Summer of Stir Fry

I think it's been years since my big beautiful carbon steel wok came down off the high shelf. When we moved here we found a sad little electric stove -- hardly high enough heat for a decent stir fry and no grates to hold the fully round bottom pan in place.
But look at me now with 18,000 BTU per burner quickly tossing together a dinner of tofu, carrots, onions, celery, mushrooms and peppers. That wok turned what looked like a pretty dismal selection of vegetables, minced garlic and ginger, and a couple pantry staples (soy sauce -- 2 TB, hoisin -- 2-3 tsp, sesame oil -- 2 tsp, brown sugar -- 1 1/2 tsp mixed together into a sauce)into way more than the sum of it's parts all in about 15 minutes. Super fast, tasty, too quick to heat up the kitchen and not a lot of prep to tackle -- its' the perfect summer dinner. Why didn't I think of this sooner?

I Don't Know Where The Time Goes

I guess I've just had nothing to say -- or maybe nothing to cook.
We've been traveling far and wide and probably not taking the care and attention of each other or our dinners as we usually do or should.
2016 has been a madhouse, working between four continents and more timezones and then there's the diet.
I've been feeling at odds with my weight and James, who has always been thin, thought if we ate more thoughtfully we could just feel better. He started reading (actually re-reading) Dr. Joel Fuhrman's Eat To Live and one day, kind of off the cuff said . . . Let's try it.
There we were, overnight vegans.
Furhman's plan celebrates plant based nutrition: beans, fruits, nuts, vegetables (cooked and raw), limited grains. No sugar, no meats, no eggs, no dairy, no processed foods, minimal grains and oils.
Of course, we decided to start with the hard core, most restrictive plan.
Suddenly I didn't know how to cook anymore. All of the flavor crutches I've used for years (cheese, bacon, olive oil, butter) were taken away. I had to start thinking about every dish and every bite.
Lentils, tofu, beans, brown rice, buckwheat, raw cashews.
For the first couple weeks it was salads, soups and bean burgers. Not exactly photogenic.
Now I am starting to branch out. Tonight's dinner which looks remarkably like our pre-Fuhrman dinner of three months ago: Brown rice risotto.
If I'd had short grain rice I would have used it but basically I cooked regular risotto with brown instead of white rice. The cooking took longer and more stock but otherwise the process is exactly the same. Start with chopped onions and garlic sautéed, in this case, in barely a shimmer of olive oil (sprayed on), add in the raw rice and toss with the barely there oil, add in some wine and when that cooks away start added stock 1/2 - 3/4 cup at a time until the rice is tender. For extra flavor I soaked some dried porcini mushrooms and used the soaking liquid as part of the liquid and added the chopped reconstituted mushrooms midway through cooking the rice. I pan roasted some king oyster mushrooms to mix in and grilled portobellos to lay on top along with some crisped collard greens.
James said it was the best meal we've had since we started, and that seemed worth posting.

A Quick Trip To Portland

On my way home, strolling through the airport looking for coffee and maybe breakfast, I came across a row of folding tables and a sign: Capers Farm to Table. A local food airport market. I had to at least look.

Walking the length of the offerings was a lot of what you'd expect: popcorn, nuts, trail mix, honey, Oregon wines. But in the middle, nearly hidden was a small area of fresh, locally foraged produce. Fiddlehead ferns and fragrant, earthy morels. I couldn't resist. Sure I already had a beautiful Pendleton wool shirt in my bag for James but this would be a real treat, Besides, although I'd tasted ferns in restaurants I had never cooked them myself. A chef's treat like that I immediately began to picture creamy parmesan risotto topped with sautéed fiddleheads and morels -- the very picture of spring in wetter climes. Very soon I was carrying Pacific Northwest home to California for dinner.

The fiddleheads, I learned, need a quick blanch before using in sautés or salads so I popped them in boiling water and then right into a hot frying pan where the morels were already plumping up in butter, olive oil and fresh thyme. After just a few minutes I piled my precious cargo over oven-baked risotto (onions, sautéed in 2 TB olive oil until soft, garlic and thyme added in for good measure, 1 1/2 cup arborio rice toasted in the oil, 1/2 cup of wine cooked until evaporated, 3 cups of warm chicken broth stirred in then covered and baked for 25 minutes at 400º.  Just before serving I stirred in another cup of warm broth, 2 TB of butter and a handful of parmesan cheese).

I was a little nervous. These were luxury ingredients with a luxurious price tag. I wanted to do them justice and make the effort (and expense) worth it.

I needn't have worried. James sat down intrigued and excited by something totally new. The bright green little curls taste almost like the freshest asparagus ever but better. Sweeter, more vibrant, more special. A fresh bite of wild spring.

Chicken And Mushroom Sauce

Some early mornings I lie awake listening to James and the dogs snooze and flipping through cooking shows (or home improvement -- my two favorite genres) on TV. Recently I happened upon The Barefoot Contessa making a simple dish of braised chicken with wild mushrooms. Why not I thought. I have chicken, I have mushrooms, I have wine. I set out to make  this tender chicken in rich gravy.
For some reason the house felt a little warm today so James and I had dinner on the picnic table by the chicken coop. I don't think the "girls" noticed.

Winter Squash

Winter squash, I find, though it is something I love is also -- at least according to Weight Watchers -- diet friendly. Amazing. One of my favorites is the slightly dry but super sweet kabocha, bright orange flesh with edible green skin. No peeling. I decided to roast up slices and build our dinner from there.
Most often I see kabocha squash in Japanese of vaguely Asian "health food" meals. I decided to head down that path and pull out one of my favorite (though I suspect it is more of a good for you chore for James) rice cooker recipes, courtesy of Martha Stewart Living. Brown rice, mushrooms, tofu and spinach steamed together and dressed with just a dash of soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, and sesame oil. I steam 1 1/2 cups brown rice, 1/2 ounce dried mushrooms (shitake if I have them), 8 oz cubed firm tofu, and a dash of salt in a rice cooker until done (about 45 minutes). I let the mixture steam for 15 minutes more and then add in about 4 cups of baby spinach, close the lid and let the spinach steam in the rice cooker (about 2 minutes), Just before serving I mix through chopped scallions, chopped cilantro (tonight it was parsley), 2 1/2 TB soy sauce, 1 1/2 TB rice wine vinegar and 1 tsp sesame oil. Very diet friendly indeed.

Martha Let Me Down

Since James enjoyed last night's salad and crostini combo so much I thought I'd try again and find a really interesting salad. After a little internet search I settled on a Martha Stewart recipe for a broccoli rabe salad with carrots and radicchio. James loves broccoli rabe. We have a load of carrots from a juicing binge not too long ago. That salad seemed perfect for us. It was beautiful in the bowl but the dressing was just kind of ordinary and in fact didn't add much to the combination. It was just okay. Not good enough.

Mercifully I paired this lackluster salad with super delicious crostini. I sautéed mushroom slices in butter and olive oil until they were golden brown. I added in a minced clove of garlic, chopped fresh thyme, and a finely diced shallot and cooked for about 5 minutes more -- until the shallot was tender. I deglazed the pan with a splash of water and topped slices of toasted (drizzled with olive oil) ciabatta with the mushroom mixture. A delicate goat's milk gouda topped the mushrooms. After two minutes under the broiler and a shower of chopped parsley the best part of dinner was ready to serve. Sorry Martha, tonight was not your night.

Random Pork Pizza

We are pizza eaters. I make James some home-cooked pie at least twice a month and I always think it's a good way to recycle, well re-purpose, some ingredients from the fridge. Today I had the leftover end of a garlic salami (saucisson a l'ail) and the last bits of a pork terrine. I sliced those thinly and laid them on the herb and garlic crust (yes -- thank you Trader Joe's), drizzled with olive oil. Next came slivers of red onion and sliced mushrooms. I topped James' pie with fresh burrata I found in the cheese case at Costco, crushed red peppers, and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese. The fresh cheese made the crust a little wetter than I like so I popped it back in for extra toasting (an extra 5 minutes at 500º).

No complaints from James. He went back for thirds.

Whole Grains For Dieting

I really like brown rice. I thought I'd try a diet friendly pilaf -- well, steamed rice and vegetables. All I did was mix rice, dried mushrooms, chicken broth, chopped carrots, chopped onion, garlic, thyme and a pinch of salt in the rice cooker and turned it on to cook. When the rice was finished I fluffed it with a fork, mixed in some frozen peas and parsley and let the rice steam until the peas were cooked (about 5 minutes). To give james a little extra flavor I sautéed some fresh mushrooms in a little bit of olive oil, butter and thyme and laid them on top of the rice.

Tomorrow I'll make something just for him.

Trader Joe's Strikes Again

I like to think I am too grass-fed, seasonal, locavore, food snob to be seduced by Trader Joe's. But I am not. Okay, we buy our meat on-line, get our fruits and vegetables either from our garden or the farmer's market, and cheese is now a regular gourmet affair (except for fresh mozzarella and the occasional tub of shredded parmesan I grab from Trader Joe's). It hardly confirms my food pedigree but I kinda love TJ's. It helps to stock the kitchen with -- dare I say it, convenience foods. Ingredients perfect for dinner in a hurry.

I had a class to dash out to a class and so I needed something quick cooking for James' dinner. I turned to a package of arugula and parmesan ravioli (cooks in four minutes) I found in the TJ's cold case. I topped it with a make-ahead ragú of mixed mushrooms. First I soaked some dry morels I happened to have in hot water for about 30 minutes. Next I sauteed sliced mushrooms (a mix of cremini and oyster I found at the farmer's market) and chopped rosemary in olive oil. After about five minutes I added a chopped onion and minced garlic and continued to cook for about three minutes more. When the onion was soft and the mushrooms were just getting a bit brown, I added in the drained and chopped morels, 1 cup of red wine, and 1 cup of the mushroom soaking liquid along with S&P and let the mixture simmer for about 5 minutes until the mushrooms were soft and flavorful. I finished the sauce with a knob of butter.

Once I drained the ravioli I added them to the pan with the sauce along with about 1/2 cup of pasta cooking water and a handful of parmesan cheese. I gave everything a couple gentle turns over very low heat and dinner was ready to serve.

Wilted Lettuce Salad

I started by sautéing a pan of mixed mushrooms in olive oil and butter, having no idea what was next. I thought those mushrooms might go well with cauliflower so I steamed a head and thought again.

We still have garden fresh lettuce so I grabbed a head and let the warm mushrooms and cauliflower act as the oil for the dressing and mixed in some of our own homemade tart red wine vinegar. Next time, for a real full meal salad I will add some chopped bacon into the mushroom mixture and top the wilted leaves with shredded gruyère and soft, runny poached eggs. Sort of a wilted cauliflower lardon -- might just catch on.

Friday Night Steak Dinner

The Williams Sonoma catalogue sitting on my night stand boasted steakhouse recipes and all the utensils to cook them. It kind of got me in the mood to cook steak, and I happened to have a couple Hearst Ranch New York strips in the freezer.

I almost always cook steak the same way. I pre-heat the oven to 500º with an iron pan (this time I used my Le Creuset grill pan) inside. When the oven and the pan are super hot I put the pan on the stove over a high flame (make sure the fan is on) and lay in the steaks coated with olive oil and a crust of cracked peppercorns and sea salt. The steaks sear on each side and I pop them in the oven to cook through -- tonight it took about three minutes on a side and six minutes in the oven for these bone in steaks. I always let them rest for three to five minutes before slicing.

I generally melt some flavored butter on the steaks. But tonight, for a little something extra I whipped up a mushroom red wine sauce for the meat. I melted about four TB of butter and two TB of olive oil in a pan and added one thinly sliced leek and several sliced cloves of garlic. When the garlic started to color I added in a good quantity of fresh thyme and about 1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms. I let the mushrooms soften in the butter and then poured in about 3/4 cup of red wine and 1/2 cup of chicken stock and let the sauce bubble and reduce while the steak cooked. I stirred in a dash of balsamic vinegar for a little sweetness and let the pan simmer over low heat. To finish the sauce I swirled in a drizzle of cream and seasoned with salt and pepper and cooked until combined.

The salad came straight from our front yard -- picked about 10 minutes before I served dinner and dressed with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Steak dinner --- a good way to start the weekend.

Herbed Polenta

Right now I have two dinner goals. I am trying to work down our pantry -- use things we have in the house, and find dishes that work for my diet and with a little embellishment work for James too. Tonight, thinking of the mound of now off limits( for me) dairy in our fridge I decided on a creamy polenta. I had a recipe from Osteria Stellina ready to adapt. First I gathered a mix of fresh herbs -- 3 sprigs of thyme, about 2 TB rosemary, 1/4 cup of parsley, and about 1/2 TB fresh sage all chopped together waiting to flavor James' dinner. I melted a TB of butter in with 2 TB of olive oil and added in 1 chopped onion. I cooked the onion over medium heat until it was translucent and soft but not colored (about 4 minutes). Then I added 4 cups of water, 1/2 of the herb mixture, S&P, and brought the mixture to a boil. I stirred in 1 cup of polenta and allowed the pot to boil for just a minute or two until the polenta had started to thicken and then reduced the heat to low (so the mixture was just bubbling) and cooked -- stirring occasionally for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes I poured in about 1/2 cup heavy cream, the rest of the herbs and a handful of chopped raclette (I went for something easy melting) cheese. I stirred for a few minutes more until the mixture was soft and creamy.

While the polenta cooked I whipped up a vegetable topping we could share. To a non-stick skillet barely coated with a spray of olive oil I added sliced mushrooms, chili peppers, garlic, and salt and covered the pan over medium low heat to let the mushrooms color and cook down. I added a bit of broth and a large bunch of escarole, covered the pan again and let the greens steam on top of the mushrooms. For James I sautéed thin slices of chorizo in fruitty olive oil for a drizzle on top. Herbed polenta with sautéed mushrooms and escarole with chorizo oil.

You could call it pantry driven Euro-fusion or, just what James had for dinner.

Pork Cutlets In Mushroom Sauce

It's hard to think of something new. Meats and sides run through my head until I just pull something off the shelf and decide to work around it.

Although James will say he doesn't like pork (hmm perhaps he isn't aware that bacon, prosciutto, and the roast he practically licked off the plate from our neighbor Joyce were all pork). I think what he doesn't like, and quite reasonably so, is dry, overcooked, flavorless pork. What James doesn't like is bad food and that knowledge haunts every trip to the grocery store.

And so I set out on my pork chop challenge.

I pulled out boneless loin chops and sliced and pounded them into thin cutlets. I dredged the cutlets in seasoned flour and lightly browned them (not cooked through) in a combination of hot oil and butter. I set the meat aside and added chopped onions and sliced mushrooms to the pan and let it cook until the mushrooms were a bit soft and had given up their liquid. Then I poured in about 1/2 cup of white wine, deglazed the pan, and cooked down until the wine was just about gone. Then I poured in some heavy cream -- just enough to get a nice color to the sauce and let the whole mixture simmer for about five minutes. I added the pork back into the skillet and let the meat heat through (and finish cooking at the same time).

James cleaned his plate -- even dragging the green beans through the rich sauce. "This was really good," he said. "And, I don't even like pork."

Crispy Polenta Cakes and Mushroom Ragout

I had two big portobello mushrooms taking up space in the fridge and need to put together something warming and cozy for another rainy day. But I really didn't fell up to endless stirring or babying something on the stove. Besides, I'm trying to be back on the diet plan so who wants to make stew for one? I decided on a rich mushroom ragout. I sautéed pancetta and a few small cubes from the end of a chorizo I found in the drawer, added in a chopped onion and sauteed until it was soft. Next came the thinly sliced mushrooms which cooked for 10 minutes or so, until they gave up a bit of liquid. Then I added a good dollop of tomato paste, about 1/2 cup (maybe more ) of white wine (there was an open bottle in the fridge), and about a tsp of dried thyme and let the skillet bubble until the wine was cooked off. I finished the ragout with a good sized knob of butter and a splash of whole milk (no cream in the fridge). I served the ragout over polenta cakes -- cold polenta cut and fried in olive oil.

Okay probably not a dinner James will brag about or bring up later like last week's Italian fried chicken, but I did notice a pretty clean plate.

Spinach Spaghetti w Mushroom Ragu (Ragout?)

Spaghetti everyday and yet we never get tired of it.

Every now and then I try to do something a little different. The cooler weather has brought a mushroom seller to our local farmer's market -- I spied those brown paper bags in the fridge and another weekday dinner was born.

I crisped up a little pancetta in some olive oil and set it aside. To the same oil (and the rendered fat) I added a mix of chopped mushrooms and about 1 TB of butter. When the mushrooms were soft and slightly browned I tossed in one chopped shallot, 2 chopped cloves garlic, and a bout a tablespoon of fresh thyme leaves. When the shallot was softened I added in about 1/4 cup of marsala wine and cooked (scraping up the born bits from the bottom) until the wine was evaporated. Next went in about 3/4 cup of cream with plenty of S&P, and I cooked for a few minutes until the sauce was thickened.

When the spaghetti was just cooked I added the pasta, a bit of the cooking water, and the reserved pancetta back to the pan and gave it a good toss over medium heat to just combine the flavors.

That's the quickest answer to "what's for dinner" I can think of.