Quick Lettuce Wraps

Thanks to a generous invitation, we enjoyed a long, relaxing weekend in Maine with a great group of friends.  Long days on the beach, plenty of fresh air, and of course lots of seafood!  

Lobster, whether served chilled in a hot dog bun (called a "lobsta roll") or cracked out of a steaming shell, is a classic Mainer meal.  Chowda is another local favorite, which is a delicious combination of cream, potatoes, bacon, and the obvious...clams.  Yum.

Back in Jersey, we were in the mood for some bold flavors, but also something light (lobsta is also served with butta & Mainers also love their blueberry pie).  Cooking Light has a lot of recipes that fit this bill, and are surprisingly tasty despite the reduction in tasty tasty fat. 

We settled on a lettuce wrap recipe that featured tofu, fresh veggies, and a spicy peanut-hoisin sauce.  The watery crunch of the crisp lettuce gives the meal a natural lightness.  

The bold Asian flavors of this dish help you forget about the missing bun bread, tortilla, etc. (or in this case, even the meat).  If you don't like tofu, feel free to swap in finely diced chicken breast.  But give tofu a chance...we're still learning to appreciate it.  One tip is to buy the extra-firm tofu, which improves its texture substantially.

Recipe

Ingredients

Sauce:

1 tsp canola/safflower oil

1 T minced shallot (or sub red onion)

1/3 cup water

2 T peanut butter (preferably the 'natural'/non-Skippy kind)

4 tsp hoisin sauce

Dash crushed red pepper, or more to taste

1 T fresh lime or lemon juice

Filling:

1 (14oz) package extra-firm tofu, drained and crumbled [see note in directions]

1 T. dark sesame oil

6 green onions, thinly sliced in 1" pieces, divided

2/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided

3 T soy sauce

1 tsp grated fresh ginger

1 1/2 tsp agave (or 2 tsp white sugar)

1/2 tsp Sriracha, or more to taste

1 cup carrots, julienned

2 cups rice (served hot)

8 lettuce leaves (select fresh, undamaged lettuce; Bibb, Green Leaf, and Romaine are good options)

Directions

1. Cook the rice.  Wash and dry the lettuce leaves.

2. Spread crumbled tofu in a single layer on several layers of paper towels; cover with additional paper towels. Let stand 20 minutes, pressing down occasionally.

3. To prepare sauce, heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Add canola/safflower oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add shallots/onions, and sauté for 2 minutes. Add 1/3 cup water and peanut butter, hoisin, and red pepper flakes, and stir with a whisk. Bring to a boil; cook 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir in lime/lemon juice.

4. To prepare tofu sauté, heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add sesame oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add half of the green onions; sauté 1 minute. Add tofu; sauté for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 2 tablespoons cilantro, soy sauce, ginger, sugar, and Sriracha; sauté 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir in carrots and remaining green onions.

Serve with rice, peanut-hoisin sauce, cilantro, and lettuce leaves.  Spoon a little rice onto each lettuce leaf, then top with a couple big spoonfuls of the tofu mixture.  Add the peanut-hoisin sauce and sprinkle with cilantro.

Hope you enjoy this delicious dish just as much as we did.

-Jeff

A little more love for/from Maine:

For the original recipe, check out the Cooking Light recipe link.

Comfort Food - Italian

Bolognese Sauce

Central Park, City of New York

Walking the streets of New York these first few days of October, I've noticed women wearing their trendy knee-high boots and warm sweaters.  Men are breaking out windbreakers, sweatshirts, and I've even spotted a couple knit caps.  My favorite is the local fruit guy, who must have grown up in a very warm part of the world.  In 60º F weather, he was wearing a full winter parka and a thick knit cap!

With chilly weather and football on every weekend, it means only one thing.  Rich, hearty Italian food is once again a perfect meal.  While I could eat lasagna and creamy pasta dishes year-round, they are so much better when you come in from outside and your cheeks are little cold, and you could use something to warm up.

One of my favorite go-to Italian dishes is a homemade Bolognese sauce.  Chunky tomatoes, sweet carrots, and crisp celery complimenting a hearty helping of beef, veal, or pork, along with subtle flavors of white wine and fresh herbs...it's hard to imagine anything more delicious.  

Like all recipes, this one starts off by finding the best ingredients.  I love canned whole San Marzano tomatoes.  Before adding to the pot, squeeze them by hand, crushing into various sizes.  This adds a little more interesting texture than pureed or crushed tomatoes.  


The celery, carrots, and onion should be fresh, but this is also a great recipe for using up scraps in the bottom of your fridge.  Little bits of onion or a few sad looking stalks of celery will be transformed into delicious food after cooking in the pot for a couple hours.  


For the wine in the recipe, use a dry white wine (Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, etc.), which can be from some old bottle that you forgot about entirely.  Ooh...and don't forget to find some quality pasta.  If you have time (and the ambition), fresh pasta is the best.  

Zinfandel vines in California

For a wine pairing, I recommend a full-bodied Zinfandel.  The best Zin I've had has come from California.  Specifically, the Zin coming out of Leonesse Cellars in Temecula has greatly impressed me.  Paso Robles, Lodi, and St. Helena (Napa) are other areas in California with some great Zinfandel.  The key for the wine is to pick something that can handle the acidity of the tomatoes.  Think of the tomato as a mountain and the proper wine as a 4x4 truck.  A creamy Chardonnay or a delicate Pinot Noir would be like a Prius.  They just won't cut it.


Anyway, take your time with the recipe.  It takes a while to prep and cook, and you don't want to rush the recipe.  I love cooking it during the day on Sunday, watching football while the delicious aromas from the pot fill the whole apartment.  Serve with fresh bread and olive oil, and don't forget the grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

Buon appetito!

Ingredients:

1/2 T. unsalted butter

1/2 T. extra-virgin olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 medium carrot, finely diced

1 small to medium onion, finely diced

1 celery rib, finely diced

1 lbs coarsely ground beef, pork, or veal (or more, depending on how meaty you like your sauce)

1 T. tomato paste

1/2 cup dry white wine

One 28-ounce can whole tomatoes, hand-crushed, juices reserved

3/4 cup stock

1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

2 T chopped flat-leaf parsley

2 T chopped basil

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, for serving

Instructions:

1. In a large sauté pan, melt the butter in the oil.

2. Add the onion for 2 minutes, then add carrot & celery.  Cook until the onion is soft, about 5-10 minutes.

3. Add garlic, stir, and let cook another 30 seconds.

4. Add the ground beef, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, and cook until no pink remains, about 8 minutes.

5. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes.

6. Add the wine and cook, stirring, until reduced by half, about 5-10 minutes.

7. Add the tomatoes with their juices, the stock, nutmeg and 1 tablespoon each of the parsley and basil and bring to a boil.

8. Season with salt and pepper and simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, until very thick, about 1 1/2 hours.

9. Cook pasta of choice (I use linguine and angel hair pastas).

10. When pasta is nearly done, add remaining 1 tablespoons of parsley and 1 tablespoon of basil into the meat sauce.

11. Season the sauce with salt and pepper, and serve over pasta.

12. Serve with freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.