Empanadas

I've been out of town, but while I was away I did a little experimental cooking. It's always nice to have a willing guinea pig! One of the things I'd wanted to try for a long time was empanadas, but there are so many different recipes out there. Then I came across this recipe, which seemed to match everything I was looking for, especially a flaky crust that doesn't use crisco or lard. We all loved it! The only thing I did differently was to use ground turkey thighs instead of beef or veal, but the flavors are so rich you can't tell. The almonds, olives, raisins, and tomatoes in the filling blend perfectly with the meat and warming spices like cinnamon, cumin and cloves. The dough uses cream cheese, and it was tender and flaky. I ended up with twice as much filling as needed, though, so now it's in the freezer all ready to go for another day.

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Fierce Shrimp Fra Diavolo

Fra diavolo, or brother devil, refers to a spicy, garlicky sauce that's often paired with seafood. I had some big shrimp just lounging in the freezer, so I pulled them out. Once defrosted, I tossed the shrimp with red pepper flakes and salt and then sautéed the shrimp til just cooked, only couple of minutes. I set the shrimp aside and sautéed sliced onions in the pan, later adding fire-roasted tomatoes, garlic, oregano and white wine. After this cooked down a bit, the shrimp were added back in, with basil and parsley, just to blend the flavors. I served this over linguine.

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Vacation Food

Steamed:


Tiny:


Crunchy:


Huge:


Sweet:


Toasty:


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Pasta with Shrimp, Mascarpone and Spinach

The original recipe is for bruschetta, but in the days after Thanksgiving, when we all needed something different for dinner, pasta seemed like a good idea.  I also used spinach instead of arugula and a can of fire-roasted tomatoes instead of fresh plum tomatoes, as that's what I had on hand.

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Vacation Food

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Mother's Day

To all the mothers out there--and most especially my mom-- I want to wish you a very happy Mother's Day! This year I made dinner for my mom, taking advantage of the best of spring flavors. We had spice-rubbed grilled chicken, cornmeal-crusted tofu, asparagus, tomato salad with arugula, and rosemary roasted potatoes. For dessert, we had a tart and creamy key lime pie, along with juicy strawberries dipped in sour cream and brown sugar (one of my mom's--and my--favorites.)

Kt's Key Lime Pie

1 graham cracker pie crust (9-10 crushed graham crackers, melted butter, sugar)

14 oz sweetened condensed milk

1/2-3/4 c fresh lime juice, depending on how tart you like it

zest of 1-2 limes

4 egg yolks

3/4 c heavy whipping cream

2 Tbs sugar

1-2 tsp vanilla

lime zest

chocolate shavings

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a bowl, mix together the sweetened condensed milk, lime juice and zest, and egg yolks until smooth. Pour into the graham cracker crust -- it won't reach all the way to the top.

Bake for 20-25 min., til only the very middle jiggles slightly. Let cool for 15 min., and then chill for at least an hour. Then beat together the whipping cream, sugar, and vanilla til fairly stiff and spread evenly on top of the chilled pie. Top with additional lime zest and chocolate shavings.

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Grilled Shrimp Tostadas

Summer is here in full force, and the thought of something hot for dinner was too much for me. So I quickly puffed some flour tortillas in a frying pan and grilled some shrimp that had been marinating in lime zest, cumin, sriracha, and a little oil. I also grilled the corn and then cut it off the cob. On top of the tortilla I piled romaine lettuce that had been tossed with a little lime juice and olive oil, tomatoes, red peppers, corn, queso fresco, avocado, and green onions, with a little dab of sour cream on the side. And now, even though it's so hot and because I'm a nice auntie, I'm going to go back some chocolate-coconut cookies that someone requested.

Meatballs

Why are meatballs so good? Made right, they're tender and juicy and flavorful and, well, meaty, but there are many meatballs out there that fall flat. This recipe is part of my ongoing meatball experiment. And while they never seem to photograph well--small lumpy rounds sitting in a cauldron full of slowly cooked tomatoes--the flavors are wonderful, so I'm not complaining. This time, instead of coating the meatballs in dried breadcrumbs, which I didn't have and didn't feel like making, I just dusted them in flour to help seal in the juices when I seared them, and that worked out just fine. This made them lighter, too. Kt's Meatballs All measurements are approximate and can be adjusted to taste or what you have on hand. 2 slices of bread 1/4 c milk 1 lb ground sirloin (I used 90%, but use what you like. Ground turkey works well, too.) 1/4 c onion or shallot, grated 1/2 clove garlic, minced 2 Tbs tomato paste 1 egg 1 Tbs Italian seasoning 3 Tbs grated parmesan cheese 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp pepper 1/3 c flour olive oil for the pan 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes (fire-roasted with basil is good) In a small bowl, pour the milk over the bread and let sit for about 10 min., til the milk is soaked in. Using your hands (or a fork), mush the mixture together thoroughly. In a medium bowl, combine the ground beef, onion, garlic, tomato paste, egg, Italian seasoning, parmesan, salt and pepper, and the milk/bread mixture. Use your hands, as they'll mix it the best, but don't overwork the meat, as you don't want it to become tough. Form the meat mixture into balls about one inch large -- feel free to make them larger, which also has the benefit of making the process go faster. Pour the flour into a shallow dish, and then lightly dust each meatball with the flour, being careful not get too thick a coating. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven, and add the meatballs to sear. Gently turn them so all sides get at least lightly brown. Depending on the size of your pot, you might have to do this in two batches. When all the meatballs are browned, add them all back to the pot, and pour the tomatoes over them. Gently stir so the tomatoes mostly cover the meatballs, cover the pot, and let simmer on low for 20-30 min., stirring gently every so often so the meatballs don't stick to the bottom of the pan. Adjust the seasoning in the sauce before serving. Serve with pasta, rice, in a sandwich, or just by themselves, which is what I did tonight.

Chicken Fricassee With Mushrooms

Cooking with a friend tonight: fricassee de poulet aux champignons chez Rose, from Patricia Well's Bistro Cooking, et deux salades. The chicken fricassee, or freaky chicken as it was called, was simmered with garlic, fire-roasted tomatoes, and sauteed mushrooms until it was falling off the bone. Delicious, and it took less than an hour to make. We served it on top of fusili, though rice or crusty bread would also be good. We also made a caprese salad, with fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, and lots of basil, and a spinach salad with tart Granny Smith apple, orange bell peppers, and Cambozola cheese, a combination of Camembert and and Gorgonzola that is absolutely fabulous.

Summer Salad

Sungold tomatoes, watermelon, fresh feta, and basil.

Roasted Wrinkly Tomato Soup With Basil

Tonight, faced with a pint of wrinkling grape tomatoes, I made roasted tomato soup with basil. I sliced the tomatoes and roasted them at 400 degrees for about 40 min. Then, in a saucepan I sauteed 1/2 c onion with one clove of garlic in some olive oil. After about 10 min., when the onions are golden, I added about 2.5 c of chicken broth, a 14 oz can of fire-roasted tomatoes, oven-roasted tomatoes, and a cup of fresh basil. The soup came to a boil and then simmered for about 45 min. I pureed it with an immersion blender, added a couple tablespoons of cream, adjusted with salt and pepper, and topped with a little basil. Along side this soup, I had a sandwich with flank steak and fresh feta -- and if you eat meat and have never had steak and feta together, you really need to, and soon.

In reverse order, here's the soup in its ugly duckling stage, before being pureed. The somewhat blackened roasted tomatoes are floating around in base of chicken broth, fire-roasted canned tomatoes, and lots of basil.


The tomatoes just out of the oven ...


And the fresh tomatoes themselves, not looking particularly aged here, but they needed to be used in the near future.