Open-faced Tomato and Mozzarella Sandwiches

One of the best applications for day-old bread, in my opinion, is to top it with some good toppings and put it in the oven for a few minutes. I recently baked some bread according to the ciabatta recipe I've used before, but shaped short baguettes (bâtards) instead. The recipe below is a very simple sandwich, but providing you use high-quality ingredients, it tastes heavenly.

Open-faced Tomato and Mozzarella Sandwiches

A piece of baguette, 8-12 inches long
1 tomato
2-4 oz Mozzarella cheese
olive oil
dried oregano
dried garlic (garlic powder)
salt
black pepper

Start by turning your oven (or toaster oven) to 400 degrees F. Cut the bread lengthwise and place, cut side up, on a baking sheet. If you are unable to balance the pieces so the cut side is fairly level, you can trim the underside slightly.

Drizzle the bread with a little olive oil. Slice the tomato and cover the bread. Cut the cheese into chunks and place on top of the tomatoes. Add the herbs and spices to taste. Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes, or until cheese is bubbling and starting to brown.

Pizza - again!

I know this is the fourth post about pizza, but...just look at it! The last pizza recipe I posted was Alton Brown's, and while it's good, it's not as good as this. I wrote about Peter Reinhart's ciabatta recipe relatively recently, and this recipe is based on the same technique but has slightly different ingredients. Look at that crumb! It's absolutely divine.

Pizza

24 oz unbleached bread flour (roughly 5 1/3 cups)
1 tbsp coarse kosher salt
1 tsp instant yeast
1 1/2 tbsp honey
2 cups plus 2 tbsp water at room temperature
2 tbsp olive oil

Place all the ingredients in a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix on low speed for one minute (with the paddle attachment if using a stand mixer or with a wooden spoon if mixing by hand). Let stand for five minutes. Switch to the dough hook and mix another three minutes on medium-low speed (or mix by hand if not using stand mixer).

Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled surface. Stretch and fold the dough once, as described in the ciabatta recipe linked above. Tuck the dough into a ball, then divide into four pieces. Form each piece into a ball, then place into a separate sandwich-sized freezer bag misted with spray oil. Refrigerate overnight (or up to four days) or freeze for up to several months. If you do freeze, remove to fridge the night before baking the pizza, then follow the rest of the recipe below.

About 90 minutes before you plan to bake the pizza, remove the dough from the fridge. Stretch each piece of dough and make it into a ball, then place on a lightly oiled surface, loosely cover with plastic wrap and let rest until ready to bake. An hour before baking, place a baking stone in the lower part of the oven and turn the oven to the highest temperature it will go (usually 500 or 550 degrees F).

When ready to bake, dust the work area and each piece of dough with flour. If using a pizza peel, dust it as well (if not, the back of a sheet pan will work fine as well). Place one piece of dough on the work area, then press on the top to form a disc. Lift it and gently pull on the edges, rotating as you go, until the middle is very thin and you have a thicker edge. Place on the pizza peel and rest for 10 minutes.

Top the pizza as desired (the above photo was tomato sauce, fresh oregano and mozzarella cheese), then slide onto the baking stone and bake for about 4 minutes. Open the oven and turn the pizza, then bake another 3-7 minutes, or until crust is fully baked and cheese is browned. Remove from the oven and let cool at least a couple of minutes before slicing and serving.

Fish and Chips

I try to eat something healthy once in a while, and this is not it. Fish and chips is definitely one of my all-time favorite meals, and having a deep fryer (albeit a toaster-sized one) in the kitchen is great. Messing with a heavy-bottomed pot and thermometers and trying to keep the temperature constant on an electric range is not my idea of a good time. If you have a gas range, you may have more luck doing so, but this meal really calls for a proper deep fryer. I recommend using peanut oil to fry the food, but safflower will work fine as well. If you want to serve this the way it's done in fish and chips shops in Britain, you'll want to use a folded up newspaper. I prefer the plate because ink and food do not go too well together.

(I apologize for not posting this yesterday - I had it all written out and forgot to actually publish it!)

Fish and Chips

1 lb firm-fleshed white fish - cod is recommended
2 large baking potatoes
1.5 cups unbleached all purpose flour, divided
1 bottle (12 fluid ounces/355 ml) dark or amber beer, cold
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp paprika powder
peanut oil for frying
lemon wedges for serving
lettuce for service (optional)
tartar sauce (recipe below)

Begin by washing the potatoes and cutting them into uniform pieces. The thickness is up to you - I made mine about 1/2 inch thick and 3 inches long. Place in a bowl filled with cold water. Heat the oil to 325 degrees F. Pat the potatoes completely dry before frying to avoid splatter. Cook the potatoes in small batches for about 2 minutes, until pale and floppy. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels. Repeat with the other batches until all of the potatoes are done.

Turn the oven to 250 degrees F.

In a large bowl, stir together 1 cup of the flour, the baking powder, the salt, the pepper and the paprika. Add the beer and whisk until smooth. Refrigerate for at least ten minutes.

Increase the temperature of the oil to 375 degrees F. In small batches, fry the potatoes until cooked through and golden brown, about 3 minutes. Remove to a paper-lined plate, then transfer to a baking sheet and keep warm in the oven while finishing the rest of the food. Repeat until all the potatoes are cooked.

Remove the batter from the fridge. Cut the fish into chunks, roughly 2 by 5 inches. Put the remaining half cup of flour on a plate. Dip the fish strips in the flour, then in the batter. Fry until golden and cooked through, about 3 minutes. Make sure you do not overcrowd the oil. If you need to fry the fish in batches, transfer the cooked fish to the baking sheet in the oven, to keep warm.

Serve with lemon wedges, tartar sauce and some lettuce. If there are leftovers, you can reheat them in a 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes (but this dish is definitely best eaten fresh out of the fryer).

Tartar sauce

1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp pickles
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tbsp capers
1 tsp coarse-grained mustard
salt
black pepper

Start by cutting the pickles into small pieces. Place all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until the pickles are finely chopped and everything is mixed well. Keep in the fridge and use within a week.

Tuna Salad

The title of this post should probably have been "Tuna Salad Salad" since that is technically what I made, but the second "salad" part was pretty much just lettuce and some cheese, so I'll stick with the part that actually requires a recipe to make.

There's a Swedish saying - nöden har ingen lag - which basically means "necessity has no law" or something like that. The necessity, in this case, was for food and there was nothing directly unlawful with what we did to stifle our hunger, but the saying came to mind anyway. We were hungry and didn't have the energy to go grocery shopping, so we checked what we had in our fridge and pantry, found some tuna and other delicious ingredients and made tuna salad!

Tuna Salad

1 6 oz tin tuna in water
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 stalks celery
1/2 small yellow onion
15 red grapes
1 clove garlic
1/2 apple (whatever kind you like)
1 tsp lemon juice

Start by draining the tuna thoroughly. I emptied the tin in a strainer/sifter and applied a little pressure with a fork to get rid of the water. Put the tuna in a medium bowl and set aside. Finely chop the celery and onion. Finely mince the garlic. Halve the grapes and cut the apple into small pieces. Add everything but the lemon juice to the tuna and stir thoroughly to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and place the salad in the fridge for at least 20 minutes, to chill. Remove from the fridge and stir in the lemon juice.

Serve on fresh bread (preferably whole wheat) or on top of your favorite kind of lettuce. If you do the salad option, sprinkling some form of shredded cheese works great (I recommend Monterrey jack or mozzarella).

Vegetable Soup

I wasn't feeling all too well tonight (sore throat), so I decided that soup was the way to go. This one is simple, quick (apart from preparing the vegetables themselves, takes a little while), and much more filling than I thought. I have about two quarts left of it after dinner last night, some of it in the fridge and some in the freezer.

I served this with some grilled cheese sandwiches, but it'd go great with just some freshly baked bread and maybe a little sharp cheddar cheese. Or, if you want it to be even healthier, serve it with nothing but a spoon!

Vegetable Soup

3 medium leeks
2 cloves garlic
2 medium potatoes
3 medium carrots
2 cups green beans
8 tomatoes
1 can corn (or 2 ears fresh corn)
2 tsp lemon juice
2 quarts chicken or vegetable stock (preferably homemade)
salt
black pepper

Start by preparing all the ingredients: slice the leeks (white part only), mince the garlic, peel and cube the potatoes (1/2 inch cubes), peel and slice the carrots (make "coins" of carrot), cut the green beans into 1 inch pieces.

Peel the tomatoes and remove the seeds: boil enough water to cover a tomato, make a small incision (an X) at the very bottom, then place in the hot water for 30 seconds. Transfer to an ice bath and peel off the skin (it should come right off at this point). Cut open, remove the seeds, then chop the tomatoes. If using fresh corn, I prefer it roasted. Set the oven to 350 degrees, place the cobs on a cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes - you should obviously do this well in advance and not after you start making the actual soup.

Once you're ready, put about 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed stock pot over medium-low heat. Add the leek, garlic and a pinch of salt, and cook until soft, about 6 minutes. Add the carrots, potatoes and beans and cook another 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the stock and turn the heat to high. Once the liquid starts to simmer, add the tomatoes, corn and about a half teaspoon of black pepper. Stir the soup, then turn the heat to low and cover. Let cook for about 30 minutes, or until the vegetables are entirely cooked through and tender. Add the lemon juice and salt to taste, then serve immediately.

Pasta salad

Yes, yes, I know that was more than a couple of weeks. I didn't forget about the blog, I was just crazy busy. Now I'm not...actually, that's not true, but at least I've decided to take the time to start updating the blog again! It's right around 100 degrees F out there (that's ~38 degrees C), so I thought a nice, cool salad would be a good idea. I've always had a special place in my heart (stomach) for pasta salads, and here's a pretty simple one that always leaves me hungry for more. For more substance, add some cold, cooked chicken and crumbled bacon - but this sucker is actually vegetarian in the original recipe, that follows (crazy, right?)

Pasta Salad

1 package (16 oz) penne pasta
15 cocktail tomatoes
1 cucumber
1 can corn (or 2 fresh corn cobs, cooked with the corn removed from the cob)
1/2 head romaine lettuce
8 oz feta cheese, crumbled
pesto sauce

Boil the pasta until al dente. Drain and let cool. Wash and shred the romaine lettuce. Wash and quarter the cocktail tomatoes. Wash, then dice the cucumber. Drain the corn (if using a can), or wash the cobs, remove the kernels and cook them (most recipes call for a non-stick pan with a little bit of oil over medium heat until the corn is cooked). Put the cooked and now cooled pasta in a large bowl. Add about five tablespoons of pesto sauce (recipe follows below, or you can buy a jar at the grocery store) and stir until all the pasta is covered. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until combined. If you wish, add cooked, sliced chicken or turkey and crispy, crumbled bacon to the mix at this point.

Serve with freshly baked bread and a cold beer on a sunny patio (unless it's friggin' 100 degrees out, you want the shade then) for optimum results.

Pesto Sauce

2 cups fresh basil leaves (packed)
1/4 cup grated fresh Parmigianio Reggiano
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil (use the good stuff if you have it)
3 tbsp pine nuts
3 garlic cloves, finely minced

You'll need a food processor for this. Start by placing about a third of the basil leaves in the processor and blend until finely chopped. Add a third of the garlic and a third of the nuts and blend again. Add a third of the cheese and a third of the oil, and blend again. Once it turns into a paste (you may have to scrape the sides of the bowl). Empty the bowl, then repeat the process until you've used all the ingredients. Combine the batches. This will last about a week in the fridge, a few months in the freezer. If you're not making pasta salad, it works really well if you just add it to freshly boiled pasta. I used to heat it with a little bit of creme fraiche and serve over spaghetti, but it's crazy expensive and hard to get creme fraiche in the US and I wouldn't want to try it with sour cream. Heavy cream is probably a better bet.

Baked Peppers

This course is not something you generally see in fine restaurants. It appears most of the time, you'll see these contraptions in cafeterias, and (from what I understand - I've not had one in a cafeteria), they're apparently not very good at all. I remember them from way back when I was a kid and my parents would make them, but I can't remember trying to make one myself.

I decided to try making my own recently and they came out great...much better than the photo I took, which is slightly blurry - but you can't really tell from the thumbnail above, so don't click on it. I mean, uh...here's the recipe.

Baked Green Peppers

4 medium green peppers
2 shallots
1/2 yellow onion
2 cloves garlic
1 lb ground beef
4 strips of bacon
1/2 can diced tomatoes
1 cup uncooked white rice
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
Salt
Pepper

Boil your rice according to the instructions on the package. I generally remove 20% - 30% of the water listed, as I like my rice al dente, but it's a personal choice. Boil water in a large pot with about a tablespoon of salt. Cut off the tops of the peppers and discard them (or eat them, I don't care). Remove the membranes and seeds, place in the boiling water and make sure they're submerged (place something on top of them if needed). Boil for about 3 minutes.

Set the oven to 350 degrees F. Chop your onions, garlic and shallots. Place in a frying pan with some cooking oil over medium heat for about 3 minutes or until the smell makes your mouth water. Add the ground beef, break apart and fry until cooked through, stirring regularly. In the meantime, fry the bacon crispy in a separate pan. Add the diced tomatoes to the ground beef. Once the bacon is done, cut it up in small pieces and add to the ground beef as well. Salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the cooked rice and take off the heat.

Next, make sure the peppers can stand on their own. If they cannot, slice off small pieces off the bottom until flat enough so they can stand up. Place in an oven safe form and add about 1/2 cup water around them. I also like to dash some olive oil over the peppers, but if you choose to do this, make sure you don't fill up a specific pepper too much. Now add the filling evenly to the peppers. If you have some left when they're all full - eat it. It's great on its own!

You now have a choice with the cheese! Either sprinkle the peppers right away and cover the dish with tin foil for the first part of the peppers' visit to the oven, or wait until they are halfway done and sprinkle then. Your choice! Either way, the peppers will need 35-40 minutes in the oven before they are ready, so add the cheese after about 20-25 minutes if you choose to follow the "halfway" option. If using tin foil, remove the tin foil at the very end to make sure the cheese gets browned.

Serve as is, or maybe with a green salad.

Pi(e) Day

Nerd alert! Last Saturday was 3.14.09 - 3.14 is, as I hope you all know, also known as Pi Day. Jacquie and I had some people over, made some pies and watched the movie Pi. I made an apple pie (Alton Brown's recipe), a mixed berries pie and a quiche with broccoli, chicken and fontina cheese. All three came out splendidly (the quiche went in two minutes, the apple pie was almost finished, then everyone was too full) and good times were to be had.

For the mixed berry pie and the quiche, I decided to just use a pre-made crust. For the apple pie, things got slightly more advanced.

Alton Brown's Apple Pie

For the crust:

6 oz unsalted butter
2 oz vegetable shortening
5 to 7 tbsp apple jack (or apple brandy)
12 oz all purpose flour
1 tsp table salt
1 tbsp granulated sugar

For the filling:

3 lb apples, a mix of Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, Breaburn, Golden Delicious or whatever else you can find - try to mix them up (tart, sweet, different textures)
3 tbsp tapioca flour
2 tbsp apple jelly
1 tbsp apple cider
2 tsp freshly squeezed lime juice (the juice of 1/2 lime, more or less)
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp ground grains of paradise

Start with the dough for the crust. Bring out your favorite food processor and combine flour, salt and sugar. Pulse a few times. Add the butter and pulse 3-4 times, until combined. Add the shortening and pulse 3-4 times again, until the mix looks mealy and everything is incorporated. Now add 5 tablespoons of apple jack and pulse another 5 times. Add more apple jack if needed, until dough holds together when squeezed. Weigh the dough, remove half and shape into a disc, cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge. Repeat with the other half of dough. You want to leave this at the very least for 1 hour, or up to overnight.

Next, let's do the filling. Peel and core the apples. Slice into 1/2 inch wedges - about 8-12 wedges per apple, depending on size. Toss with 1/4 cup sugar and place in a colander set over a bowl. Let drain for 1 1/2 hours. Once drained, move the liquid to a saucepan and place over medium heat until reduced to 2 tablespoons. Set aside to cool.

Toss the apples with the tapioca flour, the remaining sugar, the jelly, cider, lime juice, salt and grains of paradise. If you cannot get grains of paradise, fret not and use caraway seeds instead (ground).

Next, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Remove a disk of dough from the fridge and place on a lightly floured piece of waxed paper. Sprinkle with some more flour on top of the dough and roll out into a 12-inch circle. Place into a 9-10 inch tart pan that is 2 inches deep, preferably with a removable bottom. Trim the edges. Set a pie bird in the center of the pan.

Place the apples in the unbaked shell in circles, starting around the edges, working towards the center and forming a slight mound in the middle of the pie, around the pie bird. Pour over any remaining liquid. Roll out the second piece of dough as you did with the first. Place the dough over the apples, pressing the pie bird through the dough. Press together the edges of the dough around the rim of the pie. Brush the top crust with the juice reduction, but be careful not to brush close to the rim of the pie, or it'll stick to the pan completely.

If you have a heating coil in the oven, place the pie on the bottom rack, preferably on a pizza stone. If your oven has a flat bottom, place the pie on a sheet pan on the floor of the oven. Leave here for 30 minutes, then transfer to the lower rack (or, if using a pizza stone, one rack higher but no longer on the stone) for another 20 minutes. Remove to a rack and cool for a minimum of 4 hours before carving.

If you were using a pan with a removable bottom, slide the pie out of the pan and carve around the pie bird.

Mixed Berry Pie

2 pieces of pie crust
15 oz blueberries (fresh if you've got them, frozen if you don't)
15 oz raspberries (same)
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp freshly squeezed lime juice (the juice of half a lime)
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
cinnamon

This one is quick and simple, and absolutely delicious. Set your oven to 425 degrees F. Start by placing a piece of pie dough in a 9 inch pie form and trim any excess off the edges. Keep the excess dough if you want to decorate the final pie (more on that later). Next, combine the berries with the flour, sugar and lime juice in a large bowl. If you bought frozen berries, make sure they're at least somewhat thawed first. Stir the mixture around until the dry goods are soaked up by the berries and juices.

Add the berries to the pie crust, sprinkle with a little bit of cinnamon and cut up the butter into small bits. Next, let's make some egg wash: beat the egg in a small bowl or glass. Add the milk and beat to combine. Roll out the second piece of pie crust and brush the edge (about 1 inch into the crust) with the egg wash. Flip around and cover the dough - the egg was will glue the top crust to the bottom crust a little better than just squeezing the two pieces together. Lightly brush the top of the dough with some egg was, making sure there are no "puddles" anywhere. If you wish to decorate the pie, roll out any excess dough into a thin sheet, and use cookie cutters or a knife to make a pattern. A heart works well, I should have done the π sign, but didn't :)

Cut three slits in the top crust, to let out steam. Bake the pie in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes, then lower the oven heat to 350 degrees and bake an additional 30 to 40 minutes, or until the juices are bubbly and the crust is browned. Remove and let cool for at least an hour before carving. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Chicken and Broccoli Quiche with Fontina Cheese

1 pie crust
1 large broccoli head
2 chicken filets, skinless & boneless
2 tbsp grated onion
1 cup whole milk
1.5 cup shredded fontina cheese
4 large eggs
salt
pepper
nutmeg

Turn the oven to 350 degrees. Place the dough in a 9 inch pie form and trim off any excess (the excess can be discarded). Prick with a fork and, once the oven has reached the appropriate temperature, bake for 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove and let cool.

Cut the chicken into small pieces, about 1/4-1/2 inches. Fry in a non stick pan with a little amount of vegetable or olive oil, until cooked through. I usually increase the temperature when they're almost finished and get a nice, brown surface to the chicken bits. Makes for more flavor without drying the chicken out.

Wash the broccoli and cut off the florets. The size is up to you, I generally leave the smaller florets as they are and cut large ones into two or four pieces. Place in a microwave safe bowl with a 1/4 cup water and cook in the microwave on high for 1 minute. Remove, and discard the water. Place the chicken and broccoli in the pie shell.

Beat the four eggs in a medium bowl. Add the milk, shredded cheese, 2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper, 1/4 tsp nutmeg and the grated onion. Stir to combine, and pour over the chicken and broccoli in the pie crust. Make sure you do not overfill the crust - if you have too much batter, leave about 1/4 inch at the top.

Bake in the oven for roughly 1 hour, or until nicely brown and a knife inserted in the middle of the quiche comes out clean and it feels like it's set nicely. Let cool for 10-15 minutes before carving. Serve with a green salad.

Salsa Chicken Tortillas with Guacamole

I found a recipe for the slow cooker that is amazingly simple and the end result is pretty freaking awesome. Served on a tortilla with some homemade guacamole and shredded cheese, I can't believe it takes all but ten minutes to whip this up, including the time it takes to make the guacamole but naturally not including the 6-8 hour cooking time in the slow cooker.

If you do not have a slow cooker, it can easily be made in a dutch oven or similar, just shorten the cooking time to 1 hour and cook on medium heat.

Salsa Chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast fillets (preferably with rib meat, not thinly sliced)
1 large can of salsa

Yes, making your own salsa will most likely make this recipe far better, but this isn't haute cuisine we're talking here - this is a simple, middle of the week, comfort food sort of recipe that is so easy to prepare on a day when you have no time or energy to actually cook (rarely for me, but still). Trim excess fat off the chicken. Place the whole pieces in the slow cooker. Dump the salsa on top, making sure to cover the chicken. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. The chicken should be cooked through and be shredable, but not dry.

Guacamole

3 ripe avocados
1 medium tomato
1/4 white onion
1 lime
salt
pepper

Make sure the avocados are ripe - they should be soft, but not mushy. You'll have a hell of a time getting the fruit out of the shell if they're too hard or too soft (but too soft is preferable over too hard). Place the avocado in a bowl. Finely mince the tomato and onion. Discard the tomato pulp, you only want to keep the meatier parts. I leave the skin on the tomato, you can peel it if you want to. Add the onion and tomato to the avocado. Cut the lime in half and squeeze the juice over the mix, making sure no seeds from the lime find their way into the bowl. Mash together, salt and pepper to taste.

If you wish to make the guacamole spicy, do not add Tabasco sauce. Tabasco is vinegar based and you do not want to introduce that element to your guac! I suggest a hot sauce made from chilis or - why not - a fresh jalapeño. Your choice!

Once your chicken and your guacamole is finished, heat a tortilla according to the instructions on the packaging (unless you make your own, but that's something I'll save for another day), add salsa chicken, grated cheese (anything goes, cheddar is great for this though) and guacamole. Wrap up, consume. Goes great with a light Mexican beer like Corona or Dos Equis.

Baked Ziti

Ziti is plural for "bridegroom" in Italian ("zito" is singular), but this recipe does not involve any newlyweds at all. A baked ziti is, as far as my extensive research shows (checking Wikipedia), an Italian-American dish. Makes sense, since I'd never heard of it before I moved to the US and I do love me some Italian food. To me, it'll always be like something out of the Sopranos - hell, Bobby Baccalieri kept his wife Karen's last frozen Ziti for ages, before Janice talked him into finally eating it. So, a ziti is essential ziti pasta (or penne, which is very similar) mixed with a tomato based sauce and cheese, baked in the oven. My recipe is a vegetarian version and as it'll last about a week in the fridge, it's usually enough for two dinners and a couple of lunches for me and Jacquie. I prefer making my own sauce, but you can always use a can of tomato sauce if you're pressed for time/like that sort of thing.

Tomato Sauce
16 oz whole peeled tomatoes (canned tomatoes are fine for this)
3 shallots
4 cloves garlic
1/2 cup dry red wine
olive oil
fresh basil or oregano

Mince the shallots and put them in with some olive oil in a heavy-bottomed sauce pan and place over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 2 minutes. Finely mince the garlic cloves and add. Cook another minute or so, we're looking for some translucent shallots here. Next, add the tomatoes. Chop them coarsely first. Cook for a couple of minutes, then add the wine, salt and pepper to taste. Stirring occasionally, let the sauce simmer until it's reduced by half. This can take anything between ten minutes and half an hour. Once the sauce is finished, fold in the herbs (chop them coarsely first) and remove from the heat.

Baked Ziti

1 1lb package ziti or penne pasta
8 oz ricotta cheese
8 oz shredded mozzarella cheese
2 oz freshly grated parmesan cheese
tomato sauce (above)
salt
pepper

Set the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Boil the pasta al dente, according to the instructions on the package. Make sure you salt the water first. Drain the penne and return to the pot (but not the heat!) and add the ricotta cheese and about half of the mozzarella. Mix well. In an oven-safe dish, place about half of the tomato sauce. Next, place about half of the pasta/cheese mix in the dish, add another layer of tomato sauce, then the rest of the pasta. Top with the remaining mozzarella and sprinkle the parmesan cheese over the top.

Cook in the oven for 35-40 minutes, or until the cheese is nicely browned and the sauce is bubbling. Let cool a few minutes before cutting, and serve with a fresh green salad.

"Put in the Pan"

Pytt i panna is a common Swedish meal, generally made from leftover beef the day after having steak. There are probably as many recipes as there are Swedish chefs (so fourteen or so), but it usually includes the previously mentioned beef (in small pieces), cut up hot dogs, potatoes and onion. I decided to make this with a little bit of a twist because I didn't have any leftover steak and I don't really want to put hot dogs in anything that isn't shaped like a bun (and doesn't taste like a bun).

My parents served a form of pytt i panna at their (now closed) restaurant - Le Petit Piteå in Perpignan, France. Here's my take:

Put in the pan (Andreas-style)

• 1/2 lb ground beef (I used 20% fat)
• 2 Italian sausages (I used mild, but spicy would work well too)
• 2 large russet potatoes
• 3 large shallots
• salt
• black pepper
• Tabasco sauce

Cut the potatoes into half-inch squares. Peel and thinly slice the shallots. Put a pan over medium high heat on the stove. Add a little oil and a small dab of butter, if you wish. Add the potatoes to the pan. Flip the potatoes occasionally, making sure they get evenly fried. When they look like they are more or less done, add the shallots. In addition, add salt and pepper to taste.

Remove the skin from the sausages, and cut them into small pieces. In a separate pan (cast iron skillet if you have it), add the sausages and the ground beef. Use a spatula to make sure the ground beef is adequately separated (we're not making meatballs here). Once cooked through, add the potato/shallot combination to this pan and stir. If you decided to use Tabasco sauce, now is the time to add it. Add more salt and pepper if required.

Serve immediately with fresh sliced tomatoes and cucumber. Enjoy this fantastically healthy meal (no, not really).

Pita Bread and Tzatziki

I went to a Greek/Mediterranean restaurant for lunch the other day and had a Gyro sandwich (unidentifiable meat in a pita bread with vegetables and a tzatziki sauce on the side). I'm happy to have located such a restaurant considering I love that sort of food and I didn't think I'd be able to locate something that tastes so authentically Greek in Austin. Since we decided to throw a New Year's Eve party and needed snacks, I figured I might as well make some tzatziki and pita bread from scratch. Here's a quick and simple recipe for pita bread and tzatziki. I use the stand mixer, of course, but it works well to knead by hand as well.

Pita bread

• 1 package (2 1/4 tsp) quick-rising yeast
• 3 - 4 cups flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/4 cup hot water (but not too hot)
• 1 tbsp olive oil + 1 tbsp for coating

Put the yeast, 2 cups of the flour, the salt, the water and 1 tbsp of oil in a large bowl. Mix until fully incorporated, then add flour until you have a soft and relatively sticky dough. Turn onto a floured board and knead for 5 minutes. Lightly coat a bowl with oil and place the dough in the bowl, turning it to cover. Next, cover with a kitchen towel and leave in a warm place for 2 hours, or until doubled in size.

Turn your oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit (230 degrees Celsius).

Once the dough is done rising, turn it out onto a floured board again and punch the air out. Divide into 8 equally sized pieces and form little balls. Roll each ball out into a circle, about 1/4 inch thick (be careful not to handle it too much at this point!), then place on a cookie sheet (lightly greased, or covered with baking paper). Place cookie sheet close to the bottom of the oven for 4 minutes, then turn and leave for another 4 minutes or until lightly brown.

Remove from oven and immediately cover in a kitchen towel for 4-5 minutes. Once this is done, gently press each pita bread to release the air from it, but be careful and do not do this once the bread has cooled completely. Store in zip lock bag - it will last 2-3 days in room temperature or a couple of months in the freezer. Makes for a great sandwich, just cut open and stuff with vegetables, beef, chicken or anything else you can think of.

Tzatziki

• 16 oz Greek yogurt (or plain yogurt)
• 2 cucumbers
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• the juice of 1/2 lemon
• 5 - 10 cloves of garlic (to taste)
• 1 tsp salt

If you were unable to find Greek yogurt, the first step is to place a coffee filter in a funnel, put the normal plain yogurt in the coffee filter and let drip (into a bowl!) for at least 12 hours in the fridge. This will remove most of the moisture from the yogurt, which is imperative. I did my latest batch with Bulgarian yogurt, which was a little too "wet" and I should have let it drip for 4-5 hours but I didn't have the time.

Once your yogurt is prepared (or if you're using Greek), start by carefully washing the cucumbers and then cutting them in half, lengthwise, and remove the seeds. Once removed, grab a grater and coarsly grate the cucumber into a bowl. Next, you need to remove as much moisture as possible from the cucumbers. One way is to place them in a (clean!) dish towel and squeeze it, but remember that it will be completely green when you're done and you may not be able to clean it completely. Don't use grandma's favorite towel, mkay? I generally just grab a handful of cucumber, squeeze it in the palm of my (clean!) hand and then place on paper towels. Once all the cucumber is done, place another paper towel on top and get rid of even more moisture.

Finally, the garlic. Peel and chop very finely (use a press if you have to, but...no, don't use a damned garlic press) is all you have to do.

Now, combine the oil and juice in a medium bowl. Add the yogurt and mix very well. Add the cucumber, garlic and salt. Stir well and taste - you may need to add some more salt. I generally add black pepper as well.

Garnish with a little parsley if you want to, or just eat it because that's what it's there for. Lasts a week in the fridge if well sealed. Does not freeze well.

Enjoy :)

Butternut Squash Soup & Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

A grilled cheese sandwich with a cup of soup is one of the staples in the Great American Diet - perfect for chilly fall evenings or perhaps as lunch in the midst of the snowy winter. Since we don't get snowy winters here in Austin, and "chilly" is when the mercury hits 60 degrees (that's 15 degrees Celsius for the rest of the world), I make my grilled cheese sandwiches and soup whenever I damn well please, thank you very much.

I was charged with the "make the food" task for Thanksgiving this year (all right, I charged myself with the "make the food" task, so what?) and decided to start people off with a butternut squash soup. It went down really well, so I decided to make it again recently, removing the canned tomato soup that generally seems to be the standard side for a grilled cheese from the equation. And now, the recipe!

Butternut Squash Soup

• 1 large butternut squash
• 2 cups chicken stock (homemade if you're into that sort of thing, low salt content if you buy it)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• salt
• pepper
• freshly ground nutmeg
• butter or olive oil

Heat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 degrees Celsius). Cut the squash lengthwise and scoop out the seeds - these can be toasted in a pan for a snack once cleaned and dried, but I'm not going to go into detail here. Cut the squash halves into half inch-thick pieces (leave the peel on) and put them in an oven pan, skin side down. Dab with butter (or drizzle with olive oil), salt and pepper. Put the pan in the oven for 30-35 minutes or until very soft. Remove from oven. Scoop the fruit from the peel into a blender. Add the chicken stock and puree until no lumps remain (you can also use a stick blender if you have one, just put the ingredients in a pot instead). Pour the mixture into a pot and bring to a simmer. Add the heavy cream and nutmeg and bring back to a simmer. Salt and pepper to taste.

Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Yes, you probably don't need the recipe for a grilled cheese sandwich, but I'm going to be thorough here, so here it is anyway.

• 2 slices of bread. I prefer sourdough, but anything goes
• Enough cheese to cover the face of one slice of bread. I like Cracker Barrel Cheddar, but anything that melts goes (Mozzarella is interesting, and provolone is fantastic too)
• Spreadable butter
• Black pepper (optional)

Spread the butter on one side of each slice of bread. I usually grab my bread from the freezer and by the time it's about to hit the pan, it'll be thawed enough. Now, add slices of cheese on the non-buttered side of one slice of bread. Add freshly ground black pepper, if you want to. Now add the other slice of bread on top, buttered side up.

Heat a skillet (I use my iron cast pan because iron cast pans rock) to medium high, add a tiny bit of vegetable oil if you want to, fry bread on each side for roughly one minute or until golden brown. Serve immediately with a cup of hot soup.

The soup will last in the fridge for 3-4 days, in the freezer for about a month but is absolutely best served right away. The sandwiches won't last long, at least not with me around because I'll eat them all.