Beware, picky eaters…

The world is divided into two camps-those who love beets and those who hate them. I’m firmly in the first camp, though I wasn’t always. It took my friend Jan and her perfectly roasted beets to change my mind. I think the problem was that I had never had beets prepared properly. In fact, I believe, correctly or not, that proper preparation is the key for anyone to like any food. And I often feel the need to prove it.

When people tell me that they don’t like a particular food I’m usually a little incredulous. I try to be tolerant, but often feel it is my duty to prove picky eaters wrong. Case in point, my friend Sydney despises eggs. She will steer clear of anything with the slightness whiff of egg. She doesn’t eat her father’s pancakes because they are too eggy. Once when she was visiting, I made a delicious custard-based (a.k.a egg-based) ginger ice cream and served it for dessert. I waited for her to taste it and I asked how she liked it. When she said, “Yum, delicious!” and took another bite. I jumped up and yelled, “Ha! Got you. There are six egg yolks in that ice cream!”

I never said I was the most congenial hostess, but don’t worry, if you are allergic to shellfish, I won’t sneak in any shrimp. If you are a vegetarian, I’ll use vegetable stock rather than my normal chicken stock. But if you tell me that you hate mushrooms, I just might chop them into teeny, tiny pieces and serve them to you hidden in a meatloaf. Fair warning, you picky eaters, you.

Thankfully, my husband is an excellent eater. The only thing I will occasionally find pushed to the side of his plate is raw green peppers. I guess I’m not hiding them well enough.

We both are beet lovers and fall is a great time to get them. This past weekend I went to the Hudson Farmers market. Red Oak Farm had beautiful red and golden beets. I picked up a bunch of each, roasted them, sliced them and served them with a roasted chicken. The two beet colors were quite pretty together. My husband and I ate them all. I meant saved some so that I could try a new recipe, but didn’t set any aside.

Earlier this week, with a deadline looming and a preference for local produce, I got on the phone and called some farms. I called Fog and Thistle to see if their road-side stand was open and if they had beets. It wasn’t open but a nice person offered to go out, in the rain no less, and pull some beets for me. Got to love that!

Red Oak and Fog and Thistle have become my favorite farms. Of course anyone who helps me out of a beet crisis gets points in my book, but I like both farms for two reasons. One, they are organic and two, they are reasonably priced, satisfying both my frugal nature and my quest for healthy food. They give me hope that you can eat pesticide free produce on a budget!


Roasted Beets
If you have particularly large beets, or just want to speed up the cooking time, half or quarter them before roasting.

Beet juice can stain your skin, so wear kitchen gloves if you don’t want pink fingertips. I also like to peel them in the sink to contain any beet juice splatter.

Ingredients
2 pounds medium beets
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Method

  • Heat the oven to 400 degrees.
  • Rinse the beets and trim off any leafy tops, cut any large beets into smaller pieces.
  • Place beets in a deep-sided pan, add water and cover with foil.
  • Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until beets can be pierced with a fork and the skin comes off easily.
  • Peel and slice the beets. Drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Serve warm.

Serves 4-6

This post is part of Fight Back Fridays at The Food Renegade!

Pears

As a kid, I mainly ate two kinds of pears. The first kind were canned. For any special occasion at my grandparents, we would start in the den with shrimp cocktail. Then we would move to the dining room where at each place setting was a glass plate with tomato aspic for the adults and pear salad for the kids. For the pear salad, my grandmother would set a pear-half on a leaf of iceberg lettuce. She would add a dollop of mayonnaise in the center of the pear and top it with a sprinkle of cheddar cheese. Did I just hear all of you mayonnaise haters groan?

The other kind of pear was the kind that grew on the first tree outside of our backdoor. This was a large tree, easily higher than the window of my sister’s second floor bedroom. These pears were hard, gritty and rather bitter. I would occasionally pick one and eat it, but was never impressed with them. I was always under the impression that they just were not good eating pears.

Turns out, maybe I just wasn’t harvesting them right. The pears’ gritty texture is due to something called stone cells. The best way to minimize stone cells is to pick unripe pears and allow them to ripen off the tree. Done correctly, the texture is smooth and the pear is juicy.

Asian pears, totally different in both taste and texture to European pears (the typical ones grown around here), are one exception and should be allowed to ripen on the tree.

Nutritionally speaking, pears are a good source of fiber, have a bit of potassium and vitamin C – good things to have in a healthy snack.

At the farmers market last week, I picked up three types of pears, Bosc, Bartlett, and Comice. Barlette pears are light green and will turn more yellow when ripened. Bosc pears have a classic pear shape and a cinnamon-brown colored russeting. Comice pears, small in size, are the cutest, most perfect pears. I’d buy them just to look at them. Fortunately, they are not only adorable, they are also juicy and delicious. They are my favorite pear.

Store pears at room temperature until they start to soften. When ripe, they should give gently when pressed. Once ripened, store them in the fridge.

I do think about driving by my old house, picking some pears and letting them ripen properly. I wonder if they might boot Comice pears out of my favorite pear spot. I’d like to think that they would.

Redesign: in the works!

I’m working on a new look for the blog. It may be awhile before I land on anything I want to stick with, so don’t be surprised if things keep evolving. Suggestions and comments are welcomed!

Almond Date Balls and “I Will Not Diet”

My friend Molly McCaffrey writes a blog called “I Will Not Diet. No, it isn’t a gluttonous free-for-all. She focuses on healthy eating and exercise as a lifestyle, without falling prey to yo-yo fad diets. She also explores our culture’s attitude toward curvy women. It is insightful, informative and often humorous — a good read for sure.

She teaches English and creative writing at Western Kentucky University and September means back to school. For Molly, school means long hours and stressful days — a bad combination when you are trying to eat healthy. She is able to ward off the potential quick fix of a fast-food burger, by following a simple motto — be prepared.

Knowing that her weeknights will be hectic, Molly and her husband do their cooking on the weekend. They each make a big meal and parse it out for the week. They cook once, but make enough to have four healthy ready-made meals during the week. No need to order out for pizza.

She is also prepared when it comes to snacks. Molly finds that if she has a healthy snack every couple of hours, she can avoid junk food during the day, and when she gets home in the evening, she isn’t famished, so she eats a more sensible dinner.

Molly brings small snacks to work. Her snacks range from a piece of cheese and an apple or container of yogurt to a fancy cottage cheese dip with raw vegetables like red peppers, cucumbers and carrots. She makes the cheese dip often. It’s a Moosewood Cookbook recipe and is made by blending cottage cheese, feta, dill and green onions. Sounds like something good to have on hand. When you have easy access to healthy food, you are less likely to be tempted by the processed junk from the vending machine.

I am a big snacker myself, so I decided to experiment with various nut and granola bars. I wanted something easy to eat on the go and a bar fit that bill. The nut bar recipe I made was delicious, but was certainly not a bar. The crumbly mixture was excellent as a yogurt topping, but wasn’t the portable snack I wanted.

The granola bars were just OK, nothing too special, but they were portable. I’ll need to work on both of those recipes a bit more before they will be ready for prime time. Stay tuned. In the meantime, I switched my attention to other healthy homemade snacks.

Date balls were easy and delicious. I don’t know why I’m just discovering them now. You do need a food processor, but no oven is required. They have about 60 calories each. The good thing is those calories are comprised of all nutrient-dense ingredients. Plus it only takes one or two to satisfy my sweet tooth. Candy bars usually check in at about 250 calories, with rarely anything of nutritional value (dark chocolate, containing antioxidants, is the exception).

I made the date balls with almonds. Experiment with other nuts. Next time I plan to try pistachios.

Molly has it right. Instead of not allowing yourself to snack between meals, be prepared with healthy snacks and keep your change out of those vending machines!

Almond Date Balls

Ingredients:
2 cups California dates, pitted
1 cup sliced almonds
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 tablespoon maple syrup (optional)
1/4 cup shredded dried unsweetened coconut (look for organic coconut with “coconut” as the only ingredient)

Method:

  • Pulse dates, almonds, almond extract and maple syrup in a food processor until the mixture forms a ball and easily sticks together.
  • Roll into balls and then roll in dried coconut to coat.

That’s it. Pretty darn easy!

Makes 25 small balls. Store in the fridge.

Fall Farmers Markets

I started to write this article this past spring. I glanced at the calendar and noticed that it is September. Is anyone else wondering where the summer went? I certainly am.

As excited as I am every May for the return of farmers markets, it’s really the late summer and early fall that is my favorite time to go to them. The tomatoes and peaches are still around while all of the fall crops are starting to elbow their way in. The tables are crowded. It’s truly a cornucopia of fresh food.

When I go to the grocery store, I have a list. I go with purpose, want to get what is on my list and get out. That is the opposite of how I shop at farmers markets.

For the farmers market, I like to go without an agenda. I may hope that the plums are still there, or that the winter squash has started to come in, but I never go with a list. I like to be inspired by what looks particularly good that day.

I like to wander around the market and linger about before I buy anything. I want to see all of my options before then I start to formulate meal ideas. Dinner plans revolve around what I pick up at the market.

This past weekend, I went to the Catskill Farmers’ Market. This year it was moved from the Catskill Point to smack in the middle of Main Street. I like the change. I’ve always thought that downtown Catskill looks like a movie set. The white tents and live music add a festive feel to the cute town.

If you have a freezer or know your way around a pressure cooker, stock up. I’m always happy to grab locally grown produce out of my freezer in February.

Go out this weekend to your farmers market or local farm stand and soak it in. I’m guessing this fall will pass by with the same speed that summer did, so no lollygagging!

Cantaloupe and Sopressata Salad

photo of canaloupe saladThis is my all-time favorite cantaloupe salad recipe. I’m happy that in September, there are still plenty of cantaloupes at the farmers market.

Ingredients

3-4 lbs cantaloupe, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/4 inch chunks (see note)
1/2 cup sopressata salami, diced
1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

Method

  • Combine cantaloupe chunks, sopressata and basil in a large salad bowl.
  • In a small bowl, whisk lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper.
  • Pour dressing over cantaloupe, toss to coat, and serve.

Serves six.

Note: Cantaloupe 101- After washing the melon, slice it in half and scoop out the seeds. Slice into wedges then carefully cut the orange flesh away from the rind.

Cantaloupe Bread

My mom’s friend Sandy and her husband have a farm stand in Virginia. He does the farming; she runs the stand. My husband and I visited it this summer. They had a couple of large bins filled with cantaloupe. I asked Sandy to help me pick out a good, sweet one.

She started picking up the melons and sniffing them. She handed me one and said that it seemed like a good one but she wasn’t sure. She picked up another and gave it to us in case the first one wasn’t sweet. We picked out beautiful tomatoes, green beans and blue potatoes. We must have gotten the friend discount because she only requested a 10 spot.

On the way out, she ran to our car with yet another cantaloupe. “Just in case,” she said. With that, it became our favorite farm stand.

Smelling a cantaloupe is the best way to tell if it is ripe. It should have a pleasantly sweet aroma. If it has too strong of a fragrance, the melon most likely will be overripe.

Also look at the color underneath the netting on the skin. A ripe melon will be creamy white or yellow. Green indicates that the melon isn’t completely ripe. An unripe cantaloupe will ripen on your kitchen counter, but it doesn’t get sweeter. My understanding that for the sweetest melons, it is best to pick ones that have ripened in the field.

You’ll also want a melon that feels heavy for its size, is firm and doesn’t have any soft spots. Soft spots are a sign that it is overripe or has been bruised.

When preparing cantaloupe, it’s important to wash the outside before cutting. Whatever is on the outside can be transferred to the melon’s flesh when it’s cut. Wash the melon under running water and use a vegetable brush to gently scrub it.

Cantaloupes sport a bit of health prowess. One of my favorite sites for nutrition information is the World’s Healthiest Foods. It is well-sourced and gives nutritional profiles on everything from soy sauce to lima beans. It also makes me want to eat whatever it is I’m researching.

For example, the site gushes about the health properties of cantaloupe. Cantaloupe is an excellent source of vitamin A, vitamin C, a very good source of potassium and a good source of vitamin B6, dietary fiber, folate, and niacin (vitamin B3). According to the site, eating cantaloupe promotes lung health, protects your vision and reduces risk of death from heart disease, stroke and cancer. Wow, it’s a veritable wonder drug! Give me some!

As I was looking for recipes, I started wondering why you rarely see any recipes for cooked cantaloupe. I’m guessing it’s because cooked cantaloupe doesn’t sound appealing. I imagined that it would tastes a bit like overly ripe cantaloupe, which, in my opinion, can be summed up in one word: yuck.

Actually, cooked cantaloupe tastes a bit like cooked pumpkin. That’s no wonder since they are close cousins both haling from the Cucurbitaceae family. This explains why cantaloupe worked great in a sweet quick bread but my cantaloupe cobbler experiment didn’t go so well. My husband said that he liked it but I wonder if that is just something a sweet husband tells his wife to keep on her good side.

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cup whole-wheat flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/3 cup coconut oil or melted unsalted butter
1 egg
2/3 cup honey
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup walnuts, chopped
2 cup cantaloupe, peeled, seeded and chopped (see note)

Method

  • Heat oven to 350º F.
  • Greased and flour an 8 x 4 inch loaf pan.
  • In a large bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
  • In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together coconut oil, egg, honey, milk and vanilla and add to flour mixture.
  • Place cantaloupe in a food processor and pulse a few times, until finely chopped. You may also either finely chop the cantaloupe or mash it with a potato masher.
  • Add cantaloupe and nuts to mixture and mix until combined.
  • Turn mixture into the prepared loaf pan and bake for 45-55 minutes.
  • Cool and serve.

Note: Cantaloupe 101- After washing the melon, slice it in half and scoop out the seeds. Slice into wedges then carefully cut the orange flesh away from the rind.

I’m sharing this recipe on:
The Nourishing Gourmet

Easy Peasy and Absolutely Delish Salmon Kebabs

Fish is one of those things that we hear we should add to our diets. According to the Harvard School of Public Health, fish is an excellent source of heart-protecting omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin D and selenium, is high in protein and low in saturated fat. They recommend eating one to two three-ounce servings of fish a week. Fatty fish such as salmon, herring, mackerel, anchovies or sardines are particularly beneficial.

Unfortunately, we also hear that some types of fish are full of mercury or PCBs and other seafood is endangered of being over fished.

It’s hard to keep track of all of it. To help sort it out, the Monterey Bay Aquarium has a Super Green list of seafood that is both healthy for you and caught or farmed in environmentally friendly ways. To make the list, fish must have low levels of contaminants, a minimum of 250 milligrams omega-3 fatty acids and be well-managed and caught or farmed in environmentally friendly ways.

Sadly, there aren’t a lot of choices on this list. According to the guide, as of May 2010, the Best of the Best is Albacore Tuna (troll- or pole-caught, from the U.S. or British Columbia), Freshwater Coho Salmon (farmed in tank systems, from the U.S.), Mussels (farmed), Oysters (farmed), Pacific Sardines (wild-caught), Rainbow Trout (farmed), Salmon (wild-caught, from Alaska).

They also include a list of second best choices. These fish contain less omega-3 fatty acids than their top picks. This list includes Arctic Char (farmed), Bay Scallops (farmed), Crayfish (farmed, from the U.S.), Dungeness Crab (wild-caught, from California, Oregon or Washington), Longfin Squid (wild-caught, from the U.S. Atlantic), Pacific Cod (longline-caught, from Alaska)

Local Ocean, in Hudson, NY, has come up with an innovative solution to both over-fishing and environmental contamination. It uses a closed salt-water system and raises fish that are both sustainable and pollutant free. I like that. They currently sell to restaurants, but I’m told they will open a retail outlet this fall. I’ll be waiting by the door.

Until they open, I will be consulting my guide and buying fish on the Super Green List. When buying fish, if you don’t see the origin listed, ask. You don’t want to end up with farm raised Atlantic salmon when you are looking for wild caught Alaskan salmon, now do you?

Salmon is a nice firm fish and excellent for kebabs. Kebabs are one of my favorite ways to cook food on the grill. Just about anything you can skewer, you can grill. Some things, like garlic, are tricky. You have to pick large cloves so they don’t split open when you stab them. With softer items, like tomatoes, be sure to cut big pieces. Cherry tomatoes work great on kebabs. My new favorite thing to kebab is fruit.


Pancetta Salmon Kebabs on Arugula

My sister-in-law Tori calls these “Easy Peasy and Absolutely Delish Kebabs.” I have to agree. She modified the recipe from Sunset Magazine. I tweaked it a bit more.

You’ll need eight skewers (two per serving). If you are using wooden ones, be sure to soak them in water for a couple of hours to prevent the whole thing from catching on fire!

Ingredients:

5 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 to 2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper, divided
1 1/2 pounds skinned salmon filet (wild caught, Alaskan preferred)
4 ounces thinly sliced pancetta
3 teaspoons chopped parsley
4 cups arugula, washed and dried


Method:

  • Combine 1/4 cup oil, vinegar, garlic and salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a bowl. Set dressing aside.
  • Cut salmon into one-inch chunks.
  • Prepare grill for high heat (450° to 550F°).
  • In a large bowl, combine remaining tablespoon of oil with remaining 1/4 teaspoon of pepper. Add salmon to bowl and gently mix to thoroughly coat.
  • Wrap each salmon cube with pancetta, then skewer each wrapped chunk.
  • Oil cooking grate, using tongs and a wad of oiled paper towels. Set kebabs on grate and grill covered, turning once, until salmon is barely cooked through, about four minutes total.
  • Toss arugula in dressing and divide onto four plates.
  • Set two kebabs on the arugula bed and serve.

Barbecued Baby Back Ribs in a Slow Cooker

Photograph by Kate Sears

I think I’m like most people and consider the slow cooker strictly a winter appliance. It’s for making piping-hot casseroles and hearty stews. It is kept neatly stored all summer. There is no room for it on the counter with all of the bags of fresh produce we lug home.

Then something happened that changed my perspective on slow cookers. That something was “The New Slow Cooker” by Brigit Binns. We are lucky to have Brigit living among us in the Hudson Valley. She is an awesome cook and prolific cookbook writer — a marvelous combination. Not only does she know her way around the kitchen, she shares her immense culinary knowledge and spot-on recipes.

It’s always good to know someone who is working on a cookbook. There’s lots of testing and, more importantly, eating involved. Brigit was recently working on a new one. Being good eaters, my husband and I happily volunteered to come over and do our part. We are always helpful that way.

On one such visit, I spied a brand-spanking-new cookbook, “The New Slow Cooker.” These aren’t your grandma’s crock pot recipes. The eye-candy photos are inspiring, as are all the dishes that scream summer. Yes, summer dishes in a slow cooker! I went home, cleared some counter space and let my slow cooker see the summer sun.

Williams-Sonoma was nice enough to let me reprint a couple of my favorite recipes from Brigit’s book.

“The New Slow Cooker” is currently available in Williams-Sonoma stores and online at www.williams-sonoma.com.

Barbecued Baby Back Ribs

Reprinted with permission from Williams-Sonoma The New Slow Cooker.
Photograph by Kate Sears; recipe by Brigit Binns. Copyright 2010 by Weldon Owen Inc. and Williams-Sonoma Inc.

1 tablespoon bacon drippings or canola oil
1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup (8 oz/250 g) ketchup
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons dry white wine
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons chipotle chile powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon celery salt
Salt
1/8 teaspoon Tabasco or other hot pepper sauce, or to taste
5 pounds (2.5 kg) baby back ribs

Apple-Fennel Slaw for serving (see below; optional)

Makes six servings.

To make the barbecue sauce, in a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat, warm the bacon drippings. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until softened, about five minutes. Stir in the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, wine, lemon zest and juice, brown sugar, mustard, chile powder, cumin, celery salt, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low and cook very gently, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching, until slightly thickened, about 12 minutes. Stir in the Tabasco and taste for seasoning. Use right away, or preferably let cool, cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours before using.

Preheat the broiler. Trim the membrane from the back of each rack, then cut into individual ribs. Arrange the ribs on a rack set in a rimmed baking sheet. Broil, turning once, until browned on both sides, 10 to 12 minutes.

Transfer the ribs to a slow cooker, add the barbecue sauce and turn the ribs to coat evenly. Cover and cook on the low setting for five to six hours. The ribs should be very tender.

Using a slotted spatula, transfer the ribs to a large platter and keep warm. Pour the sauce into a small saucepan, let stand for few minutes and skim away the fat from the sauce with a large spoon. Bring to a boil over high heat and boil rapidly to reduce and thicken slightly, three to four minutes.

Arrange the ribs on warm individual plates and drizzle with some of the reduced sauce. If using, mound the slaw alongside the ribs. Serve at once.

Apple-Fennel Slaw

In a large bowl, whisk together 1/4 cup (2 fl oz/60 ml) each fresh lime juice, sour cream and mayonnaise; 1/2 teaspoon each salt and chile powder, preferably chipotle; 1 1/4 teaspoons sugar; and 3 1/4 cups (3 1/4 oz/20 g) fresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped. Add 2 large fennel bulbs, quartered lengthwise, cored and thinly sliced crosswise; and 2 small tart red or green apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced. Toss to mix. Cover and refrigerate for one hour before serving to allow the flavors to marry.

Grilled Whole Chicken

In the summer heat, my goal is to turn on the oven as little as possible. We have a small kitchen and no air conditioning so, when it gets too hot in the kitchen, we do indeed get out of it.

Thankfully we have a grill. My husband and I got a beautiful grill as a wedding gift. We were eager to get it up and running because we had invited people over for a pre-wedding cookout and our new grill would play an important roll in that event.

Since in a few days we were expecting 50 plus people in our backyard, we opted to go pick up the grill from Sears instead of waiting to have it delivered. Loading the heavy, large, flat box into our truck was the first clue that “some assembly required” took liberties with the word “some.”

Assembling a grill with 42 pages of instructions should be a requirement for all engaged couples. You find out interesting things about your betrothed that may have otherwise taken years to uncover. For instance, you may discover that your wife-to-be always likes to try everything without first reading the directions on the off chance that she can figure it out on her own. Or maybe your groom, when frustrated, tends to use a hammer when other, more appropriate tools, like a screwdriver, might work better.

I’m not saying that if you don’t pass this grill-building test, that you shouldn’t get married; I’m just suggesting that it will give you some important framework to navigate your marriage.

“Oh, Kara, remember the grill incident. Read the directions, honey.”

The pressure of a wedding combined with the impending cookout was intense, as was the usually warm May weather. Knowing us, we probably started the project on empty stomachs with a package of hot dogs on stand by for the fully assembled grill. No matter, we finished the task and still agreed to marry each other, even if we did end up with a couple of wayward bolts.

Since then, I’ve been burning up all kinds of things on the grill. I think I just get excited and want to rush things along. I turn on the grill full blast; throw whatever I’m cooking on. I close the lid and walk away. I am always very disappointed when I open the lid to see that my juicy hamburgers have turned into little black hockey pucks. Dang.

Lately, I’ve decided to master the grill. The first thing I did was read our grill’s manual. Second, I learned the value of indirect heat. Not everything needs a burning hot flame under it to cook. If you have a gas grill, indirect heat is a snap. Just turn on the burners for one half of the grill and cook on the other half. With a charcoal grill, you just have to maneuver the hot coals either to one side or around the edges. Indirect heat is a must for things that require a long cooking time, like a whole chicken.

Real grill aficionados pooh-pooh our gas grill in favor of hardwood lump charcoal. It burns hot and imparts a natural smoky flavor. It’s also usually a natural product without the chemical additives that charcoal briquettes can sometimes have. My interests are certainly piqued and I plan to try it the next time I’m around a charcoal grill.

Until then, I’ll keep perfecting my gas-grilling skills and wait for the day when something falls off our beautiful grill so that we will finally know where those extra bolts were supposed to go.


Grilled Whole Chicken

I love cooking whole chickens, but usually relegate that task to the winter kitchen. I was happy to discover that I can get excellent results with a whole chicken on the grill. Now I can enjoy it year round. Use any leftover chicken for chicken salad and be sure to make stock out of the bones.

I always brine my birds. The process captures and holds moisture, giving you a nice juicy chicken.

Ingredients

Whole chicken, about 3 pounds
1/4 cup salt
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 orange (or half of a grapefruit or 2 lemons)
1 tablespoon olive oil or butter
Pepper, salt, cayenne

Method

  • The night or morning before you plan to grill, place chicken in a large bowl or pot and cover with water.
  • Mix salt and minced garlic in about a cup of warm water and stir until dissolved. Add mixture to the pot/bowl with the chicken.
  • Refrigerate and soak for four to 12 hours.
  • After brining, rinse the chicken in cold, running water. Pat dry.
  • Quarter the orange and place in chicken cavity (make sure you remove the neck and giblets if there are any).
  • Rub the chicken with olive oil or butter and generously sprinkle with pepper and salt. Add cayenne pepper according to your spice preference.
  • Prepare grill for indirect grilling. If using a gas grill, heat one side to medium-high and leave the other side off. If using a charcoal grill, light the briquettes. When they glow red, scoot them to the sides, leaving an empty space in the middle of the grill.
  • Once the grill is hot, you’ll want to oil the grates. This can be done using a basting brush (a silicone one works well. Make sure it is meant for high heat), or you may ball up a couple of paper towels, dip them in oil and, using tongs, rub the towels over the grates.
  • Place chicken, breast side down, on the grill rack over direct heat; close the lid and cook for five minutes. Using tongs inserted into the cavity, turn chicken over, close the lid and cook five minutes.
  • Move chicken over to the indirect heat side. Close the lid and cook 40 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted into the beast registers 165°. If you don’t have a thermometer, cook until the juices run clear.
  • When the chicken is getting close to done, brush with barbecue sauce, if desired.
  • Remove from grill and let rest for 10 minutes.

Serves four.

Yep, Onion Sandwiches!

onion SandwichDid you catch the NPR story about a retired postal worker? After 37 years on the job, Chester Reed recently retired from the post office. What is remarkable about the story is that he never called in sick. Never. He wracked up 3,856 hours of sick leave. The other remarkable thing is that Chester is 95 years old.

When asked what his secret was, he quickly replied, “Garlic. And onion sandwiches.” Chester’s recipe is to take two slices of bread, put lots of mayonnaise on both slices, cut a “great big slice of onion” and put it between the bread and eat it!

Of course, being an onion lover, I had to make one. And then I had to make another version that my neighbor John told me about. Instead of mayo, one bread slice gets peanut butter (yes, that’s right, peanut butter) and the other gets mustard. Yu-um!

To your health!

Worth a listen: Postal Worker Retires At 95, Onion Sandwich In Hand

Summer Lettuce Soups

lettuce soupMy husband and I, woefully, have a very shaded backyard. Nothing but hostas and the occasional mushroom grow there. Fortunately, we have been able to dig into two community gardens. We have a small plot in the Catskill Community Garden and we share another garden with friends in Athens.

Lettuce has always done well in our Athens plot. This year was no exception. I feel a bit disrespectful to the prolific plants, but I’m getting a little tired of eating salad. We pick and pick and there is still more. Plus, it’s all starting to bolt. That in garden speak means it’s about to go to seed. We need to eat it all before it does. I know, it’s hard to hear someone whine about having too many garden-fresh greens, but if you’re like me, you might be trying to think of ways to use your bumper crop.

This year we planted mache, also known as corn salad or lamb’s lettuce. I wasn’t sure how to pronounce it. One of the garden friends, David, learned the proper pronunciation when he was in a restaurant in Paris and he saw mache soup on the menu. He asked what mache soup was. The waiter, with just the right amount of distain that one would hope for in a Parisian waiter, corrected David’s pronunciation and quipped that an American just wouldn’t understand, but it was a type of lettuce.

I learned two things. One, how to correctly pronounce mache (it rhymes with “posh”) and two, you can make soup from lettuce. The waiter was probably right. I dare say, most Americans’ reaction might be, “Lettuce soup?!” said, perhaps, with a bit of disgust. We like our lettuce crisp.

If you can set aside any preconceived notions about lettuce, a whole new culinary world opens up. You can toss it in a stir-fry, throw it on the grill and yes, make lettuce soup. Lettuce soup is delicious, healthy and frugal. The beauty of this soup is that it works fine with lettuce that’s a little past its prime. I’m not suggesting that you use rotting lettuce, but the wilting lettuce that you bought at the farmers market last weekend might be the perfect candidate.

I tried two versions, a cold uncooked one and a cooked version, which was delicious both hot and chilled. The cold version was a delightfully bright-green color. The cooked version was not. The combo of the potatoes and balsamic vinegar darken the color considerably. My preference is for the uncooked version. It is a nice, bright, refreshingly tangy soup. It was a little too tart for my husband. He loved the rich, cooked version. My favorite self-serve farm stand has bags of lettuce for a buck each, so it won’t break the bank to try both!

Lettuce can often collect dirt, especially if you are picking it fresh after a hard night’s rain. There is a trick to washing greens. First trim off the roots and separate the leaves and rinse. Place leaves in a large bowl of water and swish them around a bit. It’s important to lift the lettuce out of the water since the dirt will fall to the bottom of the bowl. You may need to repeat this a couple of times.

Tangy Lettuce Soup
If you love things on the tart side, use two tablespoons of lemon juice. Use any type of lettuce. Try adding a few herbs, like basil, mint or parsley to get a more complex flavor.

Ingredients
5-6 cups lettuce, torn into small pieces
1/3 cup onions chopped
2 cups plain yogurt
1/3 cup water
1-2 Tablespoons lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

  • Place all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Add more water if the soup it too thick. Season with salt and pepper.
  • Refrigerate a few hours before serving. Taste and adjust seasonings.

Garnish with thin slices of radish or carrot. Serves 4 as a first course.


Potato Lettuce Soup
I like to make this with peppery arugula.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
5 cups of water or vegetable stock
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
5-6 cups of lettuce, torn into small pieces
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
Plain yogurt for garnish (optional)

Method

  • In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat until hot. Add onions and sauté until onions become translucent.
  • Add potatoes and garlic and sauté for couple of minutes, stirring often. Be careful not to let the garlic brown.
  • Add water, salt and pepper. Simmer for ten minutes
  • Add lettuce and simmer until the potatoes are soft. Add vinegar and adjust seasoning.
  • Use an immersion blender to puree soup. You can also use a traditional blender. Let the soup cool a bit before transferring it to the blender. Be sure to keep a towel and your hand firmly on the blender lid. Hot soup has a tendency to spew. Serve warm or chilled with a dollop of plain yogurt.

Serves 4 as a first course.

Summer Stawberry Ice Cream

When I was a kid we usually made two kinds of ice cream, peach and strawberry. I knew it was special for a couple of reasons. First, we only had it in the summer when the fruit was freshly picked. I don’t think anyone would have stood for canned or rock hard out-of-season peaches. Second, it took a long time to make.

We had a hand-cranked ice cream churner, the kind that used rock salt and ice. We always made ice cream when there was a big crowd. I’m guessing that is because of the abundance of free child labor. If you knew ice cream was being made, you tried to stay away from the porch. If got too close and made eye contact with any adult, you would be summoned to take your turn churning.

These days, I have an electric ice cream maker. No rock salt is needed so the process is much simpler. Here’s how I usually make ice cream: I glance around my kitchen and see what I have and improvise.

This week, I picked up some-fresh-from-the-field strawberries and thought they would be perfect for the summer’s first ice cream. In a bowl, I added a couple of cups of milk (I use cream when I have it). I eyeballed it for two people. Trying to stay on the non-refined sugar train, I added honey. I then added vanilla extract and a dash of salt. I tasted and adjusted for flavor. Then I grabbed the ice cream maker from the freezer, plugged it in and started churning.

Now, when you cook this way, you have some successes and you have some failures. Somehow this honey strawberry ice cream missed the mark. My husband claimed to have liked it, but I didn’t. I think the honey was too floral for my taste.

It would break my heart to throw out perfectly good milk and strawberries so like many of my mistakes, I transformed it. I let it melt, added flour and baking powder and made strawberry bread. It was ok, still not great. From there, my husband sliced it and made French toast—much, much better. Finally, I turned the leftovers into bread pudding, which is the most common final resting place for all things bread in our kitchen—perfect.

But it wasn’t the strawberry ice cream I had been craving, so I started again and used sugar this time. It tasted just like summer!

If I want to make ice cream on the fly, I make a Philadelphia style, which doesn’t use eggs or require cooking and cooling.

You will need an ice cream maker for this recipes. One fun one to get is an Play and Freeze Ice Cream Maker Ball). Once the ball is frozen, you add the ingredients and roll it around until the ice cream is done. How fun is that?

Modified from The Fannie Farmer Cookbook.

Philadelphia-Style Ice Cream with Strawberries

Ingredients
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups of milk
1/4 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon vanilla extract (or whole vanilla bean)
3 cups fresh strawberries, chopped

Method

  • Whisk all ingredients together until the sugar has dissolved.
  • Place in ice cream maker and churn according to your ice cream maker’s instructions.
  • Serve freshly churned. This one doesn’t freeze as well as the custard.

Makes 1 1/2 quarts.

Eat your weeds!

After college I lived in Richmond, Virginia in a section of town called Oregon Hill. My roommate Rebby and I planted a garden in the back of our row house. Neither Oregon Hill nor city backyard vegetable gardens were particularly fashionable at the time, but that didn’t matter to us.

Once, when weeding, Rebby pulled a weed, examined it, tasted it and declared that she thought it was sorrel. She pulled and tasted many so called weeds. In doing so, she had our garden rows looking very tidy and forever changed my perspective on weeds.

There are all kinds of weeds you can eat: dandelion, chicory, wild violets, purslane, plantain, stinging nettle, burdock root and, believe it or not, kudzu. I have not tried kudzu, but apparently you can eat the leaves like spinach and use the root, which is called Japanese arrowroot as a thickening agent. In true southern form, you can also batter and fry the leaves.

Kudzu is very invasive so it is often sprayed with herbicide. You’ll want to stay away from sprayed kudzu. Also be sure to stay away from that other ubiquitous highway weed, poison ivy.

In fact, when foraging for weeds, I mean, edible plants, there are many things to keep in mind. For one, not everyone loves weeds and loathes chemicals as much as I do so be careful where you gather. Pick a clean, herbicide and pet-free field. Second, not all weeds are edible plants. If you aren’t certain, skip them or check a guidebook.

An easy to identify weed is the much loved and much hated dandelion. Health wise, the list of the beneficial properties of dandelions is as long as my arm. Dandelion greens are rich in calcium, iron, vitamins A and C, and beta-carotene. They have antioxidants properties, aid with liver disorders, diabetes, urinary disorders, acne, jaundice, cancer and anemia. They are a diuretic and a good detoxifier. So eat up!

My husband and I recently went to a Cornell Cooperative Extension Office rain barrel workshop up in the mountains in Maplecrest. My friend Bridget said that it is now trendy to sport dandelions in your lawn. It shows the world that you are eschewing polluting the environment with chemicals. Up on the mountain they, thankfully, got that memo. It is full-blown dandelion season there. Lawn and fields alike are covered with the beautiful yellow flowers.

We pulled into a hiking trial parking lot, grabbed a bag and headed up the trail. We quickly filled our bag with a combo of dandelion leaves and flowers. We also bagged a few bugs, so I would recommend giving them a good rinse before you bring your haul inside.

We picked enough flowers for Andrew to give dandelion wine a try. I’ll let you know in a few months how it turns out!