Pasta Georgina

I've been working lately on assembling a binder full of our favorite recipes - the ones that we eat and say to each other, "Why don't we eat this every week?" My hope is that if I have them indexed in one location that I'll remember them better when I'm doing my meal planning, but the problem is that there are so many of them. I also have a binder of recipes I want to try, and a third binder of recipes I like well enough to keep... The "Foods We Eat" project is taking much, much longer than I imagined it would.

I have the recipes organized by categories that I have listed in my four week menu plan. My menu plan has general headers for each day of the week, like Mexican on Thursdays or leftovers on Wednesdays, then within each I have slightly more specific ideas like for Italian I have pasta, pizza, and polenta. Then when I'm planning my menu for the week, if the idea is pasta, I choose a pasta recipe based on what sounds good and what produce is seasonal and what I happen to have on hand. I haven't much stuck to the days of the week thing - I tend to switch the days around based on what ingredients need to be used before they spoil and what our schedule is and how long the meals take. In general it has helped me a lot with my meal planning and has worked better than any other system I've tried because of its flexibility.

Z is in Hershey right now for a big cross-country meet. They got a hotel suite and cooked their dinner last night. Her coach recommended a dinner of pasta on Thursday, so we had Pasta Georgina - one of our last chances to have it this summer, as the season of fresh tomatoes and basil is coming to an end. I got this recipe from Kretschmanns, our CSA farmer and I can't find the recipe right now, so I'm going to write it from memory. Sorry no photos lately - our camera is getting repaired.

Pasta Georgina
2 cloves garlic
1 Tbs. minced fresh ginger (this is the surprise in the recipe)
4 large summer tomatoes, chopped (about 4-5 cups)
1/2 lb cubed mozzarella
1 bunch fresh basil, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Saute the garlic and ginger in olive oil until fragrant. Add the tomatoes and simmer until most of their liquid is gone (I've also added 2 cups chopped kale with the tomatoes, and it's good). When you're ready to serve the pasta, stir in the mozzarella and basil, add salt and pepper to taste, and toss it with about a pound of your favorite pasta, then serve. This is a recipe that is strong enough to work well with whole grain pasta.

Zucchini Carrot Muffins

In case your gardens are still producing zucchini (my squash vines have all succumbed to powdery mildew), I present for your consideration Zucchini Carrot Muffins.

These are yummy, relatively healthy, and freeze well. I usually freeze whatever we don't eat when they're fresh from the oven and throw them into Zoe's backpack for snack time. I used to send one of these with a yogurt for a lunch, but she eats a lot more than that now. The frozen ones are best reheated a bit in the toaster oven to get that crunchy top back. I also often freeze extra zucchini (shredded), in the amounts for my favorite recipes, and this is one of them.

I've adapted this recipe from one my sister sent me for Trail Ride Zucchini Muffins. I substituted carrot once when I was short on zucchini, and I like the flecks of color - I would do about 2 c. zucchini and 1/2 c. carrot. I also like the extra brightness the lemon peel gives them.

Zucchini Carrot Muffins
1 c. whole wheat flour
1 c. flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 egg, beaten
1/3 c. oil
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. nonfat dry milk
2 1/2 c. zucchini and carrot, grated
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp lemon extract
1/2 c. raisins (optional - I haven't used these yet)
1/2 c. chopped nuts
zest of 1 lemon (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. Sift flours, soda, baking powder and cinnamon together in a bowl; set aside. Combine egg, oil, sugar, dry milk, zucchini/carrot, vanilla and lemon extract in another bowl; beat thoroughly. Stir flour mixture into egg mixture just until smooth. Stir in raisins and nuts. Fill greased muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake for 20 minutes or until done. Other whole grain flours are good.

Raspberry Buttermilk Cake

I've been meaning to try this recipe for a couple of months. It's fantastic and pretty easy after all. It works with frozen raspberries and other berries or even rhubarb. It's tender and delicate, sweet and tart. Buttery, but not so rich you couldn't consider having it for breakfast. I gave the recipe to my daughter and her friend after they picked black raspberries. It was easy enough for them to make it and they devoured it all before I got a chance to try it. Her friend's family has made it multiple times since, and I finally got around to it this week and have regretted not trying it before. It takes about 15 minutes, plus cooking time. I really wish our raspberry bushes were still fruiting now, but I can still get them from the farmer's market, I think.

(from the June 2009 Gourmet)

Raspberry Buttermilk Cake

1 cup flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 stick butter, softened
2/3 cup plus 1 1/2 Tbs. sugar, divided
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 large egg
1/2 cup well-shaken buttermilk
1 cup fresh raspberries (about 5 oz)

Preheat oven to 400 with rack in middle. Butter and flour a 9-in round cake pan. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Beat butter and 2/3 cup sugar at medium high speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes, then beat in vanilla. Add egg and beat well.

At low speed, mix in the flour mixture in 3 batches, alternating with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour, and mixing until just combined.

Spoon batter into cake pan, smoothing top. Scatter raspberries evenly over top and sprinkle with remaining 1 1/2 Tbs. sugar.

Bake until cake is golden and a wooden pick inserted into center comes out clean, about 24-30 min. Cool in pan 10 min, then turn out onto a rack and cool to warm, 10-15 min. more. Invert onto a plate.

Blackened Tilapia with Cilantro-Lime Slaw

I need something a little perky and fresh to help me through these cloudy days. This is a recipe I keep coming back to because it tastes great and it's pretty good for you, too. Although I might prefer the tilapia with black bean mango salsa, that one requires fresh tomatillos and mangos, which are hard to come by and keep on hand. I almost always have cabbage and a lime on hand, plus tilapia in the freezer, so it doesn't require extra shopping. I've found the cilantro is such a small amount that it's ok if I leave it out.

This slaw recipe is tangy and salty and it's kind of addicting. Even Clay, who generally dislikes coleslaw, really likes this one.

(adapted from Fine Cooking 96)

Blackened Tilapia with Cilantro-Lime Slaw

serves 2

1/2 small clove garlic
kosher salt
1 med. lime
3 Tbs. mayonnaise
about 2-3 cups cabbage or Savoy cabbage, thinly sliced (I use my mandoline)
2 scallions, thinly sliced
2 Tbs. chopped fresh cilantro leaves
freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp ground cumin
two 5-oz tilapia fillets, cut in half lengthwise
1 Tbs. unsalted butter

Mince or finely grate the garlic, zest and juice the lime, mix with garlic and mayonnaise. Toss in the cabbage, scallions, cilantro. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

In a small bowl, mix the chili powder, cumin, 1/4 tsp salt, and several grinds of pepper. Sprinkle the spice rub all over the tilapia.

Melt the butter in a 10-inch cast-iron or nonstick skillet over med-high heat. Cook the tilapia on both sides until browned and cooked through, about 3 minutes total for the small pieces and 5 minutes for the large. Transfer to a plate. Toss the slaw and add more lime juice, salt, and pepper to taste. Serve the tilapia with the slaw.

I like to serve it with warmed corn tortillas.