Chunky Vegetable Sauce

The uses of this sauce are as versatile as the veggies that can be put in it. Use whatever you have on hand, or use what you like best.



Celery Heart
3 Carrots
1 Yellow Bell Pepper
1 Leek - white part only - sliced and cleaned
4-5 garlic cloves
1 Yellow Squash
1 Zucchini
7 small Tomatoes
Vegetable Stock
1 T Tomato Paste
1 T Red Wine Vinegar
1 T Worcestershire Sauce
Fresh Basil - or any fresh herbs

Dice all of the vegetables except the sliced leeks and the tomatoes.



Peel the tomatoes.



Separate the tomatoes into two parts, blend one of them with a little veg stock and cut the other into large pieces. Set aside.



Heat oil and butter in a sauce pan over medium heat.



Test the oil by throwing one small piece of onion in it. If it sizzles, the oil is hot.

Add the celery, carrot, and pepper. Cook for a minute or two.



Stir in the leeks and garlic, season with salt.



Cook for another two minutes or till the veggies are soft and sweating.

Polenta

Polenta is a simple dish made by cooking cornmeal in water. After it's cooked, you can add any flavors that you like to it. Fresh herbs and Parmesan cheese are traditional, but jalapeño and cheddar, or asparagus and lemon zest would also be great flavors to add. Let your imagination run free.

Instead of serving the polenta freshly cooked, you can chill it, slice it and then fry it up. Yumm! It will have a nice crispy fried outside that holds the creamy filling in. Fried polenta is great with any sauce and can be made without the flour coating for a gluten free dish. The polenta slices can also be grilled, if you're outside, or not into fried food.



Basic Recipe
6 C Water
2 t Salt
1 3/4 C Cornmeal
2 T Butter



Additions
Basil
White Pepper
Salt
Oil for frying

Bring water to a boil. Add salt.

Slowly pour in the cornmeal while continually whisking.



Once all of the meal is mixed in and there are no lumps, lower the heat.

Switch to a wooden spoon and stir often, cooking for 10-20 minutes.



The cornmeal will be cooked and thick when it's done. (Your spoon should leave a trail behind it in the pan.)

Finish with butter and your choice of seasonings. You can also add cheese or cream to the polenta, if serving it soft (not fried).



The polenta is now ready to eat, or you can continue on and make fritas.

Food Pics - A

I just want to post some pictures of food that I've made, but didn't write down any instructions for. Most were taken with our old camera, so the quality may not be the best. Perhaps one of theses dishes will inspire you're next home cooking experiment.


Grilled Artichoke and Bread with Hollandaise


Mexican Style Chicken Soup with Soda Bread and Herb Butter


Yellowfin, Braised Brussel Sprouts, and Potatoes with Au Jus


Mini Butternut Squash and Asparagus Tamales



Corn Cakes

Tip - How to Peel and Seed a Tomato

If you cook tomatoes in a sauce with their skins on, the skin will just slip off as it cooks. You end up with tough ribbons of skin. If you peel and seed the tomato first, you'll have a smoother, more elegant sauce.



This is what you'll need:

Tomatoes
Pot of boiling water
Slotted Spoon
Ice bath (a bowl of ice water)
Pairing knife (optional)

Review II - Sea Salt Eatery

Sea Salt Eatery
4801 Minnehaha Ave
Minneapolis, MN 55417
(612) 721-8990 ‎

*Update - Sea Salt Eatery is now open for spring and summer! 04/07/11 - 10/30/11*

We ate dinner a Sea Salt yesterday, our first visit of the year. I was happy to see a short line but then disappointed when I saw that the whole fried fish special that I read about on line was sold out. The line was moving fast and my decision making skills had to keep up. Tony and I quickly decided to share the Fried Fish Tacos (two for $5) and the Crab Cake Basket (1 for $11).



The fish had a crispy batter filled with steaming flaky white fish. Each piece of fish was served on two grilled corn tortillas with sauce, onion and cilantro. I gave Tony my cilantro, it's not my thing. I did really enjoyed the grilled tortillas, the char was excellent and so is the price of these tasty tacos!



The crab cake had lots of large chunks of crab meat with a nice proportion of breading, vegetable and crab. The basket included slaw, corn salad/relish and melon. Only the cake was spectacular, I think I would prefer two à la carte crab cakes over the basket if that was an option. Ummm a crab cake taco would be good, maybe I should drop Sea Salt a line.



It was great to sit outside again and enjoy a cold beverage without shivering. The winter was long and all the snow that collected has melted and is now flying over the falls and down the river. It's a great sight to see! I'm looking forward to many more tasty visits to the Sea Salt Eatery and Minnehaha Falls this summer!

Heirloom Tomato and Garlic Super Simple Sauce

I used one red and one green heirloom tomato for color and flavor. You can use any tomatoes that you have for this sauce.



This recipe serves two, so adjust accordingly.

Butter
EVOO
4 cloves Garlic - roughly chopped
1 T Red Onion - finely diced
2 Heirloom Tomatoes - roughly chopped
Salt
White Pepper

Heat butter and oil in a sauce pan over medium heat.

Add garlic and onion and cook for two minutes.



Stir in the tomatoes, salt and white pepper and cook for two more minutes.




Pour over, or toss with pasta or grains.
This sauce is gluten free and vegetarian, so toss it with some pasta and add some steak if you want that stuff.




Rotini with Tomato Garlic Sauce and Baked Yellow Squash

Tip - How to Clean Clams

When buying clams, be sure that they are still alive. They should be tightly closed. If you have one that is open, tap it. If it's alive, it will respond to you.

Never eat or prepare dead shellfish! Also, open the package that they come in to allow them to breath till you're ready to clean them.

When cooking with clams, you want to take care in cleaning them. Their shells have lots of grooves good for holding dirt. This dirt will loosen up while the clams cook and will end up in your broth or sauce. No one wants to eat dirt!

1. Place the clams in a bowl.

2. Fill the bowl with cool water.



3. Let this sit for 10-20 minutes. This will help to clean some of the saltwater from inside the clams.

4. Remove the clams from the water. (Do not pour them out, use your hands to lift them out.)

5. Take one at a time and scrub it under running water.



6. Rinse it off and pat dry.

Once all the clams are clean, they are ready to cook.


Clams in White Wine Sauce

Other mollusks, such as mussels should be cleaned the same way. Mussels have something that's commonly called it's beard. You'll see a bunch of fibers hanging out of the shell, that is the beard. To remove this, use a towel to hold it firmly with your fingers. Then, tug the fibers out and toward the hinge. This should remove it without killing the mussel.

Clams in White Wine with Linguine

This one's for you Tim.

When you buy clams from the market, they should be alive. They should stay alive till you're ready to cook them. When you're done cooking them, they should all be opened. If any of the clams do not open, do not eat them! Also, be sure to clean the shells very well. They have little groves that can hold dirt, and you don't want a gritty sauce!



A Large pot of Salted Boiling Water
1 T Butter
1 T EVOO
2-4 large Shallots - diced
2 Celery stalks - finely diced
Garlic - sliced
6 peeled and seeded Tomatoes - diced
s/p
Crushed Red Pepper Flakes (CRP)
1 1/2 cups Dry White Wine
Juice form 1 Lemon - divided
1-2 lb Clams - cleaned well
linguine
1 T cold Butter
Fresh Basil - chiffonade

Heat butter and EVOO in a large skillet.



Add celery and shallots to the pan. Stir and cook for 2 minutes.



Add garlic to the pan and cook 2 more minutes.



Stir in the tomatoes and season with s/p and CRP. Cook for another 2-4 minutes.



Turn the heat off, or remove the pan from the open flame (to prevent a flare up) and add the wine. Return the pan to the heat and add 1/2 of the lemon juice.



Bring to a boil.