Memorial Day Salad Trio

I decided to celebrate Memorial Day with a salad trio.  

APPLE SLAW

Ingredients:

• apples, sliced thin and chopped
• celery, sliced thin on the diagonal
• golden raisins
• toasted walnuts
• sage
• chives, chopped

    dressing:

• lemon juice
• olive oil
• sugar to taste

Method:

Toss prepared ingredients with dressing.  A light, slightly tart version of the classic Waldorf salad.

I may try this with fresh fennel, thinly sliced, and also (but not with the fennel) with finely chopped fresh ginger.  


KUMATO TOMATOES & GOAT CHEESE

Ingredients:

• sliced Kumato tomatoes
• crumbled goat cheese
• chives
• fresh basil leaves
• balsamic vinegar

Method:

Layer ingredients on tomato slices in order listed.  Sprinkle lightly with balsamic vinegar.  Use the real stuff, not the red-wine version that's sold at grocery stores. It's expensive but a little goes a long ways and the flavor is much cleaner.



STRAWBERRIES & MINT

Ingredients:

• sliced strawberries
• chopped fresh spearmint
• orange juice

Method:

Toss berries and mint; add a splash of the juice.  Champagne would be lovely instead of the juice.


Notes:

Try one or more of these salads for something light.  The apple slaw is very refreshing; the Kumato tomatoes & goat cheese is a classic and often-repeated blend of flavors; and strawberries -- well, they speak for themselves.

If you haven't tried Kumato tomatoes, I highly recommend them. The seeds are  only available to select growers; the tomatoes have to be grown under specific conditions and protocols. They can therefore be a bit pricey, but they're worth every penny. They're amazingly full of intense, slightly sweet tomato flavor, something I almost never find in a grocery store tomato.   The flesh is firm and juicy; color varies from a brownish-red to greenish-brown. If you don't already know that refrigeration destroys a tomato's flavor, take this as your warning, and do not put these gems in your fridge.

Whatever you eat and with whomever you share it, happy Memorial Day weekend!  Go out and cook, eat, dance, and love!

Cate Jane's Sweet Potato Puree Soup

I love sweet potatoes.  Plain and simple or with other ingredients, but never ever with all that butter and sugar that many people serve as a vegetable at Thanksgiving. (There's more sugar and fat in that dish than in a normal pie, for crying out loud.  Talk about overkill.  And it doesn't even taste good; it just tastes like sugar.).  One of my favorite meals is a plate of steaming brown rice and some boiled sweet potatoes, lightly mashed and served plain, that's how much I love the taste of sweet potatoes. As part of a main meal, in a soup, in burritos, in salad... love 'em.

This soup was inspired by and named after a neighbor who wasn't feeling well.  We had recently been talking about sweet potato and kale soup, and when I found out she was ill, my mind started thinking of comfort food... first my thoughts went to my Il Templari variation with sweet potatoes, then to a sweet potato-black bean soup I love, but neither sounded quite like what would appeal to me if I were fighting off a bug.  Then it hit me:  cream of sweet potato soup, without the dairy!  I started thinking about what I would put in it and came up with the ingredient list below.

Of course I knew a sweet potato puree soup wasn't a novel idea, and a quick search on the internet confirmed this. There are many delicious-sounding variations of a sweet potato puree soup, many of them very similar to what I made.  I went with my original instincts of what would feel comforting to me and plunged in. The result: one of my new favorite soups.  And yes, I may be breaking my arm patting myself on the back, but this truly is a keeper for me and one I know I'll make often.  It's very simple, very easy, and muy delicioso!

For the first time, I'm endorsing a product:  the broth I used for this soup.  The reason is very simple:  when I opened the box of broth and tasted it, I was struck by its richness and depth of flavor.  I think it made a huge difference in how the soup turned out; I believe it really brought out the sweetness and flavor of the sweet potatoes.  Feel free to use whatever broth you like, but  consider giving this one a shot.  I am not receiving any compensation for this endorsement (but if they'd like to reward me with some free broth I wouldn't say no).  

I only had two sweet potatoes so that's what my ingredient amounts are based on.  You can, of course, easily increase the amounts.

On with the show:

CATE JANE'S SWEET POTATO PUREE SOUP

Ingredients:

• 2 medium sweet potatoes
• 1/2 c. diced onion
• 2 peeled and chopped carrots
• 1 stalk celery, sliced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• about 2 c. vegetable broth (highly recommend Pacific Organic Low Sodium Vegetable Broth)
• 1/4 t. ground ginger or more

Method:

Cut sweet potatoes into thirds and cook in a covered pot in about 1" of water until very tender.  Drain and cool; slip off peels.

While potatoes are cooling, over a low heat, cook remaining veggies in a very small amount of olive oil until onions are translucent.  Add broth and cover; simmer until veggies are very soft.

Puree sweet potatoes with a small amount of liquid from veggies.  Put in soup pot.  Puree other veggies in food processor in small batches and add slowly to sweet potatoes, stirring to check consistency.  I used all the broth and veggies in this batch.  Add ginger.  Heat gently, and serve.

Notes:

If I'd had fresh ginger I would have added it.  You can also add cinnamon and/or nutmeg.  I chose not to add the last two because I wanted the sweet potato taste to be simple, clean, and in the front, but another time, depending on my mood, I might add any and all of those.  I think a hint of rosemary would also be good in this, especially as a winter soup, with a warm rosemary polenta or cornbread on the side.  

You can, of course, add dairy (cream, milk, a swirl of plain yogurt or sour cream).  I think if I served this cold I might add a dollop of plain yogurt for the tang.

Although I am not a fan of cold soups, this is delicious, smooth, and light when eaten cold, and would be perfect for a hot summer evening meal, with perhaps a wild rice salad or some marinated green beans...

However you serve it, do give it a try, and as you do, remember to cook, eat, dance, love!

Buttermilk Bread

Lately I've been enjoying one of the first things I taught myself in the kitchen:  yeast breads.  When I was a sophomore in college, my roommate convinced me to join a cookbook club.  We each got two free books and had to order and pay for two books.  I've long forgotten what the two paid-for books were, but I still have the two free ones, both bread-baking cookbooks.  My very first excursion into yeast-bread baking was a success, and I was hooked.  In fact, I was so in love with homemade bread that for ten years I made all (and I do mean all) my own bread:  rolls, buns, loaves, pita, and all the sweet yeast breads like donuts and coffeecakes, and every non-yeast bread you can think of as well.  

I love everything about yeast breads: the yeasty fermenting smell of the yeast as it proofs.  Mixing the ingredients together and seeing the gluten begin to form stretchy threads.  The physical feel of the bread in my hands as I knead and feel it take on a smooth texture, and of putting my shoulders into turning and folding.  Seeing it rise, not once, but twice, as the yeast does its magic. Smelling the warm aromas as it bakes.  And finally, slicing it and tasting it, still warm from the oven.  

The slow process of bread baking is part of the attraction for me.  I know many people prefer to rush through it, using bread machines, fast-rising yeasts, and other shortcuts.  For me, it's like a lot of things: it's not the destination as much as it is the journey.  I like the connection I have with my food when I take time with it.  I like the journey of bread baking; it satisfies something much deeper than just my hunger.

Although I don't bake as often as I did during that ten-year period, I so dislike paying too much money for too-often poor-quality store-bought bread that I tend to make my own bread frequently.

Here's a loaf that makes great sandwich bread.  It has a fine grain and a slightly-nutty, slightly-tangy flavor; it slices well and makes great toast.  And yes, it's from one of those two original books.

BUTTERMILK BREAD

adapted from A World Of Breads, Dolores Casella

Ingredients

• 1 c. buttermilk
• 2 T. sugar
• 2 1/2 t. salt
• 1/3 c. butter
• 1/2 c. warm water
• 2 T. yeast
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• 6 c. flour (unbleached or a mix of unbleached and whole wheat)

Method

Gently heat the buttermilk with the butter until the butter is melted.  Stir in most of the sugar and the salt.  Set aside to cool to lukewarm.

Proof the yeast in the warm water with the remaining sugar (1 t. or so is plenty).

Combine half the flour and the baking soda.  Add cooled buttermilk and yeast and stir until smooth and you can see the gluten begin to form.   Add as much more flour (ideally not more than 3 more cups) and knead until smooth and elastic.  

Place in a greased bowl and cover with a damp (not wet) dish towel.  Let rise in warm place until doubled.  Punch down, form into two loaves, and place in greased bread pans.  Let rise again.  Bake at 375 for 45 minutes or so.

Remove from pans, cool on racks until you can't stand it any more, then slice and enjoy!

Variation

I think this would make a great cinnamon raisin bread, with coils of cinnamon, butter, and golden raisins.  

Notes

If you aren't familiar with bread-baking, there are plenty of good resources on the internet.  But if you really want to know about the journey of bread-baking, pick up some of the older cookbooks, make a cup of tea, and settle in for an evening. You might find that the journey is worth it.  

It's all part of cook, eat, dance, love!

Date Nut Bread

Recipes for date nut bread -- like recipes for almost anything, any more -- are all over the internet.  I don't know how this one compares to what's popular right now.  I just know it's one I've been baking for 40-plus years, and it's stood the test of time, at least for me.  The recipe is from "A World Of Breads," Dolores Casella, one of two bread cookbooks I've had since the early '70's.  I still use both of those cookbooks regularly.

To get right to it:

DATE NUT BREAD

Ingredients

• 2 c. chopped, pitted dates
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1 t. salt
• 2 c. boiling water
• 2-6 eggs (depending on how rich a bread you want.  I use 2-3)
• 1 c. brown sugar (note:  this is a decrease from the recipe in the book)
• 1/2 c. soft (not melted) butter
• 3 c. flour
• 1 c. nuts (I use pecans when I'm giving this for gifts but I like walnuts, too)

Method

In a bowl, combine dates, soda, salt; pour boiling water over all, stir, and set aside to cool.

Beat eggs until well-blended.  Add sugar and butter and beat until light and fluffy.  Stir in flour; add date mixture and nuts.  Blend.  Batter will be on the liquid side.  Pour into two greased loaf pans.  Bake 350, 55-60 min.

Slice and enjoy!

Variations

You can add vanilla or almond extract (2 t.).  Or, use 1 c. orange juice in place of part of the water.  Try different dried fruit (cranberries with the OJ would be good).  Experiment!

Notes

I like this warm with butter but it doesn't need any spread at all, it's moist and full of fruit and nuts and just really good.  It's also good for cream cheese sandwiches (add some chives or fresh herbs of your choice) or with other cheeses (like goat cheese) or peanut butter.  Good with tea and coffee.  Good for breakfast or a snack.  Good with savory soups.  Heck, it's just good!

Cook, eat, dance, love!

Mom's Southern Vegetable Soup

My mother grew up in the south, and she grew up poor.  Beef wasn't common in the south then anyway and, with little money available, when her family did eat meat it was more likely to be pork or poultry.  So the vegetable soup I grew up on and love is a pork-based vegetable soup, not the beef-based many know.  As far as I know mom never wrote down her recipe but I watched her make it several times growing up and have been making it on my own for 40 or so years.  Here it is, as best as I can remember.

MOM'S SOUTHERN VEGETABLE SOUP

Ingredients

• ham shank (optional) (most of the ingredients are optional, actually)
• vegetable stock (homemade preferable)
• carrots
• onions
• celery
• green beans
• corn
• peas
• okra
• black-eyed peas
• lima beans
• potato
• tomatoes (peeled, canned or fresh)
• herbs (I use basil and rosemary)
• imagination
• love

Method

If you're making stock, make it first, using your own favorite recipe.  I like to make it with lots of celery tops, a quartered onion or two, a couple of bay leaves, and a couple of carrots cut into large pieces.  I let it simmer at least an hour.  Taste and season if you like.  I don't add salt if I'm using a shank because the shank will add a lot of salt anyway.  When the stock is done, strain it over a large bowl or pot and discard the cooked veggies.  

Mom always threw her ham shank into the pot and added the canned and not drained tomatoes and most of the veggies and let it simmer.  After a few hours she would pull the shank out, cut off the meat, add the meat back to the pot, and announce dinner.  I like to cook the shank in the broth first because I like to skim as much of the fat off as possible before I add the other ingredients.  Up to you.  If you do cook the shank in the stock, let it simmer slowly an hour or more, then remove the shank; allow it and the stock to cool.  Skim the fat off the stock, shred the meat from the bone, and add it back to the stock, along with all the other veggies.  Simmer at least 30 minutes or until all raw veggies are done.  

Serve with cornbread or a crusty loaf of bread.

Notes

OK, now on to the imagination part:  you don't have to use a ham shank.  You can use a ham hock but be forewarned they generally have very little meat on them.  You can use chopped ham but you'll lose the smokey flavor from the shank.  I tried it once and never again.  However, it's also very good as a vegetarian/vegan soup with no meat at all.  Vegetables can be of your choice but the tomatoes are part of the base of the soup so I wouldn't omit them.  I also think celery, onion, and carrots are pretty basic, but there are no rules here.  Amounts are what you have on hand and like.  Okra isn't required and it's not my favorite veggie but throwing a handful in thickens the soup a bit, which is kind of nice on a cold winter evening.  It's better with fresh veggies (mom almost always made it late summer) but you can used canned -- but use as many fresh veggies as possible.  Better the second day.  Freezes great!

Have fun with it, and cook, eat, dance, and love!