flatbread fun

Tester Teaser

Let's have more Tami tester pics. This time around, how about some Flatbread Fun? Tami has some insane bread recipes in her upcoming cookbook! These two top my all time fave's in it ... I think; there are SO many!

This first one is The Veg Wedge. The grilling comes out in full force in this recipe. Get the coals ready or have the gas tank full, it is loaded with grilled vegetables, smeared with Cracker Spread and glazed with a special sauce. To finish it, you slap this monster on the grill and let the bread develop an awesome crunch. Can you taste it, yet?

If you are in the mood for a lighter appetizer flatbread, you will want to dig into this masterpiece, Tomato and Arugula Flatbread. Again her Rosemary Flatbread is grilled but this time with arugula and then topped with a tomato salad and Horseradish Sauce. A little kick and a lot of flavor. Party in your mouth.

I certainly hope this book will be out soon; I almost feel bad showing you these teasers and then telling you you can't have them, yet. Soon, I hope!

FNF - bubble and squeak with sausages and onion gravy

Not to scare anyone that time has suddenly sped up and it is again a Food Network Friday, hosted by the lovely author of American Vegan Kitchen, Ms. Tami Noyes, this is due for April 1st. (So it is not too late to join in the fun! Redo Jamie's recipe vegan and send your creation to Tami.)

When I chose this one, I had St. Pat's Day in mind, so I made it on that day. Bubble and Squeak is a traditional English dish made of leftover vegetables and potatoes mashed and fried together until crisp. What is the connection to Ireland? The Irish claim it as well. Good enough for me!

We have traditionally enjoyed Corned Seitan and Cabbage on this holiday, but, truthfully, I wanted something else - not to mention that David requests Corned Cabbage throughout the year and does not feel restricted to the wearing of the green.

As written, this Jamie Oliver dish is not - not! - low fat in any way. This is obviously not a Food Revolution meal. A bit of recipe translation: A knob is a tablespoon and a glug is a couple of tablespoons. He asks you to use a glug of olive oil to fry your potatoes. No need, folks. The potatoes absorb the oil anyway and then you need to add more. Skip most of the oil, use a well seasoned cast iron pan or nonstick and your potatoes and root vegetables will brown just fine.

Since the sausage was the bit of creative element for this FNF, I made my Corned Seitan but rolled it into links. This maintained my tradition of having Corned Seitan on St. Patty's and tasted really good to boot.

The onion gravy calls for 1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar. This would not be a big deal, except Jamie does not reduce it any. This had me raise a Vulcan eyebrow.

Ultimately, the gravy was a little too thick, so I added another half cup of broth. The acidity would have been a bit much alone, but with the rest of the dish, it worked beautifully. This must be why he has a TV show and I have a blog.

I used baby arugula, dressed with a bit of lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper for the greens.

Delicious meal.

Cost Breakdown

corned sausage: $4

potatoes, leek, turnip, carrot: $4

onion, arugula: $3

chestnuts: $4 (and on sale!)

flour, herbs, vinegar, stock: $2

Total to make 6 servings:

$17.00

thai noodle salad

I made a lite lunch pasta salad. I grilled a bunch of vegetables and cooked up some pasta. 

I am trying to make different dressings that do not need oil, so for the Thai influence I blended the meat of a young coconut with some fresh lime juice, and added a diced chili pepper. 

It all came together very nicely. It was fresh and still crisp tender. The only change I would make is the eggplant. While it is delicious fresh off the grill, the eggplant doesn't have quite the flavor after it sits for a bit. 

Cost Breakdown:

corn, green beans: $1

eggplant: $1

arugula:$.50

zucchini: $1

onion: $.50

peppers: $1

tomato: $1

pasta: $2

young coconut, sunflower seeds: $2

lime: $.25

Total to feed a family of 5:

$10.25