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America's Favorite Recipes
The Melting Pot Cuisine
By Uma Aggarwal AuthorHouse
Copyright © 2016 Uma Aggarwal
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-5246-4000-2
CHAPTER 1
Favorite Side Dishes
Here are recipes for dishes to round off every kind of meal from weeknight suppers to special celebrations. Whether you're looking for just the right kind of dishes to serve before a special meal or easy sides dishes to serve with midweek suppers, there is possibly a dish for you. Everybody in the kitchen is looking for more creative ways to prepare side servings of vegetables, rice or grains. Sometimes it requires extra effort to learn these basics like how to make fluffy white rice and mashed potatoes. Even though they are called side dishes, these unassuming recipes often steal the spotlight on the dinner table. Like when you are serving chicken and mashed potatoes for dinner -- what are you most excited about? Let's be honest, it's the mashed potatoes, and if the side dish does not make such a splash, it is always at the very least an integral part of the meal, complementing the other flavors present at the table and tying the entire meal together. Our eyes tell us when we're attracted to certain dishes; it's the same with food. So it could be said that we do eat with our eyes. If we don't find it physically pleasing, then it's unlikely we'll want to eat it. Ever wondered why restaurants serve up meals with a little garnish on the plate, some salad, etc. It's to make the food seem more attractive. So sometimes these side dishes do the job that you never expected.
Green Beans with Almonds
This is a great recipe for making green string beans. In this dish the green beans keep their bright green color and their snap. The dish is also called Green Beans Almandine. Almandine is a culinary term indicating a garnish of almonds.
This classic dish that's easy and elegant originated in the Liguria region of Italy, where the rich soil is perfect to grow green beans. Instead of almonds you can add toasted Hazel nuts or Pine nuts, they also go very well with green beans and make it a great dish for a holiday dinner. Green beans, while quite low in calories (just 43.75 calories in a whole cup), are loaded with nutrients.
They are an excellent source of vitamin K, vitamin C, manganese, vitamin A, dietary fiber, potassium, folate and iron. It is a wonderful side dish that is healthy and especially flavorful. Slivered almonds look so pretty with this French-style green beans preparation, and they add a tasty crunch too.
Ingredients
1 ½-- Lb. Fresh Green beans trimmed
1-Tbsp Olive oil
1-Tbsp Butter
1-tsp Minced garlic
Black pepper and Salt to taste
½--tsp Cumin powder
Toasted slivered or sliced almonds, for garnish
Lemon Juice for garnish
Garammasala for garnish
Method
1. Cook green beans 5 minutes in 1-inch boiling water, covered. Drain beans and return pan to heat.
2. Add oil and butter to the pan. Add the garlic and brown it a little and toss beans into the pan.
3. Season with salt, pepper and cumin and heat it through. Transfer to a serving plate. Garnish green beans with toasted slivered or sliced almonds and sprinkle of lemon juice and a pinch of garammasala and serve.
5. Serves 4.
Broccoli in Oyster Sauce
Broccoli was first introduced to the United States by Italian immigrants but did not become widely known until the 1920s.
It is healthy, nutritious, adds a lot of fiber to your diet and is loaded with vitamins A, C and K. Broccoli is best cooked when you brush it with olive oil, salt, garlic powder and black pepper and roast it at 425°F. After roasting sprinkle, it with some Parmesan and lemon juice and serve.
Another great way to serve is to cut it in small pieces, quickly stir-fry and glaze with oyster sauce and a hint of sesame oil. This way it will look like as part of an Asian-influenced dinner when you serve it with steamed rice and a main meat dish. The rice soaks up the sauce and makes it soft and tasty. It also makes a delicious and simple vegetable side dish when you add a few water chestnuts for crunch. I often cook it in hot melted butter flavored with chopped garlic, chopped onions, green chilies, salt, sprinkle of red pepper stir fried until it is a little tender. Sprinkle a pinch of garam masala and chopped coriander leaves and serve. It is quick and delicious.
Ingredients
1½- Lb Fresh Broccoli
2-Tbsp Olive oil
1½-Tbsp Minced garlic
1-Tbsp Minced ginger
1½- tsp. Sugar and cornstarch /each
½-Tbsp Soy sauce
1- tsp. Red pepper flakes (optional)
½-Tbsp Sesame oil
½- Cup Chicken broth
3½-Tbsp Bottled oyster sauce
2-Tbsp Sake or dry white wine
Method
1. Cut florets from broccoli and place them in a microwavable dish. Peel stems, slice and add them. Rinse and drain. Microwave partly covered on high for 6 to 7 minutes or until crisp tender. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl, combine oil, garlic and ginger root.
3. Microwave on high i minute. Stir in sugar, cornstarch, soy sauce, red pepper flakes and sesame oil. Add broth, oyster sauce and wine. Microwave on high 1½ to 2 minutes, or until thickened.
4. Drain broccoli and add the above sauce, tossing to coat lightly.
5. Season to taste and serve immediately.
Baked Sweet Potato or Acorn Squash
Often served in America on Thanksgiving, this dish represents traditional American cuisine and is the one that was prepared by the indigenous people of America even before European settlers first arrived here. It is a side dish of mashed sweet potatoes sometimes topped with a brown sugar and pecan topping. Since then sweet potatoes are cooked many ways. Sweet potato pie is a traditional favorite dish in the Southern U.S. cuisine. Then slices of the Sweet potato fried in bacon drippings are served with the bacon on the toast. Sweet potato fries are also prepared in the same fashion as French fried potatoes and many more different ways. Sweet potatoes are extraordinarily healthy and are rich in carotenoids (orange and yellow pigments) and they also play a role in helping the body respond to insulin. And as unlikely as it may seem, coffee (another magic food) and sweet potatoes have something in common: They're both rich in the natural plant compound chlorogenic acid, which may help decrease insulin resistance and they're actually an excellent source of this compound. Abundant vitamin C found in sweet potatoes may also help fight heart disease and complications of diabetes, such as nerve and eye damage.
Ingredients
4-5-Sweet potatoes or Acorn squash
½- Cup Brown sugar
1-Tbsp Honey
¾- Cup Butter
1-tsp Grated orange rind
1-tsp Cinnamon powder
1-tsp Ginger minced
¼-tsp Cayenne pepper
1-tsp Salt
¼-tsp Nutmeg or mace
1-Tbsp lime-juice
Method
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Place the unpeeled, whole sweet potatoes in a large saucepan cover them and bring to a boil. Cook until barely tender. Remove from heat and chill completely.
2. Peel the sweet potatoes and slice them into ½-inch thick rounds. Arrange the rounds neatly in a buttered baking dish.
3. Mix the brown sugar, honey, butter, orange rind, cinnamon, ginger, cayenne pepper and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium flame and cook for about 1 minute. Pour the butter-sugar mixture over the sweet potatoes and sprinkle the nutmeg and lime -juice over the top.
4. Place the baking dish into the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the potatoes are heated through and lightly browned on the top. Serve it with your favorite meal. Adjust the seasoning if you like before serving.
5. Serves 4-6
Scalloped Potatoes
Scalloped potatoes are my favorite though it is an old time traditional recipe. Traditional because you will mostly find it prepared at the major holiday times like Thanksgiving and X-mas. I would rank it number #1 among all the potato side dishes of our cuisine. You would not realize how delicious they are until you have made them yourself and soon you get surprised that very soon they will become one of your favorite dishes to prepare at the family gathering and holidays. They are healthy and are made with very basic ingredients like milk, cheese, onions, bread crumbs, thin slices of potatoes and some butter. Sometimes mushrooms or tomatoes or both of these ingredients are used.
The name "scalloped" can sometimes can confuse you into thinking that somehow scallop the shell fish could be used in cooking them but as you see it has nothing to do with seafood. Actually the term "scallop" was used by English chefs to slice the meat thinly and the same term started to get used for slicing potatoes. This also shows their clear connection of its origin and according to some the dish originated in England. The pilgrims or the early settlers might have brought this dish to this new land we call it America.
Ingredients
4-Lbs. Yukon or Idaho Potatoes
¼- Cup Butter
1- tsp. Chopped garlic
1-tsp. Chopped green Chili
2 ½- Tbsp. All Purpose flour
Salt to taste
Black pepper to taste
¼tsp. Cayenne pepper (optional)
2- Cup Milk
½- Cup Guere cheese
1-Tbsp Chopped coriander
Method
1. Boil the potatoes in salted water until tender. Peel and slice (%cm) thin and layer them 3- quart baking dish and set them aside.
2. Prepare the white sauce in a sauce- pan by heating the butter until melted and add garlic and chili. Wait till it sizzles and then add the flour, stir and cook until it starts to bubble and then gradually add the milk.
3. Keep stirring and cooking on low heat until you have a sauce of pourable consistency.
4. Add salt and pepper to taste and pour over the prepared potatoes in the casserole dish.
5. Sprinkle the cheese and bake it in the oven at 350°F for about 10 minutes and then change the setting to broil. Wait till the cheese turns to a shade of brown about 3-5 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle the chopped coriander or parsley and serve with your meal.
6. Serves 6.
Boston Baked Beans
Among the New England dishes Boston Baked beans are on the top of the list. The pilgrims and the early settlers learned how to make corn bread and baked beans from the natives. And also invented brown bread by mixing barley meal with corn meal.
Since the early settlers were using molasses for making Rum they also started adding it to the baked beans and Boston Baked Beans came were born. This signature dish was invented by the Puritans during the celebration of Sabbath. The beans were cooked in a community oven and local chef would collect pots of beans from the locals on a Saturday morning and brought them back Saturday night for dinner after baking. In New England sometimes the beans were left overnight in the oven and were delivered for Sunday meal and still comply with the Sabbath regulations. Brown bread with baked beans has been a popular meal in Massachusetts till the 1930s.
There is a interesting piece of history attached to Boston baked beans. Every history lover knows the great molasses flood of 1919 when the whole city got bathed in molasses. It is said that 50 foot tank holding 2.5 million gallons of molasses exploded on its way to the rum and alcohol producing factory and killed 21 and injured 150.
Ingredients
6- Bacon silices
3-Tbsp Olive oil
1 ½- Cups Chopped onion
4-Cloves Garlic chopped
1 ¼- Cup Barbecue sauce
¾- Cup Dark beer
¼-Cup Mildly flavored molasses
3-Tbsp Dijon mustard
3-Tbsp Dark brown sugar
2-Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1-Tbsp Soy sauce
2- Chopped Jalapeno peppers
1- 15- to 16-Oz Cans Northern beans, drained
Chopped fresh parsley
Method
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Cook bacon in large skillet over medium heat until crisp.
2. Transfer to paper towels and drain.
3. Transfer 2 ½- tablespoons of olive oil to the skillet and add onions and garlic.
4. Fry for 2 minutes and add the cooked and chopped bacon. Fry and cook few minutes and remove from heat.
5. Add barbecue sauce, beer, molasses, Dijon mustard, dark brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce and jalapeno peppers to the pan and Wisk to blend.
6. Stir in beans. Transfer bean mixture to 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish and bake uncovered until the sauce thickens slightly, about 1 hour.
7. Cool 10 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley and serve. Serves 8-10.
Creamed Corn
In American regional cooking, there are many famous corn recipes, such as corn chowder, creamed corn, succotash, and cornbread and also do not forget that corn was also served on the first Thanksgiving table in 1621.
When Americans think of corn the first preparation that come to their mind is corn on the cob. But have you tried creamed corn with roux thickened sauce to thicken the dish instead of the natural corn juice, because the sauce contains enough cornstarch and it also makes the whole dish much more lively and fresh tasting. Creamed corn became popular first in American Midwest and then rest of the country. But unlike other preparations of sweet corn (like corn on the cob and freshly cooked corn) creamed corn is partially pureed releasing the liquid contents of the kernels in a creamy sauce. This Southern style creamed corn uses bacon as a flavor and is richer in consistency. Corn may not be a grand vegetable but it is a life saving grain. If it had not been for corn, the Pilgrims of Plymouth Colony might have starved to death during their first year in America. The Indians taught settlers how to grow corn, pound corn into meal, and how to cook with it in so many different ways.
Here is a recipe for one of the most loved side dishes of American cuisine.
Ingredients
2- Tbsp Butter
¼ Cup Chopped onions
2- Tbsp. Chopped Green pepper medium hot
16-Oz package Frozen corn
1-Cup Heavy cream
2-Tbsp white sugar
1-Tbsp Flour
4-Oz. Cream cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
¼-Cup Grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
Method
1. Cook the onion in 2 tablespoons butter in a saucepan and add the chopped green peppers until transparent.
2. Combine together corn, cream, sugar, flour, cream cheese, salt and pepper, to taste in a large bowl and slowly add to the above mixture in the saucepan. Stir to cook for 2 minutes
3. Cook the corn mixture and turn heat down to medium-low, stirring until it becomes creamy and corn is softer and creamier about an hour.
4. Stir in the Parmesan cheese until melted and serve.
5. Serves 6-8.
Note: Use your favorite kind of blue cheese or Gorgonzola and bacon for a variation. Because of the saltiness of the bacon and blue cheese, adding salt may not be necessary.
Stuffed Tomatoes
Tomatoes have long been a part of our history in the south. Tomatoes arrived in North America before the Revolutionary war and the earliest reference of them is in 1710, when an herbal list reported seeing them in what is now South Carolina. Thomas Jefferson grew tomatoes at Monticello back in 1781, but they didn't' really start to become popular here until after the Civil war. It was not until the early 1900s that the tomatoes gained popularity in the U.S. and since that time, we can't seem to get enough of them.
Whether served at breakfast, lunch or supper, tomatoes are a versatile food and are frequently present on our plates. Being a part of the fruit family it is often called love apple or golden apple (in France and Italy) but here in America we definitely treat it like a vegetable.
Not only do tomatoes taste delicious, they are Super healthy. A great source of vitamins (A, C, E and K) and magnesium, niacin, iron, phosphorus and copper it has been considered a health food for quite a long time now. Below is a delicious stuffed tomatoes recipe that is quite easy and can be made quite fast.
Ingredients
10- Medium tomatoes
1/4-Cup vegetable oil
1-Medium chopped onion
1-tsp. Minced garlic
1-tsp. Minced ginger
1-tsp. minced green chilies
1-Cup Chopped Mushrooms
Salt to taste
1/2-tsp. Cumin powder
Black pepper to taste
1-Cup Cooked rice
½-Cup Crumbled ricotta cheese
or
Pan fried ground beef or ground turkey
¼- Cup toasted pine nuts
1-tsp lemon juice
1/4- Cup Grated parmesan cheese
1- Tbsp. chopped basil/cilantro
Method
1. Preheat oven at 475°F
2. Slice the top of the tomatoes and remove it as a cap. Remove the entire pulp and save it in a bowl. Rub a little oil on the exterior of the tomatoes and set them aside.
3. Cook the onions in 1/4 cup of oil until light brown and add the ginger, green chilies, and ginger and mushrooms until all the moisture is gone.
4. Add the tomatoes pulp, salt, pepper, cumin powder and cook 2 more minutes and mix in the pulp into the onions mixture.
5. Add the ricotta cheese, pine nuts, cooked rice and stir to mix. Add the lemon juice and set the filling aside.
6. Set the tomatoes on a cookie sheet without the cap and cook for 5-8 minutes until the skin looks slightly cooked and turns a little brown. Remove from the oven.
7. When cool enough to handle, fill them with the fillings and sprinkle the parmesan over them. Reduce the temp to 350°F and bake them for another 5 minutes. Sprinkle the chopped coriander and serve them with your meals. They make a elegant presentation.
8. Serves 8.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from America's Favorite Recipes by Uma Aggarwal. Copyright © 2016 Uma Aggarwal. Excerpted by permission of AuthorHouse.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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