Justin & Meredith Winokur's Kitchen Cooking Notebook
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posts/2014/02
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Pepperoni Pizza Rolls (and roasted pasta snack experiment) -- back to top
I made mini pizza rolls to take to a super bowl party. I started with a wonton wrapper, added two pepperoni halves, a bit of (canned) pizza sauce and then some cheese. I folded them and baked them for about 12 minutes.
They came out okay. Nothing amazing. It also didn't hurt that I tried a different brand of pepperoni and it sucked. It was so oily that I actually just tossed the extras. These were a lot of work and I do not think I would rush to do them again. I did make about 50 of them!
I also tried a new experiment. I really like how the wonton wrappers taste when they bake. They get crispy and are flavorful. They are just pasta so I tried something different. I par-cooked pasta, drained it, tossed it with olive oil and then I roasted them.They came out looking like raw dried pasta but a bit easier to eat. Certainly strange. I was inspired by fried spaghetti have had before.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7209, 2014-02-02_102801
Imitation Crab Fresh Rolls and Spaghetti Squash -- back to top
I made fresh rolls and spaghetti squash. First the rolls since that was the bigger thing. I made a bunch for lunch and dinner the next few days. I filled them with sautéd kale, julienne cucumber, julienne carrots and imitation crab. I finely chopped the kale so it was small pieces. And I deseeded the cucumber, but I do not think that was needed. I used a new trick to the paper. Since they are so large, I filled a tray with water and I used that to wet the rice paper. These came out pretty good. Lots of veggies! They took a bit longer to prep and make than I would have liked but it wasn't too bad.
In the background, I made spaghetti squash with sauce. The sauce was a combination leftover pizza sauce from the other day and fresh home-made sauce. I tried something different too. I put a can of tuna in for protein and a different flavor. That was a mistake. It wasn't_bad _per se, but it was strange! Oh well.
The nice thing about this meal is that it made a large dinner portion and a few lunches! And the rolls were pretty. See the pictures below.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7215, 2014-02-03_103636
Cabbage Fritters -- back to top
I made cabbage fritters based on zucchini and broccoli ones. It was actually closer to the zucchini as I used half an onion and I didn't use feta. Anyway,once I had sliced up just half a cabbage, I already had so much so I only used half. And then, through playing, I ended up with a whole cup of flour and 3 eggs. Plus some water. Mixing it was rather difficult but it finally kind of-sort of-maybe came together. I was able to form it and it cooked fine, though I let it go longer. I did 350 for 30 minutes or so, flipped and did another 30 minutes. I should have used a higher heat but they eventually cooked.
They actually tasted really good. I am not sure if it was the batter or the cabbage, but there was a nice subtle flavor. I would do it again but I'd be more prepared for (a) the amount of prep time and (b) the longer cook time.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7220, 2014-02-04_110442
Roasted Broccoli and Seitan Chorizo -- back to top
I made roasted broccoli and seitan chorizo for lunch. I just laid out the broccoli and roasted at 425 (or so) for about 30 minutes. The chorizo was the normal recipe cut in half. I do not know why but I needed to add some more water to get it to all come together. I tried not breaking it into pieces and just chopping as I went. Honestly, it was much easier this way but I didn't like the outcome as much, There were too many kind of burnt crumbs and the rest just wasn't as good. I may try to do a bit of both next time since this was easier; especially with a smaller pan.
Anyway, the lunch was good. Lots of food from the broccoli but few calories.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7224, 2014-02-06_110829
Seared Salmon, Roasted Crispy Potatoes and Roasted Asparagus -- back to top
Meredith and I made an easy dinner. We started with the crispy roasted potatoes I have done before, but with purple majesty potatoes. As I noted the last time, I used a lower heat. I did 450 but kept the 20 minutes. However, I only did the other side for 6 or so. I again just did half-moons since you have to turn them halfway and this helps. They were in fact rather crunchy, though I thought maybe a tad dry.
We did the salmon the usual way on the stove then oven. And, since the oven was already cranked up, we just did the asparagus for 5 minutes with the smoking salmon. That actually gave them a bit more flavor. The 5 minutes at 500 was perfect for "normal" people, though I prefer them a bit more cooked. The salmon came out dry. I do not know if I went too long, the fish was thinner than I am used to, or this was lower quality salmon but it was far from as good as it often is when I cook it this way. Oh well.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7228, 2014-02-06_191211
Coconut Shrimp, Mussels and Roasted Cabbage -- back to top
This was mine and Meredith's anniversary dinner. We had eaten a large lunch earlier so we didn't want anything too heavy so we went with seafood. We had Filipino (I think) coconut shrimp, mussels in white wine and roasted cabbage + broccoli.
Mussels: I did this so I know more about it. I lightly sautéed a bunch of scallions in some oil. Then, as they were almost finished, I added 4-5 minced garlic cloves. When they were all aromatic, I added about half a bottle of cheap white wine (Three Buck Chuck). Finally, I added a bit of crushed red pepper. I used the steamer insert to steam the mussels. Later, I actually decided to do another few minutes to cook them a bit more (this time without the basket).
They were really good, though I was disappointed by the number of dead ones before and after. The sauce was really, really good with the crusty sour-dough bread we bought.
Shrimp: Meredith did this so I am less completes sure of what she did. I think she followed the recipe below with a few major changes.
When she combined it all, it seemed to curdle but that didn't affect the flavor. I really liked them. You could taste all of the coconut flavor (probably from the flakes). I would make this again in a heartbeat.
(as an aside, it calls for 1 lbs of shrimp for two people!!!)
Cabbage: This was nothing special. Just the normal roasted cabbage but with some (old) broccoli that I had around thrown in. Kind of a let down with the other stuff.
Head-On Coconut Shrimp (from Burnt Lumpia)
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Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7232, 2014-02-08_204217
Breakfast: Bacon, Toast and Eggs -- back to top
A pretty easy and simple breakfast. I baked some thick-sliced peppered bacon (from The Fresh Market) and served it with two fried eggs and toast from extra sour-dough from the night before.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7236, 2014-02-09_105645
Indian Seitan and Carrot + Parsnip soup -- back to top
I had done a bit of reading on seitan and most recipes call for a 1:1 vital wheat gluten to water (by volume) ratio. I decided to test it with sausages. I also tried adding all seasonings to the water instead of the dough. I used the following ingredients. I brought it all together and manually kneaded it for 5 minutes. I really liked how it came together. It was easier to form and felt like less of a mass of rubber.
Formed into 5 equal pieces (3 dinner, 2 lunch). Pressure steamed on setting 2 for 25 minutes. (But too much and not good. See below)
I decided to try cooking it like sausages but steaming in the pressure cooker. I do not know if it was the heat, cook time, method (in the aluminum foil) or something else, but I didn't love the texture or the flavor of this attempt. First of all, I forgot the salt! That was pretty noticeable. And too much seasoning. But it just didn't taste like seitan! So, next time, I will do the 1:1 ratio but with more normal ingredients. I think I will still cook it in the pressure cooker but I will simmer (without foil) instead of steam. You can also see that I tried 3 different shapes.
The soup was more straight-forward. I did the following:
I cooked it all for about 20 minutes, immersion blended it, and gave it another 5 minutes. The soup was pretty good. Not overly nuanced like last time but sweet and flavorful. And very easy. It was a bit thick. I would go with another cup of water.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7240, 2014-02-09_213229
Patty Melts and Rutabaga Chips -- back to top
I made low-fat patty melts and rutabaga chips. To make the patty melts, I made two 1/3 lbs patties. After they were done, I sautéd onions in the same pan. I kept having to deglaze with wine but it worked well enough. The onions didn't really caramelize too much but they had a lot of flavor. I then assembled with fat-free thousand island and a bit of shredded cheese. I spread Brummel and Brown "butter" on the outside of the bread and I tried to grill it. It worked better when everything was warm. (I had made lunch for the next day and refrigerated the stuff and then assembled dinner the next day). As you can see from the picture, it came out a bit messy. I was afraid of over-cooking the bread (I burned a slice the day before) and I was just having issues all around. Oh well, it still came out pretty good.
The rutabaga chips were also really good. I played with slice thickness and settled on the second-from-the-smallest (3/8" I think 1/8"). I baked them at 425 for 30 minutes. I flipped them and did another 5. Unlike potatoes, these crisped up really nicely. I wouldn't say they were better since rutabaga has a very different flavor, but I liked them a lot. I will do it again! (note, I may be wrong about the times. I seem to have lost my notes so I am using the best of my recollection)
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7244, 2014-02-11_083607
Cauliflower Fritters and Seitan -- back to top
I made cauliflower fritters with the regular recipe with a bunch of feta, rosemary, paprika, and other seasonings. They came out a bit wet but I was afraid to cook them too much longer as I could smell the cheese melting. So, they were a tad undercooked but really, really good. The feta really adds a lot of flavor! And they are really easy!
I also tried seitan again. I tried to use the 1:1 ratio (by volume) but it really was too wet. I ended up adding extra gluten to make it more doughy. The ingredients (including the gluten are below). I cooked them in the pressure cooker (no aluminum foil) for 30 minutes (Time starts when steam vents, setting 2/10 to hold pressure). I combined the dry ingredients a bowl and the wet in a cup. I mixed them and then hand-kneaded for 5 minutes (timed!) I didn't rest the dough. I keep reading mixed reviews on if that matters
Dough:
Broth:
They were better than last time but still not incredible. They were almost too light and fluffy. I think I need to increase the gluten. Also, I want to work out a measure by weight for both the water and the gluten
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7247, 2014-02-12_083652
Angel Food Cake -- back to top
I made angel food cake. I had 4 leftover egg whites and other eggs I wanted to use up. I got the recipe from the book Ratio which is all about the ratios in baking/cooking. The basic Angel Food Cake ratio is 3:3:1 (I'll come back and add the actual recipe) (Added 2017-07-16: Angel Food Cake).
I used 254g egg whites (from 8 eggs) so the rest scales. This is my first time making this cake and I didn't know what the expect. I also know you're supposed to use a tube pan but they said that a spring-form pan would work. I actually clamped it over parchment paper (and then released a bit, pressed out the air, and clamped again). It still rose up enough and seemed to work fine.
I followed the directions including folding the flour/sugar into the eggs but when I poured it into the pan, I realized I had missed a good amount of flour. So I had to fold the egg white inside the pan (and I then whipped it).
It was fully cooked at 30 min or so. I cooled it upside down. The cake was very, very good. It reminded me of what I have had in the past. The only thing is that it was really a bit too sweet and sticky. Next time, I'll do 3:2.5:1 (or 6:5:2) ratio
[Recipe to follow]
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7432, 2014-02-13_172215
Gimme Lean Sausage Sandwich -- back to top
There wasn't much to this meal. I took half a package of gimme lean and I cooked it on the grill pan. I then put on some of Meredith's homemade harissa (recipe to come...eventually) and then melted some cheese. I put it on two pieces of toasted rye. Really simple, fast and good.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7436, 2014-02-13_172946
Homemade Tuna Sushi and Bahn Mi Garden Rolls -- back to top
We took two Vietnamese dishes and combined them. We used Meredith's Mushroom Pate, sliced cucumbers, Meredith's pickled carrots, sliced jalapeños, cilantro and Pan-Seared Tofu.
The Tofu was based on Kenji's Method (from Serious Eats). You use boiling water to get more water out of the tofu. Then you press the tofu and finally, pan-fry/sear it. You do not marinate it but after it is cooked, you can then put it in the sauce. We used a mixture of TJ's Soyaki (aka Soy Vay), sriracha and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. The tofu was very good.
The rolls themselves were good. Some were better and more tightly rolled than others but they were all flavorful. The mushroom pate got kind of lost in them which is unfortunate since it's so good. A tip Meredith discovered is to put down on the bottom whatever you want to be most visible.
We made tuna, avocado and cucumber sushi. We found that at The Fresh Market, they will sell you still vacuum and frozen sashimi grade tuna for a really amazing price! You just have to ask for the still-frozen stuff. We used that and it tasted fine. No fishy flavor at all. Very clean but flavorful.
Cutting it was kind-of a nightmare. It wasn't clear which way the grain went and we forgot whether or not you are supposed to cut along it or against it. Still, we managed to get the 7ozpiece sufficiently cut.
More details on the rice below.
We made the sushi rice using Alton Brown's recipe (also below). The recipe worked well enough. Some layer of rice burned on the bottom but we carefully scraped off of it to avoid the burned flavor. Otherwise, the only change was to go a bit light on the salt since we (a) had less rice and (b) were using a different and potentially more fine salt.
It came out very flavorful but way too sticky. As you can see from some of the pictures, we had a lot of trouble getting a thin layer on the nori and did not have a great rice coating. I need to read up on how to spread it and/or look at other recipes. I did really like the flavor though.
We forgot to buy wasabi so we served with sriracha (which we also had out for the rolls). And soy sauce. We also had some peanut sauce from Whole Foods that wasn't very good. I mixed in a bit of sriracha which helped a little but not much.
Sushi Rice (from Alton Brown)
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Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7444, 2014-02-16_120721
Sweet and Savory Breakfast Crepes -- back to top
We made crepes for breakfast. I followed the recipe in my Ratio book. It basically called for 2:2:1
I did almond milk, 4 eggs (it's suggestion) and a scant 1 cup flour.
Anyway, I mixed it all and let it sit for about 40 minutes. There were still some flour clumps but it worked pretty well. I kept having some trouble flipping and/or spreading them but they eventually came out. I lost a few but we just ate them without filling. Honestly, I thought it tasted a bit eggy. I wish I had read around because I have since found Alton Brown's which use less egg but more liquid. His isn't as pliable with the liquid choice but I think I would use this as a jumping-off point for next time and I'll modify the liquids as I see fit.
Anyway, I made savory crepes that had scrambled eggs, thick-cut bacon and a bit of Meredith's harissa. Plus salt and pepper. Meredith made sweet crepes. She made two "sauces" out of part-skim ricotta. One had powdered sugar and lemon zest while the other was TJ's fig butter. And she macerated strawberries. We tried a tiny bit of sweetened condensed milk on a few but it wasn't as good as we had hoped.
I folded mine like a burrito which worked fine but I like how Meredith's looked better. She put all of the toppings on a corner and then folded it into a triangle.
I want to explore making other types of crepes by modifying the recipe and fillings. We will see what I come up with.
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Original WP Post ID: 7449
Original WP Pub Date: 2014-02-17_100216
Lentil Moussaka -- back to top
I made the pretty standard Lentil Moussaka at Meredith's. I had a bit trouble with the eggplant because (a) I had to slice it by hand so it was perfectly even and (b), I had to use a gas broiler drawer which I am not used to.
It came out really good. One thing I did was to actually use the parmesan cheese that is suggested. I think that helped a lot. I also did the béchamel with two real eggs instead of 3 egg beaters. I also added a tiny bit extra almond milk and flour to make a bit extra sauce.
I also went heavy on the lentils because I was going to make extra sauce but I ended up not doing it. This made the sauce a bit thicker than usual.
I do not know why, but this held together better than usual. You can see we were able to get real slices out of it.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7473, 2014-02-17_230822
Potato Hash with Fried Eggs -- back to top
I had some leftover potatoes from yesterday's moussaka so I made home-fries. I first sautéd a really small onion and then I put in diced leftover potatoes (They were par cooked from yesterday). As they neared completion, I added some (too much) salt and pepper. I finally topped them with two over-medium fried eggs. A fairly quick and simple breakfast!
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7478, 2014-02-18_094305
Zucchini Fritters and Edamame -- back to top
I wanted a simple and fairly light meal so I madezucchini fritters (no real changes or anything) and some steamed edamame. Pretty straight forward.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7482, 2014-02-18_221948
Roasted Potato Chips, Shishito Peppers, Dip and Chicken -- back to top
This was a big but not-too-difficult meal. I made roasted crispy potato chips (with some experimentation), Shishito / Twist Peppers (with dip) and a sautéed chicken breast.
I have been trying to perfect roasted potato chips and I think this is the closest I have come. I was inspired by the technique for crispy roasted potatoes so that was the basis. I sliced a russet potato into 1/8" slices (second-smallest on the mandoline) and I put them into_rolling_ boiling water with a bit of vinegar and salt for 3.5 minutes. I wanted to make sure I was fully boiling since the time was pretty low. I drained the water, and rinsed them with cold water. I blotted them dry and placed half on parchment paper directly on the dray and half on a cooling rack (see photos below). I sprayed them with pam and the topped them with salt and pepper. I roasted them at 450 for 10 minutes, flipped them, and did another 10.
First of all, the ones right on the pan were crispier. For some reason, the ones on the cooling rack were crispy on the outside but less so in the middle. The chips in general were great! They were the best ones I have ever done in the oven. I wonder if a lower temperature for longer would be better next time? Some were a bit burned. And I wouldn't mind them drying out more. And next time, I'll skip the cooling rack
(This has been added to My Recipe Book)
Meredith and I have had shishitos before at a restaurant and really liked them. We finally found them at an asian supermarket and I brought some home. I roasted them following the directions from Love and Lemons. I did the following:
Layed them out on a tray with Aluminum foil. Sprayed them with pam and topped them with salt and pepper. I sealed it with more aluminum foil and roasted at 450 for 5-7 minutes (I did 7). Then I turned on the broiler, removed the aluminum foil and broiled them. The recipe calls for 2 minutes but they didn't seem done so I did them for 4. Next time, 3 would suffice.
They were pretty good though not as good as the restaurant. I have some left so I will experiment. Many web sites call for doing them in a cast-iron pan instead of the oven/broiler. I'll investigate that.
Exact Instructions:
For the Shishitos: Wrap the peppers in foil with a bit of olive oil and salt, and roast in a 450 degree oven for 5-7 minutes. Open the foil, turn the heat up to broil, and continue roasting for another 2 minutes, or until they begin to blacken and blister.
I had them with a dip I'll explain next.
I threw together a dip with the ingredients you can see in the picture. The base was low fat mayo (which apparently has a "best by" of over 15 months ago. Oops. Oh Well...)
The dip was okay. Nothing too fancy but it served the purpose. I actually really liked it on the chips
The chicken was pretty straight-forward. I flattened out a breast and I topped one side with salt, pepper and Trader Joes 21 Seasoning Salute. I cooked it in a frying pan, seasoning side down, and then seasoned the other side.
Nothing too fancy with it but it was surprisingly good. Not dry and it had enough flavor. I would do it again.
I figured I would include some photos as I went.
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Original WP Post ID: 7490
Original WP Pub Date: 2014-02-21_204123
Roasted Sweet Potato Chips and Spaghetti Squash -- back to top
I made spaghetti squash casserole and roasted sweet potato chips. After last night's success with the chips, I decided to try with sweet potatoes. I did the same thing I did on 2013-12-15(also with spaghetti squash) but I sliced them into 1/8" slices first. I baked them at 450 for 10 minutes, flipped them, and did another 10. Some were crispy but most were a bit mushy. Certainly not as crispy as yesterday's potatoes. I will do more reading and come up with something better.
I also made the pretty standard spaghetti-squash with homemade sauce. It made a lot so I have 2 lunches and 1 dinner. I used a smoked turkey sausage I got at Kroger which I really liked. Though, had I known I was going to get 3 servings, I would have used more links.
So, overall, nothing too amazing but certainly a pretty good meal.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7510, 2014-02-23_205526
Chicken and Broccoli in a White-Bean Bourbon "Cream" Sauce -- back to top
I wanted to make broccoli and chicken in a "cream" sauce but I didn't want the calories. I decided to try to make a sauce with white beans to thicken. I also wanted to add a bit of bourbon to the sauce since I had a cream sauce earlier with dramboie which was really good. I read a bunch of different recipes and settled on doing the following for two servings:
I sautéd
I deglazed the pan as they were done, added a bit of oil and cooked up
When they were cooked, I added
I cooked it for a bit and moved it to a container and immersion blended it (It wasn't deep enough in the pan). I then added
Meanwhile I chopped and steamed about
I sliced the chicken* and combined it all together.
*When I sliced the chicken, I found it was not as cooked as I thought so I sautéd it, sliced, in a separate pan to cook fully.
Overall, the flavor was a bit strange. It had a slight grittiness that could have been from the beans, though maybe form the corn starch. The coconut part of the almond-coconut milk gave it a slightly curry-esque flavor too. Overall, it was not amazing but not awful either. I would certainly try it again and try to improve upon it. I do really like the idea of the white-bean cream sauce since it give it a lot of protein without using real cream. And it is a very filling meal without a ton of calories. The color was also a bit strange but it is hard to see from the photo
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7517, 2014-02-25_102455
Failed Reuben Crepes, then Semi-Failed Reuben Garden Rolls...and Roasted Green Beans -- back to top
After the success of crepes the last time I decided to try to make reuben crepes. I made crepe batter with Alton Brown's Recipe (not copied), halved, and with rye flour. I also used almond milk instead of regular milk, Brummel and Browns instead of butter. And I combined it in a cup and used the immersion blender. I did it in the morning for tonight. It was very thick but I assumed/hoped it would thin with time.
Well, tonight I went to make the creped and it was way too thick. The first one barely spread and was impossible to flip. I added some water and tried again. They also failed so I tried to make it thicker. Nope! They would spread but I couldn't get it to flip. When I would try to pick it up, it tore.
I have a lot of ideas of what may have gone wrong. They are as follows (in a_rough_ order)
So anyway, next time, I will go back to the eggy recipe from last time but I'll use 50% rye flour. You can see the final rye-egg mush I had at the end in the photos
I had all of the stuff out for making reubens (see the photos). So I pulled out the [22cm] rice paper wrappers and made them into garden rolls. I added a tiny bit of the rye mush (so I could say it had rye) and I also added caraway seeds. As you can see from the photos below, they did a pretty good job getting into rolls but I wanted to melt the cheese.
I recalled seeing someone pan-fry the garden rolls so I tried that. I used a thin layer of oil and pan fried them. Well, they did not hold up well. They stuck to the bottom of the pan and tore. The parts that did not stick were quite good. The roll was kind of crispy and bubbly.
I do not know why it didn't occur to me to bake them. It would have been less oil and certainly less rough. Next time.... (update: see this post. Baking worked very well)
Not much to say here. It occurred to me that while I claim the best way to cook all vegetables is by roasting1, I have never tried it with green beans. I read around and settled on 15 minutes at 450. They were pretty good. Mushier but I enjoyed them.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7526, 2014-02-26_090116
Okra may be the exception but I think I should try again. ↩
Baked Breakfast Garden Rolls -- back to top
I was still bummed about yesterday's issues and I had a bit of extra time this morning so I made breakfast garden rolls. The filling was just 2 scrambled eggs and about 1/3 of a Gimme Lean sausage, cut and sautéd. And, when I was assembling, I added a small amount of part-skim mozzarella. (plus some salt and pepper)
I made two with the 22 cm wrappers but I had a lot of extra filling so I made a larger one with the 33 cm wrappers that could hold it all. It was a bit hard wrapping with warm, wet ingredients but it ended up fine. Just a bit loose.
I put them on a baking sheet with non-stick aluminum foil and sprayed them with pam. I baked them at 425 for 15 minutes.
They came out pretty good. Fairly crispy and harder. The cheese was melted (the main reason for baking them) and they held together very well. Clearly, this would have been preferable the day before.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 7530, 2014-02-27_071846