Pigeon Peas

A caribbean staple that does wonders.
Steamed, in rice, in stew, with coconut, "a la vinagreta", in fritters or in hummus.
I just had a huge meal at a Dominican restaurant (El Merengue)160 Blue Hill Ave. Roxbury MA.
Celebrated with a friend the independence of his country from Haiti.
I am so stuffed I can not sit down and write for long but I promise the recipes will follow.
BTW... They are easy to find in almost all supermarkets under the Goya Products.

Sweet no more... Savory Dumplings.

1 cup
Sifted Chick Pea Flour
1 teaspoon
Baking Powder
1/4 Cup
Boiled Pumpkin
4 Whole eggs
Dash of nutmeg
Dash of Cayenne Pepper
or Paprika (Less Heat)
Dash of salt
1/4 Cup of Boiled Cauliflower
1/8 Cup of Tarragon, Chives and Cilantro Chopped.
4 oz. of Luke warm water.
4 Tablespoon of oil or Ghee (Clarified Butter)

Make two batters
1. Runny Batter:
One egg White and 3 yolks
1/4 Cup of Flour
Nutmeg
salt
Water.
Let sit aside on a bowl

2. Solid Batter:
One Whole Egg
and the remaining egg Whites Beaten to soft peaks
Mix in a Bowl Dry Ingredients
Herbs, Flour, Salt, Paprika, Baking Powder
Add the Ghee and the whole egg
Fold the egg whites
Drain the Pumpkin and the Cauliflower and squeeze dry
Fold in the vegetables
You should have a batter that can be rolled into little balls.
If too wet add flour if too dry add some Ghee.

In a deep pan heat corn oil enough to float your dumplings
After rolling all the batter into balls (Do not make them too thick)
Let them rest for one hour under a damp cloth at room temperature.
Dip in the runny batter
and drop to fry in the pan.
Balls that are too thick may not cook through.
Balls that are too small will separate.

Enjoy with tamarind Sauce or Yogurt.

Say Cheese!

Ah! Cheese cake
Childhood memories of happier times.

Silvia's Cheesecake

3 packages of Cream Cheese
4 eggs
3 Half pint Containers of Sour Cream
Graham Crackers (or Maria Crackers)
1.5 Tablespoons of Butter
1 cup Sugar
Vanilla Extract

Separate eggs
Beat in low speed the cheese and 3/4 cup of sugar
add one yolk at the time
add 1.5 Teaspoons of Vanilla Extarct and continue to beat.

Prepare a mold spring or otherwise by covering the inside with butter
Layer a crust of crumbled cookies and butter on the bottom.

Beat the egg whites to a Merengue (Soft peaks)
Fold these egg whites whipping the first wet mixture,
incorporating the merengue gradually as you fold the batter.
DO NOT beat or you will loose the air and end with a flat dense cake.
Pre heat oven 350º
bake 20 min keep checking for firmess

Beat Sour Cream, Remaining Sugar and Vanilla
pour over top of the cake and return to oven
5 min.
take out and let cool.
Serve refrigerated.

I like to serve it with Dark Chocolate Covered Lemon Leafs as a garnish.

Make Dark bitter chocolate Ganache melting it very slowly in water bath.
Carefully as not to incorporate any of the water it will ruin the whole Ganache.
Use fresh lemon leaves when and were available. May use Bay leaves but cover them first in a thin layer of Lemon Essence and Butter. Lemon leaves naturally release their oils and essence as the warm chocolate covers them molding to each vein and creating a copy of the leave in the process. Once cooled separate the leaves and use the chocolate leafs as decorations.

You can also choose to do a sweeter milk chocolate ganache and cover the whole cake, drawing patterns by drippings of white chocolate!

Bored of Koolaid then TEPACHE...

I am not insulting you, I swear!
Tepache is a fermented mexican drink based on Pineapple remains.

Is simple but it may take several days to accomplish.

Here it is:
One large Pineapple (NO Cans)
Cut and save the rinds and core of your Pineapple.
Use the Flesh for any other recipe.
Place in a large Pitcher full of cold water
Add a cup of sugar
Leave outside at room temperature overnight.
Next morning you should see tiny bubbles appear.
Stir and place in the refrigerator to slow down the fermentation
Keep for 4 days
At end of 4th day or so add more sugar
remove all vegetable matter and stir
Skim the top foam.
Add fresh water and enjoy very cold
This is a pro-biotic food
It's Alive!
This Pineapple Cider is great in the summer as it is very refreshing.
You may speed things along by adding some beer.
Traditionally Mexicans use Piloncillo (Brown Sugar) and Cinnamon.
It is commonly made in Taquerias and Puestos, even in jail houses as an alternative to alcohol...
And yes it does contain traces of alcohol, after all it is fermented.
Perfect to settle upset stomachs and perfect with a spring of mint.
Photos from:http://www.lapanzaesprimero.com

Made for TV... Tv Dinner

Making my lunch bags for the rest of the week has turned into quite an adventure as of lately.
Roumaging through my refrigerator to find out what is left to cook or what is left to refurbish.

I decided that, "since cooking has become a chore and less and less time can be dedicated to it", I have to go Industrial.
Looking through the refrigerator to figure out what packs and freezes well enough to create my six to seven ready to eat meals for the work week.

Fried food is not good when it comes to microwaves, green vegetables are a must and protein (in my case from two sources animal and vegetable) and last but not least taste.

What freezing, thawing, cooking, microwaving and transporting can do to your food is a science on its own. But for a small kitchen guy discovering the what's and how's of making your own "TV Dinners" is proving to be daunting.

So even though this post has no recipes to share in my part.
I can share one thing and that is the principles of TV Dinners
1. Separate: Trays have covers and compartments to allow the cooking of either wet items from spilling over to your cherry cobbler or/and to create separate cooking environments as hits items may cook or need to be served at different temperatures.
2. Cover: Plastic sheets, films and or lids create the means to control your foods future cooking mainly by trapping it's own steam. Never mind the fact that they keep your office microwave and lunch bag clean.
3. Food: Food items should be considered for their qualities to freeze, thaw and reconstitute. It is ideal that you consider slightly undercooking your food items as they will be microwaved turning a once tender roast into a rubber ball. Foods that contain gluten or wheat in a dough form do not microwave very well, again turning into rubber as they cool and into brick once they are served. Bread items are not a good idea, sandwiches turn soggy and loose their crust, crunch and to me even flavor.
4. Steam: Vegetables that are high in water contents are better left just blanched and very raw. Freezing will break down their cellular structure and many times more water will be released from them once they are microwaved. Blanching them in scalding hot water and inmediatly in a cold ice water bath releases and reseals the nutrients with in the veggie allowing them t remain there until you microwave.
5. Transportation: Select your container carefully, melting styrofoam and other polysterines can release dangerous chemicals, and though they are marketed as insulating that does not mean heat resistant.
6. Temperature: The higher the sugar and fat contents of a food the greater amount of heat it releases when cooked. (The principles behind that famous dieter's measurement (THE CALORIES).
7. Flavor: Most if not all TV dinner items have a sauce involved in it. Again sauces are a way to retain the flavor, to protect certain items from freeze burn and to distribute heat. Meats cooked in a sauce retain moisture and tenderness. Pastas on the other hand can be doomed if cooked in their sauce, therefore what would have been an "Al Dente" pasta can turn into sauce and glue. Remember the food items will continue to cook so time your pasta to be undercooked so that the sauce can take over once in the microwave.
8. Fresh: Salads are a fresh as it gets right? Well not if you transport them with a dressing on. Separate dressings and treat vegetables and fruits that turn brown before packaging. Bananas, Avocados, Apples, Pears and Peaches can turn black, mushy and unappetizing in many instances as with the avocado changing the flavor to a slight bitterness. Wash with lemon or lime juice all cut fruits. If they are turned into dips or sauces skim the surface oxygen by pouring a thin even layer of olive oil.
That is part of the reasons behind the syrup in those colorful and tasteless fruit cocktails.

Check this story about the origins of TV Dinners:
http://caveviews.blogs.com/cave_news/2005/08/tv_dinner_origi.html

But baby it is cold outside!

Stay at Home Chicken Soup

Water lots
2 lb. Dark meat chicken cuts w bones
Bunch of Cilantro (Coriander)
3 leaves of Culantro (Long Leaf Coriander)
2 large onions chopped
3 Cloves of Garlic
Salt to taste
Two Bullion Cubes

Boil it all until reduced by half.
May add Ginger and Lemon Grass
and serve with Thai Basil, Bean Sprouts and Lime wedges
(Basic Vietnamese Pho)

You can find all the ingredients fresh in a Chinese supermarket...just stay clear of the fish and live els section.
or go online see the resources column.

Happy V.D.

V.D. Valentines day/V.D. Venereal Disease...Humm Coincidence?
Well while we ponder that thought. Here is a love potion.





Love Potion #3

Passion Fruit Sorbet,
Pineapple Mint Granizo
and Rose Ice Cream

Use the juice of a passion fruit strained (Powerfull stuff)
Use only 16 onz to make a 2 pints of Sorbet
Egg Whites(9 eggs)
Sugar

Mix egg whites and froth almost to Merengue
add Passion fruit Juice (As you continue to fold)
add sugar and a pinch of salt (very little)
Spread on a cookie sheet lined with waxed paper.
Freeze for 2 hours
Take frozen mix and churn.

Repeat process use a very riped pineapple otherwise it will be sour
Blend with mint leaves
repeat process with the egg white but use less of them
you may also use unflavored gelatin
place a thicker layer on a cookie sheet with wax paper
mix with shaved ice or freeze in a block and shave it.
Frozen juices can be shaved with a knife be careful though

For the third you need an ice cream maker

1 cup heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
1 cup sugar
5 large egg yolks
1 ½ cups loosely packed, very fragrant old rose petals, washed and spun dry
Method:

1) Prepare an ice bath by placing ice cubes in a large, flat-bottomed container that will hold the bowl where the ice cream will be chilled.

2) Place the sugar and the rose petals in a food processor fitted with the metal blade and make paste.

3) Place the heavy cream, milk and sugar paste in a medium sized saucepan and place on medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Bring to a simmer and turn off heat.

4) Place the egg yolks in a medium sized bowl. Whisk yolks until light; add the hot liquid slowly, while whisking until the mixture is homogenized. Return liquid to saucepan and cook on medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until it reaches a temperature of 180 degrees F. on a candy thermometer or it coats the back of the spoon. Strain the mixture through a fine sieve into a clean container and place in the ice bath. Once completely chilled, freeze in ice cream machine, following the manufacturer’s instructions.

or

Use the egg yolks remaining from the Sorbet
Boil the cream 2 pints with rose escense or water
about 16 onz. and a small strawberry for color.
reduce the liquid
add sugar
let cool and refrigerate.
Using and ice cream maker
let the mixture churn, add the eggs portions at a time
pinch of salt. You may add pink rose petal
Mind you some ice cream makers require salt in the ice.
NOT IN THE ICE CREAM
But salt in a very small quantity can brighten up a sweet dish.

Serve all three in small scoops, with dry Pistachios or Cardamon sprinkled wafers.