Cooking, recipes 13 and 14 and Tuesday Tip

Not that this is particularly surprising, but I've noticed that since I've started cooking at home more and we've been eating out less, we're spending less on food!  Magic!  I'm liking this new trick.  Hopefully, I can keep this up -- the slightly reduced rate of cooking is working better for me, and after April, I'll try to stick to a similar pattern, though with maybe slightly bigger dishes (which is easy for me) and slightly fewer cooking days.

Anyways, we got potatoes at the CSA a few weeks ago, and last week there was green garlic, and I stumbled upon this recipe for Korean-style pancake potatoes and there we were.  I ended up modifying it quite a bit based on what I had in the fridge and through looking at other recipes, but I thought I should start giving credit to recipes I get online.  Anyways, besides the potatoes, the fridge is overrun with greens, and the pancakes needed a side, so I made a simple side dish of greens and porcini with lemon and soy sauce.

Korean Potato Pancakes

1 lb waxy potatoes  (I used La Soda red potatoes.)
1 head of green garlic (I used 2, and it was overkill.  Mu and I both enjoyed it, but I'm not sure others would)
a scallion or some chives or green onion, if you want (I didn't have any and it was fine)
1 egg
salt to taste (though the dipping sauce is plenty salty)
chili pepper (optional, but nice -- I used about a teaspoon of the stuff I ground up the other day)
neutral oil for frying

Dipping Sauce
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
splash of lemon juice
1 teaspoon sugar

Greens and mushrooms
Bunch of greens (I used a bag of kale and a bunch of chard...not sure how much that actually was)
A handful of dried porcini
Soy sauce
lemon juice from 1/2 - 1 juicy lemon
splash of sesame oil
neutral oil
ginger to taste (I just used the kind from a spice jar because I was too lazy)
Penzey's Bangkok blend (optional, you can probably use plain chili or nothing at all)

Pancakes, cooking

Start the greens first, since they can take a while to soften, and they also can sit around while the potato pancakes finish.  Put the dried porcini in a bowl of hot water to soak.  Cut up the chard and kale (I didn't cut my kale and wish I had) into manageable chunks.  Heat some olive oil on medium high heat and add the greens, in batches if necessary.  Once they've started cooking down, about 5 minutes, add the porcinis and their soaking liquid.   Add a splash of sesame oil, some soy sauce, about half a lemon worth of juice, and about a cup of water.  Lower heat to medium, cover, and let cook until the greens are soft, about 20 minutes.

Pancakes and a lady :)

Greens and porcini after the liquid is gone

In the meantime, peel and grate the potatoes using the small holes on a box grater (I had Mu to help with this part, which was really nice). Using a fine strainer or cheese cloth, drain the potatoes into a bowl.  Let the potato liquid sit until the water separates from the starch.  Carefully drain the water, leaving the starch behind.  Finely chop your garlic.  Combine grated potato, garlic, starch, an egg, salt, and chili powder and stir well so everything is distributed.  Heat about a spoon of oil over medium heat.  Once it's hot, add a tablespoon of the potato mixture, then shape into a flat-ish circular pancake.  I did 5 at a time, that's how much space my pan had.  Cook until the bottom is crispy and golden, about 3 minutes.  Flip and do the other side until it's brown.

While you're cooking the pancakes (or, most likely, before you put the first batch on), check on the greens.  Once they're soft, uncover them, add ginger and Bangkok blend, adjust soy sauce and lemon to taste, and allow to cook uncovered until the liquid boils away (I ended up having to drain some).  Also between pancake batches, make the dipping sauce by combining all the ingredients.

Serve hot, especially the pancakes!

Pancakes and greens and a bowl of dipping sauce to share

Recipe summary
Time: About 45 minutes, mostly hands-on.  Mu helped with peeling and grating the potatoes, which probably saved about 10-15 minutes.
Serves: Greens turned out to have 5 servings, and there were a total of 10 pancakes.
Highlights/thoughts: I wasn't sure I could achieve a "Korean" pancake, because I don't know what element in this actually makes it Korean.  It did make me think of dim sum, though, so that's probably good.  The chili powder really added a nice bit of heat and flavor, as well.  The greens were really helped by the presence of the porcinis, so that was nice.  Porcinis are magic that way. :)
Would I make this again? Definitely.  The pancakes felt like a huge success, and were much easier that I was afraid they'd be, and given how often we get greens from the CSA, I'm always making some variation or other on this recipe.

And now for Tuesday Tip!  I know for some people, cooking is this great pleasurable thing that they look forward to and that's a break from their daily lives.  I'm not those people.  There are times when cooking does feel fun (when I'm trying a new and easy recipe, or when I'm making a reliable favorite), and there are certainly things about it that are gratifying (other people saying that my food is yummy, or feeling like a recipe was surprisingly successful, like today), but most of the time, it feels like a necessary and somewhat annoying chore.  One of the things that makes it more annoying for me is that I end up feeling like I'm stuck in the kitchen, with nothing to stimulate me while I'm chopping and stirring.  At the same time, it can be hard to keep up a conversation while I'm juggling different steps in a recipe or different dishes.  So, Mu came up with a solution for me.  He hooked up an old pair of speakers in our dining area so that they're broadcasting into the kitchen, and now I can plug in my phone and listen to podcasts or music while I cook!  The phone itself isn't loud enough to be heard over whatever I'm doing, but the speakers are perfect.  When we have our own house, I'm totally having a sound system put in the kitchen!  But anyways, that's my tip for people who aren't greatly enthused by cooking itself -- music or podcasts can be a great help without being (for me) too distracting!

Cooking, recipe 6 and another menu plan

I don't really have a theme for this week -- I still want to do Indian/Asian, but I'm not feeling ready to do so this week.  So, we'll have random things Elaine wants to try that are also kosher for Passover.

Sunday (today): Mushroom stock.  This doesn't feel quite like a real recipe, since it doesn't produce an immediately edible dish, but I've wanted to do stock for a while and haven't convinced myself to do so.  Plus, we still have leftovers to finish.
Monday: Quinoa with portobellos (left over from last week), tomatoes, and some other veggies. :)
Tuesday: Most likely, nothing -- I'll be at school from 9:30am 'till about 9pm, so it seems unlikely that I'll cook.
Wednesday: Probably nothing again -- work 'till 5, a review 'till 6:30, and theater in the evening.
Thursday: Molecular gastronomy day!  My sister got me a kit for my birthday, and I have 2 recipes that seem to go well together that I'd like to try -- arugula noodles and balsamic vinegar pearls.  So exciting!
Friday: Matzah ball soup again (since I haven't posted the recipe, I'll just count it that time), and a side of some kind -- maybe snap peas with garlic and lemon?
Saturday: Beet salad with goat cheese.

So, today's recipe is mushroom stock.  As far as I can tell, it almost doesn't matter what you do with stock, but here's what I did. :)  No picture this time, sorry.  Also, I doubled this recipe.

Mushroom stock (cobbled together from Cooking Everything Vegetarian and internet sources)
Ingredients
1 onion or 2 green onions
2 carrots
2 celery stalks (I didn't use them, but it's recommended everywhere)
1 pound white mushrooms
1 ounce dried porcini or shitake mushrooms
10-20 stems (with leaves is OK) of parsley
1-2 bay leaf (didn't use it)
1 head garlic (optional, but I love garlic)
2 quarts water
neutral oil
salt and pepper

If using dried mushrooms, soak them in boiling water.  Coarsely chop the onions (discard the brown skin, but keep the tough layer you'd normally toss) and slice the carrots (Wash well, but no need to peel).  In a stock pot, heat some oil on medium heat.  Cook the onions, stirring frequently, for about 3 minutes.  Add carrots, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook for about 10 minutes, until relatively tender, stirring occasionally.  Chop the white mushrooms in the meantime (or ahead of time if you like to have your mise-en-place).  With a slotted spoon, remove onion and carrots and set aside.  Add more oil if necessary and put in the mushrooms.  Sprinkle with salt and cook until they release liquid and start to brown, about 10 minutes.  Add the dried mushrooms and their cooking liquid along with the cooked vegetables.  Stir, then add water, parsley, bay leaf if using, and garlic (separate the cloves, but don't bother peeling).  Stir and bring to a boil.  Redice the heat so that the liquid is boiling steadily.  Cook for at least 30 minutes, more if you have time, stirring once or twice.  Cook, drain, and use or freeze.

Recipe summary
Time: 2 hours or so.  Prep and boiling took about 30 minutes, and then I had to do very little for the next 1.5 hours
Yield: About 3 quarts.
Highlights/thoughts: I like that I was able to control the flavor and salt amount here in a way that I can't with store-bought stuff -- I'd really rather my stock be less salty so that I can adjust recipes as needed.  I don't like, however, feeling like I put in mushrooms that I could've eaten but now can't because all the goodness has been boiled out of them.  The solution, I think, is to start a freezer bag of trimmings.  That's what I'm gonna try over the next few weeks.
Would I make this again?  Definitely, though I'll have to figure out which variation will work best for me.

Cooking, recipes 3, 4, and 5 (Portobello steaks with glazed carrots and pistou)

I think I should number things by recipes rather than days, since I'll have days where I'm skipping and such.  Today, I made 3 different things, so 3, 4, and 5 it is.

I'm starting to wonder if I'm going to have to modify my cooking schedule to cook less frequently, maybe 5 out of 7 days.  Partially, this is because even though it's only been 3 days, I'm already not sure I want to keep this up for a whole month.  The other, more practical, consideration is that I'm not good at cooking reasonably small amounts.  I'm aiming for 4 portions each night -- 2 for dinner and 2 for lunch the next day. Two of the meals I've cooked so far have been 5-6 portions, though, which means leftovers are hanging out in the fridge.  Now, I don't mind eating leftovers at all, but I don't want so much that they go bad.  So, I'll see how the rest of this week goes and if I can adjust my portions, or if it makes more sense to adjust the schedule, instead.  Part of me feels like it'll be a more manageable project if I adjust the schedule, but part of me feels like I'm giving up and I've barely even begun!  We'll see.

I made two more recipes from the Fresh 20 site, and they were much more successful.  The other one was adapted from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, which has become my go-to book for veggie advice and recipes.

Portobello steaks with glazed carrots and pistou
Ingredients

Shrunken, but not too much

Portobello steaks (adapted from the Fresh 20 site)
4 portobello caps, no stems (recipe originally suggests 6, with a serving size of 1.5 cap per person.  This seems ridiculously large to me, especially given that they also include a side recipe that I didn't end up making)
olive oil
salt and pepper
paprika (well, they actually said thyme because they seem to have a thing for thyme, but I do not)

Quick-glazed carrots (adapted from Mark Bittman's book)

Not all the liquid has yet boiled off

1 pound of carrots
1/3 cup white wine or stock or water (I used wine and water)
2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
salt and pepper
paprika (that's my addition, I was on a paprika kick today)
1-2 teaspoons lemon juice
Note: I ended up doubling the recipe and it worked great, though took longer

Pistou (from the website)
2 cups arugula
2 cups basil leaves
2 garlic cloves (I used 4)

Small tupperware!

1/3 cup olive oil
1/2 cup shredded parmesan
1 plum tomato (medium-sized)
salt and pepper




Preheat the oven to 400 F.  The carrots take the longest, so get them going first.  Peel and cut the carrots into sticks or coins (I did coins because the food processor has an attachment for that, weee! Or, rather, Mu did coins because he peels carrots for me (I hate doing it for some reason) and then continued helping.  Yay, Mu!).  In a medium-sized deep pan (mine was too big), combine carrots, butter, and whatever liquid you're using.  Heat until it boils, season if you're not using stock, cover, and adjust the heat until the whole thing simmers.  Cook more or less undisturbed until the carrots are tender and there is less liquid, 10-20 minutes (longer if you have more carrots).  While that's going, brush the portobellos with olive oil and season on both sides with salt, pepper, and whatever other spice you're using.  Put them on a baking sheet cap-side down and cook until they've shrunk a bit and released some liquid, but aren't totally scrunched up (very technical, I know), 10-15 minutes.  In the meantime, make the pistou (or make it way ahead of time and store in the fridge).  In a blender or food processor, pulse the arugula, basil, and garlic into a coarse mixture.  Add olive oil slowly and blend.  Add the parmesan and tomato and blend some more until it's pretty uniform (it'll still be a little grainy).  Salt and pepper to taste.  At this point, uncover the carrots and allow the rest of the liquid to boil off.  Add the lemon juice and adjust the seasonings as needed.  Top each portobello with pistou and serve with carrots on the side!

Meal summary
Time: About an hour total, though Mu was helping with peeling carrots while I was grating the parmesan.  Carrots were probably 40 minutes total, with prep. Mushrooms were super easy, about 20. The pistou was also easy (especially if you don't grate your own cheese), about 5 minutes after the grating.
Serves: Mushrooms are for 4, carrots are 7-8 as a side, and the pistou is probably for 4-6, depending how much you want as a garnish/sauce.

Yay, colors!

Highlights/thoughts: This was much quicker and easier than yesterday's recipe, so perhaps I can give The Fresh 20 another shot.  I was glad that I added extra garlic to the pistou, though, because it gave it a nice kick that it wouldn't have had.  The paprika/lemon combo was a nice one.  I'm glad I made extra carrots, since they're a pretty versatile side.
Would I make this again? Definitely.  I know portobello steaks are the overdone vegetarian thing, but I really like how they taste, and they were so easy!  And the pistou added a great bite to the whole dish.

Cooking day 2 and Tuesday Tip

I'm making another change -- instead of doing the carrots today, I'll do them tomorrow, post-CSA pickup (where I will get carrots).  Logical, right?

Today's recipe comes from a site I signed up for called The Fresh 20. There was a groupon for it a little while ago (groupons are gonna be the death of me, clearly), and I thought, eh, why not.  The site gives you 5 new recipes each week, along with step-by-step instructions and an organized shopping list.  Each meal is meant for about 4, which is perfect for us -- dinner and lunch the next day!  I signed up for the vegetarian version, of course, but there's also classic and gluten-free.  I haven't decided to cook an entire week of their recipes yet, but I may do that one of the next April weeks -- thus far, I've just picked out a bunch that I like and will try several of them for mushroom week.

Anyways, before I get to the recipe for today, have a Tuesday Tip. :)  We've been trying to figure out how to eat more salad and more fruit (though not necessarily together).  Having greens in the house doesn't always help -- we just don't do anything with them.  Some fruit is easier, such as apples (for me) or blueberries (for Mu).  For whatever reason, though, most other things fall by the wayside.  In experimenting, we've discovered a few things.  One, single-size portions help.  Two, variety really helps.  This is a little counter-intuitive -- if we have trouble going through a thing of berries, say, why would I get berries and mangos?  But actually, the variety, in combination with packing, gets us to eat more fruit!  Last night, for example, I packed a bunch of tupperwares with a few mango slices, a handful of raspberries, and a few strawberries -- and we've already started eating them.  Similarly, a salad with smaller amounts of more ingredients makes us eat salad.  Oh, and having small tupperwares of dressing to take along is great, too.  That way, the greens don't get soggy, and I also don't have to eat an undressed salad.  The only downside to this strategy is that it uses a large amount of tupperwares, but that's a minor issue to have.

Salad and fruit and dressing!

And with that, on to the recipe for today.  As I mentioned, this was from the Fresh 20 website.

Mushroom Pearl Barley Risotto
Ingredients
2 portobellos
1 cup dry pearl barley
1/4 cup dry white wine
4 cups veggie stock
1-2 cups water, if needed later
1/4 cup grated parmesan (I used more, probably about half a cup)
salt and pepper
thyme (I used pasta sprinkle, which has thyme and garlic and basil and oregano)
olive oil

Dice the portobellos.  They'll look pretty big, but they cook down a lot.  The recipe didn't say to remove the gills, so I didn't, but in retrospect, I probably should've.  It was nevertheless fine.  Saute the mushrooms in olive oil for 2-3 minutes, then add the barley and salt and thyme.  Saute for another 1-2 minutes.  Stir in the wine and cook, stirring frequently, until the liquid evaporates.  Stir in the stock in 1-cup increment, cooking until each batch evaporates.  If the barley still isn't cooked through when the stock is done, add water (I ended up adding about 1.5 more cups).  Once barley is ready, fold in parmesan and season with black pepper.

Recipe summary
Time: 1.5 hours, almost all hands-on.  Despite what the Fresh 20 thinks, this really isn't a weeknight recipe.  This made me kind of unhappy.
Serves: Theoretically, 4.  I think it'll be about 5 or 6 servings for us, though.

Oops, smear on the plate

Highlights/thoughts: I should've known that risotto takes a long time, but the recipe didn't have a time estimate, and given that it was meant to be a weeknight recipe, I was surprised at how long it took.  Also, the suggestion is to serve it with carrots, which would help the presentation -- it's very brown otherwise.  However, I can't imagine this serving 4 with a side!  I'm going to have to reconsider following their recipes exactly, since it looks like their portions are huge.  Also, watch the salt on this one.  My stock (which wasn't homemade) was pretty salty, and as it cooked down, I realized I should've added less salt at the beginning.
Would I make this again? Probably, or at least some variation of it.  It was really very easy, if long, and tastes creamy and rich without actually being too much so.

Month of cooking, day 1 (greens and mushrooms with spaghetti squash)

Slight change of plans already to the proposed menu -- Passover starts on Friday, which means I can't do polenta on Saturday.  Also, we'll be doing seders with friends both nights, so it probably doesn't make sense to cook a separate meal for us, especially on Saturday.  Since I offered to do soup for the Saturday seder, that'll be my recipe for the day.  It's not mushrooms, but hey, the theme isn't a hard and fast rule.

Also, I realized that I'm doing all brand-new recipes this week, and I really don't need to -- the goal is to do lots of new stuff, of course, but really, it's to do something different every day.  I won't change anything else for this week, I don't think, but I'll have to remember for next week.

Today, I got lucky with my choice of recipes. I hadn't actually had time to go grocery shopping, despite my best intentions, but I had all the ingredients I needed already in the fridge.  In top of that, some of the prep work was already done -- Mu had peeled all my garlic for me last week and it was sitting in a ziplock, waiting, and the spaghetti squash was left over from 2 weeks ago and just needed some frying.  That said, I'm gonna have to be better about planning in the future.  I need to set aside time for prep work, and I'm not always good at remembering that.  But today, I got a quick and yummy meal!

Braised greens and mushrooms with spaghetti squash
Ingredients
Baked spaghetti squash (recipe here but I used less garlic this time because I added some to the greens separately)
1 bunch of chard (collards or mustard greens would be fine here)
1 small red cabbage (or some other green if you'd like)
dozen shitakes
handful (say, 10?) oyster mushrooms
garlic for the greens (maybe half a head?)
Neutral oil
Salt and pepper
A couple of slices of lemon or some lemon juice

If you don't already have baked spaghetti squash, bake it now.  It should be scooped out and ready to cook with garlic and butter by the time you start the rest of the recipe.  Wash and roughly chop the greens.  Carefully clean the mushrooms and de-stem the shitakes.  Slice or chop into bite-size pieces.  On high medium heat, heat some neutral oil in a large pan and toss the greens in.  Saute for a few minutes until they begin to cook down.  Add the mushrooms and salt and pepper.  Chop up and add the garlic.  Saute for another few minutes.  Add about a cup of water, turn the heat to low medium, cover and cook until everything softens, about 7 minutes.  In the meantime, take your baked squash and cook it with garlic and butter as per the previous recipe.  When the greens and mushrooms are soft, uncover and cook until most of the liquid is gone.  If your greens are a little bitter, like mine were, add a splash of lemon juice at this point.  Add the squash, adjust seasonings as needed, and cook for another 2-3 minutes to meld the flavors together.  Serve hot!

Aren't the colors pretty?

Recipe summary
Time: It's hard to say, because I had so much done ahead.  With the squash already baked and the garlic peeled (which takes me forever!), it took about 40 minutes, start to finish, though most was hands-on this time.
Serves: 6 as a lunch dish, probably 4 if you want a bigger meal.
Highlights/thoughts: You could use any mushrooms here, but I like the flavor and texture of the shitakes.  The oyster mushrooms don't have a strong flavor, but the texture is nice because it feels meaty and satisfying.  I also liked using the red cabbage for the bit of color.  Oh, and I love how lemon juice takes the edge off bitter greens!  I learned that from someone at the CSA and I use this trick a lot!
Would I make this again?  For sure, in some variation.  We get a ton of greens, and mushrooms go well with them.

I finally went grocery shopping after cooking this, so I'm ready (I think!) for the rest of the week!

Two of the promised recipes!

Turns out, I lied about the salad -- still haven't done it.  Ah, well. :)  The lettuce is the crisper and should keep a little longer. Let me tell you about the two of the things I did accomplish, instead.  I should tell you, I don't do very precise directions.  I can tell you approximately what I did and how it turned out, though.

Roasted Beets and Carrots (inspired by Cin's comment on my first post)

Ingredients:
Large bunch of carrots (probably a dozen and a half small to medium carrots)
Beets (I had a pretty small bunch, 4 medium ones.  Could have used double that, really)
Garlic (I used 6 heads of green garlic, which is probably equivalent to half a head of older garlic)
olive oil to taste
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400F.  Peel carrots and chop into bite-size chunks (those turned out better than the few thinner bits I had).  Peel beets (save the greens!) and chop into bite size chunks (if your beets are really small, quarters are probably fine.  Mine were larger).  If using green garlic, peel the top layer of skin and chop off the green ends (save them!).  Chop the garlic into biggish chunks -- they'll taste better that way. Toss everything with salt, pepper, and enough olive oil to coat the lot.  Spread on a baking sheet, in a single layer if possible.  Roast for about an hour, turning over at the 30 minute mark.  Serve immediately, makes a great snack!

I'm not sure how many servings this is -- it's really a side dish or snack, though Mu and I ate pretty much all of it as dinner. 

Tip of the recipe: save the beet greens, they can come in handy later!

Polenta with Zucchini, Tomato, and Mushroom Sauce
Ingredients:
Sauce:
2 medium zucchini
6-8 tomatoes (you can probably use canned tomatoes here with no real difference.  I'd guess 2 cans would do it)
1-1.5 pounds of common mushrooms (I used brown, you can use white, too)
a handful of dried porcini (this is optional, but even a small amount of dried porcini makes everything taste a little like porcini)
onion/green onion/green garlic greens (I used the latter, given my CSA share, but any of these will work for a little extra flavor)
1 can olives (optional, but I love them.  I just used a can of plain black olives, I don't think the fancy ones are necessary since it's all cooked)
olive oil, salt, red pepper to taste
white wine to taste (for sauce, obviously, though I like to sip as I go :) )

Polenta (from Mark Bittman's "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian" book)
1/2 cup milk (whole is best, but anything will do)
2 cups water
1 cup coarse cornmeal
salt and pepper to taste

Rinse your dried porcinis, put them in a small bowl of boiling water (enough to cover them), and let them soak for about 30 minutes.  In the meantime, trim and slice the zucchini (I like to do half circle slices for smaller zucchinis, or quarter circles for larger ones).  Core and quarter the tomatoes.  Carefully wash and pat dry the mushrooms, then slice them.  You can slice the stems, as well, though if they're very long, I usually chop the long bit off.  Chop your onion/whatever you're using. :)  In a reasonably large saute pan over medium high heat, heat some olive oil, then saute the onion until it's gotten softer, about 2-3 minutes. Add zucchini and mushrooms and cook for a minute or 2, 'till it cooks down.  Drain and add the porcinis and the tomatoes.  Salt and pepper, add a splash of wine and a little water, then turn heat to medium low and cover.

While the sauce is simmering, start the polenta. Combine milk and water in small saucepan over medium heat and bring almost to a boil.  Slowly, whisk or stir in cornmeal.  Salt and pepper, but not too much.  Bring heat to low and simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently.  Polenta should be reasonably thick at the end.

While polenta is cooking, check on the sauce.  When zucchini and mushrooms are tender and tomatoes have broken down, uncover.  Add olives and saute until liquid reduces (if you want more of a wine taste, you can add another splash). I like to add crushed red pepper for some spice at this point.  When it's almost gone, add polenta (if you want, you can also just finish it off and serve it over the polenta).  Cook for another few minutes, stirring to coat the polenta evenly.  Adjust seasonings as needed and serve!

This yielded us 6 servings, I believe.

Tip of the recipe: dried mushrooms are awesome!  I got a pound of Asian Porcini, and while they're a little pricy, they also last forever.  A handful goes a long way towards adding flavor, so I feel like they're a pretty good deal overall. 

Tomorrow, minestrone-type soup!