Grilled Cheese with Fruit and Jam

We eat sandwiches for dinner sometimes. Ed is so accommodating, he will eat anything I cook and never complain. For example — recently I baked a batch of butter cookies for too long and they were nearly burned and he told me he actually prefers them that way.

Anyway, he’s okay with sandwiches for dinner and that’s all very familiar to me because I grew up in a sandwich household. My Mom used leftovers creatively most of the time, although she NEVER called them leftovers because she didn’t like that word. But sometimes dinner was just a sandwich. 

I don’t make Grilled Cheese sandwiches too often though. Our dinner sandwiches are usually more substantial. Grilled Cheese is usually just when the grandkids come.

But occasionally we’ll have it, depending on what kind of cheese I have in the fridge and bread in the freezer. I like to use cheese/bread combinations other than American cheese on white bread (although I am NOT sneering at that. I just need something more for dinner sometimes).

Recently I made this sandwich and we both loved it: Grilled Cheese with Fruit and Jam.

It’s what’s for dinner.

Grilled Cheese with Fruit and Jam

2 slices multigrain bread

2 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon apricot jam

1-1/2 to 2 ounces sliced cheddar, Gouda, Manchego or fontina cheese

slices of fresh peach, nectarine, mango, papaya or apricot

Spread one slice of the bread with a half tablespoon of the butter. Spread the other slice of bread with the jam. Place the cheese and fruit on top of one of the bread slices, then cover the sandwich with the other slice. Melt half the remaining butter in a saute pan (preferably nonstick) over medium heat. When the butter has melted and looks foamy, place the sandwich in the pan, cover and cook for about 2 minutes. Lift the sandwich with a rigid spatula and add the remaining butter, let it melt and flip the sandwich into the pan. Cook for another 2 minutes or until the outside is crispy and golden brown and the cheese has melted. Makes one sandwich

Farro Salad with Carrots, Peas, Tomatoes and Dill

Farro is becoming trendy. So says this article, which I read recently.

Actually, farro has been pretty popular in my house for the last several years. It’s one of those whole grains, you know, the stuff everyone says is so healthy, full of fiber and nutrients and so on.

It’s popular with me because it tastes so good and because there are so many things you can do with it.

I first cooked farro because I was getting bored with white rice, brown rice, black rice, red rice and every other kind of rice. And with pasta, potatoes and egg noodles. And there’s been an overload of quinoa recently too.

But I wanted something filling and “starchy” as a side dish with dinner. 

There was this little bag of farro in the store. It looked intriguing. I decided to give it a try.

SUCCESS! Farro is sumptuous and tastes sort of nutty and toasty.

I’ve made it dozens of ways, treating it just like rice: steamed, poached, sauteed, in pilaf. Plain. With vegetables. As a salad, drizzled with vinaigrette.

Every recipe is terrific.

Some say farro is the same as spelt, but it is actually a different, if similar grain. It is also a lot like wheatberries and oat groats (so you can substitute those in recipes). Farro is sometimes called emmer wheat. 

Do try it. You can use it all summer in a salad and all through the year in other ways.

Here’s one recipe we love at our house. 

Farro Salad with Carrots, Peas, Tomatoes and Dill

1 cup farro

1-3/4 cup water or vegetable stock

2 carrots, chopped

1 cup thawed frozen green peas

1 cup halved grape tomatoes

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1-1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

1 teaspoon grated fresh lemon peel

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place the farro and water in a saucepan and bring the liquid to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat, cover the pan and simmer for about 30 minutes or until the farro is tender, but still chewy. Set the farro aside to cool slightly. Cook the carrots in boiling water for 3-4 minutes or until tender. Drain and add to the farro. Add the peas and tomatoes and toss the ingredients to distribute them evenly. In a separate bowl or a jar, combine the olive oil, lemon juice, dill and lemon peel. Whisk the ingredients until well combine (or shake in a covered jar). Pour into the farro mixture and toss the ingredients. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Makes 4-6 servings 

Beef and Pasta Salad with Avocado-Chili Vinaigrette

I hate waste, so I love using leftovers. Frequently I’ll try to figure out some new and interesting recipe to use up the stuff in my fridge. But more often my motto is simply: in cold weather put everything into a pot pie, when it it’s warm outside cut it up into a salad.

It’s warm outside.

So leftovers become: leftovers plus vinaigrette = salad = dinner.

Like this one, from leftover brisket, tomatoes and vegetables. I also had a half avocado, so I mashed it up into the vinaigrette and spiced it up with chili pepper.

Beef and Pasta Salad with Avocado-Chili Vinaigrette

1 pound penne pasta

2 cups cut up leftover beef

1 cup halved grape tomatoes or 2 medium cut up tomatoes

2 cups cut up cooked broccoli, asparagus or green beans

1 cup olive oil

6 tablespoons red wine vinegar

3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro or parsley, optional

1/2 avocado, pitted, mashed

1 tablespoon finely chopped jalapeno pepper

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Cook the penne and drain but reserve about 1/2 cup of the cooking water. Place the pasta in a bowl. Add the beef, tomatoes and vegetable. In a jar or small bowl, combine the olive oil, vinegar, cilantro, avocado and jalapeno pepper and shake (cover the jar) or whisk the ingredients until well combined. Pour some of the dressing over the pasta and other ingredients. Toss to coat all the ingredients. Add more of the dressing, to taste and/or some of the cooking water, if necessary to moisten the ingredients. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (If you don’t use all the dressing you can save it for another salad.) Makes 4 servings

Imam Bayildi

Need a good side dish? Imam Bayildi is one of my favorite go-to recipes whenever I am at a loss. It’s a good family dish and also works for company. 

I learned to make Imam Bayildi years ago when I was working on an article for eggplant. I found a recipe and the name of the dish, translated, was so intriguing — “the Imam fainted” — I had to try it. If only because, as the story goes, the Imam (an Islamic clergyman or spiritual leader) who first ate this dish was so delighted that he passed out from joy.

Well, whether the tale is apocryphal or not, this dish is very very good. And what’s more, you can serve it hot, warm or at room temp, so you can either get it together in advance and cook it for dinner, or make the whole thing in advance and serve it for dinner.

It’s also a good item for a vegetarian meal (I like it accompanied by scrambled eggs or mushroom ragout).

This year during Passover I made this dish for dinner and used leeks instead of the usual onions. My family liked it even better this way, so here’s the recipe.

Btw, a tumblr reader once told me she added olives to the dish when she made it. I’ve tried that and it is delicious! So, add some olives if you like — black, pitted olives make the dish even more colorful.

Imam Bayildi

• 1 medium eggplant

• salt

• 1/2 cup olive oil

• 3 medium leeks, cleaned and sliced

• 2 large cloves garlic, chopped

• 3 large tomatoes, deseeded and chopped

• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

• 1 teaspoon sugar

• 1 teaspoon salt or to taste

• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

• 1/3 cup water

Cut the eggplant into slices about 3/8-inch thick. Sprinkle with salt and let rest for 30 minutes. Wipe the eggplant slices dry with paper towels. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Heat one tablespoon olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Cook the eggplant slices a few at a time for 2-3 minutes per side or until slightly wilted. Add more olive oil to the pan as needed to prevent scorching (use 4-5 tablespoons more if needed). Place the cooked eggplant into a baking dish (cut it into smaller pieces if you wish). Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to the pan. Add the leeks and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the tomatoes, parsley, sugar, salt and lemon juice. Cook for one minute, stirring frequently. Spoon the vegetables on top of the eggplant. Drizzle with any remaining olive oil and the water. Cover the pan and bake for 45 minutes. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature.

Makes 6-8 servings

#fridayreads

fridayreads:

Here at Team FridayReads, we are practicing book addicts. Because we suffer from this contagious and life-saving malady, we often read multiple books at a time. This means our hair is extra shiny, we walk with extra pep in our step, and our #fridayreads won’t fit in one Tweet!

Here’s what we’re…

I’m reading “The Lost Wife” by Alyson Richman, about newlyweds who each believe the other has been lost in the Holocaust and then meet at a wedding of their grandchildren in the United States many many years later. Excellent portrayal not only of enduring love and the value of memory, but also of life at Terezin Concentration camp during the Holocaust and of the paintings done and smuggled out to newspapers. Good read.

New York City Classes for Pregnant Women, New Moms: Why Do We Read Parenting Books That Make Moms Feel Like Crap?

amotherisborn:

The other day, I was finishing a childbirth education series, and one of the students voiced something I think many pregnant folks think about. Now that we’d come to the end of our childbirth class, she said, she was less worried about the birth. But with some of those questions answered, she…

sprinklefingers: Chocolate cake class - Online!

sprinklefingers:

Oh, technology. Sometimes I love you. Sometimes I hate you. Sometimes I’m on the fence about you.

Here’s something I’m on the fence about: Craftsy has an Alice Medrich-taught chocolate cake class on tap - you pay a one time class fee of $59.99 and you get to watch the ‘class’ as many times as…

Watching a real live human teach cooking and make a mistake — is priceless. That’s what was so wonderful about Julia Child. Never perfect, dropped stuff on the floor, laughed at herself. Never pretentious.

She was special.

Sautéed Quinoa with Scallions and Mint

Passover, with all its dietary prohibitions, can create cooking issues.

Add another factor, like having to cook for someone who’s a vegan or is lactose-intolerant or who is allergic to nuts or other ingredients, and you really have to be creative about dinner.

My cousin Leslie had several guests at her Seder who had special dietary needs. One is her daughter-in-law who is vegan, gluten-intolerant, allergic to mushrooms and nuts and goodness knows what else. She couldn’t eat the matzo-ball soup, turkey, matzo stuffing with mushrooms, onions and celery or the honey-hazelnut macaroon tart. 

It meant lots of extra cooking. 

But sometimes preparing a dish for someone whose diet requires extra effort not only reaps rewards in the form of gratitude from the person you’re cooking for, but also because you might discover a dish that will appeal to everyone, so you can make more of it the next time, and cut out one that only a few can eat.

Consider this dish made with quinoa, which is fine for Passover and for nut-free, gluten-free, lactose-free vegan diets.

Sautéed Quinoa with Scallions and Mint

(photo from JoyofKosher.com)

1 cup quinoa

2 tablespoons olive oil

3-4 large scallions, chopped

1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

2 teaspoons finely grated lemon peel

salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Rinse the quinoa several times in a strainer. Place the quinoa and 1-1/2 cups water in a saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat, cover the pan, and simmer for about 15 minutes or until all the water has been absorbed. Set aside. Heat the olive oil in a wok, stir-fry pan, or sauté pan over medium heat. Add the scallions and cook for 2–3 minutes or until they have softened. Return the quinoa to the pan and cook, stirring to distribute ingredients evenly. Sprinkle with the mint, lemon peel and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for about one minute or until the ingredients are hot. Makes 4 servings.

Salmon Latkes with Lemon-Scented Mayo on Matzo

Half a lifetime went by before I understood the unique wonderfulness of sandwiches on matzo. As a kid I felt awkward and embarrassed bringing cream cheese and jelly or egg salad sandwiches on matzo in my school lunch.

No matter that several other kids did the same thing. I thought it was weird and I hated it.

Nevertheless, even then I had to confess, if only to myself, that those sandwiches were really really good. The crunch and crispiness of matzo was perfection against anything soft inside. So if it was anything creamy or tender, like tuna or chicken salad, well, that was good. If weird.

Roast beef? Not so much. Too hard to chew a piece while at the same time trying to keep the matzo from crumbling into a million pieces.

My Mom sometimes made salmon latkes to eat on matzo. I would never bring this to school. Much too weird I thought. Too fishy. It might smell.

Kids are embarrassed by those sorts of things.

But at home? Well, salmon latkes on matzo (with a dollop of lemon-scented mayo) is a real treat.

Try it for yourself!

SALMON LATKES WITH LEMON-SCENTED MAYO ON MATZO

• · 2 cups mashed cooked salmon

• · 2 large eggs

• · 1/2 cup matzo meal

• · 1 small grated onion, optional

• · 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill, optional

• · salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

• · vegetable oil

• · mayonnaise

• · lemon juice

• · grated fresh lemon peel

• · matzos

In a bowl, mix the salmon, eggs, matzo meal, onion, if used, dill and salt and pepper to taste until well combined. Heat about 1/8-inch vegetable oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Shape the salmon mixture into 8-10 cakes. Fry for 2-3 minutes per side or until crispy. Drain on paper towels. Eat plain or with Lemon-Mayo on Matzo.

Makes 8-10

For each portion Lemon-Mayo, mix mayonnaise (2 tablespoons) with 2 teaspoons lemon juice and 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel per portion. Spread on a half piece of matzo, top with one salmon latke.

Pearl Fein’s Crunchy Matzo Brei

Sour cream or applesauce?

It’s the same question two times a year.

On Hanukkah it’s the question of what you put on top of potato pancake. On Passover, it’s what you serve with matzo brei.

Of course you might be one of those people who eat matzo brei with maple syrup. 

But really! It’s only authentic with sour cream or applesauce.

And please, no lemon-coriander-pomegranate dip.

For me, it’s definitely sour cream. For Ed, it’s applesauce.

Well, first it’s the matzo brei right?

I like it soft. He likes it crunchy. Here’s his mother’s recipe.

Pearl Fein’s Crunchy Matzo Brei

1-1/2 matzos

warm water

1 large egg

salt to taste

butter

Break the matzos into small pieces into a bowl. Cover with warm water and let it soak for 20 seconds. Drain any non-absorbed water, then squeeze the pieces to extract as much excess water as possible. Add the egg and mix the ingredients. Sprinkle to taste with salt. Heat the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. When the butter has melted and looks foamy, add the egg-matzo mixture. Cook for 2-3 minutes per side or until golden brown and crispy. Makes one serving (but you can double, triple or even quadruple the recipe and use a bigger pan)