Dinner recipes (under construction)

cricket lane salsa #2 (Sarah)

green grape salsa (from Vegetarian Planet)

Roasted potatoes (Joann)

gunsmoke slaw (Jim from Vegetarian Planet)

chilaquiles (Jim from Vegetarian Planet)

vietnamese rice paper rolls (Mark from Vegetarian Planet)

cilantro chile dipping sauce (Esther from Vegetarian Planet)

Squid in cilantro chile sauce (invented at this party by Stuart!)

fried squid strips (from Rodolfo Llinas)

basil squid

one that didn't make it: yucca

liquid nitrogen lemon sorbet (Tom and Joann)

hangover treatments

Thanks to Nelson Medeiros for supplying an extra grill and for fruit salad, marinated chicken. Also to Tara and Ming for barbecuing duty.

cricket lane salsa #2
tomatoes (10) (ripe ones are best; one can stewed tomatoes added because these weren't so ripe)
tomatillos (5)
red onions (2)
lime juice (from 2)
white vinegar (about 1/4 cup)
brown sugar (about 2 tbsp)
cilantro (a huge bunch)
jalapenos (3)
dill (some)
salt (to taste)

green grape salsa
bunch green grapes
chopped seeded cucumber
minced jalapenos
lime juice

gunsmoke slaw
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 garlic cloves
3 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1-2 tsp chipotle pepper sauce
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup canola oil
2 cans mandarin oranges
1/2 green cabbage head
2 carrots
5 scallions
Mix everything except the vegetables. Mix the vegetables together then pour on the first mix.

chilaquiles
2 tbsp olive oil
6 corn tortillas
1 medium potato peeled and sliced into thin rounds
1 large red pepper seeded and cut into 1/2 inch wide strips
1 small zucchini, cut in half lengthwise then crosswise into 1/2 inch half moons
2 garlic cloves minced
2/3 cup ricotta cheese
salt pepper to taste
your favorite hot sauce or salsa
Heat the oil in a skillet, add tortilla strips and stir until stiff and spotted with brown
Preheat oven to 375.
In skillet with remaining oil, cook potatoes for 5 min, then red pepper, zucchini, garlic for 5 min more
Take pan off heat. Add ricotta and tortilla strips, add salt and pepper
Put mixture into 9-10 inch casserole dish
Bake chilaquiles for 15 min or until done. Serve with hot sauce or salsa.
pepper to taste

Vietnamese rice paper rolls
(modified)
3 large carrots
1 small jicama
basil
mint
shelled dry roasted peanuts
round rice papers (about 8" diameter)
shred vegetables and herbs. break peanuts into pieces using mortar or pestle or similar.
bring 1/2" water to boil in a frying pan big enough to hold rice paper
dip one rice paper at a time into boiling water; remove with chopsticks after about 10 sec
spread out the rice paper before it becomes a sticky mess.
add a combination of shredded vegetables, basil mint and peanuts onto the rice paper, and wrap as an egg roll. Dip in cilantro chile dipping sauce (see below).

cilantro chile dipping sauce
1 tbsp minced garlic
2 cups minced cilantro
1/3 cup lime juice
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup thai fish sauce
1/2 cup sugar
2 minced jalapenos
Chop everything and mix them together. The fish sauce is the most strong tasting (dangerous) ingredient. Add it first, then add sugar gradually to taste, until it "neutralizes" the fish sauce.

Squid in cilantro chile sauce
Take a whole squid mantle and slit it down the slide
Soak several mantles in cilantro chile sauce (above)
Thread the mantles on barbecue skewers (one per skewer)
Barbecue on the grill using cilantro chile sauce as marinade.

Fried squid strips
Slit a squid mantle down the side, then cut it into 1/4" strips lengthwise
Heat some oil in a skillet until it is pretty hot
Poke a barbecue skewer into the ends of one of the strips, and fry the strip in the skillet
Dip briefly in soy sauce and vinegar then eat right away

Basil squid
Cut squid mantle in rings or small strips
Chop up as much basil as you can get your hands on
Chop up as well some green pepper, green onions.
Mix the greens and squid together in a bowl
Throw everything into a wok with heated oil
Add some fish sauce and tabasco sauce (or better, dried hot red peppers with the greens)
Stir it all around; it is done in a minute or two

Roasted potatoes
Cut several small, red skin potatoes into small pieces about 1/4" in size.
Mix with 2 tbsp olive oil, chopped garlic if desired
Roast at 350 F for about 1 hr
Half way through, add spices, such as rosemary, "fines herbes", salt, pepper

Yucca
Scrape off all the skin.
Use a machete or the largest, sharpest knife in your kitchen to hack the yucca into 1/2" thick rounds.
Boil in water until soft (30-60 min)
Deep fat fry then eat with a roasted red pepper sauce.
This dish didn't make it at this party because someone first turned on the wrong burner, then the right burner wasn't working, then when it was finally allowed to boil, it went 90 min and ended up one big mush (I'm afraid one person was responsible for all of these miscues). The yucca was strained and put in the refrigerator for possible use later, but was accidentally thrown out the next morning (by another person).

liquid nitrogen lemon sorbet
Pour about half a carton of Paul Newman lemonade into a large cold proof bowl
Add sugar to make it sweet enough for sorbet, but not too sweet (a few tbsp perhaps)
Add the juice of one or two lemons
Add liquid nitrogen (about same volume as lemonade) and start stirring fast with a wood
spoon or similar kitchen tool.
Periodically add about half that amount of liquid nitrogen as the smoke dies down
It will take about 5 minutes of adding liquid nitrogen and stirring before the sorbet is ready

Hangover cures
1. Take two aspirins
2. Take two aspirins before imbibing
3. Take two aspirins before passing out
4. Drink a lot of water before passing out
5. Have another shot the morning after ("hair of the dog")

Vegetarian Planet
An excellent vegetarian cook book by Didi Emmons (1997; Harvard Common Press).