Page 4C
East Oregonian
EAT, DRINK & EXPLORE
COOKING WITH HORSERADISH
HOMEMADE PREPARED HORSERADISH
An underappreciated
root with bold kick
By SARA MOULTON
Associated Press
Horseradish — a member
of the mustard family native
to Eastern and Central
Europe — has been enjoyed
by people since antiquity.
Even so, when Peter Kump,
one of my mentors, wrote
in praise of the root in
1992, he argued well that
horseradish remained vastly
underappreciated.
Sure, we know it as a key
ingredient of cocktail sauces
and as one of the ive bitter
herbs served at a Passover
seder. But fewer people
know it for how well it
complements roasted meats,
poultry and ish, he said.
If anything, Peter
may have understated its
usefulness. Food historian
Waverly Root wrote that
some ancient populations
ate copious amounts of
horseradish in winter for
its warming qualities and
that Roman philosophers
recommended horseradish
to treat all manner of
ailments. Modern chefs
have always loved
horseradish, but now,
increasingly, you can ind
it in the produce section of
the supermarket, making it
easy to add it to your home
culinary tool kit.
So let’s talk about two
kinds of horseradish: fresh
and homemade prepared. In
search of fresh horseradish
at the supermarket, look for
a irm, off-white root with
no soft spots or cuts. Peeled,
it should appear smooth
and white inside. Potent
as horseradish can be,
sometimes just a hint of it
Saturday, June 4, 2016
Start to inish: 5 minutes
Makes about 1/2 cup
• 2-ounce piece peeled fresh horseradish, cut into
1-inch chunks
• 2 1/2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
• 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
In a food processor, process the horseradish until
it is very inely chopped. Keeping your eyes averted
when you remove the lid from the food processor,
transfer the horseradish to a bowl and stir in the
vinegar and salt. Let stand for 10 minutes before
using.
PETITE STEAKS WITH HOMEMADE
PREPARED HORSERADISH CRUST
AP Photo/J.M. Hirsch
Petite steaks topped with a homemade prepared horseradish crust.
is enough. In that case, peel
and grate the fresh vegetable
on top of your inished dish
right before serving. Raw,
it’s almost sweet.
But if you want to
make your own prepared
horseradish — similar to
what you’d buy jarred at the
grocer — a ierce batch that
will last for several weeks
in the fridge, you’ll need
to start with quite a bit of
freshly grated horseradish.
If you try to do the job
with a hand-grater, you’ll
be sawing away for hours.
Here’s a much faster and
easier way; cut the root into
1-inch chunks and grind
them in a food processor.
However — and please
pay attention here — once
you’ve ground the root,
you must treat it like a
dangerous gas. Horseradish
contains strong and volatile
oils that are released when
it is chopped or crushed.
That’s why you need
to stand at arm’s length
from the processor as you
remove the lid, then keep
your distance for a few
minutes before spooning it
out of the processor. If you
don’t keep your distance,
at least initially, you’ll tear
up worse than if you’d just
chopped a bushel of onions.
Oddly enough, 10
minutes later all the wind
has gone out of this storm.
The horseradish becomes
quite mild, even boring.
What do you do to preserve
horseradish’s trademark
heat? Add vinegar, and
do it quickly, before the
lavor starts to fade. Your
homemade condiment will
taste sharper and cleaner
than the stuff in the bottle
and can be used in any dish
to which you used to add the
bottled stuff.
Here, I’ve combined our
prepared horseradish with
mayonnaise and mustard to
form a super-tangy glue for
the crumbs adorning some
steaks. It would be equally
wonderful with ish. For that
matter, it’ll add a nice kick
to just about any spring dish
you can name.
———
Sara Moulton is the host
of public television’s “Sara’s
Weeknight Meals.” She was
executive chef at Gourmet
magazine for nearly 25
years and spent a decade
hosting several Food
Network shows, including
“Cooking Live.” Her
latest cookbook is “Home
Cooking 101.”
Start to inish: 45 minutes
Servings: 4
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary
• 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 1/2 cup inely crushed potato chips
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons prepared fresh horseradish
(recipe above)
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• Kosher salt and ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 pounds petite illet or lat-iron steaks or
boneless short ribs, cut crosswise into 1-inch thick
pieces
Heat the oven to broil.
In a large, oven-safe skillet over medium, heat 1
tablespoon of the oil. Add the garlic and rosemary
and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Stir in the
breadcrumbs and cook, stirring, until they have
turned slightly golden, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to
a bowl, then add the potato chips and stir well. Set
aside. Wipe out the skillet.
In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise,
horseradish and mustard, then season with salt and
pepper.
Heat the remaining oil in the skillet over high
heat. Season the steaks on both sides with salt and
pepper, then sear for 1 minute per side.
Working quickly, spread the horseradish mixture
generously on one side of each steak, then top the
mixture with the breadcrumb mixture, pressing
it down gently. Transfer the skillet to the oven’s
middle shelf and broil until the crumbs are lightly
browned, 1 to 2 minutes. Divide the steaks among
serving plates, along with any juices from the
skillet. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Nutrition information per serving: 560 calories;
370 calories from fat (66 percent of total calories);
41 g fat (10 g saturated; 0.5 g trans fats); 120 mg
cholesterol; 460 mg sodium; 13 g carbohydrate; 1 g
iber; 1 g sugar; 34 g protein.
A summer spin on the
grilled cheese sandwich
By KATIE WORKMAN
Associated Press
Several weeks ago when we rolled out
the grill for the irst time of the season,
there was much joy. What to grill irst?
Ribs? Burgers? Pizza? So many choices.
This is the sandwich that triumphed:
A marriage of a summer BLT and an
actually grilled-grilled-cheese sandwich.
The buttery crunch of the bread, the
juicy tomatoes, the melty cheese, the
crisp bacon and lettuce — these two
sandwiches were meant to ind each other
and become one.
You can use iceberg lettuce if you want
more of a crunch, and you can experiment
with various types of cheese and bacon
or pancetta. User your imagination, and
this recipe will make this the summer of
grilled cheese.
———
Katie Workman has written two
cookbooks focused on easy, family-
friendly cooking, “Dinner Solved!” and
“The Mom 100 Cookbook.” She blogs at
http://www.themom100.com/about-katie-
workman/
Black River Outdoors Center via AP
This undated photo provided by Black River Outdoors Center shows kayakers entering a
cypress swamp on the Waccamaw River in South Carolina. Kayak trips through the swamp
offer quiet natural surroundings and a tranquil contrast to busy nearby Myrtle Beach.
Just a few miles from busy
Myrtle Beach, a quiet kayak trip
By BETH J. HARPAZ
AP Travel Editor
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C.
— Condo towers with ocean
views. King Kong hanging off
a mini-Empire State Building.
A zipline, escape room and
helicopter rides.
Myrtle Beach is all of
this and more. But just a
few miles from the city’s
busy boardwalk and roadside
attractions, a different type of
thrill awaits.
Here, the Waccamaw
River meanders through a
cypress swamp in a wildlife
refuge. Spanish moss drapes
the trees, turtles sun them-
selves on stones and spider
lily plants bloom with bright
white lowers.
Spend a few hours
kayaking the calm waters
and who knows what you
might encounter. A dragonly
could land on your arm. A
water snake could slither by.
A bright yellow bird might
pierce the quiet with a loud
call as it lits from tree to tree,
but good luck pronouncing its
name: prothonotary warbler.
Duck your head if a
low-hanging branch comes up
too fast to paddle around, and
move to the side if the modern
AP Photo/Katie Workman
THE ULTIMATE GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICH
Black River Outdoors Center via AP
This undated photo provided by Black River Outdoors
Center shows a dragonly landing on the hand of a kay-
aker in the Waccamaw River in South Carolina.
world intrudes: Motorboats
turn up on the waterway too.
I did a two-hour kayak trip
here with a group of friends,
booking through the Black
River Outdoors Center. Our
guide, Mandy Johnson, was
brilliant at spotting wildlife
and generous with her knowl-
edge. And her love of the
natural world was infectious:
We smiled as she picked a
lailing white moth out of the
water and let it cling to her hat
until its wings dried.
The kayak outing was one
of many excursions I took
on a ive-day getaway to the
Myrtle Beach area. But while
I enjoyed the destination’s
other pleasures — including
brunch at the Tupelo Honey
restaurant and a visit to Fat
Harold’s, a North Myrtle
Beach club famous for the
swing dance known as the
Carolina shag — the kayak
trip stands apart.
See, exciting activities are
easy to come by in a place
like Myrtle Beach — not to
mention restaurants, bars,
ireworks and shopping.
What’s harder to ind is tran-
quility. But there it was, in a
kayak.
Start to inish: 20 minutes
Servings: 4
• 8 slices sourdough bread
• 4 teaspoons unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/3 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese (or choose your favorite cheese)
• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 8 strips cooked bacon or pancetta
• 8 large pieces romaine lettuce or iceberg for more crunch
• 3 plum tomatoes, sliced
• Kosher or coarse salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Preheat the grill to medium low.
Butter one side of each of the pieces of bread. Evenly divide the cheese
between 4 slices of the bread, on the un-buttered sides. Place all of the bread,
buttered side down, on the grill and cover the grill. Grill the bread until the
bottom is lightly marked with grill marks and the cheese is melted. You may
need to remove the plain pieces of bread irst, and move the cheese covered
pieces to the top grill rack and cover the grill for a couple of extra minutes, so
that the cheese melts but the bottoms of the bread slices don’t burn.
Spread the mayonnaise evenly over the unbuttered sides of the 4 pieces of
plain toast. On the melted cheese slices, layer the bacon, lettuce and tomatoes,
and season with salt and pepper. Place the mayonnaise spread slices mayo-side
down on the sandwiches, slice, and eat warm.
Nutrition information per serving: 1042 calories; 270 calories from fat; 30 g
fat (13 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 54 mg cholesterol; 2169 mg sodium; 150 g
carbohydrate; 8 g iber;15 g sugar; 43 g protein.