caterina cacciatore

we have a young man visiting who wanted to know how our outdoor clay oven worked so the guys fired it up while i made some pizza dough using freshly ground spelt flour / home canned tomato/garlic jam / sweet onions / kalamata olives / a little zucchini / mozarella / olive oil / and a dusting of parmigiano

hey it was good and it was fun

the horno doesnt get used often enough !

photos

Meyer Lemons are my favorite lemons / they have a fine pored thin skin / they are orange-y when fully ripe / they are some sweeter than your average lemon / they are divine

they are hybrids originally developed in China

whole slices of them are used in Shaker Lemon Pie

the whole entire lemon (except for the seeds) are edible

eat one every day during Meyer Lemon season (right now) for good health

i contemplate making sorbet with the ones i have / just cuz i love truly fruity sorbet / the kind where the first ingredient listed is the fruit and not spring water / dont know about the sugar tho / i might experiment with honey or maple syrup

here is the recipe for one quart :

4 Meyer lemons

1 cup sugar

4 cups water

2 Tablespoons of vodka

Method:


To prepare the lemon sorbet: Wash the lemons and grate the peel into a non-corroding bowl. Juice the lemons, measure ¾ cup of juice, and strain it into the bowl with the grated zest.

Heat the sugar with 1 cup of water until completely dissolved, then add the remaining 3 cups of water. Add this to the juice and peel. Add more juice if needed. Add vodka - this helps prevent ice crystals from forming and it makes a creamier texture. Chill mixture. Freeze according to the instructions with your ice cream maker.


MeyerLemon has a lovely slide show of Meyer Lemons

i had a Meyer Lemon tree when i lived at Happy Trail / it takes several years to produce fruit / the first year it was covered with little green baby lemons / the toddler who lived across the trail pulled them all off

i contained my disappointed rage / i told her not to pull them off the next time until the little seductive nubbins were YELLOW / the brat

but there was never another time

all tired routines are taking a rest

slice up the rest of the potato bread / then cut slices in strips / i like to break the strips into smaller pieces by hand / you know for the organic Every Part Touched By Human Hand look

throw in some cubes of NeoTuscan Boule languishing in the freezer

put all cubes of bread in a baking pan / drizzle with olive oil / spinkle with salt

let toast in 350' oven / set the timer for 25 minutes / stir them around / put back in for another 20 minutes / meanwhile have ready as much chopped garlic as you would like to have for this amount of bread cubes / add garlic and watch it doesnt burn as garlic can be fragile with heat

when they are toasted to the degree you like and are uniformily crisp let them cool to room temp / keep in an airtight container

yumm on salads / divine in cream of tomato soup

or on spinach/mushroom salad with WarM BaCon DreSSing

hang on / stayed tuned

blackberries and cottage cheese

today's chicken soup

snack : more blackberries

biggest blackberries i ever did see

snack : leftover salmon poached in marsala mixxed with a little mayo and smeared on elegant wheat crackers with small green olives on the side

an apertif / smile

whatever will be the entree / the piece di resistance / and how about a salad ?

a crisp sweet onion and apple salad with a dash of mayo and two dashes of fruit vinegar

the chicken soup gets a late in the day UpDate with the addition of gently carmelized leeks

meanwhile the aroma of toasting garlick croutons permeates the premises

top it off with the news that Mrs Geezer is now making nitrates free bacon

and so lets just all eat ourselves into a stupor while we still have the chance

tortellini sono le paste that skaterina dislikes the most / along with bowties, orecchiette (little ears), and shells

at the Shifty Markup she was attracted, however, to red, white, and green tortellini stuffed with some ricotta and parmesan cheeses / it was the colours that led to the epiphany / of course, the reason she doesnt like tortellini is because it needs to be cooked a lot !

definitely not al dente

there is too much dough folded in over itself / al dente gives a Big Chew allright / and the idea that the shaped is inspired by Venus' belly button is / well ~~~~~~~~de lish e ous

clever idea

the first year i lived in Rome i stood fascinated in front of a tortellini making machine / little metal fingers stretched the dough / a dollop of stuffing wd drop into place / the fingers bring the ends together and voila a twist and the belly button goes into the bowl

the red white and green tortellini went into a pot of simmering broth / some of the beef broth i made recently to which i added some of the best vegetable broth i have ever made

this broth included a couple of beets / a package of carrots / a bunch of red kale / half a bunch of parsley / half a small red cabbage / bunch of celery / a couple of potatoes / and a chunk of onion

this all goes into a big pot and covered with enough water to give 4-5 quarts of rich dark deep red broth

drink hot in a mug or bowl with squirts of lemon / salt / cayenne pepper / other seasonings as one prefers

like a little gob of ghee will do ya

very alkalizing and reinvigorating

zero points on weight watchers

the overcooked tortellini were yummy excellent slurping up with the broth / so good we had the leftovers for breakfast

there are enough bones in the frozen bone bag to warrant putting up a pot for stock

add vegetables this time

rustle up a can of tuna / the potato bread i made yesterday is the kind to use for a tunafishsalad sandwich / with bestfoodsmayonnaise and finely diced celery / leafy lettuces flopping out of the edges

here's how i made the Potato Bread :

put a couple of handfuls of the leftover potatoes in the food processor with a couple of TBs of chopped parsley / whir it up

meanwhile proof 3 tsp of dry yeast in 1/4 cup warm water and 1/4 cup flour for at least 30 minutes

add a cup and a half of flour to the potatoe in the processor / add a couple of TB of gluten flower / an egg that is fork whipped and a couple of TB of olive oil /and of course the yeast / mix this / you will prolly need to add another cup or so of flour / mix in the processor until the dough balls up / add a little water if it is too dry / this is winging it time

turn the dough out on a flowered board / knead for 5-7 minutes or until smooth and together / place in an oiled bowl and turn it over so it is oiled on all parts / cover with plastic wrap and let rise until double

punch the dough down and shape in a loaf / place in buttered loaf pan and let rise again / preheat the oven to 425 degrees and bake 25 minutes / turn off oven / let the loaf sit in there for five more minutes

this turned out pretty good !

skaterina sed she never had homemade salisbury steak / why wd anyone want that, anyway ? she likes the kind found in supermarket steam tables / an oval shaped kind of meat / gurgling in thick brown gravy / mash taters in the next slot

the kind of food you dont have to chew

which of course is why she was disappointed in the salisbury steak i churned out yesterday / the sonoutlaw loved it and so did friend from vermont / but skaterina said it wasnt PROCESSED enough / it required a bit of chewing and she didnt like the wine in the sauce

because wine does not go with potatoes ! she firmly believes this / wine in sauce or gravy is okay with noodles or pastas or rice and grains / but yuck with potatoes / that's my story and i'm sticking to it

with some of the leftover potatoes ( cut in chunks some red potatoes, leave the skins on but scrub them first, boil until fork tender, drain, throwin some butter / chuck up with some handy kitchen utensil

save salting potatoes until you eat them / potatoes absorb salt like mad

when in doubt add butter

i have been tossed out of the kitchen for a major spring cleaning

i am so thrilled with the new way of cooking tortillas that i will be testing some different ones today, like sprouted wheat tortillas and / yes / corn tortillas

stay tuned in

a perfect cold dreary day for tortilla testing

a recipe for lentil burritos caught my eye because of the yogurt sauce and a different way of using flour tortillas

i had ground lamb so i used that with some diced onion and garlic lightly sauteed / then add the lamb to the pan with cinnamon, cayenne, cumin, parsley, mint, salt and pepper and a little broth or other moisture (maybe a little tomato) so it wont be dry and have this ready / it needs to be hot when you asssemble the burrito

wing it on the spices using amounts that appeal to you / taste as you go / usually heavier on the cinnamon and cumin and lightly with the cayenne / a pinch at a time is good until you get it how you like it

also lightly steam some shredded cabbage and have that ready too

the yogurt sauce recipe was for TWO servings and i followed it exactly :

in a food processor chop a cup of fresh cilantro leaves and stems
add 1/4 cup chopped scallions or spring onions
2 tsp fresh ginger
1 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp ground cumin
2 cloves garlic
juice of half a lime or lemon
salt and cayenne pepper to taste
whir all this up in the food processor

then add it to 1/2 cup of plain yogurt

mix well and chill

it is really wonderful

if you dont like cilantro i guess you cd use Italian parsley but it just wont be the same

(i love cilantro, btw)

now for the tortillas i used 10" Spelt tortillas

in a pie pan or other shallow dish big enough for a tortilla to fit in

mix one egg and 1 TB milk and 1TB chopped parsley

heat 1 TB in a large frying pan until hot but not smoking

dip the tortilla in the egg/milk mixture on both sides

fry til golden in the frying pan / turn and do the other side

fill with the spiced lamb and some of the cabbage / fold up

serve with the yogurt sauce

son-out-law put his yogurt sauce inside the burrito but i had mine on the side

the eggdip for the tortilla makes it almost crepe-like / scrumptious and not dry like tortillas can be

roast a couple of chicken thighs / dribble some olive oil in an oven proof pan
put the thighs in skin side down / sprinkle with salt and pepper / throw in the peeled garlic cloves laying around on the cutting board left over from the pork green chile
set heat to 350' and put the pan in cold oven

roast for awhile then turn them over and roast until golden

meanwhile there is already a pot of white basmati rice made

assemble the soup using Pacific chicken broth / as much or as little rice as you want and the same with the chicken and all the fatty oily juices from the pan

have on hand a thawed out package of pork pieces / like stew sized pieces

luckily have on hand a quart of pork broth from stewing the leftover roast pork with some onions the other day

two pints of tomatillos canned last fall

lots of cloves of garlic

half a large Mayan Sweet onion

1 or 1 small cans of ortega green chiles diced

seasonings : cumin cinnamon salt and pepper / a little sugar

brown the pork pieces (maybe dredged in flour first) in hot leftover bacon grease with a little oxtail fat

when they are brown (use a heavy iron pot or le crueset) take the pork out / add some olive oil and butter to the pan and throw in the chopped onions / brown then / put the pork back in the pot / pour in two pints of tomatillos / and the pork broth / add a bunch of peeled garlic cloves whole

simmmer for several hours or until the pork is tender

while simmering i add the seasonings / a small palm load of sugar / a goodly finger load of cumin and a pinch of cinnamon / a small square of dark unsweetened chocolate

the daughter is cooking rice and beans with corn tortillas and salsa / she comes over and gets a pot of pork green chile and the sour cream

smile

i am going to have my pork green chile with freshly baked cornbread and lightly steamed cabbage / or maybe the cabbage will be with shredded carrots and apples for a nifty HIGH Fiber salad

keep it all moving

no eggs in this ice cream recipe therefore it is more like an Italian gelato

2 cups milk
1 cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream
or half and half
pinch of salt
2 tsp vanilla (for vanilla gelato)
or
2 tsp peppermint flavoring

handful of crushed peppermint sticks or candies

i try to buy enought of these candies at Christmas time
bc i like peppermint ice cream in the summer

peppermint candies are hard to find in Moab unless it is
Christmas

Moab is not a shoppers' paradize

oh / here is how to make it :

put the sugar in the milk and warm it up so the sugar dissolves
add the cream and the flavorings

cool it down and put in the freezer / when it has thickened up some
stir in the crushed candies

or chill it and pour into an ice cream maker / add the candies after
the ice cream has begun to freeze

otherwise the candies will sink to the bottom of the bowl

wdnt want that !

my favorite ice cream when i was growing up was Gifford's Peppermint

it was PINK and i loved it in a sundae with HOT FUDGE SAUCE and whipped cream

my boyfriends parents took us to Gifford's after our 9th grade "prom" (this was in the '40's) and after that i threw up all over their new car / it was a Kaiser

memory bank overflows

this is from Joanne Weir's book


2 teaspoons dry yeast
3/4 cup plus 2 TB warm water (100')
2 cups unbleached bread flour
2 TB olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt

in a bowl combine the yeast and 1/4 cup of the flour and 1/4 cup of the warm water

let it stand until it bubbles up, a minimum of 30 minutes or up to an hour

add the remaining flour, the salt, and the remaining 1/2 cup water plus 2 more TB of water and the olive oil

mix thorougly / then turn out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth, elastic and a bit tacky to the touch (7 to 8 minutes)

place the dough in an oiled bowl and turn it so it is oiled all over

cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until double in volume (1 to 1 and 1/2 hours)

alternatively let this dough rise in the refrigerator overnight / the next day bring to room temperature and proceed

makes two 9 inch pizze

preheat oven to 450' / bake preferably on a pizza stone / until done / 12 to 15 minutes

what works for me is putting the 1 and 3 /4 cups of flour with the salt in the food processor / pulse to mix and then when the yeast has proofed pour it into the flour and whir it up until it forms a ball

also : adding a TB or 2 of gluten flour really helps with the rise / if you do add this subtract an equal amount of the unbleached flour / sometimes a handful of wheat germ adds a nice nutty tasty fleck as well

some folks prefer whole wheat crust but not us ! ugh / skaterina would rather eat shoe box cardboard

i forgot / we did have Deer Burgers for lunch

such lean meat ~ lean like buffalo meat

tasty with Mayan Sweet onions lightly fried in / what else / butter

spinach too and a cup of spinach soup as an appetizer

things may be looking up after all

the Last Cat and the MoochPooch enjoyed the chicken pies

skaterina is impossible right now so we are comparing different kinds of frozen chicken pies

so far there are no winners

i figure if she eats enough canned and processed food she will eventually . . . . . . .