Carrot Osso Bucco, Zucchini Chips, Orange Cake and more

Carrot Osso Bucco
This vegan play on the classic braised lamb shanks recipe, is the brain-child of Richard Blais, former Top Chef contestant and winner of the Top Chef All-Stars competition.  I special ordered "giant" veggies from our Southwest Florida Produce Co-op, and they really came through with the goods!

I've tweaked Richard's recipe slightly by braising not just giant carrots but also giant parsnips.  For our WW friends, this is a 3-point dinner when served with 1/3 cup of rice!  The following serves 4.

1/2 pound of Pearl Onions, or a large-diced Sweet Onion
3 giant Carrots
3 giant Parsnips
1 tsp Curry Powder
1-1/2 cups dry Red Wine
2 cups Mushroom Broth
1 Tbsp Porcini mushroom Powder
Salt & Pepper to taste
optional garnish -- flat-leaf parsley tossed with a splash of EVOO and lemon juice.

If using pearl onions, blanch them in boiling water and then peel.  Otherwise peel and large-dice a sweet onion or red onion.  Peel, then cut the carrots and parsnips into 3" lengths.

To give you an idea of how big those carrots and parsnips are -- the blade on my Nakiri bōchō vegetable cleaver is 7" long!!

Pre-heat oven to 350F. Rather than the oven and an oven-proof cooking vessel, I used my electric skillet set to 350F to do the actual braising.

In a splash of EVOO, in a hot skillet, season and brown the carrots and parsnips about 5 minutes per side.  

Add the onion and curry powder and continue cooking a minute or two.  Then add the wine, porcini powder and mushroom broth, bring to a boil.  

At this point, if braising in the oven, transfer to your oven-safe container and cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes.  In my electric skillet, I reduced the temperature in stages to 225F and continued cooking for about an hour until the veg was just fork tender.  

Garnish, if desired, and serve.  I served with 1/3 cup of mixed white & brown rice as you see above.

WOW!!  This is a killer recipe!  One of the very best veggie-vegan recipes I've ever prepared.  That mushroom/red wine gravy with onion!  The carrots and parsnips were just like slicing a rich hunk of steak.    Of course you don't need giant carrots and parsnips, but they sure make an imposing plate of food.

Baked Zucchini Chips
This recipe does work best with Giant (large diameter) veg.  One of the nicer things you can do to this vegetable!

Zucchini
Breading Mix -- half Panko and Half grated Parmesan from a can.  I used 1/4 cup each here.
Paprika and other spices
EVOO

Slice the zucchini into 1/4" or thinner rounds.  I used our Saladmastertm slicer, but a mandolin or good knife skills will work too, of course.  Pat them dry with paper towels

Preheat the oven to 400F.  Lay the chips out on parchment-covered baking trays and spritz them with EVOO.  Dust with your favorite spice blend.  

Bake for 15-20 minutes until browning nicely.   

Here the zucchini chips are the side veg for baked salmon.

If you have racks that fit your baking trays your chips will be even better -- crisper because they'll cook on both sides.   

Orange Cake
This was my Thanksgiving dessert (others brought apple pie and cheesecake).  I followed a recipe from the Season 2 Great British Bake Off cook book for Blood Orange Sponge Cake.  I wrote about it three years ago, here:

https://foodingaround-kiltedcook.blogspot.com/2016/11/chicken-leeks-feta-blood-orange-cake.html

It's too early just now for Blood Oranges (they won't be ripe until mid-January or thereabouts) so I used frozen concentrated orange juice, as well as local Navel Oranges (zest and juice) for this year's cake.

Even though the sponge collapsed a bit too much, the cake was so popular at Thanksgiving that I didn't even get a chance to take a photo of a slice by itself!

Honey Broiled Oranges Here's another "giant" application.  We got these huge locally grown Navel Oranges in our produce box this week.  So big, I thought they were grapefruit!!   Halved, segmented, drizzled with honey and broiled for a few minutes, they made a sweet dessert.

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!

Blue Corn Crackers, Braised Bamboo Shoot, Baked Yuca Sticks, Vegan Pulled "Pork", Plum Parfaits

Vegan Pulled Pork Sandwich with Oven-baked Yuca Sticks

Vegan Pulled "Pork"  

Last year I showed you how to make Pulled Jackfruit -- a.k.a. Vegan Pulled "Pork".

(https://foodingaround-kiltedcook.blogspot.com/search?q=jackfruit).

It was so good, I'm doing it again1  Check out all the details in that post from last year.

Last week Michael from Pine Island Botanicals  harvested his biggest-ever Jackfruit -- 98 pounds!!   So I went to the Farmer's Market and pickup up about an 8lb slice;

After processing the green fruit slice I had about 6 pounds of ready-to-use pulled 'meat'.  So I diced up an onion and some garlic, sautéed them, them added the jackfruit.  After a few minutes of cooking I added "some" BBQ Sauce.  My new favorite is G. Hughestm Sugar Free, Original BBQ Sauce.  As the name sez, it's sugar-free -- more vinegary than sweet, and perfect to counter the natural sweetness of the jackfruit.

To accompany my Pulled "Pork" sandwiches, I made;

Baked Yuca Sticks -- can't call 'em 'fries' if they're baked!
That's Yuca, not Yucca.  Pronounced You-ka, not Yukk-a.  Yuca is a root vegetable; Yucca is not.  Yuca grows in the moist hot tropics; Yucca grows in the hot arid desert fringes.  Don't eat Yuca Raw; it's moderately poisonous unless cooked.  Don't eat Yucca at all, it's just nasty.    Yuca is also called Cassava or Manioc, and is the source of tapioca.

Now that we've got that out of the way, we're going to make Yuca Sticks, because you can't call them "fries" if they're baked!

I got this monster root from the Southwest Florida Produce Co-op, where we get most of our fruit and veg.  These yuca were grown locally.

Preparing the Root
First thing you have to do is cut the root into manageable lengths -- 4-6" is good.  I use a hacksaw.  If you had to you could use an oiled serrated knife, but a hacksaw is easier.

Now stand the sections on end and slice away that rough 'bark' with your chef's knife or a cleaver.

Leave the logs whole, and boil them for 20-30 minutes to soften them up so they're 'fork tender' half way to the core.  Drain and cool.

Once cool, you can cut the logs into sticks.  Start by quartering lengthwise. Then slice away the tough, stringy core.  After that cut the quarters into sticks.  You can store these par-cooked sticks over night and finish the cooking the next day.

Baking
Preheat your oven to 425F.  While that's going on prepare a baking sheet with no-stick spray or a piece of parchment paper.  Place the drained and patted dry yuca sticks in a large-ish bowl and either spray with a high-smoke-point oil, like Grapeseed oil, or toss with a tablespoon or two of the oil.  Coat the fries and they lay them out on the baking sheet with space between.  Dust with a spice blend like Everglades Seasoningtm.

Bake at 425 for 15 minutes or so, then toss them and cook for another 15-20 minutes until nice and brown.  Serve hot from the oven.  A lemon or lime-mayo makes a nice dipping sauce rather than ketchup.  We also like Costa Rican Lizano Sauce as a dip for yuca sticks.

Plum Parfaits with Honey & Almonds
After a rich dinner like BBQ Jackfruit and Baked Yuca Sticks you want something light and a bit sweet to finish the meal.  These Plum Parfaits are quick, easy and just right!

2 firm Plums of choice, diced
1 Tbsp Honey of choice
1/4 tsp Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Lemon Zest
1-1/2 cups plain Icelandic or Greek Yogurt
1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted.

Simmer the plums, honey and cinnamon in a splash of water until the plums get saucy.  Transfer to a bowl, add the lemon zest, and cool to room temperature.

To plate, layer spoonfuls of cooked plums with spoonfuls of yogurt, ending with plums, then top with toasted almonds before serving...


"And now for something completely different!"

Yóu Mèn Sun (Braised Bamboo Shoot)

I stopped at a local Farmer's Market the other day to get a few pounds of Jackfruit from my friends at Pine Island Botanicals.  And while I was there I saw these huge fresh Bamboo Shoots.  So I got one to show you Faithful Readers.  This is not those stringy metallic tasting things in a can that you add to stir fry.  This is a magnificent vegetable in its own right.

Preparing the Shoot

My shoot weighed in at 11 ounces after trimming the bottom clean.  Next step is to use a sharp knife to slice down the length of the shoot about 1/4" deep.  Use your fingertips to pull the outer "leaves" away exposing the creamy white interior.  

Now trim about an inch off the tip, and put in a pot of water to boil for at least 30 minutes.  Some species of bamboo contain high concentrations of cyanogenic glycosides which can produce cyanide!  However boiling the shoots for at least 30 minutes renders all species perfectly safe to eat.

Once drained and cooled, cut into convenient sized pieces.

The Braising 

I'm going to braise the bamboo shoot first, and then add other, separately-braised vegetables to make a complete dinner.  

3 Tbsp EVOO

2 thin slices of fresh Ginger

2 tsp Sugar

2 tsp Rice Wine

1 Tbsp dark Soy Sauce

1 Tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar

1 cup Water

Heat the oil and fry the ginger in it for about 30 seconds.  Then add the sugar and cook until it dissolves before adding the bamboo shoot pieces.  Stir and fry for a couple minutes until the edges start to brown.

Now add liquids and simmer everything together for about 10 minutes while the liquid reduces.

Remove the bamboo shoots and repeat the process with other vegetables.  I used:

Parcooked Baby Carrots

Whole Button Mushrooms

Sugar Snap Peas

Red & Green Bell Pepper strips

English Cucumber strips

Shallot

Blue Corn Crackers

I got a half-price deal on a bag of Harina de Maiz Azul -- blue corn flour.  It used to be that you only saw blue corn products on the Navajo Reservation --  because the Dineh had a more or less monopoly on the blue seed-corn.  Nowadays you find blue corn chips everywhere, and the harina is common in mercados and tiendas (Mexican stores).   These crackers, although round, aren't really tortillas or tostadas.  They're more of a gordita -- chubby.  Much thicker.  The smaller thicker ones have a softer center; the larger are more crispy like a tostada.

You can make these crackers with ordinary yellow masa -- but where's the fun in that?  Still, either color makes a healthier snack than tortilla chips.  This recipe makes about fifteen 3"diameter crackers.

1-1/2 cups Harina de Maiz Azul (blue corn flour)

1 tsp Cumin

2 tsp Mexican Spice blend or similar seasoning

1 tsp Baking Powder

1/2 tsp Salt

3 Tbsp EVOO

1 cup Water, plus maybe a bit more...

Preheat the oven to 425F.

Mix together the dry ingredients.  Add the olive oil and water.  Just enough water to make a workable dough after you knead it for a minute or two in a blue corn floured bench.

Make the dough into thin flat bits.  I used my tortilla press and walnut sized lumps of dough.  I you don't have a press, roll the dough out to about 1/8" thin between sheets of wax paper and use a biscuit or cookie cutter to make your crackers.   Lay them out on a dry baking sheet.

Bake 15 minutes or until crisp and just beginning to brown on the edges.  Let cool enough that you don't burn your mouth before serving!  This recipe makes about 16 crackers 3" in diameter.