Archive for the 'Sauces' Category

Canning 101 & Tomato Jam

Published on October 5, 2011 in Sauces. 1 Comment Tags: , , .


Yes, it’s true. I’ve been bitten by the canning bug. It seems like everyone is doing it these days. My mother says that back in the day, they canned pretty much everything (in peak season, they also picked 40 quarts of strawberries EVERY day — can you imagine?). So there was jam and tomatoes every which way, including what Mom is convinced what a precursor to salsa. That just makes me laugh. Why can’t I imagine salsa existing in the 1950s? I’m sure it did, but it just seems strange.

I know, canning is scary. At least, it seemed that way to me. But the truth is it’s actually quite easy. It’s just that you have to follow a bunch of steps and have certain gear, which is normally enough to get me to just blow the whole thing off. But for some unknown reason, I decided to persevere and just sort of worked my way through it.

So, here’s what you do: take your jars (I’d use 1/2 pint jars for this recipe), lids and screw tops and put them on a canning rack (I didn’t have one, so I blew this off; I’ll probably buy one for next time — I’m such a rulebreaker) in a pot that’s big and deep enough to give you a couple inches above the top of the jars. Pour hot (not boiling) water into the pot (and jars) and bring to a boil. Boil for 10 minutes. Your jars are now sterilized. That was easy, right?

Now for the processing. Once you fill your jars (after draining and drying them), put the lids and screw tops on and put them back into the pot of boiling water (canning tongs are good for this; regular tong can work in a pinch, but be careful, that pan is HOT). Boil the jars for 15 minutes, take them out and let them cool at room temperature. You can test to make sure the seal is good by pressing down on the lid; if it doesn’t move, you’re good. If you push down and hear a click and the center goes down, it’s not sealed. You can put it back in and boil it again or just eat the contents within a couple weeks.

Anyway, I ended up making this particular tomato jam because a) I had a bunch of beautiful tomatoes, b) I wanted to try something different, and c) I got sucked into this site, which, whoops, you’re gone now…and won’t be back for awhile if you start reading. Never mind the amazing recipes, this woman, Jennie, is going through hell and then some (and still going). There are no words.

So, now that you’re back and thoroughly depressed, please cheer yourself up by making this jam. Tomatoes are still out there at the markets, but they’re going fast, so get on it. And also try not to be too scared about the amount of sugar in there. I put less than the original recipe called for and at first, I was sort of freaking out about how sweet it was, but then after it sat a bit, I realized it was kind of awesome. It is sweet, yes. But it is also savory. And in my case, a little spicy too, which I think counteracts the sweetness.

As for how much time you cook this, it’s a taste and feel thing, which in my case went for about 4-1/2 hours and was REALLY just almost perfect, until somehow, someone, I think it was the dog, turned the heat up from low to ultra-high and I realized that that very disturbing, acrid burning-pan smell was coming from my kitchen. Well. I was able to salvage the top layer of the batch, which ended up very caramelized and actually quite tasty (we won’t discuss the scorched black layer or my very sad Le Creuset pan, which is NOT the same). Yeah, so don’t do that. And keep an eye on the dog. They’re tricky. Very tricky.

Tomato Jam

Makes 1-1/2 pints (or 1 pint in my case *sniff*)

3 1/2 lbs tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1 small onion, diced
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup cane sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon cumin
2 dried thai chilis OR 1/4 teaspoon cayenne OR 1 teaspoon red chili flakes (optional, but use it!)
1/4 cup cider vinegar
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
1/2 cup finely diced tart green apple

Put all ingredients in a 2-quart pot. Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until thickened and jam-like consistency, about 3 hours. Transfer to sterilized glass jars and store in refrigerator for up to two weeks, or use a hot-water canning bath for 15 minutes for long-term storage.

This site is super helpful. Also, you can watch this fun and informative video. We like fun and informative. It’s a good combo.

Healthy Eggplant Parmesan

Published on April 28, 2011 in Italian, Main Courses and Sauces. 2 Comments

I really do love eggplant. I feel like it’s one of those vegetables that gets short shrift. Eggplant is misunderstood — first off, it’s sort of weird-looking, it’s purple. People fear the purple factor. And there’s this whole mysterious salting thing — necessary or not? (answer: depends). To peel or not to peel? And so on. But it really is so very tasty, and it’s excellent made this way. This way being a healthier baked-not-fried eggplant parmesan and frankly, the eggplant part is so good, half of it didn’t even make it into the rest of the dish (little hands kept dipping into the stash in the fridge, and I don’t mean mine…my hands are huge, but not in that Tina Fey Bossypants way. No man hands here, really, I swear).


I also ended up doing a shortcut version* first, which also depleted the eggplant supply (and why you’ll notice that in the photos I ended up using an 8″ square dish instead of a 9″ x 13″). I’ll probably do this version more often than the actual full-on recipe because you get all that great eggplant flavor and tomato-cheesy goodness without having to do the assembly and baking steps. Whichever version you end up making, it’s a win-win.

Notes:
A lot of recipes say to peel the eggplant to reduce any bitterness, but I was reading this book (which is amazing, btw) and she claims if you have fresh eggplant, it won’t be bitter. You also don’t have to do the salting step because you’re not frying the eggplant, so there’s no worry about it soaking up a ton of oil (because there isn’t any!). You can make it super-healthy by using all tofu rather than ricotta for the filling or half and half, which I did this time around. You can also use part-skim mozzarella instead of whole-milk, and you really don’t miss it.

Healthy Eggplant Parmesan

2 (1-pound) eggplants, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon buttermilk (water works fine too)
2 cups whole-wheat panko (the store only had Italian-seasoned ones, which worked out well)
1/4 cup Parmesan, grated (use Pecorino Romano if you’re lactose-intolerant)
Salt
Black pepper

Filling:
1/2 cup torn fresh basil
1/4 cup Parmesan, grated
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 container firm tofu, crumbled (or you can use ricotta or a mix of half and half, which I did this time)
1 large egg, lightly beaten

3 cups tomato sauce (like this or a good-quality jarred sauce like Rao’s)

1-1/2 cups (12 oz) part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded or sliced
4 tablespoons Parmesan, grated

Preheat oven to 375°.

Whisk the eggs and buttermilk or water in a shallow bowl. Combine panko and 1/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano in another shallow dish. Dip eggplant slices in egg mixture, then dredge in panko mixture, evenly coating the slices including the sides. Place the slices on a Silpat-lined sheet pan (or use a spray) and bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden, flipping each round once and rotating baking sheets halfway through.

Combine the filling ingredients (basil through egg) in a mixing bowl.

To assemble, spread 1/2 cup of the tomato sauce in bottom of a 9″ x 13″ baking dish. Layer half of eggplant slices over pasta sauce. Top with about 3/4 cup tomato sauce, followed by half of the tofu mixture, then a third of the mozzarella. Repeat layers once, ending with about 1 cup of the tomato sauce. Top with remaining third of mozzarella and Parmesan. Cover with aluminum foil if you have it (I didn’t). Bake for 25-30 minutes, taking off the foil for the last 5 minutes or so. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

* SHORTCUT VERSION:

After the eggplant rounds are baked, spoon a bit of tomato sauce on top of each, followed by some shredded mozzarella and Parmesan. Top with a sprinkle of fresh basil and broil for about 3 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbling. Serve on a bed of greens.

Lunch

Published on December 3, 2010 in Beans + Legumes, eggs and Sauces. 0 Comments

This was so good-looking, I just had to take a photo. I’m a weirdo. I know this.

Scrambled eggs with Monterey Jack, black beans, avocado and Cholula (if you don’t know about Cholula, you are either a) living under a rock or b) don’t like hot sauce (in which case you should just pack it in and move to a).

Christmas cookie recipe #1 coming up…

Lemon Hummus

Published on June 23, 2010 in Appetizers, Beans + Legumes and Sauces. 0 Comments Tags: , , .


I make hummus a lot. This is another recipe that reminds me of my dad. He used to make hummus a lot too, except he went CA-RAZY with the garlic. Like, I mean, cuckoo-for-Cocoa-Puffs crazy. But as long as everyone was eating it, then it wasn’t too bad. Otherwise, watch out! I’ve toned mine down a bit. Plus, I’ve noticed that the garlic in Argentina is a lot stronger than the garlic in NY. Isn’t that weird? I can’t figure out why, but I seem to use one clove when a recipe calls for two down here. Maybe it has something to do with the latitude? Or is it longitude? Perhaps I’ll never know. I also add a lot of lemon because I like the bright, acidy contrast to the creamy nuttiness of the tahini. I’ve also given a range on the amount of olive oil because some people may want to go easy on it and that’s fine. Also keep in mind that if you use beans that you soaked and cooked (and you remembered to save some of the cooking liquid), you can use more of that and less oil. You just need enough to blend everything together and hold it there. Hummus does not have to be oozing olive oil…not that there’s anything wrong with that.


This is another of those recipes (this seems to be a theme!) where you can use any old bean you have lying about and it will be great. Try cannellini or even black beans. Also, if you don’t have tahini, then just leave it out. It’s okay. We won’t tell anyone.* Just make sure you have good dipping items about — bread, crackers, tortilla chips, carrot sticks, I could go on…you get the idea. Wing it!

Lemon Hummus

1 14-15 ounce/210g can chickpeas, rinsed
1/4 cup of the liquid reserved from the can (or cooking liquid from beans that have been soaked and cooked)
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon tahini
Zest and juice of one lemon
1/3-1/2 cup olive oil
Salt to taste

Put the first five ingredients in a food processor or blender and pulse a bit. While the machine is running, slowly pour the olive oil in through the feed tube (weird that it’s called that). Add salt to taste and blend until you have the consistency you like (some like it chunky; others go for super-smooth — your call).

You can serve it with a little pool of olive oil and a few bright flecks of lemon zest on top. Other fun toppings: a smattering of Tabasco or some other hot sauce, like hot chili oil (yum), a dash of dried oregano, fresh chives, a few whole chickpeas, olives, roasted red peppers…okay, I’ll stop now.

* But you should know that the combination of the tahini with the chickpeas makes hummus a complete protein. So if you are a vegetarian and are looking for those pesky complete proteins, then use the tahini…in good health!

Easy Peasy Tomato Sauce

Published on May 4, 2010 in Italian, Main Courses, pasta and Sauces. 2 Comments Tags: , .

I know everyone and their mother blogged about this sauce, but hey, maybe someone reading this little blog may not have seen it, so I couldn’t just keep it to myself. Tomato sauce is one of those things that yes, you can buy in a jar from Trader Joe’s for like $3.00, but then you don’t have the satisfaction of making it yourself. And you can’t personally vouch for the quality of the ingredients that went in that jar. And it’s really almost as easy as opening a jar of tomato sauce. Really. You only need to open a can of tomatoes and cut an onion in half. Oh, and cut a hunk of butter off your butter plate (this bit is rather important). So very easy. Easy peasy. As the title says.

I love this sauce with the fresh gnocchi from La Genovesa, an amazing old-school pasta shop in Palermo Soho. And I love that you can watch them roll the pasta out on their giant old machine, which is parked in the front of the shop. And they make killer ravioli (think fresh squash, spinach & ricotta, etc.). Love that too. This is the general consensus. Nothing but love, baby.

Adapted from Marcela Hazan’s Essentials of Italian Cooking

Serves 4.

28 ounces (800 grams) whole peeled canned tomatoes (chopped or crushed tomatoes are okay too)
1 medium-sized yellow onion, peeled and halved
5 tablespoons (70 grams) unsalted butter
Salt and pepper to taste
10-15 basil leaves torn (if you have them, no biggie if you don’t!)

Dump the tomatoes into a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Toss in the halved onion and the butter and bring the pan to a simmer over a medium-low flame and stir every so often. If you’re using whole tomatoes, smush them against the side of the pan with a wooden spoon or snip with kitchen shears once they soften up a bit. Let it simmer uncovered for 45 minutes (or about 30 minutes if your tomatoes are chopped already). Add salt to taste (careful as some tomatoes are already salted and I often end up using salted butter).

While that’s simmering away, creating a deliriously wonderful fragrance in your kitchen, boil some pasta — about a pound should do. Remove the onion*, then toss the sauce with the drained pasta, add black pepper, a few torn basil leaves and some Parmesan, if you like. Although, it really doesn’t need anything. It’s just perfect as is.

* The original recipe says to toss the onion, but that’s sacrilege in my house. Some little pieces will slither out and find their way into the sauce and they should stay there. Any extra pieces can be cooked up with some scrambled eggs or tossed into a quiche or frittata. Or you can even just eat them with a hunk of bread, standing over the stove…just please don’t throw them away. So wasteful. And really very silly.