Seared Scallops and Spinach with Shallots and Bacon

A Soy-free Kitchen Original
(This cooks up very quickly in one pan.)

1 lb sea scallops
1 bag  (6-9 oz) baby spinach
2 slices bacon
2 medium shallots
1/2 cup hard cider

1. Cut bacon crosswise into 1/2-inch strips. Using a 12" skillet, fry until just crisp; remove to a paper towel.  Remove bacon grease from pan, reserving for later.

2. Meanwhile, cut scallops in half crosswise and mince shallots.

3.  Put a teaspoon or so of the reserved bacon grease (maybe a little more if the skillet is not non-stick)back in the skillet.  Sear scallops over high heat, approximately 2 minutes per side.  Remove to a plate and tent with foil.

4. Put another teaspoon or so bacon grease back in the skillet and saute minced shallots briefly.  When they are just starting to turn a little brown around the edges, add the cider and deglaze the pan.  Add spinach, cover the pan, and cook until the spinach is wilted but not mushy.  Add the bacon pieces and toss.

5. Serve the scallops over the spinach. 

Serves 2-3.  Possible accompaniments: Orzo or rice pilaf.

SOY-FREE CONSIDERATIONS:
none

(c) 2012

Vaguely Mexican Fish Cakes

As I have said before, I am originally from New England.  We ate fish sticks, fish cakes, fish patties, fried fish, etc, etc.  Usually cod.  And always with tartar sauce. 

Today I went to use some cod my husband had bought and found myself without white bread to use as filler.  (I know, I know, traditional cod cakes use potato as filler, but traditional cod cakes are made with salt cod, too.)  I did, however have some leftover corn tortillas.  My original recipe used thyme, but we had cilantro, and cilantro goes with tortillas, so.  . . .

[Update:  the original recipe had 4slices homestyle white bread (no milk) instead of the tortillas, 1 Tbsp fresh thyme or 1 tsp dried instead of the cilantro, and 1/4 cup minced celery.  You could put some fresh parsley, too.]

Vaguely Mexian Fish Cakes

4 corn tortillas, ripped up
1/4 cup warm milk
1/4 cup green onions, cut in 1/2" pieces, white and some green
1/4 cup cilantro leaves, packed
1 egg
1 - 1 1/2 lbs cod or other white fish, cut into about 8 pieces
1 tsp ground cumin
salt
pepper

1. Put the torn tortillas in the bowl of a food processor and let sit a few minutes. 

2. Add the green onion pieces and cilantro and pulse until the tortillas are in crumbs. 

3. Add the egg, fish, cumin, about 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper and pulse until egg is combined with fish, but not until the fish is pureed. 

4. Divide the fish mixture into 8 portions and roughly shape into balls.

5.  Heat about 1/4 cup canola oil in a 12-inch skillet on medium high until it just begins to shimmer.  One by one, place the cod mixture in the skillet and press flat with the bottom of a pancake turner. 

6.  Cook until brown on one side, flip, and brown again.

7.  Serve with some kind of salad, and of course tartar sauce.  You might put some chopped cilantro in the tartar sauce and a couple of shots of lime juice.

8.  Serves 4, two cakes apiece.

SOY-FREE CONSIDERATIONS:
Check the tortilla ingredients for soy, but this is generally not a problem with corn tortillas.

Chicken Divan

Chicken Divan has come full circle. Originally made with mornay sauce (bechamel or white sauce with cheese in it), over the years it turned into something you dumped canned chicken, frozen broccoli and a can of cream-of-something-soup into.

Well. We don't eat cream-of-something soup anymore because it usually has soy. I don't like frozen broccoli because the stems are tough and the crowns are mushy. So, let's go with a standard recipe and cut down on some of the butter and cheese to reduce the fat. The classic cheeses to use are half gruyere and half parmesan, but you can use anything you have on hand. We like sharp cheddar.

Chicken Divan
Serves 4

4 cups broccoli
4 tsp butter
1/4 cup minced onion or shallot (optional)
3 Tbsp flour
1/2 cup chicken broth (or water)
1 tsp chicken bouillon powder or 1 cube
1 cup milk
2 oz shredded cheese (1/2 cup)
10 oz sliced, cooked chicken
Cooked noodles, rice, or toast

1. Steam the broccoli--let the water in the steamer come to a rolling boil, then steam the broccoli for 8 or 9 minutes, covered.

2. While the broccoli is cooking, melt the butter in a large saucepan. Saute the optional onions until they are soft but not browning at the edges. (If you don't want to do this, add 1 tsp minced dried onion later with the chicken bouillon.)

3. Sprinkle the flour over the melted butter and stir. Add the chicken broth or water all at once and stir until smooth. Slowly add the milk, stirring constantly, until it is all incorporated and smooth. Heat until just bubbly.

4. Add the chicken bouillon and shredded cheese, and stir until the cheese is melted. Add the chicken and stir to coat with sauce.

5. Dish out the rice, noodles, or toast on 4 plates or shallow soup dishes. Divide up the broccoli over this. Ladle the chicken and sauce over all.

Note: If you are really energetic you can poach your own chicken for this. I simmer chicken breasts with some celery leaves, a couple of baby carrots, several grinds of pepper, and a bay leaf. When it is done, I simmer the broth down to concentrate it and use in the recipe.

No-soy considerations:
Check the chicken bouillon for soy.
If serving over toast, check the bread for soy or soy oil.

A Chicken Pot Pie

Here's a good fall recipe, and it is not too hard to make if you have 1/2 pound leftover chicken and use frozen vegetables. The original recipe came from a Weight Watchers cookbook and used a small tube of (five) biscuits, each split in half, on top, which made it really easy, but they have soy oil. If you can eat soy oil--I can't--go ahead and use them, but use the cooking temperature and time on the biscuit tube.

This is a real favorite of my kids.

Chicken Pie with Biscuit Top
Serves 5 in our family

4 teaspoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon mixed herbs, such as Italian blend or Herbes de Provence
1 1/2 cups milk (skimmed milk works fine)
4 ounces shredded cheddar cheese (or whatever kind you like)
8 ounces cooked chicken, cut in 1/2" cubes
1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules, or a crumbled chicken bouillon cube (read label to avoid soy)
1 tsp grainy mustard (optional)
1 cup thinly sliced carrots (* see note)
1 cup sliced mushrooms (* see note)
1 cup green beans (* see note)
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

For biscuit top:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
1 1/4 cups milk

1. * First, steam or parboil the vegetables until they are tender-crisp. Put aside. (Skip this step if using frozen vegetables.)

2. Melt the butter in a 3-quart saucepan or large skillet. Add the flour, mustard, and herbs. Cook for a couple of minutes, then add the milk, a little at a time, stirring to blend. Let the sauce simmer until it has thickened, maybe 3 minutes. Add the cheese and stir while it melts. Add the chicken, bouillon and optional mustard, stir, then add the vegetables.

3. Put into a lightly oiled casserole.

4. For the biscuit top: mix dry ingredients in a large bowl. Work in butter with tips of fingers, two knives, or a pastry blender. Add the milk gradually, mixing with a fork until you have a soft dough.

5. Drop the biscuit mixture over the top of the casserole in heaping tablespoons, then smooth slightly to cover the entire surface.

6. Bake at 450F for 12-15 minutes.

*Note: you can substitute 3 cups of frozen mixed vegetables for the carrots, mushrooms, and beans. Or use a drained 8-oz can of sliced mushrooms and 2 cups of frozen vegetables. You don't have to pre-cook the frozen or canned vegetables.

[photo to be added]

Moo Goo Gai Pan

sThe last time I went to a Chinese restaurant I was sick before we left, even though I had ordered only steamed shrimp, steamed rice, and sweet-and-sour sauce on the side. I blame cross-contamination in the kitchen (probably someone used a spoon that had been in another dish.)

But I love Chinese food.

So, to a avoid a long story and get straight to the recipe, here is our home-made:

Moo Goo Gai Pan

1 lb skinless, boneless chicken, cut into 1" pieces
2 Tbs cornstarch
3/4 cup chicken broth (or 3/4 cup water + 1/2 tsp chicken bouillon powder)
2 Tbs Worcestershire sauce, or 1 Tbs each Worcestershire and Maggi seasoning
1 tsp dark (Asian) sesame oil
1 Tbs grated fresh ginger (do not pack)
8 oz sliced button mushrooms (you can buy this amount in a carton in the produce section)
1/4 lb fresh snow peas (or 3/4 cup frozen green beans)
1 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced
1 medium onion, sliced the long way (not into rings)
2-3 tsp canola oil

Hint: start rice before you start this dish. Brown rice: start 20 minutes before, white rice: start just before.

1. Combine the chicken with 1 Tbs of the cornstarch in a medium bowl; toss well to coat and set aside. Combine the broth with the remaining 1 Tbs cornstarch, Worcestershire (or Worcestershire and Maggi) sauce, and sesame oil in a 1-cup glass measure; set aside.

2. Heat a 12" skillet (or a wok if you have one) over medium-high heat until a drop of water sizzles. Swirl in the canola oil, then add the chicken. Stir-fry until lightly browned, 2-3 minutes.

3. Add the ginger and stir-fry until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

4. Add the mushtooms, snow peas or green beans, bell pepper, an onions, and stiry-fry until tender, 3-4 minutes.

5. Add the broth mixture and cook, stirring occasionally, until it boils and thickens, and the chicken is just cooked through, 1-2 minutes.

Serve over rice.

Shakshuka--my new favorite Friday-night supper

I went to Israel last year and am still fascinated by Israeli food. It's kind of a Middle-East fusion thing, with dishes from all over. I bought Joan Nathan's The Foods of Israel Today and decided to try some recipes for things I hadn't already had in Israel. The first one we tried was Shakshuka. I loved her recipe, but of course had to tinker with it (based on some other online versions.) So here's mine:

Shakshuka Recipe
Yield: 3 large servings

2 medium onions, chopped
1 (each) 28-ounce can tomatoes
6 cloves garlic, roughly diced
1 teaspoons salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/4 cup olive oil
4 - 6 large eggs

1. Heat the oil in a frying pan (12" if you have it) and heat it. Cook the onions until shiny and translucent but not brown. Add the tomatoes, garlic, salt, paprika, and tomato paste. Bring to a simmer and cook, uncovered, over low heat until thick, maybe 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Make indentations in the tomatoes and break the eggs into them. Break the yolks. Cover and continue to cook for about 3 to 4 minutes (maybe longer, depends on how hard you like your eggs), until the eggs are set. Serve with pita bread.

note: I also think this would be good with fresh parsley sprinkled over the whole thing.

Soy-free considerations:
none

Tuna Noodle Casserole and a Bonus Recipe

Tuna Noodle Casserole (or Toona Noona, as one of my kids called it) is not high class fare, but it has its advantages. It is quick, and my whole family will eat it.

Half of that changed when I came down with the soy allergy.

Canned Cream of Chicken--or Cream of Mushroom, or Cream of Celery--soup contains soy. You could make a white sauce for the casserole, but then you've changed what makes this dish most appealing--after the pasta is cooked, the whole thing takes 10 minutes, tops, if you leave off buttered bread crumbs, which we do because the kids think they're disgusting. They will eat it with crushed potato chips, though. Big surprise. Anyway. . . .

Heloise solved this one. Sort of. The Hints from Heloise column had a recipe for a "creamed soup mix" that involved dried everything, including milk. You just added water, heated it, and Presto! Quasi creamed soup. Or creamed quasi soup. Or something.

I have been known to use dried ingredients, but instant powdered milk as the main ingredient only shows up in one thing in our house (more on this later). So, what to do? Take the concept, replace the dried milk and water with real milk, and try it out. It worked. Here is our new standard:

Tuna Noodle Casserole

8 ounces shell pasta
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tsp chicken bouillon powder
1 teaspoon dried minced onion
1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs, such as Italian or Herbes de Provence (without lavender)
1/2 teaspoon Old Bay Seafood seasoning (optional)
2 cups milk
2 6-oz cans soy-free tuna*
1 4-oz can sliced mushrooms

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, undercooking by a minute or two. Drain. Put back in the same pan.
2. While the pasta is cooking, mix all the dry ingredients together in a small bowl. Open and drain the tuna and mushrooms
3. With the pasta back in the pan, but off the heat, stir in the flour mixture. Put the heat back on to medium.
4. Stirring constantly, slowly add the milk. Heat the mixture, stirring once in a while, until it bubbles. Add the tuna and mushrooms.
5. Let sit a few minutes on low heat to give the pasta a chance to absorb some of the liquid.

*A word about soy-free tuna. It's hard to find. That "vegetable broth" a lot of tuna is canned in, is usually some combination of soy and other things. Trader Joe's has tuna in plain spring water, with salt or salt-free, and so does Whole Foods. I am told that expensive imported Italian tuna in olive oil is fine, too. If you can't find soy-free tuna, canned soy-free chicken is easier to come by, and it works in this recipe, too. In that case, you can omit the herbs and add a teaspoonful of curry powder or dried dill.

Bonus recipe:
Honey Nut Butter Candy

1 cup powdered dry milk
1/2 cup nut butter of your choice (peanut butter, almond butter, etc.)
1/2 cup honey
ground nuts, sugar, colored sugar, or soy-free chocolate shot (ha! if you can find these, let me know.)

Mix the milk powder, nut butter, and honey together in a bowl until you can't see the milk powder any more. Roll teaspoonfuls of the mixture into balls. (If it's hard to handle, refridgerate for a half hour to an hour.) Roll in nuts, sugar, or chocolate shot.

You can put this in little paper cups in a box for a nice presentation. We have alternated these with nut-stuffed dates rolled in sugar for gifts. It is easy for kids to make.