Christmas Latkes

Yup, you read that right, Christmas latkes. We decided this year, to make breakfast the focal point of our Christmas day dining. Latkes are some of our favorite breakfast foods, and while not especially difficult to make, they are time consuming. I usually make pseudo-latkes out of leftover mashed potatoes--delicious, but not the real thing.

I had made proper latkes before, but I was looking for the perfect potato pancake. The first stop in my quest, was what is the right kind of potato? I generally found 2 answers: Yukon Gold or Russet. I found this perplexing, as these potatoes have entirely different starch content. One recommendation I found was that if Russets are used, the latkes would be crispier. Usually my lakes are flavorful, but a bit soggy, so Russets were the way to go.

I used a recipe from My Fudo to nail down a technique, but the ingredients are based on what I've always used and include panko breadcrumbs rather than just flour. The technique they've developed is a winner--these are the most perfectly textured latkes I have ever eaten.

Latkes (serves 4-6)

• 2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and placed in a bowl of cold water
• 1 onion, grated, with moisture squeezed out with paper towel/tea towel
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 C AP flour
• 1/2 C panko bread crumbs
• 1/3 C finely chopped parsley
• seasoned salt, to taste
• generous amount of black pepper, to taste
• canola oil, for frying

1. If not serving immediately--and by immediately from the fryer to a quick blot on paper towels and into someone's mouth--place a large baking sheet in your oven or warming drawer and preheat to 200 degrees. Prepare a second small baking sheet or plate and cover with paper towels, set next to your workspace. 
2.  Prepare a large bowl of cold water. Begin grating the potatoes to a medium shred and place the shredded potatoes into the cold water. Once all of the potatoes have been shredded, allow to sit for 5 mins. Place the potatoes in a colander and rinse with cold water. Squeeze any extra moisture out of the potatoes with paper towels or a clean tea towel, or put them through several spins in a salad spinner. 
3. In a large bowl, combine the grated potatoes, onion, beaten eggs, flour, panko, parsley, salt and pepper to taste. Mix until well combined.
4. In a large, heavy bottomed skillet, pour canola oil to a depth of about 1/2 in. Heat on medium-high heat. When a single shred of potato sizzles on contact with the oil, the oil is ready. 
5. Form the potato mixture into 2-inch pancakes with your hands. Carefully add a few to the oil, being careful not to crowd the pan. Check frequently, and flip when golden brown on the bottom, cook a few more mins until brown on both sides.
6. Carefully remove the latkes from the oil and allow to blot on the sheet/plate with the paper towels. Quickly remove the pancakes from the plate and allow to warm in the oven. Serve warm with sour cream.

Kitchen Notes: I added the step of extracting extra moisture from the potatoes and onions, because it has always been my understanding that the drier the item to be fried, the lighter and crispier the texture, and this seemed to work for me.

                                                      So much potatoey deliciousness!

Verdict? The texture of these latkes was incredible. They were perfectly crispy and light as a feather, I was incredibly impressed. They also soak up almost zero oil--I used the same single sheet of paper towel for the entire batch and it was not saturated at all. These are a lot of work, but well worth it!

                                                             Happy New Year Everyone!

Chipotle Roasted Veggie Omelet

In the continued quest for Things that Would Be Delicious with Chipotle Sour Cream, indexed in recipe, Smoky Lentil Soup, we revisited Baked Goat Cheese Quesadillas, which took to the flavored sour cream well. This time for veggies we used: (1) red pepper, (1) zucchini, (1) green bell pepper, (1) poblano pepper, (3) very tiny Yukon gold potatoes, (1/2) red onion, (1/2) yellow onion, seasoned with chili powder, garlic powder, Goya Adobo seasoning, and McCormick Montreal Steak Seasoning. We used the leftover veggies to make a kick-butt omelet.

  A beautiful, warm, October day...Great for eating on the porch, but not for taking photos!

I must give credit where credit is due. This idea to throw our leftovers in an omelet comes from my husband. Problem is, I didn't really know how to make an omelet. Sad, no? So, it was Google, You Tube, and Jacques Pepin to the rescue:

I selected the country style omelet. I haven't quite developed a taste for the class French omelet. The video is worth a watch, even if you have graduated from the French Culinary Institute, just because his accent is so charming. I recommend that you follow his directions, rather than my paraphrased ones, the result will most likely be far better.

Roasted Vegetable Omelet (serves 2)

• 1 C roasted vegetables ( from baked goat cheese quesadillas, following the recipe below, or based on your own  whims)
• 1 chipotle pepper & adobo sauce, chopped
• 4 eggs
• salt & pepper
• butter 

1. Combine the chipotle pepper with the vegetables and set aside.
2. Place 2 tsps of butter in an omelet or (gasp!) fry pan and begin to heat. Meanwhile, crack open the eggs and place in a bowl, whisk vigorously with a fork until the albumin begins to break down. Add salt & pepper to the eggs and continue to mix. 
3. When the butter has begun to brown, add 1/2 the eggs. Very lightly stir with a fork or chopstick (I drew lines across the pan, like cutting a pizza).  Cook for about a minute, or just to your level of doneness.
4. Add 1/2 C veggies on half of the egg mixture, then fold the other half of the egg over the mixture. 
5. Invert the omelet onto a plate (really, you need to watch Jacques do this). Repeat the above with the 2nd omelet. 


For the roasted vegetables:

• 1 red pepper, sliced thin
• 1 zucchini, sliced thin
• 1 green pepper, sliced thin
• 1 poblano pepper, sliced thin
• 3 very small Yukon gold potatoes, scrubbed and sliced thin
• 1/2 red onion, sliced thin
• 1/2 yellow onion, sliced thin
• olive oil
• chili powder
• garlic powder
• Goya Adobo seasoning with cumin
• Montreal steak seasoning 
• pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a roasting pan, toss all of the vegetables and drizzle with olive oil. Toss the veggies until well coated with the oil.
2. Liberally add the above seasonings to your liking. I probably used about a 1/2 tsp for each. Stir the veggies until coated with oil, seasoning mix.
3. Bake for 40 minutes, stirring every 10 mins to avoid sticking. 

Kitchen Notes: This recipe can take poetic license regarding the seasoning and veggies used. This recipe for me was based on the convenience of what I could cobble together quickly.


Verdict? This recipe was just fun for me. It rivaled a good quality omelet from a fancy brunch joint, allowed me to use up some leftovers, and to learn how to cook something new that I really should have mastered long ago!

Ingredient Elimination: Veggie Cream Cheese

Note: I've cooked a lot of recipes in the past few weeks, and due to a family emergency, I've been unable to post. I'm going to try to catch up over the next week.

This could also be called "Crisper Drawer Cream Cheese" since I basically assessed the contents of my crisper and added the stray bits to this cream cheese. The ingredient to be eliminated in this edition of Ingredient Elimination is soy cream cheese. I'd used 4 oz of soy cream cheese to make creamy tomatillo sauce for vegan fried green tomatoes. I prefer soy cream cheese in dips--its flavor is neutral and it creates a better consistency than conventional cream cheese--but used for its intended purpose, it has a strong soy flavor, a strong tofu flavor, which doesn't work so well with a bagel. Not wanting it to go to waste, and not wanting the stray veggies in the drawer to go to waste, I whipped this up. If I had intended to make this, selecting the ingredients from the market, the veggies would be a lot different. There'd probably be a bit of roasted pepper, perhaps a touch of tomato, and maybe some capers or chives.

Crisper Drawer Veggie Cream Cheese (makes ~6 oz)

• 4 oz soy cream cheese
• 1/2 carrot, coarsely chopped
• 1 green onion, coarsely chopped
• 1/4 large zucchini, coarsely chopped
• freshly ground pepper

1. Pulse all above ingredients in a food processor. Don't puree, but mix until the veggies are in fine bits. Allow cream cheese to sit in fridge before serving. Add additional black pepper when serving.

Kitchen Note: Don't omit the pepper. It really enhances the flavor of the veggies.

Verdict? As mentioned above, these aren't my #1 choices for a veggie combo for making cream cheese (it's a bit muted), but it definitely succeeded with regard to: 1) taking the "soy" edge from the soy cream cheese; 2) using up some of the veggies in the fridge. I found this much fresher tasting than conventional veggie cream cheeses, and it's a quick-and-dirty way to increase veggie intake and decreasing the fat content without resorting to (gasp!) low fat cream cheese.

Cherry Almond Oatmeal

Last day of vegan week! (Um, reporting 4 days late) Today I ate:

• Cherry-almond oatmeal
• Tamale casserole
• Spanish Veggie Soup**
• Apple
• Caraway Finn Crisp
• To drink: water, seltzer, coffee

 To recap, I feel positive about how well we did. But first, a segue. When I was 11, I decided to try vegetarianism for a month. I'm currently 28. I'm still a vegetarian. 1 week of veganism, however, did not give me the desire for a lifelong commitment to the lifestyle. My husband and I decided, though that we might try to do this once a month or so.

Alright, without further ado, a rather yummy breakfast recipe. This is modified from my go-to, Moosewood Restaurant New Classics. 

Cherry Almond Oatmeal 

• 2 C rolled oats (not instant)
• 4 C water
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 C raw, slivered almonds
• 3 Tbsp cherry pie filling, plus extra

1. In a pot with a tight-fitting lid, add the oats, water, and salt. Bring to a boil. Lower to medium-low heat and cook, stirring frequently for 5 mins.
2. Toast the almonds on a baking sheet at 350 degrees for 5 mins until aromatic. 
3. Add the cherry filling to the oatmeal, and continue to stir frequently, for 5 mins. Add the almonds and continue stirring. 
4. Let cool for 2-3 mins, then serve immediately. Add extra nuts and cherry filling as desired.

  Kitchen Notes: I found 1 tsp of salt to be way too salty, I recommend reducing to 1/2 tsp, you can always add more toward the end. I used a cherry-almond compote that I bought on clearance at Art Mart in Urbana. See pic below:

Verdict? Being a child of the instant oatmeal--and I mean microwave instance oatmeal--generation, I didn't appreciate how wonderful the texture of slow-cooked oatmeal is. Creamy, velvety, buttery, all without dairy. I'm excited to make this again. As mentioned above, it was a bit salty. Dial down the salt.

Vegan Tempeh Sausage

It's a long backstory, but my husband and I are going vegan for a week. In full disclosure, we have some concessions. Anything perishable in the fridge that would spoil as a result of our neglecting it for a week, is exempt, including both leftovers and some whole ingredients. So, there will be some consumption of turkey (him), leftover poblano stuffed peppers (me), and a paneer-rice casserole (us). Also, without getting into a lengthy explanation, we are not omitting honey or white sugar.

Provided we can commit to this for a week, here is a skeleton of a planned menu with some possible meal/snack options for the week that may or may not appear as blog posts:

• vegan tempeh sausage
• pepita/cranberry snack mix
• chili-lime pistachios
• Indian bi bim bop
• broccoli bow ties
• fried green tomatoes
• cashew cream
• Spanish bean soup
• carmelized onion & spinach hummus
• almond oatmeal
• enchilada casserole
• lentil bolognese
• japchae
• bean burritos
• polenta with maple/cranberry topping

I promise you, we will not get to all of these, and some may be disasters. But that's the fun of the kitchen.

Anyway, this morning I made vegan tempeh breakfast patties. Be forewarned: If you expect this to taste like genuine sausage, you will be sorely disappointed. Additionally, though the recipe says they are patties, they are more suitable for crumbles. If you're looking for a low-fat alternative to sausage, you will also be disappointed as tempeh is not low-fat and the recipe uses a lot of oil. On a happy note, the fat is healthy fat, tempeh is packed with protein (20g a serving) they are quite yummy, and smell like Thanksgiving!

Recipe taken from my standby, Moosewood New Classics. Wording changed.

Vegan Tempeh Sausage (serves 4 hungry people)

•  16 oz tempeh (2 packages)
• 3 Tbsp canola oil
• 1 tsp dried sage
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 3 Tbsp AP flour

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Heavily oil a large cookie sheet.
2. Crumble the tempeh and place in a steamer basket. Steam for 10 minutes or until soft. While the tempeh is steaming, whisk together the remaining ingredients in a small bowl. Use 2 Tbsp of the oil, reserve the remaining Tbsp.
3. When cool enough to handle, place the tempeh in a large bowl and add the small bowl of mixed ingredients. With clean hands, combine til well incorporated. Add additional oil or flour if necessary. Mixture will be crumbly.
4. Roll into balls (1 in or larger), place on cookie sheet and flatten to 1/3 in or so. Brush with the remaining oil.
5. Cook for 5 mins until tops are brown, flip, and cook for an additional 5 mins.


Kitchen Notes: Unfortunately, these do not form into patties well, they are super crumbly, fall apart easily, but are by no means dry. The original recipe calls for only 2 Tbsp flour, but it was impossible to bind the ingredients. The additional Tbsp does not impart a floury taste nor does it dry out the patties. I saved half of the mixture and reserved it for another recipe when I realized it was so crumbly. My phone settings make the patties appear yellow, they were actually a nutty brown color when done.

Verdict: If you require a perfect presentation, avoid this recipe. If you don't mind a patty that falls apart when you eat it, you may enjoy this. It's far more nutritious than commercial veggie sausages, and is exceptionally tasty in my opinion. As mentioned above, they're crumbly, but not dry at all. It would be a great filler for an omelet (negating the vegan factor, I know!) or for a veggie sausage gravy. The ends are perfectly crispy, the middle juicy, chewy and satisfying. A keeper.