Writing my first book, La Nena's Kitchen, has been such an eye-opening experience. Thanks to the gracious time and attention of my first readers and recipe testers, I have become a faster cook in my home kitchen. In writing a book to help other people transition to cooking with plenty of fruits and vegetables, I have become a new chef in the kitchen- one that uses recipes and gets in and out in less than an hour. Who would have ever thought I would make the same thing twice and be out of the kitchen in less than half a day?
From my experience working in restaurant kitchens where we crafted new menus almost daily, I learned to use recipes as guidelines to be followed loosely. At home, I usually float along the same wave of intuition and concoct impromptu meals made with tidbits of this and that. It wasn't until I wrote the first draft of La Nena's Kitchen that I was reminded that putting a few recipes into regular rotation at home could be useful.
In the first draft of the book, I encouraged the reader to explore many different recipes and to be adventurous. Then, one of my first readers sent me feedback reminding me how useful it is to follow and repeat recipes. When you put regular recipes into your home cooking rotation you become more comfortable with them, prepare them faster over time and can often shop for the ingredients quickly and sometimes without a list.
Following recipes has helped me shop more easily. Thanks to my ever-so-tech-savvy mother, I was introduced to an app called Shop and Cook that stores my recipes and drafts quick shopping lists when I need them. What a treat! The app is now available on the IPhone. Maybe next year Mathilde, the designer, will make it friendly for us DROID folks.
Here's to following recipes, especially those that work!
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Low-Glycemic Valentine's Day Dessert
This month, I combined my favorite sweet and tangy Kiku apples with a spicy chocolate sauce for a low-glycemic recipe I entered in the Hot Raw Chef video competition! The process of developing the recipe and preparing it on camera was such a fun and rewarding experience! I received such encouraging feedback from people who have a sensitivity to gluten and were delighted to find my recipe using fruit as opposed to wheat flour for the tart's shell.
Try my Chipotle Chocolate Cherry Apple Tart this Valentine's Day! You'll love it!
Chipotle Chocolate Cherry Apple Tart
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
Chipotle chocolate cherry sauce
3 oz frozen black cherries
1 Tbsp vanilla agave syrup (recommended brand: organic nectars)
2 oz Haas avocado (1/2 of a Haas avocado)
1 Tbsp raw cacao powder
1/8 tsp ground chipotle pepper
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
Tart shell
2 large kiku apples (yields 4 2.25-inch diameter rings and 3 oz of chopped pieces)
Tart filling
3 oz chopped kiku apples (obtained from the 2 large Kiku apples listed above)
1.5 oz pepitas
Juice from 1 lime
1/8 tsp salt
Tools
Digital scale, measuring spoons, cutting board; chef’s knife; ring molds; food processor, 1-pint bowl, 1-quart bowl, 1 soup spoon, 1 small spoon
Instructions
1. Place the frozen black cherries in a one (1) pint bowl. Coat the frozen cherries in vanilla agave syrup.
Allow the cherries to thaw out at room temperature for 30 minutes.
2. Prepare the chipotle chocolate cherry sauce using a food processor. Scoop the green flesh
out of the avocado half and into the food processor. Reserve four individual thawed cherries and add the remaining cherries to the bowl of the food processor followed by the cacao powder, ground cinnamon and ground chipotle pepper. Process the ingredients on medium speed until they become a smooth creamy sauce (approximately 45 seconds).
3. Place one apple vertically on your cutting board so that it stands firmly. Slice and reserve 1/4 inch from one cheek of the apple. Slice another 1/2 inch into the same side of the apple, approaching the core. Repeat the process on the opposite side of the apple.
4. Slice the second apple in the same way. You should now have four 1/2 inch slices of apple. Compost or juice the left over apple cores and pieces.
5. Lay the apples slices flat on your cutting board. Press and turn a large 2 1/2 inch ring mold into each slice to cut out a circle from each slice. Discard the outer rings with the skin. Next, press a smaller 1.75 inch ring mold into each larger apple circle. You should now have 4 attractive apple rings.
6. Dice the remaining inner apple circles into small pieces (1/4-inch x 1/4-inch x 1/4-inch). Place the diced apple pieces in a 1 quart mixing bowl. Mix the diced apple pieces with the pepitas, the juice from one lime and the salt in the bowl.
7. Return to the 1/4 inch cheeks that you first sliced off each apple. Slice the cheeks in twelve 1/16-inch slices.
8. Assemble your tarts on individual plates by first creating a 3 inch circle with 1 soup spoon full of the chipotle chocolate cherry sauce on each plate. Next, place the apple rings in the center of each circle of chipotle chocolate cherry sauce. Use a small spoon to fill each ring with the diced apple mixture. Top each tart with a cherry and tuck three thin apple slices vertically into the corner of each shell to create a small decorative fan effect.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Summer Coleslaw
With temperatures almost reaching three digits on the Fahrenheit scale, I, like many other people along the East Coast, have been craving barbecue fare. I've never quite understood why I find barbecuing during the summer so much fun when being in front of a hot grill on a scorching day is actually very tortuous.
I love the burgers, kielbasa, skirt steak and other foods cooked on the grill but my favorite part of the barbecuing experience is eating the refreshing side dishes. Coleslaw, for example, is one of my favorites.
Coleslaw is quite the versatile salad, as its primary ingredient, cabbage, is available year round. In the Philadelphia metro area, it grows during the fall, some farmers use different styles of hoop houses to keep it going during the winter and in grows beautifully in the cool spring temperatures. Three varieties that are commonly seen in the area are red (purple), green, Napa (Chinese) and Savoy.
With four varieties of cabbage in different colors and shades to start out with, one can make the slaw as colorful as time, budget and creativity permit. Typically, the cabbage is dressed in mayonnaise to make coleslaw but many people make great tasting coleslaw using other sauces and dressings. In the version at the end of this post, the dressing is made from ground pepitas.
My work these days has been revolving around a curriculum for junior high and high school students on how to design menus. With the youth in mind, the recipes included in the curriculum have a brief seasonal ingredient list, require little or no cooking and few tools. Coleslaw, for its ease of preparation, great nutritional value, and great taste is on list of recipes to include in the curriculum.
Coleslaw or kool sla is said to have been popularized by Dutch immigrants in the Pennsylvania region centuries ago. Throughout the state a popular version of coleslaw that I see on many menus is Asian slaw, usually involving black sesame seeds and a sesame oil vinaigrette.
Here's my first early summer version that goes great with or on burgers of any kind, veggie, beef, chicken or whatever you fancy.
The cabbage for today's recipe test came from the Earth Keeper's garden in West Philadelphia. What a great group of inspired young people!
Early Summer Slaw
Serves 4 as a side dish
Ingredients
1 small cabbage head
1 roasted red pepper
2 radishes
Leaves from 6 stems of cilantro
1/2 yellow summer squash
Dressing::
1/4 cup of pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
1 clove of garlic
1 basil leaves
2 mint leaves
2 Tbsp vinegar of your choice
1 Tbsp water
1 tsp maple syrup
Method
1. Make the dressing first by combining all ingredients in a coffee grinder or small food processor.
2. Chop the cabbage into fine strips (julienne), then finely chop them into small pieces.
3. Grate the summer squash.
4. Finely chop the radishes, and the roasted red peppers.
5. Add everything to a bowl and season with salt and pepper, if you desire.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Mis queridos tacos
Who loves tacos? I do! Growing up in southern California, tacos were a staple meal of my childhood. Whether we made them at home or enjoyed them at the casual dining spots in the neighborhood, I must have eaten tacos at least once or twice a week.
My Mom and I both had our own favorites. When we choose to go out to eat, my Mom loved to feast on tacos al carbón: soft and warm tortillas filled with small cubes of beef, finely chopped cilantro and a squeeze of lime juice. Hold the onions please.
I usually ate grilled chicken tacos but there were days when I had to have carnitas, juicy pulled pork.
As a disgruntled teenager, I grew tired of the standard beef and pork tacos. I wanted something different, of course. So I began exploring fish tacos made from who knows what kind of fish. Then beautiful tacos made of pink and white chopped shrimp seemed to appear at every taqueria in Los Angeles. Sure, I had known since I was eight years old that my blood cholesterol levels were often too high and that I should avoid eating shellfish because of its naturally high cholesterol content. But the shrimp tacos with diced avocado, onions and cilantro were so beautiful and delicious, I had to eat them!
The side dishes that came with tacos were also a treat! Regardless of the restaurant, most tacos were usually accompanied by refried black or pinto beans topped with a dry white cheese called queso seco and orange rice, usually colored by the annatto seed we called achiote.
Somehow when went out for tacos we excused ourselves from the "A Meal is Not a Meal Without a Salad" rule. Perhaps we would simply eat too much, drink too much soda, or maybe we needed the roughage of our usual romaine lettuce salads to move everything through. I just remember always having gas after our taco outings.
These days, because I am very intrigued by the world of plant foods, I have been adding more vegetables to everything, including tacos. I suppose I could serve a salad with tacos but with so many great vegetables in season now, they can go right into the soft fold of the tortilla.
This spring, I stumbled into Tortilleria San Roman located in South Philadelphia's Italian Market neighborhood and found really great-tasting white corn tortillas. I was inspired to try to out a new version of tacos packed with kale from the raised bed gardens of Earth's Keepers in West Philadelphia, spicy radishes from my own urban garden plot, and yellow summer squash and cilantro from the market at Clark Park. The red and pinto beans are also somewhat local, coming from Cayuga Cooperative in New York. What a gift! Tacos made from all local ingredients!
Buen Provecho!
Tacos al Verano
Serves 2 adults
6 white corn tortillas
2 large leaves of curly kale, finely chopped
12 cilantro leaves
1 small yellow squash, cut like spaghetti
1 cup of cooked kidney and pinto beans
2 radishes, thinly sliced
Chipotle salsa to your taste
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Inspired by History
Food is the ultimate starting point for learning anything from chemistry to language. You name the subject and food can be included in the discussion. Let's take history, for example. Did you know that Vietnam, a southeast Asian country, was occupied by France from the mid-nineteenth century to the start of the 1950's? As with most instances of diverse people coming in contact, language, food and other cultural elements intertwine.
Let's consider a specific food that was first enjoyed by the elite French and Vietnamese, then became a popular street treat and is now a staple menu item in food carts on streets around the US, UK, Canada and beyond: Banh Mi.
Banh Mi is a sandwich. Generally, a Bahn Mi comes together when a warm baguette is smeared with mayonnaise, then meat pate, followed by the addition of slow-cooked meat, raw and pickled vegetables like radishes, carrots, hot peppers, green onions, and fresh mint and cilantro. Sweet baked tofu as the main filling is a favorite of the non-meat Banh Mi-eating crowds today.
People of the past in bustling towns and cities who spent a great deal of their days working and commuting from place to place, found the warm crunchy sandwich to be just the thing to satisfy hunger, taste and flavor. The same holds true in today’s world.
Looking back at the political and economic history and migration of people in the context of their foods is a great way to remind ourselves of how we have come to eat the way we do. Understanding that people ate certain foods and composed recipes to suit their needs can help us create new dishes and combinations for our lifestyles today. With health and vitality being of primary importance to growing numbers of consumers our choices, even for fun tasty foods, must still have health-promoting qualities.
In the case of the Vietnamese Banh Mi, the French people who went to live among the Vietnamese brought the practice of taking wheat flour to make baguettes, then southern Vietnamese entrepreneurs added local vegetables, herbs and meats to suit the taste and finances of working people. In today’s cities, food lovers continue to enjoy the sandwich for its filling, economical and tasty nature.
With the overconsumption of meat and animal foods being associated with cancer and other chronic illnesses in scientific studies such as The China Study, a commonly found meat Banh Mi might not be the most health-promoting option. But as history shows, we, people can be inspired by a food and make it into something that fits our needs. We can enjoy the sweet, spicy and tangy flavors, the crunchy chewy texture of Banh Mi and still get the multitude of nutrients naturally occurring in raw plant foods by loading it up with asparagus, radishes and other locally-grown seasonal vegetables this spring! Remember to toast the baguette first if you enjoy the warmth and crunch.
Spring Banh Mi
Baguette (Seeded/Whole Wheat/or Plain)
Spicy Red Sauce (See notes below)
Asparagus (Marinated in Lime Juice and Garlic)
Pickled Carrots and Red Onions
Portobello Mushrooms (Marinated in Vinegar)
Cilantro leaves
Jalapeño Peppers (Thinly Sliced on a Bias)
Spicy Red Sauce: Ketchup, Apple Cider Vinegar, Cayenne Pepper, Chili Pepper
Let's consider a specific food that was first enjoyed by the elite French and Vietnamese, then became a popular street treat and is now a staple menu item in food carts on streets around the US, UK, Canada and beyond: Banh Mi.
Banh Mi is a sandwich. Generally, a Bahn Mi comes together when a warm baguette is smeared with mayonnaise, then meat pate, followed by the addition of slow-cooked meat, raw and pickled vegetables like radishes, carrots, hot peppers, green onions, and fresh mint and cilantro. Sweet baked tofu as the main filling is a favorite of the non-meat Banh Mi-eating crowds today.
People of the past in bustling towns and cities who spent a great deal of their days working and commuting from place to place, found the warm crunchy sandwich to be just the thing to satisfy hunger, taste and flavor. The same holds true in today’s world.
Looking back at the political and economic history and migration of people in the context of their foods is a great way to remind ourselves of how we have come to eat the way we do. Understanding that people ate certain foods and composed recipes to suit their needs can help us create new dishes and combinations for our lifestyles today. With health and vitality being of primary importance to growing numbers of consumers our choices, even for fun tasty foods, must still have health-promoting qualities.
In the case of the Vietnamese Banh Mi, the French people who went to live among the Vietnamese brought the practice of taking wheat flour to make baguettes, then southern Vietnamese entrepreneurs added local vegetables, herbs and meats to suit the taste and finances of working people. In today’s cities, food lovers continue to enjoy the sandwich for its filling, economical and tasty nature.
With the overconsumption of meat and animal foods being associated with cancer and other chronic illnesses in scientific studies such as The China Study, a commonly found meat Banh Mi might not be the most health-promoting option. But as history shows, we, people can be inspired by a food and make it into something that fits our needs. We can enjoy the sweet, spicy and tangy flavors, the crunchy chewy texture of Banh Mi and still get the multitude of nutrients naturally occurring in raw plant foods by loading it up with asparagus, radishes and other locally-grown seasonal vegetables this spring! Remember to toast the baguette first if you enjoy the warmth and crunch.
Spring Banh Mi
Baguette (Seeded/Whole Wheat/or Plain)
Spicy Red Sauce (See notes below)
Asparagus (Marinated in Lime Juice and Garlic)
Pickled Carrots and Red Onions
Portobello Mushrooms (Marinated in Vinegar)
Cilantro leaves
Jalapeño Peppers (Thinly Sliced on a Bias)
Spicy Red Sauce: Ketchup, Apple Cider Vinegar, Cayenne Pepper, Chili Pepper
Tuesday, May 03, 2011
Waiting for asparagus to open a restaurant
Last spring, over a lovely medley of ales in Vermont, I shared a dream with some new friends about asparagus. “You really dream of asparagus?”, they doubtfully asked me when I finished my story about the skinny stalks poking out of the ground.
Yes, dear friends, I admire the little stalks so much that I dream of them. But then again, I have been dreaming of foods for a long time. Sometimes they even serve a function. Once, I dreamt that baguettes were used as the barricade for my front door. What a waste of such delicious bread!
The asparagus in my dream last year was not used as a sword, dart, barrier or anything else. I simply found myself in a field and saw the little shoots begin to poke of out the ground.
Other people are equally, if not more, enthusiastic about asparagus and write all about it. In Barbara Kingsolver’s book, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, she recounts her families’ impatient wait for the first shoots of asparagus. Asparagus were among the first vegetables that her family ate as they began a life of growing their own fruits and vegetables.
In a Quintet of Cuisines from the nineteen seventies, Michael Field, tells of the big to-do around the first asparagus crops near the Alpines mountains of Switzerland. On one of his many visits he was taken by his Swiss hosts to eat loads of white and green asparagus drowned in butter.
Over the course of my time in culinary school, the most common preparation for asparagus involved an egg yolk, a little lemon juice and about a half pound of clarified butter for Hollandaise sauce. For as visually beautiful a sight as the bright yellow sauce over green stems was, I always longed to taste more of the asparagus.
Well before I thought about going to culinary school, I prepared a memorable meal of coconut creamed asparagus soup for one of my closest friends. At that meal, he loved the pale green soup so much that he expressed to me in Portuguese, “Meu bem, você precisa abrir um restaurante!” My dear, you must open a restaurant!
Five years later, I continue to love asparagus and have come to anxiously await its arrival. Years ago, I would buy it the moment I saw it in any grocery store regardless of whether it was organic or locally in season or not. Now that my awareness of how, where and when foods grow, I look for it from farms and farm-connected retailers at specific times of the year. When I am on the east coast of the US, for example, my encounters with asparagus are very special as they only take place between April and June.
So far this spring I’ve been in Philadelphia and have found outstanding asparagus from Maple Acres Farm and Steve Bowe’s Organic Farms! At my company’s Earth Day Celebration, oblique cut asparagus topped a spring salad of tender bok choy, spinach, romaine lettuce and purple cabbage.
For a fun and surprisingly filling informal dinner, delicate asparagus stems were added to a spring vegetable pita pocket with thinly sliced radishes, carrots, Russian red kale and tahini sauce.
My husband and I recently enjoyed a savory spring pasta involving small diced asparagus, sundried tomatoes and rosemary woven into spelt capellini for a little crunch with every bite. This was a perfect dish to enjoy with a glass of Pinot Noir!
I am in a hurry to sit down again with my dear lusophone friend who praised my creamed asparagus soup years ago. I usually try not repeat dishes that hold a special memory as the experience with those foods belongs to the moment that has since passed. But, I may have to open a can of coconut milk to make a new asparagus soup for my dear friend if we meet before this year's asparagus season ends.
His encouragement, and that of many other kind friends, propelled me into culinary school. Maybe sharing a new recipe for asparagus soup with him will send me on my way to really open a restaurant this time! Who knows?
Yes, dear friends, I admire the little stalks so much that I dream of them. But then again, I have been dreaming of foods for a long time. Sometimes they even serve a function. Once, I dreamt that baguettes were used as the barricade for my front door. What a waste of such delicious bread!
The asparagus in my dream last year was not used as a sword, dart, barrier or anything else. I simply found myself in a field and saw the little shoots begin to poke of out the ground.
Other people are equally, if not more, enthusiastic about asparagus and write all about it. In Barbara Kingsolver’s book, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, she recounts her families’ impatient wait for the first shoots of asparagus. Asparagus were among the first vegetables that her family ate as they began a life of growing their own fruits and vegetables.
In a Quintet of Cuisines from the nineteen seventies, Michael Field, tells of the big to-do around the first asparagus crops near the Alpines mountains of Switzerland. On one of his many visits he was taken by his Swiss hosts to eat loads of white and green asparagus drowned in butter.
Over the course of my time in culinary school, the most common preparation for asparagus involved an egg yolk, a little lemon juice and about a half pound of clarified butter for Hollandaise sauce. For as visually beautiful a sight as the bright yellow sauce over green stems was, I always longed to taste more of the asparagus.
Well before I thought about going to culinary school, I prepared a memorable meal of coconut creamed asparagus soup for one of my closest friends. At that meal, he loved the pale green soup so much that he expressed to me in Portuguese, “Meu bem, você precisa abrir um restaurante!” My dear, you must open a restaurant!
Five years later, I continue to love asparagus and have come to anxiously await its arrival. Years ago, I would buy it the moment I saw it in any grocery store regardless of whether it was organic or locally in season or not. Now that my awareness of how, where and when foods grow, I look for it from farms and farm-connected retailers at specific times of the year. When I am on the east coast of the US, for example, my encounters with asparagus are very special as they only take place between April and June.
So far this spring I’ve been in Philadelphia and have found outstanding asparagus from Maple Acres Farm and Steve Bowe’s Organic Farms! At my company’s Earth Day Celebration, oblique cut asparagus topped a spring salad of tender bok choy, spinach, romaine lettuce and purple cabbage.
For a fun and surprisingly filling informal dinner, delicate asparagus stems were added to a spring vegetable pita pocket with thinly sliced radishes, carrots, Russian red kale and tahini sauce.
My husband and I recently enjoyed a savory spring pasta involving small diced asparagus, sundried tomatoes and rosemary woven into spelt capellini for a little crunch with every bite. This was a perfect dish to enjoy with a glass of Pinot Noir!
I am in a hurry to sit down again with my dear lusophone friend who praised my creamed asparagus soup years ago. I usually try not repeat dishes that hold a special memory as the experience with those foods belongs to the moment that has since passed. But, I may have to open a can of coconut milk to make a new asparagus soup for my dear friend if we meet before this year's asparagus season ends.
His encouragement, and that of many other kind friends, propelled me into culinary school. Maybe sharing a new recipe for asparagus soup with him will send me on my way to really open a restaurant this time! Who knows?
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Emerald Greens
This week's PA produce bundle included collard greens. My first thoughts went to collard greens simmered with turkey neck bones. The flavor of collards cooked this way is always delicious but the color leaves much to be desired. With extra celery and shallots at my disposal I searched for a new way to prepare the greens. And then, Chef Valerie Erwin came to mind.
Chef Erwin of the Geechee Girl Rice Cafe in Philadelphia was featured on a local morning show sautéing collard greens with bell peppers and onions. Her greens turned out such a vibrant green that left me so intrigued I had to experience these collards in person. A few days later, I stopped in for dinner at Geechee Girl Rice Cafe for an appetizer of sweet potato tostones followed by beautifully broiled rainbow trout served with the infamous collard greens and mashed sunchokes. What a treat!
The collards were a brilliant bright green that is acquired by blanching them in boiling water before sautéing them. While I love the flavor and look of these greens, I was disappointed at the thought of the collards' powerful nutrients being left behind in the cooking water. I decided that if I replicate the dish at home, I would have to save the cooking liquid.
At home this week in my kitchen, I blanched my collards, sautéed them with celery and shallots and seasoned them with ground cumin and lemon juice. What a flavorful combination!
I used the green broth from blanching the greens to then cook polenta. When the polenta reached its creamy serving point, I finished it with a little smoked sea salt and cayenne pepper. Surprisingly, I perceived no remnant of the mild bitterness of the collard green water. Just simple hearty sweet polenta.
Blanching collard greens is a way to experience their vibrant emerald green color. Just be sure to cook polenta, short-grain brown rice or other grains in the green cooking liquid to take full advantage of the rich nutrients collards possess.
Thank you, Chef Erwin, for the inspiration!
Collard Greens with Cumin and Lemon Juice over Cayenne Sweet Potatoes and Stone-Ground Polenta
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