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Fabulous Homemade Ranch Dressing

July 3, 2012 by 12 Comments

This one’s for my friend, Peg. Peg bakes magnificent bread and sells it at our farmers’ market in Angelica, New York. Peg pointed a baguette at me last Saturday and said, “Rebecca. You need to do Ranch dressing. Soon.”  When someone brandishes bread at me, I listen.

It didn’t hurt that Peg was doing a little mind-reading. I had just been thinking that Foodie With Family was sorely lacking in the salad dressing category and it is BIG GREEN SALAD season and we all know how I feel about BIG GREEN SALADS (if not, click here.) It’s dunking season, too. Don’t forget all the summer snacking possiblities. Carrot and celery sticks, broccoli and cauliflower florets -oh heck- and breadsticks, and chicken wings, too. Just about everything is better with a little coating of Ranch dressing, isn’t it?

Remember that Ranch dressing doesn’t just come in packets. And good golly… that pre-made stuff in the bottle is horrific. Ranch dressing is -at the heart of things- a tangy buttermilk dressing loaded to the gills (were buttermilk to have gills, that is) with herbs. We all know fresh herbs taste better than dry ones, so why are we content to dress our salads with dry ones? This Independence Day, I call for a revolution. A Ranch revolution. A herby, garlicky, tangy, creamy, buttermilky dressing revolution.

Put pitchers of this out at your party! Put bowls of this out on your buffet for dipping! Celebrate your freedom from packets and bottled dressing!

Peg will lead the charge with a baguette.

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Fabulous Homemade Ranch Dressing

Yield: 3 cups of dressing/dip

Fabulous Homemade Ranch Dressing

No need to buy packets of mix or bottles of the stuff, Fabulous Homemade Ranch Dressing is just minutes away. Tangy buttermilk thickened with sour cream and mayonnaise is the base for the classic herb dressing that kids of all ages love on salads or as dip. Once you try the homemade version, you may never go back!

Ingredients

  • 1 1/4 cups cultured buttermilk (homemade, or storebought)
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 3/4 cup mayonnaise
  • 1/3 cup, packed, finely chopped dill
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley (flat-leaf or curly)
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped chives or green parts only of scallions
  • 3/4 teaspoon finely chopped fresh oregano
  • 1 large clove garlic, peeled and finely minced or pressed (or 1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic)
  • 1 teaspoon salt (or more to taste)
  • freshly ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

In a mixing bowl, whisk together all ingredients until smooth. Pour into a canning jar or pitcher, cover tightly and refrigerate for up to 10 days.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/07/03/fabulous-homemade-ranch-dressing/

Filed Under: Appetizers & Snacks, Comfort Food, Component Foods, Condiments, Gluten Free, Party Food, Rebecca, Recipes, Salads, Stretching your dollars Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Greek Millet Tabbouleh (Gluten-Free)

June 23, 2012 by 2 Comments

I’ve been wilting like spinach in a screaming hot pan in this humidity and heat. I dropped two of my boys off at camp and drove away after giving the hairy eyeball to all the counselors to try to ascertain whether or not they were secret closet psychos. Conclusion: They are all wonderful people. I’m the one who is crazy.

I blame the weather and a colourful family history of wild men and wilder women. As in the sort of folks who slept with shotguns under their pillows.

Here is where my dilemma comes into play. I love food. Love it madly. (Queen Obvious makes an appearance today.) There are, however, few things I like less than sweating just because I’m breathing. With the spontaneous combustion level temperatures this week, I honestly didn’t want to go anywhere near the stove. In fact, I swallowed my pride when dropping the two aforementioned boys off at camp and handed over packages of storebought shortbread cookies in lieu of actual baking. *hangs her food blogger head in shame and shuffles past table*

So what is a gal to do when she wants to eat and doesn’t want to cook? Enter the rice cooker, stage left.

Rice cookers aren’t just for rice, folks. They cook all sorts of grains to perfection. In this case, my rice cooker cooked millet to perfection without heating up my stove. Are you familiar with millet? It’s a tiny grain that’s a major food source in many parts of the world. Coming from a family of grasses, millet has no gluten at all, making it suitable for consumption by folks with coeliac disease or gluten-intolerance.  All that aside, it just plain tastes great. It cooks much like rice when done right and has a slight nuttiness to it that makes it a stand out in cold salads like tabbouleh.

Tabbouleh. Is there anything better on a hot, hot day than a cold bowl of vibrant vegetable, olive, feta and dill laden tabbouleh dressed with lemon juice and olive oil? I don’t think so! Tabbouleh hails from the Middle East which seriously knows how to survive heat waves. This tabbouleh is a departure from the normal bulghur wheat version, using millet instead. It’s a lovely change, with that little nutty hint the millet lends the dish, that -as a pure bonus- renders the dish gluten-free.

Before anyone says it, yes. This dish makes a large batch! Let’s consider, though, what time of year this is. This is picnic, pool-side, lunch-under-a-tree, road-trip, too-hot-to-cook, lay-in-a-hammock-with-a-book season. When you make Greek Millet Tabbouleh, you can eat off of it for a whole week. (Well, unless you’re a family of our size, in which case you get two meals from it. Tops.)

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Greek Millet Tabbouleh (Gluten-Free)

Greek Millet Tabbouleh (Gluten-Free)

Toasty, nutty, fluffy millet takes the place of bulghur wheat in tabbouleh and is studded with fresh cucumbers, tomatoes, marinated artichoke hearts, crumbled feta, and fresh dill then dressed with freshly squeezed lemon juice. This big batch, gluten-free summery salad stores well in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup dry millet
  • 1 1/3 cups water
  • 1 tablespoon plus 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, separated
  • 1 seedless cucumber, cut lengthwise into eighths and then into small wedges
  • 1 pint cherry tomatoes, quartered
  • 1 cup marinated artichoke hearts, roughly chopped
  • 1 cup feta crumbles
  • 3/4 cup black kalamata olives, pitted (I used garlic stuffed kalamata olives for extra oomph.) and chopped
  • 1/2 of a sweet onion, peeled and diced
  • 1/4 cup, packed, fresh dill leaves, finely chopped
  • The juice and zest of 1 lemon
  • 1 clove of garlic, peeled and finely minced
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • additional extra virgin olive oil for serving

Instructions

Put the millet in a heavy bottomed skillet over medium high heat, stirring or tossing constantly, until you hear the grains popping and they toast to a very light golden brown. This will take about 4 to 5 minutes.

Quickly transfer the toasted millet into a deep bowl and immediately pour cool water over it to cover. Be careful when you do this as it will create a lot of hot steam very quickly. Swirl a couple of times then pour the water and toasted millet into a fine mesh strainer. Put the millet into the bowl of a rice cooker, add the 1 1/3 cups water and 1 tablespoon of the extra virgin olive oil. Program the rice cooker for 'regular' or simply turn it on if it is an on/off variety.

If you do not have a rice cooker, toast and rinse the millet as directed above, then cook according to package directions but using the same ratio of millet/water/olive oil as instructed in this recipe.

When the rice cooker (or stove top cooking) is done, open the lid and fluff with a wooden spoon or rice paddle. Scoop into a large mixing bowl and toss in the chopped onions and garlic. Let cool 10 minutes, fluffing every so often to help it cool more quickly.

After 10 minutes, toss in the last 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil and the cucumbers, tomatoes, artichoke hearts, feta crumbles, kalamata olives, chopped dill, juice and zest of the lemon, and salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a storage container and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving, but an overnight chill is best. Toss gently and drizzle with a little additional olive oil just before serving.

Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to a week.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/06/23/greek-millet-tabbouleh-gluten-free/

If you’re looking for a good rice cooker, look no further than the model that gets a hard-core workout in my own kitchen. This Sanyo rice-cooker is one of the few things I would replace immediately if it kicked the bucket even though it hasn’t kicked the bucket yet and shows no signs of doing it despite being used several times a week for the past four years. It is practically titanium folks. The link below IS an affiliate link but I put it there because I believe in the product.

Filed Under: Accessible Ethnic, Gluten Free, Happy Healthy and Wise, Healthy Foods, Party Food, Rebecca, Recipes, Side Dishes, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Asian Marinated Cucumber Salad

May 3, 2012 by 28 Comments

I have something special for you today.

Yesterday, I gave you my husband’s all-time favourite entrée. Today, I’m giving you his all-time favourite salad. Tomorrow, I’ll give you his all-time favourite appetizer. If I believed in keeping secret recipes*, these three would be at the top of the list because they make you look so talented when you serve them.

*But I don’t believe in secret recipes or lessipe (leaving out an ingredient or process when sharing a recipe). In fact, you might have to pay me NOT to share a recipe with you. The true joy in food -at least for me- comes from sharing it. Refusing to share a recipe or a crucial step in one is tantamount to blowing a big, fat, wet raspberry at someone when they ask you for help. In other words, it ain’t right.

Here’s the thing; the food looks stunning and tastes amazing but takes so little effort you’ll be left feeling a little funny accepting all the inevitable praise that comes from serving it. For instance, we have the salad pictured above.

This is the recipe equivalent of the town where I spent all of my elementary and middle school and some of my high school years; if you blink you’ll miss it. You slice cucumbers and onions, you pour a couple things on top and toss then refrigerate. Then you eat it. And again, like my small town, if you blink it will be gone. For a salad that is so easy and has so few ingredients, the taste will blow you away. It is clean, fresh, bright and accompanies Japanese Salmon over Linguine beautifully, yes, but it is also good with all sorts of seafood, chicken and pork,  or even stashed on sandwiches in place of pickles.

…Or eaten furtively with a fork straight from the refrigerator while holding the door open with your pajama clad knee. Not that I’ve done that. Today.

Here comes the recipe, don’t you blink!

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Asian Marinated Cucumber Salad

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Asian Marinated Cucumber Salad

This delicate, fresh, vibrant, crisp, marinated cucumber salad is the perfect accompaniment to seafood, chicken and pork dishes.

Ingredients

  • 1 large English (seedless) cucumber, very thinly sliced
  • ¼ of a sweet onion, very thinly sliced
  • 1/3 cup rice vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
  • 1 tablespoon minced fresh dill or ½ teaspoon dried dill weed
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 teaspoon sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Instructions

Gently toss together all of the ingredients until everything is evenly coated. Put in a container with a tight fitting lid and refrigerate for at least an hour prior to serving. This keeps well, refrigerated for up to 5 days. Gently toss again before serving.

Cooking Notes:

I use a mandoline to slice my cucumber and onion paper thin. If this is not available to you, use the sharpest knife you can and slice as thinly as is possible. It will still be great if you can't get paper thin slices, it just won't be quite as delicate.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/05/03/asian-marinated-cucumber-salad/

Filed Under: Accessible Ethnic, Appetizers & Snacks, Happy Healthy and Wise, Healthy Foods, Recipes, Salads, Side Dishes, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Kitchen Sink Hush Puppies | Pepper Jack and Ham Deep Fried Cornbread

April 17, 2012 by 12 Comments

 

I have a deep love for hush puppies that began -as so many things did- in my childhood in Kentucky. I was awfully young when we lived there and don’t have very many concrete memories of the place aside from creek stomping, salamander capturing, and sledding down coal piles in snow suits*, but one thing I do remember vividly is making occasional treks out of the holler and into the biggest nearby town for excursions that almost always ended in a trip to Long John Silver’s.

*No really. We did that. Being a family from Michigan, we missed our sledding hills and winter sports while living in Kentucky. My mom’s clever solution was to kit us out in snow suits and go sledding down a local coal pile.

Now, I know very well that hush puppies weren’t invented by or exclusive to Long John Silver’s  but it was my favourite part of the long haul into town and back. In all likelihood, it was what made me behave in public. Deep fried foods have that power over me and always have.

A fried fish dinner with hush puppies was my inevitable order and -truth be told- I ordered that every time just for the hush puppies. I pushed the fish around the greasy little cardboard clam shell case hoping I’d missed a piece of hush puppy here or there.

Dead crispy, dark golden brown, deep-fried nuggets of cornbread studded with onions: what wasn’t to love? The answer is nothing. And though my time in Kentucky was limited, my adoration for hush puppies remained. My mom didn’t do a ton of deep frying, despite the fact that her affection for all foods fried is as abiding as mine. She did break out the boiling oil for special occasion foods like lumpia and hush puppies, but it wasn’t a regular thing. I think this cemented the idea that fried foods -hush puppies, in particular- equaled celebration food.

I’m a little (okay, a lot) more loosey goosey with the deep fat frying than my mom. I’m pretty easy to persuade that it’s time for some deep-fried something or other.  When I got home from a successful vendor meeting for our local farmers’ market where I was introduced as the newest member of the management team (Shout out to Angelica Farmers’ Market: The best local producer and artisan market in Western New York!) I felt pretty excited. Where some people would take that excitement and go for a run, tidy a room, complete a project, I channeled it into HUSH PUPPIES! …Because that’s just the kind of gal I am.

I cranked up the heat under two inches of oil in a pan, spent five minutes chopping some goodies to toss in, measuring, and mixing, and in the time it took the oil to heat, I was standing by with my little scoopy thingy in hand, ready to get my fry on.

Here’s where the magic happens. When I dropped the first couple of scoops of hush puppy batter into the pan and the scent bubbled up  on the oil, my kids -who had been energetically flying around the yard, climbing trees and living in their imaginary worlds all day long- materialized behind me asking things like, “What smells so good?” and “Are those for us? Please say yes!”. My wee six year old said, “Are those for dinner? Or just part dinner?”

Hush puppies don’t take long, folks. This is not a delayed gratification food. When I pulled the first batch out a mere three minutes after dropping them in, the kids were standing by with forks in hand, ready to skewer on my say so. And skewer they did. Forks rammed down into those hush puppies so fast I feared for my fingers. Little teeth nibbled away and happy groans were heard. The same six year old who had previously asked what part of the meal these would comprise announced, “This is the best part dinner of my whole life. Ever.”

Unlike back in the day of the simple unadorned hush puppy, though, today’s were extraordinary. A plain hush puppy is good enough, mind you, but when you add minced ham, green onions and spicy pepper jack cheese to the usual chopped onions, you get a hush puppy that will, well, hush your puppies. We’re talking about what is essentially craggy, crispy, deep fried corn bread balls stuffed with creamy, spicy pepper jack, salty minced ham and two kinds of onions. These aren’t your standard issue Long John Silver hush puppies, people. Not by a long shot.

What do I serve these with? Mainly I serve them with this sauce and gorge myself, but I suppose there are those of you with more will power than I have and to you I say, “Serve them alongside fish dinners, with soup or salad, with chili or with a good supply of toothpicks and napkins on a buffet table.”

While you whip up something to accompany these, I’ll be over in my chair with my feet up trying to come up with a reasonable explanation for how many of these I ate. Carry on.

Some Notes:

  • I prefer these made with a nice coarsely ground corn meal. The widely available canister cornmeal will do alright, but for the ne plus ultra of hush puppies, go for the really gritty stuff.
  • Please, for the love of all things good in this world, grate your own cheese for these. It doesn’t have to be fancy cheese. It doesn’t have to be expensive, but don’t use the pre-grated cheese-in-a-bag. That cheese is coated with stuff to keep it from clumping which also has the net effect of making it melt in a way that isn’t as happy making. There’s a time and a place for the pre-grated stuff, but it’s not here.
  • Mince your ham into the itty-bittiest pieces you can produce. The same goes for the green onions and the sweet onions. It’s all about the distribution, folks. The finer you mince those things, the better the chances that you’ll get a little of everything in each bite. That is a very good thing. Trust me.
  • Don’t get fancy with the way you drop your batter into the hot oil. You don’t want perfection of shape on these. The irregular, jutting-out parts are the crispiest spots on the hush puppies. Those are the bits that render me powerless against them.

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Kitchen Sink Hush Puppies | Pepper Jack and Ham Deep Fried Cornbread

Kitchen Sink Hush Puppies | Pepper Jack and Ham Deep Fried Cornbread

These dressed up hush puppies are craggy, crispy, deep fried corn bread balls stuffed with creamy, spicy pepper jack, salty minced ham and two kinds of onions. Eat them as a stand alone snack or appetizer, or serve alongside fish dinners, soups, salads or chilis.

Ingredients

  • 2 inches of canola, peanut or vegetable oil, or lard in a high-sided, heavy-bottomed pot or skillet (or an electric deep fryer)
  • 1 1/4 cups cornmeal
  • 3/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1 cup plain yogurt or buttermilk
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/4-1/2 cup finely minced or chopped fully cooked ham
  • 1/4 cup finely minced or chopped green onions
  • 1/4 cup finely minced or chopped sweet onion
  • 1/4 cup shredded pepper jack cheese

Instructions

Place the oil-filled pot over medium high heat and bring the oil to 375°F. Line a bowl or baking pan with paper towels and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the corn meal, flour, salt, sugar, baking soda, black and cayenne pepper with a whisk. In a separate bowl, use the same whisk to thoroughly combine the butter, yogurt or buttermilk and egg. Pour that directly into the flour mixture, add all of the mix-ins, and use a spatula to stir everything together gently, just until no more dry pockets remain and it is combined evenly.

Use a 1 1/2 teaspoon scoop (or simply mound the batter on a teaspoon) to drop the batter into the hot oil. Fry only as many as can comfortably fit into the pan while leaving room for them to move around. Don't overcrowd that pan! Fry the hush puppies for 2-3 minutes per batch, flipping them about halfway through the cooking. Use tongs or a slotted spoon to transfer the finished hush puppies to the paper towel lined bowl or pan and let drain briefly before serving.

These are best when served hot, but are still great warm or room temperature. You can store leftover hush puppies in a paper towel lined, tightly covered container in the refrigerator and reheat them for just a few minutes in a hot oven to re-crisp them.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/04/17/kitchen-sink-hush-puppies/

Filed Under: Appetizers & Snacks, Bread, Comfort Food, kid food, Party Food, Rebecca, Recipes, Side Dishes Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Honey Chipotle Oyster Crackers | Make Ahead Mondays

April 2, 2012 by 6 Comments

For today’s Make Ahead Monday I wanted to go in a not-freezer direction.  You know I love my freezer full of goodies, but there are certain staples I make ahead of time that have nothing to do with the chill chest. They’re too good not to share and so? I shall share!

I specifically wanted to talk snack food-slash-salad toppers. I have a thing for salads. It’s my mom’s fault. (Hi, Mom!) Every night we’d ask mom what we were having for dinner. Nine nights out of ten, her answer went something like this, “Some _____, a little bit of _________, a _________, and A BIG GREEN SALAD.”

As kids, my siblings and I didn’t necessarily appreciate the effort that went into providing a BIG GREEN SALAD (which is always in all-caps because of the enthusiasm with which mom always said it.) in Northern Michigan in deep winter in the middle of nowhere. That took some planning!  Mom always pulled out all the stops on salad. This is probably why I’m a salad-a-holic.

My mom’s salads have always been festive. There’s no such thing as a boring salad from my Mom. Heck. My mom is just festive. Period. But we’ve covered that ground before. Mom is big on salad toppings. We would raid the camp kitchen for Baco-s (perennial favourite), but we’d also toss on anything that was handy: frozen peas, hard boiled eggs, onions, bell peppers, cheese cubes, raisins, chow mein noodles, croutons, potato chips, corn chips, crushed pretzels, and anything else that held still long enough to get tossed on top. This brings me to a point…

Have you ever noticed that most things that are delicious and crunchy out-of-hand are also wonderful on salads? It’s true. It is a universal law. These Honey Chipotle Oyster Crackers are not an exception, but they are exceptional. Exceptionally habit forming, that is. Oh, Mama. Oh, Mom. Slightly sweet and slightly spicy with hints of garlic and onion, these crunchy little gems beat snack-attacks and top salads or soups with equal aplomb. Can snack crackers have aplomb you ask? These ones do.

I’ve given the recipe here today in what I think of as a baby amount. In other words, it’s in a quantity calculated to serve a family that is not as big as ours. If you’re a snacky sort (as I am) or you have a bigger family (as I do), you’re going to want to double or even triple the recipe.  The crackers last for up to fourteen days in an airtight container, and if they start getting a little on the softer side, they can be recrisped in the oven. Whether you simply munch these from a bowl or pop ‘em on your salad, you’re going to be so glad you made them.

It’s Spring; It’s time to get your BIG GREEN SALAD on and top it in style! Or as Vince would say, “Stop having boring salad. Stop having a boring life!”

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWRyj5cHIQA[/youtube]

 

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Honey Chipotle Oyster Crackers | Make Ahead Mondays

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Honey Chipotle Oyster Crackers | Make Ahead Mondays

Turn boring old oyster crackers into these slightly sweet and slightly spicy, crunchy little Honey Chipotle Oyster Crackers with hints of garlic and onion that beat snack-attacks and top salads or soups with equal aplomb.

Ingredients

  • 1 (10 ounce) bag oyster crackers
  • 3 tablespoons canola oil
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 teaspoon water
  • ½- ¾ teaspoon chipotle powder
  • ½ - ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ½ teaspoon granulated garlic
  • ½ teaspoon granulated onion

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a rimmed 11-inch by 17-inch (or equivalent sized other pans) with non-stick cooking spray.

In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together the canola oil, honey, water, chipotle powder, salt, granulated garlic and granulated onion until it is smooth and even. Add in the oyster crackers and toss gently to coat them evenly, then spread them in a single layer over the prepared pan.

Bake the crackers for 15 minutes, stirring -especially around the edges- every 5 minutes, or until the coating is dried on the crackers. Let cool completely on the pans and transfer to an airtight container. These will be good for up to 14 days.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/04/02/honey-chipotle-oyster-crackers-make-ahead-mondays/

Filed Under: Appetizers & Snacks, Comfort Food, Component Foods, Condiments, kid food, Party Food, Rebecca, Recipes, Side Dishes, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Simple Garlicky Green Bean Stir Fry

March 16, 2012 by 11 Comments

Let’s review the rules of Tasty Penance.

  1. I give you a highly caloric or nutritionally suspect recipe that is irresistible (par example: this.)
  2. I feel guilty.
  3. I offer a recipe that is nutritionally sound and legitimately good for you that also tastes irresistible.
  4. I’m off the hook and feel free to give you more naughty recipes.

Take a good look at number three on the list because the last bit of the sentence is most important; the Tasty Penance recipe still has to taste outlandishly good. I’m not well-suited to culinary hair shirts and gustatory self-flagellation. My taste buds still have to be happy because I am needy.

Today’s recipe knocks requirement number three out of the park.* These crisp-tender, garlicky, gingery, spicy green beans are not just packed with all my favourite flavours, they’re also great for you. If you blanched (vegetable pun) at the sight of the word ‘spicy’, don’t fret, the spice is easily omitted from this recipe. Whenever I make these, only about half of the finished product makes it to the table because The Evil Genius and I circle around the kitchen on any little excuse we can think of, snitching at first just one green bean, but then becoming bolder and dangling three or four into our mouths at once. Such is the power of this green bean dish. Did you ever think they could be so good?

*Cue baseball analogies because Spring Training is going strong. Go Red Sox!

Making this dish even more appealing is the fact that it is so easy to make.

I just have one warning, but it’s a biggie.

More than one person has sworn off stir-fries because they didn’t follow the law. They’ve gotten two or three or however many steps in and realized they forgot to peel/chop/measure/BUY some crucial ingredient and it derailed the whole process. I feel that pain. There is nothing quite like unrequited stir fry cravings. I can help, though.

I can. Trust me. The one simple hide-bound rule to successful stir-fries is this:

You need to remember to have absolutely everything -ingredients AND equipment- ready and within reach before starting to cook.

Have your green beans washed and trimmed if necessary, your garlic/onion/ginger minced or sliced according to directions, your water and oyster sauce, your wooden spoons, and your serving bowl standing on the counter raring to go. Once you put the oil in the pan, you are on duty and you will not walk away until it is done and in the bowl to be served. It’s the law.

Now go forth and conquer stir-fries starting with this perfect spring green bean dish. Tasty Penance is a good thing.

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Simple Garlicky Green Bean Stir Fry

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Yield: 4 servings for a side dish, 2 for a main dish

Simple Garlicky Green Bean Stir Fry

Crisp-tender, garlicky, gingery, and coated in a slightly sweet sauce, these spicy green beans are good enough to be a stand-alone vegetarian main dish, but are intended to be served alongside any number of stir-fries or grilled or fried meats. Healthy tastes great!

Adapted, with thanks, from Kalyn Denny of Kalyn's Kitchen

Ingredients

  • 1 pound fresh green beans (Preferably haricot vert, but any fresh green bean will do.), ends trimmed if necessary, and strings removed if they are particularly stringy.
  • 2 tablespoons canola, vegetable or peanut oil
  • 3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
  • 1 tablespoon of ginger, peeled and minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (Omit if you're sensitive to heat.)
  • 1 large yellow onion
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons water
  • 2 tablespoons oyster sauce (found near the Asian foods in most grocery stores.)
  • Optional:
  • sesame seeds for garnish

Instructions

Cut and discard a thin disc from both the blossom and stem ends of the onion. Peel the onion and cut in half from top to bottom. Lay each half and cut the onion into slivers (again from top to bottom) that are about the same thickness as the green beans.

Put a large wok or heavy pan with a tight fitting lid over high heat for 1 or 2 minutes or until you can no longer hold your hand a couple inches above the pan because it is too hot. Carefully add the oil to the pan and swirl to heat it through. When the oil is shimmery -about 30 seconds- add the garlic, ginger, onions and crushed red pepper flakes. Use two wooden spoons to keep the contents moving until they are fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add all of the green beans and the salt and use the two spoons to toss the green beans, garlic, ginger and onions. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds or so. Add the water and put the lid on the pan. Let the beans steam for 5 minutes, checking about halfway through to see if it is too dry. If the pan is dry, add a teaspoon of water, replace the lid and continue steaming.

After 5 minutes, remove the lid and add the oyster sauce, using both spoons to toss the beans and sauce together. Continue cooking over high heat for 2 minutes, or until the oyster sauce is distributed evenly and the beans are all coated and crisp-tender.

Serve hot garnished with sesame seeds, if desired.

Leftovers (if you have some) store well tightly covered in the refrigerator and reheat very well either in the microwave or in a covered saucepan with a splash of water.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/03/16/simple-garlicky-green-bean-stir-fry/

Filed Under: Accessible Ethnic, Happy Healthy and Wise, Instructional, Kitchen Techniques and Hints, Rebecca, Recipes, Side Dishes, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , ,

Ninfa’s Green Sauce (Bonus Recipe Hack)

February 10, 2012 by 17 Comments

Full disclosure: I’ve spent some time in Houston but I’ve never been to Ninfa’s. I’m not even sure I’m pronouncing the name properly. Is it NIN-fahz? NEEN-fahz? neen-FAHZ? However you say it, though, I now want to eat there desperately because if this sauce is a sign of what they have to offer… Well, let’s just say that it’s all bound to be spectacular.

The truth is, I had neither heard of the aforementioned place, however it’s pronounced, nor the recipe I’m about to give you until I saw this post by Lisa Fain of Homesick Texan, whose blog I have loved for a very long time. This is one of those recipes where -while reading it- you know exactly how it will taste and you know you want it. Badly. Now.

And so, after seeing this recipe a little over two years ago, I made it a mere year and a half later for the first time. Sigh. It’s really hard to source certain ingredients around here. Avocados, cilantro, sour cream, jalapenos? Oh sure. Easy peasy. It’s those green tomatoes that gave me fits. First of all, when I had green tomatoes on the vine this summer I was so busy I didn’t know whether I was coming or going and forgot ALL ABOUT THE DADBURNED RECIPE. Pardon me while I go bang my head on the wall for a minute or two. Secondly, when I remembered the recipe there were no green tomatoes (or yellow as the recipes suggests substituting) anywhere within a two hour drive.

Well, shoot.

I’m resourceful? Why was I letting this lack of green tomatoes stop me? (Because I wasn’t thinking, that’s why.) I had an entire shelf full of green tomato salsa verde I had made over the summer staring me in the face. Big, fat duh! I hacked the recipe. While the original called for 3 green tomatoes, I simply substituted 2 cups of homemade green tomato salsa verde* and a splash of water, then proceeded as directed with the rest of the recipe. Well, except for that whole Greek yogurt vs. sour cream thing… but I’ll get there momentarily.

*You can’t find green or yellow tomatoes and don’t have homemade green tomato salsa verde on the shelf? No problemo. Use an equivalent amount of store bought salsa verde in its place. Yes, most commercially available salsa verde is made with tomatillos, but that’s certainly not going to hurt the overall affect here! Live boldly! Substitute!

Speaking of substitutes, I decided to sub in a cup and a half of the zero fat Greek yogurt I had snapped up on clearance at Aldi last week. I’m not a no-fat/low-fat proponent by any means, but cheap is cheap and this stuff is good anyway with no weird preservatives or flavour improvers. Heck yes. Go Team Frugal! It worked like a charm! I mean, why wouldn’t it? What took me so long to think of the recipe hack? Yeesh.

This sauce. Let me tell you. It is smooth. It’s so smooth it’s smoove. It’s velvety, it’s rich (thank you, avocados), it’s spicy, it’s creamy, it’s garlicky. I ate it on tacos, Fritos, on a spoon, on my finger… So darned good. Mama. I considered rubbing it on the pulse points as perfume. Hubba hubba. I know my husband would approve.

Here’s another bonus. You know avocado’s distressing tendency to brown after being cut/smashed/whatevered? It doesn’t in this sauce or at least it does it at a far slower rate. My amateur food scientist theory is that the happy bacteria in the Greek yogurt (and I’d imagine the same could be said for sour cream) and the acid in the tomatillos/green tomatoes keep it from oxidizing. But that’s just a theory. And who cares? The sauce is good. And pretty. And pretty good. Geez. It’s better than good. It’s great. It’s habit forming.

Now what are you waiting for? You need this sauce. You need it tonight. You need it for the weekend! Go forth and create green sauce!

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Ninfa’s Green Sauce

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Yield: about 5 cups

Ninfa’s Green Sauce

This creamy, dreamy, spicy, garlicky, smooth-as-silk avocado salsa is simply magical. Use as a sauce or dunk to your heart's content.

Recipe originally from the Houston Chronicle via Homesick Texan and recipe hack by yours truly!

Ingredients

  • 3 medium green or yellow tomatoes, coarsely chopped (Or 2 cups green tomato salsa verde or commercially available salsa verde with about 1/2 cup of water.)
  • 4 tomatillos, peeled of the paper husk, rinsed and coarsely chopped
  • 1 to 2 jalapenos, stemmed and chopped (if using the salsa verde, also remove the jalapeno seeds.)
  • 3 cloves of garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
  • 3 ripe avocados, halved, pitted, and scooped from the shells with a spoon
  • 4 stems worth of cilantro
  • 1 tsp. of salt
  • 1 1/2 cups of sour cream (or Greek yogurt, which is my preference.)

Instructions

Add the green or yellow tomatoes (or the salsa verde and water) to a heavy-bottomed saucepan along with the tomatillos, jalapenos, and garlic. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the tomatillos are tender. Remove the pan from the burner and let the mixture cool for about 15 minutes.

Transfer the contents of the pan into a food processor or blender with a metal blade. Add the avocados, cilantro and salt and blend until completely smooth. Use a rubber or silicone spatula to scrape the sauce from the food processor or blender into a mixing bowl and whisk in the sour cream or Greek yogurt until evenly coloured. Serve immediately or store in a jar or other container with a tightly fitting lid for up to a 4 days.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/02/10/ninfas-green-sauce-bonus-recipe-hack/

Filed Under: Accessible Ethnic, Comfort Food, Comfort Food, Component Foods, Condiments, kid food, Kitchen Techniques and Hints, Party Food, Recipes, Side Dishes, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , , ,

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

November 16, 2011 by 9 Comments

 

As I walked up from the mailbox a couple weeks ago, I glanced through the pile of stuff; a bill, some advertisements, blah blah blah, and then something caught my eye. On the cover of the new issue of Whole Living was a pan full of what appeared to be roasted Brussels sprouts with grapes and walnuts. “Ooooh,” thought I, “That looks good. I’ll give that a look over as soon as I make myself a cup of tea.” I walked in the door, sat the magazine down and never saw it again.

What happened to it? Who can say? What happens to anything that disappears in a home with five sons ages thirteen (for another two days) and under? Well, sometimes those things end up in the chicken coop under a pile of something I’d rather not describe on a food blog, or on the roof of the shed (not kidding), or buried under the gravel pile (with my soup spoon), or stuck on a pike in the boneyard (not so scary, really, it’s a place where kids found a pile of deer bones left by the previous owner of our property, now a fertile ground for much imaginative play) as a pirate flag, or crammed under beds/van seats/recliners.

But the idea of the dish stayed with me. I didn’t want to overthink it, because Whole Living usually has lovely, uncomplicated, pure flavours in their recipes. They don’t get all wacky and difficult, God love ‘em, so I decided the fewer ingredients, the better. I grabbed the ingredients the next time I went to the store and came home to try my hand at the version my imagination had supplied.

I was assembling my pan-o-sprouts when my husband walked by, stopped and backtracked. “You’re putting grapes in with Brussels sprouts?” he asked incredulously? I decided to play it cool and replied with a, “Yep.”  He shrugged his shoulders and moved on.

Thirty five minutes later I pulled a tray of roasted sprouts* and other goodies from the oven and took a deep whiff. Oh my. That smelled pretty good. I splashed balsamic vinegar onto the hot pan and vegetables and it smelled even better. I tossed it all together and it smelled best yet. Then I called Mr. Doubtful into the room. “Give it a try,” I said.

He did.

One grape, one Brussels sprout half and one piece of walnut in one bite. Then he went into broken record mode, trying the same combination again and again and again. “This is perfect. It is. You need one piece of everything for the perfect bite.”

I probably don’t need to tell you how well this would go with your Thanksgiving feast, but I should probably  mention that we ate a full pan of this the first night I made it and forgot all about the rest of the meal. And I would be remiss if I didn’t tell you that with a little crispy bacon thrown in, this would be at home between a bottom layer of grits and a top layer of poached or fried egg. Then there’s that little matter of throwing together with pan-fried ham pieces for a quick hash.

…I never did find my  Whole living, but I ran my version of the recipe past a friend who did not lose (or have lost on her behalf) her copy. As luck would have it, my method was the same and my end version differed only in the matter of quantity of olive oil and the fact that I didn’t include fresh thyme. How ya like that?

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Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Grapes and Walnuts

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Grapes and Walnuts

Roasted Brussels sprouts are mellower than their boiled counterparts, and when combined with intense roasted grapes, toasted walnuts and balsamic vinegar you have a perfect dish that you have to taste to believe. Try it with your Thanksgiving feast, or on a night when you want to make ordinary extraordinary.

Inspired by Whole Living.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2-2 pounds fresh Brussels sprouts
  • 2-3 handfuls of red, seedless grapes
  • 1/2 cup shelled walnuts (large pieces, not diced)
  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • Kosher or sea salt to taste
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 2-3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Trim the Brussels sprouts of any dry ends and loose leaves, then halve. Place halved sprouts along with grapes and walnuts on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle the olive oil evenly over the top, sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss to coat. Roast for 30-35 minutes, or until the sprouts are well-browned in places, the nuts are fully toasted and the grapes are darkened in colour and very plump.

As soon as you remove the pan from the oven drizzle the balsamic vinegar over the contents of the pan and toss to coat. Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle with a little additional coarse sea salt.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/11/16/roasted-brussels-sprouts/

Filed Under: Comfort Food, Happy Healthy and Wise, Healthy Foods, Rebecca, Recipes, Side Dishes, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , , ,
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