Leek & Potato Soup, Ragout, Florentine, Thanksgiving

Leek & Potato Soup
Sally's been asking for this soup, so I finally made a batch.  Really simple, but really tasty!

2 or 3 Leeks, sliced well into the green bits
3 large Idaho Potatoes, diced  large
1 cup Vegetable Broth
2 cloves Garlic
Salt & Black Pepper to taste
2-3 Tbsp quick cooking Oats or Oat Flour, for thickening

Cook the leeks and garlic in the broth while you peel and dice the potatoes.  Add the potatoes, salt and pepper, and 4-5 cups water.  Simmer for 20-30 minutes until the potatoes are tender.  Add the oatmeal/flour for thickening and simmer another 15-20 minutes.  Serve with hot-from-the-oven Fast Bread to soak up all the goodness.

Butternut & White Bean Ragout
Ragout is a fancy French name for a sort of stew without much broth. Usually a ragout is served over something -- rice, polenta, mashed potato or turnip, etc.  but I decided not to overdo things this time.

2-3 cups cubed Butternut Squash
1-2 cups cooked White Beans
6oz sliced Mushrooms
3/4 cup diced Sweet Onion
2-3 cloves Garlic, minced
1 cup Vegetable Broth
1/4 cup "Greens" of your choice
Salt & Pepper to taste
Assorted herbs --  marjoram, coriander, sage, cumin to taste.

Simmer everything in the veggie broth until tender.  Simple, eh?  Next time I'll do a bed of rice or riced cauliflower.

Baked Cod Florentine
Anything "Florentine" includes spinach, usually as a bed on which the rest of the recipe is served. 
We were gifted with a big bag of fresh spinach, so I trimmed it, and wilted it with some lemon juice to make the Florentine base.  The "baked cod" is the Greek style that I wrote about a few weeks ago (Sept 24th).   I also had a half cup or so of Hollandaise sauce left from a Cabana Croque Madam breakfast, so I spooned that atop the spinach before laying down the cod.

Food PornThis omelet as so pretty I couldn't resist the photo.  This was a 2-egg breakfast omelet for a Cabana guest:

Thanksgiving 2019
So here's my menu for Thanksgiving -- a dozen guests.  Nothing new really, except I've added roasted Brussels Sprouts fresh cut from the stalk.  Our Produce Co-Op had stems of sprouts available if you wanted, and I did.  Left a few on the stalk for show-and-tell on the Thanksgiving table.

Red Cooked Turkey Breast
Ham
Walnut Lentil Loaf for the vegetarians
Sweet Potato & Apple Casserole
Green Beans with slivered almonds
Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Cavender's seasoning
Mashed Potatoes & Turkey Gravy
Mushroom Sage Dressing
Orange Cake from a Great British Bake-Off recipe

Happy Thanksgiving from our house to yours!

Watermelon Salad, Persimmon Bread, Inside-Out Quinoa Rissoles, Cauliflower Cheese

Watermelon Salad
I know, I know... my northern readers are freezing.  But down here it's still watermelon season, and this is delicious!

I've seen this salad in books and such, off and on for several years, but never tried it.  I wish I'd tried it earlier!!  Simple, sweet, salty, tart and nutty.  Next best thing to going face-down in a slice of melon, like we did when we were kids!  Serves 2.

2+ cups cubed Watermelon
6 Tbsp crumbled Feta Cheese
4 Tbsp julienned fresh Mint
Juice of half a Lime
4 Tbsp Pine Nuts, toasted

Put the watermelon in bowls, then top with the rest of the ingredients.  Yep -- it's that simple!

Inside-Out Quinoa Burgers
Inside-Out indeed!  The "burgers" become the buns in this quirky (but very tasty) California veggie burger.  Makes 5 burgers (10 patties).

1-13/ cup dry Red Quinoa
2 Tbsp EVOO
Juice of half a Lemon
1/2 tsp Red Chili Flakes
2 Eggs, beaten
1 tsp Cumin
1 Tbsp minced fresh Mint
1 Tbsp Oregano
1 tsp Black pepper
1/4 cup Bread Crumbs
Salt only to taste
Fillings:  Hummus, Tzatziki, tomato, onion, lettuce, etc.

Cook the quinoa to package directions -- I use my rice cooker.  Makes bout 4 cups.

In a bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, chili flakes and eggs.  In a separate large bowl combine the cooked quinoa, cumin, mint, oregano and pepper.   Add the wet ingredients to the dry, nd mix to fully incorporate things.  Fold in the bread crumbs last.

Pre-heat the oven to 350F.

Form the patties using egg rings or large cookie cutters.  My rings are about 3-1/2" diameter and 1/2" deep.  Set the rings on a baking sheet covered with parchment, and press 1/3 cup into each ring.  Remove rings and bake 16-18 minutes until dry and firm.  Remove from the heat and carefully reserve the patties.  Re-warm before you build the burgers.

Plating:  set a patty on a plate and schmear the top of it with Hummus.  Add slices of tomato, lettuce, onion, feta and whatever else you fancy (Kalamata olive slices would go well).  Add a nice dollop of Tzatziki and then finish with the top burger-bun.   Goes really well with some nice baked sweet potato wedges.

Persimmon Bread
This takes the persimmon to a whole new level.  What a great dessert bread!

2 Eggs, beaten 

1 1/2 cups Self Rising flour

3/4 cup White Sugar

1/2 tsp Salt

1/2 cup Vegetable Oil

1 tsp Cinnamon

4 Fuyu Persimmons

1/2 cup chopped Walnuts

1+ cup chopped Persimmon, reserve 4-6 slices for garnish

Preheat oven to 350F. Oil a 9 x 4 inch loaf pan. Puree the two ripest persimmons.  Cube 1-1/2 fruit, and slice the remaining half fruit into half moons.

In a small bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, salt, nuts, and cubed fruit.

In a large bowl, blend the eggs, sugar, and oil with the persimmon puree. Fold in the flour/fruit nut mixture. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake for 30 minutes.  

Top the loaf with the reserved persimmon slices and bake for an additional 30 minutes or until tester comes out clean.

Cauliflower Cheese

This is a Sally Dish, from her childhood.  Cauliflower.  And Cheese Sauce.  Really tasty!  All I'm allowed to do is prep the cauliflower and nuke it tender.  She makes the cheese sauce:

Butter or Olivio
Cornstarch or AP Flour

Dairy
Cheese

Melt about 3 Tbsp of butter in a 2 quart pot.  Add about 3 Tbsp of cornstarch and whisk together.  Cook for about 2 minutes to get rid of any floury taste.   Still whisking, start adding dairy (milk, half & half, even Almond Milk will do.

Keep whisking to break up the wads of flour/butter as you continue to add dairy -- up to 2 cups.  Bring the mixture up to a simmer and continue cooking until it starts to thicken -- a few minutes.  Once the sauce is nearly thick enough for you, start adding shredded cheese of your choice (Sally prefers very sharp white cheddar).   When the sauce is uber cheesy,  put the cauliflower florets in a baking dish, and top with cheesy goodness.   Pop in a 350F oven for 20 minutes or so to get a bit of browning and crust on the top.



Serve with a side veg.  I made green beans with slivered almonds.

Fast Bread, Hamlin (no pied piper) Marmalade, Persimmons, Quinoa Rissoles

Hamlin Yellow(because they're not oranges)Marmalade

No, that's not a Meyer Lemon, although it sorta looks like one.   The Hamlin orange is one of the most cold-hardy sweet oranges, and has been around Florida since the mid-1880s.  The distinguishing characteristics are, of course, it's yellow flesh, and sweet, not acidic taste and juice.  If you can find them, they make great marmalades, curds and similar preserves.  Great eating out-of-hand too.

My usual recipe to make a full pint of marmalade:   3 oranges, chopped.  Skin, pith, seeds, flesh and all,  pureed leaving some chunks.  Combine with a little less than the same volume of sugar (any kind) and microwave on High for 10 minutes.  Spoon into screw-top jars and refrigerate when cooled to room temperature

Poached Persimmons

Those funny looking orange-yellow 'not tomatoes' -- Persimmons -- are one of the most under-utilized fruits in this country.  The flavor is delicate and mildly sweet, and they are great just cut into wedges and eaten out of hand.  But they also make great jam, smoothies, pies, breads, cookies and simple desserts like this.

3-4 FuYu (sweet) Persimmons
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1 Star Anise
1tsp minced fresh Ginger
3-4 Tbsp Sugar
White Wine
Water

Remove the stem ends, and cut each fruit into 8 wedges, then cut the wedges into bite sized pieces.  In a suitable pan cover them with half water and half white wine (about a cup each).  Bring everything to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the fruit are tender -- about 15 minutes.

 Serve plain, or over Icelandic/Greek yogurt, rice pudding, or vanilla ice cream.

Fast Bread
That's "fast" bread, not Quick bread.  This makes real, risen loaves of bread, not the usual baking soda/powder sort of quick bread rise.  The recipe takes only about 1-1/2 hours for two loaves,  not the hours and hours of rises-and-kneads of ordinary yeast breads, which is why it's called Fast Bread.  Four simple ingredients -- bread is, after all a "simple" recipe.

2 cups warm Water (not hot)
1 packet Quick Rise Yeast
2 tsp Salt -- as Alton Brown says -- "Never leave the salt out of a baking recipe!"  (it limits the rise)
2-1/2 cups each of AP flour and Whole Wheat flour, plus more for bench flour

In a small bowl stir together the warm water and yeast.  In a large bowl combine about half the flour with the salt.  Add the yeasty liquid and start stirring, then add the rest of the flour; and a splash of water if needed.  You want the dough to "come together" but not be wet.

Dump the dough onto a clean floured surface and start kneading.  Knead for about 10 minutes until you get a mass that's "smooth as a baby's bottom".  Lacking a baby bottom for comparison, you can use the stretch test, and it's ready if you can see light through a wad of pulled-apart dough before it tears.

Grease a pair of loaf pans, divide the dough mass into two piece and form nice smooth loaves to put in each pan.  Cover and set in a breeze-free warmish place for 30-45 minutes until the dough doubles in size more or less.

Preheat the oven to 425F and bake the two loaves for 15-20 minutes, to an interior temp of 190-220F.  Remove to cooling racks.  Cool for 15 minutes then take the loaves out of the pans.

Cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing and schmearing with butter for the ultimate warm treat!

Great crumb, dense but not heavy, this is a winner in my bread baking department!  If you want a nicer looking dark crust on top, don't forget to brush the dough with soft butter before baking, like I did!

Quinoa Rissoles
This recipe comes from Bon Appetit magazine.  Another chapter in my quest for the ultimate Veggie Burger.  Sally and our friend Susan tasted something called the Inside-Out Quinoa Burger at True Food Kitchen restaurant down in Naples, so here I am trying to make something similar. *

1-2 cups cooked Quinoa

3/4 cup cooked Sweet Potato (1 medium-large spud)

1 Tbsp EVOO, divided

2 cups sliced mushrooms, chopped fine

1 Shallot, finely chopped

1/2 tsp or more Red Pepper Flakes (or Smoked Hot Paprika)

1 cup Breadcrumbs (Panko would be better)

juice of a Lemon

Black Pepper to taste

Nuke the sweet potato, scoop out the meat and mash it. Saute the shallot and mushrooms in a bit of EVOO but don't let them color.

Combine everything in a bowl and mash together. Divide into 4 patties. Fry patties in remaining EVOO for 7-8 minutes per side, until GB&D.

These are pretty good, but according to my sources, the TFK burger is better!

*Last minute update -- I actually found the True Foods Inside Out Quinoa Burger recipe.  More on that in a future post!!!

No-Salt BBQ Sauce, Croque Madam, Cocoa Drop Cookies, Pita-Pizzas and Much More

Honey-Yogurt Banana Split
We're all adults here, right?  So it's OK to start with dessert once in awhile, and end today's post with another dessert.  This one is pretty simple:  split a banana, dollop on some Icelandic Skyr or Greek yogurt, and drizzle with some of your favorite honey.  Try not to drool!  I like the banana chilled, personally.

Quinoa Stuffed Acorn Squash
A Blue Zones recipe that is surprisingly tasty, simple and inexpensive.  Can't find Blood Oranges (sometimes called Moro)?  Juice of any old orange will do just fine. It's the bit of citrus and natural sweet that's the important thing.

1 large Acorn Squash (or 2 small)
1 cup dry Quinoa (or you could use faro, barley, couscous, even amaranth)
4 Green Onions
2 stalks Celery
1/3 cup Pumpkin Seeds
1/2 cup Raisins or dried cranberries
4 Apricots, chopped
1/2 tsp Sage
Juice of half a Blood Orange

Halve, seed and cook the squash.  You can roast it, but a microwave is a lot faster!  Reserve.  Cook the quinoa to package directions.  I use my rice cooker.  Cool and fluff. Chop the green onions and celery.

In a skillet or large diameter pot, saute the green onions and celery until starting to get soft.  Add the dried fruit, pumpkin seeds and sage.  Now add the other ingredients and cook a bit more to marry the flavors.

Stuff the hot squash with the hot filling, and serve.  Or top with a bit of shredded cheese and bake for 20 minutes @ 400F.

Pita-Pizzas

Portion control concept here.  Use whole pita breads as the crusts for individual pizzas.  Dock (poke tiny holes in) the pitas, then broil them for a minute or three to get them a bit more crispy.  If you have a toaster oven these are the perfect meal to make in it.   Top with your favorite items (go easy on the sauce), then broil another 5 more minutes to melt cheeses and meld flavors.  

Cut into quarters and serve. 

Croque Madam
Our Airbnb listing is called Poolside Cabana With Gourmet Flair -- and I'm the Gourmet Flair!  Guests have a dozen or more menu of items they can choose for breakfast each morning.  Consequently I'm always on the lookout for new and interestingly different menu items.  This Season I'm debuting the Croque Madam -- basically a gourmet grilled ham and cheese sandwich topped with Hollandaise or Alfredo sauce; and a fried egg.    There are lots of ways to assemble this delight, but this is mine.  Breakfast for Two:

4 slices Multigrain Bread
3 oz. Smoked Gruyere Cheese, sliced or shredded, divided
6 oz Country Ham divided (I buy a 12 oz package of "country ham pieces for seasoning" for $3)
2 Eggs
1 cup Hollandaise Sauce (from scratch, a packet mix or a jar)

Fry the ham (country ham is not cooked, and must be, before being eaten.  You could fry watery old ordinary "Virginia" sandwich ham but it won't taste nearly as good in this dish!  In the same pan, cook the eggs in rings.  Reserve both ham and eggs.

Put the bread in your toaster and toast until nicely browned.  Pre-heat the Broiler. 

On a foil-covered baking sheet, lay down two slices of toast and top equally with ham and then cheese (right side of photo).  Ladle on some of the Hollandaise sauce, then top each with a second piece of toast.  Ladle on more Hollandaise and the remaining cheese (left side of photo).   

Broil for "a few" minutes until the top cheese is melted and browning.  Plate on a schmear of Hollandaise and top each with a fried egg.

The first guests to try the Croque Madam really enjoyed it!

No-Salt BBQ Sauce
We had a "football dinner" with our vegan friends Susan and Patrick.  They'd never tried Jackfruit before.   Patrick has to be pretty much salt-free, so I made this BBQ sauce to go into the Pulled Jackfruit that I made for our dinner.

17 oz container Pomitm No-Salt Tomato Sauce
1/2 cup Dark Brown Sugar
1/4 cup Molasses
Juice of Half an Orange
2 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
1-1/2 tsp Smoked Paprika
1 tsp Dry Mustard
1 tsp Garlic Powder or pressed raw garlic
1 tsp Black Pepper

More heat?  Add some Cayenne or other hot pepper.  More sweet?  Add more dark brown sugar. 

Bring to a low boil and simmer for 10-15 minutes to mesh the flavors and slightly thicken.  Want it thicker?  Add a Tbsp of corn starch and 3 Tbsp water whisked together and simmer a few minutes more.

Coca Drop Cookies

If you love dark-not-quite-bitter chocolate like we do, you're gonna love these easy bites.  Great for a Holiday potluck item too!  

2 cups Self Rising Flour

1/3 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
3/4 cup Dark Brown Sugar

1/4 cup Unsweetened Applesauce

4tsp Vegetable oil
1-1/2 tsp Orange Extract
1 large Egg

Preheat oven to 350F.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper

Stir together the flour and cocoa powder.   In another bowl combine everything else.  Whisk the liquids until smooth (or use a hand mixer).  Add the beaten liquids to the flour and fold to combine into a stiff dough.

Scoop dough by level tablespoonfuls, and roll into balls.  Arrange balls on the baking trays.  The balls don't slump, but you don't want them touching, either.

Bake for 8-10 minutes, then cool on the baking sheets for a couple minute before moving cookies to a cooling rack.   Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

If you're being artsy, dust them with powdered sugar!