T’chi’na (NOT “Tahini”)

Backstory

2020 Update: I revisited this recipe from 2009, and tweaked it for eleven years worth of refinement).

Americans like things simple. Cheese Whiz, American Cheese, Pop Tarts. Today I saw a sealable bag with marinade in it, sold as an “incredible way to marinate meat.” It’s easier I guess to pull something off a shelf than think long enough to add marinade, water and food and seal ’em together.

T’chi’na — a sauce or dip with sesame paste as a base — is a key component of several dishes, including  hummus and baba ghanoush from the Middle East and sesame noodles from Asia. It’s fattening, but it’s good fat. It makes a great protein base for a vegan meal and goes well with a lot of things. Like rice: it’s a great ‘fill me upper.’

Yes, it can be used as a drizzled dressing on salads or in a good felafel at a central bus station in Israel. But I like it sharp, with a Texas flair, and thick and creamy. Fills all the hungry spaces in your belly, as good as a burger, without (most of) the guilt.

I make it in large batches. The longer it sits in the fridge (2 weeks is fine) the stronger the flavors get.

While purists might whine, in this particular case powdered garlic is a better flavor dispersant than dicing, mincing, or crushing garlic. Roll with it. Trust me. I also haven’t found a taste difference between bottled lemon juice and fresh for the purposes of this recipe.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. sesame paste (I prefer toasted, but raw is just fine)
  • 2/3C – 1C lemon juice
  • 1T sesame seeds (again, toasted or raw work equally well)
  • 1T garlic powder
  • 1T Tabasco sauce
  • optional: 2t chili flakes
  • 1.5t salt
  • Water

Preparation

  1. Take all the ingredients & put them in a food processor with a blade attachment in place. By hand: bowl and whisk (that’s what I use)
  2. Spin it up/mix. Add water until it’s got a creamy consistency: at least a minute after you’ve got the color from murky brown to a light tan
  3. If the color’s too dark, at more lemon juice

Serves:

Depends. It’s an ingredient for other dishes. It can be eaten as a dip with tortilla chips (hey, this is Texas!) or pita, fresh or baked. Otherwise, use in some of my recipes.

Timing

Prep time: 2 minutes. Elapsed time: 5 minutes.

Kickass Pea Soup

Backstory

There’s a place in town that makes a great pea soup. Okay, I know, it’s just pea soup… but there’s an incredible warmth, body and texture to that soup. (It’s also fun that it coagulates when it cools, and forms fleleh too.) My mom made a great one with oxtails for flavoring. Not having oxtails and being on a tight budget, I felt like improvising.

I don’t know what drives folks to make arcane recipes when simple works. I’ve found recipes for split peas with the following ingredients:

  • Evaporated milk
  • Spaghetti
  • Instant minced onion
  • Croutons
  • Celery sticks
  • Green food coloring
  • Chicken bouillon cubes
  • Instant bouillon granules

Oy…

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs. dried split peas
  • 1-1/2 lbs. carrots
  • Dealer’s choice: 1 lb. bacon or  1/4C olive oil
  • 1 yellow onion
  • 1 bulb garlic
  • Take your pick: 8C of water or 4C water and 1qt. low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
  • 1T black pepper
  • 2T paprika
  • 4 bay leaves

Preparation

  1. Check the peas carefully for stones and  then wash the peas thoroughly (dirt is nice, but it doesn’t belong in soup)
  2. Chop the onion
  3. Crush the garlic cloves & mince
  4. If you’re using bacon, toss it into a 5qt. pot with the onions. If you’re going veggie, heat the olive oil to the smoke point, then toss in the onions
  5. Stir until onions are coated in grease/oil, then lid for 5 minutes, stirring to keep things from burning
  6. Add 6 cups water, the peas, the carrots and the bay leaves
  7. Bring to a roiling boil for five minutes
  8. Add the pepper & paprika
  9. Keep at boil, stirring every 3-5 minutes so nothing burns on the bottom for 30 minutes
  10. Bring it down to a simmer. Stir every 10 minutes, for another 40-50 minutes

Because of the specific gravity of the peas, it’ll look like soup on top and goop on the bottom. Be one with the pot; it’s fine. As the soup cools, the liquids will be absorbed by the peas.

First aid: If it’s starting to look too thick, don’t be shy about adding a few more cups of water. Worst case: it’ll boil off.

Serves:12-14 servings

Timing

Prep time: 10 minutes. Elapsed time: 90 minutes.

Backstory

I generally hate sugary breads. Sugar in general in breads. But I had only a little time to get something together for two parties, so I gave it a shot. The second bread didn’t work, in the sense that I was looking for a multi-colored swirl or turducken effect. When I get it down, I’ll post it here. But the first bread was delicious, and it goes wonderfully with red wine, butter, or PBJ, depending on circumstances. I’m presuming y’all have a Kitchen Aid mixer with a dough hook, otherwise the mixing step will be 10 minutes instead of the 3 with the machine. (All hail American ingenuity!)

Ingredients

  • 5C Flour [unbleached whole]
  • 1T Salt
  • 2T yeast with 1T sugar in 1C warm water
  • 1/2C oatmeal
  • 1/2C maple syrup
  • 1/3C Almond oil

Preparation

  1. Mix all the dry ingredients, reserving 2C flour, while the yeast proofs in a bowl. When it has, add it and the wet ingredients to the mix.
  2. Add the remaining 2C flour slowly, until the dough is tacky but stays in a ball.
  3. Grease a bowl, put dough ball in it, then grease the entire dough.
  4. Cover and let rise 35 minutes.
  5. Punch down thoroughly, shape into a loaf and put into greased dish or pan in which it will bake (9″x9″ casserole dish works well). Set oven to 350° and put covered dough on top of stove. Let rise 25 minutes.
  6. Put dough in oven.
  7. For crispier crust, put a cast-iron pan into the oven when you heat it up. Then, after the bread’s in the oven, pour 2C boiling water into the cast-iron pan and close the door quickly.
  8. Bake for 40 minutes.

Serves: 8-10

Timing

Prep time: 5 minutes Elapsed time: 90 minutes.