Grassfed Chuck Roast, with Leeks and Fennel, in the Slow Cooker

Remember Crockpots?  Who doesn't have a Crockpot story to tell:  "It tipped over in the car on the way to a potluck!  The beans hadn't even begun to get soft after 12 hours of cooking!"  My personal stories are more along the lines of special dinners being ruined because the slow-cooked entree was ... ah ... not so much cooked as poached in a sea of simmered sludge.

But no more.  Crockpots (generically known as slow cookers) are back with a vengeance.  After all, we're all busy.  We still want, as we did in days of Crockpot yore, to return home on a blustery fall evening to the savory smells of a dinner that is ready to eat.

Creative cooks have worked hard to achieve this renaissance in slow cooking.  Having been intrigued by a number of their cookbooks, I decided to jump into the fray with Liana Krissoff's Secrets of Slow Cooking, and Costco's offering of a sleek, modern, 7-quart Crockpot. 

The ancient 4-quart Crockpot I received as a wedding present in 1978 still works fine, but I was interested in the larger capacity, and ... the new digital controls!  Essentially the same as older models (high and low settings), but now the hours count down so you know just how much time has elapsed, and when the hours you set are reached, the unit switches to "keep warm" mode.

For this, my first slow cooking foray in a couple of decades,  I decided to stick with a simple beef dish.  I thawed a Thundering Hooves grassfed chuck roast (Blue Valley Meats bought the inventory when Thundering Hooves went out of business) and checked out a slew of recipes in books and online.

I drafted up a unique recipe of my own, but when I started to prepare it, I found that my carrots had frozen in the vegetable bin, and I had no onions but did have a fennel bulb.  Hence, the recipe I intended became this recipe instead.  And when, five hours into the cooking process, I discovered two large leeks lurking in the fridge, I sliced those up and tossed them in.  The result was so amazing that I'll definitely re-create this re-created recipe next time. 

SLOW COOKED CHUCK ROAST WITH LEEKS AND FENNEL

A splendid, satisfying winter dish.  I served it with a deep green kale salad with dried cranberries and walnuts, and spaghetti squash.  Winter dinners don't get much better than this.

One 4-1/2 pound grassfed chuck roast (or smaller roasts to total about 4 pounds)

3 tomatoes, diced, or a can of diced tomatoes
1 7-ounce jar or can tomato paste
3/4 cup red wine
1 head garlic, peeled and roughly chopped (about 10 cloves)
1 fennel bulb, diced
2 large leeks, sliced (or put them in at cooking midpoint*)
1/4 cup oregano
1/4 cup thyme
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
5 bay leaves

Cut roast into even pieces (I cut mine into three chunks) and place them in the slow cooker.

Mix all remaining ingredients in a medium bowl.  Pour the red wine into the empty tomato paste jar, cap and shake to rinse all the last bits of tomato paste out.  Pour the sauce mixture over the roast, cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 4-5 hours.

My roast (4-1/2 pounds) was tenderly, meltingly perfect, at 8 hours.  I removed the meat to a casserole, then poured the sauce into a deep saucepan, where I used my immersion blender to turn it into the most amazingly delicious (and starch-free) gravy. 

This recipe easily would serve 8 people.

*It's a myth that removing the slow cooker's cover during cooking releases epic amounts of heat.  You could even leave the lid off and get great results.  So, poke, prod and add to your heart's content!

Tom Yum Goong

This incomparable Thai soup requires a trip to your local Asian market, but after that initial effort, it's quick to prepare.

Tom Yum Goong is a magical soup.  It soothes.  It warms.  It invigorates.  I have theories as to why this is so, but it's more satisfying just to enjoy the soup than to talk about it.

Thanks to Michele, the lemon grass is local!  She gave me a lemongrass start which I am nurturing indoors this winter and will set out in Spring.  Lime leaves, lemon grass and tamarind freeze quite well, so keep some on hand to make this soup when you need it most! 

TOM YUM GOONG

There is room for you to alter this recipe to suit your tastes, but do be careful of the broth-to-seasonings ratio.  I combined many recipes and adjusted until I found perfection. 

1/2 cup lime juice
1/4 cup Thai fish sauce
2 tablespoons red Thai curry paste

6 cups Oriental or chicken stock
4 cloves crushed or chopped garlic
8 kaffir lime leaves
15 inches of lemon grass, cut into 3-inch lengths
8 slices galangal or ginger
1/4 cup tamarind paste (if it has seeds, soak paste in water and strain into soup)
2 cups regular coconut milk (not "lite")

2 cups mushrooms, quartered
2 cups cabbage, cut in 1-inch chunks
2 cups broccoli, separated into florets

12 ounces tail-on shrimp, thawed or fresh
2 medium tomatoes, cut in wedges

Green onion and cilantro to garnish

Combine lime juice, fish sauce and curry paste in small bowl.

Bring stock to boil.  Add garlic, lime leaves, lemon grass, galangal or ginger, tamarind paste and coconut milk.  Boil for 3 minutes.

Add mushrooms, cabbage and broccoli.  Boil for another 3 to 5 minutes until vegetables begin to be tender.

Add shrimp and tomatoes.  Cook just until shrimp turn pink.

Stir in fish sauce mixture.  Serve in bowls.  Top each bowl with green onion and cilantro.  If you like, you can swirl in more curry paste before garnishing, to raise the spice-heat level in individual bowls.

Makes 6 large or 8 smaller servings.

A Visit to the Northwest Regional Food Hub

For a while now, you've been seeing that little notice in the upper right side of my blog recommending the Northwest Regional Food Hub's "Shop the Northwest" website for placing your order for local products, to be delivered to their store for you to pick up.

Today I actually visited the Northwest Regional Food Hub. 

I get positively giddy when I think about how fortunate we are to have such a varied and vast lineup of truly exceptional food producers in our area.  As a farmers' market junkie, I droop in spirit a tad when the markets end, then perk up when my bi-weekly Winter CSA deliveries start. Now I can get my local food fix in between deliveries.

A refrigerator case of Pure Eire ... pure dairy bliss!  

The Northwest Regional Food Hub is located at 603 Goethals in Richland, and is part of a larger movement to provide improved customer access for small and mid-size producers of fresh food and other products.   At last ... something in our crazy world that makes sense!

As you might guess, people like those who run the Food Hub have a definitive interest in health and clean eating. I had a great discussion with one of them today. She's been grain free for more than three years, and it seems there are actually (!) people interested in learning how to cook for the grain-free lifestyle.   In a moment of crazy enthusiasm, I shared my blog link and said I'd help with that.

Local onions and pumpkins.

The Hub has tastings, classes, farm tours, celebrations, and other events. The best way to keep up with the goings-on at this bustling mecca of local goods is to drop them a note here and request their e-newsletter.  You must do this to stay up to date; things are changing rapidly at the Hub.

For hours and events, check their facebook page (link at top right on my blog) and their website. 

Moxie Organix skin care products:  "Courageous skincare with a heart."

Brussels Sprout Salad from Mixt

A couple of weeks ago, we found ourselves in Bend, Oregon.  At Ginger's Kitchen Shop, I was immediately drawn to their small but amazing selection of cookbooks, many of which I'd never seen before.  Lots of new cookbooks are coming out that use just simple, fresh, unprocessed foods ... and few to no bloating grains, legumes or pastas, which we have been eschewing for some time.  (For some weird reason, I love the word "eschew" when it comes to things not eaten!)

So it was a marvelous treat to page through Mixt, a salad cookbook by Andrew Swallow.  My Schreiber and Sons Brussels sprouts were, I knew, waiting at home ... and I couldn't wait to get there and make this salad!

BRUSSELS SPROUTS WITH WARM BROWN BUTTER VINAIGRETTE
Adapted from Mixt, by Andrew Swallow

Pomegranates hadn't quite hit the grocery stores when I made this, so I substituted fresh raspberries.  But pomegranates are here now!  Be sure to save your healthy bacon fat for use in other dishes.

1.5 pounds Brussels sprouts (yield 9 ounces leaves when separated)
8 strips uncured bacon, preferably from pastured pork, cut into 1-inch pieces; use 1/2 inch chunks if bacon is thick
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1-1/2 tablespoons salted butter or ghee
1 organic Fuji apple, cored and sliced 1/8 inch thick
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup pomegranate seeds
1 white turnip, julienned

Cut off the bottom of each sprout and peel off the leaves.  I ended up with gorgeous little sproutlet hearts; use those, too!

Heat a pot of salted water to boil, and prepare a large bowl of ice water.

Blanch the sproutlet hearts for 1 minute; add to them the sprout leaves and blanch for 2 more minutes.  Drain quickly and throw sprouts/hearts into the ice water.   Set aside.

In medium skillet, fry bacon until perfectly crisp but not crumbly.  Transfer bacon to a small bowl and set aside.  Drain the bacon fat and reserve for other uses.  Add butter or ghee to skillet and melt, then add sage and saute for a minute to flavor the butter.  Turn off heat.  Add mustard and vinegar, then whisk well.

Assemble salads:  In serving plates, place sprout leaves/hearts.  Add apple slices and toss.  Drizzle vinaigrette over.  Season with salt and pepper, and add bacon, pomegranate seeds (or raspberries) and turnips.

Serves three as a main course, four as a side.

Baron Farms Pot-Roasted Pork Loin in White Wine with Garlic, Fennel and Rosemary

Roast pork perfection ... thanks to Baron Farms.

Years ago I found a used cookbook by Jamie Oliver, the British chef known for his casual approach to cooking.  Like mine!  Jamie uses great, fresh ingredients and doesn't do fussy.  Like me!

This is one of my favorite recipes ever.  Still, you can play with it .... like I did with Jamie's recipe.  Just be sure to start with local, pastured pork, such as this beautiful loin from Baron Farms in Wapato.  Easily, theirs is the tenderest, most flavorful and succulent roast pork I've ever tasted.

BARON FARMS POT-ROASTED PORK LOIN IN WHITE WINE WITH GARLIC, FENNEL AND ROSEMARY
Adapted from The Naked Chef by Jamie Oliver

This is a rustic dish, and goes beautifully with a green salad, grilled vegetables, and chunky applesauce.  My roast was about five pounds, and was bone-in.  It roasted in about 2 hours.   If your roast is boned, it will take less than the indicated time to cook. 

1 3- to 5-pound local pastured pork loin roast, rolled and tied if flat
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
Butter and/or olive oil, about two tablespoons

8 or more cloves garlic, peeled or not
A handful (or a couple of branches) of fresh rosemary
4 bay leaves
2 or 3 fennel bulbs, cored and sliced
Half a bottle of white wine (I used Badger Mountain Organic Chardonnay); more if you like

Fennel bulbs sometimes have discoloration on the bulbs.  Just use a peeler to remove it, rather than wasting the fennel!  The bulb on top has been lightly peeled.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Season roast with salt and pepper, then sprinkle on the fennel seeds.  In Dutch oven or other heavy pot with lid, brown meat on all sides in butter and/or olive oil over medium-low heat, until roast is nice and golden brown.

Throw in the garlic, rosemary, bay leaves, fennel slices, and wine.  I wanted more juices, so I added a 12-ounce bottle of organic apple juice. 

Here's your roast, ready to go into the oven.

Cover pot and place in oven for about 1-1/4 hours, or until internal temperature (if bone-in roast, test temperature near bone) reads at least 160 degrees.

Remove roast to cutting board and slice.  Remove rosemary, garlic skins (if left on) and bay leaves from juices.  Arrange pork slices in shallow casserole and pour juice mixture over meat.

Serves 6 to 8, depending on size of your roast.

Colonel Mustard, with the Collards, in the Dining Room

Mustard greens (left) and collard greens, washed and ready to chop.

Let's face it.  Greens are not for ninnies.  Most folks have no clue how to prepare them, and so gravitate to easier things, like zucchini and carrots.  Yet robust greens like collards, and spicy, spiky greens like mustard, are true nutrition workhorses.

Schreiber and Sons is the only local producer of mustard greens and collards that I've found.  At the next-to-last Richland farmers' market of the season, I found these gorgeous, organic greens to be on sale, but only if bought in quantity.  They were $3 per bunch, but only $1 per bunch if I would buy five bunches.  I hesitated only for a moment, then loaded up my cart.

I could advance so confidently because I have devised a method to make these wonderful organic greens a part of more meals, with less work.  Here's the plan for frozen, on-demand greens that will amaze and satisfy.

1)  Get your hands on as many bunches of fresh mustard and collard greens as you can.  I used my two giant bunches of mustard greens, and two of my bunches of collard greens.  (If your greens have gone limp from being in the fridge too long, try this to revive them.)

2)  Tear the collards from the stems.  Wash the leaves and place in a large bowl.  No need to spin dry.  Run kitchen shears through the bowl, snipping to the bottom.  Don't snip your fingers.  In fact, keep your non-snipping hand out of the bowl, just to be safe.  Alternatively, stack the leaves and slice, then chop them.  Collards should be roughly chopped.  Place them in a large pot.

3)  Add a half inch or so of water to pot, sprinkle a little salt over all (I used 1 teaspoon of chipotle salt), and bring to a boil.

4)  Cook collard greens for 15  minutes or so, adding water if necessary.

5)  Meanwhile, trim the stem ends of the mustard greens, wash the greens and place them in a large bowl.  You don't need to remove the mustard leaves from their stems; the stems are tender.  Either chop the mustard greens with shears or make a neat pile of them and cut in strips.  Reserve mustard green strips/pieces in the bowl; you're going to add them to the collards in the pot later.

6)  When the collards have cooked 15 minutes, pile the chopped/sliced mustard greens into the pot on top of  the collards.  Sprinkle with another teaspoon of salt.  Clap the lid on the pot and cook for 15 more minutes, stirring the mustard greens in as they cook down.

Soon you will have a pot of hot greens that looks like this.  I stirred in a couple tablespoons of bacon grease, but that is optional; you could also use butter or olive oil.

The two white dishes in the rear of the picture are 1-1/2 quart Pyrex casseroles waiting to receive the greens for freezing.  Fill your casseroles to your liking, or divide the greens into smaller containers for freezing.  Evenly divide any remaining cooking liquid among the containers.

Cool, cover, refrigerate, then freeze your casseroles of greens.  When frozen, run some hot water over them to loosen, then pop them into gallon-size Ziploc bags and return to the freezer.

This picture shows frozen greens prepared like this, but with prosciutto, onion and garlic added. 

When you are ready to use your frozen disk of greens, get it out of the freezer and set aside for a bit.  In a medium-sized skillet, saute onions and garlic in oil or fat of your choice.  You may wish to use bacon or prosciutto, too. You could use sesame oil, ginger and garlic or curry paste for Oriental greens.  Or go in another direction and sweeten things up with a little maple syrup or honey, and Dijon mustard.  You can use cream or butter with nutmeg.  Fresh or canned tomatoes are wonderful with greens.  Thyme and other savory herbs go well, too.  So do chopped toasted nuts, added just before serving.  Your creativity is the only limit here. 

When you have cooked your sauce ingredients to your liking, remove them from the skillet, then add the frozen greens with a little water and heat through until the greens are completely thawed and simmering hot.  NOW pour your sauce back in over the greens, stir, and serve.  Adding the sauce mixture at the last keeps bacon crispy and your sauce ingredients distinct and not overcooked.

There's nothing like dark, robust greens, with an interesting, flavorful sauce, to complement any other foods on your dinner plate.  The spicy mustard greens lighten up the more sturdy collards.  And you'll feel virtuous and fortified when you rise from the table!

Cajun-Portuguese Fusion: Bouillon Verde

 

The Autumnal Equinox is here, so ...it's soup time!  I'm pretty sure Soup Peddler David Ansel titled his hilarious and fun-to-read cookbook Slow and Difficult Soups in response to the overused "Quick and Easy" that dozens of cookbooks seem to use these days.  Most of David's soups, though, actually are quite simple and speedy to prepare. 

Every year about this time I start thinking about Caldo Verde, a Portuguese soup made with linguica sausage and kale.  That's why I picked up a package of AmyLu's andouille sausage at Costco the other day.

Yes, I know  andouille is Cajun, but Costco didn't have linguica.  Come to find out, I didn't have enough of my delectable Schreiber and Sons kale, either, so I subbed in some of their Brussels sprouts.  Then I decided to add carrots, and some smoked paprika.  Really, it became rather a soup free-for-all, which, I am happy to report, turned out splendidly.

So, herewith my Cajun-Portugese fusion soup.  Caldo Verde is Spanish for green broth, which in French is bouillon vert, so we're calling this Bouillon Verde.  Fair enough?

BOUILLON VERDE
Adapted from The Soup Peddler's Slow and Difficult Soups by David Ansel

The book calls for browning the sausages first, then sauteeing the veggies in the fat in the pan.  My sausage was, unfortunately, rather low fat, so I couldn't do that.  But if you have fatty sausage, browning it first is the way to go!

3 tablespoons ghee, butter or olive oil

2 onions, quartered and sliced into crescents
1/2 bunch kale, thick stems removed, leaves chopped
2 cups trimmed Brussels sprouts, coarsely chopped

8 andouille sausages, cut in about 1-1/2 pieces, at an angle for jauntiness
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper
a few grinds of black pepper

2 quarts chicken broth or stock

2 or 3 potatoes, peeled (or just well scrubbed, if they're organic), cut into 3/4-inch dice
6 fat carrots, peeled, cut in half lengthwise, and then into 3/4-inch dice.

1 head garlic (about 8 fat cloves), peeled and coarsely chopped

Salt as needed

Start off by heating the ghee in at least a 6-quart soup pot over medium heat.  Add the onions, kale and Brussels sprouts as you prepare them, stirring occasionally.  The veggies should begin to soften and perhaps even brown a bit.

Add the sausage pieces and stir, then stir in the paprika, crushed red pepper and black pepper, and cook a few more minutes.

Add the broth, potatoes and carrots, and half the garlic, and bring to a simmer.  Cook for 15 minutes or so, then stir in the remaining garlic.

Cook 5 to 10 more minutes, or until the potatoes and carrots are tender. Taste for salt; whether to add any or not depends on the broth you use.  I added 3/4 teaspoon and found it to be just right.

Makes about 8 servings

Costco is now selling this organic chicken "stock" as opposed to the "broth they formerly offered.  The label says "More versatile than broth."  My opinion?  The stock is exactly the same as the former "broth." 

Don't be afraid to buy these lovely branches of Brussels sprouts at Schreiber and Sons' booth at the farmers' markets.  The sprouts pop off by hand quite easily.  Just snap and twist.

The Ritual Nectarine

You know how it is ... well, maybe I'm unique, but I doubt it.

Glorious weather.  A spectacular hike experience.  Sweltering and thirsty, you reach the hike midpoint, and pull up to the nearest log or rock to rest a spell and enjoy a magnificent view (which you have EARNED!).

You rummage around in your pack for that ripe-to-perfection Gilmore Farms nectarine you have wrapped carefully in a paper towel.  One sweet, juicy, flavorful bite later, and you know that this is an experience you will never forget:  endorphins high from being outdoors and hiking, nourishment and hydration flowing into you from one of the tastiest, juiciest fruits known to man.  You want to have this experience again and again.

That happened to me several years ago on the hike to Upper Crystal Lake from Chinook Pass, and because we take this hike every year, I've made sure to repeat this ambrosial experience each time by packing a Gilmore Farms nectarine to look forward to. These photos are from this year's hike on September 4.

This hike is spectacular and perfect in every way.  There are open hillsides, rocky shale, shady forests, cool lakeside resting spots, several great viewpoints, a high pass, flower-filled glades, and finally, views of Mount Rainier above Upper Crystal Lake.

Looking back at Chinook Pass from the trail.

Sheep Lake lunch stop.  Sourdough Gap is in the indention in the center of the photo, in the mountain ridge.

A sampling of the flowery glades we passed by.

Tiger lilies ... a rare sight.  They're native to Washington State (a knowledgeable-looking hiker told me) and don't bloom for very long.

And finally:  The Nectarine View

Logistics:  Link to a map here.  We like to start the hike by parking at Tipsoo Lake, just inside the (no-fee) entrance to Mount Rainier National Park.  There are restrooms.  Follow the trail shown on the map to Sheep Lake.  There's another trail up to Sourdough Gap, through which you can proceed, taking the left-hand trail at the fork, to a small ridge, passing over which you will see Upper Crystal Lake and Mount Rainier.

And don't forget to pick up your Gilmore Farms nectarine (they're at Pasco, Richland and Kennewick Farmers' markets) before leaving home!

The Surprisingly Easy Watermelon Basket

Tonight we were invited to a gathering with no name or theme, or even an expressed purpose (hanging out with great people was implied).  There would be food.  We could bring something if we wanted.  Well!  With such nonexistent guidelines, I didn't know which way to turn.  So I asked my group of friends last night at our Gals' Dinner Out what to do ... I was thinking about melons.  Jeanne said, "Why not make a melon basket!  It's easy!" 

I laughed.  Ha!  I could just see the hash I'd make hacking around on a juicy melon, not to mention the low likelihood of ending up with something worthy of taking where Other People would actually see it.

But once again, as has been the case so many times (and I've blogged about many of them), I was entirely wrong.  I tried it.  And it worked. 

May you all be so blessed with friends who have faith in you, and with the courage to do something outside your culinary comfort zone.

This was instinctive.  To keep the melon from tipping, I sliced a bit off the side to keep it stable.

With the knife point, I scored a line around the long equator so I'd know where to stop when slicing the basket handle.  I also lightly scored, on the top, the desired width of the basket handle so I'd know where to cut.

Now we're cookin'.  I got a container ready for the melon squares.  (Yes, that is a box of Gilmore Farms organic nectarines in the background.  They are awesome!  See Gilmore Farms at our local farmers' markets.  The melon is from Sageland Farms in Pasco.)

With a smaller, slimmer knife, I cut the arch of melon out from under the basket handle, and started making cubes of the pieces as I cut them out.

Cutting down into the bowl of the melon.  This is a little tricky because of the curves.  So I started saving the nicest-looking, most even cubes separately for the finished presentation.

An ice cream scoop worked great for cleaning out the melon bowl.  After that, it was just fill (least perfect pieces underneath, saved perfect cubes for the top), chill, and go!

Savoy Faire Slaw

You'd think the plethora of amazingly fresh local vegetables in summer, available at our area's FIVE weekly farmer's markets, would result in an endless cascade of posts on this, my local food blog.  Ironically, though, the big push every day to use up the produce with which I've stuffed my fridge results in some hectic cooking, with little time left for blogging about it.

As well, long summer evenings don't lend themselves to sitting at a computer, but rather to being outdoors enjoying our balmy Tri-Cities weather and gorgeous sunsets!   But I have a few things in the blog pipeline that are good enough to publish.

How could anyone not be inspired by this gorgeous local organic Savoy cabbage?  I paired it with a creamy chive dressing found in one of my favorite cookbooks.
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SAVOY FAIRE SLAW
Dressing inspired by Patricia Wells in Vegetable Harvest.

Savoir-faire is the French expression for "know how to do."  You'll know just what to do with this slaw!

1 smallish head savoy cabbage

1/2 cup cream
1 tablespoon snipped chives
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt

Trim core from cabbage.  Slice cabbage very thinly, then slice crosswise a few times so you have pieces about an inch long.

Whisk dressing ingredients in medium bowl.  Add cabbage and mix well.  Slaw will keep well but tastes fantastic freshly made. 

Makes 4 servings

Undeservedly Good Shrimp Curry

Sometimes you want lip smackin' food with the minimum of effort.  By "minimum," I mean practically no effort at all.  Not just cutting corners, but eliminating them entirely.

To that end, I frequently employ some seriously slap-happy cooking practices that just possibly could get me banned from the food blogosphere.  To be honest, the results aren't always blogworthy. 

But this scrumptious dish calls for a little peek into the slam-dunk, get 'er done methods you can use to produce meals when you really don't feel like cooking.  And when you didn't thaw anything ahead of time.  When it absolutely, positively has to be on the table by six o'clock, and you started cooking at 5:45. 

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UNDESERVEDLY GOOD SHRIMP CURRY

Adapted from tasting the Valley Cafe's Spicy Asian Shrimp from our last visit there.  You can use a 14-ounce can of coconut milk instead of the water and coconut cream, if you like.

25 tail-on (or tail-off ... your call) shrimp, frozen
1/2 cup chopped sundried tomatoes, in oil (I used Costco's, even though they have Italian spices!)
A few slabs (about 1/2 cup's worth) of coconut cream (see end of this post)
1 to 2 teaspoons red Thai curry paste
1/4 teaspoon (or more to taste) crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon salt
A few grinds black pepper
2 cups water
Green onions (or chives)
Fresh basil or mint (Mint was growing in a pot on the patio, so I used that)
Chopped fresh tomato, if you have it

Quickly rinse the frozen shrimp, pluck them from the rinse water, and lay them in a single layer in a medium skillet.  Top with the sundried tomatoes, and arrange your coconut cream slabs around atop all.  Add the curry paste, crushed red pepper, salt, black pepper and 2 cups water.

Turn heat on to medium high, and when things start to bubble a bit, stir everything around.  Reduce heat a tad, but make sure it keeps simmering.  The shrimp will begin to turn pink.  Stir occasionally, and when shrimp are done, remove them with a slotted spoon to your serving dish.

Continue simmering the sauce until it's reduced about a third.  If you used a can of coconut milk, reducing probably won't be necessary.  Pour sauce over the shrimp, top with green onion (or chives), diced tomato, and basil or mint.

Makes 2 very hearty servings. 

Valley Cafe Vegetables

Some of you who grew up in the age of strip malls, Applebees and P.F. Changs will not remember when most restaurants had narrow street fronts and were long and thin, stretching through to a back alley. The Valley Cafe in Ellensburg continues this grand tradition of narrowness, but this venerable establishment had foresighted designers, and is blessed with a row of ancient skylights to alleviate the inevitable darkness of this building design.  The experience of walking back in time is very strong at The Valley Cafe, especially as the booths, counter, and most of the furnishings are original.

Ellensburg makes a great day trip from Pasco.  The day we were there was chilly and windy, but sunny, and we were glad to get in out of the jacket-piercing breeze to see what we could find on The Valley Cafe's menu that would be friendly with our way of eating.

We decided on the Steamed Vegetables and a separate order of Spicy Asian Shrimp.  After we ordered, I asked the server if any bread was involved in this meal.  We're getting used to heading bread off at the pass so it won't be wasted.  She hesitated a moment, but said "No."

It took quite a while for our order to be prepared, and when the vegetables arrived, they were a delightfully colorful and flavorful mix of vegetables I'd never seen combined before.  As well, they were topped with a little cheddar-jack cheese and toasted pumpkin seeds, something I'd also never considered doing to vegetables.  Naturally, I took notes.

As it happened, the chef himself brought the rest of our order to the table, and I told him how remarkably tasty the vegetables were, and how unusual was the combination.  He said, "Well, you didn't want broccoli, so I just put together some other vegetables."  Turns out, the server thought I'd asked if any broccoli were involved in our meal, thinking we didn't want it!

I never fail to be intrigued by the happenstances that result in new dishes.  This one is a new favorite of ours, and it goes particularly well with the cafe's Spicy Asian Shrimp, so I concocted an easy-peasey version of that, too, and it'll be up next.
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VALLEY CAFE VEGETABLES
Cook gently so your vegetables will retain their color and flavor.  

2 tablespoons ghee or butter

4 carrots, peeled and cut into coins
1/2 pound asparagus, snapped and cut into 1-inch lengths
1/3 of a small red cabbage, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 red pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 jar (6.5 ounces) marinated (or plain) artichoke hearts


Pumpkins seeds lightly toasted in a dry skillet
Shredded jack or cheddar cheese (optional, of course)

In large skillet, melt ghee.  Add carrots and stir fry for a couple of minutes.  Add asparagus and cabbage, and continue cooking until all is just beginning to soften.  Add red pepper pieces, and cook, gently stirring occasionally, until all vegetables are crisp tender.  Don't overcook.

Remove to serving platter or individual plates, and tuck artichoke pieces here and there evenly.  Sprinkle with cheese and pepitas.

Makes 4 generous servings.

Heidi Swanson's Spiced Coconut Spinach

Things are slightly hectic around here lately, but my mind continually returns to the kitchen, especially as the farmers' market season gets underway.  Several ideas are circling in my mind about refining, nay, reinventing, my way of cooking.  I'm excited about sharing some ideas and approaches I've been discovering.

I am usually a slap-it-together-and-see-what-happens kind of cook.  Once in a while I carefully create a constructed dish, but I've often wished I could be a slow-down-and-think-about-it, mindful, kind of cook more consistently.

Meanwhile, I tried this recipe by Heidi Swanson of 101 Cookbooks, who somehow manages to be mindful, deliberate, and spontaneously creative with ingredients on hand ... all at the same time. 

I had what turned out to be 14 ounces of fresh spinach from the very first Pasco Farmer's Market of the year, and so doubled Heidi's recipe, which made four hearty servings.  Having no shallots, I used onion in their place.

I highly recommend this dish.  It's very calming to toast the mustard seeds, cumin and coconut.  The scents and subtle colors appeal to the senses.  You have an awareness that you are doing something to spinach that will be very, very good.   Preparing the ingredients all ahead of time creates a sort of serene kitchen ballet as the dish unfolds in real time, and really, not so much more time than slapdashery would take.

An early Spring dish that nourishes on all levels.

Kohlrabi Greens

The sweetest, crispiest organic kohlrabi can be found at Fred Meyer these days.  I'm hoping to see it at the farmer's markets this year.

In the meantime, we've been enjoying it raw, peeled and sliced, sometimes as a great chip stand-in with guacamole.  It can also be shredded and used in salads, adding an interesting, fresh flavor kind of like a cross between cabbage, turnips and broccoli.

Normally, I discard the leaves and store the Sputnik bulbs in the fridge 'til ready to use them.  But the last couple of bunches had leaves that looked perfectly fresh and tantalizing, so I washed them, sliced them, and have been cooking with them ... and they are wonderful! 

Kohlrabi greens are closest to kale when it comes to cooking time ... they're not as tender as beet greens, but are more tender than collards, which need to boil for an hour.  Just wash the leaves, rip out the thicker parts of the stem, slice the leaves thinly, and saute for 10 to 15 minutes with onions, garlic, crushed red pepper ... or even apples or tomatoes and herbs.  Voila!  A new green!

What to do with Coconut Butter

Healthy fats like coconut oil beat sugar and flour every time for clean, sustained energy and a happy metabolism. 

So, in the midst of the Easter onslaught of factory-churned-out chocs and candies with additives galore, I just got out my beautiful marble Easter eggs for color, and made Nancy's coconut-date energy balls.

These are really, really, good, plus, as you can see from Nancy's description, they have all kinds of positive health implications.  I increased the organic citrus peels to two teaspoons each, which gives these little citruspheres a powerful resemblance in taste to those horribly unhealthy lemon bars which we all remember fondly for their ability to make our teeth hurt.  We should have listened to our teeth!  Our bodies didn't want that much pure refined sugar.  Nancy kept going on her theme and developed raw cacao superfood truffles, which look tempting to me to try.

As often happens, finally having found a recipe that used the coconut butter I'd bought on impulse, another way to use this luscious stuff appeared.  Ryan's coconut cream and blueberry bark is incredibly delicious.

As with the citrus balls, you soften the jar of coconut butter (or coconut cream) in a pan of warm water on the stove, pour it out (I used a Silpat; Ryan used parchment paper) and slap frozen blueberries evenly across the top.  The frozen blueberries solidify the coconut butter.  Just break the bark into bite-sized pieces (this is important, because chomping into a big piece may cause a blueberry laundry crisis) and store 'em in the fridge.

Many thanks to Nancy and Ryan for adding variety to my energy arsenal!

More ideas for making coconut bark here.

Update:   Here's a seriously convenient way to keep coconut cream and coconut butter accessible.  If you've ever tried to dig 'em out of the jar with a pointy knife, you know what I mean.  Warm the coconut cream or coconut butter in the uncovered jar set in a pan of water on the stove.  May take 15 minutes or so at a simmer.  Stir occasionally.  When soft, spread coconut cream or coconut butter onto a Silpat.  Let harden, and either cut or break into roughly tablespoon-sized pieces.  Store them in a jar or other container.  For coconut cream, one tablespoon heated with 1/4 cup water makes 1/4 cup.  Stir a piece or two into curries, with a little water, or into sauteed veggies with Asian seasonings.  For the coconut butter ... you can either resoften with your preferred warming method, or just enjoy it as a snack.

Coconut cream pieces ready to reconstitute ... or just eat!

On Not Eating Certain Scenery

Last April we were cleaning up flower pots in preparation for new planting, when a mama quail, completely camoflaged, whirred out of this pot when we approached it.  We carefully inspected the pot, and sure enough ... we found a nest with 18 little speckled eggs in it.  Mama came back later, and I took this picture of her.  Yes, she is there ... at about 12 o'clock.

The next day, she temporarily left the nest, and I quickly took this picture of the eggs.

I had seen a quail couple, with the mama waddling about and looking really round, exploring our yard for a nest site a couple of days before.  We learned that quail eggs take 28 days to mature.  Sure enough, about that much time went by (with us tiptoeing around the flowerpot every time we went outside to work in the yard) when we noticed that hatching had begun.

The hatching was quickly over, and the quail parents set immediately to their task of teaching the little ones how to queue up, hide in a cluster under mama's wings, and keep close to the fence or stay under shrubs when the annoying person with a camera stepped carefully out of the house.  But I was not able to get good pictures of them because they never stood still!

For several days, the training went on, with one parent herding and fussing over the chicks, showing them how to find food and avoid predators, and the other parent standing guard atop the fence. Then they were gone.

I thought our quail excitement was over, and I had cleaned out the flower pot and planted new flowers.  One day, though, I saw a quail family in our yard, with significantly larger chicks.  Were they our quail family?  I don't know.  But all in all, it was fun and educational to watch Nature at work.

And this time, no recipe.