Pierogies

Sometimes I cook when I get stressed. Keeping track of ingredients, keeping my hands busy with making something delicious helps keep me calm.

The other night, I was feeling stressed, and knew I wanted to make something delicious and handmade. After squeezing all the liquid out of those zucchinis previously, I had been thinking about my Aunt Kathy's cabbage pierogies.

Not wanting to go quite as far as to steam and squeeze multiple heads of cabbage, I instead opted for the comfort food of cheese, potato and onion filled pierogies.

Aunt Kathy uses a Martha Stewart pierogie dough recipe, which I like. My filling consisted of salted boiled potatoes, some lactose free coffee creamer, crumbled queso fresco (it's what we had in the house -- but any salty cheese will do), and onions that I had carmelized into a sweet paste-like consistency. 

About half the little dumplings got fried in the handy cast iron, while the other half were boiled in salted water. I like mine served with sour cream and any leftover carmelized onions (there weren't any this time). We also had leftover of the curried yogurt sauce from the zucchini fritters, so I dipped in that as well.

They're not quite the crunchy flaky consistency of the pierogies at Veselka but they have a nice, doughy, homey flavor to them. Sweet and savory, hot and filling -- the perfect comfort food.


Aunt Kathy's Pierogies:

(adapted from Martha Stewart)
1 beaten egg
2 TBS sour cream
1 cup water
1 cup milk
5 cups all purpose flour

Whisk the sour cream into the egg, then slowly add the milk, then the water. Stir in most of the flour, then use the rest to knead the dough for 8 to 10 minutes.

Invert a bowl over the dough and let it rest for about an hour.

Cut off a softball sized chunk of dough, cover the rest with a damp towel. Roll the dough into an inch-wide rope and divide into walnut sized balls. Roll each one out until it's 4-5 inches in diameter and thin.

Use a small cookie scoop to fill in the center, shaping the filling slightly with your fingers. Fold the dough over and pinch on all sides.

Boil or fry (or in some cases, boil all of them, then fry -- depends on what you're in the mood for).

You made need to salt before serving.

Filling:

Mashed potatoes + carmelized onions (I follow Serious Eats' guide to carmelizing onions) + a salty cheese

Steamed, squeezed cabbage + cream cheese + shredded cheese

plain potato

farmers cheese

"A Tiger in the Kitchen" launch day: family recipes

Today I'm part of a group who are posting their favorite family recipes to honor our friend Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan, who releases her book, A Tiger in the Kitchen, today.

Cheryl put her talents as a cook and a journalist to good use for the book, learning recipes and family stories from her relatives in Singapore. She has asked us to share a family recipe today in that spirit of family and cooking.

My recipe is a simple one, and one I've shared before. My Nan's Irish Soda Bread is still one of my very favorite recipes and it's one that I learned when I was first starting to cook, back in my tiny college kitchen, with a crappy temperamental and bakeware that had seen finer days.

The first time I made Nan's bread was a complete failure -- but it had nothing to do with the quality of my kitchen. No, in my haste to copy the recipe from the e-mail my aunt had sent me, I had written 450 degrees instead of 350.

Miraculously, the bread wasn't too burnt, just hard as a rock. A big "350" is now scrawled across the top of the recipe in my notebook, so I never forget.

Nan's Irish Soda Bread:
4 c white flour
1/4 c sugar
1 tsp salt
1 heaping tsp baking powder
1/4 stick  butter broken into tiny pieces
optional: 1 c soaked raisins (I never use these -- always had to pick them out as a kid)

1 2/3 c buttermilk
1 egg
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp baking soda

Mix the first 5 ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mix the wet ingredients separately with the cream of tartar and baking soda, then add slowly to the flour mixture.

Knead gently and shape into a large round loaf.

Place on an oiled cookie sheet, cut a 4" X on the top, and brush with beaten egg.

Bake 60-70 mins at 350 F. Cool for as long as you bear to wait (I can usually only wait about 10 minutes!).

Serve with butter and enjoy!

---
So, raise a glass to Cheryl's success with the book. I'll try to update the post with other family recipes as I find them. (scroll to end of the post)

Go home and cook a meal with your family tonight. (or stop at your favorite locally owned bookstore and pick up Cheryl's book, like I am)

Call your favorite grandparent, aunt or uncle and ask for a family recipe. Share one of your own with your son, daughter, niece or nephew.

I hope I'm fortunate enough to have an adventure similar to Cheryl's with my Korean birth family some day. In 2007, I learned the basics of Korean cooking from the cook at Ae Ran Won home for unwed birthmothers. The stress of everything else going on with my birth family meant I didn't get the chance to cook with my halmonie and ohmma and learn from them. Hopefully I'll get that chance someday.

Update: here's a running list from Twitter of recipes posted so far:

#LetsLunch: Healthy recipes for 2011 (January)

After really falling off the bus and going a little treat crazy following Thanksgiving, I'm definitely ready for some focus in 2011 on my eating and exercising.

Last year was a great start -- I really learned how to lose weight for the first time. When I went to the gym 5 days a week, tracked calories and drank 1 liter+ of water a day, I lost weight. Regularly. In all, I lost 20 lbs last year (net loss, only 14 lbs, after having to re-lose 6 lbs when we moved).

So, I was excited to land on the theme of "healthy recipes for the new year" for this month's #LetsLunch.

#letslunch is a monthly "gathering" of food-loving writers from all over, hosted by Cheryl Tan, of A Tiger In The Kitchen.

We agree on a date and a theme, then each blogger presents his or her recipe on the chosen date (today).

If you are interested in joining, please send a Tweet using the hashtag and introduce yourself!

I made a dish from my friend Thea today. She's been dating my brother for about six years now, and we made this together last month for my mom's birthday.

Thea's Quinoa with Veggies Salad:

                                        

I made the quinoa salad yesterday for an office potluck -- at the office. I started the quinoa in the rice cooker, and prepped the veggies while it cooked. This is 2 cups of pre-rinsed quinoa and a quart of low sodium chicken stock.

About 1 teaspoon of salt and powdered garlic (don't judge me.... I was doing this in an office kitchen. Thea used real garlic -- about 2 cloves)

Then let the rice cooker work its magic.

Next, grab your veggies. I used two bright bell peppers and 1 1/2 zucchinis. Thea also uses asparagus, which I'm not a big eater of, so I skipped it here.

If you're cooking at home, dice the veggies and pan fry with the garlic, maybe a little onion until tender.

If you're cooking in an office kitchen, grab the Foreman (yes, we keep a Foreman Grill in our kitchen at work), slice the veggies and grill them.

Toss your grilled and diced veggies with the cooked quinoa, season with some smoked paprika, freshly cracked pepper, fresh chopped parsley and feta cheese. This recipe makes a pretty large bowl-ful!

Check out everyone else's offerings below:

Linda's Mesquite Date Muffins at Free Range Cookies
Steff's Frittata attempt at The Kitchen Trials
Cheryl's Watercress soup at A Tiger In The Kitchen
Mai's Spicy Roasted Cauliflower at Cooking In The Fruit Bowl

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Ok, a bit early. But I had my friends over for a big corned beef and cabbage dinner today.

St. Patrick's day is one of my favorite holidays, mostly because of the meal involved. My mom's side has done a big St. Pat's dinner the last couple of years that I've been around. Lots of fun (as is always the case with them), and a TON of food.

I only have one full-sized burner, so it involved a little creative maneuvering of pots and pans. By the end of the night, I had 4 corned beefs, 2 soda breads, 2 1/2 cabbages and about 7 lbs of potatoes.

The soda bread is my Nan's recipe, which I've written about before. In an attempt to cut down on the number of dishes, I did the bread in one bowl.

Cut up butter, sugar, salt and baking powder. Technically this is something that could be done in my food processor, but it seems more traditional to do it by hand.

Buttermilk, of course, the secret ingredient to Irish Soda Bread.

Egg wash keeps the inside moist and gives the outside a great crust.

End result? Beautiful.

Next up? the corned beef. I seasoned with kosher salt and white pepper, bay leaves then covered with water. I started one in my crock pot and one in a stock pot. The crock never got quite hot enough, so I had to finish the crocking one in the stock pot.

When the meat comes out of the boiling stock (after about two hours), score the fat side. Mix a paste of dark brown sugar and Guinness (or whiskey in a pinch) and spoon over the top of the meat. Bake covered at 375 for about 15 minutes, then uncover for another 10-15 minutes.

Flip the meat and score the other side. Spoon the remaining paste into the back side of the meat and bake uncovered at 375 until a nice glaze forms.

While the meat is baking, put the cabbage (cored and cut into quarters) and potatoes (also cut into quarters) into the same pot as the stock.

Season with salt and pepper as needed. Serve with butter and Irish soda bread.

Dreaming? of TONS of leftovers from this giant feast.

My kitchen wishlist

One month later, I'm all moved into a great new place, my new kitchen is set up, and I've been cooking like mad.

I haven't been spending as much time perusing the websites of William Sonoma or Crate and Barrel, because, well, I'm pretty much set! (sidenote: this was NOT necessarily the case during #snomageddon when I was literally running out of things to do)

But, the past week or so, I've noticed there *are* a few things I could do with.

So, here it is, my new Kitchen Wishlist:

• apron -- I keep cooking in old T shirts, all of which are now stained or oil splattered. It's becoming a nuisance, and wish I had an apron or two for clothing protection. Needs to be of durable material, so stains won't soak throw, and dark colors, so it doesn't get ruined the first time I use it. 
• Large, wide bowls. With the amount of mul naeng myun, and now pho, I eat at home, I need to stop eating of my mixing bowls (which, is too narrow, and I end up making a huge mess). I had some great ones (OK, they were plastic, but at least the correct shape) at my last place, from the dollar store, but I think they got thrown out. 
• Kitchen timer - I bought a $7 one at Target, and surprise surprise, it broke after about a week. Because my oven isn't that accurate, I just keep a close watch on things anyway, but it would be nice to know HOW LONG things have been cooking for.
• Sugar bowl - I love the tupperware set I have for storing flours, sugar and salt, but there is something that says to me "this is a home" when sugar can be stored in a beautiful little jar or bowl. My mother has a very distinct one, my grandmother has a very distinct one -- it's just something that feels important. And would be convenient. :) 
• Tiles - I recently saw a post about using simple tiles as a pizza stone and to moderate heat in your oven. My oven is notoriously bad for having even heating (as proved Sunday with burnt outsides and wobbly insides on my first attempt at pound cake). The concept of having an accurate and evenly heated oven sounds wonderful.

Kitchen Faves

OK, First Things First:

IT CAME!!!!!!!!!!!!

Merry Christmas to me! (courtesy of my VERY loving grandmother, Nan!!) I am now the VERY excited owner of a 9-cup Cuisinart food processor. Looking forward to making some soup and hummus this weekend to break it in!!

Now...

I feel like I've been having kitchen-withdrawal. Between being at my parents' house, and now being in the middle of the move, I've only been doing minimal cooking.

So, while I've been missing my kitchen things, I put together my list of my favorite kitchen things that I'm most looking forward to using when I finally get all set up! (which sounds like it may be Monday)

Tools I Love:

* short wood handled spreader

* hand held strainer

* bread knife

* pastry brush

* rice cooker

* kitchen scissors

These are all things that I love because I use them often, and use them for a TON of things. The spreader? it's a cheese knife, cupcake froster, mayo spreader, etc. The bread knife? best thing in my kitchen for cutting up pineapple. And while most people think they have no use for a rice cooker - I would counter that. You can make quinoa or couscous, you can steam fish or vegetables, and rice is a REALLY easy thing to prepare. This is my go to wedding gift - because most folks don't think to register for one. I, of course, also tuck my favorite fried rice recipes inside to give it a little personal touch.

Dreaming? of getting back into cooking every day, of course!!

Merry Christmas, kitchen!

As promised, here's the rundown of the great Christmas gifts I received this year -- nearly all to benefit my new kitchen! A beautiful candy/dessert bowl, french-style rolling pin (can FINALLY throw out that old wine bottle!!), various kitchen tools, new knives (and a knife technique course), and 8 bowls to match the plates my parents bought me for my birthday last year. I really do feel lucky to have such amazing friends and family to be supporting my cooking in 2010!! a BIG thank you to you all.

 

 

My grandmother also gave me some money for Christmas, and this is what I'm ordering once we get back to Washington:

A few notes on food-related gifts:

• Gifts for food people can generally be grouped into two categories: actual food-things, and cooking things. Some cooks might be picky about tools for his or her kitchen - though I'm still in the process of setting up my first kitchen, so I love all kinds of tools! Serious cooks, from what I can tell, tend to shy away from things that can only be used for one particular thing (garlic peelers, pineapple corers, etc) or things that are bulky to store (waffle makers, blenders, etc.)
• Another great gift is something that looks unique that can be used for serving: relish dishes, appetizer plates, bowls, serving spoons or tongs, sugar bowls, cream pitchers, salt/pepper shakers, etc. Places like Marshalls or Homegoods make these available at really great prices. They're also great because they don't necessarily have to match anything else at the table. 
• Actual food items are a great idea for folks cooking on a budget -- this can range from a simple grocery store gift card (maybe a place they might not usually be able to shop - cheese shops, Whole Foods, Kowalskis) to higher end ingredients your cook might not normally buy for him or herself: fancy olive oil (or other flavored oils: walnut, truffle, sunflower seed, etc), spreads and jams, peppercorns, dried mushrooms.
• And a great standby? Kitchen towels. I've received some fantastic dish towels from people -- a gift you use everyday, and rarely think to buy nice ones for yourself. Everywhere from Target to Williams Sonoma to Anthropologie sell a range of beautiful prints, patterns, and a variety of textures. 
  

Dreaming? of putting all of my new kitchen gear to use in the New Year!

#10in10 update: I started food journaling again - writing down everything that I eat, and the exercise I've done, each day as a strategy for the #10in10 challenge, hosted by Recipe Girl. Hopefully this will help me to think about everything that goes into my mouth throughout the day, and consider why I'm eating them!

Thanksgiving with the fam

OK, so ever since my parents moved our family away from New Jersey, it's always just been the four of us at Thanksgiving -- not very exciting.

But since I now live in Washington, a (usually) 4-hr drive up the coast back to NJ, I came up here for Thanksgiving and had the big holiday with my mom's family for the first time in, probably 15 or so years.

Last night we did a bunch of the prep work, made my aunt's soup, and started a bunch of the side dishes. Lots of fun, but I also learned that I am allergic to potato peels (I usually only make the skin-on red potatoes) -- as my palms swelled up to double their size, itched, burned and were bright red after we peeled the 10 lbs!!

Butternut squash soup

Sweet potatoes (SOOOOO good)

Brussels sprouts (same recipe as from intern thanksgiving!) - these were a HUGE hit with my family. I was really surprised!

Today there was a lot less to do, so I made some quick rolls - VERY easy recipe (see below), which were also a big hit

 

I also got put in charge of the mashed potatoes... and got to play with my aunt's Kitchen aid!! :-)

MMMM so many potatoes!

Thanksgiving feast.

In short, everything was DELICIOUS, and I had a blast with my family.

OK, here's the recipe for the rolls:

In a bowl, mix 1 package rapid action yeast, 2 TBS sugar, 1 c milk mixed with 1 c water heated to luke warm (about 120 degrees -- not too hot, do not kill yeast). Mix well, set aside in a warm place for 8-10 mins until foam appears.

In a large mixing bowl, sift together 5 c. flour (you can use whatever kind you like, I used good old All Purpose White), a tsp of salt, and a tsp season salt (if you like). Make a well, and pour the warm yeast mixture in. If the yeast doesn't foam, it's dead or you killed it. Start this step over.

Mix together until a shaggy dough starts to form. Drizzle up to 4 TBS olive oil into the mix, until all flour is combined. Turn out onto a well floured surface and knead for 10 mins. Return to well oiled bowl and over with damp tea towel.

Allow to proof for up to an hour (longer, if you are using slow yeast, or in a cold kitchen). Dough should be roughly double in size. Punch down (exactly what it sounds like), knead again briefly, then pull small sections (roughly the size of a golfball, I guess), and form a smooth, rectangle or finger shape (try to have as few seams as possible).

Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with sea salt. 

Bake 12-15 mins at 350 degrees