Stoneview

I have fond memories of Deano’s Pizzeria in Lafayette, LA. Back in the day, my favorite pizza there was the Seafood Seizure with shrimp, scallops, broccoli and their white sauce. Last week when the subject of a seafood pizza came up I knew exactly what I had to make. This one has scallops, shrimp, mushrooms, and pancetta (’cause I had some I needed to use up). Next time I’ll do the classic which doesn’t look to be on the menu anymore. (Granted, that was the late ’80s early ’90s so it’s been awhile.)

for the white sauce: 3 T melted butter, 2T minced garlic, 1 t crushed red pepper- saute until garlic is fragrant then add 1/4 cup flour and cook 60 seconds. Add 1 1/2 cup cold whole milk, whisk to combine and heat until thickened and bubbly, stir in 1/2 cup finely shredded freshly grated Parmesan and 1/3 pound each chopped scallops and shrimp. Transfer onto your uncooked pizza crust, top with a light sprinkle of shredded mozarella and bake on your preheated pizza stone at 425F for 12 minutes.

ETA: I used this amount of sauce for two pizzas

I used to think I didn’t like miso, mainly because I don’t care for miso soup at Japanese restaurants. Then Jason made this fennel stuffed pork  recipe which calls for “light miso”. I had no idea there were many kinds of miso! At first I thought I probably just like the mild white miso but now I wonder if maybe it’s the fish stock in the soup that I don’t care for. At any rate, miso is beginning to appear more often at my table and I’m learning ways to use it.

Soba with tofu and veg

6 ounces buckwheat soba noodles
sesame oil
1 carrot, cut into matchsticks
several shiitake, stemmed and torn into pieces
1 cup snow peas, cleaned and sliced
3 or 4 green onions
2 inch piece of fresh  ginger, peeled and grated
1 cup cucumber, sliced into half- moons
firm tofu, pressed and cubed*
1 t crushed red pepper

2 T rice wine vinegar

1 T soy sauce

2 T miso
2 T honey

Cook the soba according to the package directions. Drain, rinse with cold water and drain again. In a large bowl, toss soba with about a teaspoon of sesame oil to coat. Chop the green onions reserving the tops. Saute the rest of the onion with the shiitake for about 60 seconds in a teaspoon of oil. Turn off the heat and stir in rice wine vinegar, crushed red pepper, miso, soy sauce,  and honey. Transfer mushroom/onion mixture into the bowl with the soba, add remaining ingredients and toss well.

*Line a dish with a towel, place the tofu on it, cover with another towel and a heavy weight. Let stand about an hour to remove some of the moisture. This is a good way to prepare tofu for frying but I left mine fresh for this dish.

Local apples are starting to be available which means fall is right around the corner. The chilly wet days earlier this week brought the first few brightly colored leaves fluttering down into the yard but of course peak season is still quite some time away. The sun and heat have returned so a light cool supper was much appreciated. Brie and apple with arugula on ciabatta rolls with olives and local radishes.

Yesterday was all cooking all the time or else shopping for cooking. In the morning I made a small batch of cherry preserves. The cherries are just storebought because I missed the very brief picking season this year (only one week) but I wanted to practice for next year. I loosely followed this except that I did chop all my cherries small, I added the zest and juice of a lime,  I cooked to 220F after adding my sugar and added a splash of Grand Marnier instead of his Kirsch or almond extract. I water bath processed them for 10 minutes. After I was done I remembered this delicious topping for ice cream I like to make that’s cherries, red wine, lemon zest and basil and wonder if I can come up with a preserves based on that combo next year?

It was also time to make more taco meat for Daniel’s quesadillas. He goes through about a pound a week and I cook up 2 pound batches, divide and freeze them. A few months ago Penzeys sent a free jar of their southwest seasoning and got me hooked on yet another of their blends. It’s easy enough to mix myself but oh so convenient to just dump in a couple tablespoons of this after I drain the fat. Since I use it so often, I caved and bought the tall jar.