Paella with Tomatoes

Paella has been on my list of dishes to make for almost a year now. Like most things on my list, they either get done that second or they get pushed to some time waaay off in the future. Paella got pushed into the future. Way off.

Thoughts of paella were originally prompted by a gift of saffron from Spain, even though I know this traditional Spanish dish is chock full of seafood and other meat goodies that I do not eat. Like most dishes, even paella can be vegetarianized.

A kick in the butt came a few weeks ago when Mark Bittman (man of many food fads in the blogosphere – No-Knead Bread and list of 101 simple meals) posted a recipe a few weeks ago in The New York Times of paella with tomatoes that’s fit for a vegetarian.

I know what you're thinking. What's the point of paella without the seafood? The point is the saffron rice. The other point – of this recipe, at least – is to make use of some of the tomatoes that are overwhelming your kitchen. To bring some of the meaty heartiness of the dish back, I added veggie sausage. I don't think the sausage added to the dish, but it didn't detract, either. For me, this dish is more about the rice.

At this time of year when tomatoes are still abundant, and the weather has cooled off to the point where you no longer fear your kitchen will spontaneously combust if you turn on the oven, this quick, one-dish meal is perfect.

Paella with Tomatoes
Adapted from Mark Bitman’s recipe in The New York Times
4 to 6 servings

3 ½ cups vegetable stock
1 ½ pounds ripe tomatoes, cut into wedge
salt and pepper
¼ cup olive oil
1 medium onion, minced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon tomato paste
large pinch of saffron
2 teaspoons paprika
2 cups Spanish or other short-grain rice
7 ounces veggie sausage
minced parsley for garnish

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
  
• Warm stock in a saucepan.
  
• Toss tomatoes in a bowl with salt, pepper, and 1 tablespoon olive oil.
  
• Put remaining oil in a 10- or 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Make sure the skillet is oven proof, as it’ll be going in the oven later.
• Add onion, garlic, salt, and pepper to the skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 to 5 minutes, or until vegetables soften.
  
• Stir in tomato paste, saffron, and paprika and cook for a minute more.
  
• Add rice and cook, stirring occasionally, for another minute or two.
  
• Add stock and stir until combined.
• Put sausage and tomato wedges on top of rice, and pour remaining juices in bottom of bowl over top of rice.
  
• Put pan in oven and roast for 15 minutes, or until rice is dry and just tender. If rice looks dry but is not quite done, add a small amount of stock and return to the oven until done.
• When rice is cooked turn off the oven, and let the pan sit for 5 to 15 minutes in the oven.
• Remove pan from oven, sprinkle with parsley, and serve.

Kool-Aid Pickles

While I was away recently, I left a food experiment in my refrigerator. No, not your usual what-molded-while-I-was-away experiment. I read an article in the New York Times about a food craze that’s getting the kids down South and in other locations excited – Kool-Aid pickles! - so gave it a go.

Apparently, Mom and Pop owned convenience stores and neighborhood entrepreneurs are selling dill pickles pickled once more in Kool-Aid. It sounds gross, but Kool-Aid pickles can’t be any worse than the pink pickled pig’s feet and pink pickled eggs in those large plastic jars sitting by the register at convenience stores that we used to dare each other to eat when I was young. (No one dared touch the pig’s feet, but a few brave souls tried the pickled eggs. No one went back for seconds.)

I made a double strength batch of cherry (red) and tropical punch (blue) Kool-Aid. I drained the dill pickles, and poked the pickles with a fork about 15 times to let the Kool-Aid seep into the pickle. I then left the pickles swimming in the double strength Kool-Aid in my refrigerator for a little over a week.

When I returned home from my trip, I peeked in on the little cukes. They were not evenly dyed by the Kool-Aid, but it was time for the moment of truth. Were these kids on to something? Or were they taste bud-challenged?

I bit into a cherry Kool-Aid pickle first. Not horrible. It tasted like cherry Kool-Aid and a dill pickle. (Sorry, there’s just no other way to describe it.) The second and third bites, though, made me a little nauseous. Oh, this is so wrong! Pregnant women couldn’t even crave something like this.

Next up were the tropical punch pickles. These I liked better. The tropical punch Kool-Aid complimented the dill pickle better than the cherry Kool-Aid. (Never thought I'd say that sentence.) The tropical punch pickles tasted more like a pickle than Kool-Aid, which is why I could actually finish a blue pickle without feeling ill.

Conclusion – These kids is Ka-ray-zee! Or maybe I fugged up the experiment somehow. I doubt it.