Welcome to the new and improved version.  Now I bake the fish in the oven, which reduces the oil use but still leaves it crispy, and cuts the time I spend in the kitchen way down.  Plus now I can make 4 meals at once.

Just like before, you want to choose a flat boneless fillet.  I’ve tried several, but really can’t get better than dover sole.  It’s reasonably sustainable, wild caught, sold boneless, and cheap.  I usually buy it at Costco (can’t vouch for all branches, but mine has a excellent fish counter).

Dover sole washed and drying

The basic directions are to take fresh (or defrosted) fish that is reasonably dry (I always rinse fish before using), coat it in flour, coat it in “egg,” and coat it in flour again.  It really makes a big difference to do the double coating, so I recommend you don’t skip it.  I use the same container of flour for both dips, you could do different ones if you wanted…some people do a fine flour for the first dip and a coarse one for the second.  Use a large roasting pan for the flour.  The 2-3″ lip helps keep the mess down and the large size lets you work with 7 or 8 pieces of fish at once.

It helps a lot to have a wet hand and a dry hand.  I use my right hand to lay the fish on the flour and turn it over, then I use my left hand to dump more flour on the fish to make sure it’s fully coated as I pile them up to one side of the container.  You can follow my suggestions of plates from my old recipe, but I’ve found that to be an unnecessary step.

Next I use my right hand to dip each piece one at a time in the “egg” and let it drip before laying it in the flour and turning it over.  The dry left hand piles flour on top to make sure everything is coated.

The Flour:

In the past I used half soy flour and half brown rice flour plus salt (a tsp or two for every 3 cups) and pepper.  The soy cuts down on the carbs but is too heavy alone.  Brown rice works well but is very carby.  This makes a nice but thin coating.

Then I started using cornmeal, the standard fine grind from Arrowhead or Whole Foods.  Because it isn’t as fine as flour, I do 3 parts cornmeal to 1 part brown rice flour.  Plus salt and pepper.  This batter is slightly thicker and has a nice flavor.

Azure Standard sells a corn flour which turns out to be an actual flour grind.  It gives a thin coating to the fish and isn’t very good on its own.  They also sell a medium grind cornmeal which turns out to be pretty coarse.  Not quite as coarse as polenta but way beyond “meal.”  My last fish batch was about 3 parts medium cornmeal and 1 part corn flour.  Came out thick and very good.  And the “scones” I made with the leftover flour was fabulous.

Do experiment with flours if you don’t like, or can’t have, my choices.  Heck, even wheat.

I’ve changed my seasoning too.  I still use salt and pepper but add cumin powder and paprika.  You can’t taste them in the final product but it gives it a depth and richness it lacked before.

The Egg:

You can use real egg here if you want.  But we use flaxseed, which works very well.  Heat up water and add well ground flax seeds (I use a way oversized glass measuring cup in the microwave).  Stir and let cool.  The standard amount is 1/3 cup water to one tablespoon of meal equals one egg.  I usually make a bunch of eggs worth and then add more water as I get down to the bottom.  I find that a thinner “egg” coating works better on the fish.

Amounts:

Plan on around 1/2 pound of fish per person (measured before coating).  This is an average for children and adults.  A group of just adults will eat more.

It’s very hard to give the amount of flour mix because it varies so much based on how thick the fish fillets are (it’s surface area that counts, not weight), how coarse your grains are (coarser ones weigh less per cup due to more airspace and also make a thicker batter), and your technique.  Count on at least 3 cups of flour mix per 5 lbs of thin fish.  But I add extra to make hushpuppies with.

About 6 eggs or egg equivalent will do 5 lbs of thin fish.  For flax I usually use 6-8 tablespoons of flaxmeal to 2 cups of water, then add 1-2 cups as I go along.  Since I like it thinner, this is enough for 7-9 lbs of fish.  Plan to have extra for hush puppies.

I like to make 9 lbs of fish at a time.  It’s not that much more work than making 4 or 5 lbs but it’s about all I can handle.  Fried this would be way too hard, but baking makes it easy.  I generally bake up 1/4 of it then freeze the rest, for an additional 3-4 meals for 3 people (each time we usually have a serving or two leftover for lunch the next day).

Ingredients:

Dover sole fillets
Seasoned flour mix
Beaten eggs or flax goo
Oil for baking (I use olive)

Baking the Fish:

Coat the fish in flour, dip in egg/flax, coat again in flour, shake off excess and put on a cookie sheet with a good deal of olive oil on it (just enough that it moves around when you tilt the pan).  Do not use baking pans.  The fish will not crisp up.  Use sheets that are flat or have a lip no higher than an inch.

Bake at 400*F until the bottom is browning nicely.  Flip fish over and brown the other side.  Take care not to burn it or let it get too brown.  But you want it crispy.

Freezing the Fish:

Coat the fish in flour, dip in egg/flax, coat again in flour, shake off excess and put on a cookie sheet or baking pan with a piece of parchment or waxed paper on the bottom.  Do not use oil.  The fish can touch but should not overlap.  You can make 3-4 layers of fish as long as there is parchment or waxed paper between each layer.  Stick in freezer.

In theory, you can move the fish to zipper bags once frozen, but we’ve never bothered.  You will want to do this if your freezer gets freezer burn easily though.

When you want to cook them, just remove from freezer.  No need to defrost.  Put the fish (minus the paper!) on a well oiled cookie sheet and bake at 400*F as per above.

Frozen battered fish, direct from freezer (right) or ready for the oven (left)

Leftover Batter:

I’ll make a separate hush puppy post at some point.  I make mine more like scones and they are fabulous.  Mix the leftover flax goo or egg with the leftover flour mix.  Add water or milk (I’ve used soy milk to good effect) or more flour until the batter is thick enough to only partially hold its shape on a pan.  Add more seasoning (dill weed, dill or cumin seeds, chipotle pepper powder are all good) and a pinch of baking soda.  Bake on an olive oil coated pan until fully cooked but not too hard.

Recipe for Tarter Sauce:

Relish (I prefer dill but sweet is fine)
Veganaise or mayonnaise (1-3 times the relish)
A squeeze of fresh lemon
A bit of salt

Serving the Fish:

Serve with tarter sauce and lemon slices (or catsup if you’re like my daughter).  The fish is delicious with coleslaw but goes well with a wide variety of vegetables.

Leftover fish is great cold or heated.

Oven Fried Dover Sole with tarter sauce and roasted vegetables

©2010 Norwitz Notions. All Rights Reserved.

Hand shaped tortillas from homemade masa

Masa, the corn dough used to make tortillas, tamales, pupusas, and more, is quickly becoming one of my favorite kitchen staples.  Unfortunately, it’s hard to get good quality product.  Even in Mexico, shops with fresh masa for home use are disappearing in favor of the powdered stuff.

I began my quest in early 2008.  My daughter’s 3rd birthday was coming up and I wanted to have a taco bar.  I looked and looked for plain fresh tortillas for sale but found nothing suitable.  I live in a semi-rural agricultural part of the San Francisco Bay Area.  You can’t do a cartwheel without hitting a Mexican neighborhood, market, or restaurant.  But almost every last tortilla I found had preservatives in it.  Why on earth??  Trader Joe’s has some pretty good ones, the “handmade” ones, but they’re a bit pricey for a large party, and they aren’t organic.  Whole Foods has organic tortillas with good ingredients but they’re dreadful.  Okay if fried hard but just horrible if you try to make them soft, like a real taco.

The first stop in my masa journey was the powdered stuff.  Masa harina.  Maseca brand.  I made pretty good (and very cheap) tortillas from it.  They tasted much the same as commercial tortillas…because most of those are made from the powder too.  It’s not organic, it’s probably GMO, it leaves a junky feeling in my stomach, but it’s easy to find, easy to store, and moderately easy to make.  It’s good in a pinch but is sort of like buying squishy “wheat” bread from a bag instead of baking your own from whole grains.

I’ve looked but haven’t found organic masa harina (harina means flour).  Bob’s Red Mill makes a non-organic one that is pretty decent.  Worlds better than Maseca but it still gives me that icky tummy and, like all masa harina, is difficult to work with and shape into anything but basic tortillas.

My next discovery was a true masa shop, practically in my backyard.  Primavera in Sonoma, California.  For a mere $1.50 a pound, I could buy beautiful organic whole grain masa, ready to cook.  Unfortunately, “practically” means a 45 minute drive each way and I have been having trouble sourcing it anywhere else.  The only Farmer’s Markets they sell at are an hour away and the stores they sell their finished products at don’t carry the masa because it’s so perishable (you can’t freeze it and it’s best used within a couple of days, though it will not go bad for a week or slightly more).  I was special ordering it from my local Whole Foods but they decided this was too much trouble.  I met their early morning delivery truck in parking lots a couple of times but, with a child in tow, this got to be a hassle.

The next step was obvious, I was going to have to make my masa myself.  But how?  First I (re)discovered the Good Eats (Alton Brown on the Food Network) episode where he makes it, effortlessly of course.

Then I worked on ingredients.  You need field corn for this, which simply means the kind of corn used for cornmeal, not for corn on the cob or popcorn.  Azure Standard to the rescue!  They grow their own and a 5 lb bag of organic dried field corn is a mere $3.05.  Note: you really do want organic here (or at least buy from a farmer you know isn’t using GE seeds or spraying).  Almost all field corn in the US is genetically engineered (and heavily sprayed).  Organic is not.

Next you need Cal, short for calcium carbonate aka slaked lime (get food grade, not the grade for cement or whitewashing walls!).  Most Mexican markets will have this.

Calcium Carbonate for making masa

The only other ingredients are water and salt but you do need a stainless steel (or other non-reactive) pot, a stove, and a food processor.  In my net searches, I came across another blogger, Rancho Gordo, who made masa using Alton Brown’s recipe.  My heart sank as I read their difficulty in getting the food processor method to work.  But I decided to plow ahead anyway.  And I’m glad I did, mine came out wonderful!

It’s pretty easy.  Measure 6 cups of water (I use filtered since the corn will absorb it) into a pot, add 2 tablespoons of cal, and stir as you gently heat the water.

Soaking the corn in lime water

When the lime is dissolved (a few seconds), add 2 cups of corn.  Rinse it first, though I forgot the first time and it didn’t seem to matter (since you will rinse later).  Bring to a boil then turn off the heat.  Alton Brown insists that you do this slowly, with the time to boil taking half an hour or more.  I did that the first time but the second time I forgot to watch it carefully and it boiled quicker and stayed at a boil for a few minutes.  Oops.  Didn’t make a big difference, though it absorbed more water.

Turn off the heat, cover, and let it sit overnight (I’m not sure what the minimum time for sitting is).  If you can’t get to it the next morning, no problem.  My second batch sat for almost 24 hours.  It swelled up more but was still firm enough to rub and rinse.

Dump into a colander and drain out the excess lime water.

Corn after soaking in lime water

Now comes the fun part.  Soak in fresh water (I use tap water here), rub, rinse, repeat.  Alton Brown says 5-6 minutes of rubbing while rinsing.  I wasn’t that throgho.  I put the colander in a larger bowl, fill with water, rub for a while, pour off the skins, add more water, rub, drain and rinse, etc.  Remember the purpose of the lime is to change the protein content and texture.  It’s not essential to remove the skins.

At the end, soak in fresh water for a couple minutes and repeat.  Then drain and process along with a teaspoon of salt.  Alton Brown makes it seem easy, with just a few pulses and 4-5 TB of water.  I found it takes more than that.  I pulse at first, scrapping down the sides as needed, but then just let it run.

Masa after a trip in the food processor

The first time I did use way too much water, as you can see above.  I put in about 10 oz (20 TB).  It made a nice smooth product but not one I could shape with my hands.  I still managed to make yummy tortillas though, so no great loss.

The second time I used half as much water (about 5 oz or 10 TB) and the masa came out lovely.  Not quite as smooth as my first batch, or as Primavera’s gorgeous product, but very usable and delicious.  It was still a little wetter than I would have liked but I could shape it by hand (see tortillas at the top of the page) and could have made pupusas or other foods from it.  See below.

Finished masa ready to shape and cook

Cost is pretty low too.  One batch (2 cups of corn) costs 61 cents for the corn (would be less if I bought it in 25 or 50 lb bags), 13 cents for the cal (again, I could buy in bulk and save), and another couple pennies for the water, salt, and electricity.  So let’s say 75 cents for enough masa to make 15-20 medium organic whole grain tortillas (masa weight will vary depending on how long you soaked it for and how much water you added). This is expensive compared to Maseca masa harina, which runs $4-6 for enough flour to make a couple hundred tortillas.  But less than Primavera masa or any finished tortillas you can buy.

All in all, is it worth it?  So far, yes.  My masa has a wonderful corn flavor, a great texture, and is making excellent tortillas (and soon to be making pupusas, challah, and other cool things).  It takes 2 minutes to set up at night, another few minutes to watch it and then cover, and 10 minutes to make the next day.  Tortillas take a couple minutes to make and cook.  Someone into convenience foods would be put out, but it’s really nothing in the great scheme of things.

©2010 Norwitz Notions. All Rights Reserved.

The hurdle was how to cook the eggplant.  Eggplant goes from hard to creamy fairly quickly.  I decided to roast it and this turned out to be perfect.  Slice in to 1/2″ thick pieces (keep the skin on, it adds flavor and color) and put on low baking pans or cookie sheets with a bit of olive oil.  Do not overlap.  Turn the pieces once so there is some oil on both sides.  Don’t use much, just enough to give it a little browning and so it won’t stick.

Roasted eggplant slices

When the eggplant is fork tender but not falling apart, take it out of the oven.  When cool enough to handle, slice and dice into small bite-sized pieces.

Diced eggplant

Dice and add the rest of your vegetable ingredients.  I use cucumber and tomato.

Cutting cucumbers

Now make the sauce.  I couldn’t hope to duplicate the Turkish version so I made a simple chimichurri-style sauce.  Cilantro, fresh lemon or lime juice, extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, a bit of hot pepper, and cumin seeds (plus fresh garlic if you wish).  You can substitute cumin powder but the seeds give it a nicer flavor.  Use powder if the salad will be eaten within an hour of making, because the seeds won’t have time to soften.

Mix the sauce in the blender, pour over the vegetables, and mix.  That’s it, you’re done.  Serve chilled, at room temperature, or slightly warm from the eggplant.  It’s good all ways.

Eggplant Salad

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You can make these raw (with a dehydrator) or cooked.  I find that lower temperatures lead to a wetter bar and higher ones to a cakier one.  But the proportion of ingredients changes that up too.  If you do a very thorough blending job you end up with something like a Lara Bar, or you can leave the mix more chunky, which gives it more character.

I started using sunflower seed butter (aka sunbutter) a few months ago and discovered that they give the bars a chocolate-like look, mouth-feel, and even some taste.  Since chocolate is the worst of Miriam’s food intolerances, that’s a really cool find.

Here’s the version of this recipe I used for a submission to the baked goods, bar cookies, competition at the Sonoma County Fair last week.

Recipe:

Sunflower seed butter (sunflower seeds, cane sugar, salt), 16 oz
Raw cashews, 2 cups
Dates, 14 oz
Ginger root, fresh, 2 TB
Cinnamon, 2 tsp
Cardamon, 1 tsp
Vanilla extract (vanilla, organic alcohol), 1 TB
Sea Salt to taste
Water as needed

Don’t worry about the amounts of the main ingredients.  I used full containers so that’s what it came out as.  My sunbutter is from Trader Joe’s.  The dates are pitted deglet noor dates in a pre-packed container from Whole Foods.  You can use any kind as long as they’re fresh (don’t use dried date pieces, the ones that look like elongated pellets).  For the cashews, I just poured them into the empty sunbutter container to measure (and to scoop out residual butter).

As for the flavorings, those amounts are guesses.  I did a lot of add and taste, add and taste again.  I will note though that the batter was spiced beautifully but the bars came out very mild; the spices were in the background.  When I do it again, I’ll double (or triple) the amounts.  If they come out nice and strong I’ll call them gingerbread bars, but I was careful with the naming for the contest because I didn’t want them to be judged that way when they were so mild.

Chop the ginger root and put it in the food processor first.  You want to make sure it’s well processed.  Now add your other ingredients and blend until smooth.  If you want a chunkier bar, take some of the cashews and process them before anything else and turn out to a bowl when they’re at the right consistency.  Do this in as many batches as it takes for the size of your food processor.

Date notes: take the time to feel each one with your fingers before putting it in the processor.  I usually find one pit for every 2 containers or so.  And there are often the little end caps left on.  Just one of these things will spoil your entire batch if left in.

Ingredients in the food processor

Why add water if your goal is to bake or dehydrate out the liquid?  Because food processor motors can only handle so much and it helps the mix come together.  Don’t add too much water or baking will take forever and the bars will be overcooked and thin.  I used perhaps a cup total for this batch, which is more than I usually need but my ingredients may have been dryer than normal.  Just add a small amount at a time, as needed.  Don’t measure because the amount you need will vary based on a lot of factors.

When it’s ready, mix in a bowl if needed, and turn out into a baking pan.  You want the mix to be about 3/4 or 2/3 inches deep.  My pan was enamelled so I did nothing to it but you may want to lightly oil a less smooth pan.

Bar mix ready to go into the oven

I baked at 250*F for about an hour.  I prefer lower temps (150*F) for longer periods of time but of course I waited until evening of the night before the Fair contest to start these.  Check often for burning (if you bake at a higher temp, they are easy to overcook).  At lower temps you may need to flip them part way through to dry out the bottoms.

They came out perfect.  When I use less cashew and bake at a lower temperature I get more a fudge-like bar.  These surprised me by coming out cakey.  In fact, Michael just assumed I used flour.  They tasted like they had flour to me too.  They were still great, even if they weren’t what I expected.

I chose the six best bars for the contest.  The recipe made about 3 times this amount.  Those were good sized bars too.

Finished bars ready for Fair delivery

So…did I win anything?  Nope.  I wasn’t really expecting to.  Aside from a touch of sugar in the sunbutter, the only sweetener was the dates.  These weren’t really dessert bars, they were snack bars.  And if you were a judge tasting cookie after cookie and suddenly came upon a low-sugar one, it would taste flat to you.  I think they were delicious (and so did Miriam and Michael) but they weren’t really right for this contest.

I don’t know where I fell but there were 12 entries in the “bar cookie: other” category and I didn’t get one of the 5 prizes.

County Fair display case

These bars were great for just eating but even better heated up in the toaster oven and served under vanilla ice cream (vegan of course).

©2010 Norwitz Notions. All Rights Reserved.

I got my chance May 8, 2009.  I announced the meal as vegan and gluten-free (the other meals there are vegetarian or vegetarian plus some fish), planned a menu, and set to work.  I quickly realized that, while my cooking skills are pretty good, my catering skills are quite lacking.  It didn’t help that we were never sure exactly how many people would show up (RSVPs are due two days before, but they’re flexible).

I planned for 20, got 18 (equivalent of 15 since several were small children), and cooked enough for 30.  Whoops.

A few folks lingering over dinner

After many years of cooking Passover Seders for upwards of 20 people, I have learned the trick of saving complex or new recipes for smaller venues.  Everything I made was simple to moderate and something I’d cooked many times before.

The Menu:

Chili-Cornbread Casserole
Roasted vegetables (red beets, golden beets, rutabaga, & leek with rosemary)
Green salad (romaine, cherry tomato, daikon radish, carrot, orange cauliflower, & mustard balsamic dressing)
Fresh strawberries with cashew cream
Challah (from masa) with sesame seed & oatmeal

Chili Cornbread Casserole

The good news is the food all came out fabulous.  No mishaps at all.  I can’t tell you how relieved I was about that.  The bad news is we had some disasters with the timing.  One of the disadvantages to cooking a large meal outside of your home is that you tend to forget things.  Well, Michael and I left a box of miscellaneous items behind.  Unfortunately, they were essential items for both of the dishes I had to finish up and bake in the synagogue kitchen.

Michael running home to get it set us back about 45 minutes, and we were already running 15 minutes late.  So everything was pushed back an hour (which means at least my time estimates were dead on).  The challah also took longer than expected, even though I had deliberately made them thinner than usual so they’d cook faster.

Salad and strawberries

All in all, I’d call it a success.  The next time I get the chance to cook for a crowd, I’ll have a clearer idea of amounts.  And hopefully the timing will work out better.

Roasted root vegetables

For anyone interested in the amounts of ingredients I used and what it all cost, check out my blog entry Catering Lessons: The Cost of Cooking for 30.

©2010 Norwitz Notions. All Rights Reserved.

Another little known fact is that criminis are nothing more than portabellas picked early.  They don’t have the same rich flavor a portabella has but they still taste like something (unlike the bland white ones).  Portabellas run about $2 more per pound than criminis.  Except the other day when they were on sale for the same price.  So I snagged a bagful.

I often use criminis to make pesto stuffed mushrooms but I wanted to use these portabellas for a main dish.

So, I washed them, carefully pulled off the stems (rock them back and forth), cut the ends off the stems (only necessary if they aren’t trimmed before arriving at the store…the difference is easy to tell: untrimmed ones have dirt on them) and threw the stems into the food processor.

I put the mushrooms cap down on a dry baking tray and popped them in the oven at a medium temperature (300*F or so).  Then I turned back to the food processor.  I put in some leftover pan-fried tofu (I would have used fresh tofu but we had a big container of the cooked), a couple stalks of celery, and a large portion of sun-dried tomatoes in oil.  I had to add a fair bit of water to get the consistency right.  Then I salted to taste (do this after adding water).

At this point, 10-15 minutes had gone by so I took the mushrooms out of the oven and picked them up one at a time to fill (this is why I said a dry tray).  After you fill them, put some oil on the tray and place them back, cap up, for baking.

Stuffed portabella mushrooms ready for baking

Pop them in the oven (about 300*F) and cook until the top is slightly brown and the mushrooms are soft.  The time will vary by the size of the mushrooms and the filling but these took around half an hour.

Now, if you’re thinking…but I don’t like sun-dried tomatoes, but I’m allergic to soy.  Don’t worry.  This is a very flexible recipe.  If you can call it a recipe.  Use whatever you like.  Meat, cheese, nuts/seeds, or something that doesn’t have protein if it’s a side dish.  Olives would be nice, or fresh herbs, or vegetables. The filling should have good strong flavor to complement the mellowness of the mushrooms.

Just make sure it’s thick enough to hold its shape with baking and serving but thin enough to spread.  And the filling should be fully cooked.  It only goes in the oven long enough to heat through and to set (or for cheese to melt).

While these were in the oven, I made a quick salad with chopped romaine lettuce, cucumber, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper.

They were delicious.  Great cold the next day too.

Portabellas with salad

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The original comes from Victoria’s Health and uses eggs.  I’ve made the recipe twice now with flax goo (for 2 eggs: 2 tablespoons ground flax and 1/2 cup water in a large glass cup, nuke for 1-2 minutes, let cool) instead of eggs and it comes out great.

Nut Burgers

1 cup of walnuts or pecans (I used walnuts)
1 cup of sunflower seeds
½ cup sesame seeds or hemp seeds (I used hemp)
½ cup flax seeds (whole or ground, I used whole)
½ cup oats
One bunch fresh parsley
1 tablespoon soy sauce (tamari)
2 eggs or egg equivalents
2 cups cooked beans (I used 1 1/4 cans of various types including black, kidney, and garbanzo)
2 tablespoons tahini or nut butter (I used cashew butter the first time and left it out the second)

The recipe also calls for 3 cloves of garlic, which I leave out, and suggests optional additions of cooked vegetables or rice, which I haven’t tried.

I add a pinch of salt and a teaspoon or so of chipotle powder for flavor.

Recipe makes about 14 burgers, which is perfect for 2 big dinners for 2 adults and a small child.

The actual making of the burgers is quite simple (assembling the ingredients is the hardest part): dump into a food processor and push the on button.  Form into patties.  Cook that day or freeze on a cookie sheet for later use.

Nut Burgers formed and waiting to be cooked or frozen

There are a few bumps though.

I have a pretty rocking food processor but it’s just a bit too small for the entire recipe.  The first time I made it, the parsley didn’t get processed very well and I had to pull out strands of it and some of the beans stayed whole (you can see this in the picture above).

The mix from the top half of the processor formed easily but the bottom half was insanely sticky.  I tested them carefully though and found no difference in how they cooked or tasted or in the final texture.

The second time I made them I added a bit more liquid and pulled out processed parts into a bowl to make room for more ingredients and mix later.  The bowl was great but the liquid was a mistake.  The burgers were even stickier than before and didn’t form nicely into patties, though they were still okay.  The taste wasn’t as intense but they were still good.

I like to cook them with plenty of oil on medium high heat, so the outside browns a little.  I was afraid the inside would be gooey but it was really good and the whole thing was quite similar in texture to the Amy’s Bistro burgers we often have.  When Michael cooks them, he prefers less oil on low heat.  The insides come out the same as mine but the outsides are like the insides and not browned.

Frozen burgers came out just as well as fresh ones, so this is a good recipe to make ahead.

Variations:

This is a pretty adaptable recipe.  You can make all sorts of changes and still have it come out good.  The original author recommends dried parsley if you don’t have fresh, or you could use another herb.  If you can’t eat nuts, try pine nuts instead of walnuts/pecans.  If you want it 100% soy-free, use any salty sauce in lieu of the soy sauce, or try water and salt.  To lower carbs, you can use edamame instead of beans, or use a cooked vegetable to round out the texture.  I don’t know what would happen if you left out the oats but I suspect the answer is not much.

Serve:

I like my burgers on a plate with mayonnaise, mustard, avocado if available, and plenty of pickled and/or cooked vegetables.  Michael skips the mayo and uses plenty of spicy mustard.  Miriam sometimes likes hers with catsup and prefers her burger cut and and her condiments on the side so she can dip.  Then of course there’s the usual burger in a bun.

I’m very happy with this recipe and it will be one of our staples for a while I’m sure.

Burgers dressed & on a plate

©2010 Norwitz Notions. All Rights Reserved.

This recipe disappears fast and gets raves (even from the meat-eaters).

I originally made it with red bell pepper and I love it that way, but I can’t justify buying bell peppers when they’re not in season. They’re very expensive, imported from far away, usually not organic, and rarely any good. So I use red cabbage as a substitute. It works well and provides a nice color contrast.

Recipe:

2 bags frozen shelled edamame (32 oz)
3 red bell peppers or 1/2 large red cabbage
2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar (estimate)
3 Tablespoons very good extra virgin olive oil (estimate)
Handful of fresh herbs, minced
Salt and pepper

To spread out the workload, you can make the vegetables the day before and leave them in a cold oven until you’re ready for them.

Peppers: Roast washed peppers whole in a 350*F oven for about an hour, turning several times. When peppers are cool enough to handle, remove seeds and stem and cut into strips, about 1″ long.

Cabbage: Cut cabbage in half, remove core, and slice in to long thin strips, then cut the strips in half so they are 1-3″ long. Roast dry (or with a touch of olive oil) in a 350*F oven until very dehydrated but not brown.  Stir often.

Slicing raw cabbage

Boil the edamame according to directions, drain.

While still hot, toss the soybeans in a bowl with olive oil, then vinegar, salt and pepper.  Add the vegetables at any point.

Cool edamame on counter then add finely chopped herbs, I used parsley, sage, lemon thyme, and oregano.

Put in fridge, serve chilled.

Nutritional Information:

The edamame alone is:
120 grams protein
96 grams total carbs
60 grams fiber
36 grams usable carbs

The rest of the ingredients will add basically no protein and a small number of carbs (maybe 10g at most). This recipe makes enough to serve a dozen people at a potluck. If we take that to mean there are 12 servings total, each serving has 10 grams of protein and 3-4 grams of usable carbs.

Edamame salad with roasted cabbage

An earlier version of this recipe with red peppers was posted to my lowcarb website December 1, 2003. A version of the recipe with red cabbage was posted January 24, 2004.

Note: Recipe rewritten with new pictures 12/08.

©2010 Norwitz Notions. All Rights Reserved.

Start with the right pumpkins.  Your fabulous jack-o-lantern is not a good candidate, not even a fresh, uncarved one.  Jack-o-lantern pumpkins are bred for looks.  The inside is watery and does not taste very good, though it’s technically edible.  Your compost pile or worm bin will love it though.

Our pumpkins came from the pumpkin farm across the street from us, the Peterson Farm.  They grow several varieties, including the jack-o-lantern type.  We got my favorite, the Cinderella Pumpkin (which Michael is cutting up below).  It gets its name from the deep color and carriage shape.  Plus a couple others, including the pumpkin pie pumpkin, which looks like a smaller version of a jack-o-lantern.

Instead of carving, we displayed them outside in our Sukkah and for Halloween.  They lasted just fine for a few weeks outside in the cold (not freezing) and rain.

Michael cuts a cinderella pumpkin in half

Wash the pumpkin and cut it into manageable chunks, then remove the seeds with a fork.  Roast the seeds later.  You can leave the gooey insides part (remove for jack-o-lanterns but don’t bother with other pumpkins). Cut the pumpkin sections further to good baking chunks (not too small or they’ll be a pain to peel).

Cutting the pumpkin into pieces (picture by Miriam Norwitz)

We had three pumpkins and made three big trays of pumpkin chunks.

Chunks of pumpkin ready for baking

Roast them until they are soft all the way through, but not burnt.  Pretty much any temperature will do.  Go ahead and put them in while cooking something else.  At 350*F, expect it to take about an hour.  But don’t go by timing: poke your pumpkin with a fork often.

Pumpkin fresh from the oven

The only hard parts are cutting up the really big pumpkins and taking the skin off (okay, removing the skin isn’t hard, but it’s tedious).  Do this after the pumpkins are cooked and when they are cool enough to handle (I left these out overnight).  Pull off any burnt parts and peel or slice away the skin.  Don’t worry about bits of skin that are left with the flesh.  A small amount is fine.

Important note: The juicier pumpkins will have liquid in the tray and drip more as you peel them.  Lightly wring out the flesh before using.  But don’t toss that liquid.  I save it (in the fridge or freezer) and use it as an easy soup stock.

Peeling cooked pumpkins

Take the pumpkin flesh and put it in the food processor.  In batches if you need to.  Process until smooth.  I put the various batches into one big bowl since there were different pumpkin varieties and I wanted to mix them.  This is the result.

Pumpkin Puree

Anything you don’t use right away, freeze.  It freezes very well with little to no loss in taste or texture.  I like to measure it into 2 cup containers (zipper bags work but I prefer Pyrex storage containers (that’s glass with a tight plastic lid) if I have enough of them).  That way I only have to defrost exactly what I need for a recipe.

Now what do you do with it?  Pumpkin pie is the obvious first choice.  I’ve also used it to thicken vegetable stews. When I could eat dairy and eggs, the puree was fabulous in pumpkin cheesecake.  Although most of us think dessert when we think pumpkin, the truth is its a wonderful savory food too, and it’s lowcarb, the lowest of all the winter squashes.

As for more things to do with pumpkin puree, I’m stuck.  If you have a good recipe, please link to it in the comments.  I still have 10 cups worth to use up.

©2010 Norwitz Notions. All Rights Reserved.

Pumpkin pie from Thanksgiving 2007

Because I couldn’t find one perfect recipe, I used the crust from one and the filling from another. Actually, Michael did the work.

Lowcarb notes: we’ve made this pie (filling and crust) with xylitol instead of sugar and it works fine.  Leave out the molasses.

We decided to triple the recipe this year but somehow ended up with 4 pies (and 6 crustless cupcakes we made for a nut-allergic friend).  We used small/medium springform pans.

The crust:

From:
http://www.somethinginseason.com/2007/10/pumpkin-pie-from-scratch-part-1.html
(note: this lovely site has been shut down)

Basic recipe:
2 cups whole pecans (you can substitute walnuts if you like)
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg

Michael processing pecans

I used pecans and organic cane sugar and flaxseed goo for the egg (1 tablespoon fine flax meal in 1/4 cup water, nuked for a minute then left to cool). You simply grind it all in the food processor and then press it into the pan. Cover the bottom and an inch or more along the sides with a good thick crust (1/4″ or so).

Crusts ready for filling

The filling:

From: http://www.tazarat.com/results.asp?id=33

Basic recipe:
3/4 lb firm tofu
1 (16 oz) can pumpkin puree or 2 cups fresh-cooked pumpkin
1 cup Sucanat (organic evaporated cane juice/cane sugar) or brown sugar
2 TB oil
2 TB molasses
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp ginger powder or 1.5 tsp fresh grated ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg

Michael & Miriam measuring pumpkin puree

We used homemade pumpkin puree (from Peterson pumpkins) which I measured into 2 cup bags and froze. For the sugar, we used organic cane sugar. Michael used 4/5 of a cup instead of a full one in 2007 but we forgot in 2008 and used the full amount.  The pies tasted great and weren’t too sweet. The oil was sunflower (also oiled the pan with it). Instead of ginger powder, we used twice as much grated (both fresh and frozen work well) ginger.  In 2008, we couldn’t find nutmeg in the pantry so substituted cardamon (yum…I think we’ll have to do both next year).

Pumpkin pie filling

You just food process and/or mix everything and pour it on the crust. Spread out evenly.

Filling the crusts (picture by Miriam Norwitz)

The directions say to cook for 1 hour at 350*F, until cracks appear.  But this isn’t nearly long enough.  The filling takes 1.5 to 2 hours; unfortunately, the crust starts to burn after you pass 1 to 1.5 hours.  The secret is to turn off the oven after an hour or so, before you get that burnt smell, but leave the pies inside where it is warm.  The filling will continue to set.  If your oven doesn’t hold heat well, leave it on a low temperature (like 200 or 250).

The good news is that overcooking the crust actually tastes good.  People liked it even when it was burnt, though it was better when it was just caramelized.  Just keep an eye on it and you’ll be fine.

Pumpkin pie display

This is a rich pie with plenty of spice, but still a good pumpkin flavor. It is softer than your usual pumpkin pie but part of that is regular pies have a very firm crust that holds the filling (this crust doesn’t do that at all). The texture is good. All in all, it was a success.

I made a cashew cream to go with it. The cream was also a huge hit. It was great on it’s own but even better with the pie. They went together superbly.

Pumpkin pie with cashew cream

Note: Recipe rewritten with new pictures 11/08.

©2010 Norwitz Notions. All Rights Reserved.

Cranberry sauce is one of those dishes that is so easy to make I can’t understand why everyone doesn’t do it. Especially given that the canned stuff is so bland and without texture.  You do want to use organic cranberries here, as chemically-grown berries tend to be high in pesticides.  2008 was not a good year for cranberries and they were horribly expensive.  Fortunately, you don’t need a lot of them (1 lb served over a dozen people).

This recipe freezes extremely well. It also lasts in the fridge for a long time. I froze a batch leftover from Thanksgiving 2006 and served it for Thanksgiving 2007 with very little reduction in taste or texture.  I used the recipe again for Thanksgiving 2008.

Ingredients:

Fresh cranberries, 1 bag (about 16 oz)
Fresh lemon zest from 2 small lemons (organic only)
Fresh lemon juice from 1 lemon (2 if not juicy)
Fresh ginger root, grated, 1-3 teaspoons
Salt, pinch
Stevia, pinch or two (optional)
Organic cane sugar, as desired
Water as needed

In 2008 I used 3 TB sugar and no stevia and ended up with perfect sauce that was not very sweet (which is how we like it).  In 2006/7 I used a bit less sugar and some stevia.  In 2008 I also used 3 TB water to thin out the sauce a bit.  How much water you need (if any) will vary a lot based on how juicy the berries are, how much you cook it, how much sugar you use, etc.

Rinse the cranberries in water and drain.

Put into an empty pot on the stove and heat gently while stirring until the cranberries start to soften.

Zesting a lemon over cranberries

Add stevia and sugar to desired sweetness. The stevia is optional but will help reduce the overall sugar level. I end up using about half of what is called for in a traditional cranberry sauce that also has a sugar boost from orange juice. Don’t use all or mostly stevia as the dish will be too bitter (I love stevia but it doesn’t mesh well with lemons).

Add salt, lemon, and ginger.

Stir and cook until the cranberries start to pop open and the texture is to your liking. Mash a bit if you wish or leave mostly whole. Adjust sweeteners/seasoning if needed.  If the flavors aren’t coming together, you probably need a touch of salt.

This cranberry sauce makes a great traditional accompaniment to turkey or other Thanksgiving fixings. It’s also good as leftovers with a variety of foods as a condiment. Miriam enjoyed dipping carrots in it. And for Thanksgiving 2007, some people ate it straight as a dessert.

Finished cranberry sauce

Note: Recipe rewritten with new pictures 11/08.

©2010 Norwitz Notions. All Rights Reserved.

I made the cashew cream to go with a vegan pumpkin pie I took to a Thanksgiving Potluck in 2007 and again in 2008, though it’s delicious on anything sweet.

Recipe:

2 cups raw cashew pieces (I keep them in the freezer)
Juice of one small lemon
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
Dash or two of white stevia powder (or use a another sweetener if you prefer)

Soak the cashews overnight (anything between 4 and 24 hours is fine).

Drain and rinse the nuts and blend them with as much water as they need.  You may need to do this in several batches.

Michael & Miriam blend the cashews

Add the rest of the ingredients.

Keep blending, then stop and use a spatula regularly to get it all. Make sure it is very smooth.  Don’t be afraid to add water, but taste the cream frequently to make sure you aren’t over doing it.  If the blender is strong, the nuts will cream up and absorb the extra liquid.  If not, you’ll have a somewhat gritty cream (which won’t take too much liquid, so be aware) but it will still taste good.

Finished cashew cream

Serve as you would whipped cream.  It will keep in the refrigerator for several days.

Cashew cream over pumpkin pie

Note: Recipe rewritten with new pictures 11/08.

©2010 Norwitz Notions. All Rights Reserved.

Start with any winter squash: pumpkin, acorn, red kuri, whatever you like.  In these pictures, I used butternut squash.

Cut the raw squash in half lengthwise.  Use a fork to pull out the seeds.  See the gooey stuff in the seed section of the squash?  It’s delicious when cooked so you can just leave it there (except for pumpkins; remove and discard pumpkin goo).

Removing butternut squash seeds

If you want, you can wash the seeds in some fresh water (I rarely bother).  This will give them a cleaner appearance and flavor after being cooked, and will reduce burning.  Be sure to lay them on a clean towel after washing to dry them.

Mix in some oil (I use olive, just enough to coat), something salty (I used tamari), and some flavor (I used cumin, other times I use curry powder or hot pepper).  Stir with the fork.

Spread them out on a cookie sheet (no need to grease it since you put oil with the seeds) and bake until crispy and golden brown.  I put them in with the squash (the temperature can vary between 300 and 450 degrees) but watch them carefully because they’ll be done in 5-20 minutes, depending on the temperature.  They do burn easily.  Be sure they aren’t too soft either; you want them to crunch in your mouth once they’ve cooled down.

Roasted butternut squash seeds

If there are any leftover, store them in a glass jar with a lid on the counter.  They will last for a few days to a couple of weeks.  If they get soft in the jar, just crisp them up in the toaster oven.

©2010 Norwitz Notions. All Rights Reserved.

My friend used slicing cucs (the kind you put in salad), cut into chunks.  They were delicious but a bit mushy with a thick skin.  I knew I’d want to use pickling cucs, which are thin-skinned, solid, and just the right size for pickles.  I found some at an organic farm stand I passed on my way to an appointment in Santa Rosa.  The farmer insisted I take some heads of dill as well.

I used the making sour pickles recipe from fellow tribe member Sandor Katz, author of Wild Fermentation.  With other veggie ferments, you add salt, massage it in, and let the vegetable juices come out and cover the veggies (adding some salt water if necessary).  But, with whole pickles, you need to make a brine.  With cucumber pickles especially, the salt to water ratio matters.  I used 3 tablespoons salt in 2 quarts/liters of water.

I also added a large head of dill flower, a small handful of peppercorns, and some grape leaves.  Katz (and other sources) say the grape leaves help make the pickles crunchier.  I figured it couldn’t hurt, and I do have a nice grape vine in the back of my property.  Next time though I’ll make extra grape leaves and then use them for stuffed grape leaves since all the commercial ones have preservatives.  If you want garlic, toss in a few peeled cloves.

Seasoning for pickles

Put your dry seasonings in the bottom of the container (use glass or ceramic; plastic works but I can’t recommend it).  You don’t have to sterilize it first but do make sure it’s clean.  Wash the cucumbers, cut out any bad spots, and remove any remaining blossom ends with your fingernail or a knife.  You can keep the stems.  Pack tightly into the container.

Packing pickles

Now, pour in the salt solution, making sure all the cucumbers are covered.  Put a plate or jar or other weight into the container to keep the pickles submerged.  I used a plate with a water-filled jar on top.  Cover the container with a loose fitting lid or towel to keep it clean.

Put the container on your kitchen counter or some other place that’s not too hot or too cold.  Don’t put into your fridge; it won’t ferment.

A plate as a jar weight

Check the pickles every day.  There will be a lot more mold growth than with sauerkraut and other vegetables.  Carefully wipe it away, cleaning the plate/weight as well.  You can dip a cup or ladle into the brine to pull off mold from the top.  The mold is white and isn’t overtly harmful but it will make your pickles mushy and bad tasting.  Don’t worry about traces but try to get most of it.

After 5 days, my pickles were crunchy with a slight tang but were more cucumber than pickle.  At two weeks they were just right.  You should taste now and then to see how you like them.  Some people go a month or more.  It’s not only a matter of taste (do you want sour, half sour, dill, etc?) but the salt concentration and temperature will make a big difference in the fermentation rate.  When they’re done, clean things up one last time and stick the container in the fridge.

Pickles ready for eating

This batch came out pickle perfect.  But my second batch, not so much.  That time I bought organic pickling cucs from the farmer’s market and they had air spaces in the middle.  You just can’t predict this.  The pickles took less time to cure and still tasted fine (though not as flavorful since I didn’t have any dill) and the texture wasn’t bad, but I didn’t get that solid pickle crunch when I bit into them.  I also had a lot more trouble with mold the second time, even after refrigerating.  They’re still edible but I’m not sure what went wrong.  Guess I’ll have to practice some more…next cucumber season.

©2010 Norwitz Notions. All Rights Reserved.

Start with fresh masa if you can get it.  Reconstituted masa harina if you can’t.

Grab a chunk, roll it into a ball, then flatten by hand into a thick oval tortilla.  Place your hot dog on top, making sure the tortilla is large enough to cover the dog on all sides.

We used a LightLife Tofu Pup.  Not because it’s the best vegetarian hot dog out there (trust me, it’s not) but because it’s the only one I know of that is even halfway like a hotdog but is vegan and gluten-free.  Miriam had been asking for hot dogs and this package was a treat for her.  Feel free to substitute any hot dog or sausage of your choice.

Hot dog placed on top of masa

Now, roll the masa around the dog, seal the edges and crimp the ends.  Pull off any excess masa.

Note: I haven’t tried this on a stick but the time to do it is before you put the hot dog on the masa.  Wrap the masa around the hotdog end of the stick.

Corndog ready for frying

Fry in a hot cast iron pan (or anything else that won’t stick) without any oil.  With tortillas, the pan should be hot enough to sizzle water, but here you want it on the low end of that because the masa is thicker and you want it to cook through without burning the outside.

Cook until browned on all sides.  That means about 6 turns (it’s round, not a square) and don’t forget a few seconds on each of the ends.

Corndog with Catsup

Serve with the condiments of your choice.  For Miriam, that’s catsup.

Miriam adds catsup to her dog

Three years olds often take some time to warm up to new foods, even ones that become their favorites later on.  Not in her case…  “I LOOOVE this!!”

Half eaten corndog

©2010 Norwitz Notions. All Rights Reserved.