2B — THE OBSERVER & BAKER CITY HERALD
TUESDAY, MAY 18, 2021
HOME & LIVING
Sweet and sour beef Beautiful butter lettuce salad
whips up quickly, but
keep that wok hot
Fine sea salt and freshly
ground white pepper
2
tablespoons
extra-
“When I cook vegetables
virgin
olive
oil
today, my goal is to showcase
1 large head butter lettuce,
their natural fl avors and
washed and patted dry
qualities, so simplicity is key,”
(it’s important to clean the
writes chef Eric Ripert in his
lettuce thoroughly of soil
newly published cookbook,
and sand), core trimmed
“Vegetable Simple.”
but head left whole
Simple has certainly been
2
teaspoons
fi nely chopped
a defi ning element in my
fresh
tarragon
leaves
manner of cooking in the
2
teaspoons
fi
nely
past 13-plus months, but
chopped chives
sometimes, those prepara-
Ligaya Figueras
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Linda Gassenheimer
Tribune News Service
Sweet and sour beef is a popular Chi-
nese stir-fry dish. Here’s a simple version
that has great fl avor and can be made in
minutes. The sweet and sour sauce is light
so it gently coats the beef and vegetables
blending the fl avors together, but not
masking the taste of each ingredient.
The secret to wok cooking is to achieve
a crunchy texture while making sure the
food is cooked through. Make sure your
wok or skillet is very hot before adding
the ingredients. The oil should be smok-
ing. Then add the fi rst ingredient and let
sit, without tossing for at least a minute.
Repeat this process when adding the main
ingredients. This allows the pan to regain
its heat after adding the cold food.
Helpful Hints
• To substitute white or red wine
vinegar for rice wine vinegar, use 3 ounces
vinegar and 1 ounce water.
• For easy stir-frying, place all of the
prepared ingredients on a cutting board or
plate in order of use. You won’t have to look
at the recipe once you start to cook.
Countdown
• Make rice dish.
• Prepare Sweet and Sour Beef ingredi-
ents.
• Stir-fry beef dish.
Shopping List
• To buy: 1 bottle rice wine vinegar,
1 package brown sugar, 1 small bottle
reduced-sodium soy sauce, 1 container
cornstarch, 1 bottle sesame oil, 3/4 pound
grass-fed beef tenderloin, 1 red bell pepper,
1 small bok choy, 1 bunch scallions and 1
package microwaveable brown rice.
• Staples: salt and black peppercorns.
SWEET AND SOUR BEEF
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon sesame oil
3/4 pound grass-fed beef tenderloin
cut into 1-inch cubes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup red bell pepper cut into
1-inch cubes (about 1 cup)
2 cups sliced bok choy, leaves and stems
Mix vinegar, sugar, soy sauce and corn-
starch together in a small bowl and set
aside. Heat oil in a wok or nonstick skillet
over high heat. When oil is smoking, add
beef and stir-fry 3 minutes, turning after
one minute. Sprinkle beef with salt and
pepper to taste. Add red bell pepper and
bok choy. Let stir-fry 2 minutes, turning
after one minute. Move the ingredients to
the sides of the wok and add the sauce in
the center. Bring all of the ingredients into
sauce and stir-fry until the sauce thickens,
1 to 2 minutes. Serve over the rice.
Yield 2 servings.
Per serving: 420 calories (38% from
fat), 17.5 g fat (5.7 g saturated, 6.8 g
monounsaturated), 84 mg cholesterol,
38.5 g protein, 24.1 g carbohydrates, 1.8 g
fi ber, 674 mg sodium.
RICE AND SCALLIONS
Recipe by Linda Gassenheimer
1 package microwave brown
rice (1 1/2 cups cooked)
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1/4 cup sliced scallions
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
In a small bowl, combine
the sherry vinegar, balsamic
vinegar, and salt and white
pepper to taste. Slowly whisk
in the olive oil.
Season the lettuce lightly
with salt and white pepper.
Using a pastry brush, paint
each lettuce leaf with the vinai-
grette. Sprinkle with the herbs.
Quarter and serve immedi-
ately, on chilled plates.
Serves 4.
Per serving: 75 calories (88%
calories from fat), 1 g protein,
2 g carbohydrates, trace fi ber,
7 g total fat (1 g saturated), no
cholesterol, 33 mg sodium.
SILKY BROCCOLI
SOUP
Fine sea salt
1 large or 2 small stalks
1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
SPRING
Preparation: 10 minutes + overnight chill time
Makes 2 servings
2. Season broth to taste with salt (usually 1/2
teaspoon, but this depends on the base used).
Add chicken breasts or thighs to simmering
broth. Reduce heat to very low, cover the pan
and cook 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and let
the chicken sit in the broth for 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, prepare vegetables and op-
tional add-ins.
4. Remove chicken from broth with tongs to
a cutting board. Discard skin. Pull chicken away
from bones in long shreds. (Broth and chicken
can be refrigerated separately for up to 3 days.)
5. Just before serving, return broth to a sim-
mer. Add 1 sliced zucchini, 1 cup peas, 1 diced
tomato and optional 1/2 sliced jalapeno; cook
2 to 4 minutes (the longer time is for the frozen
peas).
Step 6: Stir in 3 cups spinach and the shred-
ded chicken; simmer 2 minutes. Stir in 2 sliced
green onions, 1/4 cup chopped cilantro and
1 tablespoon chopped dill. Add any optional
ingredients and sprinkle with lemon zest. Serve
in deep, warmed bowls.
OVERNIGHT BREAKFAST BOWL
BUTTER LETTUCE
SALAD
Muesli cereal delivers a great blend of
textures in these overnight bowls. Try a com-
bination of frozen diced mango and blueber-
ries here. Mixed berries or cherries would
also taste delicious. You can skip the frozen
fruit and serve the cereal topped with sliced
banana and fresh berries.
1 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut
milk or skim milk
1 tablespoon cane syrup, rice syrup, pure
maple syrup, agave syrup or honey, to taste
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch salt
1/2 to 2/3 cup muesli cereal, such as
Bob’s Red Mill, or old-fashioned oats
1 cup chopped fruit, such as frozen
mixed fruit or mixed berries
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1. Mix 1 cup yogurt, 1/2 cup milk, 1 table-
spoon syrup, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, 1/2 teaspoon
cinnamon and a pinch of salt in a bowl until
smooth. Fold in 1/2 to 2/3 cup muesli cereal and
1 cup chopped fruit.
2. Spoon mixture into 2 individual covered
containers. Refrigerate covered overnight.
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Recipes excerpted from
“Vegetable Simple” by Eric
Ripert. Copyright © 2021
by Eric Ripert. Excerpted
by permission of Random
House, an imprint of Penguin
Random House LLC.
2 teaspoons aged
sherry vinegar
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
Per serving: 231 calories (23% from
fat), 6 g fat (1 g saturated, 2.4 g
monounsaturated), no cholesterol, 4.4 g
protein, 39.9 g carbohydrates, 2.8 g fi ber,
8 mg sodium.
Continued from Page 1B
541-963-0265
888-843-9090
In a medium to large pot,
bring 3 cups of water to a boil.
Add 1 teaspoon salt, then add
the broccoli stems and cook
until they start to soften, about
2 minutes. Add the fl orets
and cook until tender, about 5
minutes.
Once the fl orets and stems
are tender, drain them in a
sieve set over a bowl, reserv-
ing the liquid. Transfer the
broccoli to a blender, adding
enough of the reserved liquid
to cover. Add the butter and
puree until very smooth. You
can adjust the consistency
with more of the reserved
cooking water if it’s too thick.
Taste the soup and adjust
the seasoning with salt and
white pepper. Serve in 4
warmed bowls, or chill im-
mediately and reheat later, to
keep the soup’s bright green
color.
Serves 4.
M. Curtiss PN-7077A CCB# 183649
M
Microwave rice according to package
instructions. Measure 1 1/2 cups rice and
reserve remaining rice for another time.
Add oil, scallions and salt and pepper to
taste. Toss well.
Yield 2 servings.
By Linda Gassenheimer
Ready the next day
tions don’t produce results
that are beautiful to behold.
The vegetable dishes that
Ripert shares from his rep-
ertoire are as artful as they
are easy.
I was drawn to Butter Let-
tuce Salad because it calls for
a pastry brush, used to paint
the lettuce leaves with an
herby vinaigrette. The notion
of a lettuce head as canvas
is a lovely reminder that
cooking is a form of art, an
expression of creativity.
In the headnote, Ripert
remarks that “your guests
will enjoy cutting into the
lettuce head with a knife and
fork, as they would a wedge
salad.” Mine certainly did.
The bright broccoli soup
takes advantage of the entire
plant, stems included. I
served it warm, but one of
my dinner guests, who took
leftovers home that night,
happily drank it cold for
breakfast the next morning.
Top it with croutons if you
desire crunch and some color
contrast.
broccoli, fl orets separated
and stems thinly sliced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Freshly ground white pepper
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