HUMMUS DIP WITH SPINACH AND ARTICHOKES

My imaginary friend came over the other day.  She hadn't visited in a while, but something was bothering her so she put in an appearance. The conversation went something like this: 

"What's that you said?" I asked her. "You love spinach dip?"
"Yes, I love it!" she replied.
"And you also love spinach-artichoke dip?" 
"Indeed I do!"
"And you're crazy about hummus?"
"Crazy as a loon!"
"And what else did you say?  A little louder please, I can't hear you too well. Really? You can't decide which to eat? Poor you! Quelle dommage! How about if you make all three?" 
"Forget the notion."
"Relax, relax! I don't mean three different dips; make one dip that is a combination of hummus, spinach and spinach-artichoke dip. Trust me, dear, it's delicious! I bought some from that market I go to, and I loved it. It has a hummus base. I need not tell you how healthy hummus is. Then there is spinach added, and carrots, and water chestnuts. Then there are chopped up artichokes incorporated into the mix."
"Did you get the recipe?"
"No ... the staff wouldn't give it to me but how hard is it going to be to make something similar? Come into the kitchen with me dear, and you'll be eating dip in no time." She followed me into the kitchen.

WARNING:  THIS RECIPE IS NOT INTENDED FOR CONSUMPTION BY "PURIST" HUMMUS EATERS, AS IT CONTAINS INGREDIENTS NOT ORDINARILY FOUND IN TRADITIONAL HUMMUS RECIPES.  WILL THE "PURIST" HUMMUS EATING FOLK PLEASE CHECK MY POST ENTITLED: 
HUMMUS, HUMMUS, HUMMUS!

This recipe does away with the fat and calories of spinach/artichoke dips. Out goes the mayonnaise. Out goes the sour cream. Out go the high-fat cheeses. Instead, there is protein from the chickpeas, there is iron-rich spinach, there's delicious feta cheese and there's the goodness of yoghurt.  

Make the hummus base:

Take a 15 ounce can of chickpeas, 1 garlic clove, 4 level tablespoons tahini, 4 tablespoons lemon juice (or a little more, if needed), and a pinch each of salt, cumin and black pepper. Whip them up in a food processor until you get a smooth consistency. To that mixture add 3 tablespoons Greek yoghurt and 2 tablespoons olive oil. Whip the mixture up some more and that should do it for the base of the dip.

Now let's add some vegetables:

Chop up 4 artichoke hearts (the canned ones, but not the marinated ones), chop up some spinach, chop some water chestnuts, chop a little parsley, and grate a carrot.  How much of each?  
Oh, details, details. We can measure or we can wing it.  I'm all for winging it. 
Let's just fold the vegetables into the hummus.  Stir in a tablespoon two tablespoons of feta cheese.  

Place the dip in the refrigerator for a few hours or preferably overnight so that the  Resting time is important so that the flavours can blend together. Once the dip is ready, place it on a serving platter and decorate the top with pine nuts. Serve with carrots, celery and pita chips. 

"Taste it.  Come on, taste it..." whoops... where did my imaginary friend go?  Oh well, she's gone, but no worries, she pops up often. This was fun to make and I like that it's a delicious and healthy dip. 

GREEK STYLE ROASTED POTATOES

 

Oregano, garlic, olive oil and lemon juice. Four ingredients that make a spud taste awesome! Peel, mix and roast. Simple and yet so flavourful. This way of cooking potatoes is very popular in Greek homes. Yes, this is the ubiquitous Greek roasted potato! Every Greek or friend of a Greek has either eaten them, or cooked them, or both. A good accompaniment to Greek roasted potatoes is feta cheese. That, some olives and a salad are an excellent and inexpensive meal. 

For this recipe, I always use Yukon Gold potatoes, a variety that's grown here in North America and is very similar to varieties available in Europe. The Yukon Gold potato entered the market in 1980, and it's a cultivar developed in Canada. It's distinguished by its thin, smooth, yellowish skin. Its flesh is golden yellow in colour and high in moisture content, and its flavour is extraordinary: sweet and buttery. These types of potatoes can be baked, boiled, or grilled, and will always yield the best results! 

 Ingredients:

3 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into wedges

1/4 cup olive oil
4 garlic cloves

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons dried oregano 
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup vegetable broth
juice squeezed from one large juicy lemon

Some thyme leaves for garnish

Pecorino Romano cheese, grated, and maybe a little feta cheese, too, if you're feeling up to it

Directions:

Pack the potatoes tightly in the pan but make sure they are still arranged in one layer.

Take them out of the oven and add the Pecorino Romano, mix, then raise the heat and cook uncovered.

Looking almost ready!

• Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C.
• Smash the garlic cloves and peel them. Remove the green sprout from the middle of each garlic clove. Do this because the sprout can turn a funny grey colour when it's roasted (as I have learned from experience), and I don't think you're going to like grey stuff mixed in with your potatoes, even if you know it used to be some harmless little garlic sprout. Once the sprouts are discarded go ahead and mince the garlic.   
• In a large bowl toss the potatoes with olive oil, oregano, minced garlic, mustard, and salt and pepper. Come on, get your hands in that bowl and get the tossing action going! 
• Now, spread out the potatoes onto a baking pan. They have to be closely packed in but in one layer, so choose a pan that can accommodate them that way.
• Bake for 25 minutes, then take the pan out of the oven.
• Add the broth and the lemon juice.  Grab yourself a spoon and toss those potatoes once again. 
• Raise the oven temperature to 400°F/200°C.
• Place the pan back in the oven and finish cooking the potatoes. This should take an additional half-hour to forty minutes. They'll be done when tender in the middle and a little browned around the edges.  
• Take the potatoes out of the oven, place them on a serving dish and for garnish sprinkle them with some thyme leaves and a handful of Pecorino Romano cheese.   
• Feta cheese? Crumble a little feta cheese into tiny pieces and sprinkle it on top of the potatoes, or, you can serve some feta on the side, which is my personal preference. 
• Serve while they are still warm, and enjoy, enjoy, enjoy! 

Serve plain

Or add some feta cheese on top.

 

CORN, HERB AND VEGETABLE SOUP, SMOOTH AND CREAMY

Hurry up and get yourself some fresh corn. Make soup with it, grill it, freeze it to have some for fall. Before long, fresh corn will be gone from the market. I've bought lots of it, and one of my favourite ways to cook with it is to make soup. I make this corn soup at the end of every summer, and I love it. You could say it's my farewell to summer dish.  

The soup features sweetcorn in a creamy broth with lots and lots of vegetables. Fresh herbs take it over the top, making it extra delicious. The bay leaves, rosemary, thyme, and parsley came from my herb garden. It's giving us a prodigious crop this year. We have more than enough for ourselves, for a neighbour and for co-workers. A great little garden, proving that even small growing spaces can give big results. 

Fresh corn is high in vitamin C, very high in potassium, and it's responsible for significant antioxidant activity. So hurry up and enjoy some sweetcorn and some corn soup: it's one of the summer's fleeting pleasures.  

This year I bought extra corn and froze the kernels to have for cooking during autumn.

Ingredients:

5 ears of corn

3  cups 2% milk

5 cups low sodium vegetable broth

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 large red onion, chopped

2 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped

3 cloves garlic chopped

3 celery stalks, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

1 medium red bell pepper, chopped

1 large zucchini, chopped (don't peel)

3 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves

the leaves from 1(or even 2 if you like the stuff) nice size stick of rosemary

2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons parsley, chopped

salt and pepper

3 scallions, chopped, use white and light green parts only

Directions:

Prepare the corn:  Ready, set, go!

• Remove the husks and the silk strings from the corn.  Break the cobs in half. Stand the flat end of each half on a cutting board. Grab your knife in one hand and with the other hand hold the top of the corn cob firmly in order to steady it. Use the knife to scrape off the kernels, and keep rotating the cob until all the kernels are scraped off.  With the flat end of the knife scrape off any bits of corn remaining on the cob. Alternately, you can use a vegetable peeler to scrape off the bits. Reserve the kernels and do not discards the corn cobs because they'll be put to use!
• Place the milk in a saucepan. Add the corn cobs. Bring the milk to a boil, lower the heat and cook for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat,  set the saucepan aside, but let the corn cobs steep in the milk.
• In a large Dutch oven heat the olive oil.  Add the chopped onion, the red peppers, celery and garlic. Cook, stirring for about 5 minutes.
• Add the potatoes, zucchini, carrot, and corn kernels. Cook, stirring for 10 minutes. 
• Add the broth, the milk, the corn cobs and all the herbs. 
• Cook for about 30 to 40 minutes, until all the vegetables are soft.  
• Season with salt and pepper. 
• Turn off the heat, remove the bay leaves and corn cobs and discard them.  
• Using an immersion blender puree the soup. 
• Ladle into soup bowls, garnish with scallions if desired, and serve. 

BEEF AND BARLEY SOUP WITH BEANS

It's been close to 2 months since my last post.  I hadn't given up on this little blog of mine, that wasn't the reason for not posting. It's just that here at home we were in the middle of a renovation project. One that took way too long to complete - actually, there are still some odds and ends that need finishing. Consequently, there has been very little cooking going on in our kitchen. Along the way, we made do with lots of canned soup, sandwiches, salads, some takeout (Chinese, of course), lots of eating standing up, and lots of paper plates. Yes, I'll admit it: a few times I ate soup straight out of a can. At other times I poured my soup into a paper bowl. Then I'd remember that the microwave was packed away in the garage and I would have to eat my soup cold. Appetizing? You bet! I sampled a few cans of beef and barley. I asked myself: can I create a beef and barley version that's better than what I am eating out of this can? The answer was quick to come: You bet! So I waited. For the new floor. For the new counter. For the dust to go away. For the spackling paste to dry. Then I went shopping:  brisket, barley, vegetables. And then, I COOKED! For the first time in two months. Yes, I still remembered how to slice onions. I even remembered which box my chopping knife was packed in. I took it out and got started. I made a huge pot of beef and barley soup. Never mind that it was 85 degrees outside. There never was a more satisfying and enjoyable soup. Savoury, steamy broth, beef so perfectly cooked it melted in one's mouth, and beans and barley, warm and filling.  This is the kind of soup you ladle into your best china if you can remember which box it's packed in. 

Ingredients:
Use these first 10 ingredients to make a nice broth:

3 pounds beef chuck or brisket, fat removed, the beef cut into 1-inch cubes
about 3 tablespoons olive oil
beef bones for soup
1 onion cut into large pieces
3 bay leaves
3 celery stalks, coarsely chopped
2 carrots, coarsely chopped
3 cloves of garlic cut in half
salt and pepper
10-12 cups of liquid

 Now use the following ingredients to finish the soup:

1 (8-ounce) can of tomato sauce

2 tablespoons tomato paste
3 celery stalks, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 small onion chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1¼ cups pearl barley, rinsed
2 cups soaked cranberry beans
4 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves

one sprig of rosemary
salt and pepper

Directions:

Making this beef and barley soup is a little time-consuming, but the end result is truly worth it! Unless you are feeding a large crowd, there will be leftovers- but don't worry. The soup will taste just as good if not better the next day. I made a large batch on purpose so we could have leftovers.

• Rinse the cranberry beans and soak them overnight.  About  1¼ cups should yield 2 cups of soaked beans.
• In a large heavy Dutch oven heat the olive oil and sauté the beef in two or three batches, removing each batch to a plate as it finishes sautéing.  
• When all the beef is done, place it back into the Dutch oven and add the liquid, the bones, the onion, celery, carrots, bay leaves, garlic and salt and pepper.
• Bring to a boil and then lower the heat. Cover and cook on low for about 1½ hours. Let cool and carefully remove the meat from the broth. Strain the broth and discard the cooked vegetables and bones.
• Pour the strained broth back into the Dutch oven and add the tomato sauce and tomato paste; if you'd like, sauté the tomato paste before adding the broth and tomato sauce to the pot.  
• Add the meat, the barley, the beans, the fresh onion, celery, carrot and garlic. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer on low for an hour, stirring occasionally.
• Add the thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper to taste and then simmer for about another half hour. Add the parsley.

That should do it.  Ladle the soup into bowls and serve.  The long cooking time will have made the meat very soft. Enjoy your beef and barley soup!!! 

SUMMER FRESH TOMATO and KALAMATA OLIVE BRUSCHETTA

This is a lovely bruschetta recipe packed with flavour.  Fresh tomatoes, a dash of garlic to keep away the vampires, and a mixture of fresh herbs that give a je ne sais quoi character to the appetizer, something that all good appetizers should have just to add a zany quality to your party! 

There is lots of fresh basil and parsley here. I decided to give it a Greek twist by adding some Kalamata olives, and then, at the last minute, I decided to throw in some capers. To top, I used one of my favourite cheeses, Pecorino Romano, freshly grated. I had some anchovies in the cupboard and I thought why not? For a few of the appetizers, I omitted the cheese and used an anchovy as a topping. Why? Because my guests deserve it, that's why! 

This recipe makes lots of appetizers, however, go ahead and adjust quantities as you need to. Here's my recipe:

Ingredients:

• 5 ripened plum tomatoes 
• 1 shallot, finely minced
• just a few Kalamata olives, pitted and finely chopped
• some capers, finely chopped

• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

• fresh basil sliced chiffonade style
• freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese  
• anchovies

Ingredients for the bread:

• Bread, cut into slices for serving. You could save your stale bread, cut it into slices and store it in a plastic bag until ready to use, and at that time you can lightly toast it.
• some olive oil 
• about one or two cloves of garlic 

Directions:

• Cut the tomatoes in half and remove the seeds. Rinse the tomatoes under cold running water to make sure all the seeds are gone, and then dry with paper towels. Once the tomatoes are dry, dice them up.    
• Make a dressing by mixing the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, and salt and pepper. 
• In a medium-sized bowl mix the shallots, tomatoes, capers and olives. 
• Pour the dressing over the tomato mixture and mix. 
• Set aside for about 3-4 hours. Do not refrigerate.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Right before the bruschetta is to be served, top each bread slice with a little olive oil and place them in the oven. Toast lightly. 
• Once the bread is out of the oven rub some garlic on each slice. 
• Top with the bruschetta.
• Top with the basil chiffonade 
• Top some slices with freshly grated Pecorino Romano 
• Top a few slices with anchovies. 
• Arrange on a platter and serve.

It's a promise: you'll enjoy biting into the crunchy slices of bread, and you'll savour the medley of fresh herbs and vegetables that make up the delicious je ne sais quoi character of this treat! 

CHARLOTTE BRONTË'S JANE EYRE AND MY GIFT OF A DELICIOUS BOWL OF PORRIDGE FOR LITTLE JANE!

Charlotte Brontë, (Born 21 April 1816 - Died 31 March 1855)

Portrait by George Richmond, 1850, chalk

National Portrait Gallery, London

Brontë's publisher, George Smith, commissioned this portrait of the novelist as a gift for the author's father. 

What am I reading?  For this edition of Novel Food, the internet book club hosted by Simona from Briciole, I am rereading "Jane Eyre." Then, I am cooking porridge, a nice version of porridge, and nothing resembling the stuff poor Jane had to eat during the Brocklehurst regime at Lowood. Consider this porridge as my present to little Jane, who suffered much but never gave up her quest to find independence and love. 

A plainer version of porridge and another version with more bells and whistles. Recipes can be found here:

Charlotte Brontë’s "Jane Eyre" is just about my favourite novel. I first read it when I was a child living in Greece, and, of course, it was the Greek translation I read. Reading the beautiful Brontë Victorian English came later, after I had become fluent in English. I've picked up and read the novel many times since, most recently just a few weeks ago when a friend mentioned to me that she was rereading it.  

"There was no possibility of taking a walk that day. We had been wandering, indeed, in the leafless shrubbery an hour in the morning; but since dinner (Mrs Reed, when there was no company, dined early) the cold winter wind had brought with it clouds so sombre, and a rain so penetrating, that further out-door exercise was now out of the question. I was glad of it: I never liked long walks, especially on chilly afternoons: dreadful to me was the coming home in the raw twilight, with nipped fingers and toes, and a heart saddened by the chidings of Bessie, the nurse, humbled by the consciousness of my physical inferiority to Eliza, John, and Georgiana Reed."

This is the opening paragraph of the novel, which right away describes the melancholy mood of Jane Eyre, the novel's main character.  We understand the loneliness and unhappiness she feels while living with the Reed family. They neglect her and torment her. Eventually, her Aunt Reed ships Jane off to Lowood, a school run by the cruel Mr Brocklehurst. He is so stingy that he nearly starves his students. During Jane's first day at the school, breakfast is a ration of badly cooked porridge that's burned and inedible. Brocklehurst is eventually removed from his position, and Jane grows up to become a teacher at the school. She then finds employment as a governess at Thornfield, where she falls in love with her employer, Mr Rochester. He loves Jane as well and proposes marriage to her. The problem is that Mr Rochester already has a wife, albeit one who is quite insane and violent. Unbeknownst to nearly everyone, the mentally disturbed wife is locked up in the attic at Thornfield. Jane discovers this while she is standing next to Edward Rochester, at the altar, ready to marry him. He suggests that they run away together, but Jane is able to reign in her passion and resist the temptation of becoming his mistress. She leaves Thornfield in secret and begins a long voyage that eventually leads her to happiness. Bertha Rochester, the nutty wife, sets fire to Thornfield. Mr Rochester is injured in the fire and becomes blind (temporarily). He also becomes a bachelor, free to marry. Jane still loves him desperately, and her passion is rewarded because destiny brings them back together. Jane and Edward Rochester marry. At the end of the novel, we find her enjoying the love that he is offering her. She has children, and she is enveloped in the warm family atmosphere that she had sought since childhood. 

A rare first edition copy of Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre sold as part of Bonhams' Books, Maps, Manuscripts and Historical Photographs auction, held on June 19, 2013 in London. The book sold for £39,650 ($61,949).

I'm sure that Jane and family had porridge for breakfast often, just as I am sure that it was a well-cooked offering and nothing like what Jane had to eat when she was a child!  

Brontë Parsonage Museum, the former Brontë family home, the parsonage in Haworth, West Yorkshire, England, where the Brontë family lived and where the Brontë sisters, Charlotte, Emily, and Anne, wrote their famous novels.

You can find my recipe for porridge here.