Whole Grain Blueberry Pancakes

I had written on of my best blog posts for this recipe, come back to edit it, and lost it all to the wilds of the Internet. 

Now I'm sitting here, trying to figure out what to do. I might be able to remember it all, but it won't be as good. It was heartfelt, telling the story of my dear friend whose family lost everything in a fire a few weeks ago. It talked about my memories of the house, the 1,000 Christmas cookies we baked one year (at once an awesome show of Christmas spirit, and horrifying event) and how the material possessions are gone but the memories will always remain. Blueberry pancakes are her favorite, and the last thing we ate in her house together.

At first when I saw the post was gone, I was angry- the words had flowed easily, the post was neatly wrapped up in four paragraphs. I've never had a strong creative streak for one thing or another, but when I realized I regretted losing this one, I realized how what this blog means to me. It combines my love of cooking and experimenting with the reason I do it- to share with people. And, FINE Internet, life or whatever caused me to loose this, lesson learned . Sometimes the memories are the most dear- so make them count.

I do remember the most important line however: I will make these for her in my house, and hold her hand to let her know that memories remain and she is loved. 

Whole Grain Blueberry Pancakes

Serves 6

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour 


2 tablespoons ground flax seed- optional

1 teaspoon baking powder


1/2 teaspoon baking soda


1/3 cup granulated sugar


1/2 teaspoon salt


2 1/4 cups buttermilk

2 large eggs, lightly beaten


2 tablespoons butter, melted (melt in the pan skillet you are going to use)

1. Combine the flour, flax seed, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt in a large bowl.

2. Add the buttermilk, eggs, and melted butter. Stir all the ingredients until they are just combined. Batter will be lumpy, you don't want to over mix.

3. Heat the skillet to medium-hot and brush it with a bit of butter. Temperature is very important here- too hot and they will burn, too cold and they won't look right.

4. Pour about 1/3 of a cup of batter into the skillet. Sprinkle a handful of blueberries over the top- don't add to the batter as they will break up and turn it grey.

5. Wait until bubbles start to form around the edges and the center of the pancake, then flip with a spatula and cook the other side until golden and cooked through. Repeat with the remaining batter.

Frozen Peach Pie

I first stumbled across this recipe at a demonstration of 'healthy' foods at the Piedmont Park Green Market. A healthy and frosty treat? Sounded too good to be true. Sadly, it was. Non-dairy whipped topping (aka: Cool Whip)? Dude, it's hydrogenated vegetable oil and high fructose corn syrup. But not to worry, this no-bake pie is easily remedied with homemade stabilized whipped cream.

Have I mentioned that use of the oven is banned between the Fourth of July and Labor Day weekend? Thus, frozen peach pie has become my standard summer holiday potluck offering. Enjoy a slice of the season.

Frozen Peach Pie
Makes one big, summery pie

1 graham cracker pie crust (store bought or homemade)
3-4 ripe peaches
1 pint heavy cream
1 teaspoon gelatin
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
Splash of vanilla extract
Pinch of cinnamon (optional)
8 oz light cream cheese, SOFTENED (v. important)

1. Pit and dice peaches.

2. Boil two tablespoons of water, then add gelatin to dissolve. Allow to cool to room temperature.

3. Whip cream with either a whisk, hand mixer or stand mixer. When cream is halfway thickened, add powdered sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and gelatin. Whip to medium-firm peaks. Mix in softened cream cheese until just barely combined.

4. Gently fold 3/4 of the fruit into cream mixture. Spoon into pie crust. Top with remaining peach pieces.

5. Freeze pie for at least two hours. Let thaw for five minutes before cutting to serve.

Antipasto Fridays: Tempura Fried Squash Blossoms

We started Antipasto Fridays as a low-cook, snacky way to herald the coming of the weekend. This series introduces small plate favorites during the week so it may grace your own weekend opening ceremonies.

One morning. Three farmers markets. And a beautiful reminder of Italian days gone by.

I normally leave frying to the professionals. Beyond the fact that it's not the healthiest of options, there's the incredible mess and oily waste to deal with. But husband promised PROMISED he had done this before, and would be responsible, and that it would yield the most delicious treat EVER. He was only right on one count.

The secret is simple: soda water. The little bubbles make for an incredibly delicate tempura batter.

Since the squash blossoms, we've tried eggplant and zucchini sticks too. And I can no longer claim to be against home frying.

Tempura Fried Squash Blossoms
Batter adapted from Wolfgang Puck
8 squash blossoms

Batter:
1 tablespoon rice flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 tablespoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
3/4 cup soda water

Optional stuffing:
Grated parmesan cheese
1 clove minced garlic
Small handful of ground or chopped pine nuts

1. Sift together all of the dry ingredients. Whisk in soda water, a little at a time, until the right consistency is achieved. Most of the batter should run off the back of a spoon instantly, leaving only a very thin coat. Allow to rest in the refrigerator 1 hour before use [not the end of the world if this doesn't happen].

2. Combine the optional stuffing ingredients and mix well. Shape the mixture into 1 tablespoon balls.

3. Gently clean the squash blossoms in a bowl of water, shaking out any dirt and removing the stamen.

4. Insert one cheese ball into each flower. Gently press the filling into the base of the flower. Cover with the petals and pinch the top to seal.

5. Heat 4-5 tablespoons of olive oil over high heat, ultimately coating your pan with a 1/3 inch of olive oil across the bottom.

6. While oil heats, dip each blossom into the tempura batter, making sure to coat completely. Let any excess batter drip off. Place the blossom in the oil and fry until golden brown, about 1 minutes. Flip and fry the other side to brown evenly. Remove to a paper towel lined plate.

Tomato & Peach Quinoa

Oh hai Running with Tweezers readers. Glad you made it. Let me show you around. Definitely check out our well-organized recipe index for a list of all the goods. Kate and I(Nic) mostly hang out on Twitter, even though we live less than a block apart. Oh, and we occasionally film our exploits (no, not those exploits), including the time we made butter in a food processor. Got it? On with the show (a re-post of our guest post up on RWT).

Photo by the talented Tami Hardeman

It's a rare opportunity in food making, or food blogging, to actually create something never before seen. But if you have a flavor pairing in mind, sometimes you can out cook Google and the legions of cooks to come before. Classic ingredient combinations are a natural place to start. This past fall while traveling through northern Italy I discovered the wonder of pecorino cheese with pear. Since then, I've thrown them together against risotto, pizza, spinach salad and ice cream. No recipe required! It's the ability to translate those combinations across a range of forms that earns you 'good cook' status.

Quinoa, however, has not been the easiest thing to incorporate into my repertoire. And I have really made an effort to bring it into rotation once my #1 recipe tester's pancreas went on the fritz, and began demanding low-carb, low-sugar, generally healthy food. Pasta is out, protein packed quinoa is in. But how to make it summery? Most quinoa recipes highlight its nutty flavor, leaning heavily fall. I can't in good conscience hack into a butternut squash this time of year.

Summer naturally presented me with peaches and tomatoes at the same time. Coincidence? I think not. It's a tried and true flavor combination, that I've seen across caprese-style salads, bruschetta and gazpacho. Could it brighten up a grain sometimes compared to cardboard? My hunch was correct, and Google confirmed this to be the first ever published Peach Tomato Quinoa. And delicious to boot!

Tomato & Peach Quinoa
Serves 4

4 medium tomatoes, diced
3 peaches, peeled and diced
1 red onion or 2 shallots (skip the Vidalia's, you don't want any additional sweetness)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
1 cup quinoa
2 1/2 cups broth of your choice
2 tablespoons fresh chopped thyme

1. Dice tomatoes and set in a colander to drain excess liquid. Peel and dice peaches and onion.

2. Preheat a saucepan. Rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh strainer and allow to drip most water out. Scrape into the pre-heated pot and let it toast for a minute or two until aroma is released. Add the broth and thyme. Bring to a boil, then reduce and simmer for 20 minutes. You'll know it's done when the liquid is absorbed and the individual grains show a little spiral.

3. Heat olive oil in a large frying pan over high heat, adding diced onion or shallots. Cook to take the raw edge off, about three minutes. Add tomatoes and peaches. Saute for no more than five minutes, or else too much liquid will be released and require extra time to boil off. Add basil.

4. Fluff quinoa, and serve topped with peach tomato mixture.

Corn Fritters

I got a chance to test drive the new Cooking Channel while visiting our folks in Texas with their cushy satellite tv. Kate can vouch for the fact that HD TV makes for some really wonderful Saturday afternoon naps. It was just before and just after such a nap that I caught a few episodes of Bill's Food, featuring Australian chef Bill Granger.

Bill was whipping up some of his restaurants signature dishes, including these amazing looking corn cilantro pancake things. I was pretty devastated not to find his exact recipe online, but this version is fairly close to what I recall. Bill actually pureed some of the corn in addition to using whole kernels, so I may give that a try in future versions.

Even after our fresh ears of corn revealed a few caterpillars, these were a serious hit. The recipe reminds of falafel, especially with the gratuitous use of cilantro.

Corn Fritters
Adapted from Simply Recipes
Yields 14-16 fritters

1 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 cup water
2 cups of corn kernels, (see steps for cutting corn from a cob) cut from 3 large cobs (or frozen corn, defrost and drain first)
4 large scallions or green onions, finely sliced (about half a cup)
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Olive oil (or oil of your choice for frying)

1. Sift together flour, baking powder, salt, ground coriander, and ground cumin in a medium bowl.

2. Add egg, lemon juice and water. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until smooth. Add the corn, onions, and cilantro. Stir until just combined

3. Heat a large frying pan on medium high heat. Add enough oil to generously coat the bottom of the pan. When oil is hot (shimmering not smoking), spoon about 2 heaping tablespoons worth of batter into the pan to form one fritter, patting it down with the back of the spoon. Note that the fritters will splatter like mad as they cook (I nearly lost an eye). So, either use a screen splatter guard, or wear long sleeved clothes.

4. Leave about 1/2 inch between the fritters in the pan. Let cook about 2-3 minutes on each side, flipping the fritters when they are nicely browned on one side. When browned on the other side, remove the fritters to a plate lined with paper towels. Add oil as needed to keep the bottom of the pan well coated.

Recipe short: Grilled Watermelon with Yogurt Sauce

O, delightful little yellow watermelon that I lovingly toted home from the farmer's market. How to highlight your beautiful color and bring out your complex flavor?

ANSWER: Grill that bitch.

Grilled Watermelon with Yogurt Sauce
Straight out of Food & Wine Magazine

1 cup plain Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon coarsely chopped thyme
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 of a small watermelon (we found whole rounds easy to flip on the grill)
1/4 cup small mint leaves

1. Light a grill. In a bowl, combine the yogurt with the lemon juice, vinegar, thyme and the 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Season mixture with salt and pepper.

2. Brush the watermelon with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Grill over high heat until nicely charred, about 1 minute per side; transfer to plates.

3. Top the watermelon with the yogurt sauce and season with black pepper. Drizzle with olive oil, garnish with the mint and serve.

Coconut-Infused Couscous with Key West Shrimp

As Kate confessed, we don't share too many meals. Which is really a shame, considering we live less than a block apart.

But we didn't miss the opportunity to share the spoils when two free boxes of couscous arrived at my door. Yep, we took the bait from Near East to test drive their Around the World in 5 Minutes recipe site. I'd tried a rice pilaf or two from Near East before, but until this offer I had no idea their commitment to 100% all natural ingredients. Not to mention the fact that they have organic and whole grain lines.

Bonus: this recipe is fast, easy and healthy (depending on your ability to find light coconut milk). As a former brown rice devotee, I may be switching to couscous, which cooks in just FIVE minutes. For serious, FIVE. Compared to hour plus cooking times for brown rice, it's a miracle. And not too shabby in the nutrition department.  

We only made one little change to the recipe: subbing in some fresh Key West shrimp instead of the original called for prawns. These pink beauties are at least regional, and the closest source of shrimp I could find. And I finally got to use some of the jalapeños bursting out of our scorched urban garden. They must be taking their cues from this Atlanta summer, because they are hot hot hot.

So, considering that this post and recipe meet much of the Stuff White People Like criteria, let's get this Asian/Mediterranean fusion party started!

*Disclaimer: Kate and I were contacted and sent 2 boxes of Near East Plain Couscous for testing this recipe and tasting. We did not receive any compensation, and feel this is a great product and recipe to share with you.

Coconut-Infused Couscous with Shrimp
Adapted from Near East's Around the World in Five Minutes
Yields four generous servings

Couscous:
3/4 cup unsweetened, light coconut milk (shake can before opening)
1/2 cup low sodium, low fat chicken broth (or my new fav Better than Bouillon)
1 tablespoon green onion,  chopped
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
Pinch of  turmeric
1 package Near East Original Plain Couscous

Sauté:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 pound of local shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 garlic cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh ginger
1/2 bunch green onions
1 hot red or green pepper
2 tablespoons fresh basil,  (Thai, if available) or cilantro
1 tablespoon fresh mint
3/4 cup unsweetened, light coconut milk
1/4 cup low sodium, low fat chicken broth
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (about 1/2 of a lime)
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon sea salt (optional)
Black pepper, freshly ground
1 tablespoon cornstarch or potato starch
2 tablespoons cold water

1. Peel and clean the shrimp. Chop the green onions, garlic, ginger, basil, mint and hot pepper. Juice the lime. Having this prepped in advance will help ensure the sauté does not over cook.

2. In a sauce pot, bring coconut milk and 1/2 cup of broth to a boil. Simmer for a few seconds. Stir in the first chopped green onion, soy sauce, turmeric and couscous. Cover; remove from heat. Let stand 5 minutes. Fluff couscous with fork lightly before serving.

3. While couscous is standing, heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté shrimp 1 minute. Add garlic, ginger, green onions, hot pepper, fresh herbs; sauté 1 minute, stirring often.

4. Add coconut milk, broth, lime juice, soy sauce, turmeric, sea salt and a few grinds of pepper; simmer 1 minute. It's ok if it looks a little dry.

5. Mix cornstarch with water; stir into sauce. Simmer 1 to 2 minutes, stirring often, until sauce is thickened and shrimp is cooked through.

Serve the sauté over the couscous.

Grilled Bread Salad

I eat alone fairly often. My roommate and I have different schedules often, I can only impose upon Nic so many times before we get sick of each other, and its not practical to meet up with someone every night to share a meal. Eating alone has never bothered me though, it is the perfect chance to eat exactly what I want- whether it be eggs 4 times in a row or some total random mish-mash of things, with a side of green salad to make it seem legit. 

A while ago I came across What We Eat When We're Alone by Deborah Madison. Madison is a well accomplished vegetarian cookbook writer, who complied this book through interviewing people on what they eat when they are alone (well, yes, but there is no better description.) When there is no one to cook for and no one to please, people come up with some strange concoctions to satisfy themselves. A lot of the meals revolved around toast, all things Mexican, and ungodly things done with peanut butter. 

This salad came from having gone to the farmer's market and looking for a way to fashion a jumble of fresh vegetables into some type of coherent meal. The bread came from a local bread company, H&F Bread Co.,  tomatoes and cucumbers sounded tasty, and as I am now the proud host of Nic's grill, so that had to be put to use. You are more than welcome to simply toast the bread, and ignore grill the scallions though. Its all up to you.

Grilled Bread Salad

Serves 1

2 thick slices of multigrain bread

halved garlic clove

6-7 cherry tomatoes

1/2 cucumber

2-3 tbl chopped herbs- I used basil and parsley

1 green onion

lemon juice

1. Preheat grill to medium high. Grill scallions for 1-3 minutes, looking for grill marks. Rub the slices of bread with olive oil and grill until toasty, and grill marks appear. Remove from the grill and rub with cut garlic clove. This gives the salad some garlic flavor without overwhelming raw garlic flavor/pieces. 

2. Cube bread, mince green onion, and chop tomotoes and cucumbers. Mince the herbs, tear the basil. Combine all ingredients in a bowl, and drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice. Serve after about 10 minutes, to allow flavors to meld.