Cheesy Kale Sweet Potato Tart from the woks of life

IMG_2491For the pastry:
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 stick cold butter, cut into small cubes
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon cold water
For the filling:
2 tablespoons butter
½ cup finely chopped leeks
1 bunch kale, stemmed and chopped
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
olive oil
salt and pepper
1 small sweet potato
2 sprigs fresh thyme, plus more for garnish
1 cup ricotta
1/2 cup shredded cheese (gruyere, aged cheddar, or manchego work great for this)

 NOTE: very good baked in pie plate without crust

Start by making the crust. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or two knives until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Whisk together the egg yolk and water, and add it to the flour mixture. Mix everything together with a fork until the dough comes together. Flatten into a disk, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator to chill for at least an hour. Take out of the refrigerator about a few minutes before you’re ready to roll it out.

Roll out the dough and fit it to your tart pan. You may have to patch it up a bit, but don’t worry, it’ll turn out great. Pierce the dough all over with a fork and place the tart shell in the freezer for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped leeks and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the kale, crushed red pepper flakes, and a couple drizzles of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook for another couple minutes, just until the kale is wilted. Remove from the heat.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (210 degrees C). Blind bake the tart shell for 10 minutes, and remove from the oven. If you see it starting to puff up at all, poke the dough with a fork again!

Prep your potato by peeling it and slicing it paper-thin. A mandolin helps, but a sharp knife will do the job. Add the thyme and ricotta to the kale mixture. Place a layer of sweet potato slices in the bottom of the tart shell. Spread the kale and cheese mixture evenly over that, and top with another layer of sweet potato slices. Brush the top thoroughly with olive oil and sprinkle the cheese over the tart. Bake for about 20 minutes, until golden brown.

Salad with Warm Goat Cheese — Ina

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1 (11-ounce) log plain or herbed Montrachet
2 extra-large egg whites, beaten with 1 tablespoon water
Fresh white bread crumbs
For the dressing:
2 tablespoons good cider vinegar
2 tablespoons good Champagne vinegar
Pinch sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 extra-large egg yolk
1 cup good olive oil
Enough mixed salad greens for 6 servings
Olive oil and unsalted butter, for frying

Slice the Montrachet into 12 (1/2-inch-thick) slices. (The easiest way to slice goat cheese is to use a length of dental floss.) Dip each slice into the beaten egg whites, then the bread crumbs, being sure the cheese is thoroughly coated. Place the slices on a rack and chill them for at least 15 minutes.

For the dressing, place the vinegars, sugar, salt, pepper, and egg yolk in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and blend for 1 minute. With the motor running, slowly pour the olive oil through the feed tube until the vinaigrette is thickened. Season, to taste.

Toss the salad greens with enough dressing to moisten, then divide them among 6 plates.

Melt 1 tablespoon oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a saute pan over medium-high heat until just under smoking. Cook the goat cheese rounds quickly on both sides until browned on the outside but not melted inside. Top each salad with 2 warm rounds and serve.

Olive Tapenade Grilled Cheese

yum

 

 

 

my version

my version made with lemon boy tomatoes and provolone cheese

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Makes one big sandwich

  • 2 slices rustic bread, sliced
  • 4 tablespoons black olive tapenade
  • 2 slices mozzarella cheese
  • 2 slices tomato
  • Kosher salt, to taste
  • 2 tablespoons butter

yu Pat tomato slices dry, sprinkle with salt, and set aside while you assemble the other ingredients. Spread each slice of bread with two tablespoons of the tapenade. Top with cheese, and the sliced tomato. Butter outside of sandwich, and cook in a skillet over medium heat until cheese melts and bread is golden brown.

Read more: http://www.fromaway.com/sandwiches/olive-tapenade-grilled-cheese#ixzz2bOhcdP8M

 

Cheese ball — Blake

1 cup sharp Cheddar; finely chopped
1 cup Havarti; finely chopped
1/2 cup softened Brie
1 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp red pepper flakes
chili powder
chopped pecans

Mix the cheeses and peppers together very thoroughly and let it warm sufficiently to form it. Do that and then chill it a while. Roll it in the chili powder and then the pecans.

Enfrijoladas (corn tortillas with black bean sauce) Salon.com (food section)

Published in: Salon.com (food section)
Publish Date: June, 2010
Ingredients
15 1/2  ounce   black beans — canned (unseasoned if possible)
1   clove   garlic — crushed
1/8 cup white onion — roughly chopped
1/2 teaspoon    dried epazote — crumbled (Epazote is a Mexican
herb that is almost inseparable from black beans in Oaxacan cooking,
and well worth procuring)
8       or 9 corn tortillas
1/8 cup neutral oil — such as canola
Salt to taste
Instructions
For garnishes: thinly sliced white onion, crumbled or shredded white
Mexican cheese (such as cotija or quesillo), chopped cilantro, avocado
slices (optional)
Heat the beans, garlic, onion, and epazote together in a saucepan over
medium heat until the garlic and onion are soft, about fifteen minutes.
Transfer bean mixture to a blender or food processor, blend until
smooth.
Return bean mixture to saucepan. Cook over medium heat, adding enough
water or broth to form a thick but pourable sauce. (It should have the
consistency of a thickish bean soup, but not be gloppy.) Taste and add
salt if needed. Transfer the sauce to a wide skillet and keep it warm
while you prep the tortillas.
Now it’s time to assemble the enfrijoladas: Heat the oil in a saute pan
over medium-high heat. Fry each tortilla for a couple of seconds on
each side to soften it. As each tortilla becomes soft and pliable,
remove it from the oil, allow all excess oil to drip off, then dip the
tortilla in the bean sauce and fold it in half. The tortilla should be
completely coated in sauce. (In Oaxaca, where the tortillas are
ginormous, they are folded into quarters, like crepes.)
You can either arrange the dipped tortillas decoratively on individual
serving plates (allowing three or four per serving as a main course) or
put them all in a common serving dish. Either way, nap them with any
extra sauce, top with any of the garnishes listed above, and serve
immediately.

DSCF1573

15 1/2 ounce  black beans — canned (unseasoned if possible)

1  clove  garlic — crushed

1/8 cup white onion — roughly chopped

1/2 teaspoon dried epazote — crumbled (Epazote is a Mexican herb that is almost inseparable from black beans in Oaxacan cooking, and well worth procuring)

8 or 9 corn tortillas

1/8 cup neutral oil — such as canola

Salt to taste

For garnishes: thinly sliced white onion, crumbled or shredded white Mexican cheese (such as cotija or quesillo), Feta cheese, chopped cilantro, avocado slices

Heat the beans, garlic, onion, and epazote together in a saucepan over  medium heat until the garlic and onion are soft, about fifteen minutes.

Transfer bean mixture to a blender or food processor, blend until smooth.

Return bean mixture to saucepan. Cook over medium heat, adding enough water or broth to form a thick but pourable sauce. (It should have the consistency of a thickish bean soup, but not be gloppy.) Taste and add salt if needed. Transfer the sauce to a wide skillet and keep it warm while you prep the tortillas.

Now it’s time to assemble the enfrijoladas: Heat the oil in a saute pan over medium-high heat. Fry each tortilla for a couple of seconds on each side to soften it. As each tortilla becomes soft and pliable, remove it from the oil, allow all excess oil to drip off, then dip the tortilla in the bean sauce and fold it in half. The tortilla should be completely coated in sauce. (In Oaxaca, where the tortillas are ginormous, they are folded into quarters, like crepes.) serving plates (allowing three or four per serving as a main course) or put them all in a common serving dish. Either way, nap them with any extra sauce, top with any of the garnishes listed above, and serve immediately.

You can either arrange the dipped tortillas decoratively on individual serving plates (allowing three or four per serving as a main course) or put them all in a common serving dish. Either way, nap them with any extra sauce, top with any of the garnishes listed above, and serve immediately.th any of the garnishes listed above, and serve immediately.

NOTES:  I toasted the tortillas, made the sauce thick like refried beans.  In the future I will add some cumin and oregano to the beans.

Buttermilk Fresh Cheese, Lee brothers

  • 1 quart whole milk
  • 1 1/2 cups whole or low-fat buttermilk
  • 2 teaspoons coarse salt
  1. Cut out three pieces of cheesecloth into 12-inch squares. Line a colander or medium strainer with all three layers of cheesecloth. Set colander in sink.
  2. Combine milk, buttermilk, and salt in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, and heat over medium-high heat until mixture has separated into white curds and translucent whey, about 8 minutes. If using lowfat buttermilk, separation occurs at about 180 degrees and the curds will clump together readily. If using whole buttermilk, separation occurs closer to the boiling point, about 212 degrees, and the curds are finer-grained. When using whole buttermilk, let curds and whey stand off heat for about 3 minutes after separation, so the curds cling together and facilitate the straining step.)
  3. Ladle the contents of the saucepan into the prepared colander. Let the whey drain, 1 to 2 minutes. Lift the four corners of the cheesecloth and gather them together. Gently twist the gathered cloth over the cheese and press out any excess whey.
  4. Cheese can be unwrapped immediately and served warm, or let stand until cooled to room temperature, about 10 minutes more. To serve a firmer cheese, transfer cheese, in its cloth, to a small flat-bottomed dish or pie plate; refrigerate until cool, about 10 minutes. Unwrap cheese and gently invert onto plate; discard cloth. Tent cheese with plastic wrap and keep refrigerated up to 2 days. Remove from refrigerator and let stand for 10 minutes at room temperature before serving.

    Flavorings

Pepper-add 1 tsp of pepper in step 2

Lemon -add 1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest in step 2

Herb – add1 teaspoon dried herbs, such as tarragon, oregano, or basil in step 2

Vanilla -add 1 teaspoon pure vanilla ext in step 2

Makes 1 6-ounce round; serves 4 as a snack with crackers