Monday, August 14, 2006
Everything's Coming Up...Tomatoes!
I posted for the Loveliness Fair of Elegant Simplicity in the Kitchen a picture of a basket of our homegrown tomatoes.
I, for one, never tire of fresh tomatoes. For dh and me, the tomatoes are the reward for the work in the garden. It's the treat of summer.
But what do you do with all those tomatoes?
Even though our garden is producing many tomatoes, I don't think it's enough. ;-) What I mean is it's perfect for daily eating, but I don't have enough to do canning or freezing yet...nor have I tried that. We eat too many to get enough to make a large batch of sauce. Did I mention that we LOVE tomatoes?
Inspired by Donna Marie's upcoming Carnival of Yum I want to share our summer tomato treats. Keep in mind that we avoid wheat, eggs and dairy, so that limits our combinations.
Sliced tomatoes: The easiest and tastiest way to serve a ripe, homegrown tomato is to simply slice and serve.
Scrambled Eggs with Tomatoes: I like to have eggs in the morning, and a nice change was scrambling eggs with chopped tomatoes. Add green onions and garlic (either a dash of garlic powder for a hint of taste or small amount of minced garlic) and keep stirring until eggs are cooked. One could do an omelette, but I like the scrambled eggs better.
Eggs in Purgatory is another way to use tomatoes with eggs. This could be breakfast or a meatless meal. I omit the cheese.
4 large tomatoes, peeled
3 tablespoons butter or olive oil
1 pound fresh mushrooms, thinly sliced
6 to 8 eggs
salt and pepper
3/4 cup (3 oz.) Jack cheese, shredded
Fresh parsley, chopped
Cut tomatoes into cubes and drain in a colander for several minutes.
Meanwhile, in a 10" to 11" frying pan, over high heat, melt butter. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring until they are soft and juices have evaporated. Add tomatoes and stir to heat thoroughly.
With a spoon, make 6 or 8 nest spaces and break an egg into each space. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and cover evenly with cheese. Cover pan and cook on low heat until eggs are set as you like. Garnish with parsley. (Source: Sunshine Italian Cookbook, 1981)
Different Versions of Marinated Tomatoes: The cherry tomatoes are perfect to serve alone. I cut them in half and marinate them in various ways:
This version was my paternal grandmother's recipe:
Marinated Tomatoes
tomatoes, sliced or chopped
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1 clove garlic, cut real fine
Serve it just as is. The earlier you make it the better.
Lemon Dressing for Tomato Salad:
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Salt and ground pepper to taste
Add to tomatoes chopped red onion and fresh basil, mix the dressing and pour over tomatoes.
Marinated tomatoes or Tomato Bruschetta
I make a quick version of this recipe to serve just the tomatoes (since we can't have the French bread). I use less of basil and garlic for the quick treat, and no cheese, obviously. But it so yummy. For guests, serve the gusto with the bread, too. I suppose I could also serve with corn chips.
5 ripe tomatoes (on the vine), cut in small pieces and drained
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons Vidalia onion, chopped fine
hand full of fresh basil, chopped
4 tablespoons Olive oil
dash balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper, to taste
Fresh mozzarella, tiny pieces, optional
Bread or Crostini
1 loaf French baguette slices, cut horizontally in thin slices
1 clove garlic, halved
olive oil
Mix first ingredients together (except mozzarella). Let tomato mixture sit 30 minutes or so to let ingredients seep together.
Take bread slices, rub each slice with halved garlic clove. Brush with olive oil and broil until crispy. You also can broil the bread and then add garlic and oil (crostini).
Serve with crostini, either on tray with each slice with tomato mixture added, or let guest put mixture on bread slices.
Chicken Sautéed with Fresh Tomato: I used our tomatoes for on St. Dominic's Feast Day. I didn't have time to let the sauce cook down further, but still it was sweet and delicious...definitely a different taste than canned tomatoes.
Pasta Salad
1/2 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried basil
dash red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon salt
8 ounces pasta (such as macaroni, rotini)
20 cherry tomatoes, halved
1 can kidney beans
1/2 medium vidalia onion, sliced or chopped
I didn't have this, but it would be nice to make this an antipasto salad, by adding some pepperoni. Broccoli florets would be a nice touch, also. Whisk first six ingredients together, then pour over cooked pasta. Put in refrigerator for about 30 minutes to soak up the marinade, then add other ingredients, toss together and serve.
Last but not least, my pièce de résistance is my homemade salsa. As soon as I mention my tomatoes are coming in, my family and friends start asking when will I start making a batch of salsa. It's that good. I use the food processor to make things chopped and even. Confession: I don't like cilantro, so I omit. But some love it, so I include it in the recipe.
Jenn's Own Salsa
8 ripe tomatoes, size medium to large, peeled and chopped
2 jalapeno chile peppers, finely diced
5 green onions, or one small yellow or Vidalia onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced finely
cilantro, to taste
salt, to taste
1 lime, to taste
Dash of Tequila (optional)
Blanch and peel tomatoes. Remove core, seeds, and chop tomatoes. Drain in colander after chopped to reduce amount of juice.
Remove seeds and chop jalapenos very finely. Be sure to protect your hands (and eyes). I use rubber gloves when chopping. Also, taste the jalapeno for heat. Each one varies. Dice onions and chop/mince garlic.
Use food processor or chopper to make chopping a bit easier. Add all above ingredients until to consistency desired. Add juice of 1-2 limes. Add salt, cilantro and Tequila.
Chill for 30 minutes or so before serving. Taste again to see if more salt is needed before serving.
Serve with tortilla chips. I usually make large batches because it goes fast!
19:10 Posted in Summer Meals , Vegetables and Salads , Wheat, Egg and Dairy Free | Permalink | Comments (4) | Email this
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Feast of St. Dominic, August 8
El Greco: St Dominic in Prayer, 1586-90
This is a special feast day in my extended family. We celebrate one brother's birthday, one sister's wedding anniversary, and it was Great, Great Aunt Clair's birthday, a very special, saintly lady, may she rest in peace.
About St. Dominic, see Catholic Culture, Patron Saints Index, and a goldmine of links from the Dominicans (of course!).
St. Dominic was born in Spain, but fought Albigensianism, a Christian heresy in western Europe. Father John Hardon has an excellent explanation of Albigensianism. (Image: Pedro Berruguete, St Dominic and the Albigenses, c. 1495).Dominic founded the Order of Preachers. The reason why so many people were being sucked into this heresy was plain ignorance. So his mission was preach the Gospel, the Truth. From the Encyclopedia of Catholic Saints (August), there are some interesting notes on his life:
It was while he was still a student that he was given the first opportunity to show that charity and loving kindness which were to be the hallmarks of his life. The harvests had been poor, the reserve supplies of food were quickly running out, famine was already devastating the countryside and would soon reach Palencia. As always it was the little people, the poor and the humble, who were the first to be affected. The professors at the university took no notice; so long as they were paid they could always buy something on the black market. The students were as carefree as usual; if the worst came to the worst, they could always go somewhere else in search of learning and food. But Dominic at once sold all his possessions, including all the books that he had annotated with his own hand. For a scholar, and particularly for a scholar in those days, this was a great sacrifice, but Dominic explained it simply: "I do not wish to study dead parchments when men are dying of hunger." He used the money to buy food for the poor, but the words that he spoke--clear, simple and full of the spirit of the Gospel--aroused his fellow-citizens to their duty, and works of charity began to multiply all over the city. For Dominic was a scholar whose search for truth had drawn him closer to his fellow-men and not, as so often happens, away from them.
So beautiful! What a reminder on what our studies and reading should bring us. And these actions at the age of 16!
I couldn't find many quotes from this saint...but the ones I did find all point back to penitence and fasting. Another prod that in this day mortification is still very much needed.
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A man who governs his passions is master of the world. We must either command them or be enslaved to them. It is better to be a hammer than an anvil.
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Fight the good fight, my daughters, against our ancient foe, fight him insistently with fasting, because no one will win the crown of victory without engaging in the contest in the proper way.
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Possess poverty. (Dying words)
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For this saint's feastday, I don't think anything elaborate would be appropriate. We won't be fasting, but simplicity will be the aim. I'm going to trace back to Dominic's Spanish roots and use a recipe (once again) from my favorite Spanish cookbook My Kitchen in Spain by Janet Mendel for the main dish. My tomatoes are ripening and this recipe is perfect for using some of those luscious fruits, Chicken Sautéed with Fresh Tomato. Accompanying this I will have brown rice, a simple green salad and fresh fruit salad for dessert.
Chicken Sautéed with Fresh Tomato
Pollo con Tomate
3 Tbsp. olive oil
2 pounds chicken legs and/or thighs
4 1/2 pounds fresh tomatoes (about 8 large tomatoes)
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 tsp. salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Pinch dried thyme
1/2 tsp. pimentón (I'm omitting)
2 bay leaves
2 Tbsp. brandy
Choppped fresh flat leaf parsley
Heat the oil on medium high heat in a deep skillet, then add and brown the chicken pieces, about 10-15 minutes. Remove when browned all over, and drain extra fat except 2 tablespoons.
Either microwave or boiling water method, blanch and peel the tomatoes. Seed the tomatoes and chop coarsely, making 5 1/2 to 6 cups.
Heat remaining oil in skillet on high, add all remaining ingredients except parsley. Cook for 5 minutes, then add the chicken back to the pot. Lower heat to medium and simmer uncovered, about 45 to 75 minutes. Remove the chicken when done, but continue cooking the tomato sauce over medium heat until very thick and beginning to brown, about 30 minutes longer. Add chicken back to the pot to reheat. Remove bay leaves, serve garnished with fresh parsley.
Another sidenote on St. Dominic. He's the patron of scientists, astronomers and astronomy. I wish I realized this before I went to the grocery store. Seems a star fruit would be in order for our fruit salad. ;-) But we'll eat out on the porch and perhaps do a little star-gazing tonight, as the night is clear.
15:00 Posted in Cultural , Family , Family , Food Allergies , Liturgical Year , Main Meal , Poultry , Summer Meals , Vegetables and Salads , Wheat, Egg and Dairy Free | Permalink | Comments (1) | Email this | Tags: chicken, summer, tomatoes, St. Dominic, Saint Dominic, Albigensianism
Monday, July 24, 2006
Food for St. James the Great, Apostle
Update: I added a photo of our St. James Torte -- I used both the stencils for the decoration. The torte was dense and tasty...definitely a recipe to repeat. The chicken was delicious, nice and juicy.
I've been looking forward to July 25, feast of St. James. See today's entry in Family in Feast and Feria for more information on this feast day.
For food, I'm going to use some Spanish recipes. In spirit I want to be in the Cathedral at Santiago de Compostela. For ideas of famous foods from that region, see Gastronomy of Santiago. The empanadas sound wonderful, but I don't have time to attempt wheat, egg and dairy free empanadas, but it might be something I try in the future.
So for the main meal I'm going to adapt a Tapas recipe. I love all of Penelope Casas' books, and her Tapas: The Little Dishes of Spain is what I'm using for inspiration. But I confess, I'm planning my meal by what I have in the house. Our garden is slowly ripening and I also have chicken. I'm going to make
Chicken in Beer (Pollo en Cerveza)
"This chicken has a subtle lemony flavor, and although I have chosen to use the wing portion for easy handling, you might also use small drumsticks or any other part of the chicken (skin on), cut in small pieces."
Serves 6 as appetizer, but for main meal probably 2 or 3
Start preparation several hours in advance
12 chicken wings (or thighs or drumsticks with skin)
12 ounce bottle beer (minus 1 Tablespoon for sauce)
salt
Freshly ground pepper
1 tsp. thyme
1 bay leaf
Sauce:
1/4 tsp. thyme
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. beer
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
Chop the wings into three parts, discarding the tip portion. As I'm making this the main meal, I'm using whole thighs. In shallow bowl or zipper top bag, mix together the marinade: beer (except reserve 1 Tbsp.), pepper, salt, thyme and bay leaf. Arange the chicken in marinade and soak for several hours, turning occasionally.
When ready to cook, combine Sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Remove chicken from marinade and pat dry with a paper towel. At this point you can either grill or broil the chicken. If broiling, arrange on a broiler pan, brush on the sauce and add salt and pepper to taste. Broil or grill for about 5 minutes (longer if other kinds of parts), flip and baste and salt and pepper. Continue cooking until golden but still juicy. Use a meat thermometer to make sure they are cooked thoroughly.
For dessert, I'm going to attempt to make the famous Tarta de Santiago. This will not be allergy free, but I'm up for the challenge, and to give a nice treat on this wonderful feast day for my dh. There are oodles of recipes on the internet for this cake. There are two different version -- one has a crust and filling, the other is more like a flat cake.
Some examples: Food Network,
Reading Room (nice picture), Travel and Living and Spain Recipes (another good picture).
The recipe I'm using is from my favorite Spanish cookbook, My Kitchen in Spain by Janet Mendel . I've mentioned in another post, Memories of Little Grandma. I happen to have a bag of ground almond meal (thanks to Trader Joe's), so the tart shoudn't be too time-consuming. Almonds don't grow in this area of Spain, so it is a puzzlement that this cake is made with them. Mendel speculates that it originally might have been made from chestnuts.
The torte is usually decorated with a pattern of the Cross of St. James or the cockle shell, both symbols of St. James. I prepared some patterns of the Cross of St. James and the cockle shell of St. James. Print and cut out the images. Place the image in the middle of the torte and sprinkle confectioner's sugar over the rest of the cake. Remove the pattern carefully and you'll have the cross or shell in the middle of the cake. 
If you don't have time to make this torte from scratch, any cake will do. Purchase a pound cake even, and put the design on the cake. If you need to resize the pattern, use image program, such as Paint Shop Pro. After opening the image in the program, go to print and choose the size you want it to be on the page. It's that easy -- and I just discovered that after all these years of frustration!
Almond Torte from Santiago de la Compostela
Torta de Almendras de Santiago
Ingredients:
1 pound ground almonds
2/3 cup butter
2 3/4 cup granulated sugar
7 eggs
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 Tbsp. grated lemon zest
3 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
Confectioner's sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Greas a 10-inch springform pan.
Spread the almonds in a baking pan and toast them in the oven, stirring often. Remove from oven when light colored, about 3 to 5 minutes. Give time to cool.
In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and beat, one at a time. Gradually stir in the flour, the almond meal and lemon zest.
Pour mixture into the greased pan and bake about 45 minutes, or until a cake tester in the center comes out clean and the center when lightly pressed bounces back.
Cool for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and cool on a wire rack. Poke the surface of the torte with a skewer and drizzle with lemon juice over the top. Add the pattern of the cross and dust the surface with confectioner's sugar.
Catholic Culture has a few more suggestions for recipes for St. James. I am going to go French a bit and serve some green beans, inspired by this recipe. The cookbooks Cooking with the Saints by Ernst Schuegraf and A Continual Feast by Evelyn Vitz also have some unique recipes for the feast of St. James.
15:30 Posted in Books , Desserts , Family , Family , Liturgical Year , Poultry , Summer Meals | Permalink | Comments (2) | Email this | Tags: Santiago de Compostela, Torta de Santiago, Cake of St. James, Tapas
Thursday, July 13, 2006
All in the Marinade...but Keeping it Simple
Rachel Ray has some great ideas, and her cooking is wonderful for busy moms. I have her 30 Minute Meals 2 and there's one recipe that I use all the time. But I confess, I'm not faithful to the intent of the recipe. I use her No-Mystery Marinade for our summertime grilling. The Basic Marinade can be used for filet mignon, strip steaks, chicken breasts (and thighs), pork chops and portobello mushroom caps...but mostly, I use it on chicken thighs. I prefer to use all natural or organic meats, and thighs cost a little less than breasts most of the time.
In 30 minutes or less, I can have a meal of chicken breasts or thighs on the grill. Take a large (gallon) size Ziploc bag and fill it with the ingredients of the marinade. By now all I do is drizzle in the red wine vinegar, add some glugs of olive oil, add salt, pepper, thyme, parsley, minced garlic, some red pepper flakes, swirl around a bit and add the meat. In 15 minutes the meat is ready to be grilled.
This recipe has been a lifesaver for us. I've made it for guests and during trips away from home. I can't always trust ready-made marinades, or homemade mixtures. Soy sauce is a common ingredient, and it contains wheat starch. This is a quick meal I can make when I need some alternative safe foods for my son.
On the subject of marinade, do you ever plan on grilling and realize you didn't allow time to marinade? Some recipes call for overnight marinating. I just recently read a Q&A in the August Issue of Cuisine At Home that boosted my spirits! Is the writer secretly trying to help out busy moms who want to cook good meals?
Too Much of a Good thing
Is it possible to keep meat in a marinade for too long?
Yes, contrary to popular belief, a marinade's primary purpose is to add flavor to meat, not tenderize. It's true that acids in marinades (wine, vinegar, citrus juice, yogurt, etc.) cause meat proteins to break down. But the acids penetrate only about 1/4" deep, no matter how long the meat is soaked. And at a certain point, the proteins will break down so far that they lose a great deal of texture, causing the meat to become dry and mealy.
So how long should something be marinated? In general, an hour is plenty for beef, pork and lamb; 30 minutes for chicken. Because fish and seafood are more delicate, it's best to marinate them just 15-30 minutes. Any longer and the acid in the marinade will "cook" the fish, turning it rubbery.
What a relief! So, even in the afternoon if I come home with groceries and decide the fate of a cut of meat is going on the grill, I still have time to marinade AND cook. Woohoo!
17:35 Posted in Books , Poultry , Summer Meals , Wheat, Egg and Dairy Free | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this
Saturday, June 03, 2006
Fruits of the Holy Spirit
Pentecost is tomorrow. From my favorite liturgical cookbook, Cooking for Christ I love to read her story of her Pentecost Picnic.
Inspired by Mrs. Berger, I'd like to make a strawberry cake and have a picnic. But I think I'll settle to eating alfresco (on the porch) and an allergy-free shortcake. I'm also serving poultry, probably chicken, reminding us of the symbol of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove. And I'll grill it...giving the bit of tongues fire to the feast! Since this is the birthday of the Church, this will be a taste of the birthday party celebration, too.
Due to the food allergy restrictions, I had to search for shortcake alternatives. Last week I received my Gak Snacks order which included their cookbook. (BTW, the cookies are DELICIOUS!) It includes a Strawberry Shortcake recipe, free of eggs, wheat and milk. This is the recipe I'm going to trial....I'll post on my results! (Email me if you want the recipe before Pentecost).
I am also thinking of serving a fruit salad. Suggested by Evelyn Vitz in her cookbook A Continual Feast is a twelve fruit salad, imitating the twelve fruits of the Holy Spirit (note that St. Paul in Galatians only mentions 9 fruits, but the Church teaches that there are 12):
Charity
Joy
Peace
Patience
Benignity
Goodness
Long-suffering (patient suffering over an extended period)
Mildness
Faith
Modesty
Continency
Chastity
Different possibilities: grapes (combine different varieties), cherries, blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, peaches, nectarines, plums, apricots, pineapple, apples, bananas, melon (combine different varieties), oranges, grapefruit, kiwi, mangoes, pears
Sugar is optional
and lemon juice.
You can either mix all the fruits together in a large bowl, or lay them in an attractive pattern (perhaps with twelve as an organizing motif) on a bed of greens. Sprinkle with sugar if desired and lemon juice to keep from browning.
She suggests serving this with Curry Mayonnaise, which for one, we can't have in this house because of eggs and two, doesn't sound appealing. What I do with our fruit salad is serve with pound cake or, in this case, shortcakes and whipped topping. Who says shortcakes only have to have strawberries on them? There are some types of the dairy free topping that are completely free of allergens (check the label to make sure). Yes, they don't taste like the real thing, heavy whipped cream....but it is still tasty.
Happy Birthday! Enjoy your family Pentecost celebration.
10:50 Posted in Books , Desserts , Family , Family , Liturgical Year , Summer Meals , Wheat, Egg and Dairy Free | Permalink | Comments (4) | Email this
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Cool Cooking
The hot, hot weather is upon us. We've had a very mild spring in Virginia, but this week the summer's heat begins. And the transition to cooler cooking begins.
We fired up the grill for Memorial Day weekend, enjoying the visit of one of my sisters and their family. We dined alfresco, on our covered and screened porch. It was a spontaneous invitation, but it turned out to be a wonderful, relaxing evening.
The cookbook I turn to more often in the summer months is Twelve Months of Monastery Salads by Brother Victor-Antoine d'Avila-Latourrette. He has recipes for each month of the year, but I don't follow monthly patterns if I have the ingredients, I find the recipe.
One potato salad recipe that is free from eggs (and mayonnaise) is his Sicilian Potato Salad. I've made it with small red potatoes, but I just made it with russet potatoes. Easy and nutritious and delicious are my aims in the kitchen. I now put whole potatoes on to boil in salted water, and after they are fork tender, I rinse and then peel the skins. I save so much time instead of doing the process of peeling and cutting potatoes.
Serve this potato salad at room temperature, or cold. It passes the next day leftover test, although the olive taste was a little more dominant.
Sicilian Potato Salad (Insalata di Patate)
Salad
2 pounds small red potatoes, peeled, cooked in boiling salted water just until tender, drained and quartered
1 celery heart, finely chopped
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 cup black Sicilian olives, drained, pitted and chopped (I use less)
1/4 cup capers (optional)
1 gherkin (optional), finely chopped
a few sprigs fresh Italian parsley, finely chopped
Vinaigrette
1/2 cup Sicilian or other olive oil
2 Tbsp. dry Marsala wine
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1. In a deep salad bowl, put cook potatoes and add celery, onions, olive, capers, pickle, and parsley. Toss lightly to combine.
2. Whisk vinaigrette ingredients together in a small bowl and pour over the salad. Toss lightly, making sure evenly distributed and serve.
Makes 6 to 8 servings.
21:08 Posted in Books , Summer Meals , Vegetables and Salads , Wheat, Egg and Dairy Free | Permalink | Comments (2) | Email this