Post by cddexter on Sept 13, 2015 14:28:31 GMT -5
Moving shortly to a new farm, but having to live in a camper in the interim until the house is built. This has caused me to create some new ways of surviving gastronomically. Thought I might share some of this with you, just in case it sounds tasty even if you have a real kitchen, but don't feel like doing real cooking...
Desperation Chili
(Barb Netti will probably faint when she reads this, sorry Barb, I know this isn’t like real Texas chili.)
The ingredients are fully cooked first and just mixed together. Sitting for a day or so will blend the flavors, and heating it up to eat wilts the greens.
2 lbs DEXTER hamburger
2 onions, peeled and diced
chopped garlic to taste
any other veggies you'd normally add to your chili
2 cans beans (I've moved to Heinz Baked Beans--maple and BBQ chipotle work well) but you can stick to kidney beans or any other for that matter. If you use canned black beans, I’d drain and rinse first or the sludge at the bottom of the can may discolor the result.
1 can crushed tomatoes or 1 can tomato paste plus some water
1 can diced tomatoes, or diced homegrown tomatoes
lots of finely chopped cilantro, parsley, and fresh spinach or kale or chard (dark greens are really good for you. For the veggie wimps, you hardly notice them when chopped and mixed in)
chili powder or your favorite home mix to taste
salt if you like, and some pepper, and just for me, extra chipotle
sugar or molasses to taste
1. Break up hamburger into lumps, flatten and broil in a convection oven until brown through.
2. Chop onions and garlic (and any other non-leafy veggies), add some olive oil and a tbsp or two of water and cook about 5 minutes or until truly soft, in a covered dish in the microwave (remember this is the only cooking they'll get).
3. Open cans and dump in BIG bowl
4. Chop greens and add to bowl
5. Add spices and sugar, cooked veggies and meat (break meat up with your fingers or use the back of a spoon or fork)
6. Stir well and let sit for a day
7. Heat and serve
This produces a really thick chili. Add water to change consistency.
Boring? Add some homemade tzatziki (drain yoghurt for 24 hours, finely grate an English cuke (no seeds) and drain for 24 hours then squeeze excess moisture out, combine both with crushed garlic to taste, and lemon or lime juice and/or olive oil to correct consistency and dill, parsley, cilantro, etc. to modify look, color and taste)
Desperation Spaghetti Sauce
Pretty much the same as the chili, but leave out the beans and substitute chopped fresh basil and parmesan cheese in place of the chili powder, and add some pine nuts and more olive oil. Same prep instructions. Try varying the noodle type for a change, or with cottage cheese and spinach or other chopped greens and A LOT of mozzarella, make lasagna.
By adding the greens, I’ve created a fully balanced meal all in one serving and the nutrients don’t get leached out.
Upgraded Coleslaw
I DETEST the standard coleslaw served in restaurants. Pale, watery, limp, capital B boring.
Try this coleslaw with roast chicken or a chop or fish, and a handful of interesting crackers (Christie’s Triscuits have some really cool new flavors including brown rice versions—yum!). Made ahead, it keeps in the fridge for up to a week. When it starts to get a bit slimy, it’s time to feed what’s left to the chickens.
I still have all my teeth
, but I have friends who don’t, and they love this slaw as it doesn’t take much chewing. The trick is to chop the veggies up fairly fine—more of a mince. Just use what you need for the meal and add dressing last… DO NOT add the dressing up front to the whole batch or it will go limp and runny and won’t last more than a day at most.
Depending on my mood and what’s in the kitchen, I add pine nuts, sunflower or pumpkin seeds, chopped almonds or walnuts or pecans or ?? to vary it a bit from day to day. The crunch adds to the texture. Combine any/all of the following in any percentage depending on what you have in the fridge or garden and what you or your family like best.
Chop all ingredients finely: savoy cabbage (more interesting looking and higher in nutrients especially if you use the outside darker leaves; julienne first, then chop), red onions (milder, sweeter flavor), green onions, sweet onions, chives, celery, grated carrots, peppers of all colors, lots of parsley, cilantro, kale and/or chard (julienne first, then chop). This combo produces a bright, enticing slaw that keeps well. Store in a sealed container in the fridge (I reuse a supermarket plastic bag with the top twisted closed.).
Of course you can add just about anything, but keep in mind that tender plants like spinach bruise easily and will go slimy within a day, so keep them out. Broccoli doesn’t look nice with all those little flower buds drifting through the slaw, Cauliflower ditto, and anyway, you can make a separate raw veg salad with them if you like).
Normally I make my own dressings, but with limited space, I’ve discovered a Heinz Litehouse dressing called Dilly Dip which when combined with regular commercial Coleslaw dressing makes a good combo. I tend to put a dash of chipotle in things to add zing instead of using salt.
Want a quick meal? Grate some cheese into the slaw and increase the seeds/nuts. Feeling wicked? Use nice greasy salted potato or corn chips instead of the baked crackers.
Misc Note:
I don’t like the look of stems in food, and I hate waste, so I throw the parsley and basil stems (and spinach and, and, and stems) in the blender with some olive oil, put in an old used lidded jar, and store in the freezer. When making soup or sauce, I thaw a jar and add the contents. If you use lots of oil it doesn’t really freeze and you can gouge out what you need rather than thaw the whole jar.
Thoughts from the tide pools of Vancouver Island. Cheers, c.
Desperation Chili
(Barb Netti will probably faint when she reads this, sorry Barb, I know this isn’t like real Texas chili.)
The ingredients are fully cooked first and just mixed together. Sitting for a day or so will blend the flavors, and heating it up to eat wilts the greens.
2 lbs DEXTER hamburger
2 onions, peeled and diced
chopped garlic to taste
any other veggies you'd normally add to your chili
2 cans beans (I've moved to Heinz Baked Beans--maple and BBQ chipotle work well) but you can stick to kidney beans or any other for that matter. If you use canned black beans, I’d drain and rinse first or the sludge at the bottom of the can may discolor the result.
1 can crushed tomatoes or 1 can tomato paste plus some water
1 can diced tomatoes, or diced homegrown tomatoes
lots of finely chopped cilantro, parsley, and fresh spinach or kale or chard (dark greens are really good for you. For the veggie wimps, you hardly notice them when chopped and mixed in)
chili powder or your favorite home mix to taste
salt if you like, and some pepper, and just for me, extra chipotle
sugar or molasses to taste
1. Break up hamburger into lumps, flatten and broil in a convection oven until brown through.
2. Chop onions and garlic (and any other non-leafy veggies), add some olive oil and a tbsp or two of water and cook about 5 minutes or until truly soft, in a covered dish in the microwave (remember this is the only cooking they'll get).
3. Open cans and dump in BIG bowl
4. Chop greens and add to bowl
5. Add spices and sugar, cooked veggies and meat (break meat up with your fingers or use the back of a spoon or fork)
6. Stir well and let sit for a day
7. Heat and serve
This produces a really thick chili. Add water to change consistency.
Boring? Add some homemade tzatziki (drain yoghurt for 24 hours, finely grate an English cuke (no seeds) and drain for 24 hours then squeeze excess moisture out, combine both with crushed garlic to taste, and lemon or lime juice and/or olive oil to correct consistency and dill, parsley, cilantro, etc. to modify look, color and taste)
Desperation Spaghetti Sauce
Pretty much the same as the chili, but leave out the beans and substitute chopped fresh basil and parmesan cheese in place of the chili powder, and add some pine nuts and more olive oil. Same prep instructions. Try varying the noodle type for a change, or with cottage cheese and spinach or other chopped greens and A LOT of mozzarella, make lasagna.
By adding the greens, I’ve created a fully balanced meal all in one serving and the nutrients don’t get leached out.
Upgraded Coleslaw
I DETEST the standard coleslaw served in restaurants. Pale, watery, limp, capital B boring.
Try this coleslaw with roast chicken or a chop or fish, and a handful of interesting crackers (Christie’s Triscuits have some really cool new flavors including brown rice versions—yum!). Made ahead, it keeps in the fridge for up to a week. When it starts to get a bit slimy, it’s time to feed what’s left to the chickens.
I still have all my teeth
, but I have friends who don’t, and they love this slaw as it doesn’t take much chewing. The trick is to chop the veggies up fairly fine—more of a mince. Just use what you need for the meal and add dressing last… DO NOT add the dressing up front to the whole batch or it will go limp and runny and won’t last more than a day at most.Depending on my mood and what’s in the kitchen, I add pine nuts, sunflower or pumpkin seeds, chopped almonds or walnuts or pecans or ?? to vary it a bit from day to day. The crunch adds to the texture. Combine any/all of the following in any percentage depending on what you have in the fridge or garden and what you or your family like best.
Chop all ingredients finely: savoy cabbage (more interesting looking and higher in nutrients especially if you use the outside darker leaves; julienne first, then chop), red onions (milder, sweeter flavor), green onions, sweet onions, chives, celery, grated carrots, peppers of all colors, lots of parsley, cilantro, kale and/or chard (julienne first, then chop). This combo produces a bright, enticing slaw that keeps well. Store in a sealed container in the fridge (I reuse a supermarket plastic bag with the top twisted closed.).
Of course you can add just about anything, but keep in mind that tender plants like spinach bruise easily and will go slimy within a day, so keep them out. Broccoli doesn’t look nice with all those little flower buds drifting through the slaw, Cauliflower ditto, and anyway, you can make a separate raw veg salad with them if you like).
Normally I make my own dressings, but with limited space, I’ve discovered a Heinz Litehouse dressing called Dilly Dip which when combined with regular commercial Coleslaw dressing makes a good combo. I tend to put a dash of chipotle in things to add zing instead of using salt.
Want a quick meal? Grate some cheese into the slaw and increase the seeds/nuts. Feeling wicked? Use nice greasy salted potato or corn chips instead of the baked crackers.
Misc Note:
I don’t like the look of stems in food, and I hate waste, so I throw the parsley and basil stems (and spinach and, and, and stems) in the blender with some olive oil, put in an old used lidded jar, and store in the freezer. When making soup or sauce, I thaw a jar and add the contents. If you use lots of oil it doesn’t really freeze and you can gouge out what you need rather than thaw the whole jar.
Thoughts from the tide pools of Vancouver Island. Cheers, c.
WHAT!!! Heinz Baked Beans??? To each their own 
I competed against large hotels,restaurants and individuals. No beans were used. 
?.