Eats - Beets and Beet Greens (Cooking with whiskey)

Great with the sweet potato

In case it isn’t obvious by now, I like beets. A lot. They’re beautiful, delicious, healthy, and versatile. Even their greens are beautiful, delicious, healthy, and versatile. When sold alone, beet greens are known as Swiss Chard. An aside – a variety of Swiss Chard, called Rainbow Chard, is particularly lovely. As the name implies, it varies in color from yellow to green to pink, and maintains its color through cooking, adding flair to dishes.

Alright. On to the recipe at hand.

I had two beets leftover from the pickled beets and eggs (previous post), so I decided to use them with the greens of one bunch of beets (as sold). The beets were boiled and peeled already, so they just needed a bit more cooking.

I started with a couple tablespoons of olive oil in the pan, adding a quarter of an onion, cut into slivers, a third of a shallot, and a large clove of garlic. After two minutes, I added two beets cut in sixths, rosemary, black pepper, and salt. I cooked the beets an additional five minutes, then added the greens, cut into manageable pieces, a splash of tamari, and a few tablespoons of whiskey. Once the greens have wilted, it’s ready.

My brother’s review: “It’s really damn good.”

Eats - Pickled Beets and Eggs

Pickled Beets and Eggs

I started with three large Mason jars and 7 medium beets.

I boiled the beets about 30 minutes, then plunged them into ice water to remove the skin, quartered them, and divided the portions between each of the jars. I also diced 1 large shallot and sliced 1/2 red onion, dividing them between the jars and adding sprigs of rosemary to each.  For the brine:

2.5 c. Cider vinegar

.5 c red wine vinegar

black pepper

salt

1 c. water

1 c. sugar

tbsp mustard ground

2 tsp allspice

Then I added equal parts of brine to each jar, capped them, and put them in the refrigerator for two days.  On the second day, I boiled 9 eggs, peeled them, and put three in each jar, capping the jars and returning them to the fridge for four more days. 

Eats - Flourless Chocolate Cake

It didn't last long....

I was making dinner with a friend and decided to surprise him with dessert. I mostly followed this recipe, except I didn't bother with the double boiler. A very brief time in the microwave (a minute) and a lot of stirring was sufficient to melt everything smoothly.  And I used turbinado sugar instead of refined sugar. Also, it suggests some sorbet be served with it, but I just went with sliced strawberries, and I think it was a wise choice. Also, the recipe calls for an 8 inch pan, but I only had a 9 inch pan. To compensate, I baked it only 22 minutes instead of 25, and I actually really liked how thin it was.

Eats - Pittas and "Turkish" Salad

Dough for pittas rising

These recipes came from my friend, Uri, and can be found on his blog Food All Over.

Pitta dough

Peppers and garlic for "Turkish" salad

Veggies roasting

Eats - Spicy Lentils with Yogurt and Cinnamon Raisin Rice

The spicy lentils are from a recipe I've adapted from the Hot Spicy Lentils recipe in the Very Vegetarian Cookbook.

Spicy Lentils and Yogurt and Cinnamon Raisin Rice, Fresh Spinach, and Pitta with "Turkish Salad."

The recipe calls for 

3/4 cup red lentils (I did not have red lentils, I used plain ol' lentils)

4 tsp polyunsaturated oil (I used canola oil)

1 red onion (I used 3/4 of a white onion)

2 garlic cloves (I used 5)

1/4 tsp ground cumin (I used more like 1 tsp)

1/4 tsp ground coriander

(and I add a few tsp of curry powder as well)

1 red chile (I used 2 jalapeños)

3 3/4 cups vegetable broth

Juice and grated rind of 1 lime (I don't do this)

Ground black pepper

The recipe continues (and I follow most of these directions):