Tabbouleh

I love summer - all the fresh vegetables, fruits, and herbs you can eat! One of my favorite meals is probably not considered a meal in any other house, but I love it. The story behind this meal goes back MANY (~25) years. We were at our first duty station - Pensacola Naval Air Station. Yes, I realize my hubby was Air Force (he just retired!), but the services were trying a new "joint" thing. 

Anyhow - my hubby came home from work quite early one day, leaned over, kissed me, and my response was, "where the h#*@ have you been?!" He tasted like garlic and spices and wine! He had stopped at an international food store and tried tabbouleh, hummus, and red wine. I made him take me right then and there. We went back to the store, picked up a container of tabbouleh, one of hummus, and a bottle (maybe two!) of red wine. We lived on that for a couple of days. YUM!

I highly suggest you buy some Sabra hummus (we love the roasted garlic kind), pretzel chips (bagel chips work, too!) and a lovely bottle of red wine to go with the tabbouleh. 

I found this recipe on the internet years ago - hope you enjoy it as much as we do. I put a link on the bulgur wheat, in case you don't know what it is.

Tabbouleh a La Paula Wolfert (I don't know who that is, but she makes a good tabbouleh!)

2/3 cup fine grain bulgur wheat 
8 scallions, finely sliced
½ cup fresh mint leaves, shredded
½ cup fresh sorrel leaves, shredded (optional - I have never found them)
2 cups flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 medium cucumber, peeled, halved, seeded, & finely diced
¾ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
pinch cayenne pepper
¼ teaspoon allspice
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
salt
2 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped (yeah - I just chop them and skip the rest!)

Pick over the bulgur and place in a fine sieve; shake to remove any dust and place in cold water to soak briefly.  In a good-sized mixing bowl, combine the scallions, herbs, cucumber, spices, oil and lemon juice.  Drain the bulgur and squeeze by hand to remove any moisture.  Immediately add to the bowl and mix well.  Add salt to taste, cover, and refrigerate overnight.   Before serving, mix in tomatoes and additional salt if needed.

In order to eat this the same day, I will often use hot or boiling water instead of cold water. I don't notice a taste or texture difference, but that could be the wine I'm having with it!

 

Slow cooker "roast" chicken

You don't need a recipe for this. Seriously. 

Step one: Buy a chicken. FYI, my father-in-law once told me that the bone structure of all the chickens you buy at the store are about the same, so buy the biggest one you can find, as the extra money is paying for more meat.

Step two: Open it. Do this in the sink. Obviously. Pull out any "extra" parts. These will be in the rear-end cavity and/or the neck cavity. Drain everything, put the wrappers in the trash, wash your hands, and take the trash out. Yes, now. It will smell really bad if you forget!

Step three: Crumple a few pieces of aluminum foil into the bottom of the inside of the slow-cooker (so the chicken doesn't swim in its own juices). Bring the inside of the slow-cooker over to the sink (where the chicken still is, right?) and put the chicken into it, breast side up. Wash your hands!!

Step four: Sprinkle all over with desired seasonings (Nature's Seasons or Italian seasoning or garlic or whatever). Put it back into the slow-cooker, turn it to low and let it cook for 6-8 hours. The breast meat should be 160F. You can also cook on high for 4-5 hours. 

Step five: Eat! Yum! You can add a slurry of a little cornstarch and cold water to the liquid to make a little gravy. The leftover meat is yummy as chicken salad or on a salad or in a pot pie! 

 

"Mexican" Recipes

It's been awhile. I haven't had many requests for recipes lately, so I've been slacking! But now, I'm going to switch my focus just a teeny bit. My oldest is moving out on his own and needs some easy, inexpensive recipes. Here is the first in the "series". 

Easy Pork "Carnitas"

Carnitas are supposed to be fried in lard, I believe. I don't do that. But this recipe is still pretty yummy!

Pork shoulder/butt or country-style ribs
A bottle of Herdez tomatillo salsa (or another brand - doesn't matter)

Cut the meat into chunks, toss everything into a crockpot and cook 6-8 hours on low, or until you can shred it with a fork. Serve with tortillas and fixings (see the following). If you want a little texture, scoop out the meat and little juice, put it on a baking sheet and broil in the oven for a few minutes, stirring every minute or so, until crispy. Yum!

Crema

I don't know how authentic this is, but it's very tasty on the pork!

1/2 cup plain yogurt or sour cream
2 Tbsp mayonnaise
2 tsp chipotle in adobo sauce

Mix and let sit for at least a half-hour for the best flavor.

Coleslaw

Get a bag of coleslaw from the grocery store. You can either mix it with some chipotle ranch dressing or you can make a dressing. I do not have measurements, but here are the ingredients.

Lime juice
Honey (just a touch)
Yogurt or sour cream
Minced onions or scallions
Minced chipotle in adobo sauce (to taste)

Mix and let sit about a half-hour for the best flavor.

Pepperoni Rolls - a West Virginia treasure

If you have never lived in West Virginia, you might be confused as to what the heck this recipe is for. It's for the yummiest snack ever and the West Virginia state food. They were invented in Fairmont, WV by an Italian immigrant as lunch for coal miners. You are seriously missing out if you've never had one.

I'm not a native West Virginian, but I love to bake and we love to eat these, so after moving to Virginia, I didn't have a lot of choice but to figure out how to make them. They're not only delicious, they don't need refrigeration and so are terrific to take on car trips. I send them with my kids when they have away games. I used to be able to send just a few, but they started sharing and now...well, now, I have to make several dozen for them to share!

There's not REALLY a recipe. It's bread dough wrapped around pepperoni. NOT slices. No. Just no. Pepperoni sticks. It's just not right if you use slices. 

Just try the recipe. If you don't like them, I'm not really sure we can even be friends. Haha!

Pepperoni Rolls (I usually make two batches)
Tweaked from King Arthur Flour and Cooks Illustrated

1/2 large stick (20 oz) pepperoni (see picture on the right)
1 cup water
2 Tbsp pepperoni fat
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
3 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp yeast

First, cut the pepperoni. Cut off the ends, cut off the wrapper, then cut the pepperoni into quarters. You'll have four pieces about 5" long. Cut those in half lengthwise, then in half again. You'll use just two of them for this batch. Then each of those gets cut into quarters, then cut each of those pieces in half. You'll end up with 64 little sticks of pepperoni. Put those pieces into a microwave-safe bowl and cook for about 3 minutes, to render out some fat. Remove, put the pepperoni on a couple layers of paper towels, and use the rendered fat in the dough. You COULD use butter, but I think this tastes better.

I use a bread machine and put all the ingredients (except the pepperoni, of course) into my machine and run the dough cycle. If you'd prefer to do it by hand, mix everything (except the pepperoni) together to make a soft, smooth dough. Let it rise until doubled. 

When it's finished rising (bread machine or not), divide into 16 pieces and flatten into little rectangles about 3"x 4". With the short side facing you, place one piece of pepperoni on the end, roll just enough to cover, add another piece, roll to cover, add another, roll to cover, and add a fourth piece. Roll up the rest of the way, pinch seam shut, and place, seam side down, on a greased baking sheet. Repeat with the rest of the dough.

Cover with a clean tea towel to rise at least 45 minutes, or until just about doubled. About 30 minutes into the rise, heat your oven to 375. When rolls look a little puffy and bounce back most of the way when touched gently with your finger, bake for about 18 minutes (rotating halfway through baking) until golden brown and delicious.

Let cool on wire rack and do try to not eat them all at once. 

Indian food - really?

Okay, okay, I know. There's no one out there less Indian than me. But I can read and I have found some really good recipes. This is butter chicken - from TwoSleevers, only tweaked the tiniest bit. Serve this over basmati rice. Yes, it makes a difference. Yes, I know it's more expensive. Go to the ethnic grocer and get a big bag. You'll be eating it SO often now that you know it's so easy. 

Read the whole recipe before you start cooking, as I have ingredients in two separate sections. 

Enjoy!

BUTTER CHICKEN

1 14-oz can tomato puree or crushed tomatoes
6 cloves garlic
grated ginger - the same amount as the garlic
1 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp garam masala (I make my own - see below*)
1 tsp ground cumin
2 lbs chicken thighs (if you use bone-in, remove skin before cooking)

Mix everything but the chicken together in the crockpot. Put the chicken thighs in. Cook for 4-6 hours on high or 8-10 hours on low. I usually (if I'm going to be home) start them on high just to get them going, then turn them down to low. They really do have a better texture if you cook them on low for longer. If you do cook them on high the whole time, you have to test them after 4 hours. They really do get dried out in the crockpot surrounded by all that sauce. I know, weird, but they do.

Remove the chicken from the pot, turn it off, and let it cool for about 30 minutes. Then add

4 Tbsp butter
1/4 cup cream
1 tsp garam masala
chicken (pulled apart or cut - NOT shredded...and don't forget to remove the bones!)

Mix together gently, add salt and pepper to taste, and serve over that basmati rice you cooked. You did cook it, right??

*I make my own garam masala. Pretty sure I got the recipe from Cook's Illustrated.

3 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp ground coriander
1 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp cinnamon

Mix and enjoy.

Corn Muffins, or, What to Serve with Jambalaya

When I was a kid, we ate Jiffy corn muffins. I loved them. Still do, actually. However, I now prefer to make stuff from scratch when possible. Whenever I make jambalaya, these muffins are ALWAYS requested. I'm pretty sure there would be a riot if I didn't have them. They're pretty simple. I've often thought of mixing up the dry ingredients as my own "mix" and just adding the liquid ingredients later, but I forget. Oh well!

Hope you enjoy these as much as my family does!

Corn Muffins

Makes 12 muffins

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (10 oz)

1 cup fine-ground, whole-grain yellow cornmeal (4½ oz)

1½ teaspoons baking powder 

1 teaspoon baking soda 

½ teaspoon table salt 

2 large eggs 

¾ cup granulated sugar (5 1/4 ounces)

8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), melted

¾ cup sour cream 

½ cup milk 

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray muffin tin with cooking spray.  Whisk flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl to combine; set aside. Whisk eggs in a second bowl until well combined and light-colored, about 20 seconds. Whisk sugar into eggs until thick and homogenous, about 30 seconds; add melted butter in 3 additions, whisking after each addition. Add half the sour cream and half the milk and whisk to combine; whisk in remaining sour cream and milk until combined. Add wet ingredients to dry; mix gently with a rubber spatula until batter is just combined and evenly moistened. Do not over-mix. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups. Do not level or flatten the surface of mounds.  Bake until light golden brown and skewer inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean, about 18 minutes, rotating muffin tin from front to back halfway through baking time. Cool in tin 5 minutes; invert onto a wire rack, stand upright, cool 5 minutes, and serve warm.

Pocket breads

I discovered this recipe years ago (Cook's Illustrated - of course!) and my family LOVES it. We use it for tuna salad (two batches - one with mayo and one with Miracle Whip to keep everyone happy), egg salad (made the same way), Greek salad (oh my gosh, it's fabulous), and the best of all....GYROS!!!

I hope you try it. It's not too hard. Just make sure there's plenty of flour on each piece.

Baked Puffed Flatbread
Makes eight 6- to 7-inch breads
Make sure you let the pieces of dough rest after forming them into balls and again after rolling them into 4-inch circles; otherwise, they will shrink back and not hold their shape.

1 package dry active yeast (2¼ teaspoons)

1 cup water (warm -- 110 to 115 degrees)

1 tablespoon olive oil, plus extra for brushing

2 teaspoons granulated sugar 

¼ cup plain yogurt 

1½ teaspoons table salt, plus extra for sprinkling

½ cup whole wheat flour

2 cups flour, plus additional as needed

In the workbowl of a food processor fitted with stainless steel blade, sprinkle yeast over warm water. Add oil, sugar, and yogurt and pulse to mix, about four 1-second bursts. Add salt, whole wheat flour, and 2 cups bread flour; process until smooth, about 15 seconds, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary. Process dough (adding more flour as necessary until dough just pulls completely away from sides of bowl) until soft and satiny, about 30 seconds. Squeeze dough gently with full hand; if dough is sticky, sprinkle with flour and knead just to combine. Place dough in medium bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and place in warm, draft-free spot until dough doubles in size, 30 to 45 minutes. (At this point, dough can be punched down, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerated up to 2 days.)

 Turn dough onto lightly floured work surface and, if sticky, sprinkle very lightly with flour.  Cut into eight pieces.  Roll into balls, let rest 10 mins.  Roll into 4” rounds, let rest.  Roll into 6” rounds and stretch to 7” just before baking.  NOTE:  Be SURE that each bread has flour on it and doesn’t stick at ALL…if it does, it will NOT puff up. 

About 30 minutes prior to cooking, adjust oven rack to lowest position, line rack with pizza stones and heat oven to 500F. Bake dough rounds on preheated pizza stone until bread is puffed and golden brown on bottom, 5 to 6 minutes.  Transfer breads to wire rack to cool for 5 minutes; wrap in clean kitchen towels and serve warm or at room temperature.  If you want to use them for sandwiches, cut in half with a serrated knife.