Lox Ruben

SMOKED SALMON REUBEN

Sauce:
equal parts mayonnaise, chili sauce or ketchup, and finely chopped dill pickle (or relish)
fresh lemon juice
Kosher salt and freshly milled black pepper
optional: horseradish, Worcestershire sauce...

Sandwich Goodness:
2 slices rye, pump or marble bread
1-2 slices of Swiss cheese
thinly sliced smoked salmon (lox)
capers
sauerkraut, drained, rinsed and gently squeezed dry
unsalted butter

Combine sauce ingredients to taste. Spread 1 side of each slice of bread with some of the dressing. Arrange half of the cheese on one slice. Place the salmon, sauerkraut, and remaining cheese on the cheese-topped slice of bread and top with the remaining bread slice, dressing-side down.

Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat; add the sandwiches and something heavy (such as a cast iron skillet, flat saucepan lid, or heatproof plate and a weight such as a food can) to firmly press the sandwiches down. Cook for 6 minutes a side or until golden and the cheese has melted. Cut the sandwiches in half and serve (with a pickle, if you're classy!)

Naan

* 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
* 1 cup warm water
* 1/4 cup sweetness (sugar, honey) this quantity can be reduced
* 3 tablespoons kefir/yogurt/milk
* 1 egg, beaten
* 2 teaspoons salt
* 4 1/2 cups AP flour (or 2/3 AP & 1/3 wheat flour)
* 1/4 cup butter, melted

1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Place dough in a well oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise. Let it rise 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in volume.

2. Fold down dough, and knead in any additions. Pinch off small handfuls of dough about the size of a golf ball. Roll into balls, and place on a tray. Cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

3. During the second rising, preheat griddle to high heat (careful about the heat, you don't want to burn your naan!)

4. At griddle side, roll one ball of dough out into a thin circle. Lightly oil griddle. Place dough on grill, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until puffy and lightly browned. Brush uncooked side with butter, and turn over. Brush cooked side with butter, and cook until browned, another 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from grill, and continue the process until all the naan has been prepared.

Optional Ingredients:
2 teaspoons minced garlic, 1/2 bulb roasted garlic, green onion, cheeses, herbs, spices, roasted cauliflower, chicken, partially rehydrated dried fruit, seeds...etc.

Palak (or Saag) Paneer

I made this when the sisters came to visit. I need to adapt the spices a little more, but it was delicious!

Ingredients

1 recipe paneer cut into ½ inch cubes (or store-bought paneer) Vegan option: use firm tofu

2 lb spinach (fresh or frozen) chopped

3 tablespoon onion (chopped)

2 tablespoon tomato (chopped)

½ cup half and half or yogurt (optional)

2 teaspoon garam masala powder

1 teaspoon cumin powder

½ teaspoon turmeric powder

2 tablespoon ghee or oil

Salt to taste

METHOD

1 Heat ghee in low-medium flame. Add cubed Paneer and heat until light golden brown. Remove and set aside.

2 Heat ghee or oil. Sauté onion until light golden brown. Add spinach and cook until it turns into a paste.

3 Add spices and tomatoes. Simmer for few minutes.

4 Add half and half or yogurt and Paneer to spinach curry. Cook for about 10 minutes in medium heat.

5 Serve hot with rice or naan

Number of Servings: 6 to 8

Adapted from

http://www.food-india.com/recipe/R051_R75/R055.htm

Curried Pumpkin (or squash) and Ginger Scones

3 cups All-Purpose Flour (consider using 1 c. wheat flour)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 c chopped crystallized ginger
1/2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp chopped or grated fresh ginger (or 1/2 tsp dried)
1/4 tsp turmeric (optional, for color)
5 tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 c (1 stick) cold butter or margarine
1/2 c cooked, pureed pumpkin or squash (canned is fine)
1 cup buttermilk, plain yogurt or sour cream (low-fat or nonfat is fine)

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, curry, turmeric and sugar. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender, your fingers, or with an electric mixer, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the pumpkin or squash and buttermilk, yogurt or sour cream till smooth. Add this to the dry ingredients, stirring till just combined. Feel free to use your hands to blend, just don't overmix.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, and pat or roll it into a 9x12-inch (approx.) rectangle about 1/2 to 3/4-inch thick. Cut into 3-inch squares, and cut those diagonally into triangles. Transfer triangles to a parchment-lined or lightly greased baking sheet, leaving about an inch between scones.

Bake the scones in a preheated 425°F oven for 20 minutes, or until they're golden brown. (caution! do not overcook or they'll be dry and less tasty!) Remove them from the oven, and serve them warm, or at room temperature, with honey, jam, cream cheese or plain.

Yield: 24 scones.

Based on the recipe found at King Arthur Flour.

Curried Black-Eyed Peas ne Dal

• 1 1/4 cups dried black-eyed peas
• 5 bacon slices
• 1 medium onion
• 2 celery ribs
• 3 chopped cloves of garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes
• 6 cups chicken (or veggie) broth (if you have less, just add water!)
  
• 1/4 c. chopped sundried tomato (or 1 c. chopped fresh tomato)
  
• 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves (or dried)
• 1/2-1 c. coarsely chopped spinach

Pick over peas and in a saucepan cover with cold water by 2 inches. Bring water to a boil and boil peas 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat. Soak peas 1 hour. Drain peas in a sieve.

While peas soak, prep ingredients: Coarsely chop both bacon and tomatoes. Finely chop both onion and garlic. Thinly slice celery crosswise.

In a 5-quart kettle cook bacon over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 10 minutes. Remove and set aside. (VEGETARIAN/VEGAN, skip this step)

Saute onion, celery, garlic, and spices in the bacon pan (VEGETARIAN, use butter instead of bacon fat: VEGAN use olive oil), stirring occasionally, until onion is softened. Deglaze pan with broth, and bring to a boil.

Add peas and tomatoes and simmer, uncovered, until peas are tender, adding more liquid as needed.

Either remove and blend 1/2 of the soup, or use a potato mashes to break up peas and thicken soup.

Continue simmering until it reaches a stew-like consistency*, then toss in spinach to wilt, season with reserved bacon, salt and pepper and serve with crusty bread, pita or over rice.

*If you prefer a soup, then stop cooking after the beans are soft!

Butternut Squash, Sage, and Parmesan Pasties

Crust

1 recipe Pate Brisee (Pie Crust) Divide crust into 4-6 balls and press flat. Chill for 1-48 hours.

Filling
one small-med butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1 cm cubes (~8 oz prepared)
1 medium red onion, diced
2-3 cloves garlic, crushed and coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon finely chopped sage
1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted (if desired, crush with a rolling pin)

Sea Salt
Freshly ground white pepper (or black)
1 egg, beaten

Remove crusts from fridge and roll flat, no less than 1/8 inch thick. Return to fridge until needed.

Preheat oven to 375°F.

In a large bowl, combine butternut squash, onion, garlic, sage, parsley, Parmesan cheese, and pine nuts.

Spoon mixture over half of each dough round, leaving a 1-inch border around the edge. Sprinkle well with salt and pepper.

Moisten the edges of the dough with beaten egg. With cool hands, fold the pastry over and crimp the edges. Cut a small slit in the top of each pasty to vent the steam. Brush all over with beaten egg.

Bake until golden and cooked through, about 40 minutes. Serve hot or warm.

Adapted from a recipe found at The Kitchn blog.

*edit 1/23* This is a dry dish. It needs some sort of adaptation, either a sauce or to be made like a pot pie with a gravy...to be continued...

Pear Marsala Oatmeal

I've been exploring unusual oatmeals lately, mostly working with savory ingredients, but I had a pear that was dreadfully wounded in the trip home...and so I chose to sacrifice it to the greater good before its mangled and languishing form attracted fruit flies. We made Chicken Marsala a few nights ago, and so had masala wine just sitting around...and I'd just read a recipe on poaching pears in said substance. The following followed.

Ingredients: (measurements are approximate, I make oatmeal by feel)
most of one pear, skinned and cored
1/3 c. Marsala wine.
1/3 c. water to start, add more as needed
1/4 c. hearty oatmeal or other hot cereal
a healthy pinch of cinnamon
a knob of grated fresh ginger (dry will suffice if needed)
sea salt
slivered almonds (optional)
honey or brown sugar (optional)
1 tsp butter (optional)
dash of cayenne pepper (optional)
milk, yogurt or soy milk (optional)

1. simmer pear in Marsala until very soft then add water and bring to a boil.

2. add oatmeal, spices, ginger and butter (if desired) and reduce heat to a gentle simmer. Stir occasionally and watch water absorption of oats adding more water if needed. (I like mine to still have a little bite to them and so don't add a lot of water or they become more of a porridge)

3. both sweeteners and milk product may be added during the cooking process or after.

4. garnish with slivered almonds and remaining desired ingredients.

Basic Bread (no-knead)

This is one of those "no-knead, easy, 5 minutes a day" bread recipes that I've always been dubious about...I tried a recipe from Mother Earth News this week and LOVE it. Be aware, this produces a very crusty-crusted loaf excellent for dipping in soups, or even for making bread boules to hold dip, soup or stew. If you want a softer crust, try the basic bread recipe.

This recipe produces about 4 1lb loaves. You can gauge your usage visually as you use the dough.

INGREDIENTS:
7 1/2 c. all purpose flour*
1 1/2 tbsp (2 packets) granulated yeast
1 tbsp salt (or to taste)
4 c. lukewarm water (about 100 F) **
cornmeal

MATERIALS:
baking stone
roasting pan
tub for in the fridge, at least the size of a large shoebox
pizza peel, cutting board or sheet pan to slide dough into oven
Serrated knife
FRIDGE SPACE!!!

Mixing and Storing the Dough

1. Measure the dry ingredients (flour, yeast, and salt) into a resealable, lidded (not airtight) plastic food container or food grade bucket.

2. Mix water into dry ingredients, do not knead, using a spoon, food processor, or stand mixer. You may need to use your hands to get the dough uniformly moist without any dry patches. The dough should be moist and loose enough to conform to the shape of the container.

3. Cover with a lid (not airtight) or loosely with plastic wrap. Allow mixture to rise at room temperature until it begins to collapse (or at least flatten on top), approximately 2 hours. Longer rising times -- even overnight -- will not change the result.

Do not punch down dough. Ever.

4. Refrigerate risen dough for at least 3 hours (overnight is better). The longer it rests in the fridge, the deeper the flavor will be (think sourdough). The dough will sink onto itself and will not rise again in the container.

On Baking Day

1. Prepare a pizza peel, cutting board or back of a sheet pan to hold the dough while rising and slide it easily into the oven. To do so, sprinkle it liberally with cornmeal to keep the loaf from sticking.

2. Dust the surface of your dough with flour and pull up then cut off (using a serrated knife or scissors) a grapefruit-sided piece of dough.

3. Hold the mass of dough in your flour-coated hands and gently stretch the surface of the dough around the the bottom on all four sides, rotating a quarter-turn as you go to form a ball. The correctly shaped loaf will be smooth and cohesive on top, it's OK for the bottom to be ugly, that'll fix itself. This step should take no more than 20-40 seconds or your loaf will get dense.

4. Shape your loaf: leave it a round boule, make it narrow and oval shaped by stretching gently to elongate and rolling ends to taper them, poke a hole in the middle and stretch for a large circular loaf...be creative but handle the dough quickly and with a minimal of air-bubble breakage.

5. Place the loaf on the cornmeal coating, close to the edge for easy sliding (it won't rise a ton during resting, but leave at least an inch of space to the edge of the surface). Allow it to rest covered loosely with an inverted bowl or other draft-blocking jobbie for 90 minutes.

6. 30 minutes before baking, place a baking stone on a rack in the middle of the oven, and a empty broiler tray or other heavy baking dish anywhere in the oven where it won't impede the rising bread. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

7. Just before baking, slash the loaf with quarter-inch-deep parallel cuts across the top, using a serrated knife. (if desired, before cutting the loaf can be "painted" with water and sprinkled with seeds, nuts, or other toppings).

8. After a 30-minute preheat, you're ready to bake. Quickly slide the loaf off the resting surface and onto the hot stone. Quickly and carefully pour about a cup of HOT water into the broiler pan and close the oven door to trap the steam. Be prepared to move quickly, because you want that accumulated heat to stay in the oven.

9. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the crust is richly browned and firm to the touch (smaller or larger loaves will require adjustment in resting and baking time).

10. Remove the loaf from the oven and allow to cool completely, preferable on a wire cooking rack. The crust may "sing" (crackle) when exposed to air, and will initially soften, but will harden again when cool.

Additional dough can be stored in the oven and used over the next couple of weeks. You'll find that teven one days storage improves the flavor and texture of your bread. When your bucket is empty, don't wash it! Instead, mix another batch in the same container to get a head start on the sourdough flavor. Alternatively, incorporate up to 2c. of your old dough.


*or 4 c. whole wheat and 3 1/2 c. high gluten; or 5 1/2 ww + 2 c. ap + 1/4 c. vital wheat gluten
** you can add herbs & other ingredients to the water for flavored breads


Recipe from "Healthy Bread in 5 Minutes a Day" by, Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois. Visit www.healthybreadinfive.com for more ideas.