peach and blackberry pie

so over the july 4 holiday, my uncle asked why i never posted any recipes anymore.  and i didn't have a good answer.  being busy isn't an excuse because it isn't like i'm not cooking anything.  so i'm trying to make the effort to remember to take photographs and to document what i've been doing.  that said, i'm still being slow about it (this pie was baked back on july 9)...but at least i'm posting!

jackie found a recipe for this blackberry and peach pie online, and she wanted me to try it.  we had picked up some peaches from a roadside stand outside rockingham, nc, on our way back from the beach (frozen by now, of course), but we needed some berries.  so jackie came with me on her very first blackberry-picking expedition.  after the briars and the bugs and the heat, it might be that she'll leave the berry picking to me in the future, but she did good!

ingredients:
~ 2.5-3 cups fresh blackberries
~ 3 peaches, skinned/sliced/pitted
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1/2 tablespoon nutmeg
- double crust (premade)

preparation:
mix the berries, peaches, cornstarch, and sugar in a large bowl.  contrary to the online recipe, i also stirred the cinnamon and nutmeg into the mixture.

press one pie crust into the bottom of a pie pan.  pour the fruit mixture into the pan and cover with the second crust.  crimp the edges together to seal the pie.  cut slits in the pie for venting.  i got a little fancy and cut out a few ovals in addition to a few slits.  brush top of the pie with the melted butter.  i also sprinkled a little bit of white sugar and cinnamon on the crust.

put pie in oven (preheated to 450°F) for 15 minutes.  reduce heat to 350°F and bake until crust is golden brown.  for me, this took about 37 minutes.

verdict:
this is a good pie and pairs very nicely with vanilla ice cream.  one downside was the crust; it was cooked properly but just wasn't as flaky as, say, a pillsbury crust.  as an alternative, it would be a great cobbler filling.  i'll definitely make a version of it again!

blackberry quick bread

there are blackberries growing along the greenway behind the house, and they are good ones, too!  which is quite convenient and beats doing what i did last summer - which was trekking alongside the road picking somewhat inferior berries.  this weekend, i spent a couple hours picking a gallon of blackberries.

i froze most of them, but i wanted to do something different with the cup or so i reserved.  i toyed with the notion of trying something i heard from my dad...apparently a gentleman told him that the best thing to do with blackberries was to stew them with some honey or sugar and serve them over buttered biscuits (and a slice of hoop cheese on top).  this sounds like a pie without the pie, and it certainly works for strawberry shortcake, so i could see it.  however, today, i decided to try a quickbread.

i'll admit that i took this recipe from something i found online.  i suppose the joy of cooking might have had something on quickbreads in general, but i didn't find anything specific to blackberries.  so i decided the internet would provide this time.

preparation is quick/easy and only takes about 10 minutes.  cooking takes about an hour, and then it takes a little time to cool before cutting in and enjoying.

ingredients:
- 2 cups flour (all-purpose)
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- blackberries (i had maybe a cup and a half or so)
- 3/4 cup milk
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- most of a stick of butter

preparation:
mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl.  gently stir in the berries until well coated.

melt the butter in a separate bowl.  mix the eggs, milk, and vanilla with the butter, and incorporate into the dry mixture.  stir batter until fully mixed and add to a greased bread pan (i used a 4" x 9" pan).  bake at 350°F for about an hour, or until the loaf is golden brown and a toothpick stabbed into the top comes out clean.  let cool for about 10 minutes before removing from the pan.

verdict:
this particular recipe is less sweet than i was expecting.  considering how there was only a cup of sugar, i suppose this shouldn't be any real surprise, but it lacks that certain something.  after talking to mom, it could be improved upon by toasting a slice with cinnamon sugar -- or by applying (gasp!) blackberry jam and/or honey.  shawn suggests adding something savory -- like perhaps a goat cheese (which i could see).

nonetheless, the bread did cook through properly, and the berries did not burst, so it was a pretty loaf.  i might play with this in the future.

zucchini casserole

so this is rather belated, but i tried a recipe a few weeks ago that i'm finally getting around to documenting.  i had some zucchini lying around and wanted to do something with it.  my initial thought was to do something similar to the pork and aubergine casserole, but it turned into something a little different along the way.

 total prep/cook time is roughly 40 minutes, and there were maybe 4-5 servings.

ingredients:


- 18 oz mild italian sausage
- 1 large zucchini
- 24 oz jar of spicy tomato and basil sauce (i used a variety called "classico")
- bag of italian six cheese  blend.

preparation:
remove the sausage from the casing and brown over medium-high heat.  when mostly browned, add thinly sliced zucchini into the pan.  when tender, add the jar of sauce and simmer mixture for several minutes.

pour mixture into a baking dish and sprinkle the cheese evenly to the top.  cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350°F for about 25 minutes.  serve over rice (i used basmati).

verdict:
this was a strange dish.  there was a nice kick to it from the sausage and the spicy tomato sauce, but it wasn't overpowering.  served over rice as it was, it felt almost like an indian curry-type dish, but it was using italian flavors.  an odd combination.  overall, it was a little watery, and there wasn't any particular textural contrast to the dish.  if i could've gotten the cheese to crisp up a bit, that might've been a worthwhile addition.  possibly baking some cheese separately on a pan and adding it afterwards could work.  all told, though, the aubergine casserole was probably superior.

hash and eggs

i felt like experimenting tonight.  and what i ended up making was nothing like what i originally intended.  but that's okay because it turned out moderately successfully.

in this case, i put a spin on hash and eggs.  total time was approximately 40 minutes (prep plus cook times), and i can probably get two brian meals out of it.

ingredients:
- 1 medium eggplant (courtesy of dad's garden)
- handful of potatoes (also courtesy of the garden)
- 1 small onion (starting to see a theme yet?)
- 2 medium-ish tomatoes (yup...definitely a theme)
- 2 eggs (nope...he doesn't raise chickens)
- olive oil
- spices (paprika, rosemary, garlic powder, basil, salt/pepper)

preparation:
chop the potatoes and eggplant, and toss them in a bowl with olive oil.  for what it's worth, i quartered the eggplant lengthwise and chopped each sliver in about 1/2 inch chunks.  mix in the spices (sans basil) and stir until the vegetables are thoroughly coated.

in a separate bowl, roughly chop the tomatoes and mix with basil.

spread the potatotes/eggplant on a lined plan and roast at 400°F for about 22 minutes.  remove from oven and set aside.

add some olive oil to a large pan and bring to a medium-high heat.  stir in the tomatoes and allow to cook for 2-3 minutes.  stir in the rest of the vegetables and cook for 3-4 minutes.

cook eggs over-easy(ish) and serve on top of the hash.

verdict:
this was much better than i was expecting.  i've never been a fan of runny eggs (or so i thought), but it works amazingly well when the yolk coats the potatoes and eggplant.  the tomato cooks down and gives a little tang to the whole dish.  i'm not an expert on cooking eggs in this particular fashion (hence the less-than-stellar picture), but i guess i can learn.

however, i do have two mild complaints.  first, the potatoes were a little hard.  when i do this sort of thing again, i'll chop them smaller and/or roast them a little longer.  second, i had intended to sprinkle a little parmesan cheese on the mixture.  oh well...there's always next time!

spoon's bbq

for the past several weeks, i've been wanting some good barbeque.  i had gotten the desire a month or two back, and the bbq place i ate at in anderson, sc, just didn't do the trick.  then i remembered having gotten bbq way back in the day from a place down on south boulevard (in charlotte):  spoon's barbeque.  it's eastern nc style pork with a tradition in bbq that goes back to the 1960s...if they've been around for 50 years, they have to have something going for them!

i had thought about it one day and mentioned it in passing to my mother.  apparently the desire for good pork barbeque is contagious because she stopped by spoon's while she was in town to pick some up for herself.  sadly for mom, the retaurant was closed for vacation that particular weekend.  and luckily for me, i happened to talk to her (and learned about their schedule) before driving down to get some.

today, though, i was down visiting some friends in the northern part of charlotte, and i figured it was a perfect opportunity to get some pork goodness.  they were open, and it was wonderful.  you know you're in the south when the sweet tea is done right, and that's just the start.  then you get the hushpuppies; some places have the spectacular quiet dogs, and i'll admit that spoon's isn't one of them.  but they're nicely browned and crunchy, and they work well for dipping in the brunswick stew.

said stew is also pretty good, and that's next to the cole slaw (which i normally don't eat, but this was sweet and crunchy and rather good) and the pork itself.  most important is the sauce.  i'd forgotten how much i like the vinegar-based sauce on the pork.  particularly, i like how the vinegar evaporates off the hot pork for the first couple bites, and you just inhale it.  granted, it makes me cough, but i likes it.

so yeah, i got a nice lunch today...and brought home some pork bbq, some brunswick stew, and some sauce for later.  i'll have to wander back again!

eggplant, tomato, and turkey

last year, i had attempted a casserole that was moderately successful.  and when i raided my dad's garden this past weekend (i'm a regular peter rabbit, i am!), i absconded with a couple (small) eggplants.  he apparently wanted to see what they looked like while growing, so he planted a few this year.

i decided to tweak my previous recipe and try something a little different.  this time, i took some ground turkey, some eggplant, and some fresh tomato to make a casserole.  i was going to add some green peas, but they just didn't seem appropriate for this recipe.

prep + cook time was approximately 45 minutes.  this appears to be about three brian-sized portions.

ingredients:
- one large tomato
- two smallish eggplants
- one pound ground turkey
- olive oil
- various spices (salt/pepper, chili powder, oregano, basil, garlic, paprika, sage)
- feta cheese
- some parmesan (because it was there)

preparation:
brown the turkey on medium-high heat, pour off the grease, and layer in the bottom of a casserole dish.  i added salt and pepper, paprika, garlic powder, and some oregano while browning the meat.

peel/slice the tomato and layer it on top of the turkey.  add salt/pepper, basil, oregano, and whatever else smells nice.  i added a little sage. just because.  sprinkle a good amount of feta cheese on top of the tomato.

peel (most of) the skin from the eggplant and slice thinly.  brown the eggplant on medium-high heat with some olive oil, salt, and pepper.  once browned, layer the eggplant slices on top of the casserole.  sprinkle a little parmesan on top.

bake at 350°F for approximately 25 minutes.

verdict:
taste-wise, this is amazing.  the chili powder and pepper gave it a bite that wasn't too overpowering, and the overall spice mix gave a nice, savory flavor.  texture-wise, the eggplant proved problematic again.  the general consistency of the casserole worked nicely, too.  i was afraid that there wouldn't be enough juice, but the tomato cooked down just enough to allow a little something in the bottom of the pan -- but without everything being too soupy.

i had hoped that browning it in the olive oil would provide a sufficient barrier against over-cooking and toughness.  sadly, this is not the case...the eggplant was kind of chewy.  i'm at a loss on how to adjust things for the future.  possibly, i could put the tomato slices on top of the eggplant.  theoretically, this could allow the tomato to caramelize (which is an interesting notion).  this bears consideration.

in the meantime, go me!

ratatouille

so i was looking at my supply of vegetables, and i wanted to do something different with my zucchini.  since i have this nifty copy of joy of cooking (courtesy of my sister), i went to the index to see what it would have for summer squash.  lo and behold, it sent me to a ratatouille recipe.  i decided to modify the recipe (slightly).

prep time is about 15 minutes, and total cooking time is about 45 minutes.  no rodent assistance with the cooking is required, even...i can do the preparation without a rat pulling my hair and jerking my arms around!

there appear to be about three brian-sized portions.

ingredients:
- 1 small eggplants (probably about a half-pound)
- 2 zucchini (again, about a half-pound)
- a few small sweet onions (hey, i had them so i figured i'd use them...)
- 3 garlic cloves
- a pint of diced tomatoes (canned from dad's garden)
- olive oil
- basil, thyme, salt/pepper

preparation:
although the recipe implies that the vegetables can be prepared as the food is cooking, i'd prefer to prepare everything before i start the cooking process.  as such, peel the eggplant (apparently the skin is tough) and cut into one-inch chunks.  also, cut the zucchini into chunks (skin can remain).  on a separate plate, slice the onions and finely chop the garlic.

add olive oil to a large skillet and to a medium heat.  add the zucchini and eggplant and cook, stirring until golden and barely tender (about 10 minutes).  remove the vegetables.

add the onions with a little olive oil until slightly softened and then add the garlic.  stir occasionally until tender but not brown (it took me about 6 minutes).

add the tomatoes, thyme, and salt/pepper.  reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 5 minutes.  add the eggplant and squash, and cook until everything is tender (about 20 minutes more).  stir in basil.

verdict:
i think it was the combination of the basil and tomato, but the dish was sweeter than i expected.  it also needs something to sop up all the juice; if i hadn't already planned on the starch of the corn, i'd've cooked some rice.  i like the flavor combinations, but it does seem to lack something.  maybe it has something to do with the fact that the diced tomatoes didn't really have any structure (they all fell apart in the pan).  if/when i cook this again, i'll have to play with it and see what else could work.  possibly carrots and green beans?

beyond all this, i had planned on sprinkling feta cheese on top.  but i forgot.  sadness.  i'll just have to remember to do it for the leftovers!

parmesan green beans

it's summer!  and as everyone knows, summer means vegetables...preferably raided from a garden.  in this case, i raided my dad's garden this weekend and brought home lots of produce (thank you, dad!).  today, i decided i wanted to do something with green beans.  as previously noted, roasting green beans is a worthwhile endeavor, but i wanted to play with it a little bit this time.

now, if i were an awesome cook, i'd do this as one of several side dishes...and make an entree on top of it all.  but i worked all day, which means i was tired and hungry.  so i just took it easy this evening and ate half of the beans and a tomato (not shown).

using about a pint and a half of green beans, i followed my recipe (though i did add a little sriracha to the mix) and roasted the beans at 425°F for about 20 minutes.  after putting the vegetables in a corningware dish, i mixed in a little parmesan cheese...you know, just because.

i think the sriracha added a nice dash of heat to the dish, but i'm thinking that parmesan didn't quite work.  maybe it's the fact that it was the shredded variety (not quite the powdered parmesan-in-a-can, but still probably not "real"), but it didn't seem to melt all that well.

maybe reheating tomorrow will melt the cheese a little more.  and i'll have squash and more tomato and maybe potatoes to go with it!

roasted green beans

i've never really tried to do anything particularly fancy with green beans.  generally, i'll just dump them in a pot of water and cook them on the stove, but i decided to try something different for a change.  i procured some green beans from my dad this weekend, and now i want to see how roasting them works.

in addition to the roasted green beans, i went with my tomato/broccoli salad, some eye of the round steak, and some jasmine rice.  for the first time in awhile, i went with a full blown meal (including multiple sides).  i have been expressly forbidden to show the picture of the dinner guest, but here's what my plate looked like.

 
ingredients:
- green beans, ends snapped off
- olive oil
- garlic powder
- ground hot pepper
- paprika
- black pepper
- kosher sea salt

preparation:
after washing and draining the beans, i drizzled them with olive oil and mixed in the garlic powder, paprika, pepper(s), and salt.  i spread them onto a baking sheet covered with parchment paper and roasted in the oven at 425°F for 15 minutes (or until the beans start to get nicely browned on the edges).  obviously, the beans got moved to the serving dish thereafter; trying to put a baking sheet on the table (with everything else) just wouldn't work!

verdict:
i had been having problems with underseasoning some of my previous roasted vegetables, so i had tried to compensate accordingly today.  in this instance, i think i got a little too much salt.  not to say that i completely overdid it, but it's more than i would prefer.  lesson learned, i suppose.

also, i had somehow expected a slightly crispier texture overall, but that did not quite happen.  this could be partially explained by my overall poor meal timing; i took the beans out of the oven well before the meat was cooked, and the rice took longer than anticipated.  so the green beans sat a little while before being eaten.  sadness.

still, i think that, in principle, roasted green beans are a good idea.  possibly only for special occasions, though.  because ordinary green beans are nice, too.  and they're so much less fuss and bother.

tomato and broccoli salad

nothing says summer like fresh, home-grown tomatoes.  nothing.

so when i go home to visit my parents in summer, i of course carry off as many as i think i can possibly eat.  and normally i might be content with simply slicing them onto a plate, adding a dash of salt and pepper, and either eating them with a fork or between two pieces of bread.  but i thought i'd try something different today.

ingredients:
- 1 medium tomato (in this case, i think it was a better boy)
- 2  trees of broccoli (is "tree" the technical term?)
- crumbled feta cheese (i used a garlic and herb variety)
- basil
- cracked black pepper

preparation:
cut up the broccoli and tomato (i peel the tomato, too), add a liberal amount of basil, feta, and black pepper.  stir and dig in.

verdict:
i had originally intended to use cucumber instead of broccoli, but the cucumbers at the grocery store were not very good looking.  and i wasn't near any farm stand to pick a good one.  but in the end, i'm glad...the broccoli was a nice crunch, and i think a cucumber might have made the whole thing too watery.

this can never replace a tomato sandwich, but it's definitely a worthwhile side dish.  or, you know, as the meal itself...whatever works!