Crispy Potatoes and Peppers

The humblest vegetables can turn into amazing meals when prepared with fresh ingredients and a little attention to detail. In this case, it was very humble ingredients—potatoes, peppers, and onions—that turned into a truly delicious and simple meal with a few key additions and a little care in the prep. The key additions in this case are indulgent, true, but a little goes a long way: duck fat and creme agria. The duck fat came from some roasted duck legs that I'd made a while back, and the crema agria is Mexican style sour cream, I get mine from Darigold because it's what's commonly available (and delicious). It's extra smooth, extra tangy, and extra delicious, and while I'm basically required to love sour cream because I'm half Hungarian, this stuff is my absolute favorite, and can stand in equally for both regular sour cream and creme fraiche, for significantly less money than creme fraiche, I might add.

Stuffed Zucchini with Spinach and Feta

I love these little zucchinis. Have you seen them? I think they're called 8-ball zucchini, and they're about the size of an 8 ball or a softball, and they are just perfect for stuffing. I always get a little sad when I see the regular stuffed zucchini, because to me it's not really stuffed. More like shallowly carved out and then a bunch of toppings piled on top that could possibly tumble off. I understand that you can get more crunchy, browned cheesy goodness on those zucchini boats than these round ones, and so for that, I can understand why people do it. But I really love to truly stuff something and get a ton of goodies inside, which is why I really love these. Plus, they look so cool, and it might be my imagination, but I think these are milder and sweeter than your regular old regular zucchini. And if you've read my blog before, you know how obsessed I am with personal serving sized things, like mini cakes and tartlets, so you can imagine how much I like these when a single stuffed pepper is the perfect serving for one person. Not to mention totally cute.

Now, take a sweet, mild, uniquely shaped zucchini, and stuff it with herbs, veggies, and cheese, and you totally have my vote. The great thing about these is that they are open to using up leftovers and really very versatile. Want something hearty? Stuff it with cooked rice, crumbled italian sausage, the rest of the zucchini, and some parmesan or romano. Got some leftover chicken? Throw it in. Need to use up the end of some cheese? Use whatever you have on hand. For me, I had some fresh baby spinach that was a couple days past salad stage, a gigantic block of feta that I was still working through, and some leftover pistou that I had used on top of some salmon. For me, this was a great clean-out-the-fridge dish. Since it is warm and summery here, I made this vegetarian and just popped it in my toaster oven—no need to heat up the whole kitchen with the regular oven when it's nearing 80 degrees out. My hands on time was only a few minutes, and dinner was ready in under 45 minutes. Add a starch—in my case, some great ciabatta from the Mount Vernon farmer's market—and some fresh fruit for dessert, and you're done!

Smoky Paprika Grilled Shrimp

I'm still obsessing about the meal that we had at the Harvest Vine a few weeks back. Just about everything was perfection: from the elegant but rustic decor, the knowledgeable and friendly service, and the food. The standouts, besides the Iberico ham that I talked about before, were the shrimp, wild Gulf shrimp with some sort of amazing sauce. I am so picky about my shrimp, and have had too many sub-par shrimp that were bland, overcooked, rubbery, or worse, earthy tasting so you know they're off or haven't been cleaned properly, which makes me so very gun-shy when ordering them. But these were superb: seasoned perfectly, tender but not mushy, and oh so very sweet. They were, without a doubt, the best shrimp that I've ever had. And we only had 5 or 6. To share, Clearly, this was not enough shrimp. We could have easily devoured 3 more orders between the two of us.

So when the weather finally cleared, and it became grilling time, off we went to Metropolitan Market to find enough shrimp to satiate our shrimp craving. And they had beautiful, fresh, huge, wild gulf shrimp. Bingo! We used a very simple rub out of the Weber's Way to Grill book, which is a really great grilling book and not what you'd expect (definitely not "100 ways to make burgers" as a friend had thought it might be), but it's full of great things like cedar planked salmon, flank steak roulade, even grilled fruit recipes. And this wonderful but simple rub. I'm usually not a big fan of garlic powder, but it works here. Try to seek out some high-quality fresh, wild shrimp, and a good Spanish paprika, it will make all the difference.

Salmon with Potatoes, Pea Vines, and Sweet Onion Relish

Spring foods make me happy. Spring onions, peas and pea vines, fresh wild salmon, fava beans, mint, baby potatoes... all these things are so wonderfully full of flavor with vibrant colors, it's a joy to cook with these incredible ingredients. I've combined all of these into one dish that is light, vibrant, and bursting with flavor. This relish is the real standout here, with lemon, mint, and sweet onion, it's incredibly fresh and great on both the salmon and the potatoes and vegetables. You may want to make extra for other meals!

Frittata with Leeks, Asparagus, and Serrano Ham

I've always been a fan of prosciutto and ham in general. But after having a truly wonderful meal at Harvest Vine in Seattle, where I experienced the out-of-this-world Iberico Serrano, I've since been a little obsessed with the Spanish cured pork. When Mother's Day came around, I made brunch as usual, and couldn't wait to use a little Serrano ham (not Iberico, unfortunately, but still quite tasty!) with some wonderful local asparagus and leeks.

This frittata makes a great main course for any meal, as far as I'm concerned. I've served it for both brunch and dinner on warm spring and early summer nights. Look for asparagus that's very thin, so that they will be easy to cut with a fork. This recipe easily scales up to serve 6 or 8.

Round out the meal with a side salad and some crusty bread--I've made a salad of baby arugula, radishes, thinly sliced zucchini, and Duchilly hazelnuts with a little salt, pepper, walnut oil, and sherry vinegar, but any salad greens with an oil and vinegar dressing would be a great pairing.

Creamy Broccoli, Potato, and Leek Soup

I've been on a leek kick lately. Those tender, delicate vegetables add such a great flavor to so many dishes. Here, leeks lend a subtle, sweet flavor to a delicious soup - green broccoli, thickened with yukon gold potatoes. I've made potato soups before with the hand blender, to varying degrees of success - they often come out a little gluey or gummy. And broccoli soups can taste thin without the addition of butter and heavy cream. But this seems to be a great balance - enough veggies to keep the soup from being gluey, and enough potatoes to make the soup thick and filling. Just a little butter for flavor, and some evaporated milk for body, this is a great one for weeknights when you want something comforting, creamy, and healthy, but don't have a lot of time. Add some whole grain bread, or maybe a couple cheese-toasts on the side, and you have a great dinner.

Creamy Broccoli, Potato, and Leek Soup

1 TB butter
3 large leeks, white and light green parts only, chopped
2 medium potatoes, chopped into 1/2" cubes, about 2 cups
1 large head of broccoli, crowns chopped, stems peeled and chopped, about 2 cups
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
6-8 oz evaporated milk
1/2 tsp worcestershire sauce
1 tsp Frank's Red Hot sauce
salt and pepper to taste

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Sweat the leeks with a pinch of salt until starting to wilt, stirring occasionally, about 7 minutes. Add the potatoes and broth, and simmer for 10 minutes. Add broccoli, and simmer for another 6-8 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. Turn off heat, and blend with a hand blender until creamy. Stir in milk, worcestershire sauce, and Frank's. Taste, adjust seasoning if needed with salt and and a healthy dose of pepper, and serve.

Fall Fried Rice, American Style

Brussels sprouts are a vegetable I wrestle with. You see, I don't dislike many veggies. I like tiny veggies quite a bit - baby artichokes, small potatoes, tiny pickled cucumbers. And I love cabbage. So naturally, I should love brussels sprouts, seeing as how they're really like tiny cabbages. What's not to love? Well, I just usually don't like them, they taste funny and bitter and off to me, unless they're doused in butter and cream at Thanksgiving, and I am just not going to do that the rest of the year.

When given the option from my local CSA to get local, organic brussels sprouts on the stem, I jumped, thinking I should give them another chance, and this was a good way to do it. If I didn't like a gigantic spear of fresh, local, on-the-stem sprouts, I probably wasn't ever going to like them. I also jumped, like I am wont to do, with other seasonal goodies and overfilled my fridge. So there my sprouts sat, sad and lonely at the bottom of the fridge, until all the other vegetables were exhausted and they were the last things left. It had been over a week, and it was time. There I was, staring at the refrigerator, wondering how I was going to make this work for dinner. What else masks, err I mean, goes well with the flavor of sprouts? Well I had bacon, and leeks. Ok, good start. But I needed a starch. "Honey, do you want brussels sprouts, bacon, and leeks with pasta, rice, polenta, or potatoes?" "Rice", he replied. Of course he picked the one item I had no plan for. Was I going to have to make some sort of sauce with this? Then it hit me - we make fried rice, and that has has similar bits - veg, onion, and cured meat. I could hit this up with some more American type seasonings - Worcestershire and Frank's hot sauce, perhaps? A little thyme? Why does soy sauce get to have all the fun? So something new and delicious was born, my husband and I had a great and quick dinner, and I conquered the sprout.

Hearty Autumn Salad with Bacon, Egg, Cornbread Croutons, and Artichokes

I'm back! It's been a long while, and the weather has changed drastically since I've been gone. But I have good reason - two good reasons, actually - for being gone so long. First, my hubby and I took a two week whirlwind trip to Europe, staying in Amsterdam, Brussels, and Zurich. There was much good food, much good beer, a whole lotta walking, wonderful weather despite it being October, and in general a good time was had by all. I ate lots of delicious new foods (Dutch pea soup! Deer sausage! Stoemp! Waterzooi!), and will be posting the recipes here as I make them and can get them close to what I remember having. But besides being gone, there was a lot of planning. It was my first time to Europe, and I planned it myself. Every little bit. Lodging, transportation, train tickets, local metro passes, museum tickets, everything. It was intimidating, and time consuming, and occasionally stressful! But it all turned out well.

Secondly, I've been devoting time to one of my other passions - namely all things design. I'm a bit of an obsessive when it comes to well-designed cookware and serveware (and decor, and... ok, modern and well designed ANYTHING really), and I've been delving in headfirst scouring through thrift stores and other sources, trying to find the good stuff. The good news: I've been finding good stuff! Though it takes time. The flipside is I've been finding TOO MUCH good stuff, and I can't just let it sit there, so I take it home, and well, I've opened an Etsy shop with all my goodies. If you like unique and modern home stuff, check out my shop at http://kiteless.etsy.com/.

Crunchy Cabbage, Cucumber, and Chicken Stir-Fry

I make stir-fries a lot. They're a really simple and tasty way to make a quick and veggie-packed dinner. Usually, by the time the rice is done, my meal is done, as well (or at least really close to being done!) I often use a few variations on some common themes: beef and broccoli (sometimes with red bell peppers or carrots) with a lightly sweet soy sauce; shredded pork and cabbage with dark soy and a little heat from sriracha or sambal olek; sliced pork or chicken with Thai red curry paste, lime leaves, green beans, and basil. And sometimes I just dump in whatever I have on hand, with whatever condiments, vinegar, sauces, herbs, and maybe some crunchy toppings, sound good. The great thing is, it's pretty hard to screw up. As long as I don't overcook my meat and veggies, or make the sauce too salty, it's all pretty tasty. But I don't find them worthy of posting, because I don't measure, and while they're always good, they're never great. Not something you'd feel comfortable telling someone "Hey, you should make this! You'll like it."

Well, this time I made one that's really good, and worthy repeating (and a blog post)! Cabbage and snow peas are great in stir-fries, but the real winner here is the cucumber. Stir-fried until slightly softened, the flavor becomes sweeter, milder, and almost a little nutty. The texture becomes more silky, and it loses some of that graininess. It becomes a really nice and unexpected foil to the crisp and crunchy cabbage and peas. The mint and cilantro are a must here, too, as they cap off the stir-fry with a nice, fresh, herbal note. With a side of your favorite rice, this is a lean, healthy, satisfying meal that feels like a real treat.

Italian Chicken Burgers

I told you guys I was on a burger kick!

What happens when you take inspiration from Chicken Milanese and Salad Caprese and put it on a bun? You get a delicious sandwich, that's what. The idea for this sprang from seeing a recipe in Bon Appetit about a Chicken Parmigiana sandwich. It looked delicious, but I wrestled with the idea of putting tomato sauce on my sandwich. I envisioned trying to eat it and getting a ring of sauce in the palms of my hands. I pictured the sauce dripping onto my shirt. I pictured soggy breading. In my mind, this wasn't really going too well. I wanted a crisp-coated chicken burger, and that tangy tomato flavor, and of course the basil and cheese. Just no gloppy messiness, please.

I started with a lb of ground chicken, and an egg. It got very soupy very quickly, I had to use quite a bit of what I'd planned on using for the coating as a binder, to sop up the juice. But that's ok, because the end result is a delicious, juicy patty that doesn't taste bready, and who can argue with that? Depending on how moist your chicken is, you may need more or less bread crumbs, so add a TB or two a time until you can form a patty, while trying to handle the patty as little as possible.

Vietnamese-style Pork Burgers

I've been slightly obsessed with burgers lately. I love just about anything on a bun, from handmade veggie burgers to beef with bacon, with lamb burgers (with goat cheese and pickled red onions, please!) being one of my favorites. Not to mention that I think my husband has perfected the beef burger (he has a secret ingredient - I'll see if I can get him to share it in a later post!). But I've been trying new ways to get some of my favorite flavor combos sandwiched between a yeasty kaiser roll or soft ciabatta, if you are a talented enough baker, or lucky enough to source some good ones, and to cut down on meat costs by purchasing ground meat. If you are in the Seattle area, I am really fond of Essential Baking's kaiser rolls, as well as their Panino rolls, or, if you're feeling decadent, Macrina's brioche buns. I know, buying expensive buns may seem to defeat the purpose of eating frugally, but to me, the bun is second only to the patty, so I won't skimp there.

This is a pretty straightforward translation - turning a pork banh mi into a pork burger. I'll admit, it's not much of a stretch, but it sure is yummy! Use good quality and fairly lean ground pork - I really like Thundering Hooves - and toss with a little fish sauce, dark soy, and lemongrass. I used to purchase whole lemongrass, peel them to their less fibrous innards, chop them into 3" lengths, and freeze them until I needed them (I do a similar thing with ginger). And this is still a good option, but one day, browsing through the large Asian section at my favorite local grocery store, I found a giant frozen tub of finely minced lemongrass. For about $2. Well not only was this a time saver, but it's also an excellent deal, so I snagged it and have been using it ever since!

Springtime Risotto with Fava Beans and Asparagus

I've been intimidated by fava beans before. These big beans that you have to peel twice: once out of the pod, then a second time out of the skin. (The internet says blanching them briefly in boiling water, then shocking them in ice water helps the skins slide off easier; you can also peel them as-is while watching TV, like I did.) It seems like a lot of effort for little payoff. I was wrong, the payoff is big! Now I'm a convert, and even my bean-picky husband liked the dish (a lot). So creamy and mild, they have a wonderful green yet slightly nutty flavor that goes well with the freshness of asparagus and lemon.

Risotto is always made out to be a lot of work, but I don't really think it's as hard as it can seem. Sure, you have to stir, and it does demand your frequent attention, but in 30 minutes you can have delicious risotto while only tending to one pot, and to me that's easier than trying to orchestrate a separate protein, starch, and veg.
 

Barbecued Lamb with Wine, Cilantro, and Soy Sauce

Summer means many things to me: fireworks at 10:30 pm; long, long nights and early mornings; the most beautiful blue sky and cool Puget Sound; hiking; the all-too-short season of those delicious Rainier cherries, pluots, and heirloom tomatoes; and grilling - in particular, a giant hunk of lamb. This is probably my favorite grill recipe ever, and I'm such a sucker for lamb.

If you're only familiar with grey lamb smeared with mint jelly, forget about all of that! This has the great marinated flavor of red wine, plus the savory flavor of soy sauce, and that fresh herbal flavor of cilantro that I love so much, and nicely charred end bits. If you get a boneless leg of lamb, one end will be smaller than the other, so you're sure to have a level of doneness to suit anyone, and you're almost guaranteed leftovers.

Poached Eggs with Greens and Garlic on Toast

Today I received a fantastic loaf of bread in my grocery delivery box - the most lovely loaf of French bread I have ever laid my eyes upon. Before I even put the rest of the groceries away, I cut off a slice from the end - perfection! Very moist, tender, and fine crumb, lovely yeasty smell and flavor, thin but crisp shell. An excellent bread from Boulangerie Nantaise, in Seattle. I hadn't planned on using the bread that day, but it seemed a shame not to eat it fresh, so I rummaged around the fridge to see what I could find.

Fresh eggs, some arugula needing to be used up, some beet greens, with beets to be used at a later date, and a fresh head of garlic. A lovely dinner was created - toasted and lightly buttered bread, layered with slightly bitter, savory, and garlicky greens made lively with a dash of sherry vinegar, topped with a poached egg. A delicious light supper, the egg yolk running into the greens, making a sauce; the greens softening the toasted bread just a bit. Yum.

Ginger Fried Rice with an Egg

I have an ongoing love affair with eggs and rice. Ever since I discovered the joy of an over-easy egg with rice and soy sauce, it's been my favorite breakfast, easy lunch, or I'm-too-tired-to-cook meal.

I'd been eyeballing this recipe in the Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges cookbook, especially since I'd had good luck with several of his other recipes. So when I saw Mark Bittman wax poetic about it recently, and he showed me just how easy it really is, I knew it was time to give it a shot.

The ingredients are simple, but this is really tasty fare. The silky, smooth leeks really gives the rice a lovely flavor and subtle texture, and the crispy garlic and ginger really elevates it. Served with a simple salad with a miso vinaigrette, it really hit the spot. My husband loved it so much, he was mostly done by the time I'd finished snapping pics. Next time, I'll use jasmine; I used calrose by force of habit, and realized my mistake only after I'd started cooking it. Oops. It still turned out great, though!

Patatas Bravas - Roasted Potatoes with Spicy Tomato Sauce and Aioli

I'm always on the lookout for new side dishes or light entrees. Sure, local and seasonal veggies, prepared simply with good ingredients, are always delicious, but sometimes I just want something a little different. And while crispy oven-roasted potatoes are always a good idea, sometimes more actually IS better, as is the case with these - patatas bravas, a Spanish potato dish.

Take delicious, crispy, oven roasted potatoes, blanched and then roasted at a high temp with olive oil, salt and pepper to get all golden brown and delicious. Good, right? Then add a slow-simmered tomato sauce, enriched with spicy red pepper and an unexpected but welcome hit of cumin. Mmmm, even better. Now cut the acidity and spiciness with some creamy, garlicky aioli, and you've got the world's best side starch, or an awesome light lunch with some blanched or roasted veggies like haricot vert or zucchini, or with a nice crisp salad.

Endive and Potato Salad with Smoked Trout

Seattle is the land of smoked salmon, but I have a secret: as much as I love the salmon, I really love smoked trout. It's a little milder than salmon, with a sweeter flavor, but it still has a nice, meaty texture and pleasant saltiness. Unfortunately, it's a little bit hard to find - 10 kinds of smoked salmon, or even salmon candy, is readily available, but refrigerated smoked trout (I've tried some in cans and didn't care for it) is only available in the more specialty stores around here.

That's part of the reason I love this salad, it's a great use of smoked trout. Paired with crunchy and slightly bitter endives, creamy potatoes, and a lovely light and lemony dressing, and lots of fresh herbs, this salad hits all the notes for me - crunchy, creamy, lightly bitter in a very pleasant way, meaty, salty, tangy, all good. All this without croutons, which I dearly love (especially when using leftover La Brea ciabatta and frying them lightly in bacon fat), but this salad needs none!

Coffee-spiked Pork Satay

These are a unique yet simple appetizer for get-togethers or a light lunch or dinner - pork skewers with a simple coffee-spiked peanut sauce. It's not the first pork skewers I have on here, and it probably won't be the last, but what can I say, I dig meat on a stick. I know the dipping sauce sounds a little strange -- coffee and peanut butter, really? -- but it’s a surprisingly nice flavor combination, and if you have a little leftover coffee from the morning, this will all come together super quickly. And after all the work of the holidays, or if you're planning a New Year's shindig, wouldn't we all love something simple and quick?

I know I'm really pulling from a variety of influences here, but don't skip the garam masala. I find the combo of spices is just right to give it a real depth of complimentary flavor to peanut sauce. If you don't have any on hand, try adding just a pinch of coriander, cinnamon and black pepper.

Asian-inspired Turkey Burgers with Cabbage Slaw

It's always really nice when you throw some things together in a clean-out-the-fridge kind of moment, mostly hoping for something simply edible, and you end up with something so delicious, you make it again and again. Tonight was one of those nights. I'd had some gai-lan (Chinese broccoli, which is sooooo good) languishing in the fridge. Half of a sad cucumber. An old half-head of cabbage. I knew I needed to use these up, so an a-ha moment came on - I had some hamburger buns and some ground turkey in the fridge that I had randomly picked up but hadn't had any plans for - what about turkey burgers with a cabbage-cucumber-cilantro slaw?

I threw a couple of my favorite Asian condiments, plus ginger and green onion, into my basic turkey burger recipe and was exceptionally pleased. They had a ton of flavor, and were so moist and tender! And these had no cheese, but you won't mind. Slap these on a whole-wheat bun, and you have a super-lean and healthy burger that tastes great. These will definitely go into standard rotation.

Steak and Arugula Salad

Hooray for summer! That means wonderful fresh fruit and veggies, and lots of salads. I love salads, they're fresh and crisp, and you can throw in whatever you've got, and you've got a pretty good chance of it coming out good for little time and effort. Bonus 1: lots of veggies, so lots of vitamins, it's good for you. Bonus 2: no to little cooking! And when it's over 80 degrees inside, because there is no A/C in Seattle, that counts for a lot.

This is one of my favorite salads. It's a snap to put together, and it's got steak and crispy shallots, 2 man-pleasing ingredients. It's budget-conscious since it stretches a steak -- you only need about 4 oz per person. It's pretty simple, so don't skip the crispy shallots, they really add a lot of dimension to the dish.

I'm giving approximate amounts - this is salad, after all - feel free to tweak as you like.