Now that we're all doing our best to be house bound, this seemed like a the perfect time to revive our cooking blog to swap recipes. Last night we made a good, freezable, fridge-cleaning soup that we call date soup! Here's the (very flexible) recipe:
For the protein:
1 lb ground meat (preferably chicken or turkey) (Or no meat! Do beans instead)
Liberal amounts of garlic (like 8 cloves?)
Basil or parsley (dried or fresh is fine)
Salt or garlic salt or onion salt, or a mix of all three!
Pepper
Olive oil
Cut any of the above seasonings, or add others that you like (I'd add fennel seeds, but that's not popular with the wife).
Add meat, crushed garlic, and seasonings to a bowl, and squish together like you're making meatballs or sausage. Heat the olive oil in a soup pot, then add meat, and cook so it ends up in little bits, like you're making a bolognese sauce or taco meat.
For the rest of the soup:
Carrots
Onion
Zucchini
Yellow summer squash
Mushrooms
Spinach
Fresh basil
Omit any of the above vegetables, or add others that you like or need to get out of your fridge.
Cut up your vegetables into spoon-appropriate sized bits. Add the carrots and onions to the protein, stirring until they're a bit cooked, then add:
Canned tomatoes or a can of spaghetti sauce
Chicken or vegetable broth
Bay leaves
Other seasonings (Italian seasoning, etc)
Then add the rest of the vegetables, starting with the summer squashes, waiting a while, then adding mushrooms, waiting a while, and adding spinach and basil right before it's done.
As the soup is cooking, cook noodles (pasta shells are traditional for us) to eat it with, or eat it with bread. (Italian rustic is really good, and here's an easy recipe that's worked well for me. (NOT SO RIDICULOUS OF ME TO HAVE BOUGHT A FIFTY POUND BAG OF BREAD FLOUR, NOW, IS IT, STEVE??))
Parmesan or mozzarella are great on top of this soup!
Showing posts with label all-time favorite recipes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label all-time favorite recipes. Show all posts
Monday, March 16, 2020
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
High Summer CSA
The first five or six weeks of our CSA here in RVA, we were up to our ears in green food. Chard, kales, green onions, leeks, beet greens, arugula, lettuce heads, zucchini. We began to grow tired of thinking of ways to eat green food, in fact. Thankfully high summer has arrived. It's hot and muggy, but the veggies are colorful!
This week we got 4 summer squash and zucchini, a great big bag of beets w/o their tops, enormous cukes, basil that's going to seed, fresh full-sized onions still on their stalks, kale, curving purple Chinese eggplants, green peppers, early tomatoes, and cantaloupe melon!
To celebrate the return of salad days we ate: salad. Specifically Greek village salad, χωριάτικι.We've also laid in a quart of black olives and 2 lbs of Dodoni Feta to enjoy all July.
Greek village salad, χωριάτικη, is simple food, and the recipe is simple too.
Serves 2
1 green pepper, sliced
1/4 onion, sliced so that the onion falls apart
1-3 tomatoes, quartered if small or cut into eighths if larger
1 cucumber, sliced into tomato sized chunks
a handful of black or green olives
One thick slice of feta cheese on top, to be divided by the salad eaters
crumbled oregano
Olive oil, vinegar or lemon juice, salt and pepper (optional)
Photo credit: Christos Proukakis flickr
We love this salad over here, and have some strong opinions about it. I've never been to a restaurant that actually serves Greek salad in the US.
Anything with Lettuce? Not χωριάτικη.
Crumbled up feta? Not χωριάτικη.
This salad really depends on the quality of its tomatoes, so we can only enjoy it during the summer time.
Want more protein? This isn't exactly Greek, but we often add a can of tuna. It's good, believe me! This salad makes the perfect summertime dinner with thick, crusty bread when you don't feel like cooking in the heat.
This week we got 4 summer squash and zucchini, a great big bag of beets w/o their tops, enormous cukes, basil that's going to seed, fresh full-sized onions still on their stalks, kale, curving purple Chinese eggplants, green peppers, early tomatoes, and cantaloupe melon!
To celebrate the return of salad days we ate: salad. Specifically Greek village salad, χωριάτικι.We've also laid in a quart of black olives and 2 lbs of Dodoni Feta to enjoy all July.
Greek village salad, χωριάτικη, is simple food, and the recipe is simple too.
Serves 2
1 green pepper, sliced
1/4 onion, sliced so that the onion falls apart
1-3 tomatoes, quartered if small or cut into eighths if larger
1 cucumber, sliced into tomato sized chunks
a handful of black or green olives
One thick slice of feta cheese on top, to be divided by the salad eaters
crumbled oregano
Olive oil, vinegar or lemon juice, salt and pepper (optional)
Photo credit: Christos Proukakis flickr
We love this salad over here, and have some strong opinions about it. I've never been to a restaurant that actually serves Greek salad in the US.
Anything with Lettuce? Not χωριάτικη.
Crumbled up feta? Not χωριάτικη.
This salad really depends on the quality of its tomatoes, so we can only enjoy it during the summer time.
Want more protein? This isn't exactly Greek, but we often add a can of tuna. It's good, believe me! This salad makes the perfect summertime dinner with thick, crusty bread when you don't feel like cooking in the heat.
Saturday, June 4, 2011
CSA week 4 and Spanakopita
This week we made quite a haul again at our CSA. We brought home curly red-tipped kale, basil, dill, rainbow chard, 2 zucchini, a cucumber, and a daikon radish.
The highlight of out cooking this week was a truly amazing chard and spinach spanakopita. P and I loved it so much we gobbled up two fat slices each. Traditionally, this pie is made with all spinach, but I think the chard and onion variation is even better, frankly, and I've had a lot of spinach pies. It's not exactly health food, but feta is much lower fat than most cheeses, and this is the sort of pie that makes you put your fork down, close your eyes, and take a deep, contented sigh about how good life must be that it offers you this pie. P prefers to beat his elbow on the table, while I prefer to simply exclaim "this is good" so often H now does it every night at dinner.
The phyllo is a kid-pleaser even if the filling may not be.
Recipe freely adapted from Diane Kochilas, the Food and Wine of Greece
One recipe phyllo dough
Oil, for pan
1 large bunch swiss chard, stems chopped, leaves split down stem and finely sliced
2 oz frozen shredded spinach
1/4 cup olive oil
1 largish vidalia onion, finely diced
1 large bunch dill, chopped
1 egg, slightly beaten
3/4 lb crumbled feta cheese
1/2 - 3/ 4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3/4 tsp nutmeg, ground
3/4 tsp cumin, ground
salt and pepper
1. Preheat oven to 375. Lightly oil a 10 1/2 inch pie plate.
2. Wash and chop chard, and drain very well. Heat 2 T (or more) oil in skillet. Saute onions and chard stems for 5-6 minutes, until beginning to brown, over medium heat. Add chard greens and continue to saute, lowering heat to low-medium, covered, for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. After 5 minutes, add the frozen spinach. If this mixture is watery once cooked, press the liquid out in a colander. Set aside and cool.
3. In a large bowl, combine cooked greens, dill. Add egg, 1/4 cup olive oil, feta, parmesan, spices, salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon.
4. Divide phyllo dough in half. Roll out first half of dough into a circle about 12 inches in diameter. Place in oiled pie plate. Brush with some oil. Spread spinach filling evenly over dough.
5. Roll out remaining phyllo dough into 12 inch circle. Carefully place over filling. Gently press top and bottom pastries together and cut away excess, leaving about 1/2 inch hanging over rim of pie plate. Roll top and bottom together to form your preferred crust. Make some incisions in the center of crust. If you wish, brush crust with beaten egg yolk and 1 T milk for a shiny crust. Bake for about 40 minutes.
Homemade Phyllo Dough (not nearly as hard as you'd imagine, or as layered)
2 to 2 1/2 cups flour, we use a mixture of 1 cup whole wheat, and 1 cup white bread flour
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 olive oil
3/4 cups water minus 1 T (if making ouzo variation)
1 T ouzo (if desired, it's very good with spanakopita)
Sift together 2 cups of flour, salt, and baking powder. Make a well in the center and add water and olive oil and ouzo (if using). Stir together until all ingredients are combined.
Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and silky to the touch, 5-7 minutes, adding remaining flour as necessary.
Refrigerate covered dough for 1 hour (up to 3 days).
Remove dough from fridge 30 minutes before use. To roll, divine into two equal balls. Keep it covered when you're not rolling it. Roll out onto lightly floured surface into circle. Brush bottom sheet with olive oil.
The highlight of out cooking this week was a truly amazing chard and spinach spanakopita. P and I loved it so much we gobbled up two fat slices each. Traditionally, this pie is made with all spinach, but I think the chard and onion variation is even better, frankly, and I've had a lot of spinach pies. It's not exactly health food, but feta is much lower fat than most cheeses, and this is the sort of pie that makes you put your fork down, close your eyes, and take a deep, contented sigh about how good life must be that it offers you this pie. P prefers to beat his elbow on the table, while I prefer to simply exclaim "this is good" so often H now does it every night at dinner.
The phyllo is a kid-pleaser even if the filling may not be.
Recipe freely adapted from Diane Kochilas, the Food and Wine of Greece
One recipe phyllo dough
Oil, for pan
1 large bunch swiss chard, stems chopped, leaves split down stem and finely sliced
2 oz frozen shredded spinach
1/4 cup olive oil
1 largish vidalia onion, finely diced
1 large bunch dill, chopped
1 egg, slightly beaten
3/4 lb crumbled feta cheese
1/2 - 3/ 4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3/4 tsp nutmeg, ground
3/4 tsp cumin, ground
salt and pepper
1. Preheat oven to 375. Lightly oil a 10 1/2 inch pie plate.
2. Wash and chop chard, and drain very well. Heat 2 T (or more) oil in skillet. Saute onions and chard stems for 5-6 minutes, until beginning to brown, over medium heat. Add chard greens and continue to saute, lowering heat to low-medium, covered, for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. After 5 minutes, add the frozen spinach. If this mixture is watery once cooked, press the liquid out in a colander. Set aside and cool.
3. In a large bowl, combine cooked greens, dill. Add egg, 1/4 cup olive oil, feta, parmesan, spices, salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon.
4. Divide phyllo dough in half. Roll out first half of dough into a circle about 12 inches in diameter. Place in oiled pie plate. Brush with some oil. Spread spinach filling evenly over dough.
5. Roll out remaining phyllo dough into 12 inch circle. Carefully place over filling. Gently press top and bottom pastries together and cut away excess, leaving about 1/2 inch hanging over rim of pie plate. Roll top and bottom together to form your preferred crust. Make some incisions in the center of crust. If you wish, brush crust with beaten egg yolk and 1 T milk for a shiny crust. Bake for about 40 minutes.
Homemade Phyllo Dough (not nearly as hard as you'd imagine, or as layered)
2 to 2 1/2 cups flour, we use a mixture of 1 cup whole wheat, and 1 cup white bread flour
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 olive oil
3/4 cups water minus 1 T (if making ouzo variation)
1 T ouzo (if desired, it's very good with spanakopita)
Sift together 2 cups of flour, salt, and baking powder. Make a well in the center and add water and olive oil and ouzo (if using). Stir together until all ingredients are combined.
Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and silky to the touch, 5-7 minutes, adding remaining flour as necessary.
Refrigerate covered dough for 1 hour (up to 3 days).
Remove dough from fridge 30 minutes before use. To roll, divine into two equal balls. Keep it covered when you're not rolling it. Roll out onto lightly floured surface into circle. Brush bottom sheet with olive oil.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Improving on an Old Classic
We are experiencing our first Virginia spring here. Apparently, that means that while last week it was 78, tonight the low is 29, and the high tomorrow is 44. This second winter is pretty lame-o!
But, it does have its upsides, in the form of roasted vegetables and oatmeal chocolate chip cookies with cinnamon.
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies with Cinnamon
3 cups regular or quick (not instant) oats
1 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 sticks butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 - 1 tsp cinnamon
1 large egg
1/4 cup water
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips
Oven 350. Ungreased cookie sheets.
1) In medium-size bowl, beat butter until soft. Beat in sugars, egg, water, and vanilla until creamy.
2) Combine flour, salt, baking soda, oats until well-combined.
3) Add oat mixture gradually to butter-sugar-eggs with beater at medium-low speed, gradually beating until just blended. Stir in 1 cup chocolate chips by hand.
4) Drop onto cookie sheet and bake 12-15 minutes, until lightly browned.
But, it does have its upsides, in the form of roasted vegetables and oatmeal chocolate chip cookies with cinnamon.
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies with Cinnamon
3 cups regular or quick (not instant) oats
1 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 sticks butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 - 1 tsp cinnamon
1 large egg
1/4 cup water
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips
Oven 350. Ungreased cookie sheets.
1) In medium-size bowl, beat butter until soft. Beat in sugars, egg, water, and vanilla until creamy.
2) Combine flour, salt, baking soda, oats until well-combined.
3) Add oat mixture gradually to butter-sugar-eggs with beater at medium-low speed, gradually beating until just blended. Stir in 1 cup chocolate chips by hand.
4) Drop onto cookie sheet and bake 12-15 minutes, until lightly browned.
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Happy New Year's Noodles
Happy New Year to everyone!
We are enjoying settling back into our house after two full weeks in Minnesota. Our family has begun celebrating our family Christmas on New Year's Day, and I wanted to come up with something that honored the traditional southern black-eyed peas for New Year's. More importantly, we're trying to cook out of our pantry this new year. So, we had a great long-time favorite: Thai Peanut Noodles, enlivened with silly measuring units, green peas, and lima beans.
Thai Peanut Noodles, for those w/out measuring spoons:
1/2 package thin spaghetti (we use only 100% whole wheat)
1/4 cup peanut butter (or just a hugely full big serving spoon)
1 1/2 jiggers soy sauce
1 1/2 jiggers sherry
1 1/2 jiggers tomato paste
1 big tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon chili paste with garlic
juice and zest of one lime (or 1 1/2 jiggers lime juice)
1 jigger olive oil
3-4 cloves garlic, diced or pressed
1 coffeemug full of lima beans, frozen
1 coffeemug full of green peas, frozen
1/2 handful of chopped peanuts (optional)
2 scallions, sliced (0ptional)
1. Heat a pasta pot full of water until it boils. Cook the pasta until it's done. If you want, steam cook the lima beans and peas in a steamer basket on top of the boiling water. This didn't work so well for us, so I ended up dumping the peas and limas in for the last 3 minutes to boil with the pasta. Strain out peas and limas (or if you're lucky, just remove your steamer basket), then save 1/4 cup of pasta water for peanut sauce. Drain spaghetti and return to pot.
2. In a small saucepan, over medium heat, cook garlic for 1 minute in olive oil. Remove from heat.
3. Add all the remaining ingredients for the sauce. Mix well. Return to low heat but do NOT let the sauce boil. (If you do let it boil, the PB separates out, and the soy sauce turns bitter)
4. Dump the peas, limas into the pasta, and toss all of it with the peanut sauce.
Enjoy!
We are enjoying settling back into our house after two full weeks in Minnesota. Our family has begun celebrating our family Christmas on New Year's Day, and I wanted to come up with something that honored the traditional southern black-eyed peas for New Year's. More importantly, we're trying to cook out of our pantry this new year. So, we had a great long-time favorite: Thai Peanut Noodles, enlivened with silly measuring units, green peas, and lima beans.
Thai Peanut Noodles, for those w/out measuring spoons:
1/2 package thin spaghetti (we use only 100% whole wheat)
1/4 cup peanut butter (or just a hugely full big serving spoon)
1 1/2 jiggers soy sauce
1 1/2 jiggers sherry
1 1/2 jiggers tomato paste
1 big tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon chili paste with garlic
juice and zest of one lime (or 1 1/2 jiggers lime juice)
1 jigger olive oil
3-4 cloves garlic, diced or pressed
1 coffeemug full of lima beans, frozen
1 coffeemug full of green peas, frozen
1/2 handful of chopped peanuts (optional)
2 scallions, sliced (0ptional)
1. Heat a pasta pot full of water until it boils. Cook the pasta until it's done. If you want, steam cook the lima beans and peas in a steamer basket on top of the boiling water. This didn't work so well for us, so I ended up dumping the peas and limas in for the last 3 minutes to boil with the pasta. Strain out peas and limas (or if you're lucky, just remove your steamer basket), then save 1/4 cup of pasta water for peanut sauce. Drain spaghetti and return to pot.
2. In a small saucepan, over medium heat, cook garlic for 1 minute in olive oil. Remove from heat.
3. Add all the remaining ingredients for the sauce. Mix well. Return to low heat but do NOT let the sauce boil. (If you do let it boil, the PB separates out, and the soy sauce turns bitter)
4. Dump the peas, limas into the pasta, and toss all of it with the peanut sauce.
Enjoy!
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