WebliminalBlog

I bought some minimally processed boneless pork chops to have for supper. After looking in a few books I decided to use the recipe Pork Chops With Mustard from “ The Talisman Italian Cook Book,” by Ada Boni. The pork chops were very good. We had them with oven roasted potatoes and a green salad with avocado and pomegranate seeds.

Here is the recipe.

Ingredients:

• 4 pork loin chops, about 1/2 inch thick
• 1 TBL butter
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 TBL flour
• 1/2 Cup dry white wine
• 1/2 Cup stock
• 1/2 teaspoon prepared mustard
• 1 teaspoon capers
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper

Directions: Braise pork chops in skillet with butter, browning nicely about 20 minutes on each side. Remove chops from skillet. Place onion in skillet, brown slowly, blend in flour, add white wine and stock and boil gently until mixture is slightly thickened. Return chops to skillet, and simmer 10 minutes. Add mustard, capers, salt and pepper, mix well and serve. Serves 4.

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DoD Confirmation List

Latest Coalition Fatality: Dec 05, 2007

Source: Iraqi Coalition Casualty Count

This recipe is from The Catalan Country Kitchen, by Marimar Torres. In English its called “Glazed Leek and Cheese Tart.” It serves 8 to 10 people. We made it for the second annual tapas event at Denis and Maylou’s. A great array of tapas and friends. What a treat.

We made the tart following the instructions below. The pastry was especially good, and turned out well following the instructions. No substitutions, and getting things ready beforehand seemed to work well.

For the pastry

• 1 1/2 cups of whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) frozen unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 egg yolk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 5 tablespoons of ice water

For the filling

• 4 tablespoons of butter
• 3 bunches of leeks, thinly sliced, with one third of the green part (about 3 pounds after cleaning.)
• 3/4 teaspoon of salt, or to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne, or to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, or to taste
• 4 eggs (Plus 1 egg white, optional)
• 1 cup half and half
• 1 cup grated Gruyere or Emmenthaler cheese (1/4 pound)

To make the pastry dough: In a food processor, pulse flour and butter together until the mixture has the consistency of cornmeal. In a small bowl, mix together egg yolk, salt, and ice water; add to flour and butter mixture. Whirl until a ball of dough forms. (If a ball doesn’t quite form, remove dough and knead with your hands on a lightly floured surface for abotu 30 seconds.) Wrap the ball of dough in plastic and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before using.

To prepare the filling: In a large pot, melt the butter and, over very low heat saute leeks until they are dry and almost caramelized; this will take 45 minutes to an hour. Season with the salt, pepper, cayenne, and nutmeg. Let cool. In a large bowl, lightly beat eggs. Add cream and leeks, and mix well.

To prepare the tart: Preheat oven to 425 F. On a lightly floured board, roll out pastry thinly to fit a 9- or 10-inch tart pan about 1-1/2 inches deep. Trim away the excess doe. Line pastry shell with aluminum foil and weight it with pie weights or beans. Bake in 425 F oven for 15 minutes. Pick up foil by its edges and carefully lift it out of the pastry shell. Bake shell for another 5 to 10 minutes, or until lightly golden. Remove form oven. Reduce oven temperature to 375 F.

To assemble the dish: Pour leek mixture into pastry shell. Sprinkle cheese on top. Bake in 375 F oven for 45 minutes, or until cheese turns golden. Serve warm, cut into wedges.

A story accompanies each recipe in the book. Her is the one the author wrote for this recipe.

Lola Pijoan was a great chef and a great lady. She died in 1990, leaving behind a legacy of old Cataln recipes that I have enjoyed at Can Borrell, the enchanting restaurant and inn she ran with her husband, Jaume Guillen, in the village of Meranges, high in the Pyrennes mountains. Reached by narrow winding roads running through bucolic valleys and mountain landscapes, this area — called La Cerdanya — is one of the most beautiful in Catalunya. I chose this recipe from her extensive repertoire because not only it it one of my favorites, it was one of hers, too. And it can be served either as first course, as a tapa cut into small wedges, or as a light luncheon entree with a salad.

Last year we made Prawns in Garlic Sauce with Sweet Red Peppers from the same cookbook.

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DoD Confirmation List Latest Coalition Fatality: Jun 25, 2007

Source: Iraqi Coalition Casualty Count

A friend gave us some green tomatoes recently and I made a some green tomato chutney as a variation of the recipe “Green-Tomato Chutney” by Susie Quick. I had some friends over today who tried the chutney and got two requests for the recipe. Here’s what I used and did.

Ingredients:

1/2 c packed light-brown sugar
1/3 c cider vinegar
2 T peeled and minced fresh ginger
2 T minced onion
1/8 teaspoon dried hot red-pepper flakes
Pinch of kosher salt
2 1/2 pounds green tomatoes, seeded and chopped (about 2 cups)
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 c chopped cilantro

Process:

1. Bring the sugar, vinegar, ginger, onion, pepper flakes, and salt to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes, until syrupy.
2. Add raisins.
3. Add the tomatoes and simmer, stirring, 15 minutes, or until most of the liquid has evaporated and tomatoes are soft. Remove from heat and stir in cilantro. Let cool.

Enjoy.
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And today’s special is ..
Tyrant custom makes a slave of reason.

2790

This recipe is from The Catalan Country Kitchen, by Marimar Torres. We are making it for a party on Thursday night.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil
18 large garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
1/2 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
3 large red bell peppers seeded and cut into thin strips lengthwise
2 pounds medium prawns, peeled but with tails attached
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves

Directions:

Heat oil in a large skillet. Add garlic, pepper flakes, and red peppers; cook over low heat until peppers are soft, about 10 or 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Season with salt.
Turn heat to high and toss prawns in; stir and turn them over for 1 minute.
Pour lemon juice and wine over and saute quickly 1 or 2 more minutes, until the prawns are cooked through.
Serve immediately, sprinkled with parsley.

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And today’s special is ..
All we are saying, is give peace a chance. - John Lennon
2725

This is the recipe for the excellent crackers that we make and serve for company. They always get lots of positive comments, once people get over the fact that we make our own crackers sometimes. It’s not hard to make the crackers, and Lynn is the master at getting them thin enough for baking.

The recipe is from Simply Ming by Ming Tsai and Arthur Boehm with photographs by Alan Richardson. It contains several other great recipes in addition to this one.

“Make 4 pounds of dough. Lasts about 1 week, tightly wrapped and refrigerated, 3 to 4 weeks frozen.” We’ve kept the dough frozen longer than that and it has been fine.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon cumin seeds
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1/2 ounce (2 packages) active dry yeast
6 1/2 cups bread flour
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 teaspoons kosher salt

Steps:
1. using a motar and pestle, grind the cumin, coriander, fennel, and peppercorns and combine them in a medium bowl. Set aside.
2. In a 5-quart mixing bowl, combine in this order the yeast, 2 1/2 cups cold water, the flour, oil, garlic, and salt. Using a dough hook, mix at a low speed until the flour’s gluten is fully developed and the dough is smooth and doesn’t tear easily when stretched, about 15 minutes. Remove the dough from the machine and knead in the spices.
3. Cover the dough with plastic wrap. If using immediately, allow the dough to rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. Otherwise, refrigerate or freeze until ready to use.

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2717

This is the recipe for the excellent crackers that we make and serve for company. They always get lots of positive comments, once people get over the fact that we occasionally make our own crackers. Lynn is the master at getting them thin enough for baking. You’ll need the recipe for the Blue Ginger Cracker Dough hat I posted earlier .

The recipe is from Simply Ming by Ming Tsai and Arthur Boehm with photographs by Alan Richardson.

From Madhur Jaffrey’s Spice Kitchen. This recipe is a favorite of ours. The end result gets rave reviews.

1 1/2 pounds Salmon Fillet skin removed.
salt
freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/4 teaspoon brown mustard seeds
1/8 teaspoon fennel seeds
1/8 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
1/8 teaspoon kalonji
A large onion, peeled and cut in half lengthwise and then crosswise into thin half-rings
1 1 1/2 inch cube of fresh ginger, peeled and cut into very thin slices and then into very fine slivers
1 pound trimmed fresh spinach or chard, finely shredded
8 canned tomatoes, chopped, or fresh tomatoes, peeled and seeded
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste

Cut the salmon crosswise into 5 or 6 portions. Pull out the bones with a pair of tweezers. Sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides and set aside for 20 minutes or longer.
Heat oil in a very large frying pan or a very wide saute pan over medium-high heat. When very hot, add the cumin, mustard, seeds, fennel, fenugreek, and kalonji. Stir once or twice and quickly add the onions and ginger. Stir until the onion just starts to brown, then add the spinach. Saute for about 5 minutes, then add the tomatoes. Continue to saute for another 4 to 5 minutes. Add the cream and 2 cups of water, cayenne, 1 teaspoon salt, and some black pepper. Stir to mix and bring to a simmer. Simmer, uncovered, over low heat for 5 minutes. This can be done ahead of time.
Just before you sit down to eat, bring the sauce to a simmer again. Lay fish pieces in a single layer over the sauce. Spoon some of the thinner, more watery parts of the sauce over the fish. Cover. Simmer for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the fish has just cooked through.

Delicious!

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And today’s special is ..
We must select the illusion which appeals to our temperament and embrace it with passion, if we want to be happy. - Cyril Connolly
2225

Dr. Bruce’s Awesome Grilled Salmon

Here is the salmon recipe in case you want it.
Dr. Bruce’s Awesome Grilled Salmon from “Feeding the Whole Family” by Cynthia Lair, ISBN 9780931055973.
That is out of print, but a newer version, ISBN 0966034619, is available at Amazon.

2-3 pounds Salmon Fillet. We use king salmon, wild caught in Alaska. Using a tweezer, remove pin bones from salmon.

Marinade:
2/3 cup tamari or shoyu
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
2 Tablespoons grated ginger root
Juice of 1 large lime
4 cloves of garlic, minced
4 scallions, finely chopped (we sometimes leave this out)

To marinate:
Whisk all the liquids and ginger, garlic, and scallions together. Place fish in a shallow pan and pour marinade over the top. Allow to marinate 1 hour in the refrigerator. This can also be marinated out of the refrigerator, and its best to do that if the fish has been defrosted so it gets to an even temperature throughout.

To grill:
Get the grill ready - be sure the coals are white if you’re using charcoal, or heat the grill if you’re using propane. You can also do this indoors using your stove’s broiler. Put the fish skin side down on the grill. Brush or spoon marinade form dish over the salmon. There is always too much marinade to do this with all of it at once. I put marinade over the fish several times as it’s cooking. Grill about 5 minutes (the author says a rule of thumb is to cook the salmon 10 minutes for each inch of thickness, and that matches my experience.) Turn the fish over and remove the skin. it should come off very easily. Put more marinade on the fish and grill for another five minutes. You’ll have to decide after that whether it is done. Pry open a piece to see how it looks. Be sure not to overcook.
We’ve been making this recipe for years, and it is one of our favorites. The salmon always gets raves from family and friends.