Apparently, we're stormed in.
However, the CC had two food shopping trips organized on Friday and Saturday. Long before he had heard of this pesky little problem that seems to be imminent.
Friday consisted of some wonderful shopping at the Indian and Korean markets in Jackson Heights.
Saturday consisted of some wonderful shopping at the Greek markets in Astoria.
The latter was followed up by some wonderful Japanese ramen in Astoria. (Those Japanese hipsters! They can't quite resist those cheap rents, can they?)
This (storm) too shall pass.
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Saturday, October 20, 2012
Improptu Dinner Party
♦
Zebra Tomatoes with Arbequina Olive Oil and Sea Salt
♦
Autumn Mac-n-Cheese with Vegetables
♦
Cheese Course (with Duck-Fat Ciabatta)
♦
Chocolate
Friday, October 12, 2012
You Always Think It'll Happen To Other People
This summer, for the first time, the CC has finally OD'd on tomatoes!
Would You Rather Be a Fruit or a Vegetable?
Humans are a fairly omnivorous species.
We eat roots and tubers, stems and stalks, leaves, flowers, seaweeds, and fungii and call them all vegetables.
We also eat fruits.
Most interestingly, we eat some fruits and call them vegetables†.
A substantial reason for this is the United States Supreme Court decision from 1893 in the matter of Nix v. Hedden. And like all momentous events in the United States, it all comes down to a matter of taxation.
The Tariff Act of 1883 required a tax to be paid on imported vegetables but not fruit. The "intuitive" notion, which of course is not the botanical notion, was that fruits were sweet and were "mostly eaten as is" and vegetables were not and were "cooked".
It all came down to a matter of dueling dictionaries.
Common parlance‡ won and the tomato "became" a vegetable!
† tomatoes, eggplant, bell peppers, chillis, tomatillo, squashes, cucumber, legumes, peas, avocado, corn, okra and olives.
‡ If you really want to freak your vegetarian friends out, when you're eating fruit, be sure to say loudly, "Mmmmmmmmmm ... tasty ripe ovaries!" (because that's what they actually are!)
We eat roots and tubers, stems and stalks, leaves, flowers, seaweeds, and fungii and call them all vegetables.
We also eat fruits.
Most interestingly, we eat some fruits and call them vegetables†.
A substantial reason for this is the United States Supreme Court decision from 1893 in the matter of Nix v. Hedden. And like all momentous events in the United States, it all comes down to a matter of taxation.
The Tariff Act of 1883 required a tax to be paid on imported vegetables but not fruit. The "intuitive" notion, which of course is not the botanical notion, was that fruits were sweet and were "mostly eaten as is" and vegetables were not and were "cooked".
It all came down to a matter of dueling dictionaries.
Common parlance‡ won and the tomato "became" a vegetable!
† tomatoes, eggplant, bell peppers, chillis, tomatillo, squashes, cucumber, legumes, peas, avocado, corn, okra and olives.
‡ If you really want to freak your vegetarian friends out, when you're eating fruit, be sure to say loudly, "Mmmmmmmmmm ... tasty ripe ovaries!" (because that's what they actually are!)
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Flatbread with Dandelion Greens
There are recipes that are old friends. The years go by, and you keep perfecting them (and there's always something to be perfected, isn't there?)
This one is an oldie. The CC got it from a friend's magazine (Seriously! The CC wouldn't be caught dead buying those magazines.)
Over the years, it's been rationalized and made much much more scientific. It's been through the paces more than a few times. More spices have been added and tweaks made but the basic ideas remain the same. You, my good friends, are the beneficiaries of the CC's hard work.
It's an idea as old as time. Bread topped with tasty stuff topped with cheese. If you're thinking "pizza" then that's what it resembles, of course.
What makes it interesting is what the "stuff" is and how the "bread" is constructed.
It's basically a very classic long-fermented dough topped with dark leafy slightly-bitter greens with tomatoes and Indian spices topped with salty feta. A Greek friend mentioned that it very strongly resembles what they call "Arabic Pie".
It's truly a wondrous recipe. So make this one. It takes a little effort but it has a rock-your-world kinda taste. It will certainly rock your party!
Ingredients
Dough
1/4 cup rye flour
2 cups whole wheat flour (sifted)
3/4 cup dark rye flour
1/2 tsp dried yeast
2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups water
cilantro (chopped fine)
rosemary (chopped fine)
1 tbsp ground pepper
Topping
1 large red onion (very finely diced)
1 cup tomato sauce
6 cups chopped dandelion greens
olive oil
salt
crumbled feta
Recipe
Dough
In a very roomy glass bowl, add 1/4 cup of rye flour with the dried yeast and mix with about 1/2 cup of luke-warm water. Err on the cooler side. Hot water will definitely kill the yeast. Let it sit for about 20 minutes.
This is an old baker's trick. Rye flour is like crack-cocaine for yeast. They will reproduce and go crazy. It's called a poolish (French) or biga (Italian).
After 20 minutes, the sludge will be all foamy. (If not, your yeast is dead. Discard and try again.)
Add the sifted whole-wheat flour, rye flour, cilantro, rosemary, salt, black pepper. Add water slowly and knead until you get a solid but pliable ball. (This really depends on the weather and humidity. The CC just adds water slowly until he gets it right.)
Cover the bowl tightly and let it sit for at least 8 hours.
After 8 hours, you will notice that the dough is a lot more "flowy". The yeast have eaten away the sugars and left the gluten behind. Deflate the dough.
Form a ball one more time. If it's very wet, you may need to add a little bit more flour.
Cover and let it sit for a 2-3 hours. It will rise a lot faster the second time around.
Topping
Roast the spices in a dry skillet. Make sure they don't burn. Set aside and grind in a clean coffee grinder.
Pound the ginger, green chillies and garlic to a paste. Set aside.
Heat up some olive oil. Fry the onions for about 4 minutes. Add the paste above and fry for a while. Add the tomato sauce. Let it cook for about 6 minutes.
Add the greens with some salt. They will give off a lot of water. Let them cook at a medium-low heat until almost all the water is gone.
Add the ground spices, mix and set aside.
Assembly
Cover a large rectangular 9"x16" pizza tray with aluminum foil. This makes cleanup easy.
Pour some olive oil and spread all over. This ensures that the dough doesn't stick. Deflate the dough gently with your hands. Dump it in the tray, flatten it gently with your fingers so that it assumes the rectangular shape of the tray. The dough will be quite "doughy" so this step is quite easy.
Top with the greens mixture from above. Add crumbled feta on top.
Pre-heat the oven to 450°F.
The CC lets the tray sit near the oven while it pre-heats for about 20-25 minutes. Consider this as the third rising of the dough. (It rises really rapidly.)
Bake for about 14 minutes. (You will need to check because the feta can easily burn.)
Let it rest for about 7 minutes. (Yes, this is important. It's still cooking even though you've pulled it out of the oven.)
Slice and devour!
This one is an oldie. The CC got it from a friend's magazine (Seriously! The CC wouldn't be caught dead buying those magazines.)
Over the years, it's been rationalized and made much much more scientific. It's been through the paces more than a few times. More spices have been added and tweaks made but the basic ideas remain the same. You, my good friends, are the beneficiaries of the CC's hard work.
It's an idea as old as time. Bread topped with tasty stuff topped with cheese. If you're thinking "pizza" then that's what it resembles, of course.
What makes it interesting is what the "stuff" is and how the "bread" is constructed.
It's basically a very classic long-fermented dough topped with dark leafy slightly-bitter greens with tomatoes and Indian spices topped with salty feta. A Greek friend mentioned that it very strongly resembles what they call "Arabic Pie".
It's truly a wondrous recipe. So make this one. It takes a little effort but it has a rock-your-world kinda taste. It will certainly rock your party!
Ingredients
Dough
1/4 cup rye flour
2 cups whole wheat flour (sifted)
3/4 cup dark rye flour
1/2 tsp dried yeast
2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups water
cilantro (chopped fine)
rosemary (chopped fine)
1 tbsp ground pepper
Topping
1 large red onion (very finely diced)
3" ginger
5 garlic cloves
2-3 Thai green chillies (or 1 serrano)
1 stick cinnamon
2 tsp whole coriander
1 tsp whole cumin
1 tsp cloves
1/2 tbsp fennel
3-4 cardamom pods5 garlic cloves
2-3 Thai green chillies (or 1 serrano)
1 stick cinnamon
2 tsp whole coriander
1 tsp whole cumin
1 tsp cloves
1/2 tbsp fennel
1 cup tomato sauce
6 cups chopped dandelion greens
olive oil
salt
crumbled feta
Recipe
Dough
Just a few notes about commercial yeast. It is built to reproduce fast but that doesn't allow flavor to build so you need to retard it. The standard way is just to stick it in the refrigerator and give it much much longer times to do its thing. This recipe was made last week when Fall made its way. The house was extraordinarily cool which is functionally the same thing as a refrigerator. The CC trudged off to the NYFF while the dough did its thing.
You want a cool long fermentation process not a fast one. Otherwise, the dough which is part of the magic will have no taste.
You need to prepare this dough early in the day for consumption at night.
In a very roomy glass bowl, add 1/4 cup of rye flour with the dried yeast and mix with about 1/2 cup of luke-warm water. Err on the cooler side. Hot water will definitely kill the yeast. Let it sit for about 20 minutes.
This is an old baker's trick. Rye flour is like crack-cocaine for yeast. They will reproduce and go crazy. It's called a poolish (French) or biga (Italian).
After 20 minutes, the sludge will be all foamy. (If not, your yeast is dead. Discard and try again.)
Add the sifted whole-wheat flour, rye flour, cilantro, rosemary, salt, black pepper. Add water slowly and knead until you get a solid but pliable ball. (This really depends on the weather and humidity. The CC just adds water slowly until he gets it right.)
Cover the bowl tightly and let it sit for at least 8 hours.
After 8 hours, you will notice that the dough is a lot more "flowy". The yeast have eaten away the sugars and left the gluten behind. Deflate the dough.
Form a ball one more time. If it's very wet, you may need to add a little bit more flour.
Cover and let it sit for a 2-3 hours. It will rise a lot faster the second time around.
Topping
Roast the spices in a dry skillet. Make sure they don't burn. Set aside and grind in a clean coffee grinder.
Pound the ginger, green chillies and garlic to a paste. Set aside.
Heat up some olive oil. Fry the onions for about 4 minutes. Add the paste above and fry for a while. Add the tomato sauce. Let it cook for about 6 minutes.
Add the greens with some salt. They will give off a lot of water. Let them cook at a medium-low heat until almost all the water is gone.
Add the ground spices, mix and set aside.
Assembly
Cover a large rectangular 9"x16" pizza tray with aluminum foil. This makes cleanup easy.
Pour some olive oil and spread all over. This ensures that the dough doesn't stick. Deflate the dough gently with your hands. Dump it in the tray, flatten it gently with your fingers so that it assumes the rectangular shape of the tray. The dough will be quite "doughy" so this step is quite easy.
Top with the greens mixture from above. Add crumbled feta on top.
Pre-heat the oven to 450°F.
The CC lets the tray sit near the oven while it pre-heats for about 20-25 minutes. Consider this as the third rising of the dough. (It rises really rapidly.)
Bake for about 14 minutes. (You will need to check because the feta can easily burn.)
Let it rest for about 7 minutes. (Yes, this is important. It's still cooking even though you've pulled it out of the oven.)
Slice and devour!
Saturday, October 6, 2012
The Haul
Shishito peppers (so late!), flat beans, zebra tomatoes (again, so late!), dandelion greens, rosemary.
Already, the brassicaceae are out in full force but the weather being a little too warm means it was a little early for the CC. In any case, there will enough of them all winter.
Already, the brassicaceae are out in full force but the weather being a little too warm means it was a little early for the CC. In any case, there will enough of them all winter.
Saturday, September 29, 2012
The End of Summer
This is it. Summer is gone.
Tomatoes, last of the cherry tomatoes, last of the eggplants, chives, onions.
Saw cauliflower for the first time. Fall is here.
Tomatoes, last of the cherry tomatoes, last of the eggplants, chives, onions.
Saw cauliflower for the first time. Fall is here.
Friday, September 28, 2012
Okra
Most people have a love/hate affair with the vegetable. The CC naturally loves it.
When he was but a little child, he adored it beyond reason. (Clearly, the CC had advanced tastes even back then.)
The trick with okra that makes it "slimy" is that if it's wet, it has a tendency to leak slime. Cellular-wall decomposition and all that. It needs to be pan-fried at a high-heat and it's absolutely necessary that the okra not be wet. You will get spectacular reaults if you just ensure this simple rule.
You must dry it thoroughly with a piece of cloth or if you are lazy, pop it in a pre-heated oven at very low heat (without allowing it to cook.) Either way, the okra must be bone-dry.
The recipe below is a classic Bengali Recipe. As you might guess, there are similar recipes with variations in the spices all over India with much discussion about which is the "best".
The CC refuses to get into that particular Vietnam. He likes them all and the topic is a bit of a snooze-fest anyway.
This one is quite lovely (particularly because of the fennel and nigella) but why quibble over relative greatness?
Dharosh Chorchori
Ingredients
15 pods okra
1 large onion (sliced into thin quarter-moons)
1 1/2 tsp turmeric
1 green chilli (diced fine)
3-4 fresh green chillies
2 tbsp oil
1 tbsp panch phoran
salt (to taste)
Recipe
Slice of the stem and tip of the okra. Make a couple of length-wise gashes on the body of the vegetable.
Slit the 3-4 green chillies length-wise with a gash.
Pound the turmeric and finely diced chillies with a tablespoon of water and grind to a fine paste.
Heat the oil in a wok. Add panch phoran and cook till the spluttering stops. Add the okra. Stir-fry for about 6 minutes. Add salt, the masala paste, the sliced onions and the green chillies.
Stir-fry for about 2-3 minutes. Add about half a cup of water. Simmer till the pan is nearly dry.
(Note: This is a "dry dish". It would normally be served with rice, a "wet dish" and a daal.)
When he was but a little child, he adored it beyond reason. (Clearly, the CC had advanced tastes even back then.)
The trick with okra that makes it "slimy" is that if it's wet, it has a tendency to leak slime. Cellular-wall decomposition and all that. It needs to be pan-fried at a high-heat and it's absolutely necessary that the okra not be wet. You will get spectacular reaults if you just ensure this simple rule.
You must dry it thoroughly with a piece of cloth or if you are lazy, pop it in a pre-heated oven at very low heat (without allowing it to cook.) Either way, the okra must be bone-dry.
The recipe below is a classic Bengali Recipe. As you might guess, there are similar recipes with variations in the spices all over India with much discussion about which is the "best".
The CC refuses to get into that particular Vietnam. He likes them all and the topic is a bit of a snooze-fest anyway.
This one is quite lovely (particularly because of the fennel and nigella) but why quibble over relative greatness?
Dharosh Chorchori
Ingredients
15 pods okra
1 large onion (sliced into thin quarter-moons)
1 1/2 tsp turmeric
1 green chilli (diced fine)
3-4 fresh green chillies
2 tbsp oil
1 tbsp panch phoran
salt (to taste)
Recipe
Slice of the stem and tip of the okra. Make a couple of length-wise gashes on the body of the vegetable.
Slit the 3-4 green chillies length-wise with a gash.
Pound the turmeric and finely diced chillies with a tablespoon of water and grind to a fine paste.
Heat the oil in a wok. Add panch phoran and cook till the spluttering stops. Add the okra. Stir-fry for about 6 minutes. Add salt, the masala paste, the sliced onions and the green chillies.
Stir-fry for about 2-3 minutes. Add about half a cup of water. Simmer till the pan is nearly dry.
(Note: This is a "dry dish". It would normally be served with rice, a "wet dish" and a daal.)
Monday, September 24, 2012
Panch Phoran
It's a classic Bengali spice-mixture. Literally means five-spices (although different from the Chinese five-spice mix.)
It consists of equal parts of cumin, fennel, fenugreek, nigella and radhuni.
The latter may be hard to get but it's necessary.
Although they ask you to substitute by mustard seeds, radhuni tastes nothing like mustard. It's closer in spirit to celery seeds than anything else.
It consists of equal parts of cumin, fennel, fenugreek, nigella and radhuni.
The latter may be hard to get but it's necessary.
Although they ask you to substitute by mustard seeds, radhuni tastes nothing like mustard. It's closer in spirit to celery seeds than anything else.
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Late Summer Harvest
Pole beans, purple beans, cranberry beans, tomatoes (heirloom and not-so-heirloom), onions, zucchini, pattypan-squash, chives, basil, rosemary.
Not in the least bit over-the-top. No sirree!
Not in the least bit over-the-top. No sirree!
Friday, September 21, 2012
Yellow Nails
The CC was expecting it. Any moment the question would be asked.
It was asked today.
"Why are your nails yellow? You don't smoke!
The CC laughed. He has been the beneficiary of fresh turmeric and has been cooking a lot with it recently (recipes and pictures to follow.)
Turmeric stains your hands and your nails. Alas, good food has consequences.
The stains shall fade but the food will live on in the blogs!
It was asked today.
"Why are your nails yellow? You don't smoke!
The CC laughed. He has been the beneficiary of fresh turmeric and has been cooking a lot with it recently (recipes and pictures to follow.)
Turmeric stains your hands and your nails. Alas, good food has consequences.
The stains shall fade but the food will live on in the blogs!
Clams in Dry Masala
Every week a local fisherman comes to the farmers' market. They have whatever they catch the previous day.
This being the East Coast, they always have clams which the CC never fully appreciated before living out here. Now, they are the most purchased weekly item (after tomatoes, of course!)
There are two classics that the CC makes often — spaghetti with clams and asari gohan (あさりご飯).
This recipe is from the Konkan region in India. It's quite straightforward, and it's in the sukke style (as in it's a dry dish.)
Ingredients
2 dozen clams
1 small onion (diced fine)
1 sprig curry leaves
1/2 cup fresh/frozen coconut
2-3 pieces of tamarind
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp chilli powder (or more)
oil
salt
Recipe
First soak the tamarind pieces in 1/2 cup of boiling water. Set aside for 15 minutes or so. When done, mash the tamarind with your hands (the water should've cooled down.) Pass through a fine sieve and retain the liquid. Toss in the turmeric, chilli powder and salt into the liquid and mix thoroughly. Make sure you don't get lumps of turmeric and/or chilli powder. You need to make sure they mix thoroughly.
In a small pot, heat the oil. When it shimmers, fry the onions until they are translucent. Add the curry leaves and fry for a bit. Add the coconut and fry for a minute. Add the clams and fry for a bit. Toss in the tamarind liquid (which has the spices mixed in.)
Cook uncovered until the clams open. Serve immediately with rice.
This being the East Coast, they always have clams which the CC never fully appreciated before living out here. Now, they are the most purchased weekly item (after tomatoes, of course!)
There are two classics that the CC makes often — spaghetti with clams and asari gohan (あさりご飯).
This recipe is from the Konkan region in India. It's quite straightforward, and it's in the sukke style (as in it's a dry dish.)
Ingredients
2 dozen clams
1 small onion (diced fine)
1 sprig curry leaves
1/2 cup fresh/frozen coconut
2-3 pieces of tamarind
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp chilli powder (or more)
oil
salt
Recipe
First soak the tamarind pieces in 1/2 cup of boiling water. Set aside for 15 minutes or so. When done, mash the tamarind with your hands (the water should've cooled down.) Pass through a fine sieve and retain the liquid. Toss in the turmeric, chilli powder and salt into the liquid and mix thoroughly. Make sure you don't get lumps of turmeric and/or chilli powder. You need to make sure they mix thoroughly.
In a small pot, heat the oil. When it shimmers, fry the onions until they are translucent. Add the curry leaves and fry for a bit. Add the coconut and fry for a minute. Add the clams and fry for a bit. Toss in the tamarind liquid (which has the spices mixed in.)
Cook uncovered until the clams open. Serve immediately with rice.
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Tortang Talong (Eggplant Omelette)
Summer means eggplant, and there's no better way to start off a Sunday than with this sublime combination of smoky eggplants and eggs.
Incidentally, the Filipino world is divided into those that add ground pork as a topping, and those that don't. The CC refuses to take sides in this particular debate. De gustibus ..., etc.
Ingredients
(serves 2)
2 eggplants
2 eggs
1 tbsp patis (substitute with salt)
oil
Recipe
Grill the eggplants until the skin is charred. If you don't have a grill (like the CC), stick them directly on top of the flame of the burner. Keep turning until it is nicely charred. Set aside.
When cool, the skin will peel off quite easily.
Gently smash the eggplant with a fork into a flat roundish shape (like the picture above.) Try not to puncture it. (If you do, don't worry too much. The eggs will seal it.)
In a separate bowl, crack the eggs. Add the patis and whip till blended.
Each eggplant will be dipped in this mixture and pan-fried.
Heat some oil in a skillet. When shimmering, add the egg-dipped eggplant. As the egg sets, you will need to gently wrap it around the eggplant.
Serve hot. (The topping above is Sriracha, of course!)
Incidentally, the Filipino world is divided into those that add ground pork as a topping, and those that don't. The CC refuses to take sides in this particular debate. De gustibus ..., etc.
Ingredients
(serves 2)
2 eggplants
2 eggs
1 tbsp patis (substitute with salt)
oil
Recipe
Grill the eggplants until the skin is charred. If you don't have a grill (like the CC), stick them directly on top of the flame of the burner. Keep turning until it is nicely charred. Set aside.
When cool, the skin will peel off quite easily.
Gently smash the eggplant with a fork into a flat roundish shape (like the picture above.) Try not to puncture it. (If you do, don't worry too much. The eggs will seal it.)
In a separate bowl, crack the eggs. Add the patis and whip till blended.
Each eggplant will be dipped in this mixture and pan-fried.
Heat some oil in a skillet. When shimmering, add the egg-dipped eggplant. As the egg sets, you will need to gently wrap it around the eggplant.
Serve hot. (The topping above is Sriracha, of course!)
Saturday, September 15, 2012
Panzanella
Been craving it for a month. Finally got it.
The CC is in a tomato-haze.
Cucina di povera never goes wrong when the cravings hit.
The CC is in a tomato-haze.
Cucina di povera never goes wrong when the cravings hit.
Tomato Heaven
The CC's freezer is filled with homemade "tomato paste" and a large amount of "tomato sauce".
The house smells divine.
Some of the "tomato sauce" will be for present consumption. Some more might be made depending on the weather.
Bring it on, February!
The house smells divine.
Some of the "tomato sauce" will be for present consumption. Some more might be made depending on the weather.
Bring it on, February!
The Return of Tomato Man!
Today at the farmers' market, the CC was grabbing tomatoes to make tomato sauce and tomato paste to freeze.
The farmer said, "Grab them while you can, Tomato Man. Fall is coming. I can see the fear in your eyes!"
The farmer said, "Grab them while you can, Tomato Man. Fall is coming. I can see the fear in your eyes!"
Monday, September 10, 2012
Raita with Cherry Tomatoes & Chives
Authenticity be damned, the CC damn near ate the entire thing while tasting it!
(It's not that far removed from a classic onion and tomato raita. So there!)
Ingredients
1 cup Greek yogurt
12 red cherry tomatoes
12 yellow cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped chives
salt
black pepper
Recipe
Quarter the tomatoes. Toss everything together. You may need to add a few tablespoons of water to get the desired smooth consistency.
(It's not that far removed from a classic onion and tomato raita. So there!)
Ingredients
1 cup Greek yogurt
12 red cherry tomatoes
12 yellow cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped chives
salt
black pepper
Recipe
Quarter the tomatoes. Toss everything together. You may need to add a few tablespoons of water to get the desired smooth consistency.
Saturday, September 8, 2012
Ginisang Ampalaya (Sautéed Bitter-Melons with Egg)
This one is for the bitter melon lovers out there. (You know who you are.)
It's a straightforward Filipino breakfast dish. You sautée some bitter melon rounds with onions, patis (fish sauce), garlic, black pepper and eggs.
You can add ground pork, or not. You can add bell peppers, or not. You can add tomatoes, or not.
There's a lot of that "or not" in Filipino cooking.
Only constant here seem to be that it wouldn't make any sense to have a sautéed bitter melon dish without bitter melons, would it now?
Also, the eggs are key. They act as counterpoint.
The eggs were lightly scrambled because that's the way the CC rolls.
You may want to roll differently, or not.
It's a straightforward Filipino breakfast dish. You sautée some bitter melon rounds with onions, patis (fish sauce), garlic, black pepper and eggs.
You can add ground pork, or not. You can add bell peppers, or not. You can add tomatoes, or not.
There's a lot of that "or not" in Filipino cooking.
Only constant here seem to be that it wouldn't make any sense to have a sautéed bitter melon dish without bitter melons, would it now?
Also, the eggs are key. They act as counterpoint.
The eggs were lightly scrambled because that's the way the CC rolls.
You may want to roll differently, or not.
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Tomato Risotto with Oregano, Fennel & Feta
This recipe was originally by Diane Kochilas — a Greek adaptation of the Italian risotto — and it had the risotto cooked in Ouzo. (Can you hear the howls from Italy already?)
Anise tends to have an overpowering smell (at least to the CC) so he toned it down by using fresh fennel instead of Ouzo or Pernod.
Incidentally, fresh fennel is still plenty potent.
The feta does add a wonderfully creamy element, and the recipe tends towards the richer side because of the overpowering smell from the fennel and umami from the summer tomatoes.
Ingredients
8 ripe tomatoes
1 bulb fennel (finely chopped)
1 shallot (finely minced)
4 cloves garlic (finely minced)
2 cups carnaroli rice
4 cups broth.
2 tbsp fresh oregano (chopped)
1 tbsp lemon zest (optional)
olive oil
salt
black pepper
2/3 cup feta
Recipe
The original recipe has the tomatoes grated over a box grater but with summer tomatoes, it was easy enough to just pass them through a food mill.
Sautée the shallots, fennel and garlic in olive oil. Keep the broth on a simmer in a separate vessel near by.
Add the rice and fry making sure that each rice grain is covered in the oil.
Add the broth and the tomatoes alternately. Keep stirring the risotto until it absorbs all the broth. Make sure it's not over cooked. It should still have a bite (al dente) and the mixture should just be slightly on the wet side.
Stir in the feta, oregano and lemon zest at the end right before serving.
Anise tends to have an overpowering smell (at least to the CC) so he toned it down by using fresh fennel instead of Ouzo or Pernod.
Incidentally, fresh fennel is still plenty potent.
The feta does add a wonderfully creamy element, and the recipe tends towards the richer side because of the overpowering smell from the fennel and umami from the summer tomatoes.
Ingredients
8 ripe tomatoes
1 bulb fennel (finely chopped)
1 shallot (finely minced)
4 cloves garlic (finely minced)
2 cups carnaroli rice
4 cups broth.
2 tbsp fresh oregano (chopped)
1 tbsp lemon zest (optional)
olive oil
salt
black pepper
2/3 cup feta
Recipe
The original recipe has the tomatoes grated over a box grater but with summer tomatoes, it was easy enough to just pass them through a food mill.
Sautée the shallots, fennel and garlic in olive oil. Keep the broth on a simmer in a separate vessel near by.
Add the rice and fry making sure that each rice grain is covered in the oil.
Add the broth and the tomatoes alternately. Keep stirring the risotto until it absorbs all the broth. Make sure it's not over cooked. It should still have a bite (al dente) and the mixture should just be slightly on the wet side.
Stir in the feta, oregano and lemon zest at the end right before serving.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
