Rookie Cookery

Industrial Food Goes Fishing for Consumers

I received an interesting email today, promoting a new web site called FishScam.com. The web site purports to allay the fears of consumers over the amounts of mercury and other pollutants in our fish supply. We consumers are being "scammed and alarmed," they say, by environmental and organic "radicals" who run around in pirate boats and attack fishing fleets and the like. Relax, they say. Eat fish.

I like eating fish. In fact, I highly recommend you visit Beyond Salmon, an excellent food blog all about recipes for fish. Yet even as I continue to eat fish, the fact is I am very concerned about the pollutants in our water and in all our food supply. So what's really going on here? Is FishScam really a web site protecting my interests as a consumer? Or is it protecting the interests of industrial polluters who are tired of having to answer to consumers' justified concerns over the toxicity of our food supply?

I think the real scam here is the placating of consumers with pats on the head, telling us that just because we don't want to eat poison we might as well be Jack Sparrow on the high seas, harpooning some poor fisherman trying to make an honest living.

My response? Go fish somewhere else for consumers. I don't feel protected when you tell me that the amount of poison in our food is "acceptable and safe". I don't feel protected when companies like Monsanto are cornering the market on food with their genetically modified seeds, then removing our precious bio-diversity and poisoning our soil. I don't feel protected when your best defense of "business as usual" is to characterize your opponents as wild eyed violent radicals, when the truth is that your opponents are ordinary Moms and Dads who simply want to feed their families healthy, nutritious food without having to grow it all themselves in their own back yard.

Because the truth is, if that's what we have to do, we'll do it. We'll have to protect ourselves, because big business isn't going to do it unless it's profitable. For further information on how you can get involved, please visit the Oragnic Consumers Association web site, or Millions Against Monsanto

And as for FishScam.com....Go fish somewhere else. I don't buy what you're selling.

Easy Vegetable Side Dish: Sesame Sugar Snap Peas

After all the desserts of the holiday season, I am craving vegetables. We had the family over for Christmas, and I wanted a vegetable side dish that did not have to be served hot. Sugar Snap Peas were the perfect solution: Simply trim the ends off the peas, (I used scissors), then dress lightly with dark or toasted sesame oil and a sprinkling of sesame seeds. Ina Garten suggests black sesame seeds for this dish, but I could not find them in Whole Foods, so I used the regular kind. The peas were crunchy and sweet, and I didn't even have to cook them! Now that's a winner for a buffet style meal any time.

More Food Gifts To Give: Homemade Hot Cocoa Mix

After the house is decorated, put some holiday music on and snuggle up to a hot cup of cocoa. Here's Alton Brown's recipe for homemade instant hot cocoa mix. It's delicious, free of additives, and mixes up in a jiffy. Make an extra batch and give them away as Christmas gifts. Simply fill half your mug with the mix, add hot water and stir. MMmmmmmmm. This recipe includes a little heat from a pinch of cayenne pepper. I added more of a dash, which was a little too much for my son Ethan, although he is eagerly drinking it up. Add it conservatively at first.

HOT COCOA MIX RECIPE

2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup cocoa (Dutch-process preferred)
2 1/2 cups powdered milk (I used low fat)
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons corn starch
1 pinch cayenne pepper or more to taste

Hot water (add when ready to use)

Seal the unused mix (without the water) in an airtight container. Will keep in the pantry indefinately. For a richer drink, you can also use the mix with warm milk.

To give as a gift, package in decorative tins, or jars with decorative fabric wrapped on the lid with a rubber band. Add a small card with instructions for use, such as "Fill mug half full with mix; add hot water and stir."

Food Gifts To Give: Candied Pretzels and Apricots

Here's a super simple way to dress up pretzels or dried apricots for a festive touch at a party or for holiday giving. All you need are pretzels, chocolate chips, and dried apricots.

Any shape of pretzel will work, but the "rod" or stick style is easiest. Simply melt the chocolate chips over a double boiler or in the microwave (be careful not to scorch it!) and apply the melted chocolate to the pretzel. Then roll it in decorative sprinkles, and set it aside on waxed paper to dry.

I found that it was best to pour the sprinkles into a long and narrow, flat-bottomed plastic container. If you use a plate, be sure the rim does not get in the way of the pretzels when you roll them in the sprinkles. To apply the chocolate to the pretzel, I rolled it across the end of a rubber spatula that held a generous blob of chocolate. Shake the excess chocolate off the pretzel before rolling it in the spriinkles.

Chocolate dipped dried apricots are an elegant and tasty gift. For variety and a little more color, dip some of them in sprinkles too.

Making these treats is so simple, and children love to help!

Gift Ideas for the Cook and the Kitchen

I love to cook, and I pride myself on keeping a fairly lean and gadget free kitchen. Nevertheless, there are some kitchen tools that are so handy, once you use them you will wonder how you got along without it. This past week I surveyed my kitchen and made note of my favorite kitchen tools that would make a great gift for the cooks in your home. Come back and visit for more ideas in the days ahead!

THE SILPAT NON-STICK BAKING MAT

Baking gear has gone 21st Century with the invention of the silicone baking mat, or Silpat. This flexible and reuseable baking mat replaces cooking parchment paper or grease on the baking sheet, saving money and calories. Even better, it works fantastically well, with an easy release of food with no sticking. Simply wash it with warm soapy water and dry it for the next time you bake. Amazing! I store mine by rolling it up in my favorite vintage kitchen linen. Do make sure you buy the size that fits your baking sheet.

I love the Silpat, and I recommend purchasing two if you like to bake cookies and rotate the pans. There are also baking dishes and muffin pans now available in this same material.

INSULATED FRENCH COFFEE PRESS

Recently I read that the best way to make coffee for the true coffee lover is with a French Coffee Press. Since my daily morning ritual includes two cups of coffee, I decided I had to check it out for myself. I bought a French press, put a few scoops of coffee inside, poured hot water over the grounds, and after a minute or two slowly depressed the plunger to separate the grounds from the coffee. The model linked to above is insulated, so your coffee will stay nice and hot.

They are right; this method does produce a flavorful and markedly smoother cup of coffee! Apparently we Americans over-extract our coffee, which produces a more bitter brew. The European method of the coffee press is gaining favor here in the States as more people are discovering these little pots.

THE MICROFIBER MOP KIT

I know, it's very unromantic to consider a mop kit as a gift item. But I love this mop. Let me tell you why.

No one likes cleaning the kitchen floor, but this mop makes it quick and easy. The microfiber pads will hold three times as much water as conventional fabric. Simply wet the pad and place it on the floor, then press the mop head into the pad. The velcro makes it stick and you are ready to go! When you are done mopping, simply remove the pad and rinse it out or throw it in the washing machine.

This mop system is like the popular "Swifer" brand mops--with one essential difference: The pads are reuseable! I don't know about you, but it kills me to consider using a mop with disposable liners. Our poor planet is already sufering under a load of wasteful garbage. And don't even get me started on the Swiifer mops that are battery operated! Puh-leeze! No thanks.

This mop kit comes with the mop, and two pads--one for wet mopping and one for dusting. I recommend you buy an extra set of whichever type of pads you use most. I have a lot of tile flooring so I use two or three pads to go over the whole floor very quickly. I have used several types of floor mop, and this one is my favorite by far.

Food Gifts to Give; Date Nut Treats

Hand crafted gifts are the most satisfying to give and receive. These Date Nut Treats are a simple and elegant dessert for that special party or to give as a hostess gift. My Mom made these years ago, and I remember them for their delicious simplicity and the reliance upon nature's sweetness. Note: you can omit the confectioner's sugar on some of them for a bit of variety on the plate or in the gift bag. Do let your guests who might be allergic know about the nuts, or omit them.

Come back for more home made gift ideas in the days ahead!

DATE NUT TREAT RECIPE

whole pitted dates
shelled peanuts
conectioner's sugar

With a paring knife, cut a slit thrugh one side of the date, lengthwise, and open up. Place one or two peanuts inside the date, then press it closed again. Roll the date in confectioner's sugar and shake off the excess. Place in air tight container until ready to eat or serve.

Sugarless Cranberry Relish Recipe, Made with the naturally sweet Stevia herb

My friend Elise over at Simply Recipes recently shared a fantastic cranberry relish recipe. Her recipe calls for the use of a food grinder to get the perfect consistency for this condiment. I had two (minor) dilemmas: First, Either I can't find my food grinder or I foolishly gave it away before moving house last year. Hm. Fortunately Elise has found a good food grinder to buy, so I may just have to sashay over there and get one because I know I'm gonna make this again! The second dilemma: I wanted to prepare a cranberry dish that could be modified for my loved ones who can't eat sugar.

Stevia to the rescue. Stevia is a natural herb that is hundreds of times sweeter than sugar, with negligible calorie count. It can be safely used instead of sugar as a sweetening agent, and is much more healthful than artificial sweeteners. The drawback is that a tiny bit of Stevia goes a very long way, so it cannot be substituted for sugar in terms of volume or textural (structural) qualities that sugar brings to baking.

The great news is, very tart fruits such as cranberries and rhubarb work particularly well with Stevia, so this cranberry relish recipe was a great candidate for a non-sugar version. It comes in both a powder and a liquid version. I bought my Stevia online, but I have seen Stevia for sale at Trader Joe's, and it is available at many health food stores also. There are several cook books on cooking with Stevia, with Stevia Sweet Recipes: Sugar-Free Naturally by Jeffrey Goettemoeller getting good reviews.

I made one batch of the relish as per the recipe below. However I then cut the batch in half and made a sugar version, and then a sugarless version with Stevia.

CRANBERRY RELISH --TWO WAYS

2 cups washed raw cranberries
2 skinned and cored apples (note: I used Granny Smith)
1 large seedless orange
1/2 cup sugar (or more, to taste) and/or 1/8 to 1/4 tsp Stevia

Note: If you have a food grinder, I recommend you grind all fruits together as in Elise's original recipe. Otherwise you can do as I did in a pinch:

1. Manually crush the cranberries with a mortar and pestle and/or potatoe masher
2. Very finely dice or chop the apples
3. Slice up the orange pieces as small as you can

Combine all the fruits and toss gently in a big bowl.
Then divide the fruit into two work bowls.

SUGARLESS VERSION:
Add 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon Stevia powder to the fruit, tossing gently with a rubber spatula and sprinkling the Stevia slowly and carefully to get good distribution. Start at lowest amount of Stevia, stir and very slowly add a bit more to desired sweetness. Yes, Stevia is that sweet! Technically I don't suppose Stevai macerates fruit in the same way as sugar, so you might not get a very syrup-like texture with this. However the Diabetics in my family really enjoyed this relish, so there were no complaints here!

SUGAR VERSION:

Add 1/2 to one cup sugar (to taste--see note below). Add, stir gently with spatula, and let sit to macerate about 15 minutes at room temperature. Can be refrigerated, although bring to room temperature to serve.

Cook's notes:
The original recipe called for 2 cups of sugar to sweeten the entire (non divided) recipe. If you divide it, normally one would add one cup of sugar to the sugar sweetened half of the recipe, but I used only one half cup and it was sweet enough for my family's taste. (We like tart foods). I recommend you start with 1/2 cup and slowly add up to one full cup of sugar to your desired level of sweetness.

Chocolate Citrus Biscotti Recipe

Looking for a delicious food gift to give this holiday season? You can't go wrong with Chocolate Citrus Biscotti, a crunchy-sweet cookie that can be dipped into coffee, hot chocolate, milk, or stand alone on its own munchy merits.

I profiled this recipe from Giada De Laurentiis last year, when I was a new food blogger. In my rookie blogger enthusiasm, I took step by step pictures of the entire biscotti baking process, and posted them on my blog. What I neglected to post was the actual recipe! So here is the recipe, below. To see the original post with a step by step, biscotti making pictorial extravaganza, click here.

Note: Giada has a sightly different biscotti recipe in her book Everyday Italian, which features crushed pistachios.

CHOCOLATE CITRUS BISCOTTI RECIPE

preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup fine yellow cornmeal
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon grated orange zest (from about one ornage)
1 tablespoon lemon zest (from about two lemons)
1 3/4 cups semisweet chocolate chips (note: I used more than this, about 2 cups)
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat.
Stir the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
In another bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the eggs and sugar until pale yellow and fluffy.
Add the citrus zests to the dry ingredients.
Add the flour mixture to the eggs and sugar and beat just until blended. Let stand for five minutes. (Dough will be soft and sticky).

Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet, forming two mounds which you will shape into two 11 by 4 inch loaf shapes. To shape the loafs, first moisten your hands with cold water so the dough will not stick to your hands.

Bake until lightly brown, about 35 minutes.
Cool for five minutes.
Using a serrated knife, cut the loafs crosswise into 1/2 inch diagonal slices.
Arrange biscotti cut-side down on the same baking sheet.
Bake again until pale and golden, about 25 minutes.
Cool again for about five minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Melt the chocolate chips in the microwave (stirring frequently) or in adouble boiler over simmering water.
Dip one cut side, or one half, the biscotti into melted chocolate and shake off excess. (Note: I applied the chocolate to half with a pastry brush. Maybe that's why I used more chocolate!)
Place the biscotti chocolate side up (if chocolate is on one side only...) on a parchment lined baking sheet and refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes. (Note: don't forget the parchment or wax paper, or the biscotti will stick to the pan and break!)

Finally, dip a dry pastry brush in the cocoa powder and lightly brush the cocoa over the chocolate on each biscotti.
Store in an airtight container for several days, or freeze for several weeks.
MMMmmmmmmmmm biscotti!