Lazy Sundays

I love nothing more on lazy Sunday afternoons and evenings than cooking up batches of food for the week.  I tend to do more Sunday cooking during the fall and winter months when I will make large pots of stews, chili or casseroles and freeze some and eat the rest all week long (boring diet, I know), but this Sunday I decided I was going to put my kitchen to work.

This post should probably be titled, "My Amazing Food Processor," because it really did all the work for me this Sunday. 

I first started by using the processor to make a dough for Scallion Pancakes using scallions from our share.  This is the second time I've made Scallion 'cakes.  Last year I used a recipe that was in the Denison Farm newsletter (I can no longer find it on their website, unfortunately).  These pancakes were very much like traditional, Sunday morning pancakes, with a loose but very thick batter, that got poured into the skillet.  I found them to be a bit heavy and doughy so I figured I'd try a new recipe this year.  I found this recipe for Scallion Pancakes with Ginger Dipping Sauce on the Food Network website.  It is a bit more involved, requiring an actual dough, resting time, rolling pins etc, but I figured I'd give it a go. 

I used the processor to bring together the flour and hot water into a ball (easiest dough recipe ever, by the way).  I shaped the dough into a ball, put it in a greased bowl and let it rest, covered by a warm damp towel.
I then cleaned out the processor and got to work making salsa with the cilantro from last week's share.

This recipe was inspired by my friend Ali, who loves to make her own salsa..hey Al!  I used four Roma tomatoes, a vidalia onion, one glove of garlic, a bunch of cilantro, a touch of Tabasco for heat, lime juice and salt and pepper. 

Casey and I both agreed, this was super super yummy salsa.  So refreshing! Slightly sweet from the ripe tomatoes, a bit of heat and a touch of cilantro.  I rarely use or know what to do with large bunches of cilantro and parsley that come in the CSA.  I don't really enjoy the flavor of either that much, but I am not one of those people that thinks cilantro tastes like soap, so I just use it sparingly.

Next, I set out to make my own hummus.  I'm not sure what the price for hummus is at your grocery store but up here it goes for $4-$6 a container, which I think is RIDICULOUS, given that it's JUST chickpeas and a few other things.  In a true cost saving measure, I made this batch out of rehydrated chickpeas.  I think this may be the last time I try to rehydrate chickpeas...for some reason, even though I follow the directions, they are never quite rehydrated and always have a little bit of bite, kind of al dente. This tends to lend an interesting texture to the hummus.  Nothing I can't deal with, but I think I'll stick with canned beans from now on.

For the hummus, I used about two cups of rehydrated chickpeas, half a can of white beans that I had left in my fridge, two tablespoons of tahini, juice of one lemon, one glove of garlic, 1 tablespoon of cumin, olive oil and salt and pepper.  This made a lot of hummus.  It was ok, maybe too much garlic, maybe too much cumin.  All can be adjusted to your own taste, but perhaps this is why people pay good money for perfectly balanced hummus.



Excessive amounts of hummus.


Back to the scallion pancakes...these required the rolling out of the dough on a floured surface...don't forget this step.  This dough is WICKED sticky (yes, I'm from New England). After it's rolled out, the dough gets brushed with oil (I used olive oil-but sesame would be good) and covered with 1/2 cup of chopped scallions.  The dough then gets rolled up like a jelly roll, sliced into four sections and then each of those sections is rolled out into a 4-5" pancake.

Not exactly a rectangle, as per the directions.

The pancakes then get pan fried in a skillet with oil and voila!

At least they look pretty.

These were still kind of thick and doughy...I may have given up on scallion pancakes or next time I will make more pancakes out of the dough and roll them much thinner to ensure proper cooking-- though I'm not sure there will be a next time.   At the end of the day this is just fried dough...so what's not to enjoy. 

The best part of this recipe was the dipping sauce, which I improvised out of a ginger lemon dressing I had in my fridge.  I added soy, more lemon juice and a tad bit of hot sauce (you could use red pepper flakes). 

Oh, you may be wondering what happened to my dear friends, the baby turnips.  They got roasted with some confetti potatoes. 

Tasty, but WEIRD texture.  I think these little guys have a lot of moisture in them and just get kind of spongy.  Casey actually spit hers out.  I didn't mind them that much, but maybe they are just best raw.  I guess I'm still waiting for an amazing turnip recipe to come along.  I may be waiting for a while.

Cheap Eats

Life takes us all down unexpected paths and mine has currently put me in a state of "transition," as I like to call it....otherwise known as unemployment or job hunting.  So in between sending out resumes I've been on the hunt for cheap eats.  Not just any cheap eats (a la peanut butter and jelly or scrambled eggs...which I've eaten my fair share of recently) but homemade comfort food cheap eats.

With the cold, rainy weather predicted for the next week, I was inspired to make a couple of easy dishes that would last me a few days.  My mom is known for making yummy soups and stews on days like today and taking a page from her book, I fashioned together a little Mexican Tortilla soup from items I had in my cupboard.  

I started with one glove of garlic and one onion (picked up from Saturday's Farmer's Market) and let them saute in olive oil.   I then added about a tablespoon of cumin and a hefty dose of ground chipotle pepper that I had left over from a recent trip to Sante Fe, NM.  I might have gone a little overboard on the chipotle, as my eyes started to burn and nose began to run after I added it to the pot, but at this point, I need some extra spice in my life, so I'm ok with it.

This stuff is the real deal...trust me it will clear your sinuses.  Also what a bargain-my brother and I split a bag and this is what's left of my share.

After letting that saute for 2-3 minutes, I added one can of drained black beans, a 32oz can of crushed tomatoes and 32 oz of chicken stock and let it simmer for 15 minutes to let the flavors come together.  Easy peasy.  About 5 minutes before serving I like to add flour (or corn, depending on your preference) tortillas, cut wedges.  This helps thicken the soup a bit more and adds a different texture.  Top with sour cream, or guacamole or a squirt of lime juice and you're good to go!

Another yummy item my mom is known for, is her granola.  For as long as I can remember, we never bought granola in our house, it was made by hand in massive batches.  Making granola is a great way to save money, especially with the stuff at the grocery store costing upwards of $5 a box.  Now, my version of granola is pretty simple, as I didn't have all of the ingredients my mom likes to add, but really granola is one of those things that once you have the basic concept/ingredients, you can make it however you want.

To start, I added about three cups of old fashioned oats, and a tablespoon of cinnamon to a big bowl.  To that, I mixed in a teaspoon of vanilla, a 1/4 cup of maple syrup boiled by my brother at the North Country School in Lake Placid, NY, and 1/4 cup of canola oil.  Pour the oat mixture onto a non-stick baking sheet, and bake at 375 degrees for 20-30 minutes.  I'd recommend checking it about half way through and quickly flipping/mixing the oats to make sure everything browns evenly.  Let cool and store in an air tight container.  Voila, breakfast for the next week!

Super yummy maple syrup! Love ya Nick! He also makes cheese, and knits..who is this guy!

My mom likes to add ground flax seed, shredded coconut, walnuts or almonds and raisins to her granola.  One note of caution, be careful with the nuts and fruit--add those towards the end of the baking time to ensure they don't burn.  As for sweeteners, you can really pick anything you like.  You could use brown sugar or honey or agave or any combo to meet your desired taste.

Also, if you want to cut down on the amount of oil, you can sub orange juice.  Sounds odd, but it works!

What are your recommendations for cheap eats (either homemade or dining out)?  

I just had to share this photo.  These flowering trees are my absolute favorite!  Just a little sunshine to brighten up this dreary day!