Deliberately vegetarian baked beans

This time, I really was trying. The following is an iteration of the "accidentally vegetarian baked beans" that I made awhile back. I used Arabic-style crispy onions to emulate the effect of bacon.

The recipe is written as executed, which came out very well. A couple of tweaks I would recommend:

• Cook the beans the first time to the doneness you want at the end. Don't cook them to firm because you figure they will get mushy. For whatever reason, they don't soften up much in the slow cooker.

• Vegan worcestershire sauce is, of course, not exactly the same as the kind with anchovies. There are many brands. Choose one, taste it, and adjust the other proportions.

• I didn't have any paprika, so it's not in the recipe, but I still think it should have some.

• Definitely needed more molasses. At least another tablespoon, maybe two.

• I cooked the beans for 8 hours, plus one hour of resting, because that's the time I had. It needs more. I'd say try around 12 hours cooking, plus 1 hour resting.

Based on this recipe for barbecued beans:

http://www.howsweeteats.com/2012/05/crockpot-bacon-bourbon-baked-beans/

First pass:

http://tofuvavohu.blogspot.com/2012/08/accidentally-vegetarian-baked-beans.html

INGREDIENTS (AS USED, NOT AS RECOMMENDED):

• 1 1/4 lb dry great northern beans
• 1/2 stick kombu
• 1 large sweet onion, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, roughly minced
• 2 cups water
• 2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 3/8 cup ketchup
• 2 tbsp molasses
• 1 cup bourbon
• 3 tbsp strong brown mustard (I used a homemade batch with only bourbon)
• 1/4 cup unfiltered apple cider vinegar
• 1 1/2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp vegan worcersteshire sauce (note to self -- update with brand)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• ~ 1tsp salt

DIRECTIONS (AS USED, NOT AS RECOMMENDED):

1. Pick over and rinse beans. Soak overnight. Drain, cover with water. Add kombu piece. Boil to desired final tenderness, 25-45 minutes depending on a variety of factors. Drain, remove kombu, set aside.
2. Mix the onions and garlic in a bowl. Add about half the salt and mix thoroughly.
3. In a large, heavy pan, over high heat, heat the oil almost until almost the smoke point. Add the onion mixture. Cook until starting to get crispy, turning thoroughly intermittently. When done, set aside.
4. Combine all remaining ingredients (spices, liquids) in a large bowl. Mix thoroughly.
5. Combine everything in the slow cooker. Cook on low for 8 hours. Shut off heat. Stir. Let stand uncovered for one hour before serving.

Kashk e bademjan (Persian eggplant)

I've been trying to make my own variant of this since December, when a Persian friend opened my eyes to it. I finally nailed it. The trick was the special preparation of garlic. I have no idea if this is authentic (beyond the substitution of lowfat sour cream for kashk), but honestly it's too tasty to care.

Proportions--sorry, I didn't measure anything! But with this sort of thing, it's really a matter of taste.

• 1 large purple eggplant, sliced into 3/4" slices. Don't peel it!
• 1 head of garlic, peeled but not chopped or cut at all! Just remove the skins!
• 2 small onions, chopped
• Handful of chopped flat-leaf parsley
• A few leaves of fresh basil
• Between 1/4 cup and 1/3 cup lowfat sour cream
• About 1/4 cup olive oil
• Salt
• Red pepper flakes
• Juice of 1/4 of a lime

Directions--

1. Preheat the oven to 450.
2. Roast the eggplant for 40 minutes, flipping over halfway through. Allow to cool until near room temperature (20 minutes or so).
3. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a heavy frying pan over a medium-high heat.
4. Once a single piece of onion will sizzle in the olive oil, add all the garlic and onion. (You did leave your peeled garlic intact, right?) Saute until golden.
5. Put everything in a food processor. Don't make it too smooth; you want some texture.

Garnish with a bit more parsley and olive oil. Delicious with sliced cucumbers!

Pumpkinseed Nutella

My sister told me about sunflower Nutella, but I didn't have any sunflower seeds, so I tried it with pumpkinseeds. I prepared the liquids first (halving the recipe) and then added them in a little at a time. I'm glad I did, because the original called for way too much liquid. I have attempted to reflect my final proportions here.

• 1 cup raw pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
• 2 1/2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 2 tbsp maple syrup (may need to adjust)
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 3 tbsp milk

In a wide, heavy pan, toast the pepitas over medium heat, turning constantly with a spatula. They will pop! So make sure you don't lean close to the pot. The will start to smell awesome after a couple of minutes. When a good number of them are golden, take them off the heat and continue turning. Transfer to another vessel and cool in the freezer until they are room temperature.

Meanwhile, combine all of the other ingredients in a measuring cup.

Put the room-temperature pepitas into the food processor. Grind for several minutes, stopping each minute to scrape the sides of the bowl. After going much too long as little granules, they will suddenly and magically turn into an awesome green nut butter the color of pistachio ice cream.

Add everything else and continue to process. You may have to scrape the sides several times.

Makes one 8oz jar.

Red beans and rice (wine base)

New Orleans got me thinking about red beans and rice, and this post in the NY times got me thinking about red wine bases for beans. This involves some juggling--probably not a great recipe for beginners.

1 bottle red wine
1 large sweet onion, chopped
1 large green bell pepper, chopped
12 oz Andouille sausage, shredded
4 oz bacon
1 tsp dried rosemary
2 bay leaves
zest of one lemon
juice from 1/2 lemon
2 tbsp malt vinegar
1 lb red beans
4-6 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 piece kombu -- optional, makes beans more tender
Salt to taste

1. Soak beans overnight.
2. In a medium saucepan, combine rosemary, bay leaves and wine. Let simmer for 30 minutes over medium heat.
3. Meanwhile, drain beans and put with the kombu in a medium pot, with enough water to cover + 1". (You can always add a little more and drain some if you're worried.) Bring to a simmer, cover and let cook for 35 minutes or until tender.
4. Meanwhile, in a large, heavy pot, cook the bacon as slowly as you can to get as much fat out as possible. Remove the bacon to a plate and set aside.
5. Cook the onions and garlic in the bacon fat until soft. Add the peppers and cook together until very soft, about 15 minutes.
6. Take the kombu out of the bean mixture. DO NOT DRAIN!
7. Strain the wine reduction into the pot with the onions. Combine everything into this pot.
8. Mash the beans a little bit with a masher. This releases starch and causes the stew to thicken.
9. Cover and let simmer for 20 minutes, adjusting with salt and vinegar as necessary.

Serve with white rice.

Selecting a Burr grinder for French Press coffee

After 5+ years of service, my Capresso Infinity grinder is reaching the end of its useful life. I can't complain: it did wonders for a long time, and my 1-2 french press coffees per day comes out to about 3000 uses, or about 3 cents per use.

Given that economical rate, I decided to go up to a better grinder. The two mid-range grinders that people seem to like for French Press are the Breville SmartGrind and the Baratza Virtuoso. It was hard to get a clear head-to-head for French Press specifically, so I did my own virtual comparison. Here is a video of the two models:

At about 8 minutes, you get the comparison of the coarsest grinds. The coarsest setting on the Baratza is far too coarse for French Press. But the one on the Breville is far too fine. See, for example, this excellent chart of the idea grind coarseness.

That means that really only the Baratza is capable of producing optimal French Press coffee. If you're willing to settle for "almost there," the Breville is much easier to use. The other way to look at it, of course, is that using the Baratza means settling for much clunkier controls. And I was pretty happy with "almost there" (via my Capresso) for years and years.

So there you have it. They both have pros and cons. But I am willing to spend more effort for a more excellent cup of coffee, so I went ahead and bought the Baratza. You can look forward to a truly geeky table of experimental results as I try it out.

Mustard, take 3: with bourbon

I had a few drops of bourbon left (just over 2 tbsp) after my third batch of baked beans, so I used it in a half-batch of mustard. This time, I used 6 oz of Element Red Giant ale, of which I'd picked up a growler on my way back from MA to Princeton. 50/50 yellow and brown, 3 minute grind. This time, it came out so good that I considered eating it straight from the food processor instead of putting it in a jar.  I know, disgusting. But it's that good.

Note: the whole time, I've been using 1/2 tsp allspice and no cloves, because it turns out the bag of bulk "cloves" that I had was really bulk allspice. Oh well, apparently 1/2 tsp allspice and no cloves is just fine.

Accidentally vegetarian baked beans

These were supposed to be pork and beans. (Don't tell my rabbi.) Unfortunately, the kielbasa that I bought was spoiled when I opened it. Thanks, Shop Rite!

It didn't matter. Despite the imperfections that I will enumerate below, these were far and away the best baked beans I've ever made or had. The bourbon added a real sophistication of flavor that I would never omit again.

It also corrected two mistakes from my previous attempts at baked beans: first, the onions were completely caramelized, which got rid of sulfuric off notes.

Second, the beans were cooked ahead of time. Who knew this was necessary? It seemed like 10-12 hours of cooking, after already being cooked once, would reduce them to mush. That was not the case at all.

Based on this recipe for barbecued beans:

http://www.howsweeteats.com/2012/05/crockpot-bacon-bourbon-baked-beans/

I didn't see the need to shell out for "barbecue sauce" (why?) so I adapted this recipe, which consists mostly of things already in the bean recipe:

http://www.simplyscratch.com/2011/09/homemade-barbecue-sauce-part-1.html

I also prefer large white beans ("great northern" beans) to small white beans ("navy" beans).

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lb dry great northern beans
• 1 large sweet onion, chopped
• 1/2 head garlic, roughly minced
• 2 cups water
• 1 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 3/8 cup ketchup
• 2 tbsp molasses
• 1 cup bourbon (I used Elmer T Lee--Jim Beam probably would have been fine)
• 1 3/4 tbsp homemade brown mustard (first batch)
• 1/4 cup unfiltered apple cider vinegar
• 1 1/2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp + 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS:

1. Pick over and rinse beans. "Quick soak" the beans by boiling them for 2 minutes, then removing from heat for 1 hour. Drain, fill with fresh water, and simmer for 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, saute the onions and garlic in the olive oil. 
3. Drain beans. Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker. Cook for 10 hours.
4. Remove beans from heat and let sit for several hours to thicken before eating.

NOTES:

• Way too much brown sugar. I would use half as much next time.
• If you don't use any meat, it needs salt. Probably more than the 1/2 tsp I used.
• As I said, using such a complex (and expensive) bourbon as Elmer T. Lee was a waste. Also, it's a bit bitter, although this was nice.
• If you do use meat, reduce or eliminate the oil. Brown the meat and use the drippings to saute the aromatics.
• One could use substantially more beans and still have plenty of sauce. I was serving it 1:1 with quinoa and there was loads of sauce for the quinoa!

I am going to try using 1 1/4 lbs beans next time. I am also going to try using some uncased German sausage, or other sweet garlic sausage like Andouille. I will also use only 1/2 cup brown sugar.