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Organic A to Z

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Organic A to Z

Category Archives: recipes

RECIPE: Beer Battered Fried Zucchini Spears

31 Friday Aug 2012

Posted by gregory in recipes

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Fried Zucchini

It seems so boring but damn it is so tasty.  Nothing beats a great deep fried beer battered zucchini spear!

For extra flavor I used a dark brown beer and whole wheat flour too.  You can use any oil you like but you know I’m an olive oil junky, love that flavor!

1/2 C Flour
1/2 C Beer
1/4 tsp salt
1 lb Zucchini spears
Olive Oil for deep frying

Mix the batter together with a fork or a whisk until it is smooth.  Dip each spear into it and carefully deep fry.  Have your oil on medium high heat, if you have a thermometer you want it to be at about 375 degrees.  Fry the spears (only a few at a time) for about 5 minutes.  Frying can be a pain sometimes, one big problem is over crowding the pan…if you add too many items (especially something frozen) the temp of the oil will drop significantly.  Best to do a few at a time to get your groove on and test it all out.  When your spears are golden brown, carefully remove them from the oil and blot on papper towels.  Hit them with some sea salt and munch away.  Sometimes I’ll have a little dipping sauce on the side too.

Yogurt and Lemon Zest Dipping Sauce

Great for fried, grilled or raw veggies!

1/2 C Whole Fat Yogurt (preferably Greek yogurt)
Zest of 1 Lemon
Salt and Pepper to taste

Stir all of these ingredients together.

RECIPE: Raw Tagliatelle Pasta of Zucchini and Carrots

31 Friday Aug 2012

Posted by gregory in recipes

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Raw Pasta

Raw Pasta

My main goal with this recipe was to show off how easy it is to make a raw pasta using veggies.  I used a green and a yellow zucchini and threw in a carrot as well.  All you need to do is carefully cut slices out of each veggie using a vegetable peeler.  You can use a mandoline too, but I really think a peeler works best for this.  You can toss these ribbons with any sauce you want, marinara, vinaigrette, simple olive oil…or do something wacky like my Thai coconut sauce.

THAI COCONUT PEANUT SAUCE

This is sauce is kinda “farang”–the Thai word for foreign.  But it’s good.  And it’s easy.  And it tastes really great with the raw pasta so rock it!

1/2 C Coconut milk
1 to 2 TBS Lime Juice
1 TBS Brown Sugar
1 TBS Fish sauce
1 TBS Thai Soy Sauce
1 TBS Ginger, minced
1 Clove garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp chili flakes
1/3 C fresh cilantro
2 TBS peanut butter (unsweetened, organic)

Mix all of your ingredients together in a bowl and beat with a wisk or a fork.  Toss the sauce onto your veggie ribbons and enjoy.  You can add other veggies to this too, a little shallot and cherry tomatoes are nice.  Simple and tasty.

 

RECIPE: Grilled Zucchini

31 Friday Aug 2012

Posted by gregory in recipes

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Grilled Zucchini

Grilled Zucchini

The classic, easiest and perhaps tastiest way to showcase zucchini!

1 lb zucchini, cut into slices
salt
pepper
olive oil
fresh herbs

Like I said on the show, this is so easy I don’t even need to show you how to do it.  All you gotta do is cut your zucchini into slices about a third of an inch thick.  Brush each side with a little olive oil, hit it with salt and pepper and grill each side for about 2 to 3 minutes until you get some nice grill marks.  You can do this in a hot skillet too.  I threw some torn mint leaves on my zucchini but any fresh herb will work.  A little drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and some finishing sea salt and you have a great dish on your hands!

RECIPE: Pizza

30 Thursday Aug 2012

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I’ve been making pizza at home for years. In fact, I can’t even remember the last time I bought a frozen pizza or ordered take-out. Sure, occasionally I’ll go out for pizza too, I can’t help it…it’s everyone’s favorite food after all!  But making your own pizza from scratch is the best—really entertaining and delicious. It’s also a great way to turn a casual dinner party into a killer shindig.

The key to a good pizza is the crust, so here are a few things about making bread to get you started. It’s pretty simple but still requires a bit of practice, so don’t be bummed out if your first attempt isn’t perfect–there’s no such thing. My pies are never uniform or round and they’re always a little bit different each time.

Only practice will let you get the feel for what you like because so much in this type of baking is tactile. It requires you to get your hands in there and touch the dough. If it is wet and sticking to your hands or the work surface, you’ll need more flour.

This recipe isn’t exact, and I’m one of the guys who always says baking generally requires precision. It’s like a science. But making bread is different. The type of flour you use and the humidity of your kitchen will make a difference. I recommend having an extra 1/2 cup of flour at your immediate disposal for the kneading. You might need more or it’s possible that you might need less. On the show I was using all purpose whole wheat flour but I think it’s easiest to start off using all purpose white flour if you are a first timer.

Another thing that really helps me out is the use of a pizza stone. Rather than spending cash and buying one, I hit my local hardware store and made my own. Unglazed quarry tiles are what you are looking for–something with no lead or dye in it. I’ve used Saltillo tiles and think they work really well, but they tend to crack easily.

Whether you invest in a stone or go for quarry tiles, you want to have a flat surface to cook your pies on.  Using the racks in the oven isn’t always a great idea, so if I don’t have a stone I usually invert a sheet pan (or use a cookie sheet) and place it on the racks.  To slide your pizza on and off its flat cooking surface, you’ll want to invest in a pizza peel–my “paddle” from the video.  It’ll help you slide the dough on and off. Using another inverted sheet pan works as a great substitute.

Enjoy the process.  Have fun with this recipe, it’s just pizza in the end!

PIZZA

PIZZA

 

1 packet of active dry yeast (2.25 tsp)
3/4 C warm water (about 100 degrees, not HOT though coz anything over 120 will kill the yeast)
1 tsp honey
1.5 C flour + an extra 1/2 C for kneading and dusting
1 TBS salt
1 TBS olive Oil

Preheat your oven to 450° Fahrenheit for at least 30 minutes prior to baking.

The first thing we’re going to do is proof the yeast, especially when you’re not sure of the age of your yeast. Place the yeast in a bowl and pour warm water on top. Add a tsp of honey to the mixture. I use my fingers for the mixing by rubbing the granules of yeast until they dissolve. Let this sit for ten minutes. If the yeast is alive and active, you’ll get a foamy, bubbly looking surface. If nothing happens, the yeast is dead and you’ll need some new yeast.

If you know that you’ve got good yeast, there’s no need to proof it.  Skip the honey and water trick and just add the dry yeast directly into your flour and salt.  If you’ve proofed the yeast in water, go ahead and add the wet yeasty water to a bowl and add the flour in 3 or 4 stages by combining with your hands as you go. When all of the flour is incorporated add the salt and olive oil. Bring it all together and get ready to work it.

Spread a little flour on a flat work surface. I use a slab of marble. Then gather up your dough. Push on the dough with the heel of your palm and get a nice rhythm going. Knead it for five minutes, adding flour as you go to keep it from sticking to your hands or the work surface.

After five minutes you’ll need to let the dough rest for a good 1 to 2 hours. Dust the ball of dough with flour or rub it with some olive oil. Then put it in a bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and drop a lightly dampened tea towel on top. Put the bowl in a warm, draft free place and let it sit for at least an hour. It will more than double in size. Punch the dough down to deflate it. Then cut it in half. 

Flour your pizza peel or sheet pan and start flattening and pressing the dough into your desired shape. You can use a rolling pin for this, but I prefer to use my hands and fingers because they give the pie more texture. I usually go for some sort of amoeba shaped pizza myself, but occasionally I’ll go rectangular.

When you’ve got the shape you want, drizzle on a little olive oil and top with your favorite ingredients. Less is more is my motto when it comes to pizzas, so don’t go crazy. On the show I did a pizza with fresh pears, arugula, goat cheese, blue cheese, and walnuts. I also made a Margherita of mozzarella, fresh tomatoes, and fresh basil. One classic and one funky, but both are amazing.

Slide the pie on the stone in the oven. If you’re not using a stone, you can just pop in the sheet pan. Definitely check the pie after 7 minutes, but it will probably need about 10 to be fully done. Cook until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is bubbly. Cut it up, let it cool, and dive in.

RECIPE: Masala Frittata

27 Monday Aug 2012

Posted by gregory in recipes

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Masala Frittata

Masala Frittata

I went backpacking in Rajasthan India for that whole Y2K thing.  It was still 1999 when I trekked to a town named Sawai Madhopur to visit a natural preserve in the hopes of spotting tigers.  Though I never saw any cats, I had an amazing breakfast at guesthouse:  MASALA OMELETTES!  I rebranded that omelette into this thick and fun frittata, enjoy!

6 Eggs
Cracked Black Pepper
Sea Salt
1/2 tsp Turmeric
1/4 tsp Crushed red chili flakes
1/2 tsp Garlic, crushed
1 tsp Ginger, diced
1/3 C Red onion, diced
1/2 C Cilantro, chopped
1 Tomato, chopped
1/2 C Ricotta cheese (or quesa fresca…any mild, creamy cheese)
1/2 Lime’s zest
1 C cooked potatoes (in bite-sized pieces.)

In a big bowl beat the eggs and add all the ingredients, expect the potatoes.  Stir to incorporate everything well.

Get an oven-safe, nonstick pan and heat it up on medium heat.  A little oil or butter to just coat the bottom and the sides.  Add a layer of your potatoes.  Sometimes I’ll go ahead and cook raw potatoes in the pan on the spot.  This takes several minutes and so, being the impatient guy that I am, I usually use some leftover spuds from a previous dinner.  Any type or size of potato will do, but I recommend cutting them into manageable, bite-sized pieces.

Pour all of the eggs into the pan and let them set.  I usually run a spatula or a fork around the edges just to keep them from sticking and help me monitor the progress.   When you feel that the bottom (and sides—any surface hitting the pan) has set and cooked and the top is still runny, it is time to broil the sucker.  Pop the pan under the broiler (or a super hot oven) and let it cook for about five minutes.  When the top is firm and a little golden brown you are good to go.  Serve this with a salad for a great breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner.  Namaste!
Serves six.

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  • VIDEO: Zucchini
  • Z is for ZUCCHINI
  • RECIPE: Beer Battered Fried Zucchini Spears
  • RECIPE: Raw Tagliatelle Pasta of Zucchini and Carrots
  • RECIPE: Grilled Zucchini

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