I have been doing the dairy-free diet for a few weeks now so I am starting to miss buttery sweets. While searching for a good shortbread recipe, I found this one. It was adapted from the book Butter Sugar Flour Eggs: Whimsical Irresistible Desserts. The original recipe was called Lydia’s Austrian Raspberry Shortbread.

The first day I mixed the shortbread, divided it into four pieces (for easier grating), and placed them in the freezer.

The next day I grated the shortbread in an 8″ x 8″ pan.

The blueberry jam bled through the shortbread and the whole thing came out a lot thicker than the picture in the book but still good overall. It was also a little sweeter than I would have liked so next time, I will reduce the sugar to 3/4 cup. It could be that the jam already had enough sugar.

RECIPE:

1/2 pound (2 sticks) Earth Balance vegan buttery sticks, softened at room temperature
2 egg yolks
1 cup granulated sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
dash of salt
1/2 cup blueberry jam, at room temperature (or any jam available, preferably homemade)

In a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (I used a hand mixer), the buttery sticks until soft and fluffy. Add the egg yolks and mix well.

In a medium bowl, stir together the granulated sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to the buttery stick/egg yolk mixture and mix just until incorporated and the dough starts to come together. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and form into 2 or 4 balls. (I found smaller balls easier to grate). Wrap each ball in plastic wrap and freeze at least 2 hours or overnight, or as long as a month.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Remove 1 (or 2) balls of dough from the freezer and coarsely grate the frozen dough into the bottom of an 8″ x 8″ baking pan. Make sure the surface is covered evenly with shreds of dough. With a spoon or spatula spread the jam over the surface, to within 1/2-inch of the edge all the way around. Remove the remaining dough from the freezer and coarsely grate it over the entire surface. Bake until light golden brown, 30 to 40 minutes.  (I used convection bake and it only took about 20 minutes). Cool on a wire rack, then cut in the pan with a serrated knife.

The verdict on the buttery sticks? It was a great substitute but I would not want to use it all the time. Not that I should eat that much “butter” anyway

I will write about my decision to go dairy-free sometime, but for now enjoy the sweets!

With fall in our midst, we decided to move some of our pepper plants inside. I guess the habaneros liked the heat because they turned orange in no time. In my quest for a recipe that uses this particular type of pepper, I found an old one I used from the JavaFoto archives.

The plant itself was small and fit into a one gallon container but very productive.

These peppers were from our garden (hold your breath for these names!) – Big Jim Hot Pepper, Alma Paprika Sweet Pepper, Cherry Bomb Pepper, Hungarian Yellow Wax Pepper, Cayenne, Jalapeno. We also added  a green tomato and a store-bought Anaheim pepper. The green tomato added some tartness which rounded out the flavor so well that we added a second one.

Stew in process

Dinner is ready!

We opened a bottle of  Bad Henry IPA to go with the meal. If you haven’t already tried it, we highly recommend that you go get a bottle right now. I am not a big fan of IPA beers but I loved this one. It has a slight sweetness that made it smooth. We recently met Henry at Whole Foods Market when he was sampling the beers. Fire Mountain Brew House is in Carlton, OR.

RECIPE:

3 lbs. pork shoulder, cubed
3 lg. onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp. oregano, crumbled
1 c. assorted green peppers, chopped
1-2 green tomatoes (optional)
3 tbsp. flour
Water
Salt & pepper
olive oil to saute

Cut away as much fat as possible from the pork and cut into cubes. Brown meat in olive oil. Remove from pan and sprinkle meat with the flour. Brown onions and garlic in frying pan until transparent, but not brown. Add meat, oregano, chilies to onion mixture and add water to cover. Simmer 2 to 3 hours to tenderize the meat*. Add salt and pepper during last 1/2 hour. Cool and degrease stew.  Serve rolled inside flour tortillas. Serves 6.

* Alternatively, use a pressure cooker or crock pot to tenderize the meat.

Charlotte and I first learned about the Basil-Mozzarella-Tomato sandwich in 2005 when we were traveling around Europe. It’s common to see them in sandwich shops or even vending machines at train stations. It’s a great sandwich because it’s cheap and even cold it tastes good and satisfies your hunger. It can also be baked in Panini style with endless options to add complimentary ingredients.

Since our discovery of the BMT sandwich it has become a staple in our diet. It’s especially good during the summer when we have delicious vine ripened tomatoes from the garden, along with lots of other goodies to throw in the mix. Tomatoes, Olive Oil, and Basil are all considered super-foods, so it’s a healthy choice and a great vegetarian alternative to the classic BLT.

In this BMT example I’m using Italian hearth bread from a local bakery in Portland call Delphinas. We buy the bread from Trader Joe’s, along with the mozzarella log that is made with milk not containing rGBH. The tomatoes are Early Girl and Roma tomatoes straight from our garden along with the Genovese Basil. As a bonus I harvested a Hungarian Yellow Wax Pepper from our garden for added flavor. The tater tots are 365 brand from Whole Foods Market, they make a great accessory.

Ingredients:

Fresh Basil Leaves- Not basil from a spice jar, but real basil leaves. You can buy them at the store or grow your own plant.

Mozzarella Cheese- preferably from a mozzarella log.

Bread- French bread style works well but try different kinds to see what you like.

Fresh Tomatoes- It’s important to have tasty fresh tomatoes since this is the majority of the flavor in the sandwich. There is nothing like vine ripe tomatoes, but if you don’t have that then spend the extra cash for some heirloom or other tasty variety from your local produce stand or farmers market.

Other- Peppers, meat, dressing, pico de gallo, other herbs, olives- the options are endless. Basically anything that can go on a pizza could be considered as an add-on.

Instructions for Panini style:

Apply olive oil to both pieces of bread. If your sandwiches are turning out soggy then slightly toast the bread before baking, the olive oil will keep it from getting too crispy. Likewise if you are using frozen bread then just slightly toast it beforehand. Add tomatoes to one piece of oiled bread and if desired add salt and pepper on top of tomatoes. On the other slice of oiled bread put the slices of mozzarella cheese and any peppers or other optional ingredients on top of the cheese so it melts in. Place a sheet of tin foil on top of a cookie sheet, and then place each piece of bread open face style on the tin foil. Cook in the oven for 5-10 minutes at a reasonable low temperature, around 365. A few minutes before your sandwich is done, take it out and add the basil on top of the cheese; this will keep the basil from drying out too much. Once finished put the two pieces of bread together to make a sandwich. Enjoy!

BMT Ingredients

The BMT Panini

Butterscoth Brownies or sometimes called Blondies

I might be the only person I know who is not fond of chocolate. I do like it in small quantities such as in tiramisu, café mocha, or maybe a small square of dark chocolate after dinner.  Marcel on the other hand LOVES chocolate so I am always trying new recipes that use chocolate but not too much of it. Here is one I tried recently from the Joy of Cooking book. I expected it to be a little bit more dense and less chewy but mine came out with loose crumbs and breaking apart. I can only blame the white whole-grain flour I used, and maybe the lack of corn syrup? Let me know if you have a good recipe for it or have any advice.

Costello's Menu

We discovered this wonderful little café on NE Broadway last weekend.

Cafe Mocha

Costello’s Travel Café serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner as well as delicious coffee. They brew Caffé Umbria and serve bread from the Pearl Bakery. The place was delightful and the food, delicious!

Firenze Ciabatta Panini and Mykonos Wheat Levain Panini

It was just like the dream we’ve always had, to open a travel-themed coffee shop. For now, we’re happy to hang out in one.

Best Tomato Sauce Ever

I first read about this sauce from Orangette who was inspired by The Amateur Gourmet and now it is all over the food blogosphere. The original recipe was from Marcella Hazan’s Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. Three ingredients: San Marzano Tomatoes, Onions, and Unsalted Butter. Now it’s my turn.

I’ve used San Marzano tomatoes for quite some time. They are the gold standard in canned tomatoes. I first learned about them during a trip to Napoli where we were served the simplest but most flavorful pasta dish ever.  Later on, a friend introduced us to Tutta Bella in Seattle, who serves some of the best pizzas I’ve ever had. As part of their certification, they have to use San Marzano tomatoes. The authentic ones are grown around Mt Vesuvius in Napoli. Apparently, the volcanic soil adds to the sweetness of the tomatoes. These days, there are domestic versions in the US but I have yet to try them. So for this recipe, I am using California San Marzano canned tomatoes. As for the spaghetti, I like Barilla N0. 5. This one is on the thin side, just like they serve in Italy.

The verdict:  After adding the onion and butter, I can’t even tell the the difference between US domestic tomatoes and certified San Marzanos. Maybe I have to test them side by side? Either way, this sauce will transport you to Italy!

San Marzano Tomato Sauce
Adapted from Marcella Hazan’s Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking
Serves 4

1 28-oz can of San Marzano tomatoes
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium yellow onion, peeled and cut in half
sea salt

1. Combine tomatoes (use the entire contents of the can), butter and onion in a saucepan. Add a pinch of sea salt.
2. Simmer uncovered at a very slow but steady simmer, for about 45 minutes, or until the butter fat separates from the tomato.
3. Stir occasionally, mashing the tomatoes with a potato masher to desired chunkiness. Add salt as needed.
4. Discard the onion (save for something else if you wish) and toss the sauce with spaghetti, cooked al dente.

Serve with freshly-grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese.

Something is not right about my camera. The pictures are coming out grainy or soft focus and it is not as light-sensitive as usual.

Food Carts are very popular in Portland. I wish I could try all of them but my list of food carts and restaurants to try is endless! Here is one that I recently tried.

Nong's Food Cart

Nong’s have been praised by various food critics and the locals rave about it in online reviews. Marcel and I have been wanting to try it but they are only open on weekdays.

I finally got to try it on one of my days off. While Marcel was freezing on a ski trip at Whistler, I was warming myself up with the delicious broth from Nong’s. I must say, I totally agree with the reviews. This humble dish looks simple but the flavors are complex. I loved the garlicky chicken and the rice was infused with some broth too. The ultimate Asian comfort food.

Khao Man Gai (Chicken and Rice but oh so much better in reality)

Google shows a few recipes.

Portland Monthly magazine named it one of the best “restaurants” in 2009 and here’s what the locals say at Yelp.

Check out Food Carts Portland and this Portland Food Cart Scene video by the NY Times.

Swedish Pancakes

The Swedish knows breakfast. I will never forget the hotel we stayed at in Stockholm where they had everything you can imagine on their breakfast buffet. We had to get up early every day just so we had enough time to eat

Ingredients based on my calculated "formula"

In my attempt to duplicate the pancakes, I’ve tried different mixes and recipes but none of them had the right texture or flavor. So, I created my own version based on these ingredients. Now, I know these brands work so I cannot speak for substitutes. I’ve tried regular milk but the pancakes came out too thick. Another brand of buttermilk pancake mix was not smooth enough. Real butter burns too fast and besides Earth Balance (not to be confused with smart balance) is made with olive oil, a healthy fat.

Swedish Pancakes
Makes 4 thin pancakes

Ingredients:

2.8 ounces 365 buttermilk pancake mix
8 ounces Silk vanilla soy milk
Earth Balance buttery spread for frying

Method:

1. Pre-heat round non-stick pan to medium heat.
2. Add soymilk to pancake mix. Whisk until well blended and smooth.
3. Scoop about 1/2 teaspoon buttery spread on the pan. The buttery spread will sizzle. Rotate the pan to distribute the “butter”.
4. While sizzling, pour about 1/4 cup of mixture into the pan. Rotate to spread the mixture to make a thin layer. The sizzle results in random holes and lacy edges.
5. Once edges turn brown and starting to lift, turn the pancake over. Cook for another minute or so.
6. Serve with lingonberry jam or whatever you like.

Crispy, lacy edges

Broder in SE Portland serves awesome Swedish breakfast “bords”.

IKEA is a good resource for all things Swedish.

Pizza Margherita

I am constantly trying out new recipes, even some that are too complicated for my limited culinary skills. However, most days we eat simple meals that are quick and easy. Like a lot of you out there, I don’t always have time to spend  hours in the kitchen to make a great meal.  We don’t eat a lot of processed food but sometimes I need some help from those little boxes.

A weekend lunch might consist of pizza and salad. A favorite of ours is the refrigerated pizza dough from Whole Foods Market. We toss the dough, add tomato sauce (this time I used  leftover spaghetti sauce), add fresh tomatoes drizzled with olive oil and slices of mozzarella cheese. Sprinkled with red pepper flakes and parmigiano reggiano cheese,  I have just made a gourmet pizza in my own kitchen. A bag of salad greens with good quality store-bought dressing completes the meal.

Halibut Steamed in Onion-Ginger Sauce

A couple of weeks ago, my friend Sokbun and I went to Ocean City Restaurant for dinner. We ordered the steamed sea bass and it was delicious – delicate but flavorful. As I was searching online, I found this recipe on Steamy Kitchen. I am not going to post the recipe here as it’s hard to beat Jaden’s take on this classic method.

The only substitutions I made were omitted the cilantro and used halibut instead of rock fish. The fillet was purchased frozen from Trader Joe’s. After watching Alton Brown’s Good Eats (I’m a big fan), I was convinced that unless the source is local, fish is better purchased frozen. Obviously, live fish is ideal but most US markets don’t have them. Apparently, fish and other seafood are quick-frozen at the source. The stores thaw them out so unless you know the source, you don’t really want thawed out fish that could have been sitting in the case for several days.

My steamed fish came out good. I think my mom will be impressed the next time she comes to visit

Rasa Malaysia has another version of this recipe.