Baked zucchini friesIn the winter, I use this same recipe to make sweet potato fries. You really can't go wrong. I don't actually measure the breading ingredients. I just sort of pour and toss everything into the food processor and it always turns out fine. With the exception of the time I accidentally dumped a pile of pepper in there, and even then, we still gobbled up the fries while drinking lots of water. They're very forgiving.
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/8 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 cloves of garlic
Pinch of salt
Pepper to taste
3 or so zucchini, washed well, unpeeled
1 egg
: Toss everything except the zucchini in the food processor and blend it well. Alternatively, finely mince the garlic and use well grated Parmesan and just mix everything together. Put the mixture into a wide, shallow bowl and set aside.
: Slice the zucchini into fry shaped pieces of similar size (but don't worry about being too fussy).
: Beat the egg in a wide, shallow dish. Toss the zucchini pieces, a few at a time, in the egg wash and then shake them off a bit and toss them in the breading. Lay the pieces on a baking dish, making sure none of them touch. You'll probably need to do a couple of batches.
: Bake in a 475F oven for about 20 - 30 minutes, turning just once. Fries should be browned and crisp when finished.
Cornmeal waffles (adapted from Brown Sugar Kitchen, via Gourmet)
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm water
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups whole milk (I actually used 1%)
2/3 cup stone ground cornmeal
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1/4 tsp baking soda
Vegetable oil for brushing
: Proof the yeast. Stir it into the lukewarm water (water should feel just barely warm when you dab it on your wrist) and let it stand until foamy, about 15 minutes.
: Mix together your dry ingredients (set aside the baking soda to add in the morning), slowly add your milk and eggs, whisking as you go. Stir in the proofed yeast mixture and the cooled butter.
: Cover the bowl and stick it in the fridge overnight.
: The following morning, stir in the baking soda and then make the waffles according to the instructions on your waffle maker. One thing to keep in mind - these waffles are thinner and lighter than you may be used to. They don't puff up much, so you don't want to pour too much batter in the waffle iron at once.
: You can keep the waffles warm while you work by sticking them on a cookie sheet in a 250F oven in a single layer.
Pasta with lentils, kale and caramelized onions (adapted from Epicurious, 4 servings)
1/2 cup French green lentils (I used black)
2 cups water
3/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (I think I used less than half of this)
2 large onions, finely sliced
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 pound kale
3/4 pound dried short pasta (I only used 6 oz, which is half of what they recommend and it made 4 normal person sized servings with a better ratio of stuff to pasta, in my opinion)
Simmer lentils in water (2 cups) with 1/4 teaspoon salt in a 1- to 1 1/2-quart saucepan, uncovered, adding more water if necessary to keep lentils barely covered, until tender but not falling apart, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from heat and season with salt. (I used some leftover cooked black lentils and it was perfect)While lentils simmer, heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then sauté onion with pepper and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, stirring, 1 minute. Reduce heat to low and cook until soft and golden.
While onion cooks, cut out and discard stems and center ribs from kale. Cook kale in a 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling salted water uncovered, stirring occasionally, until just tender, 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer kale with tongs to a colander to drain, pressing lightly. Keep pot of water at a boil, covered.
Coarsely chop kale and add to onion along with lentils, then simmer, stirring, 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper.
Add pasta to kale-cooking liquid and boil, uncovered, until al dente. Drain pasta. Toss everything together. Serve with a bit of Parmesan cheese. Voila.
The kale is a beautiful bright green and all the textures go together perfectly. The original recipe tells you to save some of the cooking liquid and add it back in, but unless you like soupy pasta, I don't recommend it. It certainly isn't dry, so I'm not sure why they think you need the extra water.
Apricot sandwich cookies (from Martha Stewart's Cookies, makes 10 large or 1 1/2 dozen small)This dough was soft, soft, soft. I chilled it before rolling it out and still had to add flour in order to avoid having it stick to everything in sight. It probably would help to follow the instructions and roll it out between two pieces of parchment paper, but I hate doing that for some reason.
1/2 cup almond flour (finely ground almonds)
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup powdered sugar
2 tbsp granulated sugar
Finely grated zest of 2 lemons
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup apricot jam
Whisk together both flours, cornstarch and salt in a bowl.
Beat butter, sugars, lemon zest and 1 tbsp of the lemon juice in an electric mixer until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture gradually. Refrigerate dough for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350F. Roll dough out, approximately 1/8" thick. (Martha recommends rolling between two pieces of parchment paper, but I just used a well floured board). Refrigerate or freeze for 10 minutes.
Cut cookies with desired shape (Martha calls for a 1 1/8" scalloped round, I just used the edge of a drinking glass). Refrigerate cut cookies for 10 minutes before popping them in the oven. Bake for 10 minutes, until cookies are a pale golden color.
Strain jam through a fine sieve and whisk in the remaining lemon juice. When cookies are cool, make sandwiches by dribbling a bit of jam on a cookie and placing another cookie on top. The jam will set up in about 30 minutes.
Maidanosalata - raw parsley dip (slightly adapted from Modern Greek)
*This contains a raw egg, which means you run the risk of getting salmonella. Personally, I think it's a slim chance and I'm fine with it, but if you're pregnant or immune compromised, you might want to pass.
3 slices sourdough bread
1 1/2 bunches of fresh flat leaf parsley, stalks on, chopped
1 medium sized onion, peeled and roughly chopped
1 egg
2/3 cup olive oil
4 tbsp red wine vinegar
Salt & pepper
:: Place everything except the oil and vinegar in a food processor and pulse until smooth. Slowly pour in the oil and vinegar, while mixing (similar to making an aioli). Season with salt and pepper.
Stewed parsley dip (slightly adapted from The Glorious Foods of Greece)We ate both of these with flatbread. They were so different, but both wonderful. The raw parsley dip has a sharp flavor with just a bit of heat. The stewed parsley dip is mellow and a bit sweet from the cooked onions and tomatoes.
1/2 cup olive oil (I used a little less)
2 medium onions, chopped
8 cups coarsely chopped parsley
1 1/2 cups chopped tomatoes (canned are fine)
Salt & pepper, to taste
:: Heat olive oil in a wide, heavy pot and cook the onions over medium low heat until wilted and translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the parsley and toss to coat. Cook until wilted completely, about 7 minutes. Add tomatoes, season with salt and pepper. Simmer until most of the liquid is absorbed, about 20 minutes. (At this point, I poured it in the food processor and pulsed it a few times, for a slightly smoother texture).
Simple berry tartWarning - this bubbles over like crazy. Make sure you have a baking sheet to catch the juice or you'll spend the next day scrubbing your oven.
One ten inch tart crust, unbaked, frozen (Deb's recipe is my go to)
2 bags of frozen blackberries (10 oz. each, I think)
1/4 cup sugar (approximately)
1 tablespoon cornstarch
*Toss the blackberries with the sugar and cornstarch. Pile in the frozen crust. Bake at 425 for 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to 375 and continue baking for about 45 minutes, until the crust is browned and the berries are bubbly. Let cool for at least 20 minutes before eating, to give it a chance to firm up.
Simple vanilla ice cream (makes about 6 servings)The ice cream isn't pictured because it is too good. I couldn't just stand around photographing it and letting it melt into oblivion. Home made ice cream melts very quickly because it doesn't have any of those weird stabilizers. You'll just have to imagine it.
2 cups heavy whipping cream
3/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup half and half
1 tsp vanilla
*Whisk together the whipping cream and sugar until dissolved, about 2 minutes. Stir in the half and half and the vanilla extract. Freeze according to the instructions on your ice cream maker.
