A Life, Lived

Daring Cooks - February Challenge - Mezze

The 2010 February Daring Cooks challenge was hosted by Michele of Veggie Num Nums. Michele chose to challenge everyone to make mezze based on various recipes from Claudia Roden, Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Dugid.

Our challenge was to create a Mezze table. Our requirements were that we had to make Pita and Hummus using the given recipes, and we could make anything else we wanted to accompany that. Of course I went all out!

Our mezze menu consisted of:

Pita bread

Humus

Cured Olives

Greek Feta marinated in olive oil we brought back from Rhodes with oregano from Greece

Tzatziki

Lamb and Feta Patties with Apple Pepper Relish (thanks Cindy for that awesome recipe!)

Stuffed Grape Leaves (Dolmades)

Greek Sausages (Loukanika)

Assorted Fresh Vegetables

Pita Bread – Recipe adapted from Flatbreads & Flavors by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid
Prep time: 20 minutes to make, 90 minutes to rise and about 45 minutes to cook

2 teaspoons regular dry yeast (.43 ounces/12.1 grams)
2.5 cups lukewarm water (21 ounces/591 grams)
5-6 cups all-purpose flour (may use a combination of 50% whole wheat and 50% all-purpose, or a combination of alternative flours for gluten free pita) (17.5 -21 ounces/497-596 grams)
1 tablespoon table salt (.50 ounces/15 grams)
2 tablespoons olive oil (.95 ounces/29 ml)

In a large bread bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water. Stir to dissolve. Stir in 3 cups flour, a cup at a time, and then stir 100 times, about 1 minute, in the same direction to activate the gluten. Let this sponge rest for at least 10 minutes, or as long as 2 hours.

Sprinkle the salt over the sponge and stir in the olive oil. Mix well. Add more flour, a cup at a time, until the dough is too stiff to stir. Turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 8 to 10 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Rinse out the bowl, dry, and lightly oil. Return the dough to the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise until at least doubled in size, approximately 1 1/2 hours.

Place a pizza stone, or two small baking sheets, on the bottom rack of your oven, leaving a 1-inch gap all around between the stone or sheets and the oven walls to allow heat to circulate. Preheat the oven to 450F (230C).

Gently punch down the dough. Divide the dough in half, and then set half aside, covered, while you work with the rest. Divide the other half into 8 equal pieces and flatten each piece with lightly floured hands. Roll out each piece to a circle 8 to 9 inches in diameter and less than 1/4 inch thick. Keep the rolled-out breads covered until ready to bake, but do not stack.

Place 2 breads, or more if your oven is large enough, on the stone or baking sheets, and bake for 2 to 3 minutes, or until each bread has gone into a full balloon. If for some reason your bread doesn't puff up, don't worry it should still taste delicious. Wrap the baked breads together in a large kitchen towel to keep them warm and soft while you bake the remaining rolled-out breads. Then repeat with the rest of the dough.

Hummus – Recipe adapted from The New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden

1.5 cups dried chickpeas, soaked in cold water overnight (or substitute well drained canned chickpeas and omit the cooking) (10 ounces/301 grams)
2-2.5 lemons, juiced (3 ounces/89ml)
2-3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
a big pinch of salt
4 tablespoons tahini (sesame paste) OR use peanut butter or any other nut butter—feel free to experiment) (1.5 ounces/45 grams)
additional flavorings (optional) I would use about 1/3 cup or a few ounces to start, and add more to taste

Drain and boil the soaked chickpeas in fresh water for about 1 ½ hours, or until tender. Drain, but reserve the cooking liquid.

Puree the beans in a food processor (or you can use a potato masher) adding the cooking water as needed until you have a smooth paste.

Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Adjust the seasonings to taste.

Satay

This month’s Daring Cooks challenge was chosen by cuppy of cuppylicious. The challenge was to make one of our favourite street foods - satay. Cuppy gave us a bunch of options - there were different marinades, different sauces, and different proteins to use. Lots of decisions!

We decided to use the more complex marinade because it contained many of our favourite thai ingredients (with the odd surprise or three). For the sauce we used her peanut sauce (which was brilliant!). For the protein we used beef because we were eating pork and chicken already this week (well, we also had two small pieces of chicken breast so I tossed that into a separate bag with some of the marinade).

This was an easy version of satay to make. Yes, it was different than other satay that we have had but frankly, every time we have satay it tastes different! If you're looking for a solid recipe with which to expand your culinary horizons you won't go wrong with this one!

Thanks cuppy!

Satay Marinade

1/2 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 T ginger root, chopped (optional) (2 cm cubed)
2 T lemon juice (1 oz or 30 mls)
1 T soy sauce (0.5 oz or 15 mls)
1 tsp ground coriander (5 mls)
1 tsp ground cumin (5 mls)
1/2 tsp ground turmeric (2-2.5 mls)
2 T vegetable oil (or peanut or olive oil) (30 mls)
1 pound of beef (16 oz or 450g)

Place all of the ingredients (except the meat) in a food processor and process until smooth.

Cut meat into 1 inch strips.

Place the meat and marinade into a ziplock bag, seal and chill.

Feeling the need to make it more Thai? Try adding a dragon chili, an extra tablespoon of ginger root, and 1 tablespoon (0.5 oz or 15 mls) of fish sauce.

Marinate up to 24 hours.

If using wooden or bamboo skewers, soak your skewers in warm water for at least 20 minutes before preparing skewers.

Gently and slowly slide meat strips onto skewers. Discard leftover marinade.*

Broil or grill at 290°C/550° F (or pan fry on medium-high) for 8-10 minutes or until the edges just start to char. Flip and cook another 8-10 minutes.

Peanut Sauce

3/4 cup coconut milk (6 oz or 180 mls)
4 Tbsp peanut butter (2 oz or 60 mls)
1 Tbsp lemon juice (0.5 oz or 15 mls)
1 Tbsp soy sauce (0.5 oz or 15 mls)
1 tsp brown sugar (5 mls)
1/2 tsp ground cumin (2.5 mls)
1/2 tsp ground coriander (2.5 mls)
1-2 dried red chilies, chopped (keep the seeds for heat)

Mix dry ingredients in a small bowl. Add soy sauce and lemon, mix well.

Over low heat, combine coconut milk, peanut butter and your soy-lemon-seasoning mix. Mix well, stir often.

All you’re doing is melting the peanut butter, so make your peanut sauce after you’ve made everything else in your meal, or make ahead of time and reheat.

December Daring Cooks - Salmon en Croute

After a rather long break I'm back in the Daring Cooks 'fold'.  Fall was nuts but life seems to have returned to some calm normalcy (he says with the Christmas craziness upon us).

This month’s Daring Cooks challenge was chosen by Simone at JungleFrog Cooking. The challenge was to make salmon en croute – following a recipe from Good Food Online. Essentially Simone gave us two choices - a salmon en croute or a beef en croute. We went with the salmon because we need ot eat more fish. It seems that with the passing of BBQ season we've been eating far less fish than we should.

Simone provided a recipe for the short crust pastry. When I tried to make it the resulting pastry was impossible to use . . . this is why I ALWAYS buy pre-made pastry from the Mennonite ladies at the farmers market. I am sure that one day the pastry gods will forgive me but until then I shall continue to buy the stuff.

Simone's recipe was easy to follow and the result was delicious. Many of the Daring cooks have commented on how this dish was high on the 'wow' factor - making it a great choice for holiday entertaining!

Salmon en Croute

Mascarpone or cream cheese 5.2 ounces/150 gr
Watercress, rocket (arugula) and spinach – 0.6 cup/4.2 ounces/120 gr
Shortcrust pastry – 17.6 ounces, 500 gr. 
Salmon fillet (skinless)- 17.6 ounce/500 gr
egg – 1 medium sized

1.Heat the oven to 200°C/390 F. Put the mascarpone or cream cheese in a food processor with the watercress, spinach and rocket and whizz the lot until you have a creamy green puree. Season well.

2. Roll the pastry out so you can wrap the salmon in it completely (approx. 2-3 mm thick) and lay it on a buttered or oiled baking sheet (it will hang over the edges). Put the salmon in the middle. If it has a thinner tail end, tuck it under. Spoon half of the watercress mixture onto the salmon. Now fold the pastry over into a neat parcel (the join will be at the top, so trim the edge neatly), making sure you don’t have any thick lumps of pastry as these won’t cook through properly. Trim off any excess as you need to. Make 3 neat cuts in the pastry to allow steam to escape and make some decorations with the off-cuts to disguise the join if you like. Brush with the egg glaze.

3. Bake for 30 minutes or until the pastry is crisp and browned. To test whether the salmon is cooked, push a sharp knife through one of the cuts into the flesh, wait for 3 seconds then test it against the inside of your wrist; if it is hot, the salmon is cooked. Serve with the rest of the watercress puree as a sauce.

Rice with Mushrooms, Cuttlefish and Artichokes

My participation in the Daring Cooks has been somewhat 'spotty' at best. The challenges have been on the go for four months and I've managed to make two them. The premise is simple - a food blogger selects a recipe and the rest of us work our way through it. Finally on 'reveal day' we all blog about our success (or failure). As you might guess today is reveal day!

This month's challenge was chosen by Olga from Las Cosas de Olga and Olga’s Recipes. She chose a delicious Spanish recipe, Rice with Mushrooms, Cuttlefish and Artichokes by José Andrés, one of the most important Spanish Chefs at the moment. He trained under well-known Ferran Adria at his three Michelin star restaurant El Bulli. José Andrés lives now in Washington DC and he owns several restaurants in Washington DC area (El Jaleo, Zaytinya, Oyamel). This recipe is from his US TV show Made in Spain.

The basic dish consisted of sautéed artichokes, mushrooms and cuttlefish (which I replaced with calamari), which were then simmered with short-grain ice in fish stock. However, there were two additional components which were prepared separately: sofregit (a simmered tomato sauce with optional mushrooms and bell pepper - similar to the classic Italian Sofritto and allioli (a garlic-based sauce). We were encouraged to use Spanish rice and olive oil if possible, but in my kitchen the rice was Italian, the olive oil Greek.

The sofregit was no problem (although it would have been far better which more ripe tomatoes - with this cool wet summer we've been having ripe, flavourful tomatoes aren't that common right now, SIGH). The allioli, however, was more complex. Of course, we cooks ARE daring so we  were encouraged to try the traditional method, which consisted in crushing garlic with a mortar and pestle, then adding olive oil drop by drop, stirring constantly with the pestle, until a thick sauce formed. This sounded bloody complex so of course I had to have a go. Suprisingly, while my arm was about ready to fall off, it worked! The resulting sauce was brilliantly flavoured and took this dish to an entirely new height.

This recipe seems complex because of the different components and steps - it isn't really. If you feel like a taste of Spain do give it a shot.

Enjoy!

Rice with Mushrooms, Cuttlefish and Artichokes
Cooking time: 45 minutes Servings:4-6

4 Artichokes (you can use jarred or frozen if fresh are not available)
12 Mushrooms (button or Portobello)
1 or 2 Bay leaves (optional but highly recommended)
1 glass of white wine
2 Cuttlefish (you can use freezed cuttlefish or squid if you don’t find it fresh)
Sofregit(see recipe below)
300 gr (2 cups) Short grain rice (Spanish types Calasparra or Montsant are preferred, but you can choose any other short grain. This kind of rice absorbs flavor very well)
Water or Fish Stock (use 1 ½ cup of liquid per ½ cup of rice)
Saffron threads (if you can’t find it or afford to buy it, you can substitute it for turmeric or yellow coloring powder)
Allioli (olive oil and garlic sauce, similar to mayonnaise sauce) - optional

NOTE: I also added some bay scallops, chicken breast, and sliced Spanish Chorizo . . .

Cut the cuttlefish in little strips.

Add 1 or 2 tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan and put the cuttlefish in the pan.

If you use fresh artichokes, clean them. Cut artichokes in eights.

Clean the mushrooms and cut them in fourths.

Add a bay leaf to the cuttlefish and add also the artichokes and the mushrooms.

Sauté until we get a golden color in the artichokes.

Put a touch of white wine so all the solids in the bottom of the get mixed, getting a more flavorful dish.

Add a couple or three tablespoons of sofregit and mix to make sure everything gets impregnated with the sofregit.

Add all the liquid and bring it to boil.

Add all the rice. Let boil for about 5 minutes in heavy heat.

Add some saffron threads to enrich the dish with its flavor and color. Stir a little bit so the rice and the other ingredients get the entire flavor. If you’re using turmeric or yellow coloring, use only 1/4 teaspoon.

Turn to low heat and boil for another 8 minutes (or until rice is a little softer than “al dente”)

Put the pan away from heat and let the rice stand a couple of minutes.

 Sofregit (a well cooked and fragrant sauce made of olive oil, tomatoes, garlic and onions, and may at times
different vegetables such as peppers or mushrooms)-
Cooking time: aprox. 1 hour

2 tablespoons of olive oil
5 big red ripe tomatoes, chopped
2 small onions, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped (optional)
4 or 5 garlic cloves, chopped
1 cup of button or Portobello mushrooms, chopped (optional)
1 Bay leaf
Salt
Touch of ground cumin
Touch of dried oregano

Put all the ingredients together in a frying pan and sauté slowly until all vegetables are soft.

Taste and salt if necessary.

Allioli (Traditional recipe)
Cooking time: 20 min aprox.

4 garlic cloves, peeled
Pinch of salt
Fresh lemon juice (some drops)
Extra-virgin olive oil (Spanish preferred but not essential)

Place the garlic in a mortar along with the salt.

Using a pestle, smash the garlic cloves to a smooth paste. (The salt stops the garlic from slipping at the bottom of the mortar as you pound it down.)

Add the lemon juice to the garlic.

Drop by drop; pour the olive oil into the mortar slowly as you continue to crush the paste with your pestle.

Keep turning your pestle in a slow, continuous circular motion in the mortar. The drip needs to be slow and steady. Make sure the paste soaks up the olive oil as you go.

Keep adding the oil, drop by drop, until you have the consistency of a very thick mayonnaise. If your allioli gets too dense, add water to thin it out. This takes time—around 20 minutes of slow motion around the mortar—to create a dense, rich sauce.

José's tips for traditional recipe: It's hard to think that, when you start crushing the garlic, it will ever turn into something as dense and smooth as allioli. But don't give up. It's worth the extra time and effort to see the oil and garlic come together before your eyes. Just make sure you're adding the olive oil slowly, drop by drop. Keep moving the pestle around the mortar in a circular motion and keep dreaming of the thick, creamy sauce at the end of it all.

Allioli a la moderna (Modern recipe)
Cooking time: 3-4 minutes

1 small egg
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil (as above, Spanish oil is highly recommended)
1 garlic clove, peeled
1 Tbs. Spanish Sherry vinegar or lemon juice (if Sherry vinegar is not available, use can use cider or white vinegar)
Salt to taste
Break the egg into a mixing bowl.

Add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and the garlic cloves, along with the vinegar or lemon juice.

Using a hand blender, start mixing at high speed until the garlic is fully pureed into a loose paste.

Little by little, add what's left of the olive oil as you continue blending.

If the mixture appears too thick as you begin pouring the oil, add 1 teaspoon of water to loosen the sauce.
Continue adding the oil and blending until you have a rich, creamy allioli.

The sauce will be a lovely yellow color.

Add salt to taste.

José's tips for modern recipe:
If you do not have access to a hand blender, you can use a hand mixer (the kind with the two beaters) or a food processor. If you use a food processor, you must double the recipe or the amount will be too little for the blades to catch and emulsify.

What happens if the oil and egg separate? Don't throw it out. You can do two things. One is to whisk it and use it as a side sauce for a fish or vegetable. But if you want to rescue the allioli, take 1 tablespoon of lukewarm water in another beaker and start adding to the mix little by little. Blend it again until you create the creamy sauce you wanted.

Olga’s Tips:
In Spain, rice is not stired as often as it is when cooking Italian risotto. You must stir it once or twice maximum. This tip is valid for all Spanish rice dishes like paella, arròs negre, arròs a banda…

Sofregit can be done in advance. You can keep it in the fridge or even freeze it.

Allioli must be consumed during the preparation day and preserved in the fridge before using it.

Daring Cooks - Chinese Dumplings and Potstickers

By now most folks who follow food blogs are aware of the Daring Bakers - that dedicated group of bakers who tackle a complex baking challenge each month. You might not know that the Daring Bakers have formed another group known as the Daring Cooks and there is a whole new website called The Daring Kitchen.

The Daring Cooks had their first challenge last month which I skipped - no good reason as I had everything I needed to make the recipe. When I saw this month's challenge I knew that I'd be joining the ranks of the Daring Cooks post haste!

The neat thing about being a Daring Cook is that you are given the opportunity to whip something together that you wouldn't normally attempt to make. This month's challenge is a perfect example of this! I've made dumplings and post stickers before but I've never thought to attempt the dough; it has always been easier to buy pre-made wrappers.

Jenn of Use Real Butter (you have to love the title of that blog - a cook after my own heart!) would have none of that! The dumpling dough was the one thing you HAD to make so make it I did!

Chinese Dumplings and Potstickers

Jenn's recipe and directions:

It's a basic concept; a filling inside a dough wrapper, sealed, and cooked. This delicious theme runs through many cultures and is among the more popular bites at Chinese restaurants - especially dim sum. The recipe I provide is based on my family recipe. There is a lot of wiggle room and I encourage you to explore. If you've made them before - great! Now try something different!

The process goes a little like this:

You can (and should) reference instructional photos and discussion on my blog post here.

Wrappers:Well yes, you could purchase pre-made dumpling wrappers at the store (NO WONTON WRAPPERS - they have egg), but they are inferior compared to homemade. The whole point of this challenge is to make the dumpling wrappers by hand. So here is the one requirement: the dumpling wrappers must be made by hand. It isn't all that hard, it just takes a little time and practice. People usually get the hang of it after making about a dozen.

Fillings:the beauty of the Chinese dumpling/potsticker is that the filling is very versatile. That's why there are so many different kinds of dumplings when you go to dim sum. The two most common are pork and shrimp. You can make them with other ground meats (beef, chicken...) or vegetarian (tofu, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, glass noodles, Chinese chives - oh yum!). The important thing to keep in mind is that the filling needs to "stick" to itself or else you will make your life incredibly miserable wrapping up filling that keeps falling apart. I think if I were to make vegetarian dumplings, I would sauté the cabbage and mash up the tofu for a better cohesiveness. It's up to you how you want to fill your dumplings and I say - run with it! Just keep it cohesive and no big chunks of hard ingredients (they poke through the wrapper dough = disaster). I realize it may be tempting to dump all of the vegetables into a food processor and give it a whir, but I caution against it. You don't want a slurry, you want a mince. Practice your knife skills and be careful.

Special Equipment: A rolling pin - preferably not tapered.

Time:Prep for the filling takes me 30 minutes - longer if peeling and de-veining shrimp. It will depend on your proficiency with a good sharp knife. Rolling and wrapping several dozen dumplings takes me 1 hour by myself. My parents can crank through it in 30 minutes when one person is rolling wrappers and the other is wrapping dumplings. Might be fun to get a second person to help! Cooking: I have to cook mine in batches. When steaming, I can cook a dozen at a time in about 10 minutes. Potstickers: 15 minutes per 2 dozen determined by the size of your pan. Boiling - 6 minutes per dozen or so depending on size of pot. My own personal preference is for potstickers - mmmmm! But they are ALL good.

Chinese Dumplings/Potstickers

pork filling:
1 lb (450g) ground pork
4 large napa cabbage leaves, minced
3 stalks green onions, minced
7 shitake mushrooms, minced (if dried - rehydrated and rinsed carefully)
1/2 cup (75g) bamboo shoots, minced
1/4 (55g) cup ginger root, minced
3 tbsp (40g) soy sauce
2 tbsp (28g) sesame oil
2 tbsp (16g) corn starch

[note: I used the pork filling - it was delicious]

OR

shrimp filling:
1/2 lb (225g) raw shrimp, peeled, deveined, and coarsely chopped
1/2 lb (225g) ground pork
3 stalks green onions, minced
1/4 cup (55g) ginger root, minced
1 cup (142g) water chestnuts, minced
1 tsp (5g) salt
3 tbsp (40g) sesame oil
2 tbsp (16g) corn starch

dough: (double this for the amount of filling, but easier to make it in 2 batches - or just halve the filling recipe)
2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (113g) warm water
flour for work surface

dipping sauce:
2 parts soy sauce
1 part vinegar (red wine or black)
a few drops of sesame oil
chili garlic paste (optional)
minced ginger (optional)
minced garlic (optional)
minced green onion (optional)
sugar (optional)

[note: I used soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, garlic chili sauce, garlic, and green onion - MMMMMM)

Combine all filling ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mix thoroughly (I mix by clean hand). Cover and refrigerate until ready to use (up to a day, but preferably within an hour or two).

Make the dough, Method 1:Place the flour in the work bowl of a food processor with the dough blade. Run the processor and pour the warm water in until incorporated. Pour the contents into a sturdy bowl or onto a work surface and knead until uniform and smooth. The dough should be firm and silky to the touch and not sticky. [Note: it’s better to have a moist dough and have to incorporate more flour than to have a dry and pilling dough and have to incorporate more water).

As people worked on the challenge there were some comments that the dough was too dry. Jenn was quick to provide advice:

There have been two complaints posted about a dry dough and I realize that this rests in the problem of measuring flour which has a different density and hence weight for 2 cups depending on how you scoop it. That is why I also list the weight: 250g. Flour tends to settle over time, so when I scoop it out, I shake several cups' worth back into the container before taking a final scoop of soft, fluffy, flour and I get 250g for 2 cups. When you knead the dough, if it feels hard and dry, then you can add more water. [Warning: it will NOT be a soft bread dough, so don't expect it to be, but it shouldn't be a brick either.] It is perfectly fine to use more than the 1/2 cup listed in the recipe as everyone's climate and flours vary. Use your judgment - this is what being a Daring Cook is about. We are trying to cultivate a sense of intuition so that recipes are general guidelines from which you can expand your own style.

Knead the dough about twenty strokes then cover with a damp towel for 15 minutes. Take the dough and form a flattened dome. Cut into strips about 1 1/2 to 2 inches wide. Shape the strips into rounded long cylinders. On a floured surface, cut the strips into 3/4 inch pieces. Press palm down on each piece to form a flat circle (you can shape the corners in with your fingers). With a rolling pin, roll out a circular wrapper from each flat disc. Take care not to roll out too thin or the dumplings will break during cooking - about 1/16th inch. Leave the centers slightly thicker than the edges. Place a tablespoon of filling in the center of each wrapper and fold the dough in half, pleating the edges along one side (see images in post for how to fold pleats). Keep all unused dough under damp cloth.

To boil: Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add dumplings to pot. Boil the dumplings until they float.

To steam:Place dumplings on a single layer of napa cabbage leaves or on a well-greased surface in a steamer basket with lid. Steam covered for about 6 minutes.

To pan fry (potstickers): Place dumplings in a frying pan with 2-3 tbsp of vegetable oil. Heat on high and fry for a few minutes until bottoms are golden. Add 1/2 cup water and cover. Cook until the water has boiled away and then uncover and reduce heat to medium or medium low. Let the dumplings cook for another 2 minutes then remove from heat and serve.

To freeze: Assemble dumplings on a baking sheet so they are not touching. It helps to rub the base of the dumpling in a little flour before setting on the baking sheet for ease of release. Freeze for 20-30 minutes until dumplings are no longer soft. Place in ziploc bag and freeze for up to a couple of months. Prepare per the above instructions, but allow extra time to ensure the filling is thoroughly cooked.

To serve:Serve dumplings or potstickers hot with your choice of dipping sauce combinations.