Mushroom Israeli Couscous Risotto

I think there are two kinds of food shoppers.  Sam falls into the group which goes into the store, for exactly what he needs, and escapes as soon as he can.  I, on the other hand, love to browse the aisles.  What if I miss some new and exciting product?

Last year I was searching for Israeli couscous, but I could never find it.  Who decides which aisle holds certain products?  I have a feeling that me and that individual are not on the same wavelength.  There are times where I’ll circle around searching for something in particular, and never end up finding it.

One day, when I was alone in the store, I stumbled upon Israeli couscous.  Finally!  Of course once I find the product, I couldn’t find a recipe which I wanted to try.  I recently organized my food magazine basket (growing every month), and finally came across a recipe which sounded delicious.

What is Israeli couscous?  Other names it is known as are: ptitim, Jerusalem couscous or pearl couscous.  In the 1950’s food rationing in Israel was enforced, and during this time rice was scarce.  The prime minister asked Osem (the largest food manufacturer and distributor in Israel) to make a wheat-based substitute.  The company then made ptitim, made of hard wheat flour roasted in the oven.

These days, Israeli couscous is marketed towards children in Israel.  Just like pastas in the US- they are made in various shapes to cater to a younger crowd.  Many eat ptitim plain, fried with onions, or topped with tomato sauce.  Meanwhile, in the US you can find it in trendy, upscale restaurants.

Mushroom Israeli Couscous Risotto
Adapted from: Cooking Light (March 2009)

We basically made a risotto, but rather than using arborio rice- I tried out Israeli couscous.  Both of us really enjoyed it, it was a bit lighter and more filling.  If you’re not a fan of mushrooms, feel free to swap it out for asparagus and green peas, or use whatever mushrooms you have in your fridge.

 

2 1/2 cups of vegetable broth (or chicken)
1 cup of water
2 cups of shiitake mushrooms, sliced
2 shallots, chopped finely
5 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/4 cups uncooked Israeli couscous
1/2 cup dry white wine (ex: Bogle Chardonnay)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
4 oz goat cheese
4 tbsp chives, chopped

Combine the broth and water in a saucepan over medium heat, bring it to a simmer.  Continue to simmer this broth until you use it all up.

Heat olive oil in a saucepan, then toss in the mushrooms.  Allow them to cook for about 5 minutes, or until the moisture evaporates.  Add in the shallots and garlic, cook for another 2-3 minutes.  Then add the Israeli couscous, stir constantly for about 1 minute.  Finally pour in the wine, cook for another minute or until most of the liquid is absorbed, stir constantly.

Add a ladle (about 1/4 cup) of broth into the couscous mixture.  Stir constantly until the broth is absorbed.  Then add another ladle of the broth, continue until all of the broth has been used.

Stir in salt and pepper.  Finally, add in the goat cheese and keep stirring until it has dissolved into the couscous mixture.

Divide the couscous onto 4 plates, and sprinkle with the chives.

Vegetable Croquetas with Arugula

In the summer of 2004 I studied abroad in Sevilla, Spain.  It was a great summer filled with drinking boxed wine on the street, eating delicious Spanish food, traveling around the country and improving my Spanish.  I ate tapas before they were cool here in the US.  My señora was a great cook, and I wish I had learned a bit more from her.

On my first day, she prepared gazpacho and croquetas (croquettes).  Upon my first taste of the cold tomato soup, I was worried that I was going to hate the food in Spain.  But then when I first took my first bite of the croqueta- I knew I could survive.  It was warm, crispy on the outside, soft and gooey on the inside.  Yes, I could definitely eat these.  Fortunately, I eventually fell in love with gazpacho and many other delicious recipes Macarena (my señora) prepared.

Most Spanish croquetas are made with meat, the most popular being chicken or ham and cheese.  But sometimes you just need some extra vegetables in your life.  So when I found this recipe for a vegetable croqueta- I couldn’t pass it up.

Vegetable Croquetas with Arugula
Adapted from: Cooking Light (March 2012)

You can serve these over any salad or eat them as an appetizer.  The cheese choices can also be swapped for something you have (such as cheddar). 

1 large or 2-3 small potatoes
8 oz cremini mushrooms, halved
1 leek, washed & roughly chopped
2 tsp thyme, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup Gruyère, shredded
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 egg, yolk & white separated
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup panko
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Boil water in a small pan, then drop in the potato(es).  Allow to boil until they are cooked.  Take it out of the water, and then mash the potato into a smooth consistency.

Add the mushrooms, leeks and thyme into a food processor.  Pulse until all of the vegetables are finely chopped.

Heat a large skillet, and add 1 tbsp of olive oil.  Once it’s warm, add the mushroom mixture and mashed potato, allow it to cook for about 5 minutes.  Turn off the burner, but while the mixture is still warm add the Gruyère, salt, pepper and egg yolk.  Stir the ingredients well.

Divide the mixture and shape each piece (of about 2-3 tbsp) into little logs or round patties.  Lay them out.

Have the flour in a shallow dish.   In another dish have the egg white.  In a third dish, combine and mix the panko crumbs and Parmesan cheese.  Dredge each vegetable patty in the flour, then dip it in the egg white, and lastly dredge it again in the panko mixture.  Do this with all of your patties.

Heat up the skillet once more, add 1 tbsp of olive oil.  Then add each of the patties, cook them for about 5 minutes on each side, or until they are golden brown.

I topped a arugula salad with these croquetas, drizzled with a vinaigrette.

Orzo with Brie & Cauliflower

I apologize for the disappearing act (again!), but this past weekend I ran the Marine Corps Marathon!  So this week was a bit of a recovery week, and it allowed me to catch up on my social life- yes, Saturday long runs don’t allow for many crazy Friday nights!

But since I was running the marathon, the week prior I was looking for savory, carb-filled dishes.  I came across this recipe during the summer, but kept this little gem hidden until the weather allowed for it.  Yes, it’s coat weather here in DC.  This recipe satisfied us with its rich, warm taste on a chilly Wednesday night.

The orzo with Brie and cauliflower not only made us want seconds, but we wished we had made more of it!  And as many cheesy recipes, this was even better the next day.  I wish the picture came out a little better- it does look a bit color bland- but you can’t judge a book by its cover, right?

One change I did make from the original recipe was add mushroom bouillons, if you don’t have those on hand you can do this with a veggie broth (or beef).  If you would like the mushroom flavor, just sauté mushrooms and toss them into the dish when adding the cauliflower.  But that could be another recipe post!

Orzo with Brie & Cauliflower
Adapted from: Vivek’s Epicurean Adventures

1 1/2 cups orzo
6 cups of water
2 mushroom bouillons
4 tbsp thyme leaves, chopped
2 tbsp unsalted butter, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
1 head of cauliflower, florets cut
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup of white wine (we used Pinot Grigio)
5 oz creamy Brie, chopped
1 tsp salt (depending on taste)
1 tsp pepper (depending on taste)
2 tbsp chives, minced

Heat a small non-stick pan, then add the orzo.  Toast the orzo and roast for about 3 minutes  This will give the orzo a roasted, nutty smell and taste.  Turn off the heat once the orzo is lightly browned.

Bring water, bouillon cubes and 2 tbsps of thyme leaves to a simmer in a saucepan.  Keep this liquid at a simmer until you use it all up.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan heat up 1 tbsp of butter and 1 tbsp of olive oil.  Add the cauliflower  and sauté it for about 5 minutes or until the florets start to get golden brown.  For the last minute add the garlic and 2 tbsp of chopped thyme.  Transfer all of the ingredients to a bowl.

Add the rest of the butter and olive oil (1 tbsp of each) into the saucepan.  Add the chopped onion and sauté for about 5 minutes- the onion should become translucent.  Then add the orzo, stir the mixture for about 30 seconds.  Then add the wine, and simmer until the liquid has been absorbed.

From the broth/thyme liquid, take out 2 ladles (about 1/2 cup) and pour it into the saucepan which has the onion and orzo.  Stir it slowly until the broth has been absorbed.  Continue simmering, stirring and adding the hot broth until you have used up all of the broth.  Allow for the broth to be absorbed before adding another ladle.

Lastly, stir in the cauliflower/garlic mixture into the saucepan with orzo.  Then add the Brie pieces- keep stirring so the cheese can melt into the orzo.  Add salt and pepper to taste (we only had about 1 tsp of each- the bouillons and cheese were salty).

You can sprinkle the top with some leftover Brie pieces and chives.

Barley with Stuffed Portobellos

This past weekend Sam and I drove into Virginia, it was beautiful to see the rolling hills- especially with the leaves beginning to change colors.  Absolutely breathtaking.  This means fall is here, summer has officially ended.

While living in the midwest I noticed that fall tends to come and go quickly.  School starts, football games begin…and winter abruptly begins.  Here, in Virginia, fall lingers.  I’ve learned to love it- it gives us more than enough time to try out many warm, filling and familiar dishes.

Whenever I’m in the mood for a natural, earthy flavor when cooking dinner I tend to add mushrooms into the dish.  Sometimes we’ll make a portobello mushroom burger- there are so many flavors in each bite.  So when I saw this dish in Vegetarian Times– I knew we had to try it.  Each bite has the perfect blend of leeks, pine nuts and portobello mushroom; the barley allows this dish to be a very filling dinner.

Barley with Stuffed Portobellos
Adapted from: Vegetarian Times (Oct 2011)

cooking spray
4 portobello mushrooms, stemmed
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp salt
2 tsp pepper
1 onion, chopped
2 leeks, thinly sliced
8 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp thyme, chopped
1 lb fresh spinach
4 oz goat cheese, chopped and softened
3 tbsp pine nuts

Cook 1 cup of barley in about 2 cups of water until it is tender.  Drain, and divide between 4 plates.

Preheat the oven to 400ºF.  Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.  Brush mushrooms, on both sides, with 1 tbsp of olive oil.  Also, sprinkle the mushroom caps with 1 tsp of salt and 1 tsp of pepper.  Arrange the mushroom caps on the baking sheet and roast for 5 minutes.  Turn the mushrooms over and roast for another 5 minutes, or until the mushrooms begin to soften.  Once the mushrooms are done, plate them on top of the barley.

Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Then add onions, leeks, garlic and thyme.  Sauté for about 5 minutes, or until the leeks are tender.  Then, add spinach and cook for another 10 minutes until the spinach has wilted.  Finally, stir in goat cheese and pine nuts.  Keep stirring until all of the cheese has melted and has been incorporated into the mixture.  Remove from heat and add 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp of pepper.

Finally, fill each portobello mushroom with the leek-spinach mixture until it is spilling out.

Bok Choy and Mushroom Bulgur

Sometimes I’m in a cooking groove, and cannot wait to get home and make some yummy dinner.  Usually by Thursday, when I’m tired and exhausted, that cooking groove diminishes a bit.  As many of you know, cooking can take time and planning. 

 

Although living in the city does have its perks, the downside is that we don’t have a grocery store nearby where we can just pop in and pick up ingredients for dinner.  The closest grocery store is 1 mile away, although it’s not that far and may be fun to go once in a while, the long lines and the idea of pushing and pulling the granny cart does not necessarily make this our ideal choice.  We sometimes pick up ingredients from different stores.  For example, Trader Joe’s has an excellent variety of cheeses.  And since the Farmer’s Market started, we’ve bought bacon, milk, eggs and butter. 

 

Due to the these “location restrictions”, we meal plan.  We order the majority of our food on Peapod, and list out different meals which we want to eat.  By seeing what we eat over a number of days, we make sure to have a variety of meals (pastas, grains, Mexican or Indian, etc).  I’ve noticed that I have become more aware of the ingredients I put into our food, and into my body.

Which leads me to the dish pictured below.  It was on the cover of Vegetarian Times, and I coud not wait to make it.  And it tasted just as delicious as it looks.  The flavors blended so well, and the broth kept the bulgur moist.  (In the case you don’t have mushroom bouillon, feel free to use vegetable or chicken stock) Between the mushrooms, and the steamed bok choy, this dish had a very earthy, natural taste to it.  It’s great for a warm dinner, or leftovers for lunch.

 

Bok Choy & Mushroom Bulgur
Adapted from: Vegetarian Times

 4 tbsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
8 oz crimini mushrooms, sliced
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
3 shallots, finely chopped
1 cup uncooked bulgur
1 1/2 cup water
2 mushroom bouillons
1 tsp fresh thyme, minced
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
4 small bok choy, halved

Heat 2 tbsp of oil over medium heat, then add half of the garlic.  Add the mushrooms, and cook for 5 minutes, or until browned.  Transfer the mushrooms to a bowl.  Add tomatoes to the skillet and saute for 2 minutes, or until browned.  Transfer into the bowl that has mushrooms. 

Add the remaining oil and garlic into the skillet.  Stir in shallots and saute for 2-3 minutes.  Stir in the bulgur until the grains are coated with oil.  Add the water, bouillons and thyme.  Season with the salt and pepper.  Cover, and reduce heat to medium-low, simmer for 5 minutes.

Arrange the bok choy halves on top of the bulgur.  Sprinkle the mushroom and tomatoes between the bok choy.  Simmer for 5 minutes, while covered.  Remove from heat, and let it rest for 10 minutes.