Grilled Vegetable Tart

      For someone who loves to cook, I own very few cookbooks – three to be precise. 

       The most recent acquisition was one that caught my eye at the local bookstore, Powell's, on a rainy and otherwise boring Portland winter afternoon.  The moment I saw it sitting on a shelf, all new and glossy amongst its used book neighbors, I knew I was going to walk out of the shop with a new cookbook.  The book, that I’m waxing poetic about, is Plenty – celebrity UK chef Yotam Ottolenghi’s ode to fancified vegetarian cooking.  All the cookbooks that I have bought, I have bought for the pictures.  And this one is no exception.  Its pages are chock full of drool-worthy images of all manner of vegetarian foods, cooked up in innovative ways.  And luckily, I had the foresight to buy a version that lists ingredients in cups, rather than by weight.  My only complaint about the book is that the recipes don’t really lend themselves to cooking for a large crowd.  So recently, when I had over a small group of friends for a casual summer dinner in our garden, I decided to finally test-drive a couple of the recipes in the book.   

       I have to say, this cooking experience was a real joy, because for a change, I was following a recipe.  Since I had gone shopping earlier for some of the more exotic ingredients that I did not already have on hand, it was really fun throwing together familiar ingredients into a completely new dish.  For this summer meal, I cooked up Ottolenghi’s Very full tart as a substantial first course.  Ottolenghi qualifies this recipe as A fantastic Mediterranean feast, full to the brim with roasted vegetables.  This description is pretty spot on, except I would say that this tart is overflowing with roasted vegetables -- while assembling the pie, it was hard to believe that I could fit them all in.

The fancy recipe inspired this handblocked menu card -- you can see more of my designs at http://www.etsy.com/shop/5farthings

        This being the start of summer and all, I chose to grill my veggies outdoors, which gave them the added flavors that only grilling can impart.  However, if you follow the recipe from the book, you could simply roast all the veggies in the oven.  In fact, I think this recipe could easily be adapted for a hearty fall dish, bursting with various types of winter squash and dotted with a sharp cheese such as Roquefort.  Stay tuned for the fall version, I guess.
      But getting back to this tart, I think the dinner party was in agreement that the results were absolutely scrumptious.  If the rest of the recipes in this book are anywhere as good as this was, I highly recommend that you immediately trot over to your computer/book store, and order yourself a copy of this beautiful and delicious book, immediately.  And for those of you lucky enough to be in London, do check out one of Ottolenghi's many restaurants there, and leave a comment here for the rest of us to drool over.

Grilled vegetable tart – adapted from Yotam Ottolenghi’s Very Full Tart, Plenty

Serves 8 as a first course and 4 as a main course

Ingredients

1 pie crust, either homemade or store-bought

1 red bell pepper and 1yellow bell pepper, diced into 2 inch chunks

1 medium eggplant, cut into 1 inch chunks

1 small sweet potato, diced into ½ inch pieces

1 small zucchini, cut into 1 inch pieces

2 medium onions, thinly sliced

6 T olive oil

10 sprigs of thyme, leaves stripped and coarsely chopped

1/3 C ricotta

4 oz. Feta

10 cherry tomatoes, halved

2 large eggs

1 C heavy cream

Toss together peppers, sweet potato and zucchini, half the thyme leaves, and 2 T of olive oil.  Salt to taste and grill on a hot grill until tender. 

Mix eggplant with 2 T olive oil, salt to taste, and grill until tender.

Mix sliced onions with 2 T oil, and grill until very lightly browned on both sides.

In the meantime, preheat oven to 450 deg F

Lightly grease a 9-inch loose-bottomed tart dish

Roll out pie crust dough to about 1/8 inch in thickness and of a diameter large enough to cover the inside of your tart tin, with a slight overhang over the rim

Lightly press in your dough into the tart tin, leaving a slight overhang on all sides

Cover with parchment, top with pie weights or dried bean, and blind bake pie crust for 30 minutes

Remove weights and paper and continue baking about 15 minutes more or until your crust is golden brown

Remove crust from oven and cool for about 10 minutes

While crust is cooling, beat together cream and eggs

Line bottom of crust with cooked onions

Scatter the rest of the grilled veggies evenly into the crust

Dot the pie with chunks of feta and ricotta

Gently pour the cream mixture into the remaining few crevices surrounding the veggies

Arrange the halved tomatoes on top, and press in very lightly

Sprinkle remaining thyme leaves on top

Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until the pie filling has set and is golden brown

Cool for at least 10 minutes before cutting

I made this a few hours before serving and kept it warm in the oven until dinner.  Before serving, I warmed it up once more by heating under a foil for 10 minutes at 350 deg F.

Serve as a main course or a substantial first course, along with a tangy salad.

Quattro Stagioni

As we round the corner on spring, I'm certainly in high spirits about the spectacular color show that is undoubtedly ahead of us. Don't you just love the changing of the seasons? There's something to look forward to at every turn -- veggies and perennials to plant in spring, beach trips and blooming roses in the summer, Thanksgiving gatherings with dear friends in the fall, and mugs of mulled cider in front of the fireplace in winter. As I was pondering the changing of the seasons, I decided to make a Pizza Quattro stagioni for dinner. Roughly translated from the Italian, this just means Four Seasons Pizza. I did have one of these in Florence during a recent trip to Italy, and it was molto delicioso. From what I understand, it is simply a pizza with four quadrants, representing the four seasons. It makes for a very nice meal due to the variety in the toppings.

I'm not sure if each of the "seasons" is supposed to contain a particular ingredient, but I'm guessing that this is not the case, since I've seen many, many variations on this pizza. I simply used whatever was available in my fridge – zucchini, shiitake mushrooms, mixed olives, and red bell peppers -- to throw together this easy weeknight dinner. I guess this post is really more to inspire rather than to serve as a strict recipe. So, pump up the Vivaldi, pour yourself a glass of chianti, and get creative. Buon appetito!

Guide for Pizza Quattro Stagioni

Pizza base (make your own or buy them premade. I use a whole wheat Pita from the refrigerated section at New Seasons Market, and these serve as the perfect base for individual pies)

Sauce (I used Prego Garden Vegetable; I've used a homemade pesto before, and this is also delicious)

Toppings: I used sliced red bell peppers; kalamata and green olives; shiitake mushrooms; and thinly sliced zucchini. But of course, the possibilities are endless. I topped all pizzas with fresh basil, which added a very nice flavor. Rosemary or oregano would also be great as a spice.

Cheese: Since I was using fresh basil, I opted for the classic pairing of basil with fresh mozzarella, but any cheese that melts would work well. If I had some feta in the fridge, I would certainly have used this as well.

To prepare: Sauce your pizza base, top with "toppings", sprinkle cheese and spices on top, and bake in a 350 deg F oven till bases are browned, toppings are tender, and cheese is melted (about 15 minutes for my pizzas).

Great for a weekday dinner!

Paper Chef 39: Tangy Eggplant Rolls with Blackberry-Mango-Chickpea Salad

Spring has arrived in all her glory, here in Portland, Oregon. This is my first spring in the Pacific Northwest, and I have to say, it has caught me unawares. The stunning pink and white camellias, the cheery daffodils and those little purple flowers all over my neighbors’ lawn; not to mention the meticulously planted 'sakura' (cherry blossom) trees that are now in full bloom are all absolutely delightful – and I thought this place was only famous for its roses! Naturally, I wanted to incorporate the rich colors of this gorgeous spring palette into my entry for this month's Paper Chef. So without further ado, here's my take on cooking up blackberries, bulgur, artichokes and eggplant (for a vegetarian take) into an edible, delectable, colorful concoction.

Notes: all oil used in recipe is extra-virgin olive oil
Ingredients are provided as they come up in the recipe rather than up front, because a) I find this method to be more intuitive and b) I’m too lazy to type out all my ingredients twice.
Please excuse my pictures this once; my light was fading fast as I was trying to photograph my creations.

If you like what you see, and hopefully make, please go to paperchef.blogspot.com and vote for my entry :-)

Tangy Eggplant Rolls with Blackberry-Mango-Chickpea Salad

Grilled Eggplant
Take one large eggplant
Slice it lengthwise, brush with oil, sprinkle with a pinch of salt and grill until cooked and tender
Set aside until ready to plate


Bulgur Pilaf
Sautee ½ a diced red onion with 2 cloves minced garlic until translucent in 2T olive oil
Add ¾ C bulgur and toast for 2 minutes
Add 2 C water to bulgur and cook until evaporated and bulgur is cooked but al dente
Season with salt and pepper to taste

Artichoke tapenade
1 scant cup of water-marinated artichoke hearts
4 large cloves of garlic
Salt and pepper to taste
Blend together all tapenade ingredients to a spreadable but chunky consistency.
Mix in 1 T extra-virgin olive oil and keep refrigerated.
Ok, now for the blackberries. I initially wanted to make a blackberry vinaigrette and brush it onto the eggplant before grilling, but I just couldn’t get myself to crush those beautiful jewel-like berries. So, I decided to toss them into a sweet-tangy salad instead along with diced mangoes. I added chickpeas to the salad since chickpeas and bulgur have complementary amino acids and also taste yummy together. To make the

Blackberry-Mango-Chickpea Salad

½ C dry chickpeas, soak overnight and cook till soft and tender
¼ red onion, finely diced
1 medium ripe mango, diced
2 T finely minced cilantro
2 T lemon juice
Mix all the above ingredients and toss lightly with salt to taste

Now, to assemble your chef d’oevre:

-- Lay out a slice of grilled eggplant.
-- Spread 1 tsp. (or more) of artichoke tapenade on eggplant
-- Place 2 heaping T. bulgur pilaf about 1 inch from one end of eggplant slice
-- Roll up the eggplant; repeat with remaining eggplant slices and stack side-by-side in oven- proof dish.
-- For the final flourish, top each eggplant roll with a thin slice of Halloumi cheese. This is a very salty and flavorful Middle-Eastern cheese that holds up well to high heat. Place dish into
pre-heated oven and broil until cheese is melted and browned (this happens very fast – be careful).

Serve Tangy Eggplant Rolls with Blackberry-Mango-Chickpea Salad on the side. Enjoy with a chilled glass of Gerwutztraminer -- preferably on an unseasonably warm spring afternoon, under the gentle shade of a cherry-blossom tree.

Through my guesstimating eyes...

As the author of a food blog, it goes without saying that I really enjoy cooking and like to think that I am sometimes moderately successful. However, blogging about food has turned out to be quite a bit more complicated than doing the actual cooking. One of the main reasons for this is having to write down exact recipes for all my creations -- a task that I have always put off in the past. Being a scientist, I am no stranger to following precise recipes mixed to exacting specifications. But I must say, that when it comes to everyday cooking, I’m pretty much of a pinch-of-this and a splash-of-that kinda gal. I don’t always know how many tablespoons (although I can estimate those pretty well) or how many ounces (I can’t estimate those at all) of any given ingredient goes into my recipes. I also believe in using what you have on hand rather than hunting down specific ingredients. And since I don’t usually bother writing down my recipes, they never turn out quite the same every time I make them. This allows for plenty of variety, but sometimes, just sometimes, I wish I had written down exactly how I made that ancho mole sauce I made for Thanksgiving in 2006. Perhaps I have been playing to increasingly tougher crowds, but I am yet to receive as many rave reviews on anything as I did for that sauce!

Starting this food blog has hence been a blessing and a bane. On the one hand, my cooking speed has been considerably slowed down since I now measure out all my ingredients in order to be able to recreate them in my posts. On the other hand, I have finally started a collection of recipes that I enjoy making and eating – this should, in theory at least, make the question: “What’s for dinner?” a lot easier to answer in the future.

However, for old-time’s sake (and because I’m a bit pressed for time today), I thought I would share with you one of my recipes as seen through my guesstimating eyes. Here’s what’s for dinner, tonight. Enjoy!

Tomato Spinach shells with Basil-Saffron Cream sauce

Half a package of Tomato Spinach Shells, cooked al dente
1 pat butter
2 small splashes extra-virgin olive oil
A couple of tablespoons of pumpkin seeds
One large spoonful of minced garlic
One large spoonful of minced basil
4 dried red chili peppers, crumbled
(On a 3-star spice scale, this will definitely earn you 4-stars; not for the faint-of-heart)
A handful of thinly-sliced red onions
A fistful of all-purpose flour
2 small splashes of half and half
About 2 C milk (I used skim milk)
A dash of grated parmesan
Half a cup of petite peas
2 small pinches of saffron strands
(The sweetness of the saffron balances the spice of the chilis nicely)
Salt to taste


Toast pumpkin seeds lightly in hot skillet and remove
Melt butter in same skillet, add onions, garlic, chili peppers and basil to butter and sautee until fragrant
Add olive oil to skillet and sautée for an additional minute or so
Add A/P flour and sautee for a couple of minutes
Add half-and-half, milk, and parmesan; toss in peas
Salt to taste and allow sauce to simmer and thicken
Stir in saffron
Serve atop shells with a side of steamed corn-on-the-cob.

Cozy Italian Dinner

Although my last post was quite a while ago, I refuse to be relegated to the realm of blogs that have a single introductory post from three years ago and are left hanging with just the promise of things to come... I remember being quite perplexed while settling on a Blog address as I came across site after site of abandoned posts.

Seeing as it's been quite a while since my last post, I thought that I would present a complete menu here rather than a single item. Since I just moved to a new city, I have been quite busy making new friends and entertaining them with my culinary experiments. On one such recent occasion, I decided to cook an Italian meal for some new friends. After much indecision and many phone calls to my husband, I finally settled on a relatively simple menu of Leek and Mushroom Tarts with an herb salad, Rigatoni Alla Norma, and of course, Tiramisu. To avoid making this post a recipe for boredom, I am only posting the Leek Tart recipe below.

The inspiration for the Leek and Mushroom Tarts was an absolutely delectable offering at a local bakery in Portland, OR called Baker & Spice. If you're in the area, I highly recommend you check out this local gem; see http://bakerandspicebakery.com for a mouth-watering preview.

The leek, or Allium ampeloprasum, belongs to the same family as chives, onions and garlic, but has a much milder flavor than its cousins in the Allium family. I think leeks taste best either fresh or lightly sauteed, not boiled, although this is a personal preference. Apparently, leeks have been in cultivation at least since ancient Egyptian times -- thanks Wiki! I can say from personal experience that they are incredibly easy and rewarding to grow. I had ample success growing these in Wisconsin through spring, summer and fall. If you would like to grow your own, see http://www.ehow.com/how_9869_grow-leeks.html

Anyway, that's enough about leeks -- now onto the recipe!

Mushroom Leek Tarts

For the pastry:

I defrosted Pepperidge Farm's frozen Puff Pastry
--hey, I warned you I don't make everything from scratch. But if you want to make your own, Google offers plenty of recipes, including some YouTube videos as well. I rolled out each sheet ever-so-slightly and pricked it with a fork all over.

I then scored a 1-inch border all around the pastry
-- gently draw a border with a sharp knife; do not go through pastry obviously

I then brushed the whole sheet lightly with olive oil and and blind-baked (a fancy way of saying pre-baked) it at 375º F for about 10 minutes. This step will help you avoid a soggy center in your finished tart and is well-worth the effort!

For the filling, I used:

• 1 large egg
• 4 T ricotta
• 1C Sautéed Portabella mushrooms, cooled
• 2C Lightly sautéed chopped leeks, cooled
• 4T finely minced basil
• 3T finely minced sautéed garlic (ah...the leek's much-loved, albeit
smellier, cousin)
• 1/2C grated Gruyere
• Salt and pepper to taste

Now, I have to say that I'm not a huge fan of meticulously following recipes while cooking, so ALL ingredient measures are guidelines and can be adjusted to taste.

I mixed all the filling ingredients the night before and refrigerated the mixture overnight.

After pre-baking the pastry, top with about an inch of filling within the scored border. Return to oven until filling is heated through (this happens quickly) and the pastry is golden brown all over (check the bottoms, these cook slower) -- about 20 minutes.

Remove, cool slightly, cut and serve with a light salad. You could also make individual tartlets by pre-cutting your pastry into squares before baking and scoring each of the squares before filling them.





Tiramisu

I know I promised to stop with the Tarts, but I wanted to share my pictures of Tiramisu as well.

I will, however, spare you any details about the origins of Tiramisu. Recently, there has been a glut of articles surrounding the resurgence of this dessert, so a quick Google search should yield more information than you asked for.

As for the recipe, after much searching, I pretty much followed the recipe at the Cooking for Engineers website that offers an eggless version that, in my opinion, is better than the original. If you're unfamiliar with this site, I highly recommend you give it a glance:

http://www.cookingforengineers.com/recipe/26/Simple-Tiramisu

Now, on to the pictures. I plated fairly generous portions of this decadent dessert on dessert plates dressed with a thin layer of crème anglaise (more on that later).