Jenmenke

Road Warrior

Food

Meatless Monday Twenty Something

I’m too lazy to go look what number it is.

I just replied to about a months worth of comments. I’ve been so buried here in soccer land I can’t even tell you. But here’s the great thing: it’s almost over! Yes, I do feel a little bad about saying that, but never-the-less, I am happy about it. I am also happy that my kids’ teams have each had 2 wins this year. Never-to-before in all the years of soccer have we won games. No, I’m not kidding about that. We are farm kids playing the big league, affluent suburbs. So any win is a huge win. So that part has been fun. Reffing, rain, rescheduling games, rice-paddy fields, coaching dramas… that stuff? Not so much… ENOUGH!

I think it’s Meatless Monday Twenty Four? Anyway, who cares. Just know that this one contains shrimp. Because even though there are some die-hards out there who don’t consider shrimp meatless, I, in fact, do.

Let me just ask this before going any further: Is it only me, or are enchiladas a real pain in the pooper? So many tedious little steps…

BUT FOR THE GLORY OF THE TASTE I WILL TAKE ON THE TEDIOUS!

These are fabulouso!

Shrimp & Cotija Enchiladas with Salsa Verde

(serves 5, with two enchiladas each) (why 5? Because that’s what fit in the pan) (please, please, please don’t think any of these measurements are holy. Use what you have. Substitute what you don’t.)

  • about 40 uncooked medium shrimp, peeled & deveined
  • 1 t cornstarch
  • 1 t cumin (for marinade)
  • 1 t chili powder
  • 1 pinch ground coriander
  • 1 T sesame oil (yes, this is odd for a mexican dish, but trust me on this)
  • 1 cup — more or less — of salsa verde (I had canned from garden, but also use store bought)
  • 1/2 cup plain yogurt
  • 1 cup chopped cilantro, divided
  • 1 cup chopped green onions divided
  • 1/2 red onion sliced thinly, then cut into quarter rounds
  • 1/2 cup chopped green pepper or poblano.
  • 1 small hot pepper, chopped, use amount to taste
  • 2 T chopped fresh oregano or 1 T dried
  • 1 t cumin (for cooking)
  • 10 corn tortillas (freshly bought, non refrigerated is best)
  • 6 oz crumbled Cotija cheese (about 1/2 a block of it)
  • sour cream, chopped tomatoes, lettuce & avocado for garnish

Preheat oven to 35o.

In a shallow dish combine shrimp with corn starch, cumin, chili powder, coriander & sesame oil. Set aside for 30 minutes to an hour. (mix it up. I hadn’t yet in this photo)

In a shallow dish (pie plate, which I transferred to after this photo was taken), combine the salsa verde with the yogurt, most of the green onions and 1/2 cup of the cilantro.

In a large saute pan, heat about 2 T of oil. When hot, add the onions and saute for about 2 minutes until softened. Then add the peppers (both hot and mild), oregano and cumin. Cook over medium heat until fragrant and softened, about 4 minutes. Add the shrimp and any accumulated juices to pan and cook, stirring constantly, until shrimp just turn pink. Don’t cook any further than that.

*optional: I hate to leave any flavors lying around, only to be washed down the sink. If you are using a cast iron pan like I did, you might have some crusted on deliciousness after cooking the shrimp. Add about 1/4 c water to pan and scrape up browned bits until pan is clean. Add this to the salsa verde.

For the tortillas: this is a constant torment for me. Enchilada recipes ask you to do various things with corn tortillas as a first step to assembling enchiladas. Some say to fry briefly in oil, then to coat with your sauce. Some say to heat briefly in a damp towel in either the microwave or the oven. I don’t know if it is the tortillas we have around here or what, but those processes are both a pain in the butt, and disastrous for me. The tortillas get too soft and fall apart. I have found that if I use the corn tortillas available in on the shelf and not the refrigerator section of the grocery store, and I haven’t refrigerated them for weeks, I don’t have to do anything to them. If, however, I only have refrigerated tortillas in the house, I will grudgingly perform the fry-in-oil step first because otherwise they are too hard and will crack as you roll them.

With that said, do what you need to do in order to be able to roll your tortillas without them cracking.

In a 9×13 pan, spread a thin layer of your salsa verde sauce over the bottom. Take a tortilla and dip both sides into the salsa verde mixture. Then, place 4 shrimp and some of the onion/pepper mix onto the center of a tortilla, top with about 1T of cotija and roll up. Place in pan seam side down. Repeat with the rest of the tortillas.

Top with remaining sauce and any extra shrimp, onions and cheese you have. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes.

Remove from oven and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup of cilantro and green onions, then serve with bowls of sour cream, chopped lettuce, chopped tomatoes, avocados and any other delicious condiment you can think of.

Swoon over your own brilliance.

Check off one more Meatless Monday.

Will the Real Jennie Menke Please Stand Up

Now GET TO WORK!

This is an entry to myself. It is born of unmotivated, sloth-like behavior.

It is raining.

It has been raining for — I haven’t kept track — nine days? It certainly has not been sunny in at least seven days, that I am certain of. We have received over 6 inches of rain. My garden is growing mushrooms instead of vegetables and fruit. I am growing mushrooms.

It is dank.

I should be working. Because I am broke. (Thanks all you bright-eyed graduates.) That’s quite a gig you got going: your parents pay for school, then all your parents friends pay for your social life.

I was going to write about the Meatless Monday side dish that never was. But I’m not even motivated to do that. But I will! I will!

Right after I go have another latte…

I’m back. I’m here to tell you about my cooking failures. I will tell it like it is. I suppose I always tell it like it is, but sometimes I suppress information when I deem it might reflect on me in a negative light.

Take Meatless Monday Twenty Three, for example. The one I haven’t written about yet. We had it, oh yes, indeed. I took pictures of part of it. Then I ran out of time and never finished it. I intended to finish making it and sort of infer that it all went together. I wouldn’t have lied, mind you, I just wouldn’t have told the whole truth that they were spread out a few days.

But I never actually finished the side dish. It’s still sitting in my refrigerator. I don’t even know when I made it. I have to go to Aperture to see when the photos were taken. Hang on a sec…

6/2/2010. It is now 6/11/2010 6/14/10. That was nine twelve days ago. It’s still in my fridge. I was still planning on finishing it. I’m coming to grips with the fact that I’m going to have to give it to my chickens. But I’m not quite there yet. I’m still not quite there yet. Yesterday, Dave deemed it chicken-fare. He took it out there without even taking a picture for this post. (I swear it still smelled just fine.) The nerve! Then, making matters even worse, when questioned about it, he had this to say:

Me: “Did you give it to the chicks?”

Dave: “What do you mean?”

Me: “I wanted to give it to the chicks and not the rooster… (silence) You know, did you put it in the new coop?… (silence) The small coop. The one with the fence your dad made… (silence) DAVE! Come ON! Did you give it to the rooster or the chicks? It’s a simple question!”

Dave: “I don’t even know what you’re talking about.”

Me: (raising voice) “HOW CAN YOU NOT KNOW WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT? The rooster is in the OLD coop. The one in the big fenced in area! The chicks are in the NEW coop. They are still SEPARATED!”

Dave: “New coop, old coop. I don’t know what you are talking about.”

Charlie: (can’t restrain himself any longer listening to two idiots) “Dad. The playhouse is the new coop. The old coop is inside the big fence with the electric wire around it.”

Dave: “Oooooh. Why didn’t you just say that?”

Jennie: (has lost all control. Is screaming now.) “We’ve had chickens in this set up for YEARS. How can you not know there is a new coop and an old coop?”

Dave: “I hate the chickens. I don’t pay attention.”

Jennie: … speechless. Because, he’s right. And since that almost never happens, she wisely decides to be quiet. Which also almost never happens.

(about 60 seconds pass)

Dave: “Do you want a beer?”

Jennie: “Sure!”

So it goes.

It (the side dish) was Israeli Cous Cous with Kale. I planned to make a cold salad with vinaigrette (I had NO idea vinaigrette was spelled that way. Absolutely no idea… I was spelling it vinegarette. That’s your spelling-lesson-betterment for the day)

I got my new rice cooker for mothers day and have been wanting to stretch myself beyond the norm and use it to its full potential. I did it all in the rice cooker:

When it was done, it looked like this:

No wonder we gave it to the chickens.

Braised Lamb Shanks with Polenta

Finally Found Some Lamb Shanks to Cook.

Unfortunately, the only way I could find lamb shanks were to buy them while still attached to the entire animal. I know, I know. Darling, soft, fuzzy lambs should not be eaten.

I know!

But we love lamb. I’m sorry, we just do. And buying it in plastic-wrapped packages at Costco doesn’t change the fact that it used to be a cute, fuzzy lamb.

Honestly, I find it so weird when people I talk to drop their mouths in HORROR that we bought a whole lamb — from a farm down the road, no less!

I say to them, “You don’t like lamb?” (It’s true that sometimes they don’t, but many, many of them DO eat lamb — from the store.)

“How can you do that,” they ask?

Seriously? As if the chops at CostCo didn’t come from a real and formerly-living lamb somewhere?

“It’s the idea of it,” they say. “You drive by those lambs every day. How can you eat them?!”

Well for crying out loud, get over it! If you are going to be a carnivore, or an omnivore, for crype sake, be honest about it. You are eating meat. It came from an animal! Deal with it. And if you can’t deal with it, become a vegetarian. That, I can respect.

At least I know this lamb lived a wonderful life in a green pasture, running around happily. It was killed humanely at a local butcher shop and packaged for me the way I asked. I actually feel pretty good about the whole thing. Put that into your styrofoam pipe and smoke it!

Rant concluded.

On with the meal:

Charlie helped me with this and told Dave later, “I could easily make these again.” And he’s right: it was ridiculously easy. And so, so very good. Baaah!

You braise the shanks in tablespoon or two of oil.

Then remove to a pan and add a chopped onion, 5 cloves minced garlic, 3 stalks of diced celery and 2 diced carrots (I would cut the veggies smaller next time). Add the shanks back in and add 1 can chicken broth, 1/2 cup of water, one 14oz can of diced tomatoes and juice (I also used garden tomato juice from freezer), 2 sprigs rosemary, 3 sprigs thyme and 1T whole peppercorns.

Bring to a boil then cover and put in a 325 degree oven for about 3 hours.

About 20 minutes before eating, make the polenta. I can never seem to find the ‘real’ thing and keep accidentally buying ‘instant polenta.’ This recipe worked quite well with the instant kind, keeping it nice and soft. The best we have tried, really. I credit the milk. I think I usually only make it with water or broth.

Soft & Creamy Polenta

Over low heat, saute small diced onion and 3 cloves of garlic in about 2T olive oil. Then add 2 cups of chicken broth (I used one can and diluted with water to make 2 cups) and 2 cups of milk with 1 tsp of salt and bring to a boil. Turn down heat to a simmer. Whisking constantly in one direction, slowly add 1 cup of polenta. Switch to a wooden spoon and stir often over low heat for about 20 minutes. Add more water if polenta gets too thick.

Right before serving, add 1T butter, 1/4c shredded parmesan or pecorino (the poor man’s parmesan!), 3T chopped sage (thyme may be substituted) and lots of cracked pepper. Serve topped with shanks and sauce.

Of course I forgot to take a picture. I’m such a boob.

Meatless Monday Twenty Two!

From a Box!

This is, without a doubt, my lamest effort to date. But if I didn’t post it, with full disclosure, then I wouldn’t be being honest. We eat this chili mix all the time. And, I LOVE IT!

Unfortunately, it isn’t always available. The mix is from Tastefully Simple, which a good friend of mine sells. There aren’t many things along the lines of boxed food that I like, but when this stuff is available, I buy a whole case of it.

No, I’m not kidding.

As you can see, there are only four left. We don’t eat it much in the summer, so that should hold us over just fine — assuming, of course, that Tastefully Simple brings it back again next fall. They are in the annoying habit of “discontinuing” it and the bringing it back “by popular demand!”

I cross my fingers every year that I will hear from Karen saying “It’s back! How many do you want?” It’s like having my own personal shopper.

Since you can’t get it, I suppose it’s silly to be talking it up so large, but maybe you could find it on Craig’s List? Or ebay? Once, when I was working at our local food shelves — seriously, I’m not kidding — I unpacked a lone box of this mix. I about FELL OVER. Yes, of course I took it. And then I replaced it with TWO boxes of powdered milk that I bought and donated, which assuaged my guilt somewhat. Powdered milk is like liquid gold to the food shelves — very expensive and rarely donated. But I still feel guilty, having cheated someone out of White Chili heaven.

We usually — no surprise here — add chicken to it. For Meatless Monday, however, we abstained. I added only a can of white beans

And lots of condiments from the garden and fridge: cilantro, green onions,

Cotija Cheese,

Honestly, it took more time to get all the condiments ready than to make the damn chili. Seriously!

I remembered pepitas at the last minute, so they aren’t pictured here.

To make the chili, you open two foil packets, dump them in a pan with 6 cups of water and bring to a boil. It’s ready 10 minutes later.

I serve it up with lots of white rice. Then eat the leftovers for about three days. I suppose I should be on the lookout for a true-blue white chili recipe, but honestly, isn’t it nice to have an option like this to have dinner on the table in 15 minutes? I rate it right up there with my Aroy-D Green Curry. Mmmmm.

Crazy Cake!

On Charlie’s First Official Day of Summer Vacation

And…

He’s already bored. So I told him to go make a cake. Oddly enough, he seemed to take me seriously, so I rooted around in my recipe box for my Crazy Cake recipe. I wonder if I am the only one who remembers this cake fondly? Is it popular? Does anyone still make it?

My mom made it a lot when I was a kid. Then, in 8th grade Home Ec class with Mrs. Kahnne, we made it at school. Remember Home Ec? Oh my gosh, what a lot of who-ha to make a pot of macaroni and cheese. I think the lead up to actual cooking took 75% of the quarter. I remember it being painful. I also remember the teacher said “measure” like “may-zure,” which I thought was distracting. I could remember nothing else after she said it, as the word replayed in a loop in my head. I wondered things like:

  • Maybe she grew up with her mom pronouncing it that way…
  • Why doesn’t she just roll over and say it the way everyone else says it?
  • Does she think she sounds sophisticated?

Then along came Martha Stewart pronouncing the “H” in “herb” and I thought the same things all over again.

Anyway, this cake takes about 10 minutes to prepare and 40 minutes to bake. I am not a huge chocolate person, and I find it just perfect. I have heard of die-hard choco-manics adding tons more chocolate chips or — horrors! — frosting it. Yuck!

Crazy Cake
  • 3 c flour
  • 2 c sugar
  • 1 t salt
  • 2 t soda
  • 1/3 unsweetened cocoa
  • 1 t vanilla
  • 3/4 vegetable or canola oil
  • 2 T vinegar
  • 1 cup (or to taste) chocolate chips (I use milk chocolate)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Sift together flour, sugar, salt, soda and cocoa into an ungreased 9 x 13 pan.

Make three holes (2 small and 1 large) in the flour mixture.

Pour 1 teaspoon vanilla into one of the small holes. Pour 2 T vinegar into the other small one. Pour 3/4 cup oil into the large one.

Then, pour 2 cups water over the entire mixture and gently blend well with a fork until flour is all blended. Just remember to be gentle.

Sprinkle with desired amount of chocolate chips.

Bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean (avoid chocolate chips!)

Eat,

eat,

eat.

Die.

Meatless Monday Twenty One!

Three Cheese Griller with Veggie Salad

This was a surprise Meatless Monday, because I didn’t even know I was doing it until I was almost done.

Dave is out of town, kids are going three different ways. I’m on day four of refinishing my kitchen table in mid ninety degree heat… End of May = crazy times.

Yesterday, inbetween coats of polyurethane, and knowing we were heading out of town for the weekend, I took stock of the “crisper.” Really. What a silly name for a drawer that seems create slime more than it “crisps.” It is always with great trepidation that I dig to the back recess of the “crisper.” You just never know what you’re gonna find.

I was amazed to find some mighty fine looking produce in there!

You see, Dave has been doing a lot of the grocery shopping the last couple months. I’m not sure why. I actually think he might like it. Is that even possible? I quite simply could never walk into another grocery store and be happy. Give me a cow, a garden and a freezer. I’d rather make something from scratch than get in the car and go to the damn grocery store.

But you already knew that about me, didn’t you?

While I love the fact that Dave is doing a lot of the shoppping, it is also very dangerous from a “crisper” perspective. When I shop, I know what’s in there and I try to use it. I don’t like to waste things. Well, except celery which seems to enjoy turning to jelly in my “crisper.” I really enjoy wasting celery.

So it was with shock and awe that I found a beautiful package of haricots verts. You know the ones? They cost like six bucks or something! What the Hell? Doesn’t anyone tell that guy if he’s gonna shop for me he has to act like a MISER?

Actually, he did just say to me the other day, “As long as I’m doing the shopping, you don’t get to complain.” I can’t even remember what it was that he was referring to*, but add the beautiful package of haricots to my list of complaints. Money doesn’t grow on trees, you know!

Beans don’t keep forever, so I thought I better cook ‘em up and use them. Along with a nice little head of broccoli he bought.

And, yes, I also cooked some of that beetle-infested God-forsaken asparagus.

Then I ran out of time and threw it all in the fridge. I forgot about it until tonight. With Dave out of town, two soccer practices and a choir concert, I had to come up with something to eat fast.

So I whipped up some of the salad dressing I made for the Keeping Up with the Beans, last summer:

  • ~ 1/4 c balsamic
  • ~ 1 t dijon mustard
  • ~ 1 t honey
  • salt and pepper
  • wisk in enough olive oil to make a medium thick emulsion (mine was about 1/8 c)

Then add whatever it is you are trying to get rid of. For me it was wrinkly grape tomatoes…

I also added some garbanzo beans and toasted pine nuts. Wished I had cucumbers. Thought about craisins.

I wanted to call that dinner and be done. But I’m not stupid. I know my kids would faint if that’s what I served them. So I cut up the rest of a loaf of ciabatta that was getting hard:

And grated three kinds of cheese

And cooked it on my new griddle set-up (revamped my Thermador cooktop. Very cool. More on that another time.).

I wished I had some butternut squash that a commenter recommended for adding to grilled cheese a while back, but sadly I did not. Still. The sammies were a hit.

That left approximately four minutes to eat before having to leave for the first of the evening’s activities.

Now, I’m off to eat the rest of the salad. It’s my birthday today, so I’m just sitting here waiting for good things to happen.

* I remember what he said I couldn’t complain about now. It was those stupid boxes from Costco. He’s too lazy to use the big bags I bought for that purpose. So he puts everything in the huge corrugated  boxes they have available, then throws them in the recycle area for me to collapse on recycling day! Which was today! And why I suddenly remembered. Funny how that happens…