In Praise of Smoked Paprika

I finally got around to getting some propane for the BBQ. Usually I grill right through the winter, but I think the cold temps and snow up here in the north is slowly sapping my will to grill. Either that or I am getting old. In any event, I inaugurated BBQ season 2010 with grilled oyster mushrooms. I can't get enough of these because they really have a great grill flavour and texture. The perfect addition to any grilled menu are these potatoes, tossed in smoked paprika. If you have not had smoked paprika, get thee to the bulk food store post haste! Smoked paprika is great for many things (southern tofu, for example) but I particularly like it on potatoes since it makes a great brunch dish, or a side for a BBQ meal. Pictured is a pound of baby red potatoes, boiled for 15 mins, until soft but not mushy, then chopped in half and fried in a bit of olive oil. When potatoes are cooked with a crispy outside, season with kosher salt to taste and toss in about 1 tbsp of smoked paprika. I like to add it when the pan is still hot so it smokes a little before it coats the potatoes. Truly addictive!

Panettone: Baking Through the Bread Baker's Apprentice

There is nothing like baking Christmas bread in the middle of a heat wave. But, who am I to argue with Peter Reinhart? This recipe takes quite a bit of time since it relies mainly on wild yeast (i.e. a sourdough starter) to rise, but it makes some wonderful bread. I really was not in the mood for candied fruit peel (which I can only handle once a year) so I made more of a fruit loaf with currants and raisins. I actually forgot the almonds the recipe calls for. Oh well. Next time. I'm sorry the picture is so terrible (it looked way better on the little preview screen), it really does not do justice to this bread.

GENERAL NOTES
1. As mentioned above, you need to have some sourdough starter on the go to make this bread in two days. Otherwise, you are going to need a good week to get your starter going.
2. I usually use rum in these kinds of bread (and am always disappointed that you really cannot taste it in the final loaf) but this time I used whiskey. The flavour really came through.
3. I did not have panettone pans or papers, so I baked them in 8" round pans.

VEGAN NOTES
1. I subbed soy milk for dairy milk, and margarine for the butter.
2. I subbed a flax egg (1 tbsp ground flax whisked into 3 tbsp water) for the egg, and did not bother to replace the egg yolk. Soy yogurt would also work fine, or you could just forget about replacing the egg.

Green Curry Summer Rolls

Last week we had a bit of an early heat wave so I was looking for a nice cool dish that didn't involve a lot of cooking. Although the boys totally hated these, Vegan Mom and I loved them. The crunch of the lettuce contrasts the vermicelli and rice paper, while the punch of heat from the curry paste is cooled by the cucumber. Yum. Not a real recipe, but here is the stuff I put in mine. Adjust amounts according to how many rolls you want to make.

INGREDIENTS
- steamed broccoli (crisp and bright green, not mushy. Once the broccoli is cooked, plunge it into ice water to stop it from cooking)
- thinly sliced lettuce (romaine, or other)
- cooked rice vermicelli, cut into about 3" pieces, tossed with soy sauce and green curry paste (to taste)
- thinly sliced shallots
- thinly sliced cucumber
- finely chopped cilantro (or sliced basil, Thai or otherwise)
- rice paper
- dipping sauce

METHOD
1. Soak rice paper in warm water as per directions, fill with ingredients, roll like a burrito. Serve with dipping sauce.

Pane Siciliano: Baking Through the Bread Baker's Apprentice

I think this is the only bread in the cookbook that takes 3 days to make, but it was fun nonetheless. You can actually skip the third day and bake it on day 2, but I thought that since I had got that far I might as well go one more day to develop as much flavour as possible. This loaf combines bread flour and semolina flour and the end result is a golden loaf with a wonderfully crispy crust. The whole family enjoyed eating it by the slice, and as the bread for wee sandwiches.

GENERAL NOTES
- none

VEGAN NOTES
1. I subbed maple syrup for the honey. I'm sure you could just use sugar, or some agave as well.

Rhubarb Syrup

This post may be too late for all y'alls in the US, but up here it is rhubarb season and we have it coming out of the wazoo. Every year I make stewed rhubarb (not photogenic, but tasty) and the kids always balk at first but end up bolting it down with gusto. This year I did something different: I strained off most of the juice (making the stewed rhubarb thicker, like an applesauce) then boiled it into a syrup. It is absolutely wonderful in lemonade (as pictured) or in a glass of ginger ale.

You can play with the proportions, depending on how much rhubarb you have on hand. Here is what I did:

INGREDIENTS
- 10 cups chopped rhubarb
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup sugar (or to taste)
- 1 cup homemade strawberry jam
- 2 tbsp lemon juice

METHOD
1. Combine all ingredients in a large stock pot and bring to bubbling. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 mins, or until rhubarb is cooked down and falling apart.
2. Strain rhubarb through a fine sieve (I use a spoon to stir/mash it a bit), taking a much liquid as you want (you now have tasty stewed rhubarb).
3. Put the liquid in a stock pot that can hold about 3 times the volume of the liquid. Bring to bubbling over high heat (it will foam up like cray, so use a large pot). Stir rapidly, until foam goes down, then cook and stir for about 5 mins, until liquid has become glossy.
4. Cool and store in the fridge, adding to drinks as you see fit. Pour the syrup down the back of a spoon to get the funky look pictured above.