Labneh with Olive Oil and Sumac

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Plain, whole fat yogurt drained of its whey for 24 hours.

Pooled in a really, really good olive oil.

Sumac sprinkled on top.

You must make this.

Now.

Nisrine of Dinners and Dreams has the process and the beautiful photos.

Go.

Copyright 2005-2012, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Basics: Garlic Rubbed Crostini Recipe

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 I know.  Crostini.  Big whoop.

Anyone can make it.

And you can hardly call it a recipe; a method is more apropo.

But this blog began in lieu of a family cookbook for my sons and this is the year that every so often I will find the basics that appear throughout this blog and give them their own post.

 

Crostini, as they are called in Italian, crouton or croûtes, as they are called in France, are simply small slices of bread that have been toasted in the oven.  They can be plain or brushed with olive oil as I have done here.  They are the building blocks of myriad small-bite toppings.

Begin with a long baguette of good artisan bread.  Cut the baguette on the diagonal into 1/4-inch slices, brush one side lightly with a good olive oil and toast in a 400-degree oven for 7-12 minutes or until golden brown.

 Like this.

Take a clove or two of garlic, peeled and cut in half, and when the crostini come out of the oven, quickly rub the cut half of the garlic clove over the olive oil-brushed side of each piece. Not a lot, just one or two gentle passes. You want the essence of garlic, not an overpowering crescendo.

Let the crostini cool a bit then add your favorite toppings, just like you would do with crackers.  Or grate a little cheese over the top, like I did in this post, maybe add a few grains of coarse sea salt, and pop them back in the oven until the cheese melts.

Float them in soups, serve them with stews.  Serve them topped with pâtés or your favorite tapenade.  They are hands down a giant leap over crackers from a box.

 

Christine's Garlic Rubbed Crostini

(print recipe)

Ingredients:

1 long artisan baguette, preferrably sourdough

good olive oil for brushing

1 or 2 garlic cloves, peeled and cut in half

Preparation:

Pre-heat oven to 400-degrees.

Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper.

Slice the baguette on the diagonal into thin (no more than 1/4-inch) slices.

Pour the olive oil into a bowl and using a pastry brush (I keep one just for this purpose), brush a small amount of olive oil on one side of each slice of bread and line them up on the sheet pan.

Toast the slices in the oven for 7 to 12 minutes, watching them carefully so they don't burn, until they are golden brown.  They will be crisp.

Remove the pan from the oven and working quickly, rub the cut garlic over the olive oiled side of each crostini.  Be careful, they will be very hot.

When finished, the crostini may be served right away or allowed to cool completely and put into a ziptop freezer bag to store for several days on the counter or several months in the freezer.

So simple.  And so good.

~  Lest you think I'm losing my culinary mind, most folks know croutons as those small toasted cubes of bread that are tossed into salads.  A crouton is simply a small toasted piece of bread, it can be cubed or it can be sliced and comes from the French word croûte, which means crust. To make it easy, just call them crostini.

~  I keep a pastry brush separate from my baking brushes specifically for the purpose of brushing olive onto things.  The brush is easily cleaned by immersing it into a bowl of hot, soapy water and letting it sit for a few minutes then running hot water over it.  Remove as much of the water that you can with a dish towel and let the brush air dry before putting it away.  This is not a product plug, but Dawn dishwashing detergent is perfect for this task as it cuts through the oil quickly.

Related recipes you may want to try from Christine Cooks:
Simple Chicken Liver Pate
Chicken Liver Pate on Garlic Toasts
Sun-dried Tomato, Kalamata, Almond Tapenade

Crostini recipes from other food bloggers:
Best Crostini Recipe Ever from Bleeding Espresso
Olive Crostini from Simply Recipes
Olive Oil-Artichoke Crostini from Smitten Kitchen
Beet Greens on Crostini from White on Rice Couple

Copyright © 2005-2011, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Recipe for Simple Chicken Liver Pâté Using Crème Fraîche

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Pâtés can be smooth as silk, coarse and a bit chunky, or anywhere in between. They can be seasoned with herbs, fortified wines, vegetables, capers, onions and shallots; even brined whole peppercorns - to name a few.

Or not.

What I give you here is the not version:  A simple, smooth and rich pâté that spreads like soft butter onto a cracker or crostini. A basic recipe with which to let your imagination take wing; master this and there will be no stopping you.

Christine's Simple Chicken Liver Pâté with Crème Fraîche
Ingredients:
1 pound free-range chicken livers (I used Rocky brand)
2 teaspoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon Italian herbs (optional)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt or sea salt
generous grindings of black peppercorns - about 1/4 teaspoon
1/2 cup dry white wine
3 heaping tablespoons crème fraîche (See Cook's Notes)
Preparation:
If using the herbs, put them in a mortar and pestle with the salt and grind them a bit.
Gently wash the livers under cool water. Pat them dry then cut out all connective tissue and sinew.
Heat the unsalted butter over medium-high in a heavy skillet.
When the butter has melted, add the chicken livers and cook, turning once or twice, until nicely browned but still slightly pink in the center.  Stir in the herb salt, black pepper and white wine and stir, breaking up the livers, until the wine has almost evaporated, 2 to 3 minutes.
Turn the heat to medium-low and stir in the crème fraîche, stirring until it has liquified and then thickened, 2 to 3 minutes more.
Remove mixture from the heat, adjust to taste with salt and pepper, let cool for about 15 minutes.
Using an immersion blender, blend the livers until they are very smooth. You can achieve even more smoothness by pressing the mixture through a fine mesh sieve.
Spoon the mixture into a small bowl or mold, pressing down and smoothing the surface with the back of a spoon, cover with plastic wrap, seal tightly and refrigerate until cold.
To serve:  If you put the pâté into a decorative ceramic mold to chill, unmold onto a plate to serve with your favorite crackers. Or you can scoop only the amount you need into a small dish and keep the remainder cold.

Cook's Notes:
~ If you are bereft of an immersion blender (also called a stick blender), you can use a food processor or a regular blender. You can even use a fork and the muscles in your arm, but it takes longer.
~ Your pâté mixture will be the consistency of thick gravy before chilling.  Don't despair, it will thicken and compress while it chills.
~ I always have a jar of homemade crème fraîche in the fridge; it's easy to make and can keep for up to 3 weeks. If you need to buy some I recommend Bellwether Farms.
~ One more thing:  the surface of the pâté can turn a bit gray, even while in the fridge, if the plastic wrap is not placed directly onto the surface and sealed well. This is from oxidation and doesn't change the flavor, it just looks unsightly. You can skim the surface to remove the discolored pâté if it grosses you out. Something I would definitely do if serving to guests.




Other recipes that you may enjoy:
Chicken Liver Pate on Garlic Toasts
Traveling Food Lady's Got Company Coming

Copyright © 2005-2011, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Quick-boiled Prawns with Winter-Summer Yellow Pear Tomato, Avocado, Cilantro Guacamole

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An invitation to an appetizers potluck party was the inspiration for this recipe. That and the kiwis that had been holding (I thought) in the fridge while we were on the Atlantic seaboard for 2 weeks.
Now I think that kiwi guacamole spritzed with lime juice sounds like a stunning dip to go with prawns. Just not made with overly fermented kiwis. Sigh. Another time perhaps.
As in all cases when one ingredient does not cooperate, you find one that does. The petite organic yellow pear tomatoes that are coming to California from Mexico right now fit the bill. Sweet, tart, not too big a carbon footprint. Our borders do touch, after all.
The avocados are pure California. Organic, buttery smooth and rich, they pair well with the finely diced tomatoes, fresh cilantro notwithstanding. And yes, I do realize how lucky I am to have it growing right now in my northern California coastal garden.
This guac is a wintertime treat, bringing the sunny olé! flavors of summer to brighten our still-gray skies and our chilly tummies. Make it just before you're going to take it to a party or serve to guests.
Be sure to use plenty of sea salt when you boil the prawns, and boil them quickly - blanching really - no more than 1-2 minutes, then get them out of there and into an ice bath.

Definitely a crowd pleaser, this.

Quick-boiled Prawns with Yellow Pear Tomato, Avocado, Cilantro Guacamole
Christine's original recipe
(print recipe)
Makes enough for a crowd of 20 or so
Ingredients:

40-60 medium prawns, preferrably USA wildcaught, peeled, tails left on, sandtrack removed*
2 tablespoons sea salt
4 large avocados
1 cup finely diced yellow pear tomatoes
juice from 1 Meyer lemon
1 tablespoon green garlic, minced
1 tablespoon minced, seeded jalapeno pepper
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon sea salt (or to taste)
pinch red pepper flakes (more if you like it hotter)

Preparation:
Prep all of your ingredients, except for cutting the avocados, ahead of time.
Have a large bowl of ice and water standing by to receive the cooked prawns.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the 2 tablespoons of sea salt.
Toss the prawns into the boiling water and allow them to blanch for 1 to 2 minutes or until they turn bright pink. Do not overcook them.
Immediately drain the water from the pot and put the prawns in the ice water to stop the cooking. Let the prawns cool then allow them to drain in a collander until ready to use.
While the prawns are cooling and resting, take an avocado and cut it in half lenghthwise. Remove the pit and scoop the pulp into a medium bowl. Repeat with the remaining avocados.
Mash the avocado pulp with the lemon juice until the mixture is buttery but still has some lumps.
Stir in the rest of the ingredients (no, not the prawns) and adjust the salt and seasonings to taste.
Put the finished guacamole in a clear glass bowl and cover it with plastic wrap, pressing the wrap down on the top of the guac to keep it from browning.

Arrange the prawns around the guacamole bowl and you're ready to party.

Cook's Notes:To remove the sandtrack from the prawns, I use a sharp knife and make a cut down the back of the prawn from the head to just above the tail. If the sandtrack is still there, this will reveal it and you can pull it out. I've had many a prawn that still had the sandtrack intact. It's your call whether to remove it or not.

Buen provecho!

Copyright © 2005-2010, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Grilled Oysters with Garlic Butter Oil and Basil

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One of our very favorite spring through fall dinner starters is grilled oysters. We prepare them very simply so as not to muddy their fresh-out-of-the-water salty-sea taste.

That's right.Harvested on Wednesday afternoon and delivered to our door on Thursday morning. These oysters are as fresh as fresh can be.

We usually order Kumamotos and small Pacifics. Mr CC likes his kumos raw with a squeeze of Meyer lemon juice and a small grind of black peppercorns. He says they're superb. I myself will never know. A terribly traumatic run-in with a raw oyster when Mr CC was courting me left me with - dare I say it - a bad taste in my mouth.

I really don't think I'm missing out on much. Swimming in their own little teaspoon of butter and olive oil with minced fresh garlic, grilled just enough to heat them through, then topped with a few drops of hot sauce - could there be anything more sublime?

Grilled Oysters with Garlic Butter Oil, Basil and Cholula
Ingredients:
fresh oysters in their shells
olive oil
butter
garlic, peeled a minced
fresh basil, chopped
Cholula hot sauce
Preparation:
This is more technique than a recipe and the foremost thing you need is to have an accomplished oyster shucker in your midst. One who doesn't fear the knife. More to the point, one who is quite handy with an oyster knife.
That would not be me.
That would be the intrepid Mr CC who does a damn fine job of shucking oysters.
So, you open the oyster's shell (I'll try to get Mr CC to do a video to show you how) and discard the top shell, reserving the oyster in its bottom shell with the liquor.
Place each oyster on this very cool rack and when filled, put on the grill over high heat.
Meanwhile you will have placed several tablespoons of good olive oil, along with a few teaspoons of unsalted butter, in a small saucepan over low heat.
Add about 4 cloves worth of minced garlic and heat until it's simmering gently.
Spoon a small amount of this delectable elixir over each oyster as they are cooking.
The oysters are ready when their edges begin to curl slightly.
Remove them from the grill, sprinkle with a bit of chopped basil and serve immediately, in the half-shell, not forgetting to pass the oh-so-important bottle of Cholula.
Pure heaven.

Copyright © 2005-2009, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Sun Dried Tomato Spread with Kalamata Olives and Toasted Almonds

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I stole this recipe.

(I've done it before.)

Actually, what I did was figure it out from the ingredients listed on the container. Did a darned good job of it too (yes, I'm sayin' so), not having proportions and all.

So, is that stealing?

Maybe so. Maybe not.

All morning I tried to find a web site for the local producers of Paolo's Antipastos by Hasta Be Pasta, but they don't seem to have one which is a bummer because I'd like to give them credit.

At any rate, here is my iteration just in time for outdoor lounging on the deck, sipping a glass of dry rosé and nibbling on noshes while a warm, almost-summer breeze ruffles your hair and the grill is waiting to do its duty for dinner.

This sunny spread takes about 2 minutes to whip up in the food processor and is a wonderful accompaniment to rustic artisan breads. Have your ingredients assembled and ready to go, and don't forget to toast those almonds; it makes a difference.

Sun-Dried Tomato and Kalamata Olive Spread
Preparation and ingredients proportions by Christine, lifted from the ingredients list of Paolo's Antipastos
Ingredients:
1 and 1/2 8-ounce jars (about 1 heaping cup, packed) sun dried tomatoes in oil, drained
1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives
Juice from 1/2 of a large Meyer lemon
Fresh rosemary, thyme and oregano, chopped (see Cook's Notes)
1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds
Olive oil if needed
Preparation:

Place the sun dried tomatoes, kalamatas, lemon juice and herbs in a food processor and pulse several times until a it becomes a chunky, spreadable consistency.

Add the almonds and pulse just until they are broken up but visible.

You can thin the spread, if desired, with a drizzle of olive oil now, but I didn't need to.

That's it. Get out your antipasto tray; load it up with great cheeses, good bread, salami and cornishons and get out to the deck. Don't forget the wine.

Cook's Notes:

> I picked the herbs fresh from my garden. When chopped, had about 1 tablespoon each of the rosemary and oregano and about 1/2 teaspoon thyme. You should feel free to use whatever herbs you have on hand that will go with tomatoes, which is the dominant note in this spread.

> I experimented with making this spread earlier this spring, using up the remainder of my slow-roasted tomatoes that had been in the freezer since last fall. It worked very well and I was proud to have a spread that was made with mostly locally grown ingredients. This time, lacking said tomatoes, I used a product made in the Napa Valley, not too terribly far from my kitchen. It made a very good spread, but if you're lucky enough to put up your own sun dried tomatoes, so much the better.

> This recipe made enough spread to fill two 5-ounce containers.

Copyright © 2005-2009, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Make Your Own Saucisson de Porc

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When Peter at Kalofagas cured a few pork tenderloins several months ago, I knew I had to do my own - for the experience if nothing else. Peter is quite an adventurous and prolific cook who made the whole curing process seem so easy that I felt confident in following his directions. And guess what? It worked! I have two lovely lean saucisson pork tenderloins in my fridge waiting for holiday guests to nibble and enjoy. Thanks so much for sharing your triumph Peter. Never say you can't teach an old cook new tricks: It's now my triumph too and I'll be doing more charcuterie in the months ahead.

Cook's Notes:

Update - I found this book on charcuterie at Amazon.

Copyright © 2005-2007, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Home Made Potato Chips

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Now before you shake your collective heads in dismay at the high fat, high carb fare appearing on this blog lately, hear me out.

These potatoes, organically grown here in Humboldt county, were an offering at the farmers market yesterday. Well, Mr CC loves potatoes and he rarely gets them because I don't cook or eat them. But the potatoes were so small, so cute, so colorful and his eyes so imploring, how could I resist? I'll make potatoes au gratin, he said excitedly. My eyes rolled in my head as I envisioned yet another pound settling around my hips.

It was not my idea to turn them into potato chips. It was his. We'd been asked to bring hors d'oeuvres to a friends house for dinner and he decided it would be a hoot to bring potato chips; organically grown, home made potato chips. What could I say? No, I do not bow to his every culinary whim, but I must admit to a bit of mischievous curiosity thinking about bringing potato chips as hors d'oeuvres.

Red Bliss, Yukon Gold, Yellow Finn, Russet, and Purple Peruvians all combined to make a basket of lovely little chips. I dare you to eat just one. It turns out that the purple and red in these little guys are the same antioxident rich anthocyanins that give blueberries their color and health benefits. Of course I didn't know that before we made the chips, but it does help to alleviate the guilt factor a bit.

My contribution to this endeavor was to slice the potatoes into very thin slices using a mandoline, then carefully blot the chips as they came out of the hot oil. Then I sprinkled them with kosher salt and tossed them with a grating of our local Mt. McKinley cheese from Cypress Grove Chevre. Mr CC did the frying. Exceedingly well.

Were they a hit? Did they make people smile? Oh, you betcha!

Mr CC's Home Made Potato Chips

Ingredients:

About 3 pounds of a variety of small potatoes

canola oil

kosher salt

Mr. McKinley cheese, grated (parmesan would be good also)

Preparation:

Pour oil to a depth of about 4 inches into a large, heavy pot and heat to 375 degrees over medium heat.

Have a thermometer handy to check the temperature of the oil occasionally.

Wash and scrub the potatoes then dry them thoroughly. Do not peel.

Using a mandoline, position the potato so the slices will come from the length of the tuber, not the width, and slowly slice until all the potato is in thin slices.

When the oil is the required temperature, carefully place the slices, one at a time, into the hot oil. The oil will bubble ferociously at first because potatoes are so full of water.

Maintain the oil temperature between 350 and 375 degrees.

Using long-handled tongs, keep the chips from sticking to each other in the hot oil. Never leave the stove during this process.

Watch the chips very carefully as they begin to turn golden brown. As soon as they do this, allow them to cook for just a minute more then remove them from the oil with a skimmer and place them on paper towels to drain.

You can gently blot the oil from them with paper towels.

Toss them with kosher salt and then grate some of the cheese over the chips and toss them again.

Try not to eat too many before taking them to your hosts.

Copyright © 2005-2007, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Celebrating Humboldt Bay Oysters

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Minutes from being pulled out of the bay, you can buy these beauties, harvest-fresh and tasting of briny salt water, from Humboldt North Bay Oyster Company (sorry, no web site) on Saturday mornings at the Arcata Farmers Market .

These are plump, sweet Kumamoto oysters, a specialty of Humboldt and Arcata Bays (actually one very large body of water stretching from Arcata in the north, past Eureka to the National Wildlife Preserve in the south.)

Interesting reading about how this strain of oyster came to be grown just 1/2 hour's drive from my kitchen may be found here.

And did you know that Arcata is host to the annual Arcata Bay Oyster Festival which attracts 10,000 to 15,000 oyster-loving revelers each year? Yes it is. And this year the event is being held on June 16th which also happens to be our 23rd wedding anniversary. You can bet we'll be there.

Mr CC likes to serve these babies hot off the grill, dribbled with melted butter and sauteed garlic slices. That's the way I like them best.

Not at all fussy when it comes to libation pairing, oysters go well with Champagne, a zingy white wine or a good microbrew.

Slurp!

4/28/07 - Cook's Notes:
Now here's a lesson in shoddy research. The oyster pictured above is not a Kumamoto, it's actually a Pacific oyster, also originally from Japan. We got Kumamotos at the Farmers Market this morning. Photos coming.


Copyright © 2005-2007, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

The Brick Layer's Omelet

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Recently, Mr CC's Aunt Kay sent an article that had been clipped from the March 10, 1963 Bonanza Magazine within the San Francisco Sunday Chronicle, Western Dining section. The article, part of which is shown above, was written by Jane Benet with a photo by early Bay Area photographer, Roy Flamm, and features a recipe from Ralph Johnson, my late father-in-law, painter, sculptor and art professor at UC Davis from 1957 to 1988. The recipe is a re-print from the Artists' & Writers' Cookbook published in 1961.

As I've said before, Ralph was a great cook and dear friend and I was fortunate to share many an evening with him; my kitchen or his.

The story goes that when he was a young man, Ralph had a job as a hod carrier, working for a Danish bricklayer. His boss gave him the recipe which he then dubbed the Brick Layer's Omelet.

Mr CC is the chef of note here, claiming proprietary descendancy. He shopped for the ingredients and made the dish. I took the photographs and ate what was put on my plate. This is an old fashioned dish using simple ingredients. It was tasty but, more to the point, it was truly poignant.

Before I go any further, I simply must tell you about these eggs. Oh my god, they are so beautiful, their yolks so orange, their whites so perky and clear. They must have come from very happy hens.

Well, yes, as it turns out, they are very happy hens from our very own, local Wild Chick Farm. Pasture-raised, organically fed, they live about 12 miles from my kitchen. These particular eggs are from Araucana hens and may be purchased on Saturday mornings at the Arcata Farmers Market.

Brick Layer's Omelet
As re-printed in the SF Sunday Chronicle, March 10, 1963
Ingredients:
3 strips bacon
4 eggs
1/4 cup flour
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
salt and freshly ground pepper
1/3 cup chopped olives (we used black)
1/3 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/3 cup monterey jack cheese cut into cubes

Preparation:
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.
Fry the bacon in a 9-inch skillet until tender-crisp.
Remove from skillet and drain on paper towels. Leave bacon fat in the skillet.
Place the rest of the ingredients into a large bowl and mix together with a fork until the eggs and flour are combined.
Pour contents into the skillet and crumble the bacon over the top.
Bake in the 350-degree oven until the omelet is golden and puffy, about 30 minutes.
Cool slightly and cut into wedges to serve.
As Ralph said, "A little jelly is sometimes good with it."

Copyright © 2005-2007, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Mediterranean Red Pepper Coulis

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People go nuts over this sauce whenever I make it. It's fast, fresh, delicious, versatile, vegan friendly and about as heart-healthy as it gets.

We put it over roasted veggies, stir it into soups, dollop it on steaming bowls of stew, use it as a dip for crisp, raw veggies. If he's lucky enough to find some left over in the fridge, Mr CC puts it into his lunch tacos.

Recently, I used it in several ways: As a sauce for the as-yet-to-be-posted Stuffed Mexican Hat Pasta, and then again as a topping for the soup that was made from the left over Mexican Hat Pasta stuffing. Posts are coming soon.

I call this Mediterranean because the ingredients taste and smell like that warm, sunny region to me. And coulis is simply a more exotic French term for a fresh sauce. See my notes below for a few variations.

Mediterranean Red Pepper Sauce
Christine's original recipe
Ingredients:
2 large red bell peppers, charred, peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped
1/2 sweet onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon plus 1/4 to 1/3 cup olive oil, divided
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
fresh Italian parsley (optional)
fresh basil (optional)

Preparation:

Set the whole red peppers over a gas flame set on high and char until the skin is blackened and blistered all over, using tongs to turn them. You will know when the blistering begins because the skin will give a popping sound.

When charred, place the peppers into a paper bag, fold down the top and let sit for about 15 minutes.

Remove peppers from the bag and, using your fingers, push and peel the skin from the fruits. Do not put under running water to do this as you will wash away much of the flavor. It's okay for bits of charred skin to remain on the peppers, I think it gives them character.

Cut off the tops of the peppers and remove the seeds and veins.

Chop peppers coarsely and set aside.

Saute the onions in the 1 tablespoon of olive over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes.

Add the chopped garlic and stir for about a minute more.

If using the fresh herbs as I did for this recipe, chop them coarsely now.

Place the chopped bell peppers in a food processor and pulse 3 or 4 times, just to break the peppers up.

Add the chopped herbs, the onion and garlic saute along with whatever oil has remained in the pan, and pulse until the mixture is finely chopped.

With the machine running, pour the 1/4 to 1/3 cup of olive oil through the feed tube in a small, steady stream, using enough oil to create a thick, smooth sauce.

Stop the machine and taste the sauce. Add salt if needed and pulse to incorporate. Add the lemon juice and process until incorporated.

Keep in a glass bowl or measuring cup. This can remain at room temperature for several hours but should be refrigerated if being kept longer.

Cook's Notes:

Here you can see another version of the sauce with no herbs. You would think character would be lost but it's not so. It's different and just as delicious.

Going south-of-the-border, you could make this sauce by substituting red onion for the sweet one and lime juice for the lemon.

Spice it up with charred, peeled jalapeno.

Leave out the garlic if you wish.

Don't saute anything. Just add it fresh to the food processor.

Add spices like cumin and corriander.

My preference is to keep it as simple as possible so the freshness of the ingredients shine.

Copyright © 2005-2007, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Vegan Black Bean Nachos And . . .

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Happy Second Blogaversary to me!!

On February 19th!

And I missed it!

Happily, the reason I missed posting that day, and since, is that my son Jeffrey arrived and is here for 2 weeks to lay the kitchen and bathroom tile and finish up painting the rest of the downstairs rooms.

This is a wonderful thing. Not only to have him here for all this time, which is the BEST thing a mom could want, but to get the tile and painting projects done by his professional self, which is the second best thing a mom could want.

And because Jeffrey is vegan, I'll be bringing my very limited repertoire of vegan recipes to this blog to share with you. I'm already learning so much from him. Like TVP, or textured vegetable protein. Who knew this could taste (almost) like meat? I certainly didn't. I'll be trying it out in a stuffed portobello mushroom dish this week as well as in a rich tomato sauce over polenta. Tips and recipes welcome!

Beginning at the most elemental level, I made vegan nachos last night, using Follow Your Heart Nacho Cheese. Heated on the stove with a small amount of soy milk added, this cheese substitute melted reasonably well into a pourable nacho sauce. Very impressive!

I'm going to give you the recipe as I made it, but please read the Cook's Notes at the bottom of this post for some tips on how I'd do it over again.

Vegan Black Bean Nachos
Christine's original recipe with tips from Jeffrey
Ingredients:
1 large bag white corn tortilla chips (you may not need all of them for this)
1 can organic black beans, drained
1 small can diced green chiles
2 10-ounce packages Follow Your Heart vegan nacho cheese alternative
3 tablespoons VitaSoy Original Soy Milk (see Cook's Notes)
2 Baked Tofu Vegi Patties, crumbled (made fresh daily right here in Humboldt county!)
1 small can sliced black olives
4 small ripe tomatoes, diced
1/2 of a ripe avocado, diced small
4 green onions (scallions), thinly sliced

Preparation:
Prheat oven to 350 degrees.Spray a 9x11-inch rimmed baking sheet with a non-stick spray. Set aside.
Break the vegan cheese into small pieces, or cut into small cubes, and place in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
Add the soy milk (see my notes below) and stir until cheese is completely melted and of a pourable consistency.
Place a layer of tortilla chips on the baking sheet and cover them with 1/2 of the black beans.
Sprinkle 1/2 of the diced green chiles over the beans.
Pour 1/2 of the cheese sauce over this layer.
Repeat with the rest of the tortilla chips, beans and chiles then top with the crumbled vegi patties and the remainder of the cheese sauce.
Sprinkle the sliced olives over the top and bake in the oven until piping hot.
Remove from the oven and cut into serving portions.
Plate each serving with tomatoes, green onions and avocados sprinkled over the top.

Cook's Notes:
What I would do if I made this again: leave out the soy milk and use a tablespoon of Earth Balance or olive oil. I think the soy milk thinned the cheese a bit too much, resulting in a few soggy but very tasty tortilla chips.

Eggplant Caponata

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My father-in-law, Ralph Johnson, was an artist and art teacher. He was one of the very early faculty members of the art department at UC Davis , teaching there from 1957 until his retirement in 1988.

Besides being a wonderfully whimsical painter and sculptor, he was an excellent cook. One of the many dear things about him that cemented our relationship early on, I'm sure.

The first time I met him, he had invited Clay and his "new girlfriend" (that would be me) over for dinner and served us steaming bowls of succulent crab cioppino accompanied by hot, crusty French bread. Not only did I fall in love then and there with both the man and his cooking, my culinary bar was raised a number of notches.

We delighted in cooking and sharing meals, talking over glasses and bottles of wine and I am glad for the years I spent in his company.

One evening he prepared a Sicilian caponata (an eggplant based anti-pasto dish) which delighted my taste buds so much, I begged to have the recipe. He copied it from the cookbook on his kitchen counter (I cannot remember which cookbook it was) and to this day I have it tucked away in my old yellow plastic recipe box, hand written on yellow lined paper, sporting a tomato stain.

Ralph passed away a number of years ago so please don't think this is a eulogy to recent loss. It's just that when I found the beautiful eggplants at my grocers I remembered that I had his caponata recipe and decided to finally give it a try. All these years and I hadn't made it once.

I suppose you could say I followed the recipe, in that I used eggplant, onions, tomatoes, golden raisins and capers, but there the similarity stops. Given my whimsy and what was on hand in the cupboards, the end product is a very different yet tasty beast, as was confirmed by the "beach nighters" who gobbled it up this evening.

Eggplant Caponata
Christine's original recipe* (with inspiration from and with loving memories of Ralph)
Ingredients:
2 pounds of whole eggplants, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
1 head of garlic, cloves peeled and left whole
Kosher salt
Extra virgin olive oil for the pan
1 cup coarsely chopped sweet onions
14 1/2 ounce can diced tomatoes - I used Muir Glen Organic Fire Roasted
12 of Kalyn's Slow Roasted tomatoes, skins removed and coarsely chopped (or use sundried tomatoes, about 1/3 cup chopped)
2 heaping tablespoons golden raisins
2 tablespoons capers, drained
2 heaping tablespoons coarsely chopped toasted almonds (I was out of pine nuts, which is traditional)
1 packet Splenda sweetener or 1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
Zest of a Meyer lemon
Juice from the above Meyer lemon - about 2 tablespoons

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Drizzle a large roasting pan with olive oil to coat the bottom.
Add the eggplant cubes and the whole garlic cloves and sprinkle with kosher salt.
Using your hands, mix well, adding more olive oil if the eggplant seem dry. Eggplant drinks olive oil and then releases some of it later in cooking so don't go overboard on this step. About 1/4 cup total should be sufficient.
Cover the pan with foil and roast in the oven for about 20 minutes or until the eggplant is soft.
Remove the foil and continue roasting until the eggplant is golden brown and tender to the bite. Don't allow it to burn or stick to the pan. Frequent shaking of the pan may be necessary.
Remove the eggplant from the oven and allow to cool.
Meanwhile, add a bit of olive oil to a large heavy pot set over medium heat.
Add the chopped onions and saute gently until softened but not browned.
Add the diced tomatoes, the slow roasted or sundried tomatoes, the raisins, capers, sugar or Splenda and the allspice and stir to blend.
Add the eggplant mixture to the pot, stir again and cook gently for about 15 minutes until the caponata is soft, aromatic and thickened.

Remove from the heat and stir in the nuts, lemon zest and juice. Adjust the seasonings if necessary, but I don't think you'll have to.

Eggplant Caponata is my offering for Weekend Herb Blogging, hosted this week by its founder Kalyn Denny of Kalyn's Kitchen. Kalyn will be posting her roundup on Monday. Read how to join in the fun here.

Cook's Notes:
This is best served at room temperature with good whole wheat crackers or crusty artisan bread. If you have to refrigerate it, bring it out early enough before serving so it can warm up a bit.

Thanks to Bill and Erika for the inspiration to use Meyer lemon juice instead of the more traditional red wine vinegar. It was one of those "Ah-ha's" that truly makes this dish sparkle.

Edited on 2-11-07: *I've struck out the word 'original' here because, on thinking it over, I did not invent caponata, I simply made a different version of it. For more information on the dish and its origins, please click on these links.