Finally, last weekend I worked up the courage to try using up the rest of the barley. I picked a recipe from How to Cook Everything (I’m not shilling for him, really!  My partner just got me the book last week and I love it!).  The recipe, stovetop pearled barley with onions and mushrooms, called for pearled barley, but I frankly don’t know what the difference is between types of barley, so I ignored that and substituted my pot barley.

And you know what, it was pretty good. My partner and I didn’t even really notice that it was vegetarian (except it wasn’t really, cause I added a bit of beef stock). Which is a big deal, cause we’re practically carnivores, if carnivores ate rice and potatoes too. The only problem was that the recipe made too much, so I put the leftovers in the fridge thinking we could have them for lunch the next day. But, this is where it got not so good. The barley got too mushy overnight, and somehow the whole thing just lost all flavour. Reheated barley with mushrooms and onions is not a dish I will want to eat again.

So I suppose barley’s not all bad. And I’m thinking that pot barley is probably a low grade of barley, which may be my problem. I think I might give it a try again one day, but I definitely won’t cook enough for leftovers.

Anyone got any barley tips or recipes?

I know, I know, it sounds complicated. But it literally took me less time to prepare it than the oven took to heat up, and then it was just a matter of setting a 40 minute timer and waiting. So simple.

Here’s the recipe (adapted from the really wonderful book How to Cook Everything (more on that book in a later post):

1/2 package of puff pastry (that’s the secret to a really easy, and super tasty, tart or pie!)
1 box frozen spinach
1 onion, chopped
1 teaspoon garlic (I use the pre-minced stuff you can buy in the jars for simplicity, but it’s easy enough to cut your own garlic)
6 or 7 mushrooms, button or shitake, or a mix of whatever kind you like, washed and sliced
3 eggs
1/2 cup skim milk
1 cup goat’s feta, crumbled (other cheese’s could work too, maybe mozzerella or cow’s feta, but goat feta has a really great taste if you can find it)
black pepper
table salt
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 slices of white bread
1 tablespoon olive oil.

First, thaw the puff pastry (if you forget to do this, leave it on a dish on top of the oven while it’s heating up and that should thaw it quick enough, otherwise it takes about 2 hours on the countertop).

Heat the oven to 375F.

While the oven is warming up, cut up the onion, garlic and mushrooms and put in a frying pan or skillet with the olive oil. Cook on the stove top on medium heat until the mushrooms are starting to change colour then transfer to a large bowl. Thaw the spinach in a bowl in the microwave (2 or 3 minutes should do it), then mix in with the mushrooms and onions.

Add the eggs, milk, salt, pepper and half the goat’s feta to the mushroom/spinach mix and stir well until the eggs are mixed in completely (think scrambled eggs).

Toast the three slices of bread and then cut into cubes of about half an inch (instant homemade breadcrumbs!).

Spread the puff pastry on a pie dish or pretty much any medium sized baking/casserole dish that it will fit in (I used an 8-inch brownie pan, cause that’s what I have. Don’t judge!). Pour the spinach/mushroom/cheese/etc mix on top of the puff pastry and spread with a spoon until it covers the whole pan. Finally, layer the bread crumbs and remaining crumbled feta on top. That’s it. Tart prepped.

Bake in the 375F oven for 20-40 minutes. (My oven is a bit, shall we say, eccentric, so it took 40 minutes, but the book recommends 20 minutes). It’s done when the eggy-mix looks firm and the top is dark golden.

Enjoy! (Even though it’s spinach!)

Today, I tried my hand at replicating this. I didn’t get it quite right, but the result was pretty good – and super quick!

After washing and trimming the baby bok choy, I heated about 1 tablespoon (tbsp) of vegetable oil in a small pan with 2 tbsp of low-sodium soy sauce, 1 tbsp of water, and about 1 teaspoon each of pre-chopped garlic and pureed ginger – both of which I buy pre-prepared for convenience. I added the bok choy to the pan once it had started sizzling a little, put a cover on the pan, and steamed it for about 3 minutes. And that was that!

Anyone got a favourite bok choy recipe I should try?

One of the best tricks I’ve learned to help increase the amount of veggies I eat, is to make enough of each dish to freeze some. Alternately, I prepare extra veggies and freeze them – washed, peeled, chopped, sometimes blanched, and generally ready to use – in individual sizes so that next time I need some carrots, or onions, or whatever, there’s a handy little package in the freezer ready to throw into the pot.

For instance, I used the tips on the site to freeze three bunches of collard greens – which I’ve mentioned before are hard to find in my neighborhood. Now, next time I want to make collard greens and corned beef, I can just grab a package of chopped, frozen greens from my freezer.

For some veggies, it might not be worth it to freeze your own compared to just buying pre-frozen… like peas, or corn… but for veggies you can’t buy frozen, I definitely recommend it.

Although this recipe is pretty simple – barely more than thinly cut cucumber in sugar water – it was amazing. Served with an ice cube in each bowl, on a warm summer evening, this is a perfect appetizer or palate cleanser to end a meal.

I haven’t tried making it, but this recipe looks about right.

But today was the sort of day when you want something warm and steamy. So instead, I’m going to try this recipe from my favorite recipe site: cookstr.com.

I’ll let you know how it goes.

UPDATE: What a success! This recipe was easy, tasty and just what I was craving.

I’ve had bad luck with kale recipes in the past – too tough, or too slippery… but this soup had none of those problems. I even cheated and used pre-cooked turkey chorizo, instead of fresh tofu chorizo, and it still worked out fine.

I used a whole bunch of kale, so there was about 10 cups of soup. I’ve attempted to store this up for later by freezing it in 2-cup amounts – which work out to have cost about $2 each, and have about 200 calories. Not bad for a quick lunch or side dish for supper when it’s time to thaw them out.

According to wiki, it’s a hybrid between broccoli and Chinese kale (also called kai-lan). I’ve never tried Chinese kale, so I can’t say if broccolini has acquired any flavour from that plant.

I found an easy broccolini recipe that suggested brushing it with olive oil, sprinkling with salt and roasting in a hot (400-450F) oven for 10 minutes until tender. While this produced a fairly tasty snack, the broccolini became really soft. I think it would be tastier a bit more crunchy, especially while salty and oily.

Overall, I prefer the milder taste to regular broccoli, but I think I need a new recipe.

Anyone have any suggestions on how to cook broccolini?