Homemade Kimchi

Kimchi is a tangy, spicy, pickled condiment and is Korea's most loved food. Koreans eat kimchi at almost every meal. Like Laotians and their padek, few Koreans can last more than a few days before their cravings get the better of them.  I adore kimchi too and eat it almost everyday. It's so convenient, we serve it as a vegetable and sometimes in more "exotic" ways, like our favorite grilled cheese sandwiches, that we call Kimcheese .  A few nibbles of kimchi in the middle of the afternoon boost my energy like no cup of coffee can.  It's our salad during the winter months when fresh salad greens look tired and winter weary.  A bowl of ramen noodles with kinchee and leftover meats is our all time favorite fast food at home. 

Lao Food: Tum Maak Houng or Green Papaya Salad

Tum Maak Houng has it's origin in Laos and the Isaan part of Thailand. It is one of the most favorite dishes of Laos, beloved by all it's people and those who live abroad will go to great lengths to find the green, unripe papaya.  Eaten throughout the day, as part of a meal or anytime snacking, it is adored by young and old.  Whether you enjoy spicy hot food or not, there's a tum maak houng for you.

Tum maak houng is pounded in a mortar and pestle to meld all its flavors.

It is impossible to nail this down to a single recipe or to describe the flavors of Green Papaya Salad.  Everyone has their own preferences. Even in my own family, we argue about whether it is too spicy, too sweet, not salty enough or maybe it needs a touch of lime.  The flavors we're after are hot, salty, sour and sweet, in that order. That being said, my Dad would turn his nose up at any tum maak houng that contained even one grain of sugar. He liked it hot and salty with chunks of padek and just a touch of lime juice.  My sister Thi makes it super hot, and on the sweet side with padek and tamarind paste.  My sister Li adds tamarind paste but no padek. She uses nam pa or fish sauce instead, making it not as sweet nor as hot.  My version is closer to Li's. 

Homemade Pork Rind - "Kiep Moo"

My share of pork from Walpole Valley Farms included several sheets of pork skin with an inch of fat on them. I knew right away that I would make Kiep Moo with it.  Kiep Moo is the Lao version of pork rind.  Green Papaya Salad and Kiep Moo is my favorite Lao food combination.  Rich, crunchy pork skin is the perfect foil for the spicy, salty, sweet and sour Tum Maak Houng, the Lao name for Green Papaya Salad. 

Kiep Moo (Homemade Pork Rind)

Crispy Kale Snack

Even as I glean every last bit of kale from the garden and crisping them in the oven, Walpole is a colorful blaze, a perfect picture of fall in New England.

View from March Hill Road, Walpole, NH. Photo by Amy.

Red Russian Kale, the only kind I grow, is delicate and hardy

Kale and Swiss chard rule the garden at this time of year and as I'm staring down a huge basket of kale, taking up half my kitchen, I get an email from Maggie telling me about her new way with kale. The idea is simple, toss fresh kale with olive oil, spread them out in a single layer on a large cookie sheet and roast in 350 degree oven until crispy but still green. Maggie's directions were to

"toss torn 3-inch size pieces with oil. Bake 350 degrees for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally until crisp and crunchy."

My Red Russian only needed 10 minutes and stirring was not necessary. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with salt, pepper and/or freshly grated Parmesan. Serve immediately, these are so easy to make, fun to eat and criminally addictive.

Crispy Kale Snack

Cook's tips:
- Line cookie sheet with parchment paper to prevent kale from sticking.
- Don't let the kale get brown, at that point it can get bitter.

Deviled Eggs with Chives

Chives are at their peak right now, about 10"-12" tall here in my zone 5 garden. They're best before they start to bloom for once they bloom they become stronger and not quiet as tender. So on the way home from my walk I picked up these beautiful free range eggs at a neighboring farm.

Besides the fact that I adore eggs in any shape or form, they also go really well with chives. I thought about making an omelet with Cheese and Chives or Scrambled Eggs with Cheese and Chives and before chive season is over I'll probably make both those things but today I'm in the mood for deviled eggs, my all time favorite forbidden food.

Start with perfectly cooked eggs. Hard boiled eggs are easily overcooked causing a dark green circle around the yolk with a tinny after taste. Here's my technique for perfect hard boiled eggs--put eggs in a pan, in a single layer, cover the eggs with cold water, plus an inch more. Bring to a gentle boil over medium high heat. When water starts to boil, remove from heat, cover, and let sit for 15 minutes. Drain the hot water and soak the eggs in cold water until completely cooled. Farm fresh eggs are harder to peel than older eggs so I usually put my boiled eggs, if they resist peeling, in the fridge until they're very cold. Or I use older eggs.

I don't actually have a recipe for deviled eggs but I did measure as I was making this batch. They came out creamy and decadent and the recipe can easily be doubled or tripled for a crowd.

Deviled Eggs with Chives

6 eggs
2 TBS chopped chives
3-4 TBS mayonnaise
1 TBS sweet pickle relish
1 tsp Dijon mustard
Few drops of Tabasco
Few drops of Maggi Sauce
1/4 tsp ground chipotle peppers
salt to taste

Carefully peel the eggs, cut in half lengthwise, remove the yolks and put in a mixing bowl.


Mash the yolks with a fork, add the rest of the ingredients and blend well. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Spoon egg yolk mixture into the egg white halves, arrange on a platter and sprinkle with more chives. Enjoy as hors d'oeuvres or part of a "this 'n that" meal.

A rainy day picnic

Colorful fall greens

With just a bit of coddling, beautiful greens still linger in my southern New Hampshire garden.

Chinese cabbage and baby beets

Kale and escarole under row cover

Swiss chard and arugula

Bright Light Swiss chard is as tasty as it is beautiful. In the garden it grows easily and abundantly, and need only to be picked to keep it producing. I harvest it by the armloads from early summer to late fall. Both leaves and stems are edible but I prefer only the leaves and the stems get composted.

Here are two never fail Swiss chard recipes.

Sautéed Swiss Chard with Garlic and Oyster Sauce

3 lbs Swiss chard, leaves coarsely shredded, stems discarded

3 Tbs olive oil

4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

Salt and pepper to taste

1 Tbs oyster sauce

Heat oil and garlic in a large heavy pot over medium heat, add salt and pepper. When garlic turns slightly golden add chard leaves in batches, stirring until wilted before adding next batch and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a serving bowl, toss with oyster sauce and serve. Makes 8 servings.

This chard ball recipe is adapted from an old spinach ball recipe. Whether you make them with spinach or Swiss chard the accolades will be the same, and will leave your guests begging for more.

Chard Balls with Hot and Sweet Mustard

4 cups cooked Swiss chard, squeezed dry, or 2 10 oz packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry.

2 cups herb stuffing mix, crushed

1 cup grated parmesan cheese (5 oz wedge)

½ cup (1 stick) butter, melted

5 scallions, finely chopped

3 eggs

Dash of freshly grated nutmeg

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Shape into 1 inch balls. Cover and refrigerate or freeze until ready to bake.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Set balls on ungreased baking sheet and bake until golden brown about 10 to 15 minutes. Serve with Hot and Sweet Mustard.

Makes about 50 balls

Hot and Sweet Mustard

½ cup Coleman dry mustard

½ cup white vinegar

¼ cup sugar

1 egg yolk

Combine mustard and vinegar, cover and let stand at room temperature 4 hours.

Mix sugar and egg yolk in small sauce pan. Add mustard and vinegar mixture and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened. Cover and chill. Serve at room temperature.

Wild mushrooms

Chantarelle and Oyster mushrooms found on my walk yesterday.

It was my lucky day to stumble upon these gifts from the woods, I practically skipped home to spend the morning washing, cleaning, and every now and then, sniffing them. I was in mushroom heaven. All the while planning how to best use this windfall.

I settled on my old standby, I seem to always turn to this recipe when I have more mushrooms than I know what to do with. It's sinfully yummy, doubles easily and freezes well.

Wild mushrooms with garlic

1 TBS olive oil
1TBS butter
1 pound assorted wild mushrooms, shredded
3 large cloves of garlic, sliced
1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
A dash of Maggi Sauce
Salt and pepper

Heat olive oil in a large, cast iron skillet over high heat. Add mushrooms and sauté until slightly brown and not too dry. Add garlic and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add white wine and cook until evaporated, about 1 minute (at this point taste the mushrooms, if they’re not tender add a little water, continue to cook a little longer until done. Add cream and cilantro; stir until sauce coats mushrooms, about 1 minute, season to taste with salt, pepper and a dash of Maggie sauce. Serve on toast. Any leftovers can be folded inside an omelet, added to fried rice, or tossed with pasta. Makes 6 servings.

A new beginning

Once in while life throws us a curve ball and we get a chance to reinvent ourselves, but too often when this happens we’re afraid because usually we’re put in this situation not of our own choosing. So we’re afraid, afraid of the unknown. I’m afraid, but I will ride the fear and know that I will arrive safely on the other side. Be in the moment I remind myself. At this moment my mind wonders about all the possibilities. One thought that won’t go away is---Should I do the farmers' market? I’m not eager to do the market again, I’ve been there, I’ve done that. I’ll have to come up with a different product so I wouldn’t feel like I was going back to something old and stale. It’ll have to feel new, fun and exciting. Not much to ask, but maybe if you don’t ask you don’t get.
People love the spring rolls and I can sell them as fast as I can make them but I’m so tired of making them, it’s like Billy Joel having to sing Uptown Girl over and over again. So I need a new angle on the food. I want my new food to be mostly local ingredients and organic.
Here’s the spring roll recipe for you to try and see what the fuss is all about.

Spring rolls with Chicken sate at Bellows Falls Farmers' Market

Everybody’s Favorite Spring Rolls

Filling:
1 lb ground pork
¼ lbs onions, chopped
¾ lbs carrots, grated
¼ lbs. bean sprouts
1-8 oz can water chestnut chopped
2 TBS oyster sauce
2 TBS dried cloud ears, soaked in water until soft and chopped
50 grams cellophane noodles, soaked and cut into short lengths
2 eggs

1 lb package rice paper

Peanut oil or canola oil for frying

Mix all ingredients together except rice paper and oil. Immerse a sheet of rice paper in warm water and immediately put on damp kitchen towel, repeat until you have five sheets of rice paper between damp towels stacked one on top of the other. Flip over so the first sheet of rice paper is on top. At this point the rice paper should be perfectly hydrated and pliable.

Center about 2 TBS filling mixture on the bottom 2/3 of the paper, leaving 2” border. Fold in the right then the left edges over the filling, roll to top edge, wet rice paper will stick to itself forming a tight seal. Transfer seam side down onto a platter.

When all the filling have been rolled, deep fry in hot oil until golden brown. Serve with spicy fish sauce. .Makes 30 to 35 spring rolls.

This recipe doubles easily and cooked spring rolls can be frozen. Reheat directly from the freezer, in 450 degrees oven until deep brown and crunchy.

Spicy fish sauce with peanuts

½ hot water
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup fish sauce
1/8 cup rice wine vinegar
2 TBS dry roasted peanuts , ground
Hot chiles to taste, thinly sliced

Mix all ingredients, except peanuts and chiles, and stir until sugar is dissolved. Garnish with peanuts and chiles before serving. Makes 1 ¼ cup.

This sauce can be doubled or tripled and refrigerated will keep almost indefinitely. I always have it around. It’s good on a lot of Asian salads and for dipping dumplings and such. More on this handy sauce in future posts.

Let me know what you think of these spring rolls and would love to hear about your experiences making them.