Good morning GUSpachos!!! Actually it is about 8:40 p.m. EDT as I type. Unlike the rest of you lazy sleepy heads, I'll be up early to be at the door of the Y -- it opens at 7 a.m. I will already have my bathing suit on (covered up, of course) and ready to go. I can get in a mile and a quarter on Saturday and Sunday because I'm a slow poke -- today it took me 63 minutes.
Then I have over an hour of upper body weight stuff and 40 minutes on the stationary bike which is just an opportunity for me to read my Kindle.
The Y will be in repair mode soon -- they are staggering which areas get work done. The pool will only be closed one day -- I can manage. But the frigging weight room will be closed 5 days!!!!!! I do have free weights here and yoga tapes. But, Jeebus, that's a lot of down time for me now that I'm neurotic.
Oh, I'm supposed to be addressing quitting smoking. Well, you wouldn't have a smoking elderly body like mine if you didn't go to the gym!!! It is the breathing that is the remarkable difference. I used to huff and puff just going up the stairs to my apartment.
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ninkasi23 wrote a great What's for Dinner -- Tomatoes diary Saturday night. Lovely recipes. Local tomatoes are even coming in here in Connecticut. My porch plants are growing but they don't have the benefit of good garden freedom. I'll get a few ripened ones and the rest will have to be fried green tomatoes -- a Maryland staple.
The Neeley's Fried Green Tomatoes
This couple have become one of my favorites. I don't have a teevee but they are on the Food Network (with a bunch of loser cooks with nice teeth and toned bodies). All of the Neeley recipes I've tried are brilliant. I have a more simple one for fried green tomatoes -- flour, green tomato and oil, but this one is a must try for me.
Ingredients
Oil
4 green tomatoes, cut into 1/4-inch rings
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon garlic powder
4 eggs
2 tablespoons milk
1 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs
Pinch cayenne pepper
Pinch paprika
Buttermilk Dipping Sauce, recipe follows
Directions
In a deep-fryer, preheat oil to 350 degrees F. [you can use a frying pan -- I use my old cast iron one]
Season tomatoes, on both sides, with salt and pepper. Place flour and garlic powder in a shallow dish. In another shallow dish, beat eggs with the milk. In another dish, mix bread crumbs with cayenne and paprika. Dredge tomatoes through the flour, then the eggs, and then through the bread crumbs. Add only a few pieces to the fryer at a time, so they can cook evenly, about 2 to 3 minutes. Drain on paper towels and serve with Buttermilk Dipping Sauce:
Buttermilk Dipping Sauce:
1 cup apple cider
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3/4 cup buttermilk
3/4 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons Neelys BBQ sauce
1 lime, juiced
4 scallions, sliced thin
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the apple cider and brown sugar. Allow to reduce until thick and syrupy. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
In a medium bowl, add buttermilk, mayonnaise, BBQ sauce and lime juice and whisk well. Add in the scallions and the apple cider mixture. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve with Fried Green Tomatoes
America's Test Kitchen's Greek Style Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta
Serves 4 to 6
This recipe works equally well with jumbo (16 to 20 per pound) or extra-large (21 to 25 per pound) shrimp, but the cooking times in step 3 will vary slightly depending on which you use. If you don’t have ouzo, see “No Ouzo?” (below) for suggested alternatives. Our preferred brand of canned diced tomatoes is Hunt’s, and our preferred brand of feta cheese is Mt. Vikos Traditional. Serve the shrimp with crusty bread or steamed white rice.
INGREDIENTS
1 1/2pounds shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails left on, if desired (see note)
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons ouzo (see note)
5 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed through garlic press (about 5 teaspoons)
1 teaspoon Grated zest from 1 lemon
Table salt and ground black pepper
1 small onion, diced medium (about 3/4 cup)
1/2 medium red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and diced medium (about ½ cup)
1/2 medium green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and diced medium (about ½ cup)
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1(28-ounce) can diced tomato, drained, 1/3 cup juices reserved (see note)
1/4 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh parsley leaves
6 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (about 1½ cups) (see note)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill leaves
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Toss shrimp, 1 tablespoon oil, 1 tablespoon ouzo, 1 teaspoon garlic, lemon zest, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper in small bowl until well combined. Set aside while preparing sauce.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in 12-inch skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion, red and green bell pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and stir to combine. Cover skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables release their moisture, 3 to 5 minutes. Uncover and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until moisture cooks off and vegetables have softened, about 5 minutes longer. Add remaining 4 teaspoons garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add tomatoes and reserved juice, wine, and remaining 2 tablespoons ouzo; increase heat to medium-high and bring to simmer. Reduce heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until flavors have melded and sauce is slightly thickened (sauce should not be completely dry), 5 to 8 minutes. Stir in parsley and season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. Reduce heat to medium-low and add shrimp along with any accumulated liquid to pan; stir to coat and distribute evenly. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until shrimp are opaque throughout, 6 to 9 minutes for extra-large or 7 to 11 minutes for jumbo, adjusting heat as needed to maintain bare simmer. Remove pan from heat and sprinkle evenly with feta. Drizzle remaining tablespoon oil evenly over top and sprinkle with dill. Serve immediately.
Note: If you don't have ouzo, you can substitute with Pernod or 1 tblsp. vodka plus 1/8 tsp. anise seed.
h/t to belinda ridgewood: Sounds like one can also use anisette or sambuca. I know Pernod is delicate in cooking so maybe start with a titch less of any substitutes.
French Tomato Tart
Another amazingly great food website: David Lebovitz: Living the Sweet Life in Paris OMG!!!! Gorgeous recipes, pictures, visual directions.
One 9- or 10-inch (23-25 cm) tart
Adapted from A Culinary Journey in Gascony
Because this is ‘country-style’ fare, this tart is open to lots of interpretation. For those of you with tart dough “issues”, you can make this either free-style or in a fluted tart ring with a removable bottom. Kate didn’t let the dough rest, but simply rolled it out, transferred it into the tart ring, and ran the rolling pin over the dough to neatly shear away the edges.
If you wish to make a free-style tart, roll the dough out to about 14-inches across, then transfer it to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicon baking mat. Assemble the tart, leaving a 2-inch (5 cm) border, which you’ll then fold up to enclose the tart.
Depending on the size of your pan, you may have a bit of dough leftover. We used it to make a few mini-tartlets, which we enjoyed later than evening with our aperitifs.
Tart Filling
One unbaked tart dough (see recipe, below)
Dijon or whole-grain mustard
2-3 large ripe tomatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper
two generous tablespoons chopped fresh herbs, such as thyme, chives, chervil, or tarragon
8 ounces (250 g) fresh or slightly aged goat cheese, sliced into rounds
Optional: 1 1/2 tablespoons flavorful honey
Tart Dough
1 1/2 cups (210 g) flour
4 1/2 ounces (125 g) unsalted butter, chilled, cut into cubes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
2-3 tablespoons cold water
1. Make the dough by mixing the flour and salt in a bowl. Add the butter and use your hands, or a pastry blender, to break in the butter until the mixture has a crumbly, cornmeal-like texture.
2. Mix the egg with 2 tablespoons of the water. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the beaten egg mixture, stirring the mixture until the dough holds together. If it’s not coming together easily, add the additional tablespoon of ice water.
3. Gather the dough into a ball and roll the dough on a lightly floured surface, adding additional flour only as necessary to keep the dough from sticking to the counter.
4. Once the dough is large enough so that it will cover the bottom of the pan and go up the sides, roll the dough around the rolling pin then unroll it over the tart pan. “Dock” the bottom of the pastry firmly with your fingertips a few times, pressing in to make indentations.
If making a freestyle tart, simply transfer the dough to a prepared baking sheet (see headnote); no need to make indentations with your fingers.
5. Preheat the oven to 425ºF (218ºC). See note.
6. Spread an even layer of mustard over the bottom of the tart dough and let it sit a few minutes to dry out.
7. Slice the tomatoes and arrange them over the mustard in a single, even layer. Drizzle the olive oil over the top.
8. Sprinkle with some chopped fresh herbs, then arrange the slices of goat cheese on top. Add some more fresh herbs, then drizzle with some honey, if using.
(If baking a free-form tart, gather the edges when you’re done, to envelope the filling.)
9. Bake the tart for 30 minutes or so, until the dough is cooked, the tomatoes are tender, and the cheese on top is nicely browned. Depending on the heat of your oven, if the cheese doesn’t brown as much as you’d like it, you might want to pass it under the broiler until it’s just right.
Note: Kate indeed does cook her tart in a very hot oven. You might wish to check the tart midway through baking and turn it down a bit in case the top is getting too dark, before the crust and tomatoes appear to be cooked.
GUSpacho from Williams-Sonoma
This chilled soup comes together in a flash and makes a lovely light dinner on a hot summer evening. Use the best-quality ingredients you can find, including vine-ripened heirloom tomatoes. The soup needs to be refrigerated for at least 1 hour before serving to allow the flavors to develop, so plan accordingly.
1/2 red onion, chopped
3 lb. heirloom tomatoes, cored and chopped
1 1/2 cucumbers, peeled, seeded and chopped
1/2 tsp. plus 1 Tbs. kosher salt, plus more, to taste
5 tsp. fresh lemon juice
4 Tbs. olive oil
2 tsp. minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp. minced fresh thyme
2 Tbs. sherry vinegar
2 cups cubed French bread
1 large red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
Crème fraîche for garnish (optional)
In a small bowl, stir together 1/2 cup of the onion, 1 cup of the tomatoes, 3/4 cup of the cucumbers, the 1/2 tsp. salt, 1 tsp. of the lemon juice, 1 Tbs. of the olive oil, the parsley and pepper. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.
In a blender, combine the remaining onion with the remaining 4 tsp. lemon juice, the 1 Tbs. salt, the garlic, thyme, vinegar and bread. Turn the blender on, slowly increase the speed to the highest setting and blend until smooth, stopping the blender to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add half of the remaining tomatoes, cucumbers and bell pepper and blend until completely smooth, about 1 minute. Transfer to a large bowl. Blend the remaining tomatoes, cucumbers and bell pepper until smooth. Transfer to the bowl and season with pepper. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 1 day.
Just before serving, transfer the soup to the blender. With the blender set on the lowest setting, slowly stream in the remaining 3 Tbs. olive oil and blend for 1 minute. Adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper.
Ladle the gazpacho into bowls. Garnish each portion with a heaping spoonful of the diced vegetables and a dollop of crème fraîche. Serves 4 to 6.
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