My "Top Chef" Challenge

I am, among other things, a food show junky.  Top Chef is one of my favorites; although I probably have 10 favorites...


So, when I was preparing for Tamarind Tribal Belly Dance's Student Showcase, I couldn't help but feel like I was on an episode of Top Chef.  I would like to see them try this challenge:  Provide appetizers for an unknown number of people, using as many local ingredients as possible, for $150.  Also, it's May 1st in Wisconsin, which is well before the growing season.  Also, try to make it sort of Middle Eastern themed.  Oh, and there will be a bunch of vegetarians...

Right...

Overall, the day was a total success.  My students were AMAZING and made me very proud.  And the food was good, although it vanished more quickly than I would have preferred.  I didn't have the option of going completely local, but I did try my best.  Unfortunately, the day got away from me and I completely forgot to take pictures of anything.  I'm sorry.  I suck.

Most of the recipes were taken, almost directly, from the Aarti Party website at Food Network.  So, most of the pictures that I have here are taken from there as well.

Chewda: Indian Chex Mix
From what I found online, this is very similar to Chex Mix in the sense that everyone has their own recipe.  It was salty, spicy, and sweet.  I did eat a lot of it right after making it the night before the Showcase, and while it was good room temperature, it was even better warm.  This recipe makes 4 cups, and I doubled that. 

• 2 cups Corn Flakes cereal
• 2 cups Rice Krispies Cereal
• 1/4 cups peanuts (I used Spanish)
• 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1 tsp mustard seeds 
• 1/2 habanero chili (Local)
• 1/2 tsp tumeric
• 1/2 tsp hot madras curry powder
• small handful banana chips
• 2 tablespoons golden rasins
• Kosher Salt

In a large wok over medium heat, toast the corn cereal, puffed rice cereal, peanuts, and pumpkin seeds
until the cereals have crisped up, about 2 minutes. Remove from the pan.

Warm the oil in the same wok over medium heat. Add the mustard seeds (stand back, they'll pop!
), curry leaves, chile, and turmeric. Cook about 30 seconds. Turn the heat off.

Add the cereal mixture, banana chips, and raisins. Season with salt. Toss until well
combined, and pour into a big bowl.

Mint Pea-Lafels (Like a Falafel, but with Peas!)

 This Recipe is supposed to serve four.  I multiplied it by 8.  Warning, if you're going to do that, make sure you have a big enough bowl.  I did not.  And food process in batches.  Also, this recipe was supposed to be deep fried.  I ended up baking them because when they went into the oil they just fell apart and it was nasty.  Baked, though, they worked out well and were a lot healthier.  Also, I'm going to freeze a few and see if they heat up well later.  If so, this would be a good snack for our feeding FatChanceBellyDance when they come to visit in the fall.

• 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
• 1/4 tsp coriander seeds
• 1 cup frozen peas (Local)
• 1 cup frozen edamame (Local)
• 1 small red onion or shallot (local)
• Two cloves garlic (local)
• 3/4 cups mint leaves
• 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional for pans.
• 1/4 cup flour (local)
• 2 large pitas, halved
• 2 roma tomatoes
• 1 cucumber, sliced thinly

Preheat oven to 400.

In a small skillet, toast the fennel and coriander seeds for a couple of minutes until they're fragrant and slightly darker, about 2 minutes. Don't walk away from the pan! They'll burn!

Remove from the pan and throw into a coffee/spice grinder. Grind to a fine powder.

Throw the peas, edamame, ground spices, shallot, garlic, mint leaves, olive
oil, and salt into a food processor. Puree until smooth. It won't get completely
smooth because of the edamame, but process until it is as smooth as possible.

Scrape into a big bowl and stir in the flour. The mixture will still be pretty soft. Not to worry!

Lightly grease 2 cookie sheets with olive oil.  With your hands, scoop out a small amount (like the size of a small ball of cookie dough), and roll into a ball.  Flatten into a disc, and place onto the cookie sheets.  Don't let them touch, but the patties can be pretty close together as they don't expand at all.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown on the bottom.  Flip.  If they fall apart when you pick them up to flip them, they didn't cook long enough.  Cook for 15 minutes longer on the other side.

These keep warm well in a crock pot.  Updates later on whether they can be frozen and re-heated.

Serve with Yogurt Dipping Sauce:

• 1 cup plain yogurt (local)
• 1/2 cup mint leaves, finely chopped
• Kosher Salt

Combine first two ingredients in a bowl.  Mix thoroughly.  Season with salt.

Cucumber Raita
Makes four cups.  I doubled it.

• 2 cups low fat yogurt (local)
• 2 cups grated cucumber
• 1 clove garlic, minced (local)
• 4 sprigs mint leaves, minced
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 2 tbsp golden raisins
• freshly ground black pepper

Mix ingredients together vigorously.

This is really good when the rest of the food is really spicy!

Sloppy Bombay Joes
OMG, these were so good.  They were sweet, and spicy, and crunchy, and GOOD!  And not any harder than regular sloppy joes or chili or any other meaty snack foods.  They were a little watery, though.  More like chili than sloppy joes.  I might cut out the water entirely.  I will absolutely be making these again.  As stated above, these are not my pictures; I served this in pitas.

This recipe serves 4-6.  I made it x4.

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp minced ginger
• 3 cloves garlic, minced (local)
• 2 habanero peppers, whole (local)
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 15 oz. tomato sauce
• 1 cup water
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup shelled pistachios
• 1/4 cup golden raisins
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 large white onion, finely diced (local)
• 1 red bell pepper, seeds and membrane removed, finely diced.
• 1 lb ground beef (local)
• 1/2 tsp honey (local)
• 1/4 cup half and half (local)
• 4-6 pita halves

Begin by making the sauce: Warm the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat, until it
shimmers. Add the ginger, garlic and serrano pepper. Saute until the ginger and garlic brown a
little. Add the garam masala and paprika and saute for 30 seconds. Stir in the tomato sauce and
water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, until thickened, about 15
minutes.

Meanwhile, warm two tablespoons of oil until hot.  Add the pistachios and raisins, cook until the raisins swell up and the pistachios are slightly toasted.  Remove raisins and pistachios and set aside.

Add 1-2 tablespoons more oil and return the pan to heat.  Add the cumin seeds and allow them to sizzle for about 10 seconds.  Stir in the onions and pepper, and saute until softened and starting to brown.  Add the habenero.  Saute for 3 more minutes, seasoning with salt.  Stir in ground beef, breaking up the big lumps, and allow to brown.  Add the sauce, stir, bring to a boil, then lower and allow to simmer.  Cook until the meat is cooked through and the sauce is thickened - about 15 minutes.  Fish out and remove the two peppers, unless you want to give someone a terrible (but potentially hilarious) surprise.  Add honey, half-and-half, pistachios, and raisins.  Stir, taste, and add seasons if appropriate.

Fill the pitas with the sloppy joes, and enjoy!

I also had local sausage and cheese.  I wish I had some now!!  Mmm... Cheese....

Smelt Fest!

It's finally Spring in Wisconsin!  How can I tell?  The daffodils are blooming; the radishes, lettuce, and peas I planted three weeks ago right before it snowed are starting to pop out of the ground, and the Smelt are jumping!

What is a Smelt, you ask?  Well, either you're not from around here or you simply haven't lived yet!  Smelt are tiny fish, which are not local to the great lakes, but were introduced there in the 1900s as food for stocked salmon.  They are now one of the few fishes that I will eat out of Lake Michigan.  Because they are so small, they are not as chucked full of some of the contaminates that other, bigger fish (which eat the smelt) in Lake Michigan might have.

I remember my dad taking me to watch them fish for smelt when I was little.  I don't particularly remember enjoying it.  First off, you fish for them now, in early spring, when still technically feels like winter to everyone who doesn't live in Wisconsin, Minnesota, or Canada!  These guys live out in the deep water all summer, but come in to the shores to spawn in the spring.  Second, you fish for them at night.  Smelt are small, and therefore caught with nets, in one of two ways: either the fishermen lower big square nets down off of the piers, or they wade out into the lake with huge nets pulled between several people.  Either way it is done at night... or possibly very early in the morning.  For the pier nets, they shine lights down into the water to attract the fish.  So, I remember being cold, tired, and a little damp.  Not my idea of a good time then or now!

from JSonline: http://www.jsonline.com/sports/outdoors/119984084.html

Then, too, I was disgusted by the little things.  Smelt are TINY.  So you don't really clean them in the way that normal fish are cleaned.  You cut of their heads, gut them, and that's all.  Bones, tails, fins - all for eating!  When I was younger I grossed out pretty easily, as a lot of kids are, but I really didn't think I cared for meat.  In fact (and it might be a real shocker from reading this blog) I was well on my way to becoming a vegetarian.  Not sure when that changed, but something about tiny fish with crunchy bones is suddenly very appealing!  Lightly breaded and fried, served with french fries, cole slaw, and rye bread. 

So, I thought my re-introduction to smelt would be a perfect locavore activity.  These guys are really popular here, especially along the lake the further north you go.  So, my dad and I made the hike up to Port Washington to enjoy the 60th Annual Smelt Fry at the Port Washington American Legion Post.  It was not fancy, but it was delicious and the locals shared there butter and tartar sauce (which, for some reason were not provided with the meal - although a free beer was!).  The fish were very small, which my dad said is a good thing.  Apparently, when they get bigger, the bones get a little more pokey.  But they were light, and had a good not too fishy flavor.  I didn't really care for the tails because they got caught in my braces, but I read the signs saying that anyone who didn't eat them would get mocked, so I ate them.  And, possibly most exciting, the brandy old fashioned was only $3.50!

I don't have a recipe.  I would guess any light fish fry batter.  You wouldn't want something heavy with breadcrumbs as it would overpower the fish.  But, really, this is a once a year treat... I recommend making it special.  Head to Port Washington, or Manitowoc, or some other small town on the lake, and let the experts make it for you.  Get there a little early and take in the sights.  You won't be able to see the smelt fishing unless you're there VERY early, but you'll probably be able to figure out where they do the fishing from.

From what I understand, the smelt population is dwindling.  I've read it's because of pollution, and I've read it's a result of the zebra muscles taking over.  One one hand, it's hard to be too upset, because they don't belong in Lake Michigan in the first place.  On the other hand, this is a great Wisconsin tradition that might be on it's way out.  We may have been there too early, but there weren't a lot of younger individuals at the American Legion Post...  Maybe smelt aren't trendy.  It's obvious that they're not the sexiest food ever.  And yes, the concept of eating a whole fish is a little scary.  But it's good, and in the end that's all that matters.

And frankly, I'd be very sad to lose one of the last fish I'm willing to eat out of Lake Michigan.  I love fish, and it's a terrible thing to know that there's a big lake full of them right outside my window - but we've polluted our food source so badly that I don't dare eat any but the smallest of them.