Guest post: Scallop risotto

One of my favorite things to cook, for family and friends, is risotto. I always loved ordering it when we went out to eat, but I figured it was one of those dishes I'd only get to enjoy in a restaurant. What did I know? It's easy to make, is a wonderful comfort food, and, whenever I make it for friends, they're always impressed because they think it's too hard to make. I've even blogged about risotto before over here.

Anyway, here's what you'll need for approximately four servings:



3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 onion—finely chopped
2 cloves garlic—finely chopped
1 red pepper, chopped

SAUTE THE ABOVE, THEN ADD:

16 uncooked scallops (if they're really big, you can use fewer. I usually cut them into halves or quarters)
6 sun-dried tomatoes—cut into small pieces (or more!)
½ teaspoon finely chopped lemon zest
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

COOK THROUGH and set aside (I usually keep the heat on low).


Meanwhile, bring 5 cups fish, chicken or vegetable stock (I usually use chicken or vegetable—low sodium versions) to a simmer.

To make the risotto you need:

1 ½ cups arborio rice
½ cup white wine

Now the fun stirring begins. In a large pot, heat one T. of unsalted butter and some olive oil (probably 1 T. but I just pour in a glug). Saute 1/4 c. finely chopped onion and then pour in the uncooked rice, and stir to coat all the grains well. Keep the heat on medium (you want it to bubble/boil softly) and add the wine, stirring occasionally until most of the liquid is absorbed. Basically, when you can draw a wooden spoon through the rice and it leaves a "clear" path/streak for a second or two, you're ready top add more liquid. Now, add the broth, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring occasionally until the liquid is absorbed (just like with the wine--when you can draw spoon through the rice mixture, add the next half-cup of broth).


Continue adding the simmering broth to the risotto until there's only 1/4-1/2 cup broth left in the pan. Add the broth and the scallop mixture, remove from the heat and stir in the remaining ingredients:

1 cup tightly-packed spinach leaves, cut into slices (I know there's a fancy term for this but I don't know it).
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon lemon juice
fresh tomatoes

Give it another good stir to mix everything together and voila! You just made risotto.


One of the great things about this recipe is once you get the basics down (how much broth to how much rice), you can mix it up with the rest of the ingredients. Do you like mushrooms? Go for it (me, personally, I detest them). I've made this with smoked salmon and dill. Yum. Or chicken. Whatever. All you've really got to know is the basic formula of rice and broth and how to let it simmer/cook.

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Guest blogger Judy Larsen is used to cooking for one husband and four kids who love everything she cooks (or at least are savvy enough to not say otherwise) and one kid who for years lived on only "white" foods.

Let's Talk Latkes

The first night of Hanukkah is...yikes!...tomorrow. Friday, December 11th. Did I mention YIKES?

I mean, sure, I'm not ready present-wise. And I don't have enough candles to get us through more than a day or two. (Especially since we light a minimum of three menorahs: one is mine and Baroy's, one is Em's, one is N's.) But, really, that yikes is about latkes. Specifically, the fact that I don't know when I'm going to be able to make them. And IT IS NOT HANUKKAH until I have eaten myself sick on latkes. Latkes that I have made myself. With applesauce that I have made myself.

(Yes. It's all about me.)

But, hey. The fact that I'm so overwhelmed by life that I haven't managed to schedule the making of latkes, much less done any actual making of latkes...that shouldn't impact you guys. Or at least not beyond the lack of cool latke-related photos on this post. (Sorry.)

And so, let's talk latkes.

Now, making latkes? Ridiculously easy. There are fancy latke recipes out there (relatively speaking), but me, I'm a simple kind of gal. In fact, you can't even really call this a recipe; what follows is really a list of obvious ingredients, and some tips on how to make the process of latke-izing as painless (and delicious) as possible.

Latkes =
potatoes
onion
egg
flour
salt
pepper (optional)
oil

OK. So. First, let's talk potatoes. I am almost embarrassed to admit that, until a year or so ago, it never occurred to me that there was an easier way to do latkes than the spend-seventeen-hour-peeling-russets routine. Now? I'm all about the Yukon golds, or just plain old white potatoes. Because, dude! You don't have to peel! The skins on these potatoes are so thin, you can just grate them into the batter along with the potatoes themselves (after cleaning well, of course). It cuts the latke-making time down to almost nothing! Trust me. It's totally worth it.

Now, let's talk proportions. My mom taught me to make latkes, and she told me to use a more-or-less four-to-one ratio of potatoes to onions. But the potatoes she used were huge russets, whereas the potatoes I use, well, we just talked about that. So I just sort of eye it; I probably use about one small onion (or half of a larger one) for every six to eight potatoes I put through the food processor.

On to the actual making. First, wash the potatoes. Next, grate them. What I do is put a bunch of potatoes and the onion through the grater apparatus on my food processor, then put aside about half of the coarsely grated mixture into a collander, so the liquid can drip off and the batter will be less runny. I take the other half and put it through the food processor again, using the blender blade (if that's what it's called, the blade that sits on the bottom of the mixing bowl) to turn that half of the batch almost into a puree.

Once that's done, mix the two halves of the potato-onion batter together in a large bowl, adding in one already-beaten egg.

Next, add enough flour to firm up the batter, and then season with kosher salt (I prefer kosher salt for cooking) and pepper (if you like to give your latkes a little kick) to taste.

As you're doing these last couple of steps, you'll want heat a quarter-inch or so of oil (the more neutral the oil, the better; I prefer canola) in one or more skillets. When the oil is hot, drop the batter in by large spoonfuls; turn the latkes once, when the edges start to brown, adding more oil as needed.

Remove cooked latkes from skillet and place on a plate or platter lined with at least two layers of paper towel; cover each single layer of latkes with another layer or two of paper towels, to soak up excess oil. Serve hot, or freeze in single layers on cookie sheets lined with wax paper; once the latkes are frozen, they can be put into plastic bags and stored pretty much indefinitely. (God, I wish I'd done this a few weeks ago. I'd be all ready now!) When you're ready to serve them, pop them into the oven on the same cookie sheets at 300 degrees or so, until warm and crisp.

And that's pretty much it. Or, rather, that's almost it.

If you know anything about latkes, you know what I'm going to ask: Applesauce, sour cream, or both? You already know my answer. (And no, it's not "both." One does not adulterate the perfection that is homemade applesauce...not even with the creamy near-perfection of sour cream.) But you might (I shudder to think) have a different opinion. And so I ask...When it comes to latke accompaniment, what's your pleasure?

And to all who celebrate, via latkes, presents, or prayers: Happy Hanukkah. May your days and nights be a feast of lights.

Cabernet Sauvignon: a special vintage

Have you heard of One Hope? The California wine company is donating 50 percent of its profits on bottles of its award-winning 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon ($18.99) to charities supporting autism awareness and therapies.

Needless to say, this is a cause near and dear to us over here at (Never) Too Many Cooks. So when TC showed us the link, we agreed it was worth a mention. Let's face it—excellent wine, good food, family and friends, there's no better way to spend the holidays.

And I have to admit, there's something about this story that speaks to my heart and it's not just the fact that they are supporting autism causes. "Our name symbolizes the idea of a group, no matter how small or big, coming together as ONE and working towards HOPE for the future."

Hope for the future. God, I love that.

I can't wait to place my order.

Breakfast crepes

Finding the new and different for breakfast is something I'm always interested in. Breakfast is definitely the least varied meal of the day at our house. Nearly every day it's cold cereal for myself and one daughter, hot cereal for the other, and oatmeal for my husband. Borrrring.

On weekends we mix it up with organic eggs and organic bacon. Incidentally, if you've not yet switched to organic bacon - hurry and do so now. So delicious!! I will never go back to that overly-processed, filled-with-nitrates bacon that lines the shelves at the supermarket. The taste is awful compared to what we like to call "the good stuff."

Imagine my delight upon seeing that Living Without has a recipe for gluten-free, dairy-free breakfast crepes. I have always loved crepes, and enjoyed them often when my sister and I were roommates, but I had never tried making them myself.

They turned out to be one of the easiest things I have ever made. And now I'm thinking a crepe pan is in my not-too-distant future.

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Breakfast Crepes
1 cup brown rice flour
3 Tbsp sugar
1 cup milk (plain-flavored rice, soy, hemp or almond milk)
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp oil

Mix flour and sugar in a blender or mixing bowl.

Add milk, eggs and vanilla and combine well. Batter should be thin, like cake batter. If it's too runny, add more flour, a tablespoon at a time.

Place oil in a heavy skillet or non-stick pan and heat skillet to medium high.

Pour enough batter into the skillet to coat the bottom of the pan.

Tilt the pan until batter is evenly distributed.

Tip: If, like me, you have too large of a non-stick pan, it's not necessary to tilt the pan to coat the entire bottom. I did that on the first one and it didn't turn out well. For the rest I just tilted the pan to spread out the batter a little bit (crepes are meant to be thin).

Cook until bubbles cover the crepe.

Peek at the bottom; crepe should cook until bottom is lightly browned.



(Patience is key here. If you flip too early, you’ll split the crepe). Flip crepe with a spatula and cook briefly until done.

Repeat until all batter is used.

Immediately after removing the crepe to a plate, I spread (dairy-free) butter on it and sprinkled with sugar and then rolled them. Heavenly. My mouth is watering just thinking about them.

There would have been quite a few more on the plate, but while I was making them a certain "chef" and her husband couldn't stop eating them. We managed to hold back so I would have enough for a pretty picture.

Just think how much prettier that picture will be when I get that crepe pan and they are all the same size.

Next weekend I think we'll try adding fruit or something else delicious to them.

Do you like crepes? What's your favorite way to serve them?

Pear banana yogurt smoothie

I am a terrible breakfast person. I never do the right thing. Most of the time, I skip the meal completely, only to find myself starved and reaching for whatever is quick and easy (and often loaded with carbs) sometime before lunch.

And so when my mother introduced me to the idea of a breakfast smoothie (yes, I can be slow to think of some of the more obvious solutions on my own), I jumped at the idea. When I was in California for the summer, we kept the fridge loaded with frozen berries and bananas, yogurt and that really expensive pomegranate juice. But back home in NY, and once the weather began to turn, the idea of an icy cold breakfast loaded with berries was a bit hard to take. I needed to figure out a seasonal solution.

I got the idea to substitute frozen pear for the berries and pear nectar or apple juice for the pomegranate juice. Yes, it's still an icy cold breakfast in the middle of winter, but it's delicious and loaded with cinnamon and nutmeg and honey and a generous serving of fruit (something I often forget to eat later in the day). Best of all, the kids will love it, too (call it a milkshake!). And it's absolutely portable—so whether I'm rushing off to help build sets for the class play or to do a little last minute Christmas shopping, I can sip and go!

Here's what you need for one generous serving:

1 chopped and frozen pear (I do this task myself ahead of time)

1 banana (can also be frozen, but not necessary)

1 cup of pear nectar or apple juice (white grape would also work well here)

1 container of yogurt (I like to use Activia vanilla)

1 teaspoon of honey

pinch of nutmeg

pinch of cinnamon

Put everything in the blender: first the liquid, then the frozen fruit, then layer in the other ingredients. Blend until smooth. Pour into a tall glass, garnish with a bit more cinnamon, insert straw, and you're good to go.

Guest post: Vietnamese grilled pork with rice vermicelli

My kids call this scrumptious all-in-one meal "Vietnamese pork bowl." It's a crowd pleaser: gluten and dairy free, vegetable gateway for picky eaters, straightforward preparation, and its three-hour process is done in spurts with lots of interstitial free time to pull apart brawling children—and oh my goodness is it delicious. Even my picky son with autism can be coaxed into nibbling on one of the carrot sticks. I hope you like it as much as we do.

Serves 4 - 6

Marinade
8 cloves of garlic, pressed or minced
5 tbsp fish sauce
1/4 cup sugar
ground black pepper to taste

Sauce (nuoc cham)
1/4 cup sugar
Juice of 1 large lime
5 tbsp fish sauce
1/2 cup water
2 cloves of garlic, pressed or minced

2 pounds pork shoulder (pork loin works but compromises awesomeness)
8 oz rice vermicelli/sen mee/maifun
1 medium carrot, peeled and julienned
1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded, and julienned
5 tbsp cilantro, Thai basil, mint (any combination), chopped

1. Place pork in the freezer for sixty minutes to firm it for slicing. (Frozen pork can be slightly defrosted in microwave and sliced immediately).
2. While the pork is freezing, mix the marinade ingredients and set aside.
3. Remove pork from freezer, cut into 1/4" slices, then place in a gallon ziploc bag.
4. Pour marinade into pork bag, shake to cover all surfaces, squeeze out excess air, and seal. Marinate in fridge for one hour (you can leave it overnight, but one hour is sufficient).
5. Mix the sauce ingredients together and put in fridge until needed.
6. Julienne carrot and cucumber, and chop herbs.
   
7. Optional: Place leftover mint, cucumber, or lime in a pitcher of ice water to impress any guests or soothe yourself with a spa-like visual.
8. Optional: Reserve a couple of carrot sticks and tell your child with the self-limited diet that they will get a bite of cookie or other preferred food for each bite of said carrot sticks.
9. When the pork has 30 marinating minutes left, boil a large pot of water. Add the vermicelli/sen mee/maifun noodles and cook for 2 to 4 minutes, until tender. Drain the noodles, rinse, and set aside.
10. Fetch the pork. Grill it until it is cooked through but not overcooked, 5 - 10 min. (This is an excellent time to deep-six any fantasies about Viking ranges with built-in grill tops, as they require two hours of cleanup. I recommend a nice grilling pan, Weber, cast-iron skillet, or George Foreman-style plug-in grill.)
11. Divide up and pile noodles in individual bowls; top with vegetables, then pork, then herbs. Ladle sauce/nuoc cham over each bowl. Those who can take it should top with chili paste or Sriracha.
12. Enjoy everyone's exclamations of pleasure and delight.

Adapted from Serious Eats
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Guest blogger Shannon Des Roches Rosa serves a hot home-cooked dinner six days out of seven, if you include take-and-bake Costco pizza on Wednesdays.

TC's mom's chicken with crunchy rice

I've become increasingly--sometimes annoyingly--obsessed over what I buy and prepare for my family to eat. I'm more and more about local, organic, whole foods. I'm less and less about additive-laden convenience foods.

But, sometimes? You need to fall back on one of those you-could-make-it-in-your-sleep-and-it's-just-as-good-every-time recipes. Especially one of those you-could-make-it-in-your-sleep-etc. recipes that your mom always made for you when you were a kid.

And the truth of the matter is? Sometimes, those comfort foods require a can of Campbell's Cream of Somethingorother. (Yes, Campbell's. I actually make pretty much every soup I eat these days from scratch, but when I don't, it's Campbell's--for no reason other than that it's what my mom always used. Substitute another brand at your own risk.) And so you buy it, and you use it, and you love it--and you just don't look at the list of ingredients. It's better that way.

Now, I'm not going to claim that this is the most delicious recipe you'll ever taste. But it's easy, and it's good. Hell, it's butter and rice and chicken and Cream of Somethingorother soup. How could it not be good?


Actually, it's really, really, realllllllly good.

TC's Mom's Chicken with Crunchy Rice

• 3 chicken breasts (because that's what fits in my baking pan)
• 1 cup of rice
• 1 can of cream of somethingorother soup (Mom used cream of mushroom, but my family objects to mushrooms, though I think in the photo of up there you'll see I sneaked them in by using cream of chicken and mushrooms)
• 1/2 can of water
• butter

[Note: My mom used to also include a package of Lipton Onion Soup in the mix described in step #2, and would sprinkle paprika over the top to give it all some color before popping it into the oven. I don't do either of these things, but you're welcome to give it a try.]

1. Preheat oven to 350. Butter a casserole or baking dish.

2. Mix together rice, soup and water in the baking/casserole dish. Place chicken on top of mixture. Plop (I can't think of a better way to describe it) dabs/dots of butter on top of the chicken and the rice/liquid.

3. Cook, uncovered, for about an hour and fifteen minutes, or until the rice around the chicken is browned and crunchy on top.

See what I mean? Couldn't be easier.

By the way...While this may be the first of my mom's recipes I'll be sharing here, it absolutely won't be the last. Coming up some time this month, in fact, will be both her latke recipe, and her chicken soup with matzoh balls recipe. Which, to be honest, are also her mother's recipes--i.e., my grandmother's recipes. And possibly even my great-grandmother's recipes. (And my aunt will be leaving the full genealogy of these recipes in the comment section in five, four, three...)

The chicken with crunchy rice, though? I'm pretty sure that one originated with my mom. And if I hear otherwise, I'll be sure to let you know.

So what recipes do you guys make that were handed down to you from your mom or dad or further back? How much of what you cook for your kids (or yourself) is the same as what you were fed as a child?