Fresh Herb and Tomato Salsa with Smoked Cheese

The CSA is pouring the tomatoes on us and I say BRING IT!  I love tomatoes but even I am having trouble finding uses for all of them.  So internet searches and advice are the norm right now.

It is fun to make salsa, but I get bored with the traditional way of making it to dip chips in.  SO when I saw a salsa that acted more like a salad, I was intrigued.  Even more so when I realized this salsa had Mediterranean flavors mixed in.

And the verdict is this:  YUM!  It is fun with cooked chicken topped on a tortilla, but I also think it would make a great bruschetta topping or a great mix for a pasta salad.

If you are wanting new ways to use your summer tomatoes, give this one a try!

Fresh Herb-and-Tomato Salsa with Smoked Cheese (From Food and Wine Magazine)

• 2 cups mixed yellow and red grape tomatoes, halved or quartered
• 1/2 cup finely diced smoked Gouda, smoked cheddar or smoked Monterey Jack cheese (2 1/2 ounces)
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 2 tablespoons shredded basil
• 2 tablespoons snipped chives
• Salt and freshly ground pepper

• In a medium bowl, toss the tomatoes with the cheese, cilantro, basil and chives. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Paella...again

We made another paella, this one was in honor of Bo's birthday.

Yes, you see him doing the cooking.  He is a great cook and he loves his Big Green Egg.

After he chose a recipe he changed it greatly.  Actually there were too many changes to note them all here but I will tell you about one change that didnt work:  He left out the chorizo to make it less oily and although it WAS less oily, it felt it was missing something.  Next time I'd keep the chorizo and lose the extra oil!

PAELLA ON THE GRILL

Adapted from: Barbecue University curriculum taught by Steven Raichlen

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 chorizo sausages

1 chicken, cut into 8 pieces

Coarse salt (kosher or sea) and freshly ground black pepper

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/4 inch strips

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 ripe tomato, seeded and cut into 1/4 inch dice

1/4 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

3 cups Valencia style rice

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/2 teaspoon saffron threads, soaked in 1 tablespoon hot water for 15  

minutes

5 to 6 cups hot chicken stock or water

12 littleneck clams, scrubbed

12 mussels, scrubbed

1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined

1/2 pound squid, trimmed and cut into 1/2 inch rings (or more shrimp)

1/4 cup cooked green peas

You'll also need: wood for a fire; Tuscan grill or cast iron grill grate; a large paella pan.

Build a wood fire in a fire pit or large ranch grill. Place a Tuscan grill on top and place the paella pan on top. Add the olive oil and preheat. Add the chorizo and fry until browned on all sides, 2 minutes per side. Transfer the chorizo to a foil pan. When cool enough to handle, cut crosswise into 1 inch pieces. 


Season the chicken pieces on all sides with salt and pepper. Add them to the paella pan and brown on all sides, about 2 minutes per side.Transfer the chicken to the foil pan.

Remove all but 2 tablespoons fat from the pan.Add the onions and bell peppers and sauté until lightly browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic half way through. Add the tomatoes and half the parsley and cook for 1 minute.

Add the rice and saute until the grains are shiny, 1 minute. Add the wine and bring to a boil. Add the stock and saffron and bring to a boil.Simmer the rice, uncovered, for 15 minutes, adding stock as needed to keep them moist. Stir in the chorizo and chicken and cook for 5 minutes. Add the clams and mussels and cook for 3 minutes.Add the shrimp and squid. Cook the paella until the rice is tender, the clam and mussels shells have opened, and all the ingredients are completely cooked. Correct the seasoning, adding salt and pepper to taste.

Just before serving, sprinkle the paella with the cooked peas and 

remaining parsley. Serve at once.

Summer Squash and Corn Chowder

Here I am , back after a little Thanksgiving break and ready to get back in the swing of things.  And by "in the swing" I mean MORE COOKING.  Tis the season after all and my friends are already asking what goodies I will be baking this year.  So while I think about that, I wanted to share a recipe that I made in August with the last of the summer squash.

There is a great time of the year when both corn and yellow squash are in season, both sweet and juicy, and both begging to be made together.  And who am I to ignore the pleas of vegetables!  So a late summer chowder was quickly put together.  Now I know a "chowder" usually contains potatoes, but I tend to leave potatoes out of soups because I love to eat chewy, crusty breads with my steaming bowl.  Therefore what you see below is my take on a corn chowder, basic recipe from Cooking Light.  Enjoy!

Summer Squash and Corn Chowder (by Cooking Light)

• 2 slices applewood-smoked bacon
• 3/4 cup sliced green onions, divided
• 1/4 cup chopped celery
• 1 pound yellow summer squash, chopped
• 1 pound frozen white and yellow baby corn kernels, thawed and divided
• 2 1/4 cups 1% low-fat milk, divided
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese

1. Cook bacon in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, reserving 2 teaspoons drippings in pan. Crumble bacon, and set aside. Add 1/2 cup onions, celery, and squash to drippings in pan; sauté 8 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

2. Reserve 1 cup corn; set aside. Place the remaining corn and 1 cup milk in a blender; process until smooth. Add remaining 1 1/4 cups milk, thyme, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper to blender; process just until combined. Add pureed mixture and reserved 1 cup corn to pan. Reduce heat to medium; cook 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated, stirring constantly. Stir in 1/8 teaspoon salt. Ladle about 1 1/2 cups soup into each of 4 bowls; top each serving with about 1 tablespoon bacon, 1 tablespoon remaining onions, and 1 tablespoon cheese.

Goat Cheese Soufflé With Thyme

My first attempt at a souffle was when I was about 10.  I worked hard making a lovely souffle with cheddar cheese (that's all I remember) for my family for dinner.  Then I was sick all night.

No fault of the souffle, but you know how that is.  No interest in making souffle again.  Until now.

A foodie friend of mine described a goat cheese souffle and I was intrigued.  then I found out it was a recipe by Deborah Madison and I was hooked.  I had to make it.

In the interest of full disclosure, I do not own a souffle pan or ramekins, so I decided to just go for it in a  shallow casserole dish.  After all, it is more about the flavor than the presentation, especially when you are feeding your spouse.

It was quite tasty, not heavy on flavor but nice and light.  The fresh thyme makes a perfect partner for the goat cheese.

It made a great side dish for scallops and sauteed swiss chard.  Don't concentrate on how mine looks, just trust me about the fabulous flavor.

Goat Cheese Soufflé With Thyme by Deborah Madison

Butter, plus 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan, for the dish

1 1/4 cups milk or cream

Aromatics: 1 bay leaf, several thyme sprigs, 2 thin onion slices

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons flour

Salt and freshly milled pepper

Pinch cayenne

4 egg yolks

1 cup (about 4 ounces) crumbled goat cheese, preferably a Bucheron or other strong-flavored cheese

6 egg whites

Several plump thyme sprigs, leaves only

Preheat the oven to 400° F. Butter a 6-cup soufflé dish or an 8-cup gratin dish and coat it with the Parmesan. Heat the milk with the aromatics until it boils. Set it aside to steep for 15 minutes, then strain.

Melt the butter in a saucepan. When foamy, stir in the flour and cook over low heat for several minutes. Whisk in the milk all at once and stir vigorously for a minute or so as it thickens, then add 3/4 teaspoon salt, a few twists of pepper, and the cayenne. Remove from heat. Beat in the egg yolks one at a time until well blended, then stir in the cheese. Don't worry about getting it smooth.

Beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until they form firm peaks, then stir a quarter of them into the base to lighten the mixture. Fold in the rest, transfer to the prepared dish, then put in the center of the oven and lower the heat to 375° F. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden and just a bit wobbly in the center. Remove, scatter the thyme over the top, and serve immediately.

Ode to Fish

So this is one of those silly posts, one that really have no meaning or recipe for that matter.  But is just a platform for me to gush heavily about one of my favorite foods, fish

I can't get enough of it.  The beauty of how simply it is made.  Very little prep work goes into it and  many types of fish only need olive oil, salt and pepper and an accompanying herb.

Grill it, bake it, pan fry it, steam it, poach it... there really is no wrong way to prepare it.

Fish.  It is healthy, tender, juicy - the perfect food.

And those are my thoughts on fish.

Shrimp Saganaki

Picture this:  The acid of tomatoes with the freshness of dill melding with creamy feta, salty olives and a fruity olive oil.  Yes, it was even better than it sounds!

We served it as written with crusty bread and an arugula salad but the 2nd night we had it over hot couscous and it was even better!  Picture the delicious flavors described here melting into a soft bed of couscous.  Honestly, I'm not sure why I ever cook anything else!

Shrimp Sagnaki (from Food and Wine)

2 tablespoons each of extra-virgin
olive oil and canola oil
1 large onion, thinly sliced
6 plum tomatoes (1¼ pounds),
coarsely chopped
Salt
Crushed red pepper
1½ pounds shelled and deveined large shrimp, halved lengthwise
½ cup pitted kalamata olives, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
3 ounces Greek feta cheese, crumbled
Crusty bread, for serving

In a large skillet, heat the oil until shimmering.

Add the onion and cook over high heat, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, season with salt and crushed red pepper and cook until softened, crushing them with the back of a spoon, about 5 minutes. Add the shrimp and olives and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shrimp are cooked through, about 3 minutes. Stir in the dill and half of the feta and cook just until the feta is hot, about 1 minute. Transfer to shallow bowls, sprinkle with the remaining feta and serve with crusty bread. 

Spiced Indian Grilled Chicken

This post is because of Bo.  He made a fabulous grilled chicken (yes, we eat lots of chicken!).  Because we eat lots of chicken it is fun to try to new rubs for it.  Bo is the Indian cook in the house and he wanted to make a chicken with Indian spices.  So he turned to his new favorite show, Spice Goddess.

 The spices used along with the cooking method made a fabulous chicken grilled crisp and moist.  I would have personally put the rub on the chicken meat itself since I cook with the skin but don't usually eat it, but the flavors still pushed their way through to the meat. 

If you are unsure of Indian food, this would be a great one to try!  Serve it with a green salad and rice or naan. 

Spiced Indian Grilled Chicken (Courtesy Bal Arneson)

• 2 tablespoons dried fenugreek leaves
• 1 tablespoon garam masala
• 1/2 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne peppercorns
• Pinch salt
• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 chicken legs, split into thighs and drums

Combine the fenugreek, garam masala, sugar, garlic, cardamom, peppercorns, salt, yogurt, and tomato paste in a large bowl and mix well; set aside 1/4 cup of the marinade for basting. Add the chicken thighs and drums and coat well. Cover the bowl and let marinate in the fridge for 45 minutes to 4 hours.

When ready to cook, preheat a grill to medium-high. Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and place on the hot grill. Basting regularly with the reserved marinade, cook until the chicken is done and juices run clear, about 35 to 40 minutes.