French Toast - Two Ways

The idea of savory french toast came out of a combination of thoughts and inspirations, but I loved the lucrative possibilities and the forgiving nature of the palette; you don't have to have richly sweet flavor to enjoy this breakfast.
So, here are two recent versions of my french toast. One is the more traditionally accepted maple syrup and fruity topping approach, and the other is a play on my savory direction.

(Full recipes available upon request)  
Cranberry Walnut Calah French Toast

Fresh cranberries and some organic pomegranate cranberry juice are heated briefly and sloshed over calah bread cinnamon french toast, with a drizzle of real maple syrup and a crumbling of walnuts (toasted or not, as you please).  
I am after the fresh and vivid astringency of the cranberries, so I don't sweeten them separately or use much maple syrup to accompany them, but a little bit of the earthy maple taste is a nice balance.

Cinnamon Cranberry Walnut Calah French Toast

Scallion, Golden Tomato, and Leek Calah French Toast with Button Mushrooms
I sautee leeks and golden cherry tomatoes together with the goal for a tenderized juiciness. This serves as a highly aromatic, savory-tangy "sauce" - like the cranberry sauce above. 
The french toast egg mixture includes scallions or chives, which provides lovely color and flavor. I also fry up some whole cremini mushrooms with a little Worcestershire for on the side.

Scallion Leek Tomato Calah French Toast with Button Mushrooms

And frankly, I had quite a load of left overs!

Cinnamon toast on the left, scallion toast on the right, with it's leek and tomato savory "sauce".

Cauliflower Pie

I made this favorite from childhood with broccoli rabe and some hearty tomato soup, but it can be had with many an interesting meal-plan, or simply enjoyed on its own for breakfast. I tell you, a nice thick slab of this for my wake-up treat is quite satisfactory.

(Full recipe available upon request)
For the rabe:

Broccoli Rabe, Garlic, Olive Oil.

For the cauliflower pie:
The filling -

Cauliflower, Scallion, Cremini Mushrooms, White Onion, Herbs, Salt & Pepper (plus later ingredients).

Post-Baking...Yummy.

Thoroughly delicious.

Egg Breakfasts (Continued)

This is fairly self explanatory, but it is rather fun to revisit variations on a simple theme. Here are three pleasant egg breakfasts I've made recently enough.

(Full recipes available upon request)
Ricotta, Black Pepper, & Dijon Omelet with Peanut Butter Banana Cinnamon Toast:

Ricotta, Black Pepper, & Dijon Omelet with Peanut Butter Banana Cinnamon Toast.

Fried Nests, Whole Grain Toast, and Grapefruit:

Fried Nests, Whole Grain Toast, and Grapefruit (and tea).

 

Dijon Scramble and Fresh Cranberries:

Dijon Scramble and Fresh Cranberries (Here I briefly popped the fresh cranberries in a little bit of organic pomegranate cranberry juice).

Thanks Giving Holiday Menu

I am not yet in a position in life to enjoy many frivolities, and I tend to be quite unconventional about my social habits, so when it comes round to a particularly favored holiday or festival, I celebrate in the medium of food. A most therapeutic and rewarding medium, I must say.

This year, I put together a pre-Thanks-Giving-day meal to get into the spirit (partly because I simply couldn't decide between fish or turkey for the official day!), as well as a change on the turkey theme for Thursday evening.

Menu
(Full recipes available upon request!)

Wednesday Eve:

Seared Pepper Cod

Maple Dijon Roasted Root Vegetables with Parsnip, Carrot, and Turnip

Winter Green Salad with Radicchio, Endive, and Arugula and Maple Vinaigrette

Spiced Pumpkin Walnut Bread with Sweet Tofu Cream

Thursday Eve:

Coriander Cranberry Turkey Meatballs

Vegetable Puree of Brussels Sprouts, Broccoli, and Fennel with Sharp Cheddar and Nutmeg

Pan-spiced Sprouts and Apples

Multi-Apple Cranberry Pie with Sweet Tofu Cream

Here are the installments:

Wednesday

Along with the previously mentioned inspiration Norwegian Chef Andreas Viestad, I appreciated Nigella Lawson as a teenager as well. And within the last year or so I discovered the cooking of Gwyneth Paltrow, which I can completely respect.
This year I decided to combine a few recipes from their work with my own inventions.

Inspired by Paltrow: Maple Dijon Roasted Root Vegetables using some of my favorite roots instead - turnip, parsnip, and carrot.

Turnip, Carrot, and Parsnip Caya 2011

Radicchio Caya 2011

My own Cayenne & Black Pepper Cod Caya 2011

The whole meal - *Salad with home made Maple Vinaigrette Caya 2011

 And the Spiced Pumpkin Walnut Bread: (I put in a bit extra pumpkin and nuts)

Caya 2011

- with my own Maple Tofu Cream Caya 2011

And Thursday!

With some lovely, fresh combinations of flavors inspired by Andreas Viestad, and of course a play on my dad's famous caramelized brussels sprouts, I added the first batch of my coriander cranberry turkey meatballs.

But first, I made my epic autumn pie!
*Note in Blog Archive "The PIE" entry for more on "from scratch" pie making interests.

A variety of apples is a must I think, so I used pink lady, cameo, and fuji this time round.

I ended up using more than eight apples, and I substituted more pink lady and cameo for the two golden delicious shown here Caya 2011

Use fresh cranberries - they are entirely different than the dried and pre-sugared ones, and so vivid! Caya 2011

Mix everything up Caya 2011

Mound it up high - It is imperative! Caya 2011

Cover with a little egg, maple, and a light sprinkle of ground walnuts Caya 2011

The dinner!

Preparing the meatball mixture and the brussels sprouts Caya 2011

I do the meatballs in small batches, then set them in the warm oven while the rest cook Caya 2011

The meal Caya 2011

 - with left-over salad for the finish Caya 2011

And for dessert:

My massive multi-apple and fresh cranberry pie Caya 2011

And for breakfast the morning after:

...with maple-sweetened tofu cream using:

Having much food to last for quite some time now (honestly, just the salad will last me over a week!), and plenty of good weather to enjoy it with, I wish you all a pleasant week.
Happy Thanks Giving!

Kale, Honey Coriander Asparagus, and Sweet Onion Grilled Cheese

Here is another meal I made with the other half of a large bunch of kale.

I tend to like sprucing up the concept of grilled cheese sandwiches. I have never enjoyed american cheese in white bread.
All manner of wholesome grain or rye breads with fresh tomatoes, pepper, gouda, cheddars, brie, or monterey cheeses, a good slather of dijon or horseradish, and perhaps some onion or turkey meat makes for something much more satisfying.

This time around I caramelized a bunch of yellow onion to soft sweetness and made up some sandwiches; one with stone ground mustard, extra sharp cheddar, and lots of onion on french whole wheat, and the other with horseradish, cheddar, and onion on the same.

(Full recipe available upon request)
Paired with tender kale and honey coriander asparagus, it was quite good.

Caya 2011

Kale, a vital green

Between collards and kale, kale has always been my favorite. I use both purple and green (and when I can find it, the lovely dinosaur kale, which has these dragon-like scales that look awesome).  Kale is in the cabbage family, as are broccoli, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts...and collards and spring greens are very genetically similar.

An intensely delicious source of beta carotene, vitamin K, C, and other vital things, as well as a good amount of calcium, it also has this wonderful anti-cancer component called sulforaphane which is not significantly reduced when chopped and steamed or pan-fried. Boiling the green does tend to decrease these levels, however, or so I am told.

Caya 2011

Besides, I have found boiled greens to loose more flavor and vividness. I like to cook them until tender in a cast iron pan with some crushed garlic and olive oil...Maybe with a dash of sea salt at the end. If they are in there, covered, for too long, they pass valuable deep green and turn a sort of muddy brown-green, beyond any pleasant effect.

Here I've prepared the kale with a simple meal of spicy sweet carrots and soft-boiled eggs. Very satisfying.

Caya 2011

Baked Maple Ginger Apples* New Scandinavian Cooking

*One of the major influences in my growing appreciation for creative cooking has been a great little show called New Scandinavian Cooking. When still living with my parents I would watch it on PBS occasionally, and it was such a fun thing! Besides the introduction to Scandinavian cultures, landscapes, and languages, it was hosted by a few vibrant and enthusiastic chefs from Norway and Sweden. Their food was often very inspiring. Well, it still is! While I don't have television, there is a handy website with all the recipes and other information. I only recently rediscovered it.

Anyways, back then I took on one of Andreas Viestad's yummy recipes to learn and it has now become a favorite through the apple season.

I have altered it over the years, to suit my preferences, but nevertheless the inspirational original is accessible.
Here is the link to explore all their wonderful methods of food thought and food practice!
www.newscancook.com

I make this fresh desert (or breakfast!) with maple instead of honey...typically (although honey does taste good), and I often use a good yogurt for the topping - if I want one at all! Also, instead of sour cream, when I first started out on this recipe I substituted maple-sweatened cream cheese, whipped up with a fork for some flexible texture.

I use a hearty amount of chopped ginger, because it tastes so sweet and spicy when cooked, and it goes down so well.Caya 2011

Here I've used some Liberte brand vanilla yogurt. Lemon or coconut also goes very well! Caya 2011

Gregory Caya's French Onion Soup (with Butterbut Squash and Simple greens)

My father wasn't always in the kitchen when I was growing up, to be sure, but he did create various lovely things over the years, his wholesome stuffed french toast breakfasts being one of them. But This post is about his version of a good classic - French Onion Soup!

I remember indulging in the times when he would revisit the thought of it, playing with which cheese he liked best, which approach for the baguette he appreciated most. I fairly liked all of them, but his most successful batches came towards the end.

Now, I am sure to take from his revisitation whenever I want to make it myself. I've maded slight alterations of course, as you do, but this is all in memory of those nights when he made it for the three of us. Thanks, dad. Lovely.

(Full recipe available upon request)
So, I like my onions fairly caramelized before I do the rest of the dish, and I like my bread and cheese components to be added at the very last, crunchy individual servings of well-made baguette made soft and savory with a rich gouda, jarlsberg, or hefty parmesan. Not to mention lots of fresh black pepper, in the Caya way. Yum!
Here I made it with simple butternut squash and salad.

Caya 2011

Caya 2011

Bay Leaf Brown Rice, Golden Acorn Squash, and Warm Egg Salad (Last Minute Dinner Part III)

It really couldn't be more obvious:

Brown rice flavored with bay leaf, sea salt and pepper, and olive oil, baked thyme-seasoned golden acorn squash, greens, hard-boiled egg, sauteed onions, and juicy golden tomatoes. A mass of interesting flavors out of whatever was lying around...and quickly dwindling.

Caya 2011

Cayenne Corn Scramble with Warm Golden Tomatoes, Arugula, and Baked Yams (Last Minute Dinner Part II

And, as I had a few other vegetables on hand at that last stretch, I saved them for another dinner, and this is what they yielded soon after.

The key here was playfulness and some cayenne pepper. Well, a good amount. But lovely.

(Full recipe available upon request)
Scrambling onion, left over organic corn, free range eggs, and plenty of black and cayenne pepper together - while baking some yams with cinnamon - I spiced up some halved golden tomatoes in a sizzling blend of cayenne and safflower oil. I prepared a plate with some final arugula and tucked in soon after.

The flavors combined pleasantly with good kicking heat, creaminess, sweetness, and fresh green spice. What worked so well about the tomato all softened and melty was how the juices acted as a kind of dressing for the greens.

Caya 2011

Pepper Cilantro Omlete with Crispy Portabellos and Asparagus (Last Minute Dinner Part I)

I suppose I should clarify. I do not mean that I made this in the last available time slot of the day, but rather that I prepared it out of an enjoyable effort utilizing the remains of my fridge's innards, as it were. Hah! it can actually be quite fun - and pleasantly surprising - improvising with little at hand.

On that note, I tend to enjoy fresh produce best - even in the colder months - and so cooking up the last of the fresh vegetables is what consists of these next two posts...Perhaps the next three...

I had one final bunch of asparagus (a favorite), some eggs, onions, and a few portabello mushrooms. So this is what I made:
Omelet with remaining cilantro and ringed onion, sauteed asparagus, and crispy mushrooms. Fairly simple and self-explanatory, but rather good.

Caya 2011

Apple Carrot Ginger Bake (A Perfect Weekend Brunch)

...At least, that is what I always called it growing up. Through childhood, a frequent and most adored breakfast was this fresh-from-the-oven hearty bake, crammed with only the most delicious and nutritious of ingredients for a crisp autumn morning.

Over the years it has evolved, of course, what with it being passed along from my mother to me. She got it from an obscure yoga journal a while back, and has since made it her own. As have I.

But really, this is a prime example of why it is ridiculous to take the cop-out and do the instant flavored oatmeal packets. For one, their amounts are sad, the flavors are terrible and fake, and the oatmeal is flimsy. Try this dish and you won't want the former any more! It is vibrant, aromatic, very filling, provides energy, and refreshes the gastrointestinal track beautifully.

Serves 2-4 (depending on how hungry one is)

4 apples (cortland, pink lady, golden deliscious, braeburn, etc), chopped with skin on
1 large carrot, grated
1-2 tablespoons chopped FRESH ginger root
1 1/2 cup rolled oats
1 1/2+ cup water
Roughly 2 tablespoons (real) maple syrup, or raw sugar
Roughly 2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon baking powder
Generous helping of cinnamon
Some Cloves and Coriander, as you like
Handful of walnuts, roughly chopped (or pre-chopped)
Handful of sunflower seeds
Handful of apricots, sliced vertically (optional)

To Make:
Oven at 400 degrees F.
Combine apples, carrot, ginger, oats, nuts and seeds, apricots, and spices in a large bowl. Add water and mix to combine thoroughly.
Pour into 8 inch baking dish, filling to the brim, and top with a few small cuts of (real) butter.
Cover snugly with foil and cook in oven for roughly 30-40 minutes. (I never time things really, I just check back for tenderness of apples and bubbling juices on a self-monitored timeline. Aroma is always a good sign of nearing the end. Sometimes, depending on the mixture, I will remove the foil a little more than half way through).
*Serve with a variety of additions/topping options: almond milk (yum!), whole milk, whole milk yogurt products. I sometimes get a wonderful Liberte brand yogurt called Mediterranee, and I must recommend that lemon or coconut goes wonderfully over top.
liberteyogourt.com/en/about-us/index.sn

For those of you who don't know what fresh ginger looks like, it is that pale looking root on my cutting board. It isn't worth being intimidated by - Break off a section, or cut it, peel away the skin, and chop or mince or grate to your hearts content. Caya 2011

Caya 2011

I often add to the recipe for more, as it tends to go fairly quickly in a given morning, and seriously, this dish as a cold dessert or snack, or even for the following morning, is amazing! Caya 2011

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lentil Soup and Corn Bread

So simple. So different!
My lentil soup method has been evolving over the years, and I've grown quite a different take on the classic. Inspired originally by Mollie Katzen (link listed on right hand side of blog, under "links"), my parents often explored the dish. Now it is my turn.

(Full recipe available upon request)
If you aren't getting canned lentils, soaking them is the thing to do. I soak mine overnight and into the following day, then strain them, and simmer for three hours or so while I work in the studio or hang around doing chores.
And then the fun begins.

Foremost is good spice and good earthy freshness. I don't like my lentil soup to be weighed down even more with dense potatoes and the like. I keep it clear and vibrant with alternative vegetables.

With the lentils, I use yellow onion, garlic, celery, carrot, tomato (both stewed and fresh), and plenty of portabello mushrooms. Also I add worchestershire, sea salt and pepper, cayenne, lots of fresh cilantro, and plenty of bright scallion, cut on the bias. Lastly, sour cream.
The earthy foundation of the lentil and the mushroom is complimented and refreshed by the tomato, and the finish of raw green cilantro and scallion together adds such a tasty crunch! The sour cream perfectly carries it off too.
On a whim I last made the meal with a light corn bread using organic canned corn, cornmeal, the usual flour, etc, and also a touch of scallions.
Yummy.

Caya 2011

Caya 2011

Maple Cilantro Marinated Beef, Sweet Potato, and Sauteed Broccoli Rabe

Beef is a meat that I rarely have around the kitchen. I tend to think of something specific I would like to try, usually when craving the specific nutritional value that it provides, and then go purchase a small, clean amount.

With this meal, I was very much interested in what was turning out to be quite a serendipitous grocery trip. I wasn't sure what to make, nor what to select for the general vegetable stock-up for the next good while, and then I saw something I rarely see down in Lancaster PA. I saw lovely bunches of broccoli rabe!

I love broccoli rabe, and I often crave it, despite not finding it most of the time, anywhere. So, having stumbled across a rare event, I took advantage of it. With the rabe, I decided on making a quick marinade from what I had at home (you don't need packets or bottles for making marinades, people! They couldn't be more easy) with some flank steak cuts. Finding something of small size, organic, and affordable, I headed home.

(Full recipe available upon request)
I had lovely small sweet potatoes already, so I chopped them up lengthwise and threw them in a baking dish or two with generous cinnamon and started on the marinade.
Marinades can be quick, easy, and fully improvised with no fuss or friction. I used safflower oil, loads of freshly chopped cilantro (and stalks) I had about, crushed garlic cloves, very small onion rounds, sea salt and plenty of black pepper, (real) maple syrup, and worcestershire.

Caya 2011

Caya 2011

Next, after adding the meat to the marinade, I clean and chop up the broccoli rabe - a very easy, very quick experience.
In goes the garlic and the rabe, fire goes up, and the meat is on.

I have a very small stove in my tiny little apartment home, but I make do! Caya 2011

Caya 2011

And here it is. Pleasant combination of bitter savory and sweet creamy flavors. Cheers.