 Re-play tasty morsels....I get accused of not having a sense of proposrtion but I do like great food that has a rerun! I had lots of onions and yellow bell peppers a week ago and sauted them for a vaoriet of purposes and a great dish was simple pork loin chops and I cooked the whole package with 5 poritions then we ate 2 and I froze the othter three in two portions. Today's meal was a pork loin chope with the most amazing a ju sauce created from the meat, spices and onion/pepper mixture. I cubed it, ssauted one medium approximately .66# yam cubed; when the yam was just done I tossed the meat veggie mixture to just warm, then served it over spaghetti noodels. I don't know if I mentioned but somehow I over bough spaghetti noodels, we really don't have it that often. This meal was a late lunck served with fresh lemonade. |  Easy dinner....a blast from the past. Ever eat at a diner or a retro place and they have wedge of iceberg lettuce on the menu? Yes, that was a think all through the 50s, 60s and even today. simplist salad every, classically it is approximately a 6th or 4th of a head of lettuce served on a plate with or without garnish with thousand island dressing over the top. I made a clean out the fridge thousand island inspired dressing from 2/3rds cup non-fat greek yogurt, 1/4 cup mayo, 2-3 tbs olive tapenade, a dash of hot sauce mostly for color not flavor and a scant teaspoon of sweet pickle relish. For serving options I added a little more protein and fiber with black/white bean salad and crackers with cheese. Dinner in under 15 minutes. |
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Black and White Bean SaladThis Salad is one of my all time saples and I can't belerive I have not posted it here yet. There is the long version you use dried beand and cook them fresh--my favorite as the bean has a texture to it! As I did this week, pulled my earthquack emergency cans out of the pantry and used goya beans. Not all canned beans are made the same, make sure they are not too soft. In each area different brands will be available. I just find the qualilty steady with these. As we are still in Shelter in Place in CA I took a bit of freedom in the veggies inlcuded but I really like the 3-4 colours of sweet peppers in the original recipe. Yesterday I had 2 yellow and 1 green bell pepper so I added a chopped carrot that I microwaved for about 20 seconds to take a bit of the hardness away. This makes any salad a complete meal and by itself it is a great meal or side. I take it to potlucks frequently but also my favorite dish for a week worth of lunches to go. BLACK AND WHITE BEAN SALAD Serves 12 more or less Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups drained black beans (or 1 can) 1 1/2 cups drained white beans (or 1 can) 2-4 chopped green onions 1/2 green bell pepper, diced 1/2 red bell pepper, diced 1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced 3/4 cup diced celery Dressing: 2 Tbsp vinegar 1 Tbsp olive oil 1 Tbsp water 1/2 tsp Italian Spice Mix 1/4 tsp black pepper Directions: Mix all the ingredients and let them work for a couple of hours in a bowl. Tip-Using dried beans and cooking them separately can save between 100-200 mg of sodium if you use less than 1 tsp salt per pot and added it at the end of cooking for maximum taste. Dried bean measure would be 1 cup each color. *Recipe attached with Nutritional Analysis Recipe from Food FUNdamentals and analyzed by Community Nutrition Education Services Inc. Served at Broomball Day at Hartnell College May 17, 2014. 
"The number π is a mathematical constant. It is defined as the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter, and it also has various equivalent definitions. It appears in many formulas in all areas of mathematics and physics. It is approximately equal to 3.14159", Wikipedia. Round objects are so common in nutrition and I like celebrating food related events and Pi Day was always fune when I waas teaching. The science department students like having pie tossing events, where as I prefered teaching students how to make a pie and then eat them instead of wearing them. The pizza restaurants have a fun time with this as well. Today, we will be eating Spinach Pie and the recipe is below. Brisson family Spinach pie also has a special significance, it was one of Alexis' favoriet childhood foods. He liked it so much he served it at one of his gradeschool birthday parties. The funny part was he did not like eggs nor green vegetables at that time in his life we were always puzzled, it had to be the bacon and onions? what may have been in motion was, "the result was greater than the sum of its parts"?
Spinach Pie This recipe is the morphing of a quiche from a book I used as a newlywed. Jerry and I enjoyed it for dinner, for leftovers, and we are still eating it. Once you've made it once or twice it really comes together quiet easily. Serves 8 Ingredients: Crust: 2 cups flour 1 tsp salt 2/3 cup shortening 5-7 Tbsp cold water Filling: 1 can evaporated milk, 10 oz 4 eggs 1/4 tsp nutmeg 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 tsp pepper 1 tsp cornstarch 1 medium onion chopped 2-4 slice of good quality smoky bacon or ham (opt) 10-12 oz Frozen Chopped Spinach drained and Sqeeezed* 2 cups grated or sliced white cheese, Swiss, Mozzarella or Monterey Jack Directions: Pre-heat oven for crust to 400 degrees and then reduce to 375 for baking the pie and filling. Bake a blind single crust. The ingredients for the crust will produce a generous amount of dough so you can use a quiche or pie pan with enough for a nice woven or crimped crust edge. Crust: Mix flour and salt. Cut in shortening until pieces are the size of small peas. Sprinkle water one tablespoon at a time. The dough should come together and not be dry or sticky. If needed divide the dough, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for an hour. Roll as much of the dough as needed to cover the pie plate with at least 1.5" - 2" extra all around to create a decorative edge. Gently press the dough into the plate then pierce the bottom with a fork so it does not bubble during the blind baking. To create the edge fold the dough under so you have double thickness on the pie plate edge for the style of edge you prefer. My favorite is a zigzag that I create with my fingers. I use a piece of foil to keep the crust in place while it bakes. Bake only until it is set about 10 minutes, it should not brown! place one-third of the cheese on the warm bottom of the crust and set aside. Filling: Sauté the onions and bacon pieces until the onions are translucent; add the drained and squeezed chopped spinach; and sauté until the mixture is well mixed, 1-2 minutes max; set aside while you blend the egg mixture. Combine the eggs, cornstarch, and spices in a blender. Then stir in another third of the cheese with the egg mixture. In the prepared crust add the spinach mixture; then gently pour the egg mixture over the top you may need to use a fork to make sure the egg mixture combines with the spinach --do not stir! and do not disturb the crust and cheese layer. Sometimes a little more milk is needed but generally not. Spread the remaining cheese on the top and place in the center of a 375 degree oven for 30 minutes, check to see how it is cooking and drop the temperature to 350 degrees or 325 degrees for another 15-20 minutes. Do not overcook as the egg mixture will need 15 minutes to finish setting when you remove it from the oven. If the crust browns too fast cover it. *Fresh spinach may be used, I have also used chopped baby Spinach and baby Kale. 16 oz recommended and be sure to cook off any liquid that is released in the sauté or increase cornstarch in egg mixture to 2 tsp to assure the pie sets. Giant! ooops! The title on my last blog post is wrong! This is it not Bread.....all year long! I will try to fix but in the mean time go to Dec 5 and you will see a great recipe for Quinoa Tabbouleh, Buen Provecho, Elsa
Greetings from the Central Coast of California. I have more than 1000 recipes in my data base and yet there are so many more to read, taste and try. See the categories list and either share a recipe or ask recipe questions. I am rather focused on fresh ingredients and minimal use of prepackaged products. I love recipes with variations. Some have called them "mother recipes" and if you think about how our great grandmothers cooked while caring for 6+ children and too many chores, they didn't fuss they just got it done. We definitely have too much time on our hands sometimes or we are filling it with other things. I find cooking a hobby, part of caring for me and my family and of course research because of my career. Buen Provecho, Elsa |
AuthorElsa has been fascinated about all things food from a very young age. Her life's work has been to preserve family food customs and to encourage others to interview family before it is too late. Her early training in nutrition has inspired her recipe adaptations. The slides on this blog are from her trip to the Amalfi coast Spring of 2015. Archives
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