Garlic Shrimp with White Beans

We don't cook much seafood in o...

Why did I say "We".

I don't cook much seafood in our apartment.  I've mentioned this before, but a lot of seafood recipes require pan sauteeing that, with our lack of ventilation, leaves an unholy and stubborn fishy smell in our apartment for days.  Also, I'm not a fan of reheating seafood for leftovers--the texture and flavor get all funky on me.  But when I see a recipe that calls for roasting or broiling seafood, I perk up because the smell factor is not as much of an issue (still somewhat of an issue but not too bad), and I particularly perk up when the recipe is one where the cooking of the seafood can be quickly done and separately from the rest of the dish. That way, I can cook only the portion of seafood that we will be eating that night--the rest I can cook the next night instead of microwaving already cooked seafood.

I guess it's easier to explain by going through an actual recipe, like this one for garlic shrimp and white beans from Bon Appetit.  You make the full batch of beans, and leftovers can be reheated the next time you eat it.  For the shrimp, I cooked half of it the first night we ate it, and then the other half the second night we ate this dish.

Overall this was a quick, easy recipe that I liked, even if it wasn't uh-mazing.

Ingredients

6 tablespoons olive oil, divided
3 garlic cloves, minced, divided
2 dried chiles de árbol (if you can't find this, you could try adding a 1/4 tsp of cayenne or perhaps 1 tsp of paprika--I'm not sure about those, but I am sure that I had a bitch of a time finding chiles de arbol)
1 bay leaf, preferably fresh (yeah right--I used dried)
1 1/4 cups chopped tomato (about 8 ounces) (since it's winter, I used a drained 14 oz can of diced tomatoes)
salt and pepper
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 15-ounce cans white beans (such as cannellini), rinsed, drained
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley (I didn't do this)
Grilled bread (optional)

Preheat broiler.  Heat 2 TBS olive oil in ovenproof skillet over medium heat.  Add in 1 minced garlic clove, the chiles, and bay leaf.  Stir constantly for about 1-2 minutes, until garlic is a light golden brown (but be careful because the garlic can burn quickly).

I have burned garlic one too many times, so usually wimp out and only wait till the garlic has gotten past the pure albino stage.

Add in the tomatoes and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes.  Add in the tomato paste and cook, again with the stirring, for about 3 to 4 minutes.

Add in the beans and chicken broth.

Bring to a simmer and let reduce--the recipe said 3 to 4 minutes, mine took more like 10 minutes. Lying bastards.

In a medium bowl, combine the shrimp with remaining olive oil, garlic, paprika, salt and pepper.  Since I was only cooking half the shrimp the first night, I halved the oil, garlic, paprika, and s&p.  The next night, instead of getting my cutting board dirty for one measly garlic clove, I put in a pinch of garlic powder.  Anyway, spread the shrimp over the beans in a single layer.

Place skillet under broiler and cook through--mine took about 5-6  minutes although the recipe said 3-4. Honestly, I don't think they know how to tell time.

Serve with bread.

Ta-da!

Cauliflower and Herb Barley Salad

My big announcement, circa Little E at 6 weeks old: I managed to cook something! I managed to cook something!!! (Perhaps you were thinking that E rolled over or started reciting Shakespeare--sorry to disappoint you, but we aim low in this household.)

Up until a few days ago, Kevin and I were subsisting on the kindness and efforts of my sister and both our mothers.  We have a freezer filled to the brim with food that has lasted for weeks. It has been a godsend, and I don't know how to thank them properly (as usual).

I've also discovered the joy of Trader Joe's prepared food. I know I'm seriously behind the curve here, but their pre-cut and pre-washed bags of greens, like swiss chard and kale, save so much time. As do their artichoke ravioli and pesto sauce. Did you know this?  Of course you did.  I don't care that these things cost almost twice as much as if I prepared them myself, I just don't give a damn.

Still, at some point I had to start cooking again. Oh haha you think it's because of some joy or love of cooking that couldn't keep me away...hahaha no it's more because our freezer stash is running out.

These days I am engaging in some very serious and scholarly reading, namely in the form of magazines, including Bon Appetit. They have a great feature dedicated to fast and fresh dishes.  This warm cauliflower and herbed barley salad is right up our alley.  I served it as a side to the aforementioned artichoke ravioli, but it can be a light meal on its own.

Ingredients

1/2 cup pearled barley

Kosher salt

1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon mayonnaise

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

6 tablespoons olive oil, divided

Freshly ground black pepper

1 head cauliflower, cut into florets

1 15-ounce can gigante, corona, or butter beans, rinsed (I used butter beans because my sister happened to find them at Trader Joe's (or was it Whole Foods), but you can use cannellini or garbanzo beans, I don't think you need to kill yourself trying to find these more unusual beans)

1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves

2 tablespoons fresh tarragon leaves (if you want to simplify your life, just use parsley--I now have a bunch of tarragon that will probably go to waste)

Place barley in small or medium saucepan with enough water to cover by 2 inches.  I threw in a couple of chicken bouillon cubes to enhance the flavor (or you could just chicken broth).  Season with salt (unless you're using a salted cooking liquid/bouillon cubes). Bring to boil, lower to gentle boil, and cook until barley is tender---the recipe said 25-30 minutes, but mine took more like 20-25 minutes.

To make the dressing, whisk together the lemon zest, lemon juice, mayonnaise, mustard, and 5 TBS olive oil.  Season with salt and pepper.

In a large skillet or saute pan, heat the remaining 1 TBS oil over medium heat.  Add the cauliflower, spreading them out in an even layer.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until cauliflower is browned in spots, about 10-12 minutes--it partly depends on the size of your cauliflower florets, I cut min pretty small to try and ensure a shorter cooking time and as many browned spots as possible.  Add 2 TBS water, and cook and cover for 1-2 minutes, until cauliflower is just tender. Not mushy!

This is pre-water.

In a large bowl, combine the cauliflower, barley, beans, parsley, tarragon and dressing.

Stir before serving to make sure the dressing is well distributed.  I thought this was delicious and highly recommend it.

Ta-da!

Pork Chops Shepherd Style

Pork! Whenever I think of the word "pork", I think of the movie Babe.  During one of the scene changes where three little mice say something irreverent, they squeak out "Pork is a good white meat--ahahahaHAHAHA..." in a somewhat maniacal chorus. It has stayed with me ever since.

We had my parents over for dinner the other night and I made these pork chops, after seeing Lidia Bastianich making them on TV.  I adapted the recipe to serve 4 people instead of 6.  Even then, we had plenty of leftovers (these chops were hunky) and used them for sandwiches. Delicious.

Ingredients
4 bone-in pork loin chops, about 1-inch thick, 6 to 8 ounces each
salt and pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour, for dredging
2 TBS extra-virgin olive oil
3 small or 2 medium onions, halved and thinly sliced (about 3 cups)
2 plump garlic cloves, sliced
4 oz hunk of provolone, sliced into 4 pieces
3/4 cup white wine (optional)

Note: the nice thing about this recipe is that you can brown the pork and cook the onions ahead of time, and then about 30-45 minutes before you're ready to serve, proceed with the rest of the recipe.

Heat oil in an ovenproof 12-inch skillet over medium heat.  Generously season each side of the pork chops with salt and pepper.

Dredge the pork chops in the flour, shake off the excess, and lay the pork chops in the skillet in a single layer.  Cook for about 4-5 minutes until the bottoms are light golden brown, then flip and brown the other side for another 4-5 minutes.

Remove the pork chops to a plate.  Place the sliced onions and garlic into the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are golden brown, about 15 minutes (the original recipe says to cover the skillet but I overlooked that).

You can stop at this point.  When ready to continue (or if  you were motoring through to begin with), preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Push the onions over to one side of the skillet and place the pork chops back in the skillet.  Top each pork chop with onions, and lay the slices of provolone over the onions.

Raise the heat to medium high, and when things are sizzling, pour the wine around (not on top of) the pork chops.  Let reduce for a minute or so.  Place the skillet into the oven for about 10-15 minutes, depending on the thickness of the pork chops and how you like them done.  I like them slightly pink in the center.  Foregoing the more accurate thermometer method to check for doneness, I did the good ol' method of hacking into one with a knife to see how pink it was.

Remove to a platter, let rest for 5 minutes, and serve.  I made this broccoli rabe to go along with the pork. (Note about the broccoli rabe recipe: no need to get rid of the stems, they get soft with the long cooking time, and start checking your greens at 45 minutes or less because the 1 hour 15 minute cooking time in the recipe is a little nutso. Also, I ditched the garlic chip topping .)

Ta-da!

Chicken, Tomato and Olive Sauce

After a blazing hot and humid summer, it's been nice to pull out the slow cooker and get back to these "set it and leave it" recipes.  The long slow cooking process also helped get rid of the smell in our new apartment, a scent which we ascribed to the previous tenant leaving a dead body somewhere between the studs in the walls.

Okay it wasn't that bad, but we didn't like it either.  A few days of baking and an essential oil diffuser have seemed to do the trick. Actually, it's probably just passage of time and displacing the previous owner's smell with that of our stinky pugs.  I knew those two would come in handy one day!

For a while I was using America's Test Kitchen recipes a lot. This time was no different.  Isn't it nice to know that I can drop off the face of the blogging earth and return totally unchanged (except for growing a parasite inside me)?

This slow cooker sauce is nice because the acidity of the olives balance out the richness of the chicken.  It is a very hearty sauce, really thick, so a small serving goes a long way. Not that we do small servings in these parts.

From America's Test Kitchen Slow Cooker Revolution

1 onion, minced
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 TBS olive oil
1 TBS minced fresh thyme of 1 tsp dried
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup dry white wine
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, drained
15 oz can tomato sauce
2 TBS Minute tapioca
1.5 lbs skinless chicken thighs (I got bone-in and discarded the bones after cooking, but you can use boneless to begin with)
1/2 cup chopped pitted Kalamata olives
1/4 cup minced parsley
salt and pepper

In a microwave-safe bowl, mix together the onions, garlic, oil, thyme and red pepper flakes.  Heat for 5 minutes in microwave, stirring occasionally.

Place the onion mixture into the slow cooker, and stir in the broth, wine, tomatoes, tomato sauce, and tapioca.

Salt and pepper each side of your chicken thighs.  Place chicken into slow cooker, and try to submerge those suckers.  

Cook on low for 4 to 6 hours. Gently pull out chicken thighs, and shred the meat using two forks. The meat should fall off the bone and shred quite easily.  Discard the bones.

Stir the shredded chicken back into the sauce, along with the chopped olives and parsley.

Cook pasta according to package directions, and serve with sauce.

Ta-da!

Flank Steak with Soy Sauce and Garlic

Once, a long time ago, I lived in a basement apartment (that's "English basement" to those of us who want to feel better about living underground) in Washington DC right after college with three wonderful ladies, where I made little money and paid what now seems like a blissfully tiny amount in rent.  I hardly went out for dinner in order to save money...not to mention general laziness, but we won't talk about that.  Scrimping money turned out to be a blessing in disguise, though, in that it pushed me to learn how to cook, and to cook often.

Although the meat at our nearby Safeway ("Soviet Safeway" for any of those familiar with DuPont Circle in Washington, DC) was of a quality that I would question using at this point in my life, I didn't know any better at the time and went on my merry way, using the flank steak for a recipe I found on Epicurious.  It has turned out to be one of my favorite recipes, one that I often use when having people over for dinner because it is delicious and so simple (if you've been to my place and eaten this, rest assured the flank steak was of the utmost quality).  The soy sauce in this recipe makes the dish.

Feast your eyes on this incredibly complicated and long list of ingredients:

1/4 cup soy sauce
2 TBS olive oil
5 large garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp black pepper
1.5 to 2 lbs flank steak

Get your marinade ingredients together (which is basically everything except the flank steak)

Kevin gave me that olive oil dispenser as a gift--isn't it pretty? I loves it.

Pour the marinade over the flank steak.  For marinating, I like to use the resealable bag method, but use whatever works for you.  I put the flank steak in a gallon size resealable plastic bag, put the bag in a dish/bowl (just in case there's some pesky hole or leak in the bag), and pour in the marinade.

Make sure steak is well covered in the marinade, and refrigerate for 3 to 6 hours (leave the bag in the bowl just to be safe). Turn every hour or so to get even marination.

Preheat your broiler, grill, or grill pan.  Remove the steak from the marinade, and shake off excess. Discard the garlic.  You don't have to do this next step, but I used a paper towel to blot the flank steak to make sure that it browned instead of steamed--I did this after one time where I cooked the steak on an indoor grill pan and the apartment filled with smokey steamy marinade-y fumes. At least my guests had a je ne sas quoi scent lingering on their person to help remember the dinner.

I used the broiler method last time which made me happy.  I broiled the steak for 4 to 5 minutes on each side (about 9 minutes total), and it turned out to be a beautiful medium rare.

Slice across the grain at an angle to get your perfect pink rosy slices of hedonistic, savory meat.

Love this dish.  Ta-da!

Broiled Cod with Tomato Caper Sauce

We're going to incorporate more fish into our diet.  I've heard something about fish and omega 3's and DHA's and brains and neurological function and who knows what else, but instead of questioning things, I follow like a lemming.

I actually made the decision to incorporate more fish into our diet about a month ago.  Since that time, I've made a whopping total of 1 fish recipe.  Okay, two, if you count when I made tuna pasta last week.

I pulled this recipe from  SkinnyTaste, a website that I heard of through This Casita.  What I love about this recipe is that you broil the fish, instead of sauteing on the stovetop.  In my quest for more fish recipes, I'm looking for just broiled or baked fish--we don't have a window or a great ventilation system in our kitchen and I have learned from experience that the smell from frying or sauteing a fish will not only linger but become quite funky for days. DAYS, I tell you. My brain health is most definitely not worth days of fish stink.  Anybody could tell you that.

Since it's just the two of us, I knew we wouldn't make it through a full recipe (which calls for 4 fillets) in one night.  And since I'm not a fan of reheated fish (they're so delicate, I think properly cooking them the first time and then reheating them will probably render them super rubbery), I made the sauce for the fish, kept it in a separate container, and each night I would broil only 2 fish fillets.  While the fish was broiling, I would reheat the sauce in the microwave, and spoon over the fish when ready.

Any firm white fish will do for this recipe.  I used cod because they had that at the farmers market.

Adapted from SkinnyTaste

Ingredients

2 TBS extra virgin olive oil
4 medium fish fillets (about 6 oz each) or 6 small fish fillets (about 4 oz each) (a 4 oz portion suited us--we used cod, but tilapia or whatever other firm white fish exist would work as well)
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 shallots, minced
2 large tomatoes chopped (since tomatoes are not yet in season, I used one 15-oz can of diced tomatoes, drained--this makes the recipe more on the tomato side, but I love tomatoes)
1 TBS capers
1/4 cup dry white wine
salt and pepper to taste

Serves 4 to 6 (depending on how much fish you apportion to each person)

In a medium saute pan, heat 1 TBS oil oil over medium low heat.  Add garlic and shallots and saute for about 4-5 minutes, until translucent.  You're not trying to brown them.

Hm, must have taken this picture when things were still looking a wee bit opaque.  Cook a little more than this.

Add wine and cook until wine reduces, about 2 minutes.  Add tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, and simmer for about 10 minutes.   

 

Add capers and continue to cook until the sauce gets a little thick.

 

Meanwhile, heat up your broiler (also, I covered my broiler pan in aluminum foil for easier clean-up).  Dry your fish fillets well with a paper towel.  Drizzle remaining 1 TBS oil over both sides of each fillet (or, if you're cooking them on separate days like I did, drizzle about 1/2 tsp oil on each), and season both sides with salt and pepper.

Broil for about 7 minutes or until just done in the center (this will vary depending on the thickness of the fish).  Spoon tomato sauce over the fish and serve.

I served this with sauteed swiss chard and couscous.  I feel so virtuous just writing this post.  I suppose that feeling would be justified if I actually follow through on my plan to eat more fish.  Do you have any favorite fish recipes?

Lamb Curry

I want to forewarn you that I don't have a picture of the final product, but this dish is really good.  It's probably one of my favorite things that I've cooked in the past couple of months.  I don't think Kevin is as enthusiastic about it as I am, but everyone has flaws.

I noticed there was a lamb vendor at our farmers' market that I had previously overlooked.  So I went searching for a lamb dish I could make, and found the perfect one in good ol' Joy of Cooking.

Adapted from Joy of Cooking

Ingredients

28 oz. can of whole peeled tomatoes
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp coriander
1 1/2 tsp minced garlic
1 1/2 tsp minced fresh ginger
1 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 1/2 to 2 lbs boneless lamb stew meat (like shoulder or leg) cut into 1-inch cubes
3/4 tsp salt

Serves 4 to 6 as a main course

Let's deal with the tomatoes first.

Drain and reserve the juice, and roughly chop the tomatoes.  We'll get back to these.

Heat oil in a large skillet or saucepan over medium heat.  Add the sliced onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown.  The recipe said 5 to 7 minutes but mine took about 15 minutes.

This was at the midway point--let them get more brown than this.

Add the spices (the cumin through cayenne) to the onions and cook, stirring, for about 30 seconds.

Add 1/2 cup of the chopped tomatoes and 1/4 of the of the tomato juice along with the lamb.

Simmer until liquid is thickened, about 3 to 5 minutes.  Stir in remaining tomatoes and juice.  Add in salt.  Cover, reduce to simmer, and cook until lamb is tender, about 45 to 60 minutes.  Serve with basmati rice.

Even though I don't have a final picture this really was tasty enough that I just had to tell you about it.

Ta-da!

Makhani Dal (Lentils & Kidney Beans)

My sister recently gave me an Indian cookbook--Dances with Spices. Me likey a lot.

When Kevin and I lived in NYC, there was an Indian restaurant a few blocks away that was a substantial cut above and beyond all the other casual Indian restaurants I have ever been to.  It was called Earthen Oven, which sadly no longer exists.  I guess when we moved they lost a substantial portion of their takeout business.

One of the dishes that we loved was Dal Durga, a creamed black lentil dish.  While I was flipping through Dances with Spices, I came across a recipe for Makhani Dal, which was creamed lentils and kidney beans, and sounded pretty similar to our favorite Earthen Oven dish, so I gave it a whirl. And I'm so happy I did.

Adapted from Dances with Spices

Ingredients

1 cup dried kidney beans (you have to soak the beans the night before making the recipe--if you don't want to do that, you could substitute three 15-oz cans of kidney beans)
1 cup brown or green lentils
2 TBS ghee (you can make your own from one of the many recipes on the internet, but I bought mine from a store what you think I have time for making it myself?)
1 small onion, minced
1 TBS minced fresh ginger
1 TBS minced garlic
1 serrano or jalapeno pepper, seeds and ribs and stem removed, minced
2 tsp coriander
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup tomato paste
1 tsp salt, or to taste (I think I added about a 1/2 tsp more)
1 cup half and half, or whole milk if you must
2 TBS minced cilantro

Served 4 to 6 as main course

Place the kidney beans (not the lentils) in a bowl and cover with water by at least 2 inches.  Let soak 8 hours or overnight.  I put mine in the refrigerator because I wasn't going to get to them until 24 hours afterwards.

Anyway, when you're ready to cook, drain the kidney beans and rinse them along with the lentils.  Place legumes in a saucepan and add about 5 cups of water.  Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower heat and simmer, covered, until beans are tender but not mushy, about 45 minutes.  Then drain dem bad boys.

Now for the aromatics.

Heat the ghee in a large saucepan or pot over medium high heat.  Add the onion, ginger, garlic and serrano and cook until onion turns light brown, about 5-7 minutes.

Add the coriander, cumin, and black pepper.  Stir for about 30 seconds and add the tomato paste.  Continue to stir for about 5 minutes.

Add the legumes, salt and milk.

Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for about 6 to 8 minutes.  Stir in cilantro.

Serve with basmati rice.  Ta-da!

Have you tried to recreate a favorite restaurant dish? How did it go?