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Michael Voltaggio’s Indian-Spiced Short Ribs

April 25, 2010 By kellypea

Garam Masala

Something happened to our Sunday dinners this busy season.  They’re usually what I manage to hang on to after watching our weeknight dinners dissipate one by one from thoughtful, healthy salads and planned entrees, to a quick forage through the wilted inhabitants of my veggie bin for something to saute with rice or pasta.  Throw in some garlic and it’s dinner, right?  Hardly, but it can be eaten in a bowl, sometimes as late as 9:30 p.m. while we’re huddled in our dimly lit family room in front of a recorded show and making weary attempts at questioning one another about the day.

It’s no wonder that looking forward to uninterrupted time in the kitchen draws my attention to the weekend where the result is pleasant time together over a meal that is special — read:  is served on a plate at a reasonable hour.  The idea of “special”  seems to be part of a process to me;  a recipe catches my eye and lingers on the periphery of the minutiae that accumulates in my head, and somehow I manage to remember the main ingredient while on one of my less than stellarly organized grocery shopping trips.  The remembered ingredient is then wedged into my freezer, which just might contain the very same ingredient somewhere in its depths, as a reminder that Sunday dinner is a possibility.  Hopefully, this classifies me as an optimist.

Time goes by.  Other ingredients are collected in other stop-after-work trips to the store for the cat food or laundry detergent I forgot on the previous trip, and because those ingredients are often perishable, they become part of a different meal (see above).  It’s a vicious cycle.

Finally, the day arrives as it does each year.  Busy season ends, and glimmers of a normal life surface.  The long-awaited day in the kitchen and meal are planned and the big question looms:  Will it have been  worth the wait?

Absolutely.

(And this has nothing to do, of course, with the fact that Chef Voltaggio not only took the time to comment on my effort, but put a shout-out about my speck in the food universe on his site, Voltaggio Brothers in “Food Writing.”)

A gracious and hearty thanks to Michael Voltaggio!

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Filed Under: Beef, Braised, Chef's Recipes, Cookbooks and Magazines, Food and Wine, Herbs and Spices, Meat, Method, One Pot, Slow Food Tagged With: , , , ,

Red Sorrel and Arugula Salad with Avocado and Orange

March 16, 2010 By kellypea

Red Veined Sorrel

I live in an area that is perfect for growing just about anything all year long if one can forget the pesky dilemma of drought we’ve endured for the past many years.  I’ve been a reasonably capable gardener most of my life — thanks to my mother who most likely could grow a stick in the Sahara –  so I’ve always had plants that needed tending.  Whether they were house plants, everyday geraniums, or wildflowers I grew from seed scattered over moist soil, I’ve enjoyed the peace that has come from caring for them.

Fast forward about 10 years.

I no longer have any property to speak of to plant things in;  instead, I have what I’ll call an extended patio that wraps around one and a half sides of our house.  It all seemed so wonderful when we bought it, not to have to worry about fixing a leaky roof or painting it, and for the most part, I still agree.  But there are days when I long for a yard — or at least a yard that is more than eight feet wide.  On other days, I’m thankful that I don’t have to take care of that dream yard.  I used to have one and know that as much as it provides a sense of accomplishment and overall beauty to a home, it can be overwhelming to care for.

Herb Box

Last spring, I finally decided to purchase an herb box.  Of course, I’ll be the first to admit that an herb box (dimensions roughly 8″ x 36″) isn’t quite the replacement for a dream yard, but I can deal with the delusion when the Pacific is a short 10 minutes from my door.  My rosemary bushes grow like weeds in my planters, so they were the least of my concerns.  It was more the need to have parsley, or oregano, and maybe marjoram, or salad greens.  Now that would be a luxury!  A year has gone by, and I’ve been so busy I haven’t spent much time on my patio.  The herb box hasn’t gotten much attention.  Thyme has disappeared in more ways than one, and the purple basil never really flourished to begin with.  What I’m surprised to find is red sorrel bursting with life and all but wearing an advertisement for snails and worms to have lunch.  It never really died down over winter, and now, after our recent rainy weather, it’s flourishing along with the parsley and marjoram.  Granted, the level of soil in the box is about 50% of what it once was, but still.  Surprisingly, the arugula is sending out tender shoots as well.  Go figure.

I decided that it was the perfect reason to make a spring salad, even though the vernal equinox is still a week away.  Anything surviving the neglect my herb box has had to withstand deserves to be celebrated.  And I suppose it’s proof that one only needs a strip of space with bright light most of the day to lull her into the notion of being an urban gardener warrior.

Nice.

Red Veined Sorrel Salad

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Filed Under: Gluten-Free, Herbs and Spices, Salads, Soup, Salad and Sandwiches, Spring, Vegetables, Vegetarian, Weight loss Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Super Food: Cannellini Beans and Roasted Garlic

March 13, 2010 By kellypea

My mother has always been a master at stretching a dollar because she’s had lots of practice most of her life.  As a single mother of three children under the age of five by the time she was 25, she worked hard to put a roof over our heads and food on the table.  She was very good at providing us a life we never considered was lacking, even though by today’s standards, most would say it was.   Our clothes were mended and patched when they began to show wear, and those gently worn were passed down to the next child in line.  Yes, we had toys, but more often, we ran around outside playing with friends at imaginary games. We ate only at meal times, and when we did, the food was simple and filling.  Often, beans were on the menu, and on those days when my little sister asked what we were having for dinner, the response would be, “Hundreds of wonderful things.” And why not when you consider that a two-pound bag of pintos costs only a few dollars even at today’s prices.

As much as I still enjoy a good pot of beans, white beans, or cannellinis, are what we most enjoy now.  Often referred to as white kidney beans, they’re related to navy beans, or great northern beans.  I often keep a can or two in my pantry, but I always have a small bag of dried beans as well.  They find their way into so many different quick dishes these days — like pasta, soup, or salad.  Our favorite way to eat them is with wilted dark greens such as chard or kale, and lots of garlic.  On some nights, sun-dried tomatoes are tossed into the mix, and others, whatever pasta  I have in the pantry helps bring everything together.

This recipe for “Cooked Shell Beans” is from Frank Sitt’s Bottega Favorita and is a good starting point for so many fabulous recipes, including a nice Bean Puree if you add some roasted garlic.  Put a pot on this weekend, and enjoy all the possibilities.

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Filed Under: Beans, Chef's Recipes, Garlic, Gluten-Free, Herbs and Spices, Make Ahead, Meatless, Slow Food, Vegetarian, vegan Tagged With: , , , ,

Tamales with Pibil-Style Pork and Guajillo Sauce

January 28, 2010 By kellypea

Have you ever made tamales?  No, not tamale pie.  My mother used to make that and as much as I enjoyed her cooking, tamale pie would not have been one of my favorites.  From what I can remember, it was noticeably sweet, and comprised of hamburger, corn, and canned tomatoes.  I’m not going to blame this on my mother, because I know it was the recipe.  Tamale pie could never compare to homemade tamales.

The only source of comparison I have is that of local women who tempt office workers with their once-a-week offerings, wrapped in foil, and still piping hot.  They’re amazing and so of course it’s a challenge to not eat one before taking them home to share for dinner.  I’d say that’s a fairly good model to work from.

Often, tamales are made with dried corn husks, the masa, or corn meal and filling spread on the inside of a dried corn husk, or fresh banana leaf before steaming.  The filling can be anything imaginable, and often is depending on who traditionally makes the tamales, and what region of Mexico or the Southwest U.S. they’re from.

If you’ve been studying Mexican cooking like I have the past few years, the idea of banana leaves wrapped around a savory filling is quite tempting; it sounds so exotic! A glance out my patio window focuses in on the not so big non-fruit bearing variegated leaf banana plant I’ve been nurturing as a possible source.  No, I’d have to depend on a local market, which shouldn’t be a challenge in San Diego considering the influence of Mexican cooking, but it is.

When I first happened on to the lone 4-lb. package of huge sections of banana tree leaves recently, I grabbed it knowing I’d procrastinated long enough and could now make my own homemade tamales. I knew I didn’t need four pounds of leaves, so attempted quite unsuccessfully to separate them.  Unfortunately, the leaf strips were enormous and all folded together, so my efforts in trying to avoid waste ended up creating something worse.  The leaves began to split, making them useless for the next shopper’s tamales.

Thankfully, my first attempt at tamales was a success thanks to the help of a very good friend.  Between the two of us, influence from a few good recipes, and a make-shift steamer, a few split banana leaves caused very few problems.

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Filed Under: Bon Appetit, Chilis, Cookbooks and Magazines, Herbs and Spices, Marinades and Rubs, Meat, Method, Mexican, Other Cultures, Pork, Sauce, salsa, & condiments, Slow Food Tagged With: , , ,

Wordless Wednesday: Out of Garlic

November 4, 2009 By kellypea

IMG_6525

I’m never out of garlic, and yet yesterday when I wondered about what would go in the potato leek soup we made for dinner, I found I had only the shriveled remnants of my normally plump reserve.  There were no shallots, and I couldn’t find an onion, either.  Cooking just isn’t the same for me without these flavors.  I roast garlic and smear it on crostini, flavor oil with it to drizzle over roasted vegetables, saute it with almost everything, smash it and sprinkle on some sea salt to make a paste, mince it, cook whole heads in their papery skin, and wince when I find I’m out.

Have you had your garlic today?

Filed Under: Garlic, Herbs and Spices

Shrimp and Corn Chowder

October 11, 2009 By kellypea

Shrimp & Corn Chowder It’s only a matter of time once the hint of Fall teases me with cool afternoons that I start thinking of soup.  I’m not partial to any kind of soup in particular as long as it’s warm and satisfying.  Sometimes I long for a clear broth and others something silky and smooth.  This time, I was in the mood for something chunky with a bit of richness — like clam chowder — except I didn’t have clams.  Seafood chowder sounded excellent too, but I wasn’t sure the tilapia I had in the freezer would be the right kind of fish for that.  No, I’d have to settle for the plump pieces of shrimp I had and the sweet corn and potatoes that needed to be used instead.  I just needed to find  a recipe that wouldn’t take up an  afternoon to prepare.

I enjoy my recipe searches because in the process I compare and contrast general quantities of ingredients, consider the variety of spices used and admire an unusual spin here and there.  It’s always nice to find a version that is healthy without taking away the satisfying aspect of the dish, too.   Every once in a while, I find a recipe that stuns me.  In my search for Shrimp and Corn Chowder, I found a recipe that seems to be making its rounds, finding it posted at several different sites.  Serving six, it calls for one quart of half-and-half, one quart of heavy cream, and one-half cup of margerine. Seriously.  I just about fell out of my chair wondering why on Earth it was necessary to put that much fat into a recipe that could easily do with much lighter ingredients and avoid classifying it as diet food.

Thankfully, I found a great recipe at Nook & Pantry, and although I didn’t follow it exactly as written, my version is not too far off.  Shrimp & Corn Chowder anyone?

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Filed Under: Chefs and Bloggers, Herbs and Spices, One Pot, Potatoes, Quick & Easy Meal, Seafood, Vegetables, soup Tagged With: , , , , ,
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