Cooking is not only an art, but a science. I am fond of experimenting and sometimes my experiments go awry. Sometimes they create new and wonderful things. Tonight it was wonderful. But I bring up the science bit, because you really have to think through things sometimes before using them willy nilly. Like when I messed up the cuke salad the other day. I was too lazy to seed them and they were super-watery and made the salad too wet. I forgot how much water is in a cuke. Just the same with tomatoes. Lots of folks throw them in eggs for example and then are #$#@ed off cause their eggs are too wet. Too get rid of some of the watery aspect of juicy fruits and veggies, you seed and depulp them or you sweat them before adding them to things. Today I wanted extra moisture, so I left the pulp in in my tomatoes..well, you'll see.
We had:
Goat cheese and potato stuffed poblanos with mesclun and garden tomatoes
In General
2 large poblano peppers, roasted and skinned
Whenever a recipe calls for roasted peppers, you can either char them over a flame, say on your gas burner or in a grill, or broil on top rack in your oven. Just place the peppers near the heat source and turn them every few minutes till all the skin is charred. Keep an eye on them so they don't burn up though. Take them out and throw them in a paper bag, close it and let them sit for about 10 minutes. Take them out and rinse them under cold water, they will still be hot to the touch, so be careful. Gently rub the skin and it should just come right off. Cut a slit lengthwise and slice the top off. Gently remove the stem and seeds. Weird that this changes the flavor so much of a pepper, but there is the mystery of chemistry!
For stuffing
1-1.5 cups leftover mashed potatoes, warmed
a healthy pinch of ground cumin (a "pinch" is less than a tsp, just grab some with your thumb and forefinger. Don't be shy!)
a healthy pinch of garlic powder
salt
pepper
a handful of cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/4 cup of pine nuts, toasted in a dry pan till browned
1/2 -3/ cup chopped fresh cilantro
squirts from 1 lime quarter
1 little tube of chevre (soft goat cheese)
Mix the first 5 ingredients. Mix the rest of the ingredients in gently, don't really "stir" just mix, right before you stuff the peppers. (The mashed potatoes when reheated get a little dry, but I know the fresh tomatoes will make them just moist enough along with the cilantro when they are stuffed and sweating when the peppers are fried.)
Batter
flour for dredging
2 tb flour
1tsp baking powder
1 tb water
2 eggs yolks (save the whites)
Mix these ingredients in a bowl. Whip the two egg whites till they are stiff and fluffy. Fold them gently into the rest of the batter.
Assemble and Cook
Heat about an inch or two of cooking oil in a deep pan on med hi. Gently stuff your peppers with the potatoes and cheese. Make sure you can close them, and don't overflow them out the top. Gently roll them in some flour on a plate. Coat them in batter and gently place in hot oil. Cook first side about 2 minutes, turn to cook the other sides, and the top each about a minute. Drain on paper towels and serve with salad and a few chips.
Salad
1 tomato sliced in four pieces
Two handfuls of greens (arugala, butter, mesclun or mizuma)
drizzle with dressing of juice made from half a lime, a little olive oil, ground cumin, garlic pepper, salt, pepper, little bit of sugar.
To Drink: We had Diet Coke, but gave in later and went and got Gin for gin and tonics. Refreshing!
What we are thankful for: We are both thankful for the lovely 4th we had yesterday with a family we know. We had tons of food and played games and talked. It was very nice. We are also thankful for our wonderful country. God bless America!
Now back to my Gin...
We had:
Goat cheese and potato stuffed poblanos with mesclun and garden tomatoes
In General
2 large poblano peppers, roasted and skinned
Whenever a recipe calls for roasted peppers, you can either char them over a flame, say on your gas burner or in a grill, or broil on top rack in your oven. Just place the peppers near the heat source and turn them every few minutes till all the skin is charred. Keep an eye on them so they don't burn up though. Take them out and throw them in a paper bag, close it and let them sit for about 10 minutes. Take them out and rinse them under cold water, they will still be hot to the touch, so be careful. Gently rub the skin and it should just come right off. Cut a slit lengthwise and slice the top off. Gently remove the stem and seeds. Weird that this changes the flavor so much of a pepper, but there is the mystery of chemistry!
For stuffing
1-1.5 cups leftover mashed potatoes, warmed
a healthy pinch of ground cumin (a "pinch" is less than a tsp, just grab some with your thumb and forefinger. Don't be shy!)
a healthy pinch of garlic powder
salt
pepper
a handful of cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/4 cup of pine nuts, toasted in a dry pan till browned
1/2 -3/ cup chopped fresh cilantro
squirts from 1 lime quarter
1 little tube of chevre (soft goat cheese)
Mix the first 5 ingredients. Mix the rest of the ingredients in gently, don't really "stir" just mix, right before you stuff the peppers. (The mashed potatoes when reheated get a little dry, but I know the fresh tomatoes will make them just moist enough along with the cilantro when they are stuffed and sweating when the peppers are fried.)
Batter
flour for dredging
2 tb flour
1tsp baking powder
1 tb water
2 eggs yolks (save the whites)
Mix these ingredients in a bowl. Whip the two egg whites till they are stiff and fluffy. Fold them gently into the rest of the batter.
Assemble and Cook
Heat about an inch or two of cooking oil in a deep pan on med hi. Gently stuff your peppers with the potatoes and cheese. Make sure you can close them, and don't overflow them out the top. Gently roll them in some flour on a plate. Coat them in batter and gently place in hot oil. Cook first side about 2 minutes, turn to cook the other sides, and the top each about a minute. Drain on paper towels and serve with salad and a few chips.
Salad
1 tomato sliced in four pieces
Two handfuls of greens (arugala, butter, mesclun or mizuma)
drizzle with dressing of juice made from half a lime, a little olive oil, ground cumin, garlic pepper, salt, pepper, little bit of sugar.
To Drink: We had Diet Coke, but gave in later and went and got Gin for gin and tonics. Refreshing!
What we are thankful for: We are both thankful for the lovely 4th we had yesterday with a family we know. We had tons of food and played games and talked. It was very nice. We are also thankful for our wonderful country. God bless America!
Now back to my Gin...
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