Nothing says Spring quite like rhubarb, unless it's strawberries. Tall and tangy, short and sweet, together they're the ideal spring duo. All mixed up together and sugared down they cook up quickly into a perfectly versatile dessert. Eaten warm as a compote it can grace the brunch table. Cool and topped with whipped cream, it's a light and fruity dessert, and as a topping for ice cream, vanilla or buttermilk, it's perfect. The other great thing about this dessert in a season where rhubarb and strawberries are in season... it's dirt cheap to prepare and it's table ready in 30 minutes, can't beat that any time of year.
That was why when I hit the Fruit Basket the other afternoon and saw this lovely fruit, I couldn't resist picking some up. A friend of mine is recovering at home from a riding accident and since I was going to be doing some cooking for her, I asked her husband what she particularly would like to eat. One thing he mentioned was fruit. What better than the freshest fruit available at present, something that could be enjoyed in a variety of ways; which is why I decided on this simple light rhubarb and strawberry compote.
Rhubarb Strawberry Compote
Here's what to do:
Clean and chop:
1 lb of fresh rhubarb into 3/4 inch pieces.
2 pints of strawberries into quarters.
In a large saucepan add in:
The strawberry and rhubarb mixture
1/4 cup of water
3/4 cup of sugar
1 stick of cinnamon
Mix it together well
Turn the skillet to a medium heat, bring to a boil and then reduce everything to a simmer. Simmer it all together for 30 minutes or so until all is softened.
Add the juice of 1/2 a lemon to prevent discoloration. Check for taste, and serve it up warm or chill and serve cold, or use it as a topping for ice cream. That's it. It's that simple and easy because sometimes things just happen to be that way.
Coming up, more spring vegetables go Indian. Follow along on Twitter @kathygori
Black eyed peas were a big deal in my family every New Years Day. My mother would whip up a pot of Hoppin' John, a mixture of black eyed peas, ham hocks and onion. Evidently it was supposed to bring good luck and prosperity in the year to come. For years I dutifully ate this every year, never once questioning why. I mean, why oh why would a bunch of Italians sit around eating Hoppin' John on New Years Day, worried about luck?! It turns out there was family secret. Through a weird series of events connected to strange conspiracy theories I won't go into here, I got access to one of those family record sites online.
One of the first things I did was look into the records of my 49'r (not the football team but the miner guys) ancestors. I knew they'd come here in 1849 looking for gold but I never knew from where they'd come. That was the shocker. Turns out they didn't come from France (in the case of my great great great grandfather) in 1849. They were already here having immigrated to the US back in 1832. Great great great grandpa Jean had come to California from New Orleans, where he'd been brought as a 2 year old infant.
That explained soooo much. The French name of course I knew, but my family evidently has a rich old history in New Orleans and were quite prominent in the civic life of the city way back in the 1840's and '50's. The family's houses still stand on the historic register in the Treme district on the Bayou Road. So that explains the Hoppin' John and the reason there are some quirky French customs in this family of Gold Rush pioneers and my insane love for black eyed peas.
When I started cooking Indian food eons ago I found to my delight a lot of recipes that called for the black eyed pea and I cooked then often. When we made Sonoma our main base of operations a few years ago, I was shocked to discover that I'd lost my black eyed peas! In LA I could get them almost anywhere. Here, not so much. Usually it involved a trek to the Indian market in Cotati and even that was a crap shoot. I couldn't find them in a can, I couldn't find them in a bin, I couldn't find them in a freezer...and before I go all Cat In The Hat on you about where they weren't, this week I discovered where they were. Whole Foods started carrying them. It turns out that a company called Stahlbush Island Farms sells them organically, non-GMO frozen! I was over the moon! Finally! Okay, so I'm not soaking them myself, but short of that, these are tasty little devils which hold up well in the freezing process and have the added advantage of being right at hand whenever a black eyed pea craving hits. Which it did.
One of my favorite Indian dishes is Lobhla aur Khumbi or black eyed peas with tomato and mushrooms. The best part of this recipe is how fast, fast, fast it cooks up if one is using those darling little frozen black eyed beauties. This goes from stove to table in about half an hour. The peas are a great source of protein and fiber and the rest of the ingredients cheep cheep cheep like a birdie. And speaking of birdies, it's vegetarian and vegan and gluten free.
Indian Style Black Eyed Peas
Here's how to do it:
Defrost a 1 lb bag of frozen black eyed peas or If using dried ones put 1 and 3/4 cup of the dried peas in 5 cups of water, bring it to a boil and then simmer it for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and let them soak for 1 hour.
In a large skillet or kadhai, heat 2 Tbs of vegetable oil.
When the oil is hot add in :
1 tsp of cumin seeds
1 cinnamon stick
Let it saute for a few seconds and then add in:
1 and 1/2 chopped onion
2 large chopped shallots
Stir everything around and cook until the onions start to brown lightl.
Add in 8 oz of fresh mushrooms and cook them down until they start to soften.
Add in:
4 chopped peeled tomatoes or 1 can of chopped tomatoes
2 tsp coriander
2 tsp cumin
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 tsp Kashmiri chili or cayenne
2 teaspoon salt
1 black peppercorn
Stir everything together then cover and let it all simmer for about 10 minutes. While this is going on if using dried peas, bring them to a boil again and let them simmer again for 20 to 30 minutes. After that, add in the mushroom spice and tomato mixture and simmer the pan uncovered on a low heat for 30 minutes more.
If using frozen or canned black eyed peas, add them after the ten minutes are up and let them cook through until warm and tender...about 5 minutes or so.
As you can see, the recipe is done so much more quickly if you have access to either frozen or canned black eyed peas.
Sprinkle with 3 Tbs of chopped fresh cilantro and serve it up!
Served with some fresh warm chapattis, fresh apricots and a glass of cold Mugicha it's a hearty satisfying lunch. Add in another vegetable or two and you've got a banquet! So not using dried black eyed peas..did it work? You bet. Did I enjoy it? Take a look
I normally don't go in for frozen or canned stuff except in a pinch, but I'm really stoked about these frozen black eyed peas. Coming up next a trick with rhubarb and more gluten free Indian food. Follow along on Twitter @kathygori
When most vegetables go bad, they disintegrate and turn into gooey, sloppy messes in the vegetable drawer. Trust me, I know about this first hand. I'm talking about most vegetables. There is however, one vegetable that when it goes bad, gets even better. I'm talking about ridged gourd.
Now for anyone who says, "Say what? I've never heard of this," I say look around your bathroom. Chances are this tricky little specimen of the squash family is already hiding out there, cleverly disguised as a loofah! Yes, that high toned spa squash and butt of celebrity sex scandals, I'm looking at you.
For those of you who are interested in bathing with these natural sponges instead of cooking and eating them, just click here for the "Everything you've ever wanted to know (and more) about loofahs" page. I however, am more interested in the culinary rather than the business end of a loofah, so when I went shopping at the Asian market in Santa Rosa the other day, I was looking for the nicest, freshest, greenest ridged gourd I could find. I had a curry on my mind.
Weirdly enough the ridged gourd has been making quite a few public appearances lately on the famous "stump the chef" show Chopped. Just last weekend, a bunch of competitors were faced with a ridged gourd, or as they referred to it, Chinese Okra. It was one of those "talk back to the TV" moments for me. "I know what that is!!" I shouted. "Ridged Gourd! I could win this thing!!!"
The chefs looked stumped. Very few of them knew what to do with this strange vegetable. One even left the tough, ridged skin on and laid raw slices of it on the plate. I was giddy with self-esteem. Understand that this is coming from the person who when first confronted with a steamed bao bun ate the paper doiley it was sitting on. I take my self esteem where I can get it.
Chances are a ridged gourd can be found in most Asian or Middle Eastern markets as Chinese Okra, dodka, luffa patola, dishrag gourd or angled gourd. This is what it looks like in its' natural state. Unless you are a ruminant with several stomachs, don't try this at home kids.
This is what it looks like peeled...
...which is how one eats it, cooked or shredded raw as my friend Paula Wolfert does in a Moroccan salad with lemon juice and thyme. The important thing is to get that thick ridged skin off of it.
Once the loofah is nekkid, it's time for all sorts of fun. The recipe I decided on was ridged gourd cooked in coconut milk. The recipe is quick, has minimal ingredients and tastes great... and if you can't find ridged gourd make it with zucchini or summer squash. Enough said.
Ridged Gourd Curry
Here's what to do:
Peel, slice lengthwise and then chop crosswise 2 good sized ridged gourds (you may need 1 lb of zucchini.)
Heat 1 Tbs of vegetable oil in a skillet or kadhai.
When the oil is hot add in 1 peeled, crushed shallot. Saute it until it becomes fragrant then add in:
1 chopped medium sized onion
1 whole green serrano chili slit down the middle
6 or so curry leaves
Saute everything until the onions start to soften and brown, then add in:
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp of Kashmiri chili or 1/2 tsp cayenne mixed with 1/2 tsp paprika
The chopped ridged gourds
Salt to taste.
Cover the pan and let everything simmer for about 20 minutes or so until most of the water has been cooked off. Ridged gourds are very, very, very moist. In fact a lot of water oozes out during the cooking process so no water really needs to be added once the thing gets going.
Once the water has evaporated add in:
1/2 cup of thick coconut milk
Mix it well enough so that everything's warmed through, and serve it up.
So how does this taste? Sweet and hot and creamy with a slight undertone of bitter. Just enough to keep it interesting. Also for extra bennies, ridged gourd is high in Vitamin C, zinc, iron and magnesium. Also fiber. Hey, anything that turns into a loofah as it ages better be! Exfoliate your insides. Eat Ridged Gourd! Anyway, this dish would be great with whatever squash is at hand, and I'm going to be trying it again soon with zucchini. Meanwhile what else is up? Some treats for the Holiday Weekend and a secret birthday take an Indian turn. Follow along on Twitter @kathygori
Every now and then this thing gets stuck in my head and I can't shake it loose. Actually quite a few things get stuck there and a lot of the time its like living inside of a calliope. However, the particular thing I'm thinking of is this: "I eat my peas with honey, I've done it all my life. It makes the peas taste funny but it keeps them on my knife." I can't look at fresh peas without hearing that in my head. But of course, that's my problem. I love vegetables. I especially love vegetables that take a bit of work. Shelling, husking, peeling, you get the picture. This time of year, Sonoma is filled with all sorts of intriguing examples of “get involved” vegetables. Fava beans, new sweet spring corn, artichokes, and my personal favorite …spring green peas. Peas immediately rocket me back to my childhood. My grandmother loved to sit in her folding chair on our driveway on a sunny/chilly spring San Francisco afternoon, gazing out over an expanse of green painted cement that passed for lawn, a bowl of peas on her knee, chatting with me while we shelled for the evening’s dinner. She never minded if I stole a few from the shells I opened. Sweet and crunchy, they were better than candy. At least that’s what I was told. I believed her and fresh spring peas have always been a treat for me. Over the years I’ve used peas in all sorts of ways. I’ve served them with mushrooms, pearl onions and butter at holiday dinners. I’ve strewn them over pasta primavera, I’ve stuffed them into samosas and I’ve made them into soup. And to my mind, nothing says Springtime better than chilled green pea and mint soup. Last week, I threw my annual Springtime dinner and the first thing on the menu was pea soup. I served it in small cups as an amuse bouche , but of course a big bowl is always good too.
The soup makes up very quickly, which is a plus. It can be served hot or chilled and made ahead of time, another plus. And perhaps the biggest plus of all, the base of the soup can be made with either chicken broth, vegetable broth or plain water. Something to please everyone. If you haven’t heard of this delightful treat before, here’s my adaptation of the classic mint and pea Spring soup.
This fast and easy pea soup runs either hot…or cold.
Spring Pea and Mint Soup
What's in it
3 Tbs of finely chopped shallot
1 Tbs of butter, or olive oil or margarine if one is going vegan
2 cups of either chicken broth, water or vegetable broth
2 large sprigs of fresh mint
1 lb of fresh peas, or frozen baby peas
1/4 cup of cream or non dairy substitute or nothing at all
salt and pepper to taste
creme fraiche
extra mint for a garnish
What To Do
In a pot melt the butter or heat the oil.
When the oil is hot or the butter melted toss in the chopped shallot.
Saute the shallots until they soften.
Add in the broth or water.
Add in the mint sprigs.
Bring the soup to a boil.
Add in the peas.
Turn the heat down and simmer the peas until they’re tender about 5 minutes.
When the peas are tender toss out the mint sprigs and puree the soup with an immersion blender or a blender or food processor.
Mix in the cream if it’s being used.
Taste for seasoning.
Serve garnished with a bit of creme fraiche and chopped mint.
This soup is super easy to make up and is great any time of the day. Hopefully you can enjoy it without that dumb little rhyme running through your head. Coming up next, a fast way to fix the vegetable that stumped the chefs on Chopped! Follow along on Twitter @kathygori
When I went on my bottle gourd buying spree the other day, I had an objective. Not only was I buying bottle gourd as part of my vegetarian lunch, I was also eager to try using the same bottle gourd as a dessert. Bottle gourd is a relative/kissing cousin of zucchini. Like the ubiquitous zucchini is here, so is bottle gourd in India. As it turns out, bottle gourd is found pretty much everywhere on the planet, including the good old U S of A. It all depends on where one shops. Once you know some of the various aliases Bottle Gourd travels under, it's pretty easy to find in almost every sort of ethic market. Almost every culture on this big blue marble enjoys this versatile fruit so why not incorporate it into the American diet? Like zucchini, bottle gourd can be cooked as a savory and also as a sweet.
Almost everyone is familiar with the hit-and-run "zucchini bread/cupcakes on the doorstep" move. This is how the neighbors get rid of their bumper crop of squash come summers end. Now for those of us without a gluten problem, this is fine up to a point. But what about everybody who needs to be gluten free? Surely there must be a better way to use up the spare squash that doesn't involve cupcake papers and a baking tin? There is. It's called Bottle Gourd Kheer... or as I like to refer to it, Riceless Pudding.
The principal behind this dessert is that of the traditional Indian Carrot Halwa, or Carrot Pudding. That is a lovely concoction of grated carrots, milk and sugar dotted with nuts and raisins. It's a great way to get vegetables into those who might otherwise shun them. The recipe doesn't just end with carrots. It applies to squash too, particularly bottle gourd. And if that's not available, it can also be made with zucchini! So for those of you with no access to bottle gourd, just substitute zucchini and you have the equivalent of a rice pudding that contains no rice...only vegetables. How's that for low carb?
Bottle Gourd Pudding
Here's what to do:
Peel 1 lb of bottle gourd or zucchini
If using bottle gourd, split it down the middle and scrape out the seedy, fibrous spongy part. This isn't necessary if using zucchini.
Grate the peeled bottle gourd or zucchini in a food processor.
In a large pot or skillet melt 1 Tbs of unsalted butter.
When the butter has melted toss in:
The peeled and grated bottle gourd or zucchini. Stir it around for about 5 minutes or so until it's softened
Then add in:
2 cups of milk
Simmer the bottle gourd or zucchini in the milk until the milk is reduced and thickened, about 20 minutes or so.
Chop about 2 Tbs of pistachios.
Add them to the pudding along with
2 Tbs of split cashews
1/2 tsp of rosewater
A handful of dark raisins or golden raisins whichever you prefer
1/4 to 1/2 cup of dark brown sugar depending on personal taste
1 tsp of ground cardamom.
Stir everything together well and let it cook down a bit further to a thick consistency.
Voila! You have pudding! It looks and tastes similar to rice pudding and yet...no rice, only bottle gourd or zucchini.
This dessert can be served warm or cold. I can't believe it's not rice pudding! Coming up next a quick refreshing spring soup and a lesson in what to do if you're ever on "Chopped!" Follow along on Twitter @kathygori
It's been quite the weekend so far. I had more dental surgery on Friday, prepping for a couple of implants. During the first surgery last Fall, bone grafts etc were required. This time it's a lot easier and my new choppers should be in in a couple of months. However I was a bit snoozy yesterday after surgery as I discovered last night when Alan showed me these. I decided once I was home I would be too tired to read and so decided to watch some HBOGO on my iPad. Alan came in a bit later to check on me to find the movie running along merrily. I however, was out like a light.
In preparation for all this dental whirlwind, I've been doing a lot of cooking, and I'll be posting my squash dessert tomorrow. Meanwhile as I emerge from the fog of good drugs the dentist gave me, I thought I'd pass along a cherry pickling recipe I'd put up a year or so ago. This all came about because of a Twitter conversation with Master Chef Jon Rowley a week or so ago after I'd posted a piece on the wonderful local cherries I'd snagged at our Sonoma Farmers Market.
I mentioned pickling them and he said that he'd never heard about doing that. Neither had I before I tried it a few years ago. Turns out one can pickle almost anything! There are a wealth of cherry pickling recipes out there and of all I saw, these were my favorites. After I received a few requests from people for the recipe, I thought I'd re-post it Here for those of you who have cherries coming into season. One of the recipes is for sweet and spicy cherries (perfect for Manhattans I've been informed by those who have tried them.) The other recipe is for tart and savory cherries.
Pickled Cherries
Next up, I'll be posting about a nifty little dessert made with squash that surprised even me. Follow along on Twitter @kathygori
Last week I went on one of my regular shopping runs to Santa Rosa. I needed to do a "Big Shop," a 50 mile round trip type shop. TP, paper towels and dish soap from Costco and a whirl through my favorite Asian markets on Petaluma Hill Road. The Markets in Santa Rosa aren't Indian markets. Not by a long shot. They're Thai and Cambodian. There is only one Indian Market in all of Sonoma County and that's located in Cotati, conveniently next to the girls of Sift, winners of last year's Cupcake Wars.
I have to watch my step in that neighborhood. Too much temptation all around. Between homemade gulab jamuns at the market and tequila blueberry cupcakes and Whoopie Pies as big as my head at Sift, once I'm in these places I'm a goner. So the Thai and Cambodian markets are on my regular run. They don't have everything I need for Indian cooking but they have most of it, and there are no cupcake joints anywhere near them. So there's that.
Just as I was about to step out the door, I tweeted that I was going on a bottle gourd, bitter melon run and a couple of seconds later Paula Wolfert tweeted back to ask if I'd also pick her up a pound of bottle gourd for a tagine dish she was working on. This started me thinking. Ever since I'd started cooking Indian food 20 plus years ago, I'd been cooking vegetables that I'd thought of as strictly Indian. So what was Paula wanting with bottle gourd for Moroccan food? Turns out bottle gourd gets around.
First of all, it's got a lot of aliases. It's known as Opo, opu, doodhi, jicaro, calabash, long melon, boo thee, cucuzza, lauki, ghiya, lau and quara. Paging Interpol. Secondly, it's got a lot of uses. Everything from soup to bongs. Yes, in Jamaica the calabash gourd is used by Rastafarians for just that. Dude. Thirdly, this thing's been around a looooooong time. In fact some scientists believe that bottle gourd was being cultivated in America about 8000 years ago, and grown for an equally long time all over the world.
So why isn't it better known on the current American table? It depends on who you ask. As I mentioned above, bottle gourd gets around. It's known in many places and under many names.
When I made my bottle gourd hand-off to Paula at the bakery this morning, Pina, a local woman who hails from Sicily said, "Oh, That's a cucuzza! Where did you get it?"
As I said it all depends on who you ask. Right now I have a fridge full of bottle gourd, among other things.
You can too if you visit your local Asian market. If you can't get bottle gourd, something tells me this recipe for squash in a tomatoey sauce with spices and peas would work equally well with zucchini, or chayote squash.
Indian Squash Stew
Here's what to do:
In a small bowl mix together:
2 Tbs of tomato paste
1/2 cup of water
1/2 cup of whipping cream
Set it aside.
Peel and chop 1 lb of bottle gourd (or whatever squash you have) into 1/2 inch chunks.
Set the chopped squash aside.
If you are using frozen peas, defrost them and set them aside.
Mix together a spice blend of:
4 whole cloves
1/4 tsp of fennel pollen ( or ground fennel)
1/2 tsp of garam masala
1 Tbs of ground coriander
1 tsp of turmeric
1/2 inch piece of cinnamon
1/4 tsp of kashmiri chili or 1/8 tsp of cayenne 1/8 tsp of paprika
6 curry leaves
3 medium size tomatoes seeded and chopped or 1 can of chopped tomatoes.
1 Tbs of melted unsalted butter
1 whole green serrano chili
Mix all of these ingredients in a large skillet or kadhai (except the peas) on medium heat.
Put a lid on it, lower the heat and simmer the whole shebang for about 30 to 40 minutes until the squash is tender.
Keep an eye on it. Check it every now and then to make sure nothing is sticking. Add a bit of water if needed.
When the squash is tender, add in the peas.
Stir them a bit to warm them up.
Take out the cloves and the whole green chili, garnish with a bit of chopped fresh cilantro and mint and serve it up.
This is squash at its' best, spicy with cinnamon and cloves and a bit of heat. The vegetable is soft and buttery and yet unlike the more common zucchini, it holds it's shape and firmness after cooking. This is what bottle gourd is all about. If you have any way of getting ahold of it, try. You won't regret it.
Coming up next what happens when that same bottle gourd puts on her heels gets tarted up and goes to town? Just call her Sweetstuff. This isn't your Grandmas' zucchini cupcakes. Follow along on Twitter @kathygori
