Bolinho de Bacalhau

A few nights ago I was craving this delicious treat, but I am cutting down on the calories and the original recipe is fried.  Fortunately, thanks to the recommendation of our friend, Alfredo Pong, we purchased a Nuwave oven and cooked this delicious little balls in it.

Bolinho de Bacalhau is nothing more than codfish balls. Delicious codfish balls.  They are Portuguese in origin but Brazilians have made them famous.

I am always researching for ways to perfect the dishes I cook and this time I was very happy to find that one of my favorite chefs, Julia Child, also liked to make Bolinho de Bacalhau, she called them "Aunt Priscilla's Codfish Balls" and this time and every time from now on, I will repeat her trick.

Without further ado I present you Bolinho de Bacalhau.

Photo by Laura

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound fresh cod
• 1 1/4 cups of mashed potatoes
• 2 Tbsp of finely chopped flat leave parsley
• 1 large egg

Directions:

1. Simmer a small onion, thinly sliced, with a bay leave and two pepper corns in two cups of water.  After 5 minutes, add the cod and an additional cup of water.  When it simmers, cover the pan and remove from heat, that way the cod stays soft.  You can keep the cod in this liquid in the refrigerator until ready to use.  And this is Julia Child's trick, let me tell you it made all the difference, she was a genius and I love her.  Thank you Julia!
2. Drain the fish, place in a bowl and flake it thoroughly.  Add the mashed potatoes, beat the egg with a pinch of kosher sea salt and add them to the fish and potatoes.  Add parsley and taste, if you think is necessary add kosher sea salt and pepper.  
3. Wait a good half hour to form the balls. 
4. Place the balls on the lower rack of the Nuwave oven and cook for 30 to 40 minutes or until golden.
5. This recipe gave me about 25 codfish balls.

These were delicious.  Please make them at home and share your thoughts. 

Buon Appetito! 

Basil Avocado Cups

Last Sunday we had friends over.  I invited them to a  vegetarian feast.  This recipe was part of the menu and a total success.  It is my version of a recipe I saw a while ago.   I know you will like it as much as we did.

Basil Avocado Cups - Photo by Laura

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup Basil Pesto*
• Grapeseed oil
• 24 Wonton wraps
• 1 garlic clove, grated
• 3 ripe avocados, diced -I used the Mexican ones
• 1/2 cream cheese, softened
• 4 oz goat cheese
• Chives
• Kosher salt and pepper to taste

Basil Avocado Cups - Photo by Laura

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.  Lightly coat both sides of the Wonton wrap with the oil, put two wraps  together and press them into a 12 muffin cups.  Make sure that the bottom are as flat as possible.  
2. Bake the Wonton wrappers until golden and crispy for about 10 minutes.  Let cool completely.
3. In a bowl, stir together the softened cream cheese, goat cheese, basil pesto, garlic, salt and pepper.  Carefully, fold the diced avocado into the cheese mixture.  Scoop the Basil Avocado among the Wonton cups.  Garnish with the Chives.  

Basil Avocado Cups - Photo by Laura

*The Basil Pesto can be made ahead of time.  You can use the herb of your liking.  

Please do make this recipe at home.  Be creative and enjoy.  Don't forget to let me know.

Buon Appetito!

My very own Spanish Vegizo

One of the things I miss the most from my carnivore days are the sausages, especially chorizo.  However, I realized that what I really liked was the flavor and not so much the texture of the meat. A few months ago, I prepared a dish with soy veggie crumbles and one of the ingredients I used was "Pimentón de la Vera", which is nothing more than smoked paprika.  Oh boy, I thought I had hit the jackpot.  Instantly, I realized that the flavor was no other than the flavor I much loved of the Spanish chorizo.  I thought, "If only I could make vegetarian chorizo (vegizo)".  I know we can find vegetarian sausages in the market, but their sodium content is very high, and not to mention the artificial flavors and ingredients one cannot pronounce that makers use in order to preserve these particular items. No no, I want to make my own vegetarian sausages at home.

My quest began right there.  After a few tries I finally found a recipe online that could take me to where I wanted to go, and it did.  This is my first try, and it was a success.  The best part of this is that now, at home, I can make my own Italian, German, Mexican or Spanish vegetarian sausages.  I am very excited about this. 

This recipe gave me eight.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup red beans
• 1/3 cup vegetable broth
• 2 Tbsps. Tomato paste
• 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 Tbsps. water
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/4 cup vital wheat gluten
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1tsp. red pepper flakes
• 2 tsps. Hungarian paprika
• 3Tbsps. smoked paprika
• 1 tsp. dry oregano
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

     1.  In a bowl, mash the beans until they look like a puree. Add the broth, tomato paste, vinegar, olive oil, water, garlic and whisk well. 
     2.  With the help of a fork, stir in the gluten and blend it in well until a dough forms.  Add the yeast and combine it well.  Add now the herbs and spices and mix them in, knead the mixture like you do a pizza dough to blend everything together.  Give the dough a round shape and set aside.

 3. Cut eight pieces of foil paper and have them ready.  Section the dough until you get the amount of vegizos you desire.  Roll each section into a log and wrap into a piece of foil paper, twisting the ends like you would a hard candy.

     4.   Have a steamer basket with boiling water ready and add the foiled up vegizos to the basket.  Steam for 40 minutes.

  5.   Let it cool and voila, you have your wonderful vegizos. 

I will be making this very often.  Of course we will continue to buy chorizos because my hubby is not a vegetarian, buy I finally found what I had been looking for.

If you aren't a vegetarian but are looking to cut down on red meat, please make this recipe, you won't regret it.  And for my fellow vegetarians out there, we have hit the jackpot! 

Let me know what you think.

Buon Appetito!

Veggie Croquettes

Last night we ate some delicious croquettes, if I may say so myself.  I must confess that they were not your conventional croquettes, neither in shape nor in flavor. That is the beauty of cooking, you can transform a traditional dish and it will be OK.  

If you find yourself with a package of vegetables and have no idea what to do with it, this post might be your answer.  Would you let me know?

The croquettes' shape was my husband request and the flavor, well that's just me.

Ingredients:


Vegetable mixture

• 1 (16 oz) package of Vegetables, California blend 
• 1 Tbsp of ground cumin
• 1Tbsp of Allspice
• 1Tsp ground ginger
• 1Tsp of homemade Tahini sauce
• Pinch of Kosher salt and pepper to taste
• Bechamel
• 1 cup Cuban cracker crumbs
• 1 cup breadcrumbs 
• 2 eggs
• Canola oil for frying

Directions:



Bechamel and vegetable mixture

1. Boil vegetables in a saucepan until tender.  Drain and let them cool a little bit. 
2. Meanwhile make the bechamel -see below-.  
3. Once cooled, process vegetables in the food processor and add the cumin, allspice, ginger, tahini sauce salt and pepper.  
4. Mix the vegetables with the bechamel and let it cool in the refrigerator until you are ready to put them together. 



Before frying

5. Take a spoon of the mixture and roll in your hands to make a shape of your liking.  Roll  it in remaining Cuban cracker crumbs, then in the eggs, and then in the breadcrumbs and set aside.  Repeat with the remaining mixture.  

6. Pour enough oil in a medium to large frying pan. Heat the oil for frying to about 355F  degrees. Place the croquettes in the hot oil and fry quickly, turning several times, until golden. Remove the croquettes with a slotted spoon and set on a paper towel to absorb the excess oil. Serve immediately.

Bechamel 


Bechamel

Ingredients: 

• 3 Tbsp of unsalted butter
• 3 Tbsp of unbleached flour
• 1/2 cup of soy milk
• pinch of fresh nutmeg
• pinch of Kosher salt

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Once melted, stir in the flour until smooth.  Continue stirring until approximately 7 minutes or until it looks golden. 
2. Increase to a medium heat and stir in the milk with a wooden spoon until thickened.  Bring to a simmer, reduce heat to medium low and continue simmering until the flour has softened and is no longer lumpy and easily separates from the pan, this will be 10 to 20 minutes. Season with salt and nutmeg.   

The bechamel is a very versatile sauce. Put heavy cream and cheese and the result will be  a very delicious cheese sauce.  As I always tell you, be creative.

Now, the Star of this recipe: 


Veggie Croquettes

            

We ate them as tapas, with cheese, olives and wine.  But you can serve them however you like.  Please do try this recipe and let me know your experience with it. Remember to be creative.

Buon Appetito!