21 posts tagged “peas”
Our Daring Cooks August challenge host, the talented Olga from Las Cosas de Olga and Olga’s Recipes has chosen a delicious Spanish recipe, Rice with Mushrooms, Cuttlefish and Artichokes by José Andrés, one of the most important Spanish Chefs at the moment.
He trained under well-known Ferran Adria at his three Michelin star restaurant El Bulli. José Andrés lives now in Washington DC and he owns several restaurants in Washington DC area (El Jaleo, Zaytinya, Oyamel…).
The recipe Olga brought us is from his US TV show Made in Spain.
Rice with Mushrooms, Cuttlefish and Artichokes
Cooking time: 45 minutes
Equipment:
* 1 Chopping Board
* 1 knife
* 1 medium saucepan
* 1 Paella pan (30 cm/11” is enough for 4 people. If not available, you may use a simple pan that size.)
* 1 Saucepan
Ingredients (serves 4):
* 4 Artichokes (you can use jarred or freezed if fresh are not available)
* 12 Mushrooms (button or Portobello)
* 1 or 2 Bay leaves (optional but highly recommended)
* 1 glass of white wine
* 2 Cuttlefish (I used 'It's All Good' Mediterranean Chick'n Fillets)
* “Sofregit” (see recipe below)
* 300 gr (2 cups) Short grain rice (Spanish types Calasparra or Montsant are preferred, but you can choose any other short grain. This kind of rice absorbs flavor very well.) – about 75 gr per person (½ cup per person) Please read this for more info on suitable rices.
* Water or Fish Stock (use 1 ½ cup of liquid per ½ cup of rice)
* Saffron threads (if you can’t find it or afford to buy it, you can substitute it for turmeric or yellow coloring powder)
* Allioli (olive oil and garlic sauce, similar to mayonnaise sauce) - optional (see recipe below)
Directions:
1. Cut the cuttlefish in little strips.
2. Add 1 or 2 tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan and put the cuttlefish in the pan.
3. If you use fresh artichokes, clean them as shown in the video in tip #7. Cut artichokes in eights.
4. Clean the mushrooms and cut them in fourths.
5. Add a bay leaf to the cuttlefish and add also the artichokes and the mushrooms.
6. Sauté until we get a golden color in the artichokes.
7. Put a touch of white wine so all the solids in the bottom of the get mixed, getting a more flavorful dish.
8. Add a couple or three tablespoons of sofregit and mix to make sure everything gets impregnated with the sofregit.
9. Add all the liquid and bring it to boil.
10. Add all the rice. Let boil for about 5 minutes in heavy heat.
11. Add some saffron thread to enrich the dish with its flavor and color. Stir a little bit so the rice and the other ingredients get the entire flavor. If you’re using turmeric or yellow coloring, use only 1/4 teaspoon.
12. Turn to low heat and boil for another 8 minutes (or until rice is a little softer than “al dente”)
13. Put the pan away from heat and let the rice stand a couple of minutes.
different vegetables such as peppers or mushrooms)
Cooking time: aprox. 1 hour
Ingredients:
* 2 tablespoons of olive oil
* 5 big red ripe tomatoes, chopped
* 2 small onions, chopped
* 1 green pepper, chopped (optional)
* 4 or 5 garlic cloves, chopped
* 1 cup of button or Portobello mushrooms, chopped (optional)
* 1 Bay leaf
* Salt
* Touch of ground cumin
* Touch of dried oregano
Directions:
1. Put all the ingredients together in a frying pan and sauté slowly until all vegetables are soft.
2. Taste and salt if necessary (maybe it’s not!)
Allioli is the optional part of the recipe. We were instructed to choose one of the two recipes given, and Olga highly recommended us to try the traditional one, which is the one I made. Allioli is served together with the rice and it gives a very nice taste. Boy, it was really strong and went so well with the paella!
Cooking time: 20 min aprox.
Ingredients:
* 4 garlic cloves, peeled
* Pinch of salt
* Fresh lemon juice (some drops)
* Extra-virgin olive oil (Spanish preferred but not essential)
Directions:
1. Place the garlic in a mortar along with the salt.
2. Using a pestle, smash the garlic cloves to a smooth paste. (The salt stops the garlic from slipping at the bottom of the mortar as you pound it down.)
3. Add the lemon juice to the garlic.
4. Drop by drop; pour the olive oil into the mortar slowly as you continue to crush the paste with your pestle.
5. Keep turning your pestle in a slow, continuous circular motion in the mortar. The drip needs to be slow and steady. Make sure the paste soaks up the olive oil as you go.
6. Keep adding the oil, drop by drop, until you have the consistency of a very thick mayonnaise. If your allioli gets too dense, add water to thin it out. This takes time—around 20 minutes of slow motion around the mortar—to create a dense, rich sauce.
José's tips for traditional recipe: It's hard to think that, when you start crushing the garlic, it will ever turn into something as dense and smooth as allioli. But don't give up. It's worth the extra time and effort to see the oil and garlic come together before your eyes. Just make sure you're adding the olive oil slowly, drop by drop. Keep moving the pestle around the mortar in a circular motion and keep dreaming of the thick, creamy sauce at the end of it all.
Allioli a la moderna (Modern recipe)
Cooking time: 3-4 minutes
Ingredients:
* 1 small egg
* 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil (as above, Spanish oil is highly recommended)
* 1 garlic clove, peeled
* 1 Tbs. Spanish Sherry vinegar or lemon juice (if Sherry vinegar is not available, use can use cider or white vinegar)
* Salt to taste
Directions:
1. Break the egg into a mixing bowl.
2. Add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and the garlic cloves, along with the vinegar or lemon juice.
3. Using a hand blender, start mixing at high speed until the garlic is fully pureed into a loose paste.
4. Little by little, add what's left of the olive oil as you continue blending.
5. If the mixture appears too thick as you begin pouring the oil, add 1 teaspoon of water to loosen the sauce.
6. Continue adding the oil and blending until you have a rich, creamy allioli.
7. The sauce will be a lovely yellow color.
8. Add salt to taste.
José's tips for modern recipe:
(1) If you do not have access to a hand blender, you can use a hand mixer (the kind with the two beaters) or a food processor. If you use a food processor, you must double the recipe or the amount will be too little for the blades to catch and emulsify.
(2) What happens if the oil and egg separate? Don't throw it out. You can do two things. One is to whisk it and use it as a side sauce for a fish or vegetable. But if you want to rescue the allioli, take 1 tablespoon of lukewarm water in another beaker and start adding to the mix little by little. Blend it again until you create the creamy sauce you wanted.
Olga’s Tips:
(1) In Spain, rice is not stired as often as it is when cooking Italian risotto. You must stir it once or twice maximum. This tip is valid for all Spanish rice dishes like paella, arròs negre, arròs a banda…
(2) When cooking the alternative style you can change the cuttlefish or squid for diced potato.
(3) If you can’t find cuttlefish or squid, or you’re not able to eat them because of allergies, you can try to substitute them for chicken or vegetables at your choice.
(4) Sofregit can be done in advance. You can keep it in the fridge or even freeze it.
(5) For more information on how to clean and remove the heart of artichokes, please watch this video.
(6) To watch how Jose Andres cooks this dish click here.
(7) To tone down the taste when you do it by hand in a mortar, then add an egg yolk. If you want to tone it down in the alternative way use milk or soy milk. Anyway, the best alternative way is the original oil and garlic alone.
(8) Allioli must be consumed during the preparation day and preserved in the fridge before using it.
(9) For help on conversion on metric to imperial, visit this page.
The Verdict: We loved this rice dish immensely. We had it for breakfast and we had it again for dinner. It was that delicious! I would make this again, with different ingredients. This is the major advantage of paella. You can throw everything but the kitchen sink into it.
To see more beautiful rice dishes other Daring Cooks made in August, check out the Daring Cooks blogroll.
Yellow Curry Risotto
(Makes 5-6 servings)
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
5-6 cloves garlic, finely chopped or minced
2/3 cup baby carrots, diced
3 Tbsp. dried parsley
1 1/3 cups white jasmine rice or arborio rice
1 16-oz can coconut milk
2 Tbsp. yellow curry powder
1/2 tsp. cumin powder
1/2 tsp. garam masala
1 cup warm organic vegetable broth
3 cups Brussels sprouts, shredded
1 1/2 cups snap peas, ends discarded and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
3 cups hot water
A healthy dose of freshly ground black pepper
Salt to taste
1. Saute onion, garlic, and carrots over medium heat for about 10-12 minutes until the carrots have softened a bit.
2. Add parsley and cook for another minute.
3. Add rice, and mix well until the rice is throughly coated with oil. Cook for a minute or two. Pour in the coconut milk and add curry powder, cumin powder, and garam masala. Mix well and cook until the liquid is pretty much absorbed.
4. Ladle in the warn vegetable broth. Mix well and make sure the rice doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot. Cook until most broth has been absorbed.
5. Add in Brussels sprouts and snap peas, as well as one cup of hot water. Again, keep stirring from time to time and cook until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Repeat the same process until all the water has been used up.
6. Remove from heat. Stir in salt and pepper and thoroughly mix. Adjust the seasoning if necessary.
I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that I do not feel ready for the shift between day and night. There seems to be a constant shortage of time. When the night comes, I only get anxious and wish I could fast forward to the next day without having to actually lay down and close my eyes and let my mind go on a ridiculous trip. When the day emerges, I have invariably left behind my resolve, my revelations and my new goals. Maybe it is just the first month of the new year that has made my knees shake. I so want to hold on to each and every moment that I hold on to almost nothing at all. Thus the first 15 days went by and I have done absolutely nothing extraordinary.
Enough complaining. I have lost some of the enthusiasm for cooking lately, so I resort to risottos again. It will get better in time, I suppose.
Roasted Red Pepper and Artichoke Risotto
(Makes 4 servings)
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
5-6 cloves garlic, minced
1 jar roasted red peppers in olive oil, or two large roasted red peppers, finely chopped
1 1/4 cups white jasmine rice or arborio rice
4 tsp. parsley
1 tsp. smoked paprika
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/3 cup white wine
1 1/2 cups warm vegetable stock
1 jar water-packed artichokes (or roasted artichokes packed in oil), drained well * (see notes)
4 1/2 cups hot water
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
Salt and pepper to taste
1. Saute onions, garlic and roasted red peppers over medium heat for about 7 minutes until onions are slightly golden.
2. Add the rice and cook for 2-3 minutes until the rice is completely coated with oil.
3.
Add parsley, paprika and red pepper flakes and cook for another minute. Keep stirring to make sure
the rice does not get burned or stuck on the bottom of the pot.
4. Pour in the wine and let cook until it is all absorbed.
5.
Ladle in the warm vegetable stock and stir well. Cook until the stock
is absorbed. (Keep stirring when the rice seems much drier to prevent
it from being burnt on the bottom.)
6. Ladle in hot water by batches. 1 1/2 cups each time. Cook until the water is completely absorbed. Stir frequently.
7.
When the water is all used up and the rice is completely cooked, remove
from heat. Add nutritional yeast and salt and pepper and mix well.
Serve warm.
* If you use marinated artichokes in a jar, it is OK too. But do not use any marinated artichokes with a very strong vinegary taste. Make sure you drain really well, and you can probably rinse a bit in a bowl of water and drain again.
Now onto some stuff I made in the last few days. A tempeh cassrole, recipe by Jessy of "happyveganface". I added half a fennel bulb simply because I had it laying around in my fridge for ever. I thought it was pretty good, but my hubby did not like it as it is. Too bland, he says. But he loved it after he fried it up a bit and added some curry sauce to it.
And a loaf of spelt white bread, recipe by Nicole of Baking Bites again. Great bread! The texture and consistency were really excellent.
I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas. We cooked a lot and ate a lot, like there is no tomorrow. I guess during Christmas it is virtually impossible not to overeat. We have decided that we are not going to make any New Year's Resolutions because we already know - because we know ourselves well enough in this aspect - that we will not honor our resolutions for more than two months. So we feel rather relieved for not making any attempt. :) And you know what, I feel rather good about this. For the first time, we just accept and respect ourselves for what we are, and go with the flow. 2009 will be a good year, because we will work more on complimenting ourselves from time to time and being with ourselves in a friendly and loving manner.
Now, back to the food we cooked up for Christmas. Nothing too fancy. I almost did an all-Veganomicon feast.
1. French Lentil Soup with Tarragon and Thyme (Veganomicon, page 141).
2. Mac Daddy (Veganomicon, page 195).
3. Seitan Vindaloo (Vegan Dad, recipe here).
4. Singapore-Style Yellow Curry Rice Noodles with Tofu (Vegan Express, page 118).
5. Pumpkin Coconut Cakey Bars (My own recipe).
I wish everyone a happy New Year's Day in advance, and God bless!
I'm still suffering from a general enthusiasm about blogging. I'd love to take photos and post them, and actually I've had a lot to say before I hit the "compose" button. But once I'm here, in this big box, I seem to become speechless quickly. Sometimes words are just so hard to come by.
Below is Isa's famous tempeh bacon (from VwaV, page 23). Like Isa said, this is not gonna fool any meat-lovers. But to be all fair, a good tasty thing doesn't always have to be meat, right? For us, this is way better than bacon, only because it's full of flavors and it's extremely zingy.
Vegan Explosion's Sunday Biscuits. I can't believe how easy it is to make some fluffy biscuits in less than 15 minutes including baking time.
Dark Lentil and Vegetable Stew (recipe by Johanna of Green Gourmet Giraffe). Johanna turned a vegan recipe into vegetarian and I turned it back into vegan. I was too lazy to look at the original vegan recipe. Shame on me, as usual! Anyhow, I used cauliflower leaves, cauliflower and kale instead of the parsnip, cabbage and zucchini. And I cooked the whole stew on the stovetop without baking it. It's a stew very similar to the mole sauce, equally full of spices. We loved it!
It was a really long and stressful day. We had so much to do for our little family business that there never seemed to be enough time. I don't even know if I'm thinking straight now. Anyway, I only took one photo for our simple and humble brunch - Mushroom and Pea Pasta with Broccoli. No fancy thing as the name says it all, but some wholewheat pasta is the only thing that keeps us going nowadays. The lighting was bad, obviously, but I really didn't have much time today to get things right.
I did manage to take some more photos of the back yard I've been enjoying, mostly from looking at it only. Shame on me!
I finally tried the famous penne vodka from the excellent Veganomicon (page 193). I used whole-wheat elbows instead of penne and used a little more red pepper flakes. Towards the end of making the sauce, I added some fresh cilantro since we really love cilantro. The penne vodka came out really good. I loved the sauce since it packed a lot of zing. Of course, we can't live without some broccoli in the pasta.
On a final note, I do plan to master my new camera (though I've had it for a few months already) in the next few weeks so that I can take better photos. I bought a whole bunch of vegan frozen food so the following days will be culinarily interesting.
