Weekly Cooking (and related issues) Thread

[Jamestown1630]

In last week’s thread, we discovered that some of our Freeper Friends don’t like lima beans, and joked about doing a thread on ‘despised foods’. Instead, let’s just call it ‘less universally enjoyed’ foods; and here’s my Lima Bean Casserole recipe. I can’t recall where I got it, and the original recipe called for frozen limas; but I learned that canned ones work a lot better in this recipe.

Cheesy Lima Bean Casserole

2 pks. frozen lima beans, cooked (20 oz.) Or equivalent canned

1 C. each cottage cheese and sour cream

½ C. finely diced sweet onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. Each Worcestershire sauce and Dijon mustard

2 tsp. Paprika

½ tsp. Salt

Parmesan Cheese

chopped parsley

Combine cottage cheese, sour cream, onions, garlic, Worcestershire, mustard, paprika and salt. Gently stir in the cooked lima beans.

Pour into a greased baking dish. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley before serving.

We also learned that Brussels Sprouts aren’t universally adored. Freeper thingumbob posted a recipe that I really want to try – I bought the ‘Veri Veri Teriyaki’ last weekend just for this, but haven’t tried yet:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/3561002/posts?page=45#45

In the meantime, here’s my ‘pickled’ Brussels Sprout recipe. This recipe originally called for 1 C. of Cider Vinegar and ½ C. of water – but we do a cup each of vinegar and water, to make it a little less sour; and we usually use a bag of the frozen Hanover Gold Line baby sprouts, instead of fresh. This is great warm or cold – that is, if you like Brussels Sprouts ;-)

Dilled Brussels Sprouts

1 bag frozen Baby Brussels Sprouts

1 C. cider vinegar

1 C. water

1 clove garlic, split (we use 2)

1 dried red chili pepper (we use 2)

1 T. dried dill weed

1 tsp. Salt.

Thaw the frozen sprouts before beginning. Combine all ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer until sprouts are tender.

-JT

[stylecouncilor]

Two of my favorites! Thanks!

[Qiviut]

Good article - I like the title, too!:

The Science of Slawsome Slaw
http://amazingribs.com/recipes/slaws_salads_and_other_vegetables/zen_of_cole_slaw.html

Links to several slaw recipes (plus some extra recipes):
http://amazingribs.com/recipes/slaws_salads_and_other_vegetables/index.html

Not the ‘usual’ cole slaw recipes, but everything she makes is good & these are on my “to make” list:

Coleslaw with Warm Bacon Dressing
http://www.creative-culinary.com/coleslaw-warm-bacon-dressing/

Apple and Poppy Seed Coleslaw with Honey Mustard Dressing
http://www.creative-culinary.com/apple-poppy-seed-coleslaw/

And then there’s this for brussel sprouts:

Brussels Sprouts with Balsamic and Cranberries
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/brussels-sprouts-with-balsamic-and-cranberries/

[Jamestown1630]

Thanks for the slaw links - and that last sprout recipe with cranberries looks very interesting!

[Jamestown1630]

You’re Welcome! (I told you I’d remember you ;-)

[W.]

I love lima beans! And I was born in Lima, Ohio...

[Jamestown1630]

I had an eccentric farmer uncle surnamed ‘Lyman’. He used to kiss every pig before it went to slaughter; and he called his little daughter ‘Lima Bean’.

[CottonBall]

What a great subject! I love Lima beans though. The other day I added 2 cups of cooked barley to one can of Lima beans, added salt and it was delicious!

[Jamestown1630]

Barley! We’ll have to do a thread on that. I’ve got a soup recipe that a friend always made for her son’s vegetarian wife. It’s very good.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

Cottage cheese is good with a lot of things.

Tomato and basil are good with cottage cheese.

Next time I have some smoked salmon I am going to try it with cottage cheese, fresh dill and capers.

Smoked salmon can be kind of rich but I think the mix might be nice dabbed on crackers. Or maybe cucumbers.

Now I am hungry.

[neefer]

I love brussels sprouts! Definitively going to try that second recipe.

[Jamestown1630]

Back when our local Giant Food supermarket was still owned by the founding Jewish family, they had lots of nice things that they don’t have anymore. One was the smoked salmon pinwheels - Yes, very rich; but great.

They also had smoked whitefish back then - I miss that.

http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/09/introduction-to-jewish-appetizing-bagels-lox-whitefish-herring-and-beyond.html

[Jamestown1630]

We especially like it cold, as a ‘little thing’ on the side.

[leaning conservative]

Wow, this is very wild....when you were talking about growing in different lights I had a flashback to quite a while back when I was in the play, “ The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man in the Moon Marigolds.” A recovered memory.

I agree about canned. Usually I go for frozen over canned except for Lima beans. The Glory Foods brand of beans are so creamy& so perfectly seasoned, really good! I will try them w/ sour cream.

[reformedliberal]

IMO, cottage cheese is fine cold. I only eat the small curd, 4% fat and mix it with sour cream. I add about a 1/4 cup of good apricot preserves. This is a lunch for just me. Hubs hates cottage cheese.

Ricotta is for when you’re cooking something, because it doesn’t break down like cottage cheese.

For a very full-fat cottage-type cheese:

chop cheese curds fine, add sour cream. Place in a covered container in fridge and stir when you think about it over a couple of days. You will start to see little bubbles form as the sour cream incorporates the curds. Very tasty. I sometimes get gifted with curds, which I don’t care for. That’s the genesis of this recipe.

My mother made a summer salad she called Farmers Chop Suey. Essentially a mixed salad with a variety of ingredients topped with sour cream and full-fat cottage cheese well-mixed together. Since the *dressing* is bland, it’s best with red onions and radishes and maybe a sliced hot pepper like pepperoncini or two.

[Ellendra]

I absolutely hate those little green lima beans that you find either canned or frozen. But, let them ripen and dry down, and they become a great soup bean. In fact, I bought lima bean seeds just for that purpose, although my garden has been crowded enough I haven’t actually grown them yet.

[Jamestown1630]

That’s what I like about the canned Lima Grands, and the ones my Grandmother made from scratch - I like the creaminess.

A lot of people who have only eaten the frozen - usually the baby limas - might like the Grands (the big ones are the ones we always called ‘Butter Beans’) if they’re cooked and seasoned well.

[reformedliberal]

I like the kind you used to find in Kosher delis. It is just shredded cabbage and carrots mixed with vinegar and sugar to taste. I use about 2 cups shredded cabbage, a couple handfuls of chopped carrots in the food processor with the shredding disk, then mix with 1/2 cup white vinegar sweetened to taste. (I like it a little sour). Let sit at least a couple of hours to draw the liquid from the cabbage. It’s refreshing and it lasts a long time in the fridge. Goes well with salty fatty meats like corned beef and pastrami.

[Jamestown1630]

My grandmother always cooked them from dry, the really big ones. It wasn’t exactly a soup, but more like a ‘bean stew’.

[leaning conservative]

Ha, a butter bean lover too! The Glory Foods sauce they are in is so addictively delicious I wish they would sell it separately as soup. Your grandmother’s sound like they were delicious.

[reformedliberal]

Smoked whitefish and smoked trout! Childhood memories.

My husband brings the smoked fish back when he goes up to Bayfield, WI. It is as good as what I remember and the only place I know where you can find it in the Midwest.

A cousin once sent me a case of home-canned tuna from coastal Oregon. Solid white with no water. It was ambrosia and nothing at all like the stuff in the supermarket. The closest I’ve found is organic wild-caught tuna with salt and no water...about $4 for 5 oz. Not quite as moist, but pretty good all by itself.