty hot and I do not recommend using plastic - even BPA-free plastic - in any cooking situation where heat is applied.  

Sauce Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1/4 cup sherry vinegar or 1/4 cup dry sherry
• 1 tablespoon honey or agave nectar
• 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons chile paste (as hot as you want it) or a sauce like Sriracha
• 2 tablespoons rice wine or apple cider vinegar

Garnish Ingredients

• 1/4 cup raw sesame seeds
• 1/3 cup chopped cilantro (recommended)

Stir-fry Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons neutral oil, divided. I used refined grape seed oil. Canola oil is another choice.
• 4 garlic cloves sliced very thin
• 1 pinch red pepper flakes or small, sliced fresh or dried red peppers
• 6 cups cored and quartered red cabbage, outer leaves separated from inner leaves and each slices thinly crosswise (1/8" to 1/4")
• 4 cups greens (like kale or chard), stems removed and sliced crosswise (1/8" to 1/4") or baby spinach leaves (whole)

Preparation (Sauce):

1. Combine all ingredients  in a bowl, whisk together and set aside.

Preparation (Garnish):

1. Place 1/4 cup raw sesame seeds in a microwave-safe glass or stoneware bowl (like a cereal bowl). Do not use plastic.
2. Place in the microwave and cook on full power for 2 minutes.
3. Open the door and using a spoon, stir the seeds for about 10 seconds, making sure to bring up the seeds from the bottom.
4. Continue to cook in increments of 20 or 30 seconds, including stirring each time, until the seeds are just short of a medium caramel brown color.
5. Using oven mitts or a folded kitchen towel, remove the bowl and stir the seeds then pour them into another bowl or on to a plate to bring down the heat as they will continue to cook a little.
6. Set aside.

Preparation: Stir Fry, Assembly and Serving

1. Gather all of your prepared stir-fry ingredients, the sauce and the previously toasted sesame seeds as well as anything else - like prepared noodles, rice or proteins as close to the stove as possible. This dish cooks fast.
2. Pre-heat your skillet on medium heat for 5 minutes.
3. Add 1 tablespoon of oil to the pan, swirling the pan so that the oil covers the entire pan surface and when it shimmers, add the sliced garlic and red pepper flakes. Cook for 30 seconds.
4. Add 2 additional tablespoons of oil to the pan and turn the heat up to medium high. After about 30 seconds, add half of the thin-sliced cabbage to the pan, tossing it to coat. Stir-fry for about a minute, move the first batch to the outside of the pan and add the remainder of the cabbage. Stir-fry this batch for about a minute and then combine all of the cabbage. The cabbage should be just a little wilted looking.
5. Add the sauce mixture to the pan and combine with the cabbage. Cover and cook over high heat for one minute.
6. Add the greens and any protein to the pan and toss with the cabbage mixture. Cover and cook on high for two minutes or until the greens are just tender.. Remove the lid and if the mixture is too saucy, cook on high, uncovered for about 30 seconds to a minute.
7. Add all but 2 teaspoons of the toasted sesame seeds and, if using, the chopped cilantro and combine with the cabbage-greens mixture thoroughly.
8. Serve immediately over rice or noodles (optional) and sprinkle the remainder of the sesame seeds over top.

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Green Bean and Almond Soup and Notes on Vegetable Stock

This recipe was part of my "cook the pantry and the crisper" effort this week. After making two cakes with almond flour, I had a surplus. I also had a just-passed-prime, but still in great shape, pound of green beans. Searching "green beans" and almond meal". I found this recipe on Clotilde Dusoulier's "Chocolate & Zucchini" site. Ms. Dusoulier adapted this recipe from Rose Carrarini's (of Rose Bakery) book, "Breakfast, Lunch, Tea: The Many Little Meals of Rose Bakery".

Although not as pristine as when i bought them, these were super crunchy and fresh tasting.

It's a pureed soup of green beans, aromatics and vegetable stock thickened with ground almonds.  Green beans and almonds taste great together and using ground almonds as a thickener is a win for the gluten-intolerant. The resulting texture isn't silky smooth as most pureed soups, but the combination of flavors is very good. It's not a BIG! GIGANTIC! flavor-buster soup, but not everything has to be - just great ingredients and a lovely flavor. I ate this with salad and cheese toast.

In my version, I use leeks instead of onions and celery with no carrots (as there were none in the crisper). I prefer leeks over onions in a lot of soups and love the flavor. Leeks can take some cleaning, as there can be a lot of dirt in between the layers but I generally clean dirt of of the outside, trim off the ends, and the fibrous dark green parts (which I save for stock), cut them as called for and then wash them by soaking and swishing them around in cold water, letting them sit  for a couple of minutes to let the dirt drop to the bottom of the bowl then drying them off in a salad spinner. This method is easy and fast.

In most instances, I trim and cut up my leeks and then I wash them.
Just remember to clean your board and knife before moving on to the next vegetable.

Vegetable Stock: I cooked both wild rice and barley this week and used the left-over water as a basis for vegetable stock. Water in which I've cooked chickpeas also make a really tasty starter for stock. To that I added the green tops and trimmings from the leeks, some celery leaves, a bay leaf and a few stems of thyme. During the week I throw appropriate (where the veg isn't too strong-flavored or bitter and would overpower the taste) trimmings into a freezer bag and stuff it in the freezer. I don't use them if they've been in the freezer over two weeks.

The cooking water from many beans and grains - if you don't use it in the dish for which you cooked them - make a good base, too. White or light-colored beans - especially cannellini - tend to be good. I don't use bean cooking water when the resulting product is strongly colored or too cloudy. I let the left over water from the barley sit for about a half an hour and let the starch particles sink to the bottom while pouring off the less-cloudy water.

Vegetable Stock Guidelines: Heat up a big pot on the stove on medium-high. Add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil. Throw in the left-over vegetable trimmings that you have cut up roughly (the smaller the better) and a couple of pinches of salt. Depending on your preference, cook them without coloring them or caramelize them a little, adjusting the heat as necessary, along with 1 or two smashed cloves of garlic. Add a bay leaf, a few pepper corns, a tablespoon of tomato paste (if you have some) and cook for a few more minutes. Add half-dozen sprigs of parsley and a few sprigs of other herbs (if you have them). Add the left-over bean or grain cooking water, or just water to a ratio that works for the amount of vegetables and trimmings. Commonly, a pound of vegetables to a gallon of water, but adjust down (or up) depending on your vegetables.

Bring the pot to a boil, turn the heat down and cover so that the liquid comes to  a medium simmer. Let this cook, covered, for 45 minutes to 1 hour. It doesn't help this to cook it longer and by 1 hour, you've extracted the maximum flavor from the vegetables. Take off the heat and allow the stock to cool to lukewarm. Set a large strainer over a bowl and ladle the solids into the strainer (pushing down on them a little to extract so that you can pick up the pot and pour the remainder of the liquid through the strainer. Push down on the remaining solids a little to exact any extra liquid.  Allow this to sit for an hour or until completely cool. Pour this liquid, making sure that any sediment remains at the bottom of the bowl, through a double-layer of cheesecloth.  Cover and store in refrigerator for 2 days or in an airtight container (or multiple containers, in smaller quantities) in the freezer for a couple of months.

(LEFT) take the pan off heat when the almond meal is about this color. Have a plate ready (to cool it down)
because it will continue to cook. (RIGHT) Toasted and un-toasted almond meal comparison.

RECIPE: GREEN BEAN and ALMOND SOUP

Adapted from: Zucchini & Chocolate
Serves 4 as a main dish

I reduced the olive oil to 2 tablespoons, substituted leeks for onions and celery for the carrots. You can toast the almond meal or leave it un-toasted - I liked the taste of it toasted.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Leeks - equal to about 3-4 cups medium dice (white and light green parts) or 2 onions, medium dice
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 2-3 (depending on size ribs of celery, medium dice
• 1 - 1 1/4 lbs of green beans, washed and trimmed, cut in half if they are very long (over 4")
• Fine sea or kosher salt, black pepper
• 4 cups vegetable stock or water - heated on the stove.
• 1 1/4 cup powdered almonds (fine almond meal), divided (reserve 1/4 cup for garnish)* (See Note *)

Preparation
Heat up a heavy-bottom soup pot (4 or more quarts) on medium for about 5 minutes. Add the oil and when it shimmers, add the leeks, garlic, celery and a pinch of salt.  Adjust the heat, if necessary, to medium and cook, stirring periodically, until the aromatics are softened and some of the edges are golden brown. Add the trimmed green beans and another generous pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper (I used 5), combine the beans with the aromatics and cook for 5 minutes, stirring periodically.

Pour in the heated stock (or water) and bring the mixture to a simmer then cover and cook for 30 minutes. The green beans should be a little softer than 'crisp tender' but not mushy.

While the soup is simmering, heat a wide bottom (10" +/- an inch or two) pan over medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Have a dinner-sized plate ready to cool down the almond meal. Add the almond meal and stir to spread it out and break up any little clumps. Stir it constantly, adjusting the heat if too high, and when it is just golden (see the picture earlier in this post), take it off the heat and cook for no more than 10-30 more seconds, continuing to stir. Empty the pan out on to the dinner plate and set aside.

When the green beans are done, add the ground almonds to the pot and stir to combine. Remove the pot from the heat and allow it to cool down. Using an immersion blender - this will produce a slightly less smooth soup than a blender - puree the soup. If you use a blender, blend it in batches and then add it back to the pan to reheat** (See: Note **). Portion the soup into bowls and garnish with the reserved toasted almond meal and serve immediately. If serving family style, pass the reserved toasted almonds in a bowl.

* Note on making your own almond meal: Process 3/4 of a cup of blanched almond in short pulses, resting after a few pulses to make sure the almonds don't get too hot, until you have a fine meal.  Pulse too long and you've got almond butter.

** Note on blending or processing hot liquids: (1) let the liquid cool down for at least 5 minutes or more; (2) never fill-up the blender (fill to no more than 1/3 full) or food processor (fill to no more than 1/2 full) all the way up; (3) if using a blender, remove the stopper from the lid, fold up a kitchen towel and hold that firmly over the lid; (4) start the blender at a low speed or start the food processor in a few pulses before continually blending or processing at a higher speed.

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Sweet Sunday: Orange Ginger Torte: A Long Post for a Short Recipe

Murcott Tangerines

!WARNING!: this is a long post. You can skip down to the jump for the recipe. Or read on for:

1. How I will manage to make baked goods and desserts on a weekly basis without guilt; and
2. How I tussled through two iterations of possibly one of the shortest recipes other than, "Apple: wash, eat".

Torte Version #2 Plated: Made with Murcott tangerines. The only sugar I had was an organic unrefined,
unbleached, cane sugar which produced a deeply browned exterior. It also photographed a little darker than it actually looked.

Consider the following:

• I am much more confident in my savory cooking than in baking or desserts and I would like more practice, but... 
• I should not have left-over desserts or baked goods, hanging out in my house and calling to me like the Sirens

What to do? Until now, I'd only make desserts for a dinner party or other special occasion and send left-overs home with guests. A few weeks ago I had an ah-ha moment: the church a friend of mine attends serves food after services. A few years ago, I sent a test batch of vegan, chai cupcakes along with her (they liked them). A few weeks ago I asked her if I could make a dessert at the end of the week and send everything with her except for a serving for me to taste (and one for her). Eureka!. Now we have "Sweet Sunday".

Torte Version #1 Plated: This was made with regular white sugar and glazed with a thin mixture of
orange zest, orange juice and sugar.

Unlike savory cooking where I'm generally fearless and understand what's going on and why something works (or doesn't), I don't have that deep experience with desserts and baking. This means more copious head notes in my posts (as if I weren't wordy already!) which I hope are helpful for at least some who read. If it's all old hat to you, just nip on down to the jump link and go right to the recipe.

Torte #1 after an hour of baking. Looks fine on the outside, but the interior was mushy, still.

For the first round of Sweet Sunday, I made an orange ginger torte which has a very sexy, seductive aroma and taste. It has a short list of ingredients: oranges, eggs, sugar, almond meal, ginger (both fresh and candied) and baking powder. I ended up making it twice. The first time the end result, once I got through all of the trials and tribulations, tasted good, but I couldn't post it until I addressed the issues and questions I had or at the very least understood why I ran into problems and made it a second time with adjustments, and I will definitely make it again. I'll note this again in the recipe, but I really think this torte tastes better after the first day and on the third day it was even better - just wrap tightly and store in the refrigerator.

#1: How BIG is Small? ...Because Size Does Matter

• After I made it the first time the first thing I came to learn was that your idea of a small, medium or large orange may differ from mine and this is a perfect example of why weight is a better way to measure, especially in baking. The recipe called for 2 large or 3 small oranges. I had several Moro blood oranges and 3 of them that I considered small. The cake took two hours to fully cook instead of the one called for in the recipe. After the first hour, the insides were like oatmeal. I emailed the author (Clotilde Dusoulier of "Chocolate & Zucchini" fame - a very good blog, full of delicious, interesting recipes and good information) and she was gracious enough to update the recipe with the weight (1 1/3 lbs for the oranges) and also give a really useful description of how the crumb should appear in the post's comments. She has been blogging for years and her site and recipes are very popular - for good reason -  so there are generally many comments per post. Not all bloggers respond to questions, but she does - and did respond to mine even though the original post was from 2004!

#2 The Right Citrus for the Job

• I did some research and found that most of the similar recipes were called "Clementine Cake"  and generally called for Clementine oranges (a mandarin hybrid).  Also, I think blood oranges aren't my preferred choice for this torte. They often are a bit dear and I think the special taste and aroma qualities of a blood orange is lost in baking - at least in this torte. When you get your hands on a good blood orange, it is a wonder and not just for the beautifully hued flesh and peel. I can find essence of roses and other floral aromas in the flesh and they are wonderfully juicy.
  

  

  Torte Version #2: The recipe from which I started called for a topping of pearl sugar combined with lemon juice and zest. I opted for a glaze made with powdered sugar, orange juice and zest, topped with toasted almonds.

  
  I think this cake tastes better using an orange with less pith. Less pith=larger ratio of flesh and outside skin (zest) to pith. The second time around, I used 1 1/4 lbs of Murcott tangerines. Murcott tangerines are marketed in some areas as "Honey Tangerines" and are sometimes called Murcott Mandarins (see: UCR College of Natural and Agricultural Science's Citrus Variety Collection- I love this reference site). They are delicious to eat with a bright, sweet flavor and a great aroma. I rarely encounter a seed but cut mine in half horizontally to look for any before I pureed them. I think any thin-skinned mandarin or tangerine with great taste and a thin pith would work just fine.

#3 What is it supposed to look like?

• Ms. Dusoulier's comment, "...one thing I want to note is that this cake remains a very moist one, even when fully baked. The crumb should feel like it's been soaked in syrup" was so helpful because I wasn't sure. I know tortes made with nut meals or flours will not have the same kind of crumb as a cake or quick bread, but I really didn't know what to expect. Her comment made perfect sense to me and I knew, for my second go-round that it was properly finished.

#4 One last thing - I swear it's the last note.

• The first time I made it I used a coarse-ground almond meal and the second time, I used a fine-ground almond meal - more flour-like. I didn't see an appreciable difference so use what you have or can get your hands on. I used Bob's Red Mill almond meal both times. 

On to the...
RECIPE: ORANGE GINGER TORTE
Makes 1 8" cake
Equipment: 1 8" spring-form pan. I've seen similar recipes where a 9" spring-form pan was used with nearly identical ingredients, but make sure you check the cake at 30 minutes.

Notes: 

• I did not have any candied ginger and used more fresh ginger than was called for. I grated about 2/3 of the fresh ginger on a microplane and the remainder on the large-hole side of a box grater and really liked the occasional extra ginger-y punch.
• This cake is very moist and the crumb should appear as if it's soaked in syrup. It keeps beautifully in the refrigerator. Wrap it very tightly in plastic wrap and bring it to room temperature before serving. I think it just gets better on the second and third day.
• Even after adjusting the amount of orange, the cake still took 80 minutes instead of the 60 specified in the original recipe.

Ingredients

• 3 small / 1 1/3 lbs oranges (2/3 kg) (Clementines or Murcott tangerines), preferably organic
• 6 large eggs
• 1 1/4 cups (8 3/4 oz or 250 grams) sugar
• 2 1/3 cups (8 3/4 ounces or 250 grams) almond meal (fine or coarse grind)
• 1 3-4" piece of ginger, approximately 1" in diameter
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• Scant 1/4 teaspoon salt
• butter to grease the spring-form pan

Preparation
Preheat the oven to 375F / rack in the middle

• Wash the oranges well and remove the little green stem-end if it is there. Place them in a deep 2-3 quart, saucepan and cover with water + an extra inch. Place the sauce pan on a burner set to medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce the head and simmer for two hours, adding boiling water if necessary to keep the oranges covered. Drain and cool completely. Cut into quarters (over a bowl) and check for seeds. Puree until completely smooth in a food processor and set aside.
• Using a microplane grater, grate 2 1/4 " of the fresh ginger into a large bowl. Using the large holes on a box grater, grate the remaining ginger. Add the eggs and beat lightly with a fork. Whisk in the orange puree, the sugar, the almond meal and the backing powder until all the ingredients are thoroughly combined.
• Pour the batter in the greased spring-form pan. Bake for 40 minutes and check. If it is getting too brown, cover the top with a piece of foil. Continue to cook for 1 hour or if necessary, longer. Cook in additions of 10-15 minutes and check after each period. You should be able to stick a toothpick or slim skewer into the cake and just see a few crumbs when it's done. If it gets too brown on top, cover it with foil and continue.
• When complete, let the cake cool on the rack for 5 minutes. Run a knife (I use a very flat, plastic spatula to avoid scratching the pan), loosen the outer round and remove it. Allow the cake to rest on a rack until completely cooled.
• To keep, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator. Serve at room temperature.

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Roasted Eggplant in Coconut Curry Sauce

This dish is aromatic and light with some warmth, but definitely not hot.  I found it to be real comfort food. There are three parts: the coconut milk infusion, the curry paste and the roasted eggplant. You can serve this family style, on a platter, or on individual plates.

I didn't have the kaffir lime leaves called for in the original recipe and substituted lime but if you can get your hands on them, they are wonderful. The kaffir lime has sort of a double leaf and in recipes each half is generally considered to be one leaf. You can find them frozen or dried. I have read that if you use dried, double the quantity called for in the recipe.

Lemongrass. Left: prepared and ready to use

Lemongrass. Native to the Philippines, it is used widely used in cooking as an herb or tea. It has a highly aromatic citrus taste. It's pretty easy to find these days in some grocery stores and farmers markets and definitely in Asian markets. It freezes very well. To prepare, remove the tough outer leaves. Cut off about 1/3" at the root end. Cut off any of the top that doesn't give a little when you stick a fingernail into it. Remove a few layers of the tough outer leaves. From that point, there should be about 3-4 inches of stalk to use. Bash the remaining stalk with a meat tenderizer (or something similar) with gusto until it breaks down, then prepare as called for in your recipe. You'll want a sharp knife for mincing the bashed up stalks. Even with the tough bits removed, they're quite fibrous and the smaller you mince them, the better they will break down when you make the curry paste.

If you are freezing it, slice thinly (before bashing) and store in small plastic bags from which you have removed all possible air. I store mine in a 'snack sized' zip-close bags and just break off a chunk - it will defrost quickly - then seal the bag again. I  write the amount (number of stalks) of lemongrass on the plastic bag so that I can figure out what volume to remove when a recipe calls for a number of stalks. Fresh is best and freezing any aromatic will lessen its intensity, so use a little more if you're using frozen.

Coconut milk can generally be found in regular and 'light' versions. I can't remember the last time I used full-fat coconut milk in a savory dish. The 'light' versions have about 60% less fat and using it does not seem to negatively affect the dishes I've cooked.

This dish calls for Japanese or Italian eggplant. Long and generally about 2" or less in diameter. Make sure you don't slice them any less then 1/3" (and up to 1/2 inch) thick. They should be soft after roasting but if they're too thin, they'll break down.

The amount of sauce will be generous. After you serve, set some on the table to pass around. It's good. Since it is not over hot, this works as a side dish to spicier/hotter dishes or as an accompaniment to grilled meat, poultry or fish. I ate mine with some grilled, sliced marinated tofu.

RECIPE: ROASTED EGGPLANT IN COCONUT CURRY SAUCE
Adapted from: Herbivoracious
Serves 2 as a main, 4 as a side

Ingredients

• Coconut Milk Infusion
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and thickly sliced
• 1-2 small, hot red chiles (I used 2 chiles d'Arbol) roughly chopped
• 1 bay leaf, broken into large pieces
• 6 sprigs of cilantro plus 3 sprigs for garnishing the finished dish
• 1 14 oz can coconut milk (I used light)
• Roasted Eggplant
• 4 Japanese  or Italian eggplant (about 1 - 1 1/4 lbs), trimmed at both ends
• 1-2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• salt
• Curry Paste
• 3 small shallots, peeled and sliced thin (about 1/3-1/2 cup)
• 5 kaffir lime leaves, thinly sliced or the zest (no pith!) of 1 large lime (or lemon) removed in slices and roughly chopped
• 2 stalks lemon grass, tough outer leaves removed, tough upper stalks removed, bashed (to break down the fibrous stem) and minced very fine.
• 2 cloves garlic, thickly sliced
• 1 inch piece ginger, peeled and sliced thin
• 1 handful of Thai (or other) basil leaves (you can include some of the tender stems) plus about 8 small leaves for garnish (or 4 large leaves, torn at the time you garnish the dish)
• Juice of 1 lime (or lemon), plus a little more if you need it.

Preparation

• Preheat the oven, rack in the middle, to 450F
• 1 rimmed baking sheet
• 1 2-3 quart heavy bottom sauce pan
• Mortar and pestle, small food processor or mini-chop

Infuse the Coconut Milk

• In a saucepan (2-3 quart) on medium heat, add the oil. Add the garlic and chiles

Roasting the Eggplant

• Trim the top and bottom of the eggplants. Slice them lengthwise in 1/3"- 1/2" slices and score diagonally about 1/3 of the way through the top of each side of the slices. Brush a baking sheet with some of the oil and place the prepared eggplant slices. Brush each side lightly with some of the vegetable oil and season each piece lightly with salt on both sides. Roast these slices in the oven on a baking sheet until completely tender and browned - about 30 minutes in total. Check them after 15 minutes, turning each slice. On the second side, check after 10 minutes to make sure they're not getting too brown.

 Preparing the Curry Paste and Serving

• While the eggplant slices are roasting, in a small food processor, mini-chop or with a mortar and pestle, combine the kaffir lime leaves (or lime zest), the sliced shallots, prepared lemongrass, garlic, ginger and Thai basil and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Process in the food processor, mini-chop or pound until you have a very fine paste. Mix-in the lime juice. Set aside.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in the sauce pan you used to infuse the coconut milk on medium high heat until it shimmers , add the curry paste, adjusting the heat down, if necessary and fry for 1 minute. Turn down the heat to medium low and cook the paste an additional minute then add the infused coconut milk, stirring to combine. Cook at a gentle simmer for 5 minutes. Taste and adjust the salt. When it's ready, stir in the lime juice and combine completely.
• Pour half the sauce on a large, warmed serving platter. Transfer the eggplant slices to the platter and pour more sauce over the top (you don't have to use it all). garnish with the reserved cilantro sprigs and basil leaves.

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A Simple Soup of Sorrel, Leeks and Potato

Food bloggers photography dilemma: how do you photograph a VERY tasty soup that has the unfortunate hue of an army surplus tent? I think the color was due mostly to the color of my vegetable broth which rendered the soup not-so-green. So, before the beauty shot, why not dot the top with olive oil and float a perfectly formed quenelle of greek yogurt?

...that immediately sank to the bottom of the bowl. Oh, well.

Classically, a quenelle is a combination of fish combined with a white sauce, forced through a sieve, formed into the quenelle shape and poached. Now the use is broader, often just referring to the shape - basically a teardrop, where one of the two sides has a bit of a corner. So, I made this beautiful quenelle of greek yogurt and it sank. I should've swirled it in instead. Okay, I've moved on.

Leeks cooking with butter and a little stock.

This soup is dead easy. Except for the butter, salt and pepper, it takes four ingredients, all of which can be swapped out for others. If you have a small russet potato, a leek (or an onion, or shallots) and vegetable stock (or chicken stock, or even water) plus one other vegetable that is soup-appropriate, you can make this soup, or its cousin. If you're missing the "one other vegetable" and have another potato, you've got soup. Sure, you can tuck basil leaves into the blender with your roasted tomatoes when you purée it, or spike carrots with some harissa, but you can also just celebrate the taste of the ingredients, seasoned with just enough salt and pepper.

Sorrel leaves - pinch off the stem below the leaves.

Sorrel is a perennial used as an herb, cooking or salad green. Last week, Lynn and I used it with other herbs to stuff under the skin of a roasted chicken and it worked marvelously. I couldn't decide whether to use it in a sauce or make a soup - and decided on the latter. When I first tasted it raw, I thought, "Oh, okay another chard-ish, kale-ish cooking green." and then it tasted a little puckery (sour -like I had a mild lemon candy in my mouth - without the lemon taste or sweetness) and things got interesting. I really wanted to know what it tasted like without a lot of other competing flavors so I kept it simple: leek cooked in butter, vegetable stock, a small potato and sorrel, purréed after cooking.

After cooking, the puckery, slightly acidic finish in the taste of the raw sorrel goes away and it has a mild flavor that I don't think I can accurately describe or liken to something else - but it was very good.

The diced potato pieces should be completely tender, but should not break apart when you poke a fork into them.

You can make this without the potato and add previously cooked pasta, beans or other grain at the end. You can forego the purée-ing and keep it a little chunky - just chop up the greens as you would chard so that they are spoon up-able after cooking.

RECIPE: SIMPLE SOUP WITH SORREL, LEEKS AND POTATO

4 generous servings
This may be served hot or at room temperature.

You can purée this in a blender, food processor or use a stick blender. If you use the later, you may not achieve a totally smooth purée if that's your goal. If you substitute onion for the leeks use about 1/2 cup, diced. Leeks are milder than onions. If you use a blender or food processor, cool down your soup for a few minutes, fill the blender or food processor no more than 1/3 full. If you use the blender, crack the top just a tiny bit and hold a folded kitchen towel over the stop. Hot liquids when blended, expand and can become volcanic. If you're using a stick blender, make sure you cool the soup down and it is in a deep pot before you start.

If you are using a commercially prepared stock or broth, be conservative in how you season the leeks - you may even wish to pass on adding any salt until you've added the stock or broth.


Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter or olive oil
• 1 or 2 leeks (depending on size) white and light green parts washed, medium dice (about 1 to 1 1/2 cups)
• 4 cups hot stock (chicken, vegetable) or water
• 1 small (about 4" long) russet potato peeled, medium dice
• 4 cups sorrel leaves (or spinach or watercress), washed with the stems below the leaves removed.
• salt and pepper
• Garnish with a swirl of yogurt (whole milk), half-and-half or cream, a tablespoon per serving will do the trick and some pepper.

Preparation

• Heat a large sauce pan or small dutch oven (at least 3 quart capacity) over medium high heat. Add the butter and adjust the heat to medium. When the foam has died down, add the leeks and a pinch of salt. Cook the leeks gently, adjust the heat down so they do not brown, but cook until they are soft. If you want to add a little bit of the stock (as I did), add about 1/3 cup.
  
• Add the hot stock to the pan and the diced potato. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cover the pot. Cook for about 10 minutes until the diced potato is completely cooked through and offers no resistance when you poke a piece with a fork.
  
• Add the sorrel leaves to the pot and stir gently. Simmer for an additional 5 minutes and remove your pan from the heat. Cool down for a few minutes. Puree in thirds (see blender/hot liquid safety note in the head notes) until it is as smooth as you desire. Rinse out the pan and pour in the puréed soup to warm. Serve with a swirl of yogurt, half-and-half or cream - about a tablespoon per serving.

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Spicy Chickpeas: a Riff on Chana Masala

I dip in and out of Indian cooking and I can claim no expertise but I love the little I've learned about it. I absolutely love what happens when you combine spices and together they become a whole (taste and aroma) yet maintain an individual presence. While I've found good commercial blends, combining from scratch when you have the time - especially with whole spices - is so much better. The -several- recipes I referenced as a base for this dish were titled "Chana Masala". "Chana" (or chole) are chickpeas (garbanzo beans) and "masala" is a term used in Indian cooking -- there are many regions and types so I feel okay generalizing -- referring to a mixture of spices, often dry roasted, or a spice paste.

Draft 2 - with some cooking notes. More changes were made.
including leaving out the last addition of fried mustard seeds
at the end as I really didn't think it added enough
to go to the trouble.

I've seen references to Chana Masala in the regional cuisines of Punjab, Gujarat and Rajasthani. Most refer to the dish being fairly dry (not goopy or soupy) and being served with a fried bread ("bhatoora"). The dish is easily eaten out of hand with bhatoora. In my take on this it isn't completely dry, but far short of soupy.

Also, poblano chiles. Yeah, I used poblanos and they're definitely not used in Indian cooking. I really liked the idea of the slightly smoky flavor of roasted poblano in this dish and I have several in my refrigerator right now. One of my favorite vendors at the SF Ferry Plaza Farmers Market is Catalán Family Farm and they have some of the most beautiful chiles this time of year, as well as a bounty of heirloom tomatoes and other vegetables.

One thing I didn't have on hand that I saw in all my references was amchoor (or amchur) powder - a powder made from dried, green mangoes. I've had green mango salads in Thai restaurants and there's a slight sour-sweet taste that I'm guessing is enhanced in the dried version. Without amchoor powder, I substituted lime - adding the zest of 2 limes to the dish while it was cooking and the juice (about 3 tablespoons) at the very end of cooking, when the pan was off the heat. I don't know how comparable the flavor is, but I was happy with how the limes worked with the dish. A little sweet, a little sour and a slight hint of acid was a great contrast to the aromatic, smokey, spicy and medium heat of this dish.

When the mustard seeds start popping, be ready with the onions, otherwise the mustard seeds will jump out of the pan.

This dish is great as a side or as an entree. I ate it again tonight as a side with some left over roast chicken from Friday's dinner.

RECIPE: SPICY CHICKPEAS INSPIRED BY CHANA MASALA

Serves 2 as a main or 4 as a side
.
This is a great opportunity to practice mise en place by getting all of the ingredients either measured out or otherwise prepared. It's especially important to have the onions ready because when the mustard seeds start popping, within a few seconds they'll really start popping - right out of the pan and you don't want them to burn. Or end up all over the stove. Or on the floor. They're feisty.

Ingredients

• Spice Paste
• 2-4 dried hot red chiles, soaked in hot water to just cover, until soft ( I used 3 chiles d'Arbol, seeds removed)
• 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon ginger, grated
• 1 tablespoon fresh grated turmeric or 2 teaspoons dry
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 pinch ground cloves

• Dry Spices
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
• 2 teaspoons black mustard seeds 

• Aromatics
• 1 medium onion, small dice
• 4 tablespoons oil (canola is what I used), divided
• 1 sweet red pepper (bell, gypsy, sweet Italian) , small dice

• 2 cups cooked chickpeas
• 1 cup fresh tomato, medium dice (seeds and juice included)
• 1 tablespoon amchoor powder or the zest of 2 limes
• 1 large poblano chile, de-seeded and roasted (skin removed), medium dice
• Water - 1 to 1 1/2 cups

• Garnish
• Juice of 2 limes
• 1/4 cup cilantro, finely minced + a little extra to garnish the plate

• Salt and fresh ground pepper

Preparation

• Prepare the spice paste first. Purée the soaked chiles, including the soaking water, garlic, ginger, turmeric, cinnamon and cloves in a small food processor until it is an homogenous paste. Set aside.
• In a skillet or large saute pan (3 quarts, should not be non-stick) heated on medium high, toast the cumin seeds, coriander seeds and fennel seeds for about a minute, until they become fragrant and the cumin seeds turn a slightly darker color. Take the pan off the heat. Remove the spices to a plate or bowl and cool for a few minutes. Grind in a spice mill or in a mortar using a pestle. Reserve. Return the pan to the heat - medium high - and add the mustard seeds for about 10-20 seconds, until the seeds begin to pop. When that happens, immediately add 3 tablespoons of oil to the pan, immediately followed by the diced onions.
• Saute the onions until they are translucent, adjusting the heat as necessary and cook until completely soft and a little golden around the edges. Add the diced red pepper cook until it is tender but still has some structure
• Clear a spot in the middle of the pan. Combine the spice paste with 1 tablespoon of the oil and add to the the pan. Gently fry the paste, adjusting the heat if necessary to keep it from burning, for a few minutes. Incorporate the spice paste into the onion and pepper mixture.
• Fold in the chickpeas, tomatoes, amchoor powder (or zest of 2 limes) and the poblano chile
• When nearly all of the liquid has reduced, take the pan off the heat and stir in the lime juice and the minced 1/4 of cilantro. Combine well and serve immediately.

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Spoon Salad, Chickpeas and Wild Rice with Yogurt Sesame Sauce

A few years ago, I landed on Heidi Swanson's blog (101 Cookbooks) when I was looking for instruction on how to make yogurt and have found inspiration there, and in reading her cookbooks (Super Natural Cooking and Super Natural Every Day) ever since. Her focus, is on "...natural, whole foods and ingredients - vegetarian recipes that are good for you, with the occasional sweet treat".

At the time I stumbled across her blog I knew I wanted to maintain my membership in the "I eat meat" club, but wanted to cut back and focus on produce and whole grains as the majority of what I eat. I was inspired by not so much the main part of the dish (which looks delicious), but the dressing in her post: Sesame Yogurt Pasta Salad. In turn, Ms. Swanson was inspired by one of Peter Berley's recipes in his book.

I've written on Spoon Salad previously - a combination of raw vegetables cut up so that you can eat it with a spoon - with a good 'refrigerator life' that I make on a weekly basis and mix with a variety of other vegetables, herbs, grains, nuts, beans, dairy, meat, fish and/or tofu. The creativity is in the dressings and 'mix-ins'. The base vegetables change somewhat by season. Every once in a while, I'll use it as a base for a speedy saute or stir fry. I just don't get tired of it.

I had Spoon Salad in the refrigerator along with cooked chickpeas and wild rice and enough 'mix-ins' (avocado and cilantro) to make a great lunch, and enough leftover dressing to take to my friend Lynn's house the next day as a dip for sesame crackers.

RECIPE: SPOON SALAD, CHICKPEAS, WILD RICE & SESAME YOGURT TAHINI SAUCE

Sauce adapted from: Heidi Swanson's Sesame Yogurt Pasta Salad
Serves: 4 as a main dish and 6-8 as a side
You may make (and I recommend it) the dressing a couple of hours ahead of time and refrigerate. It will thicken up a little, but just add water - a tablespoon at a time - you don't want it to be watery.

SAUCE

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil


• 1 medium garlic clove, minded


• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin


• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander


• 1 teaspoon minced ginger


• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper


• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric


• 1/2 cup warm water


• 1/2 cup roasted tahini (if you use raw, you might want to add a teaspoon or so of toasted sesame oil)


• 1/2 cup plain or Greek Yogurt (full fat, low fat or non-fat - all of them work)


• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice


• fine grain sea or kosher salt

 Combine the warm water, tahini and yogurt in a mixing bowl and add 1/4 teaspoon salt. Combine.

Heat the olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic, cumin, coriander, ginger, cayenne and turmeric. Stir and saute for about 30 seconds or until the spices are toasted. Add this mixture to the bowl with the water, tahini and yogurt. Add the lemon juice and combine well. Taste for seasoning.

SALAD

• 4-6 cups of Spoon Salad (or any colorful vegetable-based salad)


• 1 1/2 cups of cooked chickpeas


• 1 1/2 cups of cooked wild rice


• 4 scallions, chopped (green and white parts)


• 1/4 cup cilantro (packed) chopped - leaves and the tender parts of the stem


• 1 avocado, diced


• fine grain sea or kosher salt

Combine all of the ingredients with 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt* . All but the avocado may be combined a couple of hours ahead of time and refrigerated. Take it out of the refrigerator a little before you serve - it should be chilled, but not cold. Dice and add the avocado right before serving.

Like Heidi, I like to serve the sauce on top of each serving of salad with any extra on the side.

* This assumes that none of the salad ingredients are seasoned with salt. If you are using any ingredients  that have been seasoned, adjust to taste.

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Spoon Salad: It's Crunch Time

Spoon Salad: this time with cucumber, celery, carrots, scallions, zucchini, red bell pepper, breakfast radishes and snap peas

Spoon Salad?
Spoon salad is my name for a combination of raw vegetables cut up so that you can eat it with a spoon, with a good 'refrigerator life' that I make weekly and mix with, at the time I prepare it, a variety of other vegetables (those that don't store well), herbs, grains, nuts, beans, dairy, meat, fish and/or tofu. The creativity is in how it's dressed and the 'mix-ins'. The base vegetables change somewhat by season. Every once in a while, I'll use it as a base for a speedy saute or stir fry. I just don't get tired of it.

This salad is capital-C CRUNCHY! I love the freshness and the taste. It's filling and wicked good for you. It is also great for developing and improving knife skills. I have tried cutting some vegetables in the food processor but overall, it takes less time to do it by hand and in some cases, using a food processor creates too much liquid. I recommend a small dice (1/4") for carrots or other hard vegetables and 1/3 to 1/2 inch for other less hard vegetables.

If there's a vegetable you want to use and you don't know if will keep for a few days, prepare some and add it to a separate container. Check on it each day. If it gets a little liquid-y in the container, it's probably not a good candidate. If you are considering becoming a Spoon Salad convert, think about how and when you'll use it. Once you've diced up the vegetables, you've pretty much made a commitment and you may want to start by making just a few cups at a time.

 

There really are no rules, but these:

• The vegetables are cut so that you can eat the salad with a spoon


• Don't use any 'watery' vegetables - this is a salad that should last in the refrigerator, if stored properly, for up to five days. I've gone as long as seven days with no discernible degradation of appearance or flavor. Anything like tomatoes, seedy cucumbers or other vegetables that are likely to break down quickly should not be included in the 'base' but may be added at the time you assemble it for a meal. One exception is English or Persian cucumbers - they tend to hold up well.


• Make sure the vegetables are well washed when you start and as dry as possible before you assemble and store the salad - and by that I mean no or very, very little residual water left over from washing when you start to prep and dice the ingredients.


• It should be very, very colorful


• Store it in airtight containers - I store mine in several 4-cup plastic containers

You may or may not want to add scallions to your 'base', but I find that onions or shallots (if you wish to use those) should be added as 'mix-ins' at the time you're assembling your meal or dish. It travels well.

Ingredients I Use Include:

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Baked Corn Pudding - Version 2: Updated and Improved

 My original post can be found here: Baked Corn Pudding: Simple and Delicious. It was my second post but it was stuck there in February when fresh corn isn't an in-season commodity for most of us. I made it on Saturday, but changed it slightly, including my approach to the seasoning. Is it worth getting excited over changes to a recipe that has just ONE main ingredient? Oh, hell yes!

Here are the changes:

1. For every three (or four) ears that you grate, cut the kernels off of the fourth (but save it to grate any extra corn-liquid).This dish is delicious when all of the ears are grated but even better with some whole kernels.


2. Season conservatively and taste. By that I mean start with a small pinch of salt, combine thoroughly with the corn and taste. If that's not enough, add another, combine and taste. Go very easy on the salt. For this batch, I used two small pinches of kosher salt (for a net product of approximately 2 cups of unbaked corn - it was perfect. The same goes for the pepper.


3. The butter that you use to top it should be unsalted, chilled and cut into tiny cubes - this helps cut down on the amount of butter in the dish. I used 1 teaspoon for each of the ramekins pictured, below. Using less butter has no negative impact on this dish.

Another thing that's very important is that you need a minimum depth of two- and up to three (-ish)  inches of unbaked product in whatever container you use to cook the corn. You need to bake it long enough to get at least a little brown, but not so long that it dries out. It's  more important that the corn pudding is moist than completely browned on top. I started checking these after 25 minutes and ultimately baked them for 35 minutes. There should be some liquid bubbling around the outside and the middle should be moist, but not runny.

The ramekins pictured below are 1 cup (8 fl. oz), with a depth of 2" at the inside rim.

On the left, about 1 teaspoon small dice of chilled butter scattered over the surface. You could use more butter I guess, but I think too much butter detracts from the corn flavor. I placed the ramekins on a baking sheet. If you are making a larger quantity and use a single oven-proof container, there's no need for the baking sheet.

Recipe: Corn Pudding (v2)
Serves 4 as a side - multiply at will to serve more.


Ingredients:

• 4 large ears of corn (7-9 inches long), husks and silk removed. Trim off 1/4-1/2 inch at the tip and remove about the same at the stalk end.


• 2 teaspoons well-chilled, unsalted butter + a little to grease the baking dish


• kosher salt (if using table salt and/or salted butter, use a smaller pinch when seasoning)


• fresh ground pepper

•  Oven-proof baking dish. The dish should be sized so that there is a depth of at least 2" of corn and up to 3" (ish). If using ramekins, place them on a baking sheet before putting them in the oven.


• Box grater (or corn creamer) and a large container over which you'll grate the ears. I generally do it over a flexible cutting mat and slide the grated corn (after grating each half ear) into a mixing bowl. 


• Sharp knife for removing the kernels from one ear and cutting the ears in half, lengthwise

Instructions:

• Pre-heat the oven to 400 F, rack in the middle.


• Lightly grease the inside of the baking dish with butter


• Cut 3 of the prepared ears of corn (see above) in half, lengthwise. Slice the kernels off of the fourth ear into a bowl. When the kernels are removed, grate any remaining bits of corn and liquid into the bowl.


• Grate the remaining corn into the bowl.


• Season the mixture with 1 small pinch of salt. Combine well and taste. Continue to season (conservatively) and taste until you are satisfied. A little goes a long way, here.


• Season the mixture with a few grinds of black pepper and taste. Continue to season (conservatively) and taste until you are satisfied.


• Pour the mixture into the prepare baking dish. If you are using ramekins, make sure that the mixture is combined well as the liquids separate very quickly from the corn solids.


• Remove the chilled butter from the freezer and cut off a 2-teaspoon slice. This isn't brain surgery so a little more won't hurt. Cut it into a small dice and distribute evenly over the top of the corn mixture.


• Dust the top with a little bit more fresh-ground pepper and place the baking dish in the oven. If you are using ramekins, place them on a baking sheet first.


• Check the corn after 25 minutes and thereafter every 5 minutes. There should be some liquid bubbling around the edges and the center should be moist but not runny.


• Let it rest for few minutes, then serve.

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