Butternut and Red Lentil Soup

Sometimes the best recipes in the world are the results of improvisation.  This soup is just that.  We are concentrating on getting ready for Thanksgiving, which means a lot of things.  I can't help but think about what I am thankful for.  In a way, it's too much.  I don't want to even say.  But Thanksgiving day sums up so much of it.  I love being around family and friends.  I love just hanging around, I love the cooking too.

Back to the soup.  It's a combination of broth from turkey soup we made a while back and froze.  The butternut squash I got, just because I wanted it, and baked it.  Like a lot of things Kirsty makes,  it's a bit of winging it, so the recipe won't be precise.

This is an image of the baked squash.  It's pretty much a gorgeous saturated orange color.

Ingredients:
1 whole butternut squash
     halved, seeded and baked 1 hour at 350 degrees in 1/4 inch of water on a cookie sheet
1 quart turkey broth (unfrozen)
1/2 large onion chopped
1 leek white and light green parts chopped
2 Tbsp curry powdered
1 Tbsp ginger powdered
1 Tbsp garam marsala powder
salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup red wine
1/2 pound dried red lentils

Saute onions and leek in butter and olive oil to a nice caramelized color.  Add the red wine to get all the goodness from the pan.  Reduce red wine.  Add to turkey and squash in a large pot.   Mix with the immersion mixer.  If you don't have one, either try the Cuisinart or blender.   Add spices and simmer.  We realized it was thinner than we wanted, so next came the red lentils.  I haven't seen these at the regular store.  We were at the Afgan market is where I found these.  They're tiny, relatively speaking, and a fairly bright (for beans) kind of orangish red.  They were about twice the price of the regular lentils, for what that's worth.  These lentils only took about 15-20 minutes to soften, and it's ready.  Salt and pepper to taste.  We garnished with spicy pumpkin and butternut squash seeds.

Jib Jab with Tim
This soup is one of those moments where everything just works.  It was so frigging good, especially the aftertaste, which was sweet and rich, I think the key is the combination of the lentils and squash.  I'm kind of excited about the butternut squash too.  It's a beautiful color, and a really sweet and delicious flavor, including the seeds, which we toasted, spicy seeds.

 Mom just had her birthday last week.  I'm not sure if she would mind me saying, she's 78 now.  Yep, she's still working.  I think she's talked about retiring about every year for the last 10 or 12 years.  She's a school nurse in an impacted school.  She still travels around the world, and out to San Francisco, where she's reading about a guy named Steve Jobs, pronounced Jobes. 
    "It's Jobs, mom. "
    "Oh, is it? Okay.  I wonder how Jobes got along with anyone?" 
    "I think some people had a hard time with Jobs, mom."

 

These are the spicy sweet pumpkin and butternut seeds.  I've toasted them in the oven, but these were done in a pan, and actually, now I think this is the way to do it.  Essentially, nothing in the pan, just the seeds.  Then add the seeds to the oil and spices.  That's it!

What's next? 
Yes, there are those peppers.  I've got a huge number of them.  I've been eying a bunch of recipes, and what I'm looking at is either exactly a recipe my sister-in-law shared for hot pepper sauce, or something with some oil.  The vinegar version I've made, thank you Jackie, and it turned out so good, and so easy.  I've got a couple jars in the fridge, one for Jackie.

The fridge is getting a little cleaned out, maybe to be refilled with Thanksgiving leftovers.  What a wonderful cycle.

What else? 
My cousin's twin boys.  Are they my cousins?  Or nephews?  I have no idea.  My cousin in Marquette, Michigan has twin sons, William and Daniel, or Bill and Dan.  They're going to join us for Thanksgiving!  I'm pretty excited about it.  They live in San Francisco, both fascinating and handsome and nice young men.  Their grandmother, my aunt Kallie was such a special person, and an important part of my life.  It's a special thing to connect, and have Dan and Bill for Thanksgiving.

Spicy Pumpkin Seeds

I've been thinking about Thanksgiving for a few days, and even picked up a few things, like a couple pumpkins for pumpkin pie and butternut squash which Kirsty made awesome butternut squash and lentil soup.

My sister made these spiced seeds based on a recipe from Cooking Light magazine.  The problem with the Cooking Light recipe is exactly that, they were too light, so she doubled the spices, and added the paprika and Santa Fe chipotle chili powder.

Ingredients:
1 cup pumpkin seeds
2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Cumin
1 tsp Hungarian smoked paprika
1 tsp Santa Fe chipotle chili powder
1 tbsp canola oil

Instructions:

Put seeds in a saute pan on medium for about 4 minutes, just till they show a hint of browning.  They'll actually pop a little.  Mix up the spices then add the oil and seeds.  Cool seeds on a paper towel, single layer deep.

Jib Jab with Tim
I was wondering if the butternut squash seeds would be any good roasted, and they are.  Actually, we liked them better than the pumpkin seeds, which were really good too.   The butternut are fatter, and the hulls less-so.  All in all, these do have a bit of sweet, and mostly spicy, and altogether delicious.

Kirsty made some exceptional soup today.  So delicious, using our homemade turkey broth, the butternut squash and then she wanted to thicken in up, so we talked about adding potatoes, black beans, cannelloni beans, but we settled on some really good red lentils.  I'm going to do that recipe next.

Italian Zucchini and Summer Squash

The harvest is coming in.  I haven't been around much so things got away from me.  I've been catching up, including cooking huge batches of white and red Chard and all the squash.  Love summer mmmm. 
Jib jab
Note Italian zucchini is so much better than the dark green we are used to. Its got a mild nutty flavor.  Great small and even huge. You can identify it by the variegated green skin and it is ribbed

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie and Peach Cobbler

Mmm breakfast

Dover Sole with lemon butter dill sauce, quinoa, brussell sprouts, grilled asparagus

Pan fried Dover Sole with a lemon butter dill sauce, Imperial quinoa, roasted brussel sprouts, and grilled aspargas.

It was a tough day.  Well, accept for my swim.  I was ready to do a BOC (bowl of cereal) and hunker down for the night, when I decided, you know what?  I'm making something.  Dang, and it turned out pretty good!  I had some dover sole in the freezer, and I just got some more brussel sprouts, and asparagus, and Moira noticed some Imperial quinoa in the cupboard.  As it turns out, there's quite a bit to it, but everything was fast and easy to make.

Serves 4  Time: 45 minutes, less if you are fast

Dover Sole with lemon butter dill sauce

1 pound dover sole fillets, thawed and dry with a paper towel
2 Tbsp olive oil

Heat the oil in a large saute pan.  Saute the fish to brown at medium heat,
about 4-5 minutes each side.

Lemon butter dill sauce
2 Tbsp melted butter
1/2 juice of meyer lemon
2-3 dashes dill

Warm the butter to liquid.  Add lemon juice and dill.  Stir
and drizzle over the fish.

Quinoa
1 cup imperial quinoa
2 cups water

Put the water and quinoa in a pot.  Bring to boil and reduce to simmer.  The quinoa is done when the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes.

Roasted Brussel Sprouts
1 pound Brussel sprouts
2 Tbsp olive oil

Cut off nub and take off any leaves that don't look green
slice in half
put in a bowl, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper
spread on a cookie sheet or jelly roll pan

bake at 400 deg F for 20 minutes

Grilled Asparagus
1 pound fresh asparagus
2 Tbsp olive oil

Break off woody part of the asparagus.  It's about the bottom inch or two.  Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss to distribute the oil.  Grill, turning once, about 15 minutes until tips are just brown.

Vegitarian Collard Greens and Garbanzo Beans

Collard Greens and Garbanzo Beans

I can't say I've ever had a strong urge to try collard greens.  It sounded greasy and limp and soggy.  That said, I've been on a greens kick the last few days.  I've done chard a few different ways, both red and white chard.  I've done spinach and what else?  I forget.  I've been going over to the greens section, and just checking things out.  So, the trick with collard greens is cutting out that rib and stalk.

Anyways, traditional southern collard greens have ham hocks or some other meat you stew in it.  I went for a vegetarian adaptation.  I had garbanzo beans with greens before, and it's really a tasty rich combination.   That artisan bread is toasted and drizzled with EVOO as Rachael would say.  Olive oil, salt and pepper.  It turned out to be a great last minute addition for sopping and dunking.

Serves 4-6  Total time:  45 minutes

Ingredients:
1 bunch collard greens, washed
1/2 onion, peeled and diced
4 garlic cloves, pressed
1 tsp pepper flakes
2 Tbsp olive oil
2/3 of 28 oz canned tomatoes, cut up
1 15 oz can garbanzo beans- rinsed
3 c vegetable broth 
garnish with shaved Parmesan cheese on top

It's probably best to prep the greens first.  This was my first time, and basically what I learned is,  stack about 3-4 leaves together and fold tip to stalk.  Cut the stalk out.  I didn't cut every bit out, but about halfway up the leaf to get out all the fibrous stalk.  Roll the trimmed leaves together, and cut into one inch strips.  You can cut them into shorter strips too if you want.

Heat the oil, then saute the onions and garlic and pepper flakes in the olive oil for about 3-5 minutes.  Start with the onions, then add the garlic and pepper flakes.  Once the onions are translucent, toss in the prepared collard greens and saute for about a minute or two.  Add the broth, and simmer for 30-40 minutes until leaves are just cooked.  Add the tomatoes and garbanzo beans.  It's ready!  I shaved a bit of Parmesan cheese mostly for garnish.  The pepper flakes give it a kick, and the beans add a richness.  The tomatoes were sweet!  You can use fresh tomatoes when they are in season.

I toasted the artisan bread, and drizzled with EVOO and a bit of salt and pepper.  Always a treat.

Happy New Year Lentil, Leek and Spinach Soup

 

I made this recipe a couple weeks ago, after all the parties settled down.  We had momentous milestones; Sarah's 21st, Moira turned 18, and I turned 39 (just kidding- 39+), not to mention Christmas and New Years.  Lentils came to mind today, because I made lentils again, and instead of spinach, I used some fresh chard I sauted with the veggie broth, oh, and I added some super hot peppers I chopped up fine, also from the garden from this summer and a little splash of balsamic vinegar.

This a a perfect go-to recipe for after the holidays.  It helped me clear out the fridge, and it's comfort food and seems like it's good for you, after all the rich holiday food.  I particularly like this picture, highlighting my new pottery Sarah made at school, and the Christmas lights dazzling in the window.

See that red pepper?  It was from the garden, amazingly, from this summer.  I think I harvested it at the end of November.  The cheese crusted bread adds a bit of specialness to the dish, making it a nice light dinner.

Serves 4-6
Great for leftovers too.
45-60 minutes start to finish

Lentil leek and spinach soup

1 pound dry lentils
1 onion, diced
2 leeks sliced and diced thin, the white parts
1 red pepper
2 carrots, diced small cubes
1 quart vegetable broth
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 bunches cleaned spinach

Cheesy bread

1 baguette sliced thin pieces
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup shaved Parmesan cheese

Rinse the lentils a few times, then bring the water to boil, about 6 cups of water.  Turn it down to simmer for another 20-30 minutes until the beans are just starting to soften, but not all the way cooked.  Drain out most of the water, and add the vegetable broth and bring to just boiling and turn it down.

While the lentils are cooking saute the onions, leeks, and carrots in the olive oil.  I like to start with the onions, and get them to caramelizing, then the leeks, just until they start to soften, and same with the carrots and peppers. 

Add the sauteed veggies and spinach to the lentils with broth.  In about 1-2 minutes the spinach will wilt and be perfect.

Cheesy Bread
spread baguette slices on a jelly roll pan
drizzle oil lightly over bread
salt and pepper bread
sprinkle with cheese
Broil for about 5-7 minutes until cheese starts to melt.
Serve with the soup.

Blueberry and Pecan Pancakes

This is a quick and delicious breakfast.   Essentially, here's the thing.  I made a bunch of regular pancakes earlier in the week, when we ran out of toast for the kids....  So I took all the extra ones I made, and put them in the bread bag -since it was empty :-)  -  and put that in the fridge.

So, it may not sound as good as it is, but take those pancakes out of the fridge, toast them like toast, and not just warm, but actually add a little crunch to them.  Butter them, add blueberries, pecans and maple syrup.  Pure goodness.

Left-over pancakes, toasted, buttered
Frozen blueberries, thawed
Pecans, broken up
Maple syrup

Toast the pancakes, to a crunchy finish, maybe a little brown on the edges.  Butter them.
Spoon blueberries and juices over pancakes.  Squeeze nuts to crumble. Add maple syrup.

Jib Jab
There are plenty of variations here.  You can combine the blueberries and juices with the maple syrup and warm it.  You can also add sliced bananas.  And probably the first adaptation I would do is to toast the pecans.  I can hear your other suggestions too.  Add to comments section.

Vegetarian Mushroom and Barley Stew

This is based on a little known site, the star.  It's called a hearty vegetarian stew, a Barley and Mushroom stew.  I adapted it a little.  I made this for Moira, and Sarira, the vegetarians, for Saint Patrick's day.  The girls really liked it!!  I haven't even tried it yet...other than a small taste to check the flavor.

So, jumping right in, ingredients:


1/2 C dried porcini mushrooms  ( I didn't use these.  I think they would add some richness to the stew)
1 Tbsp Olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 C carrots
1 C celery
3 C potatoes or about 4-5 potatoes - I used reds and yukons
6 garlic cloves, minced
4 C mushrooms - I just used standard mushrooms, sliced.  I think it would have been better to do some shitakes and oysters, to add more flavor
1/3 C pearled barley
2 tsp fresh thyme - i added a generous little bunch
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
3 C vegetable stock
Chopped parsley for garnish

Add 1 C of boiling water to cover porcini mushrooms and set aside.
Heat oil in large pot; add onion, carrot, celery, potatoes and garlic.
Saute until vegetables start to carmelize, about 12 minutes.
Save porcini juices.  Chop the porchins and add all the mushrooms to the pot.  Cook them
down about 5 minutes.


Add barley and cook, stirring, until shiny and coated. Stir in thyme, salt and pepper.
Add vegetable broth and porcini juice to stew.
Bring to boil and then simmer covered, about 30 minutes.
Garnish servings with chopped parsley.

Jib Jab
This was easy.  I wish I had the porchinis.  I used a lot of mushrooms.  I wonder if they would have been better if I had browned them a bit.  None-the-less, it was good, according to Moira.

Irish Soda Bread

Okay, credit to allrecipes.com - I am wondering if I should just link to this one, because I think I used this recipe directly, without changes.  If you want to see the original, it's called Amazingly Easy Irish Soda Bread.

So, 2 things.  Yes, it's amazingly easy, and yes, it's amazingly delicious.  Okay, and the best comments EVER on this one.  Gotta love those comments.

Ingredients:
4 C white flour (you can substitute some wheat in there, but it makes it heavier, so not too too much)
4 Tbsp white sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 stick (1/2 C) butter, softened (okay, I changed to butter from margarine)
1 C buttermilk
1 egg

Glaze
1/4 C butter, melted
1/4 C buttermilk

Preheat oven at 450 degrees.

Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl.  Add butter, and mix in well.  I used my hands.  You can use a pastry cutter or fork too.  Then add the buttermilk and egg.  Mix well.  Make into a ball, and put out on lightly floured counter.  Kneed a couple times.  Put the dough on a cookie sheet with parchment paper.  Slice an X across the top with a knife.  Glaze with the butter mixture.  Bake until pretty brown at 450, about 20 minutes.  Keep an eye on it.  Lower to 350 to finish.  Check with a toothpick, to see if it comes out clean.  About 45 minutes plus or minus 10.

Jib Jab
This was so delicious.  Perfect crusty outside, soft inside and so tasty.  I could/should have doubled it.  Not one big loaf, but 2.

Irish Colcannon

Credit to Food Network again, for the basis for this recipe.  I love this FN recipe, because of all the comments!! It's a 5-star, but I always love everyone's comments.  Definitely the best part.

Above maybe all else, the Irish are known for their potatoes.   They don't eat as many as they used to, but still, about 300 pounds per person per year today.

The American traditional St Patrick's meal is corned beef and cabbage.  Well, we used to do this, and I used to look forward to it, and then about two years in a row, I tasted it, and thought...geez this is gross.   So fatty, so salty, and just, yuck.  I am sure the plastic-sealed corned beef probably was not the best, and if i remember, boiling huge chunks of cabbage and carrots and potatoes together...yeah.  Anyways, not my favorite.

On the other hand...this recipe rocks!  From what I hear, a common theme in Irish recipes is potatoes, cabbage and meat.  I think most colcannon recipes are that way.  I will look around to see.

Alright then.  Got off on a little Jib Jab, even before we got to business.

Ingredients:
4 pounds potatoes, peeled and quartered (I used red and yukon, but russets are fine too)
2 sticks butter (1/2 pound)  (in the end, I didn't use it all)
1 1/4 C hot milk (just use the microwave - keeps your 'tates warm while mashing)
fresh ground black pepper
1 large head cabbage - cored and finely shredded into strips
12 oz bacon strips (the Irish would probably use a chunk of ham or bacon, boiled) fry the bacon, not too crisp, chop finely.  remove as much fat as possible with paper towels.
4 scallions, finely chopped (I omitted, due to dietary restrictions of a guest/sister)
chopped fresh parsley for garnish - use a lot

Boil potatoes for about 20-30 minutes, until tender.  Pour out the water, and start adding the butter and slowly add in the milk while mashing.  Add some ground pepper to taste.  Set aside.

Steam cabbage strips in a tiny bit of water, until they darken.  Just a couple minutes or so.  Add two Tbsp butter, and cover for 2 minutes. Drain if there is too much liquid. Remove from pan, and chop it up small.  Add to mashed potatoes.

Add chopped bacon and scallions to mashed potatoes.  If needed, and it may not, add salt/pepper to taste.
Serve a dollop on each plate, with a big divot/crater in the top, which you can add a pat of butter, followed by lots of fresh chopped parsley for garnish.

Final Jib Jab
At first, I hesitated on this recipe, which seemed too complicated, and would take too long.  In the end, it has a few steps, but each step is easy, and I simplified the meat by using sliced bacon.  I should have doubled this recipe.  It really went over well.  Better than I thought.  I made a vegetarian version for the girls, and skipped the scallions for my sis, and everybody loved it, and there were no left overs!  I didn't add the dollop of butter on everyone's, but did on a couple.  It's tasty, and not necessary....

Roasted Vegetable Irish Lamb Stew

First, credit to the Food Network Kitchen, for your recipe.  I leveraged it heavily below.  I had an idea of what I wanted to do, like using leeks and turnips, and this recipe added a bonus twist, which looked really good.  Roasting the vegetables. 

So, here we go.  I think I had enough for about 12 or maybe a couple more people.  I served 8 and I would say I had about a third left when we were finished....mmmm leftovers...

4 Tbsp Olive oil (I always use generously, so not sure how much I used)
1 boneless leg of lamb (5.5#-ish)  I diced it up myself, about 1 inch cubes
salt, pepper to taste
2 leeks chopped somewhat fine.  Just the white part.
1 onion, chopped
1/2 C flour
1 stick (1/4 #) butter
1 can Guinness (mine was a pint)
4 C beef stock
2 C of tomatoes - I used canned.  Just use a whole small can
1 pound parsnips, peeled and diced, about 1 inch cubes
1 pound carrots, peeled and diced, as above
3 pounds red and yukon potatoes, peeled and diced as above
7 cloves garlic, minced
6 sprigs rosemary, plus 2 Tbsp chopped ( I forgot the chopped!  Add it.)
2 C peas (I skipped this.  I might try this next time, and would use frozen, myself)
1 bunch parsley (chopped and use whole for garnish)

Preheat Oven 400 degrees.
Heat 2 Tbsp Olive oil in large pot.  Add lamb cubes and brown.  Remove browned lamb and set aside.  Add a touch more oil onion and leeks. Saute until soft.  Add the butter and flour to make roux.  Cook low to brown, about 15 minutes (I made the roux in another pan so I could use it in two recipes, one without leeks).  Add Guinness, stock, tomatoes and browned lamb.  Simmer for 90 minutes.

Roasted Vegetables
In a baking dish or sheet ( I used 2  9x13 inch dishes to spread the veggies out), mix together carrots, parsnips, potatoes, garlic, rosemary sprigs.  Salt and pepper to taste, then drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat vegetables.  Roast for 45 minutes, or until starting to brown, stirring every 15-20 minutes.  Remove rosemary sprigs.

Final
Add roasted vegetables, peas (if you are using), chopped rosemary to stew.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Simmer for 10 minutes.  Serve.  Garnish with chopped parsley.

St Paddy's Day - the day after

Everything turned out great.  We had 5 fewer guests than I expected, and we didn't make the Guinness Chocolate cake.  That said, it didn't seem to get in the way of us having a great time.  It was a big day, on a few fronts.  So, first, I think we made 6 dishes.  Probably an all-time high!  Okay, maybe not, but still, it was a lot.  I will post all the recipes as soon as I can.  I am nursing a super sore neck/shoulder, maybe some sort of repetitive stress, maybe from swimming or using the laptop..or maybe both or something else all together.  Anyways, getting an appointment for the doctor today.  Such a bummer!

St Patrick's day recipes:
- lamb stew without garlic, onions, or leeks - omit leek, onion, garlic
(because i love my sister, who is allergic)
- vegetarian mushroom and barley stew (i love you, mo!)
- roasted veggies irish lamb stew - i chopped up a whole leg of lamb, turnips, leeks, and roasted all the veggies before going in the stew
- colcannon (even my sisters didn't know colcannon is mashed potatoes and cabbage and ham)
- irish soda bread (dang, this was good!)

- guinness chocolate cake (okay, we got all the ingredients, but haven't made it yet.  i'm putting up the recipe anyways...)

Jib Jab
Just a few notes on the whole thing.  As usual, I scoured the Internet for recipes, and basically went to the store with ingredient lists for several versions of the above, so yes, I got a few too many things.  Extras include:  large turnip, stuff for chocolate cake.  extra 8 pack of Guinness, plus i think a couple in the first 8 pack.  I guess I was the only one dying for the Guinness.  A bunch of extra potatoes.

More Jib Jab
Cutting up the leg of lamb took a lot longer than I was planning.  Basically, about an hour.  I cut it up into small pieces, because I like it that way.  It's kind of hard to eat those big chunks, straight up.  After getting that ready, I browned it, and then split it into two pots, one for the onion-less version and the other for the rest of us.  Then I got the leeks and onions in there to saute.  Then it's major peeling and chopping veggies.  Thanks for chopping, Moira!  Carrots, 2 kinds of potatoes, parsnips - was that it?  So, cover in olive oil, add rosemary sprigs.  Roast in oven.  In the meantime, make a roux.  Add broth and tomatoes, split between two lamb stews.

While the others are roasting and simmering, get veggie stew going.  Onions, leeks and so on.  Then carrots, celery, mushrooms, potatoes, I forget what else.  Saute in olive oil.  Add broth, barley simmer.

While that's simmering, Moira is making vegan cupcakes for school, trying to use the oven at the same time.  Oh, and then making pesto... tons of fun!  For her no-meat club, they are serving vegan cupcakes and pesto pasta to non-converts, to show vegan is healthy, and delicious.  Go Mo and Sarira!

And then, do we still have time?  We have to!  Okay, Mark, you be in charge of the soda bread, and Kathy, will you do the colcannon? (while i micro-manage!)...  We pretty much ran out of pots and burners.  We were boiling potatoes, while steaming the cabbage, and cooking the bacon, with the other 3 stews going...and the vegetables in the oven.  yeah, it was a bit of a shuffle, and at the same time on 4 burners, pretty dang fun getting it all going...  Thanks Mark and Kathy!

The soda bread is so crazy easy (especially when you can tell someone else to do it :-)).  Basically, you mix all the dry ingredients, then cut in a stick of butter,
and shape into the loaf, slice a cross in it, and I had Mark glaze the top with a butter,/buttermilk mix to get it to brown nicely.  I did another thing, to speed things along, and I kinda remember seeing it somewhere - I threw it in the oven at 450 degrees, instead of 350 or something like that.  It took about 30 minutes to brown up, glazing it every 15 minutes or so.  Then after 30 min, I turned it down to 350 to cook the inside.  It turned out so perfect.  I have pictures, but I am not optimistic on how the pics turned out.

The colcannon was easy too, really.  Once I figured out what the recipes were saying.  Essentially, you make potatoes like mashers.  Peel, dice, boil, smash with butter and milk...little trick, heat the milk, then your 'tatos don't get cold.  The recipes call for ham or bacon slab or chunk or something like that.  I decided to go with bacon, american style bacon...hate to admit it, but oscar myer.  I know....but hey, it worked.  So, I just fried the bacon, tried to go not too crunchy, but not under done...so get all the grease off with paper towels, then dice, pretty finely.  I didn't want big chunks of meat in there...and actually I went way light on the quantity, because I was looking for just a hint of meat flavor.  The cabbage, just slice real thin, throw in pot, steam, add butter, once it goes darker green, then out, dice, and into the potatoes, with the bacon.  Done!!  Oh, and of course, a big pat of butter on every serving...and parsley chopped on top, as garnish.

Pog, thanks for bringing in the folding tables and chairs, and finding a table cloth and all that jazz.

So, there you have it!  We also had some nice Irish cheese.  I forget what kind, with crackers, and of course Guinness, and wine, and Coors.  We had the Collins' over.  Jim is Irish, and even has Irish citizenship, and so do their kids, Christian and Jillian.   Even with that said, they brought over their stout, which they only know me, who likes it...Jim is a Coors drinker...(which I like too!).

Everyone really liked their dinner.  Even Mark, who quietly brought baked chicken because he didn't think he liked lamb...  He was wrong.  :-)  The girls liked the vegetarian mushroom barley stew, and even Patrick and Bryce liked the lamb stew, potatoes and bread.   Dang, that was fun.  Finished off with an Irish cream liquor...nummm.

St Paddy's Day plans

Today is another Jib Jab first.  I'm actually planning a post, before I've cooked it.  I am feeling a bit under the weather, so I am thinking about St Paddy's day.  I am thinking lamb stew, Irish soda bread, and not sure from there.  Yes, of course some Guinness.  And I haven't figured out the potato and cabbage recipes yet.  I am watching a Bobby Flay show on the food channel as we speak - he's full blooded Irish, and the show is on the food history of Ireland...let's see what we come up with. 

So, 92% of beer in Ireland is consumed in the Pubs.  Pub food is only 25 years old!- since the 70s... wait, the math seems to be not too robust there... Ireland is more relaxed than America.  Guinness has 70% of the beer market in Ireland.  The largest brewery in Europe. Irish Literature; Yates, Joyce, Beckett - drinkers with writing problems... gotta understand the pub culture...  Sir Walter Raleigh brought potatoes to Ireland in the 1600s, from America.  Then, they ate 10-12 pounds of potato per person per day before the blight.    Potatoes col-cannon.  Today, 300 pounds per person per year.  Red rooster potatoes are Irish.  Rice the potatoes.  York cabbage....deep fried potato bacon cabbage...brown bread...smoked salmon...the salt goes on the fillet to kill any bacteria, and draw the moisture to the surface before smoking...smoking takes a day or two or three.    Dorina Allen, Ballyboe Irish house cooking.  Bacon and cabbage is the Irish national food.  sliced cabbage, butter, cook with herbs.  scallion champ?  bacon, cabbage.    Ester Barron, Baron's bakery.  Waterford county.  Crystal.  Tea.  Jameson.  Irish are more like Mediterraneans than Europeans.  10,000 pubs are in Ireland. Tullamore Dew, Ireland. 

One last note.  What's the difference between Scotch and Irish whiskey?  A couple things.  Some I remember:  Irish uses some non-malted barley, and Scotch is all malted.  Irish malted barley is dried in kilns, whereas scotch is malted over peat bog fires.  Also, scotch is typically distilled twice.  Irish whiskey 3 times minimum.  So, to the single malt story.  There is no such version of Irish whiskey.  By definition, it has different types of barley used.  Malted barley, and raw.

I am thinking about Ireland again, from my mutt ancestry, I am mostly Irish, from my dad's side and 25% on mom's side.  My dad has a bit of a secret family history, which he really hasn't shared much of (hence the secrets).  There is definitely some severe mental illness involved, and probably other secret things as well.   I have heard bits and pieces.  It brings up strong emotions, and in general, has been dealt with by ignoring it, or at least not talking about it.   Well, my dad doesn't talk much all together.  Not sure if that's all part of the plan or just him.  All that said, I am curious about my Irish heritage.  I would love to go there, some day soon.

Okay, just thinking out loud on the menu, grocery store wise-
lamb - safeway or a better butcher
do i need oatmeal, wheat flour for the bread?
potatoes, carrots, ruddebeggas, turnips, barley, parsley for the stew, beef stock
potatoes and cabbage for the potatoes and cabbage
leeks?
lamb chop appetizers?
Anyways, that's it for now.

It was a totally beautifully sunny warm day, and I was gonna go riding, but felt too achy, headache, bla bla bla.  Oh well, hopefully I will be better soon.

Something New

Patrick is swimming.  Moira and Patrick are getting up for breakfast.  I have been working in the gym.  My fish had babies!  I have a new job.

Peach pancakes with yogurt and peach sauce.  Peaches from Anne and Gary's garden, frozen. 

Pog has been talking about playing water polo next year for about 6 months.  Backstory: He quit soccer to play rugby.  He lasted a few weeks playing rugby, then quit.  So, for a few weeks, he has said, I am going to swim, twice a week.  And the weeks go by.  Pog, do you want to swim?  Not now, maybe later...was the typical response.  I am too tired.  I just want to chill.  Finally, he said, I promise.  I am going to swim twice this week.  Every day, Pog, how about today?  So, Finally, the week goes by, and no swimming.  So, then it's next week I will.

On Monday, he "swam".  It's a struggle.  He can't breathe and stroke.  The other shocker, is he asked me for coaching.  I thought, okay, get in, 1-2 tips, work on it, I will go do something else.  But he wanted me to stay.  And he kept working at it.  He had so much to learn.  At once, it was hard to see how far he had to go, and at the same time, admiring his determination.  I decided to sneak in a target.  500 meters.  And he made it.  It took an hour.  Whew.  Tuesday, he swam again.   Again, it was a struggle, and we set the same goal.  500 meters.   He made it this time in about 40 minutes.  We swam again on Wednesday and Thursday too.  Thursday it was about 30 minutes, and he swam the whole thing with me in the clubhouse.  Then no Friday, or Saturday.  And then, we went again on Sunday.  He was really swimming.  The whole length, breathing, albeit with extraordinary effort, but he had a rhythm going.  Dang!!  I am impressed.  Admiring him.  We went into the gym too, just for a short bit.  He benches about as much as me, he is really getting strong.  On top of it all, he has been talking with me.  Without arguing!  Anyways, I just wanted to jot that down.  It's really nice to think about.

Okay, the breakfast thing.  I've been talking about it, Moira has been talking about it.  She even said, she wants to get up early to sit down and eat breakfast before she goes to school, instead of frantically grabbing the toast Kirsty makes for them (and fruit and cheese).

So, I was thinking about balancing out my carb-loaded breakfast too, so I made oatmeal- steel cut, with filberts I toasted, and Breaburn (sp?) apples, sliced thin, and brown sugar.  Okay, still a lot of carbs there, but including nuts!!  So, this morning, I made the oatmeal, and tried to get Mo and Pog up.  It still seemed like they might, so I put the whole dang breakfast together, and sure enough, Mo comes out, all dressed up, and sits down, actually smiling, eating her oatmeal.  She said, wow, this is really good. (I frigging know!! It's outrageously good!!)  Every time, I am amazed how excited I am to see her happy from my cooking.  Well, anyone for that matter, but especially Mo, and Pog, who are on their own teenage journey.  So, yes, Pog too, but he doesn't like nuts in stuff, so I said what about your protein, Pog?  And strangly, he had this half drunk protien powder and milk thing in the fridge left over.  It looked horrible, so I offered to blend it with my new immersion mixer.  Dude, that thing rocks!!  It pulls the liquid under the blades, so no mess, and it blends like crazy, and so easy to clean!!!  So, yeah, he drank it.  I tasted it, and yeah, very pasty flavor, but drinkable!!  So, yeah.  Stupid, simple, but made my day.  Both kids with a reasonable breakfast.  [Okay, a crazy good breakfast, if I do say so!!]

Okay, there's been trauma in my fishtank.  We've reached a new equilibrium.  And...holy cat fish, we have babies!!  Little guppies everywhere.  I counted about 10.  Way cool.  So far, none of the other guys seem to be eating them either...so we will see...  Can you find him?

Finally, I have a new job.  I am product manager for a telco blade server line.  I am also newly an Oracle employee.  So, a couple of really brief thoughts on that.  1)  I am excited about this product.  Customers love it.  The value proposition is strong.  I have some background in the industry, so I don't feel completely like a fish out of water.  I am working with a team I used to work with.  They asked for me back, which is affirming.  My VP has been given new direction, and has asked us product managers to spend more time with our sales team and customers.  My sweet spot.  It's what I love.  [Jib Jabbing!]

Mom sent us some St Patrick's Day dish towels.  Totally made my day.  Woo hoo!

Okay, sneak peak on another topic.  We need a new family car.  I got a little windfall cash from the end of my Sun stock.  Sarah took the family car to LA for school.  With my new job, carpooling the kids is really getting cumbersome [although I love that little time with the kids in the afternoon].   So, just thinking about what to get.  Then thought, they can have my 10 year old car, and I get something.  So, I am just starting the process.  What to get.  So, I thought.  Hmmm.  How about a Porsche?   So, anyways, not sure it's what I want, but fun to think about.  I was looking at a 2003-2004 Boxster.  Total two seater, very fun looking.  Convertible.  Anyways, just thinking.  Actually, I am afraid I would like it about once a month, and the rest of the time, prefer something more like a Subaru or something...so, more to come on that.  I have been avoiding the BMW thing, but may have to revisit that.

Minestrone Soup

I really wanted something tasty and hot, but not overly filling, and Minestrone came to mind.  I had an idea of what I wanted, but yes, I did take a look at Closet Kitchen, to see if he had anything of interest.  He did.  A minestrone with butternut squash.  I wanted to do that, but they were out of it at Whole Foods, so, modifications...  They had acorn squash, but I wasn't up for that and decided on potato.  I had lots of fresh herbs, and pretty much doubled all of them, and also browned the sage in butter.  Oh, he used sausage in his too, which I opted for on the side, since we have non-meat eaters in the house too - I love you Moira! :-)    I didn't do his cheesy toast this time, but did slice up a baguette and drizzled it with olive oil, salt and pepper, and broiled it.  I cut up the veggies smaller, like between 1/4 and 1/2 inch cubes.  It cooks faster and I wanted them that way.

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Large yellow onion, chopped, diced
4 large cloves, minced
4 carrots, diced small
4 celery stalks, diced small
8 cups vegetable stock (Traders, low sodium, NOT the hearty)
1 28 oz can of plum tomatoes (Traders)
6 white potatoes, diced small - I prefer not to peel them
2 19 ounce can cannelloni beads (rinsed and drained- Trader's again)
2 Tbsp rosemary (chopped up)
2 T Tbsp Thyme
12 sage leaves - brown in butter, salt and pepper
6 bay leaves - I get em in the park behind our house....nice...!
pepper flakes to taste - i didn't use enough, maybe a teaspoon would be better
grated parmesan or other hard cheese
salt and pepper to taste
parsely, chopped, garnish

1 Heat the oil.  Saute the onions, 3-5 minutes, add garlic, 1 min, add the celery, carrots 3-5 more minutes.
2 Add stock, tomatoes, potatoes, beans and all the herbs and simmer for 20 minutes.
3 Grate the cheese, sprinkle on top, add parsely on top.  Serve with the toasted baguette slices.
4 We also had that italian sausage from Traders.  I cooked it on the grill, but you could do it on the stove, or whathaveyou.  Chop it up into slices, and add to soup.

Away you go!  Delicious.

Jib Jab
- It was good.  I wonder if I added too many herbs.  It just gets better the next day.  I will try it with butternut some day.  The potatoes were my thing.  Normally minestrone is with noodles.  You can try that.  I really liked the potatoes though.  That's it!

Asparagas Leek Soup

Okay, just a quick post.  Things to do, soon.  We had a great trip to Lake Tahoe.  Excellent time, skiing, snowboarding, being with family and friends.  Pog is a boarder now....more on that later.

The basis for this recipe is from Epicurious.  We had a bunch of asparagus leftover from our trip, and I was thinking soup, so here's what we came up with.  Epicurious says 5 pounds of asparagus, of which I think I had about half that, so I kind of halved the recipe.

2 bunches of asparagus chopped into 2 inchers
2 leeks chopped (just the good parts)
2-3 Tbsp Olive oil
5 C vegetable stock (I used Trader's, do NOT use hearty)
2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
4 tsp finely grated lemon peel (I used Meyer lemons from my tree)
1 Tbsp fresh tarragon finely chopped (I didn't use this, only because I didn't have any)
1 garlic clove, minced (I didn't use this, because I didn't want to)

Heat oven to 350 deg F.  (Don't use 425, like Epicurious says)
Mix the asparagus, leeks and oil in a bowl.  Salt and pepper and put on 2 cookie sheets.  We have
the high-edge kind, which was handy for this recipe.  Roast in oven until lightly browned.  About 45 mins.  Stir occasionally, as needed, about twice is what I did.

Blender
Once it's cooked, load one cookie sheet worth in the blender, and half the broth.  Blend until smooth.
Poor into large soup pan.  Repeat with remaining cooked vegetables.  Warm soup.  Add more stock if you like it thinner.  I used about 5 C total.  You could maybe get away with a quart box of stock.

Garnish
The remaining ingredients make the garnish, called Gremolata, which is a classic Italian garnish, and it adds a really nice flavor.  Yes, add the tarragon.  I wish I had some.  Just finely chop the Italian parsley, minced garlic, tarragon, and grated lemon peel together, and liberally garnish on top of the reheated soup.  Maybe next time I will add the garlic too.

Jib Jab
The soup was good, and super easy to make.  Yes, turn down the heat.  I used 425 and it went way too fast, and a little too brown on the leeks.  I think it would have been sweeter, at a lower temp.  The garnish is awesome.  I need to get the tarragon next time.  Picture to follow.

Yes, you can double this one.  I want to make it again at this size to perfect it, first.  Every now and then, it had a tiny-too-bitter flavor.  I think it could have been roasted too dark, and possibly the asparagas itself, even though we broke off the woody part, before cooking.  Maybe just a little more salt would have helped too.

Roasted Mushroom Soup

I set out to make this yesterday, and had a couple mishaps along the way.  In the end, it turned out to be really tasty, albeit, a day later.  I borrowed from a couple recipes mostly, and then I read a couple more that I probably assimilated and went into the plan.

The two main ones were Closet Cooking Blog and Epicurious.  Okay, now that I look at it, from the Epicurious Mushroom Soup recipe, the only thing I got was to use sherry, which I didn't even use, I ended up using port.  Well, the other thing was, no dairy, which I was really trying to avoid....not for religious or any reason, other than I didn't want it.  Closet Cooking has it down.  Okay, so his recipe has a cup of cream, but pretty much everything else I liked, and I more or less, I used his instructions.

8 oz of button mushrooms
8 oz of crimini mushrooms
(you can use oyster, and others too.  this is what I got, and where I started.  I can imagine going more exotic, for example, I ended up using some dried mushroom broth.)
1-2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
2 red medium to small onions, chopped
1 large garlic clove, chopped
1 Tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
1 Tbsp fresh sage, chopped
1/4 c Port
truffle oil (optional - i will try it next time)
4 c vegetable stock (or 1/2 and 1/2 with mushroom stock)
toasted cheese bread
    (slice baguette, drizzle with olive oil, add salt/pepper and grated hard cheese, bake 400 5-6 mins till brown)

So, Closet says, broil/bake the mushrooms.  It brings out the flavor.  Holy smoke, it does, big time.
This is where I messed up yesterday.  He says 30-40 mins at 400 deg F.  Today I did 400, but only about 12 minutes.  I think I should have went another 5 minutes though.  So, let's get started.

1- Clean (not with water, just brush) the mushrooms and slice.
2- Oil the slices, in a bowl, add thyme and salt and pepper to taste.
3- Spread out on abcookie sheet and bake 400 deg F for 15-20 minutes.
4- Saute the onions and garlic in olive oil.  Add the thyme and sage in the last minute
5- Add roasted mushrooms to it, add vegetable stock, simmer for 10-20 minutes.
6- I added about a cup or so of very cold water, before putting half the mix in the blender
7- Blend, and serve with a few sprigs of thyme, which really tasted so good on top.
8- serve with toasted cheese bread
9- I garnished with thyme sprigs, which actually tasted really good on top.  I bet some radish sprouts would be good too...just thinking...anyways, Moira and Kirsty really loved it, and I did too.  I think next time, I could make this in about 45 minutes.  And, you know what?  Vegetarian is so frigging easy to clean up, and by the way, keeps so much better too.  Next time, double this bad boy.

Bijou Cafe, Oatmeal and Fruit

Here's another really fun place I went to in Portland.  First, this town has quite the personality, and this restaurant embodies the 'vibe'.
Okay, here comes my signature jib jab.
So, I am walking down the street, to go there, and here's what I come across.  There's these - I will call them - trailers, sitting in a corner pay parking lot.  They seem like 50 year old converted camping trailers, turned roach-coach/food truck.  They aren't the all stainless food truck type thing, but more the corrugated siding style of the 60's camper trailer, with the fold up sides, enabling the 'store front' or service front.  So, they are all lined up, virtually touching each other like cars parked in a parking lot.  Each has a sign, offering food, like Thai, or hot dogs, or Indian, or vegetarian, or what have you.  It's like this totally ad hoc idea, yet structured.  It's easy to see personality in each little place.  Everyone doing their own thing, yet somehow finding a community theme.  I wonder, and bet, the food in these things are great.I think these are the ones I saw.

So, anyways, I am cruising over to Bijou Cafe and next I see this totally cool building with neon lights coming diagonally out from the corner of the building- again, maybe a 50's - 60's sign - something like outdoor Portland - a sporting goods place.  Neon lights are so, um, unconventional for a sporting goods joint!  Yet, cool.  So, next to that is like a little local grocery store, a place to get your nails done, and in the middle of it all, a strip joint.  I am thinking, wow, way to not make a big deal out of it.  I just find it so interesting.  The tolerance for it all....  It seems to be the Portland way.  Passion and ,compassion.  Which takes me to Bijou Cafe.  I can feel my whole self smiling as I walk in the door.  It's casual, comfortable, original, and somehow, I can feel the passion.  There's a comfortable confidence with my wait person, setting me up with a cappuccino.  So, I can see they have jazz performances... It's all totally cool.  I see another guy having the oatmeal, which looks incredible.  How, you wonder?  Well, its got nuts and fruit in it.  So, I find it on the menu and it's toasted filberts, and some specialty raisins, sliced apples, pears and bananas with some special kind of brown sugar.  So, yeah, fresh grapefruit juice and oatmeal and awesome coffee.  So, she brings it to the table, and everything - I can see the attention to detail.  The filberts are perfectly toasted.  Dry, and seriously tasty.  The raisins!  Even the raisins have this bursting with sweet, sour flavor, and of course the fruit is all organic-type stuff.  And the brown sugar has some deep brown color.  I am sure, again, something special.  And then, they even asked me what kind of milk I wanted.  Okay, maybe a surprise, I like non-fat.  
So, anyways, here's our version at home.  It's Bob's Red Mill Organic Whole Grain Steel Cut Oats, mixed roasted salted nuts (walnuts, peanuts, pecans, pistachios)  bananas, blueberries, apples sliced thin and yeah, skim milk.  The coffee cup is another story, and also from Portland, and it is Polish pottery from the Polish Pottery Place.  It's not much of a website, but a great store, and loved the woman who runs it.  It's in her house, just off of 23rd, about half way down.

Tomato Basil Coconut Soup

I am trying to replicate a delicious bowl of soup I had in Portland, at a French bakery/patisserie called St Honore.  Holy smoke, it was exactly what I was looking for, after eating 'travel' food for the previous couple days - it was one of those dishes that just goes beyond expectations.  I saw tomato basil soup on the board, and didn't even notice the coconut...  So, when it was served, and I tasted it, wow!  It was so rich and healthy tasting, the coconut seems to neutralize some of the tomato acid, and makes such an awesome flavor.  It's a big robust flavor, for a tomato soup.  Mmmm.

So, here's what I am trying.  I haven't tasted it yet, but it smells good!

1 red onion, chopped
1/4 c olive oil (or less.  I didn't use this much)
1 can 28 oz Organic Tomatoes (Trader Joes)
2 tsp oregano (dried - didn't have fresh)
20 sprigs of fresh thyme (stripped from stems)
2 bay leaves
bunch basil leaves (roll up and slice thin)
1 14 oz can coconut light milk (Trader Joes)
16 oz vegetable broth (1/2 box - Trader Joes - DO NOT USE the Hearty version)
1/4 c shredded medium coconut
salt and pepper to taste

Saute onion in olive oil.  Add tomatoes, bay leaves, oregano.  Simmer for 20 minutes.
Add coconut milk, basil and coconut.  Simmer for 5 minutes.  Blend in blender, 2 -3 cups at a time.
Garnish with slivers of basil leaves and coconut.

For next time:

Try toasting the coconut.  Try Thai basil.  Pinch of kitten hair.  Preferably Bingly.

Kirsty made this incredibly delicious salad to go with.  It's greens, goat cheese, toasted walnuts, and red beets.  She makes the dressing too, so I will have to check in on what goes into it.  The whole meal was so perfect for dinner.  Yes, the soup was awesome.  I added the coconut little by little with the intent to mellow the tomatoes.  I don't think I got to a full 1/4 c, and it seemed to release more of its sugars as it simmered.  In the end, it was so good, and I would even go so far as to say- it was as good as St. Honore!