Tex Mex Pepper Polenta Pot

Had some leftover polenta in the freezer and a bunch of stuff in the back of the cupboard being sorely neglected so I rifled through and came up with this pantry buster on the QT. Prep time is minimal (15 minutes tops, 10 if you’ve got helpers) and the results are uber yum. Unfortunately, there’s really no way of taking a flattering picture of it and showing all the goodies its got inside but there you have it:

What you need:

1 pkg polenta (unless you make your own) cut into 1/2″ slices.
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can red kidney or black beans
1 cup corn kernels
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp basil
1 tsp each ground cumin and coriander
Salt & pepper to taste
2 large red bell peppers, chunked
1 cup roughly chopped cilantro
2 cups old cheddar cheese

Strain the tomatoes, beans & corn through a colander. Toss the lot into a large mixing bowl together. Add the garlic, basil,cumin, coriander, salt & pepper. Grease the bottom of a large baking pan then line it with the polenta slices. Top that with the red pepper chunks then slather that in the tomato, corn, bean mix. Sprinkle your cilantro bits over it then do the same with the cheese. Bake at 450 degrees for 35 minutes.

broccoli & triple cheese pizza

We tend to eat later at our house (8 o’clock is not unheard of) so leavened bits, like this broccoli & cheese pizza, pop up every once in a while.

The dough:

This is made similarly to the focaccia dough but more flour and more kneading are added to this recipe. I also cut the flour with durum semolina which makes it extra tasty.

1 cup warm water
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp dry active yeast

Melt those together in a large mixing bowl and let sit for 10 minutes.

1 1/2 cups all-purpose or whole wheat flour
1 cup fine durum semolina
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil

Thoroughly mix all of those ingredients in with the flour, yeast & honey mixture. Turn out onto a well-floured surface and knead for 10-15 minutes until you have a nice, soft, stretchy ball.

Let sit 45 minutes or until the ball has doubled in size. This is a good time to make your pizza sauce and get your toppings together.

Once the dough rises, punch it down and stretch the ball out over your cooking surface – it should be about 1/4 inch thick. Let it sit for 10 minutes before decorating.

I tend to prefer very basic and fresh flavours in a pizza. This one was super simple; sauce, feta, loads of broccoli (blanched in the nuker prior to adding to the pizza), provolone – in that order. Melty cheese always goes on top in my world. I also enjoy a bright, uncooked tomato sauce (when I use it – I have to admit that I’m a sucker for pesto). Here’s my recipe:

1 can diced tomatoes
4 cloves of garlic
1 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp oregano
2 tsp basil
2 tbsp parmesan or romano cheese

Drain and press the tomatoes through a colander until almost all of the liquid is gone. Toss these and the rest of the sauce ingredients into a food processor. Whiz until you’ve got a coarse mulch.

Ni le bien qu’on m’a fait, ni le mal

See what my baby makes me? It tastes as gorgeous as it looks.

Muah!

Fried Green Tomatoes

I remember passing these over for breakfast and my grandparents’ house simply because neither of my parents were fans and so ruined me on them. It wasn’t until I was about 8 that I decided to try them again and there was no turning back from that point. Fried green tomatoes are one of the best seasonal vegie indulgences going. Here’s the recipe for my spiced up version that’s just a wee bit different from how grandma used to make them. It makes about 6 side dish sized servings.

Ingredients:

30 mid-sized unripe tomatoes
2 cups cornmeal
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 tbsp thyme leaves
2 tsp ground coriander
3 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp salt
pepper to taste
3 beaten eggs
1/4 cup vegetable or peanut oil

Instructions:

Cut the tomatoes into half inch thick slices. Set aside between paper towels in single layers while you prepare the breading. Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. Beat the eggs in another. In a large, heavy skillet, heat the oil until very hot. Dredge each slice of tomato through the egg then the breading and place them directly in hot skillet. Fry each piece about 3 minutes on the first side and two minutes on the second. As they finish move them to a paper towel covered plate to drain.

Serve immediately.

Make your vegetarian happy!

This is a dish the kids and I used to eat quite frequently two housing arrangements ago when I was far more committed to vegetarian eating than I am now. What changed? Don’t really know, but I’m feeling the need to go back to that as it challenged me and sated me in ways than a more meat-centric diet does.

The trick with it is to maintain individual flavours as much as possible and creating non-confrontational side dishes to go with it. It’s not difficult at all, just a matter of who you’re feeding.

Here’s my recipe for Grilled Cheesy Polenta and Mushrooms in a Rosemary-infused Wine Gravy:

The first step is to create the polenta. It needs to set and chill for at least 2 hours before it can be grilled. It only takes about 20 minutes to prepare from beginning to end so it’s something which can be put together up to two days beforehand or first thing in the morning (for the more motivated among us).

Ingredients:

9 cups water
2 tsp coarse sea salt
3 cups yellow cornmeal (fine or coarse – I tend to prefer coarse but fine was closest today, so that’s what I bought)
1/4 cup butter or margarine
3/4 cup grated parmesan or romano cheese (this can be vegan cheese)

In a large (we’re talking stock or pasta-type pot) bring the water to a boil. Once boiling, slowly add the cornmeal, gently sifting it through your fingers in a gentle stream so it does not become clumpy. Once all of the cornmeal is in the pot, reduce the heat to medium and stir vigorously (vigorous is important here because the mash will sputter and spit unless this is done) until the mash easily falls away from the side of the pot. Remove the pot from heat and stir in butter and cheese. Pour the hot mixture into a lightly greased casserole dish and chill.

This is what the polenta will look like:

The next step is to infuse the wine. That’s pretty easy; Take one tablespoon of dried rosemary leaves, or a 6 inch sprig of fresh rosemary and bruise them/it in a mortar and pestle. Add that to 1 cup of nice, dry white wine.

Retsina works wonderfully for this as it’s already infused with a resinous aroma provided it by the pine sap seal used to keep the amphorae in which they’re aged air tight. The $5ish price tag per bottle doesn’t hurt either. The sooner one can begin that process, the better, especially when using dried rosemary as its dryness might affect texture in strange ways. I didn’t begin until about 2 hours before I began cooking.

Next is the mushrooms and gravy.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp butter or margarine
1 medium diced onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 lb portabello mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 tbsp flour
The aforementioned wine infused with rosemary
3/4 cup water

In a skillet melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add onions and garlic. Sautee until garlic and onions become golden brown. Increase heat to medium-high. Add mushrooms. Sautee until mushrooms are wilted. Sift flour through fingers over the flour and stir, with a wooden spoon until mushrooms are coated in flour. Go start your barbecue. Cook & stir with the wooden spoon for about two to four minutes until flour is sticking to the bottom of the pan. Begin adding wine & rosemary mixture slowly, lifting flour from the bottom of the pan with the wooden spoon as you add it. Cook for three to five minutes. Add water slowly, stirring it into the existing mixture with the wooden spoon. Let simmer on low heat.

At this point your barbecue should be ready to grill the polenta. Lightly brush each piece with olive oil and place oiled side down on the grill. This stuff is the hardest thing to burn ever, so it’s ok to leave it alone for a little while, though I don’t necessarily suggest it to those who don’t multi-task well. The sauce will be ok simmering while you grill the polenta, so don’t worry about doing too many things at once.

Once the polenta is nicely grilled and hot, spoon your mushrooms and gravy over it. Sprinkle with chopped, fresh parsley and finely grated asiago cheese.

I chose to serve steamed green beans in lemon pepper butter with it. I was lovely.

Corny

Haven’t posted in a while but I thought I’d let you all know that we’re making the most of our favourite seasonal vegie:

Roasting corn has got to be the best way to have it. All it takes is a good soaking of the ears in cold water for a couple of hours (one is minimum) then tossing them on the grill (or fire if you’ve got one) for about half an hour. They come out with a sweet nuttiness that just isn’t achieved in boiling them plus the leftovers (if there are any) make a wicked chowder.

Until the lions have their historians, tales of the hunt shall always glorify the hunter

A couple of days ago I acquired a triangle moose roast as part of my payment for creating business cards for a friend. I should preface the rest of what I’m going to say with the fact that moose is my favourite meat ever. I recognise that not everyone is in the same boat. Some find it overly gamey, greasy(?), dry, dense & tough. So many cooks want to cook the devil (thought I’ve never found the devil in moose; brave and noble creatures that they are) out of it – stews, pot roasts and chillis seem to be among favourite moose dishes. I tend toward embracing its inherent qualities beyond its meatiness like its texture, it’s darker flavour and its versatility.

The other night I decided to prepare the roast for the family but needed to cater it to their tastes as much as mine. A triangle roast, no matter what creature it comes from, is a meaty-flavoured hunk of flesh. Highly underrated, in my mind, but I’ve heard many complain about the density of flavour and texture of this cut many times so I treaded lightly and treated it with a game-subduing, tenderising marinade of my own invention.

First I cut the meat into 1 inch thick steaks. Moose is very dense, triangle cut is particularly dense as well, and my intent was to toss it on the grill and I was looking for something relatively quick to cook. I’ll get into the actual cooking method in a bit.

The marinade is as follows:

Juice of 3 limes
3/4 cup amber rum
4 cloves of garlic
2 tsp sage
2 tsp thyme
1/4 cup olive oil
4 tbsp chipotle adobo (it’s the sauce that surrounds chipotles we get in cans ’round these parts)
2 chipotles
1 pinch ground cloves

I just whizzed the ingredients together in a food processor and tossed it over the meat. The steaks stood in the marinade for a good 5 hours.

Note that there is no salt in this recipe. Where salt does the trick in degamifying (made up word; I’m allowed) the gaminess of wild game, it also dries it out to a point which I find unpalatable. Instead I chose the rum and the lime to perform this function and they did so marvelously though I’ve also used ground raisins, maple syrup, orange juice, brown sugar and molasses for the same purpose.

Sage and cloves will forever in my mind be perfect flavour mates of moose. I’ve rarely cooked the stuff without them.

When it comes to actually cooking moose meat it gets a little tricky depending on the tastes of whomever you’re cooking for. I tend to like red meat fairly rare (up to 2 minutes a side does it for me with the thickest cuts of beef) but moose doesn’t hold up well to not being cooked. I allowed the grill to get really hot before putting the steaks on then immediately turned it down to medium heat and let them cook, turning about 3/4 of the way through the cooking time for each steak. The steak I made for myself was on the grill for nearly 15 minutes and was still nicely pink on the inside, with the thinnest layer of grey on the outside and very, very tender despite the complete lack of fat on the steak itself. This was the product of all the marinading done prior to cooking. It would likely make a great marinade for deer too.

garbanzo

So after a 24h flu stint, sprog the eldest asks ‘remember that stuff you used to make with chick peas and all that stuff when I was little?’

Yes – his first food request was fried, curried chick peas.

He used to love snacking on these as a kid, or as a meal on a pita with spinach and tzatziki sauce. It’s just chick peas, cumin, turmeric, cinnamon, cayenne and a little lube for the frying pan, sauteed until the peas start to pop.

mmmMMMmmmeatballs

Every so often (ok…Tuesdays, Thursdays and when I’m working lates) I get to come home to Food Cooked by Someone Else(tm). Being the mastermind of kitchen manipulation that I am I’ve kind of instituted a He Cooks evening a couple of nights a week so the romantic interest’s cooking muscle doesn’t atrophy. I’m so good.

Tonight I came home to possibly the best meatball sub ever. It features delectable, from scratch meatballs & marinara sauce (which I’m a complete failure at making), provolone cheese and lovely whole wheat bunnage. So good.

Here it is in its saucy glory:

I’ll do my best to convince him to post recipes.

Pico di Gallo

Pico di Gallo is the best thing since sliced bread. No. Scratch that. It’s much, much better than sliced bread but it’s most definitely the cat’s pyjamas. Technically a condiment used to garnish things like quesadillas and tortillas, at our house we tend to eat it like a salad – or a saladiment – though still on things like quesadillas and tortilla chips…or cornbread or steak or sandwiches or…well…anything you can imagine, really.

Once you’ve got a recipe down pat you can vary it for different purposes; substitute the tomatoes with mangoes and you’ve got the perfect accompaniment for grilled chicken. Substitute the jalepenos for chipotles or horseradish and you’ve got the best burger topping ever. Substitute the cilantro for parsley, the lime for lemon, add some stinky cheese and you’ve got an excellent pasta dish. If you don’t have limes, use rice wine vinegar. One way or the other, toss the leftovers with some baby spinach and you’ve got a killer salad in under a minute. mmmMMMmmm…saladiment.

Here’s the basic recipe I use:

2 large field tomatoes, or 5 roma tomatoes (still like their texture better)
1 large red onion (the trick is to have about 1 part onion to two part tomatoes)
2 (or 4, or 18 if you like) cloves crushed garlic
juice of 1 lime
1 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tbsp olive oil
1 jalepeno finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste (seriously to taste with the salt – salt will emphasise the garlic and that may not be what you’re looking for)

Mix all of the above together and serve with whatever your little heart desires.

Here it is with its good friends guacamole and grilled vegie quesadillas: