Rice Patties, Take Two

Last fall, when we had extra vegetables, I made these rice patties. Today, we didn't really have vegetables, but we did have leftover rice. Here's the vegetable-free version of leftover rice patties. The proportions are a little better in this version, so I'm curious to see how this version turns out with vegetables. (And they really do need a fresh vegetable garnish or sauce of some kind.)

Photo will appear when I find my camera cord...

Rice Patties, Take Two

1 cup cooked rice (this time I used white rice)
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
large pinch rosemary
pinch of dill

Heat a lightly-greased frying pan over medium-low heat. Drop teaspoonfuls of batter onto the pan to make silver-dollar sized patties. Cook a few minutes until the patties just begin to brown on the bottom; flip, and cook about one minute longer (or a little less), until golden on the second side.

Makes 8 silver-dollar sized patties.

Easy Focaccia

Normally, I don't really like focaccia that much; maybe because it's usually greasy in a restaurant and smeared with too much pesto. But a recipe in The New Vegetarian Epicure by Anna Thomas caught my eye a few weeks ago, and I tried it. OK, but not spectacular; a little too flat and not a particularly good texture for all its 10 minutes of kneading. Today I thought I'd try again, since I really wanted some white bread and we didn't have any in the house. This one requires very little kneading and just a short rise. (Its essentially my pizza crust recipe with white flour and a longer rise.) It has a great texture, moist and soft; however, it will dry out fast and have a crumbly texture once it's stale, so best to eat quickly.

Easy Focaccia

2 1/4 cups flour plus more as necessary (up to about 1/4 cup more)
1 cup warm water
2 1/4 tsp yeast (or 1 envelope if you have envelope yeast)
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
glug of olive oil (plus more to brush surface and grease baking sheet)
herbs or seeds (I used a mixture of toasted sesame seeds and toasted fennel seeds)

Combine the yeast and warm water. Combine other ingredients in a large bowl, starting with 2 1/4 cups flour. (You can reserve the herbs to scatter on top, but if you have to invert the bread to get it out of the pan they may fall off.) Stir with a wooden spoon until combined. If dough is too sticky to handle, continue adding flour JUST until you can handle it; do not add too much or the bread will be dry. Knead about 30 seconds. Let rest about five minutes. Flour a cutting board or countertop and your rolling pin well. Roll and/or pat the dough out to about a 13 by 9 rectangle and transfer to a 13 by 9 greased baking pan. If there are some tears, you can just patch them by tearing bits off the thicker edges; it won't show. Let rise 20 minutes to a half hour, until doubled.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Brush the dough with a little oil and bake on the middle rack about 7-8 minutes (start checking at 5); the dough is done when it is beginning to be golden and sounds hollow when thumped.

Cut into slices and serve warm.

Sweet Potato-Squash Soup

This is a soup my associate Ben made during Passover (yes, I know it looks a lot like the previous entry, but it tastes quite different). No reason to limit it to Passover, though; it's delicious. His inspiration was a New York Times recipe.

Sweet Potato-Squash Soup

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 tablespoon ground ginger
2 medium sweet potatoes (about 1-1.5 lbs), peeled and chopped
2 blocks frozen squash (14oz each) (or 1 medium winter squash
(about 1-1.5 lbs), peeled, seeded, and chopped)
6 cups water (or stock, if you're into that)
2 shakes cayenne pepper
salt to taste


Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium-low heat. Add the onion
and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the ginger and cook for
another minute, stirring. Add the squash, potatoes, water, and
spices. Bring to a boil. Stir. Lower the heat to simmer, and cover.
Simmer for about 30 to 45 minutes, until the vegetables are soft and
can be broken apart with a spoon.

Puree the soup in your handy Cuisinart. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with plain yogurt and dill, if desired.

Makes enough for two hungry-person dinners
and two lunches (4-6 servings.)