- Heat your oven to 450. (Incidentally, this would be a good time to warm up that little pretzel bread thing that you picked up at Trader Joes because they advertise it in the 'underwriter plug' on NPR.)
Split and seed a butternut squash, and just throw it on the oven rack. Roast until slightly soft, meaning you can stick a fork in it with some effort.Coarsely chop some sweet white onion - I used a little less than half a big one.Heat up your trusty giant cast-iron skillet, and slick it with olive oil.Drop in a couple big spoonfuls of Patak's Curry Paste (don't let the oil that collects on top bother you. Don't stir, just spoon.) Once the curry paste starts bubbling, you'll feel nervous that it's going to burn into a layer of asphalt (hardly out of the question) so throw a little water in there, and the onions, and stir it around.Check on the squash. If it's sort of soft, remove it from the oven. You can now peel it with your (overn-mitted) hand, by breaking and pulling off the thin crisp blistered skin.Once your onion is a little soft too - solid but not crisp or hard - cube your peeled squash and throw that in the pan with the onion and curry paste. Stir to get the dark orange stuff to coat the brighter orange stuff.Now. open a can of coconut milk. Reduce the heat under the pan to medium-high, and pour in some coconut milk, stirring until the dark-orange is also brighter orange.Cook for about 5 minutes to give the flavors a chance to mingle. Serve in bowl, eat with spoons. Half a large squash fed two starving adults.
Showing posts with label easy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label easy. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Curried Butternut Squash - fast, easy, vegan
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Recipe: Gluten-free Banana Bread
Preheat your oven to 350, and find a glass loaf pan.
Melt half a stick of butter (that's 4 tablespoons) and let it cool.
(If you're melting it in the microwave, keep a darn eye on it and stop it as soon as it melts, otherwise the solids will explode all over the inside of your appliance. It's gross.)
(Next, time, I will try this with coconut oil.)
Mash (or mix in your mixer) 3-5 ripe bananas. They should be super, super liquidy and make more than a cup of liquid banana goop. Mix in 1 cup sugar (I combined brown and white) and 1 egg. then that cooled melted butter (if its too far above about 80 degrees, it'll cook bits of egg.) Add a big swig of vanilla extract, and any likely-looking spices. I used quite a lot of Penzey's Pumpkin Pie spice. It was awesome.
Turn off the mixer once all that is combined. Now dump in 1.5 cups of rice flour (mine was 2/3 brown, 1/3 white), a scant tablespoon of baking soda, and a generous teaspoon of salt.
Turn the mixer on LOW and only mix it until everything is barely moistened. Large veins of dry baking soda or snowdrifts of flour are undesirable; however, lumps are fine.
Grease your loaf pan (with butter) and transfer the batter into it. It is heavy, thick and lumpy. It is brown. It does not look or pour like cake batter. It'll be okay. Seriously.
If you want to add walnuts (or black walnuts), I recommend sprinkling them on top. I have a firm 'no surprise nuts' policy, but there's actually a better reason. Having them on top allows the nuts to toast, which makes them taste lots better, and be crunchy. (It also moderates the distinctive but occasionally weird green note in good black walnuts. I think it's a perfect flavor for this bread, but can be overwhelming unless they're toasted.)
After putting the pan in the oven, lower the temp to 325. DO NOT open the oven for 45 minutes.
Begin checking at 45 minutes with the stab-with-a-butterknife method. The timing is quite changeable - could be done after 45 minutes, but occasionally takes more than an hour. I think it's because of the banana variable. When the butterknife finally comes out moderately clean - with actual moist crumbs stuck to it, rather than batter - it's done.
This came out moist, tasty, and with a good texture - springy but in no way rubbery. It looked nice, too, and the family ate it enthusiastically. Oddly, it did not have a very strong banana flavor - it was there, but not as banana-y as I would have expected.
This loaf took a long time to get done in the middle, and I worried that the ends would be overdone and hard or gummy - but they totally weren't. I was also worried that the middle would be gritty, but that's what I get for licking the knife - but, again, not at all. Good consistent texture and rise throughout the loaf. Deep carmelized sugar flavor.
Anyway, it was good.
I might add chocolate chips next time.
This is a rice flour adaptation of the wheat flour recipe I always use. (I happen to have noted, on the page of my recipe notebook, that my brother and I made it on July 15, 1996.) From Easy Basics for Good Cooking.
Melt half a stick of butter (that's 4 tablespoons) and let it cool.
(If you're melting it in the microwave, keep a darn eye on it and stop it as soon as it melts, otherwise the solids will explode all over the inside of your appliance. It's gross.)
(Next, time, I will try this with coconut oil.)
Mash (or mix in your mixer) 3-5 ripe bananas. They should be super, super liquidy and make more than a cup of liquid banana goop. Mix in 1 cup sugar (I combined brown and white) and 1 egg. then that cooled melted butter (if its too far above about 80 degrees, it'll cook bits of egg.) Add a big swig of vanilla extract, and any likely-looking spices. I used quite a lot of Penzey's Pumpkin Pie spice. It was awesome.
Turn off the mixer once all that is combined. Now dump in 1.5 cups of rice flour (mine was 2/3 brown, 1/3 white), a scant tablespoon of baking soda, and a generous teaspoon of salt.
Turn the mixer on LOW and only mix it until everything is barely moistened. Large veins of dry baking soda or snowdrifts of flour are undesirable; however, lumps are fine.
Grease your loaf pan (with butter) and transfer the batter into it. It is heavy, thick and lumpy. It is brown. It does not look or pour like cake batter. It'll be okay. Seriously.
If you want to add walnuts (or black walnuts), I recommend sprinkling them on top. I have a firm 'no surprise nuts' policy, but there's actually a better reason. Having them on top allows the nuts to toast, which makes them taste lots better, and be crunchy. (It also moderates the distinctive but occasionally weird green note in good black walnuts. I think it's a perfect flavor for this bread, but can be overwhelming unless they're toasted.)
After putting the pan in the oven, lower the temp to 325. DO NOT open the oven for 45 minutes.
Begin checking at 45 minutes with the stab-with-a-butterknife method. The timing is quite changeable - could be done after 45 minutes, but occasionally takes more than an hour. I think it's because of the banana variable. When the butterknife finally comes out moderately clean - with actual moist crumbs stuck to it, rather than batter - it's done.
This came out moist, tasty, and with a good texture - springy but in no way rubbery. It looked nice, too, and the family ate it enthusiastically. Oddly, it did not have a very strong banana flavor - it was there, but not as banana-y as I would have expected.
This loaf took a long time to get done in the middle, and I worried that the ends would be overdone and hard or gummy - but they totally weren't. I was also worried that the middle would be gritty, but that's what I get for licking the knife - but, again, not at all. Good consistent texture and rise throughout the loaf. Deep carmelized sugar flavor.
Anyway, it was good.
I might add chocolate chips next time.
This is a rice flour adaptation of the wheat flour recipe I always use. (I happen to have noted, on the page of my recipe notebook, that my brother and I made it on July 15, 1996.) From Easy Basics for Good Cooking.
Monday, May 13, 2013
Recipe: Curried Quinoa thing
While that's cooking, slice some red and yellow peppers that you found (also softening) in the (poorly-named) "crisper". About the equivilent of one large pepper (which is what's left when you excise the iffy parts.) Cut into small dice. Don't do anything with them yet. If you find you have a cucumber, peel and dice that as well, and set it aside.
If the onions are turning golden, it's time to drop in the cooked quinoa. (You can cook some fresh - take the onion pan off the stove, tell everyone dinner will be 10 minutes later than you had said, and cook according to package directions. I had some left over - most of a cup.)
Open and rinse a can of chick peas. Throw those in with the quinoa and the onions. Turn down the heat - a little crispy brown in awesome, but blackened is not delicious. Splash in a little water if you're worried about burning. Throw in the diced peppers.
Stir in a large spoonful of Patak's curry paste. We use hot, but there's also milder. Let that cook for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat - stir in a handful of dried cranberries and cover, let it sit for a few more minutes.
Serve with salt, pepper, plain yogurt and the diced cucumbers on top. Bizarrely deliscious. Kinda beige, though.
Vegetarian (vegan without the yogurt), high protein, all the fiber you need. Very very good.
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Valentines day lava cakes
This is the second year in a row that our Valentines Day has been a feast of familial love, rather than the conventional romantic variety. Last year, I made chicken adobo (this one, which sounds just gross at first read but is in fact delicious) and a more complicated variation of the molten chocolate lava cake. I found an easier one this year, and adapted it further (because by the end of a Thursday, I am not up to separating eggs or unearthing a bag of confectioners' sugar from the pantry.) it's an awful lot like the full-sized French chocolate cake that I made a week or so ago. This is messier, less refined generally, and WAY faster.
I found the recipe on SweetSavoryLife, which looks like a terrific resource; check out the cakes on her bio page!
I found the recipe on SweetSavoryLife, which looks like a terrific resource; check out the cakes on her bio page!
Recipe: Cucumber Salad
Find a big lidded container. Mine was 10 cups (a little more than 2 liters.)
Find some cucumbers. I used one super-gigantic one and one fairly normal one, and I would have had room for at least 2 more normal ones.
Peel the green rind off the cucumbers and discard.
Then, keep peeling! Making long, thin, see-through strips of cucumber.
Stop when you get so close to the middle that the seeds keep you from cutting nice strips.
Take a sweet onion and cut into fine slivers.
Put the onion slivers and the cucumber strips into your container.
In a small pan, combine vinegar and water.
You can use:
1/2 cup white vinegar, a cup water and 1/2 cup sugar
OR equal parts seasoned rice wine vinegar and water, with a couple spoonfuls of sugar.
Bring that to a boil, and pour it over the cucumber and onion mixture. Stir and let sit.
You can stir in some herbs - I used about a teaspoon of dill.
When cool, refrigerate.
It's sort of a salad and sort of a pickle - intensely flavored, refreshing on a hot day, good on a ham sandwich. I made it with CRCC cucumbers, which are excellent.
Asian vinegar is in the international food aisle at the grocery store - it's less acidic than regular vinegar, and has some sugar already in it. I use this brand:
or this one
both delicious, and widely available. Store it in the fridge once it's open (unlike normal vinegar.)
Monday, April 01, 2013
Gluten- and Dairy-Free Carrot Cake.
Dude. no fooling. My first try at g-free baking was such a success that I am left speechless. I didn't think this could work.
Carrot Cake adapted by ME!!
Preheat oven to 350, move a rack to the center position.
Grate some carrots (You need 2 cups) and let the grated carrots sit in a colander and dry out for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, drain a 20 oz can of crushed pineapple in juice.
Beat 4 large eggs, one scant cup granulated sugar, and one cup vegetable oil. And beat them and beat them and beat them, longer than you think could possibly be necessary, so they are as light-colored and foamy as they can get. This will work better if the eggs are close to room temperature - it makes them less gloppy. Add in the carrots and the pineapple, plus a cup of dried cranberries (Craisens).
(I didn't say it was a low-sugar recipe.)
In a separate bowl mix:
one scant cup white rice flour
one cup brown rice flour
1 teaspoon (or a small palm-full) salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
dry spices depending on your taste. Be generous. I used at least tablespoon of cinnamon, plus a generous shake of allspice. Use a LOT.
(If you're using a powerful mixer, you don't really need to pre-mix the dry ingredients - you can just throw them into the bowl with the wet stuff.)
Stir in 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract; you can throw in a cup of nuts now, if you like. Walnuts are good.
Drop into greased muffin tins; you can fill them most of the way, a little more than you would with another cake batter. Bake at 350 for 25-35 minutes.
I have not tried these in a full-sized cake pan, so I don't know what effect it would have. They do rise in muffin tins, some.
They don't need icing, really. Also, DON'T seal them in plastic bags - the moisture will condense into, like, slush. This is good advice for all baked goods, but with something as moist as this, it's really important.
to me, these are indistinguishable the wheat flour ones. I'm stunned.
Carrot Cake adapted by ME!!
Preheat oven to 350, move a rack to the center position.
Grate some carrots (You need 2 cups) and let the grated carrots sit in a colander and dry out for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, drain a 20 oz can of crushed pineapple in juice.
Beat 4 large eggs, one scant cup granulated sugar, and one cup vegetable oil. And beat them and beat them and beat them, longer than you think could possibly be necessary, so they are as light-colored and foamy as they can get. This will work better if the eggs are close to room temperature - it makes them less gloppy. Add in the carrots and the pineapple, plus a cup of dried cranberries (Craisens).
(I didn't say it was a low-sugar recipe.)
In a separate bowl mix:
one scant cup white rice flour
one cup brown rice flour
1 teaspoon (or a small palm-full) salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
dry spices depending on your taste. Be generous. I used at least tablespoon of cinnamon, plus a generous shake of allspice. Use a LOT.
(If you're using a powerful mixer, you don't really need to pre-mix the dry ingredients - you can just throw them into the bowl with the wet stuff.)
Stir in 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract; you can throw in a cup of nuts now, if you like. Walnuts are good.
Drop into greased muffin tins; you can fill them most of the way, a little more than you would with another cake batter. Bake at 350 for 25-35 minutes.
I have not tried these in a full-sized cake pan, so I don't know what effect it would have. They do rise in muffin tins, some.
They don't need icing, really. Also, DON'T seal them in plastic bags - the moisture will condense into, like, slush. This is good advice for all baked goods, but with something as moist as this, it's really important.
to me, these are indistinguishable the wheat flour ones. I'm stunned.
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Recipe: Quinoa
Warm Quinoa Side Dish
Put 2 cups of water on to boil in a medium saucepan.
Chop half a large white onion, half a red pepper, and 2 stalks of celery into small bits.
Heat a splash of olive oil in a small sauté pan. Saute your veg until the onion is starting to soften, with a bit of salt and pepper.
Once the water boils, stir one cup of quinoa (I like Trader Joes Red Quinoa) into the saucepan. When the quinoa comes to a boil, reduce the heat and cover.
At the same time, reduce the heat under the veg. Stir occasionally. Throw in a bit of butter if you like (and if no one is vegan/anti-saturated fat.)
If you like, add some leafy greens. Hearty things like kale will retain a lot of body, and need a little longer on the stove, and maybe a couple spoonfuls of the water from the quinoa. Wait a few minutes before adding soft greens like baby spinach; they should wilt but not completely collapse in the remaining cooking time.
Back to the quinoa - simmer it with the lid on for 10-15 min until the water is absorbed and the white ring is visible in the quinoa grains. Remove from heat and set aside.
Combine the cooked, still-hot quinoa with the cooked, still-hot and still-a-little-crunchy vegetables. Plate. Season with salt, pepper, butter, hot sauce, rice wine vinegar, or whatever.
Put 2 cups of water on to boil in a medium saucepan.
Chop half a large white onion, half a red pepper, and 2 stalks of celery into small bits.
Heat a splash of olive oil in a small sauté pan. Saute your veg until the onion is starting to soften, with a bit of salt and pepper.
Once the water boils, stir one cup of quinoa (I like Trader Joes Red Quinoa) into the saucepan. When the quinoa comes to a boil, reduce the heat and cover.
At the same time, reduce the heat under the veg. Stir occasionally. Throw in a bit of butter if you like (and if no one is vegan/anti-saturated fat.)
If you like, add some leafy greens. Hearty things like kale will retain a lot of body, and need a little longer on the stove, and maybe a couple spoonfuls of the water from the quinoa. Wait a few minutes before adding soft greens like baby spinach; they should wilt but not completely collapse in the remaining cooking time.
Back to the quinoa - simmer it with the lid on for 10-15 min until the water is absorbed and the white ring is visible in the quinoa grains. Remove from heat and set aside.
Combine the cooked, still-hot quinoa with the cooked, still-hot and still-a-little-crunchy vegetables. Plate. Season with salt, pepper, butter, hot sauce, rice wine vinegar, or whatever.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Dinner Tonight: Chickpea Tangine.
* 2 Tbs. olive oil
* Half a gigantic onion, thinly sliced
* 3 cloves garlic, minced (1 Tbs. minced from the jar.)
* i lb dried chickpeas, soaked about 18 hrs and rinsed
* several baby carrots, sliced into small chunks
* ¼ cup raisins
* 1 tsp. ground turmeric (shocked to find I had this in my cabinet)
* 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
* 1 tsp. ground cumin
* ¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
* 2 tsp. honey
(I used Really Raw honey, but didn't see any of the usual miscellaneous bee parts - Eric must have eaten them all in the top layer.)
* ½ cup plain Greek-style yogurt
The night before:
pick over the dried chick peas, rinse them in a colander, and put them in a large pot with 6 or so cups of water. I left them on the counter overnight, but transferred them the fridge before I left for work.
When you plan to cook them:
Take soaked chick peas out of fridge, rinse them one last time, cover generously with cold water and set them to boil until you can crush one with a little effort. It took about 30 minutes here. Raw chickpeas taste a little like raw chestnuts, which I don't recommend either. Cooked chick peas taste a little like roasted chestnuts, and retain some of their springyness. Stop cooking them before they get mushy.
(The original recipe called for canned chick peas, rinsed, which would make this a 20-minute dish, and I'm sure that would be fine too. I'm just a dried bean snob. And cheap.)
Heat oil in dutch over over medium heat.
Add onion and garlic, and sauté until onion slices are soft.
Stir in cooked, drained chickpeas, carrots, raisins, spices, honey, and 2 cups water.
Cover and simmer 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Keep an eye on it - I had to add about a half-cup more water at the 11 minute mark.
Serve, with a spoonful of yogurt.
Benefits from some salt and pepper.
THIS was a total winner, didn't take long, was definitely not technically challenging, and all with staple foods! We had everything except the yogurt already around the house. It's really delicious.
The original recipe is from last October Vegetarian Times. As I said above, it's even faster and easier.
* Half a gigantic onion, thinly sliced
* 3 cloves garlic, minced (1 Tbs. minced from the jar.)
* i lb dried chickpeas, soaked about 18 hrs and rinsed
* several baby carrots, sliced into small chunks
* ¼ cup raisins
* 1 tsp. ground turmeric (shocked to find I had this in my cabinet)
* 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
* 1 tsp. ground cumin
* ¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
* 2 tsp. honey
(I used Really Raw honey, but didn't see any of the usual miscellaneous bee parts - Eric must have eaten them all in the top layer.)
* ½ cup plain Greek-style yogurt
The night before:
pick over the dried chick peas, rinse them in a colander, and put them in a large pot with 6 or so cups of water. I left them on the counter overnight, but transferred them the fridge before I left for work.
When you plan to cook them:
Take soaked chick peas out of fridge, rinse them one last time, cover generously with cold water and set them to boil until you can crush one with a little effort. It took about 30 minutes here. Raw chickpeas taste a little like raw chestnuts, which I don't recommend either. Cooked chick peas taste a little like roasted chestnuts, and retain some of their springyness. Stop cooking them before they get mushy.
(The original recipe called for canned chick peas, rinsed, which would make this a 20-minute dish, and I'm sure that would be fine too. I'm just a dried bean snob. And cheap.)
Heat oil in dutch over over medium heat.
Add onion and garlic, and sauté until onion slices are soft.
Stir in cooked, drained chickpeas, carrots, raisins, spices, honey, and 2 cups water.
Cover and simmer 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Keep an eye on it - I had to add about a half-cup more water at the 11 minute mark.
Serve, with a spoonful of yogurt.
Benefits from some salt and pepper.
THIS was a total winner, didn't take long, was definitely not technically challenging, and all with staple foods! We had everything except the yogurt already around the house. It's really delicious.
The original recipe is from last October Vegetarian Times. As I said above, it's even faster and easier.
Sunday, December 07, 2008
world's easiest cookie:
This is a cookie I remember from my childhood (from other kids' houses - I don't recall my dad making cookies at our house. Cakes yes - cookies, not that I can recall, except the sliced Pillsbury roll.)Anyway, there are lots of complicated recipes for these on the web, but there's NO EXCUSE for working hard at making this cookie. 4 ingredients, 12 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350.
Grease a cookie sheet (spray grease is fine for this.)
Mix together:
1 cup peanut butter
(regular commercial stuff, smooth or crunchy - I've never tried it with natural peanut butter yet.)
1 cup granulated sugar (you could skimp on this; one recipe I saw suggested using Splenda, which I think would work fine, though I haven't tried.)
1 egg.
When completely mixed, roll into balls. Bake at 350 for 9-10 minutes. They don't turn brown, just look a little dryer.
While they're in the oven, unwrap some Hershey's kisses, dark or plain milk chocolate.
When you take the cookies out of the oven, remove them to a plate. and squish a kiss into the center of each.
Good warm, good cold. Good smooth, good crunchy. They even survive a little burn (I burned the first batch on Saturday. Still good.) Makes 18-24, depending on how big you make the balls.
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