I've been quiet on the blog for a while, not because we haven't been cooking and eating, but because of travels and work commitments. It's been a busy few months.
Summer fruits and vegetables are in the farmers' market. We ate grilled vegetables accompanied by yogurt and salad greens every day while in Turkey earlier this summer. Since we've been home we've done much the same, grilling batches of vegetables for dinner, and eating them cold for a few days after. Eggplant is a staple. It was part of every meal in Turkey, and we've been eating the small Italian and Japanese varieties (the first to market) since being home. We just toss it on the grill in slices, then dress with a bit of olive oil and salt after it's cooked. Grilled summer squashes, carrots, tomatoes and mushrooms are a staple in the house right now as well.
We also keep batches of marinated and grilled tofu. Our staple marinade is made with soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, a touch of oil, and Sriracha. We also do a variation with soy sauce, lime, vinegar, green chile paste and brown sugar. Both make a nice dipping sauce as well.
I've also been cooking batches of fresh tomato sauce, made with tomatoes onions and garlic, and seasoned with olive oil, salt, red chile flakes and basil. It's great warm over the vegetables, and also cold the next day with eggs or a cold vegetable plate.
Showing posts with label tomatoes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tomatoes. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Friday, December 25, 2009
Red Sauce Three Ways
I made enchilada sauce from scratch for the first time this summer. I’m not sure why I’d not made it before, perhaps because we rarely eat enchiladas, or perhaps I thought it would be a long, complicated process. I (more or less) followed a recipe from Annie Somerville’s “Field of Greens” cookbook, which describes a basic red tomato sauce (marinara) with appropriate seasonings of oregano, cumin, ancho and chipotle chile and lime. The sauce was quick and easy to make, and incredibly delicious not just on the stuffed peppers (the original destination) but on scrambled eggs the next morning.
Then in November while in New York, we ate some of the best patatas bravas ever at Buceo 95. The sauce was over the top: spicy, flavorful, addictive. The chef said he used paprika as the only spice. I wanted to make a batch of the sauce to go with latkes for the holiday meal this year, sort of a Jewish/Spanish fusion, so researched recipes to get a sense of how to proceed. The recipes that most closely resembled the sauce at Buceo 95 follow the same idea -- a basic red tomato sauce with spice. (Traditionalists have no fear. There is sour cream and applesauce to go with the latkes as well.) The main variation in this sauce is that after cooking I put it through the food processor to make a puree, a departure from the chunkier enchilada and marinara versions.
Marina is a staple ingredient in my kitchen, not just for pasta, but for poaching eggs, tossing with vegetables and tofu, or whatever. It only takes about 15 minutes to make a batch from scratch, using fresh tomatoes in the summer and good quality canned tomatoes in the winter, and freezing leftovers for an even quicker meal later. I hadn’t thought of red sauce as a multicultural ingredient, and am intrigued by how many ways it can be varied. The recipes are more of a “throw things in the pan” experience than an engineering project, but some ideas are posted here.
Then in November while in New York, we ate some of the best patatas bravas ever at Buceo 95. The sauce was over the top: spicy, flavorful, addictive. The chef said he used paprika as the only spice. I wanted to make a batch of the sauce to go with latkes for the holiday meal this year, sort of a Jewish/Spanish fusion, so researched recipes to get a sense of how to proceed. The recipes that most closely resembled the sauce at Buceo 95 follow the same idea -- a basic red tomato sauce with spice. (Traditionalists have no fear. There is sour cream and applesauce to go with the latkes as well.) The main variation in this sauce is that after cooking I put it through the food processor to make a puree, a departure from the chunkier enchilada and marinara versions.
Marina is a staple ingredient in my kitchen, not just for pasta, but for poaching eggs, tossing with vegetables and tofu, or whatever. It only takes about 15 minutes to make a batch from scratch, using fresh tomatoes in the summer and good quality canned tomatoes in the winter, and freezing leftovers for an even quicker meal later. I hadn’t thought of red sauce as a multicultural ingredient, and am intrigued by how many ways it can be varied. The recipes are more of a “throw things in the pan” experience than an engineering project, but some ideas are posted here.
Recipe: Red Sauce Three Ways
A simple red sauce, seasoned for marinara, enchiladas, and bravas (spicy)
Two pounds of summer tomatoes, vine ripe and tender, chopped,
or
a 28oz can of San Marzano tomatoes (including the juice). Use either crushed tomatoes, or chop the tomatoes if they’re whole.
One onion, 1/4-inch dice
A few cloves of minced garlic
Spices (see below)
Balancing acidity (see below)
Saute the onions for about five minutes in olive oil until they are fragrant and soft. Add the garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Add the spices, and saute for 1-2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, then put a cover on the pan and let it simmer for 10 minutes. If using fresh tomatoes, add a pinch of salt with the tomatoes to the pan, but if using canned tomatoes, wait on the salt for now. The tomatoes will break down into a sauce.
Check the spice level, adjusting if need be, and add the balancing acid. One note is that if you want the sauce to be hotter, add the acid first and then the extra chile. The acid tends to make the spiciness more pronounced. Add salt at the end to suit your taste.
Spices: Suggested amounts follow, but vary these according to your taste. In particular, you might like more or less heat. If you’re not sure, use an easy hand at the beginning of the recipe. You can always add more spice after the sauce is cooked.
Marinara: 1 tsp dry basil, or ten leaves fresh basil. A good pinch of red chile flakes
Enchilada: 1 tsp cumin powder (or crushed seeds), 1 tsp oregano, 1 tsp each of ancho and chipotle chile powder. If you don’t have both ancho and chipotle, it’s okay to use one or the other. Half-sharp and smoked paprika are also good substitutes, and while the flavor will be a little different, the sauce will still taste good.
Brava: 1-1/2 tsp sweet paprika, 1 tsp half-sharp paprika. If the sauce isn’t spicy enough after you cook it, add a good dash of cayenne.
Balancing acidity:
Acids help bring out the spice as well as make the sauces more piquant. Canned tomatoes taste more acidic than fresh, so you may not need as much additional acid, perhaps none at all. The amount to use varies depending on the acidity of the tomatoes, so add just a tiny bit at a time and taste as you go. Overall, you’ll probably only use 1-2 tsp total for fresh tomatoes, and perhaps less.
Marinara: No acid needed. If you used canned tomatoes and the sauce tastes acidic, add 1/4 tsp of sugar.
Enchilada: A squeeze of fresh lime juice. Squeeze a bit in, stir and taste, and add touch more if it’s needed.
Bravas: Sherry vinegar. Again, add just a touch, say 1/2 teaspoon, stir and taste, and add a touch more if needed.
Two pounds of summer tomatoes, vine ripe and tender, chopped,
or
a 28oz can of San Marzano tomatoes (including the juice). Use either crushed tomatoes, or chop the tomatoes if they’re whole.
One onion, 1/4-inch dice
A few cloves of minced garlic
Spices (see below)
Balancing acidity (see below)
Saute the onions for about five minutes in olive oil until they are fragrant and soft. Add the garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Add the spices, and saute for 1-2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, then put a cover on the pan and let it simmer for 10 minutes. If using fresh tomatoes, add a pinch of salt with the tomatoes to the pan, but if using canned tomatoes, wait on the salt for now. The tomatoes will break down into a sauce.
Check the spice level, adjusting if need be, and add the balancing acid. One note is that if you want the sauce to be hotter, add the acid first and then the extra chile. The acid tends to make the spiciness more pronounced. Add salt at the end to suit your taste.
Spices: Suggested amounts follow, but vary these according to your taste. In particular, you might like more or less heat. If you’re not sure, use an easy hand at the beginning of the recipe. You can always add more spice after the sauce is cooked.
Marinara: 1 tsp dry basil, or ten leaves fresh basil. A good pinch of red chile flakes
Enchilada: 1 tsp cumin powder (or crushed seeds), 1 tsp oregano, 1 tsp each of ancho and chipotle chile powder. If you don’t have both ancho and chipotle, it’s okay to use one or the other. Half-sharp and smoked paprika are also good substitutes, and while the flavor will be a little different, the sauce will still taste good.
Brava: 1-1/2 tsp sweet paprika, 1 tsp half-sharp paprika. If the sauce isn’t spicy enough after you cook it, add a good dash of cayenne.
Balancing acidity:
Acids help bring out the spice as well as make the sauces more piquant. Canned tomatoes taste more acidic than fresh, so you may not need as much additional acid, perhaps none at all. The amount to use varies depending on the acidity of the tomatoes, so add just a tiny bit at a time and taste as you go. Overall, you’ll probably only use 1-2 tsp total for fresh tomatoes, and perhaps less.
Marinara: No acid needed. If you used canned tomatoes and the sauce tastes acidic, add 1/4 tsp of sugar.
Enchilada: A squeeze of fresh lime juice. Squeeze a bit in, stir and taste, and add touch more if it’s needed.
Bravas: Sherry vinegar. Again, add just a touch, say 1/2 teaspoon, stir and taste, and add a touch more if needed.
Monday, December 7, 2009
Ten days of soup, part 1
Aaron can’t chew for at least ten days, a byproduct of orthodontic work, and is limited to smoothies and pureed soup for the while. I love soup so this is no problem for me, and have taken on the challenge to make the ten days of eating the same thing as interesting as possible, varied and tasty.
Because the soups need to be pureed, all rely on a homemade stock and cooked vegetables, blended with the immersion blender.
Day 1: Butternut squash, flavored with the chipotle-adobo sauce I’m so enchanted with, and finished with a dash of half-and-half to smooth the chile flavor.
Day 2: Celeriac. I hadn’t cooked with celeriac before, but had it on the list to try since last year’s trip to Paris, where it is served as a side salad in many cafes. I used it as the main flavoring in this soup, and it has a lovely, delicate celery flavor. The soup was finished with a touch of dijon mustard, a play on the typical french style of dressing served with the raw vegetable. Celeriac is my new favorite soup base, not only because of the flavor, but because it has a silky texture when pureed and a fraction of the calories and carbs of potatoes. It’s a perfect replacement for potato in soup.
Day 3: Mushroom, made with portobello and crimini in a long-simmered stock and pureed into smithereens. I added chanterelle toward the end and did second, lighter puree. Finished with just a touch of dry sherry and cream.
Day 4: Tomato-pepper, with roasted red and yellow onions, garlic and red peppers with olive oil and a teaspoon of half-sharp paprika. The paprika toasted while the vegetables roasted. If summer tomatoes were available I would have roasted them as well, but used a can of San Marzano pomodoro, which are a lot more flavorful than winter tomatoes.
Because the soups need to be pureed, all rely on a homemade stock and cooked vegetables, blended with the immersion blender.
Day 1: Butternut squash, flavored with the chipotle-adobo sauce I’m so enchanted with, and finished with a dash of half-and-half to smooth the chile flavor.
Day 2: Celeriac. I hadn’t cooked with celeriac before, but had it on the list to try since last year’s trip to Paris, where it is served as a side salad in many cafes. I used it as the main flavoring in this soup, and it has a lovely, delicate celery flavor. The soup was finished with a touch of dijon mustard, a play on the typical french style of dressing served with the raw vegetable. Celeriac is my new favorite soup base, not only because of the flavor, but because it has a silky texture when pureed and a fraction of the calories and carbs of potatoes. It’s a perfect replacement for potato in soup.
Day 3: Mushroom, made with portobello and crimini in a long-simmered stock and pureed into smithereens. I added chanterelle toward the end and did second, lighter puree. Finished with just a touch of dry sherry and cream.
Day 4: Tomato-pepper, with roasted red and yellow onions, garlic and red peppers with olive oil and a teaspoon of half-sharp paprika. The paprika toasted while the vegetables roasted. If summer tomatoes were available I would have roasted them as well, but used a can of San Marzano pomodoro, which are a lot more flavorful than winter tomatoes.
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