Millet and Sweet Potato Porridge (Congee)

I spent a couple of weeks mixing up my breakfast routine.  I did some overnight steel-cut oats in the Crockpot, then wondered if I could do something similar with millet.  Turns out it's an Asian recipe, though often made with rice.  Most recipes for it are Chinese, but even Google's AI didn't want to commit to that.

Looking at the recipes, I was skeptical about the amount of water to millet.  Then I checked on the pot in the middle of the night, and you really do need a minimum of four times the volume of water to grains.  If you want it more soupy, it's going to take at least three cups, plus the liquid from the can of sweet potatoes.

*1/2 C millet
*1 15 oz can sweet potatoes with their liquid
2 C water, or to desired consistency
1 Tb brown sugar, or to taste
1/4 tsp cinnamon

1.  Place all ingredients in the slow cooker and stir to combine.  Set to the lowest setting, which is "keep warm" on a Crockpot, for 8 hours as an overnight thing, or Low for 4 hours if you will be tending it.

2.  Stir, add more water or even milk as necessary, and turn up the heat to Low for an hour if you did the overnight version.  This will make sure the millet is fully cooked and break up any remaining chunks of sweet potato.  Serve hot.

Serves 3-4

Difficulty rating  π

Roasted Tomatoes with Mashed Lima Beans

The menu plan said "lima bean salad".  This sort of qualifies as a cooked salad.  When you look at the way I ended up plating it, this vegetarian main would be very expensive at a fancy restaurant.

I wasn't exactly sure what this was going to taste like, and kept throwing in ingredients that seemed appropriate.  Wow, it's good.  You sort of think you're having the creamiest mashed potatoes ever, but they don't taste like potatoes.  Then the roasted tomato and its herbs hit, making everything creamy and tangy at the same time.  The feta and olives can be considered optional garnishes, but they do enhance the flavors.

The L.A. Times put out a special booklet of famous chefs presenting recipes that a decent home cook could make.  Yes, they were not hard, but most of them used unusual ingredients.  If there was more than one specialty item that I don't normally buy, I didn't even read the recipe.  The only dish that fit my requirements was a deep fried cauliflower with tahini dressing.  Not a bad idea, but I'll probably roast it instead.  I was thinking of all that frou-frou food while inventing this dish.  Dried lima beans are the only thing here that the average person couldn't find an easy use for, and they're at Ralphs/Kroger in the generic dry bean section for around $3 a pound.

My tomatoes are starting to ripen, and I had two Romas left from the 25 lb case.  Having several kinds of tomatoes in the mix was an interesting change.  I threw in a couple of oven-dried as well, to add to the texture.

3/4 C dried lima beans
*1 lb tomatoes, mixed varieties to look interesting
olive oil as needed
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp parsley flakes
1 tsp other dried herbs of choice (I used dried celery leaf)
*1/2 C diced onion
*1-2 cloves garlic, minced
*1 C kalamata olives, optional
Feta to garnish, optional

1.  8-12 hours before, rinse the beans and soak in water to cover by 2 inches.  They're going to get big.  Drain and remove any loose skins.  Add to a saucepan with water to cover by at least an inch and a light pinch of salt.  Bring to a low boil for 5 minutes.  Lower heat to a simmer, cover, and cook until completely softened, about 90 minutes.  If you find more floating skins, skim them off.  They aren't evil, they just won't mash later.  Drain and set aside.

2.  An hour before serving, drizzle 2 tablespoons of olive oil in an 8x8 roasting pan and preheat the oven to 375º.  Add the tomatoes, cutting anything larger than a cherry one into wedges or bite-sized pieces.  Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper, then with the parsley and other herbs.  Roast about 45 minutes to one hour, until softened and the oil is infused with the tomato juice.

3.  10 minutes before serving, heat 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil in the pot you cooked the beans in, to make it easy on yourself later.  Cook the onion and garlic on medium heat until softened, about 5 minutes.  Add the drained limas back into the pot, stir to combine, and mash everything together with a potato masher.

4.  Spoon up the mashed limas on plates or in a serving bowl.  Top with the roasted tomatoes and their olive oil.  Garnish with olives, feta, and/or more oil as desired.

Difficulty rating  :)

Quiche with Chicken and Chard

Eggs are finally a "normal" price again.  Ok, it was an extreme coupon sale, but we're back to 25¢ apiece.  The quiche that I've been wanting for months was about to happen.

I don't know if I've ever had a chicken quiche.  Don't see why not, but I usually just put veggies in mine.  Sometimes there's fish or pork, but it's usually vegetarian.  I'm glad I remembered to buy milk.  I want to say I tried using the powdered milk I keep in the pantry once, and it separated.

I forgot how good the pâte brisée is.  That is definitely the crust you should use for any custardy pie.  It stayed crisp until the quiche was finished, while most pastry crusts get soggy or stale by the third day.

Since everything in a quiche is pre-cooked, that makes this a good way to use canned or leftover chicken.  I keep looking for ways to use the chicken I canned last year that isn't pot pie.  So, here is an actual pie.

1 batch pâte brisée
1 Tb olive oil
*1/4 C diced onion
*1 clove garlic, minced
*1 bunch red chard, leaves only, finely chopped
*1 12 oz can chicken, drained or 2 C shredded leftover chicken
1/4 tsp white pepper
1/4 tsp celery salt
1/2 tsp dried tarragon
3 eggs
1 C milk
4 oz Swiss or Havarti cheese, shredded

1.  Make the pastry, roll out, and shape in an 8" or 9" pie tin.  Full disclosure, I was using a 7" to make four servings (and one baby for a snack one day), and have adjusted the quantities here to a six-serving pie.  Place the pie tin in the freezer while you work on the filling, at least half an hour.

2.  In a medium skillet, heat the oil over medium heat.  Add the diced onion and garlic.  Cook until softened, about 5 minutes.

3.  Add the chard and chicken.  Cook until the chard is thoroughly wilted and the chicken is heated through.  Set aside.

4.  Preheat oven to 375º.  In a bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, pepper, celery salt, and tarragon.

5.  Set the pie tin on a rimmed baking sheet, in case of overflow.  Add half of the filling.  Sprinkle with half of the cheese.  I bought slices, so they're just torn up and strategically distributed.  Add remaining filling and cheese.

6.  Slowly pour egg mixture over the filling, then let it sit up to five minutes.  It will gradually sink in.  Bake 30 minutes.  Rotate for even cooking and reduce the heat to 350º.  Bake an additional 15-20 minutes, until it passes the toothpick test.  Allow to rest at least 15 minutes before slicing.  May be served warm, room temperature, or chilled.  I prefer warm.

Makes 1 8" or 9" quiche, about 6 servings

Difficulty rating  :)

Lentil Bolognese

I've heard of substituting lentils for ground beef as a money-saving trick.  Or, add some to half as much beef to stretch it.  I decided to try making "meat" spaghetti sauce (bolognese) using lentils.  I figured that was a safe way to start, since you don't really taste meat in a thick sauce.  It's the texture.

This turned out to be much easier than I expected.  I made the lentils in the morning, because they do take at least half an hour.  It only took ten minutes to assemble the sauce, and the lentils simmered in it while the pasta was cooking.  I loved the flavor, which was probably helped along by using some of the tomato sauce I had made a couple of days before.

The suggestion of adding chopped walnuts to the sauce was from Rainbow Plant Life, but I struck out on my own for the rest of this recipe.  It helps with the mouthfeel and adds extra protein.  I would definitely use that trick again in a vegan recipe.

1 C brown lentils
*1/2 red onion, diced
2 Tb olive oil
*2 cloves garlic, minced
1 15 oz can diced tomatoes
*1 15 oz can tomato sauce
2 Tb Marsala, Port, or other sweet cooking wine, optional
*1/2 C chopped walnuts, optional
1 tsp dried basil, or 1 Tb fresh
1 tsp dried parsley, or 1 Tb fresh
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp dried marjoram
salt and pepper to taste

1.  An hour before serving, or early in the day, cook the lentils.  Sort them to remove any stones, rinse, and place in a pot with 3 C water.  Bring to a low boil.  Reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and cook until they barely start to split, about 30-40 minutes.  Don't let them cook to mush.  Drain and set aside.  Refrigerate if making ahead.

2.  While the water for the pasta is heating, make the sauce.  Heat the oil in a large pot and add the onion and garlic.  Cook on medium heat until softened, about 5 minutes.  Add herbs and cook until fragrant, two minutes.

3.  Add tomatoes and their juice and the tomato sauce to the pot.  Stir in Marsala and walnuts, if using.  Bring to a low boil so the alcohol can start to cook off.  After five minutes, taste and add salt and pepper as needed.  Add lentils while the pasta is cooking and bring back up to a low boil.  Taste and adjust seasonings again.

4.  Once the pasta is cooked and drained, you can either mix it into the sauce pot or serve the sauce spooned over it.  Garnish with Parmesan and extra herbs if desired.

Difficulty rating  π

Tomato Canning Day

Like with the sweet potatoes, I patiently waited for Roma tomatoes to hit a price that made it worth canning them myself.  Smart & Final had 25 pound cases for $15 the same week that it was announced tomato prices would be rising soon.  I've never bought a case of tomatoes for myself before, only for work, but it was coming home.  Also, the timing meant that anything which didn't seal would be easy to use with what was on the meal plan for the rest of the month.

I was not looking forward to peeling half of them.  You have to peel canned tomatoes.  Fine, 50 peeled tomatoes.  I was just glad that the ones being turned into sauce could be cooked with them on.

They had condensation on them from being refrigerated, so the first thing I did was lay them all out on a towel on the dining room table.  The intention was to put the more ripe ones on the left and the ones that needed some time in a paper bag on the right.  None of them were really unripe, so I just put another towel over the less-ripe ones for two days to get everyone to the same point.

Tomatoes can be water bath canned or done in the pressure canner.  I decided that the volume of product I was making would be easier in the pressure canner because I could stack them and do a single run.  The USDA book and NCHFP have charts for both types and varying pressures.  Both types of processing require the addition of citric acid or lemon juice.  Technically, tomatoes are acid foods, but they're on the border and there's no industry standard of acidity for variety or ripeness.  It's a blanket requirement of just barely enough acid to ensure safety.  Even commercially canned tomatoes contain citric acid.

I buy no salt, petite diced when I pick up cans.  There is no safe, tested method for diced tomatoes at home, but you don't have to add salt.  I'm doing quartered and will chop them up as needed before using.  

This really was one of the things on my list when I first bought the pressure canner.  A fifteen minute processing time, even with all the other procedures that go into pressure canning, still beats 35 minutes in water that took over an hour to get to a boil.  Also, the tomato guidelines are more forgiving.  There's a five-pound time, so if the canner falls below 10 pounds you can just add five more minutes and it's still safe.  It also uses far less water and isn't as messy to clean up if jars siphon.

I probably shouldn't have done this on a work day.  I started a little after 1pm and finally pulled the jars out shortly before seven.  A lot of that time was peeling the half case of tomatoes, reducing the tomato sauce, and at least half an hour running the sauce pieces through the food mill.  I reduced it too much, and only got three jars.  I have re-branded them unflavored pizza/pasta starter and will season them when I open one.  The one that didn't seal is going in the next post.  All the quartered tomatoes sealed, so there's my year's worth of canned tomatoes.  I finally ran through all my Ball/Kerr regular mouth lids and opened the ForJars.  They seem of good quality.  The one fail was probably over-filled or not wiped well.

I stopped with about a dozen tomatoes left in the box.  I was out of room in the two stock pots I had going.  They turned into oven-dried tomatoes.  The pulp left from milling the sauce is in the freezer.  I'm going to try dehydrating it and turning it into tomato powder, which can then be reconstituted into tomato paste.  I have seen it done, but never tried it myself.

So, was it worth the $15?  If you're counting the value of what's on the shelf and in the freezer, I did save money compared to buying cans and jars of product.  The six hours of work and utilities to process the tomatoes is where it would have been cheaper to buy cans.  I'm glad I have this skill, and six hours a year isn't that big a deal when you think about it.  It probably gets easier after you've done it a few times.

Plums in Syrup

I didn't learn my lesson from the cherries and bought plums the next week.  Only five pounds this time, and way fewer pits to remove.  The recipe on NCHFP is easy to follow and doesn't require any additional acid.

If you're not into canning, this is still a recipe for you.  Everything up to the putting it in jars point can be done if you're keeping them in the fridge or using them immediately.  Think of it as poached pears, but with plums and not having to peel anything.

Frankly, it works better if you just poach them.  I didn't expect them to disintegrate, but it does explain why you can't buy canned plums.  While disappointing, I quickly realized that what I was using them for did not require firm plum pieces.  Mostly, they're going in yogurt or the popsicle mold.  I have a vague idea of stirring them into gelatin or vanilla pudding.  Maybe spooned over ice cream.  I didn't feel like opening a new jar of cranberry sauce and had some with the last of the leftover turkey from Passover.  There was some pivoting of expectations, and I probably won't can halves again, but the jars won't go to waste.

6 pounds ripe plums (makes 4 pint jars)
1/2 C sugar, or less for a lighter syrup
2 C water

1.  Wash fruit well.  Cut plums in half.  Remove stems and pits.  If canning, prepare jars, lids, and water bath canner for four pints.  It's going to take longer for the water to get to a boil than anything else.

2.  In a large saucepan, stir together water and sugar.  Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium.  Place plums in a single layer in the water and boil 2 minutes.  If necessary, do this in batches and remove the cooked ones to a separate bowl.  When all pieces have been boiled, return all of them to the hot syrup, turn off the heat, and allow to sit 20 minutes.  If not canning, allow to sit only 5 minutes, call it a day, and refrigerate.  You're done!

3.  For canning, fill hot jars with hot plums and syrup to 1/2" headspace.  De-bubble and adjust headspace if necessary.  Wipe rims, center lids, and screw down rings finger tight.  Process 20 minutes for pints and 25 minutes for quarts.

Makes about 4 pint jars

Difficulty rating  :)

Pesto Chickpea and Vegetables

It's the last of the green onion pesto!!!  That took a full year to use.  I promise not to do that to myself again.

I took this idea from Spain On A Fork and ran with it.  To simplify matters, we're calling this pesto out of a jar.  It was a fast, summery meal that was easy to put together before work and let marinate in the fridge until dinner time.  It would also make a nice lunch salad.  You can serve it warm, but I was in the mood for a cold dinner.  Don't warm it much above room temperature, or the cheese in the pesto will melt and get stringy.

*1 15 oz can chickpeas, drained
1 lb Roma tomatoes
*8oz frozen artichoke hearts or quarters, thawed
1/2 red onion
1 C kalamata olives (about half a jar)
*1 C pesto
Feta, pine nuts, fresh basil, or other garnishes to finish

1.  Rinse the chickpeas and place in a large bowl.  Make sure the artichoke pieces are bite-sized and add them to the bowl.

2.  Slice the tomatoes into wedges or large chunks.  I wanted all the components to be a different size and shape in this salad.  You can cut them however large or small you like.  Add to the bowl.

3.  Peel and wash the onion half.  Slice stem to root ends and slice.  I did French cut, but anything smaller than a full ring is fine.  Add that and the drained olives to the bowl.

4.  Toss the salad.  Add the pesto and toss again until everything is coated evenly.  Serve immediately for room temperature, or chill for later.  Garnish with feta, nuts, herbs, or even more olives.

Difficulty rating  π

Repurposing Leftover Fruit Syrup

I bought seven pounds of cherries when they were $3 per pound.  I attempted to make seven pints of canned cherries, but two didn't seal.  Those got frozen with the others I had set aside to freeze.

I wasn't sure how much syrup to make for hot pack pitted cherries (yes, I pitted seven pounds of cherries in one day), and ended up with more than a quart left over.  It was four quarts of cherries (including blanching the ones to be frozen).  I thought I would need far more per jar than I did.  It felt like a waste to just pour it out, so I went looking for other things to do with it.  Then I realized this is also a frugal way to make use of the syrup or juice in store-bought canned fruit and started a section topic post.

The first idea was to add lemon juice to cut the sweetness.  I have way too many overly ripe lemons on the tree right now, so that worked two problems at once.  Cherry lemonade is pretty good.

Next up was popsicles.  I had to go buy some popsicle molds for that one, but I think I'll be using those several times a year.  I actually bought two sets.  The one from The Container Store cost three times as much as the one from Home Goods, but it's higher quality and I expect it to last three times as long.  I want to experiment with unexpected things like freezing chai tea.

There was yet more juice to play with, so I made gelatin desserts.  The box of plain gelatin says one packet will set one cup of juice, so I just made two half-cup servings.  I did find that too firm, and will probably do 1-1/2 C of juice per packet in the future.

All of these projects can be done with the juice or syrup in a can of fruit.  It can also be used to sweeten iced tea if you opened something like pears or peaches.  Marinate chicken or pork in it.  A frugal home finds ways to use every bit of what has been purchased.

Roasted Vegetable and Quinoa Salad

While I'm waiting for my tomatoes to ripen, other things are going in salads.

As a main course salad, anything grain-based is more of a "bowl".  The difference here is that I'm not going to the effort to arrange everything pretty.  It's getting tossed.

I considered many kinds of dressing for this one.  Miso-tahini was far up on the list.  Then I decided to pick up the tang of the turnips and do miso-horseradish.  The horseradish root from April was dried out and had to be tossed.  Ok, a basic white wine vinaigrette, heavy on the vinegar, with a shallot marinated into it.

I harvested a couple of carrots, but also bought some.  The carrot out of the pond was normal and about the size I was expecting.  The one I accidentally grew in the lettuce patch seemed the same size from the top, but only grew a short way into the dense clay soil.  And that's why I don't grow root vegetables in the lettuce patch.

I'm calling my four radish-sized turnips equivalent to one from the store.  Probably not, and I wished they were more evenly represented in the dish.  The plants were dying in only 80º weather.  I'll try again in the fall.

This was a do-ahead meal.  I cooked the quinoa and vegetables the day before and refrigerated them separately.  The shallot dressing marinated overnight in its own bowl.  All I had to do on the day was toss everything together.

*1 C dry quinoa
1/2 lb carrots
1 head cauliflower 
*1 turnip
3 Tb olive oil, plus more for the veggies
3 Tb white wine vinegar (or less for a more mild dressing)
1 shallot
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp dried rosemary, or 1 Tb fresh
1 tsp parsley flakes, or 1 Tb fresh
1/4 tsp white pepper

1.  Cook quinoa according to package directions.  This will likely include rinsing it until the water is no longer soapy.  Fluff and set aside to cool.

2.  While that's going on, preheat oven to 375º and line a baking sheet with parchment.  Core the cauliflower and cut into bite-sized florets.  Peel the carrots and turnip and cut into bite-sized pieces.  Toss in a light drizzle of olive oil and arrange in a single layer.

3.  Roast vegetables until softened and starting to brown, about 30 minutes.  Set aside to cool.

4.  In a small bowl, whisk together the 3 Tb oil, vinegar, salt, white pepper, rosemary, and parsley.  Taste and adjust seasonings.  Peel shallot and slice thinly.  Toss shallot in the dressing and allow to marinate while the other components of the salad are cooling to room temperature.

5.  Toss together the quinoa and vegetables.  Drizzle with the shallot dressing and toss to distribute.  Chill until ready to serve.  I chose to garnish with some vegan feta that I had a coupon for.  It tastes like feta, but doesn't have the protein, so I added a sprinkle of slivered almonds.

Difficulty rating  :)

Kefta Burgers

I got out the grill for the first time this year.  Oof, it needed a cleaning.

I did a recipe for keftas way-way back in the early days of the blog, but that was for the traditional version.  This time, I made them burger sized and put them on the grill.  I make them mostly the same as I did 15 years ago, but all recipes evolve.  And I had a super huge green onion from the garden to work with, so this one's onion-heavy.

In the theme of making this a garden meal, I had my burgers with chard and a cucumber-mint soup that used up the rest of the green onion and some cucumbers I had in the fridge.  Not exactly a typical 4th of July barbecue, but it worked for me.

1 lb ground lamb
*1 C finely chopped green onion
*1/4 C finely chopped parsley
*1/4 C finely chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
4 hamburger buns, for serving

1.  In a bowl, combine all ingredients.  Knead well to distribute the seasonings evenly.  Chill for an hour for the flavors to meld while you heat up the grill.

2.  Form meat into four patties.  Set on the grill.  Every grill is different, and uses a different type of heat.  Even two piles of charcoal will produce different results.  With the lid closed, my burgers took ten minutes per side to get to medium doneness.  They're ready to flip when they come off the grate easily.  That's how you know you have char.  You can also temp them to about 160º.  Remember, ground meat should be a higher internal temperature than steaks or roasts.

3.  Serve on the buns, toasted if desired.  I considered a tahini dressing, then decided to have them naked.  I didn't even put any veggies on it.  Dress them as desired.

Difficulty rating  π

July Garden Update

I'm pretty impressed by this summer's garden so far.  Not everything has been an instant home run, but there have been fewer complete fails than I'm used to.

A few of the chard are still going.  I heard a description of it as "better tasting beet greens", and that's very accurate.  I'm definitely planting it again next year.  The remaining turnips were smaller than I would have liked, but the greens were dying and I had to harvest.  They were enough for one recipe.

The kale is being hit hard by the cabbage loopers.  I put netting over them.  Hopefully that will keep the mama moth from landing.  Other than that, they're looking fantastic and growing at a good pace.  I'm just losing half the leaves to bug damage.

The cilantro finally finished making its seeds.  I pulled it and dried the stems in a bag for a couple of weeks before rubbing off all the coriander.  What I don't use in cooking will be my seed for next year.

After how many years of gardening, I googled how long it takes a tomato to form.  From blossom to ripe, it's 40-60 days, depending on variety and weather conditions.  That means I have at least a month before my first tomatoes are ready.  I'm definitely ready for endless cherry tomatoes.

Something was eating the leaves off my bush beans.  They were so jagged, and close to the edge of the pot, that I thought it was a critter and sprayed critter-deterrent.  That didn't work, so I started using neem oil.  That didn't work, so I added a diluted Dawn spray to the routine.  Then I opened the screen one day to step outside, and a whole flock of birds came out of the pot.  Really?  The nips absolutely could be from beaks.  Well, I'm not getting out the non-organic pesticides if it's birds, so the critter spray came out again.  Maybe they're getting revenge for me covering the berry bramble with bird netting.  I bought another roll and a cage to support it.  I think it's working.  When the plants are a little stronger, I'll trim off all the bitten leaves.  The first flowers appeared, so beans may be in my near future.

The bird thing really threw me.  I'm thinking that they know I no longer have a cat.  She must have been my scarecrow.  Also, it's only my second time attempting to grow beans, so maybe they found them for the first time.  I'm going to start picking tomatoes at first blush, so the birds and squirrels don't have at them.

It's hard to believe that it's already time to start planning for a winter garden.  I have one celery hanging on, but will have to start next year's fairly soon.  I'll get the herbs going around the end of September.  This spring's peas were a bust, so I'll try again in the fall.  Bird netting this time.