Potato Corn Cakes and Grilled Okra

Posted on by tinycookba
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Okay, I’m a little behind on blogging because I made these on Labor Day and am just getting to writing about them.  But they are worth the wait.  First, grilled okra – now I know what you’re saying, “Okra is slimy!”  Last summer I got a big bag of okra in my CSA box and had no idea what to do with it; I, too, was concerned about the dreaded slime.  After doing some research on the net, I found that if you cut the okra in half – not all the way in half, just up to the stem part – then drizzle with olive oil and kosher salt, and grill until charred a bit, you have some great tasting okra that is not slimy.  It really is so good, and every single person who I make it for, loves it.  I saw some okra at the farmers market the other day, so go out and get some and give it a try!

My friend Jess brought over some spicy potato corn cakes from Whole Foods, 2 Labor Days ago.  Two years later I am still obsessing over them – yes, I realize I have issues.  Anyway, after never finding them again at WF, I decided to make my own.  I baked a bunch of potatoes and let them cool and then peeled and diced them.  I also cut the corn off a few cobs and sautéed the kernels in a pan.  I mixed up some diced potatoes, corn, chopped scallions, chopped jalapeno, kosher salt and an egg to bind it together.  Then I carefully made patties and pan-fried them in some canola oil.  Yum!  The combination of potatoes, corn, and a little bit of heat was so damn good!

Canneles

Posted on by tinycookba
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Rum, vanilla – what’s not to love about this cute little pastry?  I have mentioned before that I do not have a sweet tooth, however, one of my exceptions is canneles.  A cannele is a French pastry whose origins can be traced to leftover crepe batter that was cooked in little copper tins, creating a chewy, caramelized exterior, with a creamy, moist interior.  I have tried about 4 or 5 different recipes I found online, and I wasn’t happy with any of them.  Finally I found a great recipe from the wonderful chef, Jacques Pepin, from his cookbook Chez Jacques.

This, by the way, is one of my favorite cookbooks in my collection – wonderful recipes, great stories, and beautiful pictures and paintings, all by Jacques.  Here is the recipe that is in his book.  Recipe notes: I use 1 ½ tsp vanilla and only 2 T of rum,  I add a pinch of gray salt, I brush melted butter inside the molds, and only fill up to within ¼ inch of the top.  The batter is very inexpensive to make, however the silicone molds can get a little pricey.  I have one mini (I just prefer mini things) cannele mold (holds 18), and I’m getting another one this weekend – the reason being is that they take awhile to cook in the oven, so making batches of them with one mold isn’t very realistic.  If you live in LA, you can buy the large and mini cannele molds at Surfas Restaurant Supply – you can also buy large canneles in their café.  If you live in LA and love to cook and have never been to Surfas, please go there immediately (great kitchen stuff, amazing café, and really good cooking classes)!  Also, Hotcakes Bakes on Centinela makes good canneles, if you’re looking to give them a try, which I hope that you do.

The Revelation of Roasted Broccoli!

Posted on by tinycookba
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Looking for a meal to please both the kids and you – and is healthy?  Look no further than chicken tacos with roasted broccoli (this ain’t your boring steamed broccoli)!  I had some organic chicken thighs (better than breasts for tacos because they stay so moist) and corn tortillas in the freezer and immediately thought of tacos.

There is a chicken recipe I’ve wanted to try from Fine Cooking August/Sept 2011 (my favorite magazine), where you marinate the chicken (you could also use fish) in Tamarind soda(Jarritos brand) and soy sauce – check it out here.

I’m not sure the Tamarind soda really came through, all I was tasting was soy sauce, but I still loved it because it tasted like one of those Asian fusion tacos.  I toasted the corn tortillas over a gas flame on my stovetop, which makes them taste so amazing!  Then I let the kids fill their own tacos, which they loved.  Fillings: chopped tamarind soy chicken, shredded sharp cheddar, diced avocado, and homemade salsa.  For the salsa: I grilled some tomatoes just enough to get some charred marks allover them, then threw them into the blender with some white onion, cilantro, jalapeno, and salt.

As for the Roasted Broccoli, heat your oven to 425 degrees and cut florets from either 1 large head of broccoli, or 2 smaller heads.  Put the florets on the sheet pan and drizzle with olive oil and some kosher salt.  Toss everything really well with your hands and spread out.  Roast for about 20 minutes then toss around with a spatula and roast for another 10 minutes or so, or until the stalks are tender.  The broccoli develops little toasty bits all over them, transforming the broccoli to something so tasty that it doesn’t even taste like broccoli.  My kids scarfed them down and then asked for seconds and thirds!

Quinoa Arancini

Posted on by tinycookba
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Perhaps you’ve heard of arancini – basically a delicious fried ball of risotto with cheese in the middle…  I’ve made these before and they are amazing, however, in an effort to eat less white rice, I wanted to make a similar version of these, but with quinoa instead of Arborio rice.  I made this without writing anything down (bad food blogger), but here’s the jist of it:

I made some quinoa according to the package directions, with vegetable stock instead of water – and I added a pinch of salt.  I let this mixture cool in the fridge, then added an egg and some fresh herbs, chopped chives and parsley.  I happened to have goat cheese in the fridge, so I made little balls of cheese and molded the cold quinoa around it.  Then I put a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a sauté pan and cooked the patties (I make patties instead of balls, because it’s easier to pan fry these) until lightly browned on both sides.  These were very yummy – I enjoyed the crisp quinoa on the outside, the chewy quinoa on the inside, and the tangy goat cheese in the middle.  Next time I’d like to try making them with cubes of mozzarella (not fresh, it’s too watery for this) because I like the gooey quality of it.  I highly recommend taking any leftover grains that you have in the fridge and mixing them with some herbs and an egg and wrapping it around some cheese and giving it a little sauté.  You can also dip the cakes into egg and then into panko breadcrumbs or cornmeal before sautéing – although this is definitely easier to do with rice, than with the crumbly quinoa.  And, these are great for a picnic – enjoy!