After a bit of internet-access frustration and the all-around craziness of finding your way around a new town and settling into a new place, we have a date for internet service: August 30th! Barring any unforseen problems, I will be returning to the fold then! Miss you all . . . xxxooo
We have arrived safely here in MyTown, Part Two. The house still resembles a disaster area, and my internet access is spotty at best.
Thank you for all your happy thoughts, keep sending 'em our way! Be back to posting (hopefully) in a few weeks!
I am busy wrapping things up at work, and then we must begin the ardous tasks involved in preparing to move to another state. We move in two-and-a-half weeks, and the stress has already begun.
If I have the time and resources, I will try to post, but it may be a little sparse until August. Be gentle! Come back and check soon!
I had a freezer bag full of chipotle chiles in adobo leftover from another recipe; I had two cans of chickpeas and a languishing lime. From these meager beginnings, I made perhaps one of the most addictive snacks ever to find its way out of my Cuisinart. This isn't really a hummous, more of a chickpea spread that doubles easily as a dip.
Our Hero loves pizza. Deeply. So deeply I often wonder if I should be jealous. No matter how recently he's ordered a slice or three for a meal, he's ready for more. A friend of his with whom he traveled talks of great detours in walking trips in order to procure a droopy wedge of the stuff.
Our Hero's favorite pizzas are pretty standard stuff, generally from the pizzaria around the corner (any corner): floppy crust, the barest schmear of marinara, greasy cheese, sausage and/or pepperoni. That's it. Oh, and the bigger, the better.
And here's where we part ways . . . Though I can enjoy a neighborhood slice, my favorite pizzas are usually homemade and healthier: white with lots of veggies and a bit of flavorful cheese.
(Note that one of my past recipes is called "Our Hero's Favorite Pizza" - let me qualify that as Our Hero's Favorite Homemade Pizza.)
. . . so it was with love in my heart that I decided to make "supreme" calzone for dinner. I had a couple of fresh italian chicken sausages, 1/2 a red bell pepper, and mushrooms in my fridge - all pleading to be used - calzone was calling. This was my first official try at a calzone (though there was one "rustic Greek calzone" accidental pizza fold-over my brother may remember), and it was as easy as I expected. I have been toying with a new pizza dough recipe, adapted from Mark Bittman's version. I have also (gasp) been taking to making it in the Cuisinart. I refuse to apologize. It's so fast!
Calzone Supreme
Dough:
1 pkg. rapid-rise yeast
2 t. salt
3 cups white whole-wheat flour
2 T. olive oil
1-1 1/4 cup water
In a food processor: Combine yeast, salt, and flour in the bowl of the processor. Turn the machine on. Slowly pour in the oil and 1 cup of the water. Allow to mix a bit, adding additional water little by little if needed until the dough forms a ball. Process for 30 more seconds. Remove from machine and shape into a ball. Place in an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise 1-2 hours, until doubled in bulk.
By hand: Combine yeast, salt, and flour in a bowl. Stir in oil and enough water for dough to form a ball. Knead for 5-10 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Place in an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise 1-2 hours, until doubled in bulk.
Filling:
1 cup thick marinara or pizza sauce
2 links fresh italian hot chicken sausage, removed from casing
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
10 oz. baby bella mushrooms, sliced
1 cup part-skim mozzerella cheese
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Heat a skillet over medium-high. Add sausage, breaking up into small pieces until fully cooked. Place in a bowl and set aside. Add mushrooms to any accumulated fat from the sausage (it should be a modest amount), stir, cover, and cook 2-3 minutes, until juices begin to release. Add peppers, remove cover and cook until all juices have evaporated, 5 minutes or so. Season with salt and pepper. It's important to cook away the moisture so that the calzone do not get soggy. When veggies have cooked, remove to a plate.
Divide the risen dough into four equal pieces. Flatten and stretch each piece into a circle 7-8 inches in diameter. You may need to let the dough rest a bit between stretches.
Spread 2-3 T. marinara on 1/2 of each dough circle, leaving 3/4-inch border. Sprinkle with 1/4 of the sausage and a good 1/4-cup of the veggies. Sprinkle with 2-3 T. of cheese You want the calzone full, but still able to close. Wet the edge with a bit of water and fold the dough over the filling. Pinch the two sides together with your fingers, and crimp the edges with a fork. Cut three steam vents in the top of the turnover.
Place on an oiled baking sheet and bake 20-30 minutes, until golden. Let cool a bit before serving.
It almost seems silly to post a recipe for fried green tomatoes - they are so simple to make, anyone could probably come up with a reasonable version toying around in the kitchen for a short while. I will, however, post this recipe as a nudge to those who have not yet attempted this delicious snack (and perfect weekend lunch). Additionally, here in MyTown, green tomatoes seem more plentiful than locally-grown red ones (though I did manage to find some beauties) at our farmer's markets, so it's a practical recipe as well.
I have fond memories of my own fried green tomato discovery.
In college, I lived downstairs from a friend who, each Sunday, cooked up a mess of Soul Food. W would make chicken, greens, macaroni and cheese, cornbread, and potatoes as a matter of course each week. I was lucky enough to hang around and peek at the food all day long, before eating at dinnertime.
Having picked up a bunch of green tomatoes at the farmers' market, I decided to try my hand at the Southern treat. I brought the tomatoes up to W's apartment, and she passed along her recipe. Usually, W fried her tomatoes in bacon fat, and though mine are a little lighter, they make me smile and think of her.
Fried Green Tomatoes
2 medium green tomatoes, sliced (about 1/2-inch slices)
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup medium-to-fine grind cornmeal
Salt
Fresh ground black pepper
Red pepper flakes
Cooking spray or olive oil
Mix cornmeal and seasonings to taste in a large shallow bowl or plate. Heat a skillet or griddle over medium-high heat. Spray with cooking spray or coat with olive oil. Dip each tomato slice in beaten egg on both sides. Dredge in cornmeal mixture, and place in skillet. Flip tomatoes when cornmeal is slightly browned and crisped.
A plateful of these beauties makes a perfect lunch, with a handful of seasonal fruit and a dollop of yogurt or sour cream.
Well, we're back from our housing search in SmallMountainTown, and boy is it a small town! I consider myself a city girl to the core, and it seems I'm in for a big change on August 1st. Even so, we will be only 70 miles outside HUGECity, which offers lots of amenities and lovely friend J!
Our housing search was a great success . . . we ended up taking an apartment in a turn-of-the-century Victorian mansion which is still in the process of renovation. The landlords are highly recommended by Our Hero's new colleagues, so we have every reason to believe things will turn out well. One of our landlords is a professional in the dining/hospitality field, and I've seen (and loved) his kitchen, so I am hoping and praying the kitchen will be wonderful. I think people who love to cook would have a hard time building a crappy kitchen. I'll provide pictures when available. The good news: the stove will be gas. Amen.
We've had a bit of a sticky heatwave these past few days in MyTown, and standing over a hot stove sounded absolutely hellish. Instead, I whipped up this cucumber salad from Eating Well, which served me well as a light, hot-weather supper. It's a nice change from my standard (and delicious) yogurt-cuke-red onion-dill combo. The beans and feta give this some protein. Our Hero preferred it as a side dish with a fat roast beef sandwich. Either way you use it, light meal or side, it is fresh-tasting and delicious.
Cucumber-Black-Eyed-Pea Salad
Juice from 1/2 lemon
2 T. olive oil
Pinch dried or t. chopped fresh oregano
Black pepper
4 cups peeled, diced cucumber
14-oz. can black-eyed peas
1 cup diced sweet bell pepper
1/4 cup sliced red onion
1/2 cup crumbled feta (sheep's milk is best)
6-8 kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
Whisk together first four ingredients in a large bowl. Add other ingredients and toss well. Taste for seasoning. Chill at least 30 minutes before serving.
Oh yes, a personal note for a friend enduring a language pledge this summer (thank you google translator?):
انا نفتقدكم ، اندريا! لا استطيع الانتظار لاتحدث اليكم في عطلة نهاية هذا الاسبوع ، انه يرغب شخصيا.
