Leek Fritters: It's What's For Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

About a month ago I made these Leek Fritters, and because they were so stinkin' good I have been meaning to share the recipe. Since I pretty much think about food 24/7, I know that when a dish creeps into my thoughts at least once a day it's either a) time to make it again, b) time to share the recipe, c) time to open a bottle of wine, or d) all of the above. Always, always go with "all of the above," in multiple choice questions.   

My sister, who is a bit food obsessed herself (but on a healthier level), told me about these fritters a long time ago.  Whenever we talk on the phone the subject always turns to food and we start telling each other about what we've recently made and then we end up sharing recipes.  Well, she keeps bringing up these fritters; she's either made just them again or asks me if  I've made them yet, so I figured I better get on it.
     The recipe is from the vegetarian cookbook "Plenty," which by the way has a ton of great recipes.

I made the sauce a few hours before hand.  There is a shitload of cilantro in it, along with parsley, sour cream, and Greek yogurt. (In case you didn't know, Greek yogurt makes the best cold sauces.)  It was sooooo good; if it had been slathered on my shoe I would have tried to eat it.

The fritters seemed a little runny to me when I first mixed them up with the egg whites and milk, but they came together beautifully when they hit the pan. There is a teensy bit of turmeric in the recipe, which I don't think is really a spice staple (I had to buy it special for this dish) and really, I have no idea if it made a difference or not, but because they were really good I'd recommend getting you some and not deviating from the recipe.

 

The recipe says they serve four, and I suppose that is true if they are served as an entree, since vegetarians wouldn't likely be serving it with a tenderloin.  If serving it as a side dish you can half the recipe or eat the remaining fritters for breakfast, lunch, dinner, breakfast, and lunch as I did.  I nuked the leftovers and they reheated up pretty decent. Let just say they didn't suck.

 

If you've never cooked with leeks I have to ask, what are you waiting for?  They are delicious, milder than an onion and with a more tender texture so they are easier to sneak by an onion hater. (Ear muffs, Hates Everything, ear muffs). Plus, they make a great addition to many dishes like fritattas, potatoes, and pizza, to name a few. 

     Don't be put off by the long list of ingredients in this recipe. With the exception of the turmeric, most of the ingredients will likely be in your pantry. If you do your prep work ahead of time it comes together pretty quickly. 

     Check out the recipe under the "Soups-Salads-Sides" tab. 

Throwing Up On a Cop Will NOT Get You Out of a Speeding Ticket

So you know I mentioned that I got pulled over again the other day, for passing a cop, again. They always do that to me. I'm pretty sure it's not against the law to pass the law, but every time I do I get busted. Maybe it's just Wyoming and Montana and Idaho, oh and Colorado.
     Anyway my friend Jules reminded me of the time I got stopped for speeding in Yellowstone Park, which after all these years I can finally laugh about.

This is my daughter, the Know-It-All, as I like to call her. She looks angelic huh?  Look closer. Reeeeeaaal close. 

Here's what happened:  I was somewhere between Big Sky and West Yellowstone and unbeknownst to me it was 55mph zone.  I was doing 84 or 86 or something like that when I met up with one of Montana's finest, who immediately threw on the lights and flipped around.  The Know-It-All, aka Sierra, was about thirteen or fourteen years old at the time. You know... that age where something has crawled up their butts and died so they are constantly sulking...or embarrassing you...or not listening to you...or telling you to "talk to the hand".  That age.

Anyhow, she was lying down in the back seat, pouting about something I presume, when I said, urgently Sierra! Sit up and put your seat belt on, I'm getting pulled over by a cop! So then I said it again, about 562842 more times with some cuss words thrown in. Of coarse she wouldn't sit up and buckle up, so as I pulled over I told her to pretend like she was sick. Bad idea....really bad idea. I knew she was a drama queen but I had no idea that she could pull off an Academy Award wining performance without a dress rehearsal.

As I pulled over and rolled down my window the best looking cop that I have ever seen was walking up to my door. It was then that my movie star daughter sat up and started moaning, like I'd been beating her with a clothes hanger or something.  The handsome officer looked into the back seat at the pile of teenage angst that was flopping about so I gave him my best smile and said, my daughter is really sick. I was speeding so I could hurry and get her to a bathroom.
     About that time Sierra said in her best, my-mother-has-been-beating-me-with-a-clothes-hanger-voice, give me some Pepto-Bismol, and so I opened up the glove box and tossed a bottle of Pepto into the back seat. Don't ask me why I had Pepto in the glove box, because I have no idea why, but I did.  And I knew I did. It was right there, next to the vodka and my .38.

Ok, so he wasn't Eric Estrada, but close...

I was still smiling my mommie dearest smile through gritted teeth at the cute cop, hoping that hitting your brat in the head with a loaded bottle of Pepto Bismol was going to endear me to him.
     He gave me the: license and registration ma'am, do you know how fast your were going, I'll be right back, spiel, while my darling daughter was still moaning and rolling around the back seat, like she were resisting an exorcism. 

THAT'S ENOUGH SIERRA, SIT UP AND PUT YOUR SEAT BELT ON BEFORE I GET A TICKET FOR THAT TOO, I demanded, giving her a look that could have bent a spoon, if she'd had one in her hand.  But did my devil-child straighten up and act right?  What do you think?  Noooooooo.
     As the cop was coming back to the car with my ticket in hand you will never guess what Satan's Spawn did.  She ate the rest of her granola bar, took a swig of Pepto Bismol and a big gulp of orange soda and then, just as the cop got to the rear of the car she threw open the car door, about hitting him with it and then promptly puked it all up on his shoes. Yep. She did.
     He jumped back, mouth hanging unflatteringly open and looked at his orange and pink shoes. As he handed me my ticket he said, Ma'am you'd better hurry and get her to a bathroom, she seems pretty sick to me. But don't be speeding!!!       

And by the way, speeding in Yellowstone Park is a federal offense, because, duh! it's on federal land. The nice officer wrote me up for only 76 mph.  I think he felt sorry for me...either that or he saw Sierra's horns.

WHOA, whoa, whoa, slow down....you won't want to pass up this recipe for Black and White Soup...BLACK. AND. WHITE. SOUP.  Get it??? Cop cars are BLACK AND WHITE, jeez do I have to spell out everything for you?
     The Black Bean Soup is my recipe and the White Cheddar Soup, (adapted from BA) are poured simultaneously into the same bowl, creating BLACK AND WHITE SOUP.  I garnish the Black with Lime Scented Sour Cream and the White Soup with Cilantro Oil. 
     My official taste tester, The Big Guy gave it three thumbs up!

It may seem like a lot of work to make two soups, but they go together pretty fast and can be made the day before and then re-heated.  If you do that you may need to thin them down with a little more chicken broth. 
     Click on the "Soups, Salads, Sides" tab for the recipes. 

About Them Mussels...

I'm usually a purist when it come to my mussels; you know...a little wine (ok, a lot of wine,*wink wink* ) some parsley and shallots, lots of lemon and garlic. The usuj.  Not no more. After eating THEE BEST MUSSELS EV-VER at Salud Bistro in St. Croix, I've been trying to recreate them in my head. Served in a Lemon-Sherry-Cream broth, with Chorizo, they were simple but oh-so delish! 

 

Here's a picture, but oops, we were like pigs at a trough and I forget to take the picture until we had about polished them off. Our good friends, the Nicholsons, were with us and Captain Obvious and Captain Oblivious (as I like to call The Big Guy and his buddy) sucked them down, like they were in a mussel eating contest or something.

The Mussel Winners! Captain Obvious & Captain Oblivious

So I came home determined to somewhat recreate the dish.  Got me four pounds of nice fresh mussels at Whole Foods in Colorado and some good smoked Chorizo.

I decided to stick with white wine because my Sherry was ummm, vinegar. Shit happens, but next time I will definitely bring some some sherry to the party. I then made a lemon-creme broth and poached them until they just dared to open up.  Because I love tomatoes in a creamy broth like that, I diced some up threw in a handful at the last minute.

They were excellent!  I also made some fresh basil fettuccine to go with so we poured some of that heavenly sauce over the pasta and then used some crusty bread to mop up whatever sauce got away.

Next time I make them I will reduce the wine by half and add the sherry --meaning 1 cup of each, if I have good sherry. If it's the cheap stuff I'll probably go with 1 1/2 cups wine and 1/2 cup sherry.  Sometimes a little sherry goes a long way, but most of it is reduced down, so don't be afraid to pour it in. Get ya a great bottle of wine, some good crusty bread and go a little crazy!

Go to the "Seafood" tab for the mussel recipe and to the "Pasta" tab for the basil pasta.