Spicy Watermelon and Cucumber Gazpacho -- a Raw, Vegan Recipe

Image via Wikipedia

While at the IFBC last month I wrote about chef Josh Silver's watermelon gazpacho.  Gazpacho is traditionally made from tomatoes, but I have never been a huge fan of cold tomato soup.  Silver's use of watermelon as the base was a revelation for me, and it opened my eyes to the possibilities of cold soup from raw ingredients.  So, the other night I attempted to recreate it with a tangerine watermelon I picked up at the Lane County Farmer's Market.  The results, though perhaps not worthy of Syrah Bistro, were absolutely delicious.

Along with the FM watermelon, I used a cucumber from a friend's garden to add crunch, a small red onion for that allium bite, and the juice of a few limes for their tangy citric acid.  The lime juice and a pinch of sea salt also helped to break the fruit and veggies down and infuse the individual ingredients with each others' flavors, and to infiltrate them with several peppery additions to the mix.  The finishing touch: finely chopped cilantro for an aromatic character that excites the sense of smell before the soup even touches your tongue.

Image via Wikipedia

It may seem a little late in the season for cold soups, but for the home gardener and the FM shopper the fruit has been ripening all summer and now is definitely the time to use it all up before it spoils.  The raw aspect means that there is no energy used at home to prepare the meal, and the fact that it is vegan means that no animals were harmed during the creation of this recipe (I did scold Cleo for trying to eat the onion, but that was for her own good; onions are poisonous to dogs).

Image via Wikipedia

Spicy Watermelon and Cucumber Gazpacho

Ingredients:
1 small Watermelon
1 Cucumber
1 Red Onion
Juice of 2 Limes
1 fresh Chili, slightly spicy
1 handful fresh Cilantro
Red, Black and White Pepper to taste
A pinch of Sea Salt

Serves 6 as appetizer, 3 or 4 as main course.

Cut the watermelon into slices, and then dice finely.  Try to retain as much juice as possible and add with the watermelon to a bowl large enough to hold all ingredients.  Dice the red onion, chili and cucumber, and add to the bowl.  Finely chop or tear cilantro and add to the other ingredients  Add the spices, salt and lime juice, and refrigerate, covered, for at least an hour.

Serve in small cups or mugs, garnish with more cilantro if desired.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Recipe: Cool Watermelon Soup With Thai Chili and Lime (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Sensational Soups (blogcritics.org)
• Creative watermelon dishes (mysanantonio.com)

Poaching Eggs: a Few Tips and Pics

The poached eggs were so delicious yesterday that we had them, exactly the same, this morning as well.  This time, however, I snapped a few pics to help explicate the process.  As I mentioned last yesterday, poaching eggs directly in water (as opposed to in using an egg poacher) can be a little intimidating.  I was nervous the first time I tried it, but I was surprised to find how easy it really was.

Image via Wikipedia

Eggs are an excellent way to get protein in a vegetarian, or partially vegetarian diet (sorry vegans).  Egg yolks contain some important vitamins (like biotin) which are not found in many other foods, and almost no vegetables.  This makes eggs an excellent addition to your diet no matter what diet you are on.

First of all, you should select the freshest eggs you can find, as fresh eggs coagulate better and less fresh eggs tend to dissipate in the water.  Since it is hard to tell when a supermarket egg was collected, I recommend buying from a Farmer's Market or local farm, as they can tell you exactly how fresh the eggs are.  Fresh, organic eggs are more expensive, so this is a special treat for anyone who isn't raising their own chickens.

First, fill a large frying pan and a smaller pan with water, about 2 inches deep.  Bring them both to a very low boil.  Add a little vinegar to the large pan, as the acid will help the encourage the eggs to stay together while cooking.  Add a little salt to the small pan, and turn it down to a simmer.  This second pan is just a bath to rinse the vinegar and add a little salt when the eggs are done cooking.

When the two pans of water are ready, start the eggs one at a time like so:

• Crack the egg onto a small saucer
• Slide the egg into the acidified water, with the saucer as close as possible to the surface of the water
• Using a slotted spoon, gently roll the white around the yolk as the white hardens
• Repeat, until up to four eggs are in the water

By the time you done with the fourth egg, the first will be just about done.  Test it by lifting it gently out of the water with the slotted spoon, and see how much the white giggles.  It should have just a tiny bit of give, the yolk should be still liquid, and the white should be almost entirely solid.

When the eggs are done, gently lift them out of the acidified water and drop them briefly into the salted water, then transfer them to a clean kitchen towel or cloth napkin.  Serve before the eggs cool, on buttered toast or muffin, or as your favorite variation of eggs benedict.

Related articles by Zemanta

• 7 Healthy Brunch Dishes (lifescript.com)

Cannellini Marbella: a Vegan Spin on a Traditional Mediterranean Dish

The first time that my wife cooked for me, back when we were dating, she made Chicken Marbella.  It was delicious.  Little did I know it was one of only a handful of things she knew how to cook!  Of course now she is as good a cook as me (largely due to my tutelage).  But the Marbella is still a wonderful dish, and we still make it occasionally.  Courtney got it from her mother, Jan, who contributed it to a state department cookbook many years ago.

Last night we decided to give it a new twist.  We didn't have any meat in the house, as we are trying to eat vegetarian as often as possible, so we decided to give Cannellini Beans Marbella a try.  It was a delightful experiment, and one we are sure to repeat.  The base of the sauce is chopped prunes, crushed olives and capers, simmered in white wine and red wine vinegar.  It is sweet, salty, and tangy, providing a complex and exciting glaze to liven up the Cannellinis,  The process is pretty simple and the cooking time is very quick, making this an excellent weeknight meal.  The fact that it is vegan makes this a very green weeknight meal.

While Chicken Marbella is a baked dish, this version is all prepared in one pan on the stove top.

Cannellini Beans Marbella:
(Serves 4)


2 Cup Precooked Cannellini Beans, or 1 Can
2 or 3 tbsp. Olive Oil
2 Cloves Garlic
1/4 cup Chopped Prunes
1/4 cup Green Olives, pitted and crushed
2 tbsp. Capers, with brine
2 Bay Leaves
1 tsp Oregano
1 tsp Parsley
1/4 cup White Wine
1/4 cup Red Wine Vinegar
2 tbsp Brown Sugar (or demerara)
Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper to taste

Saute the garlic and prunes in the olive oil until garlic is softened, but not browned.  Add the rest of the ingredients except the beans, and bring the liquid to a boil.  Bring down to a simmer until the liquid reduces to a syrupy glaze, about 15 minutes.  Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.  Add the beans and stir to coat with the sauce.  Continue stirring until beans are heated through, about 5 minutes.  Serve immediately.


Cannellini Beans Marbella

Brining, Butterflying and BBQing a Whole Bird

Chicken is a slightly more sustainable option than beef, pork, or any other livestock.  Less water and grain go into raising them, they produce less hydrocarbon gases in their lives, and they come to harvest much more quickly and efficiently.  Also, BBQed chicken is extremely tasty.  A well marinated piece of chicken from the Q is much preferable, in my (ok, not so) humble opinion to an ordinary burger or dog.

While cooking meat over coals in your yard is not the most sustainable way to heat food, it happens to be delicious.  Also, there is a little trade off to cooking inside during the summer if your oven is competing with your AC.  Depending on where your oven and stove are located in your house, they can warm the place up as much as a fire place or small furnace.  This may be lovely in the middle of winter, but in the summer months it means cranking up the AC or suffering miserable consequences.  Getting out doors and heating your food there can help you avoid turning the AC on, perhaps even all day.

So here is my recipe, tested on a recent sunny day here in Oregon.  It came out absolutely delicious.  The brining adds tons of flavor and keeps the chicken superbly moist on the grill.  Combine that with the smokey aroma and the texture of the crispy grilled skin, and you have the ultimate BBQed  meat experience.


Brined, Butterflied and Barbecued Bird:

Ingredients:
1 Whole Chicken, raw
1/2 Gallon Cold Water
1/2 Cup Kosher or Sea Salt (not iodized)
1/2 cup Brown Sugar or 1/3 cup Honey
1/4 Cup Vinegar
2 Bay leafs

Tools:
Large Pot (~2 gallon) with Lid
Very Sharp Chef's Knife or Poultry Shears
4 Long Metal Skewers

(promise more pics the next time I make this)

The night before cooking, prepare the brine by mixing all of the above ingredients except the chicken in a pot large enough to hold everything.  Stir until salt and sugar are dissolved.  It might be easier to dissolve these ingredients in a cup of the water and all the vinegar over a gentle heat, and then stir into the rest of the cold water.  Avoid heating the brine too much, however, it should be kept as cool as possible.  When brine is ready, add the chicken, upside down (legs pointing up).  Make sure that it is completely submerged, and that the cavity is filled with brine.  If there is not enough brine to cover the bird, add more water and salt at a ratio of 1 cup water to 1 tablespoon salt until the bird is covered.  The bird may have to be weighted down to remain submerged.  Cover and keep in the refrigerator over night.

The next day, remove the chicken from the brine and wipe of any excess liquid.  Discard the brine, do not reuse or incorporate into another recipe.  On a large cutting board, set the chicken upright and with a very sharp, large knife, cut out the backbone.  From top to bottom separate the spine from the rest of the bird first down one side, then the other.  Alternatively, use poultry shears to cut out the backbone.

With the spine removed, pull open the bird and flatten it out, so what was the inside is now down, and the meat is all up.  Press down firmly on the breasts, cracking the ribs to make the bird flatter.  This will allow for more even cooking on the grill.

Use 4 metal skewers to hold the bird in this flat position, and to hold the wings and legs as much as possible apart from the breasts and thighs.  Make sure that the bird can be lifted from these skewers and remain flat.  Cut a few slits in the thickest part of meat to speed cooking.  Coat the entire chicken, both sides, with olive oil, especially around the slits and where pierced by the skewers.

Sear both sides on a very high heat grill.  Next, move it to a medium heat part of the grill and allow to cook through, approximately one hour, turning and rotating every 15 minutes.  Covering will make heat more even, but coals will burn at a lower temperature, slowing cooking time.

Test for doneness by sticking a toothpick or another skewer into the joints between the leg and thigh, the wing and breast, and into the thickest parts of meat.  Test in several locations.  If any redness is still in the liquid that runs out of any test holes, continue to cook until all new test holes produce only clear liquid.

When it is done, remove from the grill and cut into breasts, wings, thighs and drumsticks.  If any red liquid is found when cutting, put the pieces back on the grill, or wrap in tinfoil and finish in the oven.  If not, serve immediately.

Variations:
You can add almost any herbs, dried or fresh, to the brine.  Check out Foodista for tons of brine recipes.  A little goes a long way, it will completely infuse the meat.

Smaller birds will work even better: pheasant, quail, and game hen.  They will cook much quicker, however, in proportion to their size.


Brined, Butterflied and Barbecued Bird (Chicken)

Vegetarian Lasagna (Gluten Free, of course)

After an unplanned, unannounced and unceremonious sabbatical from blogging, I am returning to my few but faithful readers with a recipe, in part to point out that I am a finalist in the Foodista 'Best of Food Blogs' cookbook contest.  If I am selected, one (or two?) of my recipes will be included in a real world published cookbook (BTW, I finally added pictures to my gumbo recipe for anyone who is interested).  I didn't start this blog to be about food entirely, but as cooking is one of my passions the blog became at least partially about food as it relates to sustainability, and I am glad that it did, because cooking (and eating) good food brings me great joy.

A few days back, Courtney and I made one of those throw together weeknight meals that usually succeed only at sustaining one's body for another day or two, but we were pleasantly surprised by the results.  We made lasagna with some brown rice pasta noodles that had been sitting in our cupboard for some time, and by adding a few choice ingredients we took it form the realm of 'bland though filling' to 'can't wait to have that recipe again.'  Basically, we prepared a straight forward lasagna but threw in to each layer a sporadic sprinkling of fresh red bell pepper (chopped finely) and fresh basil leaves (whole).

Italian cuisine is ideal for communal cooking.  I am reminded of the scene in Good Fellas when the main character serves a short prison sentence and the mobsters all have their own private, minimum security wing.  They spend all day, every day, preparing elaborate meals with the finest ingredients they can bribe the guards to bring them.  One guy does the sauce, one guy does the pasta, etc.  The work is easy to break up, most of it is fairly simple, and you can socialize in the kitchen while doing it.  Lasagna is particularly good for a small group or a family to prepare together, as you assemble the layers each person can be responsible for one or two ingredients.

And of course, cooking vegetarian makes this a greener meal, since no methane producing grain eating animals were harvested to bring it to table.  So, without further ado,

Vegetarian Lasagna (Gluten Free):

Ingredients:

1 package Gluten Free Brown Rice Lasagna Noodles
3 or 4 cups of your favorite Canned Pasta Sauce, or homemade
2 cup Ricotta Cheese (or more as needed)
2 cup Mozzarella cheese, grated (or more as needed)
1 cup Chopped Spinach (frozen is fine)
1 Red Bell Pepper, julienne or diced
1 hand full Fresh Basil Leaves
1 tsp. Sea Salt (or to taste)
1 tsp. Cracked Black Pepper (or to taste)
1 tbsp. Olive Oil
Optional: Cayenne pepper and Paprika to taste


Cook the noodles in a large pot filled with boiling water for several minutes, until they are soft enough to work with but still quite al dente, as they will continue to cook in the oven and it is easy to over cook rice noodles.  In a small sauce pan, bring the tomato sauce to a boil, then add the spinach.  While the noodles and spinach are cooking, prepare the other ingredients: wash and chop the bell pepper, wash the basil leaves, grate the mozzarella, etc.  When noodles are ready, empty pot into a strainer and rinse noodles with cold water to arrest cooking.

Preheat Oven to 400F. Grease a 9x12 (or sized to your noodles) pan with the olive oil, and lay one layer of noodles on the bottom.  Cover the noodles with a portion of the sauce and spinach mixture.  Over the sauce, sprinkle some of the mozzarella and ricotta cheeses, Some of the Red Bell Pepper and the Basil.  Cover with another layer of noodles and repeat until out of ingredients.  Make sure to reserve a portion of cheese large enough to cover the top layer, as it will melt and form a golden brown crust in the oven.

Bake the assembled lasagna in the oven for about 30 minutes.  Check periodically, when the cheese on top forms a gratin-like crust, it is done.  Remove from the oven and let stand for 10 minutes before serving.  Should make about 6 portions.  Refrigerate for several days, or freeze for-almost-ever (use common sense).  Reheats very well in the oven or microwave.

Variations:

This recipe is extremely versatile.  Add one or two of whatever vegetables you have around, as a replacement for or in addition to the bell pepper and spinach.  Hard, root vegetables (like potatoes) should be par cooked.

For some protein, consider adding pine nuts, crushed walnuts, or cooked beans to the layers.  Any ground meat or sausage will also go well, but then the meal would be less green.  Similarly, canned tuna or other flaky fish will work well.

For more variety in your variety, try replacing the sauce with pesto (result will be dryer), Alfredo or other cream sauce.  I recommend against Vodka sauce, or any other sauce with a lot of cheese added, as there is a ton of cheese in the recipe already.

Speaking of cheese, Parmesan also goes very well.  Replace some or all of the Mozzarella with grated Parmesan if preferred.

The Valentine's Menu: Black Truffle and Wild Scallops on Mashed White Beans

Some lament the commercialization of holidays like Valentines day, others decry that it is a made up Hallmark Holiday, and while these arguments cannot be refuted, they also shouldn't stop us from having fun.

For our part, we avoid buying each other presents or cards and instead focus on having a lovely, romantic day.  Though we have dined out in the past we now prefer to cook at home, making a meal that is decadent and fun.  Decadent does not have to mean environmentally unhealthy, however, especially when you live in an area that produces truffles which some believe rival the Italian.  Both black and white truffles grow abundantly in Oregon and Northern California, and though they are quite expensive the flavor is phenomenal and unique.  Wild scallops, which have been unsustainable in the past, have seen massive increases in population size recently, and most sources now say that scallops can be fished sustainably and are okay for environmentalists to eat (though if you can find out the info, individually caught is better than dredged).

Valentine's Day Dinner

It is important for us to use every excuse to spend time with and honor the people we love, regardless of whether the excuse is tradition or Hallmark made.  The way we do this, however, is up to us and not the card companies or the traditions.  Cooking a meal made from the best available local and sustainable ingredients instead of purchasing cards and chocolate boxes and dining out turns our expression of our love for each other into a reinforcement of the way we choose to live.  And personally I think it is more fun.  Speaking of fun, for desert we made a chocolate Fondue, dipping homemade donut pieces from that morning along with some fancy marshmallows

 

Our Valentine's Breakfast

 
So, for your scrutiny, here is the dinner recipe:

Wild Scallops with Black Truffle Brandy Reduction and Mashed Great Northern Beans
Serves Two

Image via Wikipedia

Ingredients:

1 small Black Truffle (~1/2 oz.)
6 medium to large Wild Scallops (~1/2 lbs.)
1/2 lbs Dry Great Northern Beans (or Cannellini)
1 large Shallot
3 oz VSOP Brandy
2 tbsp dry White Wine
6 tbsp Olive Oil
4 tbsp butter
1 Green Onion, finely chopped

The night before cooking, rinse the beans and visually inspect for rocks.  Cover the beans with water in a sauce pan and leave to soak overnight.  The following day, discard the soaking liquid and rinse the beans once more.  Cover with water and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until beans are tender, about 1 hour.

Chop the black truffle very finely.  Alternatively, you can use a mandolin, cheese grater or vegetable peeler to get smaller and more regular pieces.  Melt 2 tbsp butter into 2 tbsp olive oil in a small pan, and add the truffle.  Simmer over a low heat until well browned.  This will mellow the funkiness of the black truffle and draw out its flavor (this step is not necessary with white truffles).  When truffle pieces are well browned, cover and keep nearby.

When the beans are done, drain the cooking liquid, reserving about a half cup.  Using a food processor or blender, mash the beans with 1 tbsp olive oil, the white wine, 1 oz of Brandy, and a pinch of salt and pepper.  If needed, add the cooking liquid a little at a time to control consistency.  When beans are well blended, return to the sauce pan and keep warm over a low heat.

Dice the shallot finely and brown in 1 tbsp olive oil.  When it is well browned, add it to the beans along with half of the black truffle and oil mixture, stirring well.

Sear the scallops over medium-high heat in 2 tbsp olive oil, about 5 minutes per side.  When scallops are finished, place them on a bed of the mashed beans on serving plates.  Quickly deglaze the pan with the remaining 2 oz of brandy, add the remaining truffle and oil mixture, remove from heat and stir the remaining 2 tbsp of butter to finish the pan sauce.  Pour the sauce over the scallops and mashed beans, garnish with green onion, serve immediately.

 

The Final Product

Free Sushi! (well, practically free anyway) Spicy Tuna Roll Recipe

Sunday night, Courtney had a sudden urge for sushi.  We did not, however, feel like going out, nor do we know which sushi places are good in town.  We decided to see if we could scrounge together a few sushi like items from the stuff we had in our kitchen already.

We already had nori from a previous sushi night, we always have rice and veggies on hand, the one thing that we did not have just lying around the kitchen?  Sashimi grade raw fish.  So, although every recipe you find online will tell you not to do this, we decided to be adventurous and make spicy tuna rolls from canned tuna.  The results were astoundingly good.  One can of tuna produced about 6 rolls, each roll was about 8 pieces, so we had dinner for two, for two night, from only a dollars worth of canned tuna!  Eat that, it's delicious.  All of the other ingredients (rice, nori, vinegar, etc.) were purchased in bulk, and the small portion we used was almost negligible in terms of cost.  Hence, free seeming sushi!

Our idea of a last minute meal.  Aren't you jealous?

Courtney did most of the rolling (I had always done it before, and she wanted to learn) and I made the spicy tuna filling.  So here is my spicy tuna roll recipe.

Ingredients:

1 can tuna (and because this is a green blog, take a look at this before your next tuna purchase)
6 sheets nori, dried seaweed for rolling
2 cups white rice (sushi rice for best results)
Sriracha (or other hot sauce)
1/3 to 1/2 cup Mayonnaise
1 avocado, cut into thin strips
~1/4 carrot, cut into thin strips
1 small cucumber, cut into thin strips
Rice vinegar [several uses, just make sure you have plenty]
1/4 cup (or to taste) sugar
Soy Sauce
Wasabi (powdered is fine)

Tools:
large, flat plate or bowl for rice
bamboo sushi rolling mat (find at Asian markets)

First, cook the rice.  For sushi, use twice as much water as dry rice, so 4 cups water to 2 cups rice.  While the rice is cooking, make the spicy tuna.  Drain liquid from can and mix tuna in a bowl with mayonnaise and sriracha (for extra spice, add a little cayenne pepper, chili oil, and/or chili powder).  When the rice is done, stir and dump it out on the plate.  Sprinkle with rice vinegar (3 or 4 tsp) and the sugar.  Mix thoroughly.  Allow the rice to cool to room temperature before making rolls.

While rice cools, get all of the other ingredients ready at your rolling station, have the mat laid out on a large cutting board with the first nori sheet, and keep a small bowl of rice vinegar next to the rice.  If the rice is still not cool enough, have a glass of sake.  When rice is cool, soak your fingers in rice vinegar (that is what the bowl is for) and pat a thin layer of rice down on the nori, covering it to the edges from left to right, but leaving a half inch to an inch of nori open at the front and back. Each time you go back for more rice, and periodically while patting it into place, dip your fingers in the rice vinegar again.  This will keep the rice from sticking to you (at least sticking too crazy much).  When you have an even layer of rice, about 1/4 inch deep (if you make it any deeper, it will not roll well, but thinner is just fine) make a little row of tuna from left to right across the middle of the roll, about a half inch thick.  Lay in one thin layer of carrots, cucumbers and avocado on either side of the tuna.

Now, roll the bottom half of the nori over the center row of ingredients, pressing down gently.  Next, bring the top half up and over the bottom, dabbing a little rice vinegar on the overlapping edge of nori to help seal it..  Now you should have an even cylinder.  Wrap the mat around the cylinder, and pressing a little more firmly, roll it as you would a rolling pin to compact the ingredients a little.  This will make it easier to cut.

Cut the roll into roughly 8 or 10 equal pieces.  Allow the end pieces to be a little bigger, or they will fall apart while cutting.  Use a very sharp knife with a serrated edge for best results.

Repeat until tuna and rice are all used up, should yield about 6 rolls.  Serve on a cutting board or platter with soy sauce and wasabi, enjoy.  Leftovers will keep well in the fridge for a day, because there is no raw fish to get funky.

Next time Courtney I think we're turning Japanese, we will attempt a gluten free tempura as well, so that we can make spider rolls!  I will post a recipe for gluten free tempura batter if it works out.

The Stock Pot

The other day I made a lentil stew. I was not expecting much out of it, I have made it before and it is usually bland and only moderately satisfying. This time, however, I was shocked to discover that, although I did not do anything interesting with it, it was totally delicious. The kind of delicious that finds you moments later scraping the last bit of stuff from the side of the bowl wondering if you should have seconds, extending the bliss, or savor it tomorrow as leftovers, repeating the moment.

I retraced my steps. What had I done differently this time? I used the same spices in roughly the same proportion, I added tomatoes, but that hardly explained the drastic change in quality. I concluded in the end that there was only one real difference: I had used chicken stock that I made from scratch.

The tradition of making stock is all about efficiency, utility, and reducing waste. Back when meat was extremely expensive (you had to pay a chicken in grain for months and months to get one meal's worth of meat), people felt the need to extract every milligram of protein, mineral, and flavor from their animals. In many cultures, the practice of boiling the bones and remnants of your harvested livestock developed to reduce the waste. Not because they were concerned with waste, mind you, but because the food product of the animal was so valuable that it was crazy to just throw it away.

Although this process was developed to utilize the waste, the result was so delicious that it became an important part of the cuisine of many cultures, and today is ubiquitous in the culinary arts. While dehydrated stock (bullion) and canned stock have been around for as long as the technology of canning and drying, they were originally developed as a convenience for travelers or otherwise encumbered people who could not make their own. Stock prepared from scratch is considered to be superior by most (myself included), and few restaurants will admit to using canned stock these days.

So why is it that most home kitchens have sacrificed flavor for convenience? Canned stock has become so common that most of us have never made stock at home. Also, it is quite time consuming, and many cannot imagine spending 5 hours around the kitchen, even on a Sunday. To make matters worse, those who endeavor to make a first attempt can be permanently put off by a single failure (there is nothing worse than spending 5 hours on food, and ending up with something unsatisfying). However, making stock is not difficult or labor intensive; even though it takes a lot of time it requires almost no attention. Stock keeps in the refrigerator (though it must be taken out and re-boiled every 3 or 4 days) and freezes without loosing any of its flavor, and a good stock will vastly improve the flavor of the most simple dishes. If you, like Courtney and I, are trying to eat less meat, stock adds that meaty flavor to your vegetarian dishes. And finally, if you have never had home made stock, it tastes amazing compared to the can, which was the point of the lentil story at the top of this post.

So, after all that, here is a simple recipe for stock. I will try to cover the common pitfalls that can lead to an unsatisfying result.

Basic Chicken Stock:

Carcass of 2 chickens:

The simplest way to get the chicken material is to keep all of the less appetizing parts of a chicken that you have roasted previously (the back, the bones, the giblets, and wings are good for stock). You can freeze the remains after roasting and make the stock whenever you want. Alternatively, you can try to find a 'stewing hen' (chickens which lay eggs for many years don't yield good meat). There are other ways (buying a huge pack of chicken wings) to get good stock material, but they mostly defeat the purpose of utilizing waste.

1 or 2 Carrots, roughly chopped
1 Onion, quartered
2 Celery stalks, roughly chopped
1 Bay leaf
1 or 2 Other fresh Herbs (optional, don't go crazy)
Water to cover, at least 1 quart

The key to stock making is simplicity. Remember, this is not supposed to be a finished product, it is an ingredient. I never add salt or spices to stock at all. I typically use thyme in addition to the bay, and not one other thing. Simplicity yields versatility, and that is the key for a tasty stock that can be used as a base for any meal. As Chef Shaun Hill says in The Cook's Book (my favorite kitchen reference), the stock pot is not a "swill bin," for tossing in any scraps and junk. That is what the compost bin is for.

First, roast the chicken parts in the oven at 400 F to render away all fat and brown all over. Do not allow any part to burn, but deep browning adds a rich flavor and generates the color of the finished stock. When the browning is done, move all the chicken to the stockpot, drain off all fat and deglaze the roasting pan with water. Pour the deglazing water into the stock pot.

Put all the remaining ingredients into the stock pot and add enough water to cover. Bring to a boil. Simmer until the bones are disintegrating, several hours. Check the stock regularly, skimming off any foam or impurities, and adding more water if the level drops below the other ingredients. It is important that the solids remain submerged for maximum flavor extraction, but more water than just enough is not necessary, and will only dilute the stock.

When the stock is ready, strain the liquid into another container with a ladle. the solid ingredients may contain some more liquid, so allow them sit for few minutes or press them to extract the last bit of stock.

Allow the stock to cool to room temperature before storing in the fridge or freezing. Stock will most likely jelly when cooled. If stored in fridge, take out and bring to a boil every three or four days to preserve. Keeps in freezer for up to a year. This stock will be fairly concentrated, and can be mixed half and half with water when making soup or stew. Add a little less water if making risotto. Do not dilute if making sauce.

Gluten Free Gumbo: Begin With a Gluten Free Roux

Image via Wikipedia

I made gumbo last weekend, which as we all know, starts with a roux. Gumbo is the ultimate comfort food
for anyone with a southern mother (like me), and as the house was filled with the signature smell of Cajun cooking, I felt at home here in Oregon for the first time. The recipe below does not contain exact portions, because I always just make it up as I go. Instead I describe the process and give some guesses.

As those close to us know, Courtney is allergic to wheat, which is one of the only two ingredients in roux. I had made gumbo once or twice with a quinoa flour roux, which was alright but somewhat disappointing. The quinoa did not thicken up the way roux should, and added a strange nutty overtone. So this time I consulted the all knowing Internet, and was shocked by the dearth of information on gluten free roux. There was only one decent link to Gluten Free Girl and this video, but that is a french roux and I needed a Cajun one.

I decided to wing it. Believe it or not, the most simple solution turned out perfectly. I grabbed a bag of GF All Purpose Baking Flour from Bob's Red Mill (a lovely company) and used it exactly as I would regular flour. It thickened up just the right amount, browned well, and tasted delicious. I almost think they should market it separately as 'GF Roux Flour.'

Cajun roux is different from french roux primarily in that vegetable oil is used in stead of butter (any fat can be used for roux, but different regional cuisines have different traditions). It is also used differently, as a thickener for stews and soups (gumbo, jambalaya e.g.) and not so much as a thickener for sauce (veloute or bechamel would be thickened with a french roux).

Cajun roux is made with vegetable oil for two reasons: first it is cheaper than butter (a lot of Cajun recipes use ingredients that are cheap and abundant in the south), and second because you can make the roux much, much darker in oil. With a french roux, the butter will burn before the roux cooks to the right color, which various cookbooks have described as "the color of peanut butter," "a deep nutty brown," "walnut," etc. Whatever you call it, you'll never get there with butter.

Gluten Free Basic Gumbo

Ingredients:
Canola or other high heat oil (about a half cup)
GF all purpose flour (about a half cup)
Chicken stock (about 4 cups)
Andouille Sausage (a link or two) cut into bite size bits
Left over or pre-cooked chicken (about a pound)
The holy trinity: onions, green bell peppers, and celery (about 2 cups, roughly diced, even portions of each)
Shrimp (half to a whole pound)
Fresh herbs (bay, thyme, parsley, etc.)
Cooked plain white rice
Gumbo File (ground sassafras leaves)

For gumbo, make the roux in a heavy pot or dutch oven (cast iron is best) by mixing roughly equal part oil and flour. Cook over a high heat, stirring constantly, until the flour reaches the desired color (several minutes). When the roux is dark enough, add the holy trinity and the chicken stock to cool it off a bit and stop the flour from over cooking. My mother always sauteed the trinity in the roux for a few minutes before adding the stock, allowing them to brown a little. Either way tastes very good. After the stock, add the chicken and the fresh herbs.

In a separate pan, grill the andouille sausage until it is well browned all over. Remove with a slotted spoon, adding the sausage to the gumbo without transferring the extra fat. Bring the gumbo to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes.

About 5 minutes before serving, add the shrimp. When the shrimp is cooked through, remove the pot from the heat. Serve over rice sprinkled with gumbo file, with Tabasco or other hot sauce at the ready.

Variations:

For those with a heat tooth: adding a jalapeno or two with the trinity will please. Alternatively (or additionally) add cayenne pepper with the herbs.

For those with a taste for Thai: serve the finished gumbo with fish sauce and sriracha instead of Tabasco. I did this last time I had it, and I thought it was just about the most delicious thing I ever had, and I now believe fish sauce is the perfect condiment for gumbo.

Seafood Gumbo: instead of (or in addition to) chicken add crab legs, crayfish, scallops, or any other fish or crustacean really. Add it with the shrimp, careful not to overcook.

Vegetarian/vegan: Gumbo z'herbes is a traditional lenten version of gumbo for catholic southerners. Leave out the chicken and andouille sausage. To get some of that andouille flavor add cayenne pepper, black pepper, paprika, garlic, and plenty of sea salt. In place of the meat, throw in a mix of greens such as collard greens, spinach, dandelion, etc. This site gives an excellent list of greens to include, but I think the extra step of par boiling the greens is really unnecessary, just trim and chop into spoon able size and boil in the gumbo itself. Obviously, use vegetable stock instead of chicken.

Wild Mushroom Risotto

I have made this dish (or some variation) about 10 times in the last month, and every time it has been amazing. This is due in large part to the fact that the Pacific North West has an abundance of edible wild mushrooms. From the impressive looking Lion's Mane to the improbable Chicken of the Woods (it tastes like chicken, really), the mushrooms up here are really something else. Many delicious species grow on decaying hardwoods, and the climate up here is perfect for both hardwood trees and mushrooms.

Risotto is a little scary to some because it is easy to burn. But once you get the hang of it, it is an excellent base for improvisation. You can throw in seafood or mushrooms, some chopped vegetables, or you can take it in new directions with spices. If you cook a topping or additive separately, it can be combined at the end. It is basically a rich and creamy base for whatever flavor you want to support. The signature texture breaks down when reheated, but it is still delicious, and in my opinion makes excellent leftovers when eaten within a few days. It takes about 30 minutes all told, but 15-20 minutes of that time requires constant attention. So it can be made quickly, but do not plan on multitasking.

Wild Mushroom Risotto:

1 1/2 Cups Risotto Rice:

It is essential that you use the correct rice. Only short, fat grains will do. I always use Arborio, but Carnaroli (which I have never seen in the grocery store) is apparently traditional. These particular types of rice are more starchy, and break down differently from other varieties.

4 Cups Stock:

This is where you get most of the flavor (aside from the fatty creaminess of the butter). Chicken stock is most common, but fish or vegetable stock is a perfectly acceptable substitution depending on the other ingredients. I do not recommend mushroom stock for wild mushroom risotto, actually, because the flavors might compete (the stock will probably be made with very different mushrooms). Use a vegetable or chicken stock instead. Whatever the flavor, use the best stock you can find, or better yet stock that you made yourself. Since this is the flavor base, make it a good one. Using a vegetable stock makes this a vegetarian recipe.

Up to 2 cups chopped Mushrooms:

Any variety will do, but some kind of fresh wild mushroom is best. I like chanterelles a lot, but last time I used Fried Chicken Mushrooms (which don't taste like fried chicken, really). You can also use dried mushrooms, which should be refreshed in a little water. If you do this, you can mix the re hydrating liquid with the stock to retain all of the flavor.

1/2 cup white wine
2 shallots (or 1 onion)
2-4 cloves Garlic (optional)
1 tbsp. olive oil
5 tbsp. butter.
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Get all of the ingredients ready and close at hand before you start cooking. Clean and roughly chop the mushrooms, dice the shallots (and garlic) finely, put the stock in a small sauce pot, the olive oil and half of the butter in a large skillet. Have the wine measured and in reach. Grate the required amount of cheese and keep nearby. When everything is prepped, measured and handy, you are ready to get started. This is important, because once the rice is in the pan, you cannot walk away from it until it is almost finished.

Bring the stock to a boil, then turn down the heat to a low simmer, and keep it there. Heat the skillet until butter melts and blends with olive oil, then add shallots (and garlic). When shallots are softened (do not brown) add the rice and stir to coat the grains completely with fat.

Stirring constantly, add the wine, and simmer until completely absorbed. Repeat this process with the stock one ladle full at a time (still stirring constantly) until all of the stock is gone. If you stop stirring or walk away to do something else at this point, the liquid could evaporate very quickly and the rice could burn.

Add the mushrooms about 5 minutes before the risotto is done (that is, when you are ~2/3 of the way through the stock). Once all of the stock is absorbed, remove from the heat completely. At this point, dice the remaining butter and add it a few cubes at a time, stirring until it is melted. Then add the Parmesan cheese, again stirring until completely melted. Season with salt and pepper (white if you have it) to taste. Ideally, serve immediately. Otherwise, keep covered and serve within 20 minutes. Avoid reheating as this will cause the oil to separate, damaging the presentation (but not really the flavor).

Variations:

For a vegan risotto, use Earth Balance instead of butter. Earth Balance is the only butter replacement that tastes almost as good and acts similar in cooking, and it also has no trans fat or hydrogenated oil. I have made risotto with this product a few times, and it works very well.

For a seafood risotto, use fish stock (if you can find it) or vegetable stock, and add shrimp at the same time as you would the mushrooms. If you are adding other seafood, consider cooking it separately and combining it right before serving, or using the risotto as a bed.

Other soft vegetables that can be eaten raw should be added at the same time as the mushrooms. Hard vegetables that need more cooking (tubers, rough greens, etc.) and meat should be cooked separately and combined right before serving. All together, I would not add much more than 2 cups of other ingredients per 1 and 1/2 cups (raw) rice.

Pictures to come soon, bon appetit. Scratch that, I just checked and I don't have any pictures of that one. I don't know what I was thinking. But here's a link!