Cookinglingus

The little carrot cake that could....

2011-08-22T17:18:00.001+01:00

So, I made this carrot salad (make it, you won't be sorry) and my first thought was "oh god, yum" followed immediately by "this would make a serious carrot cake".

So, I wanted to take all the flavor elements of the salad and turn it into a delicious cake. I made this thing like 5 different times and then tried to put it out of my mind, because it wasn't coming out like I wanted it to. I even tried a carrot upside down cake (which I HAVE NOT given up on) but it wasn't quite right, but I think it was my pan's fault. This cake has been in the back of my mind for months and months now, but suddenly resurfaced the other day as I was making zucchini bread. I decided to let carrots step in for the zucchini and just subbed in the spices I wanted. Let me just say, it worked out wonderfully...but be warned I ate half a loaf on my own in one day.

I used my mom's recipe as a start, but I've been using multiple flours lately instead of just plain white flour alone. She also had a trick of using applesauce instead of the oil, so I did that, but added some yogurt as well. I ended up with a thick softly sweetened batter with toasted coriander, caraway, and cumin that's spiked with a little cayenne that comes together to mimic the harissa in the original recipe. Thin ribbons of fresh mint stud the cake, giving you a little minty freshness here and there. I then topped it with a thin but crunchy, tangy
lemon icing, that also adds not only extra sweetness but also some texture to the cake. It's one of those cakes you can justify eating any time of day since it's not too sweet, as a quick breakfast with coffee or a slice with afternoon tea would be perfect! Or just eat it all day long like I did, it makes two loaves so there's plenty (or it freezes great if you want to save some for later)! I mean, it's a cake based on a salad, that's makes it healthy right?

350F- Gas Mark 4

1 tsp toasted whole caraway
2 1/2 tsp toasted whole coriander
1/2 tsp toasted whole cumin seed

Toast spices in a pan on low heat and making sure to shake the pan around you'll start to smell it get fragrant. Finely grind with mortar and pestle or spice grinder
You can use pre-ground spices, but I have to seriously rally for whole spices! The flavor and fragrance is stronger, and they stay good a lot longer because the oils inside aren't exposed to the air. So, I'm not going to give you the ground spice amounts based on principle! Ok, I will say you end up will 2T total.
I don't want to treat you like you're stupid, but I'm putting the cayenne down here on it's own so it doesn't end up in a hot pan with the other spices turning your kitchen into a death zone.
1/2 tsp- 1 tsp cayenne (depending on if you wanna keep the spice in the background)

3 C flour (1 cup plain, 1 cup spelt, 1/2 cup whole wheat, 1/2 cup buckwheat) More grains= healthier and more interesting baked goods, but use what you have. This is moist and tasty, and a good chance to try other grains. Fiber!
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

1/2 C plain low fat yogurt or buttermilk
1/2 C no sugar added apple sauce
3 eggs
2 C shredded carrots
Zest of 1 lemon
2 T chopped fresh mint leaves
1 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 C sugar (I used a half/half combo of unrefined plain and packed dark brown sugar)- increase to 2 cups if you won't be making the icing

Mix all wet ingredients, sift dry ingredients into the wet. Stir until combined. Divide between the two pans.
I have 1 nonstick loaf pan, and one normal. I just use the nonstick as is, and line the other with parchment.
Bake for 20mn, rotate loaf pans, bake about 10mn more, start testing centers of each cake as the loaves may not bake evenly or be done at the same time.
I try to take it out just shy of a "clean toothpick", so it stays moist. As it cools for 10mn in the pan, and keeps cooking a little as a result.

Tangy lemon crunch icing (for 2 loaves):

1 cup powdered sugar
1/3 cup sugar - I used turbinado sugar for added crunch- and it's all I had
1/4 cup lemon juice
I used a few teaspoons of "mint water" as well (I found it at an ethnic grocery), but it's not necessary

Put all ingredients in a bowl and whisk until smooth, but if you're using the turbinado sugar it won't smooth out.

Turn cakes out onto a cooling rack (after 10mn), and brush icing over the top, allow to cool/dry completely. Yes, you are allowed to cut a piece off of the end to make sure it's not poisoned.

Stuff your face with fries!

2011-07-28T13:45:00.000+01:00

Yeah I had homemade fries and salad for dinner, jealous? And it was delicious.

I had another post in mind, to kick off my blog breaking out of hibernation, but I made these again last night and realized I must share. Seriously... Make these bad boys and eat some of the best fries you've ever tasted, I'm not even kidding. They are crisp and almost a bit caramelized on the outside, but creamy and a little sweet inside. I'll admit, I'm not the genius who invented this cold oil method, the props really goes to Cook's Illustrated for that, but, I wanted to pass this on because they are the best fries I've had anywhere, ok, top 3 best fries I'd say. But with the two restaurants being in Bordeaux, France...this is better. The potatoes poach in the oil before frying, doing away with the need to fry twice. They actually soak up less oil and use 1/3 less of it as well (=less fat) than the traditional double deep fried version plus there's no scary dropping potatoes into hot oil!
WIN WIN.
You probably have some sad potatoes in the cupboard right now... so just do it already, you know you want to.

Serves 2 (as a side)

3 medium yukon gold potatoes- roughly palm sized, any low starch potato NOT russets, organic if you can get it, scrubbed, dried, cut length-wise in 1/4-1/2 inch sticks
peanut oil, to cover about 3 cups (for frying)- other oils "work", but peanut is best for this
to taste kosher salt- I used truffle salt, but you can use whatever tasty salt you have on hand, or even just plain sea salt)

Directions:

Total Time: 20ish minutes

Rinse the cut fries, seperating them with your fingers and drain them well in a collander (don't need to be fully dry) Put potatoes in a small but deep pot, cover with oil. There was only about 2in of headroom in my pot, and no oil bubbled over.
Cook over high heat until oil has reached a rolling boil, approx. 5 minutes. Continue to cook, without stirring, until potatoes are sorta translucent on the outside but firmed, about 12-15 minutes.
Gently stir the potatoes, I use a wooden chopstick for this, and scrape up any that stick to the bottom. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until golden and crisp, 5-10 minutes longer. Don't be afraid to scoop one out and taste if they're done!
Using a skimmer or slotted spoon, transfer fries to thick paper bag or paper towels. Season with salt and immediately shove in your mouth.

Let remaining oil cool and strain it back into the container. You now have permission to make fries at least 2 more times, more if your oil doesn't get too dark. I will also say from experience that these make DELICIOUS chili cheese fries, if you're into that sort of thing.

Thanks to Anne for the loving prod of encouragement, I've been a lazy blogger, I'm sorry it took so long!

Biscuits worth writing home about.

2010-10-23T19:58:00.002+01:00

AKA Holy Sh*t Biscuits. Yeah, seriously. It's the first thought that popped into my head when I took a bite. Next thing was "I made these?!?!". The first thought has a better ring to it. Sue me.
So, lately I've been craving some American foods like chili, cornbread, barbeque, big chewy cookies, etc. Suddenly finding myself unable to just go anywhere and find these things makes me want them even more. (I'm pretty sure that the 5 of you that read this are friends or family. But if not, I moved to Scotland 5 months ago.) Not that I ever went out for chili, but you know what I mean. It doesn't help that we've been watching Food Network and that show Diners, Drive-ins and Dives has been on. Last night he went to Pine State Biscuits in Portland. They make some tasty biscuits, and I've never been quite happy with the ones I've been making. So, using that episode (I found it on youtube!) as a guide for the technique, and another recipe tweaked to be more like theirs, I DID IT. I cracked the biscuit code! Flaky but moist, nice crispy top and bottom, and the height?!? Skyscraper territory! They were almost 3 inches tall!

First things first, put your stick of butter in the freezer, you need it frozen solid. Wake up early and do it, or put it in the night before, whichever. Mine was frozen pretty solid in an hour or so.

Preheat oven to just below 400F. (I went about 5-10 degrees under, that's what the guy in the video said, so that's what I did) This makes 10 huge biscuits. I used the 3 inch cutter, but you can use a glass, or just cut them in squares if you want. Obviously if you use a smaller cutter, you get more biscuits!

Combine dry ingredients:
4 C flour
1 1/2 tsp gluten powder (Seriously, I think it's the secret. If you don't have it, use 1/2 bread flour 1/2 plain flour. That's what the Pine State guys do, I read it in an interview.)
2 Tbsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

Combine wet ingredients:
1/2 cup full fat plain yogurt (I used greek)
1 egg
1 1/2 cup low fat buttermilk (I can't get that here, so I used a little low fat creme fraiche mixed with lowfat milk, and some citric acid to taste. I used citric acid because I don't like the taste that vinegar or lemon juice add, which is what the usual substitutes call for. It worked!)

1 stick of butter, from the freezer

a little melted butter

Grate your stick of butter into your bowl with the combined dry ingredients. Toss the flour around quickly with your fingers so the butter is mixed in, but basically just covered with the flour. Dump in your liquid ingredients. Stir it JUST enough so that you don't have any liquid puddles. You want some flour patches, and it will barely be holding itself together. Flour the counter well, and dump out your dough. It will be all sticky, but crumbly and floury. This is good, this means tender biscuits, because you are going to do the rest of the work by hand. So, take the dough and press it together lightly with floured hands into a rectangle (about 12" x 6") getting all the loose bits incorporated and dust the top with flour. Fold the rectangle over itself, it might seem a bit too wet, but just dust it with flour and fold. Press it out lightly, just big enough to make sure you can fold it. Repeat this process 4 times. You don't want to over handle the dough, it makes it tough, and makes the butter melt, which means less flaky goodness. Using a floured rolling pin, roll out to about 1" thick. At this point it should all be holding together, and you you should see little flakes from the flour and butter and folding. Cut out your biscuits. (I press my end scraps back together with a little more flour, but again don't over handle the dough. Those biscuits won't be as pretty but are still really tasty. If you smother it in gravy no one will notice a thing.)

Place on a parchment lined baking sheet about 1/2" - 1" apart. (I'll tell you now, you can freeze these before they are baked, so you don't have to eat 5 biscuits for breakfast! Bake some off now, save the rest for later! You bake them straight from frozen, for 5-10mn longer depending on your oven. Mine only took 5 extra minutes and were EXACTLY the same as the first batch. Must stock freezer with biscuits now!)
Bake for about 12mn, brush the tops with butter, then bake for 2 more minutes.

Eat them now!
We had ours with gravy, but they were so tasty just plain... I'm sure they'd be perfect with yummy jam.

Bacon, bacon, bacon....

2010-07-12T19:59:00.000+01:00

I'll admit it, I love it. It's a tasty, crispy, salty, smoky treat. It's inspired MANY crazy things: Bacon Maple Bar, Bacon Salt and Baconnaise, weird bacon goods, bacon chocolate bar, ummmm Bacon Explosion anyone? Sure, I've tried a few, and even liked them (bacon maple bar...mmmmm). However, I also like veggie substitutes, and am always looking for ways to create them at home. Tofu, tempeh, even this...but, none of them quite capture it. I have never found a sub for bacon that I could really get behind. Now, that's all changed. See that picture up there, well, that's not bacon, it's COCONUT! Yeah seriously, and it's DELICIOUS! I found many recipes online for this, but none that I found used thick strips of coconut...so I corrected that problem. Vegans and vegetarians, (and even omnivores!) you can thank me later.

1 coconut, brown "skin" on, sliced with a mandolin on 2mm & 3mm - It's what I used to get those nice thick strips, I liked having some thicker, and some thinner and crispier. You can also slice it pretty thin with a sharp kitchen knife. I looked on youtube to see how to crack one open, it's way easier than I expected! Be adventurous, you'll feel like you live in the tropics! If you just want "bacon bits", or can't get a fresh coconut, see the easy alternative below.
OR 3 large handfuls of bulk coconut- large unsweetened looks like flakes, not shredded)

1 tsp liquid smoke- I start with less, like 1/2 tsp, and add more after tasting. Depending on how smoky you like it, add more
2T soy sauce or tamari, I threw some Braggs aminos in as well - start with less, adding more to taste
1/2 tsp olive oil - Only necessary if you use the dried flakes, the fresh is oily enough
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/8 tsp garlic powder - You don't want it to really taste garlicky, just adds a savory element
Salt and pepper to taste
a little water if needed

Mix together all the ingredients then toss with the coconut. This should just coat the coconut, not be liquidy at all, but you might need to add a little water if it's too dry. Taste the coconut to make sure it's salty and smoky enough, adjust it accordingly.

Marinate coconut for 1/2 hr to 1 hr. Bake on a cookie sheet lined with foil or parchment in a preheated 350 degree oven until crispy. Watch it carefully, stirring it around every few minutes to make sure it doesn't burn. It should be a darker brown. The fresh takes longer to brown and crisp up than the flakes do. Keeps in a ziplock baggie, tupperware, or a jar for later use.

This is dedicated to the one I love...

2010-02-15T01:58:00.000Z

It's been a long while since I've posted, I apologize. I was staying with friends after I returned from a trip abroad, and that's not really the best environment for food blogging. I just finally got back into cooking again, with this recipe (the easiest tastiest thing ever, and it brought back my desire to cook!). It's got 3 ingredients and you probably have them on hand. Don't deviate from the recipe (even I didn't!!!), the beauty is in the simplicity!

Ok, so onto the recipe I really wanted to blog about, actually it's more of an idea than a recipe. I recently shared one of these tasty bars with my sweetie and was inspired. I'm not a huge milk chocolate fan, so I switched it out for bittersweet but I used all the other elements of that bar in this macaroon recipe. I took a typical coconut macaroon, then dipped it in Indian curry spiked chocolate which was followed with dry roasted almonds. The results? Just look at the photo! You know you want to put that in your mouth.

I looked all over the internet for a macaroon recipe. They varied, some adding flour or sweetened condensed milk. I just wanted a simple and pure macaroon, so I used a recipe from another blog as a starting point. I couldn't get unsweetened coconut, so I just bought the sweetened kind. Generally I would wait, because I think there's some weird preservatives, but I needed to get back on my blogging feet, so I went with it. If you have a favorite macaroon recipe, use it...then just do the final 2 steps!

Preheat to 350F

14oz bag (minus about 1/2 cup) of sweetened coconut

a pinch of salt

1/4 cup of sugar- I used the unprocessed kind. I might dial this back a little more next time, with the addition of the chocolate it's borderline too sweet for me

3 egg whites

Mix all ingredients with a fork in a large bowl. The mixture should be moist, but not wet or runny. Add the remaining coconut if it doesn't absorb enough of the egg whites. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, and start shaping the macaroons for their trip in the oven. I made them into little cone-ish pyramids, but you can stick with ball shaped or whatever you want. Just keep it to about 1T of coconut mixture per cookie or less. Also, I recommend using your clean hand to squeeze the "dough" together in a tight ball before final shaping. You should get it after a try or two. I baked these in 2 batches for about 20mn each. But, ovens can vary so keep an eye out, starting with about 12mn and adding time. I went for an even golden color all over, which gave it a nice crispy coconut exterior and a softer center. After baking, let them cool for a couple minutes so they setup before removing from the baking sheet. Then let the macaroons cool completely. Don't worry it doesn't take too long.

Chocolate dip

Approx 3 handfuls of bittersweet chips

Chopped almonds

Approx 3 handfuls whole dry roasted almonds- chopped I used the food processor

In a stainless steel bowl over a small pot of barely simmering water, melt your chocolate chips being careful not to get it too hot or it won't stay smooth and silky. In case you've never done this "double-boiler" thing, make sure the bowl is wider than your pot, and doesn't touch the water at all. You'll see the chips turn glossy and they'll start to melt. Using a metal spoon, stir to evenly melt the chocolate. It will be a bit thick, just make sure it's all melted and isn't stiff. At this point add a bit of Indian Curry powder, I used a blend of spicy and sweet. I started with 1/2t, tasted and worked up to about 1t. However, you might not want it that strong, or you might want it stronger. Remember you're just dipping the bottoms in though, and you want a nice balance with the coconut. Straight from the chocolate I dipped it into the almonds and placed each cookie on the parchment to harden. That's it!

Pan-Fried Gnocchi with Sage

2009-10-14T04:54:00.000+01:00

Mmmmm....squashy! Not the ones you've had too much of all Summer...these are their hardier bros. Yep, Winter squash! I've had a couple of these squash hogging up my hanging produce basket for over a week, it just wasn't the right time yet. But when the wind picked up the other day, and it was perfectly chilly outside, I knew it was time to turn the oven on. I roasted an acorn squash (I'm testing a recipe using these, not successful the first go round) and the butternut squash used in the recipe. I just rinsed them, sliced them in half, scooped out the guts, then drizzled them with olive oil, sprinkled them with salt and pepper, cut side down on a lined cookie sheet, and threw them into a preheated 425F oven. I tend to just check on them after about 20mn or so, and let them go a bit longer if you can't easily pierce it with a fork. The squash gets soft without losing all it's texture and it gets delicious carmelized bits. Roasting the squash is the hard part, now it's smooth sailing. I like to roast my squash a couple days ahead (or a couple at a time) to make it easier for weekday meals.

For this recipe I used a medium size squash. In the end you'll need about 2 cups of "flesh" so, if your squash is a big daddy, just roast the whole thing, and use the other half to make some soup....curry butternut soup, do it! Ok, moving on...
2C roasted butternut squash (skin remove after baking)- I run mine through a food mill, it makes it smooth as silk and it sifts out the skin that my lazy butt couldn't be bothered scraping at. If you don't have one, be careful when scooping out the flesh, and then smash and whip the heck out of it. You can adjust this to use whatever winter squash/pumpkin you have on hand.
5-6 fresh sage leaves- stack them, and fold at the crease then slice very thinly
1/2Tsp salt (or so)- this depends on how well you salted your squash to begin with, and also if you're adapting the measurements to accommodate more or less squash.
1-3C flour- I used pastry flour because it's what I had, and I was thinking it would keep the gnocchi light and airy. Feel free to use white unbleached flour (or bleached if you must, but dang, it's no good for you!)

(Hot tip: rinse this sucker right away with hot water! You think cleaning a cheese grater that sat out too long is bad, oh man.)
Add the salt to the squash puree, and then slowly mix in the flour, using a spoon, about a 1/3 cup at a time. Use a light hand (you don't want them to get tough!), but make sure you don't have any flour pockets. Keep adding flour until you get a dough ball that separates from the bowl, making sure it's not too sticky. If it needs a bit more flour, just keep dusting the dough and working it in with your hands.

Flour your hands and a board, then grab about 1/4 of your dough, and using a combo of your hands and the board, roll out some dough snakes. Try to get your snakes as even as you can, but it's not going to harm the flavor, rustic is just as tasty! Keep a light hand....

When you have your snakes all done, slice into gnocchi using a sharp knife. Depending on how fat your rolled them out, you'll want adjust how long each individual gnocchi is, as you don't want them to be too thick. I try to stick with the size of the top digit of my thumb as a guide.
From there heat a large skillet over medium/high, adding a swirl of olive oil, and a pat of butter. Put a single layer of gnocchi (you may have to fry in 2 batches) into the heated pan. Let them get brown and crispy on one side (about 5mn, maybe....don't quote me on that, my pan wasn't quite hot enough) then either do the fancy skillet toss thingee, you know the one, or use a spatula to flip them, and let them go a couple of minutes.When they are almost browned, add your sage (it gets nice and crispy), and a bit more butter if you need it. Season to taste with salt & pepper and top with freshly grated parmesan. I just ate way too many of these guys.

The elusive macaron.

2009-10-11T03:43:00.000+01:00

No, I don't mean macaroon, the sweet haystacks full of coconutty love, though I adore those. Nor do I mean the other macaron, Parisian style sandwich cookies, as beautiful as they are tasty. Nope, worrying about whether or not my cookies have "feet" is just something I'm not prepared for. I'm talking about the OTHER macaron, it's almondy, chewy and not too sweet. They come from a village in France, St. Emillion, where they are famous for these little guys and their wine....

Though I admit, mine are not nearly as crackly and pretty as the originals (next time Gadget...next time!). Not to mention I'm not looking at the gorgeous scene above while I stuff my face. It was a wonderful moment. They're traditonally sold right on the paper it's baked on! Isn't that great!?! Place a few sheets in a fancy box, and you've got a gift you can be proud of! This recipe is dead easy, it comes together so quickly, and it only has three ingredients. Yep, that's right, THREE.

2 egg whites
1/3C sugar
1 7oz tube almond paste - make sure you don't get marzipan, it's a whole different animal

If you have any egg whites on hand (which you should if you made that tasty soup from the ast post) get those out of the fridge to come to room temp (about 30mn). I bought my almond paste, but I'm sure you could make it as well, but the ease of the tubed stuff is what makes this so great! Move your oven racks to the lower portion of your oven, and preheat it to 300F.

Add the tube of almond paste to your food processor, along with the sugar. It should look like this:

Then add your egg whites, and process until you have a smooth paste. This batter then goes into a pastry bag to be piped out onto the baking paper. I don't have one of those, so I just used a thicker plastic bag with the batter scooped in, then you cut off a bit of the corner!

You'll need two cookie sheets, and two sheets of baking parchment. Pipe the cookies a bit bigger than a quarter, and about as 1/3in thick, leaving a little more than an inch in between each cookie. You can use a wet finger to tap down the little peaks, but I honestly saw no difference either way. Bake on lower racks for about 8 minutes, then switch the sheets, and bake for about 8-10mn more. You want them to be slightly browned on top, with a little more color on the bottom. Leave them on the paper to cool. Then just peel and eat. Mmmmm...chewy almondy goodness! I imagine these with some cherry jam sandwiched between them would be amazing!

Soup weather

2009-10-08T03:57:00.000+01:00

It's hitting that point in Portland where it's getting dark earlier, there's more of a chill in the air, and you wanna stay in bed and snuggle just a little bit longer in the morning. To me, this means soup time. A nice comforting bowl of soup can warm me up quicker than our heater can, and costs less too! I was reading this post and I knew I just had to make it. With some revisions of course! I had some cauliflower to use up, so I decided to roast it, and ladle the soup over the top instead of using the crusty bread (although it looks amazing, I just didn't have any).

I took Heidi's adaptation of Richard Olney's recipe and varied it a little, because I just can't seem to make a recipe exactly as it's written. It's a real problem of mine.
PRINT ME

1 quart (4 cups) broth - do yourself a favor MAKE YOUR OWN! I'll do a post on this soon, as it's almost broth making time. You can also use plain water if you want, but I love how broth adds a depth of flavor that cannot be faked.
1 bay leaf
3 sage leaves
2 springs thyme- left whole
10 medium to large cloves of garlic, peeled
1/2Tsp salt - I used less because I season my broth when I make it. If using store bought broth, use even less! Basically start with a little bit, and add it to taste.

Binding pommade:
1 whole egg
2 egg yolks - Don't hate me, I'm making a sweet recipe with the leftover whites in the next couple of days to use these up! You'll need to pick up a tube of almond PASTE, not marzipan.
1C loosely packed, freshly grated Parmesan cheese - I use a microplane, it makes it fluffy.
freshly ground black pepper - 5 or 6 twists
1/4 cup olive oil

Bring the broth to a boil in a medium pot with garlic, bay leaf, sage, thyme, and salt. Heat to a boil and turn down to a simmer for 40 minutes. Pick out bay, sage, and thyme springs return the broth and garlic back to the saucepan, turn off the heat. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup. Taste and add more salt if needed. By hand, whisk the egg, egg yolks, cheese, and pepper together in a bowl until creamy. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, constantly whisking, then slowly add a large ladleful of the broth, to temper the eggs. Stir the yolk mixture into the broth and whisk it continuously over low-medium heat until it thickens slightly. Let it go until it's about the consistency of cream. Take it off the heat and give it another whir with the immersion blender. Break up the roasted cauliflower, and add to the bottom of each bowl, ladling the soup over the top. I finished mine with some smoked paprika, because I'm officially obsessed with it, but you could use a bit more Parmesan, or just eat it as is.

Makes about 4 cups of soup.
If you're interested, I roasted two small heads of cauliflower at 400 degrees for the 40mn the broth boiled. I rubbed it with olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper. I like my cauliflower to still have a bit of bite, so if you like it soft n' mushy, just keep it in the oven the whole time while you're finishing up the soup.
This soup is creamy and filing without feeling heavy like some cream based soups. I definitely want to use this method to thicken more soups in the future!

Carnitas heaven...

2009-09-30T04:56:00.000+01:00

(click the above photo at your own risk. You might be wiping drool off your keyboard though)
Ok, so I know it might be a bit weird to post a pork dish right after a vegetarian sausage recipe. It's how I roll. We don't eat much meat, and I generally prefer "faux meats" to the real thing. In the case of carnitas however, there's no substitute. I had this idea in my head that hours of slaving away were involved when making carnitas. This recipe completely blew me away! It's basically 2 hours of inactive cooking time (then maybe 20-30mn where you actually need to pay attention), and minimal ingredients!
I saw it on Homesick Texan, and it's DE-LI-CIOUS! I also wanted to mention that this recipe isn't particularly "south of the border". So, if you wanted to forego the tortillas, and just serve it with the rice you have on hand, you've got my permission. Or, you could serve it lettuce wrap style, with some shredded carrots, etc. It's really flavorful, so it doesn't really need anything actually. The husband and I ate the leftovers straight outta the fridge, with our fingers. Yeah, we're nothing but class around here.

You can adjust this to whatever size piece of pork you can get your hands on, but you're gonna want to make extra. Trust me.

Carnitas (adapted from Diana Kennedy)
Ingredients:
3 pounds of pork butt (shoulder)- the better the quality of the meat, the tastier it is
1 cup of orange juice
3 cups of water
2 teaspoons of salt

-Cut the meat into 1 in. strips
-Put the OJ, water and salt into a large pot
-Add the pork
-Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer
-Cook for about 2 hours - don't stir
-The liquid will start to reduce, and will look like brown gravy
-Turn up the heat (medium on my electric) and let the "gravy" cook down until you are left with just the meat and the rendered fat
-The meat will start to fry in the fat (this is a good thing) and you'll want to stir it occasionally to keep it from burning, but not so often to where you don't get the carmelization!
-When you've got the meat nicely browned, turn off the heat and tilt the pan a bit off the burner with the meat at the high end. This helps drain all the fat away from the meat, so it's not sitting in a puddle.

I'm going to warn you, when it's just boiling away, it doesn't smell that awesome. I was worried I had done something wrong and was tempted to add aromatic spices, but resisted. You should try it this way at least once. I have yet to change it up because this is so simple and tasty. But, I have been dreaming up a couple different adaptations, so I'll share those when I get the guts. It's the perfect way to use up that last glass of OJ in the fridge. Also, this is usually a pretty cheap cut of meat and one that's on sale a lot. So, it's budget friendly!

Now...to accompany this amazing dish, you CANNOT just use corn tortillas from the store (ok, maybe you've got a Mexican market that sells homemade tortillas nearby)! I discovered about a year ago how easy it is to make corn tortillas, and I haven't looked back. They are a completely different thing than the ones of the grocery shelf! These don't crack or dry out, and remain a little fluffy! Plus you can make them as big or little as you'd like. Not to mention the ones from the grocery store have a bunch of weird stuff in them to make them shelf stable, and that freaks me out. So, I'm going to show you how easy it is.

Start with this:

There's a handy chart on the back:

I usually make enough for 8 tortillas, because they're talking small tortillas here. So, combine the masa, and the salt in a bowl, add almost all the water called for and stir it up. I like to start with less and add more because I don't want it too wet. Then when it gets to about the consistency of the first photo, gather it into a ball with your hands. Knead it just a little to make sure the dough is soft enough, sort of along the lines of playdough, if not a little less dense feeling in your hands. Then grab pieces between the size of a walnut and a golf ball, and roll it into a ball with your palms. I line a plate with parchment (silicone coated! It's magical.) put the ball on top, and fold the paper over it. I use two plates that completely fit together, but it will work with two cutting boards as well, or anything flat. Then PRESS like hell...you can lift the paper and check how thin it is. You don't want them too thin or they will tear when peeling them from the paper, or when you've stuffed them with your lovely carnitas. It might take a couple tries, but the beauty is...it's dough, so all is not lost. Just scrape your dough ball back together and start over! I press as I go, and just place the cooked ones in a tea towel. I use a little cast iron skillet, but use what you have. Over medium heat, get the skillet nice and hot and cook on each side for just a few minutes. You don't want it to really brown per say, it's more like baking it in a pan. They soften up a little from the steam while hanging out in the towel party with their buddies.

I prep my other additions while the carnitas are still boiling, but I like to keep it simple. I just sliced some green onions, garnished with hot sauce, and topped with some lettuce. Mmmmmmm....so good.

It's veggie sausage o'clock.

2009-09-27T03:38:00.000+01:00

Yep, it's that time folks. Can you smell it? It's good for breakfast, lunch, or dinner (shape it into larger links and throw it on the grill pan, or add it to pasta sauce or lasagna) depending on how you season it, unless you're like me and will eat a breakfast sandwich any chance you get. It's got minimal ingredients (unlike that tasty Morningstar stuff- but I can't even get through the ingredients list), and it wasn't made by some crazy machine, who knows where, and touched by who knows who. I have tweaked this recipe a ton, using many recipes I found on the web as starting points, because none of them came out exactly as I wanted them to. I wanted sausagey flavor, without the piggy creepy bits. Yeah, you know the ones. Not to mention I got a bit tired of paying $4-5 for 8 little pucks. So, here it is...the recipe of the veggie sausage gods. Actually, looking at the ingredients, unless there's some crazy rule about nutritional yeast or something not being vegan, these are vegan! Don't run in shame. Make them, love them, impress your friends. PLUS, it contains a secret ingredient, and we all know how much everyone loves those. Shhhh...

Ok...for starters here's the ingredients photo:

Yep that's it!! Ok, there's water and olive oil too...but they're camera shy. The secret ingredient is blurred out for it's protection, you'll see it later though, don't worry.

This makes a bunch, about 30 or so patties. I figure if I'm going through the trouble I may as well make a lot and freeze them. You can half the recipe if you want.

Now for the recipe: PRINTABLE VERSION
3C TVP (texturized vegetable protein)- I get this in the bulk section, it's WAY cheaper.

2C wheat gluten - I get it in the bulk section as well, for the same reason. I use Bob's Red Mill.
3/4C chickpea (garbanzo) flour - any decent international food store will have this. Bob's Red Mill also makes it though.
1/2C flake nutritional yeast - bulk sections of most natural markets should have this. Not totally essential...but it kind of is. If you've only got the powdered, use less. I also put it on popcorn, salad, and toast. It's good for you and not one of those things you buy for one recipe and never use again. Hello, mace anyone?
3TB olive oil
2Tsp liquid smoke - I prefer the brand in the picture, no coloring and no funny stuff.
2TB garlic powder
2TB onion flakes - if you've only got the powder just use a bit less.
21/2TB rubbed sage
11/2TB smoked sweet paprika - regular is ok too, but the smoked is SO good, and I use it all the time. The sweet or spicy version works here, you'll just have to adjust the amount of cayenne pepper, which you might want to do anyway depending on the spice level of yours.
1/4Tsp cayenne pepper - adjust to taste.
2TB Spike - or your favorite seasoning salt blend.
1Tsp ground black pepper
1Tsp thyme
1Tsp marjoram

2-3C boiling water - you start with 2C, but might need a little extra.
Ok, now for the secret ingredient....drum roll....can you handle it?

1TB marmite or vegemite - don't question me on this. Look at the ingredients listing of that Morningstar stuff, seriously, do it. What do you see? Yeast extract? Am I right? Ok then. So, just find this stuff and use it. It's all glowy in the photo because it's extra special, and the idea of using it appeared one day when the heavens parted. It helps deepen the flavor, and also helps darken the color so you don't feel like you're eating old rubbery chewing gum. I wouldn't go all Men at Work on you and say you should have a sandwich with it, but a VERY thin smear on toast is tasty every so often.

You'll also need:
-aluminum foil
-a canning lid w/ring any size can be used, depending on how big you want the patties
-a piece of plastic wrap, or I use a parchment cupcake wrapper (see photo)
-a steamer contraption. I use this:

Ok, here we go...

Put the kettle on. Measure everything but the flours and put them in a large bowl.

Here's some closeups of ingredients some of you might not know about.

Nutritional flake yeast:

TVP:

Texturized vegetable protein. It's soy based. They make "bacon" bits out of this stuff. Yep, Bacos are not real bacon, sorry.

Now add your secret ingredient.

Then add 2C of hot water, and give it a good stir. Now, I'm going to show you a picture, and you aren't going to like it. But, I don't want you to be shocked when you see something that so closely resembles dog food. Yep, I said it. It looks like dog food, or maybe cat food. Either way, it doesn't look good. It doesn't smell like it though! Just power through despite this:

Put a plate over it, and get the water in your steamer going. Let this sit for 5-10 minutes so the TVP can get hydrated.

Now add your 2 types of flour and mix it up. It will look like this:

Keep stirring, and add a bit more water if it seems dry. You don't want it to be wet, just a bit damp, and you want it to hold together when you press it in your hand the way a pie crust dough does. It should look like this when it's ready:

It looks sorta like cooked ground beef right? Ok, now for the instructional photo montage. I've tried many ways to get the bumpy patty shape I wanted, here's the best way I've found. You can make this as thick or thin as you want, but I'd stick with about 1/4-1/2 inch to make sure they both hold together and don't roam into burger territory. You can also use a smaller lid (I used the quart sized) if you like the small guys, but I like it to fill out an English muffin.

Start with a foil strip (I don't measure these, and just roughly tear the strips as I go. But feel free to measure out your strips based on your lid size ahead of time. You need enough to go around to make a packet with room above and below to seal it), place your lined lid on top, grab some of the mixture, squish it down firmly into the lid. Then flip the lid, and push the lid while removing the ring. TA DA! I reuse the same cupcake wrapper for the whole batch. As I said earlier you could use plastic wrap as well. Then fold the little buddy up in his foil blanket, sealing the edges up tight. It doesn't have to be perfect. I steam about 15 at a time in the for 15-20 minutes, and let them cool before trying to unwrap them. I take the unwrapped "sausages" and put them spaced on a cookie sheet in the freezer for about 20 minutes. This prevents them from freezing together in a stack when you bag them. Put them in freezer bags, and eat them for weeks.

That's it, you did it, way to go!