A Cooling Summer Apéritif: Chilled Cucumber Yogurt Soup Shots

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Icy-cold cucumber yogurt soup spiked with bits of fresh mint and fennel fronds, served in shot glasses on the back deck. What better way to spend the apéro hour, waiting for the evening to cool down before lighting the grill?

Well, you could be up here on the north coast of California where, as evening falls, we change from shorts and t-shirts to long pants and sweatshirts, or, like last night, down vests. Yes, really. One of California's best kept secrets, our summer weather. It's even foggier and colder than a summer in San Francisco.

However, once in a while we get stunningly sunny, warm afternoons. One warm enough a few days ago to prompt me to pull out a recipe that I made often during the hot summers of the Sacramento Valley where I used to live.

I adapted this recipe years ago from Molly Katzen's Moosewood Cookbook. The recipe lends itself well to adaptation and as I happen to have both fennel and mint growing in my garden, I thought they might be a good pairing. I was right. I used the fennel fronds, chopped fine, but I think that a peeled, chopped small fennel bulb would also be perfect.

With seedless cucumbers and a good, organic, plain yogurt, full-fat, low, or non, as your base, think up your own herbal combinations and go for it.

Chilled Cucumber Yogurt Soup with Mint and Fennel
Adapted from the Moosewood Cookbook
Ingredients:
4 heaping cups peeled and chopped seedless cucumbers
3 cups non-fat plain yogurt
2 cups spring water
1 clove garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons agave
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons (packed) finely chopped mint leaves
1 tablespoon finely chopped fennel fronds
Preparation:
Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor and buzz until finely emulsified.
Refrigerate until very, very cold.
How simple was that?

Cook's Notes:
Owing to the cucumber pulp, this soup can have a grainy texture. If you wish to present a more refined, smoother concoction, strain it before serving.
Had I reserved any, which I did not, I would have served these shots with a spear of cucumber as a stirring stick.

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

No Name Pan Sautéed Potatoes

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I'm still working on a name for this dish. I'm sure it has a name (in that I'm sure it's been done before), I just don't know what it is yet and a Google search was of little help. I served this to Simona and her husband last night and got such rave reviews that I decided that even without good photos (yet), I had to get it on the blog.

Potatoes have received a bad rap from the low carb/low glycemic police. Packed with nutrients, potatoes can and should be part of healthy eating as long as the high-fat toppings and deep-fat, high heat frying are avoided. (This coming from a once avowed low carber who wouldn't have eaten a potato to save her life until recently. More coming on this subject in another post.) That is not to say that would I serve potatoes daily or even weekly as they are a high-starch food that can seriously mess with blood sugar levels, but I no longer fear them as I once did. And it has been found that purple and red potatoes especially are packed with antioxidents. So I say go ahead and enjoy a potato now and then - in its simple humble skin - the way nature intended. This is an easy and very tasty way to serve potatoes with simplicity and minimal fat. I would have sprinkled fresh chopped parsley on the finished dish but am having issues with my greenhouse parsley at the moment. If you make this dish, please have some fresh flat-leaf parsley on hand.

With apologies for the especially bad photo below (what can I say? My settings were off), here's the recipe:

(Nice photo coming soon)

No-Name Pan Sautéed Potatoes
Christine's original recipe
Ingredients:
3 medium sized unpeeled Yukon Gold potatoes (red or purple varieties may be used instead)
5 cloves garlic, peeled and left whole
fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped (for finishing)
1 tablespoon kosher salt (more or less depending on your taste)
freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon unsalted butter
Preparation:
If you have two cast iron pans or other heavy skillets of the same size, prep them both over medium heat with a teaspoon each of olive oil and butter. Set one pan aside for flipping the potatoes. If you don't, be prepared to flip the potatoes onto a plate and then back into the pan.
Using a mandoline, or if you are very adept and have very, very sharp knives, slice the potatoes paper thin. I know that Yukon Golds are mostly round, but try to slice along the largest side.
If you have a handy little gadget like this, slice your garlic cloves paper thin also. If you must use a knife, slice them as thinly as you can.
After you have melted the butter and olive oil in one pan, remove it from the heat and begin layering the potato slices, beginning at the outer edge of the pan, overlapping the potatoes slightly, going around the pan and spiraling inward until your potatoes reach the center. The entire bottom of the pan should be covered with potatoes. Repeat this process two more times then sprinkle one-third of the garlic over the potatoes along with several generous pinches of kosher salt.

Continue this process until all the potatoes, garlic and salt have been used. You may also grind black pepper over these layers if desired. I chose to grind my black pepper over the whole thing when I'd finished with the layering.
Place the pan over medium heat and cook until the bottom layer of potatoes are well browned and crispy. Adjust the heat, if necessary, to avoid burning the potatoes.
Here's the fun part: Place the other skillet over the one holding the potatoes and, using oven mitts please, hold the two pans together and flip so the potatoes drop into the second prepared pan. Easy, huh?
Now put the potato-filled pan over the heat and cook until the bottoms are crispy-brown, just like the first side.
When all this is done you should have a beautiful and thin pancake-like potato dish that is crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside.

To serve, cover the pan with a plate that will hold the shape of the potatoes intact and again, using oven mitts, flip the pan over the plate, dropping the potatoes in one glorious piece onto your plate.
Sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley, cut into wedges and serve immediately.

Having been very lax at blogging lately and sorely missing some of my favorite food events, this is my entry for this week's Weekend Herb Blogging. The ever-popular WHB was established by my friend Kalyn over two years ago and is being hosted this week by Ramona of The Houndstooth Gourmet. Click here to read about the humble beginnings of WHB and here for how to join in the fun.

Copyright © 2005-2008, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Cocoa Spice Encrusted Seared Wahoo

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The very same wonderful neighbors who grow our lamb every year and often bring us fresh-caught crab are also known to go on a fishing trip or two after which they share the bounty of their catch with us. Yes I do know how lucky we are.

Last summer neighbor Chris went on such a trip to Baja and brought back a number of different kinds of tuna. In the bunch that he shared with us was this loin of Wahoo, a relative of the King Mackerel. While this fish is not in the tuna family, you could've fooled me: It looked like a tuna, seared like a tuna and tasted delicously like a tuna only really, really juicy. All the fish caught on Chris' trip were loined and flash-frozen on-site making this the freshest thawed fish I've ever tasted.

Michael Chiarello's NapaStyle Cocoa Spice Rub was the perfect base for the thick coating on the loin. The spice rub has cardamom in it so I embellished it with more cardamom and extra salt to bring out the flavors. You don't have to try to find a loin of Wahoo to make this dish; albacore or yellow-fin tuna would work just fine.

Seared Wahoo with Cocoa Spice Rub
Christine's original recipe
(print recipe)
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons NapaStyle Cocoa Spice Rub
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon fine Kosher salt
1 loin of Wahoo or tuna
2 teaspoons olive oil for the pan
1 teaspoon butter for the pan
Preparation:

Grind the spice rub, cardamom and salt in a mortar and pestle until it becomes a very fine powder.

Pat the loin dry with paper towels and then roll in the spice mixture, coating the fish entirely. Use up all the spice powder by patting it on with your fingers to make a thick coating.

Place the oil and butter in a heavy skillet over high heat.

When the butter has melted, add the coated loin and sear quickly, turning the loin with tongs until all the loin is seared and browned.

You can serve the loin at this point if you like your fish very rare. Otherwise, place the pan in a hot (400 degree) oven for 2 more minutes to cook the fish a little longer. The center will still be rare.

Remove the loin to a cutting board and allow it to rest for 2-3 minutes then slice it into rounds with a very sharp knife.

Serve with steamed green beans tossed with a small amount of butter and a sprinkling of toasted chopped pecans.

Copyright © 2005-2008, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

A Mother Of A Bean

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Up until recently, I'd never been much of a bean person. I actually can't remember my mother ever cooking a pot of beans. Maybe that's where my indifference came from.

Not that I've never cooked beans before. In the 70s and early 80s when I decided to be vegetarian and Molly Katzen came out with the Moosewood Cookbook, I made her Black Bean Soup a lot. Over the years, though, my bean cooking had fallen off to just short of never.

These days, however, with all the attention on getting one's fiber, eating more whole grains, beans, etc., I've re-examined my ho-hum attitude toward the lowly bean.

Did you know that beans are a high fiber, complex carbohydrate, low glycemic food that are high in B vitamins and many minerals? Or that Beans have been shown to lower cholesterol, prevent diabetes, and lower the risk of colon cancer when eaten as part of a regular diet regimen? Neither did I until I did some research.

And if health factors alone were not enough to get me on the bean wagon, discovering Rancho Gordo has also helped to renew my interest. Steve Sando is so enthusiastic about his beans he practically could make a convert out of anybody. Including me. Here is my most recent purchase of a trio of beans from the man himself: Good Mother Stallard, Black Valentine and Marrow.

These beans are clean, people! No dust, no rocks. And I found just one bean that wasn't absolutely perfect. How many of you can say that about your store-bought beans?

Firmly on that bean wagon now, this morning I began with the Good Mother Stallard: A swirl of purplish burgundy on a creamy background encases this sturdy, plump bean which holds its shape even after cooking. The taste is nutty and earthy, the mouthfeel creamy and smooth. This is a bean to dress simply so its lovely flavor and texture are not muddled. And please don't throw out the cooking liquid. It's pure gold.

Cooked with fresh (or dried) bay leaves (I'm so lucky to have a bay tree growing outside my kitchen door!) and a covering of cold water, the finished beans needed nothing more than a drizzle of olive oil, some lemon zest and a sprinkling of Maldon Sea Salt to make my eyes light up and my tongue do its happy dance.

A quick rinse under cold water and these were ready to soak. A 6-hour soak was all they needed.

They cooked to a perfect consistency in less than 1 hour.

There's no particular recipe here. I simply did the following:
Rinse the dry beans under cold water.
Place them in a large pot and cover with cold, fresh water. Throw in 3 fresh or dried bay leaves. DO NOT salt the water. This will retard the cooking of the beans and you'll end up with hard rocks. Ditto on using stock. Just use plain, cold water and you'll be rewarded.

Place the pot over high heat and bring to a boil. When a boil is reached, lower the flame to maintain a simmer, on my stove, that was low.

Allow the beans to simmer until they've reached the consistency you desire. These were well cooked in just under 1 hour. In fact, I may have overcooked them just a teeny bit.

Remove the pan from the heat and drain the beans, saving the pot liquid! The liquid these beans make, in and of itself, is worth it. Use the liquid for soups, stews, or to add back into the beans if you wish.

Discard the bay leaves.

To achieve the finished dish (photo at top of page), drizzle beans with good, extra-virgin olive oil, a teaspoon of fresh lemon zest (go ahead, squirt in some juice if you want) and a sprinkling of good sea salt. Serve warm or at room temperature.

This is my entry for Weekend Herb Blogging. My post is not really about an herb per se, but WHB includes plants, veggies, and fruits as well. Plus, I'm so excited about beans, I simply must share.

Weekend Herb Blogging is the brainchild of my blogger buddy Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen and is being hosted this week by Ellie of Kitchen Wench, way down in Australia. To read about WHB and how to join in, please click here. Ellie should have her round-up posted on Monday. I can't wait to read all the entries!

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

Heart Healthy Mini Pancakes

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Not only are they heart healthy, they're low-carb. A win-win little pancake. I made an earlier version of these here, when I was low-carbing a la George's book, and hadn't made them since.

Been thinking about it though, especially after reading Ilva and Joanna's new blog, The Heart of the Matter - Eating for Life, the other day.

I had seen this cute little image on Kalyn's blog and scooted over to there to take a look for myself.

This is compelling reading, people. I'm sure there are not many of us who've not been touch, in some way, by heart disease. Ilva and Joanna have joined forces to bring heart-healthy eating to the forefront of our minds and eating habits with a series of intriguing round-ups. Ilva's first round-up, featuring heart-healthy finger foods, can be seen here.

It's too bad I didn't get myself off the dime and get this post entered, as these mini pancakes, wrapped around a slice of strawberry, would have been perfect for the occasion. But that's okay because the next round up features low fat desserts and I've got a few of those up my sleeve.

Even before discovering this new blog, I'd been re-assessing the things I cook and eat. Too much reading about what's good for you and what's bad for you will do that. It may be why I've not been blogging much. We've been eating mostly vegetables and salads in my kitchen; either food I've already put on this blog, or dishes that are just too simple, repetitious, and, therefore, not blog-worthy enough for my taste.

What makes these pancakes so healthy for you is the use of flax seed meal. Flax seeds are high is omega-3 fatty acids and have been found to lower bad cholesterol, reduce inflamation, and lower blood pressure, among other health-related results. All this in one little seed.

Because flax seed meal is perishable, I keep mine in the fridge and try to use it within 6 months of purchase. I put it in fruit smoothies and on my morning oatmeal.

Two years ago my blood pressure hovered around 150/86. Now it's at a steady 115/62. A very healthy and respectable range. Do I owe it all to flax seeds? Of course not. But it hasn't hurt one bit to include it in my diet along with lowering my consumption of animal fats and meats in general.

Hearth Healthy Mini Pancakes
Adapted by Christine from Eating Stella Style
Makes 8 large or 16 small pancakes

Ingredients:

1/2 cup egg substitute (or you could use 2 whole eggs, beaten slightly)
1/4 cup reduced fat milk
1 teaspoon good vanilla extract (no added sugars)
1/2 cup almond meal (ground almonds)
1/4 cup organic golden flax seed meal
2 teaspoons white whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon Splenda granualr (or you could use sugar. Or you could use honey. See Cook's Notes below)
1/2 teaspoon each, baking soda and baking powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch salt
1 teaspoon Earth Balance Buttery Sticks for the skillet (or you could use cooking spray)

Preparation:
Mix the wet ingredients together until well blended.
Combine the dry ingredients together in a bowl then mix them into the wet ingredients. Stir to combine.
Let sit for about 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat a non-stick skillet over medium high heat and add the teaspoon of Earth Balance.
For mini pancakes, use a 1/8 cup measure and drop the batter in small rounds into the skillet. Be sure the rounds are not touching each other - unlike in my photo.
The cakes are ready to turn when bubbles form and pop on the surface of the batter.
Cook until they spring back when gently touched.
Remove to a warm plate and repeat with the rest of the batter.
Serve with sliced strawberries, a small pat of whipped Earth Balance, and a sprinkling of cinnamon.

The uber-healthy Mr CC, who couldn't help himself and drizzled his with a little pure maple syrup, pronounced these delicious.

Cook's Notes:

If you decide to use honey in place of granular sweetener, reduce the amount of milk by the same amount.

Copyright © 2005-2007, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved. No content from this site, including text and photos, may be copied, re-located or otherwise reproduced, in part or in full, for personal or monetary gain, without the express permission of the author.

A Breakfast Protein Smoothie That Packs An Anti-Oxident Punch

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This morning the swallows arrived, bringing with them a stunningly beautiful, warm day, and announcing that Spring is here. I don't care that the calendars say that Spring doesn't start until March 20th, I believe the swallows. They're rarely wrong.

This is a breakfast shake I make when the weather turns from the cold, wet grayness of winter to the gentle sunshine and soft, warm breezes of spring.

It's packed with protein, is low in calories and sports low-glycemic ingredients.

I start with organic, frozen, no-sugar-added sliced peaches and strawberries.

Whey protein powder, organic flaxseed meal and cinnamon are next - all good anti-oxident ingredients.

A little Splenda, vanilla extract and, finally, a pinch of toasted slivered almonds add flavor and texture.

Add water and buzz it all up in a blender and you have a thick, rich, smooth, frosty, decadent-tasting, low calorie, filling, good for you breakfast.

Breakfast Protein Smoothie

Adapted from 40-30-30 Fat Burning Nutrition by Joyce and Gene Daoust

Ingredients:

1 to 1 1/2 cups water

1 22-gram scoop (about 4 heaping tablespoons) whey protein powder

1 heaping teaspoon organic flaxseed meal

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon good vanilla extract (no sugar, no corn syrup)

1/2 cup organic, frozen peach slices (no sugar added)

1/2 cup organic, frozen whole strawberries (no sugar added)

1 packet Splenda (if you use granular, you may have to use more as it's not as sweet)

2 teaspoons toasted, slivered almonds

Preparation:

Place the water in the blender followed by the next 4 ingredients and buzz for a second or two to blend.

Add the fruits, Splenda and almonds and buzz on high speed until the mixture is fully blended and the consistency of an ice cold milk shake.

If you use 1 1/2 cups of water, this will make a 2-cup smoothie. I usually have 1 cup for breakfast and save the rest for a mid-morning snack. Or share it with someone you love.

Copyright 2005-2007, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved. No content from this site, including text and photos, may be copied, re-located or otherwise reproduced, in part or in full, for personal or monetary gain, without the express permission of the administrator/owner.

Low(er) Carb Kiwi Sorbet

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Kiwi is a low carb fruit that comes in at 53 on the glycemic index. Kiwi is full of fiber, and, according to Wikipedia, is a rich source of vitamin C, A and E. The skin of the kiwi fruit is a good source of antioxidants although I don't eat it - too fuzzy.

Again, according to Wiki, "raw kiwifruit is also rich in the protein-dissolving enzyme actinidin", which makes "raw kiwi unsuitable for use in desserts containing milk or any other dairy products... because it soon begins to dissolve milk proteins." This effectively eliminates kiwi ice cream, kiwi panna cotta, kiwi creme brulee and a host of other kiwi-dairy impossibilities.

Beachnight friends Mark and Ilene have kiwi vines growing at their place which are loaded with fruit. They brought us a large shopping bag full earlier this month which we ate, and ate, and ate, until we could eat no more.

That's when the idea for a sorbet popped into my head. Wow! Was that ever a good idea. If you have kiwis hanging around and don't know how to use them up, I suggest you try this.

I used Splenda-Sugar Blend to make the simple syrup for the sorbet base, cutting the sugar content by just half. You have my blessings if you want to lower the carb count even more and use Splenda granular.

Kiwi Sorbet
Adapted from The Ultimate Ice Cream Book by Bruce Weinstein
Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds ripe kiwis, peeled and cut into chunks
3/8 cup plus 1 tablespoon Splenda-Sugar Blend
3/4 cup water
juice of 1 lime
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (no sugar added)

Preparation:

In a medium saucepan, combine the Splenda-Sugar Blend and the water and place over medium heat, stirring to dissolve. Raise the heat and bring the mixture to a boil, maintaining the boil for 1 minute.

Remove the pan from the heat and allow the mixture to cool to room temperature.

Place the cut kiwis and the cooled syrup into a blender and pulse a few times to start the blending.

Add the lime juice and vanilla and blend on low to medium until smooth.

Refrigerate until very cold, overnight is best.

Using an ice cream maker, process the kiwi mixture according to the manufacturer's directions. The sorbet will be at a soft-serve stage after about 25 minutes. It can be made firmer by freezing it in an airtight container for several hours.

Cooks' Notes:

If you freeze the sorbet for longer than a few hours, you'll have to let it thaw a bit before trying to scoop it out of the container. The longer it freezes the harder it gets to scoop.

The sorbet has a lovely soft green color that my camera didn't pick up well, so I tweaked this in PhotoShop. I hope it translates well to other computers.

Grilled Stuffed Turkey Burgers

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I try to keep packages of ground turkey in my freezer at all times. It's so handy for a quick meat and tomato sauce, a low-fat meat loaf, or these cheese and avocado stuffed burgers.

Because ground turkey doesn't have much fat, I usually mix something into the meat to help it retain moisture while cooking. With meat loaf it can be egg, milk, rolled oats or good bread crumbs. But for grilling, I like to mix in a spicy jam to kick the flavors up a bit.

For these burgers I used a red onion confit, spiced up further with NapaStyle's Toasted Spice Rub. Now you can use my red onion confit, Sher's onion jam, or The Girl and The Fig Red Onion Confit, which is what I did, with these burgers. Any of these choices will have you pining for turkey burgers at odd hours of the day and night.

Grilled Turkey Burgers Stuffed with Avocado and Swiss Cheese
Christine's Original Recipe (with inspiration for stuffing ground turkey from Cuisine at Home Magazine)
Makes 4 to 6 burgers

Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds ground turkey
1/2 cup red onion confit (or a spicy jam of your choice)
1 tablespoon Toasted Spice Rub
1 teaspoon kosher salt
generous grindings of Tellicherry black peppercorns or other good black pepper
1-2 ripe avocados
1/2 pound Swiss or Swiss-like cheese or Gruyere (I used French Madrigal, called a 'baby Swiss')

Preparation:

In a large bowl, combine the ground turkey, jam or confit, spice rub, salt and pepper and mix with your clean hands until fully blended.

Using about 1/2 cup turkey blend per patty, roll and pat them out to a 1/4-inch thickness, shaping them into rectangles. Make all the patties a uniform size. The size you make them will determine how many patties the mix will yield.

Setting the patties in pairs on waxed paper (2 patties = one burger), place several slices of cheese on top of one of each pair of patties, then top with several slices of avocado.

Using the waxed paper to help you, flip the unadorned patty on top of the cheese-avocado patty and seal the edges by pinching gently.

Repeat this process with the remaining patties.

Cook patties until just done, using an outdoor grill or an indoor grill pan. Don't overcook or the meat will dry out.

One of these grilled burgers makes a nice low-carb meal with your favorite low or no-sugar coleslaw, salad or roasted vegetables as a side. You can kick the carbs up, if you wish, by serving your grilled burger on a toasted whole wheat bun.

Butternut Squash With Creamy Tofu, Thyme And Walnut Stuffing

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If I were a resolution-making kinda gal, which I'm not, I suppose one that I'd make would be to eat a little less meat.

Now I'm not saying I've made a meatless resolution for 2007, but I have been making a few dishes lately that are sans les viandes. Not by conscious design, mind you. They just came about, in the serendipitous way that food happens in my kitchen, and I didn't miss the meat.

So of course I got to thinking that this might not be a bad thing. You know, go a few nights a week without chicken or fish. (We don't eat much red meat at all, an exception being lamb - post coming soon - so that won't be a sacrifice.)

This particular dish came about because of the tofu. We smug folks up here on the north coast have our very own tofu company, The Tofu Shop, which makes organic tofu daily and distributes it, so far as I can tell, to all our local grocery stores, even Safeway. What lucky people we are.

Did you know that a 3-ounce serving of tofu has a whopping 10 grams of protein? I actually did know that. I used to be a vegetarian back in my hippy days when the cookbook I reached for the most was Molly Katzen's Moosewood Cookbook.

But my point in telling you how much protein is in tofu is that it's a perfect substitute for meat, if you happen to be a low carb person, as I am. I gotta have my protein, but it wouldn't hurt for me to lessen my intake of cholesterol. And tofu is a cholesterol-free food.

Go ahead, visit the Tofu Shop's web site. They have a lot of interesting info on tofu and the other products they make. Don't forget to come on back here for my recipe though.

To cut to the chase, my recent hankering for some tofu resulted in the following dish, which turned out pretty darned tasty to this carnivore.

Butternut Squash with Creamy Tofu, Thyme and Walnut Stuffing
Christine's Original Recipe
Ingredients:
1 medium butternut squash
1 14-ounce block firm organic tofu, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 onion, diced small
3 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
a pinch of cayenne
2 tablespoons dry vermouth
1/2 cup 1/2 & 1/2*
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
olive oil and Earth Balance** for the pan

Preparation:

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Cut the stem end from the squash and discard. Cut the squash in half lengthwise.

Scoop out the seeds with a spoon and then cut each piece in half crosswise, leaving the scooped out portion intact.

Place all 4 pieces in a roasting pan, skin side down. Fill the pan with just enough water to cover the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle the squash with salt and pepper. Cover the pan with foil and put in the oven for 45 minutes to one hour, or until the squash is tender.

You can remove the foil during the last few minutes to let any water left in the pan evaporate.

When cooked, remove the squash from the oven and tent with foil to keep warm.

Meanwhile, in a heavy skillet over medium heat, saute the onions in a small amount of olive oil and Earth Balance until they are very soft.

Add the garlic, thyme, cinnamon and cayenne and stir for a few minutes more.

Add the tofu to the pan and gently stir (avoid breaking up the cubes) until it has heated through.

Pour in the vermouth and cook, stirring, until the liquid evaporates.

Add the walnuts.

Pour in the 1/2 & 1/2 and cook, stirring, until the sauce thickens.

Remove from the heat and season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

To serve***, mound spoonfuls of the tofu mixture into each squash cavity, sprinkle with shaved parmesan (optional), surround with a green salad and enjoy.

Cooks Notes:

* You could substitute soy milk for the 1/2 & 1/2, making this vegan-firendly.

** Earth Balance Natural Buttery Spread is my new "butter" of choice. It has no saturated fat, is cholesterol free, is easy to cook with and has lots of other attributes that are good for you. Have I given up on butter? No. I just don't use so much of it.

*** I came up with other ideas for the tofu mixture as I was merrily cooking away:

Add sauteed mushrooms to the mix (if only I'd had some)

Mix toasted, seasoned bread crumbs with finely grated parmesan cheese, sprinkle it over the top of the tofu, dot with more Earth Balance and return the whole thing to the oven to melt it deliciously into the mix.

Menu For Hope III:

A reminder to all who participated in the Menu For Hope raffle, Monday, Jan. 15th is the day to check at Chez Pim to see if you won the prize of your dreams!

I'm taking the long weekend off from blogging. Back on Tuesday!

Candy Cane Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream

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Here's an (almost) guilt-free way to use up those leftover holiday candy canes.

Some time ago, I developed a fairly low-carb, low-fat ice cream (ice milk, actually) that, by itself, you can eat guilt-free, in moderation of course. The "almost" comes into play with what you add to the basic recipe.

Here I've crushed candy canes and chopped a dark, 70% cacao, bittersweet chocolate bar to enhance my base. While this does add to the carb count, you can always have friends over to help you eat it. Plus, chocolate is good for you.

I've just discovered a new (to me) evaporated milk that is fresh milk with 60% of the water removed. It's very white, as compared to Carnation which always has an unappetizing yellow tinge to it. The brand name is Santini. They also make an organic, sweetened condensed milk and I'm hoping that soon they will come out with an organic, low-fat evaporated milk. Then I'd be happy. I found the Santini evaporated milk at my local food Co-op.

Candy Cane Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream
Christine's original recipe
Ingredients:
2 cups low-fat milk (2%)
1 cup egg substitute (or you could use 4 eggs)
1 13-ounce can evaporated milk (low fat if possible)
1/2 cup Splenda granular
2 teaspoons pure peppermint extract
2/3 cup crushed candy canes
1/3 cup chopped bittersweet chocolate (60% to 70% cacao)

Preparation:
Start this at least 6 hours ahead of time or the night before to allow enough time for the custard to chill before making the ice cream.
Put the egg substitute in a large glass measuring cup and whisk in the Splenda until fully blended.
Place the milk in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat and bring just to a simmer. Small bubbles will form around the edges of the pan when it reaches this stage.
Remove pan from the heat and slowly whisk 1/3 of the milk into the egg mixture.
Whisking constantly, pour the egg mixture into the remainder of the milk in the saucepan and put back on the heat, this time on low.
Cook gently, whisking constantly until the custard thickens slightly and coats the back of a spoon.
Remove from the heat and pour through a fine sieve into a clean bowl.
Allow to cool for 10 minutes then stir in the evaporated milk and the peppermint extract.
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until very cold, overnight is best.
When ready to make the ice cream, give the custard a stir then pour it into your ice cream maker and freeze according to instructions.
When the custard reaches a softly frozen state, pour in the crushed candy cane and chocolate and continue with the ice cream making process until the ice cream has reached a soft-serve state.
At this point it may be eaten as is or placed in the freezer compartment of your refrigerator to firm up even more. To do this, pour the ice cream into a freezer-safe container, lay a piece of plastic wrap on top and cover with a tight-fitting lid. Put in the freezer until firm, about 4 hours.

Cook's Notes:
In general, I use Splenda instead of sugar in most of my sweet creations, an egg substitute (Lucerne's Best of the Egg from Safeway has the lowest sodium content) whenever possible instead of whole eggs, and either Smart Balance or Earth Balance instead of butter.
But that's me. Any of my recipes can be made with the real deal, with my blessings. Here are the equivalent whole food measurements:
Splenda Granular - to use sugar instead, measure cup for cup.
Splenda-Sugar Blend - to use sugar, double the measurement, e.g., for 1/2 cup Splenda-Sugar Blend, substitute 1 cup sugar.
Splenda-Brown Sugar Blend - to use brown sugar, double the measurement same as for the Splenda-Sugar Blend.
Egg substitute - 1/4 cup equals one large egg.
Smart Balance or Earth Balance (do not use "Lite" in baking or cooking) - use butter measure for measure. Never, ever, ever use margarines that contain trans-fats.
All that said, there are times when only the best whole food products will do, and at those times I use whole eggs, organic butter and, gulp, sugar. But not too much sugar. And NEVER trans fats.

YAY! Happy 200th blog post to me!!

Cocoa Panna Cotta - My Way

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When an idea that's like a marble rolling around in a steel drum won't be quieted, sometimes you just gotta get it out of your head and into the saucepan. So to speak.

I can't remember now where I read this, but someone, somewhere said that you cannot successfully caramelize Splenda-Sugar Blend. Pah!, I say. Yes you can.

And to prove it I've made a variation of the Cocoa Caramel Panna Cotta from my previous post, not only using the Splenda-sugar for the caramel, but also substituting fat-free 1/2 & 1/2 and regular 1/2 & 1/2 for much of the heavy cream.

In doing so, I've made it way lower in carbs and lower in fat while still retaining its creamy, silky texture. In fact, I like this version better than the last: It doesn't have any of the coating-the-roof-of-your-mouth feel that using all heavy cream can sometimes impart; and it sets up prettier, creating a layered effect of dark to light chocolate color.

Yes, Virginia, even though you might be eating lighter fare after the indulgences of the holidays, you CAN, at least once in a while, indulge in dessert.

Lower Fat - Lower Carb Cocoa Panna Cotta
Adapted from The Essence of Chocolate, by Robert Steinberg and John Scharffenberger
Ingredients:
2 1/2 teaspoons gelatin
1/4 cup water, divided
1/4 cup Splenda-Sugar Blend
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (I used Ghirardelli)
1 1/2 cups regular 1/2 & 1/2
1/2 cup fat-free 1/2 & 1/2
1 cup heavy cream

Preparation:

Lightly spray six 4-ounce souffle cups with Pam. Using a paper towel, evenly distribute the Pam over the bottoms and up the sides of each cup, leaving a thin film. Set aside.

Place 2 tablespoons of the water in a small bowl and sprinkle with the gelatin. Stir and set aside. This will become very firm.

Combine the cream and both 1/2 & 1/2s into a glass measuring cup and microwave until lukewarm. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, place the remaining 2 tablespoons of water and the Splenda-Sugar Blend over medium heat. Cook for about 10 minutes or until the liquid is a deep amber color, brushing the sides of the saucepan with a wet pastry brush if crystals form.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and quickly stir in the cocoa powder, stirring until fully blended.

Return the pan to the heat and slowly add the warm cream mixture, stirring constantly. The caramel will harden at first but will finally dissolve as the mixture heats up. Keep stirring until there are no hard bits left in the pan.

Remove the pan from the heat again and add the gelatin, stirring until it has dissolved, then strain the entire mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a pourable container.

Divide evenly among the prepared souffle cups and transfer to the refrigerator, covering the tops with plastic wrap so a skin doesn't form.

Refrigerate until set and slightly jiggly, at least 4 hours. Overnight is ideal.

I rather ruined the top photo by thinking I had to run a knife around the souffle cup to un-mold the panna cotta. But with the addition of the film of Pam (thank you for your support Jann), all you really need to do is flip cup and plate, give it a good shake, and the panna cotta will freely fall out, making for a smoother edge than you see in my photo.

Cook's Notes:

I opted out of preparing the custard sauce, adding a dollop of homemade creme fraiche as a garnish instead.

This dessert is so lovely in both taste and texture, it can stand on its own. A small shaving of good bittersweet chocolate around the plate is all it would need to give it a fine presentation.

Because gelatin is used to firm up the panna cotta, I see no reason why whole or 2% milk couldn't be substituted for the heavy cream, lowering the fat and calories even further. Give it a try!

Finally, you may have noticed that in my previous post I did not write out the recipe, providing a link and an explanation instead, but have written it for this post, creating what may seem to be a contradiction. Because I changed the recipe ingredients and the explanation of preparation significantly enough, I felt comfortable in giving credit to Mr. Scharffenberger and Mr. Steinberg for their wonderful recipe that I then adapted to suit my tastes. And because I now have their book, I'm not lifting anything from Mr. Leite's site.

And that's about all I'm going to say on this subject. :)

Persimmon Bars With Creme Fraiche

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It has become a Christmas Eve tradition at our house to have a large pot of andouille sausage, chicken & prawn soup on the stove (recipe coming), a hearty loaf of locally made artisan bread ready to butter and an easily hand-held "something" for dessert.

This makes serving a hot meal to those who arrive at different times of the day and evening easy. No formal sit-down dinner, any of the food items can be held in a lap or set on a counter to eat while talking and catching up with precious company.

Over the next days, I'll be posting many of the recipes prepared over the Christmas weekend, beginning with Christmas Eve.

And since life is short, as my dear friend George used to say, I'll begin with dessert.

These persimmon bars have been adapted from a recipe I found on Epicurious. By replacing half of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour and the sugar with Splenda granular, I've come up with a lower carb, higher fiber snack. The lemon glaze was omitted; a spoonful of home made creme fraiche offered instead.

Persimmon Bars
Adapted from Epicurious

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups persimmon pulp (from 3-4 very ripe persimmons)
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup white whole wheat flour (I use King Arthur brand)
1 teaspoon salt (scant)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg (freshly grated is best)
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 large egg
1 cup Splenda granular
1/2 cup light vegetable oil
2/3 cup golden raisins
1 cup finely chopped walnuts

Preparation:
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Butter a large baking pan (I used a 9x13-inch pan), then add several spoonsfuls of flour, turning the pan until the butter is coated with the flour. Tapping the pan, remove the excess flour.

After cutting away the stem and seeds from the persimmons, peel them and drop the very juicy pulp into a mesh strainer that has been placed over a bowl.

Using a rubber spatula or a wooden spoon, mash the pulp through the strainer, discarding any fibers and seeds that remain.

Stir the lemon juice and baking soda into the puree and set aside. (The puree will foam and then jell slightly.

Sift the flours, salt and spices together in another small bowl.

In a large bowl, whisk the egg, Splenda, oil and raisins until just combined. Add the flour mixture and the persimmon mixture alternately, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, stirring until just combined.

Stir in the walnuts.

Spread the batter into the prepared pan and bake for at least 20 minutes or until golden brown and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.

Cool completely on a rack, cut into 2 1/2 x 2 1/2 inch squares and serve with a dollop of creme fraiche.