Weekly Cooking (and related issues) Thread

[Jamestown1630]

I'm still thinking about gardens, and vegetables - especially summer squashes.

I found the following in the Smith and Hawken 'Gardeners' Community Cookbook' (a great recipe book!)

Summer Squash with Spinach Filling

For the Squash:

Boil 2 large or 4 medium, whole Summer Squash until they can be easily pierced by a knife tip, but are still firm. Allow to cool slightly, and then split them lengthwise, and remove the seeds with a spoon. Set Aside.

Spinach Filling for Summer Squash

1 large bunch spinach, using leaves and tender stems, coarsely chopped and well-drained (3/4 lb.)

(often I just buy bags of baby spinach for this, and steam them slightly in the microwave.)

4 T butter

1/4 cup finely chopped onion

1/2 cup sour cream

1 tsp. red wine vinegar

Salt

Wilt the still-moist spinach in an ungreased, heavy saute pan over medium heat, or in a microwave bowl at high heat. Drain briefly and then squeeze dry and set aside.

Melt the butter in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the onion and stir until wilted, about 3 minutes.

Add the spinach, sour cream and vinegar, and salt to taste. Stir to blend.

Spoon the spinach mixture into the hollows of the squash halves. Place in an oven proof tray and bake at about 350 degrees until heated through and the squash tender.

Filling can be made ahead and kept in the refrigerator overnight.

(I've also seen similar recipes that add some cheese to the spinach mixture; I think Parmesan would be great.)

Another summer squash recipe is one that I found in the Martha Stewart magazine many years ago; I thought it looked so nice, I even bought the little oblong pan from a specialty store, to make it. (But you don't need that; it can be made in any tart pan with a loose bottom; depending on the size/shape of your pan, you may have to increase the recipe and get creative with the 'lattice' effect.

Looks fancy, but is easy to make and turns out lovely for a special occasion:

http://www.marthastewart.com/344192/summer-squash-lattice-tart

Lastly, a quick sauce for steamed zucchini:

Mustard Sauce for Steamed Zucchini

(Low Fat, but you can add butter :-)

Mix in a saucepan:

½ C. Chicken or Vegetable Broth

1 Shallot or Scallion, minced

1-1/2 tsp. fresh Tarragon

2 T. Dry White Wine

1 T. Arrowroot (or cornstarch)

1-1/2 tsp. Fresh Tarragon (or ½ tsp. dried))

1/8 tsp. Black Pepper

Cook uncovered 2 or 3 minutes. Melt in 1 T. butter, if desired.

Serve over steamed vegetables; especially good with Zucchini.

-JT

[minnesota_bound]

Hamburger
3/4 hamburger 1/4 pork = 1 hamporkburger
Frying pan
Add butter and 1/2 slice of onion.
Heat up and stir around then add the burger.
Cover pan and raise temp to sear both sides of burger then lower temp to cook to desired doneness.

[Jamestown1630]

Excellent post!

I live in the suburbs of a great City; but they are now allowing chicken hens in the backyard, in many jurisdictions. Zucchini is a great food for the hens.

(Everyone who is interested should petition for allowing chicken hens in their backyard! Free Eggs (after the initial cost, the feed, um.....:-)

But, I think that Chickens are a great thing to include in one’s first approach to “homesteading” or “prepping”.

-JT

[logitech]

The best EVER

[JRandomFreeper]

I'd get a couple of chicken, then petition. But that's the way I do things.

When I bootlegged the commercial piglet, the neighbor and I had the city inspector thinking it was a very ugly dog that lived in a small fence.

Of course, I never really let him see the 'dog' known as Miss Piggy. He did get to have some of her later, Ribs I think, and never knew the connection. LOL!.

I have no problems being mean to government guys.

/johnny

[Ellendra]

This isn’t about summer squashes, but I wanted to share one of my extra-special soup recipes:

Veggie Beef Soup:
2 oz lean beef, browned (Yes, that says 2 OUNCES)
2 cups tomatoes (I use pureed or crushed, but diced works too)
1 cup carrots, thinly sliced
1 cup sweet peas
1 cup diced potato
1/2 tablespoon sesame seeds
1/8th tsp flax seeds
1/2 tsp salt substitute (the potassium kind, not the herbal kind)
1 tablespoon parsley flakes (or 5 sprigs fresh parsley)
Beef bullion, rosemary, and bay leaf, to taste.

Brown the beef, simmer until the veggies are cooked. You guys know how soups are made, so I won’t take too much time explaining it.

But, why is this soup extra-special? Because, if you eat this entire batch of soup, plus one egg, 2 12-oz glasses of milk, an ounce of dark chocolate, and 1/2 cup of sunflower seeds, you will have eaten 100% or more of the RDA of every vitamin and mineral, while only eating around 1600 calories!

Personally, that’s too much food for me. I can only eat about 1/3 of that. 1/2 if I’m super hungry. If anyone is having trouble sticking to a diet, try this one!

Kevkrom: You’ve mentioned on other threads how you’d like to find something that provides all the nutrients a person needs, here’s a start.

Wintertime: You mentioned on a thread that you (like me) have to keep below 1200 calories because of a hyper-efficient matabolism. Try cutting this eating plan in half, maybe it might help with the hunger pains?

I like to make a big batch of this soup, and another batch of split pea soup, on the weekends so I don’t have to cook much during the week. The split pea soup is also calculated, and with the two flavors I’m less likely to get bored. Sometimes I change the spices, making italian beef veggie soup with basil, garlic, and oregano instead of rosemary and bay. The parsley is neccesary, it’s a concentrated source of vitamin K.

Special Split Pea Soup:
1 oz chicken
1/2 cup carrots, thinly sliced
1 1/4 cup potato, diced
2 cups sweet peas
1 tablespoon parsley
1/2 tsp salt substitute
Chicken bullion, thyme, other seasonings to taste

Brown the chicken, simmer with the potatoes and carrots until they’re tender. Then, whiz the peas in a blender until smooth, using part of the cooking liquid. Add pea puree to the rest of the soup, and add seasonings. Simmer gently until done.

I like pureed fresh/frozen peas better than the dried ones. I think it gives it a better flavor. If you’d rather use the dried kind, just do the calculations to see how much to use (I don’t have that chart handy).

This soup also needs the same other foods (egg, milk, etc) in order to provide complete nutrition. You can swap the soups with each other if you like, so you aren’t eating the same flavor all day.

Let me know what you think!

(Disclaimers: I am not a nutritionist, none of this is to be mistaken for expert advice. Any spelling or grammatical errors are to be attributed to the fact that I’m typing in the dark while starting to fall asleep.)

[Ellendra]

I like Zucchetta Rampicante squash. It sometimes goes by other names, on the gardening thread we just call it T-squash. It’s an excellent multi-purpose squash, both summer and winter. It’s one of the few summer squashes I like eating raw! And when cooked, it holds its shape better than most. i even make pickles with it.

[MomwithHope]

Thanks for the tip, I’ll have to check into that, maybe its a variety hubby will eat!

[MomwithHope]

I just googled some pictures. I have seen it before. We would have a challenge finding a place to put it. So do you eat it when it’s greener in the summer and then leave it on the vine for fall?

[V K Lee]

Unlike GWH Bush, Broccoli is one of my fav veggies. Love that stuff no matter how it is cooked. However, very limited on how much and how often as it really interferes with INR reading as any other Vit. K veggies. The next best fav is asparagus....umm Heaven.

[BunnySlippers]

Reminds me of lunch yesterday ... it was good:

Butternut squash cut about 1/4 inch thick. Layer with Béchamel sauce and pesto. Sprinkle with cheese and bake until tender.

[V K Lee]

Squash (with the exception of Acorn) is one last guy on a favorite list. Seldom eaten, and seldom prepared. Do bake the acorn which is lovely with cinnamon/nutmeg, butter and brown sugar. Yum...actually better than pumpkin. The Zucchini is usually eaten in a bread recipe.

Only recently found a recipe for yellow which might be attempted and tried. This found on PASSION FOR COOKING way back in the old web archives. Though squash is not a fav, DO LOVE CHEESE!!

Squash Souffle

Ingredients:
2 lbs. yellow squash, sliced
1 medium onion, sliced
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. sugar
3 Tbsp. melted butter
3 Tbsp. flour
1/2 tsp. seasoned salt
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 cup milk
1/2 lb. grated sharp cheese
buttered bread crumbs

Instructions:
Combine squash, onion, salt and sugar. Simmer with small amount of water for 20 minutes. Drain well. Mash with potato masher. Add remaining ingrediants, except bread crumbs. Bake at 325 degrees in a buttered 1 1/2 qt. casserole dish for 30 minutes. Top with bread crumbs and bake 10 minutes more. Can be stored in refrigerator 2 to 3 days unbaked. Freezes well also. Serves 8

[JRandomFreeper]

Bechamel, real bechamel, is freaking hard to make. And I think you have a sauce picante bechanel with the salsa.

I don't envy you the task of making that.

Bechemel from memory was THE final practical exercise at the commercial school I went to. At the joint Navy/AF school I graduate from they didn't even bother teaching it. If you needed bechemel, you poured the powder out of the bag and added hot water, LOL!

/johnny

[JRandomFreeper]

I'm very blessed to have volunteer asparagus growing this year. I collect enough for a meal once a week.

/johnny

[BunnySlippers]

Bechamel is easy to make. It’s basically milk, butter; flour. I start with bechamel to make cheese sauce for tiny onions or some other cheese thing ... even as a base for tuna casserole.

Sauces that are hard for me are things like Demi-glace which I avoid for the most part.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/white-sauce-or-bechamel-sauce-40046

[BunnySlippers]

We are lucky here in CA. Asparagus flows freely ... as do artichokes and other fabulous veggies.

I was just lamenting this morning that I left two Cara-Cara oranges on my desk at work. Someone stole them both. They are very expensive. One I paid $3.00 for! :o(

Lucky I have a bag of Cara-Caras in the trunk of my car from Trader Joe’s. I’ll let you know how they turn out.

[RedStateRocker]

The Anova.

Yeah, pretty much impossible to overcook something, although a really tender piece of meat like fish loses something after a few hours.

The thing is just brainless; vac pac a ribeye, set it for 121 or whatever you like and 10-60 minutes later it’s done. Just have to brown it, I’m still playing around with the best way, currently quickly pan frying but have used a torch and the grill. Best part is that you can dial in EXACTLY how well done or rare you (or SO) want something cooked, zero guessing.

Two hundred, more or less, plus a vac sealer if you don’t have one.

Best part is that I can throw the food in and the time isn’t critical- if I have to run out to the store or something comes up, no problem.

[JRandomFreeper]

You are right. I was thinking of hollandaise, which isn't quite so easy. I had to go back to my notes for the Sauces module. Sometimes now, I lose names. We weren't allowed to use a double boiler for that practical exersize ;)

And real bechamel has cream in it. and we were required to use white pepper and the color had to be white, as measured with a dollop on a sheet of white paper, chef was harsh. LOL!

It's amazing what notes do to help a memory.

Thanks for the correction. Maybe I can keep it.

/johnny

[V K Lee]

You, sir, are blessed. We’ve seen some young spears this year and, with help from above, we’ll continue to see more next. Their ferns are as pretty as the spears are to taste. Sauted, with a bit of olive oil and lots of garlic is the usual around here. In fact, just had a bunch of them last night (store bought) Just as broccoli is great in Vit K, asparagus is a diuretic. And, supposedly, helps keep one from aging...no found facts on that assumption have been seen :)

[JRandomFreeper]

I keep a torch (american english) in the kitchen at all times. They are also great for roasting single red bell peppers if you are only feeding one or two folks. Hot propane is my friend.

/johnny

[BunnySlippers]

You may want to try Julia Child’s version of Hollandaise. She claims it is fool proof.

This is reprinted from “Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume 1”:

http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Blender-Hollandaise