Posted by Joy Manning, June 30, 2009 at 11:00 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
At my local banh mi joint, I’m always torn between the oh-so-virtuous tofu sandwich and the all-out cholesterol fest that is the pork and pâté version. Finally, I’ve bridged the gap with my homemade Meat Lite rendition. It’s a great recipe to have on hand if you, as we recommend in Almost Meatless, cook a big pork shoulder when you have time and freeze the meat in 8-ounce portions.
It couldn’t be simpler. Just buy a 4- to 6-pound pork shoulder, cut it up into four big but manageable pieces, season liberally, and brown pieces on all sides in a large Dutch oven. Add a bit of water, enough to come one-third of the way up the pork pieces, and bake on 350 degrees for about 3 hours—until it falls apart when prodded.
Of course, you can get rid of the pork altogether with an extra slice of tofu and have almost as excellent a banh mi. I like to spice up the mayonnaise with a squirt of Sriracha and a splash of lime juice. You can also add slices of fresh jalapeño before serving to increase the heat.
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Posted by Joy Manning, June 16, 2009 at 11:00 AM
Note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
There’s Meat Lite, and then there’s practically meatless. This recipe falls into the latter category. Anything cooked with stock is not vegetarian of course, and the absence of meaty pieces might disappoint some Serious Eaters. If you like, add some thinly sliced chicken or pork to this stir fry to make it meatier. And vegetarians can simply substitute water, though for me the depth of flavor provided by the chicken stock makes this feel like a meal. This recipe was created to deal with the abundance of bok choy in my CSA box, but it was so good, I know I’ll make it again.
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Posted by Joy Manning, June 2, 2009 at 11:15 AM
Note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
Photograph by sassyradish on Flickr
People often ask me how I develop recipes. Most of the time, recipes are born from conversations I have with food people or things I see in restaurants. Or both. Recently I was chatting with my co-author Tara Mataraza Desmond about my new love affair with bulgur for breakfast. She said she also likes the ingredient and recently used it to make a kind of risotto. I filed that away in my brain.
Soon thereafter, I was interviewing chef Jayson Grossberg for my Philadelphia Magazine review about his restaurant, Alphabet Soup, where I had tasted an incomparably creamy risotto. Grossberg explained that he was traveling in Italy when he tasted the creamiest risotto of his life. He tried to ask the waiter how it was made, but the language barrier made it impossible to communicate. Finally the waiter went and fetched the chef, who, as it turns out, was an American. He revealed the secret, in plain English: brie cheese. Eureka!
I knew I would try that technique on my own, and as I was scrolling through my mental idea file I remembered what Tara had said, and this recipe was born. The creaminess of the brie, the nuttiness of the bulgur, and the sweetness of the roasted asparagus is a delicious combo.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, May 26, 2009 at 11:15 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
As sandwiches go, the egg sandwich earns a versatility ranking right up there with classic peanut butter. Yet it has been suppressed for so long, stereotyped, cornered by its McMuffin identity.
The potential combinations of its simple ingredients—eggs, meat, cheese and bread—are infinite. Here, salty soppressata makes its meaty mark in just one or two whisper-thin slices, and yellow cheese that’s usually paired with bacon in typical versions of an egg-and-cheese sandwich is replaced by mild, creamy, fresh ricotta. You can cook your egg any way you like it, but for a sandwich like this, I fry mine, until the yolk is just set, still bright and barely molten when I bite it. A sprinkle of chopped fresh chives sets into the white as it cooks and sheds a bright note on the richness of the sandwich.
It's easy enough to make these for a brunch spread, baking the biscuits ahead of time and letting guests dollop spoonfuls of ricotta and fold slices of soppressata and on top of short-order eggs. But don’t let the egg sandwich identity restrict it to the first half of the day. They make a meal at breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
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Posted by Joy Manning, May 19, 2009 at 11:15 AM
Editor's note: Philly food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
Like so many of my favorite "Italian" foods, stromboli is as American as it gets. In fact, this rolled and baked sandwich, a close cousin of pizza, may well have been invented on my home turf—at Romano's Stromboli just outside Philadelphia. This might explain why I ate so much of it growing up.
All pizza shops sold it, and some got pretty creative with versions like the "Philadelphia cheesesteak stromboli." The form is easy to riff on; even my kitchen-challenged family made them from scratch with good results. This one is full of roasted vegetables with just enough pepperoni to lend it a little meaty spice. If you’re only feeding two, stash one of the unbaked strombolis in the freezer for another time.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, May 12, 2009 at 11:15 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
This is a cross between crispy flatbread and chewy pizza with extra flavor from the char of the grill. If you don’t have access to a grill, bake the dough in the oven as you would any other pizza. The topping is packed with flavor from just four ounces of turkey sausage and mushrooms spiked with a splash of malt vinegar for a bright, buttery lift.
Spring onions caramelize with the mushrooms underneath the sausage, and chives perk up the deep, earthy topping along with tangy goat cheese. The mushrooms and sausage can be roasted up to three days ahead and warmed through before adding to the grilled dough.
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Posted by Joy Manning, May 5, 2009 at 11:00 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
This satisfying chili is loosely adapted from a recipe I recently discovered on Epicurious. The first time I made it, I followed the directions exactly but kept thinking of improvements. It also struck me as a good candidate for a Meat Lite makeover. The original recipes calls for 24 ounces of chicken, while this version uses half that. The addition of plenty of black beans makes it even more satisfying than a dish with more meat.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, April 28, 2009 at 2:30 PM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
This weekend, right in the middle of sipping a cold beer and fantasizing about a lamb burger, my pal, chef and author, Robin Asbell, tweeted about the baked falafel burgers she was making. Just like that, the lamb burger in my mind’s eye became this week’s Meat Lite recipe.
Falafel, of course, is a vegetarian darling for its protein richness, flavor, and texture. Stuffed into a pita, the crispy outside and creamy, spice-infused inside makes for a sandwich that rivals even the heftiest hoagie. As is, falafel is a favorite. But a touch of lamb marbled through the mixture adds a new dimension. Plus, lamb is popular in Middle-Eastern cuisine making it a natural partner for these fellow indigenous ingredients.
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Posted by Joy Manning, April 21, 2009 at 3:30 PM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
In this casserole, a stint in a hot oven draws out the roasty sweetness hidden within every head of cabbage. Some sweet-tart apples and smoky bacon bring all the flavors into harmony. You’ll be surprised how little bacon it takes to infuse the whole dish with meaty complexity, but if you prefer a vegetarian version, substitute 2 tablespoons of olive oil for the bacon and use veggie stock instead of chicken stock.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, April 14, 2009 at 11:15 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
If world history curriculum depended on recipes instead of textbooks, I surely would have retained more of the landscape of the past.
Take kedgeree. It’s considered an “Anglo-Indian” dish and the result of the clashing and melding of cultures during the British rule of the Indian subcontinent from the mid-1800s through the mid-1900s. The original Indian rendition was meatless, fervently spiced rice and lentils. When the British came to know it, they doctored it to their liking, adding smoked fish, hard-boiled eggs and cream, and nixing the native spices for a dish they turned to for breakfast or a light supper.
The details of that whole century of conflict, supposedly picked up through high school required reading, slipped through my brain like sugar through a wide-holed colander.
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Posted by Joy Manning, April 7, 2009 at 11:30 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
A burger that goes easy on meat is a challenge. But this one really rises to the occasion with meaty texture from a portobello mushroom cap and rich savory flavor from a little oven-crisped prosciutto.
Even though each burger sports just a scant half ounce of prosciutto, its appealing crunch and intense flavor take center stage in the dish. Go with the best you can afford. I used La Quercia, and it worked very well. As delicious as the ham is, this dish would be very satisfying without it. Use soy sauce instead of Worcestershire (which gets its depth of flavor from anchovies) and it easily becomes vegetarian. Swap nutritional yeast for the cheese, and it’s vegan.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, March 31, 2009 at 10:45 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
Here's proof you can have your steak and eat it, too. With no more than a pound of strip steak and creamy fingerling potatoes, salad is a satisfying meal for four. 'Tis the season for tossing a little creativity with tender spring greens, a flavorful change of pace from winter's grocery lettuce selection. If it's finally warm enough in your corner of the world, opt for grilling instead of pan-searing the steak.
And as the grilling months approach, consider paying a little more for alternatives to factory-farmed animals. If you apply the Almost Meatless philosophy of using smaller amounts of meat in recipes with lots of non-meat ingredients, the extra cost is stretched across several meals, making for a surprisingly economical approach to eating.
Eatwild.com offers a comprehensive list of pasture-based farms and distributors nationwide, and terrific information about grass-fed food.
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Posted by Joy Manning, March 24, 2009 at 10:55 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
I order cassoulet a lot at restaurants, and they are usually packed with so much meat and fat, I can barely enjoy the slow-cooked white beans—my favorite part of the dish. Of course, their flavor comes from being cooked with meat. I used a ham shank, which yielded a surprising amount of tender ham morsels for the final dish. (Though this version still has much less than your typical meat-heavy restaurant version.)
If you wanted to cut back on the meat in this recipe, you could leave out any meat from the hock or shank and freeze it for a future soup or sandwich. What you can’t leave out, though, is the ham bone itself, which is what gives the beans their flavor. Savory mushrooms and mellow roasted garlic round out this almost meatless cassoulet.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, March 17, 2009 at 10:25 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
Last month, Serious Eats readers piped up to tell us about their favorite dishes that are light on meat. Spaghetti carbonara was one of the most frequently mentioned, no doubt because of its bacony flecks (or traditionally, pancetta). But plenty of pasta dishes call on bacon and never achieve the same ballyhoo from the masses.
Carbonara's crux, I think, is the sauce, which could be employed much more often with a few tweaks for personal renditions of the classic. When prepared just right, eggs and hot pasta create a custardy liaison that’s rich and delicious, with or without crispy pork. This recipe borrows the sauce to coat narrow rolls of pasta tossed with asparagus, onions, and a half-pound of salmon for an entrée portion for 4 to 6.
Asparagus season is practically upon us, and thin, young shoots will be abundantly available soon. Unfortunately, wild Pacific salmon season, which typically corresponds with the kick-off of spring, is being squelched by a dwindling population, threatened by contaminants and pollution. Ask the fishmonger about the source before selecting your catch. For an alternative to salmon, try arctic char, which is similar in texture, color, and flavor, if a bit milder.
Since the secret really is in the sauce, skipping meat altogether won’t make this recipe any less appetizing.
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Posted by Joy Manning, March 10, 2009 at 10:45 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
This salad is inspired by one of my favorite restaurants in South Philadelphia, Café de Laos. The restaurant lives at the decidedly unglamorous corner of 11th and Washington, the intersection of numerous immigrant communities; a nexus of authentic carnitas, spaghetti and meatballs, and pho.
One of my earliest food mentors, Susan Waskey, directed my attention to this unexpected gem years ago, and though my travels have taken me to Thai restaurants citywide since then, I keep coming back for the creamy coconut soups, the piquant green curry, the spicy laab tuna.
How the cabbage salad escaped my attention all this time, I have no idea, but I had it for the first time last week. I liked it so much that I tried to replicate it (with a little chicken) for this column. I hope you like it as much as I do. If you make it to Philly, you’ve got to give Café de Laos a try. Did I mention that it’s incredibly budget friendly?
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, March 6, 2009 at 3:00 PM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
On most days, if I had the choice between a steak and a hunk of cheese, I'd take the cheese. Especially when the cheese is a variety like Beemster, which is buttery, rich, smooth, practically meaty.
Beemster is a Gouda-style cheese similar to butterscotchy aged goudas with little bits of crunch from crystallization that occurs during the cheese-making process. The savory flavor profile is a terrific match for brussels sprouts and Canadian bacon in this creamy gratin. Serve it with pierogies and a salad dressed in a tart vinaigrette to cut through the richness.
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Posted by Joy Manning, February 25, 2009 at 11:00 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.
I am no fan of any food stuff that comes with some sort of “flavoring packet.” You know, the pouch of powdery who-knows-what that comes with your boxed rice and couscous. But with a recipe like this, when so much of the final flavor comes from the type of sausage you choose, I’m compelled to compare sausage to a flavoring packet. Good sausage can take all the work out of jazzing up and flavoring a simple dish like this one. I love a fatty, garlicky, spicy Italian link, but fresh chorizo would be just killer in this preparation. So choose your sausage wisely. The quality of the finished product, especially in a recipe that goes easy on the meat, depends on it.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, February 10, 2009 at 12:30 PM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each Tuesday with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring.
Look, I’m just going to shoot this straight. I think Valentine’s Day is ridiculous. I can’t recall ever being a fan, but I’m certain I declared my independence freshman year in college when I received flowers from my brother, who lived across campus (the card read, "Here are some flowers. From, Your Brother"), which may have been sort of nice had I not quickly uncovered the truth behind the scam: My mother made him do it.
Even now, happily one half of a very Valentiney marriage, I wouldn’t blink if the day came and went without a card or gift or morsel of chocolate (though I welcome chocolate any day of the year). I’m not into dreaming up red and pink food or aphrodisiac concoctions to mark the occasion, and to even consider going out to a restaurant on Valentine’s Day, I’d require monetary compensation (a restaurant kitchen is, indeed, a miserable place on February 14, churning out “special” menus for countless two-tops all night long).
So I’ll defer to the rest of the Internet and food magazines for oysters, truffles, Champagne, and all the other usual suspects. Here’s my offering instead. It’s a complete coincidence that these beans (beans are good for your heart) are red, that it calls for chocolate, that it’s one of my husband’s favorite meals, and that it serves two. Complete coincidence.
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Posted by Joy Manning, February 3, 2009 at 10:55 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring.
Koftas, essentially just meatballs, are common all over the Middle East. Some are meatless, some are all-meat, and many are a combo of meat and veggies.
This totally inauthentic version is based on a combination of stuff I like, including boneless, skinless chicken thighs, an ingredient I just stocked up on thanks to a sale at Whole Foods. When I got the $9 “family pack” of thighs home to this two-person household, I divided the chicken into six individually wrapped half-pound portions and stashed five of them in the freezer for future dishes (like soups, stews, tacos, casseroles, salads.)
This method of shopping and storing, combined with an arsenal of Meat Lite recipes, can keep high quality meat on the menu, even when the budget is tight. I served the koftas with my usual hummus and ate them wrapped in romaine lettuce leaves.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, January 27, 2009 at 3:30 PM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009.
If you’re bent on adopting the Meat Lite lifestyle, take a page from the ancient book of Asian cuisine. Far Eastern kitchens have always been stocked with less animal protein and saturated fats than Western counterparts (even well before Western kitchens ever existed), calling on vegetables and grains as the bulk of a dish and using meat as something of a garnish. Even traditional recipes for a dish like panaeng neua—a signature Thai dish centered on beef, coconut milk and curry paste—call for less than a pound of beef for 4 to 6 servings.
In addition to an emphasis on non-meat ingredients, Asian gastronomy employs a variety of fermented protein condiments and sauces as flavoring and seasoning agents. Fish sauce, bean sauces and pastes all pack a mouth-filling punch because of glutamic acid, an amino acid brought forth during natural fermentation. These amino acids are the foundation of “umami," or that meaty, satisfying “flavor” that’s so distinct, yet so difficult to articulate (this flavor is replicated in controversial MSG).
Scientific mumbo-jumbo aside, Asian food is delicious, often simple and quick to prepare and versatile. This recipe is sweet, salty, tangy, and sour, from tamarind, miso, sugar and lime. It’s full of texture, from a bit of pork, sturdy carrots, crunchy bok choy, chopped cashews and crisp, vibrant scallions. Serve it on top of rice and alongside garlic sesame green beans.
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Posted by Joy Manning, January 20, 2009 at 10:00 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009.
A well-stocked pantry can really bail you out of a meal time jam. This super easy but delicious spread is based on two items no Serious Eater should ever be without: imported canned tuna packed in olive oil and canned chickpeas. Mix in a few other kitchen staples, and in no time you have a healthy, versatile dip or filling that works as a party snack with flatbread, a satisfying sandwich filling, or a flavorful stuffing for jarred piquillo peppers.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, January 14, 2009 at 10:15 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009.
In Italian cuisine, antipasto is essentially the appetizer course. The word translates to “before the meal," and it’s a wonder that anyone’s appetite ever makes it to the main course given the delicious array offered on a typical antipasto platter.
Mixed greens, marinated vegetables, roasted garlic, an assortment of cheeses and wispy slices of smoked and cured meats, like salami, prosciutto, and soppressata, all add up to a perfectly satisfying meal.
This pizza makes antipasto the main course (though you could certainly serve it as an appetizer instead) and is a tasty reminder of how far just a bit of good quality, flavorful meat will go. Soppressata ranks among my personal favorites in the dry-cured salami category for its rich flavor, salty edge and subtle chewiness. I opt for sweet slicing soppressata in this recipe, but feel free to request the hot variety (do specify “slicing soppressata” when ordering, which will ensure you end up with wide, thin slices that blanket the dough, as opposed to small, thick chunks). If you prefer different types of vegetables, feel free to swap them for the suggestions here. Don’t skip the chopped greens, lightly dressed with simple vinaigrette—often the bed of an antipasto plate—as the final topping.
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Posted by Joy Manning, January 6, 2009 at 10:15 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring.
In the summer, I eat a huge fresh salad once or twice a week thanks to the mountains of crisp, fresh lettuce I get in my CSA box. But in the winter, I’m afraid salads usually go the way of sweet corn and peaches. This year, I refuse to acquiesce to a salad-less season. This week's Meat Lite combines a huge pile of seasonal veggies (Brussels sprouts and butternut squash) with savory year-round staples to get a healthy, hearty, and warm salad perfect for these cold weather months.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, December 30, 2008 at 11:15 AM
I had a very meaty Christmas and I loved every minute of it. In the span of a week, I indulged in one braised rump roast, one giant fresh ham, one roasted chicken and two spiral hams.
Today, the advance copy of our book, Almost Meatless: Recipes That Are Better for Your Health and the Planet arrived on our doorsteps. As I flipped through it for the very first time, I looked forward to returning to my Meat Lite lifestyle, and all its endless possibilities.
Yesterday, our packed car made the trip to Philadelphia from my family in the Hudson Valley with a generous helping of leftovers of the spiral ham that played a delicious role in Cuban sandwiches the night before. Back in my kitchen, it was divvied up for multiple recipes, including this week’s Meat Lite feature.
Ham is the perfect ingredient for recipes that use just a bit of meat because its robust flavor goes a long way. We call on small amounts of it in Almost Meatless for Red Beans and Rice and Ham Stock.
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Posted by Joy Manning, December 23, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009.
Being a restaurant critic and cookbook author is a fattening job. (I just started a blog about this aspect of my work.) And like Serious Eats founder Ed Levine, I struggle with my weight.
An Almost Meatless diet can go a long way to offset the extra calories I eat on the job, so I'm always looking for recipes in which the meat could be dialed down at home.
At the same time, when I spy an overly virtuous recipe that has the potential for deliciousness—like this one from the New York Times—I start tinkering with it to make it more yummy, if a little less healthy. This process typically involves pork. The following recipe is adapted from Martha Rose Shulman’s stewed lentils with cabbage from earlier this month.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, December 16, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009.
Eggs are arguably the most customizable food. They are also one of the best sources of complete protein available to us, which is why Joy and I decided to devote an entire chapter to eggs, amongst the seven other meat-centric chapters, in Almost Meatless. Plus, eggs as a meal are inexpensive—even when you opt for the highest quality, fresh-from-the- source dozen you can find. These nutrient packed orbs go far beyond breakfast and baking for delicious meals and sustenance all day long.
Joy and I met for lunch last week at Kanella, a Greek restaurant serving Cypriot specialties and other Mediterranean/Middle Eastern food in Philadelphia. The place has been wooing Joy with its avgolemono, a tough-to-beat bowl of chicken broth and lemon juice thickened with egg yolks and rice that tastes as homemade as it gets. I was lined up to order the same, until the Shaksouka won me over.
The dish—especially common in Israeli cuisine—is simply a tomato sauce simmered with herbs and spices. It rounds out to a satisfying meal with the addition of two eggs, cooked to your liking in the sauce. I opted for soft set yolks, which spilled out upon the slightest nudge with my fork, seeping into the tomatoes. Soft, garlicky bread and a wide spoon were the best tools for cleaning my plate.
Tweak the herbs and spices, add a kick of heat, fry or scramble your eggs—this iteration of Shaksouka is as customizable as the eggs you add to your go of it.
Tara Mataraza Desmond writes about, cooks, and eats food for a living. Her blog, Crumbs On My Keyboard, is dedicated to delicious things in Philadelphia and lots of other places.
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Posted by Joy Manning, December 9, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009.
Photograph from box of lettuce on Flickr
As a freelance writer working from home, I make lunch for one—myself—often. Well-organized freezer and pantry staples make cooking for one easy and economical. For example, I keep homemade chicken stock in the freezer in one cup containers, and I freeze leftover white wine in ice cube trays so I always have these ingredients handy. I keep frozen peas, good quality ham steak, and a sliced baguette in my basement freezer for fast single-serving meals. Since these small quantities defrost in less time than it takes to chop an onion, this soup comes together in about 25 minutes.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, December 2, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009.
The holiday season is a great time to embrace the Meat Lite/Almost Meatless philosophy. This may seem contradictory, seeing as it’s also the only occasion that most people roast upwards of 20 pounds of bird. But recycling leftovers is a reminder of how a little bit of meat goes a long way when paired with other terrific ingredients.
After every last piece of beautifully sliced breast gets stacked in those requisite turkey sandwiches, use the rest of the flavorful shreds of white and dark meat (there are pounds of them…flip that bird over!!) for these empanadas. Whether you make your own empanada dough from scratch or purchase good quality pre-made dough rounds, this recipe comes together fast since the filling has already been cooked and cooled.
The combination possibilities are plentiful given all the food hanging around. I made a few with turkey shreds, cinnamon-spiked sweet potatoes and pecans, as well as these turkey salsa cheese empanadas, which happen to be delicious, dunked in hot gravy. (That’s right, gravy. Thanksgiving means it’s ok to experiment with Americana-drenched combos.)
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Posted by Joy Manning, November 25, 2008 at 11:30 AM
Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009.
"This one resembles my sauce." —Joy Manning. Photograph from Martin Kingsley on Flickr
Growing up, there were always two pots of red sauce simmering on my grandmother's stove for family dinners. One was red gravy—tomatoes slow-cooked with fried meatballs and a marrow-rich beef bone—and the other was meatless marinara, a thin and mostly flavorless sauce intended for my mother, my sister, and me. The vegetarians.
In the pre-dinner bustle, as my sister filled the glasses with ice and my mother grated the Parmesan, I always stole a hunk of Italian bread and dipped it in that meaty gravy. (If I avoided any actual meat bits, I reasoned, it was still vegetarian.) Today, I still like a meat-infused sauce, but I skip the beef bone and traditional pile of meatballs and opt for a half pound of hot Italian sausage. Plenty of mushrooms amplify the meaty flavor and homemade chicken stock provides body and depth. I’ve been serving this sauce over homemade fresh spaghetti lately, but it’s got a million applications. It freezes very well.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, November 18, 2008 at 11:30 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009.
I love the idea of stuffed bell peppers. It's handy that they're edible vessels; that the accompaniment pairing possibilities are seemingly endless; that the filling can be customized to match your mood, the crowd, or the weather; that they can be a meal or a side dish. The trouble is, I don't actually like them. Bell peppers can be so pushy, dominating the flavor profile of the dish and ringing out over all of the other ingredients. You can stuff that thing with the tastiest innards ever, but in the end, the bell pepper dominates.
Giving up on all the potential of the stuffed pepper, though, seems a shameful waste. The following recipe is an adaptation that celebrates all of the aforementioned qualities using poblanos instead of bells, and an adjustable almost meatless filling. Don't like pork? Sub in ground chicken, turkey, beef or even crumbled tofu. Happen to have cooked meat leftover from last night? Shred or chop it and use it in place of the ground meat. Or go meatless and double the beans instead.
Poblano chiles aren't strangers to stuffing. Aside from their dry form—when they are called "anchos"—they are well known for being filled with cheese, dunked in batter and deep-fried to become chile rellenos. Poblanos range from sweet and mild to punchy hot and their rich, signature flavor plays nice with the other ingredients.
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Posted by Joy Manning, November 11, 2008 at 10:30 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009.
When Tara and I developed the recipes for Almost Meatless, diversity of ingredients and influences was a goal. We wanted the final assortment of recipes to show how eclectic a meat-lite meal plan can be.
But this weekly column reflects more accurately how I cook at home: I start by scouring the fridge, pantry, and freezer to identify what I already have on hand. This recipe is kind of a sibling to the chicken hand pies I posted about two weeks ago. For those, I started with half of a poached chicken breast from a batch of chicken stock. (I always remove the chicken breast about an hour into the stock’s simmering phase and reserve it for meals later in the week.) I saved the other half for this risotto, which gets its meaty flavor as much from the dried porcinis as it does from the chicken. In my next recipe, the dried porcinis (I always have them on hand) will reappear in a meat-lite meat sauce for homemade pasta. Stay tuned.
Ingredients
1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
4 cups chicken stock or vegetable or mushroom broth, preferably homemade
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more to taste to drizzle over finished dish
2 shallots, minced, about 1/3 cup
4 fresh thyme sprigs, leaves only
11/2 cup Arborio rice
1/2 white wine
1/4 cup cream (optional)
1/2 poached chicken breast, boned, skinned and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup grated romano cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
Procedure
1. Pour 2 cups boiling water over dried mushroom and soak for 30 minutes. Remove mushrooms, chop coarsely and set aside. Strain soaking liquid into a medium sauce pan and add the stock. Bring the liquid and stock to a simmer, and keep hot.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the shallots and thyme and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the rice and cook, stirring, for about a minute. Add the wine and simmer, stirring, until it is absorbed.
4. Add the hot liquid in 1/2 cup increments, stirring constantly and waiting until the liquid has been absorbed before adding more stock. (You can also start by adding about half the total liquid and simmer partially covered until it’s absorbed, about 10 minutes. And then add the rest a little at a time.)
5. When most of the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is tender, add the cream, if using. Add the chicken, mushrooms and cheese and stir to combine. Taste, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, November 4, 2008 at 10:30 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009.
Bacon supporters are an unwavering bunch. Smear campaigns run by health pundits claim that bacon is driving the health crisis with its fat-laden record and reputation, but they can’t deter loyalists. Bacon continues to win the popular vote, even reaching across the aisle to attract vegetarians.
It’s arguable, though, that above its crispy goodness, beyond the virtues of its rendered renewable grease (which Joy Manning endorsed not long ago), bacon’s greatest appeal is its signature smoky flavor and ultra-savory characteristics. Smoked pork belly, then, isn’t the only candidate capable of reviving recipes with flavor change we can believe in. Other smoke-cured foods, including beef, poultry, fish, and vegetables lend the same infiltrating flavor and aroma. And, just like bacon, a little bit goes a long way.
This rich, filling Smoked Turkey Soup calls on the credentials of naturally smoked, nitrate-free turkey wings to get behind an entire pot of ingredients. Plus, a few ounces of tender turkey meat make the finished bowl even heartier than bits of bacon would.
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Posted by Joy Manning, October 28, 2008 at 11:30 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009.
I love a retro casserole—minus the cream of mushroom soup, of course. Old-fashioned covered dish recipes are often surprisingly light on the meat. They hearken back to a time when economy ruled the home kitchen—a time we are seeing again—and casseroles could successfully stretch a little bit of meat to feed a crowd.
One of my favorite of such dishes is Chicken Divan—usually, pieces of chicken combined with broccoli in a cheesy sauce layered onto buttered toast and then baked. Here, I use a broccoli-heavy Divan-inspired filling in savory hand pies. You could replace the chicken with more broccoli or cauliflower for a vegetarian version of this freezer-friendly dish.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, October 21, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009.
It's always the same sad scene: raw cauliflower in a forlorn pile on an otherwise empty crudités platter. At best, a few florets get called upon merely as a carrier for some mayo-dense dip. It’s the only thing preventing partygoers from dunking bare fingers. Outside of this uncooked cameo, cauliflower earned a terrible reputation for its role in the ridiculous late 1990s low-carb diet craze as the mash in mock mashed potatoes.
Despite the bad rap, I’ve always liked cauliflower OK. But one of the recipes from our forthcoming cookbook, Almost Meatless, boosted me on the bandwagon, beyond the status of fair-weather dipping fan. Our Chicken and Curried Cauliflower Salad Sandwiches turned out to be a surprising favorite of the sixty or so recipes my co-author Joy Manning and I developed. They feature cauliflower, not as space filler for absentee meat or food trickery, but for its tender yet crunchy structure, adaptability to cooking methods and fellow ingredients, and earthy, assertive flavor.
When I saw the season’s harvest piled high like captured cumulus clouds in wood crates at the farmers' market, I was excited to start experimenting with similarly satisfying recipes. Roasted Cauliflower Waldorf Salad proves the meaty worth of this cruciferous vegetable. In addition to autumn apples, crunchy celery, and toasty walnuts, the cauliflower backdrop is the perfect place for leftovers of roasted chicken, turkey, and pork inspired by the chill in the air.
If you passed up the lonely florets at a recent party, you owe cauliflower a shot at proving your prejudice wrong.
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Posted by Joy Manning, October 14, 2008 at 11:10 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009. This week, stuffed cabbage!
As a kid, my neighbor’s grandmother always made stuffed cabbage when she came to visit. My friend called these savory bundles "pigeons" (the Polish name for the dish, Golabki, means pigeon), though she assured me that they weren’t made from the pesky birds. The name instead refers to the shape of the filled leaves.
The actual ingredients were a mystery, and I never pressed the issue because pigeons were delicious and, as a fledgling vegetarian, I didn’t want to know. I’ve been thinking about this lately because I read that the final scene in the movie Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist takes place at the East Village restaurant Veselka, where I ate many plates of vegetarian stuffed cabbage as an NYU student.
They were never as good as my neighbor’s grandmothers, which were obviously stuffed with tons of meats. I created an Almost Meatless version of "pigeons" that combines the hearty richness of beef with the earthy flavor of mushrooms. My take on this classic has only an ounce and a half of beef per serving, but preserves all the beefy flavor I remember.
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Posted by Tara Mataraza Desmond, October 7, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book coauthored by the two, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009. This is the first dispatch from Tara, so please welcome her to the Serious Eats family!
All this talk about bailouts and pork barreling stirred my appetite for “the poor man’s meat," otherwise known as eggplant. The vegetable earned its nickname in fiscally conservative communities throughout the Mediterranean and the Middle East where it was, and still is, called upon for its versatility in cooking. In a happy coincidence, Jim Cramer’s latest warning of “the next Great Depression” sounded simultaneous with abundant stacks of eggplant at farmers' markets around town (October rounds out the growing season in most regions).
I picked the small, slender Asian variety—which is usually more tender and less bitter than larger eggplants—to star in a hearty sandwich that’s satisfying and inexpensive, even with the addition of lamb, a perfect eggplant partner for flavor, texture, and protein.
Demand for lamb pales in comparison to its red meat counterparts in these beef-smitten United States. But it’s gaining notoriety as small, certified humane farms and chefs connect, popularizing its flavorful worth.
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Posted by Joy Manning, September 30, 2008 at 11:25 AM
Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by the book the two coauthored, Almost Meatless, due out in spring 2009.
As the weather cools, my appetite veers in the direction of hearty comfort food. But that doesn’t mean I throw away my Almost Meatless ways. This recipe celebrates one of my favorite fall ingredients, butternut squash. The vegetable’s sweetness is complemented with just a little sausage and smoky mozzarella. The casserole emerges from the oven with a crisp top and tender interior. It’s so flavorful and satisfying no one will care that each serving has less than an ounce of meat.
To make this an altogether meatless entree, omit the sausage and substitute vegetable stock or water for the chicken stock. (I tested it both ways and the veggie version isn't quite the same, but it's still very good.)
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Posted by Joy Manning, September 23, 2008 at 11:30 AM
Editor's Note: This is the first installment of Meat Lite, a weekly column that will celebrate meat in moderation by Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond. Meat Lite was inspired by the book the two coauthored, Almost Meatless, coming out in Spring 2009.
A jar of bacon grease. Photograph by unclerib on Flickr.
Even among fats, bacon grease is considered a special kind of villain. It represents all the evils of saturated fat, calories, and cholesterol. But the fact is: bacon fat has the same amount of calories as olive oil. It's true that it has more saturated fat than some oils do, but it's no worse on that score than butter. And, if you start with high-quality bacon from Heritage pigs, it would be unforgivable to allow that flavorful fat to go to waste. I have a jar of congealed bacon fat in my fridge at all times.
In my experiences, a tablespoon of bacon fat makes a tray of ultra-healthy Brussels sprouts palatable to people who claim to hate this cruciferous veggie (the cruciferous family also includes kale, cabbage, and collards). Just melt the fat down in a skillet, toss with a mess of halved Brussels sprouts, sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper, and roast those cancer-fighters at 400 degrees until they are just brown and tender. Bacon fat also makes an excellent base for sauteing aromatics in otherwise vegetarian soups. It adds tremendous depth of flavor and meatiness with a tiny amount of extra fat.
But my favorite use for this wrongly vilified foodstuff is in my roasted potatoes. I eat them like French fries, as a side for mussels, burgers and salad. And yes, I serve them with an even eviler ingredient: homemade mayonnaise. But that's another post.
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