Dairy-free – melaniepatrick.de

Paella. Bringing some summer into your kitchen.

Winter really is harsh this year – it has now been snowing for at least 24 consecutive hours and it doesn’t seem to stop. I haven’t seen the sun in a while, and if, it’s so bitter cold outside, it feels like the cold is cutting into the skin. Hence the yearning for some summer vibes, easily delivered by a Paella.

Similar to Risotto and Djuvec, Paella is a Mediterranean rice dish. They all have in common that you first fry the rice in some oil and only then add water to cook the rice. For me, Paella absolutely tastes like summer, reminding me of some very nice days in Bilbao. So whenever I come to Spain, I buy some smoked paprika powder, some saffron and of course, Paella rice:

Paella rice is a small grain rice, very similar to risotto or Abrioro rice. So don’t worry if you can’t find special Paella rice in your supermarket – I have also made very tasty Paellas with risotto rice, even milk pudding rice. Hell, in my opinion, better make a Paella with long grain rice than no Paella at all!

PAELLA
for 4

4 chicken thighs
8 large scampi, fresh or frozen
(200 g / 7 oz chorizo, cut into thick rounds)
(2 bell peppers, seeds removed and diced)
2 tomatoes or 2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 large onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
3 garlic cloves, sliced
1 cup risotto or paella rice
3-4 cups chicken or beef broth
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup frozen peas
salt and pepper
1 tablespoon (smoked) paprika powder
a pinch of saffron

Somehow, I always start with chopping onions and garlic. In this case, also the carrots. Set them aside, you will need them a little later.

This would be the right time for your Paella pan. But of course, almost nobody has a special Paella pan. Doesn’t matter, just use the biggest pan you have, in my case a cast iron Le Creuset.

Heat it up to medium, pour in some oil and gently fry the chicken legs until they are golden brown. No need to cook them through, we’ll deal with that later.

If you like, you can also fry the scampi one minute on each side, just so that they get a nice red color.

I simply forgot about the chorizo, it’s an integral part of this dish. Nevermind, just cut it into thick slices and also fry it for a bit. Set it all aside.

Speaking of nice red color: dissolve the saffron in a little bit of hot water. Smell the divine fragrance.

After getting the scampi out of the pan, start frying the carrots, onions and garlic. Not too much color, they should just get a bit soft. Then add the rice.

Stir it around in the hot pan until the kernels start to get translucent. You don’t want brown, you don’t want them fried, just a nicely coated by the oil.

Then add the broth and the dissolved saffron.

By the way, this was homemade vegetable broth. And frozen in a silicon muffin tin. Even if you are not a fan of silicon baking ware, think about getting a muffin sheet just for freezing things. Frozen stuff is very easy to extract from the silicon – just plop it out – and 2 muffin cups are one serving in most cases.

Add the rest of the spices and the peas, then arrange the chicken parts and the scampi on top. Let it simmer on the stove or in the hot oven for 30 minutes or until the rice is done – do not stir!
Serve piping hot with lemon and tomato wedges.

Chili. Hot stuff for cold days.

Chili. I guess there is not much to say. Of course, there are different beliefs: beans or no beans, ground meat or pieces, vegetables or no vegetables. This may sound totally crazy, but I like all kinds of chili. But depending on my mood, I sometimes prefer one variation over the other.

What’s really much more important: the spices and liquids you add. And in my case, it’s whiskey (with a nice amount of peat), red wine and dark ale. Fresh and dried chilies are a must.

CHILI

1 kg / 2 pounds beef (from the round)
100 g / 3,5 oz bacon
1/4 cup lard or olive oil
1 large onion, roughly chopped (2 cups)
3 carrots, diced (2 cups)
100 g / 3.5 oz tomato paste
1/4 cup whiskey
1 cup red wine
1 cup dark ale
1 can peeled tomatoes
2 bay leaves
1-5 fresh chilies, eg 1 habanero, 1 jalapeno, 1 Thai chili
3 tablespoons chili tequila
1 teaspoon dried chili
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons cocoa powder
2 teaspoons instant coffee powder
1 tablespoon dried Italian herbs
1 can kidney beans, drained (optional)
1 lemon, just the juice, to taste

To serve:
cheddar cheese, shredded
spring onions, cut into thin slices
sour cream
bread

Cut the meat into the size you like for a chili – anything between 1-inch cubes and mincing it. Then peel and cut the onions and carrots into large dice.

I like to start with the bacon, getting it brown and rendering the fat. When it is nice and crunchy, get it out and put it into a bowl.

Then add the lard or oil, let it get hot and start sauteing the onions and carrots. When the edges start to get brown, also get them out into a bowl.

Get your stove to medium-high and let it get really hot for some minutes. Don’t dump all the meat in – better start with just a few handfuls. Just let it brown for a couple of minutes, then start stirring it around. When all the sides of the meat are brown, add the next few handfuls. And so on until all the meat is in the pot and browned nicely.

OK, now the bacon and the vegetables go back in, and also the tomato paste. Add the whiskey, stir and scrape the bottom until nearly all is evaporated. Then add the wine and the beer – and top it off with water (or even some coffee you have still standing around).

Next add the can of tomatoes. Don’t worry if it looks like too much liquid, most of it will cook off anyway.

Time for some heat: Add the chilies – either whole or cut into pieces. I like to buy big bunches of fresh chilies and preserve them in alcohol.

Just cut away the green stuff, fill them in a glass jar and top it off with your favorite 40%-spirit. I like to use either Sherry, Cognac or Tequila. Keeps nearly endlessly and is a great addition for all kinds of tomato-based meals.

Add the rest of the spices and let it cook on very low for around 2 hours. Or longer, if you have the time.

Serve with spring onions, shredded cheese, crème fraîche and a nice toasty bread. Not to forget: a nice glass of cold beer to kill the heat.

Hot pumpkin soup. Getting ready for Halloween.

Here in Germany, some people started to celebrate Halloween – nowadays, you can even go to parties. But 15 years ago, living in a small town, my friends started the tradition of cooking American food, preferably something hot and watching horror movies. Over the years, we made tons of different things – chili, homemade burgers, spaghetti with meat balls. But one thing remained consistent over the years: pumpkin soup as a starter.

This one is creamy, meaty and bacon-y and of course: hot. But let me assure you: except for the crème fraîche I used for serving, it’s vegan!

HALLOWEEN PUMPKIN SOUP

1 Hokkaido pumpkin, about 1 kg / 2 pounds
1/4 muscat pumpkin, about 1 kg / 2 pounds
1 large onion, diced
4 red potatoes, peeled and diced
2 fresh chilies, cut into rings
3 cloves of garlic, sliced
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 tablespoon smoked paprika powder
1 tablespoon vegetable broth powder
1 can peeled tomatoes
salt and pepper to taste
chili sauce
lemon juice
crème fraîche for serving

Preheat your oven to 200°C / 400°F and search your kitchen for some kind of ovenproof vessel you pumpkin will fit in. In my case, a 9×13 inch pyrex form.

Cut the Hokkaido pumpkin in half and scoop out the innards – personally, I think an ice cream scoop is the best tool for the job. Then place the pumpkin halves in the form, sprinkle with oil, salt, sugar and maybe a little bit paprika powder.

Place the in the oven for about half an hour. Or until the flesh is soft and you have a nice brown crust.

OK, now we can concentrate on the soup itself:

Remove the seeds and peel from the muscat pumpkin, then dice it coarsely. Peel and dice the rest of the vegetables and slice the chilies.

Heat up a big pot, then pour in the oil and start browning the vegetables. Stir often; you’ll want some brown bits for taste.

When the vegetables are starting to get soft, sprinkle with curry and smoked paprika powder.

Look out for this stuff – I bought it in Spain during my vacation, but I’m sure you will find it elsewhere, too.

I don’t like the expression, but this is the “secret ingredient” to the soup. Basically, it gives kind of a subtle bacon flavor.

Next, pour in the peeled tomatoes and enough water to cover and let it cook for around 20 minutes or until you can just mash the vegetables with the back of a spoon.

When it looks like this, puree it with your favorite method – mine being a stick blender. But a stand mixer or food processor will also work fine.

Give it a taste and add salt, pepper, chili sauce and lemon juice accordingly.

To serve, get the pumpkin halves out of the oven and each into a bowl. Fill the soup into the pumpkin bowl and (if you’re not vegan), garnish with a healthy spoonful of crème fraîche.

Strammer Max. Dinner for one.

As Flo is often working the late shift in the last weeks, I spend many evenings alone. Which is absolutely fine by me, if it weren’t for the fact that cooking and eating alone is not really fun. At least for me. So most times, I stick to something quick and simple to make. And in the best case it’s filling, too.

Strammer Max is one of those simple dishes – it’s more of an open-faced sandwich with ham and fried egg. Ready to eat in minutes and giving you that warm, fuzzy feeling, even if you have to defend it against the cats.

STRAMMER MAX
open-faced ham and egg sandwich

2 slices of bread, toasted
butter
Dijon mustard
2 slices ham
2 eggs
salt and pepper

First, fry yourself some eggs. I like to use butter on medium heat and salt only the whites. The salt helps denaturing the proteins. Which is good, as I like the yolks runny, but the whites firm.

While the eggs are frying, toast yourself some bread. I only had toast, but use any kind of bread you like. Rye also tastes great with ham and egg.

Butter the bread and then smear on some Dijon mustard. Just for kicks.

Lay the ham on the bread and put it all on a nice, big plate. Just because you’re eating alone, doesn’t mean you can’t do it with style.

Arrange the fried eggs over the ham and sprinkle one a generous amount of pepper. Eat at once.

Carrot dip. The mean brother of baby food.

This looks so innocent, doesn’t it? I really reminds you a bit of baby food, if it weren’t for the olives, right? Go ahead, take a bite. At first, you think: “What is she talking about? Just regular carrots. A bit on the sweet side.” And then it will hit you: the tartness of the lemon juice. The slight bitterness of the olive oil. The complexity of the spices. And last, but not least: the slight burn of chili in your throat.

This is a great dip and it goes very well with all those other oriental-inspired dips, hummus, baba ghanoush and tzatziki. Just serve them all with some pita bread and olives and you have a simple, but very satisfying dinner.

CARROT DIP

250 g / 1/2 pound carrots, peeled and diced
salt
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon ras-el-hanout (or ground cumin)
1 tablespoon harissa
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus some for garnishing
olives

Around here, you always get carrots in 1 kilo / 2 pound packages. Minimum. So most times, I take the rest of the package I did not use and eyeball the amount of the rest of the other ingredients.

Peel the carrots, cut them into finger-thick slices and cook them in very salty water for about 20 minutes. They should be soft, but not falling to bits.

In the meantime, mix together lemon juice, crushed garlic, ras-el-hanout and olive oil. Hold the salt, there will be already enough in the carrots.

I like to use my immersion blender for this, so I start in a rather high and narrow mixing bowl. But feel free to use a food processor if you happen to own one.

Drain the carrots and put them over the harissa-mixture. Then puree them as fine as you want them. Personally, I like some bits left, otherwise it reminds me too much of baby food…

Serve in a nice bowl when it is cooled down, garnish with some olives and olive oil. Then dig right in.

Coq au vin. The chicken version of Beuf Bourguignon.

Ever since the movie “Julie & Julia” came out, everyone seems to be crazy about Julia Child’s version of Beuf Bourguignon. I know, Beuf Bourguignon is a great dish, but sometimes you just can’t find the right beef in the supermarket or at your butcher’s. Or you just don’t want to spend the money. On the other hand, 4 chicken thighs only cost around 2 Euro. Seemed like a deal to me.

Oh, and there’s a simple rule about cooking with wine: don’t use anything that you wouldn’t drink. But you don’t have to use the most expensive one; a simple wine in a real bottle will do fine. Real French gourmet food for a couple of bucks. Perfect.

COQ AU VIN

2-3 small onions, peeled and diced (1 cup)
2-3 carrots, peeled and diced (1 cup)
2-3 celery sticks, peeled and diced (1 cup)
6 thick slices of bacon, cut into strips
6-8 chicken thighs
flour
salt and pepper
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 bottle red wine, shiraz or pinot noir
3 bay leaves
6 juniper berries
8 button mushrooms
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon corn starch

This is the great triumvirate of French cooking: onion, carrot and celery. The base of all kinds of meat dish with. Just cut them into 1 cm / 1/4 inch cubes. While you’re at it, also cut the bacon into strips.

Preheat your oven to 165°C / 325°F.

Mix some salt and pepper into the flour, then dredge the chicken thighs in the flour. They should be covered on all sides.

Heat up a big pan on medium, pour in the vegetable oil and start frying the chicken thighs. Just don’t overcrowd the pan, 4 at a time are more than enough. They will need around 5 minutes on each side, you want them golden brown – but no need to cook them through, we’ll get to that later.

Stack them into a large pot, I like my cast iron Dutch oven for that.

When you’re done frying the chicken, put the vegetables into the pan and cook them until they are softened but not too brown. That should take about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Put all the vegetables into the pot with the chicken parts.

Then fry the bacon first and then the mushrooms – put the bacon into the pot and set the mushrooms aside.

Should look a bit like this – a pot full of chicken, vegetables and bacon. Already smells like heaven.

Don’t forget about the pan, because there is still all the good brown stuff at the bottom and you definitively don’t want to throw that away. Instead, pour in about a cup of the red wine and start scraping the bottom with a spatula. Loosen all the bits from the bottom and let it cook for a minute, then pour it into the Dutch oven.

Top it off with the rest of the wine and maybe a little bit of water. Add some salt, the bay leaves and the juniper berries.

Then put on the lid and place it in the oven for about 2 hours. Or you could prepare it until this point and cook it the next day, then it will be even more tender and flavorful.

When the 2 hours in the oven are over, check if the chicken is tender – you should be able to part the meat with a fork.

Carefully get out the meat and put the thighs on a platter. Fish out all the vegetables and spices using a strainer or a slotted spoon. Mix in the cream and if you want to, thicken the sauce with a slurry made of corn starch and water. Just mix those two together, pour it into the sauce and let it cook for a minute. As a last thing, add the mushrooms to the sauce and give it a taste – and season to your taste. I almost always need more salt.

Serve the chicken parts with the sauce, the mushrooms and your favorite side, mine being simple oven-roasted potatoes. Makes sense since the oven is hot anyway.

Picadillo. With cinnamon and raisins.

Picadillo is one of the most versatile ragús in South American cooking. You can simply eat it with rice, preferably accompanied by a fried banana. Or use it as a filling for empanadas or pastel de papas – which is best described as the Argentine version of Shepard’s Pie. But more on that in another post, first we are going to make the Picadillo.

PICADILLO

1 cup carrots, finely diced (2-3 carrots)
1 cup onions, finely diced (2-3 onions)
1 cup bell peppers, finely diced (1-2 small peppers)
2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
750 g / 1.5 pounds ground beef
1/2 cup tomato paste
1/2 cup red wine (or Martini rosso)
2-3 tablespoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried chili flakes
1 tablespoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon coriander
salt and pepper
1 cup green olives, chopped
1/2 cup raisins

Dice up all the vegetables, I like 5 mm / 1/4 inch cubes. No need to measure them exactly, just make sure you have roughly the same amount of onions, carrots and peppers.

Heat up a big pan (or heavy pot), then pour in some oil and start frying the ground beef.

Don’t dump in everything at once or the pan will cool down instantly and you’ll be cooking the meat instead of frying it. Which is not good, as many of the juices will come out, making the meat tough and the water will prevent browning. And in my opinion, the brown stuff is what makes the sauces taste so good. Seems I’m not alone, as there’s even a scientific name for it: Maillard reaction, meaning the caramelization of of sugars and proteins by high heat.

So just put in a quarter to a third, wait till it is all cooked through and then add the next batch. Then let that cook together and add the last third…

Once the meat is cooked through and has some nice browned spots, add the vegetables and let them fry together.

Let it cook for some minutes more, depending how much time you have and how patient you are. Just make sure there are some browned bits. That may sound a bit obsessive… I admit it, I’m obsessed with Maillard reaction.

Make a little room in the middle and add the tomato paste, let that also fry for a bit. Again, sugars will caramelize and add some subtle flavors. Then add the wine and scrape all the brown bits off the bottom of the pan. The will dissolve and make everything very tasty. Then add some water, just short of covering it.

Now add all the spices: oregano, chilies, paprika, salt and pepper. And yes, you heard right: cinnamon and ground coriander. At first, it seems very weird to add cinnamon to a savory dish, but believe me it will blend perfectly with the other spices…

Then add the olives and the raisins and let it all cook on low for 30 minutes minimum. Why yes, raisins. They’re traditional. No point in arguing about that.

Give it a taste, maybe add some lemon juice and more salt and serve.

Iced Tea. Thirst quencher for hot days.

There are few things more refreshing than iced tea on a hot summer day. And I don’t mean those over-sweetened soft drinks laced with artificial flavors, preservatives and other stuff you don’t really want to know about. Better make it yourself, it’s ready in 5 minutes. Go ahead and time it, I’m not exaggerating. And another thing: it helps against those mean headaches.

ICED TEA

1 liter / 4 cups water, boiling
1/2 kg / 1 pound ice cubes
6 teabags or 6 teaspoons black tea
0-4 tablespoons sugar
juice of 1 lemon

Take 6 teabags or 6 heaping teaspoons of loose black tea. Bring the water to boil and when it’s really bubbling, pour it over the tea.

Let it steep for exactly 4 minutes. Then the tea will be strong, but not too bitter. Take out the tea bags or strain the tea if you used loose tea. Then dissolve the sugar in the hot tea – the amount depends on your taste.

Weight out the ice in a big pitcher. You need half the amount by weight as you have tea.

Slowly pour the hot, sweetened tea over the ice cubes. Then add the lemon juice – also according to your taste – and you’re done! Grab a big glass, maybe a straw and sit outside in the sun with your feet up.

Tuna salad filled tomatoes. Hello from the Fifties.

A friend gave me a cookbook from the Fifties as a birthday present a couple of years ago. It is two inches thick and full of wonderful recipes, helpful hints on using leftovers – and even more delightful tips on shaping your food aerodynamically to make it more appetizing. There, I found great classics like meat loaf (in a dozen of variations), upside down pineapple and carrot cakes as well as tomatoes filled with different mayo-based salads, eg egg, chicken or tuna.

My mom used to make the tuna version as appetizer for guests: it’s quick and easy, filling but not too much and enjoyed by everyone, whether they like fish or not. Including me and my dad, who virtually despise everything that comes out of the ocean.

TOMATOES FILLED WITH TUNA SALAD

1 can tuna, drained
1 small onion, chopped very finely
1/4 cup peas
1/4 cup corn kernels, optional
1/4 – 1/2 cup mayonnaise, homemade
paprika powder
some drops of hot sauce
salt and pepper
4-6 tomatoes

Drain one can of tuna – doesn’t matter if you bought the one in oil or brine.

Take a small onion and dice it very finely – onions and tuna are a match made in heaven. And add the peas, I only had frozen (and blanched) ones. But you can take fresh or canned ones if you like.

OK, let’s spice it up a bit. Add some paprika powder for taste and color and maybe some drops of chili sauce, if you happen to like it hot.

Add some tablespoons of mayonnaise and start stirring. Just add enough to make it just come together. Not too much mayo or it will become slushy.

If you like you can cut open some tomatoes, scoop out the kernels with a spoon and fill in the tuna salad. Simple, ready in minutes and impresses you guests.

Chickpea salad. Great for summer.

Do you know those people who can eat anything at any time? Like pork roast and sauerkraut in summer or gazpacho when it’s snowing. I can’t. I am one of those who can’t eat warm and heavy stuff when it’s hot outside. I like to have a light lunch in the summer heat. But a normal green salad is never enough for me – I always end up hungry half an hour later. So this number here is a great compromise: It tastes fresh like a salad, but the chickpeas bring along some carbs and proteins, just the right amount to make you feel satisfied but not stuffed… And it’s ready in minutes – literally – so you’ll have more time to go outside and catch some rays.

CHICKPEA SALAD

1 can chickpeas
4 tomatoes, chopped
1 small onion, finely diced
1 garlic glove, crushed
1 lemon, juice only
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper
oregano
parsley

Open a can of chickpeas and drain them well. I even like to give them a quick rinse with cold water, but that’s just because the brine has a distinctive smell I don’t like.

Dice the onions and crush the garlic, then mix with the chickpeas in a bowl.

Cut the tomatoes into bite-sized pieces, then add lemon juice, salt, pepper and spices. I only had dried ones, but please use fresh if you have.

Somehow no plant survives my care more than a few weeks. Except orchids. Those are growing one flower after the other. Since December.

Give it all a stir and a taste. You should have about the same amount of tomatoes as chickpeas and some crunchy onions. When it tastes good, go out on the balcony, sit in the sun and eat straight out of the bowl.