Good Old American Arizona Road Trip-Part One

PlannedOvers is taking a break this week for a good old fashioned road trip.  It all began long, long ago, well actually about two years ago when the wee one, who by the way is not so wee anymore these days, mentioned a desire to visit the Grand Canyon.  Being the planny people that we are, wheels were set in motion and the road trip planning began.  Now that we have embarked on this journey, not only is it the first time for wee out west, it’s also, shockingly, his first ever road trip.

Our journey....

Day One:  Early, early flight from the east coast puts us in the 108 degree Phoenix at noontime where we pick up our rental and head on to scenic 89A.  A quick google search finds a Trader Joe’s in Prescott where we stock up on snacks and, of course, vino.  Overnight at the Hilton in Sedona, where we are all too beat, sadly to check out the planned dining destination, Javelina Cantina, opting instead to eat on property at Oak Canyon Grille.  A complimentary wine tasting featuring Girard Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir as well as a lovely selection of cheeses(yeah Cheese!!! Including cambozola - a most lovely marriage of Camembert and Gorgonzola, really, need I say more??? ) greeted us which we sampled before seating.  Despite a somewhat limited menu, we found the staff to be very friendly and knowledgeable and the food decent.  We were all out for the count at 9pm.

Day Two:  Upon the recommendation of the restaurant manager we stopped by Indian Gardens to gather supplies for a picnic at Slide Rock Park.  While waiting on our sandwiches we overheard that the park was full and not allowing additional cars or visitors at the current time.  The very helpful staff at Indian Gardens pointed us directly across the street where we could access the river, less crowded and free.  They braved VERY cold water and climbed the rocks downstream until out of sight returning a little battered and WET.  A quick dry on the rocks and down the road to another scenic spot to picnic on the way to Flagstaff.  Little America Hotel, is as it’s moniker suggests, is just that, a little slice of Americana and exactly what we were envisioning when planning this trip.  The two story, four building, accommodations, complete with pool, ginormous gift shop, volleyball, and (!) horseshoe pits was perfect for our overnight stay.  We opted for ease to eat on property again and the Western Gold Steakhouse, which scored high in convenience and friendliness but not so high on everything else dinner should be.  Especially the apple pie.

Day Three:  While the wee one slumbered we rose early for coffee and to explore.  A sign pointing to a nature trail led to a lovely, highly unexpected,  3+ mile hike through the woods owned by and adjacent to the Little America Hotel property.  On the agenda for today Meteor Crater and while not the largest meteor crater on earth, it boasts being the most well preserved

Some 50,000 years long, long ago, a meteor traveling 26,000 miles per hour (to put THAT into perspective - a flight from New York to LA traveling at that speed would take 5 minutes!!!) struck the earth leaving an indentation that today is nearly one mile across, 2.4 miles in circumference and more than 550 feet deep. Pretty impressive.  Our plan is to see as much of the scenic beauty that Arizona has to offer so our drive will take us down 180 and a quick stop at Wildflower Bread supplied us with provisions for our journey.  As this journey was planned many, many months out, we are able to stay on property and El Tovar Hotel will be our home for the next two nights, and we and the wee one rally and we make it to the Dining Room at El Tovar, gracious service, the very short commute to dine, and good conversation placate the high for what you are getting prices in the dining room.  There is something to be said that we are in the middle of practically nowhere, in the desert no less, and I am eating grilled salmon....but I digress.  As a side note, as I am writing this on day 5, after many, many, many days of my only protein choice being salmon, I think, no scratch that, I am pretty sure it will be a few months before, I will find myself “in the 

 mood.”

Stay tuned for the rest of our Amazing Americana Adventure!!!

Eggplant and Mush?

While I wholeheartedly realize that this post is pretty specific and most likely not for very many, and my darling husband actually accused me of posting it for the sole purpose of stating right out loud that I make my own tofu.  But it's not.  Really.  If you are one of the few who does make your own tofu, you will know that after soaking the beans, and grinding them, by whichever method you choose, (personally I use a SoyQuick) you know that upon completion of the soy milk making process you are left over with what I guess basically equates to ground soybeans.  And for years, I never knew just quite what to do with this, for lack of a more culinary correct term, mush.  And I confess, right here and right now, for years I simply washed this straight on down the drain.  But in the spirit of the PlannedOver lifestyle, no waste great taste, I decided NO MORE.  I would find something that could put this mush to good use.

My CSA box was full of eggplant so that seemed a reasonable place to start, and of course there is always an abundance of spinach to be found, and the creamy whiteness of the mush called to mind ricotta, and thus, eggplant Parmesan was born.

I mixed the mush with sauteed spinach with garlic, Parmesan cheese and an egg to bind.

See, it sort of resembles ricotta

Next I dredged my sliced eggplant in an egg bath and into bread crumbs.  I stacked my breaded eggplant on a sheet pan topped with spinach mixture, another eggplant and, of course, cheese.

Into a 350 oven for 40 minutes and finish with a touch of red sauce aka gravy.  Dinners done!

So if you do not, at this current juncture, make your own - or for that matter even eat it at all- tofu.  You can always take your PlannedOver spinach, and your abundance of summertime eggplant and create a delicious, healthy and satisfying Eggplant Parm!

Happy Eating!!!

Puree and Butter

Pumpkin in July you say?  Well I received a pie pumpkin in my CSA and was told that it needed to be cooked sooner rather than later as it did not have a very long, or stable shelf life. And it certainly wouldn't be very plannedovery of me to allow that to happen, so into the oven my seed-scooped halved pumpkin promptly went.  I figured I could use some in a Gluten free almond "bread" recipe made popular by Dr. Davis in his book and blog Wheat Belly.  Almond four, in general was a new experience for me and the notion of baking with a nut "flour" all together foreign. The "bread" itself is quite crumbly it's not really suitable for a sandwich, nor does it really resemble bread made from wheat.  However it is quite good* and an excellent vehicle for butter when toasted!  Because, really, isn't that the whole very point of bread?? To schmear it with some delicious, salty creamy butter?  Well maybe butter is not the whole point, but butter does make pretty much everything better.  Take for example this little doozy of a recipe sent to me courtesy of Rebecca along with my CSA contents list.  Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter. I'm not quite sure, given the abundance of tomatoes currently upon my counter, that anything has sounded, more simple, yet so delicious.   While I've not yet made this, the reviews alone have put it on the very tippy top of the to do list.  Tis the season for tomatoes, and I think this recipe will quite nicely utilize my abundant supply and be an excellent base for a future Planned Over. Back to butter in a bit

An hour after roasting in a 350 oven, my pumpkin emerges, smelling up the house quite like it is fall.  But fall it is not.  However, pumpkin did I have so pumpkin was on the menu.  Fortunately for me, there is not a vegetable that I have encountered that is not equally, if not superior when it has spent a spin in the Vita-mix or Cuisinart. I have long teased with my mother that as a second child I never got enough baby food which has spawned my love affair with all things pureed.  Chickpeas, cauliflower, carrots, beets all heavenly when able to be eaten with a spoon.

I decided to make a spin on shrimp and grits with cumin and smoked paprika scented pumpkin puree.  Sauteed a mess of garlic, red peppers, onion and a little butter and white wine.  Add the shrimp for a few minutes at the end and pour over warmed pumpkin puree.  I think it just might beat out the grits!

Happy eating!

*If you haven't eaten bread in several months, I can tell you wholeheartedly, it is quite profoundly delicious toasted with butter. 

Chocolate Chips and Chicken Carcases

A recent rainy Saturday found me in the midst of all kinds of projects in the kitchen.  First and foremost importantly was to make, for my darling husband, in honor of his birthday, his absolutely favorite cookie of late Chewy Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies.  To say he is fond of these cookies is likening my interest in food as passing.  He like them.  A lot.  I figured if I was going to bake cookies, I might as well make a whole boat load of cookies. And I did.  Seven dozen to be precise.  And seven dozen cookies got me two things, a happy husband, and an extended period of time in the kitchen while they were baking, cooling and waiting to be baked. So why not make stock.

Making stock is really a lost art form as most people tend to these days prefer quicker cuts of boneless meat.  It's also a tendency to think of making stock as some antiquated laborious process that really it's just not.  The thing about stock is that yes, it IS time consuming, but not YOUR time.  I found myself recently with a late evening and a shopping list to Costco, to which was promptly added, a rotisserie chicken for supper that evening.  Which found me the following day with a picked over cooked chicken and the plans of slowly simmered stock soon to follow.    Throw your carcass into a pot with some aromatic veggies and herbs cover it all with water over a low flame, and wait.  For hours.  On end.  Active time of max 10 minutes, hours of a delicious smelling house and a final product that is leaps and bounds above what you can buy in a store. 

In the beginning

At the end

I also happened that very day to have a mess of roasted squash and eggplant from my CSA.  I thought I had roasted just about everything, but had never once even thought about putting summer squash into the oven to roast.  But now I have, and I will continue to do so, and not only when I am receiving an abundance of squash.  I chopped up onions, garlic, red pepper, and zucchini and yellow squash, - tossed it with some olive oil, salt and freshly ground pepper and put it in a 425 oven for 20 minutes.  To that I added some chopped eggplant and roasted for an additional 20-25 minutes.

Quite heavenly on it's own, it became even more spectacular in it's PlannedOver form.  I made a roux with flour and butter and to that added some of the long simmered chicken stock and a touch of milk.  Boiled pasta and finely chopped the PlannedOver roasted squash.  Drained pasta and veggies were all added to the pot of sauce and tossed to coat.  Sprinkled with, of course, a dusting of Parmesan cheese.

Try your hand at making a stock, the 10 minutes of active work you have in it will pay you dividends of rewards in taste.  And you will have plenty of time to whip up a batch of cookies!

Happy Eating!

Re-cobbled Cobbler

It is hard for me to believe I am writing this, let alone that I would ever in a bazillion years, ever find myself with the need to generate a Planned Over for any type of cobbler.  You see around my house there are two.  One of which is 15 years old and can eat his weight in, well lets be realistic, just about anything he puts his mind to.  I had no idea that male adolecents could eat as much as they do.  Did my boyfriend at the age of 15 hide this from me?  It never fails to boggle my mind when he makes himself a full on sandwich for a snack 15 minutes before dinner.  And that's even when he LIKES what I am making.  The second one at home loves cobbler.  Loves it.  The man has not met a fruit that to his liking, was not thoroughly enhanced with some flour, sugar, butter and a brief stint in a hot oven. 

It all began innocently enough.  Wanting cobbler but realizing that I was up to my eyeballs in the remainder of dinner prep, the husband took over mid recipe.  Miscommunication ensued.  I thought he understood that I had already added the sugar to the FRUIT, and he heard I had added ALL of the sugar required for the recipe.  Needless to say, after their first partially eaten servings,  neither of my cobbler eating males was having any more of this particular dish. 

So here we are, cobbler sans sugar coupled with a desire for variety and my unwillingness to throw out perfectly good food, and the re-cobbled Cobbler is born.

I took the remainder of the PlannedOver cobbler and chopped it. 

To that I added some fruit from the freezer, I had raspberries, blueberries and a few blackberries on hand, so in they went.  To add moisture, melted vanilla ice cream, and soy milk french vanilla creamer that found its way into my fridge following some houseguests.  I am certain that milk with a little vanilla extract would work equally well. 

Next I needed some body and binding.  I added a beaten egg and some crumbs.  I figured if you add bread crumbs to a crab cake to help it bind why not try graham cracker crumbs here.  It was a soupy mess, not worthy of a picture, but 45 minutes at 350 produced a nice crust with a soft, moist interior.  Served with a scoop of vanilla, this time around, not a leftover to be found!

Happy Eating!

Squash becoming.....more squash

One of the things I really enjoy about my weekly CSA delivery is finding a way to live with wanting what you have vs having what you want.  And right now what we have is squash.  A lot of it.  Zucchini and yellow crook neck squashes proliferating like wild rabbits.  So it has been fun and challenging to come up with some new inventive ideas for said surplus of squash.  A friend told me recently that he dices squash, onions, and garlic with a little olive oil and roasts it for 20-30 minutes in a 425 degree oven.  I have not yet tried this, but it is on the menu for later this week.  Of course there are other uses as I wrote about in  summertime squash.  Marlo, at Gluten Hates me has several lovely recipes for summer squash, Zucchini Fries anyone??? And lets not forget the sweet side of squash to be sure.  Chocolate Zucchini Cake anyone?  Zucchini bread is always another option, or what about Zucchini Lemon Cookies from the fine folks over at food 52.

But sometimes basic is best and when the sun is shining and the sky is blue, I am so often called to the great outdoors, and specifically, the grill.  I score my summer squash in a diamond pattern and brush on some balsamic vinaigrette allowing about 30 minutes to marinate.  Oil the grate and put skin side down over medium high heat for 8-10 minutes per side.  On the grill with the squash, some thickly sliced Vidalia Onion that has been generously brushed and basted with balsamic.  Confession.  Everyone, in my house at least,  likes the burnt charie onions, that form the outer rings.  So delicious are that that I might, every once in a while, sneak a few out on the deck, without the "others" knowing.

Delicious.

Now to take our PlannedOver grilled squash and onions to another dimension.  Chop remaining Squash and onion, toss with roasted red pepper puree, goat cheese and fresh basil.  A few grinds of fresh pepper and a quick saute in a touch of garlic oil and you have a brand new use for all of that glorious summer squash.

Happy eating!

Chuck Roast and Sunset

     You know how it is when you find yourself right smack dab in the middle of a perfect sunset?  You could be at home, on vacation, in the mountains, by the sea, on a plane, in a highrise, near, far, high, low, so long as you are facing west.  And it is stunning.  It clearly takes your breath away.  It makes you happy.  Provides you with some inner feeling of calming serenity.  Some proof that this planet is a perfect system and you want to hold onto the moment, the feeling, as long as you possibly can.  But you know.  The moment is fleeting.  So you think the next best thing would be to capture it on film.  To have forever.  A memory that will for all times evoke these very emotions that are welling up in you right this very moment.  So you snap a shot.  And then another ad nausuem because, hey it is digital and you CAN just delete. And you figure, somewhat smugly, with your mad camera skills and the glorious vision presented, you might just win some sort of photography award with it's stunning beauty.

    The next day you whip out your photography device to relive the magical moment and it's just, not.  The colors are flat, there is too much shadow, or not enough light, and the sun just looks, I don't know, wrong.  Or maybe that only happens to me. Or maybe the glass of wine I was enjoying while watching the sunset made the pictures seem so perfectly able to capture the moment.  I will have to say something similar happened when photographing the PlannedOvers for this particular post.  They are just not.  Not appealing, not artistic, and Not covered in cheese.  Even though I swear I saw him take the photo and he swears I told him I would take the photo, it's not there.  But what was there, was the taste.

     It began on a rainy day, a day good for both book reading and slow cooking, a day to put the industrial food vaccuum storage system to good use. And I did do just that. I got a mess of chuck roast, cubed, seared and and slow simmered it in a pretty neutral base with garlic and onions until falling apart tender.  Allowed it to cool then bagged, sucked, and sealed to be used PlannedOver style for many meals to come.   In fact one week saw this particular PlannedOver become yet another PlannedOver with the creation of two distinct dishes.

     Monday saw the addition of onions and mushrooms, in a roux of beef broth,  made rich with the addition of sour cream all served over egg noodles.  It was a big hit.  Allrecipes has a good place to start here. Thursday took the PlannedOvers from Monday, with a mess of sauteed peppers and onions, on a toasted hogie roll, topped with melted cheese for a different take on a Philly Cheese.

     But just like the elusive sun in the western sky, brown stew meat just don't photograph the way you intend.  You just have to trust the empty plates.

"Beef Stroganoff"

Philly Cheese - photographed sans cheese

Happy Eating!