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Arrabiata sauce with garlic-cheese bread for dipping

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Bowls of arrabiata sauce with large slabs of garlic-cheese bread on the side

The son and husband units wanted pasta and sauce. I didn’t want to cook pasta. So, a happy medium, courtesy of the slab o’ciabatta my Mom left for me, which was screaming to be turned into garlic bread.

I also happened to have a quart of frozen marinara and two pounds of fresh 21/25 shrimp on standby. They’d make a good sauce, thought I, particularly with a hit of heat and some extra umami.

It’s easy to turn any basic tomato sauce into spicy arrabiata via a couple of smashed anchovies, some pureed garlic and a decent quantity of red pepper flakes. Just simmer the whole business together for about 10 minutes.

Why do I say pureed garlic? Well, sir, it happens I do quite a bit of Indian cooking and have taken a major liking to jarred garlic paste, which is nice and mellow. No bitterness. This is especially helpful in a recipe where the garlic isn’t cooked long enough to lose its harshness. Pick up a high-quality brand from India at your local Indian grocery and then tell me what you think. I go through this stuff like wildfire. It’s a lifesaver.

This dish calls for quite a bit of garlic. Just saying. If you want to use fresh cloves, please do, but make sure you’ve broken them down to a super-smooth consistency.

Trader Joe’s arrabiata is respectable, by the way. Rao’s marinara is exceptional, but it’s dear. Pick it up when it’s on sale. It’ll still set you back upwards of $6 or $7 a quart, but when you arrabitize it — wow!

Add a salad and you’ll have a fine dinner. However, if you overcook the shrimp you will not have a fine dinner, so please don’t.

Arrabiata Sauce with Shrimp and Garlic-Cheese Bread for Dipping
 
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Individual bowls of this spicy, flavorful sauce chock full of shrimp and a side of garlic-cheese bread make for a comforting meal.
Author:
Recipe type: main
Cuisine: Italian
Serves: 3 - 4 servings
Ingredients
  • 1 quart hot arrabiata sauce (or marinara sauce simmered for 10 mins with a tablespoon of pureed garlic, a squeeze of anchovy paste or a crushed anchovy fillet or two, and at least a teaspoon of red pepper flakes)
  • Two pounds deveined and shelled shrimp, no smaller than 21/25 (squeeze the tails off, too)
  • Olive or sunflower oil for sauteing
  • Three tablespoons garlic puree
  • ½ teaspoon dried oregano
  • Pinch or more of salt
  • One ciabatta loaf, cut in half lengthwise and then each half cut into four slices. You should wind up with eight flat trenchers
  • ½ cup good olive oil into which you have mixed two tablespoons of garlic puree, a little dried oregano and a bit of salt
  • ½ cup freshly grated or shredded parmesan cheese
Method
  1. Preheat oven to 375 F.
  2. Arrange bread slices on a sheet pan and brush olive oil mixture onto each
  3. Distribute cheese evenly onto bread slices
  4. Place bread in oven so it heats while you deal with the rest of the recipe
  5. Add olive or sunflower oil to a large saute pan and heat over medium flame until it's hot but not too hot, and then add shrimp
  6. Saute for about a minute, turn the flame down slightly and add the garlic, oregano and salt
  7. Saute until shrimp are just underdone, making sure the flame is low enough to keep the garlic from browning
  8. Add the hot arrabiata sauce to the shrimp, stir, put the lid on and turn off the burner
  9. Check bread. If tops are not slightly golden brown, turn oven up to broil or high convection for a minute or so. Don't burn the bread!
  10. Serve the sauce immediately in individual bowls with garlic-cheese bread on the side
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Easter 2018 and brussels sprouts with a blood orange dressing

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Brussels sprouts with blood orange vinaigrette

Brussels sprouts with blood orange vinaigrette

I’m back at the blog. After a long break. I apologize. I had a very good reason, trust me.

It’s Easter! The weather is great in the Bay Area, I got up early to feed my colony of puddytats in Richmond, the boys are watching the Mets and I’m waiting for Brussels sprouts to roast. We’re also having a cauliflower-potato mash and roast duck. Matthew, the pescatarian, is having shrimp scampi. The four monsters — Puff, Cleo, Nibbles and Tiger — are having tuna.

I haven’t looked at the blog for quite some time, and I decided yesterday that although I hate the theme I’m using I will leave it as-is for now. This is my favorite place to write because I can say what I want, when I want. There’s no focus and I don’t have to worry about much of anything. The point being that once I get into the whole design thing, which is what I’m doing with my new sites, I’ll become obsessed with perfection and lose sight of what this is all about here. I’m my own worst enemy that way.

So — Easter! A holiday I love because we keep it just to the four of us, so there’s no rush or need to have the house in any kind of real order. Not that it ever is, but I’m talking degrees.

The bummer is that I forgot to go to See’s to get candy. When Matt went today it was closed, so we are reduced to having Trader Joe’s peanut butter cups. Also, I miscalculated on the ice cream. I like to make ice cream sandwiches using chocolate chip cookies, and I then roll the sides in chips, wrap and freeze. I didn’t get the ice cream at Costco, where I got the duck, which, by the way, happens to be Maple Leaf Farms and only $15, because it would have stood in the way of my eating a package of poke in the hot dog area. Yes, Costco has really good poke. If you’ve never had it, it’s Hawaiian raw fish salad. Poke is a big thing in Cali now. Lots of good poke places around, which makes me very happy.

Back to the ice cream problem. My Grocery Outlet always has a boatload of high-end, low-overrun organic ice cream in myriad flavors. Except yesterday, of course, when they had a dreadful selection, like a million pints of Hostess Sno Balls flavor. I dug out a couple of pints of chocolate peanut butter swirl So Delicious soy-based ‘scream amid all the horrors and figured it’d pass. Matthew nevertheless thought it wise to get some vanilla at TJ, but the Humboldt organic they usually carry was out, so he came home with a quart of TJ-brand coffee-flavored. I don’t like the Trader Joe’s store brand of ice cream. It has an odd mouthfeel. I prefer their soy ice cream, which is the logic I used at Grocery Outlet when I went with the So Delicious. I won’t be making the cookie sandwiches, though. You need fabulous vanilla ice cream for those, no question.

Anywho, I need to go deal with the duck, so I hope you have a great day today whatever you’re doing, and here’s the recipe for the Brussels sprouts. It’s simple but delicious. Works well for Christmas or Thanksgiving, too.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Blood Orange Dressing
 
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A colorful vegetable side dish served warm or at room temperture.
Author:
Recipe type: Side dish
Cuisine: American
Ingredients
  • 2 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed and cut lengthwise
  • 2 blood oranges
  • Sunflower oil (for roasting)
  • Hazelnut or roasted sunflower oil (can sub a mix of peanut and regular sunflower oils)
  • Dried shallots (can sub dried onion)
  • Lemon juice (need only a splash)
  • Sugar (need only a little)
  • Salt & pepper
Method
  1. Remove the rind from the blood oranges in strips with a vegetable peeler.
  2. Squeeze the juice out of the blood oranges into a large bowl.
  3. Add hazelnut oil. A few tablespoons should be fine.
  4. Add a splash of lemon juice, a tablespoon of sugar and a little salt and pepper.
  5. Add a good tablespoon of the dried shallots.
  6. Whisk, taste and correct seasonings to your liking. The dressing should be bright and toasty with a hint of sweetness. If too thin, add oil.
  7. Let the dressing bloom at room temperature while you roast the sprouts.
  8. Oil a sheet pan generously with sunflower oil and sprinkle on some salt.
  9. Lay the sprouts cut side down and then scatter a little more oil and salt on top.
  10. Scatter the blood orange peel on top of the sprouts.
  11. Roast in a 375 degree F. oven for 20 minutes or so, depending. You don't want them too soft.
  12. Allow to cool for 5 minutes and then transfer the sprouts gently to the bowl with the dressing and turn with a spoon every now and then until they're warm or at room temperature and serve.
  13. Top with fried onions, first, if you like
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Best banana bread recipe really is

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I never, and I mean never, post recipes here that I find on the Web. I am going to make an exception for this banana bread recipe, which claims to be “Best Banana Bread.”

It is. By far. It calls for 4 bananas. You know it’s going to be a moist quick bread just from the looks of the batter.

Banana bread batter in cake pan

Here’s the finished product.

Banana bread ready in square cake pan

I often make quick bread in a square cake pan. We like it that way. You need not worry about slicing evenly, and slices falling apart. You get it.

It’s hot as blazes in the Bay Area right now, but I have guests from Germany who wanted some typical American fare. Given that I had some overripe bananas hanging around, I Googled “best banana bread” and that is exactly what I got.

More to come when things turn chilly around here.

Here’s a link to the recipe.

http://www.food.com/recipe/best-banana-bread-2886

 

Caramel in a Pinch

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Caramel in a glass jar

If you find you’re in need of caramel and don’t want to go through the full spiel, read on.

Caramel elevates most everything it’s added to, and to have a decent caramel sauce available with little notice and a reduced chance of being maimed by sugar cooked above 230 deg F. — which is what you do to make it the “real” way — is heaven.

This quick recipe is more milky than traditionally-made caramel, which, in a nutshell, involves cooking sugar to a high temperature and then cutting it with butter and/or heavy cream.

To make it the quick way you cook a little butter and sugar and then add a can of sweetened condensed milk and continue to cook it.  The whole thing takes about 30 minutes, give or take.

Let’s start with something even easier, though.

can of sweetened condensed milk with lid open

Dulce de Leche

If you use only sweetened condensed milk, you’ll be making dulce de leche, a caramelized milk and sugar confection.

Some people boil a can of sweetened condensed milk for several hours, but it’s dangerous. If you don’t keep it completely submerged the whole time it can explode, and you don’t want any part of that.

I generally just cook the sweetened condensed milk down slowly in a saucepan.

I sometimes put it in little canning jars, place them in my slow cooker, completely submerge them under water, and cook on low for 7 hours or so — making sure the jars remain completely submerged.  If you try this, be sure to take them out carefully when done, like with jar lifters, and allow them to cool down some before you open anything. Whatever you do, don’t put hot jars on a cold surface or they’ll crack!  I got the slow cooker/canning jar idea here.

Quick Caramel with Butter

If you want a buttery-milky faux caramel, use the recipe I’ve included at the end of this posting.

You’ll need only a little white sugar (it’ll work better than organic sugar), a little butter and sweetened condensed milk.

leftover caramel in a blue bowl

Because I assume you need a topping for that quart of ice cream burning a hole in your freezer and not because you’re producing artisanal candies, I think you’ll be happy with the result.

If it’s thick, you can thin it with milk or cream.

If it’s grainy, you can sieve it.

Just don’t burn the caramel.  If you burn it, it is not salvageable, and you will be unhappy.

Quick Caramel Sauce
 
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If you have a little butter and a little sugar and a can of sweetened condensed milk on hand, you can make a respectable caramel sauce.
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Ingredients
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons white sugar (organic or brown sugar can sometimes cause graininess)
  • 1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
  • Milk or cream to thin, if needed
Method
  1. Cook sugar and butter in small saucepan over moderate heat until sugar has melted
  2. Add sweetened condensed milk and combine well with sugar/butter mixture
  3. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly with heat-proof spatula
  4. Cook until you get the color and consistency you want. DO NOT BURN!
  5. If too thick, CAREFULLY thin with heavy cream or milk while still in the saucepan and combine well. The mass will be VERY HOT and it may bubble up when you add the milk or cream!
  6. If grainy, just press through a sieve
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The CSA Experience: Part 6

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Leeks in two parts. One end for broth, the other to use in a dish

Remember when I made the leek and feta scramble in installment 2 of this series?  I was then left with tough leek ends.

I used those ends today to make a soup with potatoes and ham.

Not so sexy, I know.

I promised I’d keep you informed about how I incorporate my biweekly CSA box from Albert & Eve into my life.  I think it’s helpful to have the whole story, not just cherry-picked recipes and photos of the beautiful stuff.  For every lovely dish of rainbow carrots or braised artichokes you put out out you’re going to have to figure out what to do with a whole mess of green onions.  Or trimmings.

While not every dish can be mind-blowing, they can all be tasty, even when they’re frugal,
and frugality is a must with a CSA box or you’ll wind up with some of it in the recycle bin.

The possibly of that makes me nuts.

Take the artichokes, for example.

I’m constantly thinking about them — even though I have a master plan.  They’ve been sitting in the fridge for over a week now, wrapped in damp paper towels to keep them lively.

Pending some kind of major problem, I’ll be getting another three artichokes in my next box.  I want to make all of them at the same time rather than just the three I received in my first box.  You see, I have four people.  There will be a general outcry if I come out with less than one per head.

Back to the leek ends and leek broth.

Leek broth is great for soups that benefit from mild oniony flavor.  Potato soup works especially well.

If you have a bunch of leek ends, a few big potatoes and some leftover ham or pork you’re in business. You won’t end up with a pretty, fancy-pants soup, but it’ll be plenty comforting.

This is why I’m always throwing odd little bags of leftover meat in the freezer and why you should, too.  Raw or cooked — doesn’t matter.

potato and leek soup

The soup in the photo has some green flecks in it because I tossed in the leftover bohr kale tapenade from installment 5.  Why not?  The tapenade has a complementary flavor profile, and leek and kale go very well together.

Here, then, are the instructions for this frugal soup.

Potato & Pork Soup with Leek Broth
 
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Use the dark green parts of your leeks to make a broth for a highly-customizable potato-pork soup.
Author:
Recipe type: Soup
Cuisine: American
Ingredients
  • Dark green ends of 7 or 8 leeks, rinsed and chopped into 1-inch pieces
  • 8 cups water
  • 3 large Russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
  • Kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • Leftover cooked roast pork, cubed, shredded or sliced, as desired. You can use ham, if that's what you have, or even chicken. Leftover chicken thigh meat works very well. Keep the pieces small so they heat through fairly quickly.
Method
  1. Place leeks in pot large enough to make soup and cover with the water.
  2. Bring to a boil and then simmer for about 30 minutes.
  3. Strain broth and return to pot, discarding leek pieces.
  4. Add potatoes.
  5. Remove enough broth so that the potatoes are just covered. If you don't have enough broth, add a little water. It all depends upon the size of the potatoes you used.
  6. Add salt & pepper. If the pork you are using for this dish is salty, then keep that in mind when you add salt at this step.
  7. Bring to a boil.
  8. Simmer until potatoes are just about done.
  9. Add pork and bring back to a simmer.
  10. Cook until potatoes are done.
  11. Stamp potatoes with a potato masher, or end of a wire whisk, so that you wind up with a thick, chunky soup.
  12. Adjust seasonings.
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