Forget Snowmageddon, it’s DC Meat-Free Week!

In response to Meat Week, DC Vegan joined forces with Compassion Over Killing to plan the inaugural DC Meat-Free Week.  Unfortunately, Old Man Winter doesn’t seem to want you to eat your veggies. 

Snowmageddon interfered with the last two days of Meat Week and the first few days of DC Meat-Free Week. There’s a good chance it will interfere with the rest of the week’s events as well.

(Image: DC Vegan)

DC Meat-Free Week is scheduled from Sunday, February 7 to Saturday, February 13.

-Tuesday, Feb 9:  Sticky Fingers Bakery in Washington, DC.  A portion of the proceeds benefits Compassion Over Killing.

-Wednesday, Feb 10: Busboys & Poets (all locations)

-Thursday, Feb 11: The Source in Washington, DC (5:30-10:30PM) (Reservations Recommended)

-Friday, Feb 12: Restaurant Nora in Washington, DC (Reservations Recommended)

-Saturday, Feb 13: Great Sage in Clarksville, MD (Reservations Recommended)

A dinner with Farm Sanctuary President, Gene Baur will be rescheduled for February, 27 at Great Sage.

There are plenty of vegetarian and vegan restaurants around Northern Virginia if any of those options are too far. Or, if you’re unable to make any of the events but you do venture out to visit the grocery store, there are plenty of tasty vegan recipes to try while you’re stuck at home.

If you do lose power, try these tips from the American Red Cross to keep yourself and your food safe.

Image: One Vs. Many

Just be sure to keep warm. You can even memorialize Snowmageddon by helping a great cause. When you purchase a t-shirt from One vs. Many, founded by local guys Alex Welsh and Grant Hill, 15% of each t-shirt sale will benefit So Others Might Eat (SOME), a non-profit organization that works to help the homeless, poor, elderly, and individuals with mental illness by providing meals, housing, job training, addiction treatment, and counseling services.

Too bad there isn’t a DC Meat-Free Week shirt. Of course, you could settle for one of these shirts.

–Aisha Salazar

Tags: Aisha Salazar, American Red Cross, Busboys & Poets, Compassion Over Killing, DC Meat-Free Week, DC Vegan, food, Great Sage, Gut Check, Meat Week, Northern Virginia Magazine, One vs Many, recipe, Restaurant Nore, restaurants, Snowmageddon, So Others Might Eat, Sticky Fingers Bakery, The Source, vegan, vegetarian

Battle of the South: Texas vs. Alabama

Treat yourself to some southern food in honor of the BCS National Championship between the University of Texas and the University of Alabama.

Whichever team you fancy, both enjoy tasty barbecue (brisket or pulled pork), chili, and queso dip at tailgates.

If you’re watching the game at home, try some of these recipes:

-A Tuscaloosa fan favorite: Dreamland’s barbecue.

-Longhorns fan? Try some Texas style barbecue.

-Craving some chili? Try this BBQ Pit Boys’ favorite:

 (Video: YouTube)

-Texas style queso (though some Texans swear by Rotel and Velveeta).

All are great fixings for a hearty dinner. Just don’t forget the sweet tea…or a nice cold beer!

Speaking of beer…

If you want to catch the action with Texas fans, head down to Rhodeside Grill. They will be featuring a Texas menu (chili dogs, hot dogs, corn dogs, Frito pies), discounts on certain foods (quesadillas, chicken fingers, chicken wings), and have Shiner Bock and Miller Light specials. Get there at least two hours early as it’s known to get packed. 

If you want to catch the action with the Tide, visit Old Dominion Brewhouse. There will be a pre-game tailgate party (5-7pm), featuring unlimited access to free food (hot dogs, chips, seasoned fries) with the purchase of a $7 beer ticket at the door. For every ticket purchased, ODB will donate $2 to the Alabama Alumni Chapter. There will also be raffle prizes and an Absolut Promo party. 

Tonight’s game is at 8:00pm (Eastern) on ABC.

If it came down to a battle based on food, who would win?

–Aisha Salazar

Tags: Aisha Salazar, Alabama, barbecue, chili, college football, Gut Check, Northern Virginia Magazine, Old Dominion Brewhouse, queso, recipe, Rhodeside Grill, Texas

Keen Beans

Aloo Beans

“I was not a big fan of potatoes … but it was always there on the table,” Dishes of India general manager Gophal Bhatt admitted of his father’s—DoI executive chef Ramanand Bhatt’s—North Indian vegetable medley. “I’d eat the green beans and leave the potatoes.”

Photography by James Kim

Ramanand Bhatt
Executive chef/owner Dishes of India

PREP TIME: 15 min.
COOK TIME: 15 min.
SERVES: 4

INGREDIENTS
2 large white potatoes (or the equivalent in baby white potatoes)
1 pound fresh green beans
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon cumin seed
2 tablespoons garlic-ginger paste (available at ethnic grocers)
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon garam masala

PREPARATION
Peel and cut potatoes into bite-sized pieces. Snip and cut green beans into 2-inch pieces; wash thoroughly.

Heat olive oil in a pan over high heat.

Add cumin seed (it should sizzle) and then ginger-garlic paste; stir for about 1 minute.

Add diced potatoes and green beans; stir.

Add remaining ingredients.

Cook on low heat for about 10-15 minutes. Season to taste.

Serve and enjoy.

(November 2009)

Tags: Aloo Beans, cumin, curry, Dishes of India, Gophal Bhatt, green beans, potatoes, recipe

Recipe Sleuths *Heart* Emo Searches

Was a time when folks marched into the kitchen solely because they were feeling “hungry.”

How very Cro-Magnon.

These days, professional chefs and home cooks are plumbing the depths of human emotion for culinary inspiration.

Even Top Chef has gotten in on the emo-cooking act:

(Video: The Daily Beast)

As part of the show’s October 7 “Quickfire Challenge,” the cheftestants were tasked with creating a dish dictated by a Mad Libs-like construct of randomly generated moods, tastes and cuisines plucked from the Cookstr search engine.

Cookstr editor-in-chief Katie Workman was, naturally, thrilled to have the fledgling site featured on the epicurean eyeball magnet that is Top Chef. “It was definitely a great traffic bump for us,” Workman said of the high profile vetting of their “mood” search feature.

Workman said Cookstr, which turns one this November, has flourished in large part because of its “nontraditional, intuitive” search tags.

“We tried to get into the mind of the home cook … [and] mood was one of them” she said of the founders’ desire to shake up the status quo of ingredient-driven cooking.

Cookthink co-founder Brys Stephens said the concept of mood-oriented cooking weighed heavily on his group’s mind as well–hence the reason they cemented the qualifier as one of their core search criteria and seeded the category with dozens of attitude capturing keywords (personal favorites include: “hangover-friendly,” “mind-boggling” and “junky”).

“You don’t see words like the one’s we have in other searches,” Stephens stated. “I think that’s what people love about Cookthink.”

Stephens suggested that, at least for now, Cookthink has no plans to broaden its “mood” chasing efforts (he estimated that roughly 95 percent of Cookthink’s “mood” search tags have been in place since the site launched in summer 2007).

Not so at Cookstr, where Workman said her team stands poised to unveil more interactive search features as well as torrents of culinary content (they’ve currently got 4,500 recipes online, with another 10,000 “in the pipeline,” she asserted) in the near future. “It’s pretty exciting,” she said.

–Warren

Tags: Brys Stephens, cooking, Cookstr, Cookthink, feelings, food, Gut Check, Katie Workman, Northern Virginia Magazine, recipe, Top Chef, Warren Rojas

Sumthin’ in the Key of Savory

Seared Pork Medallions with Strawberry-Feta Salsa

Our plea for a little something strawberry sent gastro-tinkerer Brys Stephens off in search of inspiration. His mind quickly seized on fusing sweet (strawberries), salty (feta) and savory (pork). “Fresh strawberries add a fruity note that plays off nicely against rich seared pork and the tang of feta cheese,” he suggests.

Photography by James Kim

Brys Stephens
Co-founder, Cookthink.com

PREP TIME: 15 min.
COOK TIME: 25 min.
SERVES: 4

INGREDIENTS
1 cup basmati rice
2 cups water
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 (1- to 1 1/2-pound) pork tenderloin
Salt and pepper (to taste)
8 ounces fresh strawberries, chopped
3 teaspoons fresh marjoram, coarsely chopped
4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
3 tablespoons lime juice
Marjoram leaves (garnish)
Lime wedges (garnish)

PREPARATION
Rinse the rice well in a colander. Combine rice, water, a pinch of salt and a splash of olive oil in a heavy saucepan. Cover the rice, and bring it to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, and cook just until it has absorbed all the water (15 to 20 minutes).

While the rice is cooking, slice the pork tenderloin crosswise into 2 inch-thick medallions. Arrange medallions between sheets of plastic wrap, and pound to 1 inch thick. Season on both sides with salt and pepper.

Chop strawberries and marjoram; crumble the feta. Combine in a medium bowl along with 3 tablespoons each of olive oil and lime juice. Toss gently to combine and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot and shimmering, add the pork medallions. Brown on the one side (2 to 3 minutes), then turn, reduce the heat slightly and brown on the other (2 to 3 minutes). Remove the pan from heat, cover the skillet and let the pork continue to cook until it reaches an internal temperature of 150 F.

Spoon the rice onto a platter and top with pork medallions. Cover with salsa and garnish with marjoram leaves and lime wedges.

(July 2009)

Tags: cookthink.com, feta, pork tenderloin, recipe, rice, salsa, seared pork, strawberry

Fun with Phyllo

Terrina di Asparagi e Granchio (Phyllo Dough Rolls with Asparagus and Crab)

Faced with an upcoming wine dinner and no vegetable muse, chef Antonino DiNicola opted instead to combine some of his kitchen’s greatest hits (veal and eggplant rolls, asparagus crab cakes). Confidence is high the ensuing mash-up will most likely claim its own spot in the restaurant’s regular rotation.

Antonino DiNicola
Chef/co-owner, Pane e Vino

Photography by James Kim

PREP TIME: 15 min.
COOK TIME: 15 min.
SERVES: 4

INGREDIENTS
2 bunches asparagus
1 1/2 pounds pasteurized crab meat
3 eggs (lightly beat 2 for egg wash)
1 quart heavy cream
Salt and pepper (to taste)
2-3 garlic cloves
1 bunch parsley, chopped
1 pack phyllo dough
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup grated pecorino Romano cheese
1 tomato, diced (garnish)

PREPARATION
Place asparagus in boiling water (3 to 4 minutes), then plunge into a bed of ice to cool down.

Mix 1/4 pound crab meat, 1/2 bunch of chopped asparagus, 1 egg, 1/2 cup heavy cream, salt and pepper, garlic and some chopped parsley (reserving most for garnish) in a blender until fully incorporated.

Place 1 pound of crab meat in a bowl; fold in blended ingredients.

Spread phyllo dough sheets on a table. Brush individual sheets with egg wash, and layer 3 to 4 sheets high. Cut phyllo stacks in half.

Place crab meat mixture and 3 to 4 whole asparagus pieces on the phyllo stacks. Fold ends closed, and roll dough into a tube. Place the phyllo rollups on a lined baking pan. Brush tubes with egg wash. Bake for 10 minutes at 350 F or until golden brown.

Place 1/2 cup of heavy cream in a pan. Add salt, pepper, garlic and nutmeg. Bring mixture to a boil. Add 1/4 pound crab meat, 1/2 bunch diced asparagus and diced tomatoes. Cook until sauce thickens (about 3 minutes). (To thicken further, add 2 tablespoons of corn starch to a little water in a separate bowl, then add to sauce.)

Cut baked phyllo in half at slight angle. Stack tubes so they intersect, then top with the asparagus-crab cream sauce. Garnish with whole asparagus, chopped tomatoes and chopped parsley.

(June 2009)

Tags: Asparagus, crab, Pane e Vino, phyllo dough rolls, recipe

Ravishingly Rhubarb

Creamy Rhubarb Salad with Sweet Poppy Seed and Basil

Incoming Patowmack Farm toque Christopher Edwards opted to meld his fantasy dining training—Edwards is a Johnson and Wales grad who’s cooked everywhere from McLean’s long-dormant Maestro to Spain’s fabled El Bulli—with his new farm-to-table mission for this dish. “The unique pairing of basil and rhubarb always makes me happy,” he says, adding, “The cream pulls everything together and provides a richness to what is normally a tart fruit.”

Christopher Edwards
Executive chef, Patowmack Farm

Photography by Hana Jung

PREP TIME: 15 min.
COOK TIME: 12 min.
SERVES: 4

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups water
3 stalks rhubarb
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoon poppy seeds
20 basil leaves

PREPARATION
Dissolve sugar in water and bring to a fast boil (3 minutes) in a sauce pot. Remove from heat.

Gently remove outer layer of rhubarb with a vegetable peeler. Cut rhubarb into thirds, lengthwise; thinly slice each segment again, lengthwise.

Whip heavy cream in a bowl until stiff.

Place strips of rhubarb in hot sugar water and let soften (2 to 3 minutes). Remove rhubarb from water; set strips aside to rest. Reserve sugar water.

Toss rhubarb strips with olive oil, poppy seeds and 1 teaspoon reserved sugar water.

Place a dollop of whipped cream onto center of four plates, then spoon 1/4 of dressed rhubarb onto whipped cream bed. Drizzle remaining juices all around the plate. Sprinkle each plate with basil.

(May 2009)

Tags: basil, poppy seed, recipe, rhubarb, salad

Chef Jose Andres Talks Budget-Friendly Recipes on NPR

Photo by giffconstable/Flickr

Yesterday on NPR’s “All Things Considered,” Chef Jose Andres, the Spanish mastermind behind Café Atlantico and Jaleo, shared his recipe for a thrifty yet fabulous meal — a garlic and saffron-infused Morrocan-style chickpea and spinach stew — that feeds four people for under $10.

Chef Andres, who the Washingtonian credits with introducing the small plates concept to the area, first tasted the stew when his then-new wife prepared it for him — with less than economical results. It wasn’t the pinch of saffron that broke the budget; it was the long distance call she made to her mother to walk her through the recipe from start to finish:

Andres tells NPR’s Michele Norris. “I remember how good it was, how affordable it was. But the telephone bill is something I will remember forever.”

To bring down the cost of this dish, skip the staggering long distance bill by checking out the recipe here, and use dried chickpeas instead of canned. The trick to cooking dried chickpeas, according to the Chef Andres, is to 1) soak them overnight with a pinch of baking soda and 2) learn the language of peas so that you, like a skilled lover, can tell when they are supple, willing and ready:

“You’re going to look at them, talk to them,” he says. “What if you’re not fluent? I’m talking to them, touching them, and with a little pressure in your fingers, you see they are very soft thing. The chickpeas is telling me, ‘I am ready.’

Those are some lucky garbanzos beans.

Do you have an arsenal of cost-effective recipes that will tide you through the recession? Share them with NPR’s “How Low Can You Go” challenge by May 1, and your recipe might be mentioned on air. Or you can just skim the 60+ recipes that have already been submitted to find something to make for dinner tonight.

– Christina Lee

Tags: all things considered, budget-friendly, cafe atlantico, chickpeas, christina lee, Gut Check, Jaleo, José Andrés, moroccan stew, NPR, recipe, saffron, spinach, thrifty

Mum’s the Word

Mother’s Day is right around the corner (May 10). And we here at the Food desk want to help ease the gift gathering tension by offering up a few culinary treasures ripe for the plucking.

The question is: what kind of special lady do you call “Mom”?

Is she a spirited Southern belle who would most likely nod approvingly at the time-honored “Mama-isms” and word-of-mouth dishes enshrined in the Junior League of Hampton Roads’ homey, “My Mama Made That”?

(Image: JLHR)

Or might your materfamilias crave adding an array of tongue-wagging tapas to her entertainment arsenal courtesy of chef Gerald Hirigoyen’s artfully arranged “Pintxos”?

(Image: Ten Speed Press)

If home gardening and frequent trips to the farmers’ markets were part and parcel of your childhood dining regimen, perhaps Canadian herbalist Pat Crocker’s new “Vegan Cook’s Bible”–a diet defining work that also doubles as an encyclopedia of fresh food care, use and storage–can provide fertile ground for your favorite domestic goddess to plow.

(Image: Amazon)

All of the above are up for grabs.

What we want to know is: what was the most invaluable cooking tip/family recipe/life lesson your own maternal figurehead imparted to you?

Share the verbal jewels (along with whatever cookbook you’d most like your mom to have) in the comments section below by Friday May 1. We’ll review all the submissions and select our favorite(s) by Monday, May 4–just in time to get the new cookbooks in your mom’s hot little hands on her special day.

–Warren Rojas

Tags: cookbook, cooking, food, Gerald Hirigoyen, giveaway, Gut Check, Junior League of Hampton Roads, mom, Mother's Day, My Mama Made That, Northern Virginia Magazine, Pat Crocker, Pintxos, recipe, The Vegan Cook's Bible, Warren Rojas

Veal with a View

Veal-Wrapped Asparagus in Madeira-Mushroom Sauce

Dawn Burkart
Chef de cuisine, Bistro L’Hermitage

A fan of turning the familiar into the flamboyant, Bistro L’Hermitage chef Dawn Burkhart—a seasoned toque who’s worked alongside chefs Jean-Louis Palladin and Robert Wiedmaier—said this impromptu veal creation should turn a few heads. “It’s quick easy and different,” she said of the skyward-reaching roll (a twist on traditional scaloppine). “It just looks beautiful on the plate.”

1. 

   Photography by James Kim

   PREP TIME: 20 min.
   COOK TIME: 25 min.
   SERVES: 4

INGREDIENTS
8 pieces veal, pounded thin
1 pound fingerling potatoes
5 tablespoons olive oil
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 pound asparagus
2 cups carrots, thinly sliced on the bias (cross-cut at roughly 45-degree angle)
1 cup flour
1/2 cup Madeira wine
1/2 pound mushrooms, cut in quarters
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon butter
1 shallot, finely diced
Salt and pepper (to taste)

PREPARATION
Cut potatoes in half (lengthwise). In a bowl, toss potatoes with a pinch of salt and pepper, 2 tablespoons oil and thyme. Place on baking sheet and roast in a 325 F oven for about 25 minutes (or until tender).

Blanch asparagus in salted water (about 4 minutes). Plunge into ice water to stop the cooking, then strain and set aside. Repeat with sliced carrots.

Season the veal with salt and pepper, then wrap each cutlet around 3 pieces of asparagus. Secure with a wooden skewer. Lightly dust the rolled veal in flour.

Warm 2 tablespoons olive oil in a saute pan over medium-high heat, and brown the veal rolls all the way around. Deglaze the pan with 1/4 cup Madeira. Move veal to a cutting board.

Add another tablespoon olive oil to pan, and saute the mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper. When fully cooked, add the remaining Madeira; reduce until almost dry. Add heavy cream. Bring to a boil for 1 minute.

Saute the carrots with butter, shallots and salt and pepper.

Slice the veal roulade on the bias. Place in center of plate with potatoes and carrots on each side. Top the veal with the mushroom and Madeira cream sauce.

(March 2009)

Tags: Asparagus, mushroom sauce, potatoes, recipe, veal