A Spanish Potluck!

I think they liked the empanadas!

What can students cook on campus? My daughter provided these photos from a recent event at her college. She attends a small liberal arts college in upstate New York. Not exactly the center of  the culinary universe. The Spanish Club puts on a Tapas potluck each year. The club buys all the raw materials and the students volunteer to cook the food. The kitchens are pretty spartan but they manage to pull off some nice things, like empanadas.

They come together to enjoy all the delicious Spanish food.

Looks like it was a great success! Food is a great way to bring people together and build community.

Spanish tapas are first-rate party food. Many of them are easy to make. Looks like they had a nice selection of things on toast, including tuna and capers. Very Spanish!

Tuna Salad for Tapas
(serves 6 as an appetizer)

This is a very tasty tuna salad on its own and unlike most tuna salads, it contains no mayonnaise.

1 6-7 ounce can tuna fish, packed in water, drained and flaked
2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tablespoons minced dill pickles
½ teaspoon pickle juice
½ teaspoon white wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon minced onion
1 hard-cooked egg, minced
1 teaspoon minced capers
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
salt and pepper
12  ½ inch slices of French or Italian bread
whole capers for garnish

Combine all the ingredients except the bread and whole capers in a bowl. You can make the salad ahead and refrigerate it until you are ready to serve it; it gets even better after some time in the refrigerator.

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Place the bread slices on a baking sheet and toast until they start to brown. Place a bit of tuna salad on each slice of toast and serve.


(Adapted from Tapas by Penelope Casas)

Spinach, Red Pepper, and Goat Cheese Quiche

Spinach, Red Pepper, and Goat Cheese Quiche
(serves 8)

For the pastry:

1¾ cup all-purpose flour

Pinch of salt

1 stick cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 large egg

2 Tablespoons ice water

For the filling:

1 box frozen, chopped spinach, thawed and drained very well

1 small jar roasted red peppers (about 1 pepper), drained and chopped into ¼“ dice

1½ cups half & half

2 large eggs

2 large egg yolks

1 teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

½ pound (8 oz.) goat cheese log, cut into ¼-inch rounds

⅛ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

For the pastry, in a large bowl whisk the flour with the salt.  Using a pastry blender cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse meal.  Lightly beat the egg with the water.  Sprinkle over flour mixture.  Stir with a fork to lightly blend, then squeeze gently until a dough forms.  Pat into a disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350°F. On a lightly floured surface, roll out pastry to a 14 inch round about ⅛ inch thick. Fit the round into a 10’ deep dish pie plate or quiche pan and trim the overhang. Refrigerate the pastry shell at least 20 minutes. Line the shell with foil and fill the pie with weights or rice. Place the pie pan on a sheet pan and bake until the pastry is firm, about 30 minutes. Remove the foil and weights and bake about 10 minutes longer or until golden brown.

For the filling, squeeze the spinach very dry and spread onto the cooled pastry shell.

In a medium bowl, whisk half & half, eggs, egg yolks, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Arrange goat cheese rounds and red peppers on the spinach. Pour custard into the shell, making sure it seeps through the spinach, and bake quiche about 40 minutes or until just set. Cool slightly before serving.

Spicy Chipotle Wings

Chipotles in adobo (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Chipotlesenadobo.jpg)

Super Bowl time! Here's a zippy chicken wing recipe for your Super Bowl party. Chicken wings are great as an appetizer or party food, but this is also great as an entree if you use thighs instead. The chicken marinates at least 2 hours (or up to overnight), so plan ahead. Unlike Buffalo-style chicken wings, these are baked, simplifying the preparation.

Chipotle chiles are ripe jalapenos (which are red) that have been smoked. They are quite hot and they have an incredible smokey flavor. Adobo sauce is a tomato-vinegar sauce that chipotles are commonly packed in. Chipotles in adobo sauce are sold in small cans. You will only use 2 chiles for this recipe, but the leftovers can be transferred to a small glass or plastic container, and they will keep in your fridge for a very long time. They can also be frozen. If you like chili, a single chipotle added to your usual chili recipe will add an interesting smokey/spicy note.

Spicy Chipotle Wings
(adapted from Perfect Party Food)

3 pounds Chicken Wings, or drumettes or thighs

Marinade
¾ cup Seasoned Rice Vinegar
¼ cup Vegetable Oil
3 cloves Garlic, peeled
2 Canned Chipotle Chiles In Adobo, with 1-3 tsp adobo sauce (depending on your heat tolerance)
¼ cup Packed Fresh Cilanto Sprigs
½ cup Red Onion, coarsely chopped
¼ cup Honey

1 tsp Kosher Salt

Put chicken in a bowl or large ziploc bag.

Combine vinegar, garlic, chipotle chiles, adobo sauce, cilantro, onion, and honey in a food processor. Process until smooth. Pour over chicken and smush it around to coat chicken well.

Park in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours and up to overnight.

Preheat the oven to 375° F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Spray with nonstick cooking spray or rub with a little vegetable oil. Transfer the chicken and marinade to the baking sheet and spread chicken into one layer. Sprinkle with salt. Cook for 20 minutes, turn over chicken pieces, and bake for another 20 minutes.

Serve hot.

Peppered Party Almonds and a tip on becoming a successful cook

If we had one tip for beginning cooks it would be "Read the recipe." Read it all the way through, carefully, before you ever start cooking. Surprises suck - surprises like "Cook for 2 hours" and your guests are about to arrive. Or "Chill overnight" and you need to bring dessert to a party right now. Or, you are missing an ingredient in the recipe you were hoping to eat for dinner in the next 30 minutes.

Now, before you start thinking "Oh, that has so happened to me!" and you beat yourself up over it, just stop. We have all done this, experienced and beginner alike. You're in a rush, you scan the recipe, and you miss some important step or ingredient.

So, slow down. Read that recipe top to bottom. Read all the ingredients. Read through all the steps.

We know this is rather obvious as tips go, but it is really important. If you get in the habit of reading through recipes, you will avoid a lot of surprises that can make you feel like an incompetent cook (not to mention a dope). Confidence, which comes from success in the kitchen, is a big part of becoming a good cook. Give yourself an advantage from the get-go: read the recipe. If you can eliminate those unnecessary surprises, you'll be well on your way to being a star in the kitchen.

Here's a party recipe that takes no time to read or make.

Peppered Almonds
(makes 2 cups)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
¾ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
¾ teaspoon black pepper
2 cups whole unsalted almonds

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add salt, garlic powder, cayenne, and black pepper. Stir and cook for 1 minute. Add almonds, toss to coat with butter and spices and remove from heat.

Spread nuts on a sheet pan. Bake for 15 minutes. Cool for a couple of minutes and serve.

Peppered almonds will keep for a few weeks in an airtight container. They make a great snack too!

Easy Indian Samosas

I've been lucky to visit India twice. Both times I surprised my hosts by requesting they only take me to eat Indian vegetarian food. Why would I want to eat pizza when I could get wonderful hearty and spicy dishes that take hours to make?

Back home, I searched for an easy recipe for my favorite Indian appetizer, Samosas. I hate deep frying foods, as it spits and makes a greasy mess of my stove.  This recipe uses Puff Pastry and is baked instead of fried. It is easier to make, but more importantly, easier to clean up after!

These are a great appetizer for a holiday party. You can make them half the size of these pictured for a one bite version or cut them up before serving. If you make smaller ones, watch them in the oven, as they will take less time to bake. They are wonderful right out of the oven, and nearly as good served at room temperature, perfect for the party buffet table.

You can serve them with a chutney, such as Major Grey's or try this simple apricot sauce that you can mix up in no time at all.

Don't try reheating the samosas in the microwave, as you'll get a greasy mess.  But, they reheat nicely if you take them out of the fridge to warm up for 10 minutes, then pop them in a 350° F oven for another 5 minutes.

Samosas
(makes 18)

1 package puff pastry sheets, thawed
3 medium size potatoes
4 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium size onion, peeled and minced
1 cup shelled fresh or defrosted frozen peas
1 Tablespoon peeled and grated fresh ginger
1 fresh hot green chili, minced
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon ground roasted cumin seeds
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 egg, beaten with 1 Tablespoon water

Place the potatoes in a pot of cold water and boil them for 20-40 minutes, until they are soft enough to cut into, but not mushy. Cool them to room temperature and then peel the potatoes and dice them into roughly ¼ inch square pieces.  Heat the 4 Tablespoons oil in a 10- to 12-inch skillet over medium heat.  Put in the onion, stirring and frying until it turns a light-brown color.  Add the peas, ginger, green chili, salt, coriander, garam masala, cumin, cayenne pepper, lemon juice and 3 Tablespoons of water. Stir it together and then add the potatoes. Keep the heat low and mix the spices with the potatoes. Add additional water, 1 Tablespoon at a time, if the mixture dries out. Continue cooking gently, stirring frequently, for 3-4 minutes more. Check salt and lemon juice. Turn off the heat and let the potato mixture cool.

Heat the oven to 400° F. Unfold the pastry sheets on a lightly floured surface. Roll each pastry sheet to a 12-inch square. Cut each sheet into 9 (about 4-inch) squares, making 18 in all. Divide the potato mixture among the pastry squares, placing about 1 scant Tablespoon on each. Brush the edges of the pastry squares with the egg-water mixture. Fold the pastry over the filling to form a triangle and crimp the edges with a fork to seal. Brush the filled pastries with the egg wash. Place the pastries onto 2 baking sheets.

Bake for 20 minutes or until the pastries are golden brown.

Note: The filling freezes well, so you can freeze ½ of it and only make 1 sheet worth of samosas if you don't need enough for a party. Make sure to thaw the filling completely before assembling the samosas.

Simple, but Spicy Apricot Dipping Sauce

½ cup apricot preserves

1 Tablespoon water
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon fresh hot green chili, minced (optional)

Mix together and if you like a smooth sauce, whir it up in a blender or food processor.