Pasta con Broccoli, or Pasta with Broccoli has been a staple meal in my family for as long as I can remember. My grandmother made it. My aunts all make it. My mother makes it, and I do too.  It’s not only because it is an incredibly quick and easy dish to cook, though it is.  It’s also not only because it is a pretty healthy dish, because it’s that too.  My family eats a lot of pasta with broccoli because it’s just plain delicious.

I sometimes think that a lot of people imagine that Italian cooking, is all about long, drawn out, complicated dishes that take all day to prepare.  While there certainly are a lot of those, there are many more that aren’t.  Italians don’t just sit around living la dolce vita all day long.  They go to work and school, run errands and take care of their families just like everybody else.  Every Italian housewife I ever knew had a slew of great recipes in her arsenal – like this one – that could be put together in an hour or less.

So let me show you just how easy Pasta con Broccoli is to make. 

First, get yourself a couple of bunches of nice, fresh, green broccoli.  Choose broccoli with floret clusters that are compact and not bruised. They should be uniformly colored, with no yellowing. They also shouldn’t have any blooming yellow flowers, as this is a sign of over maturity. The stalk and stems should be firm with no slimy spots. If the leaves are still attached, they should be a deep, dark green and not wilted.

Cut off the florets, and halve any that are larger than about an inch in diameter.  This is so that the broccoli will cook evenly.  You can also use frozen broccoli florets in this dish.  Doing so doesn’t affect the quality at all.  But, if you do go with frozen, don’t thaw it before cooking or else it will get mushy.

Next, get out your best extra-virgin olive oil. A really good one will have a greenish tinge to it.  You’ll also need to slice up some fresh garlic cloves.  Try to get them thin, but not too much so or else they may burn in the pan.

Heat the oil in a pan and gently sauté the garlic. You won’t believe how fragrant that garlic gets!  I always add some red pepper flakes too, because I’m a fiery Italian woman.

Once the garlic is soft and lightly golden, toss in the broccoli, cover and cook.

When the broccoli is tender and just a tad bit browned, pour in a little of the pasta cooking water or chicken stock, and simmer until the broccoli is cooked through.  What!  You didn’t forget about the pasta, did you?  Sheesh! That’s why it’s called Pasta con Broccoli.   Do I have to tell you everything?

The traditional pasta used in this dish is orecchiette, which means little ears.  Orecchiette is a variety of pasta from Puglia, and is shaped like…well – you know – like little ears.  They’re perfect served in sauces and soups  because their “scoop-like” shape traps bits of sauce or broth.  It’s like having a thousand little bowls inside your plate.   If you can’t find orecchiette or just don’t feel like using it, you can substitute any kind of short pasta, preferably one with a textured surface.

When your broccoli is nice and tender, add in the cooked pasta and toss.  Drizzle a little extra-virgin olive oil all over the top, sprinkle with grated cheese and you’re done.

Buon Appetito!

Pasta con Broccoli

Ingredients:

1 pound dry short pasta like orecchiette
1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) olive oil, plus extra as needed
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (If you like it hotter, add more.)
1 pound fresh or frozen broccoli florets
2/3 cup reserved pasta water or chicken stock
Salt and pepper to taste
Extra-virgin olive oil for drizzling
Parmigiano-Reggiano or Pecorino Romano cheese, grated for sprinkling

Preparation:

In a large pot of boiling salted water, add pasta and cook according to package directions. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking liquid, then drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat the 4 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet or sauté pan over medium heat. Gently sauté the garlic and red pepper flakes until garlic fragrant and lightly golden.  Be careful not to burn it!

Raise the heat up to medium-high and mix in the broccoli. Cover and cook until the broccoli is slightly browned and crisp tender. This will take about 8-10 minutes, depending on your stove. You will have to keep watch and stir often to make sure that it doesn’t burn.

Add reserved pasta water or stock and simmer, uncovered, until liquid has reduced by half, about 2 minutes, and the broccoli nice and soft, but not mushy.

Toss with pasta and season with salt and pepper to taste.  To serve, drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil and sprinkle with grated cheese.

Serves 4-6 as a first course.

Enjoy!

I was recently the recipient of two gorgeous bunches of organic Lacinato kale from SunCoast Organics.  You might know it as dinosaur kale, Tuscan kale or cavolo nero.  It’s the kind that has long, dark, embossed, plume-like leaves as opposed to its curly-leafed cousins.  Lacinato kale has a slightly sweeter and more delicate taste than curly kale, and is lovely in soups, stews or even salads.

One of my favorite ways to enjoy kale is in Caldo Verde, a Portuguese soup made with greens, potatoes and smoky chouriço sausage.  It’s a hearty, rustic dish that I make often.  But for this kale, I wanted to try something new.  I found the perfect recipe on Molly’s site, and I ran with it.

Boiled Kale with a Fried Egg and Toast is the simplest of simple dishes, yet it is so incredibly delicious.  It’s just kale, simmered in chicken stock with onions, and served on toast with a luscious, gooey, runny fried egg on top. If you’re feeling really daring like I was, you can also fry up some bacon to toss in the mix.  No fancy bells and whistles here.  Yet, once I began thinking about this guileless little dish, I couldn’t stop!

The first thing you have to do is prepare the kale, by trimming off the tough stems, rinsing it like crazy and cutting it into ribbons.

Next, you sauté some onions and wilt the kale.   Then, add chicken or vegetable stock and simmer it all, slowly, until the kale is soft and tender.  I forgot to take a picture of this part.  I guess I was too excited about the impending bacon fry.

Everything’s better with bacon – especially fried eggs.  They’ve been going steady for years.

Where there’s bacon, there’s bacon fat.  Slide a few farm fresh eggs right down into some.  If you don’t use bacon, just fry the eggs in good old olive oil.

Plop a nice, thick slice of toasted bread in a bowl, ladle on some kale, toss on a little bacon and top with one of those pretty fried eggs – or two.  I sprinkled some shredded Parmesan on top of mine too.

Oh, baby! It just doesn’t get much better than this, people!  Come on – be honest. Could you resist this?

Boiled Kale with a Fried Egg and Toast
from the Zuni Café Cookbook via Orangette

Ingredients:

1 pound kale
5 Tbsp. olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
3 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
6 cups chicken stock, vegetable stock, or water
4 thick slices of country bread
4 eggs
Olive oil
4 slices thick-cut bacon
Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano, grated for sprinkling

Preparation:

Prepare the kale by trimming away any discolored spots and removing the tough ribs and stems from the leaves.  To chiffonade the leaves, stack 3 or 4 at a time on top of each other, roll them up and then slice them into 1/4-inch-thick ribbons. Dump the sliced kale into a bowl or salad spinner and soak in cold water. Swish it around a bit to loosen any dirt and grit. Let stand for a minute or two, drain and rinse again. Spin dry or pat dry with paper towels.

In a large saucepan or stock pot, heat the 5 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions, and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are tender, but still firm.  Add the red pepper flakes, garlic and the kale, and stirring until the kale is fully wilted. Add stock to cover the kale. Bring to a simmer, cover and continue to simmer until the kale is tender but not mushy, about 30 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

While kale is simmering, fry up the bacon in a skillet. Drain on a plate lined with paper towels, and cut into bite sized pieces.  Set aside.

When kale is finished cooking, fry the eggs in the skillet with  a few tablespoons of the remaining bacon fat.

To serve, toast one slice of bread per person. While still hot, lightly rub both sides of the toast with raw garlic. Place the toast in the bottom of a wide soup bowl.  Pile some kale onto the toast in each bowl with some of its juices.  Strew some bacon into each bowl. Drizzle with a little bit of olive oil and top each with a fried egg.  Sprinkle some grated cheese on top and serve.

Enjoy!

Summer is almost over.  Hurray!!!  I have to admit, Summer has never been a good friend of mine.  Between the oppressive heat and humidity, hurricane season, and eleven weeks of school vacation, by this time each year, my nerves are raw.  I know, I know – why in the heck do I live in Florida if I hate the heat?  It isn’t by choice.   I guess I’m a victim of circumstance.  I grew up here.  I met my husband here. Our business is here.  And, most of the rest of my family is now here too.  I suppose there were a few opportunities for escape over the years, but my fear of the unknown coupled with my sense of responsibility kept me from grabbing them.  I still have hope, though.  Mini SGCC will be off to college in a few years. Our nest will be empty.  Perhaps that will be the catalyst to shake us out of this rut.

What does this have to do with Oatmeal Breakfast Bread?   Nothing, really.  But, the temperature is hovering at around ninety-three degrees in the shade as I write this, and my brain is feeling a little like a fried egg right now.   Or maybe, I’m just becoming one of those old ladies who ramble on about nothing that has anything to do with anything.  If I start walking around wearing purple hats and peppering my conversations with words like “putter” and “early bird special”, please just shoot me! 

But, the bread.  Oh yes, the bread!  That tender, cushiony, slightly sweet, lightly spiced crumb surrounded by a crunchy shell of cinnamon, brown sugar and nuts.  Dorie’s Oatmeal Breakfast Bread is fabulous!  It’s made with healthy whole wheat flour and rolled oats.  And, did I mention that it has little juicy bits of dried fruit inside?  It does!  A slice of this stuff is the perfect thing to grab on your way out the door in the morning to catch the school bus.  Or to go to the office.  Or to run errands. Or just to sit in front of your computer at home with a nice, hot cup of coffee.  It’s very versatile that way.

You can add whatever kind of fruits and nuts you want to this bread.  Dorie likes to add raisins.  I do too, but I didn’t have any raisins when I made mine.  I used a tropical fruit blend of dried mango, pineapple and papaya.  I also used toasted, chopped pecans in the topping.  They were good choices, but the next time I make this bread, I’ll definitely add raisins.  Or dried apples and cherries.  Or maybe strawberries….. There I go rambling again.  But, you get the idea.

Before I totally lose my mind, I’d like to thank Natalie of Oven Love for choosing this recipe for this week’s Tuesdays with Dorie assignment. You can find the recipe for this delicious Oatmeal Breakfast Bread there, and of course in Baking: From My Home to Yours.   And, don’t forget to stop by the TWD Blogroll to see how the rest of the gang fared with this one.

Hmmm. I think I’ll go turn the air conditioner down a few more notches and grab another slice of that bread…..

Every family has its own unique set of traditions.  These traditions are the glue that binds one generation to another.  Those revolving around food are often the ones that seem to stand out the most.  It’s no wonder. Food nourishes not only our bodies but our souls as well.  The family table is where relationships are forged, bonds are strengthened and memories are made.   One of the goals I had when I started this blog was to celebrate my Italian heritage by featuring the marvelously homey and delicious dishes I grew up eating and the loving hands that prepared them.  I wanted to show how the relationship between food and family plays an integral part in shaping who we are by sharing some of my own memories, musings and experiences.  As I said then, “I have many interests in my life, but I’ve realized that food is the fabric that holds families together. The memories of preparing a meal together and then sitting down to enjoy it with my own family are my most treasured.  Although I am merely a humble home cook, I hope that, through this blog, I can inspire some of you, as I have been inspired, to make some memories of your own.”

I strayed.

The very first of my own recipes that I posted on SGCC was based on my grandmother’s Sunday meat sauce.  That was almost three years ago. Back then, I knew nothing about how to write a proper recipe, and even less about how to take a decent photograph.  But I did know how to tell a story, and I often peppered my posts with them.  As time passed, I was seduced by simplicity and beaten down by time.  In my zeal to crank out frequent posts while keeping up with my other writing gigs, the stories and my cherished family recipes became fewer and far between. I’ve also become so inspired by the plethora of excellent food blogs on the web and and the talented and creative bloggers behind them. Every day I find so many new recipes from all different cultures, and I want to try them all!  There’s nothing wrong with that. I’ve loved stretching my culinary wings and trying new things.  That’s how we grow, enriching ourselves and hopefully, others.  It just wasn’t what my original vision for SGCC was.

So, I’ve reached a compromise with myself. While still carrying on with SGCC the way I have been, I am also going to try to set aside one day each week to get back to my culinary roots.  Sunday is going to be La Tavola della Famiglia or The Family Table day.  Why Sunday?  Because in my family,  Sunday was always the day when we all gathered together at my grandparents’ house for a long, leisurely food fest – no matter how busy anyone was.  And, since no Sunday was ever really Sunday without a huge pot of ragu simmering on my grandmother’s stove, brimming with various kinds of meat, I’ve decided to kick off my La Tavola della Famiglia series with this Fettuccine al Sugo di Pollo e Funghi – Fettuccine with Chicken and Mushroom Sauce.  

Fettuccine al Sugo di Pollo e Funghi is a riff on my family’s traditional Sunday meat sauce.  Instead of being filled with meatballs and various cuts of beef and pork, chicken and earthy, meaty mushrooms are the stars of the show.  Chicken was a big favorite of my dad’s, so both my nonna and my mother used to make this dish often.  The sugo only needs to be simmered for an hour or so, or until the chicken is cooked through.  Because of the shorter cooking time, it tends to be a lighter and brighter sauce, with an almost sweeter quality to it.  And, since you don’t have to slave over a hot stove all day to prepare it, you’ll have lots more time for other fun, family activities on a Sunday afternoon.

Here’s how you make it:

Mmmm!  Can you smell that onion and garlic sizzling?  I could just dab some of that stuff behind my ears instead of perfume!

One thing that I do differently from the original recipe is to remove the cooked chicken from the bones and add it back to the sauce.  It’s a lot easier to eat that way, plus, you get a bite of chicken in every forkful.  Another thing I like to do is use a blend of different kinds of mushrooms. I think it gives a nice variety of textures to the dish.  Here, I added a mixture of portobello, porcini and shiitake mushrooms, but any combination works.  When it comes to mushrooms, the more the merrier!  Back in the day, regular old button mushrooms were the only ones readily available, so that is what my mom and grandma used.  I don’t think my nonna ever even heard of shiitakes, much less cooked with them.

So, here you have it. Fettuccine al Sugo di Pollo e Funghi, dalla tavola della mia famiglia alla vostra – from my family’s table to yours.

Buon Appetito!

Fettuccine al Sugo di Pollo e Funghi (Pasta with Chicken and Mushroom Sauce)

Ingredients:

2 pounds chicken pieces (I use thighs)
Salt and pepper for chicken
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large sweet onion, finely diced
2 medium carrots, finely chopped
1 rib celery, finely diced
2 cloves garlic finely minced
3-4 sprigs fresh thyme
1 pound assorted mushrooms, cleaned and sliced  (I used a combination of porcini, portobello and shiitake)
1 1/2 cups white wine (If you don’t want to use wine, you can use chicken or vegetable stock.)
2 28-ounce cans San Marzano tomatoes, crushed
Pinch of red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
1 pound fettuccine or any long pasta, fresh or dried
Grated Parmegiano-Reggiano cheese for sprinkling
Flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped for garnish

Preparation:

Season chicken pieces with salt and pepper.  Set aside.

Heat the olive oil and butter in a large Dutch oven or saucepan over medium-high heat.  Add chicken and brown on both sides, about 3-4 minutes per side.  Remove to a plate and set aside.

Reduce heat to medium.  Add onion, carrots and celery and sauté until onions are translucent and slightly tender, about 5 minutes.  Add garlic and thyme and sauté until fragrant, about 2 minutes.  Add mushrooms and continue to sauté until mushrooms begin to soften, about 2-3 minutes.

Pour in the wine and bring to a boil. When boiling, reduce heat back to medium and simmer until wine has reduced by half.  Add tomatoes, red pepper flakes and salt and pepper to taste.  Bring to a simmer and add the chicken pieces.  Simmer, covered for 30 minutes.  Uncover and simmer for another 30 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.

While the sauce is simmering, prepare the fettuccine according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Remove chicken from the sauce and pull the meat from the bones.  Add the pulled chicken back into the sauce and adjust the seasonings.

Serve over pasta and top with grated cheese and parsley.

Enjoy!

Are you getting sick of me talking about Suncoast Organics yet?  I hope not, because I’m going to talk about them again.  This week I got the prettiest rainbow-colored carrots in my goodie box.  Another “first” for me. I’d seen pictures of them in cookbooks and magazines, but never, ever found them in any market around here.  I wanted to use them in a way that would really show off their pretty colors.  That meant cooking them was out.  Since my Wickled Okra was such a success, I decided to pickle the carrots as well.

One of my favorite restaurants here in town is a casual, little Vietnamese place called Pho Cali.  As you can probably guess from the name, they have awesome pho.  But, they also have awesome everything else too.  Alongside every delectable dish they serve is a sweetly zesty pickled carrot and daikon radish medley called do chua.  It’s the first thing I go for on the plate.  I sometimes have to fight Mr. SGCC for it.  But, I’m the fastest fork in the East, so I usually win.  I love me some do chua! 

Instead of making a traditional pickle with my rainbow carrots,  I channeled my inner Asian and made some do chua.  Luckily, I still had some daikons left over from last week’s veggie box from you know who.

Do chua is so incredibly easy to make. Since it is a “fresh” pickle, there is no boiling or cooking involved. All you do is julienne the carrots and daikon, and soak them in a brine made with white vinegar, rice wine vinegar, a little water, sugar and a pinch of salt. That’s it!  Plus, the pickles only need to marinate in their brine for about an hour before they’re ready to devour.

The recipe I used is from a cookbook called Into the Vietnamese Kitchen: Treasured Foodways, Modern Flavors, by Andrea Nguyen.  If you like Vietnamese food, you should definitely check it out.  Even if you only like to eat Vietnamese food in restaurants, you should still check it out because it’s a beautiful book. Andrea also writes the excellent blogs, Viet World Kitchen and Asian Dumpling Tips.  I’ve tried several of her recipes and they always turn out great, especially her dumplings.  She is a dumplings rock star!

Do chua will keep for weeks in the fridge, so you might as well make a lot.  These little guys tend to disappear pretty quickly!

Do Chua (Vietnamese Carrot and Daikon Pickle)
liberally adapted from Into the Vietnamese Kitchen: Treasured Foodways, Modern Flavors

Ingredients:

1 large or 2 medium carrots, peeled and julienned
1 pound daikon radishes, each no larger than 2 inches in diameter, peeled and julienned
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons plus 1/2 cup sugar
1  cup distilled white vinegar
1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
1 cup lukewarm water

Preparation:

Place the carrot and daikons in a bowl and sprinkle with the salt and 2 teaspoons of the sugar. Use your hands to knead the vegetables for a few minutes. They will soften and release their liquid. They should lose about 1/4 of their volume. Drain in a colander and rinse under cold running water, then press gently to expel any extra water.  Divide the vegetables among some pretty jars or containers and make the brine.

To make the brine, combine the 1/2 cup sugar, the vinegars, and the water together in a bowl and stir to dissolve the sugar.

Pour some brine into each jar over the vegetables until completely covered.   Let the vegetables marinate in the brine for at least 1 hour before eating. They will keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 weeks.

Makes about 3 cups.

Enjoy!

Okay, I’ll admit it.  I’m not a big fan of chocolate ice cream.  Never have been.  I really don’t know why that is, because I love other chocolate things.  I love brownies, chocolate chip cookies and chocolate cake. And, I absolutely adore chocolate pudding, especially when it’s homemade.  But chocolate ice cream, not so much.  The name of this particular ice cream, however, is Chocolate Ganache Ice Cream.  I really love chocolate ganache!  Love, love, love!  You could put chocolate ganache on Brussels sprouts and I would eat it.  You could even put it on duck lips, and I’m pretty sure I would still eat it.  So of course, when I learned that Chocolate Ganache Ice Cream was on the menu for this week’s TWD, I had to try it.  And, I’m glad I did.

Dorie’s ice cream is made by basically rolling two recipes into one.  First, there is her decadent, deep, dark chocolate ganache, which we all know is sublime by itself.  Then, there is a rich, creamy custard, which is the base of the ice cream.  The two are blended together and, when churned in an ice cream machine, become melded into one glorious, velvety and intensely chocolatey mound of frozen lusciousness.  Seriously, people. This ice cream is a little bit of chocolate heaven in a bowl!  And coming from someone who doesn’t really care for chocolate ice cream, that is really saying something.

Oh yes.  I also added some dark chocolate bits to the ice cream as well.  You know, just in case it wasn’t quite chocolatey enough.

Many thanks to Katrina from Baking and Boys who selected this recipe for us this week.  You can find the recipe on her site.  If you’d like to see lots more of this delicious ice cream, please check out the Tuesdays with Dorie blogroll.

I’ve been having lots of fun thinking of different ways to use up the fruits and veggies in my weekly produce basket from Suncoast Organics.  Each week they offer several interesting and unusual items that I rarely, if ever, see at the supermarket -  like the yardlong beans I made last week.

This week, I ordered some organic red okra.  I didn’t even know that okra came in red.  Since red is one of my signature colors, I ordered some.  Then I remembered that no one around here particularly likes okra.  Except in gumbo. Or jambalaya.  But I wasn’t about to start a Cajun cooking marathon in this 95 degree heat. Nosirree!  Until it cools off a little, nobody’s getting much more than salad or a quick stir fry out of me!  Okay, I might be persuaded to throw some steaks or chicken on the grill, but that’s it – unless there’s jewelry involved.

But, these lovely little, rosy, red okra deserved more than just being chopped up in a salad.  Look how cute they are!  They needed to be front and center in whatever I used them in.  So, I decided to make pickles out of them.  And, not just any old pickles, mind you, but wicked sweet and spicy pickles.  I wanted to make okra Wickles!

I’m not a huge pickle fan, but I do love Wickles Pickles.  Now, I had absolutely no idea how to make these incredibly good, sweet and spicy pickles.  And, for obvious reasons, their seventy year-old secret family recipe was nowhere to be found on the Internet.  So I read the ingredient list on the back of a Wickles jar and decided to wing it.  Either I’m incredibly talented or incredibly lucky, because my pickled okra turned out fantastic!

The first thing I did was dig out a few pretty mason jars.  Then, I sterilized them in a big pot of boiling water.  After that, I made the brine for my pickles by simmering a mixture of apple cider vinegar, white vinegar, sugar, garlic and a variety of different spices and seasonings.  Then, I stuffed the okra in the jars with garlic cloves and chili peppers and topped each jar off with brine.  The hardest part about making this recipe was waiting a few days before I could eat the okra!

If you have never made your own pickles before, you MUST try this. It’s so easy!  Another plus is that you can adjust the amounts of each ingredient to suit your taste.  The measurements I used were basically the result of trial and error.  In other words, I just kept adding stuff until it tasted right to me.  If you don’t have one of the ingredients that i used, leave it out – or add some others in. There really is no right or wrong in this.  The only ingredients that I think are essential are the vinegars, sugar, garlic and chili peppers.

So, go crazy!  Make some pickles!  You know you want to.

Sweet and Spicy Wickled Okra

Ingredients:

4 16-ounce ( one pint) mason jars with lids
3 cups apple cider vinegar
1 cup white vinegar
1 cup water
3 cups granulated sugar
8 cloves garlic, peeled
1 tablespoon pickling spices
1 teaspoon cumin seed
1 teaspoon dehydrated onion
1 teaspoon red chili flakes
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
4 fresh birds eye chili peppers with a small 1/2-inch slit cut into one side of each
1 to 1 1/2 pounds fresh okra, rinsed and dried

Preparation:

Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.  when boiling, carefully place the jars and lids into the water, making sure that the jars are filled up with the water too.  Boil jars and lids for a minute or so and remove them from the pot.  Set aside to cool while you make the pickle brine.

Combine the rest of the ingredients, except the chilies and okra in a pot on the stove and bring to a boil.  You can use the same pot you used to sterilize the jars.  When boiling, reduce heat and simmer for about 3 minutes.  Taste the brine and adjust the seasonings to your taste.

Place 2 garlic cloves and 1 chili pepper into each jar.  Then, fill each jar with okra, packing it as tightly as you can without breaking the stalks. Fill each jar to the top with brine, completely covering the okra.  Cover tightly with the lids and let cool on the counter for about 30 minutes.

Place jars in the fridge to chill.  Wait at least 2 days before using.  Longer is better.

Serve your pickles in salads or with burgers, plopped in a Bloody Mary or right out of the jar.

Enjoy!

Happy day! After resisting for years, I finally broke down and joined a CSA.  Well, not a true CSA exactly, but close.  To be honest, I was never really sold on the idea of getting a big mystery box of produce each week and then having to figure out what to do with it.  I kind of like to choose what ingredients I cook with, and plan my meals based on what inspires me.  Plus, I wasn’t crazy about the fact that I had to prepay for the season and was locked in every week, whether I was able to use the stuff or not.  Still, I loved the idea of having access to all of those lovely fresh fruits and veggies, because lord knows, I can rarely  find them at my local market! Enter Suncoast Organics and the perfect solution to my produce dilemma.

Suncoast Organics is a new business in my area that delivers – yes, DELIVERS – just picked, farm fresh, organic produce each week directly to my doorstep.  It’s similar to a CSA in that there is a membership fee, but it’s a small one and you don’t have to pay it all up front.  Also, I get to choose exactly what products I want and how much of each I want.  So, each week, I just click on Suncoast Organics’ web site, check out what’s available for that week, order what I want and pay as I go.  Brilliant, right?  If I’m going out of town or I just don’t feel like ordering one week, I don’t have to.  No wasteful spending and no wasted produce!  I still have to pay the $10.00 membership fee, but I can live with that. If I decide to discontinue the service, all I have to do is email Julie and Jim and let them know.  It’s a great compromise between a traditional CSA and buying my produce somewhere like Whole Foods.  Plus, it’s cheaper than you know where.

Last week I got some interesting things in my veggie basket, including yardlong beans, or Chinese long beans.  I have never, ever seen them before at the market, and I’m pretty sure I’d never eaten them before either.  I was psyched! 

Look how pretty they are!

I also got a bag of these gorgeous shiitake mushrooms.  Need I say more?

I put my Asian food thinking cap on and decided to combine them in a stir fry with ground pork, garlic, ginger and black bean sauce. I hunted around the web for some inspiration and found lots of great ideas.  In fact, I found too many great ideas!  So, I took a pinch of this and a smidge of that, and came up with my own version of Chinese Long Beans with Shiitake Mushrooms and Pork in Black Bean Sauce.

I heated up some grapeseed oil in my cast iron wok that I got last year at The Wok Shop. I love that wok!  I love The Wok Shop too!

Then, I cooked my garlic, ginger and ground pork. Next, I added the long beans that weren’t so long anymore after I cut them up, and stir fried them until they started to get tender.  Once the beans were on their way to delicious tenderness, I added in the shiitake mushrooms and cooked it all a little bit more.  Finally, I poured in the black bean sauce and simmered it for another several minutes and I was done.

There are lots of good recipes for homemade black bean sauce, but I decided to save some time by using a pre-made sauce from the Asian market.   There are a few good ones around, but the best one I’ve tried is from Lee Kum Kee.  I use it to make a similar dish with chicken and eggplant, as well as those tasty little steamed spareribs you see a lot on dim sum menus.

My verdict on the long beans?  I really liked them.  They were a lot like regular green beans, but chewier and a little saltier.  They played very nicely with the shiitake mushrooms, as those also tend to be a little chewy.  In fact, I would definitely consider the whole dish to be a success.

I’m looking forward to getting my hands on more long beans as soon as I can.  Next time, I’d love to try them stewed, Italian-style, with fresh tomatoes and potatoes.  Until then, I’m looking forward to my next bag of goodies from Suncoast Organics.

Chinese Long Beans with Shiitake Mushrooms and Pork in Black Bean Sauce

Ingredients:

1 pound long beans
1 pound ground pork
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon fish sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil, divided
Pinch of salt and pepper
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1-2 tablespoons unflavored oil, such as vegetable, canola or grapeseed
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 teaspoon finely minced ginger
1/2 pound shiitake mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
3 tablespoons prepared black bean sauce
1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1/2 -1 cup water

Preparation:

Rinse and cut the long beans into 3-inch lengths. Set aside.

Combine the pork, soy sauce, fish sauce, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, salt, pepper and cornstarch together in a medium bowl.   Mix well with a fork or your fingers until thoroughly combined.  Let it sit for about 5-10 minutes.

In a wok or large skillet, heat the unflavored oil on high heat until smoking, then add the garlic and ginger. Stirring constantly, fry for about 10-20 seconds until fragrant. Be careful not to burn it.  Add the pork and cook until it almost no pink remains, breaking up the chunks as you go. This should take about 2-3 minutes if your wok is really hot.

Add the long beans to the wok and continue to cook for about 4-5 minutes, or until no pink remains in the pork and the beans begin to get tender.   Add the mushrooms and cook about 2 minutes.  Remember to keep all of the ingredients moving so that nothing burns.

Whisk the black bean sauce, rice wine, brown sugar and 1/2 cup water together in a small bowl.

Reduce the heat to medium, and stir in the black bean mixture.  Taste it and if the sauce is too strong for you, add the rest of the water.  Continue to simmer and stir for another 5-8 minutes, or until the beans are cooked through and tender.

Remove the wok from the heat and mix in the remaining teaspoon of sesame oil.  Adjust the seasonings if necessary.

Serve as is, or with some steamed rice or noodles.

Serves 4.

Enjoy!

A few weeks ago, I got an email from Tom and Michael, two recent college grads with a passion for design, business and salsa.  They asked me if I would be interested in trying out their new invention – the Salsabol.   Salsabol?   It sounded pretty interesting, so of course, I said yes.

It seems that like many of us, Tom and Michael were sick and tired of scooping up salsa and having it fall off of their chips.  They knew that there must be a better and neater way to serve salsa and other dips, so they decided to put their heads together and create one.  The result is the Salsabol.

The Salsabol is an elegantly crafted and highly functional ceramic bowl designed to put an end to spilled salsa messes forever. It features a unique, patent-pending lip that pushes your salsa or dip back onto your chip for the perfect scoop every time!  Imagine!  You’ll never have to scrape salsa splotches off of your tablecloth again! 

Here’s how it works.

The raised side of the Salsabol curves back over into the bowl to form a perfectly-engineered ramp to guide the salsa directly onto your chip. Just scoop your chip up the high side and the “bol” will do the rest!  Brilliant!

The first thing I noticed when I took my Salsabol out of its box is how pretty it is.  It has a sleek, curvy shape that will go with any decor.  Plus, you can get it in any color you like, as long as it’s yellow.  Luckily, I happen to love yellow.

To “christen” my new Salsabol, I decided to make some delicious homemade salsa over the weekend.  This Spicy Melon Salsa is quite possibly one of the best salsas I’ve ever eaten, and it is a snap to make!  It’s put together with a mix of cantaloupe, honeydew and watermelon, blended with some red onion, jalapeno, lime juice, fresh mint and my secret ingredient – Sriracha sauce.  That’s right – Sriracha!  It gives this salsa the perfect little spicy kick without making it too hot to handle.

All you do is dice up the melons, onion, jalapeno and mint in little, tiny pieces and swirl in the lime juice and Sriracha.  I also added a large pinch of both salt and sugar to balance out the flavors.  Although, if your melons are super sweet, you could probably leave out the sugar.

I’d never had a salsa made with melons before, but I often add them to salads.  I love the cool and refreshing aspect they bring to a dish.  They definitely came through for me in this salsa.  It was light, crisp and just slightly sweet, playing perfectly off of the tart lime and spicy Sriracha.

And yes, my Salsabol worked great! Not a drop of that lovely salsa went anywhere but on the blue corn chips I served it with.

If you want to join the Salsabol revolution too, visit Tom and Michael’s site and get a Salsabol for yourself.  I think it’s gonna be big!

*The Salsabol was provided to me free of charge by the company in the hope that I would like it and review it on this site.  I did like it and this review reflects my personal opinion of the product.  I make no other guarantees or warranties regarding the product.

Spicy Melon Salsa

Ingredients:

1 cup diced cantaloupe
1 cup diced honeydew
1 cup diced watermelon
1/2 cup diced red onion
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
Juice of one fresh lime
1/2 teaspoon superfine sugar (If you don’t have superfine sugar, you can just grind some regular granulated sugar with a mortar and pestle.)
1 pinch salt
1 squirt Sriracha sauce to taste
2 tablespoons minced fresh mint leaves.

Preparation:

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and toss.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Makes about 2 cups.

Enjoy!

Hello, my lovelies!  It’s time again for another droolworthy creation from the Daring Bakers.  This month it’s all about the perfect summertime treat – cool and creamy ice cream.  The July 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Sunita of Sunita’s World – Life and Food. Sunita challenged everyone to make an ice-cream filled Swiss roll that’s then used to make a bombe with hot fudge. Her recipe is based on an ice cream cake recipe from Taste of Home.

The bombe or ice cream cake begins with a light and thin sponge cake which is slathered with a whipped cream filling and rolled up to make a Swiss roll.  Slices of the Swiss roll are used to line a bowl and are then filled with alternating layers of softened ice cream and fudge topping.   Then, the whole thing is frozen solid, unmolded and served.  Don’t let your eyes roll back into your head just yet.  You’ll need them to read how to make this dreamy dessert. 

In Sunita’s original recipe the sponge cake is flavored with cocoa and vanilla and chocolate ice creams are used for the layers. One of my all time favorite ice cream desserts is a Mississippi Mud Pie that I first had while on a cruise.  It’s a decadent concoction consisting of a chocolate cookie crust filled with coffee and chocolate ice creams separated by a layer of thick ribbons of hot fudge.  Absolutely sublime!  When figuring out what kind of twist I wanted to try with this bombe, I decided to use the same flavors that are in the pie, hence the name Mississippi Mud Swiss Swirl Ice Cream Cake. I know it’s a mouthful, but so is this cake! I stayed with the chocolate cake, chocolate ice cream and fudge, but swapped out the vanilla ice cream for a rich and luscious java chip ice cream made with coffee beans, espresso powder and dark chocolate bits.  I flavored my cream Swiss roll cream filling with coffee as well.  It was brilliant!  The chocolate cake rolls took the place of the cookie crust, and the rest….. homemade coffee and chocolate ice creams, dark chocolate bits, hot fudge….. Need I say more?

Although, this recipe is pretty lengthy and does take quite a while to put together, none of the steps are the least bit difficult.  In fact, you could skip making your own ice cream and just use a good quality store-bought product. That would save you the better part of a day.  Hell, you could even buy the hot fudge sauce too, and save even more time.

If you’d like to see lots more beautiful and creative variations of this Swiss Roll Ice Cream Cake, grab a fork and stop by the Daring Bakers blogroll.

Mississippi Mud Swiss Roll Ice Cream Cake
inspired by the recipe of the same name from the Taste of Home website

Swiss Cake Rolls

Preparation time- 10 minutes
Baking time- 10-12 minutes
Rolling and cooling time- at least 30 minutes
Filling-5-8 minutes
Filling and rolling- 5-10 minutes

Ingredients

For the cake:

6 medium sized eggs
1 C / 225 gms caster sugar /8 oz+ extra for rolling
6 tblsp / 45gms/ a pinch over 1.5 oz of all purpose (plain) flour + 5 tblsp/40gm /a pinch under 1.5 oz of natural unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted together
2 tblsp /30ml / 1 fl oz of boiling water
Oil for brushing the pans

For the filling:

2C / 500 mls/ 16 fl oz of whipping cream
1 vanilla pod, cut into small pieces of about ½ cm (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
5 tblsp / 70gms/2.5oz of caster sugar
2 teaspoons instant espresso powder*

Directions

Preheat the oven to 200 deg C /400 deg F.  Brush to 11×9-inch baking pans with a little flavorless oil and line with parchment paper. If you have just one pan, bake one cake and then let the pan cool completely before using it for the next cake.

In a large mixing bowl, add the eggs and sugar and beat till very thick; when the beaters are lifted, it should leave a trail on the surface for at least 10 seconds. Add the flour mixture, in three batches and fold in gently with a spatula. Fold in the water.

Divide the mixture among the two baking pans and spread it out evenly, into the corners of the pans. Place a pan in the center of the preheated oven and bake for about 10-12 minutes or till the centre is springy to the touch.  When done, bake the second cake.

Spread a kitchen towel on the counter and sprinkle a little caster sugar over it.  Turn the cake on to the towel and peel away the baking paper. Trim any crisp edges.  Starting from one of the shorter sides, start to make a roll with the towel going inside. Cool the wrapped roll on a rack, seam side down.  Repeat the same for the next cake as well.

Grind together the vanilla pieces and sugar in a food processer till nicely mixed together. If you are using vanilla extract, just grind the sugar on its own and then add the sugar and extract to the cream.

In a large bowl, add the cream, vanilla-sugar mixture and espresso powder.  Beat until stiff peaks form.

Open the cake rolls and spread half of the cream filling on each cake, leaving a 1/2-inch border.  Roll the cakes up again, this time without the towel. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge till needed, seam side down.

Java Chip Ice Cream
liberally adapted from The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups whole coffee beans (Use decaf if you don’t want the caffeine in your ice cream)
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
5 large egg yolks
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2-3 teaspoons instant espresso powder, according to taste
1 tablespoon coffee liqueur
1/2 cup good quality semisweet chocolate chopped into small bits

Directions:

Heat the milk, sugar, whole coffee beans, salt, and 1/2 cup of the cream in a medium saucepan until it is hot and steamy, but not boiling. Cover, remove from the heat, and let steep at room temperature for 1 hour.

Pour the remaining 1 cup of cream into a medium size metal bowl, set over a larger bowl filled with ice.  Set a mesh strainer on top of the bowls. Set aside.

Reheat the milk and coffee mixture, on medium heat, again, until hot and steamy, but not boiling.  In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks together. Slowly pour the heated milk and coffee mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly so that the egg yolks are tempered by the warm milk, but not cooked by it. Scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.

Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula or wooden spoon, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the back of the spatula or spoon.

Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream. Press on the coffee beans in the strainer to extract as much of the coffee flavor as possible. Discard the beans. Mix in the vanilla, espresso powder and liqueur, and stir a few minutes to release the steam.

Chill the mixture for several hours or overnight in the refrigerator.  Freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.  When the ice cream is finished churning, mix in the chocolate bits and freeze until firm.

Makes 1 quart.

Chocolate Ice Cream
adapted from The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz.

Ingredients:

2 cups heavy cream, divided
3 Tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder (I used Valhrona)
5 ounces good quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
Pinch of salt
5 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Place a medium saucepan over low heat. Add 1 cup of the cream and the cocoa powder into the pan. Whisk mixture briskly to combine, and bring to a boil. Once liquid is boiling immediately reduce the heat to a simmer, and whisk constantly for about 30 seconds. Turn off the heat and remove pan from the burner. Add the chopped chocolate into the liquid and stir until it is melted and smooth. Next, add in the remaining 1 cup of cream and stir to combine. Transfer all of the liquid into a medium bowl, and place a fine mesh strainer on top of the bowl. Set bowl aside and make the custard.

Return the medium saucepan to the stove over low heat. Add the milk, sugar, and salt into the saucepan. Heat gently until the mixture begins to steam but not bubble. While the liquid is warming, in a separate medium bowl whisk the egg yolks together. Once the liquid is warmed, slowly pour it into the egg yolks, whisking constantly to prevent the eggs from scrambling. Once the liquid and eggs are well combined, scrape the mixture back into the pan. Place the pan over a medium heat, and stir constantly. Be sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the pan while you stir. Once the custard has thickened to the point that it coats the back of your spoon, remove it from the heat.

Pour the custard through the strainer into the medium bowl of chocolate liquid. When fully combined, stir well and add in the vanilla. Place the medium bowl of liquid in a larger bowl partially filled with ice water to cool quickly. Stir occasionally until the mixture has cooled enough to be transferred into the fridge. Press a layer of plastic wrap on top of the liquid to cover and prevent a skin from forming on the top of the custard.

Place the bowl in the fridge and chill for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight. Once the mixture is chilled, transfer to your ice cream maker and freeze according the manufacturer’s instructions. If you find that the custard is too thick to pour, give it a stiff whisk or two to thin it out and then place it in the ice cream maker.

Hot Fudge Sauce

Ingredients:

1 C / 230gms/ 8 oz of caster sugar
3 tblsp / 24gms/1.5 oz of natural unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tblsp /15gms/ 1 oz of cornstarch
1 and ½ C /355ml /12 fl oz of water
1 tblsp /14gms/ 1 oz butter
1 tsp/5 ml / .15 fl oz vanilla extract

Directions:

In a small saucepan, whisk together the sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch and water.

Place the pan over medium heat, and stir constantly, until it begins to thicken and is smooth (for about 2 minutes).  Remove from heat and mix in the butter and vanilla. Set aside to cool .

Assembly:

Cut the Swiss rolls into 10-20 equal slices, depending on the size of your mold. Meanwhile, take the ice cream out of the freezer to soften.

Cover the bottom and sides of the mold/bowl in which you are going to set the dessert with plastic wrap.

Arrange two slices at the bottom of the pan, with their seam sides facing each other. Arrange the Swiss roll slices up the bowl, with the seam sides facing away from the bottom, to cover the sides of the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and freeze until the slices are firm (at least 30 minutes).

Take the mold/bowl out of the freezer, remove the cling film cover and spread the java chip ice cream on top of the cake slices and up the sides. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and freeze until firm.

Pour the cooled fudge sauce over the ice cream, cover and freeze until firm .

Remove from freezer and spread softened chocolate ice cream over the fudge sauce. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for at least 4-5 hours till completely set .

Remove the plastic cover, and place a serving plate on top of the mold/bowl. Turn it upside down and remove the bowl and the plastic lining. If the bowl does not come away easily, wipe the outsides of the bowl with a kitchen towel dampened with hot water. The bowl will come away easily.

Keep the cake out of the freezer for at least 10 minutes before slicing, depending on how hot your region is. Slice with a sharp knife, dipped in hot water.

Enjoy!