CityMama™

Fava bean crostini with shaved pecorino romano

Favas in the Cuisinart. I swear, this is my favorite color of green.

We're smack in the middle of fava bean season here in Northern California. My local market and farmer's markets are bursting with them and we've been scooping them up since they won't be around for long.

Never cooked favas before? Favas do require a little work but the reward is so worth it. You have to shell the beans and then remove the skin that covers each individual bean. Look for pods with small-to-medium-sized beans. They are sweeter, and when the beans are small you don't necessarily need to remove the skin that covers the bean. The larger the beans are, the tougher the skin on the bean. If you do end up with larger beans, no worries. Just plop the shelled but unskinned beans into boiling salted water for a minute or two, then drain them and shock them in an ice bath. The skins will soften and shrivel and you can pop them right off.

I bought 3-4 pounds of fava beans in their pods to yield about a cup of pureed favas for my crostini. They go so well with garlic and your best, fruitiest olive oil, and if you have a food processor (love my Cuisinart) you can make these crostini in just minutes.

Summer Barley-Vegetable Salad with Meyer Lemon-Miso Dressing

One of my favorite grains is barley. I love its earthy, chewiness and that as a "sturdy grain" it lends itself beautifully to soups and salads. I also love grain salads whether made with quinoa, bulgur wheat, or cous cous (okay that's a pasta and not a grain but still) and so it follows that I would love barley salads as well.

There is nothing worse than an under-seasoned grain (or pasta) salad and I think the miso adds big, bold flavor without having to add a bunch of salt. Fresh herbs also add lots of flavor. This is one of my faves and it's the perfect sunny side dish for a spring or summer day.  I make a big batch of it and keep it in the fridge for weekday lunches and snacks.

• 2 cups of pearl (not flaked) barley, soaked overnight
• extra virgin olive oil
• juice of one Meyer lemon (about 2 tbsps)

Veggies/Legumes/Herbs: (a handful or so each, use all or some):

• chopped carrots
• chopped cucumber (I like the firmer Persian cukes)
• chopped celery (celery really goes well with this)
• chopped onion
• chopped green onion
• chopped tomato
• chopped broccoli florets
• chopped sugar snap peas
• 1 can of garbanzos, drained/rinsed
• minced fresh parsley
• minced fresh basil
• 1 clove of finely minced garlic and/or shallot

Dressing:

• 2 tbsps white (shiro) miso mixed with 1 tbsp hot water
• 2 tbsps olive oil
• fresh ground pepper

Drain the soaked barley and place in a pot with enough cold water to cover by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer. Cook for about 10 minutes or until al dente. Drain in colander and rinse with cold water until cool. Drain well and dump into a big bowl. Drizzle with olive oil, and lemon juice, toss and set aside. Chop veggies and add to bowl. Toss.

For the dressing: Put the miso into a bowl and add hot water. Whisk or mix with a fork until smooth. Slowly drizzle in olive oil and whisk to combine. Add pepper to taste. Add dressing to barley and veggies and toss well.  Let sit at least 30 minutes to combine flavors before serving.  Keeps really well in the fridge for several days.

Photo taken with with my iPhone. I am part of the post-DSLR Revolution, are you?

Garlic Edamame Heaven

Not garlic edamame, but still delicious.

When I was in Honolulu for spring break we had dinner at Side Street Inn which has become a sort of "last night in Hawaii" tradition for me. Side Street looks like every sports bar/restaurant in any city in America. The thing that sets it apart is the delicious, anything-goes, local-style food. This is a sports bar that forgoes most of the usual sports bar fare. You won't find nachos here, but you will find other treats like broiled hamachi kama (when they have it), sublime deep-fried chicken gizzards, and passion-fruit-glazed ribs. And, yes, the most kickass chicken wings you've ever eaten.

I am never disappointed when we have dinner there and this time was no exception. In fact, we had eaten an entire dinner consisting of: steamed clams with Portuguese sausage, kalbi, kimchi fried rice, mixed poke (ahi and tako [octopus]), king crab legs, Caesar salad and macaroni salad all served family style, when for dessert, my brother ordered another order of the steamed clams.  They were that good.

But the dish that took the meal over the top was their garlic edamame. Try to see if you can imagine it: boiled, salted edamame (already delicious in their own right) tossed with tons of chopped garlic, melted butter (which made it heavenly), and olive oil (or just olive oil if you prefer) with just a hint of spiciness, finished with a squeeze of lemon.  Presented at the table they looked like green velvet dusted with snow from all the garlic. (Here's a photo that does not do it justice--there's just not enough garlic on this batch.) They were amazing.

Today I went out and got a bag of edamame with the intention of recreating the dish, when lo and behold, some quick Googling brought up Side Street's very recipe.  Their recipe makes a mountain, which is perfect for dinner parties (or one very ravenous party of 8).  If you make this I promise you will be addicted.  And you don't even have to go to Honolulu to taste them.

More Side Street Inn photos.

White bean soup with sauteed lacinato kale and veggies [my way]

This is how I do bean soups:

First I soak the beans over night, then I put them in a pot with their soaking liquid, bring it to a boil, skim any foam, reduce to a low simmer and cook until the beans are tender and most of the water has been absorbed (about an hour). They should be slightly dry and not yet soupy. Sometimes I add a ham hock or a Parmesan cheese rind and/or a bay leaf or two to flavor the beans while they simmer.  Then I remove anything added, season the beans and mash them lightly leaving some whole.

In a separate pan, I saute (in olive oil) whatever I am adding to the bean soup. Tonight it's a sturdy bunch of organic lacinato kale, sweet shallots, lots of garlic, garden carrots, and celery.  I cook the veggies until they are crisp-tender, then I season them as well.

To the bean pot I add more water or broth (3-4 cups) to make them soupy or as in the case of tonight, 3/4 of a box of no-chicken broth, then I dump the sauteed veggies into the soup, heat through, and serve. Don't cook too long or the kale (or spinach or chard or whatever you are using) will loose its deep green color.

Tonight's bean soup will be served with a a sprinkling of chopped fresh rosemary, a drizzle of special olive oil, and for the kids, a shaving of pecorino romano, but it's also wonderful topped with freshly toasted bread crumbs or caramelized onions or even a splash of sherry vinegar. You can even add a cup or two of al dente cooked short pasta to the soup for a warming bowl of pasta e fagioli. I love how verstile bean soups can be, whether "meatful" or vegan, it's always tasty.

Once the beans are soaked, the soup comes together fairly quickly.  It's done in about 2 hours (about an hour to cook the beans + 15-20 minutes to saute the veggies), but you don't have to watch the pot every minute.  Enjoy!

How to: Improvise when you don't have a Crock-Pot [NaBloPoMo Day 12]

Throughout my cooking life, I have had a love/hate relationship with slow cookers. Even with the help of two slow cooker cookbooks, I have never been bowled over by anything that comes out of a slow cooker. It seems to me that they are best used for keeping soups, stews, and chilis hot on a buffet.

I think my biggest problem with Crock-Pots (and I use that term to mean all plug-in slow cookers) is that when cooking meats, to get the best results, you have to brown it in a separate pan first then transfer it to the Crock-Pot and add the remaining ingredients. Those looking for a mess-free short cut to cooking (me) now have to deal with a crusted pan and a splattered stove, and that totally defeats the purpose for me.

Two recipes that I do think work really well in a slow cooker are chicken breasts that are cooked with a little water and then shredded to use in tacos or enchiladas (they do stay moist this way), and chile verde also made with chicken.

I have owned slow-cookers and always ended up giving them away. Here's what I do instead.

The best split pea soup ever

You know how Split Pea Soup is good and reliable and comforting and tastes exactly like how you remember it every time you eat it?  This recipe is way way a thousand times way better, and it came from the back of my bag of green split peas.  I've adapted it slightly, but still, the basics are the same. I think the difference came in the number of ham hocks  and bay leaves used.  I usually only use one hock and one bay leaf, but increasing the amount of each gave the soup a flavor-packed punch. From now on for all my bean soups, I will use more ham hocks and bay leaves. Try it this week, you will not be disappointed.

SPLIT PEA SOUP

The most flavorful split pea soup you will ever eat. Start it well ahead of dinner time. I didn't add any salt to this soup. I found the hocks and sausage made it plenty salty enough.

• olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 whole onion, chopped
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 3 carrots cut into 1/2 in thick coins or large chunks (I like lots of carrots)
• 4 bay leaves
• 3 (yes 3!) smoked ham hocks
• 2 quarts of water
• 1 quart of low sodium chicken broth (or just 3 quarts of water)
• 1 bag of green split peas, rinsed
• 2 sausages such as Aidell's chicken or even a polska kielbasa will do (or you can omit entirely)
• pepper to taste
• plain yogurt, creme fraiche, or sour cream to garnish (optional)

In a large soup pot over medium heat, cook the garlic, onion, celery, carrot and bay leaves in about 3 glugs (tbsps) of olive oil until onions start to turn golden brown (about 7-10 minutes). Add hocks, water and broth. Bring to a boil, skim any foam, then reduce heat to low and simmer partially covered for no less than 2.5 hours. At this point the ham hocks should  be falling-apart tender so remove them and set them aside to cool, then shred the meat.  Add peas, bring to a boil then reduce heat to low, cooking uncovered for about 45 minutes to an hour or until peas are melty and soup is thickened. During last 15 minutes of cooking time, add sliced sausages and the shredded ham meat (not the skin, cartillage etc.) from the ham hocks. Remove bay leaves before serving and pass the pepper. Makes 8 servings. (And is even more delicious for breakfast!)

Quinoa Salad with Lemon Miso Dressing

I made this salad just now and between me and the girls, it might not last until dinner.  It's based off a recipe from one of my favorite food blogs, 101 Cookbooks. I used brown rice miso instead of tahini because, well, I'm just not a fan of the tangy-gritty flavor of tahini. (When I make hummus I cheat and use ground roasted sesame seeds and a touch of sesame oil instead of tahini.)

Quinoa Salad with Lemon Miso Dressing

• 1 cup of quinoa cooked in 1 3/4 cups water for 15 minutes. Set aside to cool.
• 1 can of organic garbanzos, drained and rinsed well
• 1/4 white onion, finely diced
• a handful of fresh cilantro leaves finely chopped
• 2 handfuls of baby spinach leaves

Dressing:

• 1/4 cup brown rice miso (or any you like) thinned with 2 tablespoons of hot water
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 clove of garlic, pressed
• 1/2-2/3 cup of olive oil
• freshly ground pepper

Mix or shake well and set aside.

Toss cooked quinoa and garbanzos with dressing until well-mixed, then add onion, cilantro and mix again. Taste for salt/pepper. I found that it didn't need any salt because the miso is salty enough. Just before serving fold in the spinach leaves. Serves 4.

Note: The spinach holds up very well in grain salads, especially if it is freshly picked (as from a farmer's market). It's fine even the next day--I often combine handfuls of spinach with my grain (quinoa, barley) and pasta/couscous salads for extra color, texture, and nutrition.

Black Bean Soup (make this and dinner's ready by lunchtime)

This morning at breakfast, since I was in the kitchen preparing food for breakfast and lunches anyway, I started a pot of black bean soup for dinner.  After simmering all morning, it was done by noon and now I don't have to worry about dinner for the rest of the day.  I snuck a taste at lunch time and, after adjusting the seasonings, I'm going to give it a little more time to mellow. It'll be just right by dinner time, and even better the next day.

BLACK BEAN SOUP

Saute the following together in a big soup pot until onions are lightly browned:

• a couple of glugs of olive oil
• a 1/4 pound hunk of nitrite-free salt pork, leave whole (Avail at Whole Foods)*
• 1 red or yellow onion chopped
• 1 clove of garlic chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped finely
• 1 4 ounce can of fire-roasted diced green chilies
• 1 stalk of celery, halved lengthwise and chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 sprig (2-4 small leaves) of fresh sage
• a palmful of ground cumin

Then add:

• 8 cups of cold water
• about 2 cups of dried black beans, picked over and rinsed

Sauteed Italian runner beans

Runner beans (aka Italian flat beans) have been so delicious from our local farmer's market lately.  My favorite way to do 'em up is to saute some smashed garlic and sweet red onion in olive oil until the onions go all caramel-y. (In winter time I also add a bit of diced pancetta.) Then I dump in the beans (ends snapped) and sauté until they are crisp-tender. Sea salt and fresh ground pepper are the finishing touch.  We had these along side grilled lamb tonight.

Quick and Dirty Snacks: Roasted Garbanzos

All you need for this tasty snack is a can of garbanzos, some seasoning, a pan, and and oven. Place drained garbanzos in a shallow roasting pan.  Drizzle with olive oil and seasoning of your choice (salt, garlic salt, lemon pepper, or my personal fave: zatar spices mixed with a pinch or two of sugar), shake to coat, roast at 400º for 25 minutes. (I have a convection oven, if you don't check the garbanzos about 10 minutes in to ensure they aren't burning.) Shake pan half way through cooking.  Let cool slightly and serve warm or at room temperature. My kids love this, and are eating it right now.

[photo: Stefania Pomponi Butler]