Another Indian Recipe

This dish is vegan. Unless you "contaminate" your food by using the same spoon to stir, when cooking multiple dishes. Otherwise, this is entirely meat-, dairy-, and egg-free.

This dish is also one of my favorite comfort foods. It's so good anytime, but I really love it on very hot days or very cold days.

Curried Garbanzo Beans

Tools
* medium heavy-bottomed sauce pan
* spoon
* knife and cutting board

Ingredients
* 1 onion, diced
* 1 Tbs minced garlic
* 1 Tbs minced ginger
* 1/2 tsp turmeric (I like a little more... adjust as you like)
* 1 tsp ground cumin
* 1 tsp Garam Masala
* 1/2 tsp chili powder, or to taste
* salt
* 1 can of garbanzo beans in liquid
* a handful of fresh, chopped cilantro for garnish

Prepare Curried Garbanzo Beans
Caramelize the diced onions; should take about 8-10 minutes.

Add all spices and cook to combine flavors for about a minute.

Add the can of beans with liquid. Simmer, covered, for about 20 minutes; you may want to add just a little more water (or broth of your choice) if the mixture becomes too dry. Uncover, cook a while longer, to absorb most of the moisture.

Serve hot with rice, garnished generously with chopped cilantro.

 

This food is made of WIN.

We got two savoy cabbages in a recent bag from Farm Share, and this is my favorite use for that wonderful, leafy bundle of yumminess.

Indian Stuffed Cabbage

Tools
* skillet
* heat-proof bowl
* dutch oven
* 13x9" baking dish
* knife
* cutting board
* collander

Ingredients
* 2 onions, split use
* 5 Tbs cooking oil, split use
--> use an oil with a high smoke point.
* 3 cloves of garlic, minced
* 1 can of minced jalapeno peppers
* approx. 3" fresh ginger, grated; split use
* 1# ground beef or lamb
* 1/4 tsp turmeric
* 2 tsp Garam Masala
* 1 or 2 savoy cabbages, depending on size
* 1 14 oz can of diced tomatoes OR
1 10 oz can Rotel tomatoes + peppers AND 1 can of tomato paste
* 2 Tbs lemon juice
* 2/3 C water
* sea salt and fresh ground pepper
* lemon or lime slices for garnish (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Prepare the Meat
Heat 2 Tbs of oil in the skillet, and caramelize one diced onion. Takes between 8 and 10 minutes. Add the garlic, can of chillies/jalapenos, 1"-worth of the grated ginger; cook for another minute or two to blend the flavors and move to the heat-proof bowl. Set aside.

Add the beef or lamb to the skillet. Brown. Add turmeric and Garam Masala; cook for at least a minute or two to blend, then add the onion mixture.

Cover and cook for 20-30 minutes, making sure that any liquid is absorbed. Stir occasionally to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom of your skillet. Set aside once it's done; in the meantime, prepare the savoy cabbage while the meat is cooking.

Prepare the Cabbage
Core the cabbage/s. Salt the water in the dutch oven and bring it to a boil. Put the ENTIRE CABBAGE/S in the boiling water. Boil for about 8 minutes, then remove to the collander to cool.

Once cool enough to handle, peel off the large, outer leaves of the cabbage. They need to be kept whole, so they can wrap up the meat and onion mixture. Once you reach the leaves too small to use as wrapper, shred those!

Prepare the Sauce
Heat the remaining 3 Tbs of oil in the dutch oven, and cook the second onion, diced, to just translucent.

Add the shredded inner leaves of the cabbage/s, tomato, remaining 2"-worth of grated ginger, 2 Tbs lemon juice, and water. Season to taste with sea salt and fresh-ground black pepper. Bring this all to a boil, then reduce the heat to simmer uncovered for about 5 minutes.

Prepare the Cabbage Rolls
Spoon a little sauce into the bottom of the 9x13" baking dish.

Place a soup spoon-sized spoon of the meat and onion mixture onto the stalk-end of a cabbage leaf. Roll this end toward the tip of the cabbage leaf, tucking in the sides to make a neat package as you roll. Place the package in the sauced baking dish. Continue until you run out cabbage leaves. Leftover meat can be sprinkled over the cabbage rolls.

Cover the cabbage rolls with the sauce. Bake for 40-50 minutes.

Serve hot with rice, garnishing the cabbage rolls with the citrus slices.

 

Mmmm. Homemade Garam Masala.

It's ridiculous how easy it is to make this marvelous spice blend from India. Especially since the stuff that goes in it are spices I count as staples in my kitchen.

Tools needed:
* bowl
* a well-seasoned cast iron skillet
* mortar and pestle OR coffee grinder
* jar or zip close storage bag

Ingredients:
* 4 tsp cardamon seeds
* 2 tsp whole cloves
* 4 tsp black peppercorns -- any other color will affect flavor
* 3 Tbs cumin seeds
* 3 Tbs coriander seeds
* 2 cinnamon sticks, roughly crushed

If your skillet is not well-seasoned, grease the cooking surface lightly with an oil with a high smoke point (I like safflower oil) or ghee.

Mix the spices in a bowl so they have even distribution when they're placed in the skillet. Heat the skillet while you're tossing the spices together; it doesn't have to be super hot. Toast the spices in the skillet on medium heat for about 10 minutes. Watch to make sure they don't scorch. Give the skillet a shake now and again, to keep the spices from sticking to your skillet.

Once the spices are browned, return them to the bowl to cool. They ought to be very aromatic at this point: your house will smell like a curry potpourri.

After the spices have cooled to room temperature, grind them finely in either a coffee grinder or mortar and pestle. It's a good idea to do this in many increments of small quantities rather than all at once. Transfer each little batch to a glass jar or storage bag.

Keeps well in the freezer.

Uses:

* in a wide variety of Indian and Pakistani dishes;
* add to canned chicken meat with mayonnaise, spread on bread with sliced tomato for a great sandwich;
* 1 1/2 Tbs + 4 oz. cream cheese + 4 oz. plain yogurt = YUM on a pita chip or cracker.

Enjoy!!!

Yowza.

Slivovitz. Yikes.

This was opened after dinner at a friend's home. The dinner was a "Thanksgiving Leftovers Dinner" theme, and we were encouraged to bring whatever was left over from the previous day's meal, including any nearly-empty bottles of [name any beverage] that were really just taking up space. This bottle of Slivovitz was clearly NOT nearly empty, but Paul and Carolyn assured us all that it was most certainly just taking up space.

Slivovitz is a traditional Slovenian liquor. It's important to have it at every special occasion. This is what Paul shared with us on this occasion. Rick had a good story to share, too.

The bottle label says that the contents are 8 years old. I'm sure they were, way back when they were bottled... The problem that compounded the problem of the flavor (ugh... flavor??? Not in this bottle, all you taste is chemical...) was that this bottle was purchased on the occasion of Paul's brother's wedding, something on the order of over 20 years ago. Maybe he said something closer to 30 years ago. I don't remember. I was distracted by the bottle... It's pretty!

The bottle is molded with the name, "Beograd, Yugoslavia." That's not something we're likely to see again. It was worth the distraction.

Some of the guests had a full shot. I was curious, but didn't really want a full shot, so I waited til one of the shot glasses was empty. I asked for the bottom of the shotglass to be "wetted" and drank that: not even a thimble-full.

The verdict? Blech.

I'll ask for it the next time I need to clean oil paint off of brushes.

Which might be never.

 

Thanks-Giving Us This Bread

Well, I did it. I got it ALL done, and it's even on time. THANK GOD.

 

Thanksgiving Focaccia.

Rolls are for wusses.

 

You need a little bit of levity...

"I'll be in charge of the turkey!!" Said Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. Not in charge of the view, apparently.



Think about all of these things while eating turkey over the next few days.

NO, I'm not against eating meat, or eating turkey, or knowing where my food came from. I'm the proud granddaughter of an Illinois beef and dairy farmer. Grandpa also raised sheep and chickens. I know, and have ALWAYS known, where my food has come from. Sometimes I played with it and named it. And sometimes it was no longer there on our next visit to Grandma and Grandpa. I just think this was a lousy view for the general public.

Seeing firsthand the actual slaughter of turkeys is not pretty, though it's a very different sight from when Grandpa, Daddy, and my uncles used to slaughter Grandpa's flock of chickens. Much smoother, much cleaner, much less running around with heads cut off. Still, it's got to be disturbing for the people who have never set foot on a farm and just think of turkeys as those shapes you pull out of a grocery store freezer, all cleaned and wrapped in plastic.

There HAD to be a different camera angle.

I'm thankful this woman is not going to be a heartbeat away from the Oval Office.

 

Oh, GOD! Indeed, divine inspiration!

I love Cleveland Heights.

later edit: This is the one that came home with me. Marvelous. Went splendidly with spicy vegan spaghetti sauce and chicken parmesan. Afterwards, I had it with a Malley's pretzel bar. Another good pairing, and it nailed my PMS.

 

Thankful Thursday: My Cup Runneth Over

Time for another list. I am well and truly blessed.

I am thankful for:

1.) this glorious day. The sun is shining, the temp is up around 70 degrees F (I've installed a bright yellow button along the right margin that blinks and says "convert me" which you can use if you prefer Celcius!), the sky is brilliant blue, and our autumn leaves are vivid and gorgeous against the cloudless sky;

2.) coffeecoffeecoffeecoffeecoffeecoffee; and while that is a daily given, I choose not to take it for granted;

3.) the Cleveland Browns, no matter how well or not well they do. They are a part of our city's heritage and football is an important part of our state's legacy! ON THIS DATE, Art Modell announced that he was moving our team -- OUR TEAM!! -- to Baltimore. Tonight we have a football game here at home on national tv. I am thankful that we have our team back with its colors and name and history intact!

4.) a clean kitchen and the tools and skills I use in it. They must be darn good, because my husband goes back for seconds and thirds every time.

Which reminds me, I've been cooking so much that we are out of key staples, and I need to replenish. Finally, I am thankful that I am both free and able to go to the grocery store and buy whatever I need from shelves that are stocked plentifully with a variety of items to suit my needs.

That's plenty for now!

 

Election Day, part 13: SWEET! SWAG *still* means "Stuff We All Get"!!

I scream, you scream, we all scream for FREE ICE CREAM!

Thank you, Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream!! It was very yummy. Rick had the eponymous Cherry Garcia, and I nearly finished the very delicious Phish Food. Rick was delighted to finish that for me, as I intended.

 

Hot August Night

Sitting on Daddy's deck after dinner, enjoying conversation and the summer.

Daddy celebrates the heat of summer!

Sweet corn from a truck stand! I love summer!

Mystery SOLVED.

Since the time I discovered my Swedish heritage I've been trying to justify it to the curious urges and desires I naturally feel. Completely on the level, you understand!

*You* know. The eternity of 'nature v nurture'. I'm adopted. There's no escaping this argument. DAILY.

Some days, HOURLY.

Rick helped me today. It was on my second Belgian beer.

I commented on how I really loved EVERYTHING Belgian put in front of me, and I simply didn't understand that. Perhaps there just isn't enough available that is Swedish!

Rick, on the other hand, speculates that perhaps that is the precise reason why Scandinavians needed to go a'viking in the first place.

I know *I'D* leave home for Belgian beer. (And honey. And jams/jellies. And soups. And cheese. To say nothing of the chocolate.) Whether those genius Trappist Monks had anything to do with them or not!

Hot & Tasty

...and so easy.

This is a variant of a thing my mom used to make when I was a kid and the weather was too hot for cooking.

It's easy. Here's how.

Boil pasta. Drain canned meat: tuna, salmon, chicken, whatever. Probably not Spam, though if you like it, I'm not gonna knock it. Put the drained meat in the bottom of your serving bowl. If you have leftover veggies from another meal, dump those on top. (In this case, I had baby peas.) They'll warm through just right (and they're already cooked, anyway!!) once the rest of the concoction is added.

At about 5 minutes left of the pasta cooking time, add frozen vegetables to the pasta and pasta cooking water. Make sure to add some extra time -- 2-3 minutes -- because the cold of the frozen stuff will lower the temp of the boiling pasta. *Note*: don't put it in earlier than 5 minutes. It'll mess up the pasta cooking time. When it's all done, drain. Drain it well!!! Shake the collander, let it sit for a bit, even.

Dump all of that on top of the meat and leftover vegetables in the bowl. Add whatever seasoning you like: salt, pepper, fresh cilantro, dill, chervil, fresh onion or chives, celery leaves, garam masala, like that. Mix it a little.

Dress it!! What my mom used was simply mayonnaise. That was fine, but I prefer light Caesar or a raspberry vinaigrette or some sort of oil+vinegar+garlicky thing. Something with some bite to it. If I'm seasoning with garam masala, though, I'll stick to the mayo.

Mmmm. It's yummy. Good served warm or cold. Fresh or leftover.

Try it!!

 

Mmmm. Brownies.

>drool<

Brownies. Triple chocolate brownies. ALL of it dark.

We're not big on milk chocolate in this house.

Yum.

But the big thing to celebrate in this picture is the baking pan. It's a Pampered Chef stone. Right now it's new, but in time, with careful seasoning, it'll be as nonstick as any good old cast iron *anything*.

I'm so pleased to have this because I *used* to have one, but I tripped and dropped it. That was a couple years ago. All the alternatives I've tried in the meantime have been bitterly disappointing.

I'm a perfectionist with my baking. I'm a good artist; my baking, however, is beyond excellent. It's really bothered me to be without this important tool. NOW there's no holding me back.

I won't settle for anything less than perfection, in the case of my tools, unglazed stone bakeware. I expect to serve perfect baked goods; this sets me back on that right road.

NOMNOMNOMNOM. Comfort Food.

There's not a whole lot of food that's much better than homemade fried chicken. Doesn't even matter what goes with it. It's just GOOD.

It's hot & humid. My cue to turn on the oven.

cookie stamps
Originally uploaded by sunspotting.

Yesterday I was invited to join a Flickr group called Stamp Your Sweets & Cookies! because of the above photo. There's a picture of my springerle roll that they liked, too.

I like cookie molds and presses. Cookie cutters I find inspiring, too. There's just something fun about the blank slate, if you will, of a lump of sweet dough. If you can be inspired by a lump of clay or paper pulp or wool fleece, (and heaven help me, I most certainly can!!!) then my goodness, the things I can do with edible medium!!

It starts out with a simple, buff-colored sugar cookie dough. Or gingerbread, shortbread, chocolate, spice, omigoodness! there are so many wonderful flavors of cookie dough.

But why does it have to stay that color? (Ok, chocolate is not the easiest of doughs for a change of color.) Do I not have a multitude of food colors in the pantry? Of course I do. So that's one jumping-off point.

Then, with a variety of technicolor dough, rested, and ready to be shaped, I can cut it free-form. I can cut and stack the cookies, in pre-baked form; or cut them and plan to stack them, Linzer-style (or Oreo style, but Linzer-style, with the lacy cut-outs, is so much more fun!!) post-oven, filled with creme or jam. I can roll some balls of dough and press the little spheres with these lovely cookie presses. I can roll out a large sheet, then re-roll with my springerle roll -- it's another type of cookie press, but in a rolling pin form. Once the images from the springerle roll is impressed, I cut them to separate, and then I have dozens of small rectangular cookies all at once.




After baking, I have some more options!! Decorating options. To frost, or not to frost? Leave it plain? Add nuts? Nonpareils? Sprinkles? Sprinkles come in all shapes and colors (I have some Scooby Doo ones...), as do the many and sugars and edible glitters. There are markers made for food decorating! Amazing. I think that's a wonderful thing.

I've just discovered a neat thing that's been created, and I just don't know how I can live without it. I hope someone can find it, because I really REALLY want this thing.

The German company Stadter (with an umlaut over the "a", but this application won't permit me to use that) has a tool that lets you stamp letters -- actually impress them deeply into the unbaked dough -- into cookies or fondant or Royal icing... whatever your imagination gives you!!! (It's called the Brigitte Cookie Text Stamp.) How amazing is that??? You see why I need this thing?

No?

OK: imagine this, then. Conversation Hearts. But edible. Conversation Hearts are those hard-as-a-rock and tastes-like-barely-flavored-sugar small heart-shaped candies in pastel shades with words and phrases like, "MY MAN", "OH MY", "SWEETIE PIE" "OH YOU"... You get the picture.

And special cookies with special messages. Fun!! It completely appeals to my sense of culinary adventure. Keep your eyes open, and grab it for me if you see it, please! I'd be most grateful.

I'll bake for you!

 

Sunday Salmon- It's BARBECUED!! Yummy.

Mmmm. "M" is for "Fat Matt's", which is the brand of barbecue sauce I've used on our already buttery-rich wild salmon.

Oh. This is GOOD.

No, actually, I have no words for it. Not without dipping wildly into the realm of hyperbole. And I absolutely *never* do that, never in a million jillion years.

ANYWAY.

Here's what I did. I heated the grill pan (incidentally, one of only 2 Teflon-coated pans I have; I've got my eyes open for one that's cast iron instead!) before gently placing the salmon onto the surface. No oil; this fish is plenty oily. With half a lemon, I sprinkled some juice on just this one raw, red side. Not a lot of lemon: I didn't use the whole half, I could probably use it on another slab, possibly 2. Finally, fresh ground black pepper and fresh ground sea salt.

What? I should use some *other* salt on a great beast from the sea?

I flipped it -- carefully! it was about 6" square -- once the red, translucent flesh started to turn pink and opaque. THIS is the side I dressed with the yummy barbecue sauce!! It's very thick, and I just let it sit right on top of the meat. Most of the sauce wasn't really going to go anywhere, the surface had already been sealed by the cooking, but some would heat up enough to soak in a little. At least, that's what my imagination tells me. And my imagination tells me a lot.

So once I flipped the fish, I put the rice in the microwave to reheat. Marvelous. It was a much cooler dinner to prepare than that wretched casserole I made a few nights ago. While delicious, it heated up the house more than I really wanted...

 

Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Dad's

Off the congested highway, stuck at a train crossing! Kinda like 'out of the frying pan and into the fire', right? This must be how those sayings get started.

We turned off the car's engine, but forgot to count train cars.

Breakfast of Paladins!

Patti lifts waffles from the iron, as the Paladins meet around the table for a pre-ride breakfast. Mmm! Good stuff!