Weekly Dish

Links:

• Paneed Tilapia 
• Lemony Spinach
• Guacamole, by the Barefoot Contessa (minus the Tabasco)

Sometimes I get an uncontrollable urge to fry something. I say uncontrollable because if a girl were to be logical, she might envision herself standing in front of a boiling pot of oil in hundred-degree heat and be able to talk herself into something less, well, hot. Perhaps it’s my southern blood forcing its will right through any sensible notion of health, or comfort. Or perhaps I’ve just eaten one too many salads. Either way, when the urge strikes, nothing will do but to whip up a batch of fried something or the other, and zucchini is what I had in my fridge.

And, because Barbara is collecting recipes that feature local ingredients for this month’s Spice Is Right, I used locally ground spices — cayenne and paprika — in the batter. Both the cayenne and paprika are made from red peppers — one spicy, the other sweet — grown and ground by Papa Tom Bonnecaze Farms, who I see every Saturday morning at the market (they also make the best pepper jelly in town). The zucchini is straight from another Louisiana farmer just down the road, the buttermilk came from a local dairy, so besides the flour, seasoned salt, and oil, this dish is completely south Louisiana. And, of course, as far as techniques go, you can’t get more locally southern than frying.

These crunchy little spears are a cross between fried dill pickles–popular at state fairs around these parts–and some eggplant fries I had once at a restaurant. The zucchini held up nicely–it turns very soft, but doesn’t fall apart–and I love the mild flavor of the vegetable dressed up by the spices in the batter. Comeback sauce would, I’m sure, make a delightful dipping sauce for fried zucchini, but it’s not necessary in my opinion.

After a half-hour of frying up this zucchini, a heck of a mess in my kitchen, what with dribbles of buttermilk, splatters of grease, and bits of uncooked batter strewn from counter top to stove, one bite into the well-seasoned crunchy batter satisfied my craving and assuaged any sense of craziness I’d felt as droplets of sweat dribbled down my forehead during the frying process.

I’m already thinking of other things to fry in these precious weeks before school officially starts, so don’t be surprised if I show up here again with a batter-laden concoction to present to you.

Until, then, here’s the menu for the week and the fried zucchini recipe:

Links:

• David’s Roast Chicken
• Chipotle-Glazed Ribs
• Lemony Spinach

Locally Spiced Fried Zucchini

2 medium zucchini, cut into long, thin, spears
Buttermilk (about 2 cups, maybe less)
2 cups flour
1/2 t. cayenne pepper
2 t. ground paprika
2 t. seasoned salt
Vegetable or canola oil, about an inch deep

Heat about an inch of oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat.

While the oil is heating up, prepare the zucchini. Place the spears in a large zip-top plastic bag, and add enough buttermilk to immerse the spears. In another zip-top bag, mix together the spices and the flour. When the oil is hot — a drop of water should sizzle and pop when dropped into the pot — transfer some of the zucchini to the flour bag and shake to coat well. Add one spear at a time to the hot oil, being careful not to overcrowd the pan, and fry until golden brown, turning once to ensure even frying. Mine took about 4 minutes per batch. Remove with a slotted spoon, and drain on paper towels. Sprinkle each batch with additional seasoned salt.

Repeat the process until all of the zucchini has been coated and fried. Serve immediately. This recipe makes enough for 4 people as a side, or two hungry people as a combination appetizer/side dish/late-night snack over Scrabble. What can I say? Fried things don’t keep well, and it would be a shame to let such goodness go to waste.

Links:

• Figs and Sausages
• Curried Noodles with Beef
• Avocado and Sun-dried Tomato Fettucine

We’ve just returned from out of town; this menu is from a few weeks ago. I’ll be back up to regular posting tomorrow; until then, I have unpacking and cleaning out the fridge to look forward to!

The menu for this week is relatively short; as you can see, we’re headed to Mississippi to spend some time with family and friends before school starts. Most of what I’m planning revolves around what I have an excess of: tomatoes, basil, and Vidalia onions.
The farmer that I buy my tomatoes from starts about this time in the season boxing up very ripe tomatoes and selling them for cheap. Yesterday, I bought 15 pounds for $10! So, the only thing to do with that many tomatoes is make tomato sauce to freeze (and to use to make a lasagna for friends who are moving). And, of course, reserve some fresh ones for this pizza.

Not so much a recipe as a suggestion, for this pizza, you simply prepare whatever kind of crust you like, spread it with pesto, top with sliced tomatoes and fresh mozzarella, and drizzle the whole thing with olive oil and Kosher salt. Bake until the cheese melts.

Here are the other links for this week:

• Oven-Roasted Tomato Sauce
• Basil Pesto
• Lasagna

Happy end of July, everyone!

Links:

Boiled Shrimp
Cobb Salad
Rorie’s Tomato Paninis (Note: I used homemade foccacia bread; with a green salad, these make the easiest, yummiest summer supper!)

Another easy, quick recipe, inspired by Karina at Gluten Free Goddess, were these vegetarian tacos. We had a few leftover, and they were even better the next day.

Spicy Black Bean Tacos

1 t. olive oil
Half a sweet onion, sliced into half-moons
1 clove of garlic, chopped
2 sweet peppers, cut into matchsticks
1 jalapeno pepper, sliced
1 14 1/2-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup salsa
1 t. cumin
1 t. chile poweder
1/2 t. seasoned salt
Corn tortillas or taco shells

To serve:
Monterey Jack cheese with peppers
Sliced avocados
Lime wedges

Heat the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium. Add the garlic, onion, and peppers, and cook until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the beans, salsa, and spices; stir and let the mixture simmer while you prepare the tortillas.

To make taco shells: heat a half-inch of vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Add one tortilla to the skillet and quickly coat both sides with the hot oil. Then, let one side fry until it’s nearing the crisping stage; turn quickly and fold over with tongs, holding the top slightly open. Flip again, and remove from the oil when both sides are crispy and golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

To serve: fill each taco shell with the black bean mixture; top with cheese, avocado slices, and a squeeze of lime. Yum!

Inspiring recipe: Karina’s Black Bean Enchiladas

Recipe links:

Mushroom-Arugula Risotto (I subsituted spinach for the arugula and served the risotto inside roasted portabello mushroom caps, which was pretty, and also added more mushroom-y goodness to the risotto.)
Sweet-Hot Grilled Chicken
Angel Hair with Goat Cheese and Caramelized Vegetables
Blue Cheese and Mango Quesadillas

Here’s an idea for pizza inspired by the restaurant where I worked in college. The chef there invented this pizza as a way to make the peanut sauce and grilled chicken–both of which he prepared in great abundance each week–serve double duty. Whenever I have leftover peanut sauce and a chicken breast that needs to be used, this simple preparation often finds its way into my oven.

Authentic Thai cuisine it is not, but I love the combination of the cooked and raw ingredients atop a fluffy crust. I keep meaning to experiment with different recipes for pizza crust, but so far, I tend to stick with the basic crust/foccacia recipe both because I have it memorized and because it takes so little time to throw together. But any crust will do if you have a recipe you prefer.

Thai Chicken Pizza

One half recipe pizza dough
One grilled chicken breast, sliced
1/2 cup Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce plus more for serving
A handful of shredded mozzarella cheese (optional)

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees. Stretch the dough to fit a round pizza pan or a rectangular cookie sheet, and prick the dough all over with a fork. Bake for 10 minutes. Spread the pre-baked crust with the peanut sauce, sliced chicken, and cheese. Bake for another 5 or 6 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the crust is light brown.

To serve, top with any combination of the following:
Cilantro leaves
Basil leaves (I used lemon basil)
Chopped peanuts
Shredded carrots
Sliced green onions
Bean sprouts
Snow peas or sugar snaps

Drizzle with remaining peanut sauce.

Links:

Gnocchi with Pesto
Tuna with Avocado and Corn Salsa

Links:

Italian Sausage Lasagna

Corn and Tomato Risotto

This marker board, attached to the side of my fridge with magnets, is the source of much conversation in my kitchen. Friends are always asking about my menu-planning habits, what we eat on a regular basis, if we really stick to it, how this menu will be modified when we have kids (many of my friends with small children often scoff at my salads with goat cheese and spicy Asian food, muttering things about fish sticks and hot dogs).

I’ve always been a girl with a plan, and even if the plans don’t turn out just right (as often they don’t), filling this marker board on Saturdays helps give shape to our weeks through food. It also helps me to know when I’ve planned company-friendly meals (dishes that make more than could feed the two of us) and when we’ll have leftovers for lunch.

Of course, I don’t expect that any of you would want to follow my menu plans exactly, but in case you’re looking for a little marker board inspiration when you sit down to plan your own week’s worth of meals (if you do), I’ll try to post photos of my marker board on Sundays. Hopefully, it will also remind me which recipes I need to post about soon. If you see one that you can’t find on the site, don’t hesitate to let me know, and I’ll move it up the list of things-to-post.

In case you can’t tell, I’ve also always been a girl with a list. Or twenty.

Have a great last week of June, everyone!

Links

Monday: David’s Roast Chicken, The Contessa’s Parmesan Zucchini

Tuesday: Pad Thai with Chicken

Fortunately, Thursday night’s dinner turned out much better than Wednesday’s last week. At least I was able to eat it!

We are not big breakfast people–usually, a bowl or cereal and a banana and a cup of coffee are all either of us eat before noon. But we love breakfast food, so I often plan to make dishes usually served before noon at night. I have fond memories of my mom doing the same–she especially loved to make omelets for supper.

Me, well, I’m a waffle girl. I don’t know if it’s the crisp texture, the pretty shape, or just because I’m a fan of all bread products, but I love waffles of all kinds.

These turned out pretty well–I like the way the strawberries lightly flavored the batter, but I think I should have chopped them into smaller pieces; the slices made holes in the batter, and the part of the berry directly exposed to the waffle iron browned a little too much for my liking. Small-diced strawberries would probably solve that problem.

I topped the waffles with a smattering of sliced strawberries, a dollop of sour cream, and a drizzle of locally made cane syrup. Served with a side of bacon, this meal made us very happy breakfast-for-dinner diners.

Strawberry Waffles
based on the Basic Waffle recipe in The Joy of Cooking

1 3/4 cups flour
1 T. baking powder
2 T. sugar
1/2 t. salt
3 eggs, beaten
1 stick butter, melted
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 t. vanilla extract
1/2 cup small-diced strawberries

Preheat the waffle iron. Combine the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the eggs, melted butter, milk, and vanilla. Dump the wet ingredients into the dry all at once, folding together gently until they are well-incorporated. The batter should be a bit lumpy, like muffin batter. Fold in the strawberries.

Prepare the waffles, according to the specifications for your waffle iron. (Mine has a little light on it that goes off when the waffles are done, so I never time them.) To serve, stack two waffles on a plate, top with a dollop of sour cream or butter, a handful of sliced strawberries, and a drizzle of cane or maple syrup. Bacon makes an excellent side.
For those of you keeping up with my attempts to eat local, here’s a list of this week’s market purchases and my menu plan:

• Bought: corn, broccoli, carrots, green tomatoes, mixed salad greens, and shrimp
• Monday: Shrimp Scampi and green salad
• Tuesday: Vegetable plate–Hannah’s broccoli, corn on the cob, oven-roasted carrots, salad
• Wednesday: Shrimp and corn soup, green salad, and bread
• Thursday: Fried green tomato BLTs with Vidalia onion rings

I’ll continue to post recipes and reports for the dinners we actually end up having!