CINCO DE MAYO

Cinco de Mayo

            The four plus days of April rain in Maine in can mean only one thing – mud! “Mud, mud, glorious mud, Nothing like it for cooling the blood”, go the lyrics of the Hippopotamus song for kids by Flanders and Swann, but I am less amused as I scrape my boots after planting peas in our garden.

            On the other hand, ‘April showers bring May flowers’ may be a more positive outlook. The buds on our pear and peach trees are ready to open, the first yellow tulips are brightening the bed next to our patio and the resident wild turkey is having his annual battle for supremacy with his reflection in our garage window. Spring, Maine style, has arrived.

            One of the various ethnic holidays we have adapted in the US, especially with food, is Cinco de Mayo, on May 5^th. This is a holiday commemorating the Mexican victory over French at that date, followed by the re-establishment of the Mexican government with the help from US.

In the current climate of interest in ethnic food it is easy to find Mexican restaurants, tortillas in every grocery store and salsa and guacamole have become staples in many households. These are convenient and quick staples for a weeknight supper. But, I can still recall a time in early 1970’s when, having returned from a Southwestern vacation, I found it almost impossible to replicate tacos in Philadelphia. Finally, after much searching, I found canned corn tortillas in a small gourmet store in Chestnut Hill, and that is how Philadelphia tacos were born. I still serve them today, except the tortillas are of the more common store variety.

                        Philadelphia Tacos

            Assemble on countertop the following, before cooking the meat: ¼ chopped red onion, 2 chopped tomatoes, 2-3 cups of shredded lettuce, 4 oz. grated sharp cheddar cheese, a jar of premade salsa, mild to hot depending on your taste.  Quickly brown 1 lb. crumbled  ground beef in a large pan, pour off excess fat, stir in a package of Taco mix, ½ cup water and cook stirring until all the liquid is absorbed and keep warm. Quickly heat  6 inch corn tortillas on each side, in a hot cast iron skillet whisked with a bit of oil, about 20 to 30 seconds to a side. Stack 2-3 tortillas per person and keep warm.

            To assemble: lay out 3 tortillas on a large plate, top with a couple of tblsp. of the meat, sprinkle with layers of onion, cheese, tomato and lettuce. Drizzle top with salsa and serve with lots of napkins for wiping your fingers as you eat.

                                    Chunky Guacamole

            In a small bowl mix: 2 tblsp. fine chopped red onion, 2 chopped medium tomatoes, 1 chopped large peeled avocado, ½ tsp. salt, 2 tblsp. white vinegar and 2 shakes Tabasco sauce (optional). Mix and smash everything with a fork to blend, but keep relatively chunky. (Real Mexican protocol is mashing the last step with your hand.) Serve with corn chips.

            For a large group, it is easy to serve Tamale pie as a casserole. This recipe serves six using a 10x6x1 ½ in. baking dish, but it can easily be scaled up to twice the size.

                                    Tamale Pie

            In a large pan brown 1 lb. crumbled beef, remove from pan and set aside. Pour off most of the fat and in the remaining fat sauté until soft: 1 onion and 1 seeded green pepper, chopped . Add 2 chopped garlic cloves and after a minute return the meat to the pan. Stir in: 2 cups seasoned tomato sauce, 1 tblsp, Worcestershire sauce, 1 ½ cups frozen corn kernels, 1 can drained and rinsed black beans, ½ cup pitted sliced black olives, 1 tsp. salt, 2 tsp. sugar, 1-2 tblsp. chili powder, ¼ tsp, pepper. Simmer 20 minutes or until thick and turn into 10x6 inch baking dish. Sprinkle with 1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese. Topping: Stir ¾ cups cornmeal in 2 cups cold water with ½ tsp, salt, bring to boil and cook until thickened. Stir in 1 tblsp. butter. Spoon cornmeal over the meat mixture in thin strips and bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes until browned on top.

            To celebrate Cinco de Mayo with food, these recipes will do the trick. The addition of some beer or a margarita is a personal choice, but either way this is a delicious way to welcome May and spring even in Maine.  

             

(I. Winicov Harrington lives in Waldoboro and is the author of “How to Eat Healthy and Well for Less than $5.00 a Day: the Smart-Frugal Food Plan”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)

EMERGE INTO SPRING!

Emerge into Spring!

            Emerge is such a wonderfully positive word. Just picture a purple crocus emerging on a hillside next to a snow bank or a baby chick from an egg. It seems impossible to link ‘emerge’ with something negative. The cynic may try to tell you that we are now ‘emerging’ into our annual Maine ‘mud season’, but the correct view is that  we have emerged from all those snow banks and gloomy days into days with crisp air and sunshine.

            The Easter Holiday table with bright colors and sprightly flavors set the tone for kitchens and tables for the season. Asparagus has come in it’s rightful season, even if our Maine gardens still do not provide the local varieties. Any leftover baked ham in your refrigerator is going to guarantee many quick, simple and delicious meals for the week(s) to come. Ham slices easily complement breakfast eggs and make great sandwiches on foccacia with cheese, slaw or sauerkraut. In a cream sauce cubed ham goes well on pasta or even waffles. A very different flavor can be had in stir-fries with broccoli, baby corn, mushrooms and some Oyster sauce. Another one of my favorite combinations is a hearty luncheon salad.

Ham and chickpea salad with Parmesan

            Combine chickpeas (garbanzos) from a 15 ounce can, drained and rinsed  with 1 cup of cubed ham, 1 Tblsp. chopped red onion and 2 Tblsp. chopped parsley. Toss with a vinaigrette: 1 Tblsp. olive oil, 2 Tblsp lemon juice (or seasoned rice vinegar) and season with salt and pepper.  Toss lightly with 1/3 cup coarsely grated Parmesan cheese and serve on lettuce.

            And when the rest of the ham is gone, you can still make a hearty bean soup with the hambone. As any old-fashioned farm wife would have told you: “ It can all be used, except the squeal”.

Pan roasted asparagus

            I find an interesting taste variation in pan-roasted asparagus. Prepare asparagus by removing the tough bottom portion of the stalk. Simply snap it off where it breaks naturally. Wash the spears and dry on paper towels. In a large pan melt 1 Tblsp. butter and 2 Tblsp. olive oil. Place the asparagus in a single layer in a pan and roast on medium heat for about 8 minutes, turning the spears with tongs so that they are slightly browned on sides. Remove to a serving platter and drizzle with Oriental vinaigrette: mix 2 Tblsp. light soy sauce, 1 Tblsp. lemon juice, 1 Tblsp. rice vinegar and a pinch of tarragon.

            Living in New England it may seem strange that spring is the time for citrus fruit abundance, but in California and Florida, this is the time when citrus fruit come ripe. For bright spring salads, it is easy to pair variety of citrus fruit with greens for satisfying salads with just the right amount of tang to wake up anyone’s taste buds.

                                Spinach-orange-bacon salad

            Peel a large orange, separate out the individual sections and cut each in half. Crisp fry 2 slices of bacon in in a large heavy pan. Drain bacon on paper towels and crumble in large pieces. Pour off all but 1 Tblsp. of the rendered bacon fat. Set pan to medium low heat and pour in 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar, bring to boil and remove pan from heat, add 3-4 cups of baby spinach, ½ tsp. salt and toss until well coated.  Toss with the cut up orange and bacon pieces and serve.

            Mainers who have lived throughout the many wonderful seasons here are likely to tell you that the euphoria of ‘emergence of spring’ is bound to be followed by that other  emergence mid - May – the black fly. So, enjoy the present!

(I. Winicov Harrington lives in Waldoboro and is the author of “How to Eat Healthy and Well for Less than $5.00 a Day: the Smart-Frugal Food Plan”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)

'BRIGHTEN UP' FOR SPRING

‘Brighten-up’ for Spring

            How disappointing can it get when you are reduced to looking for a dripping roof as a sign of spring? My usual harbinger of spring, a clump of snowdrops by the front step, was unfortunately still buried in a snowdrift from our ‘Ides of March’ blizzard at the time of the official arrival of spring on Monday.

            Fortunately there are already daffodils and tulips in the store to cheer us up for the seasonal change. Our pair of blue and yellow primroses from Green Thumb, has graced our dining table now for a couple of weeks, brightening mealtimes in their blue and white dish. Somehow we feel a need for color after the stark black and white landscape of winter. It may be a bit unseasonal yet to switch to bright salads, but even relatively hearty mealtimes can be brightened by the addition of some colorful ingredients or decorative touches.

            Home cooks have re-discovered a battered breakfast dish that is easy, fast and has a number of colorful toppings, depending whether you favor a sweet or savory breakfast. This dish is the traditional Dutch Baby, which can be made with a variety of colorful toppings.

                        Fruit Topped Dutch Baby

            Place a 10 inch cast iron skillet in the oven and set to 450 degrees. In the meantime in a medium bowl beat 2 eggs until foamy and blend in ½ cup milk, 1 Tblsp. melted butter, 1 tsp. lemon rind, ½ tsp. salt, ½ cup flour mixed with ½ Tblsp. cornstarch. Carefully remove pan from oven, coat with buttery cooking spray and 1 Tblsp. butter. Pour in the egg batter and bake 18-20 minutes, or until puffy and brown. Cut up 1 pint of fresh strawberries, toss with 2 tsp. powdered sugar and ¼ cup slivered almonds. Remove baked Dutch Baby from oven, top with strawberry mixture and serve warm. Instead of strawberries, use blueberries or some other colorful berries or cut up fruit.

                        Asparagus and Bacon Dutch Baby

Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Trim fresh asparagus and cut in ½ inch pieces to make 1 cup. In a 10 or 12 inch cast iron skillet crisp 6 slices of bacon and drain on paper towels. Drain most of the fat and cook the asparagus in a hot pan for 1 minute and set aside. In a large bowl beat 3 eggs with 2/3 cup milk, 1 Tblsp. olive oil, ½ cup flour, ¾ tsp. salt, dash of cayenne. Grate ½ cup fresh Parmesan cheese and toss with bacon and asparagus. Preheat cast iron skillet in oven 3 minutes, melt 1 Tblsp. butter, pour in egg mixture and cover with asparagus-bacon mix. Bake for 12 to 13 minutes and serve hot. Variations of the recipe can be made with only bacon or substituting broccoli florets for asparagus.

            Cauliflower and Stilton Bisque

In a 3 quart pot combine: 1 small onion chopped, 2 minced garlic cloves, 3 cups chicken broth, 2 small potatoes cubed, 3 cups cauliflower florets, 1 stalk celery chopped, 1 tsp. thyme, 1 tsp. salt and pepper to taste. Bring to boil and simmer partially covered for 20 minutes. When slightly cooled, puree with 1 cup half and half, return to the stove to heat before serving. Serve garnished with 2 oz. Stilton crumbles, chopped chives and pomegranate seeds for a colorful and appetizing soup.

For an easy and colorful Friday night supper- skip the pizza and serve a pan of colorful hearty nachos.    

            Hearty Sausage Nachos

Brown ¾ lb. hot Italian sausage without casing for 6-8 minutes, breaking the meat in small pieces. Add 1 red bell pepper, seeded and finely chopped.  Stir in 1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed, 1 tsp. oregano and cook until warm for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in 2-3 tsp. finely chopped picked jalapeňo and 3 chopped scallions. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and spread with 8 oz. tortilla chips. Spoon sausage mix over the chips and sprinkle with 2 ½ cups grated pepper Jack cheese. Bake at 450 degrees for 6-8 minutes.  Top with ¾ cup each fresh salsa and sour cream.

Keeping your meals bright may not make the snow melt any faster, but it may convince us that genuine real spring can’t be too far ahead.

(I. Winicov Harrington lives in Waldoboro and is the author of “How to Eat Healthy and Well for Less than $5.00 a Day: the Smart-Frugal Food Plan”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)

FAREWELL WINTER?

Farewell winter!

            The musings of Candide about “The best of possible worlds” and “The worst of possible worlds” certainly fit our weather pattern these last couple of weeks. There was the Valentine’s day blizzard, then a few spring like days coaxing intrepid clammers out in the estuary, followed immediately with bone chilling days and nights. March has come, but winter seems to refuse it’s hold.

            An impromptu dinner with friends therefore still needed to focus on cold weather fare. With short advance planning and a quick trip to the store, an afternoon with relatively little hands-on time yielded a hearty and satisfying dinner. The centerpiece of which was a pork-butt roast with carmelized onion gravy. With roasted vegetables, red cabbage and baby kale salad we tried to say farewell to winter and anticipate the coming spring.

                                                Pork roast with carmelized onions

            Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Slice 2 large onions and spread in the middle of a 13x9 inch metal roasting pan. Rub salt on all sides of a 4 – 4 ½ lb. butt pork roast and place on top of the onions. Thinly slice 1 large garlic clove and insert in small slits in the fatty part of the roast. Generously pepper the top of the roast and place in the preheated oven. After 10 minutes, turn oven heat to 350 degrees and continue to roast for 2 ½  hours. Remove pan from oven. Set the meat aside to keep warm and place the pan with onions and drippings on a burner on the stove set on low heat to prepare the gravy.

                                                Carmelized onion gravy

            Sprinkle and blend ¼ cup flour with the drippings and blackened onions in the bottom of the pan, then add ½ cup water and scrape up the brown bits and onion-flour mix to make a smooth paste. While stirring add 1 cup additional water and 2 Tblsp. balsamic vinegar and bring to simmer. Correct seasoning and any additional water to the desired consistency of the gravy. Serve hot on slices of the roast pork.

                                                Oven roasted vegetables

            If you are fortunate to have 2 ovens, roast the vegetables near the end of the meat cooking time. If not, roast them before the pork roast, keep covered on the pan while the meat cooks and then reheat at 350  degrees for 10 minutes while making the gravy.

            Peel 4 medium potatoes, 4 carrots and 2 parsnips and cut up in 1 inch pieces. In a small bowl mix together ¼ cup olive oil, 2 Tblsp. balsamic vinegar, 1 tsp. thyme leaves and 1 large minced garlic clove. Toss the cut up vegetables in batches in the oil mixture and spread in a shallow baking dish. Sprinkle with 1 tsp. coarse salt. Roast in a 375 degree oven for 30-40 minutes until tender and browned.

                                                Wine braised red cabbage

            Red cabbage with it’s texture and color is a wonderful winter vegetable, but cooked in water it turns an unappetizing bleached purple color. However, cooked in wine with some vinegar, the rich red color retains it’s appetizing hue. Thinly slice ½ of large red onion and about ¾ lb red cabbage (6 cups). In a large heavy skillet heat 2 Tblsp. vegetable oil and cook the cabbage and onions for 10 minutes, while stirring on moderately high heat. Stir in ½ cup red wine, ½ cup balsamic vinegar, 1 Tblsp. sugar, 1 tsp. salt, ¼ tsp. ground cloves, 1 chopped apple and pepper to taste. Continue to simmer with occasional stirring  for about 15 minutes until all the liquid is absorbed. Can be made ahead and reheated.

            Our nod to the coming spring was in the form of baby kale salad with sliced water chestnuts and dried cranberries dressed with a lemony vinaigrette. Desert was easily assembled from last summers canned-spiced-peaches, a scoop of ice cream topped with a couple of preserved cherries.

            Our relaxed after dinner conversation was a glad farewell to winter and my husband’s noodling of “Danny Boy” on the home organ had us not only looking forward to St. Patrick’s day but also the coming spring.

(I. Winicov Harrington lives in Waldoboro and is the author of “How to Eat Healthy and Well for Less than $5.00 a Day: the Smart-Frugal Food Plan”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)

SNOWBOUND FANCIES

Snowbound Fancies

            Be careful what you wish for! The last couple of months many of us were decrying all that sleet and ice and wishing for some white fluffy snow instead. Well, it came with a vengeance.

            Last week gave us enough wind and that white stuff to go down in the books as the 2017 Valentine’s Day blizzard. It started out with just pretty white flakes floating down gracefully, but in short time the trees and the meadow became a blur and once the windows became plastered with snow, even that view disappeared.

            The birds valiantly tried to hang onto the swinging bird feeder, but one forceful gust even dislodged that and tossed it to the side of a drift on the deck. The wind was building an immense snow drift on the other side of the deck, which ended up as a swirling ‘snow-sail’ more than six feet tall. Next morning it was over and the silence was deafening. Finally there was the sound of the town road plow a quarter mile away. The drifts through our woods though kept their pristine shape until dusk, when our plowman was finally able to demolish the mountain of snow blocking our long and winding drive.

            Times like this a warm kitchen becomes an inviting place for activity. We started the day with a complete breakfast: oatmeal, eggs, bacon, cheese and scallion in one dish – the ultimate scone.

                        Oatmeal, bacon and cheese scones.

            Crisp 4 slices of bacon, drain and roughly crumble. Sift together in a food processor: 2 cups flour, 1 Tblsp. baking powder, 1 Tblsp. sugar, ¾ tsp. baking soda, ½ tsp. salt. Add 1 cup old fashioned oats and pulse 15 times. Add 1 ¼ sticks cold unsalted butter cut in 1 Tblsp. pieces and pulse until mix resembles very coarse meal. Transfer mix to bowl. In a small bowl fork stir 2 eggs with 2/3 cup well shaken buttermilk. Toss crumbled bacon, ½ cup shredded cheddar or parmesan cheese and 2 Tblsp. thinly sliced scallion with the oat mixture. Stir in the buttermilk and mix only until dough forms. Turn out on a floured surface and knead 5-6 times. Divide dough in two and pat into 6 ½ inch rounds. Place rounds on a parchment lined pan and cut each with a sharp knife in 6 sections, separating the sections slightly. Brush with additional buttermilk and bake in a 400 degree oven for 15 minutes. Cool and serve with butter.

            The quiet snowbound day also was conducive to making another one of my favorite winter dishes, cabbage rolls. This is an old East European dish that has the added benefit of being even better on reheating and once made can provide several ready made meals. Some variations of the dish are baked, but this one is cooked in tomato sauce on the stove,

                   Cabbage rolls in tomato sauce.

            Remove any discolored leaves from a 6-7 inch head of cabbage and partially core it with a sharp knife. Bring salted water in a large pot to boil, enough to cover the head of cabbage. Carefully lower the cabbage in the boiling water and cook for 5 minutes. Lift out the cabbage, but keep the water hot. When slightly cooled, peel off the softened leaves from the cabbage until you reach leaves that are too hard to remove. Return the cabbage head to boiling water and repeat the process until you have 16-18 removed leaves. Refrigerate leftover un-softened cabbage and for later use in salads or soups.

In a bowl mix 1 lb. ground beef with 1 medium chopped onion, ½ tsp. salt, ¼ tsp. pepper and 1 Tblsp. Worcestershire sauce. In another bowl mix:12 oz. tomato sauce, 14 oz. can diced tomatoes, 1 Tblsp. white vinegar, 1 Tblsp. Worcestershire sauce, 1 Tblsp. sugar, 2 large chopped onions, 1 cup cabbage boiling water. Place ½ cup of the tomato mixture in a large 4-5 quart Dutch oven and pack the rolls in a single layer on the bottom with folded side down.

To prepare the rolls: a) trim off any hard portion of the bottom of each cabbage leaf, chop it and add to the tomato sauce, b) spread out each leaf, place a heaping Tblsp. meat near the thick part of the cabbage leaf and fold the leaf tightly around the meat as an envelope. Pour some tomato sauce on the filled bottom layer of the rolls and continue with another layer until the meat is used up. Roughly chop any leftover leaves and layer on top, finishing with the remaining tomato sauce and press down to cover. If  there is not enough sauce, add a little of the cabbage boiling water. Bring the pot to boil, then turn down the heat and simmer covered for 1 ½ hours.

It made a warm and satisfying dinner with boiled French fingerling potatoes from our last summer’s garden after a snowbound day.

           

(I. Winicov Harrington lives in Waldoboro and is the author of “How to Eat Healthy and Well for Less than $5.00 a Day: the Smart-Frugal Food Plan”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)