Cheese and Artichoke Dip

While the dip itself is more of a snack, we actually had this for dinner tonight! Cheese and artichoke dip, vegetables, ciabatta bread and oven-roasted potatoes may not sound like a traditional Sunday night dinner, but it was really, really good!

Cheese and Artichoke Dip
1 can artichoke hearts (16 oz)
1 package Neufchatel or cream cheese
4 oz shredded cheddar, Monterrey jack or similar cheese
paprika
black pepper
salt

Turn the oven to 425 degrees F. Finely chop the artichoke hearts. I used my food processor, but a knife will do the job just fine (it'll just take a while). Mix with the cheeses, sprinkle liberally with the spices and stir thoroughly. Put the dip in an oven-safe form and bake for 15-20 minutes or until just starting to brown. Serve with root vegetables cut into staves (I used carrots, cauliflower and cucumber).

Oven-Roasted Potatoes
1 lb firm potatoes
olive oil
black pepper
salt

Turn the oven to 425 degrees F. Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil over high heat. Slice the potatoes into half-inch thick pieces and add to the boiling water. Boil for about 10 minutes or until just tender. Remove the potatoes from the water and dry on paper towels.

Place an oven rack over a cookie sheet. Spread the potatoes on the rack and brush with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and bake in the center of the oven for 20 minutes or until the edges are crispy.

The Slow Cooker

The slow cooker has gotten a bad reputation over the years, at least that's what I've gathered from reading various recipes, cookbooks and talking to friends who enjoy cooking. Everyone seems to have an older relative who has served them a soggy meatloaf or a dry pot roast that has spent untold hours in a crock pot.

I bought a slow cooker a while back because I read a recipe for pulled pork - and I love pulled pork - that the author promised would be fantastic. Now, a slow cooker (for those lucky enough to not have had grandma make soggy meatloaf in one) is essentially a countertop cooking device that applies low heat to food over a long time and is suitable to leave unattended while off doing more important things, like...well, there are few things as important as cooking, but let's pretend "going to work" is and leave it at that.

After having owned the slow cooker for about six months, I can safely say it was well worth the investment ($20 at Target) and I've made a few dishes in it that were really, really good. The fact that you can take a cheap hunk o' meat, stick in a pot and leave it for 8 hours while at work to come home to a house that smells fantastic is actually not a bad idea at all. Maybe grandma was right after all, but the application was a tad off? (I use the term "grandma generically here, both my grandmothers are great cooks and I've never seen them use a crock pot, nor have they served me soggy meatloaf.)

I generally make the pulled pork or a chili in the pot (the picture above is of my chili on chips with some melted Mexican cheese), but have tried other recipes too and I'm always on the lookout for new things to put in there. We had pulled pork sandwiches tonight (made coleslaw from scratch, served in pita bread) and it was pretty damned great.

So give the crock pot a chance - and share your interesting recipes with me! Here are a few:

Slow Cooker Chili
1 lb ground beef
1 medium yellow onion
5 garlic cloves
2 shallots
2 cans diced tomatoes (or fresh, peeled and seeded)
1 small can tomato paste
2 cans chili beans, black beans or red kidney beans, or any mix thereof (or roughly 2 cups dry beans that you let soak overnight)
2 large jalapeños
salt
black pepper
red pepper flakes
ground cumin

Start by browning the beef in a large skillet. I generally add a little salt and pepper at this point, but it's not necessary. Once browned, drain in a sieve to get rid of most of the liquid (which is basically fat and a little water). Place the browned beef in the slow cooker. Peel and dice the onion, peel and slice the shallots, and peel and finely chop the garlic. Dump it all in the slow cooker.

Next, I highly recommend putting gloves on. No, not the kind you wear when you go outside in North Dakota in January, I mean the disposable plastic gloves you steal when you go to the doctor and get bored in his office. We're chopping jalapeños and trust me - you do not want to touch your nose or eyes after chopping these spicy little peppers. Slice them in half, remove the seeds, chop them up and add to the slow cooker.

Next, open up your cans. Drain and rinse the beans if you're using canned ones. Add everything to the pot. Next, add about half a tablespoon of red pepper flakes and half a tablespoon of cumin. Add a few pinches of kosher salt and some black pepper.

Next, turn the slow cooker on. Aim for 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low - a little more than that won't hurt either. If possible, stir occasionally. If you find, when time is up, that the chili appears a bit too "wet", feel free to put it in a large pot and place over medium high heat on the stove, stirring frequently until the liquid is reduced to your preferred consistency.

Serve with rice, or over chips with shredded cheese (cheddar or provolone are good, I use a Mexican tri-cheese for this). The chili will freeze well, and be fine in the fridge for up to about a week. I usually freeze mine in smaller batches to be brought out and heated for a quick dinner or snack.

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork with Cole Slaw

Pork:

1 large pork shoulder or "Boston butt" (bone-in or not, your choice)
1 yellow onion
8 tbsp apple cider vinegar
4 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
brown sugar

Coleslaw:

4 cups shredded white cabbage (or red, but that will color the mayo and make pink coleslaw)
1 carrot, shredded
1/3 cup mayonaise (light, if you must)
1 tbsp white wine vingegar
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 1/2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt

Start by coating the pork with brown sugar. If there is a large piece of fat at the bottom, feel free to cut it out now (although leaving it on won't hurt, you can just remove it later). Quarter the onion and place in the bottom of the pot. Place the pork on top of the onion - if it does not fit, you can cut the pork in half to be able to squeeze it in there. Next, pour the vinegar and Worcestershire sauce over the pork, cover and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4-5 hours. If possible, flip the pork halfway through cooking.

Once finished, remove the pork from the pot and shred. I usually use two forks to do this. Throw out excess fat when shredding.

To make the coleslaw, shred the cabbage and carrot into a bowl. Add the mayo, vinegar, oil, salt and sugar and stir. Taste it and add more salt/sugar as needed.

Serve the pork with the coleslaw on a soft bun or in a pita bread or just eat it straight out of the bowl if you want to. I usually mix a bunch of BBQ sauce with the meat too, which gives it some extra flavor.

I was going to post a picture of the pulled pork sandwiches I made tonight in this blog, but once I checked them and found they were out of focus, we had already consumed them. I might add one later, if I make more (since I still have plenty of pork left in the fridge, where it will last up to a week).

"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.