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here comes the sun!
hello internet! it is slightly less hot as balls today, but that doesn't mean I can't still love hot weather foods - the kind of thing you make when the very thought of cooking something makes you want to curl up in front of the AC and weep (as opposed to just curling up in front of the AC). And since I am going to be more or less a housewife from now until September, with a few breaks for family stuff, here are a few favorite minimal-cooking noms from chez Reneben.
gazpacho:
• 3lbs tomatoes, cored, peeled, seeded, and chopped
• 1 bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and chopped
• 1-2 cucumbers, peeled and chopped
• 4 slices stale bread, crusts off
• cold water as necessary for consistency (about 6 cups, but less if you don't seed the veggies)
• 1-2 cloves garlic
• 1/4 vinegar - I use cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• salt and pepper
This recipe comes from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything, as so many of my recipes do. Bittman is a lot fussier than I am, though: I didn't peel or seed anything, because I am lazy. It doesn't change the flavor any, just the consistency (it tends to separate if you leave the tomato juice in, but you can fix that with a quick whisk).
He has another recipe, with eggplant and zucchini and onions and a lot more garlic, and you roast all of the veggies, and it's amaaaaaazing, but…roasting. Not so much an option right now.
rainbow peanut noodles:
This comes from…probably the radio, but more recently from my parents, who make it in massive bowls for major family events. You can leave the chicken out - I frequently do - and/or any of the veg, depending on what you have to hand and what you feel like.
• One-half pound thin noodles, such as linguine
• 5 carrots, peeled and grated
• 2 English (seedless) cucumbers, peeled, halved lengthwise, seeded, shredded, and squeezed dry
• 2 cups bean sprouts, rinsed and drained
• 1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into thin strings (about 1 cup)
• 2 cups sliced cooked chicken (cut into thin strips) (optional)
• One and one-half tablespoons minced scallion greens (mostly decorative)
• Chinese Peanut Dressing: toss this all in the blender and go WHEEEEE
1 one-half inch thick slice fresh ginger, peeled and sliced in half
8 cloves garlic, peeled
1 teaspoon hot chili paste (or chili powder+water, if, say, you live in northern minnesota and can't get chili paste at the grocery store - it's not perfect but it works)
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup soy sauce
3.5 tablespoons sugar
3.5 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil (or not, if you don't have any)
5 tablespoons chicken broth or water or whatever liquid you feel like
Cook the noodles until juuuuust tender, then rinse under cold water and toss them with the peanut sauce. Put them in a bowl and cover them with the veggies - you can arrange the veggies in concentric circles, or you can just kind of fling them all together, depending on how ambitious you're feeling. NOM NOM NOM.
ice cream:
This is dead fucking easy - I tried it out because I was curious and slightly dubious, but it actually works, and it's amaaaaazing.
• frozen fruit - the recipe I found said "one package"; I've been using about 12 oz. or whatever looks like enough
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup sugar (or less, depending on how sweet your fruit is)
Put in a food processor and blend like a motherfucker. The larger your fruit, the longer this will take - my peaches took forfuckingever, but the end result was delicious. Once you've got a goodish consistency, pop that sucker in the freezer…or eat it right away.
What do you like to eat in the summer, lj? *chinhands*
gazpacho:
• 3lbs tomatoes, cored, peeled, seeded, and chopped
• 1 bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and chopped
• 1-2 cucumbers, peeled and chopped
• 4 slices stale bread, crusts off
• cold water as necessary for consistency (about 6 cups, but less if you don't seed the veggies)
• 1-2 cloves garlic
• 1/4 vinegar - I use cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• salt and pepper
This recipe comes from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything, as so many of my recipes do. Bittman is a lot fussier than I am, though: I didn't peel or seed anything, because I am lazy. It doesn't change the flavor any, just the consistency (it tends to separate if you leave the tomato juice in, but you can fix that with a quick whisk).
He has another recipe, with eggplant and zucchini and onions and a lot more garlic, and you roast all of the veggies, and it's amaaaaaazing, but…roasting. Not so much an option right now.
rainbow peanut noodles:
This comes from…probably the radio, but more recently from my parents, who make it in massive bowls for major family events. You can leave the chicken out - I frequently do - and/or any of the veg, depending on what you have to hand and what you feel like.
• One-half pound thin noodles, such as linguine
• 5 carrots, peeled and grated
• 2 English (seedless) cucumbers, peeled, halved lengthwise, seeded, shredded, and squeezed dry
• 2 cups bean sprouts, rinsed and drained
• 1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into thin strings (about 1 cup)
• 2 cups sliced cooked chicken (cut into thin strips) (optional)
• One and one-half tablespoons minced scallion greens (mostly decorative)
• Chinese Peanut Dressing: toss this all in the blender and go WHEEEEE
1 one-half inch thick slice fresh ginger, peeled and sliced in half
8 cloves garlic, peeled
1 teaspoon hot chili paste (or chili powder+water, if, say, you live in northern minnesota and can't get chili paste at the grocery store - it's not perfect but it works)
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup soy sauce
3.5 tablespoons sugar
3.5 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil (or not, if you don't have any)
5 tablespoons chicken broth or water or whatever liquid you feel like
Cook the noodles until juuuuust tender, then rinse under cold water and toss them with the peanut sauce. Put them in a bowl and cover them with the veggies - you can arrange the veggies in concentric circles, or you can just kind of fling them all together, depending on how ambitious you're feeling. NOM NOM NOM.
ice cream:
This is dead fucking easy - I tried it out because I was curious and slightly dubious, but it actually works, and it's amaaaaazing.
• frozen fruit - the recipe I found said "one package"; I've been using about 12 oz. or whatever looks like enough
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup sugar (or less, depending on how sweet your fruit is)
Put in a food processor and blend like a motherfucker. The larger your fruit, the longer this will take - my peaches took forfuckingever, but the end result was delicious. Once you've got a goodish consistency, pop that sucker in the freezer…or eat it right away.
What do you like to eat in the summer, lj? *chinhands*
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1/2 cup light mayo
1/2 cup fat free plain yogurt
3/4 tsp curry powder
1/4 tsp salt
3 cups cooked diced chicken
1 1/2 cups seedless grapes, cut in half
3/4 cup celery, sliced
1/3 cup green onions w/tops, thinly sliced
2 Granny Smith apples
1/3 cup pecans, chopped
1 medium cantaloupe
In small bowl, blend mayo, yogurt, curry powder and salt; set aside.
Dice chicken and cut grapes. Core and slice apples, cut into small pieces. Chop pecans. Combine chicken, grapes, celery, green onions, apples and pecans in large bowl. Add mayo mixture; mix lightly. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour or overnight.
Top slices of cantaloupe w/chicken mixture.
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I always forget how much I like salads; they're something I greatly enjoy eating but never think to actually make.
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1 bunch broccoli, chopped
1 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup honey roasted sunflower seeds (regular will do, if you can't find honey roasted)
1/2 can real bacon bits (1/3 to 1/2 cup)
Dressing:
1/2 cup mayo
1/4 cup sugar
3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
I tend to mix the bacon bits with the dressing, to keep them from hiding out at the bottom of the bowl, and sprinkle the sunflower seeds on top.
The other one is:
Shrimp and Pasta Salad (This makes an enormous amount, but is easy to scale down.)
1 lb. shrimp (already-cooked, salad-type shrimp)
1 lb. pasta, cooked, drained, cooled (the original recipe calls for linguini, but it's much easier to eat if you use modular pasta -- small shells, elbow macaroni, something like that. Otherwise, the shrimp tend to hide at the bottom.)
2 - 3 green onions, finely chopped
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
Dressing (make the night before):
2 cups mayo
1 heaping TBSP mustard
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
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also necessary, since we decided to do minimal grocery shopping because more food = more to move.
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ugh, yeah, definitely. who is super psyched not to be moving this year? \o/ but good luck with yours, bb!
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I'M JEALOUS. but going to be so, so happy once we're all settled.
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I am so fucking bone tired from work that I can't even THINK about what I cook. I can't believe that there was ever a time in life I was not this tired, and could actually cook at all. LOL. <3