0. Culinary Ideas 1. Recipes temple granola | green velvet soup | butternut and chile stew rainbow for your health pie | mole poblano bourbon-maple yogurt | beet sorbet | sherry cake | emerson fritter | xocolatl shortbread the perfect cafe mocha | the perfect chocolate syrup | xocolatl human food 2. Ferment Recipes sugar water: ale, kombucha, ginger beer vegetables: sauerkraut, kimchi dairy: yogurt beans: tempeh grains: sourdough breads 3. Cocktail Recipes --CULINARY IDEAS-- pepper/cumin/cinnamon/ancho-encrusted tempeh fried in sesame oil seared tuna with a sake/blood orange reduction tofurky beer brats in a red wine/stout stew sauteed kale and leeks canned tuna + masaman curry paste + coconut milk = delicious curry! canned tuna + sauerkraut + good tomato salsa + lime + avocado = ceviche! chopped(cucumber + avocado + mango + red onion + mint + basil) + blueberry salad (in lemon juice) vegetable maki, temaki, nigiri sushi with raw red bell pepper & cucumber & avocado, gingered raw carrot slivers (marinated in pickled ginger juice), shoyu-sauteed spinach & shiitake mushrooms butternut squash/pepita/ancho chile/soyrizo stuffing black pepper/nutmeg savory french toast w/parmesan broiled salmon marinated in tandoori sauce: yogurt, sake, red thai curry paste, pomegranate molasses, coriander, mustard seeds, ginger, turmeric, cayenne --DARK GRANOLA-- (adapted from a recipe from Michele Bremer, via Joan Dye Gussow) preheat oven to 275F. mix in large bowl: 3 lbs rolled grains (oats, wheat, barley, rye) 3 cups sesame seeds, flax seeds, hazelnuts, pepitas, sliced almonds, walnuts 1 cup blend of wheat bran / whole wheat flour 1 tsp salt warm together: 1/2 cup unsulphured molasses 1 cup honey 1 cup canola oil 3 Tbsp spices (cinnamon,cloves,nutmeg,allspice) fresh grated ginger root 2 tsp vanilla extract Stir everything together, spread at most 1/2 inch thick on cookie sheets and bake at 280 approximately 1 hour or until golden brown. Stir frequently while baking to keep edges from burning. Cool and store in an airtight container. --LIGHT GRANOLA-- (adapted from a recipe from Melissa Clark via Wayne Miller) 2/3 cup maple syrup 2/3 cup olive oil 1/2 cup brown sugar 4 cup rolled grains (2c oats, 2c wheat/barley/rye) 1 cup nuts and seeds (walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, sesame) 2 tsp powdered ginger 1/4 tsp cardamom 1/2 tsp salt Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Mix together the first three ingredients. Put the grains and nuts/seeds in a large mixing bowl; pour the olive oil-maple syrup mixture over and stir until well coated. Add spices; stir. Spread the granola mixture in a thin layer over a baking sheet. Bake until the granola is golden brown, about 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. (The edges will cook faster than the center, so try to stir from the outside in.) Cool and store in an airtight container. --GREEN VELVET SOUP-- (from Amy Morris) 1 onion, chopped 2 stalks celery, sliced 2 potatos, scrubbed and diced 3/4 cup split peas, rinsed 2 bay leaves 6 cups water or stock 2 med zucchini, diced 1 med stalk broccoli, chopped 1 bunch fresh spinach, washed and chopped 1/2 tsp basil 1/4 tsp black pepper pinch cayenne 1 1/2 tsp salt Place the onions, celery, potatoes, split peas and bay leaves in a large kettle with water or stock and bring to a boil. Lower heat, cover and simmer for 1 hour. Remove bay leaves Add zucchini, broccoli, spinach, basil, black pepper and cayenne and simmer for 20 minutes. Transfer to a blender in several small batches and blend until smooth, holding the lid on tightly. Return to kettle and heat until steaming. Add salt to taste. (brent's modifications, patterned after amy's modifications: add several cloves of garlic with onions substitute 5 lg leaves fresh basil for dried basil substitute tamari to taste for salt substitute cayenne for black pepper add splash of cider vinegar & white wine) --BUTTERNUT AND CHILE STEW-- (adapted from October 2004 Cooking Light) chiles: 1 green bell, 2 red bell, 2 (dried) anchos 1 tsp aniseseed 1 3-inch cinnamon stick 3.5 cups chopped onion 4 garlic cloves, minced 10 cups (2-inch pieces) peeled butternut squash 4 cups vegetable broth 2 cups water 3 Tbsp honey 1/2 tsp salt crema mexicana (or plain yogurt) pepitas Roast fresh chiles: cut in half and remove seeds/membranes, broil until black, place in ziplock bag for 15 minutes, peel. Chop. Grind spices. Saute onion until browned. Add garlic (1 minute), then spices (1 minute), then everything else. Bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes. Roast pepitas. Serve drizzled with crema/yogurt and sprinkled with pepitas. --RAINBOW FOR YOUR HEALTH PIE-- make a pie crust with enough surplus to lay over the top, like a lattice only whole. take a lot of swiss chard (red,green,whatever) or kale or brassica greens or spinach or any other intense green leaf of your choice and steam it in white wine / freshly cracked pepper / herbs of choice (I recommend sage, rosemary and thyme). squeeze out a little excess water in a towel. roast some potatoes and sweet potatoes and garlic and onions with herbs. mush them up a bit and layer them with kale and cheeses of choice in the pie crust. bake for 30 minutes at 375. --MOLE POBLANO-- 4 mulato chilies 4 ancho chilies 4 pasilla chilis 2 cups hot veggie stock 1/2 cup almond butter 1/2 cup tahini 2 large tomatoes (peeled, seeded, chopped) 1 onion, chopped 1/2 cup raisins 2 cloves garlic, minced 4 cloves (or 1/8 tsp ground) 10 peppercorns (or 1/4 tsp ground) 1/2 inch stick cinnamon (or 1/2 tsp ground) 1/2 tsp coriander seeds (or 1/4 tsp ground) 1/2 tsp anise seed (or 1/4 tsp ground) 1.5 oz dark chocolate 2 Tbsp vegetable oil salt, pepper, sugar to taste 2 Tbs sesame seeds (garnish) Wash chiles under running water, removing stems, breaking them open and removing the seeds. Place the chiles in a large bowl, and cover with the stock. Let soak half and hour, reserving the stock afterwards. Place in the blender the almond butter, chiles, spices, raisins, tomatoes, garlic, and onion, along with a little stock, and reduce to a smooth paste. Fry the paste in a little vegetable oil, slowly adding stock. Finally add the chocolate, and stir well until it has melted. When serving, season to taste and bake meat in the mole for 45 minutes. Sprinkle sesame seeds over the top. --BOURBON-MAPLE YOGURT-- 1 quart 2% milk bourbon maple syrup 1 vanilla bean Scrape vanilla bean into milk, then use the recipe below to transform it into 1 quart of vanilla yogurt. Culture it for 8-10 hours so it's not too tart. After refrigeration, strain the yogurt for as long as possible. Meanwhile, reduce the bourbon: heat it on the stove, to below the boiling point of water, until you've evaporated a little less than half. Stir maple syrup into warm reduction, cool, blend into strained yogurt. Serve cold. Optionally, top with Carmelized Corn Flake Crunch: 3/4 cup corn flakes 3 tablespoons nonfat milk powder 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt 3 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted Heat oven to 275 degrees. Put cereal in a large bowl and crush lightly with your hands. In a small bowl, stir together milk powder, sugar and salt. Sprinkle mixture over crushed flakes and add melted butter. Toss to coat cereal evenly. Spread on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (or a nonstick baking mat) and bake 20 minutes, or until deep golden brown. Remove from pan and set aside to cool. (Topping adapted from NY Times, adapted from Christina Tosi, Momofuku Ko) --BEET SORBET-- 16 medium beets (raw) 3 cups water (approximately) 7 tbsp sugar of choice (I like 1/2 white and 1/2 brown) cut the beets into appropriately sized chunks and juice them in a motorized juicer. this should result in approximately 3 cups of beet juice. skim off any beet fluff and add an equal amount of water. stir in sugar and heat to boil, stirring periodically. remove from heat and chill. once cold, use a motorized ice cream maker to freeze the mixture. voila, beet sorbet! --CECILY'S SHERRY CAKE-- (from Cecily Elias via my mom) 1 yellow cake mix 1 package instant vanilla pudding (3 oz) 4 eggs 3/4 cup oil 3/4 cup sherry 1 tsp nutmeg Blend ingredients and pour into a greased & floured bundt pan. Bake for 1 hour minutes in preheated 350 degree oven. (exploring: 50% olive oil, a little more sherry, 50min - perfect! try 100% olive oil, 1 cup sherry, 50 min) --EMERSON FRITTER- (by Kevin & Brian 9/13/07, Santa Cruz, California) 4 local apples (quartered and chopped small) 1/4 C fresh ground flax 1/4 C walnuts, broken 1/4 C Tbsp pumpkin seeds spices & vanilla to taste 2 eggs, separated 1/3 C sweetener (2/3 maple syrup, 1/3 brown rice syrup) 1/3 C rhubarb wine (or brandy or other locally made fruit wine) 3 Tbsp applesauce 1 C whole wheat flour pinch sea salt 1 tsp baking powder non-GMO canola/safflower oil for frying powdered sugar (optional) In a small bowl toss the apples with the sweetener and wine/brandy. Let marinate for 1 hour. Drain and reserve liquid. In a medium bowl beat the egg yolks, reserved liquid and 3 tablespoon applesauce. Stir in the flour, nuts, salt, baking powder and spices. In deep fryer or deep skillet heat at least 1 inch of vegetable oil to 365-375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold beaten whites into batter and then fold apples into batter. Spoon large tablespoon of batter into the hot oil and fry until golden on all sides, about 3 to 4 minutes. Fry about 3 fritters at a time. Remove with a slotted spoon and let dry on paper towels. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar and serve hot. This recipe serves 4-6 and makes 12 small/medium size fritters. --XOCOLATL SHORTBREAD-- from Jessica of Arizmendi Lakeshore 4.5 lbs all-purpose flour (11.5 oz) 2.3 lbs cocoa (5.5 oz) a little under 1/2 cup salt (2 t) 1/2 cup crushed chili flakes (1 T) 1 T cinnamon (1 t) 6.3 lbs butter (1 lb) 3 lbs sugar (7.75 oz) some amount of dried ancho chiles (1 T powder) 1 T vanilla (1/2 t) 5.5 cups pumpkin seeds (7/8 cup) + a few more for topping Combine dry ingredients and set aside. Cream butter and sugar. Remove stem/core/seeds from anchos, tear into shreds and grind to powder. Add this ancho powder and vanilla to the creamed butter and sugar, then the pumpkin seeds (chopped medium in a food processor). Add combined dry ingredients. Roll out the dough to desired thickness, sprinkle a few pumpkin seeds over the surface and roll gently once or twice to set them into the dough. Bake at 325 for 23 minutes (in a full Arizmendi convection oven) or at ~315 for 10-15 minutes (at home). --THE PERFECT HOMEMADE CAFE MOCHA-- 6 oz stovetop "espresso" coffee 2 Tbsp perfect chocolate syrup 6 oz 2% milk Make coffee, steam/froth milk. Stir coffee into syrup, add milk. Cuban mocha: add mint leaf! Aztec mocha: add 1 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp ancho chile powder. Iced mocha: blend syrup into cold milk, pour over coffee frozen into cubes. --THE PERFECT CHOCOLATE SYRUP-- Stir over low heat (until warm and smooth) equal parts: cocoa powder brown sugar water --XOCOLATL-- 5 cups water 2 dried mulato chiles 3 Tbsp (creamy, roasted) almond butter cocoa powder sufficient to reconstitute (60%->2Tbsp, 80%->1Tbsp, 100%->none) 1 tsp cinnamon 1 tsp vanilla 7 oz bittersweet dark chocolate (60%-100% cocoa content) Boil water. Wash chiles under cold running water, removing stems, breaking them open and removing the seeds. Place the chiles in a large bowl, and cover with 2 cups of the boiled water. Let soak 30 minutes. Blend mixture (in blender or with hand mixer) with almond butter, cocoa powder, cinnamon and vanilla until no large particles remain and mixture has a light creamy consistency. Add in remaining 3 cups of water and heat to a light simmer, whisking frequently. Remove from heat and whisk in chocolate. (Sweeten to taste with brown sugar if you don't like it bitter.) --HUMAN FOOD-- A perfect food to match human dietary requirements (like dog food for humans) consisting of two parts: 1. crunchy (baked) pellets of diverse grain/bean balance 2. wet (raw) paste of green foods, vitamins (exact recipe still in process :) --SOURDOUGH LOAF BREAD-- (adapted from GEM Cultures & Maggie Glezer's recipes) 1/2 cup sourdough starter 1 2/3 cups warm water 1 cup white flour 1 cup whole wheat flour Make the levain by dissolving starter in water, then adding flour and blending. Let bubble overnight in a warm place. In the morning, remove 1/2 cup starter for the refrigerator. To the remaining levain add: 1 teaspoon salt 2 cups white flour Mix well and turn onto a board. Knead (using extra flour if necessary to keep bread from sticking to the board) until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 8-10 minutes. Put the dough into a medium bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a large ziploc bag directly on the surface of the dough. Cover with a moist towel and place in a warm area until nearly double. (With a very active culture at optimum temperature, this could take only 2 hours. With other conditions it may take as long as 4-5 hours.) When raised 1.5x to double, scrape dough onto a board and knead slightly to expel any large air bubbles. Place into an oiled bread pan, cover with a moist towel, and allow to raise to nearly double. Bake at 350F for 40 minutes. Remove loaf from the pan and cool. --CHALLAH-- Make the levain as above, except use only white bread flour. In the morning remove 1/2 cup of your levain to store. Blend: 4 eggs 1/4 cup honey 2 t salt 1/3 cup vegetable oil Add this mixture to the levain, mix well, then add: 2 1/2 cups white bread flour Mix well, knead for 10 minutes, cover and allow to ferment for 2 hours in a warm place. After fermentation, shape 2+ loaves as you wish (for a traditional 6-strand braid, separate each loaf's dough into 6 strands, pinch at end, and weave strands from right to left: over 2, under 1, over 2), place the loaves in their baking vehicles (baking pan, load pan), cover and proof for 3 hours. Make a glaze by beating one egg with a pinch of salt and brush it onto the top surfaces of the proofed loaves. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes or until crust is turning dark brown. --KIMCHI-- --SAUERKRAUT-- 2 heads cabbage (one green, one red/purple) ~3 Tablespoons salt per 5 pounds cabbage Thinly chop cabbage and layer handfuls of green, handfuls of red, and dashes of non-iodized salt into a large cylindrical glass or ceramic container. Blend and crush cabbage with the salt until a watery brine emerges. Cover the cabbage with a plate or smaller container, weighted to expel brine enough to cover cabbage, and cover with a towel. Periodically check to make sure cabbage remains covered by brine. After ~5 days, pack sauerkraut into quart jars and refrigerate. --TEMPEH-- (adapted from Sandor Ellix Katz's recipe) 2 1/2 cups (dried) soybeans 2 Tablespoons vinegar 1 teaspoon tempeh spore 1-2 zip-lock bags poked with fork-holes every few inches Soak beans overnight in a large pot, then bring to a boil to loosen their hulls. Allow to cool, then knead the beans underwater to pop off their hulls, and skim or water-winnow the hulls away. Boil the hulled beans until they are just barely soft enough to eat (90 minutes). Do not cook them as soft as you would want them to be for eating. After cooking the beans, strain them and spread them (or a portion at a time) onto a clean towel. Use the towel to dry them until most of the surface moisture has been absorbed into the towel. Place the cooked and dried soybeans in a bowl. Make sure they are no warmer than body temperature. Add the vinegar and mix well. Add the spore and mix well. Both should be evenly distributed around the soybeans. Spoon/pour the mixture into the zip-lock bags, spreading it evenly. Seal the bags and incubate at 85-90F until the fungus has spread throughout the mat and large patches of white/grey are visible, but before many black patches form (24 with no temperature interruptions, 30 hours otherwise). Remove from culture bag, refrigerate to cool (without stacking) and then re-bag in clean zip-lock bags for storage. --YOGURT-- 1 quart 1% milk 1 Tablespoon yogurt (one you want to clone, with live active cultures) Heat milk on stove to 190F, then quickly cool to 110F in sink full of cold water. Combine milk and yogurt in glass jar -- shake once closed to ensure good blend. Culture at 110F in yogurt maker for 6 hours, unplug to gradually cool to room temperature for 4 hours, then refrigerate overnight. To make thicker, greek-style yogurt, strain out whey for 10-20 minutes (in yogurt strainer or cheesecloth). --KOMBUCHA-- 2 quarts water 1 cup cane sugar (1/2 light sugar and 1/2 dark brown/succanat is good) 2 bags black tea (your favorite kind, a little flavoring is okay) 1 cup mature acidic kombucha kombucha culture 2 tsp ginger juice Bring water & sugar to boil. Remove from heat, add teabags and steep tea 15 min, then remove teabags and cool to room temp. Pour tea into your glass fermentation vessel and add kombucha/culture. Cover with a cloth. After 5 days in culture at room temperature, separate out 1 cup liquid and the kombucha culture for the next batch. With the remaining kombucha: add ginger juice and pour/funnel gently into three 16 ounce screwtop glass bottles. Bottle-condition for 2 days at room temperature, then refrigerate bottles. Notes: (1) This recipe makes 48 ounces of kombucha per week [6 8oz servings, a healthy weekly intake for 2] plus an extra cup or so you can give away to friends with the kombucha babies your culture produces, so they can start their own culture. (2) The 5 days [primary fermentation] / 2 days [bottle conditioning] cycle seems to produce a nicely acid/sweet/carbonation-balanced kombucha at 72+ degrees F. If your "room temperature" is closer to 68, the culture will take longer to ferment -- I use a 6 days/3 days cycle in this case. If you keep your home colder than ~68 or substantially warmer than ~72, you may need an even longer or shorter fermentation cycle. (3) I think the ginger juice in this recipe adds a very complementary flavor, but you can of course leave it out for pure kombucha. Or add other interesting flavors (lemon/lime juice, raspberry juice, spices). But it's very important that the tea you use is _black_ tea (not green or herbal), the sugar you use is _cane_ sugar (not honey or maple syrup or corn sugar), and that flavors or juices aren't added until the bottle-conditioning phase, thus keeping the kombucha culture in an environment that's very clean and healthy and stable for it. --GINGER BEER-- (for 2.5 gallons) -2 cups honey, 2 cups light brown sugar, 2 cups white sugar, 6 cups water -20 oz ginger, peeled and finely chopped -juice of 3 lemons -1 tsp champagne yeast (lalvin ec-1118) & 1 cup water (98 deg) -2 gallons water (cold from tap) cleaned & sterilized: 15 22oz bottles & caps boil honey, sugar, and water to dissolve. add ginger and simmer for 20 minutes. dissolve yeast in its water (at 98 deg) and set aside for at least 5 minutes. add lemon juice to ginger/honey mixture; strain into and sparge with cold tap water, then add hydrated yeast. bottle ginger beer & cap. store standing up at room temp (70deg) for 42 hours (no more). refrigerate 2 days (no more). serve ice cold! --ANNANDALE ALES-- visit http://oxhouse.org/~brent/food/annandale-ales.txt --COCKTAILS-- the deakin fizz: crushed raspberries, gin, ginger ale the deakin smash: crushed fresh garden tomatoes, chopped rosemary, vodka (strained) the deakin tonic: fresh pomegranate juice, lime, gin, fresh mint (strained) the deakin noir: milk, kahlua, cocoa powder, brown sugar, fresh mint, cayenne (strained) garnished with toasted almonds margotini: lemon vodka, chocolate liqueur, half-and-half margot 75: Sea Dog Bluepaw Wild Blueberry Wheat Ale (from Maine) with a splash of Hendrick's Gin (a handcrafted gin with traditional botanicals--juniper, coriander, and citrus peel--and a special infusion of cucumber and rose petals, creating a unique and unexpected flavor) served in a flute with wild blueberries yogi kava soda: kava yogi tea syrup (honey dissolved in kava yogi tea brewed quad-strength or stronger) chilled and mixed 1-to-1 with sparkling water over ice fire in the orchard: walnut infused bourbon, islay scotch, cherry bitters, sweet vermouth, bourbon-soaked black cherry garnish (SUMMER) beltane bellini: puree of strawberry/fresh tarragon/brown sugar in prosecco marco polo: strong sweet black tea (quad-strength or stronger black tea with dissolved honey), bourbon, strong ginger ale mayflower: puree of strawberry/fresh tarragon/brown sugar, black tea syrup (quad-strength or stronger black tea with dissolved honey), strong ginger ale, vodka, splash of cointreau (over ice) (AUTUMN) woodsmoke: woody bourbon, smoky islay scotch, splash of (grade B) maple syrup dirt martini: gin, dry vermouth, pu-erh concentrate (quad-strength) with shriveled black olive garnish autumn flower: woody bourbon, smoky islay scotch, pu-erh concentrate, saba (WINTER) the desert: tequila, prickly pear juice, fresh ancho chili powder, soda (over ice) the moon: strong sweet jasmine white tea (quad-strength or stronger tea with dissolved white sugar), vodka, half and half nightflower: tequila, jasmine white tea syrup, nutmeg (SPRING) bergamotcello: bergamot rind infused into vodka, blended with simple syrup (serve very cold, neat or in sparkling wine or soda) [infuse microplane-grated rind of 4 bergamots into 1L vodka for 1 week+; blend 3:1 with 1:1 sugar/water simple syrup; strain] first flush: bright green tea syrup (1:1 simple syrup mixed at 160 F with matcha powder), rum, soda (over ice, with camelia petal garnish) spring flower: bright green tea syrup, bergamotcello, raspberry liqueur, vodka, soda, splash of angostura bitters (over ice)