Rookie Cookery

Vegetable Crostata

This improvised vegetable crostata made a delicious main course meal recently.

First I defrosted a package of frozen spinach and squeezed out as much excess moisture as I could, and set it aside in a bowl.

Then I made a simple pie crust dough and let it rest in the fridge.

Then I sauteed a pan full of mushrooms and onions in olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper,  until tender and carmelized.

When the vegetables were cooked, I took the pie dough from the fridge and rolled it out flat.

I spread the spinach out as a base for the crostata, leaving the edges of the dough empty. (Those edges would later fold over the top).

Then I layered the onions and mushrooms over the spinach.

Then I folded the edges of the dough over the top, leaving the center exposed, and baked it at 375 degrees F. until it was brown and lovely.  I also had brushed a little milk on the crust to help it brown.

I think we were all surprised at how tasty and satisfying this dish was to eat!

I was able to garnish my crostata with some delicious green tomato chow chow that my sister Karen had sent us for Christmas.

I had never had chow chow before, and it was fabulous! It was the perfect tart-sweet accent for the savory vegetable pie. 

One of my resolutions this year is to add a few more vegetarian main course meals to my  cooking routine, and this dish will go a long way toward satisfying that goal--as well as our stomachs!

How To Have A Robert Burn's Night Party and Serve a Haggis

This gorgeous volume of the complete works of Robert Burns (copyright 1887) is a treasured family heirloom.  It was given to me by my Mother, but it is my Father who is of Scottish lineage (my Grandfather being born in Scotland) and I love my Scottish heritage.

Burns, perhaps best known as the author of the song Auld Lang Syne, (most often crooned drunkenly on New Year's Eve here in the States),  is the National Poet of Scotland. His birthday is January 25, and everywhere people of Scottish descent gather, you can find people celebrating Robert Burn's Night. You might think of it as a kind of Scottish version of the Irish St. Patrick's Day.

I was planning on celebrating my first ever Burn's Night party this Friday,  but my most brave foodie friends (more on that later) were unable to attend, and now my husband has a terrible case of the stomach flu. Alas, I have had to cancel the party this year.  What follows are the Essential Ingredients to a proper Robert Burn Night party. (Consider yourself warned if I invite you to such a gathering next year.)

ESSENTIAL INGREDIENTS FOR A ROBERT BURNS NIGHT GATHERING

1. Have the party on, or very near, January 25-- Robert Burn's birthday.

2. Serve a food called Haggis (or something like it--see below)

3. Read aloud Burn's famous "Address to a Haggis"

4. Preferably, bring the haggis to the table with a touch of ceremony and bagpipe music.

5. It couldn't hurt to wear some tartan plaids or a kilt.

ABOUT THE HAGGIS

The haggis, known as the national dish of Scotland,  consists of a porridge of oatmeal and lamb's liver, lungs, and kidneys, onions and seasonings, bound up in the stomach of  a sheep, and boiled for several hours until done. 

Simple, really. Even Alton Brown shows how easy it is to make a haggis.

Some might argue that my husband's stomach flu is merely a clever ploy to "enjoy" his haggis ahead of time. But that can't be so, as he won't eat lamb meat anyway. And I promised all my invitees that there would be non-haggis foods at  the party.  Nevertheless, it can't be denied that haggis is an aquired taste, if not avoided with some alarm altogether.

When planning my own Burn's Night, I debated whether or not to serve an authentic haggis, or to make what I affectionately call a Half Assed Haggis, which is to say  a Pretend Haggis that consists of lamb meat but no organ meats.  A web search produced everything from authentic to vegetarian (!) versions of "haggis."  Here are a few recipes such as  traditional haggis,  an Americanized haggis from Country Living, and finally a Vegan haggis (which some might argue is no haggis at all).

Here is what I was going to foist  cook for my friends: I was going to cook some lamb's stew meat, chop up some onions, and cook it up with some pin head oats in the crock pot.  Then I was going to serve some colcannon and bangers (sausages) to go along with it.

For the reading of Address to a Haggis, one must prepare by practicing the ancient Scottish dialect in which the poem is written.

Good luck with that.

Scottish bagpipe music?  You can probably find cds to borrow from your local library, purchase some off Amazon, or download it from iTunes. 

Then there is the matter of kilts. Let your conscience be your guide, but I think they can be sexy as hell, although one should avoid going overboard into the realm of cheesy.   They are good for dancing,  too, as Tartanic demonstrates when they play. Despite the sometimes poor quality, (and dubious humor at the end), here's a rather informative little video on the how and why of wearing a kilt.   

So that's it for now, my bonny readers.  And happy birthday, Robbie Burns. 

 

Persimmon Pickles Recipe

You read that right: persimmon pickles!

An over abundance of fruit usually inspires one to jam or jelly making.  However most fruit canning recipes call for lots of sugar, and I'd like to find a way to preserve the harvest without adding extra sugar.  So far the best way has been to simply freeze the fruit, but freezer space is limited.  Making persimmon sauce is another good method, but I am not sure it can be canned safely. (More research needed; it turns out that the natural acidity of the fruit has to be just right in order to can it safely.)

My epiphany came when I discovered that naturally tart flavors, such as yogurt,  pair nicely with persimmons. Could one actually pickle them? I no sooner had formed this question in my mind, planning to devise my own experiment, when I ran across just such a recipe on  Sunset.com web site.  (Weirdly, I cannot find their link to the original recipe!) Their recipe is called Fuyu Persimmon Chili Pickles, and calls for the addition of red hot peppers and additional vegetables in the mix such as onions and bell peppers.  I could not find the type of red peppers I wanted at the store, so I substituted a sprinkle of red pepper flakes. I also ended up pickling more persimmons than the other vegetables, because that was my main concern.

Here is the original recipe:

FUYU PERSIMMON CHILI PICKLES
(excerpted from Sunset .com preserving persimmons article)

4 pounds crisp-ripe Fuyu-type persimmons
3 medium-size onions
2 medium-size green bell peppers, stemmed and seeded
8 medium-size cloves garlic
12 small dried hot red chilies
6 cups water
2 1/2 cups white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon picking spices

Instructions:

Peel, core and cut persimmons into 1-inch wedges, discarding any seeds. Cut the onions and bell peppers into 1-inch squares; set fruit and vegetables aside.

Peel and slightly crush the garlic; break each chili in half.

In a 4- to 6-quart pan, bring garlic, chili, water, vinegar, salt, and pickling spices to boiling on high heat.  In batches, blanch the persimmons briefly in the hot water and set aside to drain.

Pour 1/8 of the onions into each of 8 hot canning jars, 1-pint size. Add 1/8 of the persimmons to each jar, then top with 1/8 of the bell peppers. Bring cooking liquid to boiling and pour equally into each jar, filling to within 1/4 inch of rim.

Can fruit,  following traditional methods.  Store in a cool, dark place at least 2 weeks before serving. If jars do not seal, store up to 6 months in the refrigerator, up to 1 month if opened. Makes 8 pints.

*****

This was my first foray into "real" canning, and it was both daunting and fun.

Here is the daunting part:

Now, I know that steam is very very hot and can burn,  (I always drain pasta holding it well away from my body and face) but I did indeed make the Rookie Error of reaching  over the pot of simmering jars,  and count myself lucky that the burn I got was actually rather mild and only hurt for a day.   And I only nicked myself with the knife twice, peeling those slippery pieces of fruit. 

Here's another thing I learned: Take the amount of time you think it will take to prepare the fruit, and then double it.  And prepare it ALL before you begin the canning process, because you don't want your pickling solution to boil away before the fruit is ready.  I know this from personal and unfortunate experience.

Having said that, we have been waiting patiently for a couple of weeks while the persimmon pickles make their magic transformation. I am about ready to crack open a jar and see if I am happy with the results.  I am a tad concerned that the fruit was too soft, and that the texture will come out mushy. (shudder).   I suppose if it does I could puree it into a kind of pickled chutney?  I'll report back.

But don't the jars look all pretty?  It makes me happy to see them in the pantry. 

Peppers and Craving the Sun

I find myself craving the sunlight these days, and after a few days of grey fog, Nature has obliged me with a bright and cold afternoon.

I have been told that a vitamin D deficiency will result in a craving for sunlight, as well as muscle cramps. I am busted on both accounts. One day my husband came home early from work to find me laying on the kitchen floor on a mat, just so I could soak up the sunlight streaming through the kitchen window,  in a feline stupor.  I love our house but it lacks sunlight, a serious problem in my book. A new house is being built on the lot behind ours, and I am fearful it will take away my morning light at the bedroom desk or on the "Sun Porch". Will I survive? I don't know.

As I said, I've been suffering from awful muscle cramps in the last few months. They wake me at night, silently screaming in pain, struggling to get out of bed and  walk it out without waking my husband.  I had read once that being dehydrated will cause muscle cramps, or a lack of potassium, but a co-worker informs me it is also caused by a lack of Vitamin D.  I drink water, I doubt I lack potassium, but during the winter months I am told it is difficult for we who live in the "northern latitudes" to get enough sun on our skin.  So I hope the Vitamin D supplements I bought will help until the Sun inches closer in the sky and I can catch some rays.

In this neck of the woods, it's still winter, folks.

Zevia 2.0 Taste Test: A Rookie Review

Many people start the New Year resolving to improve their diets, and that often includes cutting down on sugar. But artificial sweeteners such as Splenda usher in a host of consumer complaints and concerns about whether or not such chemicals do more harm than good.   Because my husband is diabetic, I have searched for alternatives to chemical sweeteners so that I can protect his health and provide delicious, nutritious food, including the occasional dessert, at the same time. 

Then we discovered Zevia, a soft drink made with the naturally sweet herbal supplement known as Stevia.  Perhaps you listened to the podcast Taste Test our family recorded when the four of us sat down to try Zevia for ourselves, comparing it to regular sodas.

Enter Zevia 2.0, a reformulated Zevia that promises to improve the flavor of this safe alternative to diet soda.  Did it measure up?  I sat down again with my husband Jim and our two sons Evan (22) and Ethan (18) to form an opinion. I hope you enjoy listening in on our conversation, this time edited to a more condensed seven minutes of discussion. 

Want to hear more Rookie Podcasts? Let me know in the comments section, please!

PS  New Zevia Ginger Root Beer flavor reviewed here.