What can you expect in the Food Thread on PF?

[Evo]

Yummy hypatia!

Turbo, or anyone else, what is your favorite method of preserving basil? I just cut my plants back and have a big batch of leaves that I can't use right now. I was thinking of freezing them in cubes of olive oil.

One of the things I do with fresh garlic is peel the cloves, then stick them in a small jar covered with olive oil and place in the refigerator. After I use up the cloves, I have a nice jar of garlic oil. I have so many jalapenos on my plants, I think I will do the same with some of them and have a nice jalapeno oil. And jalapeno/garlic. Oh my, now I want to do all kinds of oil mixtures.

 

[hypatia]

I hang dry Basil, along with most of my herbs. Then put them whole into a glass jar, they last forever. I'm not to sure about freezing olive oil. Maybe try freezing it in spring water.

 

[turbo]

Pesto freezes well, so if you want to make pesto and freeze it up in small bags, that will work. You can freeze small amounts of herbs in water in ice-cube trays, and then transfer them to marked zip-lock bags for later use in soups and sauces. If you want to freeze herbs in easily-selectable amounts, freeze them on a pre-cooled aluminum tray, and when they are frozen, transfer them to marked freezer bags so you can go to the freezer and get a "bunch" of basil, and a couple of "sprigs" of parsley.

 

[GeorginaS]

How do you hang basil if you're harvesting leaves? I don't have so many that I can cut hunks of plant off -- stem and all -- but I have more leaves constantly maturing than I can consume. I've tried lying the leaves on paper towels and letting them sit on the kitchen counter, which appears to be working. (That method works extraordinarily quickly with rosemary and makes my kitchen smell heavenly.) But, so, how do you hang individual leaves, or do you, and is that any better or different than just lying the leaves out? Am I messing up something in the processing?

 

[hypatia]

You cut the basil stems{or other herbs}, at about 5 inches in length. I bunch about 4 to 6 stems together with a rubberband. As the stems shrink, the rubberband still holds. Hanging is a slow drying process that doesn't deplete the herbs of their oils.
If you cut off the stems, it causes the plant to branch, giving you more stems in the process, and delaying the blooming of annual herbs.
For just the leaves, I would freeze them in cubes.
Oh I just had a thought, freezing them finely chopped with onion, garlic, lemon, salt/pepper and lemon juice and water. So my easy salad dressing is , lol easier! Just thaw and add the oils.
I'll let you all know how that one goes.

 

[turbo]

Black-bean hummus. I dislike bland chick-pea hummus and found this alternative on the 'net. It is killer, and I just had some on saltines. TOO good!

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Black-Bean-Hummus/Detail.aspx

 

[Moonbear]

Ooh, glad someone asked about basil, because I'm in the same boat. The tomatoes aren't ready yet (still green), so I can't use the basil or oregano for sauce yet, and the basil doesn't seem patient enough to wait for the tomatoes. I'll try hanging it.

 

[turbo]

Stagger the plantings of basil, dill, and other critical herbs, Moonie. We have to do that because there is no way to figure out in advance if they will mature to the point of prime richness when I need to make pickles, salsas. I have figured out that the florets of the dill plants are the richest, sweetest, parts of the weed, and I have to have florets coming in for a couple of months while the tomatoes and chilies mature.

 

[Moonbear]

Stagger the plantings of basil, dill, and other critical herbs, Moonie. We have to do that because there is no way to figure out in advance if they will mature to the point of prime richness when I need to make pickles, salsas. I have figured out that the florets of the dill plants are the richest, sweetest, parts of the weed, and I have to have florets coming in for a couple of months while the tomatoes and chilies mature.

I didn't have a lot of choice about staggering. I have limited space and had limited time for starting seeds back in the spring, so they all got planted at the same time. They'll keep producing as long as I keep pinching off the flowers, I've done that before, and my oregano grows nonstop all season, I just hate wasting the leaves I'm not using since even one plant is more than I need for fresh use.

 

[turbo]

I didn't have a lot of choice about staggering. I have limited space and had limited time for starting seeds back in the spring, so they all got planted at the same time. They'll keep producing as long as I keep pinching off the flowers, I've done that before, and my oregano grows nonstop all season, I just hate wasting the leaves I'm not using since even one plant is more than I need for fresh use.

Don't try to dry the oregano. Put an aluminum tray/pan in your freezer, and as you harvest leaves, dump them on the tray and quick-freeze them without washing them. Freezing them dry and fast preserves the taste and texture. When the herbs are frozen, scoop them into labeled zip-lock freezer bags for use throughout the winter. Never pay several $/# for herbs you can grow.

 

[Evo]

Ooh, glad someone asked about basil, because I'm in the same boat. The tomatoes aren't ready yet (still green), so I can't use the basil or oregano for sauce yet, and the basil doesn't seem patient enough to wait for the tomatoes. I'll try hanging it.

Moonbear, I tried the suggestion I found on the web about freezing them in olive oil. It works! Most anything you use basil in has some olive oil and this method preserves it without freezer burn or loss of taste.

Dried herbs change flavor.

 

[Evo]

I went to the overpriced grocery store today. They had a lot of items that were decently priced with the "card saver" program they have. I bought all of the things I wanted with the "card" prices, ate all of the free food samples for a nice lunch (Saturdays they have free food all through the store)I had fresh fruit, gourmet cheeses, barbecued ribs and a wonderful desert. Of course today my apartment complex was serving free pizza and had a beer tasting to go with it at the pool and clubhouse (they do free food and alcoholic beverages about 3 times a month).

The store had great prices on 1/4 peck boxes of local produce. Each stand has the farmer's information. A 1/4 peck of tomatoes for $3.50, a 1/4 peck of squash for $3.00, Vidalia onions .79 cents a pound. Not bad, but I can't wait until I have my own squash and tomatoes.

I bought some thin slices of liver, so if I can stay awake long enough, I'll make liver with bacon and onions. :!) <drool>

 

[turbo]

Mmmm! Fried liver with bacon and onions is a PERFECT pairing with home-made macaroni and cheese. When we lived near a place that processed chickens, we could get bargain rates on buckets of chicken livers, so we substituted that for beef liver whenever the price differential was large (often).

 

[Evo]

Mmmm! Fried liver with bacon and onions is a PERFECT pairing with home-made macaroni and cheese. When we lived near a place that processed chickens, we could get bargain rates on buckets of chicken livers, so we substituted that for beef liver whenever the price differential was large (often).

I always knew you had class! I love chicken livers also. My mom used to make a killer chicken gizzards with rice that was to die for. People just don't know what they are missing.

Also with cucumbers in season, the Evo Child could live on cucumbers sliced and tossed with lemon juice and Morton's "Nature's Seasonings" seasoned salt. I sometimes add a bit of sour cream to change it a bit. You can just use salt and pepper if you don't have Morton's Nature's Seasonings" aka "Seasonings of the Gods". That stuff is awesome.

Short story: My ex got on some kick thinking he should restrict my salt intake because of blood pressure (I had low blood pressure at the time) he just wouldn't listen to me and tried to replace the salt in all the shakers with salt substitute. Well, I noticed the first time I sprinkled it on something. So I told him to buy Morton's Nature's Seasonings, which he gladly did and was so happy he'd convinced me to go salt free. If you read the label the first ingredient says SALT.

 

[turbo]

I always knew you had class! I love chicken livers also. My mom used to make a killer chicken gizzards with rice that was to die for. People just don't know what they are missing.

Aw, shucks! Coming from a less-than-affluent family with French-Canadian heritage, I ate a LOT of stuff that more affluent people turned up their noses at. This included cheaper poultry parts, like gizzards, livers, and necks. As delis and meat-counters started carrying things like sliced turkey breast, if you lived near a poultry processor, you could get some of these parts dirt-cheap. They are WAY tasty, too.

 

[Evo]

Aw, shucks! Coming from a less-than-affluent family with French-Canadian heritage, I ate a LOT of stuff that more affluent people turned up their noses at. This included cheaper poultry parts, like gizzards, livers, and necks. As delis and meat-counters started carrying things like sliced turkey breast, if you lived near a poultry processor, you could get some of these parts dirt-cheap. They are WAY tasty, too.

Oh, I love turkey necks, the meat is so tasty! I always throw the neck, heart, liver and gizzard from a turkey into a pan of chicken broth and make a killer gravy. After it simmers a couple of hours, I chop up all the meat and thicken with cornstarch. A friend once told me his mom chopped a hard boiled egg into the gravy, I thought he was nuts, but did it for him. LOVED IT!

 

[turbo]

We just finished supper. I had taken out a package of chicken legs out of the freezer yesterday, but our fresh string beans, fresh baby beets and greens, and early potatoes (potatoes from a local farm) looked really good, so we had a vegetable-only supper with steamed beets and beans and baked potatoes. Mmm. Fresh garden vegetables can't be beat, especially when they go almost directly from the garden to the table.

 

[Andre]

...ate all of the free food samples for a nice lunch (Saturdays they have free food all through the store.

Way to go. That's called pragmatism here. It would also indicate a successful recovery from earlier problems.

 

[Evo]

Way to go. That's called pragmatism here. It would also indicate a successful recovery from earlier problems.

Well, I can fill up on samples.

I just ate the liver with bacon and onions. The Fruit Bat and Dr Foofer are giving it rave reviews. I need to hide the leftovers lest the Evo Child come by and mistake it for steak. I would never hear the end of that.

 

[Moonbear]

I just ate the liver with bacon and onions. The Fruit Bat and Dr Foofer are giving it rave reviews. I need to hide the leftovers lest the Evo Child come by and mistake it for steak. I would never hear the end of that.

That would serve her right for mooching! I'm cooking up some chicken liver now...for Ember. I don't eat the stuff myself, but when I make a whole chicken, I boil the liver in with all the other bits and pieces for a little stock/broth (depending on my patience level) and give Ember a treat of some chicken liver. The rest of the chicken is in the fridge with dry rub on it waiting to be bbq'd tomorrow.

The store had great prices on 1/4 peck boxes of local produce. Each stand has the farmer's information. A 1/4 peck of tomatoes for $3.50, a 1/4 peck of squash for $3.00, Vidalia onions .79 cents a pound. Not bad, but I can't wait until I have my own squash and tomatoes.

That's your overpriced store? I wish I could get produce that cheap at our run-down, crappy, cheapo store.

 

[Evo]

I'm cooking up some chicken liver now...for Ember. I don't eat the stuff myself, but when I make a whole chicken, I boil the liver in with all the other bits and pieces for a little stock/broth (depending on my patience level) and give Ember a treat of some chicken liver. The rest of the chicken is in the fridge with dry rub on it waiting to be bbq'd tomorrow.

Mmmmmm barbecue. I'm not allowed to play with fire. I'd be fighting Ember for that liver though.

That's your overpriced store? I wish I could get produce that cheap at our run-down, crappy, cheapo store.

I found out that they have awesome sales. Since they are just over a mile away, I will be buying more there. I wish they'd put their handmade sushi on sale.

 

[Moonbear]

Mmmmmm barbecue. I'm not allowed to play with fire.

Probably for good reason. We know how accident prone you are! I made two kinds of bbq sauce today. One is a Kansas City style sauce, which is really tasty as a cold dipping sauce, and the other is a Jack Daniel's sauce that needs to caramelize a bit to taste good (but then it is awesome!). The Jack Daniel's sauce is a cooked sauce, so I made a big batch and canned it (besides, it was a chance to test the new pressure cooker in case I need to use it for a bumper crop of tomatoes).

I'd be fighting Ember for that liver though.

She'd share. There's way more than she could eat (this chicken didn't have all the other organs in it, just a double helping of liver ), and it's all chopped up as almost a pate now.

 

[hypatia]

Green tomato pie, for you moonbear.

One 9 inch pie crust{i used the pre-made one}

Slice green tomato's very thin, about a pound should do.
One sweet onion, sliced thin
One large baking potato, also sliced{you guessed it} thin.
1/2 pound of well cooked bacon, crumbled.
about 1 1/2 cups of any kind of white melting cheese
Red pepper flakes to taste
Salt and pepper to tasteLayer it in order, several repeat layers{ mine was about 3}, and bake at 375 for 35 to 45 minutes.
I had mine hot last night for dinner, and then leftover cold today for lunch, it was great both ways.

 

[turbo]

Supper tonight will probably be a vegetable stir-fry or salad. I have jalapeno peppers and Hungarian wax peppers that go knocked off by the wind storm, and I picked a fresh cucumber (first one of the season). We also have a fair-sized yellow summer squash that a neighbor gave us. I'm not usually to keen on summer squash, but we did a stir-fry with them, along with yellow onions, scallion tops, peppers, herbs from the garden, etc. I finished that up for lunch today. I may actually plant summer squash next year - they're really easy to grow, and you get so much from so few plants that (like the neighbors) you end up giving them away.

 

[Evo]

Green tomato pie, for you moonbear.

One 9 inch pie crust{i used the pre-made one}

Slice green tomato's very thin, about a pound should do.
One sweet onion, sliced thin
One large baking potato, also sliced{you guessed it} thin.
1/2 pound of well cooked bacon, crumbled.
about 1 1/2 cups of any kind of white melting cheese
Red pepper flakes to taste
Salt and pepper to taste


Layer it in order, several repeat layers{ mine was about 3}, and bake at 375 for 35 to 45 minutes.
I had mine hot last night for dinner, and then leftover cold today for lunch, it was great both ways.

I keeping this recipe, sounds wonderful.

We also have a fair-sized yellow summer squash that a neighbor gave us. I'm not usually to keen on summer squash, but we did a stir-fry with them, along with yellow onions, scallion tops, peppers, herbs from the garden, etc. I finished that up for lunch today. I may actually plant summer squash next year - they're really easy to grow, and you get so much from so few plants that (like the neighbors) you end up giving them away.

I prefer yellow squash to zuchinni. this is my first year to plant both, I usually only grow yellow.

 

[Ben Niehoff]

I made chicken paella yesterday, but I cheated a little bit.

1 lb. chicken breast
1 container (13 oz?) of green manzanilla olives with pimiento
1 small container (6 oz?) of diced pimiento
1 link of raw beef chorizo
1 large onion
2 cups rice (I used Jasmine, but really it should something like Arborio)
1 bottle of clam juice
4 cups chicken stock
1/2 tsp crushed saffron
2 bay leaves
salt
pepper
olive oil

Chop onion into quarter-circles, not dice (pretty easy). In a 5-qt dutch oven, saute onions in oil on medium-high heat. After a few minutes, add chorizo. After a few more minutes, add chicken breasts (cut into bite-sized strips). Cook until chicken changes color. Drain brine from olives and rinse (otherwise I find they add too strong of a brine flavor). Add olives and reduce heat.

In a shallow pan, toast rice in olive oil until it's translucent and smells really nice (a few minutes). Then add rice to dutch oven. Add clam juice, chicken stock, saffron, bay leaves. Bring to boil, and then simmer low, covered, until liquid is absorbed (1/2-hour-ish).

A true paella should be done in a wide, shallow pan rather than a dutch oven (apparently, the caramelization of rice on the bottom of the pan is important)...also, apparently you're not supposed to cover it while it's simmering. But this version is easy and tastes good.

 

[hypatia]

I love chorizo! I just brown it up in a pan, mix in some salsa and chunks of Pinconning cheese and I'm good to go.
I'm going to give yours a try Ben.

 

[Moonbear]

Green tomato pie, for you moonbear.

One 9 inch pie crust{i used the pre-made one}

Slice green tomato's very thin, about a pound should do.
One sweet onion, sliced thin
One large baking potato, also sliced{you guessed it} thin.
1/2 pound of well cooked bacon, crumbled.
about 1 1/2 cups of any kind of white melting cheese
Red pepper flakes to taste
Salt and pepper to taste


Layer it in order, several repeat layers{ mine was about 3}, and bake at 375 for 35 to 45 minutes.
I had mine hot last night for dinner, and then leftover cold today for lunch, it was great both ways.

Ooh, that sounds yummy! I'll have to try it. I just need to get cheese, and have all the other ingredients. Thanks!

 

[Evo]

If you are looking for exoctic foods for yourself or as a gift, check this out. This reminded me of Zz's pictures of his trip to Malaysia.

http://www.melissas.com/

 

[Ben Niehoff]

We have figs, papaya, and lychee in our local supermarket. Also, mangoes seem to be in season right now, because there are tons of them everywhere, and very ripe (bright red). I love California. :)

Last night we made Ethiopian food. We live about half a mile from Little Ethiopia in Los Angeles, so it's easy for us to get the ingredients. But I think you can order this stuff online, too (in fact, we walked into the physical store that runs www.injera.com[/URL] and bought some spices there).

[b]Siga Wot[/b] (a red spiced beef stew):

2-3 lbs. stewing beef (chuck), cut into 1/2-inch cubes
5 large onions, chopped (yes, five. You might even want 6-8)
5 tsp. minced garlic (it will cook down to be milder)
2 tsp. powdered ginger
1/4 cup Berbere spice mix (you can make this yourself or buy it)
2-3 tbsp. tomato paste
2 tsp. of salt (it sounds like a lot, but none of the other ingredients has any salt)
1/2 cup of water
Vegetable oil or butter for sauteing (we used Ethiopian spiced clarified butter, called Niter Kibbeh)

In a large pot, saute the onions and garlic in the oil/butter on medium/high heat until onions are translucent (about 10 minutes; there are lots of onions!). Add Berbere spices and ginger, then reduce heat to low and cook another 15 minutes. Finally, add beef, water, tomato paste and salt; bring to boil and then simmer, uncovered, on medium-ish until reduced to a yummy sauce consistency (this took a while...maybe an hour. You can increase the heat to reduce faster, but you have to stir to keep things from burning on the bottom).

[b]Misir Wot[/b] (a mild yellow lintel stew):

4 cups split red lintel
3 large onions
2 tsp. minced garlic
2 tsp. turmeric
2 tsp. salt
2 cups water
Vegetable oil or butter for sauteing

I know the proportion of water to lintels doesn't seem right, but a lot of water will come out of the onions. You can add more if it's looking dry, but in our experience it came out almost soupy as written.

Saute onions, garlic, and turmeric for about 10 minutes, until onions are translucent. Add lintels, water, and salt; bring to boil and then simmer uncovered until lintels are cooked (about 30 minutes). Lintels will turn yellow and soften into a puree consistency.To serve, ladle some portions of stews on top of injera (a kind of gigantic crepe made from sourdough teff flour [teff is a kind of grain]). Ethiopian food is traditionally eaten with the hands: First tear of a small, bite-size piece of injera, and then use it as a sponge to soak up some juices and wrap it around morsels of food. Then pop it in your mouth.For dessert, you can make fried ripe plantains (called Platanos Maduros in South America; I don't know what they call them in Ethiopia). These are easy:

[b]Plátanos Maduros[/b] (fried ripe plantains)

Ripe plantains (1 plantain serves about 2)
Butter

The trickiest part is knowing when the plantain is ripe. Unripe plantains are very starchy and won't make a good dessert. Ripe plantains should be black and yellow (at least 50% black), should feel a bit soft, and should smell sweet before you peel them. They ripen slowly, so if you buy green ones at the grocery, you might have to wait a week or so.

Once you have a ripe one, just peel it, cut it into whatever shape you like, and then pan-fry it in butter until caramelized. You can add some brown sugar if you need to, but they ought to be plenty sweet enough by themselves.

 

[Monique]

If you are looking for exoctic foods for yourself or as a gift, check this out. This reminded me of Zz's pictures of his trip to Malaysia.

http://www.melissas.com/

3 pieces of dragonfruit for $48? I can get one for 2-3 euros at the grocery store, that really seems over priced to me. 20 figs for $52, that is $2.5 per fig

 

[Ben Niehoff]

Yeah, fresh Calimyrna figs at the local store are going for a few bucks for a small crate (like the kind strawberries come in). Maybe 8 figs or so.

But after reading, I see that they're in season right now, and of course, they were grown in California. You probably can't get fresh figs elsewhere in the US, although apparently they also grow them in Texas and the Southeast.

 

[Evo]

Yeah, fresh Calimyrna figs at the local store are going for a few bucks for a small crate (like the kind strawberries come in). Maybe 8 figs or so.

But after reading, I see that they're in season right now, and of course, they were grown in California. You probably can't get fresh figs elsewhere in the US, although apparently they also grow them in Texas and the Southeast.

In Houston, you won't see figs in the store because either you or your neighbor has a fig tree that produces about a ton each year.

Here in Kansas, you can't get fresh figs, even in summer, the few figs that show up in the store look like prunes.

 

[Evo]

I just ate that jalapeno that was knocked off by the storm last night. That was THE BEST jalapeno I have ever eaten! It had all of the jalapeno taste and no heat. :!) :!) I guess I should let a couple ripen and save the seeds for next year. I want to eat the entire bush right now.

 

[Moonbear]

3 pieces of dragonfruit for $48? I can get one for 2-3 euros at the grocery store, that really seems over priced to me. 20 figs for $52, that is $2.5 per fig

I think it's the overnight shipping. I just looked at lychees and saw this:

This item is highly perishable and ships Next Day Air. Product pricing includes shipping upgrade

Most of that cost probably is the difference between really cheap ground shipping, which will get you bruised and rotten fruit, and overnight shipping.