Joy's Quick Coffee Cake

Joy's Quick Coffee Cake

1 1/2 c. flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 c. butter, softened
1/4-1/2 c. sugar
1 large egg
2/3 c. milk
1/2 tsp vanilla or 1 tsp lemon zest

Struesel:
combine until crumbly:

1/3 c. sugar
2 tbsp flour
2 tbsp butter
1/2 tsp cinnamon,
1/4-1/2 c. ground nuts

Preheat the oven to 375. Grease a pan-- cake or cupcake. Sift together the flour, powder, and salt. In a large bowl, beat the butter and add the sugar till fluffy. Add the egg and milk. Add the dry ingredients and the vanilla. Stir until smooth. Spread in the greased pan. Top with the Struesel. Bake about 25 minutes

Rating: A. Why do I bother with these ratings? If I put it on here, I thought it was delicious. So. A. So good, so buttery-- in fact, maybe (dare I say this blasphemy?) a little too buttery. Next time I might halve the butter. But amazing with tea for a Sunday brunch.

Happy Birthday Matt Trifle

Trifle is Matt's favorite, and this year I made a good 'un.
Happy Birthday Matt! Trifle

Pound cake
couple teaspoons of rum (or more, if you're WILD and WICKED. Or a pirate.)
Doubled recipe of vanilla pudding
Strawberry preserves
Thinly sliced green apples
purple seedless grapes, cut in half

In a glass bowl, put down a layer of cake slices, and sprinkle them with the rum. Around the edges of the bowl, arrange a layer of the apple slices and grapes so they're visible. Then pour on half of the pudding (still warm and unset is fine). Then another layer of cake slices, more jam some more fruit, and the rest of the pudding. Arrange the rest of the fruit artistically on top. Chill a bit before serving. Voila! You may get reviews as spectacular as I got: "Wow, Becca, this is a good--fruit salad?"

Hawaiian Style Enchiladas

Hawaiian Style Enchiladas

1 lb kalua pig, already cooked and shredded (or, okay, any other cooked meat.)
3 c. of cabbage, green or red or both
6 tortillas, or more, whatevahs
1/2 c. grated monterey jack cheese
chipotle tabasco to topper.

Preheat the oven to 400. Throw the tortillas in there to get soft-- just 5 minutes. Meanwhile, saute the pork and the cabbage in a heavy skillet. Grease a casserole dish, then put a bunch of the pork and cabbage in each of the tortillas. Roll 'em up, put 'em in the casserole dish. Dump any extra pork-cabbage stuff on top, and then put the cheese on top. Bake for 10 minutes till the cheese is nice and melty. Voila! Too easy!

Joy's Vanilla Pudding

After this, you will never deign to put one of those Yellow #5 powdered jello atrocities together again. This... is the true and perfect meaning of pudding. Testify.

Joy's vanilla Pudding
Mix thoroughly in a medium saucepan

1/4 c. sugar
3 tbsp cornstarch
1/8 tsp salt

gradually stir in, making a smooth runny paste

1/4 c. milk

whisk in:

1 3/4 c. milk

stirring constatnyl, heat over medium heat until the mixture just comes to the simmer. Remove from the heat and stir 1/2 c. of the milk mixture slowly into:

1 large egg, well beaten.

Stir this back into the milk mixture, bring to a boil over medium heat, and continue to cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat. Stir in:

1/2 tsp vanilla.

Pour the pudding into a bowl or individual cups, then press plastic wrap directly onto the surface. refrigerate at least 2 hours.

Rating: A+ Try this. Just..... try it.

Coconut Rice Pudding

With coconut water, rather than milk or cream, this is a really light-tasting pudding. The intensity of the coconut flavor will depend on your liquid. We have a samoan coconut tree that makes huge generous coconuts full of very mild flavored water-- about a half gallon per nut!

Coconut Rice Pudding

1/2 c. sugar
3-4 c. coconut water
1-2 c. cooked white rice
Splash of Cream

Combine everything in a saucepan, and simmer for a long time. Maybe 40 minutes? Until the rice expands and absorbs all the liquid, and the pudding plops and glops (technical culinary terms, those.) Garnish the servings of pudding with drizzles of cream.

Recipes of Japanese Cooking, or "Eigo de Tuskuru Washoku"

I love this book. This is my go-to Japanese cookbook. It has beautiful color photographs, and includes the basics of Japanese cuisine: sukiyaki, sushi, miso soup, mochi, karaage, tenpura, nikujaga, lotus root, burdock, soba etc. etc. etc.
And plus, the Janglish is really charming. "'Silken' tofu coated with sauce is tasty and pleasant on the tongue" ! How can I resist?
I bought this in Japan, and the only complaint is that some of the ingredients are mistranslated or hard to find, like nagaimo (or "stinking snotfruit" as I have heard it called in some circles.)

Salt Grilled Akule fish with Savory Cabbage

Two gorgeous whole hooked Akule were at our grocery store. Here we are living on an island and I almost never cook fish-- I just don't really know how! Plus their goggly eyes looking up at me through the saran wrap, it's almost too much. But these guys called my name. They're a small fish-- about 1/2 lbs each-- with nice white flesh.
We got them home and Matt cleaned them out for me and scraped off their scales(one of which I see lodged in my cookbook), and left the heads on . I patted them dry, rubbed them all over with red sea salt, and dredged them in flour. Then I heated about 1/4 cup of olive oil in a big skillet over medium high and threw the suckers in to brown. They cooked for about 6 minutes per side and got a nice golden crust on them.
Meanwhile I chopped up a quarter head each of green and purple cabbage, threw those in a little saute pan with 1 inch of chopped fresh ginger, about 3 tbsp mirin, and a tablespoon of hoisin sauce. I stirfried that for about 2 minutes-- until the cabbage is still crunchy but warmed through and the sauce is bubbling.
I served the fish whole on a bed of the cabbage. Yummmmmmy.

Joy's Tomato and Goat Cheese Quiche

Joy's Tomato and Goat Cheese Quiche
Basic Pie or Pastry Dough

1 and 1/4 c. flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c. chilled lard
1 tbsp cold butter
3 tbsp ice water

Sift together the flour and the salt. Cut in the fat, and sprinkle on the ice water and mix until it just holds together. Shape the dough into a disk, wrap it in plastic and refrigerate it until ready to use. Roll it out and fit it into a 9" pan. Brush the dough with a beaten egg yolk and refrigerate.
Preheat the oven to 400. Set a rack in the lowest position in the oven.
Drain and squeeze out the liquid of a pound of canned tomatoes and set them aside.
Combine until smooth:

4-6 ounces fresh goat cheese
3/4 c. cream
1/2 c. milk

Add and whisk until smooth:

3 eggs
1 tbsp chopped parsley
3 tbsp chopped basil
pinch salt
black pepper.

Put the squeezed tomatoes in the pastry shell, pour the cheese mixture over the top. Bake until the top is golden brown, 40-45 minutes. Let it rest 10 minutes before slicing.

Rating: A+. Rapturous. Lovely. Fluffy and salty and cheesy--- absolutely gorgeous. I wished I was a photographer this thing was so crusty and golden brown. I could eat it every day.

Becca's Coconut Rice Pilaf

I found a dusty and foreign smelling 5 pound bag of basmati rice on the "deep discount" shelf of our local grocery store. I couldn't resist its burlappy charms. Here's what I did with it when I got it home, inspired by Ajanta.

Coconut Rice Pilaf

3-5 tbsp oil
1 onion
1 chopped carrot
2 c. basmati rice
4 c. coconut water
1 bay leaf
1 stick cinnamon
pinch salt

Saute the onion and carrot in the oil until nicely carmalized. Add the rice and stir fry for 3 minutes. Add the coconut water, bay leaf, cinnamon and salt, and bring back to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to Very Low, and cook for 18 minutes. Voila!

Apple Juice Gell-o

Apple Juice Gell-o
This recipe comes from the Knox gelatin box.
4 packets unflavored gelatin
1 c. cold apple juice
3 c. boiling hot apple juice

Sprinkle the gelatin on the cold juice, let it stand one minute. Add the hot juice and stir. Pour into a pan and chill. This is stiff enough that you can cut shapes out of it with cookie cutters! Wheee!

Cat Cora's Custard Ice Cream

Here it is! The vanilla ice cream I've been searching for my whole life:

Cat Cora's Custard Ice Cream

4 large eggs
1 1/2 c. whole milk
1/2 c. sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1 vanilla bean, split
1 1/2 c. heavy cream

In a large saucepan, whisk together the eggs, milk, sugar, and salt. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the mixture, and throw in the open bean. Cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens slightly and "coats the back of a wooden spoon." (one of those baffling culinary directions that has befuddled me for years-- I just watch for a slight thickening.)
Strain the mixture into a cold bowl, cover and refridgerate over night. Add the cold cream and freeze in your ice cream maker. Go to heaven.

Rating: A drooling and besotted A+

Becca's Tortillas

The first time I made tortillas was on the floor of my freezing cold apartment in Ueda, Japan. My companion was Karina Maqueda, from Mexico City, and we had no languages in common. We communicated in hugs and earnest gestures and feeble monosyllabic Japanese.
She was a real cook-- she would put her finger right into a simmering pot to taste, and then suck on it thoughtfully, then splash in salt or cream in a cascade, a foot above the stove. She had drama and flair. And she gave me a very stern look when she caught me eating my asparagus right out of the cooking water. "Do you always eat it like THAT?"
I wish these were her tortillas, which she threw together and rolled quickly with her palms, and spread into even perfect circles. But they're not.
I like to make these in huge batches and freeze whatever I don't use that day. So this recipe makes about 3o.

Becca's Tortillas

2 c white flour
2 c wheat flour
2 c corn meal
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 c. lard
2 and 3/4 c. hot water

Knead these together with your hands until it comes together into a ball and holds together, about 5 minutes. Then roll the dough into balls of about 2 tbsp each, flouring your hands and the board if you need to. Cover with plastic wrap and rest for 20 minutes.
Then heat a skillet or two to medium. Roll the balls out into even thin circles and cook in the hot pan (ungreased!) for a minute on one side, 20 seconds on the other. Adjust the heat if it takes too long or blackens too quickly. Juggle rolling pin, flour, hot pans, dough, and spatula until you have a small mountain of tortillas. Let them cool, then freeze 'em!

Becca's Sweet Potato Soup with Crusty Toasts

Sweet Potato Soup
Saute in a pot:

Olive oil
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 big or 2 small bell peppers, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
salt

Add and stir until well-combined:

1/2 to 1 tsp turmeric
fresh ginger
2 cups shredded sweet potato

Add:

3 or 4 cups Beef Broth
Simmer for 15 minutes or so, until all the flavors are combined. Serve garnished with chunks of cheese (I had sheep feta on hand, yum!) and chopped basil.

Crusty Toasts

whole wheat bread slices
olive oil/butter or both
sea salt
black pepper

Preheat oven to 400, slice whole wheat bread. Drizzle with olive oil or spread with butter. Sprinkle with sea salt and pepper. Toast for 5 minutes or so.

Joy's All-Whole-Wheat Bread Cockaigne

Joy's All-Whole-Wheat Bread Cockaigne
Combine in a large bowl and let stand until the yeast is dissolved, about 5 minutes

1/4 c. warm water
2.25 tsp yeast
1 tbsp brown sugar

combine:

6 c whole wheat flour
1/2 c. dry milk powder

combine, and then add to the yeast mixture:

2 cups warm water or miolk
1 tsp salt
1-3 tbsp melted butter or bacon fat
4-6 tbsp molasses or honey

Gradually add the flour to the yeast and butter mixture. Knead briefly. Allow dough to rise covered until doubled, and once in greased loaf pans, about an hour each.
preheat the oven to 350, bake about 45 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and bottom sounds hollow. Cool completely on a rack.
Rating: B Good, but not really inspiring. I like that it's all-wheat, though...

Joy's Bean Tomato and Sausage Gratin

Bean Tomato and Sausage Gratin
This is in the "Brunch, Lunch and Supper Dishes" section of the book, which gives all the recipes an illusion of simplicity and speed. Hah! This was ultimately delicious, but waaaay too complicated. The same result could come much easier with a few cut corners. But here it is:

Soak overnight:

2 cups pinto beans

Drain the beans. Transfer to a large pot and add:

8 cups water
1 onion, halved, each half stuck with 1 clove
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 bouquet garni

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for an hour. Add salt, then simmer until beans are tender, another 30-60 minutes.
While the beans are simmering, heat a heavy casserole over medium heat. Add:

1/4 cup olive oil
2 oz pancetta or bacon, diced.
Cook, until it renders its fat. Add
1 pound sweet italian sausages, casings removed and crumbled.

Cook, stirring until the meat loses its color, about 5 minutes. pour off most of the fat. Add, stirring for two minutes:

1 onion
2-4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp tomato paste.
2x28 oz cans of whole tomatoes with juice
1 tsp fresh thyme or oregano

Add the beans and 2 cups of the beans' cooking liquid to the sausage and tomato mixture.
Simmer it all for 30 minutes. Mean while preheat the oven to 400. Grease a casserole dish, add the mixture. Top with

1/2 c. bread crumbs
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cups grated swiss cheese.

Bake for 30 minutes, until top is lightly browned and bubbling.
Rating: B

Joy's Brown Beef Stock

Brown Beef Stock

5 lbs meaty beef bones
2 onions with skins on, quartered
2 carrots cut up
2 celery ribs cut up
2 c. cold water
cold water to cover
1 leek split lengthwise and cut up
1 bouquet garni, including 1 whole clove
tie together:
3 or 4 sprigs parsley
1/3 bay leaf
2 sprigs thyme
1 leek
2 cloves

Preheat the oven to 425. roast the bones for 15 minutes, then add the onions, carrots and celery. roast for 40 minutes, until the bones are well browned. Transfer to a stockpot. Add 2 cups water to the roasting pan, scrape up any delicious brown debris, then add the liquid to the stock pot. Add cold water to cover. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then simmer gently for 30 minutes, skimming off the foam. Add the leek and the bouquet garni, and simmer uncovered for 6-8 hours, adding water as needed to cover. Strain and cool uncovered, then refridgerate covered.
Rating: B for basic, useful, pretty simple.
Note: I like to add a splash of apple cider or balsamic vinegar to the stock

Joy's Spicy Seafood Stew

Joy's Spicy Seafood Stew

Olive oil
onion
celery
1 jalapeno pepper
2 garlic cloves
1 28 oz. can of tomatoes
2 cups clam juice
1/2 cup red or white wine or additional clam juice
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 lb skinless cod fillets, cut into 1" cubes
8 oz shrimp, peeled and deveined.
salt and pepper
1/4 c. chopped basil or parsley

Heat the olive oil and brown the onion, celery, pepper and garlic in a skillet for 3 minutes.
Transfer to a slow cooker, add the tomatoes, liquid, and red pepper flakes.
Cover and cook on the low setting for 4 hours. Turn the setting to high. Add the seafood. Cover and cook until the fish is opaque-- 10 minutes. Add the chopped herbs and salt and pepper to taste.

Rating: A
It would be lovely with some crusty bread, and a drizzle of olive oil over the finished soup.

Becca's Creamy Coconut Curry

Becca's Creamy Coconut Curry

Some olive oil
1 tbsp fresh turmeric
1 tbsp fresh ginger
1 tbsp fresh garlic
some cumin
some salt (red, thanks!)
some paprika
some pepper
2 carrots
an onion
3 potatoes
handful of corn
2 c. sweet potato
3 cups coconut water (if you don't have, leave out the cream and use coconut milk)
1.5 cups cream
1.5 cups chicken stock
Some cheese (I used Gouda)

Heat the olive oil, add all of the spices until they combine into a fragrant paste. Add the chopped vegetables and saute them until they are nice and browned and coated in the spices. Add the coconut water and cook the vegetables until they are almost done. Add the cream and the chicken stock and simmer gently (no boiling the cream) until everything is nicely combined and the veg are soft.
Serve with cubes of cheese.

Joy's Vanilla Ice Cream

For Christmas I got my husband two vials of vanilla beans and we've been carefully hoarding them until we can find some recipes worthy of the black beauties. This seemed to be a good one to start on...

Joy's Vanilla Ice Cream

1 c. heavy cream
3/4 c. sugar
pinch salt
1 vanilla bean
2 c. heavy cream
1 c. whole milk

Combine one cup of cream, the sugar and the salt in a saucepan. Split and scrape the vanilla bean in, and add the open bean. Bring to a simmer and dissolve the sugar.
Pour into a bowl and add the remaining cream and milk.
Refridgerate overnight, remove the bean, and freeze in a ice cream maker.

Rating: A. Totally easy and very yummy.

The Joy of Cooking

It's just shocking hubris of me to think I can review "The Joy of Cooking."
So I won't, too much. I'll just turn to random pages and report:
ah, green tea ice cream...spicy seafood stew, rich butter pastry crust, broiled rabbit, eggnog, longan berries, deep frying, hot chocolate, purslane soup...
This book-- I'm getting choked up-- has changed my life.
I kept checking it out from the library but finally bought my own copy when the grease stains and flour lumps started to irritate the librarians. Now my copy is thoroughly greasy, lumpy, floury, and not even hardly broken in. It's absolutely my first reference (totally launching "Better Homes" right out of the water) for cooking anything. The recipes are practically infallible.
I heart "The Joy of Cooking."
Amen.

Cat Cora's Basic Crepes

Basic Crepes

1/2 c. flour
1 egg
1 c milk
butter for the crepe pan

Whisk together the flour, egg and milk. Heat a skillet over medium high, brush VERY lightly with butter, add about 1/4 to 1/3 c. of batter and tilt the skillet to spread it out.
When the edges pull away from the pan, turn the crepe and cook for 30 more seconds.
You can freeze these by layering them with wax paper.

Rating: A+

Note: I adore these with a squeeze of lime juice and a dusting of powdered sugar. Maybe that's just me. :)

Cat Cora's "Cooking From the Hip"

I picked this up in the damp outdoor Borders discount rack for $3.99.
Why so disrespected, Cat? Why are you out in the drizzle when others less worthy are "Bam"-ing and "Y'all"-ing with abandon inside?
This book is beautifully photographed, full of fairly easy but really tasty recipes. My only complaint is that the organization is slightly weird and not very intuitive. For example, desserts are scattered throughout the book, under sort of arbitrary categories such as "Fun" or "Good to Know" or "Phenomenal."
But this is a mouth-watering book to flip through and a welcome addition to my bursting family of cookbooks.

Roy's Roasted Corn and Sweet Potato Chowder

Roy's Roasted Corn and Sweet Potato Chowder

5 ears of corn with husks
1 bell pepper
1 yellow pepper
1 green pepper
1/5 lbs of sweet potatoes
1/4 c. olive oil
1/2 onion
5 garlic cloves
1/4 c. leeks
1/2 stalk celery
3 quarts vegetable stock
1/2 tbsp each fresh thyme and basil and chives
1 bay leaf
2 quarts cream
salt and pepper to taste

Roast the corn and bell peppers in a 350 oven. Remove peppers to a plastic bag after 20 minutes, let the corn go 10 more minutes. When the peppers are cool, peel seed and dice them.
Shuck the corn and cut the kernels from the cobs. Keep the cobs.
Boil the sweet potoatoes until soft, then dice.
Saute the onion, garlic, leeks, celery and corn COBS in the olive oil for 5 minutes. Add stock and herbs, boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until it reduced to 1 quart. Add the cream and simmer for 30 minutes over low heat to reduce. No boiling!
Strain into a clean pan. Simmer for 5-10 more minutes. Add the sweet potato, corn, and bell peppers, and season with S & P.

Rating: B- for excessive fussiness.

note: Sorry Roy, I took this one for a little ride. I just sauteed the corn and peppers with the onions, added the cooked sweet potato with the cream, halved the liquid, and voila. Tasty results in a fraction of the time. I'm sure the long drawn out version would be lovely, but not tonight. I'm thinking I might puree half of it.

Roy's Banana Pancakes with Raspberry Coulis, (with plantains and strawberry-blueberries instead)

Roy's Banana Pancakes with Raspberry Coulis

Raspberry Coulis

4 oz fresh raspberry (or strawberries, papayas, mangoes-- I used strawberries and blueberries
3 tbsp simple syrup (I used honey)

Puree the fruit and syrup in a blender, and strain.

1.5 c. flour
t tbsp sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
pinch salt
1 egg plus 1 egg white, beaten
1.5 c. whole milk
3 tbsp canola oil
5 bananas (I used 3 ripe plantains)
granulated sugar
confectioners sugar
also: mint, kiwis, strawberries, candied pecans, maple syrup.

Prepare the fruit coulis.
Combine dry ingredients, make a well and add wet ingredients. Don't overmix.
Cut the bananas (or plantains) into wedges, sprinkle with granulated sugar and broil until they brown.
Heat a griddle to 350. Add pancake batter. When bubbles start to form, place banana slices on each pancake, flip and cook the other side.
Decorate each plate with the coulis, and serve with the mint and fruit and syrup. Or just with the coulis and powdered sugar.

Rating: A

Roy's Tuscan-Style White Bean Soup

Roy's Tuscan-Style White Beans

2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp minced garlic
1/4 c. onion, diced
1/4 c. pancetta (I used bacon), diced
2 tbsp celery, diced
2 tbsp red pepper, diced
2 tbsp carrot, diced
1 tomato, diced
1 tsp fresh thyme
1 tsp fresh rosemary
1 c. dried white navy beans
5 cups chicken stock
salt and pepper to taste

Note: I presoaked the beans by placing them in cold water, boiling them for 5 minutes, then letting them soak till cooking time.

Heat the oil, saute the garlic, onion, pancetta (bacon), celery, pepper, and carrot (*I add a pinch of salt here) over medium heat for till the bacon becomes a little crispy. Add the tomato, thyme, and rosemary and stir to combine. Add the beans and the stock and simmer until the beans are soft but still firm in texture (45 minutes to an hour). Season with salt and pepper.

Rating: A. This was easy and simple and delicious.

Roy's Grilled Pork Medallions with Watercress Salad and Shoestring Potatoes

Roy's Grilled Pork Medallions with Watercress Salad and Shoestring Potatoes

Marinade:
warm water
1 chopped green bell pepper
1/2 chopped onion
2 bay leaves
10 black peppercorns
1/2 cup sugar

1 boneless pork loin, about 1 3/4 lbs
1 large potato

Mushroom-watercress Bed:
2 tbsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp garlic
4 oz sliced shiitake mushrooms (I used dried)
1/2 c. watercress stems
1 c. julienned red bell pepper
2 c. bean sprouts
1/2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp toasted sesame seeds

1 quart canola oil for deep frying

Watercress salad:
3 tbsp olive oil
pinch ginger
pinch garlic
pinch chile paste with garlic
3 tbsp rice vinegar
1/2 c. julienned red bell pepper
1/2 c. julienned yellow bell pepper
8 oz watercress leaves
3 tbsp crushed toasted mac nuts.

Marinate the pork over night in the fridge.
julienned the potato and soak in water for up to an hour.
Shortly before you're ready to cook the pork, prepare the grill. To assemble the mushroom-watercress bed, heat a wok and stir fry the ginger, garlic, mushrooms, watercress stems and bell pepper over medium heat for 1 minute. Add bean sprouts and oyster sauce, saute for 30 seconds longer, add sesame seeds and remove from heat.
Grill pork, 7-8 minutes per side over high heat for medium doneness. Cut into 12 slices.
Drain potatoes and dry thoroughly. heat the oil and deep fry the potatoes over high heat until browned and crisp, (*toss with salt) and drain on paper towels.
To make the watercress salad, heat the olive oil, lightly brown the ginger and garlic over medium-hihgh heat. stir in chile paste, vinegar, bell pepper. Put into a large salad bowl and toss with watercress leaves and mac nuts, and 1/4 of the shoestring potatoes.
Arrange a mushroom watercress bed in the center of each serving plate, top with three slices of pork. Place the watercress salad on top of the pork and remaining potatoes on top of the pile.

Rating: B for excessive fussiness.

Roy's Basic Pizza Dough

Roy's Basic Pizza Dough

3/4 tsp yeast
3/4 c. warm water
1 tbsp honey
2-2.5 c. flour
pinch salt
2 tbsp olive oil

Sprinkle yeast over the water, add honey and whisk. Let sit for 5 minutes.
Add yeast mixture to flour in a large bowl. Mix and then knead until the dough looks smooth and satiny, transfer to a lightly oiled bowl and cover til doubled in bulk (45 minutes). Divide into 4, knead each portion 1 or 2 minutes, then shape into balls. Let rest for 15 minutes. Roll out into 6-7" rounds with slightly raised edges.
Preheat oven to 425.
Add toppings, and bake for 15 minutes, or until edges are golden brown.

Note: I like to quadruple the recipe and freeze partially baked shells for easy homemade pizza nights. Rating: A+

Roy's Red Chile Lentil Stew

Red Chile Lentil Stew

1 c. lentils
2 tbsp olive oil
4 oz pancetta (I subbed bacon)
1 onion, diced
1.5 tbsp garlic
2 tbsp diced carrot
2 tbsp diced celery
3 bay leaves
1 tsp chile flakes
1 lb peeled and seeded tomatoes (canned ok)
2 cups veal or chicken stock
1 1/2 c. tomato juice
2 tsp fresh basil
1 tsp fresh thyme
1 tsp fresh tarragon
1 tbsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp pepper

Vinaigrette
1/2 tbsp sherry vinegar
1.5 tbsp olive oil

Soak the lentils for 30 minutes.
Saute bacon, onion, garlic, carrot, celery over high heat till lightly browned. Stir in remaining ingredients except lentiles and vinaigrette. stir for 1 minute, then add lentils. cook over medium heat for 30 minutes.
Just before serving whisk together vinaigrette and stir it into the lentils.

Rating: A+

Note: this is lovely vegetarian-- leave out the pancetta or bacon, and substitute vegetable broth for the meat stock.

Roy Yamaguchi's "Roy's Feasts From Hawaii"

This book is full of beautiful color pictures of food, of course-- mouth watering dribbles of sauces and splashes of pestos-- caramelized meats and gleaming fruits. But even more enticing than the food are the full page spreads of Hawaiian landscapes: cattle grazing in the Kamuela highlands, waterfalls, oceanscapes. And smiling Hawaiians selling lettuce, plucking basil and netting fish look wholesome, tanned and welcoming. The recipes tend toward the fussy (cut out 35 1/2" rounds of zucchini, squash, and pepper skins to make scales, julienne everything) but are deliciously sophisticated Asian Fusion Pacific Cuisine.
Aloha! E Kaukau kakou!