An interesting meat sauce

The past few weekends, we've had friends over for a simple barbecue. Just burgers and dogs on the grill. Fast easy, lends itself to the host actually enjoying the company. But, we found ourselves building up the supply of uneaten smoky-flavored burgers. I put them in the freezer and finally decided to use them.

Although I'm in the school of cooking meat raw in tomato sauce (rather than sauteeing it first), I had to make use of the cooked meat. Unfortunately, cooked burgers can be kind of tough after sitting around. I sauteed a few slivers of garlic (we go easy on the garlic in my home), some chopped onion, my new favorite canned tomatoes, 6 in 1 and tossed in those burgers just cut in half and let it barely simmer for a few hours. I then mashed up the burgers with a potato masher and voila, meat sauce with a subtle smoky hint to it.

We ate it with whole wheat pasta for a robust and flavorful meal. This is what remained of Frankie's portion (we helped a bit).

Kid Friendly Restaurants in Columbus?

Kevin Joy from the Dispatch emailed me today asking about kid-friendly restaurants. Here's an excerpt:

Basically, I'm trying to find restaurants around town that either have:

a) more upscale children's menus
b) healthier children's menus
c) no kids meals at all, but do have, at times, a family clientele...such as the time I saw kids eating sushi at Haiku.

I'd be interested to hear any suggestions, if you've heard stories or had experiences with any of the above. Feel free to forward to anyone that might want to share their two cents.

[upscale children's menu? Hmmm, I'm thinking Kevin doesn't have children]

My general guidelines on dining with a wildly energetic kid are the following:

-Any restaurant that has crayons immediately available is good.
-We try desperately not to go to fast food because there's good stuff out there for just as cheap (still happens on occasion).
-I'm afraid we're destined for noisy places with the kids, because they just can't sit still longer than the time it takes to eat (about 15 minutes if you're lucky, my daughter's now 4).

Our family's picks so far:

1. Believe it or not, Hometown Buffet, is pretty good. It's a chain but their veggies are cooked well, they have an amazing variety of foods, our friends are vegetarians and love it there too, it's rowdy as hell so no one cares if the kid jumps up and runs around. Food is lightly flavored with just s&p (probably) and the kid only costs a dollar per year of age. Good food, cheap, loud, tolerant. Sorry it's not sexier.

2. Maybe not the healthiest fare, but kid-friendly is Pig Iron BBQ (N. High). Crayons at the ready, a nice selection on the kids menu (not just mac 'n cheese, etc.). Good for the adults too! And, they're very nice to kids.

3. Healthier. Whole World Bakery. It's a vegetarian/vegan place on N. High. My daughter loves the hummous platter (hummous and fresh veggies). And we like vegetarian fare too. Pretty cheap, very kid friendly, about $20 for all 3 of us.

4. Haiku (NOT kid-friendly). We ate at Haiku when my girl was about 18 months. We went early so it was ok. But all the hipsters who came in the door avoided our table like E. Coli. It's funny, young people are the least tolerant of children in a restaurant, whereas the older set often look at a screaming child and smirk (I suspect they're relfecting on their past).

5. Sher-E-Punjab we hear is excellent. Vegetarian buffet on Tuesday nights and our friends tell us it's kid-friendly. Haven't tried it yet. Definitely will soon!

6. Cafe Shish Kebab. We went there with another couple and their 4-year old. I hate to stereotype middle eastern-run restaurants, but I'll make an exception here. The waitstaff are always wonderful with children. I don't know why, but every restaurant we've tried is great, the former Turkish Cuisine when it was on High was great, Cafe Istanbul in Easton was kid-friendly (but food was mediocre at times). The cuisine in general is flavorful and beautifully spiced without being to much for the little guys and Frankie's a big meat eater (she eats lots of good food). At Cafe Shish Kebab she loved the donner kebab. Not bad price either.

Add your favorites in the comments or send them to Kevin Joy of the Dispatch (kjoy@dispatch.com).

Cornbread with Flaxseed

(click on the image for a better view)

I must confess, my favorite cornbread, until now, has been Jiffy. But, recently, I bought some corn tortilla chips with flaxseed embedded in them and just couldn't forget them. Grainy, corny and I absolutely love flaxseed. Like flavorful, nutty sesame seeds. So the other night, I began to formulate a cornbread recipe that would be, hopefully, as tasty as Jiffy with a bit more grain to it.

The cooking method is pretty critical, even with the Jiffy mix. The cornbread mixture is cooked in a 9" cast iron pan that's been preheated in a 450-deg-F oven and in the last few minutes of that preheating time, I add some reserved pork fat (ca. 1T). The hot pan guarantees a good oven spring and a killer crisp crusty cornbread.

So here's the basic recipe. I look forward to having fun with this basic recipe like adding corn or cheddar, etc. Enjoy.

Dave's Killer Cornbread with Flaxseed
1. Preheat oven to 450-deg-F and place a 9" cast iron pan in there during the preheating.

2. Ingedients:
Dry
coarse cornmeal, 1 C
unbleached white flour, 1 C
flaxseed, 1/4 C
sugar, 2 T
baking soda, 1/2 t
baking powder, 2 t
salt, 1 t (5 grams)

Liquid
milk, 2/3 C
vegetable oil, 1/4 C
egg, 1

3. Prep
Mix dry ingredients, mix liquid ingredients, dump wet into dry and blend until just mixed and let rest about 10 full minutes. Add some fat to your preheating pan. Remove hot pan from oven (place on potholder, it's wicked hot) and dump in rested batter. Don't worry about leveling it out. Place in oven and bake about 15 (until golden on top) minutes. Remove from oven and invert pan to place the hot cornbread on cooling rack. Allow a good 15 minutes to cool and dig in. Yum.

House of Fiber or an Alternative Style Chili

If you want to be a chili purist, go dice your sirloin in perfect 1/4" cubes and find out the rest of the specifications of "real chili", but, like anything, even perfect purists' chili, can get boring.

For some time, we've been having pearled barley simmered in stock and lightly seasoned as an alternative to rice on the side. The other day, while buying some pearled barley, I accidentally bought fast cooking pearled barley (Quaker brand). Not quite the same but it had a neat sounding recipe for a chicken chili on the back. I modified it a bit, spicewise, and it was pretty darn good. I just can't resist corn and black beans together.

Chicken, black bean, corn and barley chili
Onion (1 med. chopped) and garlic (1 clove slivered), sauteed in olive oil, 2T
Add:
Ancho chili powder, 2t
chicken (about 2 C chopped, leftovers, cooked)
cumin (fresh ground), salt, pepper to taste
black beans (14 oz. can not drained)
corn (15 oz. can not drained)
tomatoes, ca. 15 oz, fresh or canned
quick cook pearled barley
water to desired thickness

I put in everything except the barley and let gently simmer for 2 hours. During the last half hour, I added the barley. Then served topped with tortilla chips and cheddar (ran out of sour cream, would've been a nice topping).

Whole wheat pasta?

Let's not go into details, but simply say the family's trying to get a bit more grainy and a bit more fiber into the diet, and hopefully without using supplements. We're eating lots of veggies with dinner, some meat's been substituted by veggies and legumes and I think we're doing well without losing much of what we genuinely like to eat.

The newest addition to our diet recently made its premiere appearance the other night. Whole wheat pasta; 5 g fiber compared to 2g fiber/serving for regular durum dry.* We served it with a tomato sauce in which had been cooked sweet italian sausages.

Results? I don't know. I think I need another taste (tonight). It was definitely noticeable and I wasn't immediately thrilled. The texture is nearly the same as regular durum pasta but the taste was definitely ... can't quite describe it but .. more. A lot like the difference between bad white and wheat bread. Not that regular durum is anything like white bread but the comparison is about the same. Anyone else have any opinions on trying this type of pasta?

I think next we'll switch back to regular pasta and bulk up the fiber using greens and beans like Lisa's Pasta Dish (scroll to bottom of post).

*This reminds me of Nancy Silverton's concern of unbleached white versus wheat flours in breadmaking when it comes to the health benefits. She says unbleached white has fewer natural components because of the processing but is enriched with vitamins, whereas whole wheat flour contains much more of the grain, but the added components (germ, husks, etc.) are not as bioavailable and pass through. So, the two may be similar healthwise and the benefits of the switch between durum and whole wheat pasta may be moot.

I think weber_cam is back online

This food blog, in its original form, is dead. I'm now continuing it with a lighter note. Any food fancy I have gets posted because food is fun. Gone are the days of the tediously-prepared fancy things. Now are the heavy parenting days where we try to convey to Frankie that food is special and how it's related to family, friends and fun and never to be taken for granted.

Last night, we had a few friends over for pizza and Mario, with my cheapo camera with its infinite shutter delay, worked with me tossing dough to catch this shot. I don't usually toss pizza dough. It's pretentious and unnecessary, but fun. The pizzas were nice. Most pizzas were minimally topped with tomatoes, basil and mozzarella but one fancy one (our personal favorite) was topped with grilled eggplant, caramelized onions, tomatoes and chevre. It proved to be a crowd pleaser.

And I got to toss dough.

So, for the future of the weber_cam, look for silly food-related items, cheapo, kid-friendly ethnic dining in Columbus (got a few nice ones in the queue) and whatever else I feel like.

Tomorrow we're serveing grilled shrooms 'n tofu, lentils & rice (seasoned with fenugreek), grilled squash and zucchini, and burgers and dogs all around (it IS Memorial Day weekend after all).

200+300+500, my new formula

The thing I'm learning about sourdough starters is how robust they are. Here's a quick tale and I'll eventually elaborate this to try to prepare it on a weeknight.

I took my starter out of the fridge yesterday morning. The dead looking thing had liquid on top and a claylike sediment. Probably weighed about 50 grams.

I poured off the liquid and added water (ca. 100 g) and swirled it until the suspension was homogenous. Then I added about 125 grams of flour and stirred it up into a thick batter. It was bubbly within hours.

That night, I took 200 grams of this starter, diluted it with 300 grams room temperature tap water (300 grams) and swirled to get a homogenous suspension, poured it into my bread machine and added 500 grams of flour. About 350 grams unbleached white and then a mixture of rolled oats, oat bran, spelt flour, rye and wheat to get up to the 500 grams. Then let it knead in my bread machine about 5 minutes and let it rest. After about 10 minutes, I added salt (10 grams) and let the mass knead in the machine an additional 15 minutes. It was a pretty stiff ball. I dumped it on the counter. Total weight, about a kilo. I put it into my rising container and let it rise overnight (about 8 hours) until it grew to about 2L in volume.

I sprinkled it with flour, punched it down, rounded it and let it rest an hour and went shopping. Then I did the same thing. Punched it down, rounded it and put it in my heavily-floured brotform proofing basket covered with a dish towel to let rise (about 2 hours). Looked almost doubled. I preheated my oven, dumped it onto a perforated baking sheet, scored it and placed it into a 425-deg-F oven to bake for 45 minutes.

Final weight, 800 g. What a crust! I think the best part of whole grains as part of the flour make-up (ca. 20-30% by weight) is how robust the fermentations can be. No sluggish rising for this yeast-free loaf (no added commercial yeast anyway). The final loaf was light, the crust crisp and near perfect. A great bread for tonight's gorgonzola and salad. Bread, cheese and salad nights are our absolute favorite meals. Simplicity.

I'll be doing the same thing over weeks to come but feeding the starter and doing the main fermentation of the dough in the fridge over a couple days and doing the final proof at night to have a steady and predictable supply of good bread during the week.

Unfortunately, a boule's so large the cool-down time is lengthy and we won't be able to eat the goodies until the next day. Maybe that's no so bad. Poilâne thought his breads were best on their fourth day! I don't remember where I read that but I'll look and get back to you.

Simplest Ribs Imaginable

The gang here at Dave's Beer is in the middle of the crazy week we call "Frankie's Birthday". Actually on Wednesday, but the partying started on Sunday. Needless to say, we're busy and getting some home-cooked food on the table is challenging.

I've had the hankering for ribs and didn't have time to fire up the grill. So, in anticipation of Tuesday's dinner, I bought some baby backs, gave them a rub down and plopped them in the oven at 10 pm at 225-deg-F and let 'em rip until 6 the next morning. Woke up, wrapped them in foil, walked the dog and let the heavenly smell guide me through the rest of the morning scramble. They looked like this when I wrapped them up.

Tuesday night, I warmed up the foil package at 300-deg-F for a half hour and chopped them apart. They were delicate, moist and nearly perfect. I cooked some greens and served them with some bread (and fresh carrots for Frankie, a staple of hers).

What an awesome midweek treat!

(Sorry Biggles, got to have meat, even if not smoked properly.)

Desperation Chicken with Cashews

Tonight's scheduled dinner was taco salad. Boring. We do it too much. Had this recipe sitting on my desk for weeks and picked it up and realized I had almost everything I needed to make it for tonight. Frankie didn't like it but it was a lightning fast prep and really good. And, it had thinly sliced cucumbers in it! Really interesting twist.

Chicken and Cashews
Quick marinade while chopping other stuff:
rice vinegar, 1/4 C
water, 1/4 C
cornstarch, 2 T
sesame oil, 2 T
soy sauce, 1 T

Mix and plop in thinly sliced boneless chicken breast (3/4 lb I think).
Let marinate about 20 minutes.

Have ready: green onions (bunch, sliced thin), red bell pepper (thin slices), ginger (finely shaved and chopped), garlic (few slivers), mini seedless cucumbers (thinly sliced), cilantro (fresh, chopped, 2 T), toasted cashews (whole, 1/2 C), water.

Ready, set, go ...
Heat pan with sesame oil (2T) and soy oil (1T) and toss in chicken (not quite a stir fry but hot and cook quick). Then add red peppers, ginger, garlic and let mixture cook until the bell pepper is softened a bit. Then toss in nuts, onions, cucumbers and cilantro some water and heat a few minutes. Serve over rice.

After the dish, I read the recipe (I usually memorize the recipe before I get home from work for speed) again and realized I was supposed to have some brown sugar in the marinade. Next time.

Braising, the lazy cook's method

pulled_chicken
Originally uploaded by Seligman's Dog.

Trish has been out of town since Wednesday and I'm starting to wither. I get Frankie in daycare by 7:30, go to work (rest 8 hours) pick her up and get in about 5, set her up with Sponge Bob (she goes into a trance), feed the cat, walk the dog, get dinner cooking and attempt to get us fed by 6, dog out to pee again, bath at 7, DVD for the kid for 30 min., read Frankie 3-6 books, put her to sleep, put her to sleep again, put her to sleep again, dog out to pee once more, she then stays asleep anywhere from 8-10 pm. Then, I crash soon after. It's grueling.

Single parents are GODS.

After Frankie went to sleep last night, woke up and went to sleep again, I dashed to the kitchen and took two of the most unappetizing looking frozen boneless breasts of farmed protein and tossed them into some onions, garlic, some chili sauce (conspicuously close to ketchup), a hefty dash of Old Bay, some ancho chili powder that I made, a T of brown sugar, a dash of worcestershire (I don't give a shit if it's misspelled), salt, pepper, a 1/2 C or so of water, covered it and set it on a low burner all night (about a full 6 hours).

The next morning, a beautiful scent filled our home and the chicken had taken on the appearance and texture of pulled pork (a food Frankie usually eats happily and chants "hot meat" when she eats it). I took it out when we got home tonight and heated it up.

Tastes wonderful, let you know if the kid likes it.

Mom, come home!!

I tried to resist ...

Every Friday night, Trish and I pick up Frankie and go out for dinner. It's a fun ritual I've come to look forward to. We dine at a variety of (kid-friendly = LOUD) restaurants; anything from the heavenly Pig Iron Grill to Whole World, a vegetarian place. Last Friday, we went to the latter. Frankie got a hummous platter (hummous and veggies), Trish got smoked beans in tomato sauce over cornbread and I got a tofu sloppy joe sammich topped with sprouts on a hamburger bun (whole wheat of course). The last three times we've been there, I've liked it more and more. I keep trying to resist so I can fulfill my meatly needs, but I just keep getting lucky with their menu.

A few weeks ago, I got their version of Gado-Gado. Gado-gado is and Indonesian dish whose preparation varies greatly depending on the source. Basically, it's steamed veggies on rice with a peanut sauce over it all. Whole World's variation made a stew of veggies in peanut sauce which was ladled over rice. Unbelievable. I still have fond memories of it. They also have a HUGE variety of veggie burgers (soy, veggie, lentil or rice-based). Every variety I've tried so far is pretty darn good.

So, if you crave meat, go to Pig Iron; if you can do without, Whole World won't disappoint.

Kale, sausage, gmelli, pine nuts, raisins & grilled cheese (and my failure to give my daughter a nutritious meal)

The other night, I had prepared a favorite of ours. Kale, braised with a touch of garlic for a couple hours, combined with toasted pine nuts, gmelli, sauteed Italian sausage and raisins with a healthy dose of olive oil. A good hearty meal for a cold night.

Instead of trying to get this meal past Frankie, I caved like a sopping-wet piece of cardboard and just made her a grilled cheese so I could enjoy my meal without a 40 minute negotiation session on eating a couple bites of the meal.

It worked, but I still feel the guilt.

Original recipe for this dish. Enjoy.

Sunday Morning Waffles

I'm one of the few who don't like Silverton's book. I think her starter preparation is tedious and unnecessary. Starters are robust and don't need to be fed and nurtured 3 times a day. You can let them turn green, shave off the mold and perk 'em up again with a few replenishments of flour and water. Catching them at their prime for optimal leavening ... now that takes a skilled baker and LOTS of practice.

The only recipe from her book I absolutely love is her sourdough waffles. It's robust and easy. A friend of mine gave me some of the starter prepared by her method and I've kept it for years (thanks Gary!). I refreshed it a bit this weekend in preparation for Sunday waffles. Kind of a regular thing in our house. I altered the recipe a tad to incorporate cornmeal to give the waffles an interesting extra flavor. They were unbelievable and we had plenty to freeze.

Silverton's Waffles - modified a bit by me.
Night Before:
white starter, ca. 1 cup
unbleached white flour, 1 C
cornmeal, 1/2 C
milk, 250 g (ambient temp)
butter, 114 g (melted and cooled a bit)
salt, 1.5 t
brown sugar, 1 T
-Mix and let sit 8-14 hours covered with a towel.

Next morning:
Add two whisked eggs and 1/4 t baking soda
Mix, will be a thick batter

Make waffles (I never lube the waffle iron)

Panini Press

Alright, this blog shits the bed in frequency of posting. And, now, in quality.

But, I couldn't resist disclosing this one. I love a hot grilled sandwich. Last night for dinner, I was pressed for time (as usual with both working, daycare, etc.) and I went for a quickie but goody. My Mom's panini press did the trick. We had cheese and mortadella on oat bran bread. Sounds weird, but kids like weird things. We had our sandwiches and a vast selection of crunchy veggies on the side and voila! Dinner.

So, toss those fancy panini irons and use a piece of foil and an iron on high. Butter the outsides of the bread, put favorite fillings in sandwich, place the sandwich in foil folded in half and grill a few minutes on each side. My favorite is thinly sliced cheddar and thinly sliced tomato on a good crusty white.

Thanks Ma.