Moving Day Bread

From Dish Jodi:

Are you guys sick of seeing the top of my clothes dryer in all my Saucy pics? I am. Are you tired of pitying me and my 22 inch stove top and oven? I know I am tired of not being able to have more than two things bubbling on the stove at once, or an oven that JUST FITS a half sheet pan. It’s the end of an era. We’re moving this weekend.

The next time you see me, I will have a new kitchen – brand new – even all the appliances. Well actually, you will probably see me mid-reno – just using the bathroom sink and the grill outside – but THEN I will have a brand new kitchen!

But this week it’s all about packing our house, supervising the workers putting in new lights, floor, paint and getting the RENTAL UNIT ready to go. Yes, we are crazy and bought a duplex. We’ll live in the back and rent out the three bedroom front unit to help cover our mortgage. (I am starting to document this adventure here: http://soweboughtaduplex.blogspot.com/.  EEPS!

My amazing parents came this week to help us out and it’s been wonderful to have them finishing tasks, being around for deliveries and helping us pack. Last night, my mom and I did a big Fridge Clean Out Dinner – We made a mushroom, onion and broccoli fritatta, Neal made a crisp arugula salad and we decided to use up as much of the random crap in our cupboards for dessert. This turned into a quick bread packed with yummy things that may not have had a home in our new place. This was the combo we used – you can put in any stuff you want – chocolate chips? craisins? Other nuts? Use the dry ingredients, eggs and bananas as your base.


We also found a 4-year-old can of Four Loko we bought to try and have been too scared. It’s probably a collectors item. It’s from before they deemed the mix of caffeeine, alcohol, energy drink and what must be liquid plumber illegal. Why not throw that in too?

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Three old bananas that have been in your freezer for months
2 eggs
4 T butter, melted
One can of contraband Four Loko
One bloop of almond oil because it was in your cupboard and why not
1/2 C of chopped pecans so you can wash that cute glass jar and pack it
1/2 C of toasted coconut from Oliver’s 2nd Birthday Dinosaur cake you made last September
1 C of chopped strawberries that are almost bad after you bought 2 pounds of them on sale this weekend

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a loaf pan. Take a swig of Four Loko. Combine all the dry ingredients in a big bowl. Mash up the banana in a smaller bowl and mix with eggs, butter and oil. Combine wet and dry and mix until just combined.


Rinse that effort down with a big drink of Four Loko. The fold in the nuts, coconut and berries until evenly distributed.

Put in loaf pan and bake for an hour while you pack 10 boxes or until a toothpick poked in the middle comes out dry or your can of Four Loko is more than halfway gone.

Let cool for 15 minutes or so, then turn out and let cool the rest of the way. Keep snagging slices between trips lugging boxes out to the garage. Probably don’t sleep well because you are so hopped up on Four Loko.

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Reminiscing About Red Sonja

From Dish Nicole:

About 7 years ago I moved to New York City and my first apartment was in Astoria, Queens. While it wasn’t exactly the west village brownstone I’d envisioned, it was still a good starting point. One of the great things about living in Astoria was/is the diversity in restaurants and cuisine. Astoria is typically known for its Greek population but there are other hidden gems. One of my favorite restaurants I found almost a year after moving to the neighborhood, and I could have kicked myself for not getting to Mundo sooner. This place was just my style: small, great music, a super friendly staff and a killer menu (tapas style with a mix of Mediterranean and South American flavor). My favorite item on the menu was and still is their ever-popular Red Sonja. Red Sonja is a Turkish dish made from red lentil and bulgur wheat served on lettuce with fresh lemon. It might not sound appetizing but I assure you it is. It was recommended on my first visit and now I get it every time I go back. With the weather warming up, healthy and light meals are on the brain so I thought I would try to make these babies at home. I perused some recipes online and put together what I think is similar to Mundo’s version. Here is what you need:

1 cups red lentils
2.5 cups water (2 for cooking lentils and additional ½ c reserved for when you add in the bulgur wheat)
1 cup bulgur (cracked wheat)
3 scallions thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, finely diced
1 bunch parsley, finely chopped
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp cumin
2 tsp salt
1 tbsp oil
Lemon wedges to garnish
red or green leaf lettuce to wrap up the patties

To start, place the lentils in a saucepan and add the hot water. Bring it to boil, half covered. Then lower the heat and simmer for about 10-15 minutes. Turn the heat off. Add the bulgur, tomato paste, salt and cumin, mix well. Let the mixture sit and absorb the water for about 15 minutes until all the moisture is absorbed and the mixture is dry, stirring occasionally.


Next you will want to combine the lentil and bulgur mixture with the parsley and scallions in a large bowl. Let the mixture cool for an additional 10 minutes. Mix in the olive oil and take about a walnut size of the mixture into your hands and with wet hands, shape it as patties.

You can either serve it warm or chilled.

Serve the patties on the lettuce, squeeze on a little lemon juice and eat ‘um up taco style. Deeeeelish.

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Caesar Salad, Just Right

From Dish Rachelle:

I have a complicated relationship with Caesar salad. When it’s great, I love it – but that means it’s not too mayonaisse-y, or fishy, or garlicky, which immediately rules out about ¾ of the restaurant versions I’ve tasted. I’ve never made Caesar salad at home, mostly because I’ve had too many disappointing experiences with it to find myself craving those flavors. But then two things happened: I stumbled upon Thomas Keller’s recipe for anchovy dressing in The French Laundry Cookbook, which looked promising. Then, I had a great kale Caesar at the new neighborhood Mexican-French fusion restaurant Santos Anne, and it was totally delicious, in part because they garnished the salad with chorizo.

So, I made it. And it was awesome. Given that this is the first time I’ve used Keller’s recipe, I would do two things differently: I might add an extra anchovy filet, because the flavor here was very, very subtle, and I might cut down on the canola oil just a touch, because I tend to like dressings that are a bit more tangy. That said: I DO NOT THINK I CAN IMPROVE ON THOMAS KELLER! Only that I can improve his recipe for my own particular tastebuds, which is why I am quoting his version as written.

I made fresh croutons from the stale baguette that was sitting on my counter. Clearly I am a person who always has stale bread in the house, because I am convinced that every meal – with the exception of Chinese food – could be improved by the addition of a fresh loaf. But, if you aren’t that kind of person, you could always buy bagged croutons, no biggie.


For the anchovy dressing:
(I halved this because there’s no way the two of us will consume 2 cups of dressing in the next 3 days, which how long Keller says it’ll keep in the fridge. Yes, this meant that I cut a raw egg yolk with a knife.)

1 ½ tblsp. chopped garlic
1 ½ tblsp. chopped shallot
¼ balsamic vinegar (we have two kinds in the house: the good kind and the cheap kind. I used the cheap kind since it was getting mixed with other things)
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
2 salt-packed anchovy fillets, deboned, soaked in milk to cover for 30 minutes, drained and patted dry (My elegant deboning method involved pulling any obvious bones out with my fingernails.)
1 large egg yolk
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup canola oil
Freshly ground (white) pepper (OK, I used black)

Puree the garlic, shallots, vinegar, mustard, lemon juice and anchovies in a blender until smooth. (I used a hand-blender, which worked pretty well, and I didn’t transfer the mixture to “a mixer with a paddle attachment” afterwards because I was being lazy, and didn’t want to do that many dishes, and the hand blender continued to do the trick.) Beat in the egg yolk and slowly drizzle in the oils. Season with pepper, cover and refrigerate.

Chop your lettuce – I used romaine but kale would be good, too. Toss with croutons, dressing, and a fistful of finely grated, good quality parmesan.


I’m glad I have more dressing leftover. I know where I’m getting my Caesars from now on!

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