Day Sixty-Six

She Said:

Boy, I'm tired. Too tired to cook right now, that's for sure. So I'll tell you about the one dish that we made last week that I neglected to post about. This counts toward our own Julie/Julia Project and it's from Serving Up the Harvest by Andrea Chesman.
This dish used up the rest of the peas from our garden and so the rest of the pea dishes in this section will have to be made with frozen or possibly farmer's market peas. It was really good and I'm happy to have made it. But, the recipe was oddly written, so I'm going to interpret for you.

Shells with Peas and Prosciutto

8 oz. small-cut pasta (like medium shells, elbows, etc. - we used Orecchiette which was absolutely perfect)
2 cups peas (about 2 pounds in pods)
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 ounces prosciutto, diced
1 small onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus extra for serving
Salt and freshly ground pepper

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook pasta according to package directions, until just al dente. Bring a second medium pot of salted water to boil and add the peas. Boil just until tender, 3 to 5 minutes, depending on their age. Drain well.

2. In a large Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the prosciutto and onion and sauté until the onion is softened, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute. Reduce the heat to very low and stir in the peas.

3. Reserve a cup of the pasta liquid and drain the pasta. Add the pasta to the pea mixture and toss to coat. Add the cheese and toss well. Add the reserved pasta water as needed to moisten the pasta (we ended up using all of it). Season generously with salt and pepper.

4. Serve at once, passing additional cheese on the side.

This was quite tasty, as I said, and I think we will make it again. It can really be a standalone meal but we paired it with some sauteéd scallops and chorizo, which ended up being a bad combination. I ate both of my meal components separately. They were both delicious but they were not a good couple!

Day 66/375:Recipe 35/175

Catching Up!

She Said:

I have some serious catching up to do. I have three recipes that we made that count toward our own Julie/Julia Project. They are all from Serving Up the Harvest by Andrea Chesman.

Day 61 - Arroz Con Pollo with Peas

2 cups long-grain white rice
2½ cups chicken broth
½ cup dry sherry
¼ teaspoon crushed saffron threads
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups fresh peas (about 2 pounds in the shell)
1 roasted red pepper, diced
20 pimiento stuffed green olives, sliced
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Place the rice in a sieve and set in a bowl. Run cold tap water over the rice until the rinse water runs clear. Drain well. Set aside. (This step is optional. It does wash away vitamins that have been sprayed onto the rice, but it greatly improves the texture of the final dish.)

2. Combine the broth, sherry, and saffron in a small saucepan and warm gently over low heat.

3. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and sauté for 2 minutes, until the chicken is partially cooked. Add the onion and garlic and continue to sauté until the chicken is white and firm, 2 to 4 minutes. Add the rice and sauté until the rice appears toasted, about 3 minutes.

4. Stir the chicken broth mixture into the rice. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce the heat to maintain a gentle boil. Cook for 3 minutes. Add the peas to the skillet (do not stir) and continue to cook until the liquid is absorbed and the peas are tender, about 10 minutes. (if your peas are "mature", they may take a few minutes longer.)

5. Fluff the rice with a fork. Stir in the red pepper, olives, and parsley. Season with salt and pepper. Serve at once.

This was just OK. I even thought it might get better having sat overnight in the fridge and reheated. But it wasn't. It was just OK.

Day 62 - German Potato Salad

2 pounds waxy potatoes, scrubbed, halved, and sliced ¼ inch thick
4 ounces bacon, diced
1 shallot, minced
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
5 tablespoons white wine or red wine vinegar (we only used 3½ tablespoons of white wine vinegar)
1 teaspoon sugar
2 celery stalks, diced
¼ cup minced fresh parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Combine the potatoes with 6 cups salted water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes are tender, 5 to 10 minutes. Reserve ¼ cup of the cooking liquid and drain. Transfer the potatoes to a large mixing bowl and keep warm.

2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook the bacon over medium heat until brown and crisp, about 4 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and transfer to the bowl with the potatoes. Drain off all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon grease.

3. Add the shallot to the skillet and cook until slightly softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the reserved cooking liquid, oil, vinegar, and sugar. Bring to a boil. Pour the mixture over the potatoes and toss to coat. Add the celery, parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well. Serve immediately.

This was not what we were expecting from potato salad but it was quite good. The real test was taking it to work the next day when it was cold. It held up even then. Good recipe!

Day 63 - Carrot Muffins

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1½ cups firmly packed grated carrots
¼ cup pure maple syrup
¼ cup sour cream or yogurt (we used sour cream)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Topping
½ cup sugar
1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
5 tablespoons butter, melted

1. Preheat the oven to 350℉. Grease 16 regular-size muffin cups.

2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg.

3. Cream together the butter and sugar in a large bowl. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Beat in the carrots, maple syrup, sour cream, and vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture until smooth.

4. Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups. The batter will be stiff; an ice-cream scoop does a great job of distributing int.

5. Bake the muffins for 25 to 30 minutes, until they have risen and a knife inserted in the center of one comes out clean.

6. Let the muffins cool in the pan on a wire rack for a few minutes.

7. To make the topping, mix together the sugar and cinnamon in a shallow bowl. When the muffins are just cool enough to handle, one at a time dip the tops into the melted butter, then into the sugar and cinnamon mixture, covering the tops completely. Let cool before serving.

I was worried about the cinnamon and sugar topping for these. I thought that they would need a cream cheese frosting or something like that. Admittedly, they were a little dry but really tasty and just right to have with your morning coffee or tea. I really enjoyed these!

Days 61, 62 & 63/365:Recipes 32, 33 & 34/175

Day Fifty-Seven

She Said:

I have been waiting for this day since March 31st. That was the day we started our own Julie/Julia project and also 10 days after we had planted a boatload of sweet pea plants.

When I was going through Serving Up the Harvest (by Andrea Chesman) and saw this recipe, I knew that spring couldn't get here soon enough. Well, it finally arrived.

Last night after work, we trudged down to the garden and picked a bowlful of pea pods. Then spent the next 10 minutes or so shelling the peas. When all was said and done, we didn't have quite enough for the recipe so we filled in with some frozen peas but the experience was great. And there are so many more pods on the vines that I know we will have plenty for our other "pea" recipes.

Risi e Bisi

4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 shallot, diced
¾ cup uncooked medium-grain or arborio rice (I used long-grain rice but should have used arborio)
Salt (optional)
2 cups fresh shelled peas (we had 1¼ cups and used ¾ cup frozen)
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan
Freshly ground black pepper

1. Heat the broth to simmering in a saucepan on top of the stove or in a heatproof container in the microwave.

2. In a large saucepan, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallot and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the hot broth and rice, stir well, cover, reduce the heat, and simmer until the rice is just tender, 15 minutes. (We actually let this go for about 20 minutes.)

3. Taste and add salt if desired. (We didn't.) Stir in the peas and cook gently until the peas are done enough to suit you, about 5 minutes for fresh peas (less for frozen peas). Stir in the Parmesan and season with pepper. Serve at once.

This was so good! But, really, we should have used arborio rice - and will next time. This was our main dish (we had some cheese and wine prior to dinner) but it would make an excellent side dish for some nice grilled salmon or other fish. The flavor was just delicious. We will make this again!

Day 57/365:Recipe 30/175