Pre snow frenzy! Meatloaf

Today the weathermen are hyping (overhyping?) a blizzard due to start after 9 pm. I spent the morning at two grocery stores and the wine store preparing to be tucked in for a day or two.

First on the agenda was an apricot, almond pine nut crumble cake from Giada

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/everyday-italian/almond-pine-nut-apricot-crumb-cake-recipe/index.html

My favorite meatloaf recipe was next:

2 bay leaves

2 teasp salt

½ teasp cayenne pepper

1 teasp black pepper,freshly ground

½ teasp cumin

½ teasp nutmeg, Seasoning Mix

4 tbsp unsalted butter

¾ cup diced onion

½ cup diced celery

½ cup diced bell pepper

¼ cup diced scallion

2 teasp minced garlic

1 teasp tabasco or cholula sauce

1 tbsp worcerstershire

½ cup evaporated milk or cream

½ cup ketchup

1½ lb ground chuck

½ lb ground pork

2 eggs

1 cup dry bread crumbs

Melt butter, saute vegetables thru garlic, worcestershire and seasoning mix. Saute 6 min. Stir in milk and ketchup. Cook 2 minutes. Cool to room temp. Preheat oven 350. Place beef and pork in bowl and add vegetables, eggs. Remove bay leaves. Add bread crumbs.

12 by 6″ pan

Or divide into 2 and freeze one.

Bake uncovered 25 min. Raise heat to 400 bake 35 minutes.

Red Lentil Soup

I am not original in my idea today as I saw it on my favorite bloggers site-http://userealbutter.com/2011/10/23/indian-dal-recipe/#more-8963orite blogger’s site  and it sounded so delicious. She lives in Boulder and is into all of the good things- hiking, photography, food, dogs, etc! . The recipe is so easy and comes together in 30 minutes. I like adding a can of coconut milk to replace some of the liquid. This soup can definitely take 8 cups of liquid and you can add more as needed. It is delicious served as is or over rice.

 

2 cups red lentils
2 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
1 tsp whole cumin seeds
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tbsps finely chopped ginger
4 cups vegetable broth or water (I used water and doubled it to 8 cups for a soupy dal)
1 1/2 cups chopped tomatoes, with juice
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
1 tsp ground turmeric
salt to taste
1 jalapeno pepper, stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped
1 lemon, juiced/strained to serve

 

Pour lentils out onto a large shallow baking sheet and pick out any stones or random stuff. Rinse and drain the lentils. In a large pot, heat the oil on medium-high heat. Sauté the onions until they are soft, about 5 minutes, then add the cumin seeds, cardamom, garlic, and ginger. Stir together while cooking for a couple of minutes until fragrant. Pour in the remaining ingredients except for the lemon juice. If you want a stew-like dal then use 4 cups of liquid (vegetable broth or water). If you prefer a soupier dal like I do, then use 8 cups of liquid. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer for 15 minutes until the lentils are soft, stirring frequently. I like to let it cook for 30 minutes, because I prefer lentils that are disintegrating. Stir in the lemon juice before serving.

Fall harvest

This morning I made Richard Olney’s soup au pistou with a few changes to the original recipe. The best part of the recipe is the pistou, which you make by grinding a handful of basil leaves in a mortar and pestle with salt and pepper, parmesan and olive oil. The flavor is sublime!

I bought a new ristra at the farmer’s market so decides to use up my older one by making a red chile sauce to slow cook a pork shoulder I bought from a farmer at the market yesterday. You toast the chiles for a couple of minutes, seed them and then simmer in boiling water for 5 minutes. Puree with 1 cup of the simmering liquid and add a teaspoon each of cumin and coriander, s&p, and a bay leaf. I poured that  mixture over the pork shoulder and am roasting it at 350 for two hours!

Next up is fresh pico de gallo from the last of my harvest tomatoes!