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August 8, 2008

Friday night is pizza night

I switched over to a new whole wheat pizza dough. I was using a recipe from Eating Well, but recently, I wasn't happy with how the fast-rising yeast was working. The yeast wasn't incorporating well into the dough and the dough wasn't rising well. A new jar of fast-rising yeast didn't solve the problem so I went looking for a new recipe.

I found this whole wheat dough recipe on AllRecipes and so far I've been very happy with the new dough. It uses regular yeast and takes about 45 minutes to rise, but the dough is lighter and rises more reliably. Even though the recipe says to mix it by hand, I mix it in the food processor. Tonight I added about 2 tablespoons of Penzeys' Tuscan Sunset blend to the flour.

These days I'm adding a splash of balsamic vinegar to the Pastene ground peeled tomatoes that I use for the sauce.

Posted August 8, 2008 8:51 PM in Recipes | Comments (1)

August 6, 2008

Latest Fancy Burger: Chicken Satay Burgers

Our latest "fancy" burger is a Chicken Satay Burger, based on a recipe from Cooking Light. In addition to increasing the seasonings used in the recipe, I used boneless chicken thighs rather than boneless chicken breasts. Even though the chicken breast version got great reviews, I was concerned that it would be dry. I wanted a nice juicy burger.

Rather than using store-bought ground chicken, I always make my own ground chicken using my food processor. This way I know that it contains only lean chicken meat. Making your own ground chicken requires that you pulse the chicken only a few times. Be careful here, you don't want to overprocess the chicken and turn it into mush; 4-5 quick pulses is all you need.

This time, I opted to cook the burgers inside using my stovetop grill pan. But they are also perfect for grilling outside.

I had my burger on a bed of Fine Cooking's Shredded Carrots with Jalapeno, Lime, and Cilantro. Tom had his on a toasted bun with the carrot salad on the side. We both loved these and we're thoroughly enjoying this summer's exploration of "fancy" burgers. We're both pleased to discover that extra burgers reheat well for a quick lunch.

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Posted August 6, 2008 8:26 PM in Recipes

August 3, 2008

Zucchini Ribbon Salad

A recent issue of Fine Cooking included a feature on no-cook side dishes. The Zucchini and Yellow Squash Ribbons with Daikon, Oregano, and Basil recipe in this article has inspired a series of squash ribbon salads. The zucchini, yellow squash, and daikon radish version in Fine Cooking is superb, but unless I request it a few days ahead, I can't get daikon at the store I normally shop at. And it seems crazy to use anything other than local ingredients in this simple salad made to beat the summer heat. I don't grow zucchini or yellow squash in my garden. I'm one of the few gardeners who buys zucchini and yellow squash. My favorite farm is bursting with zucchini and yellow squash and we are doing our part to eat lots of it.

This simple salad starts with a vegetable peeler. I've only made it using a Y-peeler, but I'm sure that it will work with a swivel peeler. The squash is cut into ribbons using the peeler. Then it tossed with some lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, and chopped fresh herbs. Or you can use vinegar instead of the lemon juice. This recipe is very flexible, it will work with whatever suits your fancy. I've been using different herbs from my herb garden. Parsley, thyme, rosemary, oregano, basil, and mint. You can give it an Asian twist by using rice vinegar instead of the lemon juice and using a 1 tablespoon of dark sesame oil and 5 tablespoons of olive or vegetable (I prefer safflower) oil. Add a sprinkling of either white or black sesame seeds instead of the herbs. Or a Southwestern twist by using lime juice and lime zest instead of the lemon juice and zest. Use cilantro for the herb. And maybe even stir in a pinch of cumin or chili powder. How about Carribean? Use lime juice or orange juice, cilantro, and add a pinch of jerk seasoning.

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Posted August 3, 2008 9:30 PM in Kitchen Garden/Farmstand, Recipes | Comments (1)

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