Korean Sushi (Kimbap)

   

Korean sushi single-handedly made spinach acceptable to Rosalind. 

"I don't mind spinach if it's mixed up with a bunch of things," she announced as she devoured the sushi. From then on, I had no choice but to always keep spinach in the fridge to mix up with anything and everything. For nine years, this poor leafy vegetable was despised and shunned; we had a lot of making up to do.

Korean sushi, the savior of spinach, was introduced to us a few months ago.  Rosalind, coming home from a play date, brought us a plateful of Kimbap. She said that she helped roll the sushi and her friend's mom wanted us to try them.  

Not too long after that, her friend had a Kimbap-making party which she attended unaccompanied by me. Baby Hugh kept me up the night before so I chose to spend my Sunday morning in my nice warm bed instead of an overcrowded kitchen full of preteens with sticky rice on their fingers and hair. (Well okay, I wasn't planning on going anyway but I ended up having an excuse for my antisocial inclinations). Most of her friends who attended had their mothers with them. She lately chastised me for not going with her because the other mothers were shown the tricks on what to do with the rice to make it extra sticky.  

I thought that sticky rice was sticky enough in its natural state. But I did agree that I missed out on a live sushi-making demonstration given by a stay-at-home mom who had been making Kimbap for her children's lunches for years. Consequently, when Rosalind asked if we could make Kimbap ourselves, I had to resort to Google for directions. 

Serious Eats and My Korean Kitchen provided the world with outstanding recipes for Korean Sushi. Out of sheer laziness, I chose not to repeat their thorough instructions here.  But I would share with you, unabashedly, pictures of our first attempt at Korean sushi. You might be able to pick up a pointer or two on what not to do.

Here we had everything all prepped and ready to roll.

We had short-grain rice (seasoned with salt and sesame oil), cucumber, carrots, pickled radish, sauteed spinach and strips of scrambled eggs.

Rosalind liked to spread her rice sparse and thin and she didn't believe in margins. Some rice stuck on the mat.

Here you see somebody rolling the sushi and forgetting to keep the bamboo mat outside the sushi. More rice got stuck on the mat.

After a roll or two, we got the hang of it.

Sushi rolling is actually pretty straight forward, if you're the type of person who pays attention to directions.

And so, next up on Rosalind's list is Spam musubi, which has rice, teriyaki sauce and a slice of fried spam wrapped up in nori. Maybe she'll let me tuck in sauteed spinach between the sticky rice and spam.

Meatless Most Days

  

I like to do what everybody else is doing. These days, vegetables are all the rage. Veganism is the new Atkins. Since I don't usually reach for the skies, vegetarianism will do for me, part-time, that is.

Much to Rosalind's chagrin, we have jumped on the bandwagon of Meatless Mondays. Actually, Meatless Most Days is more like it. This is not because of some virtuous concern for the environment or the animals involved. I'm not going to take credit where credit is not due. It hasn't even been a conscious decision. All of a sudden, we just find ourselves consuming less and less meat.

The bottom line is that I don't like to touch raw meat; I abhor it actually. In this household, I cook most of the meals, so somehow or other, I need to be in contact with the animal flesh if I want to have it for dinner. So there I said it. I'm a meat-eating hypocrite. I don't mind eating meat as long as somebody else prepares it. That is a very depressing thought so let's not talk about that anymore. Instead, let's focus on the wonderful world of vegetables.

Vegetables are so much fun! And beans! And legumes! You can cook them in myriad of ways. With mixing and matching, the possibilities are endless. Vegetables brighten up a plate like no other so wouldn't you say that they deserve to be the main attraction instead of being pigeonholed in their usual supporting role? Vitamins and fiber are good too, if you're into that kind of thing.

What has brought this renewed interest in plant life, you ask.  Two compound words: Moosewood Cookbooks. Last summer, my sister Rachel has been so good as to reintroduce me to Molly Katzen and the world of Moosewood and boy, am I a changed cook. It has been more than a decade ago but I still remember watching Molly Katzen's cooking shows on PBS and admiring how much she gets a kick out of her fruits and vegetables. It has almost made me a herbivore. "Almost" is the operative word because at that time, I have been very foolish and thought meself invincible. So much so that brownie for breakfast, Snickers bar for lunch, and nachos for dinner have been the norm. I'm not foolish anymore, being no longer a spring chicken and all that. Nowadays, I turn to Molly Katzen and the Moosewood Collective as my guides in giving my leafy greens the attention they deserve.

So without much ado, I present the first installment of our Meatless Days series: Tamale Pie.  This recipe is adapted from none other than Moosewood Restaurant New Classics. Being my first tamale pie ever, I have no point of comparison. But I must say, this is a pretty darn good casserole.



Tamale Pie

1 cup polenta
4 1/2 cups water
1 tsp salt

15 oz can pinto beans with the liquid
1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
1 cup tomato salsa
1 tsp dried cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste

1 cup grated sharp Cheddar cheese, or Jack or Colby Jack



Preheat the oven to 350F.

In a medium saucepan, bring the water to a boil. Add salt. Reduce heat to medium and whisk in the cornmeal a little at a time. Turn the heat to low. Whisk continuously for the first few minutes to avoid any lumps. Cook for about 10 more minutes, whisking often, until all the water is absorbed and the mixture has thickened.

Pour the soft polenta on an oiled 9" by 13" baking dish. Let cool while you mix the toppings.

Pour all the beans along with the liquid in the now empty saucepan. Put back on the stove (medium heat) and mash with a potato masher or a whisk while heating. Bring just to a boil then add the corn, tomato salsa, herbs, salt and pepper. Mix and spoon over the somewhat cooled polenta.

Top with cheese.  Bake for about half an hour, until bubbly.

Let sit for 10 minutes before serving.

The Butter Ball

Posted by Rosalind




This is a recipe for homemade butter.

All you need is heavy cream and a jar. Pour 1/2 cup heavy cream into a jar. Tightly close the lid.

Shake the jar until the heavy cream turns to butter.

It's fun but it takes forever to turn the cream into butter, so you can read to pass the time while you shake the jar.

The heavy cream turns into whipped cream after a while. Keep shaking!


This is a close up version of the whipped cream.

Finally, it is butter!

This is a close up picture of the butter and the buttermilk.



Strain the buttermilk from the butter.

Now it's ready to spread on french toast!

My Cheese Ball

Becky has nicknamed Rosalind "goof ball" because she is one. "Cheese ball" also suits her very well -- with her cheesy jokes, her bent toward the dramatic and her love of cheese. She eats pretty much any cheese: cottage cheese, soft cheese, hard cheese, and even most types of blue cheese. Gorgonzola tops her list of favorites, just like Wallace (Wallace and Gromit), one of her favorite movie characters who is also a great cheese enthusiast.

So I thought it would be fun for us to make cheese. Buttermilk cheese is the simplest recipe I can find. We don't need any special tools, the ingredients are common kitchen staples, and it's very quick to make. I've never made buttermilk cheese before, but there seems to be a standard formula scattered all over the internet so I was pretty hopeful of its success.

And successful and fun it was! The process made such an impression on Rosalind that she declared she's going to make butter tomorrow and post a blog about it.

The buttermilk cheese was simply delicious, by the way. We spread it on crackers topped with pecans. Maybe next time, I can flavor the cheese with roasted garlic puree and roll the ball in chopped chives. For now, I need to figure out what to do with all this whey.


Buttermilk Cheese

4 c milk
1 1/2 c lowfat buttermilk
2 t salt

Line a strainer or a colander with 4 layers of cheesecloth. Put over a bowl.

Place all ingredients in a heavy bottom saucepan.

Heat the mixture on the stove, using medium high-heat, until the white curds separate from the whey (180F, around 8 minutes).

Ladle the mixture on the strainer and let drain for a few of minutes

Gather the edges of the cheesecloth and twist to press out the whey. Let sit for about 10 minutes to cool.

Unwrap. It can be served slightly warm, room temperature or cold. For firmer cheese, refrigerate for at least 10 minutes. The shelf life of the cheese is supposed to be 2 days.

Homemade Granola

Here's another "toss in a bowl and pop in the oven" recipe. It's very adaptable. Vegetable oil can be substituted for butter, maple syrup for honey and you can use whatever nuts or dried fruits you have in the pantry.

Granola

2 T butter (melted)
1/2 c honey (if you want more caramelization and clumping, double the amount)

3 c oats
1/2 c cashews
1/2 c sunflower seeds

1/2 c chopped dried mangoes
1/2 c dried strawberries


Toss all the ingredients (except the dried fruits) in a large bowl. Mix well.

Bake in a 325F oven for about 30 minutes.

Cool completely. Add the dried fruits.

Enjoy!

Parmesan Crisps

Sprinkle on salad or soup or eat as is!


Parmesan Crisps

a handful of grated Parmesan


On a sheet pan lined with parchment paper or Silpat, make little roundish clumps of grated Parmesan cheese about 1 inch apart.

Bake in a 400F oven for about 8 minutes or until golden brown.

Kale Crisps

I vaguely remember Michael Pollan promoting his book, In Defense of Food on some t.v. show or other when he made these kale crisps to go with baked fish wrapped in grape leaves. That was a while back because I believe he has a new book out.

Funny how a certain memory just surfaces and takes over because one afternoon, I suddenly had this overwhelming desire to crisp some kale. I sold the idea to Rosalind by telling her that they're supposed to taste like french fries. With that, my baking partner agreed to walk with me to the store to acquire a bunch of kale.

These are unbelievably addictive! Our intention was to have these as a side dish for dinner but Rosalind and I just kept munching on them so there wasn't much left by dinnertime.

Kale Crisps

1 bunch of Kale
drizzle of olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Wash the kale and remove the leaves from the stem. Dry the leaves using a salad spinner (or pat them try with clean kitchen towel).



Drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat evenly. Spread evenly on a baking sheet.

Bake at 325F for about 15 minutes or until desired crispness is reached. Watch out though: they taste bitter when burned.

Buche de Noel

If you skip all the decorations to guise the cake as a log, this makes a scrumptious chocolate roulade. This is definitely not a one bowl recipe. It takes a few extra steps than our usual endeavor, but it is really pretty simple. Notice that the list of ingredients consists of four things: chocolate, heavy cream, egg whites and sugar.

BUCHE DE NOEL

For the cake:
8 oz semisweet (or bittersweet) chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup heavy cream
7 eggs whites
2 Tablespoons sugar

For the filling and glaze
1 lb semisweet chocolate
2 cups heavy cream
another 1/2 cup heavy cream for the filling

To make the cake:

STEP 1
Microwave 1 cup cream in a glass liquid measuring cup (4 cups capacity) until it comes to a boil (about 1 minute). Add the chocolate (8oz) to the cream and let sit for a minute

and then whisk together until smooth, making sure the all the chocolate is melted.

This is our ganache for the cake.


STEP 2
Beat the eggs whites on medium speed until frothy (use the whisk attachment if using Kitchenaid mixer).

Increase the speed to medium-high and gradually add the sugar.

Beat until stiff glossy peaks form. (We got somewhat overzealous and over beat the eggs slightly but this meringue cake is so forgiving that it all turned out okay.)

Take about 1/4 of the whites and mix it with the ganache to lighten it

then dump the whole thing to bowl of whites. Gently fold together.

Pour the batter in a half-sheet pan (or a cookie sheet) lined with greased parchment paper. It is very important to grease the parchment; it makes it easier to peel and roll the cake later.
Bake at 375F for about 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely.

To make the glaze and filling:

Microwave 2 cups cream in a glass liquid measuring cup (4 cups capacity) until it comes to a boil (about 1 1/2 minutes). Add the chocolate (1 lb) to the cream and let sit for a minute or so and then whisk together until smooth. Allow to cool. This is our ganache for the filling and glaze.

Now we'll make chocolate "mousse" for the filling. Whisk the 1/2 cup cream until thickened.

Add 1 cup of the cooled ganache

and beat until stiff.

Refrigerate the "mousse" until ready to use.

Save about 1/8 cup of the remaining ganache to use as glue for the meringue mushrooms (if you're making them) and the rest can be used to glaze the cake. The glaze can be kept at room temperature until ready to use.

To assemble the cake:

Release the sides of the cake from the pan by running a knife around the cake. Spread the chocolate mousse on top of the cake, leaving about an inch margin all around.

Gently roll the cake onto itself, pulling off the paper as you roll.

If needed, you can use a metal spatula to completely release the cake.

Cover the rolled cake with the used parchment paper, tucking under the paper to keep the roundish shape of the log. Refrigerate for about half an hour to let the cake set. It would also be easier to move the cake after it has been refrigerated.

Pour the glaze over the cake. Use a spatula to cover every inch of it. With a fork, make marks resembling that of a log.

Trim the edges of the log and decorate with meringue mushrooms, fresh herbs or shaved chocolate.