Snacks

September in the Kitchen – Tomato Sandwiches and the Kitchen Sink
by

September in the Kitchen – Tomato Sandwiches and the Kitchen Sink

You probably want to know “What do tomatoes and the kitchen sink have to do with each other?”. Well, I’ll tell you, it has to do with categories of sandwiches. There are dainty tea sandwiches made for white gloves, hearty sandwiches with gravy meant to be eaten with a knife and fork, picnic sandwiches to be eaten outdoors, and ‘kitchen sink sandwiches’ which you need to eat while standing over the sink to catch the drips. This is definitely one of the later. Take a look at all that drippy tomato!

Kitchen sink tomato sandwich

Kitchen sink tomato sandwich

Make this while summer tomatoes are at their most ripe and delicious. The ingredients are simple but need to be the best…ripe tomatoes, crisp good quality sourdough toast, sweet onion, garlic, sea salt, and mayo. That’s all.

Although you could add bacon…just saying.

Kitchen Sink Tomato Sandwiches

For each sandwich you will need:

  • 2 slices of good sourdough bread, toasted crisp
  • 1 clove of garlic, cut in half
  • 1 slightly over-ripe tomato, cut in half
  • 1 tablespoon of mayonnaise
  • 1 ripe tomato sliced thinly
  • Sea salt
  • a few thin slices of red or other sweet onion
  1. Start by toasting your bread, it should be crisp.
  2. Rub one side of each slice with the cut side of the garlic clove, be assertive.
  3. Rub that same side with the cut side of the over ripe tomato, squeezing to coat with juices.
  4. Top that with a thin smear of mayo
  5. Layer the tomato juice side of one slice with the thinly slice tomato, sprinkle with sea salt (I used salt I purchased when we were in Key West earlier this year), top with the onion, then the other slice of toast (tomato side down). Press lightly together.IMG_3524
  6. Eat over the kitchen sink.IMG_3522

Lunch! Or a very delicious snack. So simple, so wonderful!

IMG_3525

The idea for this came from the N.Y. Times food section.

June in the Kitchen – Daughter of Seedy Mix
by

June in the Kitchen – Daughter of Seedy Mix

My Seedy Mix has turned out to be a popular condiment in my household. It adds crunch, a dose of flavor, and a boost of protein to all kinds of salads and vegetables. Use it as a finishing garnish (it’s more interesting than parsley). The original Seedy Mix was posted last April and has been undergoing some alterations over the past few months. Here is the updated and improved recipe:

Daughter of Seedy Mix

  • 1/3 cup sunflower seeds
  • 1/3 cup sesame seeds
  • 1/3 cup of hulled pumpkin seeds
  • 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
  • 2 teaspoons nigella seeds
  • 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 1/2 teaspoon of black mustard seeds
  • 1/2 teaspoon of Urfu Biber pepper
  • 2 teaspoons dried onion flakes
  •  2 teaspoons dried garlic flakes
  • 2 teaspoons sea salt
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. Put the sunflower and sesame seeds in a shallow oven proof plate like a metal pie plate. Toast in the oven until golden, shaking the plate a few times. This will take about 8-10 minutes. Pour into a medium bowl to cool.
  3. Heat a small dry frying pan on medium heat, add the poppy seeds and toast for 5 minutes. Remove them to the bowl with the sunflower and sesame seeds.
  4. Add the nigella seeds to the skillet and toast for 2 minutes. Remove to the bowl with the other seeds.
  5. Add the cumin and mustard seeds to the skillet and toast for another 1 to 2 minutes until golden. You might want to cover the skillet with a splatter screen as the mustard seeds will jump around. Add to the bowl with the rest.
  6. Add the onion, garlic, Urfu Biber, and salt to the bowl. Stir to mix. Cool completely.
  7. Once cool, transfer to a jar with a tight lid.
Seedy Mix II

Seedy Mix II

Sprinkle the seeds over vegetables or scrambled eggs, salad, roast chicken, or anything needing an extra embellishment. I couldn’t resist them as a quick snack while I was preparing dinner.

April in the Kitchen – Prosciutto Wrapped Mango with Mascarpone and Aged Balsamic Vinegar
by

April in the Kitchen – Prosciutto Wrapped Mango with Mascarpone and Aged Balsamic Vinegar

Really I don’t know why I even bother to write out this recipe, it’s all there in the title. With all the fancyness going around these days I think we forget that sometimes the simpliest recipes are the best. This is one of the easiest, freshest, and most delightful of dishes to serve with a before dinner with a glass of wine (rose or sparkling would be lovely) or drinks. And, it is light enough not to spoil everyone’s appetite. I know I have a tendancy to fill up on all the wonderful starters laid out before a dinner party, sometimes I’m quite full by the time dinner is served. And that is a sad thing when a hostess has gone to so much trouble.

I used mangos this time because they have just started showing up at the market, but you could make this with melon or peaches or plums. Use what is in season and looks best at the market.

Proscuitto Wrapped Mango

Prosciutto Wrapped Mango

  •  Cubes of mango or other fruit is season
  • 6 thin slices of prosciutto
  • Mascarpone cheese
  • Aged balsamic vinegar
  1.  Wrap bite sized cubes of fruit with a thin slice of prosciutto.
  2. Smear a dollop of mascarpone cheese across a serving dish.
  3. Set the wrapped cubes of fruit on the cheese to hold them in place.
  4. Drizzle with aged balsamic vinegar.

That is all there is to it. I’m going to take this to Fiesta Friday to serve to the Angie and her friends. There are so many delightful dishes served at the party, this won’t spoil anyone’s appetite.

IMG_3041

 

Fiesta Friday

Fiesta Friday

IMG_3042

February in the Kitchen – Crispy, Crunchy Flour Tortilla Chips
by

February in the Kitchen – Crispy, Crunchy Flour Tortilla Chips

Have you ever had chips made from flour tortillas? If not, you are in for a treat. You won’t find these in a store because they are too fragile (read crispy, crunchy) for commercial interest. But, they are easy to make and once you do…you will be hooked. Good bye regular corn tortilla chips. A favorite Berkeley Mexican restaurant serves them only on request. That’s the only place outside my kitchen I have ever seen them. Who needs Mexican food when you can have flour tortilla chips and bean dip!

Flour Tortilla Chips

Bean dip with Crisp Flour Tortillas

These are even better with stale flour tortillas that have been in your fridge for ? (maybe I’d better not ask it your fridge is like mine).

The chips bubble up not unlike pastry when it is fried. And, these are much easier than making pastry. Use the chips with dips, salsa, or as nachos.

There isn’t much of a recipe; here is the basic method.

Flour Tortilla Chips

  • 1 package of flour tortillas (stale is good)
  • 1/2 inch of oil in a pot suitable for frying
Flour Tortilla
Cut into wedges
  1. Heat the oil over medium to medium-hot heat.
  2. Cut the tortillas into triangle shapes, or any shape which strikes your fancy.
  3. Drop the tortillas into the hot oil a few at a time. They will cook quickly so do this in batches. Turn them after a few seconds to brown the other side.
  4. Drain on paper towels or newspaper.
Chips

Fried Flour Tortilla Chips

These will keep for a day in an airtight container (once cool), you can reheat and crisp them in a warm oven.

The trick is to cook them in oil that is hot, but not so hot that they brown before crisping all the way to the center.

If you are still searching for something different for Super Bowl, gives these a try.

January in the Kitchen – Sausage Rolls
by

January in the Kitchen – Sausage Rolls

These sausage rolls have been a big hit at parties, movie nights, and TV sporting afternoons. Sausage rolls are part of my English heritage, I remember my grandmother making them. She was wonderful with all kinds of pastry; I’m not nearly so clever. For those of you who are not familiar with them, sausage rolls are similar to “Pigs in Blankets”, an American favorite. But, much, much better! They are traditionally eaten on Boxing Day, the day after Christmas when the servants had a day off (if you lived in the Downton Abbey era).

Sausage Rolls

Sausage Rolls

I’m going to give two sets of directions, one with the sausage made from scratch and one with doctored store bought sausage. I’ve done them both ways, both are good. I’m not talented with pastry and used commercial all butter frozen puff pastry from Pepperidge Farm; but I invite you to make your own if you are so inclined. They would be even better.

This recipe was adapted from one in the New York Times by David Tanis.

Sausage Roll recipe #1 (from scratch)

  • 2 pounds port shoulder, not too lean, have it ground coarse (you can have the butcher grind it for you or do this in a food processor with the metal blade)
  • 2 teaspoons of kosher salt
  • ½ teaspoon of black pepper
  • Pinch red pepper flakes
  • ½ teaspoon ground coriander
  • ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
  • ¼ teaspoon mace
  • 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage or 1 tablespoon dried
  • 2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Sausage Roll recipe #2 (Cheater’s rolls)

Before you make the “cheaters rolls”, check the seasoning of your sausage by frying a bit in a skillet. The sausage may not need any extra spicing up and could be fine as is.

No one needs to know you didn’t make these from scratch.

  • 2 pounds mild pork sausage either bulk or removed from casings
  • Pinch red pepper flakes
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
  • ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/8 teaspoon mace
  • 1 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme or ½ teaspoon dried
  • 1 tablespoons chopped fresh sage or ½ tablespoon dried

Pastry and Assembly

  • 1 package all butter puff pastry
  • 1 egg, beaten for egg wash
  1. Defrost the pastry if frozen.
  2. Mix the pork with all the seasonings in a large bowl, incorporating evenly.
  3. With wet hands form the sausage into 4 logs or rolls about 9 inches in length. Wrap each in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.
  4. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F
  5. Line two sheet pans with parchment paper
  6. Working one at a time, roll each pastry sheet into a rectangle approximately 9 by 10 inches, cut in half to make 2 pieces each about 9 by 5 inches.
  7. Unwrap each sausage roll from the plastic and place it in the center of one rectangle. Wet one of the long edges with a bit of water to seal the pastry and roll it up, tucking in any pastry at the ends.
  8. With the seam side down, cut each log into 8 pieces.
  9. Lay the pieces pastry side up (seam down) on the baking sheets and brush with the beaten egg.
  10. Repeat with the other pastry sheet.
  11. Bake for 25 minutes until the pastry is crisp and brown, and the sausage cooked.

Cool for a few minutes before serving, these are good warm or served at room temperature. They are even good for breakfast the next day reheated in the oven. Serve with a good spicy brown mustard such as the one here

These are excellent with a cold beer (or champagne).