Savory Blueberry Sauce

Lentil Walnut loaf, asparagus, and savory blueberry sauce

Shaun was making dinner one evening a couple of days ago and John, one of the farmers, challenged him to a kumquat sauce. Shaun had his hands pretty full with a lovely dinner, but I decided to take up the challenge. There are no kumquats growing at Kings Valley (or anywhere in Oregon as far as I know) but as I have mentioned, Kings Valley Gardens has some of the best blueberries in all of oregon, and they have a lot of them! 


The full meal was:
Lentil Walnut Loaf
Roasted Asparagus
Blueberry Sauce
Blueberry "Cheesecake"


We got the recipe for the Lentil Walnut Loaf from Angela Liddon at Oh She Glows. I think this is the third time we made it (including one time for Shaun's parents who are fairly dedicated carnivores) and there are a lot of steps, but an amazing result.

To roast asparagus: Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Wash asparagus and cut the tough ends off. Some people say you should only eat asparagus the width of your pinky - I think they are crazy. After eating roughly one ton of asparagus, because when it's in season it's in SEASON, I would say the thick spears are every bit as delicious as the pencil thin ones, plus they are bigger! Anyway, thick or thin, you sill want to cut the ends off. Spread a couple of tablespoons of oil on a cookie sheet and lay asparagus in a single layer. Cook for 8 minutes.

Blueberry Sauce
1/4 onion chopped
1 tbsp oil (or enough to keep the onion from sticking)
2 cups blueberries (I used frozen but I don't think it matters)
1 tbsp dried tarragon
salt and pepper to taste

Saute onion in oil using a small sauce pan. Add all other ingredients and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes or sauce has thickened to your desired consistency.

This meal is best consumed outside by candlelight :)

How to Make Bread for a Crowd

10 lovely, local, loaves of bread fresh out of the oven

NOTE: This article includes a recipe for making two loaves, for a more detailed description of making bread for a "crowd" look here.

So apparently the secret to making bread for a crowd is... knead it with your feet. Something I recently learned about bread making is that it is the gluten that allows it to rise. Wheat gluten looks kind of like long viscous strands (appetizing right?). Anyway, these strands form kind of a net and trap the air bubbles that the yeast give off as they eat sugar and poop gas (again, super appetizing).

The gluten also provides structure as the bread rises. Whole wheat flower has less gluten than white flower so that's why 100% whole wheat loves are often really dense. When I first learned this I started adding vital wheat gluten, which is what's used to make seitan. This works pretty well. I even more recently learned that kneading bread is what helps the gluten develop, so instead of adding extra gluten, you can also knead for longer. If you are making 10 loaves at a time, which is the way we roll at Kings Valley Gardens, kneading takes a toll on your wrists and hands. Kneading with your feet helps you avoid this trouble, and is novel enough that it remains fun for the full 15 minutes required to develop the gluten. Shaun was selected for the actual kneading as he had by far the biggest feet (size 13) and don't worry he washed them very well!

10 lovely, local, loaves, in the oven

Living in Minnesota we have no problem accessing wheat and whole wheat flour that was grown within a couple of hours of the Twin Cities. Usually our flour comes from Whole Grain Milling. It is not so easy on the Willamette Valley (where we are WWOOFing for the summer). In the past a great deal of grain was grown here, but more recently farmers have switched to grass seed. Thanks in part to work done by the Bean and Grain Project there has been some return to grain cops in the area. The flour we used for this bread was grown down the road near Corvallis.

The recipe that Andrea uses at Kings Valley is Adapted from May All be Fed, Diet for a New World by Tom Robbins. I am using his recipe (and slightly adapting it myself) since I figure not everyone wants to make 10 loaves at a time? And because Andrea is working on a cook book and I don't want to give away any of her secrets. You can just multiply the recipe by 4 if you are trying to bake for a crowd.

Ocean's Bobs of Love Bread

(Makes Two Loaves)

Shaun using his big feet to knead

1 cup like warm water

2 1/2 teaspoons or 1 package active dry yeast

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup canola or safflower oil

2 tsp salt

6 to 7 cups whole wheat flour

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1/4 cup millet

Oil for brushing the loaves

Mix water, yeast and honey and let stand about 5 minutes (the yeast should be dissolved and kind of foamy). Add two cups of the flouer and all other ingredients. Continue adding the flour until you have a fairly stiff dough. Sprinkle some flour on your work surface and knead the bread for 15 minutes or until the texture is similar to an air lobe (as someone once told me). 

Shaping the dough into loaves

If you are going to knead with your feet it is helpful to have someone help you by folding the dough over before you stomp it down. If you are kneading with your hands start with a ball and press it down with the heel of your han, fold it over and press it down again. Repeat as necessary. 

After you are done kneading place the dough in a bowl and cover it lightly with a towel. Place the bowl in a somewhat warm area where it will not be disturbed. I usually put it a turned off oven. Wait for about an hour and a half until the dough has doubled in size. Knead it again for 10 to 15 minutes and then shape into loaves. Let the loaves rise for another hour or so and bake them at 350 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes. 

Did you Know Barley in Spanish is Cebada?

Risotto Style Barley with Winter Squash.

Local ingredients used: barley, winter squash, goat cheese - which are really the main ingredients in the dish.

I think barley may be my favorite grain, I really like the texture. I usually describe it as "meaty" which I guess my discourage vegetarians, but it shouldn't. Chewy is another possible adjective. Risotto style barley is not a typical or authentic risotto by any means. And I am not really even sure if this should qualify as risotto style, since you don't have to slowly add the liquid as it is absorbed which I feel is key to risotto. But you do add wine, and it is fairly creamy.

I don't actually remember what type of squash I used. It was probably butternut, but I can't be sure. Neither do I know how many types of winter squash are out there, but there are tons! I was talking with a farmer the other day who said that they personally grow about 25 varieties. I haven't found one I like significantly more than butternut though.

You could do this with pretty much any vegetable instead of squash, I have made it with mushrooms several times. I topped the "risotto" with goat cheese and walnuts. Goat cheese because it is delicious and walnuts because they are delicious, but also because this dish could be considered mushy and the walnuts add a really nice crunch.

Risotto Style Barley:
4 1/2 cups broth (vegetable, chicken etc. I use the little cubes)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Other good "winter" seasonings include rosemary, thyme, or sage - I might add 1/2 to 1 tsp of each, or none
2 tsp. butter
1 cup chopped onions
1 cup pearled barley
1 winter squash chopped and seeded (I wash my winter squashes but I DO NOT peel them, the skin gets tender and with butternut squash in particular I think tastes delicious, plus many nutrients are in the skin)
1/2 cup white wine
Toppings: toasted walnuts, goat cheese

Start boiling the cubed and seeded winter squash in enough water to cover it
Heat butter in a large sauce pan and add onions. Cook until translucent. Add any seasonings and cook 1 or 2 more minutes. Add barley and saute another minute or two. Add broth, reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 45 minutes or until broth is absorbed.

Meanwhile, when the squash is tender - about 30 minutes later - mash it up.

When the barley has absorbed the broth, add the wine and stir. Now add the mashed up squash. Now you are done. Each person can put their own toppings on, or you could, it doesn't really matter.

Enjoy

Oh Boy, Organ Meat

I guess you could consider this a Halloween post...

Lamb liver was on super special at the Farmers Market ($0.50/lb!), and if I want to eat local, on a budget, it's hard to pass up a good deal, right?

Waste is also bad, so if I am going to eat meat I should try new cuts. By the way, I have never had liver before. I don't think I am alone in not eating much organ meat, at least not in the US. I think it is interesting that we consume a fairly large amount of meat, but certain cuts, and even certain animals (like I mentioned this was LAMB liver) have almost gone out of fashion. When I was looking up recipes one website said that lamb was very popular in the US until WWII and then the army bought very large quantities and served a lot of poorly prepared lamb to soldiers. When they came home they told their wives and mothers that they didn't like lamb- and just like that, the entire country switched primarily to beef. Sheep tend to be lighter on the land than cattle, so I am trying to build my skill preparing less common cuts of meat.

This is a pretty standard liver and onions with mashed potatoes and steamed green beans. Pretty  much everything was purchased at the Farmers Market except spices, oils, and butter. Here are the ingredients:

For Two Servings

• 2 onions, chopped or sliced
• 2 small liver steaks
• about 5 smallish potatoes, washed and cut into small pieces
• maybe 1/2 lb of green beans, washed
• Oil, butter, vegetable broth, salt and pepper

Put potatoes in a small sauce pan, cover with water and/or vegetable broth (I add a vegetable broth bullion cube) boil for about 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. When they are tender drain, add about a tablespoon of butter plus salt and pepper to taste and mash with a fork. If you like creamier mashed potatoes you can add a couple of tablespoons of milk and just keep adding small amounts until the potatoes are at the desired consistency

Meanwhile... while the potatoes are cooking - Heat a tablespoon or two of oil in a large pan and add onions. Saute until tender and beginning to caramelize - about 10 minutes, but the longer the better.

Meanwhile 2... once the onions are sauteing - Put green beans in a pan (I use a saute pan so that they can remain long) with a little bit of water. You can also use a steamer but I don't have one. (Side note: one of the benefits of a steamer is that you don't lose as many of the nutrients in the water. I save the water I cook vegetables in and drink it like tea, this way I get most of the nutrients) Cook green beans for about 8 minutes.

When everything is about done, move the onions to the side of the dish and add the liver cooking 1-1/2 minutes on each side. Apparently the "secret" to good liver is that it is just barely done. Serve immediately.

OK, full disclosure. It turns out I don't really like liver. I liked the texture, it is like a very very tender steak. But there was something in the flavor that I felt was distinctive. But my partner really liked it and didn't taste whatever the flavor note that I was picking up on was. And if you have enough caramelized onions it's hard to notice the flavor. Liver is also very high in iron, and like I said, affordable... so... I am glad I tried it and will probably continue to prepare it on occasion (if only because we kind of stocked up when it was on sale)

Spinach Roulade

Spinach Roulade

I know, you might be thinking why another food blog? I don't really have an answer other then that I think mine is a little different than others I've seen.  I have read a lot of "foodie" blogs and also blogs about affordable, healthy eating. But not nearly as many that try to do both (though I am sure they are out there) Anyway, on with the recipe! For my first blog post I am writing about Spinach Roulade.  I got the recipe for Spinach Roulade from The Vegetarian Epicure Book Two by Anna Thomas. For those of you familiar with Anna Thomas most of her recipes are not what I would consider quick, they are however delicious.  I made this on a Saturday when I knew I would have plenty of time. I think the whole thing took about two hours, but only about one hour of active time and I was stopping to take pictures periodically. In terms of accomplishing my other goals, I would consider this healthy (lots of whole ingredients and vegetables maybe a little higher in fat) and the ingredients are pretty affordable. The potatoes, garlic, and onions were organic and local from PD Farms and Val's Veggies (all great people).

This is the description from the cookbook: This is like a giant rolled dumpling, with a spinach filling. A potato dough reminiscent of gnocchi is rolled up around the filling, then the whole thing is wrapped n cheesecloth boiled in salted water, and served hot, in spiral patterned slices.

Serves 6

Vegetarian Epicure Page 254

Ingredients:


Filling:

2 lbs. fresh spinach
3 tbs. butter
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 large garlic clove, minced
1 1/2 tbs white wine vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp oregano
pinch nutmeg



Dough
2 lbs potatoes
2 whole eggs
1 1/2 tsp salt
dash nutmeg
2 - 2 1/2 cups flour


Garnish with melted butter and grated Parmesan cheese.

Translucent Onions

For filling saute onions and garlic until translucent, add spinach and continue sauteing until wilted, add seasonings

Filling (sorry, a little blurry, but I was trying to cook)

Pasta Dough

 For dough cut potatoes into small cubes and boil until tender (about 20 minutes) mash slightly, add other ingredients except flour and mash completely. It should look like mashed potatoes.

Form mushy dough into ball and transfer to a work surface such as a counter and begin working in flour until you have a stiff dough. Roll dough into rectangle approximately 11 x 13 inches. Spread filling over rectangle and carefully begin rolling dough starting on the long edge (like a jelly roll).

Dough with Spinach Filling

Wrap jelly roll in cheese cloth and place in a pot full of salted water and boil for about 50 minutes. Remove from pot (I actually found this to be the hardest part, possibly because my pot wasn't big enough or there wasn't enough water I don't know, if you have any ideas let me know) Let stand for 5 to 10 minutes and then slice. I did not let mine stand. I was really hungry so I sliced it right away which I think contributed to it losing its shape and not forming nice spirals like it was supposed to. When I ate it for lunch the next day it was much easier to cut and you could actually see the spirals. Anna Thomas suggests serving it with melted butter, I just topped it with Parmesan. I think marinara could also be tasty and adds vegetables.  As you can see I served it with a salad.  Even though it doesn't look that pretty it was really tasty.


Note: these are my abridged versions of the directions. The ones found in Vegetarian Epicure are more detailed and include some extra steps, which I skipped.

Final Plate

OK, thanks for reading, let me know what you think! Oh, and because if I say it "out loud" I am more likely to do it, I plan to post once per week.

Bon Appetit!