Frozen Banana Milkshakes

Spiros, I gave up sugar for Lent (just a little boost to help me lose those first 10 pounds), and discovered that it also meant giving up chocolate.  Fortunately, I found this healthy solution to both problems.  Enjoy!

——————————-

When I was a kid, we were broke and my Mom was a super bargain-shopper. One day she discovered bananas on sale at the grocery store for a nickel a pound. She asked the produce man how many pounds he had. He said “80.” She replied “Fine, I’ll take them all.” And soon there was a mountain of very ripe bananas on our kitchen table. “What are you going to do with them all?” we asked Mom, but she hadn’t figured that out yet. So she just told us to peel them and put them in the deep freeze.

Then we began to experiment. (You can only tolerate so much banana bread…) We loved banana milk shakes made with milk and ice cream, and so one day Mom popped a frozen banana in the blender with the milk (no ice cream) to see what would happen. It turned into a super-thick, creamy milkshake with no need for ice cream — the frozen banana did the thickening.

Well, it was summer, and those cool, frosty banana milk shakes poured out of the blender for breakfast, lunch, snacks, midnight snacks…. Those 80 pounds of bananas only lasted a few weeks. So maybe they weren’t that great a bargain after all — who knows how many extra gallons of milk we went through!

Anyway, I still adore frozen banans milkshakes, especially in summer. I make them with skim milk, so there’s no fat and no sugar. You can even add a spoonful of unsweetened cocoa powder to make a decadent chocolate guilt-free shake. Or splurge and put a glob of peanut or almond butter in with the chocolate for a “Peanut Butter Cup” milk shake. You can add other kinds of fresh or frozen fruit, like peaches or blackberries.  Yoghurt is a nice addition too.  You get the idea. Enjoy!

Frozen Banana Milkshakes

1 ripe 6″ banana peeled, cut into 1/4″ sliced and frozen (The skin should have freckles so it’s sweet enough)
1/2 – 1 cup skim milk (I’m never sure how much milk it is, but it’s not enough to cover the banana.  And it varies with how much of other ingredients you add.  After a couple of tries you’ll get the feel for how much milk to use to get a thick, creamy shake.)

Optional (choose from the list, not all at once!):

Other kinds of fruit (if frozen, reduce banana or increase milk; if fresh, reduce milk, since the fresh fruit provides additional liquid)
Yoghurt
A heaping teaspoon of unsweetened cocoa powder
A Tablespoon of creamy peanut butter or almond butter
A dash of nutmeg or cinnamon

Put into the blender the banana (plus yoghurt, if you’re using it and any other frozen fruit, but not fresh fruit) and a small amount of milk.  Pulse to start (the ice crush setting works well for this), then increase speed.  Gradually add milk until the mixture is just liquid enough to spin in the blender.  If using fresh fruit, alternate milk and fruit until the mixture is just liquid enough to spin in the blender.  If using chocolate and/or nut butter add them now.  Hold the onto the lid and the bottle while blending until the lumps are gone.   Serve immediately.  (Don’t get addicted (yeah, right!)).

For a healthy “ice cream” you can pour it into a shallow dish and put it in the freezer for 30 minutes.  Remove from the freezer and stir until smooth, then freeze for 15 minutes longer before serving.

 

English Toffee

Making english toffee is (like my spiral quilts) an endeavor with results that seem really extravagant, though the actual process is quite simple.  (There, I knew I could find a way to relate this to quilting!)  So here, for your holiday pleasure is my family recipe for english toffee.  It’s a wonderful treat for yourself, and an impressive gift for family, friends, colleagues and clients.

——————————–

1 pound salted butter (if you use unsalted, add 1 tsp. salt)
3 cups white sugar
2/3 cup water
1 6-oz. bar chocolate — milk or dark as you prefer
12 oz. nuts — whatever you like.  Use walnuts raw, but I prefer other nuts roasted.  (Roasted and salted is even better if you like the combination of salty and sweet.)
2 tsp coarse sea salt (fleur de sel), optional

Pay close attention to the cooking technique — it’s not difficult, but there are reasons for doing what you do.

Choose a clear day when the humidity is low.  Do not try to make candy on a rainy day.  If there is too much humidity in the atmosphere the toffee will not harden, and instead will turn to sugar crystals.

Prepare the pan and the nuts in advance.  Use a metal cookie sheet (it must have 4 sides, not a pan with one edge flat) or 3 foil mini-broiler pans.  (These 6″ x 9″ pans are the most practical if you are making gifts, because you can gift the english toffee right in the pan.)  Spread 8 oz. of the nuts over the bottom of the cookie sheet or foil pans.

Before starting to cook the toffee, fill a small bowl with ice water and set it next to the stove where you are going to cook.  Use a heavy 4 to 6 quart pan — I use my grandmother’s old pressure cooker without the lid.  Use a wooden spoon – preferably with a fairly long handle.  The candy and the stove are hot — you will soon find out why I recommend a long-handled wooden spoon.  You might want to hold it with your hand in an oven mitt too.  Don’t use a metal spoon — it conducts heat.  And don’t use a plastic spoon — it will melt.

The simple explanation of how to cook the toffee is this: Put the sugar (and salt), water and butter in the pan.  Using medium-to-high heat, melt and stir the ingredients until the sugar carmelizes.  This is what is going to happen and what to watch for: 

The butter will melt and the sugar will dissolve.  As soon as the butter has completely melted, the mixture will bubble up to about double the size it began.  It will stay at this height throughout the entire cooking process.

You must stir constantly, and stirring technique is actually important to the outcome of the toffee, so pay attention:  When you stir, scrape the bottom of the pan.  Make small circles from the edge of the pan through the center, like drawing petals on a flower.  This mixes the hotter liquid from the outside into the cooler liquid in the center and keeps the liquid an even temperature so the toffee cooks evenly.  Stir steadily at a medium speed, keeping the surface of the candy at the same level — don’t make “waves” of liquid against the side of the pan, and don’t scrape the sides of the pan.  Why?  Because the thin layer of sugar that will get left on the side of the pan is where sugar crystals can form, and if they do, they will make the entire batch of toffee turn into sugar crystals, rather than hard candy.  If this thin film of sugar does happen to form, use a pastry brush dipped in water to wash the film off the side of the pan, dissolving any sugar crystals that may have formed. 

After 8-10 minutes, you will start to notice that the candy pulls away from the side of the pan as you stir.  It will also begin to turn golden.  Keep stirring.  As it starts to darken, drop a bit of candy off the spoon into the ice water in the small bowl.  The first test will probably be partly soft, with a hard shell.  That’s called “soft crack” stage, and the toffee isn’t ready yet.  Keep stirring and cooking until the liquid is the color of, well, toffee (a rich golden brown).  When that happens, the drop of candy that you drop in the water will immediately become hard.  This is called “hard crack” stage and this means the toffee is done.*

Remove the pan of toffee from the stove and immediately pour it over the nuts in the prepared pans.  Do not scrape the cooking pan into the cooking sheets.  Why? For the same reason you did not scrape the sides of the pan while cooking.  You can, however, scrape the pan into a separate dish (use a flexible metal one, like another cookie sheet or foil pan so the toffee is easy to remove).  This “tail end” of the batch may or may not crystallize, but you don’t want to run the risk that if it does it will crystallize the whole batch.  I like to save this leftover to break up and put in my gourmet chocolate chip cookies.

Let the toffee cool until a film forms over the top but the toffee is still wam to the touch.  Break up the chocolate and lay pieces on top of the toffee.  Wait a few minutes to allow it to melt, then use the back of a spoon to spread it around.  Sprinkle the remaining nuts on top.  If you wish, sprinkle a small amount of sea salt over the surface of the chocolate as well.  (Don’t do this if you used salted nuts – they have enough salt already.)

Cool the toffee completely and break into chunks. 

Just a note of caution about candy making: Sugar syrup is extremely hot and does not cool quickly.  If you spill on flesh it will burn long and deep.  Do not make candy with young children around, and take care not to spill on yourself when handling hot sugar syrup.  If you do, immediately plunge the syrup-covered area into ice water to cool the syrup and stop the burning.

* Funny story: In my apartment the smoke detectors are extremely sensitive.  As it turns out, every time I make toffee, they start wailing right at the moment when the toffee is ready to remove from the stove.  I don’t even have to drop-test the syrup any more!

 

Hummus

Spiros, it’s the week before Christmas and if you’re like me, you’re rushing around trying to finish gifts (quilted and otherwise) and attending parties (I have four just this week!).

So here’s one of my favorite fix-it-in-five-minutes meal recipes that you can also use as a last-minute party dish.  You can throw together with stuff that’s probably already on your pantry shelf.  AND it’s low fat, low-cal, healthy and delish to boot!

Hummus

1 15-ounce can chickpeas* (garbanzo beans) drained – save liquid
1 teaspoon to 1 Tablespoon olive oil
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried parsley or 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
¼ teaspoon garlic powder or 1 clove fresh garlic
Juice of ½ lemon
6-8 sundried tomates, cut into ¼” pieces (use scissors)
Salt to taste

Into a food processor, put everything except olive oil and reserved liquid from the chickpeas.  Turn on, and gradually add 2 Tablespoons of reserved liquid from the chickpeas, just enough so that the mixture blends smoothly in the bowl.  Add olive oil – less or more, depending on how low-fat you want this to be.  Process until smooth.  Serve with pita bread, crackers (I like RyeKrisp Light) or dipping veggies.  Makes about 1 cup.  (Hint: it’s more flavorful the second day.)

*If you don’t have chickpeas, you can use any canned beans.  For a Mexican twist, add some hot sauce or chipotle peppers.

 

French Crepes

I’m visiting a friend over the weekend, and she has asked me to come prepared to make (and teach her how to make) french crepes.  Since I was going to have to write out the recipe anyway, I’ll share it here, where you all can enjoy it!

- – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – -

When I was growing up, we always had crepes for Sunday breakfast (brunch, really) after church.  Being a large family (6 kids in total), we tossed an entire dozen eggs and a quart of milk into the Kitchenaid.  We all knew the recipe by heart, and learned to cook them at a really young age — that will tell you how easy they are to make.  Usually we just rolled them up with butter and maple syrup or jam, but over time we developed more fillings and toppings.  Whatever you serve in them, they are a delicious, fun and sophisticated way to make a meal or dessert or both.  (And, they freeze well.)  Enjoy!

French Crepes

These measurements will make about 2-3 dozen 10″- 12″ crepes. 
Use the measurements in [brackets] for a smaller batch.
1 quart milk [2 cups]
12 eggs [6]
3 cups flour [1-1/2 cups]
1/3 cup oil [2-1/2 Tablespoons]
1 teaspoon salt [1/2 teaspoon]

Fillings (choose any of these or make up your own)

Sweet: Nutella, Bananas, Yoghurt, Fruit, Jam, Maple Syrup

Savory: Chicken or Turkey & Broccoli with bechamel sauce & parmesan cheese, Ham & cheese, any leftovers

In a large bowl, beat the eggs just until evenly blended.  Gradually mix milk into the flour (this prevents lumps from forming), then gradually blend the flour/milk mixture into the eggs.  Stir in the oil and salt.

Heat a frying pan of whatever size you want the crepes to be.  Brush with oil and heat until a drop of water dances across the surface of the pan.   Reduce heat to medium.  Pour about 1/3 cup (for a large frying pan) batter into the pan and roll the pan around to spread it thinly across the bottom of the pan.  (The layer of batter should be less than 1/8″ thick; adjust the quantity of batter accordingly.)  Cook until the top of the batter is no longer shiny, then carefully flip the crepe over and cook it for about another minute on the other side.  (Usually the first crepe you make will get shredded when you try to do this — Morgan, my dog, always waited for it!  The first crepe “seasons” the pan.  After this you will not need to oil the pan again, and you’ll have the right heat.)

Serve rolled or folded with your choice of fillings and/or toppings, or build a “layer cake” by stacking them with layers of filling in between.

To freeze:
If you’re freezing them flat, put a layer of plastic wrap between each crepe.  Or, roll individual crepes and separate them with plastic wrap.  Depending on what you fill them with, you might be able to freeze them filled — convenient if you want a quick, no-prep meal or dessert.

 

Banana Upside-Down Bread Pudding

Yes, Spiros, I know I’m supposed to be quilting, and writing about quilting, but this morning I woke up with a breakfast idea I just had to try out.  I’m eating it now and it is delicious!  More importantly, it’s healthy (but you would never know it).  This is a hybrid between bread pudding, pineapple upside-down cake and a banana smoothie.  Enjoy!

   +     =

Banana Upside-Down Bread Pudding

1-1/4 cups milk
3 eggs
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
Dash salt

1/2 loaf white bread, crusts removed, and cut or torn into 1-1/2″ chunks
3 ripe bananas
1/2 stick (4 Tablespoons) butter
1/3 cup brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Melt the butter in the bottom of a 9″ x 9″ baking dish.  Slice 1-1/2 bananas in circles 1/4″ thick and lay over the bottom of the pan.  Sprinkle brown sugar over the bananas.  Lay the bread over the bananas.

In a blender, combine the milk, eggs, 1-1/2 bananas, salt and vanilla.  Blend until smooth.  Pour over bread in baking dish and with a fork press the bread down so it soaks up the milk mixture.  If you used fresh bread, bake immediately.  If you used stale bread, let it sits for 10-15 minutes so the milk can soak into the bread before baking.

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.  When serving, turn upside down in bowls, so brown sugar and bananas are on top.  Serves 4

More ideas: You could add walnuts, pecans, swirls of peanut butter or chocolate chips, depending on how decadent you want to go.  And if it’s for breakfast or dessert.  (Personally, I find there’s a fine line between the two — just ask Bill Cosby about chocolate cake for breakfast!)

9/27/11: I made this last night with pineapple on the bottom and coconut milk instead of milk mixed with the eggs.  It was okay, but next time I would make the milk mixture a bit sweeter by replacing some of the coconut milk with juice drained from the pineapple.

 

Just Desserts

Spiros, I ran across these fruit dessert recipes in the Sunday Magazine of the NY Times (September 11, 2011) and I’m anxious to try them out before all this glorious summer fruit is gone. 

NY Times Fruit Desserts

I love that none of them have pie crust which, as the author points out, adds LOTS of calories but not much flavor.  Make sure that the fruit you use is well-ripened and juicy.  Yep, dessert without the extra calories to add “batting” to my body while I’m spending hours quilting at the sewing machine.  I’m jumping for joy!  (And that burns calories too….) 

Let me know which one is your favorite . . . Happy quilting!

RaNae 

 

Soup’s On!

Spiros, by now most of you have probably figured out that I like to cook.  And I like easy, delicious, quick recipes that let me enjoy a little time in the kitchen and then get back to quilting.  Soup is a great way to do that, but the key is the stock.  If it doesn’t have a lot of flavor, the soup will be BOR-ing!  Making soup stock is easy, and with colder weather just around the corner, it helps keep the house warm  Even though it takes a few hours to simmer, it cooks itself — while you are quilting.  A bowl of hot, homemade soup is such a great way to warm up when coming in from the chill — it rates right up there with snuggling up in a homemade quilt.

I have been making soup stock — usually from turkey or chicken bones — my whole life.  It always turned out to be this watery, flavorless stuff that hardly seemed worth the effort, but the frugal part of me wouldn’t ever let a good chicken or turkey carcass go to waste. Finally, this week, I consulted a cookbook. Three, in fact, to see if I could figure out the secret to good stock. And I found it: thyme and time. All three recipes included, in addition to the usual carrots, onions, celery and parsley I always used, a generous dose of thyme (tomillo, in Spanish, I learned from my current grad student, Nydia from Peru). So I tried using thyme — and time (letting the bones simmer uncovered, for 3-4 hours to reduce the stock) — and Voila! delicious stock. I also learned, don’t salt it before it reduces, since the salt will become more concentrated during reduction.

Here are the ingredients for my chicken stock.  My three sources: James MacNair’s Soups, Southern Living All-Time Favorite Soup & Stew Recipes, and Chez Nous, by Lydie Marshall.

4 to 5 pounds chicken, duck, turkey or other poultry bones, can also include giblets (except for liver!)
4 quarts cold water
4 large carrots, unpeeled
2-4 celery stalks with leaves, cut into 3-inch pieces
2 large unpeeled onions, cut into slices (James McNair also includes 2 whole leeks, split lengthwise, but I don’t usually have them around)
4 cloves of garlic, smashed
4-6 sprigs fresh parsley
2-3 sprigs fresh thyme or 1-3 teaspoons dried thyme (don’t overdo this — it’s powerful!)
1-3 bay leaves
1/2 – 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
Salt (add near end of cooking)

Southern Living adds 6 springs fresh dill or 1/2 teasoon dried dill (I didn’t put it in mine).

James McNair gives this Asian variation: Omit the vegetables and herbs. Add 8 thin slices unpeeled fresh ginger root and 4 green onion, include the green tops, cut into 3-inch lengths. Substitute Sichuan peppercorns for the black ones. [I have no idea what the difference might be, but maybe I'll pick some up next time I see them at the grocery store.]

James McNair says to put just the bones into a pot, add the water and bring to a boil, then skim off the foamy scum that rises to the surface, before adding the vegetables and herbs. I’ve never tried this, but I think it probably makes for a clearer broth. Also, I’ve read that after the stock is finished cooking and you have removed all the solid stuff from the broth, you can stir in a beaten egg white to clarify the stock. I think it somehow “gathers up” all the little bits that get left behind.

Anyway, whether you do it at the beginning or, as JM says, after you have skimmed the foamy stuff from the top of the boiling bones, add the vegetables and herbs. Bring the pan to a boil and simmer for 3-5 hours. JM says it should be covered, but in my opinion, it reduces better if it’s uncovered. When it’s done, strain through a colander or large sieve into a bowl (several layers of cheesecloth make for an even clearer broth, since it filters finer solids than a colander does). Chill the broth, then remove any fat that hardens on the surface. If you wish, you can pick the remaining meat from the bones before discarding. (Sometimes I save the carrots too, and immediately put the meat, carrots and some broth, with some noodles, back on the stove to make chicken noodle soup.)

The broth will keep in the fridge for up to 4 days, but usually I freeze it as soon as it cools. I freeze it in 1-quart Ziplock freezer bags lying flat so they stack easily in the freezer and thaw quickly when I want to use them. Each bag holds 1-4 cups: I label each bag with the quantity so it’s easy to take the pre-measured amount I want out of the freezer when I need it.

Bon Apetite – and Happy Quilting!

RaNae

 

Asparagus, mmmmm!

My last recipe post was about brussels sprouts, so upon seeing the title of this post you might be thinking “What does this girl have for all the ickiest vegies?”  No apologies, Spiros: I love vegies, and the trick to loving them is preparing them well.  So today, I’m going to share my favorite recipes for asparagus.

One way I’ve discovered to keep my weight down is to eat a big bowl of “green stuff” for dinner every night.  Vegies are low-calorie and low-fat, plus they fill you up and the fiber keeps you full, helping to avoid the midnight munchies.  (For all the time that I sit at the sewing machine, I’m a big fan of delicious dishes that don’t pack on the pounds!)

I have a favorite pasta recipe that uses asparagus, but last night I left out the pasta, eggs and cheese and just cooked the asparagus.  It was really tasty!  So, here are both the “lite” version and the pasta version.  Both are quick and easy, letting you get back to the sewing machine in short order.  Enjoy!

Pasta with Asparagus

1 lb. asparagus (break off tough ends and cut into 1″ pieces)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 Tablespoon butter
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper

2 eggs
1/2 cup (or more) fresh grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 lb. small pasta (elbows or ditalini)

Put on a pot of water to boil.  As soon as it is boiling, put in the asparagus and cook just until bright green and crisp but tender.  Meanwhile, saute the onion in the butter.  Add salt and pepper liberally.  Remove from heat.

As soon as the asparagus is cooked, remove it from the water with a slotted spoon and add it to the onion mixture.

Add the pasta to the boiling water.

Break two eggs into a bowl and stir in the parmesan cheese.

As soon as the pasta is cooked, drain it and immediately, while it is still very hot, add the egg/cheese mixture and stir.  Toss in the asparagus/onion mixture and stir.

Serve, topped with more parmesan cheese if you wish.

————————————-

Asparagus & Onion Hash

1 lb. asparagus (break off tough ends and cut into 1″ pieces)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 Tablespoon butter
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper

In a saucepan, saute the onion in the butter.  When the onion begins to turn clear, add the asparagus and 1-2 tablespoons water.  Put on the lid and let the asparagus steam for a few minutes until crisp-tender. Add salt and pepper to taste.  Remove the lid and let the water boil away.  Serve with a bit of parmesan cheese sprinkled on top.

 

Brussels sprouts — give ‘em a chance!

Brussels sprouts are probably the most underrated vegetable ever, probably due to the fact that most people just boil them to death and they turn bitter.  But cooked properly, they can be delicious.  Here is a restaurant recommendation and some recipes to convince you.   The salad is quick, easy, cool, filling, low-calorie, healthy and delicious! (Wow, that’s a lot of adjectives….)

I suspect that one of the keys to getting mild, nutty-flavored brussels sprouts is to buy them really fresh.  Then, cook them right away — don’t let them sit long in the fridge.  Also, per the comment below from Mo Pinwil, if they have been affected by a frost (late in the fall) they might be bitter to begin with.

A few months ago I ate at Zaytinya, a Turkish restaurant in Washington D.C.  My quilting friend Rhonda recommended it.  Our waitress recommended her favorite dish –the brussels sprouts.  My dining companion was skeptical, but ordered them to humor me.  They were the first thing that arrived, and they were incredible.  Steamed tender, then flash-fried so they were crispy on the outside, drizzled with olive oil, spices and capers, over coriander (I think)-flavored mayonnaise.  To this day, one of our secret jokes is saying “brussels sprouts” the way Cookie Monster says “coooookie”.  I only wish I could duplicate the recipe at home.

But here’s another brussels sprouts recipe, also delicious and much simpler.  I saw this on the salad bar at my grocery store one day and thought “I can make that.”  The raisins are my own addition.

Brussels Sprout Salad

1-2 pounds brussels sprouts, washed and cut in half (quarters if they are large)
1-2 handfuls walnuts, broken in pieces
1-2 handfuls raisins
1/2 – 1 cup shredded parmesan (not grated like the consistency of sand)
A dash of vegetable oil or very light olive oil
White balsamic vinegar

Wash and cut the brussels sprouts and put them in a microwaveable bowl with a lid or a plate placed loosely on top.  Cook on full power for 3-4 minutes (no need to add water – they will steam in the water left on them from washing); they should be tender but firm.  If there is any water in the bottom of the bowl drain it out.  Add raisins, walnuts, balsamic vinegar and a little oil to the bowl and stir.  (You want the vinegar to get in between the leaves of the brussels sprouts.)  Just before serving, add the parmesan cheese and toss.

I shared this recipe with my hostess at a teaching visit to Maryland recently and here is what she had to say:

“I meant to tell you that when my Mom was here, we tried your brussels sprout salad recipe and it was a hit!  The two of us ate almost a pound of brussels between us!  This will be a repeat I assure you.”

—————————-

Sauteed Brussels Sprouts
(from my friend Jody, who ate them this way in England, though honestly, the recipe seems more Italian to me . . .)

Wash Brussels sprouts and par boil.  (Use the microwave as explained in the recipe above.)

Slice each in half.

Saute in olive oil with garlic and seasoning (we just used salt and pepper) and a dash of hot pepper flakes. Cook until tender – DO NOT OVERCOOK!

Enjoy!

———————————-

December 2011:  The other day David brought me brussels sprouts on the stalk as a “bouquet” of flowers.  I loved it!  Of course, I had to cook some for dinner that night, and it had to be quick and easy.  I washed them, sliced them in half and steamed them in the microwave for 2-1/2 to 3 minutes, just until they were tender.  Then I melted a tablespoon of butter over them, tossed in a tiny sprinkle of nutmeg, and livened up the flavor with about 1/2 a teaspoon of sugar.  They were delicious!  A new favorite way to prepare them when I’m in a hurry.

Click here for more of RaNae’s favorite recipes

 

Four tomato sauces

A couple of nights ago I went into a cooking frenzy.  I had been on the road for a few weeks, teaching and introducing the new book (Magnificent Spiral Mandala Quilts) at Quilt Market and Quilt Festival in Houston, and I guess I just needed to nest.  For me, that means stocking up the freezer with some of my favorite dishes. 

Below are recipes for the four dishes I cooked that night: Pasta Napolitana, Goan (as in, from Goa, India) Curried Shrimp, Moroccan Vegetable Stew and Chicken-Walnut Raisin Enchiladas in Chipotle Sauce.

It wasn’t until the next day that I realized that all four recipes had tomato sauces, but the spices in each sauce made them completely different.  The pasta sauce is flavored with pine nuts, garlic, dried black olives and raisins; the curry sauce has onions, ginger, turmeric, coriander and coconut milk; the Moroccan stew is flavored with cumin and raisins; and the enchilada sauce has green peppers and chipotle chilis. 

Italy, India, Morocco, Mexico — an amazingly broad itinerary for a vegetable that was once thought to be poisonous and inedible!

(Interestingly, three of the four dishes also contain raisins….)

Pasta Napolitana
(From a 1982 calendar someone gave me — in 1982)

1 bunch broccoli, cut into flowerets (I like to pre-cook it in the microwave for 2 minutes)
12 dried black olives, pits removed & chopped
2 Tablespoons pine nuts, chopped coarsely
1/4 cup raisins, chopped
1 28-ounce can chopped tomatoes
3 cloves garlic, minced
Olive oil
1/2 pound cut pasta (I prefer shells)

Put on a pot of water to boil and begin cooking pasta.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, saute garlic and olives in olive oil for 1 minute.  Add tomatoes, raisins and broccoli and cook until pasta is ready.

Toss sauce and pasta together and serve.

Note:  The original recipe called for a pound of pasta with this amount of sauce, but I like much more vegetables and sauce with my pasta.  Also, this is much better the second day, after the flavors in the sauce have had a chance to blend.

————————

Goan-Style Shrimp Curry

This recipe came from the New York Times, March 5, 2008. 

1-1/3 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined
Kosher salt
Ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 cup canola oil
4 dried red chilies (I use 2 — 4 is really spicy!)
1 3-inch piece ginger, peeled and minced
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
3 cups canned chopped tomatoes, with juice (a 28-ounce can)
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1-1/2 cups coconut milk (1 12-ounce can)
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2-3 cups cooked rice (I prefer Basmati rice for this)

1. Place shrimp in a gallon-size resealable plastic bag, and add 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/8 teaspoon black pepper and cayenne. Mix well and refrigerate.

2. In a deep skillet or sauté pan over medium-high heat, combine oil and chilies and stir 1 to 2 minutes. Add 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and cook for 1 minute longer. Add ginger, onion, 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt and sauté until onion is soft and translucent, 5 to 8 minutes. Add garlic, ground coriander and turmeric and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.

3. Reduce heat to medium-low and add tomatoes. Stir, scraping sides and bottom of pot, for 1 minute. Increase heat to medium-high and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring often.

4. Stir in curry powder and cook for 1 minute. Add coconut milk, bring to a boil, and add shrimp. Bring to a simmer and cook until shrimp are opaque, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in cilantro. Serve with rice.

Yield: 3 to 4 servings

——————–

Moroccan Vegetable Stew

I got recipe came from eDiets several years ago.  It’s low in fat, high in flavor, and I love the couscous surprise in the bottom of the dish (actually, that was my own idea).

1 cup broth
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled, cut into 1/4″ slices
1 28-oz. can whole tomatoes
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper (to taste)
1 tsp. cumin
1 can chickpeas, with liquid
1 – 2 large fresh zucchini, halved & sliced into 1/2″ slices
1 large bell pepper, cut into 1″ pieces
1/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup dry couscous

Place the tomatoes, carrots and onion in a large saucepan with the broth.  Bring to a boil and cook until carrots halfway tender (5-7 minutes).  Add chickpeas, zucchini, bell pepper, raisins and spices.  Simmer for 5 minutes longer.

To serve, place 1/8 cup (2 Tablespoons) dry couscous in the bottom of the bowl.  Add soup and let stand for about 5 minutes before serving, to allow couscous to absorb liquid. 

Makes 4 hearty servings.

———————

Chicken-Walnut-Raisin Enchiladas in Chipotle Sauce

A friend recited this recipe to me way back in college and it has stuck in my head for all this time.  Yes, it’s that good. 

2 large chicken breasts
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup (more if you like) chopped raisins
1 20-ounce can chopped tomatoes (see note below)
1 green pepper, chopped in 1/4″ pieces
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 7-ounce can chipotle chilis
2-4 tablespoons olive oil
Corn tortillas ( a dozen or so)
Cheddar cheese or Queso de Papa cheese

In a large skillet, saute garlic and green pepper in olive oil until pepper begins to soften.  Add tomatoes.  Chop and stir in the chipotle chilis one at a time; taste the sauce after each to see if it has the right amount of spiciness for you.  (When I make this with one can of tomatoes, I use about 2/3 of the can of chilis.)

While the sauce is cooking, cook the chicken breasts (boil or broil, as you wish) and shred the meat into a bowl.  Mix in the chopped walnuts and raisins.  Add a few spoonfuls of sauce to moisten the mix.

Roll meat mixture into corn tortillas and place them in a 9″ x 13″ baking pan.  (If the tortillas break when you try to roll them, you can layer tortillas and meat mixture instead.  If you do this, pour some sauce between the layers too so the whole dish turns out moist and flavorful.)

Pour sauce over the enchiladas.  Top with grated cheese.  Cover with foil and bake at 350 F for 30 minutes. 

Note: This amount of tomatoes makes a dish that does not have a lot of sauce.  If you like “saucy” enchiladas, double the tomatoes, garlic and green pepper to make twice as much sauce.  One can of chipotle chilis is enough for the extra sauce, unless you like the sauce really spicy.