Friday, May 29, 2009

slightly questionable

honey-barbecue boneless chicken wings. spinach calzones dipped in marinara sauce. cool ranch doritos. any kind of potato chip, by the bagful. i can get on board with lots of slightly questionable frat-boy food, but for some reason, i can't stomach cold pizza. something about the translucent congealed cheese, i think. now, cold korean pancakes, on the other hand, i'll gladly wolf down (preferably leaning against the fridge door, illuminated by the eerie glow).


they're even better hot, of course. when my mom makes these seafood- and zucchini-filled pancakes, everyone (okay, just me) crowds around the stove, waiting for the first mouth-searing bite.



i can't say these are as good as my mom's, but nothing ever is, is it? i think these are close, though.



korean pancakes

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups water
1/4 tsp. baking powder
2 large eggs
salt and pepper
2 small zucchini, julienned
4 scallions, sliced lengthwise and cut into 2-inch pieces
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 lb. shrimp, cooked and chopped
canola oil for frying

whisk together flour, water, baking powder, eggs and salt and pepper to taste. thin batter with a little more water if desired. stir in zucchini, scallions, garlic and shrimp. heat a thin layer of canola oil in a large skillet. drop pancake batter by 1/4 cup in skillet; quickly spread out to make as thin as possible. fry 2 min. on each side, pressing down with spatula to compress, or until golden brown and crisp.

dipping sauce: combine 2 tbsp. soy sauce, 2 tsp. seasoned rice vinegar and a few grinds black pepper in a small dish.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

oh hi, summer


it's about time. just sayin'.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

emergency quiche

i know it's 70 degrees and may and all, and i should be eating fresh salads and strawberries--not caramelized onions and frozen spinach and...(gulp)...heavy cream. especially since i just ordered a tiny green bikini from j.crew. but tonight just wasn't the night.

i made a tuna salad for lunch last night, tucked it in the fridge and promptly left for work without it this morning. after a long day of nothing but saltines and peanut butter, i came home ravenous...only to find this.

sad, no?

so, inspired by the lovely joy the baker , i grabbed some eggs and a carton of cream left over from mother's day and made a crustless quiche.



and you know what? it was damn good. just the thing to bring for lunch tomorrow, if i can remember.


emergency quiche
adapted from joy the baker

1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 tbsp. butter
1 10-oz. box frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed out
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded or small-diced
3 extra-large eggs
1 cup heavy cream (all right, i guess you can use milk..)
salt
pepper
nutmeg
cayenne pepper

heat oven to 375 degrees F. saute onion in butter over medium heat 10 min., or until golden brown. arrange onion, spinach and cheese in greased 9" pie plate. in bowl, whisk together eggs and cream; season with a pinch each of salt, pepper, nutmeg and cayenne. pour custard over vegetables in pie plate. bake in preheated oven 35 min.

Friday, May 8, 2009

shiny and new

hello?

if you're there, lovely reader, welcome to my shiny new blog. here is where i'll document my adventures and (let's face it) mishaps in the kitchen, and life in general.

well, that's that. and now...pizza.



jon and i made pizza yesterday. two delicious pizzas, to be exact.



it was the kind of meal that induces food comas (and did, in the case of one unnamed individual).



jon made olive oil dough from the life-changing artisan bread in 5 minutes a day and it came out perfect, crispy and chewy.


yes. pizza.


olive oil dough
adapted from artisan bread in 5 minutes a day

1-1/2 cups lukewarm water
3/4 tbsp. granulated yeast
3/4 tbsp. kosher salt
1/2 tbsp. sugar
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
3-1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

mix the yeast, salt, sugar and olive oil with the water in a large bowl. use a spoon to stir in the flour until no dry spots remain. cover and let rest at room temperature about 2 hours. shape and bake immediately, or refrigerate in a lidded container for up to 12 days.

to make pizza, shape dough into two 1/8-inch-thick rounds. top with desired toppings and bake at 500 degrees F about 10 minutes.