Thursday, May 26, 2011
Brown Rice Yam Rolls
Well, I am a deep-fry virgin no longer. I dunked my battered yams into that sizzling oil like a seasoned veteran. Somewhere mid-fry, I realized the irony of trying to increase the health of the sushi with brown rice, while stuffing it full of yam tempura. The yam rolls were delicious - however, due to the extra fiddling I think that tempura will be making only special appearances in my sushi roll line-up. The brown rice sushi was great - health notwithstanding, I loved the flavour and texture, and will definitely be making this swap in the future (I forgot to tell Mike about the brown rice and I don't think he noticed).
I do have a thanks to give: a big shout out goes to my elastic-waist maternity pants- I think I ate the baby's weight in sushi tonight. Of course, you can't make yam tempura without some sampling.
Brown Rice Sushi
I don't have a recipe per se, there are many guides to making sushi a la google. However, here are some tips.
I used this method to make the yam tempura.
For the brown sushi rice I cooked 2 cups of calrose brown rice, which I find has a stickier grain, and added sushi vinegar and salt to taste (sushi vinegar is just rice vinegar, sugar, and salt).
Just before you roll your sushi it's time to cut up your other filling options. Tonight I sliced avocado and cucumber to go along with the yam. For other sushi dinners I mix and match lots of different fillings: matchsticks of carrot, egg omelet cut into strips, crab, shrimp, smoked salmon, thinly julienned red peppers - you can be as creative as you want. I have to confess I have never used raw fish, I love it at restaurants but I'm too nervous at home.
Again, if you've never made sushi before just google the directions for how to put it all together, there are lots of good step-by-step photographs out there. Here's what I do:
It's time to roll baby! Place your nori sheet on the mat, then spread over enough rice to cover the sheet up to about an inch from one edge. Press the rice onto the nori with water-moistened fingers, and also wet the rice-less edge. Put your fillings a few inches up from the bottom of the mat and roll up toward the moistened edge. You want to be give the mat a good squeeze as you go so that your sushi is nice and compact. Next slice. I like to keep my pieces thin - particularly as we have small mouths around the table. I have a fabulous serrated bread knife that Mike gifted me a few years ago and it slices a clean piece of sushi.
Finally serve with soy sauce to dip. I love pickled ginger on the side, and it lasts forever in your fridge. If you like wasabi it will also last indefinitely in the fridge - you can also buy it in powdered form and add water to make a paste as you need it.
One final question for all those more experienced deep-fryers - how to dispose of the leftover oil?
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Grape Nuts Cereal
I love cereal; not only for it's sweetness, crunch, or thirst-quenching milk, I also dig the strange variety, the oddity of shapes and colours. Is this food? I've wondered upon seeing a string of various coloured Fruit Loops around a child's neck. My Fruit Loop necklaces never lasted long. I was invariably left with a soggy string. As a kid, I also dug the boxes. At breakfast, you could barricade your face, and suck back cereal while reading about magnifying glasses that could be ordered with box tops, or the specs of a sports hero who ate Corn Flakes EVERY day.
The trouble is, cereal isn't really very good for you. The list of ingredients is typically populated by words I cannot pronounce or define. Plus, cereal never tastes as good as I remember. Perhaps it's the additives or the long-shelf life, but the flavor is...off. Fortunately, I found out you can make cereal. Actually cereal. Not just granola. I found this recipe for cereal in the More With Less Cookbook. I love the Mennonites.
This cereal is actually delicious. It's crunchy and a little bit sweet and made with all whole-wheat flour. We devoured it.
Grape Nuts Cereal (Adapted from the More with Less Cookbook)
3 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup wheat germ
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups buttermilk
1 tsp baking soda
pinch salt
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Beat the ingredients together in a large bowl. Grease two cookie sheets and spread half of the mixture over each sheet. You want to spread it out as much as possible.
Bake for 25-30 minutes. Let the giant crackers cool of ten minutes, then brake them into irregular pieces (large shards is good). Then bake them again, lowering the heat to 250 degrees for another 20 minutes or until they are crisp.
Let cool and then whir the pieces in a food processor.
Enjoy with milk.
Friday, May 6, 2011
Quinoa Chocolate Cake
Quinoa has been nagging me for awhile. I've been hearing the buzz about quinoa - the health benefits and high protein content, but I hadn't gone out and tried any recipes myself. Well, Joan took care of that by gifting me with the quinoa cookbook. I started off with the quinoa pizza dough and then attempted the chocolate cake, which Joan has been giving rave reviews.
According to my fellow blogger, Rachel, the quinoa chocolate cake has been making the rounds in Victoria, ever since this recipe was featured in the Times Colonist. I felt it was my duty as a proud Chilliwack-ian to see what we were missing (note to those in the 'Wack - while I haven't looked around for quinoa at other grocery stores, Superstore carries it bulk in the natural foods aisle).
Kylie and Ty, some of my regular Reems Eats taste-testers was over for tea, and it was time to try out the chocolate cake. I made it in two 9 inch pans, though it was supposed to be in 8 inch, because that's what I had, so it resulted in a slightly lower cake, but it was lovely and moist.
This is a gluten-free recipe
Moist Chocolate Cake
from Quinoa 365, the Everyday Superfood by Patricia Green and Carolyn Hemming
2/3 cup white or golden quinoa
1 1/3 cup water
1/3 cup milk
4 large eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup cocoa
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Bring quinoa and water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Cover, reduce to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave the covered saucepan on the burner for another 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork and allow the quinoa to cool.
Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly grease two 8-inch round or square cake pans. Line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper.
Combine the milk, eggs and vanilla in a blender or food processor. Add 2 cups of cooked quinoa and the butter and continue to blend until smooth.
Combine sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Add the contents of the blender and mix well. Divide the batter evenly between the two pans and bake on the centre rack for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cool completely in the pan before serving. Frost if desired.
Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to one week or freeze for up to a month.
Special Thanks to my neighbour Laura for coming up with the remainder of the cocoa after I realized mid-recipe that I was a half cup short.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Royal Oat Currant Scones
I'm not ruling out a 3am tryst with Will and Kate tomorrow morning - I'm not setting my alarm, but if I happen to wake up during the wee hours, I might just have to get a quick sneak peak in. What I can guarantee is a more timely wedding recap over leftover oat currant scones with raspberry jam and tea for breakfast.
Without an ounce of English blood in me, I have still always been a royals fan, or more specifically a Princess Diana fan. Many royal weddings were staged through my childhood - Rachel, you'll recall the dress-up box dress that was my bridal couture - white polyester with a red v-neck collar. Poor Brent was forced to marry his big sister on multiple occasions.
So in honour of this Royal occasion, I give you a good British tea treat- oat and currant scones. These are indeed 'fab' and need only a good smear of butter, but the raspberry jam took them over the top. I had pictured a slightly more serene lunch of scones and tea today - however, Coby received her second time out this week, and unfortunately it occurred mid-scone. After devouring her piece of cheese, she had moved onto her brother's. His refusal was met with a firm chomp of his finger. Definitely not royal behaviour.
Oat and Currant Scones
adapted from King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking
1) Combine:
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour, regular or white whole wheat (I used white whole wheat)
1/4 cup sugar (I used brown)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup salt
2) Cut in (until resembles bread crumbs):
1/2 cup butter
3) Add:
1/3 cup currants (or raisins)
1/3 cup old fashioned rolled oats
4) Combine wet ingredients in a separate bowl, and then add to the dry ingredients:
1 large egg
1/2 cup buttermilk (I added 1/2 T lemon juice to regular milk)
1 tsp vanilla extract
5) When the dough is evenly moistened (I needed to add an extra tablespoon of milk to my dough as it was a tad dry), pat the dough into a large circle and cut into 8 wedges. These make a good sized breakfast scone, you could also divide the dough in half and make two circles, each with 6 wedges for a smaller tea-sized scone. Ensure the scones are aprox 1 inch apart on your baking sheet.
6) Brush the tops with milk or cream and sprinkle with course sugar.
7) Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes, or until puffed and golden brown, take a few minutes off for smaller scones.
These are best warm, though I can assure you I will be enjoying my scone leftovers while watching the pageantry tomorrow morning.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Basil Tomato Sauce with Meatballs and Pasta
2 cloves of garlic, minced
Monday, April 18, 2011
Monday Salad
One thing that makes Mondays a little friendlier is a lovely salad waiting for your lunch. A salad that was lovingly prepared on the weekend and will allow you an extra piece of leftover chocolate cake for dessert. This salad is great because it lasts in your fridge for a few days and tastes delicious and virtuous every time.
Haley's Barley Salad
This could be made using quinoa, or any other type of grain in place of the barley.
1) Cook 2/3 cup pot or pearl barley- cook in 2 cups of water with a pinch of salt. Cover, bring to a boil. Then stir and turn down to low heat for about 45 minutes, or until the liquid has been absorbed and the grains still have a slight 'chew'. Set aside to cool before adding the rest of your ingredients
2) Chop veggie add-ins of your choice: For this particular salad I used red pepper, green onion, and olives. Tomatoes, avocado, or cucumber are options, but should be added just before eating, not if you plan to save this salad for a few days like I do.
3) Other add ins: I add chick peas and crumbled feta cheese or chevre. Fresh herbs such as basil and cilantro are also nice additions, but I admit I usually just have them on hand in the summer.
4) Toss the barley and additions with your vinaigrette.
Vinaigrette: I combine 4 T olive oil (or canola) with 4 T wine vinegar and 1 tsp dijon mustard. Then add salt and pepper to taste. You may need more or less vinaigrette depending on your veggie quantities.
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Spelt Carrot Muffins
Spelt Carrot Muffins
Topping (this is half the amount of topping Kim uses. I thought it sufficient.)
1/4 cup spelt flour
1.5 Tbsp brown sugar
pinch kosher salt
1.5 Tbsp butter
Dry 1 cup spelt
3/4 cup flour
1/4 cup oat bran
1/4 cup natural cane sugar
1 tsp all spice
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 cups corsely grated carrot (use the food processor:)
Wet
1/4 cup melted and cooled butter
1/4 cup agave syrup
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg
For the topping: Mix the flour, sugar and salt. Cut in the butter until the mixture is crumbly. Set aside.
For the muffins: Sift the dry together. Mix the wet together and fold into the dry. Scoop into a greased muffin tin (makes nine). Top with the topping, pressing the topping gently into the batter.
Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
La!