It might be ugly, but it tasted delicious

UPDATE: I was sort of regretting posting this because it's ugly and not really a recipe, but then Melissa Clark just validated that whole decision. 

I guess this is why food stylist is a profession...because there are ways to make your food look appetizing that I don't know about. But I can assure you this was might tasty. Let me explain!

One of the struggles I have with food blogs is that they only present the pretty and challenging recipes. But often what I want is inspiration for something I can cook when I come home from work starving and doesn't take much thought to make. I have a bunch of recipes like this but the thing is that they aren't...recipes. And I think people need to be a lot less tied to the structure of a recipe. Just because this didn't come from a cookbook doesn't mean I can't share it with you! Sometimes you just throw things together and it tastes good! That's why Mark Bittman is the patron saint of this blog.

So last night when I got home from my soccer game (we lost. Don't worry about) I whipped myself up this ugly dish that is pretty much the most delicious thing ever. The inspiration came from this (which I make all the time and don't even use the recipe any more) and this (which I hope to make as soon as I get my hands on some Brussels sprouts). It's a bastardization of a lot of things, but the kimchi is key to give it a little something special and it turns out tasty every time. And that's all that matters.

I didn't follow my own flipping directions...

Cabbage Kimchi Pancake
Serves 2

Cabbage
Leek or onion
Kimchi (I like the Super Spicy Mama O's as a vegetarian option)
Flour (any is fine. I used garbonzo flour because it's what I had)
2 or 3 eggs
Salt
Oil 
Sriracha (to serve)

Shred some cabbage. Preferably not purple cabbage since it turns the pancake blue though if you don't care, I guess that doesn't matter. Shred enough cabbage that looks like a reasonable serving for two people  but that will also not overflow from your skillet. Since cabbages vary greatly by size, you'll just have to eyeball it. Throw the shredded cabbage into a bowl. Slice up the leek or onion. Add that to the cabbage. Or don't if you don't have any around! Add some kimchi. Add a bunch. You really can't go wrong with too much Kimchi. 

Sprinkle some flour on the chopped ingredients. You don't want too much flour! You just want to coat everything with a dusting of flour. So start slowly, toss to combine, and see how it looks. Once you have enough BUT NOT TOO MUCH flour, crack the eggs in a separate bowl and whisk. Season with salt. Pour over the cabbage mixture and stir to combine. Everything should be just barely coated with flour/egg.

Heat up a large skillet over medium-high heat. Generously coat the skillet with oil. Pour in all of the cabbage mixture to make one giant pancake. Press down with your spatula to flatten. Check the bottom regularly by lifting slightly with a spatula, until it is golden brown. This is when it gets hard. Turn off the heat, just in case. Find a large cutting board and put it over the skillet. Protect each hand with a towel so you don't burn yourself. Over a work surface, keeping your hand on the cutting board, invert the skillet over the cutting board and lift the skillet so the pancake is cooked side-up on the cutting board. Return the skillet to the burner. Turn the heat back on, add a little more oil. Slide the pancake (cooked-side up) back into the skillet and cook until done. Let cool slightly on the cutting board before serving and eating.

Eat with lots of sriracha. SO GOOD.

Operation Use Up All the Za'atar

Za'atar popcorn: popcorn + olive oil + salt + za'atar (duh)
(Thank you to Kat for the idea!)

Wisconsin

When I was home this summer I persuaded my parents to drive up to Wisconsin for a few days, and it was everything you'd hope it would be an more. We stayed in New Glarus and got our fill of kitsch and beer, after going to Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin to get some nature and culture in there too. Lots of beer and cheese was consumed by all.

Two Potato Vindaloo

I think I may have stretched the limits of my weeknight cooking. While this recipe was very delicious, there was more than a little too much chopping for a dinner that started to be made at 7 pm. Yotem is right, though, the leftovers are delicious.

Two potato vindaloo
From Yotem Ottolenghi's Plenty

8 cardamom pods
1 tbsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp coriander seeds
1/2 tsp cloves
1/4 ground turmeric
1 tsp sweet paprika
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp vegetable oil
12 shallots, chopped
1/2 tsp brown mustard seeds
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
25 curry leaves
2 tbsp chopped ginger
1 fresh red chili, finely chopped
3 ripe tomatoes, roughly shopped
50 ml cider vinegar
400 ml water
1 tbsp sugar
400 g peeled waxy potatoes, diced
2 red peppers, diced
400 g peeled sweet potatoes, diced
salt
mint or coriander to serve

Start by making the spice mix. Dry-roast the cardamom pods and cumin and coriander seeds in a small frying pan until they begin to pop. Transfer to a mortar and pestle and add the cloves. Work into a fine powder, removing and discarding the cardamom pods once the seeds are released. Add the turmeric, paprika and cinnamon and set aside.

Heat up the oil in a large heavy-based pot. Add the shallots with the mustard and fenugreek seeds, and saute on a medium-low heat until the shallots brown. Stir in the spice mix, curry leaves, ginger and chili and cook for a further 3 minutes. Next, add the tomatoes, vinegar, water, sugar and some salt. Bring to a boil, then leave to simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.

Add the potatoes and red peppers and simmer for another 20 minutes. For the last stage, add the sweet potatoes. Make sure all the vegetables are just immersed in the sauce (add more water if needed) and continue cooking, covered, for about 40 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.

Remove the lid and leave to bubble away for about 10 minutes to reduce and thicken the sauce. Serve hot, with plain rice and garnished with herbs.

Sweet potato soup with feta and za'atar oil

The problem with food as souvenirs is that I find myself unable to actually eat the food because I want to preserve the memory. I didn't actually GO to Israel, but I like being reminded of my friend who lived there every time I look at my jar of za'atar.

My giant jar of za'atar that I will never, ever get through. I got a little greedy last year when this friend brought back a little half pint container of the stuff, and my roommate and I finished it within weeks. There's something about this Israeli za'atar that was zestier and less sawdust-like than the giant bag of it I had bought at Sahadi's. So obviously when my friend was going back to visit her boyfriend, I requested a much larger amount.

Hence, the 20 oz or so of the stuff that I am slowly getting my way through. Maybe you want to take some off my hands?

Sweet potato soup with feta and za'atar oil
Adapted from Food52

1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons za'atar
1 tbsp butter
1 medium onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
1 leek, thinly sliced
5 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into a 1" dice
2 quarts vegetable stock
feta cheese

In a small pot, combine the olive oil and za'atar and heat over medium heat until warmed-through. Be careful not to burn the za'atar. Pour into a bowl and set aside to cool and infuse.

In a large pot, melt the butter with a few glugs of olive oil. Add the onion, carrot and leek and cook until soft but not browned. Add the sweet potato and cook for another 5 minutes. Pour in the stock and bring to a boil. Simmer over lower heat for about half an hour, or until the potatoes are soft. Puree with an immersion blender and add more stock if too thick or cook down a bit if too thin. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

To serve, garnish with crumbled feta and za'atar oil to taste. That's it!

Note: I made this soup when a friend came over for dinner and made the scalloped tomatoes as well since I still had tomatoes and half a baguette in the house. Made it with capers this time...and as predicted it was good!

There shall be no dessert

I just thought this was funny.

Classy late dinner

Summer is over, and thankfully it's pleasant to spend some time in my kitchen again. Which is great for many reasons, but the main one being that I need to reacquaint myself with cooking. And vegetables.

I had a friend from college in town from Berlin so I invited a few more people over, and was excited to try out three (three!) new recipes on a school night. I've been trying to cook many things, instead of a few things often. The only problem I'm running in to is that all of these recipes are good, and I want to make them all the time. You can only have so many standbys on rotation before you get overwhelmed...

AND, once again, I'm reminded that somewhat-adventurous meals can be created on a weeknight. And though we did eat at a kind of unreasonable hour, at least it wasn't because I was cooking until 11 pm.

I made the above raw kale salad that--let's be real--is not a recipe. I just took one bunch of dinosaur kale, chopped it, and mixed it in a bowl with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste. Then I massaged the dressing into the leaves and let it sit while I made all the other food. To serve, I added one roasted sweet potato, finely diced and cooked at 400 degrees with olive oil and salt. Then grated Parmesan on the roughest grate (or biggest? not sure what you'd call that) to taste, and some chopped raw almonds. That's it!

Scalloped Tomatoes
Adapted from Sarah Leah Chase via Food52

3 tablespoons olive oil
2 1/2 cups diced baguette (1/2 dice or thereabouts)
2 1/2 pounds diced tomatoes (the best you can find)
3 cloves minced garlic
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
Parmesan
mint leaves

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Heat the olive oil in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add the bread cubes and fry until all are evenly browned, stirring often. Add the tomatoes, garlic and sugar and cook for another 5 minutes until warmed through, stirring often. Season with salt and pepper, add chopped mint leaves to taste (you could also add capers now, which I think I might do next time I make this recipe).

Pour the mixture into a medium (6 to 8 cup) baking dish. Drizzle a little more olive oil on top, then evenly cover with grated Parmesan cheese. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the tomatoes are bubbling and the cheese has browned. Serve hot or warm.

Plenty

I set myself a goal a few months ago to cook every recipe in Yotem Ottolenghi's book Plenty. But then I got a little sidetracked by the summer (too hot to cook) and laziness (too many ingredients to buy). So the first night I had dinner with friends planned this fall, I busted out that cookbook and made two very different,  yet equally awesome recipes. Actually, that's a lie. The tofu dish was more awesome, with a marinade I now want to put on everything.

 (you can't see the frantic mess I created in the rest of the kitchen...)

Note: I was pleasantly surprised that I started cooking at 7 pm and we were eating at a not unreasonable hour. What hour exactly, I don't remember.

Another note: my copy of Plenty is the British version, and I only converted some of the measurements. For instance, I don't know what a centimeter looks like, but I just kind of cut the peppers however I please. Winging it!

Okra with tomato, lemon and coriander
Adapted from Plenty

4 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tsp coriander seeds
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 red peppers, cut into 1cm wide stips
1 mild fresh red chili, deseeded and chopped
1/4 cup chopped parsley leaves
1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves
1 can of chopped tomatoes
1 tsp sweet paprika
2 tsp cugar
400 grams okra
3 tbsp finely chopped preserved lemon
30 pitted black olives, cut in half
1 1/2 tsp lemon juice
1 tbsp shredded mint
salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat up 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large sauce pan. Add the coriander seeds and onion and saute on medium heat until the onion softens without coloring. Add the red peppers, chili, parsley and half the chopped cilantro. Cook and stir until the peppers begin to soften.

Next, add the tomatoes (with any liquid), paprika, sugar and salt to taste. Leave to simmer, covered, for 15 minutes (or longer. I let this simmer while I prepped all the other food). Remove lid and continue cooking until the sauce is thick and has lost most of the excess liquid.

While making the tomato sauce, prep the okra. Remove the stalk end, being careful not to cut too low to keep the base of the stalk to seal the okra so the seeds are not exposed (note: I didn't do this and it was fine). Mix the okra with the remaining oil and some salt and spread over a roasting pan. Roast for 15-20 minutes, or until just tender but still firm.

Add the cooked okra to the tomato sauce. Stir gently, also mixing in the preserved lemon, olives and half of the remaining chopped cilantro. Taste and adjust the seasoning. However you decide to serve (hot, room temp, with rice, etc) mix in the lemon juice just before serving and garnish with the remaining coriander and mint. Serves 4.


Brussels sprouts and tofu
Adapted from Plenty

2 tbsp sriracha
1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp toasted sesame oil
1 tsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp maple syrup
1 package firm tofu
500 g brussels sprouts
3/4 cup canola oil
100 g scallions, sliced
1 small red chili, deseeded and finely chopped
120 g shiitake mushrooms, halved or quartered
1/4 cup cilantro
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
salt

First marinate the tofu. Whisk together in a bowl the sriracha, soy sauce, 2 tablespoons of seasame oil, the vinegar and maple syrup. Cut the tofu block into 1 cm thick slices then each slice into two squarish pieces. Gently stir to marinate and set aside.

Trim the bases off the sprouts and cut each from the top to bottom in three thick slices. Take a large pan, add 4 tablespoons of the canola oil and heat up well. Throw in half the sprouts with a little salt and cook on high heat for about 2 minutes. Don't stir much. You want the sprouts to almost burn in a few places and cook through but remain crunchy. Remove to a bowl. Repeat with more oil, salt and the rest of the sprouts. Remove the second batch and add the bowl with the first.

Add 2 more tablespoons of the canola oil to the pan, heat up and saute the scallions, chili and mushrooms for 1-2 minutes. Transfer to the sprout bowl. Leave the pan on a high heat.

Take half the marinated tofu and set aside for a later use. I used it to make tofu, lettuce and tomato sandwiches for lunch later in the week and it was pretty awesome.  Use tongs to lift half the remaining tofu pieces from the marinade and gently lay them in the pan (there will probably be some spitting!), spacing them apart and in one layer. Reduce the heat and cook until they get nice and caramelized on each side. Transfer to the sprout bowl and repeat with the rest of the tofu.

Once all the tofu is cooked, remove the pan from the heat and return all the cooked ingredients to it. Add the remaining tofu marinade and half the cilantro. Toss everything together and allow to cool down slightly in the pan. Taste and adjust the salt, if needed. Stir in the remaining sesame oil. Serve warm, but not hot, garnished with sesame seeds and the rest of the cilantro. Serves 4.

Baby Visit

I normally don't like to bake. It usually seems like a too large project that I take on when I have no time so I'm up baking until 1 am and stressed/angry. I also never seem to have the right ingredients in the house, so I have to run out to the only open corner store at 8 pm and buy their overpriced ingredients. Suddenly that tray of homemade brownies has cost me $25 and I pulled them out of the oven at 2:20 am. But recently I've been converted. By this recipe. 

I first made it for a birthday party. It was a hit. I made it to bring to my new mom friend when I went on a baby visit. Hit. I made it for book club. Hit. Each time I've slightly tweaked the recipe each time to create something extra tasty. And easy. And with a reasonably stocked kitchen, you probably don't need to buy anything. I want to try experimenting with different flours next. I think maybe cornmeal would be appropriate in there? Or buckwheat flour?

Olive Oil Yogurt Cake with Lemon

Adapted from Orangette

For the cake:

1/2 cup plain yogurt

1 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
zest of 1 lemon (or more to taste)
1/2 cup olive oil

For the glaze:
Juice from 2 lemons
1/4 cup powdered sugar


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

In a large bowl, combine the yogurt, sugar, and eggs, stirring until well blended. In a separate, bowl mix the flour, baking powder and lemon zest. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients until just mixed. Add the oil and stir to incorporate and make a smooth batter. Pour and scrape the batter into a buttered bundt pan (if it's a non-stick pan yous shouldn't need to add wax paper).

Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Do not overbake.

Cool cake on a rack for about 20 minutes; then turn it out of the pan to cool completely.
When the cake is thoroughly cooled, combine the lemon juice and powdered sugar in a small bowl and spoon it gently over the cake. The glaze will be thin and will soak in like a syrup.

New Home

New ideas. More words (except right now). Same name. I won't be deleting the Tumblr (EDIT: I accidentally deleted the Tumblr), but I'm excited to have a format to write more, post recipes (and not just links) and to get a lot more creative.

So let's get cooking.