Posts Tagged ‘tomatoes’
March 25, 2013
The finished product
I have already posted our recipe for Socca, a chickpea flour flatbread that is gluten free, high in protein and delicious. Tonight, I was looking for something low in carbs, crispy and full of vegetables. After a little thinking, I decided to use the Socca as a pizza crust, and top it with a hearty blend of tomatoes, artichokes and mushrooms. The result was a beautiful flatbread, brimming with flavor and surprisingly filling. As with any unrecipe, top it with whatever you are craving. Consider adding goat cheese, parmesan or a little shredded mozzarella. Toss on some finely sliced pepperoni or bacon if you are a meat lover. Use zucchini instead of artichokes, or even both. The possibilities are endless!
For the crust:
Whisk together 1 cup of garbanzo flour, 1 teaspoon salt and 1 1/2 cups water. Allow the mixture to sit at room temperature for 20 minutes or up to a few hours.
Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Coat the bottom of a 12″ skillet with olive oil. Add a chopped shallot, and place in the hot oven until sizzling. You can also add the herbs of your choice at this stage.
Pour the batter over the shallots, and bake until the flatbread is crisp and brown, about 40 minutes. The flatbread will easily lift out of the pan when it is fully baked.
For the topping:
The topping
Saute 1 clove of garlic and about 6-8 sliced mushrooms until brown. Add a few chopped artichoke hearts ( canned or frozen) and lightly saute them. Season with salt, pepper, basil and oregano. Add 2 chopped plum tomatoes (or some crushed canned tomatoes) and cook until the tomatoes start to soften. If the mixture gets too dry, drizzle in a little more olive oil.
When the crust is done, spread the the mixture over it, leaving a rim all around. Sprinkle with chopped arugula, and enjoy!
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Tags:tomatoes, basil, shallots, garlic, olive oil, arugula, mushrooms, artichokes, salt, oregano, gluten free, Socca, Chickpea flour, garbanzo flour, flatbread, socca pizza, pepper, flatbread pizza, low carb. vegetarian, vegan
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October 25, 2012
My family loves pasta with Bolognese sauce. I try to make it in a large batch, so that I can freeze the leftovers in small containers for a quick weeknight meal. It’s easy to make, and can be left on the stove to simmer for a few hours while you do other things.
Bolognese Sauce
Sauté a diced onion and several cloves of garlic in a little bit of olive oil. Add about a pound of ground beef and season with dried basil, dried oregano, salt, black pepper and red pepper. Don’t be shy with the seasoning, as some of the flavor will diminish during the long cooking time. Continue to cook until the meat is browned.
Carefully drain off any excess fat, and transfer the meat mixture to a large pot.
Add several cans (or boxes which are generally BPA free) of crushed tomatoes to the pot, along with a couple of bay leaves. Simmer gently with the cover on the pot, for a few hours. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking. Taste and correct the seasonings before serving.
Serve the sauce over cooked pasta and enjoy!
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Tags:bay leaf, Bolognese, cloves of garlic, diced onion, dinner, dried basil, dried oregano, Food, ground beef, onion. garlic, pasta, pasta with meat sauce, tomatoes
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October 22, 2012
My family was hankering for pasta with Bolognese sauce, and the meat and pasta part of the dish just wasn’t doing it for me. However,the idea of a slow cooked flavorful dish held some appeal. I had an eggplant laying around waiting to be converted into something, and I realized I hadn’t made ratatouille in many years.
Ratatouille is an ultimate “unrecipe” since the ingredients and flavors are flexible, as is the cooking time.
Indigo Jones’ Ratatouille
Sauté diced garlic and onions in olive oil until transparent.
Working in batches, sauté sliced mushrooms, diced red and/ or green peppers, cubed eggplant, and zucchini until browned. Season with salt, pepper, oregano and basil to taste.
Add diced tomatoes and pitted Calamata olives.
Transfer to an ovenproof casserole and bake for about an hour, until the vegetables are cooked through, and the flavors meld together. Sprinkle with Parmesan
cheese and enjoy!
Tags:basil, calamata olives, diced garlic, diced tomatoes, dinner, eggplant, Food, garlic, green peppers, olive oil, onions, oregano, parmesan cheese, red peppers, tomatoes, unrecipe, vegetarian, zucchini
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September 12, 2012
I just got my first CSA package and I am so excited!
CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture, and each Tuesday between now and mid December, I will pick up a selection of produce, which comes from a local farm.
Today’s bounty was pretty straightforward:
6 potatoes
6 onions
4 ears of corn
1 head of lettuce
2 pounds of plum tomatoes
16 heirloom cherry tomatoes
1 bunch of lemongrass
Hmmm. Lemongrass. There is the challenge I have been hoping for!
When I signed up for this program last spring, my goals were to support a local farm, always have fresh produce on hand, and to expand my horizons by having to experiment with a vegetable or fruit I was not used to using.
I am going to spend a little quality time with my Asian-fusion cookbooks, and will share my recipe(s) using lemongrass with you shortly.
Tags:asian fusion, cherry tomatoes, cherry tomatoes.lettuce, community supported agriculture, corn, CSA, csa package, Food, lemongrass, onions, plum tomatoes, potatoes, produce, tomatoes, vegetables
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August 20, 2012
My family loves Tex-Mex inspired dishes and anything in a tortilla seems to get eaten. Tonight, I served homemade tortillas and they were a big hit!
Surprisingly easy to make, these flour tortillas are a bit smaller and more rustic than the machine formed ones, and taste much better. You can always size them up and make a few less, if you prefer larger ones.
Homemade Tortillas
Mix together 3 cups flour, ½ teaspoon baking power and 1 teaspoon salt. Add 1/3-cup canola oil and mix it with your hands until it resembles fine crumbs. Add 1 cup hot water and knead the dough into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap for at least 30 minutes before using. You can leave the dough out for several hours, or refrigerate it overnight, if you like to plan ahead.
When you are ready to make the tortillas, divide the dough into 12 equal pieces.
Roll them into balls and flatten them on a lightly floured surface. Gently roll them into circles.
Cook them in a hot, ungreased frying pan over medium high heat until one side is blistered. Stack them up and keep warm until ready to serve.
I filled them with lime-marinated chicken breasts, diced fresh tomatoes and homemade guacamole. Even B loved them!
Tags:baking powder, canola oil, chicken, flour, Food, guacamole, homemade flour tortillas, lime marinated chicken, salt, Tex-Mex cuisine, tomatoes, tortillas, ungreased frying pan, water
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July 25, 2012
My family loves tacos. I don’t. I am not a meat eater, and Mexican spices have never been a favorite flavor of mine. The texture of refried beans, sour cream, salsa and guacamole dripping down my chin don’t hold any appeal for me either. I won’t talk about calories here, but seriously, this isn’t usually the diet plate.
I created this super clean, simple version of a taco, which is the way I would want to eat it, IF I wanted to eat it! You can even substitute the beef for mushrooms, and have a great vegetarian version.
They seem to love them, and this unrecipe even sneaks a few vegetables into B’s diet, which is a win all the way!
Cleaned Up Tacos:
Beef Filling:
Dice 2 garlic cloves and one small shallot.
Spray a large pan with cooking spray, and sauté the garlic and shallot with 1 pound of ground beef (I buy grass fed, organic beef with the lowest available fat content, which is a much healthier alternative to basic grocery store ground chuck).
Season it with a large dollop of ground cumin, some cayenne pepper, salt and black pepper. Add a little Tabasco sauce if you like it hot. Cook until brown.
Sprinkle the meat mixture with a little cornstarch (a tablespoon or so) and stir to coat. Add a little water (about 1/3 cup), and return it to the stove, mixing it well to be sure that no clumps form. This should form a thick sauce.
Toppings:
Shredded lettuce: Be creative: I used arugula
Chopped avocado
Chopped tomatoes: I used assorted baby heirloom tomatoes cut up
Shredded Jack cheese
If you really love the classic fillings, feel free to add all the goopy accouterments you like. I won’t judge!
Assembling:
Heat a whole-wheat tortilla on the gas flame of the stove for just a couple of seconds per side.
Add the meat filling. Top with vegetables and cheese. Fold in the sides, and roll it up.
Eat and enjoy!
Tags:arugula, avocado, beef, cayenne pepper, cumin, dinner, Food, garlic, garlic cloves, goopy alternative, heirloom tomatoes, Jack cheese, lettuce, Mexican food, mushrooms, shallots, shredded jack cheese, Tabasco, tacos, tomatoes, tortilla, unrecipe of the week, vegetarian, wheat tortilla, whole wheat tortilla
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July 20, 2012
It’s no secret that I am a big fan of the Union Square Greenmarket.
I tend to go on Saturday mornings, after a particularly grueling cycling class down the street, and pick up whatever strikes my fancy.
While the greenmarket goodies tend to last longer than their supermarket purchased counterparts, fresh produce only lasts so long.
I was thrilled to stumble upon some tips in the New York Times Dining section this week, on how to prolong the freshness of summer’s vegetable bounty.
Here are a few key tricks to preserving the produce of the season:
Greens, like lettuce, are best washed in advance, dried and stored.
Soft herbs such as basil and soft produce such as mushrooms and berries should be washed when used, as the water will speed spoilage. I find that putting basil in a glass of filtered water that comes a few inches up the stems, keeps it fresh for several days. Frequent readers will note that I am also a big proponent of making pesto, and basil oil while it’s still green and “perky”.
Anything that comes in bunches, should be released from it’s binding, as the closer the vegetables are packed, the faster they will rot.
Leafy tops of root vegetables, such as carrots and beets should be trimmed to 1” long to prolong freshness but prevent them from drying out.
Fruits and vegetables should be stored separately, as the ripening fruit emits ethylene, which damages vegetables.
Some produce will continue to ripen on the counter: stone fruits, melons, mangoes, apples, pears, tomatoes and avocados. Bell peppers, citrus fruits, and berries will only deteriorate.
Bananas ripen quickly, and will speed the ripening of anything they are stored with.
If you can, cut and simply cook vegetables, as they will last longer in the refrigerator that way. Prepare them separately, to allow more flexibility in their use.
Intimidated by the skills needed to slice and dice vegetables? Have no fear.
The specialty market Eataly, just north of Union Square employs a fulltime vegetable butcher who will peel and cut your produce to order.
Photo: Glasshouse Images
Tags:avocados, bananas, basil, bell peppers, berries, bunches, citrus fruits, Eataly, Food, food storage, fruits, fruits and vegetables, greens, how to prolong freshness, lettuce, mushrooms, pesto, produce, produce storage, ripening, root vegetables, soft produce, tomatoes, Union Square Greenmarket, vegetable butcher, vegetables
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July 15, 2012
Here’s what I whipped up from my goodies from the greenmarket:
Finely shredded zucchini quick sautéed with a little olive oil as a base:
Chopped tomatoes tossed in a little basil, olive oil and garlic puree:
Topped off with grilled shrimp, of course!
A little freshly picked corn on the cob was the perfect accompaniment to a summer meal!
Bon Appetite!!
photos: Spencer Jones/ Glasshouse Images
Tags:basil, corn on the cob, dinner, Food, garlic, greenmaarket, shrimp, tomatoes, vegetarian, zucchini
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June 30, 2012
I’ve been out and about, from the greenmarket to the fish market, taking lots of photos. Can you guess what might make the cut for dinner?
Fresh seafood from Chelsea Market perhaps?
Gorgeous radishes?
Ripe red tomatoes?
Lush leafy basil?
Stay tuned… I’ll show you later!
photos: indigo jones
Tags:basil, dinner, Food, lobster, radishes, seafood, shopping, shrimp, tomatoes
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June 5, 2012
We have written here about the “Dirty Dozen,” a list of produce that has the highest levels of pesticides and contamination. It is recommended that these foods be organic wherever possible.
There is another list called the “Clean 15”, which have the lowest pesticide load, and can be enjoyed in the conventional varieties.
These are:
Onions
Sweet corn
Pineapples
Avocado
Sweet peas
Mangoes
Eggplant
Cantaloupe
Kiwi
Watermelon
Sweet potatoes
Grapefruit
Mushrooms
Asparagus
Other foods, such as broccoli, cabbage and tomatoes have more recently tested cleaner as well, due to less pest threats, and therefore less spraying.
Many of these fruits and vegetables have a protective outer layer that gets peeled or removed before eating. This helps eliminate the toxins, which are largely on the outside of the food.
The current list of the most harmful foods tested positive for at least 47 different chemicals, and as many as 67. Buying organic insures that the fruit and vegetables are not treated with harmful pesticides.
Foods that should be organic:
Celery
Strawberries
Peaches
Apples
Blueberries
Nectarines
Sweet bell peppers
Spinach, kale and collard greens
Cherries
Potatoes
Grapes
Lettuce
This lists were compiled by the Environmental Working Group, which is an organization made up of scientists, researchers and policymakers. The data used was supplied by the United States Department of Agriculture’s tests for pesticide residue on fresh produce.
photos: Glasshouse Images
Tags:apples, asparagus, avocado, blueberries, cabbage, cantaloupe, celery, cherries, clean 15, collard greens, corn, dirty dozen, eggplant, environmental working group, Food, grapefruit, grapes, harmful pesticides, kiwi, lettuce, mango, mushrooms, nectarines, onions, peaches, pesticide load, pineapples, potatoes, spinach kale, strawberries, sweet bell peppers, sweet peas, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, United States Department of Agriculture, watermelon
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