Here are some revelatory cooking tips I want to share. You might know these already so forgive my enthusiasm!
Banana Sorbet
If you have a juicer you are already psyched but especially now when you hear about this! Freeze some bananas, run them through the juicer and you have the smoothest creamiest most delicious banana sorbet ever. Add some berries and it's even better. You may want to freeze it more before serving but this blew my mind.
Greens
Blanch and shock your greens to soften them and hold the color before you saute. It makes a huge difference! Do a bit at a time so you don't lower the temperature of your cooking water and as soon as they have softened, pop them in an ice bath to stop the cooking. When you're ready to finish, pop them in your saute pan and cook as you like, with a bit of garlic, olive oil etc. We had some collards with garlic and smoked paprika and they were fantastic.
Roasted Potatoes
These aren't necessarily diet food but a little insane deliciousness is a good thing I think.
Preheat oven to 450.
Cut potatoes into 8 pieces. Put in a pot with water just covering them and bring to a boil. using a fork or a bamboo skewer, cook until about halfway or 3/4 the way done. Remove from the water and drain, (you might want to use a dishtowel to remove any excess water.)
Lay potatoes on a cookie sheet and toss generously with olive oil. Roast for about 45 minutes until they are golden brown and you see a nice crust.
Toss with coarse salt, pepper and some rosemary or whatever herb you are feeling. Eat about 5 minutes later and you will have your mind blown.
Poached Pears with Apple Cider Reduction
Peel pears, cut in half, remove seeds and inner spine and cover with a bit of lemon juice to prevent oxidation.
Bring 3-4 cups of apple cider to a low boil. Add some cloves, star anise, Cinnamon or whatever hard spices you like. Don't over do it!
once the cider is boiling, add pears so they are covered. In class we put a piece of parchment paper cut to size above the pears to keep them in the liquid. Using a bamboo skewer, test the doneness of the pear, it should be soft but not mushy.
Remove from the liquid and set aside.
Let the cider continue cooking until it is the consistency of a syrup.
Pour over the pears and serve on their own or with ice cream (soy cream, frozen yogurt?)
More soon!!
2 comments:
whoa! all those sound so good!
And not that hard! That's what's so cool, it's just these little useful secrets that help so much. I watch so many cooking shows but somehow it just doesn't sink in.
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