Baba Ghanoush

Baba ghanoush is an Arabic dip made from eggplant that I'm thinking most of us have had by now. Don't worry if you can't pronounce it. Just make it, and eat it.



I've purchased baba ghanoush in a can that was, believe it or not, fairly decent. But it is so inexpensive to make, like, a metric ton of it. Like dude: a TON. Anyway, I froze several containers of it for later. I'll let you know how that goes.

Ingredients:

4 eggplants
olive oil
lemon juice
3 or 4 garlic cloves
beans or tofu
salt and pepper

Here's how you do it: I use a simple 4/40/400 rule: put four eggplants on a cookie sheet with foil for 40 minutes at 400 degrees. Turn them over once halfway through cooking. Let them cool. Then peel the skin off and put the "meat" into a food processor with three or four cloves of garlic (yes, this plan of mine will yield a strong garlic flavor. If you want less, use less, but honestly just thinking about that makes me a little sad). Use salt (plenty, keep tasting) and pepper and a little something to thicken the mix: I use either a rinsed can of white beans, chickpeas, or about 3/4 cup of tofu (whatever you have). Then I add lemon juice, and I use the concentrated stuff if I don't have fresh ones on hand.

Blend it all up, and while it is whirring, drizzle in about a quarter cup of olive oil. Serve it with chips or pita, and drizzle it with more olive oil and some paprika. So, so good, and good for you (unless you have a date or a job interview). My friend Lynn recently made me aware of "sale produce" at our local Italian grocery, where they sell produce in big bundles that has only a day or two left. So I made this quadruple batch for about $1.29. What a thrill!

Lamb and Feta Burger

Did I say I was doing these burger posts beginning July 4th? My, how time flies! Well, it might take me until next summer, but I'll get the rest of these alternative burgers up. I'M BUSY. In fact, the dedicated reader will spot the backdrop in this next picture: the kitchen I moved out of in January of 2008. But I remember how good these burgers were!



This ground lamb burger is based on a recipe I have printed in Bob Sloan's wonderful book, "Great Burgers." I based it on his "Lamb and Feta Burger with Cumin-Yogurt Dressing." I'd reprint it here for you, but A) I'm not sure I have permission to do that, and B) I didn't really follow it closely anyway. I found ground lamb at Joe Caputo's (but any real butcher is likely to have it, just probably not "the Jewel's," as Dad would say). I seasoned it simply, added a packet of crumbled feta, some toasted pignolis, and dried Italian seasoning. The yogurt dressing was greek yogurt with cumin and lime juice, and I sautéed the spinach with some simple seasoning, and finished it with some red wine vinegar at the end. And I didn't measure anything.



I served them on pitas as Bob recommended. They were a bit rich (the lamb has a rich flavor), but nice for a new option.

Roast Chicken with Gravy and Mediterranean Stuffing

What a fancy title! For what will probably be one of my shortest posts ever...

I was in the mood for some thanksgiving-style turkey and stuffing one day, but I also had sort of a salt/savory craving. Also, I felt inordinately lazy (yes, I was pregnant.)



I had some pre-made "Mediterranean salad": the kind you find in the deli section at Jewel, near the hummus and pre-made meals. It had beans, couscous, carrots, parsley and other grains and seasonings in a vinaigrette dressing. I mixed up some Stouffer's stuffing, and added the bean salad to it. I also added some pitted and diced calamata olives to it. Voila! Mediterranean-style stuffing.

I continued on my cheating bender and purchased a rotisserie chicken. I made gravy by using the drippings in the bottom of the container. I added them to a pan, then sprinkled on flour to make a roux, and added chicken broth and seasoning until I liked the taste.



Scratched that itch, and with as little energy expended as a football-viewing couch potato might use to scratch his expanding midsection.

Mmmm... Umami!

I found this article from the Wall Street Journal to be intensely illuminating, and I just had to share it. (Please do not get the impression that I am a regular WSJ reader; I am nowhere near that deep.) At first I clicked on the title and read it just out of curiosity: a new taste discovered? Neat.

But now I realize that this article is all about me. Some of you out there are sweetness junkies and carb-lovers. My husband is a good example: we have joked for years about the loving way that he hovers over any pastry, bread, rice, potato, sugary snack or, *gasp*, any combination of the aforementioned (like a cinnamon roll, or a sugared pastry.) I have always said that I like salt as much as he likes sugar, but that isn't exactly right. I do often find dishes to be too salty. But now I know what it is that I really crave: umami!

The article describes "umami" as the deep, meaty, satisfying and complex flavor that is present in a variety of foods: Worcestershire sauce, mushrooms, parmesan cheese, anchovies, and on and on. Just as table sugar is "just sweet," MSG is "just umami." Some parts of the article are a bit scary, like the goings-on of a certain food lab that is using "an artificial taste bud" (bringing sci-fi images of a large, disembodied organ to mind -- if I touched it, would it taste me?) to test artificial means of manufacturing umami, and a PR push to get the public to accept MSG as a "more natural product." But there are natural ways of bringing out the umami flavor that is already present in foods: by roasting, grilling, drying, and sautéing. To me, this gives a name to something that I have figured out in experimenting with vegetarian foods. Using certain ingredients, combined with certain techniques (mushrooms, parmesan, roasted veggies, grilled tofu and eggplant, sun-dried tomatoes, etc.) make a dish much more satisfying than those without. I'm not a vegetarian, but I think the knowledge makes my vegetarian dishes better. Personally, I think it is umami that separates the vegetarian entrées from the side dishes.

It also explains why I've always needed parmesan in my chicken soup! What I need now is a t-shirt that tells the world what I really am: "Umami Freak."

P.S. I first read this article on a tiny screen in small text -- I apologize, but I misspelled umami the first time around. My thanks to those who commented and shouted this at me in ALL CAPS. Oops.

Chicken Tikka Masala

I find it is a bit intimidating to use new spices, but my curiosity about food tends to drive me over that fear. And I'm always pleasantly surprised to find that most dishes, the world over, contain plenty of familiar ingredients. The "base" for this dish could be the same as any number of Mexican or Italian dishes you may have made before. The only thing that may be new to you about it is the garam masala spice, which is available in most grocery stores now.

Give it a shot -- if you like warm, medium-heat dishes like chili with seasoning that is a bit more complex in flavor, you'll like tikka masala. I've changed and simplified a few things from the recipe I have, and the following recipe reflects my changes.

Marinade

• 1 cup plain yogurt


• 2 T. lemon juice


• 2 tsp. mediterranean seasoning, or just 2 tsp. cumin, and 2 tsp. cinnamon


• 1 tsp. red pepper flakes


• 1 tsp. salt


• 1 tsp. ginger


• 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into strips or large cubes

Sauce

• 1 T. butter


• 2 T. flour


• 2 cloves garlic, minced


• 1 jalapeño chili, minced


• 2 tsp. ground coriander


• 1 tsp. each: ground cumin, paprika, garam masala spice


• ½ tsp. salt


• 1 8 oz. can tomato sauce


• 1 ½ cups fat-free half-and-half


• ½ cups chopped cilantro

Combine everything on the "marinade" list, including the chicken. Marinate in a plastic Ziploc gallon bag in the fridge for at least 2 hours (overnight is better.)

If you have a grill pan like I do, you can just grill the chicken on it directly. If you have a charcoal grill, thread the chicken onto skewers first (tastes better is you got the coals). My recommendation, either way, is to only partially cook the chicken. It goes into the sauce and will cook the rest of the way. If you thoroughly cook the chicken first, you will probably find it a bit dry after it goes in the sauce. I know it is a little creepy purposefully undercooking chicken, but trust me, it will fully cook in about a minute in the sauce.

Set the lightly grilled chicken aside on a plate (don't re-use the plate, just wash it later), and make the sauce. Melt the butter and flour in a large deep skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and jalapeño, and stir for a minute. Stir in the seasonings, and salt. Combine the tomato sauce, and stir for one minute. Add the fat-free half-and-half, and simmer until the sauce thickens.

Add the chicken to the sauce (remove it from the skewers if you did this) and let simmer for a couple of moments. If you want to be sure that it is cooked, just take one of the thicker pieces out and cut into it. Don't overcook it.

I like to serve this over egg noodles with the cilantro over the top, but I think it would also be good with potatoes and peas. With the fat-free half-and-half instead of cream, it is really a healthy dish, and if you do the marinade the night before, it is also pretty quick. I served it with avocado slices with lemon, salt and pepper once -- and now I consider this to be a must-have accompaniment!

Portobello-Eggplant Burgers

While I was in Portland, I visited Powell's City of Books, an amazing multiple-story used and new bookseller downtown (and apparently, the largest of its kind in the world). One of the books I scooped up was "Great Burgers: 50 Mouthwatering Recipes" by Bob Sloan. The first recipe I tried was the vegetarian burger. Aren't I silly?



This burger is called the "Portobello-Eggplant Burger with Smoked Mozzarella and Tapenade." In the book, there are instructions to grind your own olive tapenade with anchovy dressing, but I lazily got the jarred tapenade from Trader Joe's. I also like their smoky Jack cheese, and I used that instead of the smoked mozzarella the recipe called for. The recipe recommended a "sturdy roll," and that was good advice. However, I had some whole wheat pitas I wanted to use up, and they worked just fine, though the ingredients were practically busting out of them.

I grilled the portobello caps, and melted the cheese on them. Then I added a slice of grilled eggplant. I also changed the recipe by adding basil leaves, and a shmear of roasted red pepper and eggplant dip (also from Joe's.) We added sliced tomatoes, and having no room for the recommended grilled onions, we were done! It was delicious. The flavors went together perfectly, and it was one filling, monster burger. Next time I will use the sturdier roll that was recommended, so I can pile them high like Dagwood!

Mediterranean-Style Grilled Chicken

We made this chicken again (oh, a hundred times since, I'd say), and I've posted it before... But I thought the picture in this instance really showcased the improvement in my photography skills, so I'm posting it again. Enjoy.



Served with hummus and whole-wheat pitas, which on their own are becoming my favorite snack...

Coconut Chili and Bean Medley

Here's something I experimented with the other night that came out quite good. It has a sweet and spicy, vaguely eastern flavor due to the light coconut milk and seasonings. I've been playing with coconut milk a lot since tasting Thai curry a few years ago, and this is another of my variations.

• Sauté half of a yellow onion (diced) and four minced cloves of garlic with a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a deep pan.


• Add 1/2 bag golden raisins, and four cooked and diced Yukon gold potatoes.


• Add 1 can rinsed and drained kidney beans, one can rinsed and drained chick peas, and 1/2 bag steamed or prepared lentils (about one cup).


• Add 1 can light coconut milk, three-quarters of a jar of Trader Joe's roasted red pepper and eggplant dip***, 1/3 bag of cashews, and 1/3 bag frozen peas.


• Season with salt, pepper, a little cumin and coriander, and a more generous amount of chili powder to taste. Heat through and combine until peas are thawed, and the dish is warm.


• Serve over brown rice, and garnish with red bell pepper or scallions.

I think this dish is easy to prepare, even if you don't really cook. It looks like a lot, but it is all "pantry" ingredients, and it is my favorite style of cooking (just combining things in a pan.) Don't be scared if it looks a little strange... The raisins give it a burst of sweetness, and the nuts give it a nice crunch. The leftovers (and there will be a lot), reheated very well, and it may have even tasted better after a couple of days in the fridge.

*** You could make your own by processing oil-packed red peppers (with the oil), garlic, and grilled eggplant until smooth.

Mediterranean Summer Pizza

I did it again... I found myself a couple of weeks ago without any marinara sauce. Or canned tomatoes. Or fresh tomatoes. And of course, what I really wanted to make was pizza. Could I make a pizza without it, I wondered, that wouldn't be dry, hard, and suitable only for a game of Frisbee?

Well, this pizza is what resulted. And it was light, summery, and very, very good.



I grilled two small chicken breasts (one large would do) with my usual mediterranean seasoning, alongside some asparagus (just a few spears). I chopped those, and mixed them in a bowl with crumbled feta, half a diced red onion, and some diced Greek olives (I used black and green mixed, but I think either one, or just Sicilian olives would be great). Lastly, I added the juice of one small lemon, and the grated zest.

I brushed the whole-wheat (prepared) crust with extra-virgin olive oil, and added minced garlic before spreading on the diced toppings. Then I drizzled with just a little a bit more oil, and added a light amount of shredded cheese (there was already feta, after all) and some Italian dried seasoning on top.

Then I just baked it at the recommended temperature for the pizza crust until the toppings were gold and bubbly. It was hearty and fresh, and we didn't miss the sauce at all.

Feta Cilantro Salad

Okay, something a bit more "frou-frou," or light and healthy. Mostly because it's getting hot outside! I'm starting to wonder if I should just write recipes for Trader Joe's fliers. Stilll, you could re-create this from any store, I think.



1 serving Trader Joe's Harvest Grains, cooked and rinsed (or other mixed grains in a bag... this one contains quinoa)
1/2 package prepared lentils, or about a cup cooked and drained
1/2 bunch diced scallions
1 medium tomato, diced
1 orange bell pepper, diced
1 tub crumbled feta cheese
1/2 bag cashews or cashew pieces
1/2 bottle cilantro dressing (I used TJ's, natch)
salt and pepper

Pretty simple... Had a nice crunch, and lots of textures -- very refreshing. Next time I will add some Greek or Sicilian olives, I think, if I have them on hand.

Italian Chicken Couscous

I was going to call this Italian Couscous "Where the Grease Meets the Middle East," but I shouldn't advocate negative stereotypes of my own ethnicity. Not when "the Sopranos" just stopped doing that for me.

I'm not trying to be cute, but Chris went crazy for this couscous! (Okay, I'm being a little cute). But really, I always know how much he liked something when later on he says, "Remember that chicken and couscous thing? That was really good." If you know him, you know that's a rave review. I need to go to the store and get the ingredients to make this again soon... And if you know me, you know that for me not to be bored, and to contemplate a repeat means that it was pretty darned good.



I'm using a lot of different grains and pastas lately to support our usual proteins and vegetables. It took me awhile not to "fear the couscous." There really is no reason to, as it is a lot like the pastina I grew up eating. It is really just tiny pasta, and you can use it hot or cold the same way. Even better is that the instant stuff cooks up super fast, like in a minute and a half.

For this dish, I cooked up the couscous, chopped up some leftover grilled chicken, and some sun-dried tomatoes. Joe Caputo's has real, fresh sun-dried tomatoes that don't at all resemble the leather/jerky variety that I sometimes avoid... and they smell great. I had also purchased some fresh mozzarella there, and the round shapes were so small that I didn't have to chop them up, just drained and added them. I think they were called perlini, but I may just be inventing an Italian word there, the way my grandfather began calling the subway "il soob-a-way." It sounds good though, right?

Anyway, I also added chopped scallions, chopped garlic, some toasted pignoli (pine nuts browned quickly in another pan), and some finely chopped celery for crunch. Then I drizzled it with just enough olive oil to coat, and a little shake of white wine (or you could use a little vinegar) for acidity. You could use as much of each as you want, generally though, the oil to acid ratio should be 2:1. Then, you know, salt and pepper.

I served this at room temperature or a little warm, and we just ate the leftovers cold. It was really summery, but a nicely filling lunch, too. Would have been great even without the chicken, too -- as a vegetarian entrée or as a side to bring to a party.

The Low-Carb Experiment (Part 1 of 3)

My sainted mother Mary Ann (don't get me wrong, she's still alive) is coming up this week, and she's doing me the favor of bringing not only herself, but her college-hood best friend, Mary Fran (I'm not making this up) as a body in need of dental hygiene help that I might prey upon. I mean, treat. That I might treat.

The last time Ma came up from southern Illinois, she told me ahead of time that she was on the South Beach Diet, and not to go to any trouble, she said. Just buy her some lean meats, string cheese, and some veggies, she said. Oh, and some sugar-free Jello. But what, I say? Go the easy route you say? NOT ACCEPT THE GLOVE CAST DOWN IN A CHALLENGE, YOU SAY? Oh, no. One large shopping trip to Joe Caputo's, a consult with my freebie Kraft South Beach recipe book, and it was game on, Mary Ann!

My first meal was a lunch for the two of us. I chopped some veggies crudite (still can't make the accent in this font, too lazy to try) and made a dip. I used an idea from the Kraft book, and made it, well... better. I used some home-made Greek yogurt from Caputo's as a base (you could use lowfat mayo and fat-free sour cream, instead), and added some fat-free yogurt to thin it out a bit. I added chopped cucumber, fresh dill, scallions, tahini paste, and a little Splenda (we're talking Phase I, people) and salt. Oh, and lemon juice.



It was thick, creamy and refreshing. We were scooping it by the quarter cupful. I readied the platter for a photo in my favorite spot-lite above the dishwasher, and as I did so, I realized Ma was not yet trained as my husband is. Where he would have waited patiently with fork in hand, she picked up a carrot and totally plunged into my PERFECT SWIRL. "My swirl!!" I cried, re-forming with the back of a spoon. This lady had a lot to learn!

The dip also went really well with the main protein attraction... And WHAT IS IT, you slobber on your keyboard? Oh HO! My four readers will have to wait in eager anticipation.

Tomorrow, probably. Or Wednesday. I am a master of suspense.

Mediterranean Chicken Green Salad

Remember the chicken kebabs and the mediterranean seasoning I like to use? I used the leftovers in a cold green salad. I made my own dressing with a little fat-free sour cream, skim milk (or buttermilk would be nice), a teaspoon of tahini paste, a squeeze of lime juice, greek seasoning (or just oregano and mint), and a sprinkle of sugar. I put bell peppers (non-green, of course), scallions and feta in the salad. It was nummers.

Halva

I was at Joe Caputo's grocery the other day, waiting at the always-spectacular but crowded deli counter. We were in a hurry to get to a friend's house. I picked up something that I thought was torrone, encased in plastic wrap as though it had been freshly made. Chris gave me the look that he gives me when he is annoyed that I have decided to experience something new when we are in a hurry to get somewhere. The parcel read, "halva," which I'd never had. Or heard of, for that matter. But I figured, "Well... it has something marshmallowy in it, and pistachios (which is, delightfully, the junk-food of nuts), so how could it be bad?" I tried to pull off a hunk just as we pulled up to our friend Cameron and Lindsay's house. I expected it to be chewy, like torrone, but instead it crumbled all over me and the car seat. Chris gave me the look that he gives me when he feels that I deserve to be covered in crumbs for getting distracted by food when he is in a hurry, and for being such a pig that I will open the package to eat it in the car before we get there.



It is a bit strange at first -- like the first time you have tahini all by itself (which, it turns out, is in this) -- but I really like it. Chris doesn't. I think it has a sweet, roasted nut flavor, and I like the texture. I like that it isn't overly sweet, but just enough. I also like that you can keep it wrapped on your countertop for an apparently long period of time, while you slowly chip away at it, unmolested by your sweets-mongering husband.

Chicken Kebabs

I have two versions of these kebabs: the full-on version, as shown above -- which usually comes about because I have onions and peppers on hand -- and the lazier version. I do the lazier version when I don't feel like pushing the meat onto kebabs. I like to have hummus and brown rice with both versions, as shown below.

I start by either cubing (for kebabs), or cutting the chicken into strips (which I place right onto the grill). I put the chicken into a gallon Ziploc bag (can't live without those things). I add a liberal dusting of mediterranean seasoning, enough olive oil to well-coat, and the juice of a couple of lemons or limes. Close the bag and sort of massage your meat (insert obvious joke here) until the ingredients are all combined. I marinate them for a couple hours to overnight (no longer, because the citrus will actually cook the chicken a little.)

Grill or roast the chicken, and serve in on brown rice, or dip in your favorite hummus!

Mediterranean Seasoning

Lemme break you off another remix... This combo is what I call mediterranean seasoning. Again, doesn't matter how much you use -- just combine in the following proportions in a bowl, whisk, and pour into a shaker. Then it's there when you want to use it for a quick dusting on grilled meat, or for a marinade:

1 part coriander
1 part cinammon
1 part cumin
1 part Italian seasoning or oregano
1 part dried mint
1/4 part garlic powder
1/2 part onion powder

This mix has a complex, aromatic sort of taste. It smells so good on the grill! Goes well with either lime juice or lemon juice, and olive oil for an in-bag marinade.