Friday, April 27, 2012

[Update] There are 5 new posts in "Simply Recipes"

Simply Recipes

Here is the Simply Recipes update for djuwettoo.fish@blogger.com


There are 5 new posts in "Simply Recipes"

Buttery Tomato Pasta

Buttery Tomato Pasta

About once a week, for my entire upbringing, my mother would prepare a very simple side of pasta with a sweet, buttery tomato sauce. Usually she used elbow macaroni pasta, because usually a small bowl of tomato pasta would be served alongside tuna macaroni salad, our standard Catholic fish-on-Fridays family meal. Mom would just make extra macaroni and stir in the tomato sauce for it. She did this because my dad requested it, and he wanted it because that's what his mother in Minnesota used to make for him. Oddly, the hot buttery tomato pasta was, and still is, a perfect taste complement to the cool, crunchy, acidic tuna salad.

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Saffron Rice Pilaf

Saffron Rice Pilaf

When my friend Kerissa Barron first told me about this buttery rice pilaf, I couldn't wait to try it. Then she told me it had saffron in it. Uh oh. For some reason, saffron is a spice that sort of tastes like soap to me. Not a big fan. But, I'll try just about anything once, and in this case, thank goodness. I couldn't stop eating this rice. Browned in clarified butter, with cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves, cooked in a saffron infusion, and tossed with nuts and raisins, this rice is the bomb.

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Creamy Asparagus Soup

Creamy Asparagus Soup

Here's another recipe from the archives while I'm on vacation. Enjoy! ~Elise

Spring here means strawberries and rhubarb, sweet peas and asparagus, and dreams of the summer bounty to come. Asparagus are everywhere, big, fat, and fresh. And yes, although we can get them all year round, I'm especially happy to eat them in Spring. Not only are they likely to have been grown in the same Hemisphere, and could even be local, their very abundance signals the renewal of the season and a good-bye to Winter. Here is a fresh and easy asparagus soup recipe, a perfect excuse to buy more than one bunch.

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Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

I'm on vacation for a couple of weeks and away from our kitchen. So I will be posting a few recipes from the archives, like this lemon poppyseed muffin recipe, originally posted in 2007. Hope everyone is having a fabulous Easter! ~Elise

I love lemon poppy seed muffins. This recipe is based on the same Cook's Illustrated master muffin recipe on which I based our blueberry and lemon ginger muffins. The balance of flour, leavening, eggs and yogurt results in a light and fluffy muffin. The important things to remember with making these muffins is to make sure your baking powder is no older than 6 months (it may not work if older), and to not over-mix the batter.

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Green Gumbo

Green Gumbo

Another hearty stew from Hank Shaw. Enjoy! ~Elise

Green gumbo, or gumbo z'herbes, is a Lenten tradition in Louisiana. Ironically, it is not always vegetarian, as this hearty stew is often served on Holy Thursday to fortify the faithful for the Good Friday fast. Our version includes a ham hock and smoked andouille sausages, but you can leave them out to make a vegetarian gumbo.

The tradition for gumbo z'herbes is to include many different kinds of greens in the gumbo—and to always include an odd number. Why? Apparently for every different green you add, you will find a new friend in the coming year. Why and odd number? Not really sure, although I bet it has to do with old West African or French folklore. Gumbo zav, which is how its pronounced in Louisiana, appears to be related to the French potage aux herbes, or the West Indian callaloo, which in turn has its origins in West African cooking.

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