A tiring day. Cooked brunch for 25 at an event that combined yoga class with vegetarian appetizers – a sort of class/sit down brunch for which I made a lot of things, one of them veggie samosas. A wonderful Indian cook – Tahera Rawji – taught me the easy, cheater’s way to make samosas – using frozen hash browns. If it’s good enough for a real Indian cook and cooking teacher - a cookbook author even - it’s good enough for me. I’m sorry I don’t have a photo – since it was during the day I didn’t think to bring my camera. (So it wasn’t really dinner, either. Although it was the most substantial thing I ate closest to dinnertime.)
Then at 5 I made dinner for 12 at the home of the guy who was the highest bidder on a private in-home cooking class/dinner I had contributed to a silent auction - you may have read about our fundraiser earlier this year for Nicole Pageau, an Edmonton woman in her 60s who was so moved by the plight of widows and orphans of the Rwandan genocide that she up and moved to Rwanda and built a village. (If you’re ever looking for a charitable cause, her organization is doing a stellar job over there.) He paid big bucks for it, so I was happy to go make mushroom crostini with rosemary and asiago, curried roasted butternut squash soup with apples, braised lamb shanks, lemon-Parmesan risotto, roasted asparagus, creme brulee and espresso truffles.
Am very tired. Not much looking forward to getting up in less than six hours, although I learned there will be some strapping young Stampeders to feed in the studio tomorrow morning. Did I say I didn’t like football?
Braised Lamb Shanks
Lamb shanks are one of the most richly flavored cuts of meat you can buy. Choose the largest shanks you can find – about a pound or so each – because the smaller ones are mostly bone. Lamb shanks have a lot of connective tissue, so braising is the best cooking method.
all-purpose flour
salt and pepper
6 lamb shanks, trimmed of any excess fat
canola or olive oil
2 onions, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped or thinly sliced
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
4-5 cloves garlic, crushed or left whole
1 small can tomato paste
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary and/or thyme
1 bay leaf
2 cups dry red wine
1/4 cup red or white wine vinegar
1 tsp. sugar
3 cups chicken or beef stock, or half and half
Season the flour with salt and pepper, and toss the lamb shanks in it to coat them well. Heat half the oil in a large skillet set over medium-high heat and brown the lamb on all sides, working in batches so the pan isn’t crowded. As you brown the shanks, place them in a roasting pan. Preheat the oven to 325°F.
Add the remaining oil to the skillet and sauté the onions, celery, and carrots for about 10 minutes, until soft. Add the garlic, tomato paste, rosemary, bay leaf, and pepper and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
Add the wine, vinegar, and sugar and bring to a simmer. Add the stock and bring it to a boil. Pour over the lamb shanks in the roasting pan and cover tightly with a lid or with foil.
Bake for an hour, then remove the lid and cook for another 2-2 1/2 hours, turning the lamb shanks every half hour or so, until the meat is fall-off-the-bone tender.
Remove the lamb from the sauce and strain as much fat from it as you can. If you like, strain out the vegetables and purée them in a blender or food processor, then return the purée to the pot to thicken the sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Serve the lamb shanks topped with the sauce, with mashed potatoes or creamy risotto.
Samosas
Samosas are little packages, and as such can be made with a variety of wrappers – you can buy low fat samosa wrappers fresh or frozen in ethnic grocery stores, make your own empanada dough, or use phyllo pastry. Some people like to add a finely chopped jalapeño pepper to the filling too.
Filling:
1 Tbsp. canola oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger
1 tsp. curry powder (optional)
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. ground coriander
1/4 tsp. turmeric
1/4 tsp. chili powder
3 cups frozen hash browns, thawed
1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed
1 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 tsp. garam masala
1 pkg. phyllo pastry, thawed (you’ll need 12-16 sheets)
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
2 Tbsp. canola or olive oil
In a large pan, heat oil over medium heat and sauté the onion for about 5 minutes, until soft. Add the garlic, ginger, curry powder, cumin, coriander, turmeric and chili powder; cook for a minute, then add the hash browns, peas, salt and lemon juice. Cook, stirring, for a few minutes, then remove from heat. Stir in the cilantro and garam masala. Set aside to cool slightly.
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Take two sheets of phyllo and stack them on a clean work surface; cover the rest with a tea towel so it doesn’t dry out. Combine the butter and oil in a small dish and brush the phyllo very lightly with it.
Cut the sheet in half lengthwise and then again into quarters so you have 4 long strips. Place a spoonful of filling at one end of each strip and fold the corner over it diagonally. Continue folding the strip as if you were folding a flag, maintaining the triangle shape.
Repeat with the remaining phyllo and filling, placing the packets seam side down on a baking sheet. (They can be prepared up to this point and frozen in a single layer and then transferred to a plastic bag. Pop them out of the freezer and bake them frozen.) If there is any butter and oil left, use it to brush the tops of the triangles, or spray them with some nonstick spray. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden.
Serve warm with mango chutney. Makes about 2 dozen samosas.
Per samosa: 84 calories, 3.9 g total fat (0.9 g saturated fat, 1.7 g monounsaturated fat, 1.1 g polyunsaturated fat), 1.6 g protein, 11 g carbohydrate, 2.6 mg cholesterol, 0.6 g fiber. 41% calories from fat
Spinach & Potato Samosas: replace the frozen peas with a few handfuls of fresh spinach, chopped. Sauté a minced jalapeño pepper along with the garlic and other spices as well.
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November 24 2008 | appetizers and lamb | 8 Comments »
I’m not really sure what we had for dinner tonight, to be honest. Or whether we technically did have dinner – we kind of skidded right through and suddenly it’s after 10 and I’m making creme brulee and curried squash soup, which would have actually made a fine dinner. I have two events tomorrow that require food, and because I didn’t get the final details of one until around 4 I headed out to grocery shop over dinnertime, thinking I was smart to go during the Grey Cup. It seems a lot of people had the same kind of smarts.
I made some chicken drumsticks for the occasion (Grey Cup) – threw them in the Crock Pot and sort of forgot about them, except for the occasional waft that crept by my nose. I am a big fan of chicken wings, but not a fan of all that skin and fat, which is really all there is to a chicken wing. If you pull the skin off of chicken legs they are far less in fat, have much more meat, and you can still eat them with your fingers. Try them with any kind of wing sauce and cook them in the oven, on the grill or in the slow cooker.
Sticky, Spicy Drumsticks
These are reminiscent of sweet and sour chicken, but with a spicy kick. Use less hot sauce if you’re feeding kids; more if you like to live dangerously. These do the trick when I’m craving a big sticky basketful of chicken wings. Cook them under the broiler or throw them on the grill for a smokier flavor.
8 chicken drumsticks, skinned and trimmed of any fat
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup honey or maple syrup
1/4 cup red wine or balsamic vinegar
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 Tbsp. Tabasco or other hot sauce
2-3 cloves garlic, crushed
Combine everything but the drumsticks in a medium bowl. Add the drumsticks and stir to coat.
Grill or broil the drumsticks, brushing with marinade, for about 20 minutes or until cooked through. If there is extra marinade, bring it to a boil in a small pot and simmer for a minute, until thoroughly cooked. Serve with the drumsticks for dipping.
Makes 8 drumsticks.
Per drumstick: 144 calories, 2.2 g total fat (0.6 g saturated fat, 0.7 g monounsaturated fat, 0.6 g polyunsaturated fat), 13.3 g protein, 18.6 g carbohydrate, 47.7 mg cholesterol, 0.3 g fiber. 13% calories from fat
So those sort of got picked at over the course of the afternoon. And because my sister was coming by I made a crab, spinach and artichoke dip (faster than it sounds) which was baked until bubbly and eaten with grainy crackers.
Hot Crab, Spinach & Artichoke Dip
Omit the artichokes if you want just a cheesy crab dip, or replace it with half a package of frozen spinach, thawed with the extra moisture squeezed out. If it seems too thick for your taste, thin it with a little milk.
1 – 8oz. (250 g) tub light cream cheese
1 cup low fat sour cream
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 Tbsp. grated purple onion
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 small clove garlic, finely crushed
2 drops hot pepper sauce (optional)
Salt & pepper to taste
1/2 – 1 lb. lump crabmeat, cartilage removed (or 2 – 170g cans, drained)
1 – 14 oz. (398 mL) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
half block of frozen chopped spinach, thawed with moisture squeezed out (optional)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan or old cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Stir in sour cream, lemon juice, onion, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, hot sauce, salt and pepper. Stir in the crabmeat, artichoke hearts, spinach and cheese.
Spoon into a shallow baking dish or pie plate and bake for 20-30 minutes, until heated through and bubbly around the edges. Serve warm with baked tortillas, crackers, pita or bagel chips or fresh veggies. Serves 8.
Per serving: 165 calories, 8.6 g total fat (4.8 g saturated fat, 2.5 g monounsaturated fat, 0.5 g polyunsaturated fat), 12.3 g protein, 10.2 g carbohydrate, 41.4 mg cholesterol, 2.3 g fiber. 46% calories from fat
Altogether it sort of counted as dinner, I guess. And good news: I’m making samosas tomorrow, so I’ll post the recipe rather than tease you about it!
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November 23 2008 | appetizers and chicken & turkey and cookies & squares and slow cooker and snacks | 5 Comments »
I’m not liking these early lights-out. My photos are looking particularly crappy without the aid of natural light.
I’m going to keep it brief tonight – only because I have decided to finish building this site a recipe index, which is taking a whole lot longer than I thought. (I have to go through every post and manually cut and paste the links in to an index page I built – if there is a faster way, I don’t know about it.) My dinosaur computer – it’s practically a Commodore 64 – is not speeding up the process. So I figured if I categorize a month per night, it should only take me another week or so.
I meant to make something out of Anna’s new book tonight, and I did flip through it, but when we went outside to blow bubbles in our ski jackets I discovered the Crock Pot I put on the patio Thursday night after my class in Red Deer. We had made pulled pork, the recipe where you put browned pork shoulder on chopped celery and carrots and top it with a (near) beer. I couldn’t bring myself to dump all that broth, so brought it home. When it’s cold you can just pull the fat from the surface before straining it, and upon doing so I discovered a lovely little chunk of pork still submerged. I had sort of decided on a Chickpea and Chard Soup with Rosemary and Lemon from Anna’s book, and the pork/pork stock just took it in another direction. Serendipitously, I had a batch of no-knead bread ready to bake too.
This is an odd recipe to make as I did, unless you have some leftover pulled pork and pork broth. But I imagine it would be just as delicious made with leftover shredded turkey and turkey stock. It was good, cheap, filled the gap, got some greens in. I’m not going to sing from the rooftops about it though. (The no-knead bread, however. You have to try this.)
Pulled Pork, Potato and Swiss Chard Soup
canola or olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
3-4 garlic cloves, crushed
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary
1 cup leftover pulled pork
3 cups pork stock (or chicken, or vegetable, or beef)
2 Yukon gold potatoes, unpeeled and diced
1 bunch chard, ribs removed and greens roughly chopped (or spinach, or kale)
salt and pepper
In a soup pot, heat a drizzle of oil and saute the onions until soft. Add the garlic and rosemary and cook for a few more minutes, until the onions are starting to brown. Add the pork, stock and potatoes and bring to a simmer; cook for 20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. Add the chard and cook for a few minutes, until it wilts (chard is sturdier than spinach, so will take a bit longer). Season with salt and pepper and serve hot.
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November 22 2008 | pork and soup | 2 Comments »
We totally ordered Inglewood pizza tonight. Here’s my rationale:
I didn’t get home from teaching a class in Red Deer until around 12:30 last night, having left 9 hours earlier, and then had to unload and brush my teeth and do my blog post, getting me to bed well after 1am with my alarm set for 5:30am to get up and go make 12 kinds of sausage at our Eyeopener tailgate party this morning. (I’m not complaining; it was fun.) I didn’t manage to catch a nap between the morning show and going back to CBC at 2 to do traffic on the Homestretch, powered by Tootsie Rolls and coffee (note to self: not good to have before going on the air). I thought I was riding my seventh or eighth wind when really I stumbled through my traffic reports as if I were slightly intoxicated – which lack of sleep has been compared to, except that going out for drinks if I recall correctly is much more fun than not sleeping.
After work I went to collect Comox, the Rhodesian ridgeback puppy about the same size (70 pounds) and age (8 months) as Lou, who is spending the weekend with us. I could not have brought Lou home a better gift. (We may very well not have a house anymore in a couple days; they have not stopped for the past 4 hours. I can’t find their off switches.) I didn’t get home until close to 7, with no dinner plan or much brain function, two adolescent dogs meeting for the first time and a naked three year old running in circles going AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!
It was either pizza or cereal. Mike made the executive decision.
I figured a photo of my pizza was not as interesting as this shot I took of bacon a few weeks ago, when I did the Great Bacon Experiment.
It really wasn’t that great, but surprising, and I wanted to share it with you. Back at Halloween when I made bacon caramel corn and bacon brittle for the Eyeopener, I had occasion to buy two packs of bacon and cook a lot at once. I baked it, as I usually do – bacon fits more easily onto a baking sheet than in a round pan, and doesn’t spatter (you, anyway) in the oven. (And if you want, you can sprinkle your almost-cooked bacon with brown sugar or maple sugar and a grinding of pepper as you finish baking it.) So I bought a package of no-name bacon from the Superstore, and a package of Schneider’s bacon, just to see. The above photo illustrates both kinds, baked on a sheet together. Guess which is the no-name.
Mike scoffed when he saw it, thinking that of course the deformed, shriveled pieces on the right were so obviously the generic brand. Nope. The no-name bacon cooked up in lovely strips with little shrinkage, while the Schneider’s did not. Just goes to show you that buying generic products isn’t always a bad thing.
November 21 2008 | eating out | 92 Comments »
The boys, anyway. I left at 3:30 to teach a class in Red Deer with Erin, and didn’t get home until well past midnight. (It’s pushing 1 now, and I have to be up at 5:30 to go to the Eyeopener tailgate party at CBC. I have the sausage and beer, so they can’t really start without me.)
W is on a pizza kick, and I didn’t want to make it too easy for them to order one (or more likely two) in my absence. These are like pizza pockets if they had pizza pockets in Europe, which I’m sure they do. (Not really calzone; more compact and less stuffed.) I thawed a wad of pizza dough and baggie of roasted peppers (they freeze beautifully if you buy a bunch to roast while they’re in season and cheap, or if you visit Vancouver and buy a suitcasefull for 65 cents a pound and just wear all your clothes at once when you come back on the plane) and made a quick batch to get them through the afternoon/evening. (These also freeze well; freeze before you bake them, and bake from frozen.)
Stromboli
Stromboli are rolled-up pizza-like sandwiches you can hold in your hand. It’s not as messy as a calzone, having no tomato sauce, but the roasted peppers make up for it, making them kind of tomato-esque without the sauce.
1 batch pizza dough
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
12 slices Black Forest or honey ham (about 100 g)
12 slices thinly sliced Provolone, Edam, havarti or mozzarella cheese (about 150 g)
1-2 roasted red peppers, chopped or cut into strips
1 egg, lightly beaten
Preheat oven to 400°F.
Divide the dough into 6 pieces and roll each into an 8” circle on a lightly floured surface. Sprinkle each piece with Parmesan cheese and layer with ham, provolone and red peppers.
Roll the dough up, folding the ends over and pinching them to seal. Place the rolls on a cookie sheet and brush with the beaten egg. Cut a few small vents in each roll to let the steam out.
Bake for about 30 minutes, until golden. Let cool slightly before serving. Makes 6 stromboli.
Per stromboli: 348 calories, 8.5 g total fat (4.1 g saturated fat, 2.8 g monounsaturated fat, 0.8 g polyunsaturated fat), 18.9 g protein, 47.8 g carbohydrate, 62 mg cholesterol, 2.5 g fiber. 22% calories from fat
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November 21 2008 | appetizers and sandwiches and snacks | 7 Comments »
