main course – Page 11

Caribbean Oxtail Stew

Published on December 30, 2013December 26, 2013 by Lan | MoreStomach20 Comments

and lookie here
it’s the end of the month
the end of the year
in 48 hours time
twenty fourteen will arrive
and with it
goals
ideals
declarations
promises

i suppose in order
to ensure i keep my
resolutions
i ought to say them out loud
to be kept in check
be held accountable

ok
here goes:
|| read more. i love reading, i need to do that more
|| run again, my booty needs it
|| travel, with my husband. obvi
|| attempt ONE dinner party. even if we all end up sitting on the floor

2014. let’s do this.

caribbean oxtail stew
adapted from saveur
*note: before we moved into my condo, as we were moving out of dw’s apartment he introduced me to a Trinidadian restaurant around the corner. i was pissed. because the food’s amazing and it’s within walking distance and he’d never taken me before. we haven’t been back in a long time, this is very similar to a trinidadian oxtail stew.
*call around to your local butchers or favorite grocer to see if they have fresh oxtail, grassfed being the best.
*this is a fatty dish, have a salad on the side to cut through the richness. then run a mile or so.
*the original dish calls for carrots, brown sugar and Worcestershire sauce, ingredients we had every intention of adding in the last hour or so. but we forgot. we were busy watching the Following.

canola oil, to brown the oxtail
3lbs oxtails
salt/pepper to taste
3 TBL homemade tomato concentrate
1 TBL ginger, minced
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 large onions, rough chopped
1 rib celery, chopped
2 TBL flour
4 cups homemade bouillon/stock
1 TBL whole allspice berries
4 sprigs thyme
1 generous tsp of habanero paste, or 2 habanero peppers
cooked wild rice, for serving

season oxtails with salt & pepper
in a dutch oven or heavy bottomed pot, over medium high heat, heat up the oil and brown the oxtail to your heart’s content. go for a deep color. transfer to plate, ignore.

into the pot add the tomato paste, ginger, onions and celery, saute until soft. add in the flour and stir until smooth. just make sure the flour’s all gone. add the oxtail in again, along with the stock, allspice, thyme and chiles. bring to a broil, then reduce heat to low, cook for about 3 hours. i may have let it go for 4 hours, until meat is tender and falling off the bone. check seasoning.

serve atop wild rice.

black bean lasagna

Published on December 16, 2013December 13, 2013 by Lan | MoreStomach11 Comments

right now
the chill seeps
past the usual barriers,
finding passage through
cracks & crevices
every year
i wonder aloud
why we don’t live
in the tropics
or at the very least,
winter in Australia

it’s a daunting task
to shake slumber off
when burrowing beneath the
corduroy comforter
is far more appealing
it’s also tempting to
fall into the soup rut
what’s not to like?
they’re warming,
usually quick & nutritious
but truthfully:
repetitive

what to do?
sleep like the bears
surfacing when the world is green anew?
flying south is out
december has already made her presence
known
what with the frost
the shiver inducing gusts of wind
the rain,
the bloody freezing rain,
it feels like i’m going to be cold forever

so i made this lasagna
because we’re going to incorporate more beans in our diet
because i can’t be bothered to cook every night
because it was easy
because it kept me in the kitchen,
warmed by the stove, oven and crock pot
and it fed us all week,
either for dinner or lunch
and damn if it didn’t warm us through

today’s post is a loose nod towards write alm‘s december promt-a-day.

black bean lasagna
adapted from trisha yearwood

*note: i was in 7th grade when trisha yearwood’s song She’s In Love With The Boy came out and dang if i didn’t sing that song all summer long. prior to cutting cable i saw this recipe on her show and it intrigued me. my proportions, seasonings and techniques are different from hers, so use her recipe if you want exact measurements.

1 jar of tomato sauce, i used our csa jarred tomatoes
8oz can of whole tomatoes squished/cut up
3 generous tablespoons of homemade tomato paste
1/2 large onion, chopped
a few garlic cloves, minced
3 carrots, skinned and diced
1 cup of dried black beans, soaked over night, then cooked on low in the crockpot for 5 hours
olive oil
salt/pepper to taste
1 package lasagna noodles, cooked according to package instructions
tofu ricotta, recipe below

Tofu Ricotta
1 container of firm organic tofu, excess water squeezed out
1/4 cup – 1/2 cup of raw cashews, eyeball it, i didn’t measure it
1/4 cup – 1/2 cup nutritional yeast, eyeball it, i didn’t measure it
healthy sprinkle of italian seasoning
salt/pepper to taste

in a food processor, whizz all the ingredients together. the mixture won’t be silky smooth, but it won’t be chunky either. set aside, in fridge until ready to assemble the dish.

in a large pot, boil up some water. cook the lasagna noodles according to package instructions.

in a large sauce pan or skillet, heat up some olive oil, saute the onions, garlic and carrots. season with salt/pepper. allow the mixture to brown up a bit, it’s at your discretion. add in the tomato sauce and paste. again, season with salt/pepper. add in the prepared black beans, allow to simmer on low while you complete the noodle boiling.

preheat oven to 350F.

to assemble, in a casserole dish, spoon out some of the tomato sauce first. layer noodles, then add the tofu ricotta, spreading it as best as you can, top with tomato sauce. repeat until all the noodles are done, making sure the final top layer is the tomato sauce.

bake in oven for about 45 minutes – an hour, if the top gets too browned/dry, put foil wrap on it.
allow to sit for 15 minutes before digging in.
will keep, covered, in fridge for a week.

cauliflower + pumpkin gnocchi

Published on November 25, 2013November 24, 2013 by Lan | MoreStomach17 Comments

thanksgiving,
for someone like me,
who has a naturally inclined
ungrateful heart,
was a holiday that passed like
any other day
to be sure,
i acknowledge that we get
those 2 days off
48 hours that i spend in the kitchen,
yes,
because i spend my life
with a man who loves food
regardless of the day
the month
or holiday

i am not so presumptuous
to think that this dish should
be on your thanksgiving menu,
instead,
should you find yourself
with too much leftover pumpkin puree,
or any kind of squash,
after your celebration
make this
it’s warming
it’s filling
it’s easy

here’s to wishing you and yours
a delightful thanksgiving season
may the grace of this time
be ever present

cauliflower + pumpkin gnocchi (with cilantro walnut pesto)
recipe adapted from reclaiming provincial and purple house cafe
makes 4 servings

1 cup of pumpkin puree, i use the farmer’s market brand
1/3 cup grated hard cheese, like Parmesan or Grana Padano
1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour (you may need more, you may need less)
1 egg
2 tsp ground coriander seeds

to make the gnocchi, mix the pumpkin puree with the cheese, egg and ground coriander seeds. with a dough whisk (or a fork, or your hands), mix in flour, 1/4 cup at a time until dough comings together, pulls from the sides of bowl. on the counter kneed the dough until it’s smooth and not tacky.

divide dough int 4, roll out into thin ropes. cut into little pieces. i used this method.

cook the gnocchi in salted boiling water and then saute in olive oil. you’ll know when it’s done when the gnocchi rises up in the water.

roast up the cauliflower however you like it. i kept it simple: cut the cauliflower into little florets, put on cookie sheet and throw in preheated 350F oven for about 20-30 minutes. no seasoning

for the cilantro walnut pesto:

olive oil – about 1/2 cup
1-2 cloves of garlic
bunch cilantro
handful of toasted walnuts

heat up the olive oil with the garlic in a sauce pan, watch it carefully, don’t let the garlic burn.
in a food processor add the cilantro, with stems, with the walnuts and olive oil & garlic. process until desired consistency. season with salt & pepper. if the mixture is too thick, like a paste, add a bit of water to loosen.

serve all this together in one glorious Pile.

Phở Gà – vietnamese chicken noodle soup

Published on November 7, 2013November 6, 2013 by Lan | MoreStomach26 Comments

when i was in college,
maybe 18 or 19,
i dated a beautiful boy
(dated is probably too strong a word, ahem)
one with almond shaped eyes
hair silkier and blacker than mine
and he had a tendency to ignore me at the parties
where i would impatiently wait for him to look my way
but his eyes always shifted anywhere and everywhere else
to say the least,
it was a complicated relationship
one studded with embittered arguments
huffy silences
really mean answering machine messages
(yes, it was that long ago)
until one night,
actually,
middle of the night soon after the start of my 3rd year,
during a period in time when
i had gotten myself ridiculously entrenched
in yet another complicated relationship,
one that got me kicked out of the house,
i told him enough already
it was 3am
i was half asleep
and goddamnit, i had to report to work
in two and a half hours
and i put the phone back on the cradle
turned off the ringer
and washed my hands of that soap opera
coupledom

the thing about phở is that
it seems complicated
the broth is spice laden
you add things
you subtract things
it is never the same bowl
i myself would prefer to go out for phở
than to make it
but i found myself with a whole chicken to use
and it being soup season & all
i decided to uncomplicate it
in its most simplest
it’s chicken broth that’s been infused with
some exotic spices
maybe i’m oversimplifying
but in a time where i don’t have time
for convoluted bs
this is exactly what i can handle

phở gà
adapted from wandering chopsticks

package 1-lb of Banh Pho (Vietnamese Flat Thin Rice Noodles)
1 whole chicken, about 3-4lbs
1 onion, studded with about 15 cloves
2 2″ knob of ginger
2 sticks of cinnamon
6 star anise pods
4 cardamom pods
head half a of garlic
4 carrots, scrubbed and chunked, keep the skin on
2 tsp salt
fish sauce to taste

in a small frying pan, dry fry the spices

with a creme brulee torch char the clove studded onion, garlic and ginger knobs

in an 8 quart pot add the chicken and charred vegs, and carrots

in a small spice bag add the spices and then put into pot

add water until everything is just about covered

season with salt

bring to boil and then lower temp to simmer for about 45 min – 1 hour

remove chicken and allow to cool, then shred, putting bones back into pot. cover chicken until ready to eat

meanwhile, allow soup to simmer for another hour or so (i let it go for about 3 hours)

when ready to eat, cook up noodles according to package instructions and divvy into bowls

top with shredded chicken, garnish with thinly sliced onions and scallions

carefully ladle soup into bowls

it’s even better the next day, and then the next

serves 8 – calories: 366 | fat: 6g | carbs: 41g | protein: 37g

other noodle bowl concoctions:
morestomach – vermicelli noodle bowl
whisk & knife – beef noodle soup
i am a food blog – oxtail pho
my darling lemon thyme – spicy noodle salad with pickled vegs
use real butter – chinese soy sauce chicken
angry asian creations – wonton noodle soup
angry asian creations – shrimp pad thai
angry asian creations – singapore noodles

butternut squash & pearl barley risotto

Published on October 28, 2013October 25, 2013 by Lan | MoreStomach18 Comments

if you were to ask me what my
favorite thing about autumn was
i’d be hard pressed to come up with
an answer
i would respond with more than
one answer
because despite my dislike for
the chill,
for the need for layers,
for the fading light starting at 4pm
there is still plenty to like
about autumn

for one,
the sunsets seem prettier,
the horizon has an urgency to it,
like it’s beseeching you to stop & look at it
for another,
hand-yarned neck adornments
i lucked out this year,
nuria knitted me THREE scarves,
of which i will eventually blog about

then there’s the food
(it always gets back to that, doesn’t it?)
the crock pot can come out of hiding
soups & stews are on the weekly menu
most days the dwelling is warmed
by the hardworking stove and oven

while our csa is dwindling down
we’ve been stockpiling our stash of squash
i tried delicata squash recently
the abundance of them is a wonder now
we’ll tire of them soon enough
as the season progresses
but in the meantime,
like all good things
some coaxing and attention is required
for this dish
not only from the squash
but from the pearl barley as well

butternut squash & pearl barley risotto
adapted from martha stewart living, april 2013
*note: i used already cooked squash which i had roasted when i made the autumn harvest soup. if using raw squash, you want to add it earlier in the process of cooking the barley, maybe 15 minutes in? make sure the cubes are uniform in size so they cook at the same time. it’s tricky, because you want the squash to soften and the barley to be cooked through at the same time, it’s all about timing.

5 cups chicken broth (or, 3 cubes of homemade bouillon cubes + 3-4 cups of water)
2 TBL olive oil
1 cup pearl barley, rinsed and drained
1 bunch kale, stems removed and leaves torn into large pieces (about 6 cups)
half a good sized butternut squash, already roasted and cubed
half an onion, diced
2 cloves garlic minced
grated fresh Parmesan cheese, to top

heat up broth in a saucepan, keep warm

heat oil in a pot over medium heat. add barley and stir to coat until toasted. at this point, i removed the barley from the pan. return empty pan to fire, heat up a bit more oil and saute the onions and garlic. when fragrant, add in the barley again, then add in about 2 ladles-worth of broth. simmer, stirring constantly until broth has been absorbed.

do this continuously, until there’s about 2 ladles worth of broth left. add in the kale and squash, stirring in the remaining broth.

serve hot or at room temp, topped with grated parmasen cheese