Cuban Black Beans and Rice (plus Mojo Criollo)

I have to admit a guilty pleasure - we love to watch the breezy spy-do'gooder series "Burn Notice" on the Interweb. I have learned that there is a remarkable:

1. number of exploding things you can make with the help of a hardware store or cell phone (not your mother's MacGyver)
2. amount of yogurt being eaten by spies on surveillance duty (perhaps all that Fiona does eat)
3. love affair with Miami out there, especially to Cuban cuisine (though the main characters never are seeing actually eating those Cuban sandwiches).

So today, a 20 F cold day with a west wind that just wouldn't quit, we hung a 10 ft gate and latch. We were shivering on the way in. I suggested we use up the rice by making bean burritoes - Carol countered with enchiladas (no cheese!) - I volleyed with Cuban Black Beans - and Carol said "Mojo sauce!"

Mojo (according to WikiP) "In Cuban cooking mojo applies to any sauce that is made with garlic, olive oil and a citrus juice, traditionally sour orange juice." Sadly, we don't have any sour orange available, so we mod below according to the "3 Guys from Miami" website, to whom we defer on all questions about Cuban cooking.

Mojo goes great here, but use it as a marinade too, if you dare. Garlic is the point, not an addition, keep that in mind. The oil is left out here, but if you were using it for a marinade of meat, then follow the version here (3 Guys) with oil.

This is related to our own "Vampire Marinade" (which if you follow the WikiP link on Mojo above lists the cilantro-heavy variant of Mojo as a typical Puerto Rican choice).

Ingredients

Black Beans and Rice

• 1 onion, chopped (not too finely, it is fun as texture)
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 2 14 oz cans of black beans (Goya makes a nice organic)
• 1/2 cup of mojo criollo
• 1 tbsp of cumin

Mojo Criollo

• 1.5 cups of orange juice (use a good one, no green orange flavor Need Apply)
• 1/2 cup of lime juice
• 1/2 cup of lemon juice
• 1 tsp of sea salt
• 2 tsp of oregano
• 1 head of garlic, minced (we use a strong garlic we grow called "Music")

Steps

1. Start with the mojo - add the juices, salt, oregano and garlic to a jar. Shake the bejeesus out of it and then let it sit at least 1 hour. Refrigerate any extra up to 7 days (time to plan more cuban dishes this week).
2. Saute the onion and green pepper in olive oil until they are nearly clear.
3. Add the beans, cumin, and mojo criollo. Heat it up and let some of the juices boil off.
4. Serve hot with rice.

Makes about 6 servings (4 if you love mojo).

Our Spaghetti and Meatballs

So, for us, spaghetti has never been a big deal - Carol is not a big fan of just spag-and-sauce. I used it as an excuse to deploy the "focaccia-of-doom". But there were always leftovers...

Until I found this meatball recipe from Simply Recipes. I don't use the sauce - we use our own (this year's blight knocked our tomato sauce production down to zero, so I sub in Newman's Sockarooni Sauce (with red and green peppers!).

We throw these on top of linguine (best) or spaghetti, top with the meatball(s) and then drizzle sauce over top. Yummie! And if you can stand the extra garlic, try adding in the "focaccia of doom" and dip those bread slices into olive oil studded with minced garlic. Vampires beware!

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground beef (I use 90% lean, plenty of fat from the cheese and pork)1
• 1 lb fresh sweet Italian pork sausage (I like the local Geno's)
• 2 Tbsp chopped fresh basil (or 1/2 Tbsp dried basil)
• 2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley (or 1/2 Tbsp of dried parsley)
• 2 eggs
• ¾ cup bread crumbs
• ¼ cup grated parmesan
• sea salt and pepper to taste

Steps

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F.
2. Mix together meats and herbs in a medium bowl (I use the KitchenAid!).
3. When well combined add the eggs, bread crumbs and parmesan. Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix for 1 minute till really well combined.
4. Roll the mixture into golf-ball sized meatballs (should make about 20).
5. Place the meatballs on a cookie sheet (I line mine with aluminum foil to keep them from sticking) and cook them at 400 F for 20-25 minutes.

Smoked Salmon Rollups

One of my favorite appetizers - it involves salmon lox, what's not to love?! Good water crackers are the best thing to put these on. Or just pop them in your mouth :D

The real trick is to slice it well - we freeze it for 30 minutes before slicing. Sometimes you can do this before the "chill" time. And then use a sharp knife (we use a serrated tomato knife) and then rinse it in water between every other slice. Much easier then.

Ingredients

• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 garlic clove, smashed
• 1 tablespoon onion, finely chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon spanish paprika, dried
• 1/4 teaspoon lemongrass and chili spice mix (Hot, more if you wish)
• 1 tablespoon dill, finely chopped
• 8 ounces thinly sliced smoked salmon

Steps

1. In a stand mixer, add cream cheese, lemon pepper, garlic, and dill.
2. Process until combined and smooth.
3. Lay out slices of salmon on a piece of plastic wrap, slightly overlapping edges.
4. Spoon cream cheese mixture onto salmon evenly.
5. Roll the salmon into a long and wrap tightly.
6. Chill for at least 2 hours. I like to put it in the freezer for the last 30 minutes (makes it easier to slice).
7. Cut roll into 1/4 inch slices, serve on crackers or pieces of bagel.

Makes 24 slices.

Winter Oden Soup

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp miso paste
• 2 cups of beef broth
• 4 Tbsp of mirin
• 1 5x5inch square of nori or 1 3-inch length of konbu
• 1 Tbsp of furikake (optional)
• 8 ounces of mushrooms, torn into chunks
• 4 cups of water
• 1 lb of beef - your choice of cut, although I like tougher cuts here
• 1 lb of tofu, coarsely chunked
• 4 carrots, sliced
• 1 bunch of green onions, coarsely chopped
• 1 bunch of kale or spinach, stemmed and coarsely chopped
• 6 ounces of udon noodles

Steps

1. In a large pot, add the water, miso, mirin, broth, seaweed, and furikake (optional).
2. Let the broth simmer for 10 minutes.
3. Add the sliced beef to the broth and simmer 20 minutes. Tougher cuts should go longer, which is awesome since this smells up the kitchen so fast.
4. Add tofu, carrots, and greens. Simmer 30 minutes.
5. When there are 10 minutes before dinner, add the udon noodles.
6. Garnish with green onions. Serve hot!

Between 6-10 servings, depending on slurpings!

Super No-Knead Bread Master Recipe

A few years ago a New York Times writer posted a recipe for "no-knead" bread that involved a long ferment with a minimum of yeast, a very wet dough, and a closed Dutch oven to make an airy, but crispy bread. The downside of this bread was the planning - about 24 hrs of lead time to get started. Not much to do, but we just aren't this organized. OK, I am not this organized :D

So, when I made the Potato Corn Chowder, I went looking for a variant that worked with less time. A faster ferment. Turns out it is pretty easy to do with 2/3 tsp of yeast instead of 1/4 tsp. A shorter rise (only 8 hrs for us, mixed it before we went out fencing and started baking it when we ran out of sun) makes a superior-to-any-store bread.

Now, if only I could get my sourdough starter under control...

Ingredients

• 3 cups of flour (use any combo of white, bread, and whole wheat)
• 2/3 tsp of instant yeast
• 1 1/4 tsp of salt
• 1 1/2 cups of blood warm water

Steps

1. Mix all the ingredients in the morning before you go out to hang fencing. I mixed the dry ingredients by hand and then added the warm water.
2. Cover with plastic wrap and leave it in a warm place - the house was cold (mid-50s), so I set the oven to "warm" for 5 minutes, then turned it off and placed the bowl in for 8 hours.
3. When we ran out of light, I came in, pulled the bowl out and turned the dough out onto the counter.
4. Shape the dough roughly into a ball and cover with a towel or plastic wrap again. Let proof for about an hour in a warm place again.
5. While the dough is proofing, heat the oven to 450°F. Put in your Dutch oven to heat.
6. When the dough has doubled in size, put it in the Dutch oven. You may have to pour it, pry it off the baking sheet, or just roll it in - the dough is very wet. Don't worry if it looks a mess.
7. Cover the pot with a lid and bake for 30 minutes. Remove lid and bake for another 15 minutes to let it brown.

Makes a 1 lb loaf.

Potato Corn Chowder

This is one of our oldest recipes - we only have it written down in one place on a notecard. I don't even know where we got it from, but it has been a stand-by for as long as I can remember us being together.

It is a straight ovo-lacto vegetarian recipe, but you could add some sausage to it (I know Bri would like that) or some chicken. I even saw a variant of this with lobster. Lobster! Riiiight.

Or version is big on the potatoes and corn, fresh is best, but where do you get fresh corn when it is cool enough to eat soup? Not around me, at least not with local.

Ingredients

• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 stalks of celery, chopped
• 3 red (or Yukon Gold) potatoes, chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• broth to cover (about 1 quart)
• 3 cups of corn
• 2 cups of crushed tomatoes (14 oz can)
• 1 tsp of dried thyme
• 1 tsp of marjoram or oregano
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 cup of milk, soy-milk or yogurt

Steps

1. Saute the onion for 5 minutes under medium-high heat.
2. Add the carrots and celery and saute 2 minutes more.
3. Add the potatoes and bay leaves, then cover with broth. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes.
4. Add the corn kernels (still frozen is fine) and the tomatoes. Bring to a low boil, then add the herbs and simmer for 25 minutes.
5. Remove and mash about 1 cup of potatoes (I inevitably bring along some corn and tomatoes... mush 'em all). This will thicken the soup and make it more chowder-like.
6. Finally, add 1 cup of milk or yogurt and simmer 5 more minutes.
7. Serve immediately with a great bread.

Makes 10 servings.

Baked Shrimp Scampi

We were desperate for some dinner during the fencing project - Carol found shrimp and salmon, both frozen, in the freezer. We have a couple of quick shrimp dishes (Peanut Shrimp and a "Cajun" shrimp recipe from Cooking Light that I should post some day soon). But we have an enormous 3 quart container of harvested garlic (gotta love the "Music" variety). So Shrimp Scampi came to mind quick.

We found this recipe quickly on the web - it is from a Barefoot Contessa recipe, slightly modded for a simpler kitchen. We have fresh rosemary in the house (potted plants rock) and the parsley is still holding on outside (after several nights of 22 F lows). And this is born - and it is good. We have had this one twice this week. Yum.

Ingredients

• 1 lb raw shrimp
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp dry white wine or sherry
• salt and pepper
• 2/3 stick of butter, room temperature
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup onion, minced
• 1 Tbsp fresh parsley, minced
• 1 tsp fresh rosemary, minced
• 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 egg yolk
• 1/3 cup panko

Preheat oven to 425º.

1. Peel the shrimp and then put them in a bowl.
2. Add olive oil, wine or sherry, and pepper. Let sit at room temperature while mixing the rest.
3. In the stand mixer, add the butter, garlic, onions, parsley, rosemary, red pepper flakes, lemon juice, egg yolk, and panko. Mix this "topping" at medium speed until well combined.
4. Place the shrimp in a single layer in a glass pie pan.
5. Pour the remaining marinade over the shrimp and then sprinkle the topping over the shrimp.
6. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes (the shrimp will be thoroughly cooked and pink).
7. Serve over pasta (spaghetti or shells) or rice.

Makes 4 servings.