Kidney Beans with Cheese

Last night, I made a delicious, practically vegetarian dinner. Had I subbed veggie broth for the chicken broth in the beans I made, it would have been totally vegetarian. I served the beans with Mexican corn cakes, and a green salad. The two recipes originated with Martha Stewart, but have been altered by me.

Kidney Beans with Requeson

1 can kidney beans

1 can chicken or veggie stock

2 bay leaves

1 onion, quartered

1/2 jalapeño, seeded 

1/2 tsp. cumin

A pinch of salt

1/4 c. Requeson cheese (can sub grated cotija or asadero)

Bring everything but cheese to a boil. Reduce to a brisk simmer and cook another 15 minutes. Set aside 1/4 c. cooking liquid. Strain beans, discarding everything but the beans. Mash with reserved liquid & the cheese. Adjust seasonings. Serves 2-4.

Mexican Corn Cakes

3/4 c. masa harina or cornmeal

1/4 c. flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

Pinch salt

1/4 c. Requeson cheese (can sub grated Cotija or Asadero)

1 c. corn

Water

Oil for frying

Avocado slices, tomato chunks, sour cream/crema for serving

Whisk the dry ingredients together. Add cheese and corn. Stir in water, 1/4 c. at a time, just until it holds together---kind of like scone dough. Heat oil in large skillet. Shape dough into small parties and fry until golden on both sides. Keep warm in 200 degree oven on paper towel lined plate. Serve topped with crema, avocado, & tomato. Serves 4.

Pork Chops with Tomato Gravy

I am delighted to be in our new house and have the kitchen unpacked enough to be able to cook dinner! The first meal I made here at Greenleaf Cottage was last Friday night. I made pork chops with tomato gravy, mashed potatoes, lima beans (whose water boiled over into our glass cooktop, getting the pan stuck to the burner and creating an unholy mess), and sweet corn. I got nice, thick pork chops and baked them before serving them with the tomato gravy, which I made by draining a can of petite diced tomatoes and bringing it to a boil with some butter, salt, & pepper before covering and simmering it about half and hour. Delicious!

First Colorado Cooking

Upon moving to Colorado, we spent just over 3 weeks in temporary housing with a very limited kitchen. It took some planning, to make sure I wasn't trying to make a quiche with no pie plate or something like that, but I cooked several quite good meals in that time. There are plenty of great restaurants to explore, but who wants to eat out for a month straight?

Our first meal was a simple one of fruit, cheese, and bread. Others were similarly simple, if a bit less elegant (hot dogs & cucumber slices one night, fried eggs & sausage another, and some meals out). 

A week in, I finally made a little more elaborate meal. Despite my worries about high altitude cooking and the way my pasta might turn out, we had bucatini with Bolognese sauce, bagged Caesar salad, and Pugliese bread from the King Soopers. With plenty of extra water, a lid, and a little extra cook time, the pasta turned out perfectly al dente. The sauce was not as good as it should have been, due to the fact that we had no idea where to buy red wine. In Michigan, we could get Bacardi 151 at the grocery. In Colorado, we must go to a liquor store for wine or even beer above, I think, 3.5% alcohol. It was, however, pretty dang tasty.

Simple Bolognese Sauce

1/4 c. butter

1 large onion, finely diced

1 large carrot, finely diced

1 stalk celery, finely diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb. ground beef (I like the 90% lean)

1/4 c. dry red wine

1 c. tomato sauce

3/4 c. water

Salt & pepper

Melt the butter in a heavy pot. Cook the vegetables until tender, adding garlic at the last 30 seconds or so. Add beef & brown, breaking up well. Add wine & cook until it has evaporated. Add tomato sauce & water. Bring to a boil,then reduce heat to low, cover, & simmer a couple hours. If you don't have a couple hours, it'll still taste good. Season with salt & pepper. Serves 4. (I had no garlic or wine, so I added a little Italian seasoning & garlic powder)

A couple nights later, I made a chicken cordon bleu that I found a bit blah. My wife thought it was great, though. I served it with rice pilaf (Near East with slivered almonds) & green beans. 

Chicken Cordon Bleu

2 thinly-sliced skinless, boneless chicken breasts

Ham slices

Swiss cheese slices

Breadcrumbs

Beaten egg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Layer ham and cheese atop each chicken breast. Fold into a neat bundle, with the chicken's edges tucked around the filling. Dip chicken in egg, then breadcrumbs, coating evenly. Bake about 20 minutes. Serves 2.

Another dish I made during our temporary housing time seemed a little weird to me, noodles with brats and rye croutons, inspired by a recipe from a cookbook called "The Rustic Table." It turned out to be a little bland, but I think it would have been lots better with a better meat to noodle ratio than what I used. I served it with a black-eyed pea salad, from a recipe my mom gave me, that was simply scrumptious and could have served as dinner. The original recipe came from Paula Deen. We had fresh plums for dessert. This season has been terrific for stone fruit. 

Noodles with Brats & Rye Croutons

2 slices rye, cubed

Salt

1/2 pound egg noodles

1/2 stick butter, cut up

1/2 lb. brats, sliced thickly

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Bake rye cubes until dried out, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, cook and drain noodles. Melt butter in skillet & fry brat slices. Remove to drain on a paper towel-lined plate (I might skip the draining next time). Toss bread in butter and brat grease until browned & crisp. Set aside. Toss noodles and brats together in same pan. Serve with croutons. Serves 4.

Black-Eyed Pea Salad

2 cans black-eyes peas, drained

1 can diced tomatoes, well-drained

4 oz. chopped pimientos, drained

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 c. olive oil

A splash of balsamic vinegar

A handful of finely diced red onion 

A handful of chopped parsley

A smidge of minced pickled jalapeño 

1 tsp. sugar

Salt & pepper

Mix everything gently together and adjust seasonings. Serves 6.

On the anniversary of my grandmother's death, I always make her Russian sandwiches, with sweet corn. These sandwiches are something I grew up eating. Every August, at the peak of Ohio tomato season, my grandies stopped most days at a small farm stand on their way home from water workout & table tennis. There, they would select the juiciest tomatoes, along with freshly-harvested sweet corn. For supper, they would later tomato slices, crisp bacon, and sharp Cheddar (usually Cabot) on bread slices (I toast mine) and broil until the cheese was bubbly. They ate these open-faced sandwiches (who knows what made them "Russian"?) with corn barely allowed to relax in the pot of boiling water. I added a salad & watermelon this year. Great stuff!

Another night, Nene made steaks, on which we slathered butter I'd mixed with hot sauce & chopped parsley. We had baked potatoes & an arranged salad of tomato and avocado slices with bocconcini, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with salt & peper. My basil had gotten frozen by the hotel room fridge or I would have generously added that, too.

The last hotel meal I made was a gooey, cheesy, Mexicanish (via small-town Alabama) casserole I found in one of those spiral-bound town cookbooks which usually have half a dozen deviled egg recipes and at least as many for sheet cake. We had that with Fritos for scooping, salad, corn, and guacamole.

Mexabama Casserole

1 lb. ground beef, browned

1 package taco seasoning

1 package Mahatma yellow rice

1 can cheddar cheese soup (I used the lower sodium, lower fat sort)

1 c. shredded asadero cheese

Mix beef with seasoning and water, as directed on package. Cook rice according to package. Mix everything together & heat through. Serve with Fritos, chopped tomatoes, shredded lettuce, sliced olives, sour cream, and extra shredded cheese. Serves 4-6.

What I'm Cooking, August 2016

Boy, I tell you what: moving is crazy! My talented, smart wife was just given a promotion that takes us from Hoth (AKA Michigan) to Colorado. We're not moving the right direction for me (Southeast), but I think we're going to love living in the Boulder/Denver metro area! So, yay! We even made our cross-country drive with baby, cats, & tempers intact.

However, life is still a little off-kilter, as we're staying in temporary housing designed for people who are more likely to head out to a restaurant or order in while staying here than to cook a big meal. So, I am challenged with figuring out which meals I can make without buying a bunch of duplicate seasonings and kitchen ware. 

It's been an interesting exercise in becoming aware of just how much I take for granted. I have a very well-equipped kitchen and a wide variety of ingredients at my disposal at any given moment. People are always complimenting me on what a great cook I am. Really, it's due, in large part, to what I have available to me. It makes me think about what it must be like for homeless people or people with only one cooking pot and a fire to figure out how to create meals. So, really, this is a classic case of #firstworldproblems. 

Problem solved, here is what I've come up with:

-Hot dogs, baked beans, fresh veggies

-Scrambled eggs, sausage, fruit

-Pasta with Bolognese sauce, Caesar salad, good bread

-Chicken Cordon Bleu, rice pilaf, green beans

-Scallion & cheese frittata, sesame kale, fruit

-Fried egg BLTs, fried potatoes, salad

-Egg noodles with sausage, black-eyed pea salad, fruit

-Russian sandwiches, sweet corn, watermelon

-Steak with hot sauce butter, baked potatoes, avocado caprese salad

-Taco casserole, corn, salad, chips & guacamole

-Turkish pizza, salad, fruit with dip

-Pork chops with tomato gravy, mashed potatoes, lima beans

-Kidney beans with cotija, Mexican corn cakes, salad

-Asparagus Parmesan tart, rosemary potatoes, salad

-Savannah red rice, green beans, salad

Curried Chicken Salad, June 16, 2016

Tonight, we had another hot weather supper---curried chicken salad, green salad, sesame seed bread, and macerated strawberries with ladyfingers and real whipped cream. I wasn't a huge fan of the chicken salad, as it was too fruity for me. I liked the idea of it and thought the curry would make the fruit more palatable to me, but it didn't. I mean, it wasn't horrible, but it was still fruit with meat---and regular readers know how I feel about that! Jeannene likes fruit in her chicken salad, though, so why not make it for her every now and again?

To make the chicken salad, I cubed 2 cooked boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Then, I tossed them with half an apple (peeled and chopped), a handful of chopped fresh pineapple, a handful of pitted, chopped Medjool dates, and a handful of golden raisins. Then, I mixed in some olive oil mayonnaise and some curry powder. I think I would like it better on sandwiches than I did eaten with a fork.

The Stockyard, June 15, 2016

When we moved to Michigan, there was an Applebee's in Lake Orion. Jeannene was sorry to see it go when it closed, but I'm not much of an Applebee's fan and hoped something cool and independent would open in the spot. Sure enough, after a long period of vacancy, The Stockyard has opened in that location. They say they specialize in handcrafted and that applies to the decor, as well as to the food. All wood and steel and funky overhead lights, the space looks really nice. Their chairs are not so comfortable for those of us gifted with extra padding, however. Ah, well, nobody's perfect and it certainly wouldn't keep me from returning, many times, following our initial visit last night.

We told our friendly, young hipster waiter to choose for us between the fried pickles and the spinach and artichoke dip. I was really hoping for the pickles, but I think my wife is probably kind of sick of pickles (she's the plant manager for a pickle manufacturing facility). When I just smelled the spinach and artichoke dip the waiter chose for us, I was very glad he hadn't brought the pickles. It was pure cheesy goodness, the sort of rich thing you don't want to eat very often, but are glad to get to taste every now and again. I was also pleased it was served with crostini, rather than the easily-snapped tortilla chips I see many places. The dip itself was different, too, with more of a smoky flavor to it. They use smoked Muenster and the artichoke hearts are also smoked. Delicious! Jeannene got a beer flight (kind of pricey, as they charge individually for each small pour, depending on the kind you choose, but with tremendous variety). Her favorite was the Stupid Man Suit, from B Nektar. Honestly, I don't even like beer or most hard ciders, at all, and I thought this cherry/raspberry/currant concoction was the bee's knees. I had a terrific iced tea. I often just order water because the iced tea so many places either tastes basically like water or is kind of reminiscent of olive juice.

For my main course, I decided almost immediately that I wanted the grilled cheese. I've been hungry for a fried green tomato BLT from someplace like Dayton, Ohio's The Meadowlark or Toast in Charleston. Well, folks, the grilled cheese (which is just called "grilled cheese") at The Stockyard has fried green tomatoes and bacon. The cheeses are brie, which I love, and gruyère. It's all put together on farmhouse bread. I was delighted that the sandwich was of normal proportions, rather than gargantuan. It was scrumptious, although the fried green tomatoes could have been a smidge more crisp. Instead of the fries which come with it (and which are probably awesome), I had to try to cheesy grits cakes. It was a good choice, all crunch on the outside and tender creaminess on the inside. Jeannene, after much debating, opted for the hangar steak with chimichurri, also choosing the grits cakes as a side. She completely loved it.

They had some interesting desserts, including "soda cake," which has nothing to do with baking soda and much to do with soda pop. They have different flavors every day, with black raspberry being the offering last night. The parfait was key lime, which would not have flown with my tart-flavor-hating wife. The dump cake would have been my choice, had the flavor of the day been almost anything but apple. We ended up ordering the warm chocolate chip cookie, served in a wee skillet with two scoops of vanilla ice cream. That was the only disappointing part of our meal. The ice cream was fine, but the cookie was really very eggy, with scant chocolate chips. I mean, it was so eggy, it tasted like a cookie omelet, which is not really a flavor profile I'm excited about. However, with everything else being so good, I anticipate a trip back before long, this time for chili or French onion soup and a salad.

Greek-Style Fish Salad and Green Soup, June 14, 2016

Last night, in honor of Garden Day, I made a very vegetable-filled dinner. Our appetizer was skewers of cucumber chunks, small varicolored tomatoes, and bocconcini, with pesto for dipping. However, we have both come to the conclusion, after numerous tries, that we just aren't really pesto people. The veggies & cheese, on their own, were terrific, though. Our main meal consisted of soup and salad, with multigrain bread to accompany them. I think I'm not such a fan of fish in salad, but Jeannene loved the Greek-style fish salad I made. I would find it phenomenal with no meat. Chicken might also be okay. I adapted the recipe from one in a favorite salad cookbook of mine, Twelve Months of Monastery Salads by Brother Victor-Antoine d'Avila-Latourrette. The soup of fresh greens was adapted from his Twelve Months of Monastery Soups. I was a bit skeptical about the soup before I tried it, but it was delicious, if a bit rich!

Greek-Style Fish Salad

4 c. water

12 oz. tilapia fillets

Juice of 1 lemon

A bag of baby spinach

1 red onion, chopped

A handful of grape tomatoes (I used the teeny ones from Lady Moon Farm---love them)

A handful of bocconcini (can sub feta, blue cheese, or whatever you love)

Dressing:

1/2 c. good quality olive oil

Juice of 1 lemon

2 tbsp. white wine vinegar

3 cloves garlic, minced

A pinch of oregano (use fresh chopped oregano, if possible---I forgot to get herbs at the store)

A pinch of basil (see above)

A pinch of thyme (again, fresh if possible)

Salt & pepper

(I forgot olives, but the original recipe calls for pitted kalamatas, which I think would be stellar)

Bring the water to a boil in a large pot or skillet. Add fish and juice, cover, and cook about 10 minutes, until fish is cooks through and flakes easily. Cool before cutting into small pieces and chilling at least an hour. Put veggies in a serving bowl and toss. Add fish & cheese and gently incorporate. Whisk dressing ingredients together until the mixture is thickened. Toss gently with salad to coat everything. Serves 6. 

Green Soup

1 tbsp. olive oil

1/4 onion, chopped

1/4 head of green leaf lettuce or similar, chopped

A big handful of baby spinach

A big handful of watercress

32 oz. chicken or veggie broth

1 potato, sliced

A big glug of cream (I think low fat or skim milk would also be great; vegans could sub coconut milk)

Salt and pepper, to taste

Paprika for finishing

Cook the onion in the olive oil until translucent. Add the other veggies and the broth. Bring to a boil and cook 15 minutes. Lower heat and simmer 10 minutes. Puree with immersion blender or in a regular blender (if you don't have an immersion blender, you probably want one). Add cream/milk, salt, and pepper. Heat through, taking care not to boil. Serve with a sprinkling of paprika. Serves 2-4.