I'm back! I took a trip up north, spent quite a bit of time cooking at my sister in law's (basic stuff like green bean casserole and sweet potato crunch. I didn't share the recipe because, well, it's.. one is super easy and pointless to post, and the other is a recipe in the family and I'm not sure how happy they'd be if it went public.)
Considering it's a new year, I refuse to cook things that you know will turn out tasting like dirt. There are just things I like and things I don't and there's not much one's going to do to it to change my mind. On that note, I don't want to eat a lot of fried foods, red meats or things heavy in fatty oils -- like Crisco, margerine; I'm avoiding vegetable oil due to some finds I've come across. Logically speaking I'd post a link to that, but I can't find it right now.
So I'm making a vegetarian meal that sounds like it should actually be tasty.
Serves 4.
Cook time: assumedly 25-30 minutes.
Ingredients
4 eggplants, cut in half (I'm using two, because the store had three)
1 tb coarse sea salt
4 cloves garlic, chopped
4 thinly sliced onions
1 cup olive oil
1 tb freshly chopped parsely (guess who's using dried..)
2 large firm ripe tomatoes, chopped
Short version: stab the eggplant, leave it sit for an hour, cook the rest, cook the eggplant, put everything together and bake it.
Long version:
Make several deep cuts in the tops of the eggplants. Place in a colander and sprinkle with salt. Let drain for an hour. (Note: if you're going to cook rice on the side, or anything where the juice would be possibly included in the food while you're preparing, this would be good to use. The food would absorb any lost nutrients due to draining. I've been calling it the collard-green theory, because southerners often dab up the juice with corn bread).
Preheat the oven to 350.
Saute the garlic and onions in 2 tb of oil in a large pan over medium heat until browned. Season with salt, if desired. Add the tomatoes and simmer for 15 minutes.
Heat the remaining oil in a large frying pan until very hot. Fry the eggplants until the flesh is softened, about 10-15 minutes. Note: you can do this on lower heat, which would avoid destroying the chemical compounds found in the oil and the fruit. This is one reason why frying is generally bad.
Place the eggplants in a baking dish and fill with the onion mixture. Bake until tender -- roughly a half hour.
Sprinkle with the parsley and serve hot.
Considering I have more onion and tomato than eggplant, and I'm not really keen on frying it, I'm probably going to drain the eggplant after cutting it into strips. I'll saute like it says, but instead of frying the eggplant, I'll likely bake it for 10-20 minutes (which I can do while sauteing the other stuff) and then put it all together. This saves me from washing an extra pan, using up a lot of olive oil, and destroying good nutrients from the extra cooking process. I can't see how it would taste much differently, and having extra tomatoes -- therefore extra juice -- I'm not too scared of it drying out on me.
I may add a few potatoes, since, for one, I have a lot of potatoes; for another, I have company coming over; and for a third, I have a love for potatoes. Woo!
Wish me luck!
I try to share my whacky food ideas (I don't always like traditional meals) while working on a college student budget.
Enjoy!
Showing posts with label Tomatoes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tomatoes. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 10
Sunday, December 18
Recipe: seafood sausage gumbo
Let me preface this by saying that Heather donated a chicken from Earth Fare she said she'd never eat. I can't see why, but that means she used it as a buy in for this soup.
This soup is not cheap. So don't be angsty about my charging a buy-in. I've been pretty lenient this semester.
So, I am boiling the bird. Why? Because it was frozen. But I'll use that stock in with the gumbo. I can't see how that'd hurt anything. I do intend to de bone the bird, and if you choose to do the same thing then kudos -- it's a better soup, I think, when you go through the process like this. I know I love my turkey stock and I still have some left in the freezer.
As one can see from the recipe, this one is going to take me a lot longer. The roux will be 20-40 minutes; the shrimp shells simmer for 20; part 7 is 20 minutes; 8 is about 40-45. I'm sure I can multi-task, but some of that is a consistent bout of attention (see: the roux, which I'm scared I'll end up burning but such is how things go sometimes). I can definitely see this taking two hours. On the upside, my house should be quite warm. I'm also doing peppermint-brownies since it's so close to Christmas (a week!!) =)
It says it serves 10-12 - if you add a whole chicken this won't be the case anymore :P
3 lbs raw shrimp, in shell (yes, I'm boiling the shells with the water that the chicken's in right now.)
1.5 quarts water
4 onions, 2 quarters
4 bay leaves
3/4 cup veggie oil
1 cup all purpose flour
5 tb butter
2 green bell peppers
4 celery stalks
1.5 pounds polish or andouille sausage (we actually have some jimmy dean links that were on sale, so just about whatever sausage should work)
3 cups fresh okra (in my case, frozen, since it's December)
3 garlic cloves
1/2 ts thyme leaves
2 ts salt
Black pepper and white pepper
1 ts cayenne pepper
2 tb red pepper sauce
2 cups chopped plum tomatoes (or a sweet tomato of your choice)
1 pound fresh crab meat
boiled rice for serving
1: Peel and devein the shrimp. Keep the heads and shells. Cover and chill the shrimp while you make the sauce.
2: Place the shrimp heads and shells in a saucepan with the water, quartered onion and one of the bay leaves and let it boil. Partly cover the top and let it simmer for 20 minutes. Strain and set it all aside.
3: To make a Cajun roux, heat the oil in a heavy bottomed skillet. When the oil is hot, add the flour, a little at a time, and blend into a smooth paste.
4: Cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly for 25-40 minutes until the roux reaches the color of peanut butter. Remove the pan from the heat and continue stirring until the roux stops cooking and cools down.
5: Melt the butter in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Finely chop the remaining onions and add to the pan with the peppers and celery. Cook over medium-low heat for 6-8 minutes until the onions are soft, stirring occasionally.
6: Add the sausage, stir well, and cook for 5 minutes longer. Add the okra and garlic, stir, and cook until the okra stops producing white 'threads'.
7: Add the remaining bay leaves, thyme, salt, peppers, and make sure it's to taste. Stir well and then stir in 1.5 quarts of the shrimp stock and the plum tomatoes. Bring to a boil, partly cover the pan, lower the heat and let it simmer for about 20 minutes.
8: Whisk in the Cajun roux. Raise the heat and bring it to a boil, whisking well. Lower the heat again and simmer, uncovered, for 40-45 minutes,
9: Stir in the shrimp and crab meat. Cook for at least 3-4 minutes or until the shrimp turn pink.
10: To serve, put a mound of hot, boiled rice in each serving bowl and ladle the gumbo over, making sure everyone gets a little of everything. =)
This soup is not cheap. So don't be angsty about my charging a buy-in. I've been pretty lenient this semester.
So, I am boiling the bird. Why? Because it was frozen. But I'll use that stock in with the gumbo. I can't see how that'd hurt anything. I do intend to de bone the bird, and if you choose to do the same thing then kudos -- it's a better soup, I think, when you go through the process like this. I know I love my turkey stock and I still have some left in the freezer.
As one can see from the recipe, this one is going to take me a lot longer. The roux will be 20-40 minutes; the shrimp shells simmer for 20; part 7 is 20 minutes; 8 is about 40-45. I'm sure I can multi-task, but some of that is a consistent bout of attention (see: the roux, which I'm scared I'll end up burning but such is how things go sometimes). I can definitely see this taking two hours. On the upside, my house should be quite warm. I'm also doing peppermint-brownies since it's so close to Christmas (a week!!) =)
It says it serves 10-12 - if you add a whole chicken this won't be the case anymore :P
3 lbs raw shrimp, in shell (yes, I'm boiling the shells with the water that the chicken's in right now.)
1.5 quarts water
4 onions, 2 quarters
4 bay leaves
3/4 cup veggie oil
1 cup all purpose flour
5 tb butter
2 green bell peppers
4 celery stalks
1.5 pounds polish or andouille sausage (we actually have some jimmy dean links that were on sale, so just about whatever sausage should work)
3 cups fresh okra (in my case, frozen, since it's December)
3 garlic cloves
1/2 ts thyme leaves
2 ts salt
Black pepper and white pepper
1 ts cayenne pepper
2 tb red pepper sauce
2 cups chopped plum tomatoes (or a sweet tomato of your choice)
1 pound fresh crab meat
boiled rice for serving
1: Peel and devein the shrimp. Keep the heads and shells. Cover and chill the shrimp while you make the sauce.
2: Place the shrimp heads and shells in a saucepan with the water, quartered onion and one of the bay leaves and let it boil. Partly cover the top and let it simmer for 20 minutes. Strain and set it all aside.
3: To make a Cajun roux, heat the oil in a heavy bottomed skillet. When the oil is hot, add the flour, a little at a time, and blend into a smooth paste.
4: Cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly for 25-40 minutes until the roux reaches the color of peanut butter. Remove the pan from the heat and continue stirring until the roux stops cooking and cools down.
5: Melt the butter in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Finely chop the remaining onions and add to the pan with the peppers and celery. Cook over medium-low heat for 6-8 minutes until the onions are soft, stirring occasionally.
6: Add the sausage, stir well, and cook for 5 minutes longer. Add the okra and garlic, stir, and cook until the okra stops producing white 'threads'.
7: Add the remaining bay leaves, thyme, salt, peppers, and make sure it's to taste. Stir well and then stir in 1.5 quarts of the shrimp stock and the plum tomatoes. Bring to a boil, partly cover the pan, lower the heat and let it simmer for about 20 minutes.
8: Whisk in the Cajun roux. Raise the heat and bring it to a boil, whisking well. Lower the heat again and simmer, uncovered, for 40-45 minutes,
9: Stir in the shrimp and crab meat. Cook for at least 3-4 minutes or until the shrimp turn pink.
10: To serve, put a mound of hot, boiled rice in each serving bowl and ladle the gumbo over, making sure everyone gets a little of everything. =)
Sunday, September 25
Summer Tomato Soup: Recipe
I wanted to make something that, A: matched the season a bit and B: could go with the temperature. I get a lot of comments about making soup over the summer. 'But, Mel, it's hot out. It's not soup season yet!' Why not? Because soup is supposed to be hot, heavy, full of things like beans and beef and potatoes?
Any how, here's the recipe. Enjoy!
It says it serves 4. I'm assuming it does.
1 Tablespoon Olive oil
1 large onion, chopped.
1 carrot, chopped.
2 1/4 pounds ripe, quartered tomatoes
2 garlic cloves, chopped.
3 sprigs of fresh thyme, or 1/4 teaspoon dried
4-5 sprigs fresh marjoram, or 1/4 teaspoon dried (I might use a combination of dill and savory, because I ran out of marjoram and don't feel like buying more right this second.)
1 bay leaf
3 tablespoons of creme fraiche, or sour cream, or plain yogurt, plus a little more for garnish
Salt and ground pepper
1: Heat the olive oil in a large, preferably stainless steam saucepan or flameproof casserole. Add the onion and carrot and cook over medium heat, or until just soft, stirring occasionally.
2: Add the quartered tomatoes, chopped garlic and herbs. Lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.
3: Discard the bay leaf. Strain the soup, stir in the cream/yogurt and season. Leave to cool, then chill it in the fridge.
Note: it says here that you can use oregano instead of marjoram, and parsley instead of thyme.
Considering we're supposed to eat this in about seven hours, I think I'll get to it now to give it time to cool off. I hope it's good enough for dinner; it's supposed to be hot and stormy this afternoon, so I can't see why this wouldn't be a good idea. I think I may even do grilled cheese. =)
Any how, here's the recipe. Enjoy!
It says it serves 4. I'm assuming it does.
1 Tablespoon Olive oil
1 large onion, chopped.
1 carrot, chopped.
2 1/4 pounds ripe, quartered tomatoes
2 garlic cloves, chopped.
3 sprigs of fresh thyme, or 1/4 teaspoon dried
4-5 sprigs fresh marjoram, or 1/4 teaspoon dried (I might use a combination of dill and savory, because I ran out of marjoram and don't feel like buying more right this second.)
1 bay leaf
3 tablespoons of creme fraiche, or sour cream, or plain yogurt, plus a little more for garnish
Salt and ground pepper
1: Heat the olive oil in a large, preferably stainless steam saucepan or flameproof casserole. Add the onion and carrot and cook over medium heat, or until just soft, stirring occasionally.
2: Add the quartered tomatoes, chopped garlic and herbs. Lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.
3: Discard the bay leaf. Strain the soup, stir in the cream/yogurt and season. Leave to cool, then chill it in the fridge.
Note: it says here that you can use oregano instead of marjoram, and parsley instead of thyme.
Considering we're supposed to eat this in about seven hours, I think I'll get to it now to give it time to cool off. I hope it's good enough for dinner; it's supposed to be hot and stormy this afternoon, so I can't see why this wouldn't be a good idea. I think I may even do grilled cheese. =)
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