Amy's Food Adventures

Light Delights

We're always trying to behave and eat less -- or at least eat more wisely. We're still convinced that calories count so we're more inclined to try to limit fat (it eats up lots of calories fast) and have some carbs, even those bad white ones. Here's last night's dinner, a meal which pulls out lots of calorie-sparing tricks, with some notes for those of you who are more low-carb focused.

Oven Fries

A number of folks have figured out that it's possible to create a really tasty, fried-potato-like treat with much less oil. Couple that with a lot of flavor and it's possible to be satisfied with less carbs, too. It's also easy. Just cut large, smooth Russet potatoes lengthwise in half (wash and dry them first, but leave the peel on), and then cut each half into three long wedges (easier to do than to explain). Mix 1 tablespoon of olive oil (or Canola oil) for each potato with 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper (more if you like) and some salt and pepper. Then toss in the potato wedges and mix until they're coated. Lay the wedges out on a cookie sheet; make sure each wedge has one cut side in contact with the pan -- that's how they're going to get "fried." Cook in a 350 degree oven for about 35-40 minutes, turning over half-way. If you'd like this to be even lower carb, use sweet potatoes.

Chicken Breasts in a Sauce

This has a pretty generic name because there are so many possibilities here. Basically, the idea is to take skinless and boneless chicken breast halves (we cut them into large strips if they're very big), season them (use your creativity, we like to chose between Cajun seasoning, salt, pepper and sage or rosemary (Italian), or perhaps some cumin powder (both Southwestern and Indian). Then saute them in a bit of olive oil until browned on all sides. Remove the chicken from the pan and keep it warm while you concoct a sauce.

There are a dazzling variety of choices.

(1) The easiest one is just to deglaze the pan with some white wine or dry vermouth (about one cup for a pound of chicken), stirring up any browned bits. Then return the chicken to the pan, cover and let cook for about 10 minutes on a moderately low heat.

(2) Slightly more complicated and a bit more sophisticated, is to add some chopped garlic, shallot, or onion to the pan, soften it, and then add the wine. Then continue as above. In either case, we might add more of any herb to the sauce as we're finishing it.

(3) Another choice would be to add the garlic, shallot, or onion and soften it, and then add some chopped ripe tomato (fresh or out of a can) or some tomato sauce, and some mediterranean spices (thyme would be my choice), before putting the chicken back and proceeding. For a special event, you could add some sauted sliced mushrooms with the chicken.

(4) Or you could go with garlic and some chopped chiles (canned or fresh). At our house, we'd use a choped fresh Jalapeno pepper, minus its seeds. Add the tomatoes and a bit of cumin and oregano, and stir before returning the chicken for its final cooking. It's a southwestern chicken saute.

(5) We've also turned this into an easy Indian dinner by going the garlic route and, at the same time, adding a few spoonfuls of ginger paste and some fresh lemon zest. We then stir in a big spoonful of curry powder (we like Madras) and let it cook for a minute, stirring, and then add some plain yogurt (non-fat is fine) and some chicken broth, in equal measure. For a pound of chicken breasts, we'd use one-half cup of each. Stir it together, add the chicken, and let the cooking finish. This one should get served over rice with a chutney.

We'd serve any of these with an appropriate salad, lightly dressed. The Indian saute would get a cucumber Raita (grated, seeded cucumber mixed into yogurt, with a bit of grated carrot or radish and some spice -- try cumin or cayenne, just a bit scattered on top). The others would get greens and vinaigrette with something appropriate as a garnish.

Last night we had the cherry tomato/avocado/arugula salad we've mentioned before.

When you're eating light, fruit, fresh and unfussed with, is the best dessert.

A Summer Veggie Special

Summer came early this year, perhaps as a reward to offset our anxiety over the war in Iraq, the state of the economy, and the political season that lies ahead. That has meant a bonanza of fruits and vegetables arriving at every market, pressing us to think ahead to summer time pleasures.

We are not vegetarians, but we are very fond of vegetables, particularly vegetables eaten at the peak of perfection, in their season. When the veggies are coming in, glossy and glorious, we sometimes abandon all pretense of finding a main course for them to accompany and simply have a veggie dinner.

After years of drooling over the best of the vegetarian cookbooks (I am particularly fond of Deborah Madison, Crescent Dragonwagon, and all of Moosewood), we have a few standards. Last night we had two of our favorites, a kind of Ratatouille Casserole and Corn on the Cob.

Ratatouille Casserole

The casserole lends itself to endless variations, depending on whether you'd like to serve it as a side dish or -- as last night -- as a main course. You start out by peeling, halving, and thinly slicing an onion or two and softening it to a golden brown in a few tablespoonfuls of olive oil. Then add as many sliced cloves of garlic as you like (for a 9x13 casserole, we usually use two large onions and 4 cloves of garlic), add salt and freshly ground black pepper, and a spoonful of thyme) and cook till everything is golden brown.

In the meantime slice 2 or 3 zucchini (and/or yellow summer squash), a small eggplant or two (peel it if you like, we do), 6 plum tomatoes, and anything else you'd like. Sometimes we add sliced sweet or mildly spicy peppers, chopped herbs (parsley, chives, basil), very thinly sliced fennel bulb, or other vegetables.

Spray a casserole and layer the vegetables, starting with the eggplant. (Sometimes, if we want this to be more substantial, we add a layer of sliced, peeled potatoes as the bottom layler.). We usually alternate vegetables, sprinkling the sauteed onions, handfuls of grated Romano or Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper, and chopped herbs betwee layers. The tomatoes should go into the casserole in two layers, one in the middle and one on top. We usually put a good sprinkling of cheese on top, too. If it's dinner we may also put about eight ounces of shredded Mozzarella cheese into the layers.

Everything gets baked in a 350 oven for about 40 minutes.

This is, of course, amazingly versatile. You can add other vegetables, layer in slivers of ham or leftover roasted meat, or add spoonfuls of Ricotta cheese (we mix it with an egg, chopped parsley, and salt and pepper before dolopping it between the layers of vegetables). You can bake it in individual casseroles for a lunch or side dish. We've made it southwestern with chiles and cumin and oregano, too.

The corn requires nothing but being very fresh and as lightly cooked as possible. Our secret is to put the husked corn into a pot of briskly boiling water, cover it, and turn it off. We come back five or ten minutes later (it could wait 30) and take the corn to the table for a bath of butter and a sprinkling of peppe.

Fruit Crisp

If there's time, the perfect ending to a veggie dinner is baked fresh fruit. You can do this to many kinds of fruit, from the blueberries and peaches of summer to peeled, sliced apples and pears in wintertime. Just fill a buttered casserole with fruit (mixed with sugar if it's tart, seasoning to taste -- we like a grind of nutmeg on many things). Then put a stick of butter in the food processor with a cup of brown sugar and a cup of flour, and a teaspon of lemon zest. Pulse to coarse meal and spoon over the fruit. Thirty minutes in a 350 degree oven (while you're eating the main course) and you'll be carrying a perfect fruit crisp to the table. Or you can make it before-hand and serve it warm or at room temperature.

Cook's Night Off

I like soft shell crabs (there isn't much in the way of food I don't like). My husband likes them, too. However, we have distinctively different views on the best way to prepare them. In the way of old married couples, we've compromised. When soft shells are on the menu, he does the cooking and I agree to eat them -- his way. I might provide a side dish or two.

I like soft shells lightly breaded or battered and deep fried, to insure that the slightly crunchy natural shell is encased in a reallyl crunchy outer casing.

My suband likes his soft shells dipped in highly seasoned flour (he uses Cajun seasoning or just plain old Cayenne Pepper) and then sauteed in olive oil or a mixture of olive oil and butter. When they're done, he concocts a spicey sauce to go over them, deglazing the pan with fresh lemon juice, adding ginger and garlic (usually spoonfuls from a refrigerated jar, not the freshly prepared kind), white Vermouth or dry white wine, and an artful dash of hot sauce. He likes to use something toxic called Dave's Insanity. (If you try this, I'd recommend you substitute Tabasco, unless you're into really hot; even Marshall only uses a single drop.)

The crabs are served in the sauce, softening any crispness, and usuallly accompanied by some pasta or white rice to help enjoy the sauce. Since I don't like the sauce on my somewhat crispy crab, I usually restrict it to the pasta or rice or skip it altogether in favor of a classic bit of butter, Parmesan cheese, and black pepper.

A tart salad is required. Something with a sharp vinaigrette works well, like tomato, avocado, and arugula. Or the exotic peanutty coleslw from yesterday. Or you can try this:

Chopped Tomato Salad*

Chop several large and very ripe tomatoes. (Halved or quartered cherry or grape tomatoes are okay.) Chop half a red or sweet onion (or a shallot or two) and a large handful of flat leaf parsley. Combine them all with about half a cup of balsamic vinaigrette. Optionally, add a diced cucumber, peeled and seeded. Add a few grinds of black pepper (in our case, quite a few.)

* This is a summer salad, as are soft shells. Don't bother making it if the tomatoes aren't ripe and juicy.

I probably wouldn't serve just fruit after this. But a scoop of vanilla or coffee ice cream with a bit of ripe fruit (strawberries, raspberries, etc.), that has been sitting cut up with sugar and perhaps a spoonful of liqeur during dinner, awaiting dessert, is very good.

Half the fun of this meal is not having to cook the crabs!

Hot Night Dinners

We seem to follow a program for dinners on hot nights. In Philadelphia, hot nights start early -- it's May and we've already seem a few very hot 90 degree days.

We're late eaters -- must have a Spanish gene somewhere. Usually get home from the office (it's only a mile or so away) aroud 6 and spend a few hours being irritated by the news on TV and in print, over a (non-alcoholic) drink. Some nights we stop for supplies on the wa home. We have lots of food stores iin that mile or so stretch, so it's tempting to leave the menu decision to what we find.

Hot nights that's usually something to quick saute or broil -- chicken breasts, fish, small steaks, lamb, pork or veal chops -- sometimes with a sauce, more often plain -- with intoxicating varieties of salads, usually dreamed up on the spot from what we see. A starch, another vegetable, or a cold soup (we're equally fond of Cucumber Yogurt Soup and Gazpacho) fills the third spot, and if we're still hungry we have fresh fruit for dessert.

We'll get you the cold soup recipes another time (they're up on my Foodstyles site for now, but don't count on that lasting much longer). But here are some of the salad's we've had in the last week or two. The idea is to match your mood up with what you find in the market.

(1) Roasted Beets, Goat Cheese (herbed or not), Pine Nuts (definitely toasted), and Arugula, Balsamic Vinaigrette (our house dressing)

(2) Shredded Cabbage, Shaved Fennel, Orange Slices (or Mandarin Oranges if you're lazy) in a Soy Sauce, Rice Wine Vinegar, Jalapeno Pepper, Ginger, Garlic, and Peanut Butter sauce, buzzed in the food processor

(3) Cherry (or Grape) Tomatoes with Chick Peas and ribbons of baby Romaine in a Balsamic Vinaigrette with Anchovies. This is best if the anchovies are cut into bits. It can be dressed up with olives and shavings of Parmesan into most of a dinner (add some tuna and hard boiled egg quarters and it's an American version of Salad Nicoise).

(4) Cherry tomatoes, halved, with slices or chunks of Avocado (in that not-quite-entirely-ripe stage), over arugula with Balsamic Vinaigrette. No argula? Use ribbons of baby Romaine and add a chopped shallot to get the right balance.

(5) Thin slices of fennel with thin slices of red onion and thick slices of orange. We use balsamic vinaigrette, but a sherry vinegar based vinaigrette would be very good -- and some black olives tossed over is a nice touch.

(6) Recently we've added a steakhouse salad to our repetoire: quarters of very crisp iceberg lettuce (shred it if you find it too messy to eat in a single lump), served with a few halved cherry tomatoes and a dressing made of sour cream (we use the diet kind, but any kind works), mixed with vinegar, Tabasco, and lots of crumbled blue cheese (don't use the Roquefort or Stilton for this; the cheaper stuff works fine).

And our dead favorite isn't one of these strange combinations at all -- just our version of Caesar salad. We wash and dry only the pale, small leaves of baby Romaines and tear them in halves or thirds. They get dressed with a thick mixture of egg, olive oil, red wine vinegar, Worcestershire Sauce, lemon juice, garlic (lots), and grated Peccorino Romano cheese (more than lots). Anchovies are optional. So are croutons.

With one of these salads in hand and a cold soup first, I'm not sure I need a grilled something after all!

Fun's the Goal

I've been reading about, writing about, and cooking great food for nearly 40 years.

I didn't have a great start. As a bride I couldn't boil an egg or make coffee. Living in a one-room apartment as an Army bride in Frankfurt, Germany didn't help much. But I read my way through the post library's cookbook shelf, bought a Betty Crocker cookbook (I still have it), and managed to shove a turkey (I greased it) into my tiny oven to cook a first Thanksgiving dinner. It all looks much better -- and much worse -- I'd guess, through the long lens of memory.

Today I'm a computer industry analyst. (You can see my other life at www.wohl.com and http:amywohl.weblogger.com). I travel a lot. That gets me to great restaurants -- and some of the worst airline non-food imagineable. I hide inside a food magazine and dream up my next dinner party.

I've tried having a web site about food, but it's not immediate enough. I need too much help to get things up there. I like weblogs a lot better. Any time I have access to a computer (that's nearly all the time for me), I can post. I'm hoping to post to this weblog a lot -- with luck, nearly every day.

I'm likely to write about what I'm eating or planning to eat, what I'm buying in the markets, what I'm reading, and the restaurants and food experiences I encounter in my travels. Tell me other food things you'd like to know about and I'll try to work them in.

I can cook very complicated things (I've never gone to a cooking school, but experience and reading are good teachers). However, my philosophy is more Italian than French. That is, I'd much rather use great ingredients and let them shine than fuss with a lot of two-days-in-the-making sauces. You'll see that from what I write. I have cooked in nearly every cuisine imagineable -- from Haute French to peasant Mexican, from regional Chinese to Indian (eastern) banquets. Most days you'd think our kitchen was a kind of Mediterranean bistro.

Until I figure things out, some recipes are going to appear here, in the weblog. After I get more organized, the plan is to put up a shadow web site and link there for recipes, as a kind of filing cabinet, if you will. If one of you knows a particularly good way to do this, I'd appreciate advice. Writing about technology and being a geek aren't the same thing!

Enough for now. It's time for me to eat lunch (Chinese Take-Out) and plan the menu for dinner. More later.

Amy