Beet Me!

Posted on February 18, 2015 by melsmosaic

Found some lonely beets the other day that I had to use. Didn’t find anything exciting while researching recipes, so decided to just throw some stuff together.

So, first the fun — taking those innocent beets and peeling them.

And getting some beautifully colored hands in return (didn’t have any gloves).

I hadn’t used my toaster oven for ages so decided to put it to good use since I didn’t have a ton of beets. Warmed that up to about 425 and then tossed the beets with some olive oil, oregano, basil and a couple other spices. Covered the toaster oven sheet in foil and put the (quartered) beets on there.

Roasted them for about 30-40 minutes, until they were done enough for me. When they were finished, I tossed them with some hearts of palm and pistachios. So good!

Gimme Some Gumbo

Posted on January 28, 2015 by melsmosaic

Something had me craving some gumbo the other day. What, not sure. I flipped through the great reference I have, The Little Gumbo Book by Gwen McKee and found the recipe I was looking for. It’s a Seafood Oven Okra Gumbo that uses a Dry Roux. The reason I love it is that you can throw it in the oven for a couple hours AND the (dry) roux it uses has no butter or oil. It’s just flour.

So, here we go —

Skillet Dry Roux

Place 1-2 cups flour in an iron skillet on medium heat and stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the flour is the color of the outside of pecans (about 15 minutes). Cool and store in a jar. To use: Mix equal parts of dry roux with water or oil.

Seafood Oven Okra Gumbo

Oven Okra (this makes a lot, also none of my quantities really matched in proportion to the recipe)

3 pounds okra, sliced (ok, I grabbed one bag of the frozen stuff)

3 onions, chopped (I used one big one)

3 ribs celery, chopped (I used several ribs, why not, it’s veggies!)

3 cloves garlic, minced (only 3?, yeah right)

1 (28-ounce) can tomatoes, chopped

1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste

1 teaspoon K’s Cajun seasoning **see recipe below–note I sort of threw in a bit of each of those ingredients (or S&P)

Combine all ingredients in large heavy pot.

Cover and cook 2 hours in 300-degree oven, stirring twice during cooking. Uncover and cook another 20 minutes. *I didn’t feel like it needed to cook that long.

Makes enough for 2 pots of gumbo. This can be halved or doubled; freeze portions for later quick-fixin gumbo!

Next…

3-4 cups Oven Okra (I’ve always just taken all that I had)

2 quarts water

1/2 cup Dry Roux

2 pounds peeled uncooked shrimp

8-10 crabs, cleaned, halved or 1 (6-ounce) can crab meat (this time I used scallops)

1 1/2 tsp K’s Cajun Seasoning or S&P

Mix roux in 1/2 cold water. Stir into Oven Okra. Add remaining water. Bring to a boil, then add seafood; season. Cook 30 minutes. Served over hot rice. Serves 8-10.

NOTE: Add chicken stock or most any poultry, seafood or meat to Oven Okra to create your own special gumbo concoction.

It was just what I was looking for. So good, lots of flavors. Be warned…don’t taste it right from the pot or you can easily burn your tongue. And, be ready for lots of leftovers. This would be great to serve at a Super Bowl party. Enjoy!

K’s Cajun Seasoning

1 (26-oz box) salt

3 tbsp black pepper

2 tbsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp nutmeg

2 tbsp Accent (optional ) — what is this?

2 tbsp dried parsley flakes

4 tbsp red pepper (cayenne)

2 tbsp chili powder

Mix all in large bowl and store for daily use.

Posole

Posted on January 6, 2015 by melsmosaic

It’s winter, which means it’s soup time. Was debating what to make the other night and came across a recipe I love that I hadn’t put together for awhile — Posole (from Cooking Light). The true meaning of the word/name is hominy, so that is obviously a must in the ingredients. There are many ways to make it/variations on the recipe. The key is that it has to be made during the the cold weather season.

Ingredients

1 pound tomatillos (I normally use green salsa but the store was out this time so actually had to use what the recipe called for)
6 cups Brown Chicken Stock (not sure what brown vs. ‘normal’ is, and I just use broth)
2 cups chopped onion
3 pounds chicken breast halves, skinned
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and quartered (I usually just use Tabasco and/or chili powder)
1 (30-ounce) can white hominy, drained
1 teaspoon salt

—>below are all garnishes
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
8 lime wedges

Preparation

Remove/discard husks and stems from the tomatillos. Cook whole tomatillos in boiling water for 10 minutes or until tender; drain.

Place tomatillos in a blender; process until smooth; set aside.

Place stock and the next five (5) ingredients (stock through hominy) in a large stockpot; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 35 minutes or until chicken is done. Remove chicken from bones (I have always used boneless — and skinless); shred. Stir in pureed tomatillos and salt; cook for five(5) minutes or until heated.

Stir in chicken, and serve with cilantro, sour cream, and lime wedges, if desired.

Delicious! I served it with some guacamole, salsa and chips. I also have plenty to eat for several days or freeze to keep on hand.

Salt Block

Posted on December 29, 2014 by melsmosaic

Got a salt block from Salt Works for Christmas a few years back and decided to put it back to good use. Salt blocks can be used for either cooking food or serving cold food on to get a bit more flavor (without heating it up). I normally do the former.

To do that, you heat it up very slowly over the course or 45-60 minutes. You can do it on a gas or electric stove, with some considerations in mind, based on what the salt block makes contact with, so that it doesn’t crack. Over the course of heating the block, we increased the heat on the (gas) stove incrementally over the course of about 45 minutes, in 10 minute intervals.

When you put the meat on the block, it picks up just a hint of salt on the exterior and then you get the balance of the meat flavor on the inside. We decided to cook a nice tuna steak the other night. When we felt the block was hot enough, we brought it to the table and threw the tuna steak on there. Of course, after you spend all this time prepping this piece of salt, it takes zero time to cook the meat. But, that’s why we love cooking — the prep! Took less than a minute or two to get the tuna to where we wanted. Even cooked a bit more than (I) wanted, but it was fun to watch.

Kangaroo Burgers

Posted on December 24, 2014 by melsmosaic

Am finding more good new stuff to try. In this great local store called Sprouts, while walking through the meat department I noticed some kangaroo (easy way to get to Australia, right?), distributed by Durham Ranch.

After trying warthog and ostrich earlier this year in South Africa, I had to consider this. I picked up the package to inspect. Very lean so decided to give it a try.

Looked up some recipes that evening and most said just to add some spices, an egg and breadcrumbs. Did that and the patties are cooked rare-medium rare. With all said and done, very good! Very unique, mild flavor. Tough to give it an exact description for taste because it doesn’t taste like anything else. You can tell it’s wild game, but it doesn’t come across ‘gamey.’ I definitely recommend picking some of this up if you enjoy trying new food!

Sushi’s a Wrap

Posted on November 20, 2014 by melsmosaic

The final night in NOLA some of us decided to head to a sushi place – Sake Café Uptown.

Huge menu. After reading and reading, I noticed some grilled squid. I love it when I can find that, because I don’t enjoy the (fried) calamari. So I opted for it. Ok, that could be a meal. It came out on a fajita-like platter and it was amazing. It might have been the simplest thing but I could eat that stuff all the time. I need to figure out where I can get that stuff in DC.

Then at the table next to us, I ask this woman what she ordered because I was just trying to get one other thing (this was before the squid came out). She told us about this edamame that’s not on the menu – garlic edamame. They do the ‘normal’ edamame then do something with some form or garlic – I don’t know if it’s roasted or something else but this stuff just makes you melt. This is another one that I need to find out who in the DC area has. Way too good.

So glad we checked this place out and it’s another place to check out if you’re in New Orleans.

Oh My Oyster

Posted on November 20, 2014 by melsmosaic

I kept hearing about grilled oysters in New Orleans. I might have grilled oysters once a year at Christmas when half my family eats raw oysters and then my brother is kind enough to threw a few on the BBQ for the rest of us who aren’t quite that intrigued by those raw guys. I normally put some lemon juice and Tabasco on my grilled one and it’s great. So, being in NOLA, with all this hype, I had to give them a try. I received several restaurant recommendations and ended up at a super local place – Felix’s in the French Quarter.

The guy behind the bar/counter, Magic, was awesome because I asked how they grilled them and I also asked if there was butter (mentioned I was lactose intolerant). In the funniest way, he said ‘these are the biggest waste of your time, you are not going to get the taste you need, it will be like water!’ They put parmesan cheese, sometimes butter and all sorts of other stuff on them. It was HILARIOUS what he was telling me. They pretty much refused to serve me any oyster (unless I was to go raw) because of my lactose issue. Props to them. They had fun, debating for several minutes, what I could eat at their super local place. They came up with some phenomenal grilled shrimp and their ‘amazing’ sweet potato fries.

While I was waiting for this to come out, I was intrigued watching the guys shuck the oysters. I even got an (oyster) pearl. Is this my good luck charm from NOLA? (Yes, this pic almost looks like a macadamia nut).

Then my dinner came out. WOW! I still vividly remember it. The shrimp were so juicy and I don’t really like fries that much and these things were to die for. I would totally recommend this diner-like place, beyond local, over the big names. Go Felix’s. Thanks for a great dinner!

Chef Besh

Posted on November 20, 2014 by melsmosaic

In my prior job, I spoke to a ton of celebs, over the phone. They didn’t/don’t have the slightest clue who I am, but I had a great time recording sound clips from them and booking (phone/radio) interviews for them. One of them that I worked with several times was Chef John Besh from New Orleans who did work for Zatarain’s.

I knew he had several restaurants in NOLA and I finally had the opportunity to check one out. After going on his website I found the most convenient one to visit – Lüke. It’s a ‘homage to the grand old Franco-German brasseries that once reigned in New Orleans.’ Great décor and feel as soon as you walk in and I still want to know why over the door there are three clocks that read the same time that only twice a day would be right (the time they have is now escaping me).

The menu was so mouthwatering that it was tough to pick. As the lactose intolerant one, I had some restrictions, but the waiter was extremely helpful. When all was said and done, I opted for a salad and appetizer.

For the salad it was the Roasted Beets, which were yellow ones…huge and round, thinly sliced, served underneath a huge pile of delicious mixed greens and roasted pistachios with an amazing vinaigrette! It usually has blue cheese but I opted to nix that.

The appetizer I chose was the Tartine of Local Yellow Fin Tuna Nicoise. Sort of like a Nicoise salad but served on some perfectly toasted bread with aioli. Ok, I don’t really like aioli, but wow!

Normally I would pair wine with this dinner but had to check out the local brew. I tried the Lüke Alt, Covington, altbier. Nice, smooth, between a pale and red. Next I tried the Hopitoulas, New Orleans, IPA. Nice! Just enough hops to make a great IPA.

So, next time you’re in New Orleans, if you need a place to dine, check Lüke out. It’s worth it.

No-Recipe Stew

Posted on October 23, 2014 by melsmosaic

Last Sunday I finally had the time to break in my new kitchen (just moved). So wanted to make something fun. And, the night before I opened a bottle of red wine that did not merit being finished. I don’t really want to waste wine therefore determined I would just cook with it. It had been a windy, sort of cold day around DC, so determined I wanted to make a stew-like meal. I did some research online and didn’t find anything that truly struck my fancy so got creative and put together my own thing.

Ingredients (all quantities are some/non specific):

-chicken (sliced or cut into pieces)
-cannellini beans
-stewed/canned tomatoes
-mushrooms
-kale
-red wine
-onion (used a red one)
-garlic
-thyme (had some fresh stuff on hand)
-water
-S&P

I sauteed the garlic and onion for a few minutes then added the chicken and sauteed that until it was cooked. After that I added the balance of the ingredients and cooked it over low heat for about an hour — I was in no hurry.

It was a very tasty stew, lots of flavor. I served it with a quality-of-a-name Zin, Zinzilla. It was a nice wine!

Explore in the kitchen! Never hurts to have fun and try something new.

Avocado Salad with Peaches

Posted on October 5, 2014 by melsmosaic

Was looking for something fun, super fresh and relatively easy to make for dinner. I remembered this salad from Bon Appetit that I found a few years ago. Avocados, peaches and arugula…some of my favorites. It was the perfect thing to make and pretty simple.

Avocado Salad with Peaches
4-6 Servings

Ingredients

1/2 red bell pepper, cored and seeded
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 vanilla bean, seeds scraped (I got SUPER lazy and used liquid vanilla)
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 almost-ripe avocados
8 cups arugula or sorrel
2 peaches, diced and peeled

Preparation

-Roast bell pepper (I do it on my gas stove – so easy).

-Peel and chop pepper; puree with red wine vinegar, vanilla and sugar in blender (I used the mini-prep) until smooth.

-With machine running, gradually add olive oil. Season with salt & pepper.

-Halve and pit avocados and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with olive oil and place cut side down on and medium-hot grill until nicely charred, about 5 minutes (ok, so I don’t/can’t have a grill. So, I put foil over a burner on my gas stove and made it work. Creativity in the kitchen). Peel and thickly slice.