A little lesson. (FARMERS MISO SOUP)

I am a miso lover. I need to have miso soup at least once a week, usually as the precursor to some sushi even though that feels like the lazy way out. Miso paste in general has so much more potential than a few cubes of tofu and some lonely sails of seaweed. By learning a few different (easy!) ways to use it, miso can be a staple in your fridge forever and ever. You, as the owner of a high-quality tub of miso, can reap the many health benefits for just as long.

Since it’s a fermented food, it is important is to avoid boiling miso. High heat will harm the living enzymes that make this a genuine superfood as it will also dull the unique flavors. Use miso to ‘finish’ dishes that you have created rather than adding it when there is still cooking to be done.

Miso to-do list:

-Mix into softened butter to make ‘miso butter’, the best topping for seafood ever.

-Mix with minced garlic and chili paste as a condiment for grilled meat.

-Whisk into salad dressing or marinades.

-Just miso solo in a bit of simple broth.

-I’ve seen people use it in pesto as a substitute for parmesan but…

Below is a hearty soup recipe that uses a bunch of fantastic end-of-summer vegetables, but any mixture of veg would work. Once the soup is off of the stove, dunk a measuring cup into the broth, scooping out about one cup of hot liquid. Drop a few spoonfuls of miso into measuring cup and whisk/stir until it is dissolved. Pour the miso mixture back into the soup pot and adjust to taste. You can simply repeat this process until you have reached the desired amount of umami.

Try potatoes, sweet potatoes, turnips, parsnips, cabbage, spinach and/or noodles. This recipe can be as elaborate or as simple as you’d like, the main thing is hot (not boiling) liquid*, dissolve miso, enjoy.

FARMERS MISO SOUP

(serves 4-6)

2 quarts stock or water

1/2 cup onion, chopped

1 kohlrabi, peeled and cubed into small chunks

1 celery rib, thinly sliced crosswise

1 cup chopped kale leaves

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 pound tofu, cut into small cubes

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 splash of rice vinegar

a few red pepper flakes

1/4 cup wakame seaweed, soaked in cold water until softened

1/4 cup miso paste (any color)

1/2 carrot

1 inch ginger

chopped chives to garnish

• Place the stock in a large pot and bring to a gentle boil. Add onion, kohlrabi and celery. Simmer about 10 minutes. 
• Add kale, garlic and tofu. Cook until all vegetables are tender, about 10 more minutes.
• Remove from heat. Stir in soy sauce, vinegar and red pepper to season. Taste and adjust. Add wakame.
• Take one cup of stock out of the pot and place in a bowl or measuring cup. Whisk miso into the hot broth and pour it back into the soup. Taste and adjust.
• Ladle soup into bowls and using a fine grater (preferably a microplane), grate some carrot and ginger into each soup and sprinkle with chives to garnish.
• When reheating the soup, warm it but don’t boil. I’ll say it again.

*Make your own stock! I love stock making.

https://upchefcreek.wordpress.com/2011/02/22/elaborations-veggie-dashi/

https://upchefcreek.wordpress.com/2013/04/19/balancing-it-out-alkalizing-broth-2/

Balancing it out. (ALKALIZING BROTH)

Remember the science lesson about acids and bases in the form of a number line? Seven is neutral, like water, right in the middle of both states. Anything over 7 is a base (alkaline) and anything under is acidic. Our blood, which our body maintains at a pH of 7.35-7.45, is therefore slightly alkaline. The thing is, many of the foods we eat are acid-causing, even some pretty healthy ones.

Meat, fish, poultry, eggs, most grains and legumes in excess and without balancing are not the only things that have the power to make us acidic. Some of our experiences like stress, lack of activity and poor diet choices in general can also be culprits of this undesirable condition. And though we need both acid and alkaline to be in balance, when too much acid is present, the body works overtime to keep the blood in its proper state. Foods that are alkaline*, most fresh fruits, vegetables and herbs, seaweed, miso, olive oil, for example, are not only important for daily functions, but when ingested regularly will more readily balance out the less than perfect moments in our lives.

All that to say, hey! eat your veggies!

Lately I have been making extra effort to do just that by keeping the fridge stocked with beautiful organic produce and cooking lots of healthy dinners. Also trying to keep my fridge from being a graveyard of dead leftovers or, even worse, perfectly good uncooked stuff going to seed. One of the ways I like to stretch my organic grocery bucks to the fullest is by making stock. All of the lovely and delicately aromatic things that make for a good, clear stock (carrot, celery, onion, leek, fennel, thyme) go into freezer bags until I have stockpiled enough to be dumped into a big pot with some water, simmered until a lightly golden stock is born.

A few months ago, while doing a cleanse, I learned about alkalizing vegetable broth. It broke every classic culinary rule for stock-making which advises no leafy greens, no cabbage, no squash, no root vegetables, no radish. Each one of these things said to make the stock cloudy, sulfuric, bitter, etc. but the recipe included all of these things. The product was delicious, had none of the qualities Escoffier warned about. Now I am happily breaking the rules and adding all of this stuff to the freezer bag to create broths that can double as alkalizing tonic. The broth is dark and rich and can stand alone warmed  with a little extra sea salt (also alkalizing). The recommendation is to drink it several times daily. That is a great theory and I enjoyed it when I was eating strictly, but I am more often using the stuff in soups, stews, curries and risotto in lieu of more boring stocks, giving a nutritional boost and extra flavor.

ALKALIZING BROTH

You can really be creative with the vegetables you put in there, this is just a guideline:

1 onion, quartered

(plus shallot, onion, leek or scallion trimmings)

3 carrots

3 celery stalks

2 fennel tops

4 cloves garlic

2 cups green leafy vegetables (kale, chard, collard, beet greens, etc.)

1/4 head of cabbage + the core

peels, trimmings (no seeds) of one (organic) butternut squash

1 sweet potato, large dice

1/2 cup seaweed (I like kombu)

2 cups mushroom stems (or 1 cup dried mushrooms)

1/2 bunch of parsley or cilantro stems with or without leaves

1 cup of radish (with or without tops) -optional

pinch of salt

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

4-5 quarts of water (enough to cover all of the ingredients by a few inches)

• Place all ingredients in a large pot.
• Cover with water and bring to a boil.
• Immediately turn down to a gentle simmer. Cook about 1.5 hours.
• Strain out the vegetables and save the stock in containers.
• Freeze what you are not using. Defrost as needed.

Scrap bag! Red cabbage, mushroom, leek, scallion, celery, sometimes chicken bones too.

In culinary school after  pastry classes when we were ingesting sugar all day long, we were told to go home and alkalize with a hot miso soup. Yea! I give it to my kid too, after parties and stuff.

*A proper alkalizing food chart lives here. These sistas are serious!

Strictly speaking. (BAKED SALMON CROQUETTES)

For a couple of weeks MG and I have rid our diets of sugar, caffeine (Coffee, I miss you), wheat (Bread! I didn’t mean it! Please take me back), dairy, booze, etc. As the 14 days of clean eating were coming to a close I was making up stuff to ease us back into our really fun and slightly decadent reality. The key word is ‘ease’ because I didn’t want all of that abstaining to wind up being in vain. So, for these cute little suckers, I allowed for a dredge of breadcrumbs. Without the dip in the crumbs, this version of the recipe would be all-of-those-things free and full of healthy protein, salmon. I used the canned stuff for the sake of speed cooking but using 1 3/4 cups of freshly cooked salmon flaked with a fork would be a million times better.

This recipe can be seasoned in different ways, scallions, soy, ginger, or with mayo or add an egg, some old bay seasoning, cayenne, chopped herbs, etc. Just make a delicious mixture and form into patties. I left it at easy, threw some cooked brown rice (for sticking power), garlic, shallot and rosemary in the mini chop and mixed it with the fish that I seasoned a little. Simple as bonjour.

BAKED SALMON CROQUETTES

(makes 10-12 small croquettes)

1 can of salmon such as Icy Point, about 14 ounces

1 tablespoon dijon mustard

2 tablespoons olive oil

a splash of red wine vinegar

1/3 cup cooked brown rice

1/2 tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves, or scant teaspoon dried

3 cloves garlic

1 small shallot

salt and pepper to taste

1 cup breadcrumbs

1 tablespoon herbs or spices of choice*

Cooking oil, preferably in spray form.

• Preheat oven to 400F. Cover a baking sheet in foil and spray (or drizzle) with your favorite cooking oil.
• Flake the salmon thoroughly and mix in a medium-sized bowl with dijon, oil and vinegar.
• Place rice, rosemary, garlic and shallots in a food processor until it forms a paste (or finely chop with a knife).
• Combine the rice mixture with the fish in the bowl. Season well. Set aside.
• Mix the breadcrumbs with the seasonings of your choice*.
• Form the salmon mixture into 1/4 cup patties (not too big or they will be very break-y), dredge patties in the deluxe breadcrumbs and place on the prepared sheet pan.
• After all of the patties are formed and crumbed, spray (or drizzle) the top of each one lightly with oil.
• Place in the oven and cook as close to the heat source as possible until the desired color is achieved and croquettes are heated through. Flip once, about 8 minutes on each side.

* Here you can use dried herbs or any mix of spices to trick out the breadcrumbs. I used this blend from Penzey’s that I got from my rad sister.

Salmon croquettes are also excellent served on tiny bread to tiny people…

And here is something I wrote about Icy Point Salmon back when I used to wear a thumb ring. I really do like this stuff.

‘I think we can consider it a ‘whole food’, so much so that the salmon still has its bones! When you open a can of this stuff you are looking straight into a cross section of a beautiful Alaskan salmon. It is steamed in the can this way, bones and all, so that every part of the fish is edible and needs only to be broken up with a fork and used in your favorite recipe. It is a staple in my pantryXX’

The bones are soft and edible. What that looks like:

That’s healthy but if it freaks you out, just cook up the fresh salmon. Ça va.

Side dish. (CUCUMBER APPLE SAUTEE with RAMP BUTTER)

MG rides his bike with two saddle bags strapped to each side. When he comes through the door after work and opens them up, an unexpected treat usually comes out. The other day it was a dozen t-shirts, today it was a whole red snapper packed in ice and last week it was a couple of sausages and a nice block of ramp butter from Dickson’s Farmstand. That ramp butter took the prize.

A ramp is a wild baby leek, indigenous to the New York area. Small bulb with a thin leaf stalk, ramps are cute and delicious. Chefs and food writers go hellbent for them during their short appearance in the early spring. A way to prolong their pleasant stay is to blanch them quickly, chop and stir into some softened butter, as the Dickson’s crew did. Store it in the freezer and you can unleash the magic for seasons to come.

MG threw the sausages on the grill and I got to work on a few side dishes with whatever was loitering in the kitchen. There was at least an apple and a cucumber. Though I am not in the habit of cooking cucumbers, I recalled a recipe that comes from Australian superchef Stephanie Alexander in which the cukes are sauted in butter. Having tried it once as written the result was interesting but didn’t really have any pizzaz. I thought that problem could be remedied by adding some more dimension; bright red freckled apple for sweet and sour, ramp butter for its herbaceous onion-likeness to go with the unusual juicy/crisp warm cucumber. It really came together, turning out just perfect to buddy up with grilled food.

CUCUMBER APPLE SAUTEE with RAMP BUTTER

1 crisp red apple such as Fuji or Gala

1 English cucumber

3 tablespoons ramp butter

salt and pepper

• Chop the apple and cucumber.
• Heat the 2 tablespoons of ramp butter in a skillet until foamy.
• Toss in apples and cucumbers and saute vigorously for 7-10 minutes.
• Taste for desired texture.
• Season with salt and pepper. Taste again!
• Spoon remaining ramp butter on top of warm cucumber and apples before serving.

New woman in town. (VEGETABLE BEAN SALAD)

Bored in the supermarket Goya section? There is a remedy for that. A Northern California company, Rancho Gordo is here to school us on new-old varieties of beans and celebrate old-fashioned foods native to the Americas (the Beautiful). I, personally, am celebrating beans –the versatility and the benefits. Packed with fiber and protein, beans are naturally low in fat and cholesterol and very helpful in stabilizing blood sugar which is great for America the Diabetic. So these especially intriguing beauties were the star in a recent sort of refrigerator challenge to come up with a dish for an impromptu BBQ using odds and ends that were hanging about. The nice thing being, many of the close-by ingredients were results of our peppery container garden.

My goal was a hearty salad that would satisfy those not into meat, but tasty enough to be ladled all around. Adding plenty of veggies help keep a bean salad from being too dense and a super-flavorful dressing will be absorbed by the beans, bringing all of the ingredients together in a slick of deliciousness. I have several bags of Rancho Gordo beans (a great gift!) in my kitchen and I went with the Yellow Indian Woman type because the creamy texture would go great with the peppers’ bite, smallish size would mix well with the chopped veggies and the buttery color was perfect for the bright green, red and orange to come.

In handling beans, I rinse them and do a quick check for stones or dirt clumps. Soaking overnight in a large bowl of cold water is a standard procedure which reduces the cooking time and is said to remove some of the indigestible sugars that are responsible for beans’ bad rap. At the least, a soak will clean off any residue that is clinging to the exterior of the beans. Then into a pot with some fresh water with a small piece of kombu (kelp) seaweed, said to boost the nutrients and digestibility of beans in general.*

It is important to use enough water to keep the beans covered during the entire soaking and cooking times to prevent drying out and/or burning. When making beans for a salad, err on the side of too much water and simply strain the excess. When done they should hold their shape, but mash under a fork. Check in on them frequently while they are cooking, always giving a stir and adding water if necessary. Do not undercook, as that is hard on the gut and will make you hate me and my recipe. Really pay attention as they are getting close to done, it will ensure perfection. It’s hard to set a definite cooking time since all beans are different. Even the same variety of bean can differ in length of cooking due to age. That is another plus of sourcing higher quality beans and legumes, they are most likely fresher than the supermarket kind, since there is no way of knowing how for long Safeway’s beans have been sitting around. Once drained, the finished beans will continue to cook slightly from their internal heat. It is best to let them cool spread out on a sheet pan to minimize the carry-over and have better control over the final texture, a little past al dente, but not yet splitting apart, which is key in a great bean salad.

After cooling slightly, the thick pesto-like dressing can be mixed in and tossed with any veggies you like. The dressing is thickened with roasted garlic and shallots instead of  traditional nuts + cheese, making it suitable for all types of extremists. The beans will double in volume once they are soaked and cooked. A one-pound bag (about 2 cups dry) yields 4-5 cups cooked. The vegetables add another 4 cups, which can easily be stretched or reduced. This recipe makes enough bean salad for about 20 people as a side dish. It keeps well in the fridge (3-4 days) getting more flavorful as it rests. It’s a great snack to have in the icebox and a no brainer to-go lunch.

VEGETABLE + YELLOW INDIAN WOMAN BEAN SALAD

For the Roasted Garlic and Basil Dressing:

6 cloves roasted garlic and 1/2 cup of roasted garlic oil

2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed

1/2 cup fresh dill leaves, packed

1/2 shallot

2 teaspoons dijon mustard

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

pinch red pepper flakes

salt and pepper

For salad:

1 pound Yellow Indian Woman Beans, cooked

1 bell peppers, finely sliced

2 banana peppers, sliced

3 carrots, sliced

1 can hearts of palm, chopped

1 jalapeno, finely minced

• Add all dressing ingredients to a blender or food processor and puree. Check for seasoning and adjust as needed.
• Place the cooked beans in a large mixing bowl and toss with the dressing.
• Add vegetables to the bowl and toss to combine.
• Check for seasoning one last time. Serve + enjoy.
• Leftovers may need a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil to come back to life.

ALSO!! The Roasted Garlic and Basil Dressing can be applied to the TOP 15 Uses for Pesto

* I use this method and beans don’t bother me, that is my only proof that this theory holds water. I think everyone has an opinion on this one, which I am always happy to entertain.