Polenta with greens, eggs, and creamy tomato sauce recipe

As a kid, I never liked my foods to touch each other (who am I kidding, it's still true with some dishes), but I distinctly remember the first time that I tried grits and scrambled eggs together.  My uncle convinced me to stir them up in one bowl, and I loved it.  This is the grown-up version of grits and scrambled eggs - polenta with tomato sauce, sauteed spinach, and a fried egg.  This was a simple meal that had sophisticated flavor (perfect for inviting people for dinner at the last minute).  I found the basic recipe in January's cookbook of the month, but then added the book's basic tomato sauce recipe.  I'm glad I made the addition - it was the perfect complement to the meal, plus it gave me a lot of tomato sauce for pasta later in the week.  And it was one of the best tomato sauces that I've ever made thanks to the secret ingredient, cream cheese.

Now that I've tried a handful of recipes from Moosewood Restaurant Cooking for Health, I can conclusively say that I love it.  It surpasses the other Moosewood books, which is saying a lot.  I appreciate that there's a lot of variety, including several gluten-free recipes.  Everything that I tried turned out really well, and I'm having trouble picking my favorite, so I guess I'll just say that I loved the gluten-free apple and rice bran muffins, the dried fruit, nut, and coconut truffles, the eggplant, ricotta, and walnut pasta, the Mexican rice and pepper-stuffed portabellas, and this polenta recipe.  It's tempting to stick with this book for another month, but I'll move on to another one.  Don't be surprised if you see it popping up again soon, though.

Polenta with greens and eggs (adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Cooking for Health)
(Printable version)

3 cups water
pinch of salt
1 cup stone-ground corn grits (polenta)
1 Tbsp butter
1/4 cup freshly shredded parmesan
1 Tbsp oil + 1 tsp, divided
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper
10 oz spinach
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
4 eggs

Bring the water and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan.  Slowly whisk the grits into the water, reduce heat to low, and cook while whisking frequently until the polenta pulls away from the side of the pan (about 20 min).  When it's done, add the butter and parmesan.

While the polenta is cooking, heat 1 Tbsp oil over medium heat in a large skillet.  Add the garlic and red pepper, and saute for a minute.  Then add spinach, cover, and cook until it wilts (about 3 min).

Just before serving, heat remaining 1 tsp oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add eggs and cook until the whites are firm.

Serve a few spoonfuls of polenta topped with tomato sauce (recipe below), if desired, and spinach and an egg.  Serves 4.

Creamy tomato sauce (adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Cooking for Health)
(Printable version)

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 medium carrots, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp dried oregano
2 Tbsp red wine
1 can (28 oz.) crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup basil, chopped
3 oz. cream cheese

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan on medium heat.  Add the onions and garlic, and cook until tender.  Then add the carrots, bell pepper, salt, pepper, oregano, and wine.  Cover and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are soft.  Add the tomatoes, recover, and simmer for 10 min.   Stir in the basil and cream cheese, puree in a blender or food processor, and season with additional salt and pepper if needed.  Makes about 5 cups.

Greek egg and lemon soup (Avgolemono) recipe

Sometimes I hear about a unique combination of ingredients and am completely disgusted.  Other times it intrigues me to the point that I have to make the recipe.  I don't remember where I first heard about this classic Greek soup that combines egg and lemon, but it fell into the latter category.

Greek egg and lemon soup (Avgolemono) (adapted from "The Olive and the Caper" by Susanna Hoffman)
(Printable version)

4 cups vegetable stock
1/4 cup brown rice, sorted and rinsed
2 eggs
juice of one lemon
1/8 tsp salt
freshly ground pepper

Bring stock and rice to a boil in a medium saucepan, and then reduce heat and simmer until rice is tender (about 40 min).  In a small bowl, beat eggs with a hand mixer until they become foamy.  Then stir in lemon juice.  Add about half a cup of the stock and rice to the egg and lemon, while constantly stirring.  Remove the saucepan from the burner (this is critical!) and stir in the egg and lemon mixture.  Stir in salt, and garnish with pepper.  Serves 3.

I have to admit that the combination works.  It's not something that I could ever consume in large quantities because the lemon gives it an intense flavor, but I enjoyed a small bowl of it with dinner.  There wasn't much of an egg flavor, but they gave the soup a slight creaminess that was nice.  My research in the lab has not been going well at all lately, but at least my kitchen experiments work!!
Well, this is the last recipe from this month's cookbook of the month ("The Olive and the Caper").  It was fun to stray from the general-purpose books, but I didn't end up making as many things as I have in the past because I didn't want to burn myself out on Greek food.  There are many more recipes that I want to try, particularly the black-eyed pea salad that Candice recommended in the comments on my post about Greek shrimp and tomatoes.  Of the recipes that I tried out of the book, the shrimp and tomatoes was my favorite dish, and my parents seemed to enjoy the leftovers quite a bit (and are apparently planning to make this themselves).  I could eat that stuff every week.  I also really enjoyed the Plaki-style snapper and zucchini and this soup.  I made a summer vegetable soup from this book as well, which was good but rather simple and bland (though it was perfect while I was sick).  I didn't end up writing about it  because it didn't remind me at all of Greece.  Hey, you can't win them all.  Overall, I've enjoyed this book, but I'm sad that I couldn't try any of the phyllo recipes, so if you know a way to make it work with gluten-free flours, please let me know!!

Usually I decide on a cookbook for the next month long before the current month is over, but I have no idea what it will be for September.  I suppose I had better get to work!

Eggplant and summer squash frittata recipe

While contemplating my year of blogging, I was reminded that my take on food was dramatically changed about a year ago when I read Barbara Kingsolver's "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle." Her stories about her family's year of eating almost exclusively things that they produced or that were available from the local community inspired me to focus more on the foods that are available to me from my community. I'm very lucky to live in a place with fabulous farmers' markets, several dairies, and sources of almost every type of meat that comes to mind. This year I've taken full advantage of this, and all of my animal products (with the exception of yogurt and a few types of cheese that aren't available) have come from local farms. Now that summer is in full swing, I would say that I get about 90% of my produce from the farmers' market. Perhaps I'm spending a little bit more money, but it's worth it to me to be able to interact with the farmers, know that the animals aren't being mistreated and the food isn't being sprayed with toxic chemicals, and have the opportunity to enjoy the amazing tastes that are only available when food is in season and hasn't been shipped around the world. Plus, I love being able to avoid the anxiety-inducing grocery stores as much as possible.

In honor of my blogiversary, I decided to reread "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" now that I've become more of a locavore (though still not nearly to the degree of Kingsolver's family). I can relate to many of her stories and she definitely has a way of making the labors of farming hysterical, but one part stuck out to me. She talks about how it's ok to stuff your face with each type of fruit or vegetable as it comes into season - each one will only be available for a short time, and you must enjoy it while you can. I definitely didn't understand this way of approaching food when I read the book last year, but now I know what she means. Now that so many things are available at the market, I'm eating up a storm. Melons, blueberries, peaches, apples, peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, corn, eggplant, zucchini, potatoes, and a host of other options are at my fingertips. I can't imagine a better smorgasbord.

So, it seemed only natural to include a "local" dish in the brunch that I made to commemorate my blogiversary and Dad's birthday. I use the quotes because my parents brought the eggs from Florida (Mom's boss has a flock of chickens) and the tomatoes from my grandparents' garden in Georgia, and I picked up the eggplant and zucchini from a farmer at the St. Lawrence Market in Toronto. But, in essence, I knew where all of the food came from, and there weren't any special trips to get the food to my kitchen.

Eggplant and summer squash frittata

(Printable version)

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 medium eggplant, peeled and cubed

1 medium yellow squash, cut in half lengthwise and chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

8 eggs (mine were mostly small, so 6 or 7 L or XL might be enough)

1 tsp turmeric

salt and pepper to taste

1 tomato, sliced (optional)

Heat oil over medium heat in a large oven-safe skillet. Saute eggplant, squash, and garlic until they are tender, adding more oil if necessary. Whisk eggs, turmeric, and salt and pepper together in a bowl, and pour them into the skillet. Rotate the skillet so that eggs spread out evenly, and then let it cook until eggs are mostly set (about 8 min). Then put the skillet in the oven and bake at 350 until eggs are cooked through (about 10 min). Garnish with tomato slices. Serves 6.

I really enjoyed this frittata. It came about via my favorite way of creating recipes: think of everything you have available, and throw it all together in a pan. I can't remember ever having eggs and eggplant together, but I love the combination! The delicious tomato was the perfect addition, as well. Another thing that I learned this year is that if you're using quality ingredients, simple is often better. Let them speak for themselves.

Stewed okra and tomato omelets recipe

When I showed up to pick up my CSA share this week, a grin instantly appeared on my face. There were a few small boxes of okra sitting there calling my name. Although Rebecca from Titus Farms sends out an email each week to let us know the likely options for that week, she leaves the iffy things off the list. I didn't even know that they were growing okra, so it was an extremely unexpected surprise.

This is the prettiest okra I've seen since I moved to Michigan - small, perfect pods. I didn't have very much, and I wanted to savor it over a couple of meals. Hopefully they'll have more in the future because I've been fervently collecting okra recipes since I made this.

Stewed okra and tomato omelets

(Printable version)

Stewed okra and tomatoes (makes enough for 2 omelets):

1 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 onion, sliced thinly

1/8 tsp crushed red pepper

1 cup small okra pods, stem end trimmed

1 medium tomato, diced

Heat olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and saute until tender. Stir in crushed red pepper and okra, and let cook for 3 minutes. Stir in tomato, bring to a simmer, and reduce heat to medium low. Let this cook until the tomato juices thicken (about 10 min).

For each omelet:

2 eggs

1 Tbsp milk

1/2 tsp turmeric

salt and pepper to taste

1 tsp butter

Whisk together eggs, milk, turmeric, and salt and pepper. Heat butter over medium-low heat in a medium-sized nonstick skillet. When butter melts, add egg mixture and let cook until the edges are cooked. Then flip omelet with a spatula and let cook an additional minute on the other side. Add half of the okra and tomato mixture to the middle of the omelet.

Spicy, delicious, and comforting. I love stewed okra and tomatoes, and the flavors meshed nicely with the eggs. It worked well as a dinner and breakfast, and was extremely quick to make (especially if you make the okra and tomato mixture ahead of time). I'm submitting this to Weekend Herb Blogging, which is organized by Haalo from Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once, and is hosted by Anna from Anna's Cool Finds this week.

Swiss chard scramble recipe

I came home with a ton of greens from my CSA share this week, and I wanted to try something new. I also had some eggs that needed to be used, so I decided that I should make a frittata. As I poured the eggs into the pan, I quickly realized that my chard:eggs ratio was way too high, so I ended up turning this into a scramble. It's not quite as pretty as a frittata, but it worked.

Swiss chard scramble

(Printable version)

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1 bunch chard, leaves and stems chopped separately

4 eggs

1 tsp turmeric

salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Saute onions until tender, and then add garlic and red pepper flakes and cook for another minute. Add chard stems and let cook until tender (about 5 min). Then stir in chard leaves, cover skillet, and let cook until chard is wilted (about 3 min). While chard is cooking, whisk together eggs, turmeric, and salt and pepper. Pour eggs into the skillet and stir with the chard until eggs are cooked (about 4 min). Serves 2-3.

Even though I had to deviate from my original plan, it still tasted great. If you've never tried turmeric in your eggs, I highly recommend it. In fact, since I discovered this combo last fall, I don't think I've cooked eggs without this fabulous herb. Best of all, this was extraordinarily quick to make.

Spaghetti carbonara with broccoli

One of my two yearly conferences was last week and this weekend, and I'm still recovering. This year my program was hosting, which was quite a change from last year when it was at the University of Groningen in The Netherlands. In addition to trying to go to the scientific part of the conference and social events, I was also running around trying to organize a workshop and help out with odds and ends. I was so tired today that I dozed off in my office and almost fell out of my desk chair. Needless to say, I haven't felt like putting a whole lot of energy into cooking for the last couple of days.

Spaghetti carbonara with broccoli (adapted from Mark Bittman's "How to Cook Everything")

1 large head of broccoli, chopped into bite-size pieces (I included the stem)

2 oz. bacon, diced

6 oz. spaghetti (I used brown rice spaghetti)

1 egg

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

freshly ground black pepper

Boil or steam broccoli until it's tender, drain (if boiled), and set aside. While broccoli is cooking, cook bacon in a small skillet until it gets crispy and set that aside. Cook the pasta according to package directions. When the pasta is almost done, beat egg and parmesan together. Drain the pasta, immediately put it back in the pot, and stir in egg and parmesan. Once the pasta is well mixed, add in bacon and broccoli and season with pepper. Serves 3.

Delicious! This is definitely comfort food at its finest, but the broccoli (from my CSA share!) provided a nice texture contrast and also made it a tad bit healthier. There was just enough bacon to give it a great flavor. The best part? this was ready in 30 min (and it would have been even faster had I not been moving at a snail's pace).

Well, it's officially the end of the month, and time to wrap up this month's cookbook of the month, "How to Cook Everything" by Mark Bittman. I'm still in love with this book because it has many classic recipes and encourages improvisation with a variety of add-in ideas for just about every recipe. I had a good time trying out classic chicken dishes (coq au vin and chicken adobo), making pasta for the first time (mixed greens ravioli), experimenting with new ways to cook turnips (braised turnips with mustard sauce), finally using my quiche dish (onion quiche with brown rice crust), and joining fruit and couscous (whole wheat couscous with apricots and pistachios). My favorite recipes that I made from the book this month, though, were shrimp and sausage jambalaya, potato pizza, and this carbonara recipe. I should also note that I've made many things from the book in the past: white bean dip, vegetable dip, cooked onions and apples, asparagus topped with mushrooms, and miso soup. Phew! That's a lot of recipes, and I can truly say that I've gotten to know this book. As you can see, it has all of the basic recipes that you could ever need. But, there are so many variations for each main recipe, that I could probably spend several years cooking something new from it every day. The title says it all, folks.

Onion quiche with a brown rice crust (and green eggs!)

I have a love-hate relationship with raw onions. Thinly sliced onions give sandwiches the extra kick that they sometimes need or provide a great crunch for a salad, but I'm extremely sensitive to their sulfurous compounds. Sometimes I end up with teary eyes for a few hours if I cut more than one or two of them. Cooked onions, on the other hand, are always my friend. Just about everything I make starts with onions, and I usually use more than is called for in a recipe. The sweetness that develops as onions cook is like none other. In fact, one of my favorite pizzas includes caramelized onions as a main ingredient, and I often roast onion wedges and eat them as a snack. That's half of the story.

The other half involves green eggs. No, I haven't been reading a Dr. Seuss book. I noticed a sign for green eggs on the first day of the farmers' market this year. I had plenty of eggs, so I didn't buy any, but they obviously stuck in my mind. Then Amy from Runs with Spatula told me that they had been recommended to her by Annie from Forest Street Kitchen. Amy made a green eggs and ham omelet with her eggs, and said that they seemed richer than other eggs. I had to give these a shot! I finally used up all of my other eggs, bought some green eggs one Saturday, and searched around for something to make that would highlight the flavor of the eggs (I didn't want to hide them in a complicated dish, after all!). Enter Mark Bittman. While flipping through this month's cookbook of the month, I was intrigued by the idea of making a quiche. I don't know that I've ever made one, which is odd considering that I actually own a quiche pan. Thus the onion quiche was conceived.

I had a hard time getting a good picture, but they definitely have a green tint to them

(you might have to trust me on this one)

And I guess the final tidbit to this story is that I was too lazy to make a traditional crust. I had already made bread that morning and was planning to make roti for dinner (recipe to come!). The thought of kneading a third dough and getting even more flour all over my kitchen floor was not appealing. But this brown rice crust from Closet Cooking sounded delicious (perhaps even better than a traditional crust!) and easy.

Onion quiche with a brown rice crust (adapted from Mark Bittman's "How to Cook Everything" and Closet Cooking)

2 cups cooked brown rice

1 egg

1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese

2 Tbsp olive oil

6 cups thinly sliced onions

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 tsp dried thyme

6 eggs (ideally green!)

2 cups milk

Combine rice, 1 egg, and parmesan in a small bowl, and press the mixture in the bottom and sides of a quiche pan or deep pie pan. Bake at 450 for 5 min. While crust is baking, heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Then add onions, salt, and pepper, and let cook, stirring frequently, until onions are very soft and golden brown (about 20 min). Stir thyme into onions. Whisk eggs and milk together, and stir in the onions. Pour this mixture into the crust and bake at 325 for 40-50 min (until the eggs are set in the middle). Serves 6.

This was delicious. I think I know what Amy means about the eggs being richer. They had a great flavor that was perfect for this type of dish. And this was another great dish for onions. Their intense sweetness, along with the thyme, was a perfect contrast to the bold egg flavor. And don't forget about the crust! It was slightly crunchy, but fit right in with the overall feel of the quiche. This was a great overall concoction, and I'm glad that I was too lazy to mess with more dough.

I found one of my new favorite uses of onions, so it seems that I

should submit this to Weekend Herb Blogging, a weekly food blogging event that was started by Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen, and is now organized by Haalo at Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once. This week I'm hosting, and I encourage you all to participate. See the rules for more details, and make sure to send me your information by Sunday at 5 pm Eastern time.

Huevos rancheros (sort of)

I'm tired of hearing eggs get a bad rap. I grew up thinking that they were horrible for your cholesterol, but there's actually very little evidence that dietary cholesterol has any effect on blood cholesterol levels. And guess what? All animal products have cholesterol. But, in my humble opinion, eggs are one of the tastiest. So, this adulterated version of huevos rancheros is my tribute to eggs everywhere (especially those that came from chickens who are happily frolicking about on the pasture... on a farm very near my kitchen). Ok, the thought of chickens frolicking is a bit absurd, but quite fun to imagine!

Huevos rancheros (adapted from "The Complete Cooking Light Cookbook")

1 1/2 cups diced tomatoes (or 1 can)

1 1/2 cups cooked black beans (or 1 can)

1 can (7 oz.) diced green chiles

2 Tbsp chopped cilantro

2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp cumin

salt and pepper to taste

3 eggs

1/4 cup shredded white cheddar

1 green onion, chopped

Combine tomatoes, beans, chiles (including liquid), cilantro, chili powder, cumin, and salt and pepper in a large skillet. Bring to a boil, then cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for 10 min. Pour each egg* into a separate cup and gently pour into bean mixture. Cover and simmer for 7-8 min, until eggs are done to your liking. Garnish with cheese and onion. Serves 3.

*I was cooking for myself, so I only cooked one egg in the mixture. When I was ready for leftovers, I brought an individual serving of the bean mixture to a simmer and then cooked another egg.

I really enjoyed this. Of course traditional huevos rancheros involves a corn tortilla, but I left it out because I was eating this with jalapeno cornbread mini muffins. This was the perfect vegetarian dish for a big meat-eater because I swear that it had a ground beef texture to it. And I don't even have any ground beef in my apartment, so I know that I didn't go into a trance and slip some in. I'm a big fan of topping just about anything with an egg, so this made my night. It was incredibly filling, too, and a leftover serving gave me enough iron to be eligible to donate blood this afternoon!

Shrimp pad thai

While Mom was visiting, we took a trip over to the Shrimp Farm Market. This place is only a few miles from my apartment, and they have been raising shrimp in Michigan for a long time (over 15 years, if I remember correctly). I'm excited to have a source for local shrimp! I think that they'll be at my favorite farmers' market once it opens, but it was fun to go out to the farm while we had time. I've been searching through recipes to find the perfect use for my shrimp, and many dishes sound good, but pad thai stuck in my mind. I love pad thai, but have never made it, and thought this would be the perfect time.

Pad thai (adapted from A Mingling of Tastes)

1 Tbsp peanut oil

salt and pepper

1/2 lb shrimp, peeled and de-veined

5 oz. whole wheat spaghetti (use brown rice spaghetti for gluten-free)

1 tsp tamarind concentrate

2 Tbsp water

1/2 tsp raw sugar

1/2 Tbsp fish sauce

1 Tbsp soy sauce (use wheat-free tamari for gluten-free)

juice of 1 lime

1/4 tsp red chile flakes

1 small onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

2 eggs, beaten

4 green onions, chopped

1/4 cup roasted peanuts

handful of cilantro, chopped

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Sprinkle the shrimp with salt and pepper, and cook just until pink (about a minute on each side). Set the shrimp aside. Cook noodles according to package directions and set aside. Mix together tamarind, water, sugar, fish sauce, soy sauce, lime juice, and chile flakes in a small bowl and set aside. Make sure that all other ingredients are prepared before you continue - it goes incredibly fast.

Add the onion to the skillet that was used to cook the shrimp (adding a little bit more oil if necessary), and cook for one minute. Add garlic and cook for another minute. Stir in the eggs and rotate skillet so that the bottom is covered. Break up the eggs with a spatula, add the shrimp and noodles, and stir for a minute or so until egg is mixed throughout and fully cooked. Stir in the sauce mixture, peanuts, and green onions. Remove from heat and garnish with cilantro. Serves 3.

This was good - I'm definitely impressed by my first attempt at pad thai. It doesn't quite compare to what my friend Lace makes, but it was still good. Of course I used the wrong kind of noodles, but I have a ton of pasta and didn't want to buy rice noodles. Next time I'll add more spice - either more chile flakes or a bit of Sriracha sauce. But, overall it was great, and it was a perfect use for my shrimp (and they were very tasty!).

Kookoo sabzi (Persian herb frittata)

**This is not a gluten-free recipe and was posted before I eliminated gluten from my diet. To make this gluten-free, substitute a gluten-free flour.**

Friday happened to be Nowruz, the Persian new year. Probably the only reason that I know that is because my friend, B, happens to be Persian and a basketball addict, and would often miss watching the opening round of March Madness games because of the big new year's celebration. I don't know a whole lot about Persian food, but when I had Kookoo while I was visiting B this winter, I fell in love (even when eating it left over and cold!). So, I knew that I had to make some to celebrate the new year (even though I was a few days late).

Kookoo sabzi (Persian herb frittata) (adapted from FarsiEats)

1 tsp currants

2 eggs

1/4 tsp whole wheat flour

1 Tbsp walnuts, chopped

1/4 tsp salt

freshly ground pepper

1 Tbsp olive oil, divided

1/2 green onion, chopped

1/2 cup parsley, chopped

1/4 tsp dried coriander

1/4 tsp dried dill weed

Soak currants in cold water for 15 min, then drain. Vigorously whisk together eggs, currants, flour, walnuts, salt, pepper, and 1/2 Tbsp olive oil. Add green onion, parsley, coriander, and dill, and mix gently. Add remaining oil to small oven-safe skillet (or baking dish), swirl to coat bottom, and then add egg mixture. Cover pan with foil and bake at 300 for 20 min. Remove foil and bake for an additional 20 min, or until frittata is set and top is brown. Serves 1-2.

Wow. I don't have any Persian in me, but I managed to pull this one off. The parsley flavor definitely shines through and, while I sometimes find parsley overwhelming, it works perfectly in this dish. I think that part of the reason I like it so much is because it's cooked. Parsley that's sprinkled on as a garnish often gets stuck in my throat, and I end up choking on whatever I'm eating. But, I think that the softening that occurs when it's cooked releases the flavor and prevents the gagging that would otherwise occur. In fact, the parsley was so delicious in this dish that I'm going to submit it to Weekend Herb Blogging, an event that is hosted by Anna from Anna's Cool Finds this week.

The currants and walnuts also give this dish a very nice contrast between savory and sweet. I often make omelets or frittatas, but I never think to put sweet things in them. It's amazing how delicious it is! You know, dried fruit is quite common in Persian food, so I really need to experiment more with this cuisine. B did offer to let me move in with her if I agreed to be her full-time cook, and perhaps I should consider that more seriously :)

Corn souffle

**This is not a gluten-free recipe and was posted before I eliminated gluten from my diet.**

I wanted to try something different tonight... something that I had never made before. I've seen about a million recipes for chocolate souffle this week as people prepare for V-day, so I got the urge to make a savory one. But then what do I do? Asparagus? Broccoli? Corn? Cheese? Corn seemed to be a good option because it would still allow me to taste the souffle flavor, and this felt important for my first one. I won't lie, I was nervous. Souffles have this reputation for being impossible to make. You hear stories about them falling if you simply walk through the kitchen. But recently I've read a lot of articles about how they're really not that bad - you just have to be careful about a few things. This gave me some sense of relief, and I was no longer afraid that I would look at my oven funny and ruin my dinner.

Corn souffles (adapted from A Mingling of Tastes)

butter for coating dishes

breadcrumbs for coating dishes

2 Tbsp butter

4 green onions, finely chopped

3 Tbsp whole white wheat flour

1 cup milk

1/4 tsp salt

ground pepper

pinch of cayenne pepper

4 large eggs, separated

3 Tbsp cheddar, grated

1 1/3 cup frozen yellow corn, thawed (or use fresh if it's in season)

1/4 tsp cream of tartar

Preheat oven to 375 (it's really important that the oven is hot immediately after you're done assembling the souffle). Grease 2 (500 ml) ramekins with butter and shake breadcrumbs around until bottom and sides are lightly coated. Melt the butter over medium heat in saucepan. Add green onions and saute for 3 min. Whisk in flour and cook for 1 min, whisking constantly. Add milk and cook until slightly thickened, while continuing to whisk. Add salt, several grinds of pepper, and cayenne, and remove from heat.

Lightly beat the egg yolks in a small bowl. Add a spoonful of the milk mixture to the yolks, stir, and then add the yolks back to the big pot of the milk mixture. Stir in the cheese and corn. Whip the egg whites and cream of tartar in a metal bowl with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form (this part is also very important - don't use plastic, and make sure you whip them enough). Fold egg whites into souffle batter very gently in three batches (it's okay if they're not completely mixed). Pour the batter into the ramekins, place ramekins on a baking sheet, and put in the oven immediately. Cook until tops are golden and they're set all the way through (about 40 min). Serves 2-4 (depending on whether you're eating it as a side or main dish).

You could also use more smaller ramekins or one big souffle dish, but of course this would affect the cooking time. My 500 ml dishes were both filled to the very top, so take that into consideration when picking your dishes (this is okay - they won't overflow). Ideally you want something with straight sides so that it can easily climb the dish.

Obviously it worked wonderfully. I'm not sure why one souffle turned out taller than the other, but I don't really care. I was so happy the first time I looked in the oven that I didn't know what to do with myself. I even took them out of the oven a few times to check to see if they were set, and that didn't seem to affect them. So, I don't believe all of the hype. Perhaps sweet souffles are more difficult, but this one is completely doable for a souffle novice. And it tastes great! It's sort of like a combination of spoonbread and an omelet... two fabulous things that go great together.

Now that the other one has cooled, it's fallen a lot, but that's fine because all I was asking was for it to survive the original baking. I'm sure it will still taste good, even if it is flat.

Mission accomplished.

Eggs Diablo on Polenta

I intended to make chicken tonight, but when I went into the kitchen to start dinner, the chicken was still completely frozen. I decided it could wait until tomorrow and I would try something different. It's kind of fun to find a recipe at the last minute that you can make with ingredients that you have on hand. It could be a stressful task, but luckily I keep my pantry stocked. I've been meaning to make polenta for a while, so when I came across a recipe, I figured it would be a good time to try it out.

Eggs Diablo on Polenta (adapted from Karina's Kitchen)

Eggs Diablo

1 onion, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper

1 can (15 oz.) tomato sauce

1/2 can diced tomatoes

1 can (4 oz.) chopped green chiles

1 tsp Italian herb blend

2 eggs

Polenta

1 1/2 cups chicken or veggie broth

1/2 cup cornmeal

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

To get the diablo sauce started, heat oil over medium heat in pan. Cook onion in oil until it's tender. Add the garlic and red pepper and cook for 1 min. Add tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, chiles, and herbs and let simmer on medium-low while you prepare the polenta. When the polenta is almost done, crack the eggs into the sauce, cover, and let the eggs poach until they are cooked through (about 6 min).

In a separate pot, bring the chicken broth to a boil and slowly add the cornmeal, whisking continuously. Continue to whisk constantly until the polenta starts to pull away from the sides and the bottom of the pot. The coarseness of the cornmeal will determine how long it takes - I used medium-grind stone-ground cornmeal and it took about 20 min. When it's done, whisk in salt and cheese. Serve the eggs and sauce on top of the polenta. Serves 2.

This was super tasty. I love polenta, eggs, and tomato sauce, so I knew this would be a winner. And I hadn't had a poached egg in a long time, so that was a nice change of pace. On top of that, I got a great workout at the same time! This would have been a lot easier to make if I had someone else to help me, but I had the sauce simmering before I started the polenta (and had everything else that I would need measured out ahead of time), so it worked. Be prepared to have two extremely tired arms at the end (especially if you're using a coarse-grind cornmeal). Just don't take more than a very short break from whisking it or it will burn. So if you don't have time to get a workout and make dinner, this is the perfect solution.

Asparagus and Mushroom Frittata

Decent-looking asparagus finally appeared in the store this week, and I had to splurge and get some. I hate that I can't get local asparagus because our farmers' market doesn't open until the end of May (and the asparagus is long gone by then). So, I have to settle for what's in the store, and apparently it's starting to be in season somewhere in the world. Anyway, I've been thinking a lot about frittatas lately, so I figured that would be the perfect fate for my asparagus.

Asparagus and Mushroom Frittata

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 onion, sliced thinly

4 oz. mushrooms, sliced

1 bunch asparagus, cut into 1 inch pieces

5 eggs

splash of half-and-half

1/2 tsp hot sauce

salt and freshly ground pepper

Heat olive oil over medium heat in oven-safe pan. Saute onions until they're soft, and then add mushrooms and asparagus and cook until asparagus begins to get tender. Whisk the remaining ingredients together and pour on top of vegetables, moving vegetables so that eggs cover the entire pan. Cook over medium heat until the eggs set on the bottom (about 8 min). Then bake at 350 until the top of the frittata is set (about 10 min). Serves 3-4.

This was simple and delicious. Be careful not to let it cook too long on the stove (mine was on the verge of overcooked on the bottom, but luckily wasn't too bad). Other than that, this is one of those great recipes that you can't really screw up. You can add whatever you want or leave out whatever you want (with the possible exception of the eggs...) and it will always work. I definitely needed a simple recipe after the biscuit adventure.