Garlic Scape Pesto

I have long heard about the wonder of garlic scapes, but had never actually seen them before.  Not usually sold in grocery stores, nor in the big but run-of-the-mill farmer’s market of my rather provincial hometown, scapes are the green tops of garlic.  They are harvested once a year to give the bulb of the garlic a chance to develop, and contain the flavor of garlic without the extreme bite.  So of course, when I saw some at my local market in my new city, I had to buy some.

 

But what to do with scapes?  I did not have a recipe or even a vague idea in mind, I just knew I had to have them.

Turns out, there is one clear answer:  make pesto.

Basil pesto is, to me, the quintessential summer dish.  Nothing else conjures the sensation of summer quite like it.  I’d never really ventured out into other forms of this classic sauce, because I love it so much.  But after all, the word pesto simply means to pound or to crush, and can describe any kind of sauce made in the same manner.  And I have to say this one really does rival basil pesto in deliciousness.

Please feel free to experiment with the amounts!  If you really like cheese…by all means add more!

Ingredients

2 cups chopped garlic scapes
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan or pecorino or both
1 Tablespoon sunflower seeds or pine nuts
Salt and pepper to taste
A Lot of olive oil

Blend the seeds/nuts in a food processor.  Add the scapes and blend.  Begin gradually adding olive oil until you like the consistency.  Blend in the cheese.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Voilà.

-R

Popsicles!

90 degree days have arrived and it has been MISERABLE in my house.  We have a window AC unit but need to repair the broken, lead-paint covered windows in the bedroom and dining room before we can use it.  The window has been ordered and deposit paid to the contractor.  Until it is installed, however, we are getting creative on ways to keep cool!

Some friends of ours who somehow survived living in Arizona without air conditioning had a genius suggestion:  homemade popsicles!  What can be better than frozen fruit juice on a hot day?  I’ve seen a lot of recipes popping up on the internet too that look delicious.  Here are three I’ve tried.

 

Strawberry-Kiwi
Courtesy of Fine Cooking’s amazing make-your-own-ice pop recipe generator
Makes 8-10 popsicles

1/2 cup granulated sugar
Pinch salt
About 10 kiwis (or 1.5 pounds)
1 cup strawberries, sliced or quartered or whatever

Make a simple syrup:  mix the sugar, salt and a half cup of water in a saucepan and bring to a boil.  When sugar is totally dissolved, remove from heat and allow to cool.

While simple syrup is cooling, peel kiwis and puree flesh with a food processor.  Slice strawberries.

Combine kiwi puree, strawberries and simple syrup.  Pour into popsicle molds and freeze.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie
Makes 3-5 popsicles (can be doubled)

1 large stalk rhubarb, sliced
1.5 cups sliced strawberries
Peel of 1 lemon
1/2 cup sugar
Teaspoon pectin

Peel the lemon with a vegetable peeler, carefully avoiding the pith.  Combine the sugar with 1/2 cup water and bring to a boil to dissolve.  Add the lemon peels and continue to boil for 2-3 minutes.  Remove and discard.

Add the rhubarb and cook for a few more minutes, until it starts to break down.  Add the strawberries and cook down some more, stirring and mashing with a fork as necessary.  Add a teaspoon of pectin.  This helps it congeal and will make the popsicles less hard and icy.

Pour into popsicle molds and freeze.

Creamy Honey-Lavender
Adapted from here
Makes 8-10 pops (can be halved, which I did)

I came across this recipe while searching for inspiration for strawberry-rhubarb popsicles.  I had just picked some lavender from the garden and was intrigued.  I am not convinced that lavender makes a good culinary herb — seems better suited to soap to me — but seeing as I had lavender right on hand I had to give it a try!

3 cups whole milk (I actually used hemp milk)
Buds of 6 fresh lavender flowers, or tablespoon of dried lavender flowers
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup honey
teaspoon vanilla

Bring all the ingredients together in a saucepan and bring to a boil until sugar is completely dissolved.  Allow to cool, removing the lavender flowers after no more than 30 minutes.  Pour into popsicle molds.

My favorite is definitely the strawberry rhubarb, followed by the strawberry kiwi.  Would definitely make those again!  The honey lavender was interesting, but I’m not sure I’m dying to make it again.

Stay cool!

-R

A tropical barbeque

Welcome summer!  It’s been a while since I’ve had a chance to update.  What can I say…it’s wedding season!  But finally, a free weekend, and I’ve got a lot of catching up to do!

The summer season began with a HOT Memorial day weekend, and while it has cooled off temporarily it’s looking to reach into the 90s again soon.  It’s been…an adjustment.  But I’m trying to embrace summers in Washington with no AC, and what better way than to bring a taste of the Caribbean to you?  After all, it’s too hot to turn the oven on, and we had to inaugurate this shiny new addition to our backyard:

Thus we came up with a menu inspired by the tropics:  Chicken/tempeh with a jerk marinade, golden steamed cabbage, coconut rice, and fried plantains!

To make the Jerk marinade:

These traditional Jamaican flavors are SPICY and not for the faint of heart!  I rather naively slathered it onto my tempeh, but please, go easy on it if you can’t handle extreme heat.

This can obviously be used for any kind of meat, but tempeh, a cultured soy product, is a great vegetarian alternative for the grill.  It is easy to work with and soaks up flavors fast!

I believe Mr. R adapted his recipe from this one.  Scotch bonnet (habanero) peppers are key, as is allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, sugar…  stay with me here, I know these sound like the ingredients for Christmas cookies, but the flavors meld together perfectly.  Thyme is also important, and sometimes you’ll see various aromatics like onions, garlic, scallions, and ginger thrown in too.  I am by no means an expert so please feel free to weigh in if you are.  Compare and contrast different recipes and see what looks good to you!

Do not try to replace the scotch bonnet peppers, however.  It just won’t be quite the same.  Check out a Latin grocer if you can’t find them at your regular grocery store.

Blend up all the ingredients and rub onto the protein and let sit, in a container or bag, for 30 minutes or so in the fridge.  I will say it again — go easy!  It will be SPICY!

Simply grill the tempeh over direct heat for about 5 minutes on each side. And now your vegetarian friends can join in the joy that is grilling during the summer!

Coconut rice

This recipe is DEFINITELY one I am working into my regular meal rotation — it was fantastic!  Not to mention it smelled amazing during the preparation as well.  It also made a freaking ton of rice and we had leftovers all week.  With black eyed peas worked in — it’s a complete protein!

Ingredients
Adapted from here
2.5 cups long grain basmati rice
1 can coconut milk
1 cup dried black eyed peas
4-6 cloves garlic, crushed
4-6 scallions, white and green parts, chopped
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
3 teaspoons salt
a few sprigs of fresh thyme, or a dash of dried thyme if unavailable
1 scotch bonnet/habanero pepper, minced

Cook the beans as you normally would — soak for several hours or overnight and then simmer for an hour.

Add the coconut milk to the beans cooking in their pot, then bring to a boil with the salt and seasonings, plus the scallions, garlic and pepper.

Stir in the rice and reduce heat to a simmer.  Cook for 20-30 minutes, until rice is done, liquid is absorbed, and your kitchen smells like heaven.

Golden steamed cabbage
Adapted from this website.

I love all brassicas — they are my favorite vegetables — and cabbage is no exception.  This adds a pretty note of color to your plate!

Ingredients
1 head cabbage
Assortment of 2-4 sweet and hot peppers, including scotch bonnet
1 medium onion
a few sprigs of fresh thyme (or dash of dried)
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
Salt and pepper to taste

Thinly slice the cabbage, removing the center core.
Heat a large pan with a generous amount of olive oil or butter and saute the peppers and  onions with salt, black pepper and turmeric briefly, until translucent.  Add about 1/4 cup of water, adjusting as necessary, and then add the sliced cabbage to the pan.  Cover and allow to steam until cabbage is translucent, tender and reduced in size.  Remove cover and allow excess water to steam off if necessary.  Adjust seasoning to taste.  Savor.

Fried Plantains

 

A tropical dinner is just incomplete without fried plantains.  They are simple but taste great with accompaniments such as guacamole.  We followed Alton Brown’s method.  They came out great!

This meal was something new and different for us and such a fantastic way to welcome summer with friends.  I can’t wait to make it again!

-R

Falafel!

 

Whenever I think of the best food I’ve had that has come from a truck or hole-in-the-wall-with-no-seating establishment, they all have one thing in common.  They are all falafel.

My mind often wanders to the amazingness that was the falafel I had with harissa sauce in NYC, my favorite little (emphasis on little) falafelshop I used to frequent during college here in DC, and budget college spring break trips to Germany and the Czech Republic where falafel at the doner kebab joints made up just about every meal.

These days, though, we mostly just make falafel at home.  There is no reason not to.  It is super easy.  Here is our method.

The falafels

Put away that boxed falafel mix.  You don’t want any of that crap.  Falafel is, in essence, just pureed chickpeas with spices and flavorings.  It really doesn’t take any more effort to dump a can of chickpeas into a food processor than it does to open the box and hydrate it with whatever.  And the results will be with it.

We’ve tried a bunch of different recipes over the years.  This one from Cooking Light is the easiest as it already includes binders like egg and breadcrumbs.  If this is your first time, try that one.

This one and this one are a little harder, but they are more authentic, as well as vegan and gluten-free.  The puree must be as dry as possible and the oil must be 350°.  Start with just one test falafel and if it falls apart, add some flour to the remaining puree to keep it together.

It is essential that you toast and grind your whole cumin seeds to achieve that quintessential flavor.  Do not use preground cumin.

Now, most restaurants will form the falafel into little balls and deep fry them.  I can’t blame you if you’re not up for deep frying.  Just form the falafels into little patties and pan fry them in 2-3 inches of oil, flipping halfway through until they are crisp and browned on the outside.

The pita
I find most store-bought pita to be straight up disgusting.  So dry and stale and flavorless it is not even worth spending the time to make falafel unless you are willing to make the pita yourself.  Luckily, it is easy (but time-consuming).  It helps if you are working with a partner.
I can’t recall all the recipes we’ve tried but this one was the most recent.  It doesn’t exactly always puff up to form perfect little pockets on the inside, but it mostly does…and when this bread melts in your mouth I think you will forgive any slight imperfections.

With a cast iron griddle pan, it’s easy to do…just make the dough, divide into balls, roll out roughly into circles, and cook on each side for a few minutes.  No baking or ovens.

The accompaniments
Some like their falafel with tahini, or hummus (which is a little wtf to me, chickpeas on your chickpeas?).  But my very favorite thing to add is an inordinate amount of tzatziki sauce.  In fact, one might accuse me as eating falafel as merely a vessel for tzatziki, but whatever, I like it all.
I’ve tried a few recipes but the one I’ve deferred to lately is this self-declared World’s Best Tzatziki Sauce Recipe.  And I have to say it is pretty darn good.  And really easy!  I do like to add some extra garlic though because one clove is never, ever enough for me, for any recipe!

In NYC I had a falafel sandwich with harissa sauce and it was ahmaaazing.  I haven’t made it myself before but I think I will give it a shot sometime soon.  Here is a recipe from Fine Cooking.

In addition to sauces, I always like a little red cabbage, onion, fresh cilantro, sliced tomato…obviously, there are endless possibilities, the rest is up to you!

While everything all together can be a lot to cook for one night, the falafel itself is pretty quick and if you make a big batch of tzatziki, bread, etc, you can have several easy weeknight meals worth of  food.  Falafel is best served fresh, but any leftovers can be crisped up again in a toaster oven.

Don’t be intimidated by pita from scratch, deep frying, or red cabbage.  Give homemade falafel a try!  You won’t be disappointed.

Crispy and colorful salad with sesame dressing

We pulled out the charcoal and fired up the grill for the first time of the year last week, and I wanted something fresh and salad-y to go with my veggie burgers.  I kept affectionately calling this “rainbow salad” as I was pulling it together because it was so colorful!  It is based on those classic potluck dishes with the ramen noodles tossed in for fun.

Crispy sesame salad
Adapted from the Asian Vegan Kitchen by Hema Parekh

Note:  I am publishing measurements in this recipe here, but will tell you, I didn’t really measure out the veggies while I was preparing it myself.  A salad is really not that serious :).  I thought I ended up with a little more than what was listed in the original recipe, so I increased the dressing amounts by 50% from what you see here.

Ingredients
2 cups shredded lettuce
1 cup shredded red cabbage
1 baby bok choy, chopped
1 handful sliced cherry tomatoes, or 1 medium tomato, diced
1/2 medium cucumber, julienned
1 carrot, grated or julienned
1 jalapeno pepper, finely minced
1 handful cilantro leaves
1 package crushed ramen noodles, flavor packet discarded

For the dressing:
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 teaspoons canola, peanut or safflower oil
2 tablespoons white sesame seeds
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 clove garlic, grated
1/2 inch piece of ginger, grated.

Toast the sesame seeds in a dry skillet.  Reserve 1 tablespoon whole toasted seeds and grind the rest in a mortar and pestle.

Toss all the veggies and noodles together for the salad.

Whisk together the ingredients for the dressing and toss everything to combine.

Voilà.  Yum!  Summer is on its way.

Classic French crêpes

I know I often go on about my love of crepes, and I’ve written about some different takes on them…here and here…but have I ever actually shared my go-to recipe for classic crepes?  I don’t think so!

Crepes are the perfect centerpiece for any brunch, and with Easter Sunday just behind us and Mother’s day around the corner, not to mention graduations, weddings and bridal showers this time of year, it is surely high brunch season.  But you don’t really need any excuse to enjoy the deliciousness that are crepes.  We made these for a family gathering on Easter weekend and the best part of all, is that whether you like your brunches sweet or savory, there is something for everyone here.

One thing I must reveal is that I really hate pancakes.  Never have liked them.  I know, how un-American of me, especially considering how much I love crepes.  But they are just so light and delicate and go well with such a variety of accompaniments.  Can’t say that about pancakes!

With such a quintessential French food, it is unwise to try and improve on the traditional recipe (unless you’re vegan, go here…and I’ve heard of but not tried some gluten free versions with buckwheat as well).  So I stick to the master:  Julia Child.  This recipe is easy enough for a beginner and has never failed me:

Julia Child:  Crêpes fines sucrées at Epicurious

You don’t necessarily need a crepe pan to make these; just a large skillet.  The first few take a little practice, and don’t be afraid to use your fingers to help flip them, but soon enough you’ll get the hang of it.

Be creative in what you choose to serve them with, but keep it simple.  We set up a bar where people could pick and choose their own creations:

Sweet
Nutella (duh)
Fresh berries
Creme fraiche
Homemade strawberry Jam
Honey

Savory
Sauteed swiss chard
Sauteed mushrooms
Caramelized onions
Shredded Gruyère
Creamy gruyère sauce

Creme fraiche and fresh jam rolled together in a crepe is my absolute favorite — the creme just cuts the sweetness of the jam so perfectly, it is simply amazing.  You can find it at more specialty grocery stores, like Whole Foods.

Some other ideas that come to mind — broccoli and cheese, asparagus spears, spinach or other greens, bechamel sauce…be creative!

Oh, SO GOOD… and so much fun to make and share.

-R

Steamed veggie dumplings with sweet and sour dipping sauce

Since daylight savings time began, I feel like I eat dinner much later.  Do you?  It was already past 6pm on Sunday when I decided I should start to think about dinner and headed out to the grocery store, which is luckily but one block away.

That meant it was nearly 9pm by the time we ate dinner, but  HOLY CRAP these dumplings were awesome and so worth the wait.  Better than any dumplings I’ve ever tasted in a restaurant!  Mr. R and I texted each other the next afternoon that we were so excited to have some leftover for lunch, and then confided to each other that we were STILL craving more.  So what did we do?  After arriving home after 7pm, taking care of some chores and the dog, we made another batch of dumplings, of course.

This would normally be a little bit too labor-intensive for a Monday night for me, but with two highly- dumpling motivated people working together, and leftover filling and sauce already prepared, it wasn’t so bad.

Of course, you could use prepackaged wanton wrappers, but I’ve tried that before and I think you will find that the results of preparing your own wrapper dough are WELL worth the effort.  It’s got just two ingredients and is easy — just takes time.

I used the same tofu filling I used to make steamed buns back in January, which to me tastes amazingly restaurant-quality.  For the omnivores out there, I am sure a quick google search would reveal a variety of nonveg filling recipes.  My Asian Dumpling cookbook has a bunch too!

Dumpling wrapper dough
Makes 16 small/medium dumplings
2 cups AP flour
3/4 cup boiled water

Bring the water to a boil and remove from heat for about 30 seconds before using.  Whisk into the flour with a fork.  Dough will be very crumbly at first; begin to knead with your hands until it comes together in a single ball.  The water should be cool enough to handle by this point but do be careful!

Turn ball of dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 2 minutes, until the ball of dough is smooth and elastic.

Place into a tightly sealed ziplock bag with the air removed and allow to rest for at least 15 minutes and up to 2 hours.  The dough will steam up while in the bag and become even more pliable.

To make the dumplings…

Divide in half, then in half again, until you have as many pieces as you would like (16 for regular sized dumplings).  Roll each piece into a ball and roll out thinly, particularly around the edges, into a circle with a rolling pin.

Fill each dumpling generously; the skin will stretch to accommodate.  Check out these videos for some demonstrations on various folding methods.  I like the satchel shape, though my technique could use a lot of improvement!

I actually have a nifty little bamboo steamer which is great for steaming all kinds of things as well as storage on your countertop.  However, since moving I do not seem to have or am able to find a large enough stock pot!  Oops! So I used a colander instead.

Line with parchment paper or cabbage leaves and steam for 8 minutes, or until the dumplings are starting to look a little transparent.

Sweet and sour sauce

No need to buy this!  Super easy to make with ingredients you probably have on hand already.  We amped up the heat a little with sriracha, but if you like it more mild just leave it out.

1/4 cup granulated or light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 tablespoon sriracha
1 tablespoon soy sauce
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons cornstarch dissolved in 2 tablespoons water

Combine everything but the cornstarch mixture in a saucepan and bring to a simmer, stirring to help dissolve the sugar.  Add the cornstarch and again continue to stir until dissolved.  Remove from heat and allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.

These would be the perfect meal for those lazy weekends where you stay in watching movies and ordering carryout, except you make the carryout yourself exactly how you like them.  But be careful — you’ll want them again the next day.  And the next!

-R

Garlic naan and cilantro chutney

Gah, I took these photos nearly a year ago, but in the inundation of weddings and baby showers last spring I never got around to posting about it.  Until, that is, we made it again over the weekend and I remembered just how awesome fresh, homemade naan is and that I must share this news with the world!

You know the best part of going out to eat at an Indian restaurant is the bread.  So soft and fluffy and chewy and garlic-y.  Oh my god.  Well, surprisingly you do not need a tandoori oven or other such equipment to achieve the same results at home — just a baking stone and your regular old oven!

Garlic Naan
Adapted from recipe at Manjula’s Kitchen

2 cups flour
1 teaspoon active dry yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
pinch baking soda
2 tablespoons canola or safflower oil
2.5 tablespoons strained (Greek), plain yogurt (DO NOT USE FAT FREE)
3/4 cup warm water

dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water and let sit until bubbly, about 5-10 minutes

Sift the salt and baking soda with the flour.  Combine with the oil and the yogurt.  The dough will be dry and crumbly, you may need to use your hands.

Add the water and yeast and knead; it will be come the more smooth, elastic doughyness you know and love.  Cover with a towel and allow to rise until doubled in volume, 3-4 hours.

Move the pizza stone to the bottom rack, which should be placed as low as it can go.  Heat the oven to 500°.  It will take 30-60 minutes to really get the stone as hot as it needs to be.

While you’re waiting, prepare some ghee.  Finely mince some garlic and stir into the ghee.

Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces and roll each piece out with a rolling pin into oval shapes on a lightly floured surface.

Place no more than two pieces of naan on the baking stone at once.  They should cook until they are golden brown and inflated a bit, about 2-3 minutes.  If your oven heats unevenly, you may need to reverse them front-to-back once.

Brush each piece with the garlic-infused ghee.  Heaven.

Cilantro chutney

This tastes, to me, like pure, unadulterated summer (I truly pity those who “don’t like” cilantro!) and is the perfect accompaniment to fresh naan, or onion fritters with dal (or, you know…both.  And perhaps some saag paneer…). Again from Manjula’s Kitchen.

1 bunch cilantro
3 green chilies, coarsely chopped
1/2 inch piece ginger, coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1.5 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon cumin seed
1 teaspoon safflower or canola oil
1 teaspoon sugar
pinch asafetida

Blend everything together in a food processor except the cilantro leaves until it is a paste consistency.  Add the cilantro leaves and blend that in.  Add salt or ground cayenne pepper to taste.

Tastes like going out to eat at a restaurant…but you did it yourself!

-R