Farro Salad

Farro is a delicious and slightly crunchy variety of wheat. I have read it was a staple in Roman times. We don't hear a lot about it because there are much higher yielding varieties of wheat, which are more profitable to produce. Farro is not too difficult to find, and it is well worth the search.

I added 3 cups of farro to eight cups of water in a pot. After it starts to boil, reduce the heat to medium , cover and let it cook for 20 minutes. Add a little salt, reduce the heat further and simmer for an additional 10 minutes. The grains will be al dente. Drain, place in a mixing bowl and let cool to room temperature.

At this point, you can add whatever veggies you'd like. I reconstituted some dried Roma tomatoes and chopped them roughly. Cut up some yellow onion and some radishes from the garden. Finally, I cooked some frozen green beans, put them under cold water and drained them well.

All of the vegetables are mixed into the farro. I have made this before with varities of sweet peppers, olives, asparagus, pea pods, scallions... You get the idea.

We are entertaining a friend who is vegan this evening, but you could add meat as well. I suppose.

Use your imagination. Be whimsical.

The dressing I made is based loosely on that for Greek horiatiki salad. I whisked together some red wine vinegar, olive oil, a spoonful of Dijon mustard, some black pepper and a generous, a very generous spoonful of dried oregano.

Mix the dressing into the salad thoroughly. This can be refrigerated, but it is best, in my opinion, at room temperature.

I plan to serve it with some leaves of a few varieties of lettuce. Not ice burg mind you, but you could.

Bon appétit!

Bulgogi

Bulgogi is a Korean griddled beef dish. I made it for JongSeob, our Korean student as part of his graduation dinner. Along with cheeseburgers.

Sirloin steak is sliced very thinly, tenderized with a mallet and cut into bite-size pieces. Susie did the meat prep because of my ailing arms.

The marinade consists of finely sliced Asian pear, yellow onion, sliced scallions, crushed garlic, sesame seeds, sugar, soy sauce sesame oil and black pepper.

The meat marinates for about an hour. No more than two hours or it will become too salty.

The meat along with the marinade is cooked in a pan over medium heat until cooked through. The marinade forms a glaze on the meat and the excess can be served over rice, or used as a dipping sauce.

Quite simple really.

I served it with rice and lettuce leaves from the garden. Meat and rice is rolled into a lettuce leaf and then enjoyed. Thoroughly.

We all loved it. It was so delicious, and so simple to make. It will happen again. Sooner rather than later.

Bon appétit!

Duck Eggs in Potato Crusts etc...

An on-the-fly name for something I winged from the outset. I'd welcome better name ideas.

This was a little time-consuming for me, but worth it in the end.

I started by grating a couple red potatoes and then wringing as much water out of them as I could. (A little tricky considering my recent and lingering injuries). I tossed the potatoes with a little melted butter and then used the mixture to form little crusts in a lightly-oiled muffin tin. Into a 450° oven for a half hour, or until golden and crispy.

On to the assembly. I placed a mozzarella ball in each cavity, then added a fresh duck egg from the back yard. I finished by adding a pinch of fresh finely-chopped chives to the top along with a little salt and pepper. That went back into the oven (now at 400°) for 20 more minutes.

After ten minutes I put the asparagus, also from the garden, into the oven. I love asparagus cooked this way. Simply roll the spears in a little olive oil that has been spread on a cookie sheet, then season however you'd like. This morning I used a little alderwood smoked salt.

During the final ten minutes of baking, I cut the English muffins and got the Canadian bacon ready for assembly.

Next came the Hollandaise sauce. I don't think I could ever be a saucier like Chef in Apocalypse Now! I just don't have the patience for whisking anything over low heat until it thickens. But, I did it anyway. Two egg yolks (this time chicken, from the store) and two tablespoons water, until frothy, then over a double boiler on low heat, until thickened. One third cup melted butter is then slowly whisked in. Slowly, to keep the sauce from breaking. Finish it off with a little lemon juice, some white pepper and a pinch of salt.

We are just about ready to eat.

Toast the muffins, place a slice of Canadian bacon on each, add a potato-crusted egg thingy (that is the technical term for you novices out there), and spoon a little sauce over the top. Don't forget the asparagus!

This came out really nice. Even the sauce, although I would be a little more patient while adding the butter. It did separate a little. Susie woke up when the muffins were just about done toasting, just in time to eat. She is finishing up the dishes as I write this.

Bon appétit!

Savory Cinnamon Rice

This dish is all about the cinnamon. A friend brought me a big honkin' stick of cinnamon bark from her recent trip to Vietnam. "Honkin'" is the most appropriate adjective. Trust me. I was thinking of a side dish for dinner and happened to remember the cinnamon. But what could I do with it? Rice popped into my head. Well, why not?

First I preheated the oven to 350°.

I started by melting a couple tablespoons of margarine over medium heat, in an oven-proof skillet. I added a yellow onion that had been finely diced and cooked it until it was translucent. Then I added a cup of white rice and a couple ounces of whole wheat noodles that had been broken into small pieces. I cooked this for about a minute, stirring constantly. Next I added a little salt and about a teaspoon of freshly grated cinnamon. I used my microplane for the grating. It worked wonderfully. I gave the skillet a quick stir and added a can of chicken stock.

The skillet is covered and placed in the preheated oven to cook for about a half hour, or until the liquid is absorbed. Fluff the rice a little and serve.

This came out beautifully. The warmth of the cinnamon added a really nice depth to the rice and noodles that was a great complement to the grilled pork chops with which it was served. The simplicity of the flavors didn't try to steal the show from the entrée. Definitely something I will be making again, with little if any variation.

Sorry, no picture.

Bon appétit!

Key Lime Cheesecake

The days of payday cheesecakes may be behind me, but I still make a mid-month cheesecake for Susie to take to the good people at Benton County Mental Health. This month she requested a Key Lime Cheesecake. Who am I to argue? Especially since they usually save me a slice after the feeding frenzy has subsided.

For the crust I used Golden Oreos. Golden Double-Stuffed Oreos. No need for butter with all that creamy filling serving as a binding agent. I pressed the crumbs into my parchment-lined cheesecake pan and put it in the freezer to set.

Cream cheese and sugar are beaten on medium-high for 3 minutes. No more. No less. The number is three. I digress, but tip my hat to the Pythons. I turn the mixer down to medium at this point. Two eggs plus two egg yolks are incorporated, one at a time. Then key lime juice and vanilla are added. Finally, I gently mix in a tablespoon or so of lime zest. Just for the visual effect.

The mix is poured over the frozen crust and placed in a 325° oven for 45-55 minutes. I placed a pan with some water on the lower rack to try to keep the air moist and hopefully, prevent the splitting that sporadically plagues my cheesecakes. (For the record: It worked).

While the cake baked, I mixed up the topping. Sour cream, sugar, key lime juice and vanilla are mixed together in a small bowl.

After 45 minutes, I removed the cake from the oven and let it cool for ten minutes on a wire rack. (Leave the oven on!) I then, very carefully, poured the topping on the surface of the cheesecake. Even more carefully, I spread the topping evenly over the entire surface. To finish it off, I sprinkled a bit of lime zest over the topping.

Back into the oven for five more minutes, and the cake is done. Allow it to cool for a couple hours before covering with plastic wrap and refrigerating.

I'll have to wait for reports from the mental health workers to see how it came out, but if the batter that I "cleaned" off the mixing bowl, paddle, and spatula is any indication, it will be delicious.

Bon appétit!

Focaccia

From an article in The Register-Guard. I love focaccia and learned that it is not for sandwiches. Traditionally that is. I thought I'd go the traditional route with it.

The "sponge" is made by sprinkling yeast over warm water and whisking it, then setting it aside for about 10 minutes until it is creamy. A cup of flour is then mixed in and it is covered tightly with plastic wrap and set aside for a half hour, until it has risen and is puffy and bubbly.

In my stand mixer, I combined the sponge, 1/2 cup water, 1/3 cup white wine, and 1/3 cup olive oil. I used the paddle attachment for this part. 2 1/2 cups of flour, and two teaspoons of coarse salt are incorporated, and when the dough comes together, I switched to the dough hook. I let the mixer go for a few minutes, stopping a couple times to push the dough down off the hook.

The dough is removed from the bowl, and with a couple spoonfuls of flour, is kneaded for six to 8 turns, at most. The dough should be soft, but not wet.

Place the dough in a bowl that has been lightly oiled, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and allow to rise until it has doubled in size. This takes about an hour.

Oil a jelly roll pan well, and press the dough into it, working it out to the sides. If the dough springs back, let it rest a couple minutes until it stays in place.

At least a half hour before baking, pre-heat the oven to 425° and place a baking stone on the next to the lowest rack. (The recipe says the lowest rack, but you need to place a shallow pan of water under the stone when you bake the focaccia).

With your fingers, dimple the surface of the dough. Then drizzle a little olive oil over the surface, allowing some of the oil to pool in the dimples. I spread, sparingly, some thinly sliced red onion, some rosemary needles, and some quartered kalamata olives over the oiled dough. I finished by sprinkling about a teaspoon of coarse kosher salt over the top.

Place the pan in the oven and immediately reduce the heat to 400°. On the lowest rack, place a shallow pan of water to provide steam during the baking process. Bake the focaccia for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown.

Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack. Enjoy immediately, or at room temperature.

We enjoyed it immediately, and continued to do so until it reached room temperature. There was only about one fourth of the focaccia left at that point. It was excellent!

Bon appétit!

Chocolate Truffles

For Valentine's Day, I thought I'd make Susie some chocolate truffles. They are pretty easy to make. All things considered.

Cream is brought to a simmer and then butter is added. When the butter has melted, the chocolate is added. (I used bittersweet, 60% cacao). This is stirred until all the chocolate is incorporated and the mixture is smooth and glossy. At this point, it is basically a ganache.

The ganache is poured into a bowl, covered with plastic and refrigerated for several hours until firm.

With a melon ball scoop, or spoon, or whatever, form the mixture into balls and roll them in whatever strikes your fancy. I used chopped nuts, unsweetened coconut, powdered sugar, and unsweetened cocoa powder. Not all mixed together. See the picture for what I mean.

I placed each truffle in a mini cupcake paper cup and put them in a box.

I think Susie will like them, perhaps more than I liked licking the mixing spoon and bowl.

Bon appétit!