Julia – Page 36 – Grow. Cook. Eat.

February 18, 2009

Planning Your Spring and Summer Garden (and Give-Away)

Last week’s article in the Boston Globe reminded me that I need to begin my spring and summer garden plans. It’s hard to believe with temperatures hovering around 30F that spring will ever come, but I remain optimistic. In fact, I can start seeds indoors on March 15th so that when the ground begins to thaw in April, I’m ready!

I’m fortunate to have a decent sized backyard (especially for Cambridge). But you don’t need a large backyard to reap benefits from fresh herbs and vegetables. Whether you have a balcony or even a window sill, options abound. Your specific needs and constraints will dictate what you plant. Here are some things to consider.

Limited space
When I lived in an apartment in the Back Bay neighborhood of Boston, I grew herbs in a window box outside the kitchen and cherry tomatoes on the fire escape. The yield was just enough to enliven much of my summer-time cooking. In one box, I fit four herbs: my favorites: basil, thyme, tarragon and chives.

Bang for your buck
If you have limited financial resources (and who doesn't these days), you want to get the most out of your gardening dollars. Many components go into this. First on my list is avoiding waste. Second, is getting high yields for low square footage, and finally the cost of the seeds vs. seedlings.

Too often, herbs at the supermarket are packaged in quantities greater than what I need. Further, if I have a recipe that calls for 2-3 varieties, I can spend $10 on herbs alone, and half will end up in the compost bin. For $10, I can buy seedlings of 4 or 5 varieties. And as I cook with herbs throughout the summer, I just snip off what I need, and the plant keeps growing. Better yet, some herbs, like sage, tarragon and thyme, are perennial. I bought two plants each several years ago, and the herbs just keep coming back year after year with no financial reinvestment.

Celery is another example of the package size being larger than my need. I buy two or three plants ($5 total) and break off a single stalk as I need it – usually for chicken, tuna or egg salad. Unfortunately, celery does not regrow after the stalk has been harvested. So if I cook a recipe that requires a full head, then I’ll buy it at the market, saving the garden variety for when I need a small amount for a recipe.

Most lettuces are “cut and come again.” That means that if you harvest the lettuce properly (at least 2 inches above the roots) it will continue to sprout leaves. I can cut a mixed lettuce salad throughout the spring and summer with an investment of $6 in seeds (3 packets – arugula, romaine and mizuna).

Cucumbers proliferate in my garden, and can grow upwards on stakes offering economy of space. The fruit can be used in salads or pickled. Last summer, my three plants produced cucumbers well into September and yielded many snacks, salads and pickles. Last year I bought a packet of seeds for $2 and still have enough left over for this year’s planting.

Radishes sprout early. They offer an early fix for locavores craving garden fresh vegetables. Better yet, their season is quick and short, opening up the garden space to other summer vegetables.

A final, but very important consideration is the greenness of your thumb. Do you buy seeds or seedlings? For sure, seeds are cheaper – two dollars, for example will buy you dozens of seed or one seedling. However, some vegetables, like tomatoes, require careful attention to get them from seed to seedling into the ground producing fruit. I have attempted for several years to start tomatoes indoors to transplant them in the late spring. I have never had success, and end up buying the seedlings anyway.

I only buy seeds when I can direct-sow: that is, I can directly plant the seeds into the ground. Seeds that work well in this fashion include: lettuces, cucumbers, zucchini and peas. If you are unsure if a seed can be direct-sowed, check the back of the packages, the information is usually printed there.

Can’t Beat Homegrown
Perhaps the most enticing reason to grow your own vegetables is that nothing beats home-grown – especially when it comes to tomatoes! Supermarket tomatoes and even farmers’ market tomatoes will never compare to homegrown, because they are always harvested before they’re ripe. When growing at home, the tomatoes can absorb sugar producing sunshine until the very second you pluck it from the vine. Better yet, you can grow the most flavorful heirloom varieties such as Cherokee Purple.

Some years, I’ve grown zucchini for the squash blossoms because I never see them in the markets. I enjoy their floraly soft texture that’s perfect for stuffing or just using in a quiche or omelet.

Lettuces taste spicier and crisper home-grown. Potatoes are sweeter and less starchy. And Brussels sprouts can stay on the stalk in my garden until after the first frost so I get sweet, tender sprouts instead of earthy, stringy baby cabbages.

And now for the giveaway…. To help you plan your spring garden, I'll be giving a packet of Even’ Star Organic Farm Seeds. Seeds from Even' Star Farm are cultivated to yield the most flavorful, hardiest plants. They are organic and heirloom and can also be purchased at FedCo Seeds. To give you a sense of their quality, they retail for 10 times the price of similar varieties. I have several varieties of seeds suitable for spring planting and harvesting, so the winner can select his or her favorite. All you need to do is leave a comment on my blog between now and Friday, February 27th at 5pm EST, telling me about your favorite fruit or vegetable to grow.

February 16, 2009

Asian Pears with Salt -n Pepa Shrimp

Asian pears are a cross between apples and pears — juicy like a pear, but crisp like an apple. The round shape resembles an apple, but the brown skin more closely looks like a bosc pear. And unlike their pear-cousin, the flesh is firm when ripe.

Though they are good eating, I typically use them in a sauce — for Salt -n Pepa shrimp or with Avocado-Lemongrass Springrolls.

1 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tbs. corn starch
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. Sichuan pepper
1/8 tsp. five spice
2 scallions, cut into rounds
2 serranos or Thai chilies, cut into rounds
1 tbs. oil

Toss shrimp in corn starch.

Heat a large sauté pan over a high flame. Add oil. Add shrimp and sauté for 2 minutes, or until they begin to turn pink. Add spring rolls to pan.

Sprinkle in spice mix (you will have extra) and coat shrimp with spice, scallions and chilies.

Asian Pear Sauce

1/4 cup dashi or water
1/4 c. soya,
1 tbs. sugar
1 – 2 Asian pears, cored (no need to peel)
1 tsp. chili paste
1 1/2 tbs. mirin
2 tsp. rice vinegar
zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds
2 tsp. sesame oil

Put everything in a blender and puree.

February 11, 2009

Inspiration: Cinnamon

For as long as I’ve been cooking, cinnamon has been an integral part of my pantry… its sweet and spicy scent enhances so many dishes, both sweet and savory. I add it to chocolate desserts for a little kick or blueberries for a warm accent. Since I’m not much of a baker, I more often use it in savory dishes: Moroccan Style Chicken, Italian-Style Braised Chicken or Grilled Lamb Kebabs.

Beyond my staple recipes, I never really thought about cinnamon beyond the basic ground or sticks I keep in 4 oz. jars in the spice drawer. I first learned about Vietnamese Cinnamon just a few months ago, when reading White on Rice Couple's blog…. I was intrigued! First, because of its particularly spicy flavor, it seemed better suited to my style of cooking. Second, I knew I’d be traveling to Vietnam, so I’d have a chance to buy at its source.

Indeed I purchased several quills of cinnamon on my recent trip. When I returned home, I scoured on-line and in my cookbook library for recipes that use cinnamon, but little other spicing. I wanted the cinnamon to really be able to shine. Then, as I was procrastinating one day, reading “Equal Opportunity Kitchen” I noticed that Psychgrad had cinnamon rolls on her list of recipes she’d like to try. This seemed perfect… and even more fun, I thought we could cook together! I invited Psychgrad over for a virtual cooking party.

Cinnamon Rolls are a spin-off from Brioche or Challah. All three use a similar enriched yeast dough; the richness coming from either butter or oil, and eggs. The cinnamon roll dough gets an extra kick from the swirls of sugar and butter in the middle.

The Vietnamese quills of cinnamon, which come from the bark of a variety of evergreen tree, are huge – 15 inches long and 4 inches around.

I used my coffee bean grinder (which I cleaned first, of course) to break down the sticks into a coarse powder. I’ve normally kept my pantry stocked with both ground and stick cinnamon, and pull out the jar that is necessary for a given recipe. I’ve never actually ground my own cinnamon, so my initial thought with the coarse grind was that this is a liability. In fact, I rather liked the little bits of cinnamon sprinkled throughout – they offered an unexpectedly pleasant, spicy burst.

I further modified the traditional cinnamon bun recipe by adding a ½ teaspoon of cinnamon to the actual dough – ignoring Penzy’s recommendation to use less of the Vietnamese variety than what a recipe suggests of the usual variety.

Be careful with these… if you’re like me, and can’t tolerate a lot of sugar, you could be in trouble… the spicy sweetness is addictive. The neighbors have been complaining about the noise from me bouncing off the walls with too much sugar.

½ cup warm water
2 ¼ teaspoons dry yeast
½ cup milk
¼ cup sugar
½ stick butter
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cinnamon

2 eggs
3 ½ cups flour

1 ½ sticks unsalted butter
1 ¼ cups brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon melted butter

1. In a small bowl, combine warm water and yeast. Stir to dissolve. Let sit for 10 minutes to let the yeast activate.

2. In a small skillet, melt the butter with the sugar. Removed from heat and whisk in the milk. Stir until sugar is dissolved.

3. Combine milk/butter mix, yeast and eggs in an electric mixing bowl fitted with a dough hook. Add ½ cup flour and begin mixing. Add salt and cinnamon.

4. Continue mixing and adding flour until the dough comes together in a firm ball, you may not need all the flour… or you could need a little extra depending on the day’s humidity.

5. Knead the dough for an additional 5 minutes or until it’s smooth and elastic.

6. Let dough sit covered in a warm area until doubled in volume. About one hour.

7. Meanwhile, melt remaining butter with ¾ cup of brown sugar over low heat. Stir until combined and sugar is dissolved. Pour into a 13 x 9 inch pyrex dish. Mix together remaining sugar and cinnamon

8. When dough is doubled, roll it out on a well floured table into a rectangle, about ½ inch thick and 18 x 14 inches. Brush with butter. Sprinke sugar mix on top.

Tightly roll up dough. Cut into 1 inch slices. Put slices in baking sheet. You don’t need to crowd the pan as the rolls will expand as they rise and bake.

Pre Rise….

Post Rise….
9. You can bake the rolls immediately, or refrigerate them overnight and bake first thing in the morning. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes.

10. Let cool for 5 minutes before flipping out of pan. Serve warm with coffee.

I'm submitting this recipe to Southern Grace's Cinnamon Celebration.

February 9, 2009

Craving Summer, Part 2 – Black Bean-Quinoa Salad

Another 6 inches of snow fell in Cambridge this week, and the warmth of Vietnam seems so far away. Since, I know we have another few months of winter, I try to conjure up memories of steamy summer nights… sitting on the back porch eating a light summer meal – a cold salad, maybe, with grilled meat or fish… the scent of honeysuckle wafts through the air; a few beads of sweat trickle down my back. And the warm breezes that bring relief… aaahhh summer…

This is when I begin to break into my stash of tomatoes that I canned last summer. And the basil I froze in ice cube trays

What I didn’t tell you this summer, when I was knee deep in tomatoes and jars, is that I really don’t like canning. It’s a long process. The largest pot I own only holds 8 pint jars… and with this pot on the stove, I only have enough room for a second pot of simmering tomatoes. It takes many, many batches and a solid day or two to process enough tomatoes and peachy mama peppers to get me through the winter. But now that it’s the dark days of winter, I’m so grateful for my stash!! And indeed my appreciation stays with me through the summer canning process.

Simple pasta tossed with a can of tomatoes and a basil “ice cube” offers the quintessential taste of summer. Still simple, but with a more complex ingredient list, I toss quinoa and black beans with the tomatoes and basil and serve it with grilled chicken sausage. Can you feel the warmth?

Black Bean Quinoa Salad
1 cup dried quinoa
1 cup cooked black beans
1 pint jar of summer canned tomatoes
1-2 ice cubes of basil
2 scallions, cut into rings
1/2 lime, juiced
salt and pepper to taste

1. Rinse quinoa under cold running water.

2. Put quinoa in a pot with 3 cups of water. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Bring water to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to a simmer, and cover pot. Cook quinoa for 10 minutes, or until grains pop open and have a little tail. Drain any excess liquid.

3. Toss quinoa with remaining ingredients. Serve with chicken sausage.

I’m submitting this recipe to Andrea’s Grow Your Own, a blogging event that celebrates the dishes we create from foods we’ve grown, raised, foraged, or hunted ourselves.

February 7, 2009

Do You Save Money by Growing Your Own?

Today’s Boston Globe featured an article promoting vegetable gardening as a way to save money in these challenging economic times. I have always enjoyed growing my own vegetables, but I would never tout it as being economical. Unless, of course, you have inherently good soil in your yard.

The house I live in was built in 1929 during the era of lead paint and asbestos. My neighbors (who have lived in the same house for over 50 years) tell me my backyard was paved over before developers dug it up and put in a lawn. When I moved in, I started a garden. I picked out the sunniest spot and started digging. Just inches below the grass were bricks, concrete blocks and assorted debris and rubble. The first summer, I dug out two patches – 8 feet by 4 feet – and replaced the “dirt” with a mix of peat moss, manure and top soil. I built up the patches with raised beds so that I had a solid foot of good soil. Each bed had, literally, 800 pounds of fresh dirt. And I moved every pound of it. The next year, I built two more raised beds… my backyard became a patch work of crab grass and vegetables.

Finally, two summers, I excavated the entire backyard and filled it in with rich soil. Okay, this time, I didn’t do the work, but I “supervised.”

Before… (can you see concrete blocks and bricks mixed in with the dirt)

After….
The tomatoes I grew were worth their weight in gold. But you can’t put a value on the pleasure I derive from gardening… coaxing fresh vegetables from the earth… to know that within 30 minutes, I can harvest an eggplant or salad from the garden and serve it for dinner.

Given the constraints of good soil, one can still make economical choices when plotting a garden. Stay tuned for tips on how to get the most from your gardening dollars.

February 5, 2009

Adina Kebabi

Meatballs are a great way to utilize the lesser cuts of meat. And by lesser, I mean tougher. Grinding the meat breaks down the muscle tissues, yielding a product that's tender and cooks quickly. What makes these cuts tough also makes them more flavorful. The meat we typically eat are the muscles — legs, tenderloin, racks and flank. The more use the muscles get, like the legs, the tougher the meat. But this means more blood flows through them, so the meat is also more flavorful.

Just about every culture has its version of meatballs — Swedish, Italian, Chinese. Each culture imprints its own style with the different seasoning. The Turkish version, Adina Kebabi, gets its kick from mint, chilies and cinnamon. Typically it's served with a parsley-sumac salad which offers a refreshing contrast to the highly seasoned meat.

Adina Kebabi

1 lb. ground lamb
1 onion, finely chopped
½ cup chopped parsley
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. lemon zest
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tbs. mint
½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

1. Gently mix all ingredients together. Form into a sausage shape around a skewer.
2. Grill (or saute) over medium high flame, until golden brown and cooked through. Serve with Salad, Roasted Tomatoes and Roasted Onions.

Salad
1 red onion, finely sliced
¼ cup flat parsley leaves
1 ½ tsp. sumac

1. Mix everything together.

I'm submitting this recipe to Southern Grace's Cinnamon Celebration

February 2, 2009

Resilient Recipes: Beef Stew

One of the biggest challenges in entertaining at home is timing everything. First, one must assume that the guests will arrive on time, and then as host, you need to create a time-line of when the meal must go in and out of the oven so that everything’s ready and hot at the same time. Yeah, right!

As I get away from professional cooking, and focus more on recreational cooking, my style of entertaining has evolved. After all these years of being in the kitchen for the party, I want to spend time with the guests. While the food is still important, I value other aspects of a dinner party – a relaxed and convivial atmosphere that encourages lively conversation. The food becomes the backdrop for the evening.

Part of my success, or so my friends tell me, is that I’m a calm hostess (I think it’s that I serve copious amounts of wine). I’m not anxious about the meal, nor am I racing around when the guests arrive trying to put the finishing touches on a recipe. Much of this is my professional training. But a lot has to do with the menu. I opt for resilient recipes – These could be dishes that don’t suffer from pre-cooking and last minute reheating. Or recipes that have a large window of “doneness” – think chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts. Better yet, during the winter, I make stews that actually get better the longer they cook.

Such is the recommendation I offered my friend R who just got engaged. She’s hosting her parents and future in-laws for dinner – the first meeting for the two sets of parents. One can never predict how the evening will go… will the conversation be lively during the hors d’oeuvres and delay dinner? Will the silence be deafening and encourage an earlier start to the meal? For sure, let’s hope for the former. And with a stew gently staying warm in the oven, she can enjoy the company and know that the meal will be even better.

Beef Stew
(serves 4-6 guests)

2 pounds cubed beef stew meat
1/4 cup flour
3 slices smoked bacon
1 large carrot, peeled and sliced
1 onion, peeled and diced
1 large shallot, peeled and chopped.
1 celery rib, chopped
1/4 lb. mushrooms, quartered
1 cup chicken broth
1 – 10 oz. can tomatoes
1/2 bottle red wine
1/2 cup brandy
2 sprigs thyme
1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
1 tbs. plain oil.
salt and pepper to taste

1. Season beef with salt and pepper. Dust with flour. Dice bacon, and put in a large skillet with high sides. Brown bacon over high heat. Remove bacon and set aside

2. Add oil and beef, and brown beef (on high heat) for about 4 minutes on each side. Add onions, shallots, carrot, celery, and cook for about 5 minutes more.

3. Turn heat off, and deglaze pan with brandy and red wine. Scrap all of the browned bits off the bottom, this is good stuff. Add chicken stock, thyme and cumin. Turn heat back to high, and bring liquid to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer, cover pot. Put in 325 oven. After about 1 1/2 hour, add mushrooms. Cook covered for another hour or until meat is tender.

4. Serve stew over egg noodles or with grilled bread.

If you have celiac disease or gluten intolerance, you can omit the flour. Potatoes would make a great side dish as well.

Here are some other resilient recipes from Grow. Cook. Eat.
Vietnamese Crepes with Salmon and Radish Salad
End of the Season Cannellonis
Moroccan Style Chicken Stew

January 31, 2009

Tuna Burger Makes Five

When Four Burgers opened in Central Square last summer, they featured… you guessed it…. four burgers: beef, turkey, salmon and veggie. They had always intended for a feature fifth, seasonal burger. But with the hecticness of starting a new business, they had to delay that… until now!

Finally, with a little help from Julia Shanks Food Consulting , they have added that fifth burger to the menu.

Ahi Tuna, Nicoise Style — with Roasted Tomatoes, Olive Tapenade
and Green Bean Slaw

Perhaps, I’m a little bias, but it’s a great burger. Fresh herbs season the tuna. Can you see they cooked it beautifully to medium rare? It’s topped with an olive tapenade and slow roasted tomatoes. The slaw on the side pulls in the green beans typical with a nicoise salad.

You can visit Four Burgers at 704 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA.

They are also taking requests for other burger specials. Leave a comment here, or email: info@fourburgers.com

For those of you who don’t live in the Cambridge area, you can make your own tuna burger at home:

Tuna Burgers
2 pounds fresh tuna, finely chopped
2 scallions, cut into rounds
1 tablespoons fresh tarragon, chopped
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Tapenade
1 cup pitted nicoise olives
1 anchovy filet
1 teaspoon capers
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive

Green Bean Slaw
1/4 pound haricot verts or green beans
1 cup shredded cabbage
1 carrot, peeled and shredded
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon mustard
1 teaspoon tarragon, chopped
1 teaspoon capers, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

6 buns, toasted
6 slices tomatoes

1. Gently mix the tuna with remaining burger ingredients. Divide into 6 portions and form into patties, about 1 inch thick. Set aside.

2. Put tapenade ingredients in a food processor and blend until coarsely chopped.

3. Combine all ingredients for the slaw. Set aside.

4. Heat a grill pan over high heat. Sear tuna on one side for 3 minutes, or until golden brown. Cook on second side for 3 more minutes.

5. Serve burgers on a toasted bun with a smear of tapenade and a slice of tomato. Garnish the plate with the slaw.

January 30, 2009

Peachy Mama Winners and Winter Greens

And the winners of the celebration/Peachy Mama Giveaway are: White on Rice Couple, Sandie of Inn Cuisine And micaela6955/Michele P. Please email me your mailing address to [julia] at [growcookeat] dot [com]. I look forward to hearing about your peachy mama creations!
______________________________________
During the cold of January, a visit to a produce farm might seem bleak. In Southern Maryland, home to my friend Brett’s Even’ Star Organic Farm, temperatures linger around freezing. With gray skies, and the occasional appearance of the sun so low in the sky, sometimes it feels like it is always gloomy.

Despite seemingly harsh conditions, the farm is still in full production. Two green houses in the south field produce 30 cases of mesclun a week. The chickens continue to lay eggs, albeit at a slower pace. And the frost-bitten fields are lined with winter-tolerant greens: kales, mustards, collards and other brassicas. The field greens have superior flavor and texture to their greenhouse counterparts. When overnight temperatures drop below freezing, the leaves get frost bitten, which actually sweetens the flavor, leaving a gold-leaf edge. The winds and cold rains produce a leaf that his structure and texture. The combination of the conditions yields a mesclun mix in which each leaf has a distinct flavor and texture. As the leaves get bigger, they get tougher and make perfect braising greens.

Harvesting lettuce in the winter is not particularly fun – hunched over the fields with cold fingers, but the rewards are sweet. When the temperatures rise above 32F, the leaves thaw, and with a hit of sunshine, the excess moisture evaporates and the leaves rebound. Each leaf is harvested individually, taking care not to damage the plant. The smaller leaves will continue to grow.

The peppery greens make a wonderful salad or stuffing for roasted chicken.

Chicken Stuffed with Peppery Greens and Raisins

2 tablespoons butter
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1 1/2 tsp. curry powder
1/2 cup raisins
1 bunch mustard greens, washed and coarsely chopped

4 boneless chicken breasts, skin on
1 teaspoon canola/plain oil
salt and pepper to taste.

1. Melt butter in sauté pan. Add garlic. Cook for 2 minutes over medium heat, and add the curry powder. Cook for 2 more minutes and add the raisins.

2. Add the mustard greens. And cook until they wilt. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Cool before using stuffing.

4. To form pockets for stuffing., gently separate the skin from the meat from only one long edge (leaving the skin still attached on the other half of the breast). Fill the pocket with the stuffing and smooth the skin back over

5. Turn the oven on to broil. Brush the skin with a little oil and season with salt and pepper.

6. Put chicken under the broiler until the skin begins to crisp, about 7 minutes. Switch the oven to bake/ 350, and continue cooking the chicken for 10 minutes or until cooked through.

January 28, 2009

Whole Foods, Whole Packaging

I went to the store the other day to buy mesclun for my Thai Chicken Salad. Much to my displeasure, Whole Foods/Prospect Street has done away with the bulk bins of lettuce. Instead they only sell prepackaged, pre-cut, prewashed lettuce. The smallest package was 6 ounces.

Worse yet, the lettuce was bagged and then packaged in a second plastic container.

Ironically, it also says on the outer plastic container:

Locally Packaged for Maximum Freshness

If it were packaged locally, wouldn't we need less plastic. And considering the flimsy bag I would have purchased bulk lettuce in versus the industrial strength packaging that it now used, it was probably three of four times as much packaging. I’m not sure which irritated me more – being forced to buy more lettuce or more packaging than was needed or necessary.