Fantastic Beef Stew with Sour Cream

I was inspired yesterday. I knew I was going to make a stew. I asked my husband what he'd like and he said "beef stew, with lots of potatoes". Okay, I could do that. I got 2 (1-pound) packages of beef stew meat from the freezer early yesterday. By 2 o'clock it was just barely thawed enough to break apart. Then I was pondering what sort of stew to make. I need to go grocery shopping. My vegetable drawer was almost empty - not something that happens often. Did i want to just follow a tried and true recipe or try something new? I looked through some recipes but nothing really called me.

Beef Stew with Sour Cream

Basic ingredients

I figured I would just start with the meat and add whatever sounded good! I started with all the vegetables left in the fridge - bell peppers and celery, and some garlic and thyme and a little parsley. I don't use celery in stew very often, but it is a good filler. I had 2 onions left and potatoes in the pantry. I thought I would use mushrooms, since I had cans of them, and frozen peas. And then I thought about the sour cream in the fridge. Okay, I had basic ingredients, and I was ready to start. I like some of the quasi-Hungarian types of goulash, though any recipe for "goulash" I have tried to make has failed to please my husband. We used to frequent a German restaurant in Orlando, which had something they called "goulash soup". It was slightly thickened, had a lot of shredded beef and potatoes, and was deep in color with an obvious tomato base of some kind. No recipe I have ever tried - and I have tried many ways to duplicate this "soup" - has ever remotely satisfied my husband's memory. Oh well.

So, that was not the goal for last night's stew. 

Steps 2 & 3: Brown meat - add to stew pot

Still, the thought of a tomato base with the sour cream at the end was sort of there in my mind. Proceeding with that idea, I browned the meat. I have a wonderfully large braising pot with a lid, and love to use it for stew. It is wide and low, so it has a lot of surface area. Somehow, stews just seem to get done nicely in that pot. I got it out and set it next to the stove. I used a large nonstick skillet to brown the onions and then the meat. I added flour after the last batch of meat was browned, for a little thickening. All that went into the braising pot once done. Adding in the celery and peppers, thyme, some salt and pepper and bay leaves, I thought of Hungarian paprika. I love paprika; it is another spice that was often used during my childhood. Once the skillet was emptied, I added water and stirred up the browned bits, then added tomato paste. I had first thought of canned petite diced tomatoes or maybe tomato sauce, but ended opting for the paste. I stirred that into the water in the skillet and poured it over the meat and vegetables in the braiser. Into the oven went the covered pot and the stew simmered for 2½ hours.

To finished the stew, I cooked cubed potatoes on top of the stove, added frozen peas to the stew straight from the oven, so they thawed nicely. Sour cream at the end was the perfect final touch. The stew was so amazingly delicious. My husband loved it, too, which makes it just that much better. Comfort food at its best.

Beef Stew with Sour Cream

Serves 6 to 8

olive oil or bacon fat for browning, as needed
2 onions, in ½-inch cubes
3 - 4 cloves garlic, smashed
2 pounds beef stew meat, in 1 1/2-inch cubes
2 green bell peppers, in cubes
3 large stalks celery, sliced

Steps 4 & 5 add flour to pan, remove to stew pot

1 large can (about 13.25 ounces) mushroom stems and pieces, drained
½ cup chopped parsley
2 tablespoons Hungarian paprika
1 - 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
1 - 2 bay leaves, depending on size
1 teaspoon sugar to round out flavor
2 - 3 teaspoons salt
freshly ground pepper, to taste
3 tablespoons flour
4 cups water
1 small can (6-ounces) tomato paste
2 pounds potatoes, peeled, about 1 1/2-inch cubes
1 tablespoon salt
2 cups frozen peas
1½ cups sour cream

Have ready a large stew pot or braising pot, with tight fitting lid. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Steps 6 & 7: Add water and tomato paste

Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add in some oil or bacon fat. Add the onions and saute until they are just translucent. Add the garlic and continue to saute for another minute, until the garlic is fragrant. Remove the onions and garlic to the stew pot. Add more oil to the skillet if needed and brown the meat in 2 or 3 batches (Steps 2 & 3), taking care not to over crowd the pan or the meat will not brown properly. Brown all the meat, removing to the pot with the onions once done. With the last batch of meat (Steps 4 & 5), add in the flour and toss to completely moisten, then remove the meat to the stew pot.

Steps 8 & 9 all ingredients mixed together, ready to cook

While the onions and meat are cooking, chop the peppers and celery and add them to the stew pot, along with the mushrooms, parsley, paprika, thyme, bay leaves, sugar, salt and pepper (Step 8). Once the last batch of meat has been added to the stew pot, add some of the water to the skillet, stirring to pick up any browned bits in the pan. Add the tomato paste and stir until completely blended (Steps 6 & 7). Add this liquid to the stew pot, along with the remaining water. Set the stew pot on the stove to bring up to a bare simmer (Step 9), then cover the pot with a tight fitting lid and place the pot in the oven at 300 degrees, or whatever temperature will just maintain a simmer, for about 2½ hours, until the meat is tender.

Just before the stew is done, prepare the potatoes and cook them in water to just cover, with 1 tablespoon of salt until they are tender when pierced with a knife. Drain the potatoes. Remove the stew pot from the oven. Remove lid carefully and add the cooked potatoes and the frozen peas and stir to combine. Allow the peas a few minutes to completely heat through. Stir in the sour cream, garnish with more parsley, if desired, and serve.


My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

A New Twist on a Pilaf and a New Recipe for Cod

I am always interested in going back to basics when  making foods, partly because it was something I had to do in Guatemala and that is how I learned. When what is locally available is all you can use, one learns quickly. Back in the 1970s there was no availability of every thing one could imagine on the internet. There was no internet. No cell phones. It is hard to even remember what we did back then. No remotes for the TV. Two or three channels at most. Foods that were available locally were what could be used. Period.

When I came back to the US, it was the time when using whole grains, higher fiber and jogging came into vogue. I never got the jogging bug, but was always interested in being healthy. Using foods with higher fiber seemed natural. I really liked all those things, so there was no difficulty in it for me. But, just because something is high fiber does not immediately turn out tasting good. We have to try new ways to make some foods taste marvelous. Now, here we are, 40 years later. I am still experimenting. I buy foods like whole oat groats or raw buckwheat, raw cashews, millet, teff, amaranth. The list goes on and on. Not all of those were immediate hits. Not all of those were even something I tried more than once. Still, because once they weren't my cup of tea, doesn't mean that at some point they won't taste really good made in a different way.

Green Lentil and Millet Pilaf with Baked Crusted Cod

Recently a friend gave me a recipe for waffles using soaked buckwheat and millet. No cooking of the grains beforehand. I loved those waffles. I wish I could claim that recipe as my own, but it is not. I have been meaning to get them out and make those waffles again, but have yet to get to it. Meanwhile, I keep seeing the bags of the seeds in my freezer (where I keep anything that doesn't get used too often), and was thinking what I might do with them. A few days ago, I got an idea for a sort of pilaf with less-used or -known grains, lentils or seeds. I ended up making a Green Lentil and Millet Pilaf, which I just loved. I have been eating it the past few days, all on my own, as it is not a dish my husband would touch, though I keep hoping. I had green De Puy lentils because I had used them in another dish from the Food and Wine magazine. Their recipe was with these little green lentils, red quinoa and cauliflower and I loved that too. So, the lentils were there in the cabinet, and the millet was in the freezer and I decided they would make a nice looking dish; it remained to see what I could do with the flavor. 

Green Lentil and Millet Pilaf

Green Lentil and Millet Pilaf

Serves 4 - 6
 
½ cup green (De Puy) lentils
1 small carrot, grated
1¼ cup water
½ cup millet
1 cup water
1 small knob fresh ginger, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large shallot, roughly chopped
½ teaspoon salt
1 - 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 stalk celery, sliced thinly
½ green pepper, chopped
½ teaspoon salt, or more, to taste
 
Place the first 3 ingredients into a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 25 minutes, until cooked through. In another small saucepan, bring the next 3 ingredients to boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for about 15 to 18 minutes or until tender.
 
While these are cooking, heat a skillet and add the olive oil. Add in the shallot with the first half teaspoon salt and saute until soft. Add in the garlic, celery and green pepper and saute for another 10 minutes or until the vegetables are softened. Add in the drained lentils and the millet and the second half teaspoon of salt. Stir to combine.

A few weeks back, I bought some frozen cod. The pieces were individually wrapped so they were just fine in the freezer. But, I like fish and my husband doesn't, unless there is enough breading, it is fried and there is plenty of ketchup to smother it in. I like fried fish just fine. Just not as the only way. I like eating fish made in other creative ways. So, there is this cod. I had made Beef Vegetable Soup, which is a favorite of my husband's, so I left the soup for him and made myself a piece of fish. Mayonnaise and Parmesan cheese make a nice topping for things. I have long made pork chops by setting them onto a baking sheet, setting one (¼-inch thick) onion slice on top of each, placing a dollop of mayo onto the onion, and then Parmesan over the top of the mayo. Bake for 45 - 55 minutes at 350 and o-m-g! So, with a little play on that concept, I made my cod. The recipe was just for the one piece, so if making more than one, just multiply the recipe as needed. It took longer in the oven than I anticipated, so the next time I might set the oven to 400 degrees and bake for less time.

Baked Crusted Cod

Baked Crusted Cod

Serves 1

1 cod filet, (about 5 ounces)
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
3 tablespoons panko bread crumbs
1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1 teaspoon olive oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees (350 on Convection). If the cod filet is very thick in the center, butterfly so it lays flat with a more even thickness all along the length. Salt and pepper both sides of the fish. If you have white pepper, try using that instead of black.

In a little bowl, combine the mayonnaise and the 2 tablespoons of Parmigiano-Reggiano. Spread this paste over the top of the fish, evenly. In another small bowl, combine the panko, 1 tablespoon of Parmigiano-Reggiano and the olive oil. Press these crumbs onto the mayonnaise mixture on the fish. Set the filet onto a rack over a rimmed baking sheet. [To prevent messy cleanup, line the baking sheet with foil first.] Set the filet into the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until it flakes in the center.
The cod was delightful. I smeared some tartar sauce onto my plate and set the fish on top of the tartar sauce to serve. It made for a prettier photo. You can always serve more tartar sauce on the side. Together these two recipes were just wonderful for dinner.



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Panna Cotta, an Easy, Elegant Dessert

For any who don't know, Panna Cotta is Italian for "cooked cream."  It is an Italian dessert using milk, cream, sugar and gelatin as its basic ingredients. Other flavors can be added, though the basic ingredients are more than enough to make a lovely presentation with some fresh fruit alongside. The dessert can be poured in ramekins to unmold and serve, or poured into bowls to set and serve, or into pretty stemmed glasses to serve. It is most striking and delicious served with berries, though the options certainly do not stop there.

Strawberry Lavender Panna Cotta

Of course, being me, I had to try something out of the ordinary. Meaning, I have yet to make this dessert in its simplest form. Yet. I intend to remedy that very soon. Meanwhile, I did try an experiment that was quite delicious. I made Strawberry Lavender Panna Cotta, using crushed freeze-dried strawberries, dried lavender flowers and honey. I also decided to use coconut milk instead of regular milk or cream, always with an eye to how to help if someone has allergies or aversions to dairy. This dessert has no eggs for thickening. It is naturally gluten free in its basic form. I did use honey as the sweetener, and of course another sweetener, or regular sugar can be used. 

When I decided to use coconut milk, I had a can in my pantry that was larger than usual, and used that can. I had never used that brand before, but have never had any problems with coconut milk. This one, and I did not find out until I actually tried the finished dessert, had a very strange texture. It was not smooth, like most any coconut milk brand. Hence, my panna cotta had a strange texture. There was nothing at all wrong with the flavors, however. I would most certainly make it again. With a different coconut milk.

Dried Lavender Flowers

Also, a basic panna cotta is really, truly just those 4 ingredients; milk, cream, sugar and gelatin. I decided to add in some whipped cream at the end. 

If you have never used lavender in cooking applications, it is unusual. The first time I made cookies with lavender flowers, I felt it was just too much. I have been more circumspect in the amounts used now, though I have found that if the flowers are steeped in milk first, it seems to mellow the flavor. In my recipe, I steeped the lavender flowers and the freeze-dried strawberries in the heated coconut milk and honey.

Strawberry Lavender Panna Cotta

Serves 4

1½ teaspoons unflavored gelatin (about 1/2 packet)
2 tablespoons cold water
1 cup coconut milk (or regular milk)
¼ cup honey
2 teaspoons dried lavender flowers
1 tablespoon finely crushed freeze-dried strawberries
¾ cup additional coconut milk (or regular milk)
½ cup whipping cream

In a small cup or bowl, combine the gelatin with the 2 tablespoons water. Allow to set for at least 5 minutes.

In a small saucepan, combine the 1 cup coconut milk, honey, lavender flowers and crushed dry strawberries. Bring the mixture just to a simmer, remove from heat and allow the mixture to steep for 10 minutes. Add in the soaked gelatin and stir to completely dissolve the gelatin into the warm mixture. Strain out the lavender and larger strawberry bits and discard. To the liquid add the remaining 3/4 cup of coconut milk. Allow the mixture to cool on the counter until room temperature. Whip the cream and fold gently into the panna cotta. Have ready 4 pretty glasses, bowls or 4 - 5-ounce ramekins. If using ramekins, grease them for easier unmolding later. Pour the panna cotta evenly into the 4 containers. Set these into the refrigerator for at least 5 to 6 hours, until completely set.

To unmold, dip the bottom half of the ramekins into hot water for a minute, to soften. If necessary, run a knife around the edge to loosen. Turn over onto a plate and unmold gently. Serve alone or with fresh fruits.

My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Hash Browns, Hatch Chiles & Eggs

Hash Browns for One, with eggs

I have had a desire to create a "Hatch Chile Sauce" for a long while. This began many years ago, down in Tucson, where one of my sisters resides. Near her house is a park and Tea Garden called Tohono Chul. The park is lovely in the Southwest xeriscape way, showcasing the plants and critters local to the area. The "Tea Garden" or, as I see in the website is now called "Garden Bistro", showcases absolutely fantastic meals, but breakfast is the meal I have enjoyed most often. For years, as I would visit my sister, we would go there and I would order the same meal, every time. It was scrambled eggs, wrapped in corn tortillas, served with a pool of Hatch Chile Sauce and black beans, sour cream and some olives. A Southwest breakfast fit for a king. Everything in that meal caused me raptures. And then, they took it off the menu.

I realize that menus must change periodically. The locals would want something new I assume. But me - I just wished that breakfast was still on the menu. And this is what brings me to this blog. I have been dreaming of that Hatch Chile Sauce ever since. It had a little bit of bite, but was mild, overall. The southwest flavor was the thing that just enchanted me. The last time I was in Tucson, my husband and I drove back from there, via the Grand Canyon, the giant meteor crater (remember "Star Man"?), Hatch, New Mexico, Denver, CO, Aberdeen, SD, and on and on, till we got back to Florida, where we lived at the time. When passing through Hatch, we stopped and I bought a large string of Hatch chilies. I had not really used them; mainly I had them hanging as a decoration. My understanding is that "Hatch Chilies" are just chilies that grow in Hatch, NM, and not any particular variety. They could be hot chilies or mild. The string I have are relatively hot.

A few days ago I wanted some hash browns. My husband will absolutely not eat hash browns if the skins are on the potatoes. Skins are his big, fat no-no. Me - I love the skins, so if I make hash browns for myself, I leave the skins on. I made one little potato-worth of hash browns in a tiny skillet, just for me. I made 2 eggs in the same skillet to set on top of the potatoes and it was my supper. Here is the recipe:

Hash Browns for One

Potato Mixture - In the pan

1 small potato, scrubbed
1 tablespoon olive oil 
3 scallions, chopped
3/4 teaspoon salt
a few grinds of pepper, optional
1 teaspoon cornstarch

One side cooked - Hash Browns served

Chop the scallions and set aside. Lay out a 2-layer thickness of paper toweling at least a foot long or more. Heat a small skillet over medium heat. With a large-holed grater, grate the little potato onto the paper toweling. Spread the shreds out relatively evenly, roll the paper toweling with the potato inside, then squeeze all along the roll to wring as much moisture from the potato shreds as possible. Unroll the paper toweling, dropping the potato shreds with the scallion. Add the salt, pepper if using, and the cornstarch. With fingers, toss the mixture to combine. Add the olive oil to the hot skillet and drop in the potatoes. Press them gently into an even circle. Cover with a lid, reduce heat to medium low and cook for about 4 minutes. Remove lid and set a spatula under one side of the potato cake. Using the pan's momentum, lift the pan and flip the potato cake with the spatula. Back on the heat, cover and cook for another 2 minutes. At this point the potatoes should be cooked through.
Delightful as my hash browns and eggs were, it got me thinking about that Hatch Chile Sauce again, and I started gazing fondly at my string of Hatch chiles and dreaming of how I could make a chile sauce that would be similar to the one at Tohono Chul. I have a large bag of dried Ancho peppers in my freezer. They are in 2 zip-top bags, as I do not use them often, and just want them as fresh as possible when I do want them. I wondered how many chilies it would require to get the sauce to be similar to the one at TC. Theirs was a relatively smooth sauce, a nice dusky orange in color. I figured there was no way to find out but by trying. This is what I did:

My Hatch Ancho Chile Sauce

Hatch Ancho Chile Sauce

Makes 1 pint

2 hot, dried chilies
1 large dried Ancho chili
Boiling water, for soaking 
1 large onion, or 2 small onions, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt 
2 cloves garlic, coarse chopped
3 tablespoons double concentrated tomato paste (from a tube)
2 - 3 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, rough-chopped
1 cup water, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar
pinch of dried epazote, optional
pinch of annatto powder, optional
1 tablespoon butter
 
In a small saucepan, heat some water to boiling. Reduce to lowest heat and add the 3 chilies. Allow them to steep in the water while starting the onions. Heat a medium skillet and add the olive oil. Add in the onions and teaspoon of salt; saute until translucent, stirring periodically. Add the garlic, thyme and tomato paste and stir to combine, cooking until the garlic is fragrant, about one minute. Add in half the water and stir.
 
Remove the chilies from the hot water. If you want the sauce to be very hot, leave in the seeds and membranes; otherwise, remove stems, seeds and membranes, coarsely chop and add to the skillet. Stir just to combine and pour into a blender or food processor. Process until the sauce is as smooth as you like and return the sauce to the skillet. Stir in the rest of the water, with the half teaspoon salt, vinegar and epazote and annatto, if using. These last may make no appreciable difference. The annato will give more depth of color. The epazote is a very southwest flavor and I have it in my cabinet! Add in the butter and stir until it melts and is well combined. Once cooled, store in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Corn Tortillas, Hash Browns for One, Eggs, Hatch Ancho Chile Sauce with a side of black beans, olives and sour cream

The sauce tasted really good, though it has been quite a few years since I last had it at Tohono Chul. This morning I made my Hash Browns for One, set them onto a couple of tortillas, topped that with two eggs, served myself some black beans and topped the eggs with the newly created Hatch Ancho Chile Sauce. It was a meal fit for a Southwest King - or Queen, as the case may be!



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Versatile Squash in a Cake

I have stopped using canned pumpkin for my pumpkin pies since some years ago. One of the first times I was so happy with the substitution of actual squash for the canned stuff was when I found a Jarradale squash here locally. It was the prettiest squash, all slate green-blue colored, but when I baked it and cut it open, it was also the brightest yellow-orange color inside that I had ever seen to date. The following year, I found a Jamboree squash; this one looked the same on the outside, but unfortunately it was all moldy on the inside. A complete waste of the hour of baking. Oh well, I guess that can happen.

Jarradale Squash

The other thing about the Jarradale squash that I loved so much was the density of the meat. It was a small squash, by comparison to most pumpkins. The meat was so dense though, that it doubled the weight of a pumpkin that was twice its size. When I baked and scooped the meat out, I put it into the food processor in batches and got the smoothest, most beautiful puree I could ever have wished. It also made the most delicious "pumpkin pies" that Thanksgiving. When I could not duplicate that with the Jamboree squash the next year, it really was too bad, and since it was rather last minute, I had to go back to cans for that year's pies. 

This past year, I couldn't find a Jarradale or Jamboree squash at all, so I did some online research on squash and which ones were best for making pie puree. I found a very interesting comparison one woman did, trying out 9 different squash, and making 9 separate pumpkin pies. Her results? Good old butternut squash was, for her, the tastiest, with best pie color. Okay, I can always find butternut squash. I bought one large squash, baked, pureed and came up with enough for 4 pies. I was amazed. Butternut, also, is very dense and smooth. I knew this empirically, but had never paid much attention with an eye to a pie.

I guess by now, you may be wondering what all this reflection on squash varieties is all about. I was getting something out of the freezer the other day and noticed a couple of zip-top baggies of pureed squash tucked in back. This made me think I should make something with it, which led to thinking about what pumpkin recipes I might have. I decided to try Mom Rawstern's recipe for Pumpkin Bars.

Pumpkin Cake

For starters, I changed all her spices, though I kept the basic recipe amounts. I substituted ¾ cup of the sugar with coconut sugar, and ⅓ of the butter called for with coconut oil. I have no idea where her recipe came from, or if she made it up. It was scribbled on a little sheet of paper and stapled into her one cookbook, with absolutely no instructions. This was not uncommon. Most of her recipes assumed one knew how to make a thing, because most of the time there were no instructions, or only a minimalistic "bake at 350." Imagine my surprise then, when I baked this "bar" recipe in a 9 x 13-inch pan and it baked up high as a regular cake! It also took terribly long to bake, far longer than most cakes in that size pan, at 50 minutes. It seemed it would never test done, as I timed it another 5 minutes, then another 5 minutes, and so on. There is nothing at all wrong with the flavor. I am very pleased with my spice additions. It just came out as a cake, rather than bars. This is the recipe:

Pumpkin Cake

Pumpkin Cake

One 13 x 9-inch cake

1 stick unsalted butter
¼ cup coconut oil (or use all butter)
2 cups sugar (or substitute part coconut sugar)
4 eggs
2 cups squash/pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons Bourbon, or 2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons dried orange zest
1 teaspoon ginger
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon cloves
¼ teaspoon allspice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (325 on Convection). Grease a 9 x 13-inch pan and set aside. In a stand mixer, cream together the butter & coconut oil with the sugar(s), until light. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until combined before adding the next. Beat in the squash puree. Sift or whisk together the dry ingredients, and then add in three batches to the creamed mixture, beating gently just until combined. Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45 - 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
While the cake was baking, I wanted to try out something new for a frosting. First, I wanted to incorporate sour cream into the mix, but had never done this before. I wanted a little tang in the flavor. Another thing I wanted to try was making glazed nuts (walnuts or pecans) and then placing them in a food processor to pulverize, then add these to the frosting. I started with the nuts.

Burnt Sugar Glazed Nuts

Burnt Sugar Glazed Pecans

⅓ cup granulated sugar
1 cup walnuts or pecans 
(I used walnuts this time; photo shows pecans from last week's wine tasting)
 
Cut a large sheet of waxed paper and place onto a counter top. Place the sugar and nuts into a medium sized, preferable non-stick skillet over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly with a silicone spatula or wooden spoon, until the sugar melts and caramelizes to deep amber and completely coats the nuts. Once the nuts reach that point, stir for a few seconds more, then remove from the hot burner and continue stirring for 1 minute. Turn the nuts out onto the waxed paper and with 2 forks, separate the nuts. Allow them to cool completely.

***These glazed nuts are wonderful to eat on their own. They are great in salads. You could sprinkle them with cinnamon or other spices, as desired. Do not attempt to add any liquid to the hot nuts or it could be explosive. The sugar has reached extreme temperatures to melt. For my purposes, once cooled, I poured all the caramelized nuts into the food processor with 1 cup of confectioners' sugar and processed until very fine. This way, they would also be wonderful sprinkled over ice cream.

Caramel Walnut Frosting

Caramel Walnut Frosting

½ stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
½ cup sour cream
4 cups confectioners' sugar
The whole recipe for pulverized glazed nuts
1 teaspoon bourbon, or vanilla
½ teaspoon salt (preferably medium ground sea salt)

In a heavy duty stand mixer, beat the room temperature butter and cream cheese for 6 - 8 minutes, until very pale and fluffy. NOTE: This will not work properly unless the ingredients are room temperature. Add the sour cream and beat to combine. Add the 4 cups confectioners' sugar and starting on lowest speed for one minute, combining the dry into the creamed mixture. Increase speed to medium high and beat for another 6 to 8 minutes. Pour in the nut mixture, salt and flavoring and beat to just combine. Spread this over the cake once the cake has completely cooled.
The cake and the frosting were delicious. Neither turned out exactly as I had anticipated, but the flavors are excellent in both, and the icing goes excellently with the cake. I would like to try this again, using pecans in the frosting (I had none yesterday when I started this). I might also try using less sugar in the cake. It seemed a little too much, though the flavor is wonderful.


My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Warming Vegetable Soup on Another Cold Night

We had a brief spate of warmer weather, getting into the low 40s for about 3 days, but that is gone again, and we are back to sub-zero temperatures. It was at -12 when I went to bed last night, and tonight may reach -21. Again. Sigh. So, a nice warming soup is always appreciated on nights such as these, and yesterday I made my vegetable soup; a one-pot meal at its best!

Beef Vegetable Soup with Beans & Barley

My vegetable soup varies depending on what I have available. It could be beef vegetable or chicken vegetable. It might have more, or just other vegetables, depending on what is in the fridge when I decide. I like lots of flavors, all lending their goodness to the finished product. My husband likes a soup you can just about stand a spoon in, so adding everything but the kitchen sink is not a problem. He is a picky eater and likes

Saffron

few vegetables, most of which are the starchy ones like potatoes, peas and corn. When I add veggies all cut small, I can add things he would not normally eat, and he still enjoys it immensely. I find this a terrific opportunity to add vegetables to his diet. He also loves things like barley, beans and/or lentils added in the soup, as do I.

Some of the veggies I might add or substitute if they had been on hand are butternut squash, parsnips, green beans, zucchini, Napa cabbage and/or sweet potato. Things he won't tolerate, even when all mixed up like this are broccoli or cauliflower, but those could be added also, if they are favorites of yours. When I was in Guatemala, a favorite soup that was made often was called "Cocido", meaning "Cooked". Not that exciting a name, yet the resultant soup was similar to mine in flavors, but with all the vegetables left mostly whole. They would cook a chunk of beef with whole onion, carrots, a quarter or half of a cabbage, potatoes, some kind of squash, corn on the cob (maybe cut into 2 or 3 chunks), and many other things. I loved that soup. Another inspiration was my paternal Grandmother's soup. She added far less vegetables, but the broth was stupendous! Saffron was one of her

Figures 1 & 2: Browning meat & onion; adding vegetables

magic ingredients, and I love saffron with a passion, ever since that early introduction.

So, over the years I have made a vegetable soup, with ever-changing ingredients as the contents of my fridge or the seasonal availability changed. This is the soup I made last evening. During winter, I make this soup with a can of corn, where in the summer I might cut the kernels off fresh cobs. In summer I might add fresh tomatoes, chopped, where in winter I use a can of petite diced tomatoes. Dried beans can be added instead of a can, if desired - the soup will cook long enough that the beans will cook through. Be flexible. Be warned though: this makes a huge pot. By the time all the vegetables are added, you have a very large pot full and could feed at least 8 or 10 hungry people.

Beef Vegetable Soup with Beans & Barley

Makes a large pot of soup, to feed 8 to 10

Figures 3 & 4: garlic, ginger, cilantro, parsley

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 or 2 pounds beef stew meat, more or less as desired
1 large onion, roughly chopped
3 - 4 stalks celery, sliced
2 - 3 carrots, diced 
1 large bell pepper (or more than one, using different colors)
¼ of a cabbage, cubed 
1 - 2 potatoes, depending on size, peeled, diced8 cups water (2 quarts)
1 can (14.5 ounces) petite diced tomatoes with liquid
1 can (15.5 ounces) whole kernel corn, drained
3 -4 cloves garlic, finely minced
fresh ginger, equal to the volume of garlic, minced
1 large handful each cilantro and parsley, minced
2 bay leaves
a few sprigs of fresh thyme (leave whole and fish out later, or strip leaves and add)
3 - 4 teaspoons salt
a few grinds of black pepper
¼ - ½ teaspoon saffron, crushed

Figure 5: Bring to a boil

½ cup pearl barley (I prefer the long-cooking kind) 
1 can (15.5 ounces) white beans, drained and rinsed 
1½ cups frozen peas
 
In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil on medium high. Add the meat cubes and cook quickly, browning thoroughly. Add the onion and toss quickly, browning lightly. You want to see a fair amount of brown in the bottom of the pan. This gives both flavor and color to the soup. Add in half the water, to start, stirring up the brown in the pan. Begin adding in vegetables: celery, bell pepper, carrots, cabbage, potatoes (Figures 1 & 2). Add in the cans of tomatoes and corn.

Beef Vegetable Soup with Beans and Barley

Chop together the garlic, ginger, cilantro and parsley until fine and add to the pot (Figures 3 & 4). Add the bay leaves, thyme, salt, pepper and saffron. Add the pearl barley if using the long cooking kind. If not, wait for at least an hour before adding the barley. Cover the pot and bring to a simmer (Figure 5). Keep the soup simmering for at least 2 to 3 hours on very low heat. Wait to add the drained and rinsed beans and the peas until about 10 minutes prior to serving, just to heat through.



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Another Wine & Food Pairing

My Garrigue Seasoning Mixture

Yesterday I wrote about the mini tarts I made to pair with a Pacific Rim Chenin Blanc. Today I am going to describe my thinking on the food pairing I made for the 2003 Domaine du Vieux Telegraphe Chateauneuf du Pape.

As I mentioned in my post on February 18th, I learned a new term when researching the flavors to pair with this Rhone / Southern France wine. While the term "garrigue" has been around for a while, I have not been reading the different wine publications as avidly as I once did, and missed ever hearing about this new descriptor. It is used to describe all the bouquet of aromas from the wild herbs that grow in that region of France. Any time a grape grows in a very specific soil and environment, this affects the grapes' flavor, and therefore the wine made from them. It is said that many Rhone wines retain some of this garrigue aroma. It was a bouquet of scents I was unfamiliar with, as a whole, and so I had never been able to detect this bouquet in a wine.

Showing long, lengthwise grain of the meat

I had drunk this particular Chateauneuf before; we had various bottles in our cellar. This time would be a brand new tasting, with this new idea in mind. I had created a sort of spice seasoning mixture I creatively called "Garrigue Seasoning." I know - not so creative, but what else could I possibly call this kind of mixture? I intended to use this dry spice mix to flavor a flank steak, with the idea to also marinate the steak in a mixture of currants, balsamic and olive oil. I dry-rubbed the meat with the spices first, then poured over the wet mixture and marinated it a full day. Once I broiled and sliced the meat, it didn't have nearly the flavor I hoped for, though it was very good, and paired well with the wine.  I believe if I were to make this again, I would dry rub the meat, possibly with even more of the rub than I used, and a little olive oil to marinate. 

Cheddar Rectangles

Other foods I chose to pair with a wine that is a blend of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre (GSM) were sharp cheddar and arugula, with its peppery flavors. I broiled the meat and sliced it very thinly across the grain, at an angle in order to make each slice more than double the width it would be if slicing straight down. If you have never used a flank steak, it is a very thin piece of meat. It can be a little tough because it is very lean, but cutting across the grain of the meat makes all the fibers of the meat very short, and therefore edible.

I looked for the sharpest cheddar I could find, and sliced it into ¼-inch slices. Then I cut those slices to make them ¼-inch widths by about 1¾ to 2-inches long, approximately the width of one of the slices of the steak. I got a box of baby arugula and selected  enough leaves to use 2 per steak roll. 

Garrigue Rubbed Flank Steak Rolls with Cheddar & Arugula

This makes 50 or so rolls

Garrigue Rubbed Flank Steak Rolls with Cheddar & Arugula

1 flank steak, about 2 pounds
4 - 6 tablespoons Garrigue Seasoning (post of February 18)
3 tablespoons olive oil
8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese
baby arugula leaves
 
Rub the flank steak well with the Garrigue Seasoning on both sides. Sprinkle the olive oil over and rub into the seasonings and meat. Wrap well and set in the refrigerator overnight. Prepare the cheddar by making little rectangles 1/4 x 1/4 x 2-inches. These can be cut and stored in the refrigerator until needed. Select nice, small arugula leaves.
 
When ready to prepare the meat, heat the broiler and set the rack on the second level down. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, for easy cleanup later. Set a small rack onto the foil and place the meat on the rack. Place under the broiler and broil for 6 to 7 minutes per side, depending on the thickness of the meat. When done, tent with foil for 15 minutes before slicing.

When ready to cut the meat, set the steak with the length of the grain crosswise in front of you (as shown in picture). Hold a sharp chef's knife or carving knife at a 45 degree angle. Slice at this angle, creating thin slices, much wider than if slicing straight down. These lengths of meat will need to be cut into 2 or even 3 pieces each. The length needs to be just wide enough to roll around the cheddar and arugula leaves, crossing enough to insert a toothpick to hold them in shape.

When serving these with a good wine, always try to serve slices of bread along with, as the bread helps to absorb the alcohol. It becomes very difficult to taste and rate a wine when a few sips make you tipsy. I served these flank rolls with little slices of bread, brushed with oil and broiled lightly. The meat went well with the Chateauneuf du Pape. We also smelled the garrigue seasoning and them smelled the wine, and found that these smells were definitely apparent in the wine's bouquet. Hurray!


My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.