Tag: garlic

Herbed White Bean Dip.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchen2 Comments

I made chili with the first can of accidentally-purchased white beans; now, what to do with the second can? I considered making another batch of that heavenly chili, but a brave chef would branch out and try something new. And I really do try to be a brave chef, after all. So I took the advice of my cousin Caitie and my reader Laurie and made a bean dip. This herby, spicy dip is a great substitute for hummus (ironically, that’s what I meant to make when I picked up these cans of beans in the first place!), but spread a hefty scoop on a sandwich and you’ll go nuts! A totally guilt-free dip or spread–what more could I ask for from an ingredient I bought by accident?!

INGREDIENTS

2 cloves garlic, minced
1/8 tsp fresh rosemary, minced
1/8 tsp fresh lemon balm, minced
1/4 tsp fresh parsley, minced
1/4 tsp cumin
generous pinch of cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste (you’re gonna need more salt that you think, so go easy and add more as needed)
1 can great northern beans or other white beans, drained
1/4 cup olive oil, plus more as needed

DIRECTIONS

Combine all ingredients in a food processor: first the gorgeous garlic, herbs, and spices.

Then the beans and olive oil.

Blitz everything until you reach desired consistency. Add more olive oil as needed. Then add more cayenne pepper because you didn’t add enough the first time.

Garnish with parsley and serve with warm pita bread, tortilla chips, spread on a sandwich, or my favorite, with orange and purple carrot sticks.

Spicy “White” Chili.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchen11 Comments

I always keep 2 cans of chickpeas in the house, so that I can make hummus whenever I want. Last week, I bought 2 cans of chickpeas at the grocery store, and last night, I tried to make hummus with them. I opened the first can and started to pour out the liquid, and one of the “chickpeas” fell into the sink, looking very little like a chickpea. That’s when I read the label. I had purchased 2 cans of “great northern beans,” whatever those are, by accident. So I did what all normal Millennials do: I googled them. Apparently, great northern beans are a mild type of white bean, so in the interest of “waste not, want not,” I decided to cut my hummus-losses and make this “white” chili (it ceases to be white as soon as the paprika goes in), to bring to work for lunch this week. What a lucky mistake I made that day at the grocery store–and what an awesome chili!

INGREDIENTS

2 tbsp butter, divided
1/2 white onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/8 cup flour (I used all-purpose, but use potato flour for gluten-free chili)
2 1/2 cups cups stock, divided (I used homemade chicken stock)
1/4 jalapeño, minced
3/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp hot paprika
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 can great northern beans, drained
bay leaf
sour cream and parsley for garnish
*Parmesan rind, optional

DIRECTIONS

In a skillet over medium heat, melt half the butter and cook the onions and garlic until soft.

In a Dutch oven or other large pot, melt the rest of the butter over medium low heat and whisk in flour. Whisking constantly, cook roux for 2-3 minutes, until it turns slightly darker in color.

Stir in the onions and garlic, and gradually stir in 1 1/2 cups of stock, stirring constantly. Bring to a boil and simmer 5 minutes until thickened.

When the stock has thickened, stir in the spices.

Then add the jalapeño.

Then stir in the beans and throw in your bay leaf. *If you’re feeling fancy (and happen to have a Parmesan rind on hand), toss it into the chili now. Simmer for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes, remove bay leaf and Parmesan rind, garnish with sour cream and chopped parsley, and serve. This recipe doubles (or triples) very well, so make as much as you want!

Summer Carrot Salad.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchenLeave a comment

While wandering around the farmers market on Saturday morning, I encountered a little boy standing in front of a big pile of purple carrots. He was trying so hard to make sense of these strangely-colored vegetables, and both his mother and the man behind the table were indulging his curious questions. I love to see little ones engaged in farmers market culture, so I decided to play along, too. “I think I have to get some of those,” I said to the boy. “Would you pick me out a nice bunch?” He looked back at me with wide eyes and then started to dig through the purple carrots, handing me a bunch that he seemed to have chosen for no reason in particular. I thanked him, smiled at his mother, paid the $3, and went home to make this salad for my family. Goes great with flank steak. A good day.

INGREDIENTS

1 small onion, diced
2 bunches orange carrots, grated to thin, long strips
1 bunch purple carrots, grated to thin, long strips
2 cloves garlic, minced almost to a paste
3 tbsp olive oil, plus more for sauteing the onions
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp sugar
salt and pepper to taste
parsley for garnish
handful of raw almonds, crushed with the back of a knife

DIRECTIONS

Heat a splash of olive oil over medium heat and add onions and a pinch of salt. Saute until soft and translucent. Set aside to cool.

Combine garlic, the rest of the olive oil, vinegar, cayenne pepper, coriander, sugar, and salt and pepper. Mix well with a fork.

Combine carrots, onion, dressing, and almonds, and toss. Refrigerate for 4 hours before serving. Garnish with parsley and enjoy with steak or burgers as a healthier replacement for cole slaw.

Coq au Vin.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchenLeave a comment

Coq au vin, unlike revenge, is a dish best served hot. It’s a classic in French cuisine, with tender, fall-off-the-bone chicken in a rich, savory wine sauce with a hint of tomato, speckled with mushrooms and shallots and bacon. These flavors are just amazing! It’s a perfect dish for dinner parties, but this time, I’ve made it to have for lunch at work during the week. Lucky me. Totally impressive but actually very simple to execute, this recipe is definitely one worth mastering.

INGREDIENTS

3 lb chicken (I used 4 legs and 2 breasts)
salt and pepper to taste
1 pad butter
olive oil
4 strips bacon, cut into small strips or lardons
3 shallots, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
8 oz. mushrooms, rough chop
1 cup stock, plush a splash (I used homemade chicken stock)
1 cup white wine (I used Chardonnay)
1/2 cup canned crushed tomato
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp flour (thicken with potato flour for a gluten-free sauce)
chopped parsley for garnish

DIRECTIONS

Rinse and pat dry chicken, then season with salt and pepper.

Heat butter and olive oil in Dutch oven or other large soup pot. Working in batches, brown chicken on all sides and then transfer to a plate.

In the same pot, cook the bacon. When the bacon is crisp, add shallots and garlic and cook until soft.

In a separate pan, saute mushrooms in olive oil until soft. Set aside.

Deglaze the chicken pot with a splash or two of stock and stir.

Then place chicken back in the pot. Pour wine and the rest of the stock over the chicken and add mushrooms, crushed tomato, and bay leaves. Cover pot with lid and simmer for half an hour.

When chicken is fork-tender, remove from pot. Remove the bay leaves at this point, too. Place half a cup of the sauce into a small bowl and stir flour into it with a fork. Bring the pot of sauce/gravy to a low boil and whisk the flour-thickened portion into it. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

Spoon sauce over chicken and serve with rice or potatoes, and garnish with parsley. Makes for luscious leftovers too!

Borsch.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchen2 Comments

Borsch is so misunderstood. It’s a classic in Russian/Ukrainian cuisine, but despite my Russophile tendencies, I avoided borsch for years because I thought it sounded so…awful. But college is a time for experimentation, right? So during my senior year, I finally gave borsch a try, and it totally won me over! It’s a super hearty vegetable and beef stew that gets its characteristic garnet color from its most notorious ingredient: the beet. If you’re not a beet lover, you’ll probably still like borsch (it’s really good, I swear!),  just make sure to puree the cooked beet and tomato mixture before adding it to the broth pot. Old-world peasant cooking at its finest!

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 lbs. stew beef, cubed
3 bay leaves
small onion, chopped
3 small red beets, scrubbed clean and cut into bars
14 oz. canned crushed tomatoes
1 tsp vinegar
2 carrots, peeled and cut into bars
2 celery stalks, chopped
large onion, chopped
2 medium potatoes, cubed
1/2 medium head cabbage, shredded
butter
olive oil
salt
pepper
2 cloves garlic, diced

DIRECTIONS

Fill a large pot or Dutch oven 3/4 of the way full with water and add beef and bay leaves. Bring to a boil.

When boiling, turn down to medium low heat and simmer. Skim off the fatty, foamy impurities that rise to the top.

When you’ve gotten most of the fatty bits out of the broth pot, add the small onion. Cover and simmer for an hour. Then remove the bay leaves.

Meanwhile, add butter or olive oil to a pan and heat over medium. When hot, add beets, crushed tomato, and vinegar. Stir well and simmer for an hour.

Fifteen minutes before the beets are done cooking, start the other veggies. Heat butter or olive oil in another pan over medium flame and add large onion, carrot, and celery. Cook for 15 minutes.

After you start the onion-carrot-celery mixture, turn up the heat on the broth and bring it back to a boil. Add potatoes and cabbage to the broth pot.

When the beets and tomatoes have finished cooking, add them to the broth, along with the sauteed veggies. Add salt, pepper, and garlic, stir well, and simmer for at least half an hour.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream and garnish with fresh chives or dill. Priyatnogo appetita!

Windowsill Herb Garden and Garlic Thyme Olive Oil.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchenLeave a comment

Fresh herbs look, smell, and taste amazing, so of course they’re always welcome in my kitchen. But they’re really something of a luxury, aren’t they? Not anymore! This week I made a trip out to Gethsemane Garden Center to realize the city girl’s dream of growing my own herbs at home. There were a ton of gorgeous fruit, vegetable, and herb plants to choose from, so I decided to start off with a few of my favorites. And since I don’t have garden or porch space in my new apartment, my herbs grow in pots on my living room windowsill (for now…who knows how long I can keep these alive…). Also, a quick and easy but totally luxurious and aromatic olive oil “recipe” using herbs from my garden!

Here’s my lovely mint, great for tea:
UPDATE: I just discovered that this is actually a lemon balm plant, which is similar to mint but has a more lemony scent. Still great for tea though!

Rosemary and thyme, the second half of Simon and Garfunkel’s “Scarborough Fair”:

And my favorites, the parsley and chives:

Now, let’s perk up that regular old olive oil and make it something special: Garlic Thyme Olive Oil.

INGREDIENTS:

Olive oil (Extra virgin is fine, but I like to use regular olive oil because it’s nicer to cook with)
3 sprigs of fresh thyme
3 cloves of garlic

DIRECTIONS:

Peel cloves of garlic. Rinse thyme and pat it dry. Let both garlic and thyme dry thoroughly, at least an hour (any water leftover can lead to spoilage).

Add washed and dried aromatics to a clean bottle and fill with olive oil. Let steep for 4 days, then remove thyme and garlic (again, to prevent spoilage). Use within 2 months. Great for sauteing veggies, making salad dressings, and dipping fresh-baked bread.