Comforting Low & Slow Short Ribs; Simplifying Update

Recipe:  Pimenton & Caraway Short Ribs with Egg Noodles

This is a delicious recipe adapted from the new cookbook, "Canal House Cooks Every Day".  It was easy and it is absolutely wonderful the next day when the flavors really incorporate.  The square egg noodles are called, "Pot Pie Noodles" by the Pennsylvania Dutch folks.  They are perfect in this recipe.  Also, your oven will be on low for three hours, so you will be getting some warming up from that, too, so it's a win-win!

Ingredients for 4 - 6 servings

For the Ribs

4 pounds meaty short ribs
salt and pepper
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 large onions, thickly sliced
3 cloves of garlic, sliced
2 tablespoons pimenton
2 teaspoons caraway seeds
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup dry red wine

For the Noodles

1/2 pound egg noodles (the square pot pie noodles if you can get them, or regular egg noodles)
2 tablespoons of butter
2 tablespoons of chopped fresh parsley
salt

Technique

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees; season the short ribs all over generously with salt and pepper.
Heat the extra virgin olive oil in a large enameled cast iron or other heavy, oven proof pot with a lid over medium high heat (a heavy Dutch Oven type pot works best; there's a lot of liquid in the recipe)

Brown the ribs in the oil - work in batches, don't crowd the ribs.  Transfer browned ribs to a tray or platter.

Reduce heat to medium; Add the onions, garlic, pimenton, and caraway seeds to the pot
Cook, stir occasionally; let the onions soften - this will take about 15 minutes
Push everything to one side of the pot; add the tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly until the paste gets a bit darker - this will take about 2 minutes.
Stir the onion mixture and the tomato paste together.

Return the ribs to the pot; make sure to pour in any juices from the ribs too
Add the wine and enough water so that the ribs are half submerged.
Increase the heat to medium high and bring to a simmer.

Cover the pot and braise the short ribs in the oven until the meat is fork tender.
This will take about 3 hours.

Remove the pot from the oven

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Add the noodles and cook until tender.
Drain and return the noodles to the pot.  Stir in the butter and the parsley - add a splash of water and toss well.  Season with salt.

Arrange ribs and noodles on a platter.
Enjoy!

Simplifying Life - The Efforts Continue

Here in Philadelphia we are experiencing day after day of gray, damp, certainly warm for the season, but chilly in that "wet" way; it's just awful weather.  Along with the short days, it is a nightmare scenario for those of us with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) - which frankly, I think, is most of us!

So I've decided to try to find things to make myself happy - feeling bright and shiny although bright and shiny it ain't. I've been doing a lot of cooking; a little baking (the oven from hell continues to play games with me); and a lot of organizing, re-organizing; and de-cluttering. It's not making me feel like I've spent the day in the sunshine, but it is improving my environment and de-stressing my interactions with it.

Simplifying Tip for this Week:  If you have, as we do, boxes of  generally small, little used, low priced items that you no longer want or have never really used, you can pack up your car with the boxes and go sit at a Flea Market and try to sell these things individually.  Or, you can become a seller on Ebay.  I love Ebay.  I visit it a lot when I am hunting for something in particular.  However being a seller on Ebay requires a good deal of commitment and trips to the Post Office.  I believe it is more useful when you have large items, especially those that are worth a significant amount of money, to list them on Ebay. For those boxes of miscellaneous little things - if you want to take the easy approach - DONATE.  Organizations like Goodwill will come to your home with a truck and take your boxes.  For this you will get a tax deduction, which just may be equal to or surpass what you would make at a flea market!

The Simplifying Year: Care to Join in? No Knead Bread Redux

Happy 2013!

First of all, thanks so much to those who wished us good holidays and hoped we'd have a wonderful time at our "new tradition" Christmas Eve dinner with some of our closest friends.  It was wonderful and it definitely took the edge off of  some of the loss we were feeling.  And we had a wonderful start to 2013 at our good friends lovely Larken Springs Farm (www.larkenspringsfarm.com). Good friends and food, snow, quiet, farm animals, beauty - it always does the trick.

Here at Il Moya, we have decided that 2013 will be, the Year of Simplifying Life. So, a new area of interest for the Blog this year will be a discussion of the principles of simplifying.  How to do it, the pluses and the pitfalls, and how we really decide what we need.   I have often talked about our growing knowledge of Urban Homesteading and Self Sufficiency practices and much of what we are learning from our education in those areas leads us to realize that there's too much "stuff" in our home. So, those boxes that are filling up the basement?  One more round of peeking in and they are going to a charity.  Those closets that are spilling over with clothes we haven't worn in years?  They are going to get emptied.  The "big" built in storage in our office/library is really packed and right now, I feel that we'll need to work up to that!
Our new rule of thumb starting this year will be:  When something comes in, something goes out.  Now I know what you are thinking, we already recognize that there are exceptions to this rule - and those will cause us to have to take pause and evaluate.  For example, we are both avid readers and lovers of books - and I especially love cookbooks, which I read like they were novels. Books will be a tough one.  We're just not sure yet.  I do know that we have a large collection of cookbooks that are in those basement boxes because we somewhere along the line needed space for new books and we realized that we didn't use them.  So, we already have some books that will be donated to a good home.
A big issue for us is kitchen and cooking ware.  Those basement boxes?  They are pretty much filled with kitchen gadgets.  The more you cook - especially if you love it and practice at it - you realize that you really only need certain equipment, and you're good to go. For example, in the attached recipe for home made bread, I use our cast iron mussel pan to bake my loaf.  As a matter of fact, cast iron is something you want to consider owning - if you don't already. It's worth moving other pots and pans out to add cast iron to your kitchen.  It is incredibly versatile and hard working and provides a wonderful finish on foods.  It only needs a bit of care to keep it performing beautifully; we make eggs in ours - something that many folks think is impossible.

So, I am thinking that this highlights the First Principle of Simplifying in the Kitchen:  Does a gadget or item have more than one use?  Is it versatile?  How many other uses does it have?  Have you ever tried using it for other purposes and, if not, do you want to keep it around?

Let's learn from each other, and let's start with the Kitchen!

Name a kitchen gadget that you find to be extremely versatile, and share the many ways that you use it.  OR/AND
Name a kitchen gadget that you use for only one thing, one that you find that you move around a lot when you are not using it, and think about what other roles it could play.

Let's hear from you!

Homemade No Knead Bread

Note:  this recipe is an adaptation of the no knead bread recipe made famous by Jim Lahey. It first appeared in the New York Times in 2006.  I have had inconsistent results with it over the years.  I love the idea of it, but don't always think I get the bread intended.  This recipe appears in the new cookbook (I was gifted it, and I am very happy!), "Canal House Cooks Every Day". I believe some of the slight tweaks made by the authors works very well. The bread making is really dependent on passive time - your time prepping it is really minimal and believe me, it is delicious.  Once you get the technique down, you can start to adapt your own additions to the bread.

Makes one large loaf:

Ingredients

3 - 3 3/4's cups all purpose or bread flour, plus more for dusting; Canal House calls for 3 cups, but when I made it, I needed the additional 3/4 cup of flour.  But this is often based on weather, the flour itself, and other factors so you have to look for the consistency explained below. Start with 3 cups.

1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
1 1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups, plus 2 tablespoons water

Technique:

Whisk together flour, yeast and salt in a large bowl
Add the water and using a wooden spoon, stir until blended
The dough will be shaggy and sticky.

Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap.  Let the dough rest for 18 hours (yep 18 hours, no knead remember?).  Find the warmest spot - closest to 70 degrees - you have in your home. We rarely ever reach 70 degrees in our home in winter, but find the warmest place, but do NOT put it directly on or in front of a heat source!  That just causes a skin to form on the dough and it does not help the process of proofing.  Trust me!

The dough is ready when it is dotted with bubbles.  Flour your work surface, dump the dough out of the bowl on to the floured surface; sprinkle with a little more flour and using a dough scraper or your hands, fold it over itself once or twice - no kneading!  Loosely cover the dough with the plastic wrap from the bowl and let it rest for about 15 minutes.

Sprinkle the work surface lightly with flour; using a pastry/dough scraper (now THERE's a versatile kitchen gadget) shape the dough into a ball (you can use your hands a bit, too). It doesn't have to be perfect, but you want a seam side and generally a ball like shape, but you don't want to play with the dough a lot. Put a clean towel on your work surface (not terry cloth), sprinkle with with some flour and place the dough ball on the towel, seam side down.  Sprinkle some more flour on the dough ball and cover with another towel (again, not terry cloth).  Let it rise for 2 hours.

When it is ready it should have increased in size (ideally doubled) and will not spring back when you poke it with your finger.

At least 30 minutes before the rising time is up, preheat your over to 450 degrees and put the pan and lid  that you will be baking the bread in into the oven.  Use cast iron, pyrex or ceramic. As mentioned I use a cast iron mussel pan.  A Dutch oven will work beautifully as well.

When the dough is ready, remove the pot from the oven, and dump the dough from the towel into the pot seam side up.  It will look like a mess but just shake the pan - using your oven mitts of course - and it will settle in nicely.

Cover the pot with the lid and bake for 30 minutes.  Remove the lid and bake until the loaf of bread is browned - about 15 - 30 minutes - in my experience generally around 15 minutes. Remove the bread from the pot and let it cool on a wire rack.  Sharpen your bread knife.  This bread has a fantastic crust.  Enjoy.

Celebrating Through Loss - Making Some Changes

As some of you are aware our family lost its Matriarch this past September.  This was a woman who's life was rich, full, interesting and active until her last day.  She was the dynamo at the center of our family and she is, and always will be, missed.  The first Holiday Season without a loved one is always difficult; we are blessed with a large, functional family of people who, while they all don't live close by, love each other and enjoy each other's company.  Who could ask for more?  Not I.

So, as my better half and I contemplated this Holiday Season we found ourselves re-examining the "holidays as usual" program we've been adhering to for the past 15 plus years.  Somehow, it felt that this year we needed a change - not a return, maybe a new way to celebrate.

Every year for many years, we have been holding an Open House on Christmas Eve.  Christmas Day was Family, but Christmas Eve was our "event". We'd send out a huge email, tell folks that they needn't RSVP, and that they were welcome to bring a friend, come and stay, or just drop by for a nog and to hang a decoration on our tree.  Neither one of us could envision THAT Christmas Eve for ourselves this year.  The more we talked, the more we realized that what we were trying to clarify in our minds was that we wanted Comfort.  We wanted warmth and pretty and a bit of sparkle and love.  We wanted familiar and predictable and laughter and good food and candle and fire light. We didn't want the doorbell ringing every few minutes.  We wanted to sit back, relax and soak it all in. So - what would that look like?

It didn't take long for both of us to come to a very similar conclusion:  let's investigate if some of our nearest and dearest, instead of dropping by our Open House, would be up for an evening long sit down dinner, with holiday songs playing in the background, a big sparkling tree, a long warm, groaning table and  some well, what else can you call it, "hanging out together".

We decided we needed and wanted that big hug that comes from being in the company of close friends and loved ones while having a few cocktails, eating  fabulous food, and sharing hours of conversation and laughter.

Bless them, a number of folks said yes!  The leaves will be added to the table and it will be placed in front of the fireplace (an outcome of raising two puppies at the same time leaves us with a relatively empty living room as two of our chairs spend the holidays at the upholsterers!).  We intend to look for the biggest tree we can find and we have dug out a lot of decorations and dishes and other chotchkes that we haven't used for a long time.  Somehow, seeing them is making us love them all over again.  For some reason, we've also become more obsessed than usual with natural decorations, dried  reeds, wood, handmade things, etc. It just all seems to be falling together along those lines.

For me, the lesson is to realize that loss is loss and the emotions around loss don't make a quick exit.  That said, it isn't necessary to be maudlin; to soldier through regardless.  It is necessary to be good to yourself and say, "What do I want?".  That's OK.

We can't wait for Christmas Eve!  I promise that I will share the Christmas Eve menu post event.  Some things are surprises, after all!

Enjoy the process, the preparations and the celebrations!

By the way, here's a little chart that I came across recently that I think is useful.  Lots of these spices are in heavy rotation at this time of year!  Good and good for you!

The Philly Foodist's Happy Holiday List

'Tis the time!  So many holidays are upon us.  Hanukkah starts this Saturday! And then we are into Christmas and Kwanzaa. How do you prepare?  Do you come out of the Holiday Season exhausted or refreshed and filled with wonderful memories?  Or, more commonly I suspect, with a mixture of both?

It seems to me that most of us who take holiday preparations seriously face a lot of challenges in coming out of all of this with mostly lovely memories.  I know there are lots of folks out there who just have to "show up" and celebrate.  I sometimes look at them piling into their cars to go to so and so's house with their wine or cookies in hand and think, "That must be nice; nothing to do!"  However, for the rest of us, there's planning, cooking, baking, cleaning, decorating, inviting, and - oh, remembering to fit in that very important haircut!  How do we handle it all with a smile and a firm grip on what the season should be all about?  How do we have FUN!?!

For me, I try to remember to follow a few "rules" :

1.  After awhile you just have to accept that the fact that you are attending to every detail, agonizing over every gift, and planning every meal down to the salt and pepper cellars because you like doing all that crazy stuff! Give into your obsessive side and enjoy fussing over detail and - this is important - don't let people tell you that you shouldn't be fussing!

2.  Remember that folks are coming to your home to see you and celebrate with you - and yes, because by now they probably know the food will be good! They will enjoy themselves if you are enjoying yourself, so whatever you do, aim for being a relaxed and happy host.

3.  For many of us, there's a blessing in, "having what we need". Think about what material, store bought things those close to you really need.  Especially the adults. There are probably a few things here and there but keep in mind the fun of presenting handcrafted gifts, or small purchased gifts that are unique and really speak to the likes and interests of the recipient.  Try to be sure to give yourself the time to Shop Small - you will find more of those unique items in independently owned small shops and artisans' galleries and the like. As for handcrafted or homemade items, the important thing to remember is if you make gifts, deal in gifts items that involve a process that you enjoy and have a knack for doing.  For example, I wouldn't try to knit scarves for people - that would be a disaster because I don't enjoy and am not good at knitting. And although I love to cook, I'm not one to enjoy spending a day turning out tons of cookies.  That said, whipping up a batch of mixed berry cordials in pretty recycled bottles or making homemade vanilla extract or red onion jam is pure delight for me.  I love the process and the outcomes.

4,  Making lists are a vital part of the process; you'll feel more in control because you aren't trusting everything to memory.  I like to make separate lists for gifts, decorating, cooking, homemade gifts, etc.  Yes, I have a lot of lists - but they are short and I can see at a glance what's necessary within different preparation activities.  Find a very secure spot for your lists; there's nothing worse than spending a great deal of your precious time making lists and then losing them!  Trust me on that one!

5.  Keep in mind that your home doesn't have to look like the decorated house in the shelter magazine.  Your home should be a place where those dearly beloved holiday objects that have been in your family for years and years will make an appearance for a couple of weeks. They will dress up your homestead and make you happy every time you see them.

6.  Do something that's purely charitable at this time of year.  Serve lunch at a food program; go to a Toys for Tots event with new toys; support a family that wouldn't have Christmas by donating gifts or money through a local agency; donate something; volunteer.  Figure out what works for you, but don't pass up the opportunity.  It will effect your "seasonal spirit"in a real way.

Oh, . . . . and if you can, play Holiday music while you do your preparations.  Let all of those silly holiday shows that are on TV every year at this time serve as background too - Charlie Brown or The Grinch anyone?  Believe it or not, the shows and the music will help to keep you "in the spirit".  If we lose the spirit of the season to stress and exhaustion, we've lost our ability to enjoy what should be a magical, happy time of the year.

Enjoy!

A Vintage Recipe for Left Over Turkey

The World's Cutest and Smartest Goats:  Poppy & Willow

I can only hope that all of you had as wonderful a Thanksgiving as we did!  Spending time with our dear friends at their beautiful Farm and B n B in the Lehigh Valley (www.larkenspringsfarm.com) is definitely the best anecdote for whatever may ail us or have us stressed out. Cooking a huge feast together, walking in the woods, watching the chickens and the goats frolic, and sleeping in total silence (well, except for the roosters!) is pure bliss.  And, with every visit to the farm, I learn a little bit more.  We are always so grateful and I always return tinkering with ideas for applying what I learn in the country to our urban homestead.

This year we had a beautiful organic, heirloom turkey from the Koch's  Family which we purchased through Fair Food Farmstand in the Reading Terminal Market. Our Turkey weighed in at 22 pounds!  We had a fabulous dinner with all of the fixins, including some "traditional" dishes that my better half and I have foisted upon our friends over the years. Of course, our Friday after Thanksgiving dinner consisted of turkey sandwiches piled high. As you may have guessed, each of our freezers currently has a good deal of sliced turkey, stuffing, and fabulous turkey stock waiting for our "next round" of turkey cravings.

Along with Turkey Noodle Soup, the one recipe that I will be doing and soon - possibly this weekend - is Turkey Tetrazzini.  The recipe I have been using for years is originally from the Betty Crocker Cookbook (1969 edition), given to me by my Grandmother when I moved out on my own.  I still refer to this great old cookbook for a number of old standards, along with this recipe.

Recipe:  Turkey Tetrazzini

Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter - original calls for butter OR margarine!  It's old I told you!
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 cup turkey stock
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons sherry - although not specified in the recipe, dry sherry works best
7 ounces cooked spaghetti
2 cups cubed turkey
3 - 4 ounces of sliced "button"mushrooms - the original calls for 1- 3 oz can of sliced mushrooms but I just can't!
1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese

Method:

Heat oven to 350 degrees
Melt butter in a large sauce pan over low heat; blend in the flour, pepper and salt.
Cook over low heat, stirring until the mixture is smooth and bubbly (it's a roux basically)
Remove the sauce pan from the heat; Stir in the turkey stock and the heavy cream.
Heat the mixture to boiling, stirring constantly - Boil and stir for one minute
Stir in the sherry, spaghetti, turkey and mushrooms

Pour the mixture into an ungreased 2 quart casserole.
Sprinkle the cheese all over the top.
Bake uncovered for 30 minutes or until bubbly.
If you wish to brown the top, place it briefly under the broiler.

Makes 6 servings

There is absolutely no need to change anything - well maybe the mushrooms, but you can still used canned if you want to be a purist!  I have doubled this recipe many times; it's a crowd pleaser!

Enjoy!

Shop Small Saturday - The Start of Something Big!

This is the day, folks!  Today we can all start to show big box stores, chains, and "outlets" and the like that we appreciate and would rather support our friends and neighbors and their businesses and their products!  It starts today with Shop Small Saturday - but let's make it a growing trend and an option for shopping all of the year 'round. The advantages are big!  You will support people in your own area/neighborhood to sustain and grow their businesses; you will have access to quality goods and services;  you will  be spending your money on more items produced in the U.S.; and you will be sending a clear message to chains and big box stores that their foreign made, cheap products and, in some cases, that their practices towards their workers are not acceptable. As Granny used to say, "Don't be one of those who knows the price of  everything and the value of nothing".  Consider whether you really are "getting a deal" - in the long and the short run. We all win when our small, locally owned businesses win!  Happy Shopping! Thank You!

The Imperative for Local - Let's Start Now!

AND THIS THANKSGIVING TOO!

This will be a topic we will return to a lot over the upcoming holidays.  Of course, for me, this is a pledge that drives many of our buying decisions all year around.  But, let's face it,  the holidays are a good place to start.  Going forward, I propose that we share good local purveyors and store owners - let's educate each other as to how we can shop locally! Who's your favorite?  Also, we will talk about considerations for  "Shopping Small" in an upcoming Blog.  But for now, let's talk Turkey!

If you are The Cook for Thanksgiving Dinner, please check out turkeys that are raised by local farmers and are cage and hormone free.  Try buying a fresh turkey - once you go there, you can't go back!!! They are wonderful! You do have to order them and if you are going that route, you should do so very soon.

But along with the Turkey, think about your small local vendors and Farmers Markets as a source of veggies, fruits, pies and other items you will need.  If your Thanksgiving Dinner involves family and friends bringing dishes, gently suggest where they might shop for what they need.  Also, consider the small housewares' store owner for decorative items and linens for your table.  Find a local florist for flowers. And, if you are really dedicated, there are always local wines!

Remember, the definition of "small businesses" are NOT business with net incomes of over six million dollars annually - as we have unfortunately been hearing recently.  Small business are just that:  bricks and mortar, family owned, local businesses, who are not clearing millions a year!

Let's start the season off right. By supporting those who are making a living in our own neighborhoods!

Some of Our Local Favorites for Thanksgiving Shopping & Preparation (here in Philadelphia Obviously; Your Challenge is to Identify Places in Your Area).

Reading Terminal Market
Fair Food Farmstand
Head House Farmers Market
Downtown Cheese in the Reading Terminal Market
Otolith Seafood
Ippolitos Seafood
Green Aisle Grocery
Metropolitan Bakery
Olde City Coffee