brown rice crispy bars

adapted from Alton Brown

3 oz puffed brown rice

3 T flax seed oil, plus extra for the pan

1 T honey

7 oz mini-marshmallows

3 oz toasted slivered almonds

4 oz dried chopped fruit (cranberries and cherries)

Lightly coat the inside of a 13x9x2" metal pan wiht oil and set aside. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Spread the brown puffed rice evenly on a sheet pan. Toast in the oven for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. While the rice is toasting, prepare the marshmallow mixture. Place the oil, honey, and marshmallows in a large mixing bowl set over a port of gently simmering water. Stir until the marshmallows are melted, approximately 4 to 5 minutes.

Once the marshmallows are melted, quickly add the toasted brown rice, almonds, and fruit; stir to combine. Coat your hands or a spatula with oil and spreadh the mixture evenly in the pan. Once the mixture has cooled completely, cut into squares and store in an airtight container for a few days.

ginger-infused rice pudding

makes 10 small servings

syrup

1/2 c water

2/3 c cup plus 2 T brown sugar

1/2 c granulated sugar

pudding

3 T grated peeled fresh ginger

3 c low-fat milk, divided

3 c plain soy milk

1 c short-grain rice

1/4 c heavy cream

sliced fresh strawberries and crystallized ginger, for garnish

To make the syrup, combine water and sugars in a medium saucepain. Cook over medium heat until boiling. Turn heat to low, stir and simmer about 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Combine milk, soy milk, and ginger in a large saucepain. Simmer over low heat for 15-20 minutes. Occasionally skim top. Pour milk/ginger mixture through a sieve to separate out ginger.

Stir rice and syrup into milk (you may not want all the syrup if you don't want it quite as sweet). Cook on high until mixture boils. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, stirring often, until pudding thickens and rice is tender, about 45 minutes. Add heavy cream.

Spoon pudding into each of 10 cups, topping each with strawberry slices and ginger, if desired.

bistro steak with garlic & olive oil mashed potatoes

using rinse and pat steaks dry on paper towels. season liberally with salt and pepper. place on baking rack set on jellyroll pan and put in 275 degree oven for around 20-30 minutes until internal temperature is 90-95 degrees.

wash 2 pounds of russet potatoes. do not peel or cut out bad spots (you will do this later) put them in a pot and add cold water to cover by about 1". bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.

while potatoes are cooking:
put 4 oz olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. mince/press 5 cloves of garlic into oil. cook until garlic is golden. meanwhile, put 6 oz of olive oil in a medium bowl. mince/press one clove of garlic onto a cutting board, then sprinkle a bit of salt on and smear with the side of a knife to make a paste. add that paste to the uncooked oil.

after about 5 minutes of cooking, the garlic/oil mixture on the stove should be ready. add to the fresh garlic/oil mixture. add a squeeze of lemon, a teaspoon of kosher salt and mix.

as potatoes finish (a knife should pierce very easily), remove them from the oil. hold the potato in a towel, and remove the peel with a knife. mash into a large bowl using a potato ricer. repeat until all potatoes are cooked, peeled, and mashed. stir in garlic/olive oil mixture.

unless serving immediately, keep potatoes warm by making a double boiler by turning the cooking water to a very low temperature, and placing the plastic-wrapped bowl on top.

put a tablespoon of vegetable oil in a 12" skillet and heat until oil is shimmering. add the steaks, spacing them evenly. steaks will start to smoke quickly. after 60-120 seconds, depending on thickness, the steaks should be ready to flip. after another 45-90 seconds, they should be done (120-125 degrees internally for rareish). remove from the pan and set on clean rack. brown the sides by turning the pan down to medium heat, and using tongs to hold the steaks to the pan, rotating a few times until all sides are evenly browned.

to make a pan sauce, pour the grease out of the skillet, but do not scrape bottom. add a little vegetable oil and 8 oz of mushrooms and let wilt for about five minutes over medium heat. meanwhile, mince a shallot finely. while mushrooms are golden, add shallots and saute until softened. add 1/2 c chicken broth, 1 c red wine and bring to a simmer. cook for about 6 minutes until the liquid is a little syrupy. add a tablespoon or two of balsamic vinegar, a couple tablespoons of dijon mustard, chopped fresh chives. then whisk in a couple tablespoons of cold butter; sauce should be glossy and somewhat thickened. stir in any juice from the dripping pan.

Cream of Avocado Soup

1 T unsalted butter
1 very small onion, chopped (about 1/3 c)
2 t peeled finely chopped fresh ginger root
2 to 3 garlic cloves, minced
2 ripe avocados, peeled, pitted, scooped out
¼ c fresh basil leaves
¼ c fresh cilantro leaves
¼ to 1/3 c heavy cream
¼ to 1/3 c fresh lime juice
3 ½ c ice water
salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper to taste

Place small pan over med low heat; when hot, add butter. When butter is melted, add onion, ginger, garlic, cook til golden. Cool for at least 5 minutes.

Place the avocados, basil, cilantro, cream, and lime juice in a blender and blend until pureed. Gradually, while the machine is running, add the water and reserved onion mixture and blend until completely smooth. Add seasonings to taste.

Transfer to a container, cover, and refrigerate at least 2 hours and up to overnight. Garnish with basil and cilantro.

cheese straws

recipe #1

Into the food processor put 4 oz. grated extra-sharp cheddar, 4 Tbs softened unsalted butter, 3/4 cup all purpose flour, 1/2 tsp kosher salt, 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes and pulse until it resembles coarse meal. Then add 1 Tbs half and half and process until it forms a ball.

Now you roll it out into a 8 X 10 inch rectangle on a floured surface.

After that, you cut the dough into long, tin strips 1/4 top 1/3 inch wide. Place on a cookie sheet 1/4 inch apart:

Then bake 12 to 15 minutes in a 350 oven until the ends are barely browned. Take out, cool and eat!

recipe #2:

from the NY Times

Time: 20 minutes

½ pound Cheddar or other hard, flavorful cheese
1/3 pound Parmesan cheese
2 cups (about 9 ounces) all-purpose flour
Pinch cayenne
8 tablespoons (1 stick) chilled butter, cut into chunks, plus a little more for greasing the baking sheet
Few drops ice water, if necessary
Coarse salt (optional).

1. Heat oven to 450 degrees. Grate cheese by hand or in food processor and place in bowl. Pulse flour and cayenne in processor. Add butter and process until butter and flour are combined. Pulse in cheese.

2. Turn out onto counter or cutting board and knead by hand, adding a few drops of ice water if necessary. (You may wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 2 days, taking it out for about a half hour before proceeding.)

3. Roll out into a rectangle about ¼-inch thick, on a lightly floured surface or between 2 sheets of plastic wrap, then cut into ½-inch-wide strips as long as you like. Place on a lightly greased baking sheet and sprinkle with salt, if using. Bake until golden brown, 5 to 8 minutes. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature.

Yield: At least 10 servings.

Espinacas con garbanzos

adapted only slightly from one of my favorite food blogs, Lobstersquad

1 small onion
1 clove garlic
1/2 cup tomato sauce ( tomate frito, without corn syrup or dubious stuff, please. Just add a bit of sugar if you like) - I used most of a can of muir glen organic whole tomatoes, whizzed around in my food processor until sauce-like
1/2 tsp of cumin, or to taste
400 gr. fresh spinach
1 can chickpeas, drained
sherry vinegar
Tabasco or dried chili
salt, pepper, olive oil, lemon juice

In a biggish pan hat has a good lid, sautee the onion in olive oil, and when it´s transparent, add the minced garlic and cumin. Let it cook for a minute, until it´s fragrant.
Now add the spinach, tomato, and drained chickpeas.This is a messy procedure, as the spinach takes up a lot of room, but it will collapse quickly, so just move it around, clamp the lid, and after a minute, shake it around. The idea is that the liquid the spinach gives out is soaked up by the chickpeas, so there´s no sogginess. In no more than five minutes, it will be dark green and soft, but very juicy. Taste for salt and cumin, add a splash of Tabasco, vinegar or a squirt of lemon juice, and you´re in business.
It tastes better lukewarm, so try not to be greedy.

thai-style chicken soup

1 teaspoon vegetable oil
3 lemongrass stalks, tough outer leaves removed, bottom 5 inches halved lengthwise and sliced thin crosswise
3 shallots, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
8 sprigs fresh cilantro, chopped
3 tablespoons fish sauce
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 (14-ounce) cans coconut milk, well shaken
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 pound white mushrooms, cut into 1/4-inch slices
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (5-6 ounces each), halved lengthwise and sliced on the bias into 1/8-inch-thick pieces
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice from 2 to 3 limes
2 teaspoons Thai red curry paste

Garnish:
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
2 serrano chiles, sliced thin
2 scallions, sliced thin on the bias
1 lime, cut into wedges

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat until just shimmering. Add the lemongrass, shallots, cilantro, and 1 tablespoon of the fish sauce; cook, stirring frequently, until just softened, 2 to 5 minutes (the vegetables should not brown). Stir in the broth and 1 can coconut milk; bring to a simmer over high heat. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the flavors have blended, 10 minutes. Pour the broth through a fine-mesh strainer and discard the solids in the strainer. Rinse the saucepan and return the broth mixture to the pan.

Return the pan to medium-high heat. Stir the remaining can of coconut milk and sugar into the broth mixture and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium, add the mushrooms, and cook until just tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the chicken and cook, stirring constantly, until no longer pink, 1 to 3 minutes. Remove the soup from the heat.

Combine the lime juice, curry paste, and remaining 2 tablespoons fish sauce in a small bowl; stir into the soup. Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with the cilantro, chiles, and scallions. Serve immediately with lime wedges.

aglio e olio

1 lb spaghetti
table or sea salt
6 T good quality olive oil
1/4 c minced garlic
3/4 t red pepper flakes
3 T chopped fresh parsley leaves
2 t lemon juice
1/2 c Parmesan cheese (optional)

1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position, set large heatproof serving bowl on rack and heat oven to 200 degrees. Bring 4 quarts water to rolling boil, covered, in large Dutch oven or stockpot. Add pasta and 1 1/2 teaspoons table salt to boiling water, stir to separate pasta, cover, and cook until al dente; reserve 1/3 cup pasta cooking water and drain pasta.

2. While water is heating, combine 3 tablespoons oil, 3 tablespoons garlic, and 1/2 teaspoon table salt or sea salt flakes in heavy-bottomed nonstick 10-inch skillet; cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until garlic foams and is sticky and straw-colored, 10 to 12 minutes. Off heat, add remaining tablespoon raw garlic, red pepper flakes, parsley, lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons pasta cooking water to skillet and stir well to keep garlic from clumping.

3. Transfer drained pasta to warm serving bowl; add remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil and remaining reserved pasta cooking water and toss to coat. Add garlic mixture and 3/4 teaspoon table salt or 1 teaspoon sea salt flakes to pasta; toss well to combine. Serve immediately, sprinkling individual bowls with portion of Parmesan, if desired.

Refried Beans with Cinnamon and Clove

from the weekly newsletter sent by the The Splendid Table

Excerpted from The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper: Recipes, Stories, and Opinions from Public Radio's Award-Winning Food Show by Lynne Rossetto Kasper and Sally Swift (Clarkson Potter, April 8, 2008). Copyright 2008 by Lynne Rossetto Kasper and Sally Swift

Serves 4 to 6

5 minutes prep time; 18 minutes stove time
The beans hold in the refrigerator for 5 days; add liquid as needed when reheating.

* Good-tasting extra-virgin olive oil
* 1 large onion, chopped into 1/4-inch dice
* Salt and fresh-ground black pepper
* 4 garlic cloves, fine chopped
* 1 fresh jalapeño, seeded and fine chopped
* 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
* One 14-ounce can whole tomatoes, drained
* Two 15-ounce cans red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
* 1-1/2 cups water
* 2 Tablespoons butter

1. Generously film the bottom of a 10-inch skillet with olive oil, and heat over medium-high heat. Saute the onions with salt and pepper to taste until they begin to soften, about 3 minutes. You want to hear a sizzle as they cook.

2. Add the garlic, jalapeño, cinnamon, and cloves, and cook the mix until it is fragrant, about 1 minute, taking care not to burn the spices. Add the tomatoes, crushing them as they go into the pan. Saute for another minute.

3. Stir in the beans and water. Bring to a fast simmer, crushing the beans with a potato masher (or the back of a large spoon) as they cook, and scraping the bottom of the pan as the beans begin to thicken. Simmer until the beans are thick, about 10 minutes. Blend in the butter, and taste for seasoning just before serving.

Chocolate-Chunk Oatmeal Cookies with Pecans and Dried Cherries

[these might be the best cookies ever, we highly recommend doubling the recipe]

1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour (flour should total 6.25 ounces)
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 1/4 cups rolled oats, old-fashioned, (3 1/2 ounces)
1 cup toasted pecans (4 ounces), chopped
1 cup dried tart cherries (5 ounces), chopped coarse
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate , chopped into chunks about size of chocolate chips (about 3/4 cup)
12 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), softened but still cool
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar (10 1/2 ounces), preferably dark
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Adjust oven racks to upper- and lower-middle positions; heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 large (18 by 12-inch) baking sheets with parchment paper.


2. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl. In second medium bowl, stir together oats, pecans, cherries, and chocolate.


3. In standing mixer fitted with flat beater, beat butter and sugar at medium speed until no sugar lumps remain, about 1 minute. Scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula; add egg and vanilla and beat on medium-low speed until fully incorporated, about 30 seconds. Scrape down bowl; with mixer running at low speed, add flour mixture; mix until just combined, about 30 seconds. With mixer still running on low, gradually add oat/nut mixture; mix until just incorporated. Give dough final stir with rubber spatula to ensure that no flour pockets remain and ingredients are evenly distributed.


4. Divide dough evenly into 16 portions, each about 1/4 cup, then roll between palms into balls about 2 inches in diameter; stagger 8 balls on each baking sheet, spacing them about 2 1/2 inches apart. Using hands, gently press each dough ball to 1 inch thickness. Bake both baking sheets 12 minutes, rotate them front to back and top to bottom, then continue to bake until cookies are medium brown and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft (cookies will seem underdone and will appear raw, wet, and shiny in cracks), 8 to 10 minutes longer. Do not overbake.


5. Cool cookies on baking sheets on wire rack 5 minutes; using wide metal spatula, transfer cookies to wire rack and cool to room temperature.