Back!

...and checking in from Rockville, Maryland, where I am snowed in (wait, isn't it March?) and taking the opportunity to return to this long-neglected project.

My Rockville backyard.

There have been many changes behind the scenes - I finished the PhD and got a job on the other side of the country, and in between walked the Camino, worked on a farm in Bavaria, rode a camel in the Sahara, and much, much more, stories from which will certainly pepper this blog in the months to come.

Get it? Pepper?

Changes in my schedule and environment have led to changes in how and when and what I cook.  There have been new challenges (as well as numerous realizations of how spoiled I was in California - why would one live anywhere else?), but there have been new projects and goals, some of which have even succeeded.  Expect posts about bread, CSAs, and cooking with unusual (to me) Asian vegetables.

One of the big changes about the East Coast is the access to and price of produce.  I have mixed feelings about doing all my shopping at Lotte and H-Mart (fresh okra? now?), but when cilantro costs three dollars a bunch elsewhere, most misgivings seem to evaporate.  However, when I can cook something with ingredients that are dried, canned, or (mostly) in season, I jump on it.

If you aren't already reading 101 Cookbooks, go there now.  Heidi Swanson's recipes are fresh and beautifully photographed, and she has a knack for combining flavors and ingredients that challenge my conceptions of what "goes together," and always carries it off with style. (Guilty: I tend to be a little conservative when spicing, unless following a recipe.)  The following was adapted from her recipe.  My version omits the mint (which I thought was buried by the other flavors), and has a chili-like consistency, perfect for the snowy days.  I topped it with cotija, cilantro, green onions and freshly-squeezed lime juice, and ate it with toasted, thick corn tortillas, though I bet it would be delicious served over polenta.

Dried Fava Bean Stew with New Mexico Chiles

Adapted from 101 Cookbooks

Ingredients:

1 lb/ 16 oz/ 450 g hulled dry fava beans*

8 cups/ 2 L vegetable broth (I used this)

8 garlic cloves, unpeeled

1 large white onion, sliced 1/2-inch/ 1 cm thick

1 28-oz can diced tomatoes

8 dried New Mexico chiles, (some spicy, some medium, depending on your preference), stemmed and seeded, divided

2 Tbl extra virgin olive oil

2 Tbl cider vinegar

3/4 tsp dried Mexican oregano

1 1/2 tsp fine-grain sea salt

Toppings: cotija (or other fresh, crumbly Mexican or Latin American cheese), cilantro, green onions, lime

Directions:

Place the fava beans in a large pot with the broth and three of the New Mexico chiles.  Bring to a boil, and simmer the mixture for an hour, or until the beans are tender, but not falling apart.

While the beans are cooking, put the garlic and onions on a baking sheet, and broil 5-10 minutes, about 4 inches from the broiler (this number is highly dependent on your oven.  Always watch broiling items like a hawk!), until the onion is browned and carmelized.

Remove the onions and garlic, and let them cool.  Once cool (or cool enough to handle comfortably), peel the garlic, and dice the onions and garlic together.  Whenever they're done, add the onions, garlic, and tomatoes to the beans, and let it continue to simmer.  Like all chilis, it benefits from cooking slowly over a long period of time, so don't rush it.

Take the remaining chiles, and somehow reduce them to tiny pieces.  (I used scissors, but this was painfully slow.  In the future, I would put it through a food processor.)  Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat, and add the confettied chiles.  Cook for a minute, stirring (do not leave them, or they will burn), then remove and add 3 tablespoons of water, and the vinegar, oregano, and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt.  Set aside, and let sit for at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add to the pot with the beans.

When the beans are tender, and you just can't standing waiting any longer, salt the stew to taste (though be aware that the cheese is salty), and serve with all your favorite fixings: cotija, chopped cilantro and green onions, lime juice...  Enjoy!

*Note: Make sure your fava beans are hulled, or hull them before starting!  I did not, and found myself hulling a pound of hot fava beans halfway through cooking.  I cannot recommend this procedure to anyone.

Granola

I grew up on TJs ginger-almond granola (which I thought was pretty tasty at the time, granted), but was converted by a fellow from Eugene's The Lorax, who was visiting Berkeley and Lothlorien for a few days.  I have never eaten so much granola in my life as that week.

It took me a while to attempt it myself, but now that I have, there is No Going Back.  Fortunately (as the internet and most likely you have already realized), it's really pretty easy and tastes about a thousand times better than much of the stuff on the market.

Technically, the word I wrote down at the top of this recipe is "granaloa," which says something about the hour and/or mindset I was in at the time of recording.  I found it on the internet somewhere I am unable to recall (apologies to the since-forgotten blogger), and have adapted it as I like.  Have fun!

Black Bean Salad with a Side of Orange and Jicima

The summer salad series continues with both alliterations and recipes.  These next two I thought wonderful served together, the spicy heartiness of the black beans complemented by the sweet, brisk refreshment of oranges, jicima, and radishes.  Both of the recipes come from Annie Somerville's Fields of Greens (which, by now, you have probably realized I am obsessed with).  For the bean salad, the changes I've made reflect concessions to cost and convenience, and for the orange salad, changes reflect misreading the recipe, but liking the final result.

Spicy Black Beans with Chilies and Lime
Adapted from Fields of Greens by Annie Somerville


Serves 4-6.

Ingredients:
2 19-oz cans of black beans, drained and rinsed*
Salt and pepper
1/2 medium-size carrot, diced (about 1/4 cup, prepped)
1/2 celery rib, diced (about 1/4 cup, prepped)
1/3 red bell pepper, diced (about 1/4 cup, prepped)
Zest of 2 limes (about 1 1/2 tsp)
3 Tbl fresh lime juice (the juice of the two you zested should be enough)
2 Tbl Champagne vinegar**
1 garlic clove, minced
3 pinches of cayenne
1/4 cup olive oil
1 or 2 jalapeno chilies, seeded and diced
2 heaping Tbl chopped cilantro
1 Tbl chopped mint (optional)


Directions:
Put the (rinsed, drained) beans into a large bowl.  Bring a small pot of water with 1/2 tsp salt to a boil.  Add the carrot, cook for 30 seconds, then add the celery and cook for another 30 seconds.  Drain, rinse with cold water, and add to the beans.  Add the bell pepper to the beans.

To make the dressing, combine the zest, lime juice, vinegar, garlic, 1 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp black pepper in a jar, and shake to combine (or whisk them together in a bowl).  Add the olive oil, and shake again.  Add the dressing and the jalapenos to the salad (the salad should be spicy, but if you're worried, add half the jalapeno, taste, and add more as desired).

Let the salad marinate for at least 30 minutes.  Add the cilantro and mint before serving.

Serving Suggestions: Cotija (or Queso Fresco, or Mexican cheese) is pretty widely available these days, and pretty delicious sprinkled on top.  Quick pickled onions could be good, and I know the orange-jicima salad is!

*Note: The original recipe calls for 1.5 cups (9oz) of dried black beans, sorted and soaked overnight.  Drain and rinse the beans, put them in a large saucepan, cover with cold water, bring to a boil, and then cook at a gentle boil 20-25 minutes (until tender but not falling apart).  When the beans are done, proceed with the recipe as written.
**Note: If you can find Champagne vinegar for cheap, that's fine.  Otherwise, just use sherry vinegar.

Pita

Once summer starts in Davis (and it has, no matter what the calendar says), I become a permanent fixture of the porch.  Breakfast turns into reading the news turns into work in the morning, then the late afternoon wanders in with a book (and quite possibly a beer).  I like to eat late, when the sun has set, but it is not quite dark and still a little warm.  I like to eat lightly, and ideally with my fingers, some bread and cheese and tomato, or a few salads with some warm pita.

The other weekend I was in a park, instead of parked on the porch.  One of the local high schools was putting on a free, outdoor play ("The Compleat Works of Wllm Shkspr (Abridged)," the first half of which was hilariously bad, the second half was just hilarious - think Hamlet with only three actors, done forwards, fast forwards, and backwards in under five minutes), and the Professor and I met some friends there, to watch and have a picnic.  I'm not sure if the things I brought were ideal finger foods, but they were certainly delicious, and would be perfect for a late supper on the porch.  I will post the salads over the next few days, but start with some pita with your next rendition of your favorite salad.

Some days.

Some days, you're done with a frigid office and four walls between you and the sound of, well, anything.

Some days, you're tired of your cannibalistic chickens.

Some days, you need a Franzi, Paul Simon, and a porch.

Cheers.

"F**k it.  I'm gonna build a fetish costume for my chicken."
Serves one (or many, as needed).


Ingredients:
One (or many) Franziskaner Weissbier, cold
One porch, warm and spattered with sunlight
One Paul Simon album, preferably Graceland

Directions:
Sit on porch.
Pour beer into attractive glass of your choosing.
Start album.

Walk on.