Tag Archives: cheese

Crispy Breaded Artichoke Hearts with Garlic Mashed Marrow Beans

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When Marx Foods sent me a packet of Marrow beans to sample, I was eager to use them along with crispy fried artichokes. This recipe is inspired by Yotam Ottolenghi’s recipe for fried artichoke hearts with fava beans (broad beans). If you havent read Ottolenghi’s new vegetarian cookbook, Plenty, you absolutely must buy it. Its my new favorite vegetarian cook book.

Lets talk about Marrow beans. Theyre also called Marrowfat beans. They are earthy, creamy beans that are great when mashed or pureed. They have a meaty flavor somewhat like pork/bacon. These heirloom beans are used in the Mediterranean and were popular in America in the 1800s. You need to soak these beans over night, then change the water and boil them till tender. Marrow beans will also be great in bean dips, stews or soups.

Ottolenghi’s recipe is based on the Roman Jewish style of cooking artichokes – deep frying them in olive oil. Ottolenghi uses panko bread crumbs; I used Italian flavored bread crumbs because thats what I had on hand. He then serves the fried artichokes with crushed fava beans or broad beans. I serve mine with mashed marrow beans. I think mashed chickpeas or cannellini beans will also be nice. If you dont care for the mashed beans part of this dish, you can serve up these fried artichokes just with some garlic mayonnaise.

For a step-by-step tutorial on how to clean an artichoke heart, see this post.

Crispy Fried Artichoke Hearts with Garlic Mashed Marrow Beans

adapted from this recipe by Yotam Ottolenghi
serves 3-4 as an appetizer

for mashed marrow beans
1/2 cup marrow beans, soaked overnight in plenty of water
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley or basil (Ottolenghi uses mint and dill)
salt and pepper

for fried artichokes
2 jumbo or 4 regular sized artichokes
1 egg
1/2 cup italian flavored bread crumbs or panko bread crumbs
2 tablespoons grated pecorino romano cheese (or parmesan or grana padano)
extra virgin olive oil for shallow frying
salt

Drain and rinse the marrow beans that have been soaking over night. Place beans and thyme sprigs in a large pot with plenty of water. Bring to a boil. Then reduce to a simmer, place a lid on the pot and let the beans simmer till they are cooked through, about 45 minutes. Drain when done.

While beans are cooking, work on the artichokes. Trim and prepare the artichokes hearts; see this post for a tutorial. Place fresh artichoke hearts in a pot full of boiling water, turn down to a simmer and cook artichoke hearts till they are fork tender, about 7 minutes. Make sure artichokes are not mushy; they must be cooked but still firm. Removed to a kitchen towel and pat dry. If using canned or frozen artichoke hearts, skip the boiling; but pat them dry.

Whisk the egg in a bowl. In a plate, combine the breadcrumbs and pecorino romano. Heat a small skillet with olive oil, about half way up.

Dip artichoke hearts in the egg and coat well.  Then dredge them in the breadcrumb mixture, pressing the breadcrumbs to the artichoke hearts. Shallow fry the artichokes, a few at a time, till they are golden on all sides. Make sure oil is very hot. Remove fried artichokes to a paper towel and sprinkle some salt over them. When you salt the artichokes, keep in mind that the breadcrumbs and cheese are already salty.

Once the beans are cooked, drain them, remove and discard the thyme sprigs and place the hot beans back in the pot. Add all other ingredients for the beans. Mash using a potato masher.

To serve, spread some mashed beans on a platter and arrange fried artichokes on top. Serve with lemon wedges.

Broccoli, Baby Potato and Comte (Gruyere) Cheese Tarts in Saltine Cracker Crust

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I’d been dealing with a cranky client all week and was exhausted. I wanted a nice gourmet meal, but at the same time I didnt want to leave the house (ever felt that way?). So I used what I had on hand to make this gourmet tasting, gourmet looking, cheesy tart…just what I needed after a stressful day! The gorgeous wedge of french comte cheese Sanjeev picked up a few days ago was simply spectacular in this savory tart.

Comte is a Gruyere type French cheese made from cows milk. Comte is made only with spring and summer milk. I absolutely love this cheese. Actually, I love all cheeses, but I have extra love for Comte. Its slightly sweet, somewhat soft, and melts beautifully.

If you dont like or cant find Comte cheese..

Substitutes for Comte cheese: use Gruyere or fontina instead of Comte. Or if you want to spend less, try a mix of mozzarella and parmesan.

The tarts smelled sooo good in the oven, we were getting hungry quickly! We snacked on the ingredients while waiting for the tarts to bake.

This is a rather heavy, cheesy tart, so I made it in individual mini tart/pie pans. A mini tart along with a salad was a good portion size. If you dont have mini tart/pie tins, you can make this as one large tart and cut it into wedges.

We absolutely loved the saltine cracker crust – it was easy, smelled heavenly, and very yummy!

Broccoli, Baby Potato and Comte (Gruyere) Cheese Tarts in Saltine Cracker Crust: Recipe

makes 6 mini tarts

4oz or 5 small baby potatoes (or use a medium baking potato instead)
1/2 cup low fat milk
1 teaspoon flour
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
3/4 cup comte or gruyere cheese, cut into tiny cubes
1 cup broccoli florets, chopped
2 tablespoons parsley
salt and pepper (keep in mind the cheese, mustard, saltines are all already salty!)

for saltine cracker crust

4oz or 1 sleeve of saltine crackers
4 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2-3/4 cup hot water

Pre-heat oven to 375f.

Wrap the potatoes in a paper towel and micrrowave for 2 minutes or till half cooked. Set aside.

In a bowl, whisk together the milk, flour, and dijon mustard. Then add the cheese, broccoli florets, potatoes, parsley, salt and freshly cracked black pepper and mix well.

To make the saltine cracker crust, place the saltine crackers in a food processor and crush them to a powder. You should get about 1 1/2 cups of crushed saltines. Place this in a bowl, add melted butter and hot water and stir till it comes together like a dough. Now press the saltine cracker crust dough into a non-stick pie or tart pan. Press down on the crust to compact it and also push it up the edges of the pan.

Pour the cheese, broccoli and potato mixture into the tart/pie pan with the saltine crust. Place the pan on a foil lined baking sheet and bake on 375 degrees for about 20 minutes or just till the top of the tart starts to turn golden. Cool tarts a little, then gently lift them off the mould using a knife. Serve tart warm with a salad of your choice.

Asparagus and Lemon Risotto with Arugula

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I wanted to make a comforting, hot dish for those chilly, rainy evenings we’ve had recently. I used a beautiful bundle of asparagus (which is is season now) to make some risotto. Fresh peas would also be great in this dish. You can pretty much use any vegetable you like in this risotto, but my favorites are asparagus, peas or wild mushrooms. I also like to stir in some arugula to my risottos. The fresh, peppery arugula is a nice contrast to the creamy arborio rice.

I used a crisp, dry, Gavi white wine in the risotto. I then served the same wine with the risotto.

Below: check out the cute dishes I picked up at the local thrift store! They were perfect for serving risotto. I’m not sure what the spout is meant for, but it works well as a spoon rest. Next time, I think I’ll use these dishes for baked eggs.

Perfect Risotto Tips

- use a short grain risotto rice like arborio, carnaroli or violone
- take care not to brown the rice while cooking it in butter
- always use simmering hot stock, not cold stock
- make sure you only add one ladle full (about 1/2 cup) of stock at a time
- use a good quality dry white wine. I used a Gavi; a crisp, dry white wine from Italy.
- the wine must be at room temperature. Don’t add cold wine to risotto!
- don’t stir the risotto too much while its cooking (but do stir occasionaly!)
- risotto is done when it looks creamy, but the rice is still slightly al-dente
- for a creamier risotto stir in a little butter or cream at the end

Note: I dont like soupy risotto, so I cooked mine very aldente as you can see in the photo above. But the recipe below will give you a creamier, more moist risotto, which is how traditional risotto should be.

Asparagus and Lemon Risotto with Arugula Recipe
serves about 4

10 cups vegetable stock
1 1/2 cups chopped asparagus
4 tablespoons butter
2 cups arborio or carnaroli or vialone rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup arugula leaves, shredded
1/4 cup or more grated Parmesan
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest
salt

Place vegetable stock on a large pot and bring to a gentle boil. Place the chopped asparagus in the stock and blanch for about a minute. Asparagus should be bright green and still crisp. Using a slotted spoon, remove the asparagus from the stock and keep aside. Reduce heat and keep the stock on simmer.

In a skillet, heat the butter and add arborio rice. Stir the rice on medium heat for about 2 minutes, or till it is fragrant (but don’t let the rice brown). Add wine to the rice and let is bubble away. When most the wine has evaporated, add one ladle of the simmering stock to the rice. Cook on medium-high heat. When the rice has absorbed most the stock, add another ladle full of stock. Repeat this process till the rice has cooked through (you may not use up all the stock).  Check the rice for doneness as you go. When the rice is done, stir in arugula, parmesan, lemon juice, zest and salt.

Easy 5-Minute Mozzarella Fondue

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 easy-fondue1

There is a proper way to eat fondue – dont double dip, the fondue fork shouldnt touch your mouth, transfer dipped food from the fondue fork to a plate and eat it with another fork, dont drop stuff into the fondue pot…

Then there is our ‘throw-all-the-rules-out’ method of eating fondue. We dont have a fondue set, so we put the fondue in a soup bowl and used bamboo skewers. We double dipped like crazy. Several apple cubes were lost in the fondue pot/soup bowl. At the end we wiped the bowl clean with our fingers. So much fun! 

The best part – 5 minutes is all it takes to make this fondue – easy and fuss free.

easy mozzarella and alouette cheese fondue

 Here are some fondue dipper/dunker ideas for you..

What to dip in fondue

  • lightly steamed broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus (pat them try before serving, if the veggies are wet, fondue wont stick to them)
  • lightly grilled eggplant or zucchini (my favorite)
  • roasted fingerling potatoes
  • button mushrooms
  • crusty bread
  • cubed apple, tossed in a little lemon juice to prevent browning
  • sliced fresh figs
  • pretzel sticks, tortilla chips, pita chips
  • cooked (al dente) tortellini, patted dry

easy-fondue2

Easy 5-Minute Mozzarella Fondue Recipe
serves 1-2

1 garlic pod minced
1/4 cup white wine 
a pinch nutmeg
1/2 cup Alouette cheese spread (recommended: garlic and herb or savory vegetable). Scroll down to see how you can win Alouette cheese
1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese
anything from the “what to dip” list above to serve with fondue

Heat a small, deep non-stick pot. Add garlic and wine and bring wine to a simmer on medium heat. Once the wine begins to bubble, whisk in nutmeg and Alouette cheese spread and let it melt. Then add mozzarella cheese. Keep stirring with a whisk till the mozzarella melts, about 1 minute. If the fondue is too thick, add milk (one tablespoon at a time) while whisking on medium heat till desired consistency is reached. 

Serve fondue with cubes of crusty bread, apples, steamed vegetables or anything from the “what to dip” list above. To reheat fondue, return it to a non stick pot on medium heat, whisk in a little milk if needed.

Like this recipe? Want to win the Alouette cheese I used in this fondue or two other cheese?

A cheesy giveaway! Win a free coupon for one of these cheeses!

1.Soft spreadable cheese (used in the fondue recipe above)product_lineup_Soft-Spreadable2.Baby BrieDouble-Creme-Baby-Brie3.Crumblesproduct_lineup_Crumbles

How to enter

You can do one of three things to enter this giveaway:

-Leave a comment. Tell me what is your favorite cheese and how you like to eat it
-Mention this giveaway on your blog and link to this post
-Tweet about this giveaway

Do all 3 of the above and you will be counted 3 times!

Contest will close at 11.30pm EST on Friday, Oct 2nd ’09. Three winners will be announced on Saturday, Oct 3rd ’09.

THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED. WINNERS ANNOUNCED HERE.

A Cheesy Giveaway – Part 1. Win Brie, Crumbled or Spreadable Cheese from Alouette!

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win-free-alouette-cheese

Alouette savory vegetable spread, with whole grain baguette and olive medley.

The wonderful people at Alouette cheese are giving three lucky readers of this blog a free coupon to try one of their amazing cheeses!

If you haven’t had alouette cheese, you truly dont know what you are missing! My favorite is their garlic cheese spread (which I used in this polenta recipe).

You can win a free coupon for one of these cheeses! 3 random winners will be picked!

1.Soft spreadable cheese

product_lineup_Soft-Spreadable

2.Baby Brie

Double-Creme-Baby-Brie

3.Crumbles

product_lineup_Crumbles

How to enter


You can do one of three things to enter this giveaway:

  • Leave a comment. Tell me what is your favorite cheese and how you like to eat it

  • Mention this giveaway on your blog and link to this post

  • Tweet about this giveaway

Do all 3 of the above and you will be counted 3 times!

Contest will close at 11.30pm EST on Friday, Oct 2nd ’09.

Three winners will be announced on Saturday, Oct 3rd ’09.

THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED. WINNERS ANNOUNCED HERE.

Homemade White Pizza

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White Pizza

There is a little Italian restaurant near my house. Its owned by a Pakistani, so we call it Pakistani Italian. The food is homely and wonderful. We particularly like their white pizza. Their white pizza appeals to me because its garlicky, thin crust and has no tomato sauce.

My husband came back from a trip to Ohio and I wanted to order the white pizza, but it was too late and the restaurant had closed. So I decided to make the pizza myself. It was quick, easy, and I don’t think we’ll eat pizza out anymore! Besides, you could have so much fun with the toppings!

Pillsbury Pizza dough – 1 can
Alfredo Sauce – 3/4 cup
For toppings:
Mushrooms – 1 box, green pepper – 1 and thyme
or
Broccoli – 1 cup , frozen spinach – 1/2 cup, nutmeg – pinch and Italian seasoning
or
black olives, basil and pine nuts
Garlic – 1 tsp minced
Mozzarella cheese – 2 cups

Pre heat oven to 400 degrees. Lay out the pizza dough on a non stick cookie sheet or baking pan. Press and stretch the dough to fit the pan. Pour the Alfredo sauce over the dough and spread evenly. Then sprinkle the garlic and cheese on top. Then add the toppings over the cheese. Bake for about 17 minutes.

To prepare toppings

For mushroom green pepper pizza – slice the mushrooms and peppers. Saute mushrooms on high for 2-3 minutes. Add the thyme and green peppers.

For broccoli spinach pizza – cut the broccoli into small florets, blanch in salted boiling water. Drain and sprinkle Italian seasoning. Saute the spinach and squeeze out any water. Sprinkle some nutmeg over the spinach.

For black olive basil pine nut pizza – bake the pizza with only the black olives. While pizza is cooking, toast the pine nuts in a non stick pan. Chop the basil. In the last 1 minute of baking, add the pine nuts and basil to the pizza and return to oven.

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