Perfect pairing

Now that we have the bread sorted out, let's make it a balanced meal. Because nothing warms me up on a blustery fall day than a dinner of soup and bread. And nothing cleans out the refrigerator better than my family's favorite soup.

This one is never exactly the same twice, because the whole point is to clean out the fridge. You know what I'm talking about. The celery that's not quite as crisp as it should be. The cabbage that you kind of forgot about but still has a little life left. The remnants of whatever else might be in there and not quite worthy of the bin.

This time, I started with this:



Things weren't as questionable as they often are. Because the fridge had been cleaned out pretty recently. But if it makes you happy to pretend that the celery is wilted and the cabbage is less than perfect, go ahead. Because it usually is. You see that jar? It contains about 1/2 cup of brown rice. I was sick of looking at that almost-empty container. And those cans of tomatoes are essential if I want my kids to eat this soup. For them, it's not good soup without a tomato base and a healthy dose of cabbage.



I sauteed the leeks and a couple of cloves of garlic in a tablespoon of olive oil for a few minutes. When they start getting soft and fragrant, I added the other ingredients: the chopped veggies and about a quart of vegetable stock, along with the cans of tomatoes. EXCEPT the cabbage. Save that for the last 15 minutes.



And honestly, that's about all. Let it simmer the whole time you're baking the bread. The longer, the better. Throw in the cabbage for the last fifteen minutes of cooking.

Oh, seasonings? I used my old standby fresh herbs from the garden: thyme, oregano, basil. There was some shady-looking parsley in the fridge, so in it went. And some celery salt and pepper. If you have other favorites, substitute away.

And when it looks like this, it's ready to eat. Unless you have my kids, in which case you're going to need a few ice cubes. Maybe they're Russian?

Hey, look! I'm back!

The laptop has returned to the land of the living and I just uploaded a zillion pictures. So here we are, just in time for the return of autumn.

Let's bake some bread!

A few assumptions. I have a Kitchenaid mixer and I use it as much as I can. Even though Jamie Oliver says we should make our dough with our hands, I prefer to make less of a mess and get things done. I'm a busy woman. But last winter I baked this bread almost every day because it has a lot fewer ingredients than grocery store bread, and it slices very well. Recently, in an effort to add fiber to my diet, I've been experimenting with oat bran flour, and this bread seems to accept that substitution nicely.

English Muffin Bread

1 cup milk
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup warm water (100-110)
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
2 cups wheat or oat bran flour
3.5 cups unbleached all-purpose or bread flour
cornmeal (about 1/4 cup)

In a small saucepan, warm milk, butter, salt, and sugar until everything is all melty and dissolved. While the milk mixture is cooling (to a little warmer than room temperature), dissolve yeast in warm water in the mixer bowl. After the yeast is dissolved, mix in the milk.

Attach the dough hook to the mixer and begin adding flour.

I start with 2 cups of flour, then add 1/2 cup at a time until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl and forms a nice soft ball.

Leave it in the mixer, kneading, for a couple of minutes. Dough should be soft and manageable. After it's kneaded a few minutes, remove it and put it in a greased bowl. Flip it around in the bowl so it's covered with oil on all sides.

Cover with a tea towel or plastic wrap and put it in a warm, draft-free location (I usually put it in the oven with the light on). Allow it to rise until doubled. This takes about 30-45 minutes most of the time. Sometimes it takes closer to an hour. Depends on how warm the oven is, how warm the water and milk were, and probably a lot of other factors, like the relative humidity and the barometric pressure. But it will eventually double (if it doesn't, go ahead and throw it away....your yeast was dead....probably because it was ancient or your water was too hot and killed it). Sprinkle cornmeal on your countertop (please, make sure the countertop is clean). Grease a loaf pan (or two).

Punch down the dough, then form it into a loaf (or two of them). Roll in the cornmeal.

Cover, again, place in that same draft-free location, and let rise again until doubled (might take a little longer this time...allow about an hour).

It's doubled again. Remove the cover, heat the oven to 400 (unless you're using glass pans, then heat to 375) and bake until golden, about 25 minutes.


This is really yummy with soup. Or butter. And I'm sure it would be fabulous with bacon.

Technical difficulties

I'd love to post.
But my laptop is in the laptop hospital.
And all my pictures are on my laptop.

But coming soon...baking healthy yeast bread and biscuits (using half oat bran flour), chicken soup, vegetable soup, slow-cooked pears, and more.

Any requests? The holidays are coming and I'd love to try some new ideas.

Taking its toll

I've been working about eight extra hours per week for the last few weeks, adding four hours to my Mondays and Wednesdays. With Craig teaching a night class on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and a busy weekend this past weekend, something crucial didn't happen.

We didn't plan meals, nor did we go to the grocery store.

Most of the time, cooking is something I enjoy. But only under the right conditions. I like to have sufficient time to cook so I'm not feeling rushed. I like to have company in the kitchen (even if it's just a kid sitting at the counter, chatting). I like to listen to music (preferably Prince) or NPR news. And if it could please be cold outside, as well? That would be great.

Those conditions haven't been met for several weeks. The combination of factors, beginning with Craig teaching evening classes and the kids being out of town for almost four weeks, has gotten me into a pattern of not cooking. Working late, I haven't really had time to get into a cooking groove. And our pantry selection is paltry, mostly consisting of ingredients picked up on quick trips to the store, with the intention of making a specific meal (like tacos, or this one). The kids are making the most of their last week of summer vacation by spending as much of their waking hours as possible in front of the television or computer. They're not interested in hanging out in the kitchen while I cook.

School starts for the kids on Monday, and Craig's summer semester ended yesterday. While I'll still be working late on Mondays and Wednesdays, at least for the next month, our schedule will be a little less complicated. But I've got to get back to planning our meals and shopping.

This weekend, I want to accomplish a few things. I want to go to the Farmer's Market as early as possible on Saturday. What I get there will help set the direction of the week's menu. Then I want to have a family meeting, over breakfast, in which we plan the week's meals (including lunches) and determine who is responsible for which meal. I was inspired by this post at Dirt to Dish for this tactic.

Planning the week's menu, rather than thinking about each day separately, has the added benefit of looking for nutritional "holes" in my family's diet. Since two family members are vegetarian, most of our meals are vegetarian, simply because preparing an extra meat dish is more work and more money. I've always been interested in eating healthfully (but don't begrudge me my weekly cheeseburger...it makes me happy), and I'm pleased to have children who like healthy food. It's too easy, though, to slip into a few favorite dishes (my kids both love starch, and I can happily make a full meal with a loaf of bread) and realize that we haven't eaten anything green or orange in days. But with a weekly meal plan, we can have a day or two that aren't entirely nutritionally complete, as long as the missing components are featured somewhere in the week.

I anticipate lots of fruit smoothies for breakfast, and caprese salads in my daughter's lunchbox. And maybe some locally-grown edamame. I can't wait to taste what we come up with.

Singing the praises of vegetarian chicken patties

Last night was one of those nights. My family had plans that didn't work out. Those plans included the post-vacation grocery shopping. But the car had other ideas, namely not turning over and being quite still in the driveway.

On grocery nights, my kids often eat TV dinners, only because (a) they like them and (b) after working all day and grocery shopping, there's not time or energy to cook. And that's what their tastebuds were expecting.

Plan B. I had some butter beans in the fridge from the farmer's market. The broccoli and cauliflower had held up fine, and there were baby carrots. That's a perfectly balanced, reasonable meal, especially with fruit and yogurt smoothies in the plan for dessert.

But my poor son. When he saw his plate, he literally wept. It hadn't clicked in his brain that we had to buy the TV dinners at the store, and we hadn't been to the store. Since I haven't seen the kids in weeks, I wasn't feeling stern; I didn't want to tell him to get a grip. He was disappointed, reasonably so, and I wanted to make him feel better.

So I opened the freezer, praying that I'd find some old TV dinner from months ago. Nope. But I did see vegetarian chicken patties. And that was enough to make him smile. And enough cooking time to get him to eat his vegetables while it cooked.

He didn't like the beans. He tolerated the broccoli and cauliflower. He deemed the carrots "too sweet." But he hugged me after he finished that chicken patty.

The carrots were delicious and made the house smell great. What did I do to them?

Cranberry Carrots
In a saucepan, pour 3/4 cup cranberry juice over 2 cups baby carrots. Add a few (5) whole cloves. Cook over low heat, covered, until the carrots reach desired tenderness. Serve.

Fruit Smoothies
Fill a blender with mixed fruit (I use the Spectrum brand that I find at Costco, which has a blend of peaches, melon, strawberries, blueberries and more, covering all the colors of fruit...it's frozen so allow time for it to thaw). Add 1 cup fruit juice (I used the rest of the cranberry), 1 cup nonfat plain yogurt, and a banana. Blend until smooth. It's easier (and more fun) to drink this with a big straw (you can find them with the bubble tea supplies at most Asian markets).

Food for new parents

Tonight I'm cooking dinner times two. My neighbors just had a baby girl, and they're home from the hospital. When my second child was born, my friends hooked me up with a food chain, bringing meals to my house every other day for about a month. It was the best gift, in so many ways. Each friend stayed about an hour, appropriately oohing and aahing over the baby, often bringing her own small children to play with the big sister, and nourishing our family's bodies with delicious home cooking. I can still taste Shannon's scones, Kristy's hummus, and Kaki's muffins, more than eight years later.

So it's time to repay some of that karmic debt. And I'm repaying it with roast chicken, cassoulet, and roasted potatoes with rosemary.

I've pretty much stolen Anthony Bourdain's technique for roasting chicken. I can't claim any part of it. It turns out perfect every time.

But.

My friend gave me a huge steamer in the spring, and the directions say you can steam a whole chicken. Which means my neighbors will get Anthony Bourdain's roast chicken (tried and true) while I'll get the steamed chicken. I'm very curious about this. The chicken at Bouchon is roasted in a very special oven that mists water (steam) frequently, resulting in a very tender, juicy, and amazingly good product.

The cassoulet: a can of white beans, drained, some chopped onion, a few handfuls of spinach leaves, sliced carrots, portabella mushrooms, some vegetable broth, and my favorite, fresh herbs from the garden. Thyme, rosemary, a little sage, oregano. In a large pan, saute the onion in a little olive oil (or broth, if you're watching fat grams), until soft. Then add some broth and the herbs, carrots and mushrooms, cook a few minutes. Add more broth, then the beans and spinach. Cook until the spinach wilts.

Prep pictures:


The cleaned chicken, ready for seasoning


Pushing a few tablespoons of butter under the skin makes it extra-tasty.


Salt and pepper everywhere.


Half an onion, plus rosemary, thyme, and sage go inside the cavity (giblets removed, of course)


About this much of the herbs.


And chuck it in the oven.


Or the steamer. (Hindsight being 20/20? I'd not repeat this. I had to stick that chicken in the oven after it was cooked because it was albino-looking. Would have been great, however, for chicken salad. Tender and delicious, but no color at all.


After. Note my fabulous trussing methods (not!).


This is the steamed, then oven-browned chicken. Not quite as colorful, but definitely tasty.


The Cassoulet



The Potatoes

More fun with tomatoes

Our tomato plants in the back yard haven't given us quite the bounty they did last year. June was quite hot; that's the only reason I can think of.

But we finally have a few that are ripe enough to eat (we had more, but some creature took bites out of them a few hours before we planned to pick them, which was heartbreaking).

Since I've got a movie date tonight, I'm going to make a simple dinner.

Goat cheese, tomatoes, basil, and olive oil. If the kids were around, I'd throw it with some pasta, but my husband is not a big fan of pasta. So I think I'll get some crusty bread to eat with it.

Instead of slicing or chunking the tomatoes, I'm going to stuff them with a mixture of goat cheese and basil, drizzle them with olive oil, and broil them for a few minutes.

And maybe a side of bacon, for me.