Where’s the Boeuf?

I know that Boeuf Bourguignon is so last year.  With its late summer release in 2009, “Julie and Julia” made it a popular comfort food last fall.  I don’t care; I want to write about it anyway.  I love it and have been making it for years.  And, although I adore Julia Child, own many of her cookbooks and regularly cook from “Mastering the Art of French Cooking”, her boeuf bourguignon is not my favorite.  It is not without comparing and contrasting Julia’s version with others that I arrive at my conclusion. 

Originally, a peasant dish, Boeuf Bourguignon has worked its way into the haute cuisine.  It was originally a way to tenderize tough cuts of meat (and how can you go wrong with anything browned in bacon fat and simmered in an entire bottle of red wine?). Georges Auguste Escoffier is credited with the first published recipe for Boeuf Bourguignon in the early 20^th century.  Since then, it has undergone subtle transitions as times have changed and cuts of meat have gotten tenderer.

My first introduction to Boeuf Bourguignon or Boeuf à la Bourguignonne or Beef Burgundy came after throwing a party during which a bottle of red wine was opened and left untouched.  The next day, I decided that I needed to cook with red wine and came upon a recipe for Boeuf Bourguignon.  It called for a bottle of red wine and that was all the encouragement I needed.  It was delicious!  After making it the first time, I decided to experiment and try other recipes to see which I liked best. 

I have tried three recipes for Boeuf Bourguignon:  Julia’s from “Mastering the Art of French Cooking”, a slow cooker recipe of forgotten origin and Tyler Florence’s from “Tyler Florence’s Real Kitchen”.  Hands down, the winner for me if Tyler’s version (and no, not because he is one of the hottest chefs on TV).

Those who know me well know that I am an analytical creature, so my choice has been made not just from the taste test but also from taking a close look at the ingredients and cooking methods to see why I like one better than the other.  So let’s get to the meat (boeuf?) of the matter and talk about what, in my opinion, makes a good Boeuf Bourguignon.

One of the most important steps of making a good Boeuf Bourguignon is browning the meat.  All three recipes agree on that point.  You have to get the meat browned on all sides, preferably using bacon fat.  The time I spent browning the meat, meant the slow cooker was out. To me a slow cooker is best used when there is no other cooking involved (just throw everything in the cooker and turn it on).  If I am going to spend 20 -30 minutes browning meat before putting the ingredients in the slow cooker, why bother?  The slow cooker recipe was not much of a time saver and didn’t taste as good.  End of slow cooker story.

Both Julia’s and Tyler’s recipes require full browning of the beef in bacon fat. Both require similar processes and ingredients; Tyler’s, however, calls for ¼ cup of cognac, 2 tablespoons of tomato paste and finishing the dish with 2 tablespoons of butter (Julia omits the cognac and butter and calls for only 1 tablespoon of tomato paste). The cognac and extra tomato paste add more depth and complexity of flavor. The cognac in Tyler’s recipe is added after the beef is browned and cooked in a bit of flour.  It is used to deglaze the pan and free all those tasty brown bits from the bottom of the pan.  The addition of butter to finish the sauce adds some extra richness (and in the style of Julia Child, what is not made better with a little butter?). Those are  the key differences that I believe makes Tyler’s version superior.

As much as I am a Julia devotee, I urge you to try Tyler Florence’s version.  Make them both and decide for yourself.  And don’t forget to serve your Boeuf Bourguignon over creamy mashed potatoes.

Here’s the recipe, verbatim;  I wouldn’t change a thing!

Beef Bourguignon
from “Tyler Florence’s Real Kitchen”

Serves 6 to 12 * Makes 3 quarts

Canola oil
4 bacon slices
3 ½ to 4 pounds beef chuck or round, cut in 2 x 2 inch cubes
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ cup all purpose flour
¼ cup Cognac
1 bottle dry red wine, such as Burgundy
1 (14 ½ ounce) can low-sodium beef broth
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Bouquet garni (1 fresh rosemary sprig, 8 fresh thyme sprigs, 2 bay leaves, tied together with a strip of leek)
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 cups pearl onions, blanched and peeled
1 pound white mushrooms, stems trimmed
Pinch of sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped for garnish

Place a large Dutch oven over medium heat; drizzle with a ½-count of oil.  Fry the bacon until crisp and then remove it to a paper towel; you’ll crumble it at the end and use it for garnish.  Add the beef to the pot in batches.  Fry the cubes in the bacon fat until evenly browned on all sides; turn with tongs. Season with salt and pepper.  (Don’t skimp on this step – it’s key.)

After the meat is browned, put it all back in the pot.  Sprinkle the flour over the meat; then stir to make sure the beef is well coated and there are not flour lumps.  Pour in the Cognac and stir to scrape up the flavorful bits in the bottom of the pan.  Cook and stir to evaporate the alcohol.  Pour in the red wine and beef broth; then add the tomato paste and bouquet garni.  Stir everything together and bring the pot up to a simmer.  Cook until the liquid starts to thicken and has the consistency of a sauce; this should take about 15 minutes.  Cover the pot, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 1 hour.

Uncover the pot and add the garlic, pearl onions, and mushrooms, along with a pinch of sugar to balance out the acid from the red wine.  Season with salt and pepper.  Turn the heat up slightly and simmer for 30 to 45 minutes longer, until the vegetables and meat are tender.  Remove the bouquet garni and then stir in the butter to finish up the sauce.  Shower with chopped parsley and the reserved crumbled bacon before serving. Deep and rich flavor!

Far above Cayuga’s waters

Although I have lived in the Pacific Northwest most of my life (Portland, Seattle and a couple of stints in Eugene for undergrad and graduate school), I spent my “formative” years in Upstate New York, namely, Ithaca.  My father was getting his PhD at Cornell while I was young and his entire family lived in and around Ithaca.  Summers were spent at numerous family get togethers, at my grandparents’ house or my aunt and uncle’s place on Cayuga Lake.   These were magical times as a youngster, particularly the times spent at the lake.  I had gazillions (or so it seemed) of cousins to play with and we swam, boated, explored, caught fireflies, built huge bonfires and roasted marshmallows for s’mores.  And, at every summer family event there was always Cornell Barbequed Chicken.

If you are not from Upstate New York, chances are that you have never heard of Cornell Chicken.  Robert C. Baker was a Cornell University professor who invented the Chicken Nugget and, you guessed it, Cornell Barbequed Chicken. While the value of the Chicken Nugget is dubious in culinary circles, Cornell Chicken, in my opinion, is a great addition to my barbeque repertoire.  It was originally developed as a way to sell more chicken, one of Baker’s primary missions.  After the consumption of chicken increased as a result of Baker’s work, the recipe for Cornell Chicken became a mainstay at the New York State Fair (at Baker’s restaurant called Baker’s Coop) and in many Upstate New York restaurants.

Cornell Chicken uses a vinegar and egg based sauce with a totally unique flavor.   The chicken is basted frequently as it cooks, and ideally, should be cooked over a low heat charcoal fire.  Baker provides very specific instructions about how to build a cinder-block fireplace in his paper “Barbequed Chicken and Other Meats”.  You don’t need to build a cinder-block fireplace, or even use a charcoal grill if you don’t have one; the low heat fire, and frequent basting and turning the chicken are key.  Baker’s paper also contains the recipe for the barbeque sauce, serving from 5 to 300 persons, as well as suggested foods to serve and supplies and equipment for a barbeque. 

Barbeque Sauce
from “Barbequed Chicken and Other Meats” by Robert C. Baker
(enough from 10 broiler halves)

Barbequed broilers without sauce are like bread without butter.  The barbeque sauce is a basting material.  Brush it on the broiler halves every few minutes during cooking.

1 cup cooking oil
1 pint cider vinegar
3 tablespoons salt*
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
½ teaspoon pepper
1 egg

Beat the egg, then add the oil and beat again.  Add other ingredients and stir.  The recipe can be varied to suit individual tastes.

*Adjust the quantity or eliminate salt to meet individual health needs and taste.  Barbecued chicken basted frequently during cooking will be saltier than chicken that has been lightly basted.

Place the broiler halves over the fire after the flame is gone.  Turn the halves every five to ten minutes, depending on the heat from the fire. The chicken should be basted at each turning. The basting should be light at first and heavy near the end of the cooking period.

Cooking time is about one hour, depending on the amount of heat and on the size of the broiler.  Test the chicken to see whether it is done by pulling the wing away from the body. If the meat in this area splits easily and there is not red color in the joint, the chicken is done.

Tips and Tricks

*You do not need to use broiler halves for this recipe.  It works with any chicken parts and I’ve even seen boneless, skinless chicken breasts used (although they are not as delicious as chicken with skin).  The trick is to make sure to carefully monitor the cooking time as some chicken pieces will cook faster than others.  Breasts will take the longest, so if you are doing a variety of pieces, start with the breasts first.
*Make sure your fire is giving off low heat.  I have seen a lot of burned Cornell Barbequed Chicken in my day, and it is not that tasty (or pretty).
*Baker suggests using the marinade for other cuts of meat.  I haven’t tried this yet, but it would be fun to experiment.

Summer Fun

I love summer!  I especially love summer entertaining:  usually outdoors, it is casual, and often spontaneous.  I love hosting impromptu barbeques by our pool, sometimes inviting whomever we happen to run into around town.  Kids swimming, adults socializing, everyone pitching in to man the grill – it is my favorite kind of party!  Because of their casual nature, our summer parties are generally potluck, with everyone bringing a dish to share.

I must admit, I don’t generally like potlucks when I am hosting a party or dinner.  I like to have control over the menu and often spend hours researching a theme and selecting the perfect dishes that reflect the current season and the theme, and that complement each other in flavor, texture, and appearance.  But summer is different.  Summer is when a watermelon or bag of chips counts as a side dish.  However,  I just cannot bring myself to show up with a bag of chips or a store bought salad.  First of all, it is an opportunity to cook!  And, perhaps to try out something new!  Or to make a tried and true favorite: rice salad.

 I know, rice salad doesn’t sound very glamorous.  But this rice salad is truly special.  It gets rave reviews every time I serve it and I always leave with an empty serving bowl.  It is one of my most requested recipes.  A little different from the summer salad staples potato and macaroni salad,  it won’t wilt like a green salad and contains no mayonnaise so you don’t have to worry about it giving anyone food poisoning.  It is easy to turn into a vegetarian/vegan option (just omit the shrimp).  Even though it requires a little effort, you can look at preparing it as an opportunity to practice your knife skills.  This rice salad is my “go-to” summer side dish and it  is easy to double or triple the recipe if you are serving a large crowd.

 It has a rather unwieldy given name:  Rice with Shrimp, Artichokes, Raisins, and Currants.  A better name might be Confetti Rice Salad because of how it looks.  I just call it Rice Salad.  The recipe comes from Pasta & Co., a Seattle gourmet take-out store.  They have several outlets in the Seattle area and stock delicious pre-made entrees and salads, fresh pasta, as well as an interesting selection of gourmet groceries.  My Pasta & Co. staple is the “House Herbs”.  I use them for seasoning grilled chicken breasts and pork tenderloin, and in salad dressings, among other things.  Check out Pasta & Co. if you happen to be in the Seattle area.

Rice Salad
Makes 6 cups
Adapted from Pasta & Co. Encore cookbook

¼ cup plus 3 tablespoons olive oil
¼ cup white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons finely minced garlic
¾ teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon pepper
¼ teaspoon dried basil
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
1 cup uncooked white rice, cooked according to package directions
6 ounces cooked, peeled shrimp, thawed, rinsed, and drained if frozen
½ cup canned artichoke hearts, drained and cut into eighths
1/3 cup finely diced red onion
¼ cup finely diced green bell pepper
¼ cup finely diced red bell pepper
3 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill weed
2 tablespoons capers, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons golden raisins, plumped in hot water and drained
2 tablespoons currants, plumped in hot water and drained
1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley

In a large bowl, whisk together olive oil, vinegar, garlic, salt, pepper basil, and oregano. 

Toss the cooked rice with the dressing.  Let cool. 

Add shrimp, artichoke hearts, onion, green and red bell pepper, parsley, dill weed, capers, raisins, and currants, tossing lightly to distribute evenly.  Spoon into serving dish and top with additional parsley.  Serve at room temperature.

 Tips and Tricks

*You can make the rice one day in advance.  Just bring it to room temperature before adding the remaining ingredients
*It is imperative that you use fresh dill and parsley.  Dried herbs (except for the oregano and thyme in the dressing) just don’t cut it
*I use the small, salad shrimp in this recipe; they are more economical and I think the size works better with the rest of the ingredients

A Glorious Fourth

Until I moved “home”, the small town where I spent a large part of my childhood, I never really cared much about the Fourth of July.  During the fifteen years I spent in Seattle, it was usually 55 degrees and raining on most Independence Days and I tried to go somewhere warmer and sunny.  Perhaps it is because I now have children and am seeing this holiday through their eyes, perhaps it is because I now appreciate this town in which I was raised… now, I look forward to staying home for the Fourth and filling my day with as many celebratory activities and parties as I can.

Our Independence Day starts off with a community pancake breakfast; then, marching in the town parade (anyone can participate, in fact, I think there are more people in the parade than there are spectators); attending an old-fashioned neighborhood picnic, complete with sack races and an egg toss; partying “on the lake” and culminating with watching fireworks – either from our house where we see fireworks all over Portland or at the community park for fireworks close up.  A very busy day, indeed.

Living in Oregon, the quintessential food for the Fourth of July is Strawberry Shortcake.  Oregon strawberries are like no other; certainly not like the hothouse-raised berries my husband sometimes calls “straw-melons” because of their size.  Oregon strawberries are generally smaller, a deep ruby color and sweet.  Their flavor is so intensely strawberry:  they often need no sugar to coax out their sweetness.  The only downsides are that their season is brief, generally mid-June to early-July, and they don’t ship well – so all you out-of-towners will just have to make an early summer visit to Oregon for a sample.  And for Strawberry Shortcake, you can use only fresh berries, making this dessert a truly special seasonal indulgence.

When it comes to Strawberry Shortcake, I am pretty much a purist.  No candied ginger, lemon zest, chocolate or Grand Marnier added to dress it up.  When you have the world’s best strawberries in your backyard, sometimes literally, you don’t need any flavor enhancers.  Strawberry Shortcake, in its classic form, is a sweetened biscuit topped with sliced fresh strawberries and a dollop or two of sweetened whipped cream.  The recipe below is adapted from Cook’s Illustrated. They have done the homework to come up with a superior biscuit, one to which I am making only minor modifications.

Strawberry Shortcake
Serves 6
adapted from Cook’s Illustrated Magazine’s “The Best Recipe”

8 cups strawberries, hulled

Sugar to taste

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface and biscuit cutter

1 tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

5 tablespoons sugar, divided

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled, cut into ½ inch pieces

1 large egg, lightly beaten

½ cup plus 1 tablespoon half-and-half or milk

1 large egg white, lightly beaten

2 cups lightly sweetened whipped cream

Crush 3 cups of the berries with a potato masher.  Slice remaining 5 cups of berries and add to the crushed fruit along with sugar to taste (up to 6 tablespoons).  Set filling aside for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours to macerate.

Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 425° F.  Mix flour, baking powder, salt and 3 tablespoons sugar in a large bowl.  Stir to combine.  Cut butter into dry ingredients with a pastry cutter until butter bits are no larger than the size of small peas.

Mix beaten egg with half-and-half; pour into bowl with flour mixture.  Combine with a fork until large clumps form.  Turn mixture only a floured work surface and lightly knead until it comes together.

Pat dough with fingertips into a 9 by 6-inch rectangle about ¾ inch thick, being careful not to overwork the dough.  Flour a 2 ¾ inch biscuit cutter; cut out 6 dough rounds (you can reroll scraps to make additional rounds; they will be a little tougher and not as attractive). Place rounds 1 inch apart on a baking sheet; brush tops with egg white and sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar.  (They can be covered and refrigerated for up to 2 hours before baking.)

Bake until biscuits are golden brown, 12 to 14 minutes.  Place baking sheet on wire rack; cool cakes until warm, about 10 minutes.

When biscuits have cooled slightly, look for a natural crack around the circumference of the biscuits.  Gently insert your fingers into the crack and split the biscuits in half crosswise.  Place each cake bottom on individual serving plate.  Spoon a portion of fruit and then a dollop or two of whipped cream over each cake bottom.  Cap with cake top and serve immediately.

The Right Tool

I am not much of a gadget person.  That doesn’t mean I don’t have my share of kitchen gadgets, acquired over time, some tried a few times, some never used.  I do; however, have some favorite tools that I cannot live without.  I’m not talking about the standard set of sharp knives that are a must have in every kitchen, or the cook and bake ware that are a requirement.  My favorite tools are a little bit more obscure for the average cook, but in my kitchen, are absolutely necessary.

Food Scale

I got my food scale about 17 years ago.  Sur la Table, before it was a national chain, had a single store in Pike Place Market in Seattle.  One year, they had a warehouse sale and I took the day off work to attend.  Heaven!  I spent a bit of money but acquired a lot of great kitchen gear and had a blast hanging out with “my” people who were willing to brave the crowds and stand in the long checkout line – one of those lines where you make friends with someone and they save your place while you run and find more treasures to put in your cart.

So, just why is a kitchen scale so important?  For general cooking and baking, you can get along fine with your measuring cups and spoons.  If you decide to “professional” baking, you cannot do without.  Professional bakers weigh all (or almost all) ingredients instead of using measuring cups. Weighing ingredients for baking is much more accurate, particularly with flour measurements, since the method used to measure flour in a measuring cup can cause the actual weight to vary significantly.  It is also much easier to double a recipe or halve it when using weights instead of measures.  And I find is so much easier to weigh things rather than get out all my measuring cups; I simply place my mixing bowl on the scale and measure into it.  Once I started baking this way, the quality of my baked goods improved and is consistent from batch to batch.  I now wish that all recipes would provide weights instead of measures.

Since my scale is something of a relic, they don’t make the particular model of kitchen scale that I have anymore.  It is a funky scale that, when all closed up looks like a pyramid.  The brand of my scale is Terraillon and the company is still in business making kitchen, among other types of scales.  I really cannot recommend any one scale for you to buy, since I have not shopped for a scale for almost two decades (yikes!).  I would say that my scale has performed beautifully since it continues to work, so the Terraillon company did something right.  I don’t ever even recall changing the batteries!  Here is what I will suggest when buying a scale:

*look for a scale with a digital readout.  Mechanical scales are still made and sold; however, the electronic scales are so much easier to read and use.  Your scale should measure, at a minimum, quarter ounces (eighth ounces are even better). 

*make sure it has a tare function.  This allows you to set a bowl on top, zero out the weight, weigh an ingredient, zero it out and repeat the process to weigh as many ingredients as you need. Buh-bye measuring cups!

*get a scale that measures both ounces and grams.  You never know when you are going to come across some recipe from the UK that lists all the ingredients in grams.  It is way easier to have the scale do all the work for you rather than trying to do the conversion yourself.

Food Gloves

I can hear you saying “Food gloves, why do I need those?  I don’t work in food service.”  Food gloves are one of my best friends in the kitchen.  I use them for so many things.  Have you ever chopped a jalapeño or other hot pepper and, even *after* washing your hands, taken your contact lenses out?  Ouch!  I always use food gloves for chopping hot peppers – and if you don’t want your hands to be stinky from chopping onions and garlic, well, food gloves are the answer.  Food gloves are essential when working with chocolate – they keep the chocolate from coming in contact with your skin and thus keep the temperature of the chocolate lower as you work with it.  Hand rolling truffles is an excellent application for food gloves.  Working with meat and not wanting to cross contaminate?  Food gloves.  Making Rice Krispie treats and burning your hands while pressing the Rice Krispie marshmallow mass into the pan?  Food gloves.  Need I say more?  Go out and get yourself a box of food gloves, they’re cheap.  I get mine at Cash & Carry.

Instant Read Thermometer

I am guessing most of you have a thermometer of some sort in your kitchen, likely a meat thermometer that you put in the roast and leave there throughout the cooking process. Nothing wrong with that; however, an instant read thermometer is much more versatile.  I use mine when roasting meat and barbequing, but also for baking and tempering chocolate. Making custards, lemon curd, my infamous coconut macaroons… all those items require the use of an instant read thermometer.  I even have a whisk with an instant read thermometer built right in – one of the kitchen gadgets I couldn’t resist (fortunately it gets used from time to time).  An instant read thermometer allows you to – you guessed it – get an instant reading on the temperature of something that you are cooking.  You can get one of these handy items almost anywhere:  the grocery store, cooking shop… I’m pretty sure my local hardware store even carries them. One word of warning:  do not leave put yours into the meat and leave it in while the food is in the oven or BBQ.  Most are made with a plastic dial cover and it will melt!

Portioning scoops

If you do a lot of baking you will want several sizes of portioning scoops.  They are so handy when measuring out batter for cupcakes or muffins, allowing an equal distribution into your tins.  I also use them for measuring out cookie dough, macaroons and truffles.  I have used my small scoop in the past for measuring equal portions for meatballs and crab cakes.  This is another one of those must have tools for which new uses present themselves after you have taken the plunge and added it into your collection. I get my scoops at Cash & Carry – they have a number of sizes and are a great value.

When life gives you parsley…

When I typically purchase parsley, I use only a small amount to spice up a dish or to use as a garnish.  Then the rest of the bunch gets put back into the produce drawer to rot and eventually get discarded.  Last summer, I had the good fortune to be given three weeks of a CSA share by a friend going on vacation.  During one of those weeks, I went up to nearby Luscher Farm to pick up my surprise box of produce and found, not one, but two bunches of parsley.  Clearly, I was not going to do enough cooking in the next week to use up two bunches of parsley as a garnish. Determined not to let my parsley – or any of the other produce I received from the CSA go to waste (except the kohlrabi, I never did end up using the kohlrabi), I needed to come up with some way of using it.

Growing up, parsley was the green garnish on virtually every restaurant meal.  My mom said you should eat it to give you good breath.  To me it didn’t taste all that great and was pretty much a waste (I much preferred when they garnished dishes with a cinnamon apple slice).  I also didn’t like the texture of the curly parsley that was pervasive on every restaurant dish.  As an adult, I discovered Italian parsley, also called flat-leaf parsley:  it has a much less offensive texture and a more pronounced flavor.  It is now my “go-to” parsley; I never buy curly parsley anymore unless specified in a recipe.

So, what to do with my abundance of organically grown flat leaf parsley?  Tabbouleh!  I have always liked tabbouleh (also spelled tabouli); however, until last summer, I had made it only a few times.  So I set off to find a good tabbouleh recipe and came upon a recipe in Ina Garten’s Barefoot Contessa Parties! cookbook.  Cookbook addict that I am, I own all of the Barefoot Contessa cookbooks.  They are some of my most used cookbooks; her recipes are straight forward and often just simple combinations of really great ingredients.  The tabbouleh recipe is a wonderful illustration of this simplicity and great flavor.

Tabbouleh is a Middle Eastern salad dish, originating in Lebanon, typically made of finely chopped parsley, bulgur, mint, tomato, spring onion, and other herbs with lemon juice, olive oil and various seasonings.  Ina Garten’s version is a variation on the traditional tabbouleh and is so delicious, I wouldn’t change a thing.  You can do what I do, and just eat it straight out of the bowl, or, you can serve it with grilled chicken or lamb for a healthy dinner, or stuff it into pita bread with some feta cheese for a filling lunch. It is a good thing my family doesn’t like it because I end up eating all of it myself!  

To get you inspired to make tabbouleh, watch this silly tabbouleh dance club song…

Tabbouleh
from Barefoot Contessa Parties!
Serves 8

1 cup bulgur wheat
1 ½ cups boiling water
¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2  lemons)
¼ cup olive oil (I use Extra Virgin)
3 ½ teaspoons kosher salt (divided)
1 cup minced scallions, white and green parts (1 bunch)
1 cup chopped fresh mint leaves (1 bunch)
1 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley (1 bunch)
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded and medium-diced
2 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Place bulgur in a large bowl, pour in the boiling water, and add the lemon juice, olive oil, and 1 ½ teaspoons salt.  Stir, and then allow to stand at room temperature for about an hour.

Add the scallions, mint, parsley, cucumber, tomatoes, 2 teaspoons salt, and the pepper; mix well.  Season to taste and serve, or cover and refrigerate.  The flavor will improve if the tabbouleh sits for a few hours.

Granola Girl

I love granola.  Perhaps I owe my love of granola to the six years I spent going to college and grad school in Eugene; it is, after all, a pretty “earthy, crunchy” town.  One of my favorite breakfasts is yogurt (these days, I am really digging Greek yogurt, more about that below in Tips and Tricks), fresh fruit, granola and a little bit of honey.  I don’t like just any granola, I am pretty picky… so, a few years ago I started making my own granola.  It is a pretty easy undertaking and is significantly less expensive that buying pre-made granola.  And, you can customize it to be just how you like it!

Most of us think of granola as a popular cereal during the hippie movement of the 1960’s; however, granola (called granula) was actually invented in 1894 at the Jackson Sanitarium, a prominent health spa in Dansville, New York.  At around the same time, Kellogg, the cereal company, produced a commercially available granola out of graham flour that resembled what we know as Grape Nuts.  Granola evolved to become a cereal primarily made out of toasted oats, not to be confused with muesli, which is made from raw oats.

The granola recipe I use was in the Seattle Times Sunday magazine, Pacific Northwest.  I have lost the original article; however, I recall it providing a recipe for granola for which most of the ingredients could be purchased at Costco – a great way to go if you are making big quantities of granola.

 My favorite way to make this granola is plain, with no added nuts or fruits.  I have adapted the recipe below as I like to make it and have included directions for how to customize it with your choice of nuts and fruit.  The only trick is to know when to add the fruits and nuts that you like during the baking cycle.

Granola
adapted from the Seattle Times, Pacific Northwest Magazine, December 5, 2004

8 cups quick-cooking oats
1 cup canola oil
1 cup maple syrup
1 cup honey
¼ cup water
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon kosher salt

Preheat oven to 325°F. Pile the oats into a large mixing bowl.

In a saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the canola oil, maple syrup, honey, water, vanilla extract, and salt.  Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring to prevent it from boiling over.  Pour the syrup over the oats and stir until the mixture is well combined.

Spread the granola onto two rimmed baking sheets and bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes.  Rotate the pans, exchanging the top for the bottom and the bottom for the top.  Continue baking, rotating the pans every 10 minutes until the granola is evenly toasted and golden brown.  At this point, turn the oven off.  Allow the granola to dry out in the residual heat of the oven. (This ensures that the cereal will be dry enough to keep.)  Transfer the cooled granola to an airtight container.  Serve with cold milk or yogurt.  Properly dried and cooled before its packed, homemade granola will stay fresh for at least a week.

To customize to your liking:

• For this quantity of granola, use 2 cups each of nuts and fruits
• Add the nuts after 15 minutes of baking
• Add the fruit when baking is complete after you have turned off the oven
• You can use any combination of dried fruits, nuts, seeds, coconut – get as creative as you want!

Tips and Tricks

1.  If you don’t have any rimmed baking sheets, I highly recommend getting a couple. I use mine for all sorts of cooking and baking: granola, cookies, brownies, roasting tomatoes and vegetables… the list is long.  I get mine from Cash n’ Carry.
2. Greek yogurt is expensive.  To make your own Greek yogurt, just buy plain regular yogurt (it can be fat-free, low-fat or whole milk).  Line a colander or coarse strainer with a “flour sack” type dish towel, or  about 10 layers of cheesecloth. Dump the yogurt into the lined strainer and twist or tie the top. Wait for about two hours or so, until the yogurt has reduced in volume by about half (you can choose the consistency you want by letting it drain for a shorter or longer time period).  Scoop the yogurt out and put into a covered container (I use the same container in which the yogurt was purchased).  My favorite brand of yogurt (also a carryover from my days in Eugene) is Nancy’s – in addition to making a great yogurt, they also have a wonderful history and are celebrating their 50^th year in business! Check out their website or this story from The Oregonian.