i like lemons

Growing up on the mainland, it was always a treat when relatives came to visit from Hawaii. They would bring the standard candies and t-shirts, but also foods like laulau, poi and kalua pig. Sure, chocolate covered macadamia nuts and neon yellow and red coconut balls were great, but it was that shredded pork that was like candy to me.

Though nothing quite replicates pork cooked in a traditional imu, this recipe satisfies my cravings. It’s so easy. Waiting for it to finish cooking so you can dig in? Not so easy.

Faux Kalua Pork

~2-3 lb. pork shoulder roast
kosher salt (or Hawaiian salt, if you have it)
ground pepper
water

Preheat oven to 350F. Generously salt and pepper the roast on all sides. Place roast in roasting pan, fat side up, and fill pan with water to about halfway up the side. Cover pan with aluminum foil (cover tightly, don’t leave a vent). Cook in oven for 1 hour at 350F, then reduce temperature to 300F and continue cooking for another 4 hours. Remove roast from oven and shred meat. Season meat with additional salt and pepper to taste.

~4-6 servings.

*****

This recipe freezes well so consider making two roasts since you’ll have the oven on for such a long time. If freezing a portion, add some of the cooking liquid to the containers to keep the meat moist during reheating.

The cooking liquid can be used for broth. Strain the liquid, refrigerate, then scoop off the solidified fat. Use within a day or freeze. Remember to taste the broth for saltiness and adjust your recipe accordingly.

Add your favorite barbecue sauce for some delicious and messy sandwiches. Serve with fresh salsa and and a squeeze of lime on tortillas. I like mine with salt and pepper, topped with carmelized onions, on a french bread roll.

More pictures at Flickr

There was a time in my life when I pretty much survived on pizza. Rarely was it good pizza. Most of the time it was pretty bad, but it was very cheap. One time it was practically poisonous. Let me tell you, getting food poisoning from pizza on the same night you see Silence of the Lambs and have the cover art from Front 242’s Tyranny (For You) album stuck in your head, well, it just doesn’t make for a restful night’s sleep.

Thankfully, I can make my own pizza now. This pizza dough recipe makes a crust that is chewy on the inside and slightly crisp on the outside, just the way I like it. While you could probably make/knead the dough in a standing mixer, I like to do mine by hand (I don’t even own a mixer). Ten minutes of kneading dough by hand makes me feel less guilty about the subsequent pizza feasting.

Pizza Dough

1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup warm water (110F)
1 package active dry yeast
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt
~3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon olive oil

In large glass bowl, dissolve sugar in warm water. Sprinkle yeast over sugar water and allow to sit for 5 minutes, or until yeast is foamy. With a wooden spoon, stir in 1 cup of flour and mix very well. Allow to sit for 5 minutes so that the flour can absorb the water. Stir in 2 teaspoons olive oil, salt and another 1/2 cup of flour and beat the dough with the spoon until the dough is very elastic. Add another 1 cup of flour. Transfer dough to floured surface and knead for 8-10 minutes, adding the remaining 1/2 cup of flour only if dough is too sticky.

Grease a clean bowl with 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Place dough in bowl, turning to coat surface with oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled, around 1 1/2 hours.

Turn risen dough out onto floured surface and knead for about a minute to remove air bubbles. Form dough into a ball and allow to rest, covered, for 15 minutes. Place oven rack to lowest position and preheat oven to 500F.

Divide dough into quarters and flatten each ball into an 8-inch circle or square, leaving the edges a bit thicker to form a lip for your crust. Place dough round on an ungreased baking sheet. Prick the surface with the tines of a fork to help prevent air bubbles from forming while baking. Top pizzas with your favorite sauce, cheese, etc. Bake for 10 minutes, or until crust is golden brown.

Makes 4 ~8-inch diameter pizzas.

*****

You can use this dough to make calzones. Form into a 8-inch circle and place fillings on one half of the circle, avoiding the edges. Fold bare half of dough over the fillings and pinch and crimp the edges to seal. Bake on middle rack in 400F oven for around 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown.

The dough makes good breadsticks too. Divide dough into 8 pieces and roll into 10-inch long snakes. Place on ungreased baking sheet and brush with olive oil or melted butter. Sprinkle with salt and herbs for savory or cinnamon sugar for something sweet. Bake on middle rack in 450F oven for around 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown.

The unbaked dough can be frozen. After allowing to rise and kneading to get air bubbles out, form dough into ball and wrap tightly in plastic wrap (get as much air out as you can) and place the wrapped dough in a freezer storage bag. To thaw: transfer from freezer to refrigerator and allow to thaw for 24 hours. Leave dough on countertop, covered, for an hour before forming pizzas.

Clockwise from upper left, the pictured pizzas are:

Lasagna - Jarred marinara sauce, creamed spinach and turkey lasagna filling, carmelized onions and pre-packaged four-cheese blend.

Quattro Formaggio - Jarred marinara sauce with pre-packaged four-cheese blend. A grinding of fine black pepper on top.

Carmelized Onion & Cheese - Pre-packaged four-cheese blend topped with carmelized onions. A grinding of fine black pepper on top.

Curry, Peas and Yogurt - Curry sauce, with the peas and yogurt added after baking.

More pictures at Flickr

Creamed spinach has always been one of those pseudo vegetable side dishes. With all that cream and butter you can’t really taste the spinach, but because it’s green and has the word “spinach” in it you count it as a veggie.

I came up with this recipe as a healthier alternative. It has no added oil or butter. I like to use it as a pasta sauce and it also makes a good base for a lasagna filling and for spinach dip.

Creamed Spinach

2 10 oz. packages frozen chopped spinach, undrained
1 green onion, finely chopped
2 cups broth (chicken, vegetable or whatever compliments what you are serving)
1 8oz. package Neufchatel or cream cheese, in small chunks
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Pinch nutmeg
2-3 tablespoons cornstarch (depends on how thick you would like it)
1/4 cup water

In saucepan, over medium heat, combine broth, cheese, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Once mixture is boiling and cheese is mostly melted, add spinach and green onion and bring to a boil again. Make a slurry out of cornstarch and water, slowly add it to the spinach mixture and boil until thick. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.

Makes 8 servings.

*****

For a quick dinner I like to mix some creamed spinach with linguine noodles (as shown in the pictures). If you need protein you can add grilled chicken breast or steak. Sprinkle with some parmesan, quattro formaggio or other favorite cheese.

Lasagna filling: Mix half a recipe of the creamed spinach with a pound of ground turkey that has been browned with a diced yellow or white onion.

Spinach dip: Refrigerate a half recipe of the creamed spinach until well chilled. Combine spinach with 1 1/2 cups plain yogurt (or sour cream if you are feeling decadent), 1/4 cup finely diced yellow or white onion and 1 cup of grated carrots. Salt and pepper to taste.

While this recipe can be frozen, the spinach doesn’t always keep its green color very well. If you do choose to freeze a portion, be sure to reheat it very thoroughly, otherwise it will have a curdled appearance.

More pictures at Flickr

Ah comfort food! There is something about a big bowl of beef stew on a cold, rainy night that just seems like perfection. I use champagne, or other dry white wine, because it gives a slightly sweet and bright flavor. It also keeps the color of the stew from turning that purpley grey color you can sometimes get with red wine. You can certainly substitute red wine, beer or more broth, if you prefer though.

Serve this stew in a big cappuccino mug with a thick slice (or two!) of homemade bread on the side. Pop a movie in the dvd player, get comfy and prepare for a cozy night in.

Beef Stew

2 1/2 pounds pot/chuck roast, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
~4 tablespoons oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
1/4 cup flour
2 cups champagne
4 cups beef broth
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 pound carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 1/2 pounds baby potatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces
~1/2 pound mushrooms, quartered or sliced
2 cups frozen green peas
additional salt and pepper to taste

Mix 1/2 cup flour, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper together in a plastic bag. Add cubed beef and shake until pieces are coated with flour. In large stock pot, over medium high heat, brown the cubed beef in batches using a tablespoon of oil at a time (meat does not need to be cooked through). Remove browned meat to a separate bowl as you finish browning the rest of the beef.

In same pot, over medium heat, saute onion in 1 tablespoon of oil, scraping up the brown bits from the bottom of the pot. Once the onions have softened and begun to turn translucent, add 1/4 cup flour and cook onions and flour together for a couple of minutes. Pour champagne and beef broth slowly into pot, stirring constantly to avoid lumps. Add the browned beef (and any juices that may have rendered out), bay leaf, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

After simmering for 1 1/2 hours, add carrots and potatoes. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer covered for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add mushrooms, bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer covered for 15 minutes, or until carrots and potatoes are tender. Remove bay leaf. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. 5 minutes before serving, add frozen peas, cooking just until peas are heated through.

Makes 10 servings

*****As with any recipe, feel free to add or omit any herbs and vegetables that you choose.

1 large onion is equal to about 2 cups.

Save time and buy “baby” carrots and cut them in half.

I like to use red or dutch yellow potatoes, cut in quarters. Leave the skins on.

Another shortcut is to buy a 10 oz. package of pre-sliced mushrooms.

This stew tastes even better the next day. It freezes well too.

More pictures at Flickr

After the past week of grey, rainy weather (which I adore!), I was craving something hearty and satisfying for dinner. Beef & eggplant curry sounded like a winner, so I cooked some up last night. Not the prettiest colors, but very tasty, and even better the next day.

Trader Joe’s Thai Red Curry Sauce is the key to this dish. It has a little bit of kick to it, so if you aren’t at all into spicy hot, you may wish to use their yellow curry instead. It’s milder and sweeter. Note that the red sauce does mellow out and lose most of its heat the next day.

And wouldn’t you know it - the weather has turned sunny again.

Beef & Eggplant Curry

2 pounds beef pot/chuck roast, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes
1/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
~3 tablespoons oil
1 large yellow onion, diced (about 2 cups)
2 cups beef broth
1 bottle (11 oz) Trader Joe’s Thai Red Curry Sauce
3 Japanese eggplants, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 6 cups)
additional salt and pepper to taste

Mix flour, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper together in a plastic bag. Add cubed beef and shake until pieces are coated with flour. Save any excess flour. In large stock pot, over medium high heat, brown the cubed beef in batches using a tablespoon of oil at a time (meat does not need to be cooked through). Remove browned meat to a separate bowl as you finish browning the rest of the beef.

In same pot, over medium heat, saute onion in 1 tablespoon of oil, scraping up the brown bits from the bottom of the pot. Once the onions have softened and begun to turn translucent, add reserved flour and cook onions and flour together for a couple of minutes. Pour beef broth slowly into pot, stirring constantly to avoid lumps. Add the browned beef (and any juices that may have rendered out) and the entire bottle of curry sauce. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

After simmering for 1 1/2 hours, add eggplant. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer covered, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes or until eggplant is tender. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Serve over steamed rice.

Makes 6-8 servings.

(Originally posted on January 12, 2008)