Whipped Feta Dip

The stuffed onions were part of the protein for my mezze dinner, but I wanted another half-protein.  I could have done hummus or tzatziki, and even bought the cucumber.  Then I found this by accident while researching mezze ideas and decided to add it to my dip repertoire.

The recipe I'm following is a blank canvas.  The simple dip tastes great on its own, but you can jazz it up to fit your menu.  Use chili flakes for spice.  Dill to put on top of fish.  The photo is sumac and rosemary.  Another serving had horseradish stirred into it.  It's all about making it your own.

8 oz feta
*3/4 C Greek yogurt
2 Tb olive oil
*2 Tb lemon juice
*1 clove garlic
herb and spice garnishes of choice

1.  Peel the garlic and put everything in the food processor.  Pulse at first, then run to desired consistency.  I went for still a little chunky.  It was kind of like small-curd cottage cheese, but less runny.

2.  If desired, stir in any herbs or spices.  Store refrigerated until ready to use.

Makes 2 cups

Difficulty rating  π

Tomato and Avocado Quesadillas

These turned out prettier than I expected, so they're getting a post.  I also realized that the relatively bland guacamole from the previous post was exactly what I wanted on them, so that made me happy.

Quesadillas are an easy 10-minute meal.  I usually just throw some shredded cheese on a tortilla, toast it in a dry pan, and slice up an apple for a balanced lunch or afternoon snack.  For dinner, I went to a little more effort and had beans on the side to up the protein and veggie factor.  I wasn't very hungry and only made one the day I took the photos.  They were small tortillas, and other days I made two for a dinner.  For the sake of the recipe and quantities of ingredients, we'll pretend that there are two 6" fajita tortillas per serving.

*8 6" flour tortillas
*1 C guacamole
*2 C shredded "Mexican" cheese
1 C diced Roma tomatoes
1/2 C cilantro leaves, chopped (optional)

1.  Preheat skillet or griddle over medium-low heat while you top the tortillas.

2.  On a work surface, lay out as many tortillas as fit on the griddle.  Spread 2 Tb of guacamole on each, like it was pizza sauce.  Sprinkle evenly with about 1/4 C cheese, then a generous sprinkle of diced tomatoes on one half.  It will make it easier to fold later.  If using, scatter with cilantro.

3.  Place topped tortillas on griddle.  Toast until cheese melts and underside of tortilla is lightly crispy, about 5 minutes.  Fold over into a half-moon shape (non-tomato half over tomato half), press lightly to make sure all the cheese is melted, and remove to a cutting board.

4.  Cut quesadillas into wedges and serve hot.  Optional to have salsa and/or sour cream on the side.

Difficulty rating  π

Cheese Fondue

 

I have two fondue pots, a Crockpot, and something called a "cheese baker", which is a crock that fits over a tea light stand.  I need to have more fondue parties.

When I decided to have a dairy Seder, it took me about a day to make it cheese fondue.  I researched recipes, and it was definitely doable.  Most recipes thicken the cheese with cornstarch or flour, but I found one that used potato starch.  Other than that, they were identical.

Most cheese fondue recipes include white wine.  I did not want to have most of a bottle of white left over that I didn't want to drink.  Plus, I like sherry in my mac'n'cheese and figured it would go well here.  Then I found KLP cooking Marsala and was sold.  That would be perfect with the white cheeses that are common in fondue, and lower in alcohol.  It didn't occur to me that it would turn the mixture pink.  No one seemed to care.

I was living in the moment and didn't take any pictures.  So you get ones of the leftover ingredients and a lunch I had during the week with re-melted cheese and some fruit I had to finish before it turned.

1-1/2 lb Swiss, Emmenthaler, and Gruyere cheeses, any combination
1/4 C potato starch, cornstarch, or flour
1 C cooking Sherry or Marsala, or 2 C white wine
nutmeg and white pepper to taste
Milk as needed to thin
Items to dip

1.  Grate or shred the cheese.  You can do it on a box grater, but I had the processor out for the latkes and used that instead.  Either way, freeze the cheese for about 30 minutes first and it will be easier to handle.  Toss shreds with potato starch to coat.  This part can be done a day ahead.

2.  In a medium saucepan, heat wine to a simmer.  You want little bubbles, but not a full boil.  If desired, you can let it simmer for 10 minutes to burn off most of the alcohol.

3.  Add cheese a handful at a time.  Stir constantly to melt.  If mixture is getting too thick, add milk to make it a dipping consistency.  Season with nutmeg and white pepper to taste.

4.  Pour into the fondue pot and keep over a low heat while serving.  If it starts to bubble, the bottom will scorch.  There wasn't much I could do about the electric pot except keep it on a low setting.  For the Sterno one, the insert can be used as a double boiler.

5.  Keep passing out dippers until the cheese is gone.  We had broccoli, cauliflower, radishes, artichokes, pears, apples, and matzoh.

Serves about 8

Difficulty rating  :)

Veggie Cream Toast

Part of this blog is to be my own recipe box.  I know I once made a thing with ham, cheese, and a cream sauce baked with toast, but I can't find it.  Maybe it was pre-blog.  So, I changed up what I had planned to make and did this.

Actually, I changed it up a lot.  I keep putting "quiche" on my calendar, then not making it.  It's mostly a work schedule thing.  I think I'm slotting it on a day off, then that changes and I don't want to wait an hour for a quiche to bake.  I could always pre-make it and freeze for later, but I'm really trying not to fill the chest freezer with prepared meals.

I had already bought the quiche ingredients when the work schedule came out, then sighed and looked for another way to use them.  I could have done a Swiss-based alfredo sauce, but I didn't have any flat pasta, and making it would place me back in the same time frame as a quiche.  I did have bread, and that toast casserole thingy came to mind.

What I came up with would be great for a brunch.  I even put an over-easy egg on one slice for added protein.  Should have put it under the sauce.  You could thin out the mixture into a cream soup, or use it as pot pie filling.  It's the freshness of not completely cooking the tomatoes that brightens it, and the cheese makes it hearty.

1 Tb butter
*1/2 C diced onion
1 Tb flour
1 C milk
2 Roma tomatoes, diced
*1/2 C green veggie (I used chopped asparagus)
*1 C shredded Swiss cheese
salt and generous amounts of pepper to taste
8 slices of toast for serving

1.  In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat.  Cook the onion until softened, 5 minutes.  Add flour and stir until cooked into an onion roux.

2.  Gradually add the milk, stirring frequently and waiting for it to thicken before adding more.  You can add in some of the pepper now, but hold off the salt for a bit.

3.  Stir in tomatoes and asparagus and bring everything back to a simmer.  Stir in cheese to melt, then taste and add salt and pepper as needed.

4.  Spoon over toast and serve hot, maybe with a side salad.

Difficulty rating  π

Creamed Corn Tart

 

I decided to make a quiche to use up some of the corn I had bought in March.  I bought havarti for it because it was on sale, then went looking for recipes.  All the Southern ones use whole kernel corn and cheddar.  Fine, I decided to go off on my own and make a vaguely French version of a corn and cheese pie.

My pot of tarragon never did well.  I picked the only surviving sprig and hung it up on the knob I usually dry basil on.  The same day, I moved the chives indoors to the kitchen greenhouse window, where they are finally flourishing.  I'll try that with the tarragon when it comes time to seed it again.  Even though it's Mexican tarragon, not French, I decided to use it as the herb for this pie.

I'm using the pâté brisée recipe for the crust, but subbing in some of my excess wheat flour.  I'm making progress.  There's still half a gallon of it in the freezer though.

For the Crust

1 C flour
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 C butter or margarine, cut in chunks
1 egg
1-2 Tb cold water

1.  Either in a bowl or food processor, combine flour and salt.  Cut in butter about halfway.  Add the egg and pulse or cut into a crumbly mess.  Add 1 Tb water at a time until it just barely holds together.

2.  Pour out onto a work surface and knead a couple of strokes into a ball without adding any more flour or water.  Wrap in wax paper and chill 2 hours.

3.  Roll out chilled dough on a floured surface and place in either a tart pan or large pie pan.  I remembered to take a photo this time.  Chill until ready to use.

Filling and Assembly

*1 14 oz can cream style sweet corn
*1/2 C half-and-half
3 eggs
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/8 tsp white pepper
*1 green onion, finely chopped
1/2 tsp dried tarragon
4 oz Havarti cheese, preferably shredded, but finely chopped is ok

1.  Preheat oven to 400º.  In a bowl, whisk together corn, half-and-half, eggs, salt, and pepper.

2.  I prefer to put the other fillings in the crust before the custard, so I can see that they are evenly distributed.  Sprinkle onion, 3/4 of the cheese, and tarragon in chilled crust.

3.  Pour custard over onion and cheese, then sprinkle with remaining cheese.  Bake at 400º for 15 minutes, then lower heat to 375º and bake another 35-40 minutes, until set and crust is golden.

4.  Allow to cool before cutting and serving, especially if it's in a removable-bottom tart pan and you plan to put it on a pretty platter.  Can also be served chilled, and is a good do-ahead for brunch the next day.

Makes one pie, 4-6 main servings or up to 10 as a side.

Difficulty rating  :)

Cheese Blintzes

I've been wanting these for a while.  I found out that you're supposed to eat cheese dishes on Shavuot, at least for breakfast, and planned to buy a box of frozen blintzes.

Like everything else, the price went up.  $7 for six pieces was more than I was willing to spend.  $2.49 for a package of Neufchatel and items I had at home was far more reasonable, even though cream cheese was $1.99 a few months ago.  And yes, making the crepes is a pain in the butt that pretty much justifies spending $7.  I got a burst of energy.

This is the first time I've tried to make farmer's (cottage) cheese with the Nido powdered whole milk.  It felt weird to rehydrate the powder, just to separate out the solids again, but it worked.  The curds are far smaller, but that was ideal for this use.  I think I'll try to make paneer out of it, because I really liked the consistency.  There's nothing wrong with buying ricotta or cottage cheese.

Most cheese filling recipes add an egg.  I did not feel confident that I would be able to cook the filling thoroughly by pan-frying and substituted a chia "egg".  Anyway, that is better for my cholesterol levels.  Says the woman making an egg pancake filled with cheese.  I also used half whole-wheat flour.  Kept in the freezer or not, I really need to use it.

You do not need to do this entire recipe in one go.  I made the crepes and cheese one day, filled them the next, and fried up a couple the day after.  Once filled, you can freeze them for a month or so, individually wrapped in parchment or wax paper.  Any leftover crepes can also be frozen.  Defrost in the fridge for a day and pan-fry as usual.

For the crepes

1-1/2 C milk
2 eggs
2/3 C flour
1/4 tsp kosher salt
vegetable oil for greasing the pan

1.  Whisk together milk, eggs, and salt.  In a separate container, measure out flour.  Slowly add milk mixture to the flour to make a batter like heavy cream.  Refrigerate at least an hour, up to overnight.

2.  Preheat an 8" omelet pan over medium-high heat.  Pour a couple of tablespoons of oil into it, swirl around until warm, and pour off into a side container.  This might be enough for all of the crepes.  Whisk the thickened batter to redistribute the solids.

3.  Holding the pan off the flame in one hand, use the other to pour about 1/4 C of the batter into it.  Swirl pan quickly to distribute the batter evenly until set, then place back on the flame.  Cook until the edges curl up, about 4 minutes, then carefully flip and cook the other side about 2 minutes more.  Slide off to a plate, re-oil skillet, and continue with all the batter.

4.  A note about cooking crepes:  The first one is usually a loss.  The pan temperature is never quite right, or there isn't the right amount of oil to allow for a proper release.  It can actually take until the third or fourth to get it to the right temperature: hot enough to cook through but not so hot that they bubble.  At least one is going to stick, tear, or be completely destroyed.  That is built into the yield of any crepe recipe.  This was my first time making crepes in this particular pan, and I actually didn't lose any.  It was shocking.  If you have equal luck, it makes 12, and I was simply hoping for 8.

For the filling and Assembly

8 oz ricotta, cottage cheese, or farmer's cheese, drained
2 oz Neufchatel, mascarpone, or cream cheese
1/2 tsp honey
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg or egg replacement
8 crepes
Butter for frying

1.  Mix together ricotta, cream cheese, honey, salt, and egg into a filling.

2.  Lay out a crepe on a work surface, bearing in mind which side you want facing out.

3.  Spoon about 2 Tb of filling on the center bottom third of the crepe.  Fold in sides and roll up, like making a burrito.  Set aside and continue until all of the filling is used.

4.  Preheat a medium skillet over medium heat.  Add enough butter or margarine to lightly coat bottom of skillet, about 1-2 Tb.  Place blintzes in skillet and cook until warmed and crispy, about 6 minutes per side.

5.  Serve hot, with jam, syrup, or Nutella for toppings.  I had a bunch of boysenberries off the bush and got out the Clear-jel to make a quickie pie filling-like topping.  Two blintzes per serving.

Makes 8 blintzes, 4 servings

Difficulty rating  :-0

Herb and Cheese Quiche

I decided on a use for my last store-bought frozen pie crust.  It has been on the top shelf of the chest freezer for many months, mocking me every time I open the lid.  The few pies I've made lately have required specialty crusts or were unusual sizes.  All of my upcoming pie-related projects are also going to be from-scratch.

If you're not making the crust yourself, quiches are as easy as scrambled eggs.  Just because something has a French name doesn't mean it's difficult or requires special equipment.

For the purpose of this quiche, celery is an herb.  It really is anyway, but we treat the stalks as a vegetable.  My regrown celery is more of a bush, with huge leaves.  I used them instead of buying parsley, and probably will for the foreseeable future.  If I didn't already have celery salt, I would dehydrate a lot of the stems and pulverize them into powder.  I did that with the rest of the fresh lemongrass from the satay because it was starting to turn.  If you have a convection oven, check your manual.  You probably have a dehydrator option.

Remember, if you're spending a lot of money on a quiche, you're doing it wrong.  Use whatever cheese you have on hand.  Get rid of some herbs when you didn't need the whole bunch for a recipe.  You can use half and half or cream if you have it instead of milk, but that isn't necessary.  Quiches were invented to clear out leftovers.

*1 9" pie crust, bottom only
3 eggs
1 C milk
*4 oz soft cheese of choice, shredded
*2 C assorted fresh herbs such as parsley, cilantro, basil, celery, oregano, etc
*1 stalk celery
*2 Tb onion (I used the white of the green onion)
2 tsp olive oil
Salt and white pepper to taste

1.  Preheat oven to 375º.  If crust was frozen, allow to thaw while you prepare the filling.  Place it on a rimmed baking sheet in case of overflow.

2.  Finely chop celery stalk and onion.  Cook in oil over medium heat just to soften, about 5 minutes.  Set aside.

3.  In a bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, and shredded cheese.  Whisk in a bit of salt and white pepper.  Chop up the fresh herbs and add to the mix, then stir in the cooked mixture.  I put them in after, and they just floated.  Coating them in egg will give you more at the bottom of the crust when you cut it.

4.  Pour filling into the pie crust.  Bake at 375º for 20 minutes.  Lower heat to 325º and cook until set, about 15-20 minutes more.  The crust should be golden but not dark, and a knife inserted into the center should come out clean.  Allow to rest 15 minutes before cutting.  Can also be made ahead and refrigerated.  Serve hot, room temperature, or cold.

Serves 6

Difficulty rating  π

Pupusas

I only needed a couple days of dinners and decided to use up the rest of the masa flour in the bag.  I've never made pupusas and decided to teach myself how.

The recipe I found at A Cozy Kitchen for a Salvadoran pupusa is basically the same as the gordita recipe on the bag, just stuffed.  It also includes the recipe for curtido, the quick-pickle slaw served on the side.  Ok, so I didn't realize curtido was a thing and have never tried any when someone brings pupusas to work.  I also didn't want to compound my leftovers problem by using a quarter of a cabbage and opened a jar of kimchi instead.  The recipe isn't all that different.  Curtido just sits for 4 hours to marinate, while kimchi ferments for the better part of a week.

I am not filling these with much in the way of traditional fillings, which would put the beans on the inside, or maybe shredded pork.  I shelled out for the Oaxacan cheese because I had a use for the rest of it.  Everything else I used was already in the house.

I came up a wee bit short on masa harina and decided to improvise.  It just has to be a neutral tasting, gluten-free flour, right?  So I made up the quarter cup with part garbanzo flour and part matzoh cake meal. Not enough of either to change the taste.  Technically, the matzoh meal isn't gluten-free, but the glutens have already been cooked and will not create new strands when added to anything.  The end result tasted just like other pupusas I've had and the consistency of the dough matched the description in the recipe I was following.  I'm only mentioning it as a disclaimer.

Pupusa

*1-3/4 C masa harina
1 tsp kosher salt
1-1/2 C water
vegetable oil

Filling

1 C shredded Oaxaca cheese (or mozzarella)
*1/3 C diced avocado
*2 Tb pine nuts

Curtido

1/4 head of green cabbage, thinly shredded
1 carrot, grated
1/2 Tb Mexican oregano
1/2 C hot water
1/2 C apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar

1.  Early in the day, make the curtido.  Toss together cabbage and carrot shreds in a large bowl.  Separately, mix remaining ingredients into a dressing.  Pour over the vegetables and toss to distribute.  Cover and refrigerate until ready to use, at least 4 hours.

2.  For the pupusas, stir together masa harina and salt.  Add water and mix into a wet dough.  Let that sit around while you prep the filling and griddle.

3.  Heat a skillet or griddle over medium heat.  Add a teaspoon or two of oil to the pan, like you were making pancakes (hence the Pancakes label on the post).  Fill a small bowl with about a half cup of water and a tablespoon of oil.  This is for your hands, so the dough doesn't stick.

4.  Scoop out the dough into 1/4 C mounds onto a piece of parchment or wax paper.  If you have a 2 oz ice cream scoop with a release, that's the easiest way to do it.  Add any remaining dough to the scoops to get 8.

5.  Wet your hands with the oil and water, then take up one scoop of dough.  Flatten it by tossing it between your palms into a circle.  Place a generous pinch of cheese in the middle, then a less generous pinch of avocado and a few pine nuts.  Fold the circle in half, then bring in the sides.  Toss the ball back and forth again into a disc about 4" across.  It's ok if some of the filling is barely visible.   Set the pupusa back on the paper and move onto the next, rinsing and re-oiling your hands between each one.

6.  Set as many discs as comfortably fit on your griddle.  Cook until firm and lightly browned on the bottom, about 5 minutes.  Flip and cook the other side another 5 minutes.  Any darker parts are probably cheese that was poking through and nothing to be concerned about.

7.  Remove pupusas to a plate and keep warm.  Re-oil skillet and cook the rest.  Serve warm, with the curtido on the side.

Makes 8, which can be 4 servings as a main dish

Difficulty rating :)

Paneer

 

The first time I decided to make palak paneer, I couldn't find the cheese.  I postponed the dish until I did find some.  More recently, Techie Smurf mentioned making his own.  Soon after, Elizabeth Ingram made it for an episode of Quarantine Quitchen.  So I decided to investigate.

The recipes I found are exactly the same as the one I posted for cottage cheese.  They simply go a step farther and press the cheese into a block, which also removes more of the whey than simply straining it.  It isn't any more time-consuming and produces a block of Farmer's Cheese ready to pan-fry.

Unlike my other recent from-scratch recipes, making paneer yourself is definitely cheaper than buying it.  A quart of whole milk makes at least 5 oz, and 8 oz was $6 at the market.

I'm following the method from Swasthi's Recipes.  I made a smaller batch than her posted recipe, and I'm adding a touch of salt.  It's easy, not overly time-consuming, and definitely something I will consider making again.

1 quart whole milk
1/8 tsp salt
2 Tb (1 oz) apple cider vinegar

1.  In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, warm milk and salt.  Stir often at first, then almost constantly as the temperature gets above 150º, to reduce scorching.  The reaction works as low as 145º, but I recommend getting the milk to 200º, slightly below boiling.  The molecular structure of milk changes at this temperature and makes it conducive to all sorts of cheese and yogurt making.  Also, if you're mildly but not completely lactose intolerant, this will make it easier to digest the final product.

2.  Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the vinegar.  Continue to stir for 1-2 minutes as the curds separate from the whey.  Allow mixture to sit about 5 minutes, then stir a bit again, just to make sure all of the curds have separated.

3.  Place a cheesecloth or muslin over a strainer which is set over a bowl.  Pour the whole contents of the saucepan into the strainer.  Allow to drain for a minute, then remove the strainer to the sink and run cold water over the curds to remove any remaining vinegar.  I've always thrown out the whey at this point, but it seems like such a waste that I quickly searched uses for it.  I ended up saving it to be the liquid in the vegetable broth I was making the next day, since making it vegan wasn't necessary.

4.  Wrap the cloth around the curds and squeeze out as much whey and water as possible.  Make a bundle with the cloth and hang it for 30 minutes to allow more water to drip out.  I hung it over the kitchen faucet.

5.  The next step is pressing.  Twist the cloth so the cheese inside is a disc.  Place on a draining board or back in the sieve.  Place a cutting board or skillet or some other heavy, flat item on top of the bundle.  Then put several pounds of something on top of that.  Allow cheese to press (room temperature is fine) for about 2 hours.  This should get as much liquid out of the cheese as possible, so it can be unwrapped without crumbling.  There will be a dent from the cloth, but it shouldn't be so deep that it makes the block fall apart.  At this point, you can cut and use the cheese immediately or store for 2-3 days.

6.  For troubleshooting issues, I refer you to the photo at the top of the post.  One small part of the block was not twisted tight enough.  Those curds crumbled when I cut it.  There's nothing wrong with them; you can sprinkle them over your dish.

7.  Paneer has the cool (for cheese) property of not melting.  It cuts and fries like extra-firm tofu.  Or you can have it cold, which tastes like dry cottage cheese.  Up to you.

Makes about 5-6 oz

Difficulty rating  π

Goat Cheese Stuffed Meatballs

So even someone who is well prepared for a 2-week lockdown starts scrounging around near the end of it.  It would have helped if I didn't have a recipe blog to write.  I could have had peanut butter pasta for two weeks straight, or until I ran out of soy sauce.

The last shopping trip before I had to isolate, I wasn't sure if I would be putting feta or goat cheese on the falafel pizza and bought both.  Eventually opting for the feta left the package of chevre available for this lovely concoction.

The best meatballs are made from a combination of two or three ground meats.  All I had was a pound of 80/20 beef and obviously couldn't make a spontaneous trip to the market for one or two ingredients.  If I could do that, there would have been bananas on the list.  Really started to miss those by the end.  A 50/50 mix of veal and pork would probably be the best combination for this, as both are mild tastes.  Half lamb wouldn't be bad because it goes with the cheese, but you don't want too many strong flavors in competition.

Since the recipe I'm following from With Salt & Wit cheated on the pasta sauce, and because I didn't have enough ingredients to make my own from scratch anyway, the effort involved in forming the meatballs is offset by the ease of the sauce.  I was also out of dried basil to make my own Italian seasoning mix and did not have many leaves on the basil plant, but I always buy the extra basil pasta sauce and just used more oregano in the seasoning.

I decided to try the paleo/keto/GF version and use almond flour instead of breadcrumbs.  Also, out of Panko breadcrumbs.  The recipe as listed doesn't require pasta.  I just wanted it with spaghetti because I have way too much pasta in the house.  Went easy on the portion size though because I was also having this with feta twists.

*1 lb ground meat of choice
1 egg, beaten
2 Tb milk
*1/4 C almond flour or 1/2 C Panko breadcrumbs
*1/2 C minced onion
2 tsp Italian seasoning
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
*2 oz goat cheese
*1-1/2 C tomato pasta sauce
*1/2 C fresh basil leaves
grated parmesan and cooked *spaghetti, for serving

1.  Knead together ground meat, egg, milk, almond flour, onion, Italian seasoning, garlic, salt, and pepper.

2.  Pour sauce into bottom of 9x13 casserole and shake to cover bottom.  Sprinkle with basil leaves.  Preheat oven to 350º.

3.  Form meat mixture into 12 portions.  Flatten into circles and place 1 tsp of goat cheese into middle.  Enclose into a ball and place into casserole.  Yes, they really are that big.  Repeat until all portions are filled.

4.  Bake 25-30 minutes, until center of meatballs are 160º.  Allow to rest 5 minutes before serving.

5.  Serve topped with parmesan and more sauce over pasta, if desired.

Difficulty rating  :)