The Global Kitchen

This is so easy to make. Throw everything in a pot. Boil and simmer for 30 minutes. There's minimal chopping too.

This stew is more about the veggies than the barley. It's very filling and healthy.

I used three medium French fingerling potatoes. My mushrooms consisted of button and a dried porcini and some other mushroom blend. Adding the reconstituting water to the broth really added a lot of flavor.

1/3 cup is a small amount of barley but if you have leftovers they grow overnight !



Barley & Mushroom Stew
Mark Bittman: How to Cook Everything Vegetarian)

Makes 4 servings
Time: about 30 minutes

Here barley almost plays a supporting role, as a toothsome component of a hearty vegetable stew. Use any root vegetables you like here and serve with crusty bread.

1 cup chopped onion
2 med. carrots, cut into chunks
2 celery stalks, roughly chopped
2 medium potatoes, preferably low starch, peeled and quartered*
8 garlic cloves, peeled
2 cups sliced mushrooms, preferably an assortment, or 1 cup sliced button mushrooms and ½ cup dried porcini other dried mushrooms, reconstituted in hot water to cover
1/3 cup pearled barley
1 tsp. fresh thyme or ½ tsp. dried
salt & freshly ground pepper
3 cups vegetable stock or water
chopped parsley or celery leaves for garnish(I didn't use it)

1. Combine all the ingredients except the parsley in a sauce pan. (If you use dried mushrooms, include their strained liquid and reduce the amount of stock or water accordingly.) Bring to a boil over medium high heat, then turn the heat down so the mixture barely bubbles. Cover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring once or twice.

2. The stew is done when everything is tender. Taste, adjust the seasoning, garnish and serve.

I was fascinated by the picture of this in February's Bon Appetit. I LOVE cauliflower and the presentation of this particular recipe would be impressive if you have colorful plates.

Note to self: buy new plates

Anyway, I only made two modifications. I used 1% milk instead of whole milk and I used olive oil instead of vegetable oil.

The steak you see is a grass fed organic ribeye from Whole Foods. It was really tasty!

I was really depressed when Whole Foods bought Wild Oats but I was in there yesterday and they haven't jacked the prices and they still carry grass fed beef which is the only beef I'll eat.




Cauliflower Steaks with Cauliflower Puree Bon Appétit February 2008

Few ingredients, big payoff: Large "steaks" are cut from a head of cauliflower, sautéed until golden, then baked until tender. They're served over a simple puree made from the cauliflower florets. An impressive first course, this can also be a lovely side. Just sear two mahi-mahi fillets in butter and place them alongside the cauliflower.

Makes 2 servings

Dan Barber

Ingredients
1 1 1/2-pound head of cauliflower
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup whole milk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil plus additional for brushing

Preparation
Preheat oven to 250°F. Using sharp heavy knife and starting at top center of cauliflower head, cut two 1-inch-thick slices of cauliflower, cutting through stem end. Set cauliflower steaks aside.

Cut enough florets from remaining cauliflower head to measure 3 cups. Combine florets, 1 1/2 cups water, and milk in medium saucepan, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bring to boil and cook until cauliflower florets are very tender, about 10 minutes. Strain, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid. Spread florets on large rimmed baking sheet, and bake 10 minutes until slightly dry. Transfer florets to blender. Add reserved 1 cup cooking liquid and puree until smooth. Return puree to same saucepan and increase oven temperature to 350°F.

Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in heavy large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Brush cauliflower steaks with additional oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add cauliflower steaks to skillet and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer skillet to oven and bake cauliflower steaks until tender, about 10 minutes.

Rewarm cauliflower puree over medium heat. Divide puree between 2 plates; top each with cauliflower steak.

Not so photogenic but yummy in my tummy!

I used the last of my Rancho Gordo Christmas Limas. I will be ordering again!

I'm a huge fan of Michael Pollan's Omnivores Dilemma and was really excited for his follow-up, In Defense of Food An Eater's Manifesto.

When I perused it in the bookstore I decided against buying it because it looked like the same territory covered in Marion Nestle's What to Eat.

I did check a copy out at the library, and it's worth a read. He boils it all down to, "eat food, not too much. Mostly plants". He also advises us to avoid processed food and to follow the "great grandmother" rule, which, is to not eat anything your great grandmother wouldn't recognize as food. I also found the "nutritionism" chapters informative.

Pretty standard stuff but Pollan is such a good writer I found the book worth reading.

Today I made a double batch of Bittman's vegetable stock. I freeze it in 1 cup increments since I'm single and only use a little at a time.

Homemade stock takes very little effort and tastes so much better than the grocery store stocks and broths. You can also control the sodium that goes into it.



2 tbs olive oil
2 carrots sliced
1 onion quartered (I peeled mine)
1 potato sliced
1 celery stalk sliced
2-3 cloves garlic (I peeled mine)
5-10 white mushrooms sliced
10-20 parsley stems with leaves rough chopped
2 tbs soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste.

Heat olive oil in a large stock pot over medium high heat. add carrots throgh mushrooms. Cook without stirring for 5 minutes, then stir once or twice and cook until vegetables begin to brown.If you have time brown them well stirring infrequently.
Add parsley, 6 cups of water, soy sauce and pepper. Bring to a boil, adjust the heat and simmer for 30 minutes or until the vegetables are very tender. Longer is better if you have the time.

Strain then taste and adjust the seasoning adding more soy sauce or salt as desired.

This is so good I just had leftovers for breakfast. And I'm having it for lunch. It's also simple. The only pain in the butt part is peeling the squash.

This would make an excellent side dish for the holidays. I loved the way the tangy cranberries offset the sweetness of the squash.

Bittman offers a richer variation where you replace the stock with 1 cup of warmed cream with 1/2 cup of vegetable stock.





Autumn Millet Bake
How To Cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus oil for the dish
3/4 cup millet
1 medium butternut or other winter squash or 1 small pumpkin, peeled seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 cup fresh cranberries
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon minced sage leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey
1 cup vegetable stock or water, warmed*
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds or coarsely chopped hazelnuts

Preheat the oven to 375F and grease a 2-quart casserole, a large gratin dish, or a 9x13-inch baking dish with olive oil.

Put 2 tablespoons of the oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, add the millet and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant and golden, about 3 minutes (don't overdo it). Spread in the bottom of the prepared baking dish.

Scatter the squash or pumpkin cubes and the cranberries on top of the millet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and the sage and drizzle with syrup. Carefully pour the warmed stock over all. Cover tightly with foil and bake without disturbing, for 45 minutes.

Carefully uncover and turn the oven to 400F. As discreetly as possible, sneak a taste and adjust the seasoning. If it looks too dry, add a spoonful or two of water or stock. (This is key! The millet should be close to being cooked through at this point, if not you need to add liquid and keep it moist and cooking). Sprinkle the pumpkin seeds on top, and return the dish to the oven. Bake until the mixture bubbles and the top is browned (and the millet is cooked through), another 10 minutes or so. Serve piping hot or at room temperature.

Serves 4 to 6.

I cooked up my Christmas Lima Beans!

These are nothing like the green succotash lima beans of my youth. These are meaty with a chestnut flavor and don't need much enhancement.

Again I started out by preparing them simply by drizzling them with my good olive oil and grating dried goat cheese on top. I used Capra Valtellina.

Next week I plan on using some of these in the lima bean parmegiana.



Tomorrow: an Autumn Millet Bake!

I have two new discoveries!

Discovery numero uno is Ranch Gordo's Heirloom Beans. Available at www.ranchogordo.com.

I've always bought canned beans and have been satisfied. I've never been impressed with dried beans purchased at the grocery store. But the Rancho Gordo beans are an entirely different animal. They're so fresh and tasty. I'm ready to place another order!

The first ones I cooked are the garbanzos. And all the recipes come from my second new discovery Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian cookbook. My New Years resolution is to eat more whole foods, veggies and quality meat(which can be expensive so I guess you can say I'm going mostly veg).



Cooked beans!



I'll definitely order more of these and use them in hummus, bean burgers and any other garbanzo recipe I can get my hands on.

To cook the beans I used Bittman's method.

Rinse and pick over the beans

Place in a pot and cover with 2-3 inches of water.

Bring to a boil then reduce the heat until the beans bubble gently. Partially cover pot.

Check every 10-15 minutes. When the beans start to get tender add a generous pinch of salt and a couple grinds of pepper. Stir occasionally

Add water as necessary.

I started tasting my beans right away and added the salt and pepper after about 20 minutes. Overall the beans took about 2 hours to cook and I had to add water twice.



I kept some out and froze the rest in their own broth. The first dish I made was Chickpeas in Their Own Broth. I thought this would highlight the flavor of the beans and it did. It was a very flavorful dinner served with a salad. Don't worry about the bread crumb size. Mine was uneven. And I did NOT use 1/2 cup of oil.



Chickpeas and their broth are so flavorful they hardly need anything else to be completely delicious, but a bit of garlic and good olive oil make this dish spectacular. Cooking your own chickpeas is really essential here, because canned chickpeas don’t have the flavor.

One roughly 6-inch piece French or Italian bread, preferably a day or two old

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

salt & freshly ground pepper

3 cups cooked chickpeas with about 2 cups of their cooking liquid (5 cups total)

1 Tbsp. minced garlic

chopped parsley leaves for garnish

1. Roughly chop the bread and put it in a food processor; pulse until shredded, with no chunks larger than a pea but not much smaller either. Put all but 2 Tbsps of the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the bread and a sprinkling of salt and cook, shaking the pan occasionally , until the crumbs are nicely browned, 5 to 10 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove and drain on paper towels.

2. Warm the chickpeas in their broth with the garlic and add a good sprinkle of salt and pepper. Top with the bread crumbs, garnish with the parsley, and serve, or store, covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Gently reheat and garnish before serving.

Baked Lima Beans Parmigiana

Now I tried this dish twice. Once with frozen limas and again with the garbanzos. Both had excellent results but didn't take a very pretty picture. I'm going to make this again with some of RG's Christmas Limas I also bought. I think that might make a better picture and will post it then

I didn't use nearly as much oil as he did....you could also use a jarred marinara but I think the fresh tomato sauce is better.

Baked Lima Beans Parmigiana

You can also use fava, endamame, cooked cannnelini, gigante beans or chickpeas

1/4 c olive oil
1 recipe Fast Tomoato Sauce(below)
4 cups fresh, frozen or cooked dry lima beans
salt and fresh ground pepper
1 cup cubed mozzerella(preferably fresh)
1 cup breadcrumbs (I used Panko)
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup chopped parsley for garnish

Preheat oven to 400

Use a tbs or so of the oil to grease a 2 qt souffle or gratin dish or a 9x13 baking dish

Spread tomato sauce in the dish and spoon the beans on top. Spread the mozz cubes around evenly pressing them into the sauce and beans a bit. Sprinkle with the bread crumbs and parm and drizzle with olive oil.

Bake until cheese is melted, sauce is bubbling and crumbs are brown, about 20-30 minutes.

Remove and sprinle with parsley and additional black pepper if desired. Can be served over rice or pasta.

Fast Tomato Sauce

3 Tbs olive oil or butter
1 med onion, chopped
1 24-32 oz can tomatoes drained and chopped (I'm lazy, I bought diced)
salt and fresh ground pepper

Heat olive oil in 12" skillet over med-high heat. Add onions and stir 2-3 minutes or until soft. Add tomatoes and salt and pepper to taste.

Cook, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes break up and the mixture comes together, thickening about 10-15 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

I really have been thinking of new recipes for this blog but life and work are in the way.

I'm still cooking, it just hasn't been very international.

I just received an order of Rancho Gordo heirloom beans and plan on cooking those up soon.I've also been cooking from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian cookbook(which is excellent).

So maybe for now I'll post some domestic recipes until things settle down and I can get back to the Global Kitchen.