Squash and Plums with Ricotta

Victor was reading the Washington Post the other day when he came across a recipe he just knew we had to try. It's not all that unusual for one of us to latch onto a random recipe we find - it's more unusual to ignore them.

This one was not to be ignored...

Squash and Plums with Ricotta

adapted from The Washington Post

• 1 pound ricotta or cultured cottage cheese
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 small yellow squash (12 ounces total), chopped
• 4 plums, preferably black or purple (12 ounces total) pitted and sliced
• Leaves from 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 tablespoons aged balsamic vinegar
• Flaky salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons chopped pistachios, cashews or pumpkin seeds, for serving (optional)

In a food processor, whip the ricotta or cottage cheese until creamy and light, about 30 seconds.

In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil until it shimmers. Add the yellow squash and sauté until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Add the plums and sauté until they begin to caramelize, about 5 minutes. Add the thyme leaves, and then place atop the ricotta.

Drizzle the balsamic vinegar over. Sprinkle with chopped nuts or seeds.

It's ridiculously easy outrageously good. It's savory but sweet, almost dessert-like, but better as a side dish. It would make a great appetizer with a crusty slice of bread or a really good cracker.

It also went great with a Dungeness Crab Cake from The Beaverton Farmer's Market.

It took minutes to make.

Make some.

by Tim Dineen

Orecchiette with Buttery Tomato Sauce

The latest edition of Bon Appetit arrived, yesterday, and I immediately found a recipe to cook for dinner.

We had just picked a bunch of lovely ripe heirloom tomatoes from the garden, we had an unopened bottle of Colatura - an Italian anchovy sauce (think of it as an Italian version of Asian fish sauce) - fresh basil... a nice, big wedge of Parmigiano Reggiano... We were ready!

It is really one of the quickest and most basic recipes you can throw together - and throw together really is what you do with this one. It's dinner in the time it takes to cook the pasta.

Any pasta will work with this. The original recipe called for making your own - and Alon Shaya's recipe would be perfect, here. It's our go-to fresh pasta recipe. It's perfect every time. We did, however, opt for bagged pasta because we have lots and I was looking for that quick meal.

Pasta Dough

adapted from Alon Shaya

• 1 1/4 cup 00 flour
• 1/2 cup semolina
• 2 eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 tsp olive oil

Mix flours. Make a well and add the eggs, egg yolks, and oil. Slowly mix in the flour and knead until smooth. Let rest 30 minutes before rolling to desired shape.

The Bon Appetit recipe calls for Sun Gold or cherry tomatoes. Having learned our lesson years ago, we only grow full-sized. The amount of sauce should work for up to 8 ounces of pasta. And since there are only a few ingredients, use the best you can.

Buttered Tomato Sauce

adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine

• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup onion, minced
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper - more, to taste
• 3 lbs ripe, heirloom tomatoes, chopped
• 4 tbsp butter
• 1 tsp Colatura (or fish sauce)
• 2 oz shredded parmigiano reggiano
• 4 tbsp torn basil

Heat oil in large skillet. Quickly sauté onion, and then add garlic and red pepper. Stir in about 3/4 of the tomatoes, a big pinch of salt, a pinch of pepper, and about a half-cup of water. Cover, reduce heat, and let simmer about 5-6 minutes.

Stir in butter, colatura, and cheese. Add pasta and stir to completely coat. Add reserved tomatoes and mix well - adding a bit of pasta water, if necessary. Stir in basil, and serve!

It was rich and filing without being a belly-bomb! A bit of crusty bread would have been nice, but even that wasn't necessary.

With the tomatoes finally coming in, i can see more of this in our future!

by Tim Dineen

Lamb Burgers

It's been a while since I blogged about food.

Most of my social media postings in the past month have been about the scumbag Republicans, babies being murdered in schools, that fuckwad who used to be president (small "p" intentional), and other uplifting topics.

And then there's the fact that I really haven't been cooking overly-blog-worthy dishes. We're eating well, but more of been there, done that, why write about it, again...?

Tonight, though, I finally made something I planned last week - and finally did!

I subscribe to quite a few cooking magazines. They're fun to get ideas, see what's going on in the culinary world, and mock pretentious cooks.

One magazine I recently started is All Recipes. It's an interesting magazine, reminiscent of Mother's Guild or other community cookbooks of my youth. There are probably more Miracle Whip-type recipes that I would never make, but it does have some fun, basic, good food ideas. There's definitely nothing wrong with good, basic cooking.

One fun food idea was a Lamb Burger.

Now... if you just reasonably know me, you know that recipes are a concept, an idea... a reason to get the creative juices flowing. They're not something chiseled in stone. For instance, this recipe was written as a burger on a bun with arugula and garlic aioli.  My thought was atop spinach, allowing the burger to slightly wilt the greens. I had some pomegranate ariels in the 'fridge, so those were added, as well.

Stuffed Lamb Burgers

adapted from All Recipes

• 1 lb ground lamb
• 4 tsp minced garlic
• 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh mint
• salt, to taste
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 4 oz feta
• pickled red onions and jalapeños
• Spinach
• Tomatoes
• Pomegranate seeds

Stir together ground lamb, garlic, mint, salt, cumin, smoked paprika, cinnamon, and cayenne in a large bowl until just combined.

Shape lamb mixture into four 3-inch patties. Slice feta into 4 equal pieces. Place one cheese piece in the center of each patty and carefully wrap edges around cheese to enclose. Gently flatten each into a 4 inch patty.

Preheat grill to high heat. Oil grate.

Grill patties 4 to 5 minutes per side.

Serve burgers on a bed of spinach with tomatoes and pickled red onions, pomegranate seeds, and dressing of choice.

They really came out good. I can see us making them again!

by Tim Dineen

Pork Chops, Onions, and Pears

We received our Imperfect Foods delivery yesterday morning. In the box were a couple of smallish d'anjou pears. In the freezer, we had a couple of largish bone-in pork chops.

Dinner was ready!

Years ago, I found a recipe in one of Lidia's cookbooks - Lidia's Italian American Kitchen - for pork chops with red onions and pears. I've made it many times over the years - I bought the book in 2001!

As with most recipes, I tend to make my own tweaks - and this one is no different. The base is fabulous, but there are a couple of steps I don't bother with.

First, is making the balsamic reduction. I generally don't have the cheap balsamic in the house - but I do have a really good 15 year aged balsamic I used for drizzling on top when it was time to serve.

Next is finally realizing that bone-in pork chops are the only chops worth buying. Boneless tend to be too tough and inconsistent. Also, I don't peel my pears. I don't peel a lot of fruits and vegetables - lots of texture and nutrients, there.

I added quartered small red potatoes along with the pears - also unpeeled.

The end result was delish!

Lidia’s Pork Chops with Pears and Caramelized Red Onions

• 2 cups balsamic vinegar
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 6 garlic cloves, peeled
• 4 center-cut pork rib chops, each about 12 ounces and 1 1/4 inches thick
• 1 large red onion, cut into 8 wedges
• Salt
• Freshly ground pepper
• 2 ripe but firm Bosc pears, peeled, cored and each cut into 8 wedges
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons honey

In a small saucepan, bring balsamic vinegar to a boil over high heat. Adjust the heat to a gentle boil and boil until the vinegar is syrupy and reduced to about 1/3 cup. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet with a flameproof handle over medium-high heat. Whack garlic cloves with the flat side of a knife and scatter over oil. Cook, shaking the skillet, until brown, about 2 minutes. Lay the pork chops in and cook until the underside is browned, about 6 minutes. Remove and reserve the garlic cloves if they become more than deep golden brown before the chops are fully browned.

Turn the chops, tuck the onion wedges into the pan and continue cooking until the second side of the chops is browned, about 6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. About halfway through browning the second side, tuck the pear wedges in between the chops.

Stir the red wine vinegar and honey together in a small bowl, until the honey is dissolved. Pour the mixture into the skillet and bring to a vigorous boil. Return the garlic cloves to the skillet if you have removed them. Place the skillet in the oven and roast until onions and pears are tender and the juices from the pork are a rich, syrupy dark brown, about 30 minutes. Once or twice during roasting, turn the chops and redistribute the onions and pears. Handle the skillet carefully — it will be extremely hot.

Remove skillet from the oven. Place a chop in the center of each warmed serving plate. Check the seasoning of the onion-pear mixture, adding salt and pepper if necessary. Spoon the pears, onion and pan juices around the chops. Drizzle the balsamic vinegar reduction around the edge of the plate.

Makes 4 servings.

The beauty of this dish really is its versatility. You can swap out the pears for apples, peaches, figs... whatever. The red wine vinegar can be any vinegar you have in the house - I've used everything from Lingonberry to apple cider - and a few in between.

And, just for grins and giggles, if you're in an area that has Imperfect Foods, if you follow the link below and join, you get four $20 credits ($80 total) and I get $30! Win-Win!

Imperfect Foods

by Tim Dineen

Smoky Lentil Stew With Leeks and Potatoes

Every now and again, I come across a recipe that really intrigues me.  I saw this one from the New York Times and thought the concept too good to pass up.

And the concept was perfect - plus I had all the ingredients in the house! It's vegetarian - actually vegan - but I didn't let that stop me. I cheated just a bit. I had about 8 ounces of bottom round steak in the 'fridge, so I sliced it thin and after browning it off in a bit of olive oil, cooked it with the lentils. It definitely didn't need it - I was using up something from the 'fridge - but it was a nice addition. (I doubt I would add it next time, although a spicy sausage might be a nice addition, if you're so inclined...)

Other changes...

• instead of the onion with whole cloves, I cooked a few tablespoons of dehydrated onions with the lentils along with some allspice - no cloves in the house! (I know, right?!?)
• used dried thyme.
• used a full can of diced tomatoes with their juice.
• doubled the Saffron - I have a lot due to an error by my favorite spice company.
• chopped a jalapeño pepper instead of cayenne to use up fresh items

Smoky Lentil Stew With Leeks and Potatoes

adapted from the New York Times

• 1 ½ cups small lentils, such as Pardina or Puy (12 ounces), or use any size green or brown lentil
• 1 medium onion, halved, plus 2 bay leaves and 2 whole cloves
• Kosher salt and black pepper
• 4 or 5 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced 3/4-inch thick
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 2 medium leeks, white and tender green parts, chopped in 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
• 1 large thyme or rosemary sprig
• 2 tablespoons pimentón dulce or smoked sweet paprika
• ⅛ teaspoon ground cayenne, or to taste
• Small pinch of saffron (about 12 strands), soaked in 1/4 cup cold water
• 1 cup chopped canned tomato with juice
• 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
• Chopped parsley (optional)

Rinse lentils. Put them in a Dutch oven or large, heavy-bottomed pot and add 8 cups water.

Pin a bay leaf to each onion half using a whole clove and add to the pot. Bring to a boil over high heat, add a large pinch of salt, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook with lid ajar for about 30 minutes, until soft. Turn off heat.

Meanwhile, bring a medium pot of salted water to boil, and cook the potato slices until just done, about 10 minutes, then drain and spread out on a baking sheet to cool.

Put 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil is wavy, add leeks and stir to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Let leeks cook briskly, stirring frequently until soft but still bright green, about 5 to 8 minutes. Turn heat to medium, stir in chopped garlic, thyme, pimentón and cayenne.

Add saffron and soaking water, the chopped tomato and vinegar. Turn heat to high and let everything simmer for a few minutes.

Pour contents of skillet into Dutch oven with lentils. Add the reserved potatoes.

Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook covered with lid ajar for about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning, then cook for 10 more minutes. The lentils will be quite soft and the potatoes will start to break. Discard onion and thyme sprig.

Finish with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and chopped parsley, if you wish.

It's a dish that just entered our regular rotation. I ordered more lentils from my favorite site - Palouse Brands in Washington state - and for this version I used Puy lentils. I ordered more Padina lentils as well as Black Beluga Lentils. Any of them will work, but you do want something that will hold their shape.

In the NY Times comments, several people complained of using three pots and gave their versions of making it a one-pot meal.

Yes, you can cook it all in one pot, but in doing so, lose out on building layers of flavor. Cooking the leek and spice mixture separately really concentrates the flavor. Cooking the potatoes separately allows for a perfectly-cooked potato in the final dish. And do slice those spuds thick. It's essential to the dish! Russets will work better than Yukon gold. You want them to just barely start to fall apart in the finished dish. and russets will do it, better.

And for those who changed every ingredient, cooked it entirely differently, and then said they didn't like it... well... you're idiots.

It's also a dish that benefits from being cooked in advance. If you can, cook it early and reheat it for dinner. The above picture is yesterday's dinner reheated this afternoon for lunch.

Totally delicious.

by Tim Dineen