Sunday, April 21, 2013

LOVE SUNDAY NIGHT DINNER

I just love Sunday night dinner. After a long week of work, study and the "stuff" of life, the inspiration and repose of church in the morning sets the tone for the week. What better way to jump back into the new week than preparing and enjoying a wonderful meal, full of the good things God provides.

Sunday night used to be Family dinner when we lived together as a family. It was always special regardless of the menu. Sometimes it was at the table, other times on the floor or couch gathered around the fire or at the kitchen island joking and playing as we ate. I still enjoy Sunday night dinner, Sola. I remember the good times in the past, but also enjoy and appreciate what I now have and celebrate it with making myself a nice meal!

So often I hear people say, "I love (this or that food), but I have no one to cook for." WELL..you have YOU to cook for, so why NOT??  It is wonderful to give others pleasure with the food you prepare with love, but you and I also deserve this love and pleasure.

Tonight I enjoyed Fresh Caught Trout Almondine with Tumeric Scented Basmati Rice and Peas and a Kale Salad with Avocado, Roasted Pepper and Red Onion.



You don't really need a recipe to create a meal like this. It is simple and fun to put together.
I coated the trout with seasoned flour, I used lemon pepper from Penzeys; you can use anything you like.
The trout was sauteed in butter from grass fed cows,( beautiful, yellow and rich) for about 3-4 minutes a side. I removed it from the pan, added more butter to saute the almonds, squeezed in some lemon juice and tossed in some chopped parsley. Pour this over the trout and voila! Trout Almondine.

The rice is basmati and very fragrant by itself. I always like to add more veggies when possible, so first I sauteed some onion and shallot in butter, added some freshly shelled organic English peas, the rice and water and a dash of tumeric. The rice is 2:1 water to rice. Brought the whole thing to a boil and then turned down the heat and simmered for 20 minutes. At that point I started the trout as above.

Just before serving, I washed a few leaves of kale, chopped them and put them on a plate. Added a sliced avocado, some roasted red pepper from a jar, a few slivers of red onion and tossed it all in white balsamic vinegar and olive oil.

As simple as that...maybe a half hour total time and I enjoyed a relaxing, simple, elegant meal to end the week and begin another.

Happy cooking and eating, Sola



Thursday, April 18, 2013

ARTICHOKE SEASON AND ARTICHOKE SEASON, MY TWO FAVORITE SEASONS OF THE YEAR

I am serious. Artichokes are available, fresh, frozen and canned all year long, but spring and fall are the main seasons in California where most of the fresh artichokes here in the USA originate.

Fall is my favorite season most likely because on the New England coast, my home, spring was non-existent. We went from "winter is over" to "summer" suddenly one day in June or July. Of course, winter and summer definitions depend on where you live. Now, I am a Florida resident and our winter (a season I love except for the tourists!) is akin to New England fall and spring is in February through April or May if we are lucky. The rest is a blur to my New England weather sensitivities, and probably the reason I am consistently confused about what month we are in!

 Spring Bouquet  
(Ok, they're fake, but the colors brighten my rooms!!)


 Now to the subject, artichokes. Their history is long, known at least as far back as the ancient Greeks and Romans in 300 B.C. The Roman poet, Horace,( who, incidentally tells us a lot about ancient food and agriculture including the use of "truffle sniffing pigs"), retells an ancient Greek myth about the origin of the artichoke. See http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/artichokeHistory.htm, for interesting artichoke facts and lore.

In the USA we eat Globe artichokes, although there are many other varieties. It is considered a thistle, a  plant with prickly edges. In the mediterranean, artichokes are common fare and not too expensive. Here in the US, they are a bit feared due to their shape, price, thorns, and a lack of knowledge about cooking, eating and serving.  In truth, they are a simple vegetable to prepare, eating them is fun and not at all "elitist".

One simply cuts the top and bottom off, snipping the thorns if necessary, adds a squeeze of lemon to prevent discoloring, boils or steams it for 40-50 minutes and then removes the leaves, one by one, dipping into some wonderfully flavored sauce and enjoys! Of course, one has to remove the "furry" stuff before enjoying the best part, the heart, but it is worth the effort. All good things have to be earned!

Steamed, cut and hollowed out Globe Artichoke

In addition, artichokes are good for you. They have plentiful fiber, and are a good source of Vitamin C and Folacin. Even if you indulge by dipping them in butter or a fat based sauce, the time it takes and energy required to consume them, keep it a wise choice!

In our family, we ate artichokes, steamed, with hollandaise, butter, lemon, olive oil and garlic, pesto or any other sauce we could invent. Amanda always liked hot sauce with her butter! Sicilian stuffed artichokes or Romano style braised in herbs, garlic and lemon were other favored preparations.

In my cooking class, we all made a mess and thoroughly enjoyed, Grilled Baby Artichokes (they are chokeless) marinated and stuffed with a mixture of olive oil, garlic, parsley, basil, thyme, mint and breadcrumbs or pine nuts. No one spoke as we ate. All you could hear were muffled groans of ecstasy!

Now, Sola, I still want to enjoy the artichoke experience when they are at their peak. So I do, selecting a large, gorgeous specimen and stuffing it for an exquisite dinner.
Last night I made a stuffing with Sun dried tomatoes, feta cheese, olivada, parsley, basil, garlic and panko  breadcrumbs. I licked my fingers and scraped the plate...yes, that good! And here is the recipe for you to try and do the same, sola, solo  or with friends...

STUFFED ARTICHOKE (sun dried tomato, olivada, feta)

  • 1 large, fresh* globe artichoke
  • 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
  • 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
  • 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
  • 1 large clove garlic (or to taste) finely minced
  • 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes in oil, chopped
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped olives, kalamata and green mixed
  • handful each fresh parsley and basil, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • good quality fruity olive oil


Cut artichoke top about 1 inch down, and cut stem. Put in a bowl of water with lemon or simply squeeze lemon juice over the artichoke. Set in a pot and steam or simmer with the lemon for 40-50 minutes, until you can easily remove one leaf. Do not overcook.
When cooled enough to handle , separate leaves and remove the tight leaves around center. With a melon baller or spoon, remove furry inside which covers the heart. The artichoke is now ready to stuff.

While it is cooking prepare stuffing:

Mix crumbs and remaining ingredients together in a bowl. Use enough oil to moisten and make stuffing stick together. I used some of the oil from the sun dried tomatoes to give extra flavor. Also I had some muffaletta olive mixture left from another creation and used it, but the chopped olive combination will do as well. It should not need salt or pepper, but if you want heat, add some red pepper flakes. A dash of white wine is good too, but not necessary.

Ready to stuff the artichoke!

Fill the artichoke center cavity with stuffing. Then separate leaves around it and stuff. You are now ready for the last step which makes this incredible.

 Ta Dah! I put some of the extra stuffing on the inner leaves and "cheated" before the dish was done!

Mince another clove of garlic and place in a pot with some olive oil. Add a dash of wine and stand the stuffed artichoke in the pot. Cover the pot and let simmer for 15-20 minutes. Do not let it run out of oil and wine (or use stock and water). You want this to reduce and absorb all the flavors of the stuffing mix, but not dry out. Remove and ENJOY!! Pour the extra sauce all over and all around..

YUM!!!!

How to eat this is another story..fingers and dipping and licking...fork and knife...you'll need and want it all. Lots of napkins too, or paper towels!

This recipe is for those of us "sola". If you plan to make several artichokes, you can put them in a baking dish with some oil, garlic and wine, cover the dish and bake at 350 for about 1/2 hour.

*look for artichokes that are green and "fleshy" and tightly compact and closed, not woody or with leaves opening. Also, this is an entree, so select a large artichoke. Save the small ones for a side dish.

Carnivore Variation:  Add some prosciutto to the stuffing mix.