Food By Franz

Prosciutto and Pea Pasta

manx — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 16:50:29 +0000

Prosciutto and Pea Pasta – It is “Pea Fect” for a cozy couples night dinner.

Prosciutto – it’s the Italian word for ham. It taste is nothing like American ham. Cured for at least months – Prosciutto has a wonderfully spicy and smoky taste that will open your taste buds. This is an easy and economical dinner. The prosciutto is reasonably priced and available locally at any major grocer or Italian deli. Locally, Granatos is my favorite stop, they have multiple types of this ham, that they will slice to order – making it especially economical!

1 3oz pkg of Prosciutto
1/2 onion, sliced thin
garlic clove – minced
1 C frozen peas
2 tbsp flour
2 tbsp butter/oleo
1.5 C milk
Ground Pepper
basil (3 leaves of fresh chopped finely or 1/2 tsp dried)
topping options – parsley and or hard grated cheese – Parmesan, Romano, Asiago
8 oz pasta of your choice (- linguine, penne, any hearty pasta works nicely)

Slice the prosciutto into thin strips, saute In a 10″ pan until slightly crisp (about 4 minutes). Set aside – in the same skillet – saute the thin sliced onions, add the garlic and butter – after the butter is melted – add the flour – mix well and allow the flour/butter to cook for about 3 minutes – add milk and stir thoroughly – this will thicken up in several minutes. Add the prosciutto, peas and pepper back to the pan and allow to heat through. Serve over pasta of your choice. Sprinkle with Parmesan or Romano cheese and/or parsley if they are handy –

This is a hearty meal for two – but if your hubby is like mine – he LOVES his pasta and will finish all of this. Recipe may be doubled, but only use 5oz of prosciutto as it will over flavor the sauce. Notice that there is no salt added to this recipe – the meat provides all.
One note – if you see Prosciutto De Parma or Prosciutto De Angelo – it denotes the area of Italy that it was made!

Irish Recipes

manx — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 16:40:12 +0000

From reading about Irish cuisine, it appears to be going through a revolution. Upscale restaurants featuring native resources are key – seafood and native produce being featured. Never one to give up heritage, the recipes are usually a twist on the traditional. Below are some very old traditional recipes.

Champ, Colcannon and Boxty – ever heard of them? They are all Irish born and some even have songs written about them, ie:

Boxty on the griddle,
boxty in the pan,
if you can’t make boxty,
you’ll never get a man.

Boxty is a recipe of potatoes, some mashed, some grated – the basic recipe calls for 1/2 lb raw potato, 1/2 lb mashed potato, 1/2 lb plain flour, 1 egg, Milk to mix and some salt/pepper. Grate raw potatoes and mix with the cooked mashed potatoes. Add salt, pepper and flour. Beat egg and add to mixture with just enough milk to make a batter that will drop from a spoon .Drop by tablespoonfuls onto a hot griddle or frying pan. Cook over a moderate heat for 3-4 minutes on each side. Usually served with a tart apple sauce or as part of an Ulster Fry.

Another song is about Champ, the Irish version of mashed potatoes.

There was an old woman
who lived in a lamp,
she had no room
to beetle her champ.
She’s up’d with her beetle
and broke the lamp,
and now she has room
to beetle her champ.

Champ is made by taking a couple of pounds of potatoes, wash and peel the potatoes and chop into large chunks; chop the scallions. Boil them together in salted water until tender, usually about 12-15 minutes. Drain them carefully and allow to steam dry over very low heat, covered with a cloth. Then mash well. Heat the milk (or half milk, half cream) in a pan on the stove or in the microwave. When hot, gradually add the milk to the mashed potatoes and blend well to make a soft but not wet or sloppy mixture. This is where is gets Irish – Heat four bowls or plates and split the mashed potatoes among them. Grind pepper over each serving: then press a well into the top of each. Put a lump of butter in each well, and serve immediately. The idea is for each bite to be dipped in the butter well before eating. Sounds good, eh?
Colcannon - every Irish mother had its own version – basically mashed potatoes and cabbage or kale, some onion, milk, butter, salt and pepper. Some refry this mix and break it up, drizzling butter over all. Some add a touch of mace and reheat gently. You get the idea.

Cheese and Onion Soup

manx — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 16:36:36 +0000

This is a warming, smooth soup – great as an lunch or as a pre-dinner appetizer. The english version of this soup is served with “mustard toasts”. Some garlic cheese croutons are a great topper for this, too.

2 Tbsp butter
2 med. onions, fine dice
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbsp flour
1/2 tsp dry mustard powder
2 C milk
1/2 C of chicken, vegetable stock or white wine
S & P
4 oz Cheddar cheese, grated
salt, pepper
dash of savory
dash of thyme

In a large saucepan, add the butter and onions – cook gently for about 12 minutes until soft (not browned) add garlic, flour and mustard – cook for another 3 minutes. Remove from heat and gradually add the milk and stock – whisk over medium heat until it boils. Soup should thicken as it comes up to temp. Remove from heat and stir in the cheese. Taste and add seasonings – adjust

To make mustard toast – take thin sliced bread, spread with butter and mustard, grill until crisp and golden. Cut into fingers and serve with soup.

Peas

manx — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 16:13:46 +0000

Those green spherical multiple units from the pod. Its one of those vegetable/fruit questions – yes, they are technically a fruit from a legume. There are different kinds of peas that we are all familiar with – garden peas(english), snow peas(sugar), snap peas, field peas (split peas)..and something called a southern pea, which is really a cowpea and grown like beans. There health benefits are numerous – low calorie, hi-fiber, loaded with vitamin A, C, K and Folic Acid – these are literally green gems for your diet.

Historically, peas have been a staple food for thousands of years – they are mentioned in the Bible and prized by ancient Romans, Greeks and Egyptians. More recently Louis 14th (of France) had them on his menu. The Dutch are credited with the development of the snow pea in the same era as Louis. Snap peas are a recent addition, being a cross between a garden and snow pea.

Frozen garden peas are an easy alternative during the winter and they do not lose a lot nutritionally from being frozen. Use peas in salads, stews, pasta’s. Snap peas in a lunch bag make a wonderful alternative to celery sticks. Mushy peas, split pea soup, peas with butter and mint, in green curry with chicken and basil (yummy – one of my favorite Thai dishes) – good in fried rice, too! Lots of ways to add the nutritional wonder of the peas -

Check out this breakdown – In a 1/2 cup of cooked garden peas – Only 67 calories!

Peas are an annual, cool weather vegetable. Only 60 days will bring a crop to your table. They prefer temperatures between 50 and 80 – so they are a great spring and fall crop. Peas will vine and be somewhat self supporting, but do best will a trellis or some type of support to cling to. They are a great “companion plant” in the garden and are compatible with carrots, cukes, turnip, radish, beans and herbs – they do not prefer to be planted next to onions or garlic. When buying peas, remember that younger is more tender – if the pods are scarred, or tough, chances are the peas inside will be starchy. What a wonderfully sweet way to add such value to your meals. Easily grown – even here in our little ol’ four letter state!

Interesting Facts About Peas

Peas are a good source of vitamin K – some of which our bodies convert into K2, which activates osteocalcin, the major non-collagen protein in bone – important to bone mineralization.

In China – the pea sprout and pea leaves are considered a delicacy

Peas contain purine – so individuals with kidney problems or gout may want to limit intake of purine-containing foods such as green peas

Although botanically peas are a fruit, it is treated as a vegetable in cooking

Cutest Pea Poem Ever -

I eat my peas with honey;
I’ve done it all my life.
It makes the peas taste funny,
But it keeps them on the knife.

Peppercorn

manx — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 16:08:43 +0000

Peppercorn
Talk about being under-appreciated! Just a century or ten ago this substance was demanded in ransoms! Shipped and traded worldwide, highly prized, once regarded as a privilege for the rich….now, we hardly notice the stuff sitting in its own shaker next to the spot light loving salt. Poor Pepper! Although it is the “Worlds Most Popular Spice” – no spotlight here! Thank goodness the comics don’t realize that it is actually the fruit (called drupes) of a flowering vine – it could have been the beginning of pepper prejudice!

With Pepper’s brilliant history – prized in Greek and Roman cooking, recorded in Marco Polo’s journals – how many other spices have those claims? From having your own guild established (London 1179) how does one become so common, that it hardly rates a sneeze now and again….no pun intended – BTW, did you know that its the piperine substance in pepper that makes one “achoo”…but I digress.

All three peppercorns – black, green and white all come from the same plant, but have different effects on the palate. Per the tasting experts – black peppercorns are the hottest and most intense pepper flavor of the three Green peppercorns have a “fresher” flavor and less pungent than either black or white. White peppercorns are milder than black and have a bit of a “musty” taste. Each has wonderful uses – Culinarily it is a spice we cannot do without – amazingly versatile, it has so many uses in cooking ie:
Poaching or cooking liquid for any meat
Marinades, dry rubs, seasoning mixes
Vinaigrette’s, salad dressings, sauces
egg dishes, potato and tomato dishes,
Soups/Stews/Olios – any meat, bean or vegetable combo
white pepper in most sauce that you do not prefer black specs
Pepper can be used in almost any dish that is not sweet – although there is one exception there…the German cookie “pfeffernusse”.

Pepper Parentage: A flowering vine (Piper nigrum) that produces clusters of drupes (or berries) – that is where our humble spice, Pepper comes from. Originally cultivated on the African coast, India and Indo coastal regions – it is now grown in India to Malaysia and exported worldwide. Piper nigrum can be harvested multiple times during the year – it just depends on when the berries are harvested as to the color. The green are picked as immature, the black – just before ripe and dried. White pepper comes from the fully ripe berries and are hulled to reveal a gray/white kernel.

And pink peppercorns – Forggettaboutit! They are even real peppercorns – they are from another plant entirely (S. Terebinthifolius) which is a brazillian pepper! Pink peppercorns are commonly added to peppercorn mixes commercially.

Cajun Angels

manx — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:51:20 +0000

Simple to make, a great finger food for a party or anytime appetizer!

Happy SuperBowl

1 lb shrimp – the 16-24 count work best
1/2 pkg thin bacon
long wooden toothpicks
3 Tbsp cajun or blackening seasoning mix
1 Tbsp brown sugar

Soak/submerge about 20/25 toothpicks in water for about 30 minutes prior if you have time – it keeps the pic’s from burning! De-vein shrimp, lay feet down and lay a single strip of bacon (cut to just cover the shrimp – one small piece of bacon per shrimp) tuck in the ends around the small part of the shrimp – start your toothpick there and spear up through the top part of the bacon. Lay bacon side up on a tin foil lined baking sheet. Mix together the brown sugar and cajun or blacking mix – sprinkle this over all the bacon backed shrimp. Broil on low (lower shelf if you need to) until the bacon is crispy about 6-10 minutes.
These are a wonderful appetizer plain, or serve them with a light mustard sauce or a sweet chili sauce for a buffet type service.

Gumbo

manx — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:39:21 +0000

Gumbo is a cajun soup/stew that has African origins. There are as many variations of gumbo as you can imagine, some include chicken, ham and or fish chunks. The one thing they all have in common is the okra, its used as a thickening agent. This version serves 3-4 servings with rice.

Ingredients:
1/2 stick butter/oleo/vegetable oil
4 Tbsp flour
1/2 C chopped pepper (typically a bell pepper is used, but I prefer an yellow wax or anaheim)
1/2 C chopped celery
1/2 C chopped onion
pinch each of cayenne pepper, black and white pepper (add a pinch of hot paprika if you like it spicy!)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 C okra (frozen is ok)
1 tomato, peeled & rough chopped
1 bay leaf, crumbled
1/4 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp oregano
1/2 lb shrimp (peeled and deveined)
1/2 lb andouille sausage, cooked and crumbled (smoked polish can be substituted)
2 C broth (chicken, vegetable or shrimp)
1 C rice – cook and fluff

Make a roux of the first two ingredients – keep stirring until its a very brown color (2 cautions – Do not get any on you and don’t let it burn) – when the color gets past “peanut butter” – add the pepper, onion, celery, garlic, red and white pepper -allow the veggies to start to soften up – remove from heat. Heat your broth and slowly add to the roux, making sure that it gets thoroughly mixed. Add your okra, sausage, tomato and the rest of the spices. Allow this to simmer for about an hour. Toss in the shrimp about 10 minutes before your ready to eat – adjust seasonings at this point- a dash of salt? Serve gumbo over the rice in bowls.

One note – Locally Sniders Meats sells a wonderful cajun/andouille sausage that is reasonably priced.

I found this cajun/creole cookbook written in 1885 – should be some interesting reading!

Oregano

manx — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:34:07 +0000

The proper name for the culinary herb oregano is Origanum vulgare – now I don’t know about you, but the vulgare part of the name is somewhat bothersome, eh? Oregano is a member of the prolific mint family. A perennial herb (*in most climates), oregano has an aromatic, warm and slightly bitter taste. Its leaves are coarse, oval, and fuzzy. Leaves are about 5/8 inch long; they are dark green when fresh and light green when dried. It is the leaves that are used in cooking, and the dried herb is often more flavorful as the fresh ounce for ounce. Important as a culinary herb and widely used Greek, Italian, Spanish and Turkish cooking.

Oregano is native to several areas of the globe – Europe, the Mediterranean region and southern and central Asia. Spread throughout the world by trading ships – its ability to be dried and stored made it a valuable commodity.
Oregano Cut & Sifted – 2 Lb Oregano, Cut & Sifted: GR
Oregano is a very hardy plant – easy to cultivate, easy to harvest and use. It varies in intensity; good quality oregano is so strong that it almost numbs the tongue, but cultivars adapted to colder climates have often a less intense flavor. The influence of climate, season and soil on the composition of the essential oil is greater than the difference between the various species. Oregano requires pruning or it will become rangy. It has very few pests and its blossoms attract good pollinators.

Often used in tomato sauces, fried vegetables, and grilled meat. Together with basil, it contributes much to the distinctive character of many Italian dishes. Oregano combines nicely with pickled olives and capers. Oregano is an indispensable ingredient in Greek cuisine. Oregano adds flavor to a Greek vinaigrette, is essential to the lemon-olive oil marinade for souvlaki. Useful in seasoning many fish dishes.

Interesting facts according to Wiki:

Oregano is high in antioxidant activity, due to a high content of phenolic acids and flavonoids.
Oregano has demonstrated antimicrobial activity against food-borne pathogens – these characteristics may be useful in both health and food preservation.
In southern Philippines oregano is used when boiling carabao or cow meat to eliminate the odor of the meat

Okra

manx — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:29:42 +0000

Okra

Okra – It has some very popular relatives like cocoa, hibiscus and cotton – they are all members of the Mallow family of plants. The scientific name is Abelmoschus esculentus. The fruit of this plant are the okra pods – they are green, cylindrical, tapered and full of edible white round seeds. Okra is a source of b vitamins, folic acid, magnesium, potassium and vitamin C. Okra also contains a soluble fiber and the oil (from okra seeds) contains oleic acid and linoleic acid.

Abelmoschus esculentus is among the most heat- and drought-tolerant vegetable species in the world. It will tolerate poor soil and heavy clay and intermittent moisture. The pods are not very frost tolerant.
The products of the plant are mucilaginous, resulting in the characteristic “goo” when the seed pods are cooked. In order to avoid this effect, okra pods are often stir fried, so the moisture is cooked away, or paired with slightly acidic ingredients, such as citrus or tomatoes. The mucilage effect can also be much lessened when simmering the pods by adding vinegar. The cooked leaves are also a powerful soup thickener.

Orignally from tropical africa, it was introduced to the Egyptians and Moors in the 12th century – they used the word “arab” for okra. Distributed by sea it became popular throughout the Mediterranean countries. The slave trade brought the plant to the America’s. It was documented in Brazil in 1658 and was well established as a crop in Virginia by 1781as noted by Thomas Jefferson.

In use around the world – recipes abound – can’t make a gumbo without it! In southern USA is it commonly breaded and deep fried. Frango com quiablo (chicken with okra) is a Brazilian dish. In Nepal, okra is called Rom Toriya, commonly fried with tomatoes is a national dish. It is also an expected ingredient in Callaloo – the national dish of Trinidad and Tobago. In western India okra is one of the most popular vegetables of all and is often cooked in daily meals – generally stir-fried with spices and some sugar. Okra leaves may be cooked in a similar manner as the greens of beets. The leaves are also eaten raw in salads. Immature pods can be pickled.

Interesting facts:
Slaves roasted okra seeds to brew decaf coffee like beverage
Okra is called lady fingers in many countries
It has been used as a “cold remedy” The pods are a plentiful source of mucilage (the mucus-like substance that gives okra its characteristic slimy texture). Mucilage soothes irritation while reducing swelling and pain.

Peppers

manx — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 16:35:10 +0000

To go along with the Recipe of the Month (ROM) Chili’s are this months veggie de jour. Chili peppers are actually a fruit (but don’t tell them!) from the genus Capsicum, members of the nightshade family, Solanaceae. Peppers are commonly broken down into three groupings: bell peppers, sweet peppers, and hot peppers. Peppers are used in most non-European cuisines, but are essential to Indian, Asian, Spanish, American Southwest and South American cooking from Mexico to Patagonia.

Easy to cultivate (yes, they even grow here in Utah), tasty, from warming to insanely hot depending on the variety – chili peppers add a whole new dimension to your dishes. They have a lot of nutritional value, including calcium, iron, magnesium, Vitamin A & C. No wonder most of the world’s cook use peppers in some way, fresh, dried, ground or smoked.

Here’s a rundown of the most common, locally available chili peppers.

Anaheim: Mild. Six to eight inches in size and bright, shiny green. Can be roasted and peeled, often stuffed or added to salsas.

Ancho: Anchos are mild to moderately hot and often soaked and ground for use in sauces. Sold dried (fresh they are poblanos). Dried anchos are flat, wrinkled, and heart shaped. They range in color from very dark red to almost black.

Cayenne: Hot – comes in a variety of colors green, yellow, orange, or red. Long, skinny, and wrinkled in appearance, 4-12″.

Cherry: Mild to medium hot. Round and red like a cherry. Sold fresh or pickled in jars.

Habanero: Insanely Hot! Typically orange but they can be green, red, or yellow. Uniquely shaped like a lantern and typically about 2 inches long. Can irritate skin on contact – use of gloves is recommended to handle these hot babies. Can be dried, sometimes called scotch bonnett.

Jalapeno: Hot with a bite – most often a deep green when mature but sometimes red. Use whenever recipe simply calls for hot chili peppers. They can be fresh or canned. When smoked, jalapenos are called chipotles.

Poblano: Medium. Poblano peppers are the deepest green, almost waxy looking. Great for stuffing. They can range to hot.

Serrano: Medium Hot to Very Hot. Sold red or mature green and about 1 to 3 inches in length (looks like a miniature jalapeno). Can be found canned, pickled, or packed in oil with vegetables. Often served in Thai or Mexican dishes.

Chili peppers have been used in cooking for a long time – there is archaeological evidence at sites located in southwestern Ecuador that chili peppers were domesticated more than 6000 years ago and is one of the first cultivated crops in the Americas that is self-pollinating. They were originally grown in the America’s – transported to the rest of the world through Asia, chili peppers spread rapidly into the islands on shipping routes and then to India, China, Korea, etc.

igourmet 1-lb. Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce