Bean and Rice Salad

This is a recipe that I made up as I was making the dish. I did search the internet for recipes similar but ended up just doing my own thing. The adults ate it and loved it. I didn't even try it with the kids.

1 cup brown rice

2 cups water

pinch of salt

Cook until brown rice is cooked. Then allow to cool off.

In a bowl add:

1 can or 2 cups cooked beans (I used pinto since it was all I had but kidney would have been better I think)

cut the corn off of 2 ears of corn or use 2 cups frozen or a can of corn

5 green onions sliced thin

2 garlic cloves minced

cooled cooked brown rice from above

Mix together in another bowl:

1/3 cup vinegar

1/3 cup evvo

I used Penzey's Salsa salad dressing seasoning but you could mix up your favorite mexican spices

sugar to your taste

2 tablespoons water

Combine the salad dressing above to the bowl with the bean and rice mixture.

Squeeze the juice of one lime into the bowl and stir.

Refrigerate at least 3 hours. Serve.

Barbecued Baby Back Ribs

Loved this recipe. I took a recipe from Cook's illustrated for a spice rub and changed a few things about it to adjust it to my liking. I then used applewood chips to add an interesting taste to the ribs and topped it off with some homemade bbq sauce. I made about 10 pounds of ribs today and all that was left at the end of the day was one rack of baby back ribs.



Spice rub
1/4 cup sweet paprika
1 tablespoon chili powder
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon table saltor 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon dried oregano
3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Combine spice rub ingredients in small bowl. Rub into ribs and let rest for about 30 minutes.


To barbecue the ribs: Open bottom vents on grill. Ignite about 4 1/2 quarts charcoal briquettes (3/4 large chimney-full, or about 65 briquettes) and burn until covered with thin coating of light gray ash, about 20 minutes. Empty coals onto one half of grill bottom, piling them 2 to 3 briquettes high; place soaked wood chunks on top of coals. Position cooking grate over coals, cover grill, open lid vents two-thirds of the way; heat grate 5 minutes, then scrape clean with wire brush.

Arrange ribs on cool side of grill parallel to fire; cover, positioning lid so that vents are opposite wood chunks to draw smoke through grill (grill temperature should register about 350 degrees on grill thermometer, but will soon start dropping). Cook for 2 hours, until grill temperature drops to about 250 degrees, flipping rib racks, switching their position so that rack that was nearest fire is on outside, and turning racks 180 degrees every 30 minutes; add 10 fresh briquettes to pile of coals. Continue to cook (grill temperature should register 275 to 300 degrees on grill thermometer), flipping, switching, and rotating ribs every 30 minutes, until meat easily pulls away from bone, 1 1/2 to 2 hours longer. Transfer ribs to cutting board, then cut between bones to separate ribs; serve.

Homemade bbq sauce

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, minced
2 cloves of garlic minced
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
(28 ounce) can whole tomatoes , with juice
3/4 cup distilled white vinegar
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon table salt
2teaspoons ground black pepper
1/4 cup orange juice from 1 medium orange

1. Heat oil in large, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat until hot and shimmering (but not smoking). Add onion; sauté until golden brown, 7 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to boil, then reduce heat to lowest possible setting and simmer, uncovered, until thickened, 2 to 2 1/2 hours.
2. Puree sauce, in batches if necessary, in blender or workbowl of food processor. Transfer to bowl or cover in airtight container. (Can be refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.)

Cornell Chicken

I found this recipe in the latest Cook's country magazine. Don was after me to make it since he grew up on the dish. I had never done a whole chicken on the grill before so it was an adventure. The chicken tasted pretty good overall. I added some applewood chips to the coals because I just really like the flavor applewood adds to grilled foods. I should have made more of the sauce because I prefer my grilled foods with extra sauce. However that is my personal experience and most likely not one that everyone likes. It was a pretty easy recipe to make and one that I see being made often in our house.

Do not brine the chicken longer than 2 hours or the vinegar will make the meat mushy.

Chicken
2 quarts water
3 1/2 cups cider vinegar
1/4 cup salt
2 (3 1/2-to 4-pound) whole chickens , halved

Seasoning and Sauce
1 tablespoon ground poultry seasoning
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup cider vinegar
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 cup olive oil

1. For the chicken: Whisk water, vinegar, and salt in large bowl until salt dissolves. Add chicken and refrigerate, covered, for 1 to 2 hours.
2. For the seasoning and sauce: Combine poultry seasoning, 2 teaspoons salt, and 2 teaspoons pepper in small bowl; set aside. Process vinegar, mustard, sage, rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in blender until smooth, about 1 minute. With blender running, slowly add oil until incorporated.

3. Heat all burners on high for 15 minutes, then turn all burners to medium-low. (For charcoal grill, light 75 coals; when covered with fine gray ash, spread evenly over bottom of grill. Set cooking grate in place and heat covered, with lid vents open completely, for 5 minutes.) Scrape and oil cooking grate.
4. Remove chicken from brine. Pat dry with paper towels and rub all over with poultry seasoning mixture. Arrange chicken skin-side up on grill and baste with vinegar sauce. Grill, covered, until chicken is well browned on bottom and meat registers 120 degrees, 25 to 30 minutes, basting with sauce halfway through cooking. Flip chicken skin-side down and baste with sauce. Continue to grill, covered, until skin is golden brown and crisp and thigh meat registers 170 to 175 degrees, 20 to 25 minutes longer. Transfer chicken to platter (do not cover) and let rest 5 minutes. Serve.
Make Ahead: Both the spice rub and the sauce can be made up to 3 days ahead. The chicken can be brined, patted dry, and rubbed with the seasoning mixture up to 8 hours ahead.

Ciabatta Bread

I'm working on making my own gourmet breads since they are getting so costly in the grocery stores. Plus I'd rather use organic and local ingredients which I'm sure most store don't use. This bread was very tasty. Also pretty easy to make. I generously floured the cooking sheet as told in the recipe but I think I used way too much flour. All the bread was eaten and everyone commented on how good it was.

Starter:

1/2 teaspoon yeast

2/3 cup (150 ml) water

3 tbsp milk

1/4 tsp honey or sugar

1 cup (150 g) unbleached flour

Dough:

1/2 teaspoon yeast

1 cup (250 ml) water

1/2 tbsp olive oil

2 1/2 cups (350 g) unbleached flour

1 1/2 tsp salt

To make the starter Sprinkle the yeast into the water and milk in a large bowl. Leave for 5 minutes, then add honey or sugar and stir to dissolve.

Mix in the flour to form a loose batter. Cover the bowl with a dish towel and let rise for 12 hours or overnight.

To make the dough Sprinkle yeast into the water in a small bowl. Leave for 5 minutes, then stir to dissolve. Add the dissolved yeast and olive oil to the starter and mix well.

Mix in the flour and salt to form a wet, sticky dough. Beat steadily with a wooden spoon for 5 minutes; the dough will become springy and start to pull away from the sides of the bowl, but will remain too soft to knead.

Cover the dough with a dish towel. Let rise until tripled in size and full of air bubbles, about 3 hours. Do not punch down the dough. Generously flour two baking sheets and have ready extra flour to dip your hands in.

Use a dough scraper to divide the dough in half while inthe bowl. Scoop half the dough out of the bowl onto one of the heavily floured baking sheets.

Use well floured hands to pull and stretch the dough to form a roughly rectangular loaf, about 12 inches in length. Dust the loaf and your hands again with flour. Neaten and plump up the loaf by running your fingers down each side and gently tucking under the edges of the dough.

Repeat with the other half of the dough. Leave the two loaves uncovered to proof for about 20 minutes, the loaves will spread out as well as rise.

Bake in the preheater oven (425 degrees) for 30 minutes, until risen, golden, and hollow sounding underneath. Cool on a wire rack.

Beefy Tex-Mex Stir=fry

A new favorite in this house. Also this is as easy to make as hamburger helper and so much better tasting. Everyone ate some. I did add some fresh garlic to the onion. Other than that I followed the recipe. I think this would have tasted good with some guacamole, sour cream, and salsa. I found the recipe in Rachael Ray's August 2008 magazine.

2 tablespoon evvo

1 poblano chile, seeded and finely chopped

1 onion, chopped

1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder

1 pound ground beef

1 tomato, finely chopped

2 cups crushed tortilla chips

salt and pepper

2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the poblano, onion, and chili powder and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 4 minutes. Add the beef and cook, breaking up the meat, until the meat is just cooked through, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomato and tortilla chips and season with salt and pepper. Top with cheese.

Hot German Green Bean salad

Interesting take on using green beans. Not sure if I would used the recipe again without some tinkering. However they were eaten and liked by everyone. I found the recipe in a cookbook titled Simply in Season, it celebrates using fresh local foods in cooking.

1 1/2 pounds green beans

Cook, covered, in boiling water until barely tender. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup cooking liquid.

3 slices bacon

Fry until crisp; remove all but 2 tablespoons drippings from frypan. Drain bacon and crumble, set aside.

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon lemon juice or white vinegar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 small onion, sliced into rings

Add to bacon drippings along with reserved cooking liquid.

1/4 cup water

2 teaspoons cornstarch

Mix together, stirring until dissolved. Stir into frypan. Cook until thick and clear, stirring constantly. Add cooked beans and heat though. Sprinkle with bacon and serve.

Borski CSA 7/18

Forgot to take a picture this week but we received:
8 apricots
2 cucumbers
2 head of garlic
green beans

Beef and vegetable kababs

Found this recipe in the current issue of Cook's country and gave it a try. It was a hit with everyone in the family including the kids. Everyone wanted more. The flavor was really good and it wasn't salty as the recipe said could happen if you over marinate it, which was only about a hour. The meat was tender and the veggies were cooked and not burned. I can't wait to try it again.

Do not marinate the beef for more than 2 hours or it will be too salty.

1/2 cup soy sauce
3/4 cup olive oil
4 garlic clove , minced
3/4 teaspoon pepper
2 pounds steak tips , poked all over with fork and cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks
2 red bell peppers , seeded and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
1 medium red onion , cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
10 ounces white mushrooms , stemmed

1. Whisk soy sauce, oil, garlic, and pepper in bowl; transfer 1/3 cup soy mixture to large microwave-safe bowl. Place remaining soy mixture and steak tips into gallon-size zipper-lock bag. Press air out of bag, seal, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 2 hours.

2. Add bell peppers, onion, and mushrooms to bowl with reserved soy mixture and toss to coat. Wrap tightly with plastic and let marinate 30 minutes.

3. Microwave vegetables until onions are translucent at edges, 3 to 6 minutes, shaking bowl (without removing plastic) to redistribute vegetables halfway through cooking. Uncover vegetables and set aside until meat is fully marinated.

4. Thread meat and vegetables evenly onto six 12-inch metal skewers, starting and ending with meat. Grill kebabs over medium fire, covered and turning frequently, until meat is well browned and vegetables are tender, 14 to 16 minutes. Serve.

East Farms CSA 7/15

We picked up red lettuce, green lettuce, swiss chard, green beans, peas, zucchini and squash.

Mexican Rice

I've been on quest to find a great Mexican rice recipe and I think I've finally found one I could stomach on a regular basis. This had great flavors and was pretty easy to make. I did leave out the jalepenos since I'm not a fan of overly spicy food. I was going to add green chilies but I forgot to put them in. I used a can of diced Mexican tomatoes in place of the fresh ones. Everyone who tried it liked the rice and I will be making it again. I found the recipe



12 ounces tomatoes, very ripe and cored
1 medium white onion
3 medium jalapenos
2 cups long grain white rice
1/3 cup canola oil
4 minced garlic cloves
2 cups chicken broth
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, minced
1 lime



Adjust rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350.


Process tomato and onion in processor or blender until pureed and thoroughly smooth. Transfer mixture to measuring cup and reserve exactly 2 cups. Discard excess.


Remove ribs and seeds from 2 jalapenos and discard. Mince flesh and set aside. Mince remaining jalapeno. Set aside.


Place rice in a fine mesh strainer and rinse under cold running water until water runs clear- about 1 1/2 minutes.Shake rice vigorously to remove excess water.This step removes the starch from the rice so it will not stick. IF YOU OMIT THIS STEP YOUR RICE WILL NOT BE DRY AND FLUFFY.

Heat oil in heavy bottomed ovensafe 12 inch straight sided sautee pan or Dutch oven with tight fitting lid over medium high heat about 2 minutes. (The recipe is very specific about this but I used a 10 inch dutch oven and it worked out fine.) Drop a few rice grains in and if they sizzle then it is ready. Add rice and fry stirring until rice is light golden and translucent, about 6-8 minutes.


Reduce heat to medium, add garlic and 2 minced jalapenos and cook , stirring constantly until fragrant, about 1 1/2 minutes.


Stir in broth, pureed mixture,tomato paste, and salt. Increase heat to medium high, and bring to a boil.


Cover pan and transfer pan to oven to bake until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender, 30-35 minutes.Stir well after 15 minutes.


Stir in cilantro, minced jalapeno to taste, and pass lime wedges separately.