Thursday, February 25, 2010

Show & Tell: Coconut & Black Bean Soup

My most recent Cookbookyssey venture inspired a couple of my readers to try the recipe themselves.


This photo was submitted by Mauve, who used a full can of low-fat coconut milk, rather than just one cup. Which reminds me, I also used the whole can, though mine was made with regular coconut milk (about 72% more delicious fat). Mauve also points out that this recipe is both vegan and gluten-free. Thanks Mauve! I love the presentation.


Here's a note from Jan, sent along with this lovely photo:
Like you, I was pretty discouraged in the early stages of simmering. I even considered abandoning the dish and throwing away the contents of the pot. However, after blending half the stock, it started to look better and I continued to follow the recipe carefully. Near the end the flavours started building and at the very end I had a very good soup. YAY!

I'm most certainly not a food stylist or food photographer and I shot this image as I was flying out the door for the day. Here it is -- for what it's worth.

Thank you for inspiring me to make this soup. It's easy, nourishing and tastes good. I'm definitely going to make it again and again.
Thank YOU, Jan. This soup looks better than mine! I have such talented readers. Feel free to send me some snapshots of your own adventures in the kitchen. LET'S SHARE.

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

#5: Had a Glass (2010)

Had a Glass: Top 100 Wines for 2010 under $20, $25, and $30
by Kenji Hodgson & James Nevison
© 2009 Whitecap Books

I'm trying to avoid the temptation of going for the easiest recipe in the cookbook, and rather getting over my fear of slightly more complicated recipes and tackling the most interesting. So I didn't make the clam linguine which seemed so simple it almost doesn't even need a recipe (though I will probably try it sometime soon). There's also a tasty sounding ceviche recipe which uses lime, pineapple and orange juice.


Coconut & Black Bean Soup

The recipe is still simple; I suppose I just get shy around long lists of ingredients. Veggies in the soup include onion, celery, corn, red pepper and tomato. Seasonings: cumin seeds, garlic, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper and cilantro. Additionally: lime juice, black beans, coconut milk, and vegetable stock. I know, that's not THAT MUCH. But it's enough for me.


The most exciting thing about this recipe was finally having a reason to use my new mortar & pestle, purchased during a Boxing Day mini shopping spree at Chocolate Mousse. The recipe goes something like this: Begin by grinding 1 tsp cumin seeds with a mortar & pestle; add 2 cloves of garlic and grind further. Add the juice of 1 lime and 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper and mix together.

In a saucepan, sweat onion (1 medium, chopped) and 2 ribs of celery (chopped) until translucent. Add the mortar & pestle mixture and sauté another 5 minutes.


Add 28 oz black beans (2 small cans) and the liquid they come in, 1 cup coconut milk and 2 cups veggie stock. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes. Around this time I tasted the soup and admittedly, I had my doubts...

But no matter. Blend the soup with an immersion blender, then add the corn (1 cup frozen kernels), red pepper (1/2 cup, diced) and tomato (1/2 cup, diced). Return to a simmer and lightly season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with a squeeze of lime and sprinkled with cilantro.


As I said, I had my doubts... but this is the best soup I've ever made! The coconut and lime are subtle yet distinct. The corn, red peppers and tomato are just the right amount -- also providing a subtle flavour and texture, but not enough to overpower. There's a lot of space between the ingredients, allowing them each their moment to shine on the spotlight of your tastebuds. Yep.

Anyway, this is not really even a cookbook. At a grand total of five, recipes are just a minor detail in this book; the real purpose of Had a Glass is of course its collection of cheap yet delicious wines, each accompanied by a picture of the label so it's easy to remember when you come across it in the liquor store. Because of this book I found my new favourite wine this year, Cat Amongst The Pigeons. This particular recipe was paired with a Pinot Gris recommendation: Dunavár. $12.00 (at the beer & wine store; $9.49 according to the book). What can I say; it was cheap and satisfying.

Friday, February 5, 2010

#4: Low-Carb Vegetarian

Low-Carb Vegetarian
by Celia Brooks Brown
© 2004 Whitecap Books

I was having a vegetarian guest for dinner so I turned to my stack of veggie books for inspiration. This one comes from the lovely Celia Brooks Brown, former personal chef of Stanley and Christiane Kubrick. Once again I'm astounded to find another vegetarian cookbook filled with exciting recipes, really making it difficult to choose just one. Simplicity won me over in the end, along with the marriage of the words "cheese heaven" in the introduction.



Eggplant Rarebit
Serves 4
1 large eggplant, sliced into 8 rounds
1 Tbsp olive oil plus extra for brushing
4 shallots, sliced
5 Tbsp (75 mL) white wine
1 cup grated Gruyère
1 tsp dry mustard
2 eggs, beaten
salt & pepper


Brush eggplant rounds all over with olive oil, season with salt & pepper, and bake on a cookie sheet at 375°F for 20–30 minutes, until softened and barely golden.


Sweat shallots in olive oil over medium heat until softened.


Turn the heat down as low as possible and then add the wine, cheese and mustard, stirring until the cheese melts. Add the beaten eggs and stir until the mixture thickens slightly, but remove from heat before the eggs begin to scramble.


Spoon mixture onto baked eggplant rounds and broil until puffed and patched with gold. Grind black pepper overtop and eat.

I wouldn't say this recipe feeds four, though I guess it's listed in the book as a "small course" to be served along with something else. Alone however, it made a decent meal for two people paired with the remaining wine, with enough left over for a midnight snack.

Other Low-Carb Vegetarian recipes I want to tackle:
• Portobello Mushrooms with Blue Cheese Custard
• Paneer Masala with Spinach and Coconut
Vietnamese Asparagus Pancakes
Provençal Tian
• Pumpkin Curry
• Raspberry Mess with Pistachio Meringues

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

#3: Everyone Can Cook Midweek Meals

Everyone Can Cook Midweek Meals: Recipes for Cooks on
the Run

by Eric Akis
© 2008 Whitecap Books

I surprised myself by not making the Curried Shrimp-Stuffed Papaya recipe that first caught my eye, lover that I am of stuffing things (as evidenced here, here and here and here...). However I think I need to expand my horizons a bit beyond the stuffing of fruits and vegetables. I also love French Onion Soup, and have never tried to make anything resembling it, so what better place to start than with a recipe from the fourth installment of Eric Akis's Everyone Can Cook series, which reassures, as its title suggests, that everyone, even tired, distracted, busy people who rely heavily on dollar slice pizza to fuel them throughout the week, can indeed cook.




Red Onion Soup with Brie
Serves 4
2 Tbsp butter
3 medium red onions, halved and thinly sliced
1 garlic clove (actually I used 2), chopped
1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1/2 cup red wine
4 1/2 cups beef stock
1/2 tsp dried thyme
salt & pepper to taste
4 slices (1 inch thick) toasted French bread
8–12 slices brie


Sauté onions in melted butter over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes or until onions are caramel-like and sticky.


Stir in garlic. Mix in flour and mustard. Slowly add wine, stirring constantly. Stir in stock and thyme and bring soup to a gentle simmer. Continue to simmer about 15 minutes, and season to taste with salt and pepper.


Put a toasted slice of French bread in the bottom of each bowl. Cover with soup and then top with brie slices. Place bowls on a baking sheet and broil until the cheese is melted.

Notes on cooking
• I accidentally misread the recipe and added 1 instead of 1/2 tsp of thyme. Don't do that. Too thymey.
• I mixed the mustard and flour together in a bowl before adding. Don't do that either; it makes it to difficult to incorporate.
• I only used 4 cups of beef broth, because that's how much was in the carton. I could have done with an extra 1/2 cup of liquid.
• Make sure you have ovenproof bowls. I wasn't sure if mine was ovenproof, so I kept the broiling to a minimum.

More
Seven Spoons has a pretty in-depth review of Eric's book and the "fast" food movement here.

#2: The Seasoned Vegetarian

The Seasoned Vegetarian
by Simon Rimmer
© 2009 Mitchell Beazley

I love that Simon Rimmer is a vegetarian chef and yet not actually a vegetarian. It makes this book all the more perfect for me, a lover of both cute animals and delicious meat. Under Simon's tutelage, I can live a little more of the vegetarian lifestyle, but not feel guilty when I choose to dine on deep-fried chicken skin at the local izakaya.


It was tough to choose just one recipe this time -- so many look so good! I will have to come back to this book when my, uh... two years are up. Or maybe I'll just cheat and do more. Among the most intriguing: Sweet Figs on Toast, White Gazpacho, Peppered Mushroom & Stilton Pie, Vegan Lancashire Hot-pot, and Raisin, Pistachio & Honey Cheesecake... to name several. I decided to go with an herbed frittata, because it looked pretty easy, and I've never made frittata before.


Dill & Basil Frittata with Roasted Peppers
2 red peppers, roasted
4 eggs
100 mL half & half cream
salt & fresh ground pepper
1 Tbsp each chopped fresh basil & dill
3 oz extra-old white cheddar, grated
oil for frying & drizzling
shredded Parmesan cheese
The deliciousness factor of this meal is the layering of roasted red peppers between slices of frittata.


These are easy to make, and while most directions say to let the charred peppers steam in a plastic baggie (which I likely would've then thrown away), I tried a tupperware container this time and it worked great.


So, the frittata is eggs, cream, and extra-old white cheddar, salted and peppered and herbed with fresh basil and dill.


We used about 3 times more basil and dill than the recipe called for, and it seemed like the perfect amount.


Cooked on the stovetop for about four minutes until almost set, and then finished off in the grill for about a minute. Sliced up, layered with roasted peppers, and topped with shredded Parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil.

#1: V Cuisine


Over the holidays I reorganized my bookshelves and discovered that I own over one hundred cookbooks. From all of these, I have probably used about five recipes in total. So in effort to infuse meaning into the stuff that takes up space in my apartment, I have decided to cook one recipe from each book. I will do this hopefully at least once a week. At this rate it will take me about two years, and in that time several more publishing seasons will go by and I'll probably own another 50 or so books. But I don't want to be too ambitious and then fail, so, once a week it is.

Let us begin:

V Cuisine: The Art of New Vegan Cooking
by Angeline Linardis
© 2007 Whitecap Books

Panko-Stuffed Portobello Caps

I intended to deveganize this recipe by adding some cheese on top at the end, but I forgot. And it really didn't need it. Tastes great -- and no animals harmed! Or even milked!


The stuffing is a mix of sautéed onions, red peppers, celery, garlic and parsley, mixed with sage, oregano and panko crumbs, held together with some vegetable stock. I sprinkled more panko on top, and baked at 475°F for about 10 minutes.