Ingredients

• 1 1/2 c. dried lentils
• 5 c. cold water
• 8 oz. bacon, diced
• 1 lb. ground chuck
• 1 lg. onion, chopped
• 1/2 c. chopped bell pepper
• 1 lg. carrot, chopped
• 1 lg. tomato, chopped
• 1/2 tbsp. butter
• 1/2 tbsp. flour
• 2 c. beef stock
• 1 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/8 tsp. black pepper
• 2 tbsp. vinegar

Preparation

Combine the lentils and water in a soup pot and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes. While the lentils simmer, brown the bacon in a skillet and remove to a paper-towel lined plate to drain. Discard the bacon drippings. Add the ground chuck to the skillet and cook until nicely browned. Drain well. Add the beef, bacon, and vegetables to the lentils. Melt the butter in the skillet, blend in the flour, and then add the salt, pepper, and vinegar. Cook, stirring constantly, until thickened and bubbly, about 3 minutes. Pour in the beef stock, stir well to blend, and then add to the soup pot and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover, and simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until the flavors are well-blended.

Penzey’s Spices

Ingredients

• Ground venison and ground pork, in a 3-to-1 ratio [CP: I used 1 lb. / 1/3 lb.]
• 3/4 cup bread crumbs
• 1 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 teaspoons basil
• 2 teaspoons oregano
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon pepper
• Olive oil

Preparation

Sautee the onion until translucent, cool. Mix all ingredients. Sautee meatballs in olive oil, browning on 4 or so sides to make sure they’re cooked through. Serve with pasta. [CP: I did this with white wine cream sauce, and it was wonderful – reminiscent of all the good things about Swedish meatballs.]

T. Edward Nickens, Field and Stream

Ingredients

• 8 oz. Shanghai-style noodles (cu mian) or udon
• 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 12 oz. ground pork
• salt and pepper
• 2 Tbsp. chopped peeled ginger
• 3/4 c. chicken stock
• 2 Tbsp. (or less) chili oil [this is where to control the heat]
• 2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
• 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 2 tsp. tahini
• 1 tsp. Szechuan peppercorns
• Pinch sugar
• 2 Tbsp. chopped roasted peanuts
• 2 Tbsp. thinly sliced scallions

Preparation

Cook noodles in a large pot of boiling water until just tender but still firm to the bite. Drain; transfer to a large bowl of ice water and let stand until cold. Drain well and divide between 2 bowls.

Heat vegetable oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add pork, season with salt and pepper, and stir, breaking up pork with a spoon, until halfway cooked, about 2 minutes. Add ginger; cook until pork is cooked through and lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Stir in chicken stock and next 6 ingredients; simmer until sauce thickens, about 7 minutes. Pour pork mixture over noodles; garnish with peanuts and scallions.

Serves 2.

Peter Chang’s Tasty 2, via Bon Appetit

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large red or white onion, quartered and thinly sliced crosswise
• 1 bunch chard, leaves only, chopped
• Salt and freshly milled pepper
• 1 garlic clove
• 6 to 8 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 2 tablespoons chopped basil
• 2 teaspoons chopped thyme
• 1 cup grated Gruyère
• 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan

Preparation

Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a 10-inch skillet, add the onion, and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until completely soft but not colored, about 15 minutes. Add the chard and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until all the moisture has cooked off and the chard is tender, about 15 minutes. Season well with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, mash the garlic in a mortar with a few pinches of salt (or chop them finely together), then stir it into the eggs along with the herbs. Combine the chard mixture with the eggs and stir in the Gruyère and half the Parmesan.

Preheat the broiler. Heat the remaining oil in the skillet and, when it’s hot, add the eggs. Give a stir and keep the heat at medium-high for about a minute, then turn it to low. Cook until the eggs are set but still a little moist on top, 10 to 15 minutes. Add the remaining Parmesan and broil 4 to 6 inches from the heat, until browned.

Serve trouchia in the pan or slide it onto a serving dish and cut it into wedges. The gratinéed top and the golden bottom are equally presentable.

Epicurious: Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 3/4 lb. Spanish chorizo, sliced into 1/2"-thick rounds
• 6 stalks green garlic, thinly sliced
• 2 leeks, chopped white and light-green parts
• 1 tbsp. smoked paprika
• 2 1/2 c. short-grain rice (bomba, Valencia, calasparra)
• 1/4 tsp. saffron threads
• 7 c. hot seafood or chicken stock
• kosher salt
• 3 1-1 1/4 lb. lobsters, halved lengthwise, claws cracked
• 2 c. shelled peas or frozen peas, thawed
• 1/2 c. parsley lemons

Preparation

Prepare a hot fire in a charcoal grill. Let burn down to red-hot coals; rake to edge of grill. (For backup, start a second round of coals in a charcoal chimney on pavement nearby.) Put a 16"-18" paella pan on grill grate; heat olive oil. Add chorizo, green garlic, and leeks; cook until golden, 3-4 minutes.

Add smoked paprika and rice; cook, stirring often, until rice is coated, 2 minutes. Add saffron to the stock, and add the stock to the pan and season to taste with salt; stir to distribute ingredients. Let cook, undisturbed, until stock simmers and rice beings to absorb liquid, about 10 minutes. Rotate pan every 2-3 minutes to cook evenly.

Arrange lobsters over the rice. Continue cooking, rotating the pan often, as the rice swells and absorbs the stock. Add more coals from the chimney to maintain even heat under the pan. Cook until the rice is almost tender and the lobster is cooked through, about 10 more minutes.

Scatter peas on top. (If the liquid evaporates before the rice is tender, add more hot stock.) Cook without stirring, allowing the rice to absorb all of the liquid, so that a crust develops on the bottom and the edges begin to dry out and get crusty, 5-10 minutes, for a total cooking time of about 40 minutes.

Remove pan from grill. Cover with large clean kitchen towels and let rest for 5 minutes. Garnish with parsley and serve with halved lemons, making sure to scrape some of the crust from the bottom of the pan onto each plate.

Bon Appetit, July 2011

Ingredients

• 3 lb. pork butt, cut into 1- to 2-inch cubes
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp. pepper
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp. chili powder
• 8 ounces cola, plus more for cooking
• 1/8 cup soy sauce or teriyaki
• 1/4 cup pineapple juice
• Juice and zest of 1 lime
• Juice and zest of 2 oranges
• 1/4 cup minced garlic
• 2 Tbsp. cumin
• 1 dried habanero or ancho chile
• 4 flour tortillas
• 1 avocado, sliced
• 1 recipe Grilled Peach and Corn Salsa

Preparation

Combine paprika, salt, pepper, garlic powder and chili powder and rub into pork cubes.

Mix cola, soy sauce, pineapple juice, lime juice and zest, orange juice and zest, garlic and cumin and cover pork. Marinate pork in the refrigerator 2 to 6 hours.

Remove pork from marinade (reserve liquid), and sear meat in olive oil on all sides in a heavy-bottom pot. Add reserved marinating liquid and dried chili and simmer for approximately 2 hours. Liquid should reduce to a glaze by the 1 1/2 to 2-hour mark. To keep meat moist during earlier cooking time, add additional cola as needed. Meat should be falling apart tender. Can keep up to 5 days in the refrigerator. Saute to reheat.

Serve in flour tortillas with slices of avocado and grilled peach and corn salsa. Serves 4.

Rachel Mabb

Ingredients

• 1 giant, round crusty loaf
• 2 good steaks (boneless)
• 5-6 tbsp. butter
• 1 lb. mushrooms, sliced
• 7 oz. shallots, diced
• salt and pepper
• some garlic
• some brandy
• Worcestershire sauce
• horseradish
• Dijon mustard

Preparation

Slice the top off of your crusty loaf, and hollow out the middle. Melt the butter, and cook the shallots and mushrooms. Add garlic, brandy, salt and pepper, and Worcestershire sauce to taste. Sautee your steaks in some butter or oil of their own, seasoned w/ salt and pepper. Place one of the steaks into the loaf. Add all the mushroom mixture. Top with the other steak. Spread horseradish and Dijon, to taste, over the top. Take the whole loaf, wrap in parchment paper, string, and tin foil, and weight down with a cutting board and some nice heavy books, overnight (preferably in your cool basement, not in the refrigerator). The next day, slice into wedges as you’d cut a pie (just cut through the paper/foil), and enjoy.

The Grauniad

Ingredients

• Iceberg, red or romaine lettuce leaves, washed and chilled
• Fried rice [Mom: I’ve been making Yangzhou Fried Rice (Epicurious, 7/08)]
• Bamboo shoots
• Snow peas
• One large pork chop
• 1 tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 tbsp. mirin, rice wine, sherry, etc.
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 6 oz. mushrooms, sliced thinly

Preparation

Julienne bamboo shoots and snow peas. Thinly slice pork and marinate in soy, wine, and sugar. Stirfry all together with bamboo shoots and mushrooms. Serve in wraps with fried rice.

Ingredients for Dolmades

• 2 lbs. ground lamb
• 2 large onions, grated
• 1/2 cup minced parsley
• 1/2 cup long grain rice
• 2 egg whites (save yolks for sauce)
• 2 TBSP minced fresh mint
• s & p
• 1 jar grape leaves
• chicken broth

Preparation for Dolmades

Combine all filling ingredients and mix well. Rinse, drain, and separate grape leaves. Cover the bottom of a 4-quart saucepan with 4-5 leaves. Roll 1 TBSP filling in each grape leaf. Place close together in even layers in saucepan. Add enough chicken broth to cover rolls. Place a small plate directly on top of rolls to weigh down. Cover and simmer for 1 hour.

Ingredients for Sauce

• 2 to 3 cups broth from pot
• 2 eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1 TBSP cornstarch

Preparation for Sauce

In small saucepan, boil broth. Combine eggs, yolks, juice, and cornstarch in blender. With blender running, slowly add hot broth. Return to saucepan and stir over low heat until thickened. Pour sauce over rolls. Eat.

Grandmommy

Ingredients

• 1 mango, peeled and diced small
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced small
• 1 c. thinly sliced scallions
• 1 c. chopped cilantro
• 1 tbsp. vegetable oil
• 2 tbsp. wine or balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
• 2 c. cooked quinoa, cooled (~3/4 c. raw)
• 1 15-oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1-2 finely diced jalapeño peppers (optional)

Preparation

Mix everything together and serve over greens.

Penzey’s Spices