Easter Dinner Improv

So, I cooked Easter dinner for a bunch of people, and did not write down a single ingredient or measurement. While I had planned everything that I wanted to make, it turned out to be a 7hour day of improvisation with results that exceeded the expectations of me and my guests (or so they said…).

I started with a rustic broccoli, caraway soup with just a hint of Indian flavor (curry, paprika, coriander), and completed with an organic vegetable stock.

Since the winter weather is still lingering around, I wanted to make a hearty, warm casserole using Acorn and Delicata squashes, and also a beautiful bunch of purple kale that I spotted at the co-op. To add a buttery, nutty flavor, I created a cashew cream sauce (organic cream, cashew nuts, nutmeg, cloves and rosemary), which I poured over the squash and kale before baking it. I then mixed in a few whole almonds and cashew nuts. After an hour of baking, the squash was creamy and had absorbed the flavors of the cashew cream.

Now I know I had previously mentioned that I *love* tea (I believe that I even used the word fanatic); in stating this, I am not sure that I accurately conveyed the gravity of my love for tea. Maybe this will clear up any fuzziness: for dessert I had been dreaming, all the week prior, of creating a tea cake incorporating only tea and herb flavors. The result: a chamomile layered cake (made with barley flour and just a scant of pure unrefined cane sugar), with an inner layer of lavender butter cream frosting (made by infusing lavender and agave nectar), and a top layer of hibiscus butter cream frosting (made by infusing hibiscus and agave nectar). I really wanted to color the lavender frosting, well… lavender, and the hibiscus frosting pink sans feeding my poor guests carcinogen-ous food dye. For the lavender frosting I squeezed in the juice of about 3 blackberries, and for the hibiscus frosting, I used a pinch of beet powder. This was really my cup ‘a tea in a great piece ‘a cake!

(...still frustrated by the lighting situation and photo quality...)

“Maquinoa” & Cheese with Broccoli

According to my calendar spring began at 1:48am today. Precise huh?! According to the Boston weather and my lack of body-warming genes, spring is nowhere in sight! In the midst of this cold, windy and rainy day, some natural comfort food was in order: creamy yet light, warm, melted, cheesy, smoky flavor, complete with a protein rich pasta. Perfect!

“Maquinoa” & Cheese with Broccoli

Fills one 24oz dish

½ c quinoa pasta (or other bean-based pasta)
1c broccoli
1 tbsp organic heavy cream
½ tbsp butter
½ c cheese (cubed)
¼ tsp caraway seeds
Rosemary
Nutmeg
Fresh parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and crush the caraway seeds with a mortar and pestle. Cook the quinoa pasta according to the boxed directions, until al dente (usually about 10-12 min in boiling water).

Meanwhile, heat the cream and butter in a saucepan. Once the butter has melted, add the crushed caraway seeds, a pinch of salt and pepper, and cheese (I used a soy cheese that I love: Soya Kaas). Lower the heat, cover and heat until the cheese is melted (stirring quite frequently!)

When the pasta is about 2 minutes from being done, add the broccoli and cook together for the remaining 2 minutes. Drain the pasta and broccoli, stir in the cheese mixture and pour into a 24oz oven casserole dish. Top the dish with another pinch of caraway seeds, rosemary, fresh nutmeg, salt/pepper, and parmesan cheese. Bake for 25 minutes and serve immediately.

French Macarons (Trial version)

I must be French! Over a week ago I wrote on my calendar, that today, I would attempt to make French macarons; little did I know that today is Macaron Day in Paris! These bite-sized sweets, slightly crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside, complete with a rich cream in the center, are very popular in France and are available in an endless variety of flavors.

Although this was my first attempt at making macarons, I really took the plunge and tried to make three different flavors at once: chocolate, almond, and … well I’ll keep the last flavor a mystery until I master the recipe! They came out tasting only “ok”; I found the wafer to be too sweet (and a bit overcooked) and the cream to be too bitter. I would like to perfect the recipe before passing it on. However, I just had to wish you all a Happy Macaron Day!

Balsamic Kale and Portobello Mushroom Side Dish

A sweet, nutty Portobello mushroom paired with rich green kale, accentuated by garlic, fresh basil, and a splash of sweet balsamic vinegar, all thrown together in less than 30 minutes. I served the dish complete with rustic, yet fluffy, Forbidden Black Rice (which I had made at an earlier date) to balance the nutritional content. The end result was tasty, light, yet completely satisfying. This meal turned out to be a simple, thrown-together treat.

Balsamic Kale and Portobello Mushroom Side Dish
Serves 1

1 Portobello Mushroom (wiped clean with a paper towel and stem cut off)
Kale leaves (about two handfuls)
1 garlic clove
Extra virgin olive oil (about 2+ tbsp)
Fresh basil leaves
Fresh nutmeg
Salt and Pepper

Balsamic vinegar

After washing the kale leaves, boil a pot of water and cook them for about 3 minutes until they are bright green.

Meanwhile, coat the bottom of a pan with olive oil (about 2 tbsp), smash a clove of garlic with a knife and heat it in the oil for about 2 minutes.

Slice the Portobello mushroom and let it cook in the garlic oil for about 5 minutes (cover the pan and let cook over a medium/low heat).

Drain the kale and combine with the Portobello mushroom in the pan. Add also fresh basil leaves (according to your taste; I used a good handful) and fresh, grated nutmeg. Cover and let cook about 10 more minutes until the Portobello slices look moist and browned around the edges. The mushrooms absorb oil very quickly so you may have to add more during the course of the cooking. Do not let the bottom of the pan get too dry. I was a bit generous with the oil quantity when I prepared this for myself, since it was the only source of fat in the dish and to prevent the mushrooms from burning.

At the end of the cooking add a splash of balsamic vinegar, the salt and pepper to taste and serve with rice (brown, black, wild etc).

Poor Lighting=Poor Photos

PS. In my last post, I forgot to apologize for my mauvaise photo quality. The lighting situation in my apartment does not favor capturing the essence of fine cuisine. I am aware of their dimness and am working on providing better photographs!

Green Tea Cookies (Made with barley flour)

For those of you who don’t know me, I am a tea fanatic: red, green, white, herb, fruity, grassy, flowery…whatever! I especially love the flavor of green tea leaves in cooking; salty dishes bring out its grassy tones while sweet dishes bring out its bright, sweeter side.

Have you ever baked using barley flour? It is actually my favorite flour for baking. Like white flour, it is light in weight and does not absorb as much moisture like spelt or oat flours. Unlike white flour, it is not processed and therefore contains fiber and a bunch of minerals.

Lately, I’ve been baking/experimenting with natural liquid sweeteners- the results have been quite frustrating and have not met my expectations: not enough rise, too much density and dull in flavor. After many a trial and error, I consulted my favorite cookbook, Heidi Swanson’s Supernatural Cooking. She also cooks using only natural ingredients and does not cease to succeed in baking. Her list of recommended natural sweeteners included pure organic cane sugar.

Off to the co-op I go! Low and behold, just below the liquid sweeteners, I found beautiful pure organic powdered sugar and pure organic cane sugar. They both had a slightly grayish tint and a texture more granulated than processed sugar or evaporated cane juice. In addition to using barley flour in this recipe, I also used the pure organic powdered sugar. The results were small fluffy silver-dollar cookies, bright in color and delicious in taste.

Green Tea Cookies (adapted from Lovescool.com)
Makes 20 silver-dollar cookies

¾ c pure organic powdered sugar
4oz + 1tbsp butter (softened and cut into cubes)
1 ¾ c Barley flour sifted or passed through a strainer
3 large egg yolks
1.5 tbsp green tea powder
Pure organic cane sugar for coating

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and lightly butter a baking sheet. Mix the powdered sugar and green tea powder together in a bowl and then add the cubes of softened butter. Mix with a mixer (hand or stand) until smooth and bright in color. Gradually add the flour and mix until well combined (the mixture will start to look dry and “pebble-like” but that is ok!) Lastly, add the egg yolks and mix until they are incorporated and the dough forms a mass in the center of the bowl. Let the dough cool for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator; the cooler the dough is, the easier it is to work with. Roll the dough out until it is ½” thick and cut with a small, round cookie cutter (I actually used a 1 ½ inch diameter shot glass that I found in the cabinet). Place the cookies on the baking sheet and sprinkle a very small amount of pure organic cane sugar on the tops. Bake the cookies for 8 minutes on the top rack. When removed from the oven, let cool on the baking sheet for 2-5 min and then remove to start the next batch.

**A couple of notes: You can find green tea powder in Asian or other specialty health food stores. You can also grind up green tea in a spice grinder until it forms a powder (This is the method that I used).**

Baby, I Got the Lack-of-Equipment Blues

One of the major problems about previously sharing a living space with someone is that I was highly dependent on their hand mixer. I am now in limbo as I wait for my new mixer to arrive (prévu March 10!).

The yearly income of a Masters student is equivalent to zero-dollars and zero cents per year which is limiting me from purchasing my dream appliances…

…under which I would place a bowl sturdy enough to welcome liquid nitrogen (in which case I would also need a special storage unit for the liquid nitrogen which costs almost $1000)…

Until the day comes where I actually see a yearly income, I will have to slave away with my Cuisinart hand mixer and let liquids solidify for hours in the freezer.

I have so many ideas already documented which require either a mixer, pastry bag or both. So, I am also waiting to hear if I’ve won the Williams-Sonoma Mechanical Pastry Bag on which I placed a bid (I forgot to mention that poor students also rely heavily on e-bay). I’m also looking into purchasing a butane torch and other hazardous cooking gear.

So many ideas, so little equipment!

Almond and Oat-crusted Tofu Cubes (Stuffed with kale!)

Almond meal and oats makes a wonderful alternative to ordinary bread crumbs: there is no processed flour, no yeast or other preservatives and the sweet, nutty taste adds original flavor to any dish. These “breaded” tofu cubes are easy to make and very versatile: they can be served, as hors d’oeuvres, with tamari or ume plum vinegar dipping sauces (both were delicious!). They can also be served, as a main dish, with edamame over soba noodles (I did this with the left-overs for dinner the next night. Yum!). The possibilities are endless!

Almond and Oat-crusted Tofu Squares
Serves 3-5

1 package firm tofu (approx. 0.88lb)
About 2 cups of kale leaves
½ c almond meal
½ c rolled oats
2 eggs beaten
2-4 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tsp Chinese 5 spice (anis, fennel, cinnamon, ginger, pepper)
Pinch of lemongrass
Salt and pepper

There is some prep-work involved here:

First drain the tofu and wrap it in two paper towels to dry. While the tofu is drying, wash, de-stem and cut the kale leaves into long rectangular strips about 1 inch thick. Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil. Lastly, if you do not have almond meal on hand, use the food processor to process about 1 cup of almonds or enough to yield ½ c almond meal.

In the boiling water, cook the kale for 5 minutes until it is soft and pliable. Drain it and let it dry.

While the kale is either cooking or drying, cut the tofu into 1 in x 1 in cubes.


Combine the oats and almond meal in the food processor and process about 1 minute until powdery.

Set aside two bowls: one for the two beaten eggs and the other for the almond/oat-crumbs. In the bowl containing the almond/oat-crumbs, mix in the Chinese 5 spice, lemongrass (if you have it) and salt and pepper to taste. The Chinese 5 spice is a fairly common spice combination that you should be able to find in the spice or international foods isle of your local supermarket. I happened to purchase mine, in a supermarket in Chinatown, which was only 59 cents for a whole 4oz bag!

Put a piece of kale over the tofu and dip all sides of the tofu cube into the egg. I actually found the cubes harder to handle and the results messy if I wrapped the entire cube in kale. For easier and more aesthetically pleasing results, use a small piece and wrap it over the top and two sides of the cube like shown below. Once covered in egg, the kale should stick nicely to the tofu.


Dip the cube into the almond/oat-crumbs, making sure all sides are well covered. Once the cube is covered, you can also press it together in between your hands to pack the crumbs onto the cube.
When all of the cubes are “breaded”, generously coat the bottom of a pan with the olive oil and heat for one minute over medium heat. Cook the cubes about 3 minutes on each side, or until they reach your desired level of brownness. If you have a lot of cubes you may need to add more oil to the pan half-way through. The almond/oat coating can easily start to burn so make sure that your pan is always well coated with oil.

Once finished cooking, serve immediately!

A special thanks goes to Julia Feder for taking pictures, when my hands were covered in egg, and for taste testing.