The Suburban Herbivore

Greetings fellow Suburbivores! Jason here, Ryn’s husband and the official Suburban Herbivore taste tester. (What can I say? I’m a lucky man!) It’s summer, which means, among other things, cucumbers. And cucumbers, of course, mean pickles! I thought I would share my recipe for spicy, garlicky, Icebox Pickles. These pickles are super easy to make (I’ve already made three batches since we started getting cukes from our CSA), and will last months as long as they stay refrigerated. For a something milder, you could reduce the amount of garlic and red pepper, but really, why would you want to do that?

Ingredients

2 largish cucumbers, cut into spears

6 cloves of garlic, crushed + 2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 ½ teaspoon salt

1 cup white wine vinegar

1 cup water

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Place cucumbers and crushed garlic in a bowl or large jar. In a non-aluminum saucepan, combine the minced garlic, salt, vinegar, water, sugar, and red pepper. Bring just to a boil. Remove from heat and pour over the cucumbers. Cool to room temperature. Transfer to smaller jars (or just use the one big one), and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

I found this recipe online that says it’s the one used by P. F. Chang’s. I changed it up a bit, and was really, really happy with the results. I was out of vegetable broth (for shame) so I used water, but as Mr. Brown says, water doesn’t bring any flavor to the party. Here’s my recipe for Ma Po Tofu.

Ingredients
14 oz tofu, extra firm
1 tbsp chili sauce (such as Sriracha)
1 tbsp miso paste (preferably brown)
1 1/2 tbsp canola oil
1 tbsp chili oil
1 tbsp fermented black beans
1 tbsp (or more) crushed red pepper
1 cup vegetable broth or water
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp soy sauce or tamari
4 stalks green onions, chopped
3 tbsp cornstarch
2 tbsp water

Put the entire block of tofu in a large pot of salted boiling water. Cook for three minutes. Remove, drain, cool until it can be handled, and cut into one-inch blocks. Heat both oils together in a large deep skillet or wok at medium heat. Mix the chili sauce and miso into a paste, add to the oil, and cook for about one minute. Add the black beans and crushed red pepper, and cook for thirty seconds. Add the broth, sugar, and soy sauce, mix well, then add the tofu and simmer for about five minutes. Add the green onions. Mix the cornstarch and water together in a small bowl until smooth. Drizzle into the skillet a little bit at a time and stir. Keep adding until the sauce thickens to your liking. You may not need to add all the cornstarch. Serve with some broccoli and steamed rice.

After a long weekend spent out of town, I was skeptical about what might be edible when I returned home. But I was pleasantly surprised to find that nothing had gone bad, and I was able to cobble Pasta with Spinach and Beans together for supper. I used chickpeas because that’s what I had, and you can, too, but white beans have a better texture for this dish. I do recommend using spinach instead of other greens, because this is a no-cook meal (mostly), and the tougher greens won’t wilt as readily.

Ingredients

1 lb spiral pasta
1 bunch raw spinach
1 can white/navy/great northern beans, drained
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp olive oil, divided
1/4 cup pine nuts
1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp salt
black pepper to taste

Cook the pasta using package instructions. Meanwhile, wash and chop the spinach. Saute the pine nuts in about 1/2 tbsp of olive oil. Once the pasta is done, drain it and return it to the pot (or a large bowl). Stir in the spinach, beans, garlic, remaining olive oil, pine nuts (plus leftover oil), cheese, salt, and pepper. Add a little more salt if you like, or perhaps some garlic salt. Serves 4-6.

I had a bunch of greens that needed to be used up, so I looked around for a recipe that would disguise them as much as possible, because <confession> I really don’t care that much for greens.</confession>. So, here’s my version of Saag Paneer. You can, of course, use spinach, which is the traditional way of preparing this dish. I used greens from kohlrabi, radishes, turnips, and beets, plus kale. You can make the paneer ahead of time and refrigerate it for up to five days.

Ingredients

1/2 gallon of milk (preferably whole)
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp water
2 tsp fresh ginger, minced
2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 tsp cumin seeds or ground cumin
1 tsp coriander or garam masala
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
2 tbsp vegetable oil
16-24 oz greens
1/2 cup coconut milk

First, get the milk and 1 tsp salt heating in a large saucepan on medium heat. Stir it every couple of minutes. Once the milk is boiling, stir in the lemon juice, and stir every minute or so for about five minutes while the curdling takes place. Place three layers of cheesecloth or a towel in a strainer, and if you want to save the whey, put the strainer on top of a pot or other container. After enough milk has curdled that the surface doesn’t have any gaps in it, pour it into the strainer. Twist the corners of the cheesecloth or towel to squeeze out as much liquid as possible and let it drain for either an hour (if using cheesecloth) or half an hour (if using a towel).

While the paneer is draining, make the spice puree. Mix the water, ginger, garlic, cumin, coriander or garam masala, red pepper, paprika, turmeric, and the remaining 1/2 tsp salt in a blender until pureed. (I had a hard time finding something that would blend such a small amount, so just do the best you can. A mortar and pestle might do the trick.) Set it aside when blended.

After the paneer is drained, wrap it in plastic and press it for at least half an hour, and preferably an hour. I put it between two cutting boards and placed a heavy book on top. During this time, you can steam the greens. Make sure they are pretty soft - you don’t want your saag paneer to be crunchy. Let them cool a bit, then chop finely.

Now you are ready to pull it all together! Cube the paneer into bite-size pieces. Heat the oil in a deep skillet or large saucepan on medium-high heat. Fry the paneer for about five minutes - until it turns a nice golden brown on at least a couple of sides. Remove it and drain it on paper towels. Add the spice puree to the pan and let it saute for one or two minutes. Then add the greens, paneer, and coconut milk, and heat through. If needed, add some warm water a tablespoon at a time until you are pleased with the consistency.

Serve with basmati rice. Makes 2 or 3 servings, depending on how hungry you are.