Brooklyn Forager

The July 2010 Daring Cooks’ Challenge was hosted by Margie of More Please and Natashya of Living in the Kitchen with Puppies. They chose to challenge Daring Cooks to make their own nut butter from scratch, and use the nut butter in a recipe. Their sources include Better with Nut Butter by Cooking Light Magazine, Asian Noodles by Nina Simonds, and Food Network online.

You really can't go wrong with nut butters and I've definitely wanted to explore a bit beyond my usual peanut butter, so this challenge was very exciting.  Exciting until I remembered that my food processor isn't being cooperative.  Luckily, our fearless hosts allowed some flexibility and so I got to play with peanut butter and will definitely make the rest of the recipes offered up in this challenge in coming months to try them all out. 

The upside to being a little less adventurous with this challenge is that I found a recipe that actually was really easy to prep the night before and will make an interesting, tasty and fairly healthy lunch for work.  I don't usually get that out of these challenges. 

The recipe I went with was the Asian Noodles with Cashew Dressing.  I hoped upon hope that Trader Joe's would have cashew butter for me to test out, but as they didn't, I went for peanut butter with flax seeds.  Still a bit of an experiment, if not a challenge. 

Food processing the old fashioned way!I made the dressing the night before with peanut butter, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, garlic and ginger (and, of course, sriracha for heat).  The recipe calls for 3 tablespoons of sugar and while I decided to go with 2 instead, I completely forgot about substituting with another sweetener - definitely go for it. Of course the recipe also called for a food processor here, but I used some elbow grease and a whisk since bits of garlic and ginger never worried anyone around here. 

Next, I sliced up some cucumbers, carrots and fresh green beans and mixed them together with cashew pieces and chopped Thai basil (from the garden!) and let that hang out in the fridge.  Then...I rested. 

Before work I quickly cooked up some rice noodles to finish off the salad and assembled in the morning.  Success! A light, crunchy, nutty salad that is easy to assemble in the morning and bring on the road - think work, picnics, car travel...

Stay tuned for further installments of my nut butter adventures wherein I actually make my own and play with things like cashews and pecans. 

Asian Noodle Salad with Cashew (or Peanut) Dressing (adapted from Daring Cooks Challenge)
Yield: 4 servings

Recipe notes: Customize the salad by adding or substituting your favorite vegetables. Shredded cabbage, bean sprouts, and slivered carrots would make nice additions. Obviously, you can omit the shrimp, or substitute chicken or tofu or the protein of your choice. The dressing is equally as good with peanut butter rather than cashew butter. We tested the dressing with nut butters made from salted cashews & peanuts with good results.

Ingredients:

Cashew Butter:
1 cup (240 ml) cashews*

Cashew Dressing:
½ inch (1 cm) slice of fresh ginger, chopped
8 cloves garlic, more or less to taste, chopped
½ cup (120 ml) cashew butter
¼ cup (60 ml) soy sauce
3 Tablespoons (45 ml) sugar
3 Tablespoons (45 ml) vinegar
3 Tablespoons (45 ml) toasted sesame oil
¼ cup plus 1 Tablespoon (75 ml) water
Hot sauce to taste (optional)

Noodle Salad:
1/2 pound (225 g) linguine or thin rice noodles
1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil
1/2 pound (225 g) small or medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 large red bell pepper, cored and seeded, cut into thin strips
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, sliced
1/4 cup (60 ml) sliced green onions
1/4 cup (60 ml) chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon (15 ml) chopped cashews (optional garnish)
Lime wedges (optional)

Directions:

1. Make cashew butter: Grind cashews in food processor for about 2 minutes until smooth. (*Or start with ½ cup (120 ml) prepared cashew butter.)
2. Prepare cashew dressing: Combine ginger, garlic, cashew butter, soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, sesame oil, and water in food processor or blender. Process/blend until smooth. Be sure to process long enough to puree the ginger and garlic. The dressing should be pourable, about the same thickness as cream. Adjust consistency – thinner or thicker -- to your liking by adding more water or cashew butter. Taste and add your favorite hot sauce if desired. (If the cashew butter was unsalted, you may want to add salt to taste.) Makes about 1 ½ cups (360 ml) dressing. Store any leftover dressing in the refrigerator.
3. Prepare noodles according to package instructions in salted water. Rinse and drain noodles. Set aside.
4. Heat oil in large non-stick pan over medium heat. Add shrimp to the pan and sauté for about 3 to 4 minutes or until opaque throughout. Alternately, cook shrimp in boiling water for about 2 to 3 minutes or until done.
5. Slice basil into thin ribbons. Combine noodles, bell pepper, cucumber, onions, and basil in a large bowl. Add about ½ cup (120 ml) cashew dressing; toss gently to coat. Add more cashew dressing as desired, using as much or as little as you’d like. Scatter shrimp on top. Squeeze fresh lime juice over salad or serve with lime wedges. Sprinkle with chopped cashews if desired.

I started out my enjoyment of cheese in a very limited fashion - all Cracker Barrel Cheddar, all the time.  While there are still some cheeses that I'm not rushing out to try, I have expanded my tastes greatly over time.  For my new love of feta, I credit my husband.  A friend showed me that feta really isn't all that strong and really is good, but his insistence on Greek salads for much of the last year at a local pizza joint made me actually start craving feta on my own. 

This salad came about because of one of those cravings.  I have had a box of Trader Joe's Israeli couscous on my shelf for awhile and wanted to use it.  I also have relatively unfettered access to mint from our herb garden (I've been instructed to let the other herbs have a chance to grow before I dive in).  With these three ingredients, I found myself with an interesting couscous salad and a new way to make shrimp.  By combining these two recipes, a regular dish in our household was born. 

I served this with an interesting value wine that I picked up on the $12 and under table at Brooklyn Wine Exchange.  I've found myself looking for white wines as the weather turns bright, but I'm over a lot of the oaky buttery chardonnays that I used to enjoy.  Enter the 2008 Ermita de Nieve Verdejo, a Spanish white with a lot of floral perfume and some pineapple notes that made it crisp enough and bold enough to be very enjoyable with food.  It is touted as a great alternative to sauvignon blanc.  I recommend checking it out if the weather ever heats up again!

Roasted Sea Salt Shrimp (adapted from The Barefoot Contessa, see above)

• 12 jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
• olive oil
• sea salt
• fresh cracked black pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

1. Preheat oven to 400F. (If you have a convection or toaster oven, think about that since it heats up the kitchen way less!)
2. Toss shrimp with olive oil, garlic, sea salt and pepper to taste.  Spread evenly in foil-covered baking dish. 
3. Roast for 5-6 minutes.  (Watch closely.  It's easy to go just a touch over the edge and end up with dry shrimp). 

Toasted Israeli Couscous with Feta and Mint (adapted from Fine Cooking, see above)

Serves 4

• 1 1/3 cup Israeli couscous (one Trader Joe's package)
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped mint (spearmint, peppermint or pineapple mint work well)
• 1/2 English cucumber or regular cucumber, peeled, seeded (if necessary) and diced
• 1 cup grape tomatoes, sliced in halves or thirds depending on size
• pickled red onions or sliced red onions
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tbsp pickling liquid from onions or red vinegar
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup finely diced or crumbled feta cheese
• 1 tsp. lemon zest, optional

1. Add two tablespoons olive oil to heavy saucepan (or large skillet if you want to dirty two pans).  Add couscous and saute gently until golden brown. 
2. Add water or broth as directed by couscous package, roughly 10 minutes. (See original recipe for suggestions if needed.)  Drain and rinse under cool water.  Add couscous to large bowl and toss with cucumber, tomato, onions and mint. 
3. In a small bowl, mix 1/4 cup olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar and black pepper.  (Add zest if using.)  Add feta to dressing.  Toss dressing with couscous. 
4. Add roasted shrimp or another protein.  Consider grilled chicken, seasoned tofu, pine nuts or other options as well. 
5. NOTE: We ate two servings on the first night and the leftovers one day later.  The dish still tasted fresh and maybe even a bit better as the flavors melded. 

The final mezze project that I attempted was preserved lemons.  I absolutely love Meyer lemons and they were actually in season and available at Trader Joe's, so I went for it.  I found a variety of preserved lemons throughout the internet and decided to stay close to home, once again using From Tapas to Meze (this book obviously earned its spot on the shelf after this past project) to keep things simple.

The recipe calls for juicing the lemons and placing the rinds and flesh into a jar with bay leaves, cinnamon and loads of salt.  The juice is poured over the lemons to cover and like magic, in a couple of weeks, you have preserved lemons! It really can't be easier.

What isn't so easy, however, is finding a way to use them.  Every recipe I found said that they tasted great in all manner of salads, dressings and other dishes.  Without really giving me a road map to what those other dishes might be.  Luckily, my Mediterranean handbook had a recipe for a Preserved Lemon, Tomato and Red Onion Salad. 

The salad seemed like something that would be beautiful in the summer and not so much in the winter.  In order to capture the best flavors, I hunted down some heirloom greenhouse baby tomatoes in a variety of colors to maximize flavor and visual appeal.  I tweaked the dressing a bit because of available ingredients in the rest of my kitchen and in the end really liked the result.

I have to admit that I tasted the preserved lemon on its own and a sweet lemon is turned into something more caustic with the salt and bay, but as an ingredient, it added a special layer to the salad dressing.  I do have another recipe coming using these preserved lemons, so we'll see if I can develop more ways to use these beautiful fruits.

Moroccan Preserved Lemons (adapted from From Tapas to Meze)

• 8 Meyer lemons (these are available from Jan. - Mar.)
• 1/2 cup kosher salt
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 4 bay leaves
• Additional freshly squeezed lemon juice, if needed

1. Cut lemons in quarters, keeping the sections attached at the stalk end (do not cut all the way through.  Squeeze the juice from the lemons and set aside.
2. Cover lemon quarters with good sprinkling of salt. 
3. Place 1 tablespoon salt in the bottom of a canning jar.  Pack in the lemon quarters, pushing them down and adding tablespoons of salt, cinnamon sticks and bay leaves between the lemons. 
4. Cover lemons with juice.  Add more if needed to cover lemons, leaving a bit of headspace in the jar.
5. Place lid on jar and let lemons sit in a warm place for about 3 weeks, turning the jar upside down periodically to distribute salt and juices (do not store upside down, simply turn and replace).
6. When using lemons, remove from the brine with a clean utensil.  Remove pulp (it will peel easily off), wash peel and use as directed.
7. Will keep for up to 1 year.

Tomato, Red Onion and Preserved Lemon Salad (adapted from From Tapas to Meze)

• 2 pints heirloom cherry tomatoes, diced (the more colors the better)
• 1 small red onion, diced
• 1 1/2 preserved lemon, diced
• 6 tbsp olive oil
• 4 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint (cilantro would also be great)
• 3/4 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Combine tomatoes, onions and preserved lemons in a bowl.  Set aside. 
2. Whisk together remaining ingredients.  Season with salt and pepper to taste. 
3. Toss vinaigrette with tomato mixture and marinate at least 30 minutes (not more than 1 hour) at room temperature.
4. Serve and enjoy!

Along with the fabulous pita breads (if I do say so myself) for last month's Daring Cooks Challenge, I served falafel and a couple of salads.  I have often thought about making falafel from scratch, but usually reverted to the mix in a box which really isn't bad and is certainly quick and easy.  The optional challenge recipes included one for falafel which used actual chick peas and all purpose flour instead of chick pea flour which can be harder for me to find.  So I figured I would go with it!

This recipe is nothing if not simple.  The very accessible list of ingredients goes into the food processor and then waits patiently in the refrigerator until you are ready to form it into balls or patties and fry or bake them.  I went the baking route, forming falafel balls slightly bigger than the suggested walnuts.  I baked them at 375F for 25 minutes, as suggested, in a convection oven which tends to cook things faster than your conventional oven. 

I will say that this turned out a soft-in-the-middle chick pea doughnut rather than the crispy bread-like falafel ball that I am generally accustomed to from a restaurant kitchen.  Next time I will flatten the balls a bit, or make them smaller, and perhaps cook for longer.  The result was tasty, but when I'd gotten so excited for a familiar taste, it was just different enough to make me re-think the process.

As for the Cucumber-Yogurt Salad (or Tzatziki), I again used From Tapas to Meze as my source.  In recipes that call for straining yogurt, I take a shortcut and use Greek yogurt.  They did the straining for you and the taste is fabulous.  (European-style yogurt at Trader Joe's is not Greek-style.  Be forewarned!) This was, perhaps, the biggest hit of our Mezze party.  This could be used for all manner of meals.

Falafel (Adapted from Joan Nathan and Epicurious.com)
Prep Time: 1 hour

• 1 cup drained and rinsed chickpeas
• 1/2 large onion (roughly chopped, about 1 cup)
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped OR use a couple pinches of dried parsley (.2 ounces/5 grams)
• 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped OR use a couple pinches of dried cilantro (.2 ounces/5 grams)
• 1 teaspoon table salt (.1 ounce/5 grams)
• 1 teaspoon dried hot red peppers (cayenne) (.1 ounce/2 grams)
• 4 whole garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 teaspoon cumin (.1 ounce/2 grams)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder (.13 ounces/4 grams)
• 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour (1 ounce/24 grams) (you may need a bit extra)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325F.
2. Place the drained, uncooked chickpeas and the onions in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the parsley, cilantro, salt, hot pepper, garlic, and cumin. Process until blended but not pureed. If you don’t have a food processor, then feel free to mash this up as smooth as possible by hand.
3. Sprinkle in the baking powder and 4 tablespoons of the flour, and pulse. You want to add enough bulgur or flour so that the dough forms a small ball and no longer sticks to your hands. Turn into a bowl and refrigerate, covered, until ready to bake, at least 1 hour.
4. Form the chickpea mixture into balls about the size of walnuts.
5. Bake until golden and firm, about 20 minutes. 

 Tzatziki or Cucumber-Yogurt Salad (adapted from From Tapas to Meze)

• 2 cups Greek yogurt, full or low fat (although 0% might be fine)
• Sea salt
• 1/2 medium cucumber, peeled and seeded
• 4 garlic cloves, minced (or mashed in mortar in pestle if you have the patience)
• 1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
• 2 tsp fresh mint, chopped
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

1. Grate the cucumber with a coarse grater to make about 1 cup.  Place over cheesecloth in strainer (or paper towel/tea towel).  Sprinkle lightly with salt and let drain 30 minutes.
2. Combine yogurt, cucumber, garlic, herbs and olive oil.  Mix well.  Add lemon juice and salt to taste.  Let sit 1 hour before using.
3. Serve with pita bread, vegetable crudite, gyros, souvlaki, all manner of chicken dishes or eat with a spoon!

IMG_0162, originally uploaded by Brooklyn Forager.

(Please forgive the quality of the photos lately. Camera issues, so I'm relying on the old iPhone)

A quick breeze through the farmers' market over the weekend brought us a last blast spelt salad complete with all local ingredients. I found some beautiful heirloom tomatoes including a green zebra, some crisp cucumbers and radishes. With these, I chopped up some fresh basil and mint from our garden and tossed them all in a red wine vinaigrette. The final ingredient was some warm local spelt cooked in vegetable broth and white wine. I tossed the vegetables and the warm spelt together and got a nice warm grain salad with lovely crunch and late summer flavors.