Archives for October 2014

vietnamese shrimp quinoa salad

10/27/2014 By

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Does anyone else think shrimp can have an off-putting texture sometimes? It’s not just when it’s overcooked and chewy; even cooked correctly, there can be an unevenly textured graininess that I don’t like. The smaller the shrimp, the less that texture is an issue. On the other hand, the smaller the shrimp, the more shrimp you have to peel.

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However, I love the flavor. Sweet and briny, it’s so good in a huge variety of dishes. This is one of my recent favorites. The vegetables are crunchy and fresh, but the shrimp and quinoa keep it satisfying.

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I’ve found a trick that seems to solve my texture issues with shrimp, although it’s an extra tedious step on top of the already tedious peeling. After cooking, I cut the shrimp in half lengthwise. As an added bonus, it makes them closer to bite-sized for me, so I can get a forkful with all the goodies – shrimp and quinoa and vegetables and herbs. This one simple trick makes me love shrimp – both the flavor and the texture.

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Vietnamese Shrimp and Quinoa Salad (adapted from Serious Eats)

You can save some time by cooking the quinoa in water instead of the cooking liquid from the shrimp, starting to cook the quinoa around the same time as the shrimp.

Shrimp:
1 pound shrimp, unpeeled
2 cups water
5 cilantro sprigs
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 lime

Salad:
½ cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed
1 red pepper, diced
1 cucumber, peeled, seeds removed, quartered lengthwise, and sliced
1 large carrot, peeled and shredded
2 scallions, sliced thin
¼ cup cilantro, minced

Dressing:
¼ cup lime juice from 2 limes
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 teaspoons sugar
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

1. For the shrimp: In a 2-quart saucepan, combine the shrimp, water, cilantro sprigs, 1 tablespoon sugar, and 1 teaspoon salt. Juice the lime into the saucepan, then add the lime peels to the saucepan. Place the saucepan over medium-high heat and cook until the shrimp turn pink, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the shrimp, reserving ¾ cup of the shrimp broth. Rinse the saucepan.

2. For the salad: Add the shrimp broth and quinoa to the rinsed saucepan and heat over medium-high heat until the broth boils. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let set, covered, for 10 minutes.

3. In a large bowl, combine the quinoa, red peppers, cucumber, carrot, scallions, and cilantro. Peel the cooled shrimp and add it to the bowl.

4. For the dressing: Mix everything. Pour over the salad and stir to combine. Serve immediately, or cover and chill for up to four hours.

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Filed Under: asian, citrus, gluten free, healthy, salad, seafood, vegetables

bittersweet chocolate and pear cake

10/10/2014 By

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Earlier this summer, one of my coworkers brought in peaches from his tree, so I took some and made peach cupcakes to share at work. Then a couple weeks ago, another coworker was giving away apples, so I took some and made apple pie-cake for everyone. After that, the apple grower was excited to find someone to offload her apples to, so she brought me another bag, and I made apple cake and then apple muffins. Also, my mom gave me pears, so I made pear chocolate cake.

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It sounds weird, right, pears and chocolate together? That’s what most of my coworkers said, but then they said that it definitely worked. It’s a fun recipe, with the eggs beaten until foamy and the batter spread in the pan with the fruit and chocolate on top. As the cake bakes, it rises up due to all the air beaten into the eggs, incorporating the fruit and chocolate.

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Just like in a chocolate chip cookie, the chocolate here provides a bitter richness to compliment the sweet butteriness of a fruit-based cake. Sugar and butter being, of course, the perfect compliments to almost any fruit. Basically, if you have too much fruit, give it to me and I will make cake out of it.

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Bittersweet Chocolate and Pear Cake (rewritten but not significantly adapted from Al Di La Trattoria via Smitten Kitchen)

My homegrown pears were small, so I used five of them.

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 cup (4.8 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
3 eggs, at room-temperature
¾ cup (5.25 ounces) sugar
3 pears, peeled, cored, and diced into ¼-inch cubes
¾ cup (4.5 ounces) bittersweet chocolate chunks

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9-inch springform pan with nonstick baking spray (or oil and flour the pan). In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a small skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. When the foaming subsides, start swirling the butter around the pan. When the milk solids sink and turn brown and the butter smells nutty, remove the pan from the heat and pour the butter into a small bowl or measuring cup so it stops cooking.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or a large bowl if using a hand-held mixer), beat the eggs until light yellow and thick, about 5 minutes on a stand mixer and 9 minutes with a handheld mixer. When the whisk is removed from the bowl, the egg should flow off of it in a thick ribbon. Gradually add the sugar to the eggs, beating for 1 minute after it’s all added. Reduce the mixer speed to its lowest setting and add one-third of the flour mixture, then half of the butter, another third of the flour, the rest of the butter, and the rest of the flour, beating just until combined.

3. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan. Evenly distribute the pears and chocolate over the top of the batter. Transfer to the oven and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, 45-60 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. If desired, dust with powdered sugar just before serving.

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Filed Under: cake, chocolate, dessert, fall, fruit

kale caesar salad

10/04/2014 By

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Dave and I have a friend who we affectionately refer to as Crazy Running Guy. He’s training for a marathon right now, which means he’s running upwards of 80 miles per week. He ran the Boston marathon several years ago (thankfully not the year of the bombing) and was deeply disappointed by his time of 2 hours and 40 minutes.

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It’s not unusual for us to invite him over for dinner on Saturday, and he and Dave will hang out at the bar in the kitchen while I cook…and cook…and cook some more. We’ll eat tiny servings of five or even seven different courses. Sometimes I have some prep done ahead of time and get to relax a bit, but other times, I spend almost the whole evening on my feet, except when I’m eating. I’m enjoying myself, and no one else seems disturbed that I’m cooking more than socializing.

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He isn’t much into cooking, but in a strange way, I feel like he gets me. He’s our Crazy Running Friend; I’m his Crazy Cooking Friend. Which, when you think about it, is a good match, right? Fortunately, he isn’t picky and eats almost anything I throw at him. He didn’t seem fazed at all by kale caesar salad. He didn’t get any wine though, due to a tough run planned for the next day. No wine? I definitely prefer being crazy about cooking instead of running.

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Kale Caesar Salad (slightly adapted from The Food Lab)

4 to 6 servings

As always, I substituted Greek yogurt for a portion of the mayonnaise.

1 pound (about 2 bunches) Tuscan, tough stems removed, leaves roughly chopped (about 4 quarts loosely packed leaves)
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
5 ounces hearty bread, roughly torn into 1-inch pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
⅔ cup mayonnaise
6 anchovy filets, minced
1 medium clove garlic, minced (about 1 teaspoon)
1½ ounces (about ¾ cup) Parmigiano-Reggiano, finely grated
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons juice from 1 lemon
1 small white onion or 2 shallots, finely sliced

1. Place a rimmed baking sheet on the middle rack of the oven and heat the oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, combine the kale and 2 tablespoons of the oil. Use your hands to knead the oil into the kale until the kale is dark green and slightly softened, about 2 minutes.

2. Transfer the bread, 1 tablespoon oil, and salt and pepper to taste to a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Pulse until the largest pieces of bread are about the size of a chickpea. Remove the preheated baking sheet from the oven. Add the remaining one tablespoon of oil to the pan, using a spatula to spread it evenly. Transfer the bread pieces to the pan. Bake until toasted, about 15 minutes, stirring once halfway through the baking time. Let cool slightly.

3. Add the mayonnaise, garlic, anchovies, worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, and parmesan to the empty food processor bowl. Process until smooth.

4. Add the onions, dressing, and half the bread pieces to the kale; stir to combine. Serve immediately, topping each serving with the remaining croutons.

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Filed Under: bread, cheese, italian, salad, side dish, vegetables