Moosewood Mondays : Fried Green Tomatoes

I'm finally back ! I'm on vacation since 4 days and after emptying the luggages, going grocery shopping and so on (and trying to get a hold the computer for longer than five minutes) I managed to cook one of the recipes I found on the Moosewood's site (not enough room in the suitcase for cookbooks).

I had been curious about the fried green tomatoes since I saw the movie, but had never tried them; while I was preparing them my brother told me we were going to dye of too much solanine and said I could prepare arsenicum-tomatoes as well...but a few hours have passed and we are all still alive.

Please visit Natashya, the creator of Moosewood Mondays, to see what see choose today.

If you dare trying them (maybe not on a daily base) the recipe follows (you can find it along with other ones here)

RECIPE

from Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant

This unusual, tangy side dish was popular in my family. Try it while you're waiting for the tomatoes in your garden to ripen. Use only tomatoes that are entirely green and unripe.

Serves 6 to 8

3 large or 4 medium unripe tomatoes (very green-not red at all)
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
cayenne, Tabasco, or other hot sauce (optional)
⅓ cup unbleached white flour
2 tablespoons white or yellow cornmeal
¼ cup vegetable oil

Slice the tomatoes into quarter-inch slices. Discard the ends. Spread the slices out on a platter or cutting board and sprinkle generously with salt, black pepper, and, if desired, cayenne or Tabasco. Turn the slices over and season the other sides.

In a shallow bowl, combine the flour and cornmeal. Dredge the tomato slices in the flour mixture, one at a time, covering each side thoroughly. Using 2 forks to the this job keeps your hands neat. Shake any excess flour off the tomato slices.

Heat the oil in a heavy frying pan, preferably well-seasoned cast iron. When the oil is hot but not smoking, fry the slices in batches; don't overcrowd the pan. Fry for about 3 or 4 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Serve immediately.

Moosewood Mondays : Moroccan Stew

I was craving this dish since a few days, and my neighbours were all making it so I finally got out of the fridge what I had and started cooking.

You will see I made a few substitutions, in fact I used zucchini as a pose to green beans and artichokes and forgot the black olives. I made a little cous cous (too little !) to go with it and finally had my wished-for dinner !

Please visit Natashya to check what she prepared for us (Magari !) magari it's a typical italian word that means : 'I wish it was so'.

Moosewood Mondays : Chocolate Pudding Cake

What to do when you have someone coming for dinner, the pizza take-out is full of orders, the kids are starving and the pasta water never boils ? Let the kids fix the dessert !

This pudding is very easy to put together but it is fun too.

And not bad at all as you can see...

The recipe is from Moosewood Restaurant Celebrates.

Please visit Natashya for her Moosewood recipe.

Moosewood Mondays : Broccoli Mushroom Noodle Casserole

I don't know how you choose the recipes you cook and post I think the right way would be to choose the recipe and then go shopping well I usually have some things in the fridge and search the index of my cookbooks to find a suitable recipe, in this case I was lucky: I had broccoli, mushrooms and tagliolini, it was a sign !

The Moosewood book this time is THE original by Mollie Katzen.

Please visit Natashya and check her Moosewood's recipe !

RECIPE

	16 ozWide egg noodles; or less
	2 tbButter or margarine
	2 cOnions; chopped
	3 mdGarlic; minced
	1 lg bunchfresh broccoli; chopped
	1 lbmushrooms; Sliced or chopped
	1/2 tsSalt; to taste
	Lotsfresh black pepper
	1/4 cupdry white; Optional
	3 eggs; beaten, Optional
	3 cCottage cheese
	1 cSour cream; (may be lowfat)
	1 1/2 cFine bread crumbs;

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter or oil a 9 x 13-inch baking pan. Cook the noodles in plenty of boiling water until about half-done. Drain and rinse under cold water. Drain again and set aside. Melt the butter or margarine in a large skillet, and add onions and garlic. Saute for about 5 minutes over medium heat, then add broccoli, mushrooms, salt, and pepper. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the broccoli is bright green and just tender. Remove from heat and possibly add optional white wine. In a large bowl, beat together optional eggs (or not) with cottage cheese and sour cream or buttermilk. Add noodles, sauteed vegetables, and 1 cup of the bread crumbs. Mix well. Spread into the prepared pan, and top with remaining bread crumbs and, if desired, grated cheese. Bake covered for 30 minutes; uncovered for 15 minutes more.

Moosewood Mondays : Potatoes Latkes

As an Italian, I have very mixed origins : my last name, Maovaz, always requires some spelling, as my mother's (Delcroix).

My Grandfather was born in what was then the Austro-Ungarian Empire, has become Jugoslavia and now is Croatia, on my mother's side her grandparents came from Belgium.

My nonno Maovaz was Buddist but none of my ancestors was Jewish that I know of.

In Rome there is a big Jewish Community, actually is the oldest in Europe, dating back to the II century B.C. and, as you can imagine Roman Jews eat pasta and not Latkes !

I'm very interested in the Jewish world as in the Jewish Cuisine, but, I must admit, these fritters are so good my children deveaured them without much interest in their origins !

The recipe calls for rutabaga and beets as well but I have never seen a rutabaga in my life and beets are no longer around.

Please visit Natashya to see what wonders she came up to !

RECIPE

(from Moosewood Restaurant Celebrates)

3 cups peeled and grated Russet Potatoes

1/2 cup grated onions

2 eggs lightly beaten

1/4 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspon ground black pepper

1/2 cup peeled and grated rutabaga (I skipped this)

1/2 cup peeled and grated beets (I skipped this too)

1/2 cup chopped parsley (no green things wanted)

2 Tablespoons fresh dill (same as above)

1/4 cup vegetable oil

Line a colander with paper towels. Place the grated potatoes and onions in the lined colander and vigorously press out as much liquid as you can, until the grated potatoes are somewhat dry. This will help create crisp latkes.

Transfer the grated potatoes and onions to a large bowl and stir in the eggs, flour, baking powder, salt and pepper. Divide the mixture among three smaller bowls . Mix the rutabaga into the first bowl, the beets into the second and parsley and dill into the third.

Preheat the oven to 200°.

Warm the oil on high heat in a large cast iron skillet until a drop of batter sizzles. Drop the batter into the skillet and fry until both sides are crisp.

Moosewood Mondays : Asian Turnips with Wasabi

Today I found some nice white turnips at the market and decided to give them an oriental twist thanks to 'Moosewood Restaurant Celebrates' recipe.

We like salmon and crusted in sesame seeds and cooked with garlic and ginger seemed a good pairing for the turnips.

Please check what Natashya is Moosewooding today !

Recipe (from Moosewood Restautant Celebrates)

Wasabi paste

2 teaspoons wasabi powder

2 teaspoons warm water

1 pound turnips

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 tablespoons water

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 teaspoons brown sugar, lightly packed

1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds

In a small bowl combine the wasabi powder and water and set aside.

Slice off and discard the ends of the turnips and peel them with a potato peeler or pairing knife. Cut them in half lenghtwise, and then slice each half into thin half-moons.

Warm the oil in a skillet on medium heat, add the turnips, and sauté for about 4 minutes, until very slightly browned. Add water, cover the pan, and steam for 6 to 8 minutes, until tender. (I skipped this part, my turnips were already soft after sauteeing) Meanwhile whisk together the wasabi paste, soy sauce, and brown sugar in a small bowl.

When the turnips are ready, remove from the heat and toss with the wasabi mixture. Stir in the sesame seeds and, if you like top with sliced scallions and /or slivers of red bell pepper for color.

Moosewood Mondays : Sweet Pumpkin Cookies

Quite some years ago I found a copy of 'Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant' in an english bookshop that sadly doesn't exist anymore and I fell in love with the Moosewood collective, now I own almost all their books and Mollie Katzen's too of course.

I really enjoy reading through them and was surprised when 'Volcano' Natashya started to cook Moosewood's Mondays so I'm finally joining her with one cookie recipe that manages to please all.

RECIPE

(from Moosewood Restaurant New Classic)

Yields about 42 cookies

1 cup butter, room temp (I used rice oil)

1 cup sugar

1 cup pumpkin purée

1 egg lightly beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup chopped toasted peanuts (I used almonds)

1 cup raisins

1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375°.

In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add the pumpkin, egg and vanilla and mix until well blended. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinamon, allspice, and salt, and add to the mixing bowl. Stir well to form a soft batter. Stir in the chopped nuts, raisins and, if you like, the chocolate chips.

Drop by rounded teaspoonsfuls onto a large, unoiled baking sheet (or two smaller ones), allowing a little space for the cookies to spread as they bake. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the cookies just begin to brown slightly on the bottom.