Slider Night!

Most of you can probably relate to the story that brought about "slider night." My sister and I lived several hours apart from each other for our college years, and we are finally only about 40 minutes away from one another. And, after *mumblenumber* of boyfriends that I really didn't like so well, she has a boyfriend that I am very fond of, and actually like to spend time with. Trouble is, all of us work full time, and we all have variable hours. Thus, our family time is limited. So, after not getting to spend time together as a family-group for the last 6 months or so, we finally found a night to get together for dinner. With this being such a rare and golden opportunity, we made a big to-do about it, and had "slider night," also known as "a smorgasbord of sliders" (because that is more alliterative). It was a grand success: as a result, I have recipes and photos to share!

To begin, here are the basic ingredients for the filling of our sliders, which required no preparation more complicated than slicing:
Slider Buns! (also known as dinner rolls)
tomatoes
smoked salmon
cheese! mozzarella, havarti, goat cheese, red leicester
fresh basil

Also, there were 4 filling options that actually required cooking, but since we made so many fillings, none were too difficult.

Roasted Peppers (START THESE FIRST!):
1 red bell pepper, large chopped
1 green bell pepper, large chopped
1 orange bell pepper, large chopped
1 T olive oil
1 T balsamic vinegar

Toss peppers in oil and vinegar; place in baking pan. Bake at 400 degrees for about an hour.

Grilled Portabellas:
1 T olive oil
2 portabella caps, sliced into slider-bun-sized pieces
salt and pepper

Oil a portable grill (such as a Foreman Grill) and preheat. Add mushrooms, season, and cook until done.

Sauteed Squash:
1 small zucchini, sliced
1 small yellow squash, sliced

1 small onion, diced

1 T olive oil
1 t garlic powder
1 t paprika
salt and pepper, to taste

Heat olive oil in medium pan; add onion and cook until translucent. Add squash and seasoning, cook until it reaches desired texture.

Also there was steak, but I did not make the steak, so I will hold no responsibility for what was in it or how it tasted.

And, last but not least, I made homemade tsatsiki, which is incredibly easy and the recipe was stolen, so I won't bore you with the details.

So! All these ingredients came together to create these exciting sliders:

Veggie Philly: sauteed squash, havarti or red leicester cheese, mayo (optional)
Roasted Peppers and Goat Cheese: self-explanatory, with optional drizzle of honey
Grilled Mushroom with Tsatsiki: also self-explanatory
Caprese: fresh mozzarella, tomato, basil
Bagel-Caprese: mozzarella or cream cheese, tomato, basil, smoked salmon

And obviously one can mix-and-match to his/her heart's content. I even made dessert, from a recipe 100% stolen from the Food Network. On that note, I shall leave you to salivate:

A Study in (Soup) Contrasts

I have all sorts of exciting explanations that I cooked up (ba-dum bum!) for today's recipes -- Tortilla Soup in honor of Cinco de Mayo, a double-recipe post to make up for having been absent for a month, that sort of thing. Really and truly, though, I've been sitting on these two soup recipes for weeks and weeks, and I'm just now getting around to posting them. Because I am a slacker. Hopefully these will prove to be worth their wait (I am on FIRE!) in deliciousness. Also because I'm a slacker, this is yet another post without any pictures to entice you. Sorry.

Tortilla Soup

This recipe was actually a conversion of one that I found on the Food Network site. You will not BELIEVE how many chicken tortilla soup recipes are out there, and practically no non-chicken ones. It's obnoxious, really.

2 tbsp peanut oil
2 small onions, chopped
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp chipotle powder
2 tsp salt
6 cups vegetable broth
1 cup frozen corn
1 tomato, chopped
1/2 c fresh cilantro
1/4 c fresh lime juice
a handful of tortilla strips

Heat oil in a medium cooking pot over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, chipotle powder, and salt, and cook until onion is translucent. Add broth, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add corn, and give it another 5 minutes or so (just until heated through). Remove from heat, and add the tomato, cilantro, and lime. Add a small pile of tortilla strips to the bottom of each bowl and ladle the soup over it. This ended up serving about 3. I actually did an experiment and made flour tortilla strips -- I don't recommend it. They get soggy and squishy. Corn tortilla strips will stay more crisp in the soup.

Creamy-Dilly Fish Chowda

I made this recipe up all by myself. I was inspired by a pot of fish chowder at the grocery store (in the hot food bar) that smelled so fantastic, I decided I needed to make some of my own...because I am morally opposed to buying that sort of thing pre-made. It's super-easy, but you have to pronounce it "Chowda!" If I catch anyone saying "chowder" I will take their soup away from them. It is that simple.

1/2 stick butter
3 tbsp flour
1 small onion, chopped
1 c frozen corn, thawed
1 large, or 2 medium, whitefish fillets, cut into bite-sized pieces
note: I used cod, but I think something a little more flavorful, like flounder, might be good next time. Any ole whitefish will do, though. Be a cheapskate! It's just soup!
1 c heavy cream
2 c milk
2 tbsp dried dill
salt and pepper, to taste

Melt your butter in your soup pot over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk until consistent, then whisk more slowly, but constantly, until the mixture stops forming bubbles. At this point, immediately add your onion, corn, and fish. Trade your whisk out for a rubber spatula and continue to stir constantly for a minute or two (just long enough to get your roux heated back up). Add the heavy cream, and stir until consistent. Add the milk gradually, continuing to stir until smooth (not the whole thing, obviously, but you want the cream-base-part to be consistent). Add the dill, salt and pepper, and simmer for another 10-15 minutes, until your fish is cooked through and the flavors are distributed. I recommend serving this with toast for dipping, or just throwing some croutons on top if you've got them. This is exceedingly simple and SO GOOD. But then, everything with heavy cream in it is going to be delicious.

How to eat your Easter eggs.

So, it's Easter Sunday, you've dyed a bunch of fabulous and stunning hard-boiled eggs (and maybe even hidden them for your kids -- or yourself, if you really miss egg-hunts) and now, well, you have a big ole pile of hard-boiled eggs. "How much egg salad can one person eat?" you ask yourself. Well, if you dislike egg salad (or even if you rather like it, you just don't like it THAT much) and enjoy participating in exciting small-town traditions, this is what you should be eating for Easter breakfast every year. Yes, I know it's too late for Easter breakfast this year.

This recipe is for "Creamed eggs on toast," which is what I have eaten for Easter breakfast every year of my life. I did not grow up in a small town myself, but my mom did, and it's her recipe, so there you are. My mom used to make it from our carefully dyed Easter eggs, and when I moved out I started making it for myself (from my own carefully dyed eggs). It's really not something you want to eat all the time, as it is a cholesterol festival, but it's an unexpected, delicious way to use your hard-boiled eggs.

Creamed Eggs on Toast
(serves 3)
1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp white flour
up to 1 1/2 c milk
3 hard-boiled eggs
salt, pepper, onion powder
1 demi-baguette, sliced (or 6 slices of regular bread)

Cut up the eggs into little bits -- my recommended technique, per my mom, is to just hold the egg in your hand and cut it up with a butter knife. As for the creamed part, we've all heard this song before; start by making a roux. I have typed this out so many times, so please just go to my biscuits and gravy 2 ways recipe for how to do this. Add about 1/2 cup of milk, until you're starting to get a gravy-like consistency, and season with salt, pepper, and onion powder. Add in your eggs, squishing the yolks so they blend into the gravy. Add milk until it reaches a thinnish-sauce consistency, then simmer for about 5-10 minutes. When you start simmering the creamed eggs, start your toast. These two things should coincide pretty well. When your toaster goes off, check your creamed eggs -- they should have reached creamy-gravy consistency, and are therefore ready. Generously apply creamed eggs to toast, and consume!

Vegetarian Sympathizers

The inspiration for this post started when I was driving to work one morning, and a certain obnoxious radio host felt the need to point out that he "hate[s] vegetarians," because whenever he goes out to dinner with them they make him feel guilty. "There's just nothing I can eat here," is their complaint, and he find this frustrating; in addition, he states that he doesn't want to go to "one of those vegan places" and end up eating some kind of "yeast-ball."

Frankly, I was under the impression that the vast number of non-yeasty vegetarian restaurant options was well-known. Apparently, I have been proven incorrect. True, if you prefer the family-style American dining experience (ie Applebee's, Chilli's, or the like) you will find no meatless options whatsoever, and your veggie friend will be sighing their way through the meal. However, if you have even the slightest taste for the exotic (and I do mean the SLIGHTEST) you will be able to find a restaurant that can suit all tastes, be they herbivorous, omnivorous, or any other-vorous you can think of.

Suggestions:
Italian -- this is the simplest option, and therefore the most successful for the individual who is too cranky to cater to his/her vegetarian friend. I mean geez, even if it's just cheese pizza it's better than nothing.
Chinese -- see also Italian, though I do need to note you need to find a somewhat more "authentic" Chinese place, as many take-out joints don't offer tofu as a protein option. Vegetable lo mein is great, but one can only eat it so many times.
Thai -- this is just a TOUCH more exotic, but I find that almost anyone can find something they like at a Thai restaurant.
Indian/Vietnamese (I know these are not the same, but they have the same explanation. Please don't jump all over me; I know they're different!) -- some may consider this a bit more exotic than Thai, but the same rules apply.
Ethiopian -- if you're ready for a real adventure, Ethiopian food is EXCELLENT. They offer a full range, from beef, pork and chicken, to seafood and vegetarian entrees. You may not understand or be able to pronounce all the items, but even the close-your-eyes-and-point method will most likely yield something delicious.

So go now, and feed your veggie friends, and stop whining about it! You don't have to go to some hipster joint to find something delicious (trust me, I'm pretty opposed to hipster joints myself).

Protein Experiment: Tempeh

Tempeh, or tempe in Indonesian, is made by a natural culturing and controlled fermentation process that binds soybeans into a cake form. (...) Like tofu, tempeh is made from soybeans, but tempeh is a whole soybean product with different nutritional characteristics and textural qualities. Tempeh's fermentation process and its retention of the whole bean give it a higher content of protein, dietary fiber, and vitamin. It has a firm texture and strong flavor. Because of its nutritional value, tempeh is used worldwide in vegetarian cuisine; some consider it to be a meat analogue.
(from Wikipedia)

Tonight was not my first experiment with tempeh. A month or two ago I made a shepherd's pie with tempeh from a recipe in the Veganomicon which was DELICIOUS, but since it was not my own recipe I didn't share it here. Today, however, I got brave and decided to make something up with tempeh, and the menfolk was in the mood for burritos, so that was the direction I took it. This did require bravery, because even though the package will tell you that tempeh is totally delicious plain (they say you can sprinkle it in salad!) this is completely untrue. I tried some straight out of the package, and it is AWFUL eaten plain. With the right seasoning, though, it has an excellent nutty flavor. The particular variety I purchased was a 3-grain tempeh, so it had other things in it besides soy (wheat, and something else, not sure what).

I know all of you are smart enough to know how to make a silly burrito, so I'm not going to bother with listing the tortillas and nonsense like that. Instead, I'll just share how I cooked the tempeh filling.

Tempeh Burrito Filling

1 8oz pkg of tempeh
1 tbsp olive oil
4-6 baby bella mushrooms, sliced
1 yellow onion, diced
1 tbsp garlic, minced
1 large tomato, diced
1/4 cup frozen corn
1 cup vegetable broth
onion powder
chipotle chile powder
salt

Sautee the onion, garlic, and mushrooms in the olive oil until the onions are translucent. Add the tempeh and cook another 5 minutes or so. Add tomato and vegetable broth. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, 'til about 3/4 of the broth has reduced out. Add corn and seasonings, and continue cooking until remainder of broth has evaporated and all ingredients are heated through.

Living With Carnivores

In my case, it's just one carnivore, but I like to appease him sometimes with tasty dinners. As much as I'd like to just make piles of vegetables all the time, I do often make split meals, half with meat, and half without. The best way to do that without making yourself crazy is to make carbon-copies of your dish, just change out your proteins. Tonight, for example, I made sesame garlic tofu/steak with peas. All I did was get two pans, cook up the oil and garlic at the same time in each, and just tossed tofu in one and steak in the other. Voila. I know, not very exciting, but it works, and that's what's really important. I find often that I end up doing twice as many dishes because I live with a carnivore, but unfortunately I don't have a brilliant solution for that problem yet.

Just for fun (though I'm sure you're all smart enough to figure this out on your own) here's the recipe for tonight's dinner:

Sesame Garlic tofu/steak with peas.
(yields about 3-4 servings of tofu, 1 serving of steak)
-1 lb tofu
-1 serving steak (~6 oz? I'm not sure...)
-1 1/2 cups frozen green peas
-3 tbsp sesame oil
-3 tbsp minced garlic
-3 tsp sesame seeds
-salt, to taste
-soy sauce (optional)

Heat 2 tbsp oil in one large pan, 1 in small pan. Apply garlic in the same fashion. Sautee garlic for about 5 minutes, then add tofu to the large pan. When tofu is just beginning to get a nice brown color to it, add steak to small pan and salt each. Continue to cook each about 3 minutes, then add peas. Continue to cook on medium heat until heated through. Serve over brown rice with sesame seeds as garnish. Season with soy sauce if preferred.

Sushi for dummies

Counterintuitive maybe, impossible no. Making sushi is not as hard as you think, or at least not as hard as I thought before I tried. I'm trying not to jump into advertisey, "persuasive-essay" crap like telling you about how great it is for bonding with your "special someone," but seriously it is. My fiancee and I have made sushi together several times, and it's always an adventure. Usually one of us picks out fillings while the other is in charge of construction, and then we trade. We make a little bit of a mess, but we celebrate our labors with a delicious snack so it all works out in the end.

Here's what you need to get started:
nori for wrapping
sushi rice
bamboo sushi mat
plastic wrap

Items 2 and 4 should be at every grocery store, but if you have trouble finding the mat and/or nori, an international grocer should have them. Here in St Louis, I go to Jay's. Your bag of sushi rice should have instructions for preparation -- just follow those. I know, I know, I'm a lazy cook who just follows the instructions on the bag, but I can't memorize everything.

The real kicker, for me, is that I'm not confident/knowledgeable enough to make sushi with raw fish, so I have to find alternatives (of which there are many). I've made many a delicious sushi roll at home, and not one has used raw fish.

Suggestions for delicious (and low-budget) fillings:
cream cheese
mayo
goat cheese (don't knock it till you try it)
lemon/lime juice
cucumber
carrot
avocado
bell pepper
crab meat (or k-rab, if you're broke like me)
smoked salmon
salad shrimp
unagi (or eel, for the less sushiphilic -- you can often find it precooked in eel sauce, which is what I go for)

The rule here, really, is that if you like something, try it. As far as preparation goes, practice is the most important thing. I recommend wrapping your bamboo mat in plastic wrap before you start, to keep it clean.

Put the nori down shiny-side down so the fillings go on the rough side. Spread the rice over all but a small strip of the nori at one end, and spread it THINLY. The mistake we made with our first bunch of rolls is to think that you have to have a completely opaque layer of rice across the nori. It's ok if you can see through the layer of rice a bit, and little empty patches are not the end of the world. Too much rice creates a gigantic, rather bland roll. Also, the rice spreads easiest with your fingers, rather than a wooden spoon. Keep your fingers damp but not wet, so the rice doesn't stick to you too much.

Spread your toppings in a line on the end of the nori OPPOSITE the empty strip. These you can be generous with, since that's where the flavor comes from. Roll starting from the toppings end -- I've tried both toward me and away from me, and haven't noticed much of a difference as far as one being easier than the other. Move to a cutting board, and cut with a VERY sharp damp knife. If the knife is too dry or too dull, you'll make a giant mess. Repeat and eat!

Here are some rolls I have made, including one or two I made up:
philly roll, aka JB (or Japanese Bagel) roll -- a classic!
~smoked salmon, cream cheese, avocado
vegetable roll, or salad roll
~cucumber, carrot, avocado, mayo, lemon juice
eel and cucumber roll
~exactly what it sounds like
kitty roll
~k-rab, cream cheese, red bell pepper
tiny roll -- so called because we ran out of rice, but wanted to make one more roll. This has a thin layer of goat cheese instead of rice, and it's super delicious.
~chevre with honey, smoked salmon, avocado
tea sandwich roll
cucumber, cream cheese, dill

Now go! Adventure! And share it with someone! This is not a project to be undertaken alone -- I mean really, where's the fun in that?