Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Lentil Love! Boats on a Stormy Sea

We have tried every way of cooking lentils I could find: soup, salad, rice pilaf, dal, loaf, etc. The children never liked them. THIS they loved!

I got the recipe from here: http://vegweb.com/index.php?topic=15326.0 and changed it a bit to fit our tastes.

2 cups cooked lentils
1/2 onion
1/4 cup packed cheese
2-3 tbl ground flax seeds
salt, pepper, chili powder, dried marjoram, onion powder, garlic powder
2:1 ration water and oil

First, I cooked one cup of dried lentils in two cups water. After bringing it to a boil, added a bit of salt, one crushed garlic clove and a few springs of thyme. This way, the lentils are delicious and ready for any recipe. Today I added a bit of rind from some good hard cheese. Simmered, covered, for 20 minutes. Left covered until needed. Drained lentils (reserving broth) and discarded the cheese rinds and thyme sprigs.

Boiled two potatoes in salted water. (Saved the potato water and lentil broth for soup later).

Chopped half a small red onion. Mashed the drained lentils, mashed the potatoes, combined them, and added the spices to taste. Added enough water and oil mix to make an eggless binder with the flax seeds and moisten the mix until it's sticky. Let it sit a bit. Preheat oven to 350.

Chop/shredded half a green cabbage, and one and a half red onions. Sauted in oil, browning the onion and cabbage. Added two prunes (or you can add a few raisins). Once browned, add a shot of liquid. I used a sweet white wine. Once dry, added some dill to taste.

While the cabbage browns, shape the mash into boats. Brush with oil and bake for 30-40 minutes until browned and crispy on the outside.

Plate the cabbage, place the boat on top. Stick a small leaf of bok choy or other green into the boat, as a sail. The kids ate it!! Yeay! And DH and I loved it! Hope you do too!

The most fun of this dish? I named it boats on a stormy sea.

Friday, December 25, 2009

Christmas Dinner.

Our Christmas dinner was a huge success. We had:

An appetizer of bacon-wrapped apricots & bacon-wrapped dates (stuffed with goat cheese)
- 30 minutes in the oven at 350.

A delicious side of kale, green beans, and mushrooms - Found out that the man thinks kale is "too chewy." I loved it, though.

Another delicious side of root vegetable pancakes (similar to potato pancakes but with root vegetables & scallions)

And a main protein of duck breasts topped with a pomegranate sauce. I merged two recipes into one to make the duck breasts. Here's what I did.

Duck Breasts with Shallot & Pomegranate
(Originally from Eating Well)

2-4 duck breasts
1 cup pomegranate juice
1 shallot, minced
1 tablespoon cornstarch

Score the skin of the duck breasts in criss-cross fashion - making sure to not cut the meat. Salt & pepper the breasts. In a low temperature skillet, place the breasts skin side down. Cook the skin for about 30 minutes or until most of the fat is rendered. It should be a lot!! Save the fat for a later use - except for 1-2 tablespoons for the shallot.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Remove the breasts from the skillet, & put into a rectangular baking dish. Bake for 7-9 minutes. Let the duck rest for 10 minutes after removing it from the oven.

In a saucepan, place 1-2 tablespoons of the duck fat & the shallot. Saute the shallot. Add 3/4 cup of the pomegranate juice & reduce to half. Stir the rest of the pomegranate juice & cornstarch in a small bowl until the cornstarch dissolves. Add to the pan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, stirring, until the sauce is thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. (I was too impatient for the reduction. That's why the sauce in the picture is runny.)

Slice the duck on the bias, & top with the pomegranate sauce.

Enjoy!!

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Enchiladas

The man & I purchase a HUGE pork loin from Costco a few months ago. It's been sitting in the freezer waiting to be eaten.

Tick.
Tock.
Tick.
Tock.

When his dad came for a visit, we defrosted it in hopes of having a family meal together with leftovers the next week. Unfortunately, we got 21 inches of snow, the roads became marginally passable, & the man's dad fled to sleep at airport. So, we had a 4-5lb. pork loin on our hands with only 2 mouths to feed.

Since it was already marinated, I roasted half of it with potatoes & carrots, & we ate the meat sliced. Normal reheated leftovers the next day. No big whoop.

But here's what I did with the other half. It's pretty easy & really delicious. The man's family normally makes this with chicken breasts (4 cooked in the skillet with oil, salt, pepper, whatever spices - then shredded).

Jeff's Family's Enchiladas
2-2.5 lb pork loin in marinade from store
2-3 cans of salsa verde (prefer Herdez brand)
1 cup of chicken stock
1 package of corn tortillas (18 used)
3-5 tablespoons of spicy sauce (we used Thai Chili Garlic sauce but hot sauce would work well)
1/2 - 1 cup of shredded cheese (we used chipotle cheddar)
1/4 cup of oil

1. In a slow cooker, place your pork loin, the spicy sauce, and 1/2 cup of water. Place on low for 6 hours. Pork should shred easy after this. If it doesn't shred easily, turn slow cooker up to high for another hour.
2. Shred all of the pork.
3. Heat salsa verde & chicken stock in stovetop until thoroughly warmed.
4. Place about 1/4 cup of oil onto plate or large shallow bowl.
5. Dip a tortilla in the oil to moisten.
6. Place the tortilla into rectangular casserole dish (or whatever you're going to use to bake the enchiladas).
7. Do steps 5 & 6 for all of the tortillas. Keep in mind that each enchilada is going to be filled. So, you'll want to make sure each looks "like a taco" in the casserole dish. Stack them next to each other. They'll hold each other up.
8. Add a tablespoon of the salsa verde into each tortilla.
9. Add a few tablespoons of the pork into each tortilla.
10. Add a tablespoon of the salsa verde on top of the pork.
11. Fold the tortilla ends over each other, & roll the tortilla so that the bottom is now on top.
12. Top with shredded cheese, & put into the oven until the cheese melts.

These are delicious & keep in the fridge for a few days. I hope you enjoy them!

Saturday, December 19, 2009

The Perils of Online Recipes.

Apparently, the Food Network yanked the chocolate biscotti recipe offline that I just posted. I'm not sure if this is because Gourmet magazine went under, Food Network isn't being paid to publish Gourmet magazine's recipes anymore, or whatnot.

I found a similar recipe online at Epicurious.com from Bon Appetit. At least they're still around!

Regarding the cookies from this year's Christmas Cookie Explosion, I've received some excellent comments from recipients. All of the cookies were favorites of someone. None of them were "okay." The only criticisms were that the thin mint cookies could've been crispier & that the biscotti could be a little less hard. That's not too shabby!

Happy Baking & Happy Holidays, everyone!

Monday, December 7, 2009

It's a Christmas Cookie Explosion!

Just ask the man. ;)

As gifts for my family, I've decided to make cookies for everyone. The problem is that a few family members have food intolerances/allergies, which makes this a little more creative of a problem. I've chosen these cookies for everyone:

1. Alton Brown's sugar cookies (made gluten-free with Jules' flour)

What I love:

The cookies taste fresh when they are 2 weeks old, the batch of dough makes a lot, & they're really tasty.

What I hate:

All the sifting hurts my hands/arms. I always forget that I can probably just get away with whisking the dough.

2. Heidi's peanut cookies (egg-free, dairy-free, made gluten-free)

What I love:

These cookies are delicioso!

What I hate:

They are a little crumbly & work well as a smaller cookie. It all works out well later as they need a glass of milk as an accompaniment.

3. Heidi's thin mint cookies (egg-free, made gluten-free)

What I love:

I made these years ago using a star-shaped cookie cutter. All of my little points broke when I dipped them in chocolate. This year, I made little rounds, & that worked out swell!!

What I hate:

The dough turns rock-hard if you leave them in the fridge for too long. (Heidi recommends freezing it for 20 minutes, but I refrigerated them since it would be a day or two until I could bake them.)

4. Chocolate chip cookies

What I love:

These are my go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe. My number 1 Taste Tester just smiled, mumbled, & finished his cookie. They are WAY delicious.

5. Almond lemon biscotti (made diabetic-friendly with agave nectar & no white chocolate dip)

What I love:

The flavor of these are amazing. Really lovely. I opted to zest 2 oranges in my 4th batch in lieu of the lemons & swapped the sugar for agave nectar. Really nice!

What I hate:

My first batch turned out mildly crunchy. My second? Extremely hard. I'd kick that second baking time down to 10 minutes.

6. Chocolate hazelnut biscotti
old link: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sara-moulton/chocolate-hazelnut-biscotti-recipe/index.html

What I love:

The man said these weren't overly chocolately, which was nice.

What I hate:

The dough got a few big cracks in it while it was baking. I didn't think that I overmixed!

7. maybe Triple Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal cookies

What I love:

You can really hide the flax to go egg-free in these. I haven't made them yet, & I don't know how much more baking I can do this week. I'll keep you posted!

Also, we ran out of tupperware to store all the cookies before shipment. Must ship all cookies tonight!

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Leftover Fish?

Make a salad!

Boil chopped potatoes and hard-boil some eggs. Slice onions and soak in water (it mellows the flavor of raw onion). When the potatoes and eggs are cool, slice or dice to your preference. Chop up some romaine lettuce, shred your leftover fish, add the potatoes, onions and eggs, some tomatoes if you like, a bit of dill and salt and pepper. Toss with your favorite dressing and serve with a carrot spear and broccoli flowerette. Enjoy!

Saturday, November 28, 2009

Post-Thanksgiving.

Well, I hope you all are well-fed, are doing great, & had a nice Thanksgiving. We spent our Thanksgiving at the house of friends of ours. We brought a brined turkey, two pies, & a soup to their house. (We brined the turkey using an Alton Brown recipe.)

The soup was one of my favorites: Roasted butternut squash & pear soup. I got the recipe years ago from Eating Well. It's in regular rotation on the menu around here. What's interesting about the soup is that it calls for sprinkling a little Stilton cheese (or blue cheese) on the top of it. Without the cheese, it's floral & delicately flavored. With the cheese, a sharp flavor and creaminess are added. It's almost two different soups!

Using our leftovers, we've made a turkey stock (about a gallon), & we plan on making turkey quesadillas.

For those of you interested, our menu looked like this:
Roasted butternut squash & pear soup
Crudites with sour cream dip & hummous
Apple Cranberry Almond Stuffing
Mashed Potatoes
Turkey using an Alton Brown recipe
Kris's family recipe cranberry raspberry sauce
An adhoc gravy where we added rosemary and red wine - yielding yummy purple gravy
Pumpkin pie with rum - don't follow the cooking directions - it'll never set
Cherry berry pie
plus a few wines including a Jordan Chardonnay.

Now that the floodgates to Christmas have been opened, it's officially cookie baking time! YAY! I've planned out 13 different recipes that I'd like to make. Today's the day to figure out how many I'm actually making this season. Stay tuned!

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Javanese Peanut Pasta

I'm about to illuminate the largest difference between me & my better half. Here goes. Brace yourself!

I like to cook and eat vegan. He, well, doesn't.

I'll give you an example. Last night, I called to see if he found the concept of peanut pasta palatable.

Me: "What about if we do an Asian peanut butter pasta with veggies?"
Him: "Sounds great!"
Him: .....
Him: "I have to ask the question... because I'm not sure. Does that pasta have meat in it? Because... I need meat in it."

So, lo & behold, there was magically steak in our vegan meal. I found some thin steak on sale at Giant for under $3. The frozen stirfry veggies were on sale too. Score!

The recipe comes from one of my all-time favorite cookbooks, 150 Vegan Favorites by Jay Solomon. It's filling, tasty, quick, & cheap. The only sticky point is that the sauce always manages to need a little tweaking this way or that way. I've minorly adapted it here.

I didn't include the steak recipe. Basically, it was a little bland. I recommend making the steak in the Korean bulgogi way (mirin, soy sauce, something spicy - like red pepper flakes, sesame oil, & garlic).

Adapted Jay's Javanese Peanut Pasta
1 jar roasted red peppers, sliced into strips
1/2 cup of peanut butter (chunky or smooth - chunky gives you peanuts as garnish)
1/4 cup of soy sauce
1/8 cup of water (more or less)
4-6 scallions, chopped
1 package of dried Asian white rice pasta (usually found in 1 lb or 13 oz packages)
2-3 tablespoons fresh ginger, chopped fine or microplaned (or a few squirts of the tube of ginger in the produce section)
1 jalapeno, chopped fine (or 1 tsp cayenne pepper or a squirt of Sriracha)
1 garlic clove
1.5 cups of frozen stirfry veggies, defrosted optimally
2 tablespoons oil - either sesame or peanut - or whatever you've got
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1. Set the water for the pasta to boil over the stove.

2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add veggies, garlic clove, ginger, and jalapeno (if using) & saute for a few minutes. Lower heat to medium-low. Add peanut butter and soy sauce. This mixture will melt down a little over the heat & give your veggies a nice coating. Be sure to taste the sauce & add little extra ginger, soy, spice, or peanut butter if needed. If the sauce is too thick, add in a little water. If it's too thin, let it sit on the heat until it thickens.

3. Make the pasta. It normally only takes about 3-5 minutes. If the pasta's done before the sauce is, then strain it & rinse it to keep it from sticking. Rice pasta's always a little more gummy than semolina pasta.

4. Mix the pasta with the veggie sauce in a big bowl. Mix in the roasted red peppers. Top with scallions and cilantro.

OMG, yum. & so filling. 4.5/5 for me.

Monday, November 16, 2009

I can't wait for Thanksgiving dinner dinner!

A few days ago, I decided that I couldn't wait for Thanksgiving. I really wanted some fancy stuffing. An apple sausage walnut stuffing - to be exact. I'd request it for our upcoming Thanksgiving cook-a-thon, but my kitchen counterpart doesn't eat pork. Shame.

Luckily, I finagled the day off today (they took away my Veteran's Day holiday). So, I decided to make something manageable for two people to eat - a stuffed chicken. I used Anne Burrell's sausage apple walnut stuffing recipe as a guideline.

I stuffed 1/2 of this recipe inside my chicken & 1/2 into muffin tins (so each muffin gets a crispy top). I prepped my chicken per the normal - cover with olive oil & then with salt. I added some chopped butternut squash, acorn squash, and red potatoes into the pan. Then, I zested a lemon over all of it, which added a very subtle lemon flavor. & into the oven at 375 until the chicken thigh reached 165 degrees internal temperature.

The "gravy" from the chicken tasted amazing. It was sweetened by the squashes and had a mellow lemon flavor. I plan on making something from it - or maybe just adding it to my chicken stock for a soup.

Adapted Stuffing for two
1 apple, cored & diced
2 sausage links (potentially sweet Italian)
1 celery rib, diced
1/2 onion
6-8 lightly toasted bread slices
1/2 cup apple cider
1 cup chicken broth
4 leaves fresh sage
1/2 cup walnuts
olive oil
salt & pepper

(Directions mostly copied from Anne's recipe)
Coat a large saute pan, over medium heat, with olive oil and add the onions and celery. Season with salt and cook until the veggies start to become soft and are very aromatic. Add the garlic and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes. Add the sausage and cook until the sausage browns. Stir in the apples and apple cider and cook until the apples start to soften, about 3 to 4 minutes. Sprinkle in the sage leaves and the walnuts and turn off the heat.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Add the diced bread and toss together. Pour in the chicken stock and knead with your hands until the bread is very moist, actually wet. Taste to check for seasoning and season with salt, if needed. Transfer to muffin tins (or a rectangular dish) and bake until it is hot all the way through and crusty on top.

Yummmmmy! We gave the stuffing a 4/5.

Update: Apple & Pear Crisp

In yesterday's post, I wrote that we were going to have Apple & Pear Crisp for dessert. It called for so much sugar - that I reduced it by 1/4 cup at least.

Still - It was TOO sweet! Ugh!! The man liked it - what a sweet tooth he's got. But I thought it was overwhelmingly sweet. In hindsight, I should have added only 1/4 cup of sugar into the apples & pears. The crumble on top was really good as is.

That's the update! Tonight, I plan on making something special too in anticipation of Thanksgiving. Wait & see!

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Dad's Fish Francaise.

I was speaking with my father about a meyer lemon olive oil that I purchased for use with fish, & he said, "OH! I made a really great fish recently!"

So, we gave that a shot tonight. Here's the recipe. We deemed it a keeper. & it's quick too!

Dad's Fish Francaise
4 fillets mahi mahi (or tilapia or other white fish)
30-45 capers
1 or 1/2 stick of butter
Juice of a whole lemon

Put the butter into the skillet & melt over medium heat. Add the capers. Squeeze in your lemon juice. Heat the sauce until it bubbles. Lay the fish in the pan. When the edges of the fish turn white, flip it. After 2-3 more minutes, take the pan off the heat & let it set for a few minutes. When it's time to plate, you can either do it family style - Let the fish & sauce slide off the pan onto a platter - or you can take your chances on flipping the fish individually onto plates.

DEEElish.

We paired ours with an arugula salad (with meyer lemon balsamic viniagrette, cranberries, and goat cheese - SPLURGE!), steamed carrots, and saffron rice.

And for dessert - Apple Pear Crisp!

Duck Eggs and Waffles

Start with the waffles. These are gluten-free, egg-free, and dairy-free.

Turn on waffle iron. Mix dry ingredients together:
3/4 cup buckwheat flour
1/4 cup rice flour
2 tbl chickpea flour
2 tbl ground flax seeds
2 tbl ground nuts (optional)
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
Make a well in the dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients to well:
1 1/2 cup water and hemp milk mixture (or milk of choice)
2 tbl oil
2 tbl agave nectar or sweetener of choice
Mix wet ingredients inside well a bit, then mix it all together. Add more water or milk if necessary. Make a thick batter that pours, but sits before slowly spreading outward. (Pancake batter is thinner). If the iron is ready, pour the batter into it. Keep making batches. This made 5 waffles for us. Start on the eggs:

Scrambled Eggs with a savory vegetable topping: (serves 2)

Topping:
1/4 cup Onion
1 clove Garlic
3 diced Mushrooms
2 tbl chopped Tomato
handful of Spinach
salt-free seasoning
salt & pepper

Saute onion in a bit of oil. Add garlic. Cook til browning starts. Crack 2 duck eggs, or 4 chicken eggs, and whisk with salt, pepper and a bit of water. Add tomato, mushrooms and seasoning to the onions. Check Waffles. When mushrooms start to look like they are darkening, add spinach and turn off the heat. Keep stirring until spinach is wilted. Place in a bowl. Add a bit of oil or butter to the hot pan (turn back on the heat). Check waffles. Add whisked eggs. Let sit for a few seconds, until the egg on the bottom starts to solidify. Now continuously move the eggs around the pan until the water evaporates, but not entirely. The eggs should look shiny, but not watery, nor spongy. Plate.

This recipe gave the adults a large spoon of eggs, a large spoon (or two) of topping and two waffles each, with one leftover. It also put a smile on a husband who had been woken at 5am by over-exuberant little boys.

Enjoy!

Quick Beef Noodle and Peas Dinner

We just bought the organic salt-free seasoning mix from Costco. It worked marvels in this dish.

Ground beef
Noodles of choice
Frozen peas
Salt-free seasoning
Salt, pepper

1. Brown beef or buffalo, enough to feed the family, and season with salt, seasoning, and pepper.
2. Boil water, add salt, add noodles of choice.
3. Strain noodles. In the hot pot, bring a bit of water to a boil and add frozen peas. Cook covered for 2 minutes on high. The peas should look bright and pop with pea flavor.
4. Mix noodles, beef and peas together. Use some pea water, noodle water and/or oil to moisten.

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Fish Dinner - Quick, Easy, Delicious

1. Take fish (4 fillets) out of the fridge. We used Mahi Mahi.

2. Toast one cup of buckwheat while bringing 2 cups water to boil in a kettle. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 2 cups water to buckwheat and cover. Steam for 20-25 minutes.

3. Make marinade. 1/2 cup soy sauce, 3 tbl apple cider vinegar, 2 tbl sesame oil, 4 tbl brown sugar, 3 sliced green onions, 2 cloves crushed garlic. Keep half for serving and marinade the fish in the other half.

4. Use what hot water is left in the kettle to start a pot for steaming fresh vegetables. We had broccoli florets and stems, and large chunk carrots.

5. Heat a pan, skillet or griddle on medium. Take fillets out of the marinade and discard the juices. Cook on one side until edges are cooked, flip over and cook on other side. Fish is done when it is no longer opaque in the center and flakes (separates) when pressed.

6. Plate the buckwheat and vegetables. Squirt with a bit of lemon juice. Plate the fish, top with a bit of sauce.

The whole family enjoyed this one. Hubby couldn't get over how good it was. I liked it best because it was quick, easy, and nutritious and delicious.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Cauliflower Soup and Spinach Salad

Traditional Polish cauliflower soup is made a bit differently. Here was our delicious spin on it:

Zupa kalafiorowa

7 cups beef broth (or 3 cans broth and 1 cup water)
1 lb cauliflower
2 baking potatoes
2 wild boar sausages (or sausage of choice)
1 1/2 tablespoons flour (we used tapioca)
1 cup half and half
1 tablespoon dried dill

Chop sausage and brown in a soup pot with a bit of oil. Add broth and bring to boil. Add cauliflower florets and large chunks of potato. Simmer for 25 minutes. Stir flour into warmed milk (mix milk with a bit of soup to warm it). Add dill and milk to pot. Stir and simmer 5 more minutes. Quick, filling and fantastic!

Serve with baby spinach, dried cranberries and toasted sunflower seeds with your favorite dressing. Our favorite is homemade balsamic vinaigrette.

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Grrrravy & Pumpkin Bread review

I posted a recipe for pumpkin bread without trying it. Last night, I made Alton Brown's pumpkin bread recipe (without the seeds). I did add a little more cinnamon, & I pureed my fresh pumpkin innards for it.


"That one!"


It was GREAT! Super moist, delicious flavor. The man gave it rave reviews. He said it's a 4 or 4.5 out of 5 star recipe. The only thing keeping it from being a 5/5 is that it fell apart due to its moistness. SCORE!



We hope you had a happy Halloween!

******************

In my chicken pot pie recipe, I mentioned gravy as one of the ingredients. My sister (who also posts here) requested that I write out how I make my gravy. So, here it is.


Gravy
I feel like there are two schools of thought with making gravy. One way is to make a roux. The other is to add a thickener to fluids. I've made them both, but making a roux with gluten-free flour hasn't worked well for me.

To make a roux with regular all-purpose flour, you use 1 part melted fat to 2 parts flour. For example, I used to use one tablespoon butter melted & then whisk in 2 tablespoons flour. Let it cook while you whisk it. It's done when the roux turns a light brown (i.e. when the flour is cooked). Then, you'll add your stock/broth/fluid & boil it down.

The way that I made my gravy for the chicken pot pie (the gluten-free way):
I was reducing some chicken stock - maybe about 4 cups - on the stove. To it, I added a tablespoon or two of potato starch. (You could use corn starch too.) I whisked it until it wasn't lumpy anymore. If it wasn't thick enough after that, I added a smidgen more potato starch. Cook it until the starch is cooked. Then, I tasted it, added salt, pepper, tarragon, & anything else that I thought it needed.

That's it! I know it's not precise, but it was a "shoot from the hip" sort of recipe. If you guys want, just comment or email me & I'll make it more specific.

Friday, October 30, 2009

Sneak your veggies.

I was having a discussion yesterday with my sister (who also posts here) about vegetables. She prefers them raw or with a light steam. Strangely, so do I. I say "strangely" because we were raised with a different methodology for "enjoying" vegetables. Our mother would open a can of veggies for dinner, plunk it into a dish, & stuff it into the microwave for 1-2 minutes (where sometimes it was forgotten).

Now, to Mom's defense - She likes veggies. A LOT. & If she could, she'd have many small mainly vegetarian dishes for dinner. However, she was feeding a family of 7 back then, & she was working 8-12 hour days as a nurse.

Anyways - back to the veggies. So, last night, I made a chicken pot pie for me & the man. We used 1/2 of a (leftover) roasted chicken, some homemade gravy (which was mainly low sodium chicken broth), (leftover) roasted carrots & onions, roasted butternut squash, green beans, & some fresh sage. I made a quick crust to cover it all, & that was that.

The kicker? It was MAINLY vegetables. The man didn't even notice. & he's from Texas - So, he'd notice. I thought it was a pretty successful dish. Overall, we just needed more salt in it. I added the recipe for it below.

Also, I watched Top Chef last night. One of the favorites put bananas into his polenta. (If you're Italian & reading this, I do apologize for the shock.) It got a lot of "wows!" from the taste-testers. & I thought - what another clever way to add more nutrients into your meal.

What do you do to add vegetables into your meals? Do you have to sneak them?

*****
Chicken Pot Pie

This is a rough estimate of a recipe - I mainly did a lot of "throw this in, throw that in." I used this recipe as a guideline, but I made it faster & cheaper by using leftovers. When I roasted the chicken, I stuck the carrots & onions into the roasting pan. So, the onions were full of flavor & ready for putting into the pot pie. The carrots - I wish they had been fresh. In the recipe below, I listed it as though you were using fresh veggies. Do either - I'm sure it'll be great either way.

1/2 leftover roasted chicken
4-5 cups of gravy (we had a gravy shortage - so I upped the ante.)
8 leaves of fresh sage, chopped
10-15 baby carrots (or 2-3 larger carrots)
1/2 cup of onions (pearl, boiling, or regular)
2 cups of fresh or defrosted frozen green beans
1-2 lb. butternut squash
1 fresh or pre-made crust
4 individual pie pans, or two medium pie pans. (We used medium casserole dishes, which worked fine.)
salt/pepper
1 egg (if using egg wash for pie crust)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Chop the leftover chicken, carrots, onions, and green beans into bite-size pieces. Peel the butternut squash & chop into cubes.

Drizzle the butternut squash with some olive oil and a little salt, to taste. Toss to coat the squash with the oil and transfer to a baking sheet. Roast until the squash is cooked but still has some texture, about 15 to 20 minutes in a 400 degree oven.

Put the onions and carrots into a pan with a little oil & sweat the veggies on medium heat. The carrots should be more tender & the onions should get a little translucent.

About this time, the squash & the onion/carrot mixture should be ready. When the squash comes out of the oven, reduce the oven temperature down to 375.

Now, it's time to assemble the pot pie. Divvy your veggies (carrot/onion, squash, green beans) & sage with the chicken into your pie-cooking containers. Ladle the gravy in & fill about 3/4 of the container. Add salt/pepper to taste. Top each container with a pie crust. Crack your egg, whip it, & brush the top of your pie crust (if you want to put a sheen on your crust). Cut slits into the top of your crust to allow it to vent.

Put your pot pies into the oven, & bake for about 30-35 minutes. I had extended it to almost 40 minutes b/c I wanted the crust very crispy, which turned out pretty well. However, in tasting it, we would've liked it less crispy. Hindsight!

This made about 4-5 servings of pot pie.


*****
Also - we've been having problems with comments being accepted by Blogspot lately. We apologize, & we hope it's fixed soon!!

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Buckwheat Pancakes

These pancakes are gluten, egg, nut and dairy free.

1 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 cup brown rice flour
1 1/2 cups hemp milk (or milk of choice)
2 tbls ground flax seed
1 tbl oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp xanthan gum
1/4 tsp baking powder
dash cinnamon

Heat cast iron skillet on medium heat. In small bowl, mix together flax, oil and 1/4 cup water. Mix together flours, xanthan gum, salt, baking powder, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Add flax mixture and milk. The consistency should be slightly runny. If it's too thick, add more milk or water. If it's too thin, add a bit more flour. Pour mix in 1/4 cup amounts onto skillet and let sit until edges are cooked. Flip. Adjust heat as necessary. Continue until pancakes are all made. Store leftovers for tomorrow's breakfast, or a snack for later. Enjoy!

Variation - Use half hemp milk and half apple cider, and add 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon to the flours. Yum!

If the batter is thin, so will the pancakes be. These are filling, but don't lay like a brick in the belly.

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Just in time: Pumpkin bread

I was reading Food Network's website, & I came across an Alton Brown pumpkin bread recipe. Might be good to try with the leftover pumpkin insides from carving pumpkins. The man bought me 3 (3!!!) pumpkins. So, he'll definitely get some pumpkin treats as a thank you.

I haven't tried the recipe, but I figured that I'd post it in case anyone else was itching for something pumpkiny. In the comments for the above recipe, someone recommended how to implement a gluten-free version with agave nectar, which would be good for me!

What are you going to make with your pumpkin this year?

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Apple Galette.

On Friday, we had some people over to play Winerd, which if you don't know is a wine-related board game. We asked the players to bring a dish or two for sharing. The man made two quiches - one with ham, spinach, cheese, milk & bacon - the other had spinach, cheese, and smoked sun-dried tomatoes. Both had gluten-free crusts, which I made from scratch adapting this recipe with gluten-free flour. Both quiches were excellent & from his family recipe.

I made an apple galette, which was delicious even cold. I followed the recipe from Epicurious (originally from Bon Appetit) to the T. We had an embarrassing moment with it. Everyone had arrived, & I put the galette in the oven at 450 degrees to start.

Then there was smoking. Lots & lots of smoking.

Apparently, the apricot jam partially trickled out of the galette, went down the flat baking sheet, & fell onto the burners. I lowered the temperature to 350 & left it in the oven. Thankfully, the crust hole seemed to be filled, & jam only ran a little.

The guests loved it, & they even raved about it the next day when we saw them again. They even liked the crust! (Which I used sorghum flour & brown rice flour as a substitute for all purpose flour.)

I'd give the recipe 4/5. The man said the same. Sadly, it was all gobbled up before I could remember to take a picture. But do make it!!

Monday, October 19, 2009

Beef Bourguinon

There are high expectations when you attribute a quintessential French recipe to a renowned French chef. You expect melting deliciousness with a well-rounded flavor profile.

Food & Wine listed a recipe for Boeuf Bourguignon with the name Jacques Pepin with it. I thought, "Well if something can pull me back into the cooking game, it's Jacque Pepin's beef bourguinon."


The Preparation Area: Complete with Digital Recipe laptop



First, let me say: There were a few items that I couldn't/wouldn't comply with. The man called me from the grocery store & couldn't find pancetta or cippolini onions. We got bacon & "white boiling onions" that basically resembled large pearl onions. Also, I didn't peel the baby carrots. Who peels baby carrots? The French, that's
who. Nobody else. Being not French, I plopped those right into the mix. (I blow my nose in their general direction!)

When the recipe called for boiling the pancetta, I cooked my bacon in the skillet instead. I wasn't going to boil bacon. That is le gross. Then, I crumbled it into the vegetables (or garnishes as Chef Pepin calls them).

How was it? Well, the sauce was very good. Originally, I didn't put any butter in the sauce as we were fresh out, but it definitely tasted better once I added it.

Words of advice:
1. Get the pancetta. Bacon didn't make it better. There is something about chunks (not scraps) of lardons that make recipes better.

2. Get a full flavored Burgandy, Cotes du Rhone, or Beaujolais wine. I used a South American Syrah, which was rather flat. The French recipe poo-pooed it.

3. Let it stew for longer. The broth wasn't reduced enough as per Food & Wine's pictures. It would've been much better if it was more concentrated.

The man gives the broth a 4/5 stars - but the stew together got only 2 or 3 stars.
I'd give it a 3/5 stars. I liked it, but I'm on the look out for something better. Neither of us packed it for lunch the next day.

Next boeuf bourguinon is going to be Julia Child's from Mastering the Art of French Cooking (recipe here). I hope it's better!

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Review: Arrowhead Mills Gluten-free baking mix

The man wanted to make eggs for us for breakfast. I was thinking pancakes, but I figured that I'd let him cook. If he cooks, then we're having eggs. But lo & behold, there were only 2 eggs left. (I WIN!) So, I made us chocolate chip pancakes with agave nectar & Arrowhead Mills baking mix.

(Don't know why I put a low glycemic sweetener with a bunch of chocolate chips, though!)

How were they? One word: GRAINY!

We decided that we DON'T like Arrowhead Mills' gluten-free baking mix for tender baked goods (e.g. cookies, pancakes, etc). Next time, we'll stick to heartier things for this mix.

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Chicken Soup for the Cold

Our Chicken Soup

1 whole organic free-range chicken
2 beef marrow bones
8 carrots
6 stalks celery
1 parsnip
1 rutabaga
1 turnip
1 celeriac
2 bunches parsley
1 onion
2 leeks
salt
peppercorns
vinegar
noodles of choice

Find a large stock pot. Quarter the chicken, reserving the organs. With a cleaver, chop the neck and wings. Skin the chicken, keeping the skin on the wings. Add the bones, meat, organs, neck and wings to the pot. Add in the vegetables, all in large chunks. Quarter the round roots, cut the tapered ones into thirds. If they are not organic, make sure to skin them first. Put in a quarter bunch of parsley, a few pinches of salt and two pinches of peppercorns. Add water to cover and two tablespoons of vinegar. Let sit for 30 minutes. Turn heat on high. When the pot starts to boil, pay attention. Any impurities will rise to the top as foam. Skim this off. Keep boiling and skimming until no more foam forms. Then cover and simmer.

The longer you simmer, the yummier this will get. Two hours or more is best. If you want to make this a stock, simmer all night long and the following day. 8-24 hours. In the last 10 minutes of simmering, add in a bunch of parsley to the pot. It adds vitamins and minerals as well as flavor. Remove from heat, strain into another pot. Boil noodles in the hot stock pot. You can use some broth to flavor the water. Search the strained soup mixings for the edible chicken and carrots. Chop or shred the chicken, slice the carrots. Throw away all other vegetables and bones.

Place some chicken, carrot slices, noodles and broth serving bowls. Garnish with fresh parsley.

I've heard of adding garlic and cayenne for their benefits as well. How do you make yours?
Happy healing!

Friday, October 16, 2009

Dinner a Child Can Love

Tofu with Stir Fried Vegetables (Homemade 'Chinese' Food)

Organic tofu - a 'deck of cards' size per person
Frozen organic stir fry vegetable mix
Organic wild rice and brown rice
Assortment of fresh vegetables - onion, leek, garlic, ginger, mushrooms, etc.
Soy Sauce
Mirin
Olive oil
Sesame seeds

Put rice mixture into pot with water, at the ratio of 1 cup rice to 2 cups of water. I put 1/4 cup wild rice mix per 3/4 cup regular brown rice. It lasts longer this way). Add in some salt, half teaspoon for a cup of dried rice. This feeds our family of 4 once. If you wish to have leftovers, double the rice, water and salt. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 25 minutes. When done, just turn off the heat and let it sit until you're ready to serve it. Don't uncover it.

Prepare the ingredients for the stir fry first. Slice and cube the tofu, then press between paper towels. Start to heat two pans on medium. One for the fried tofu, one (maybe a wok?) for the stir fry. Mince the garlic. Chop the onion, leek, ginger, mushrooms, leftover baked squash, etc.

When pans are hot, add enough oil to the tofu pan to make it rise above the edges of the tofu. As if the pieces are taking a sitz bath in hot oil. You'll know the oil is hot enough if a piece of food sizzles immediately, or the end of a wooden spoon sizzles. Carefully put in the tofu. (Don't stuff them into the pan, you can do this in batches if you need to). Then ignore it. I mean it. Pretend it's not there.

Put enough oil in your wok or larger pan to coat the bottom of it. Add in the onion or leek or shallot. When fragrant, add the garlic. When you start smelling cooked garlic, add the mushrooms, then any other fresh vegetable you have. Sprinkle in soy sauce. When these look like they are starting to warm up, add the frozen veggies. Add more soy sauce. Cover and let steam.

Take a look at the tofu. If the bottom edges look brown, turn to fry the other side.

Check on the vegetables, add some more soy sauce if the vegetables taste bland. Mistake the mirin bottle for the soy sauce and dump a bunch of mirin into the wok, instead of drizzling it down the sides at the end. Stir. Cover if the vegetables aren't fully cooked. Keep an eye on these. Don't overcook them. Once they are done, remove them from the wok with a slotted spoon and place into a bowl.

Remove the tofu to paper towels to dry. They should be tough on the outside, chewy on the inside. If you cook them long enough, they will be crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside. After the vegetables are in a bowl, put the tofu into the wok to coat with the delicious soy sauce, mirin and vegetable juices. Quickly remove to a serving bowl. Continue working in batches with the tofu if need be.

After the tofu is finished, add a bit of cornstarch to the wok. Sprinkle a bit at a time, while stirring furiously. Let simmer while you plate the food.

Put the rice, vegetables and tofu onto each plate. Spoon the thickened sauce from the wok onto dinner. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. If you have another dry clean pan, you could have toasted them first.

Serve to the kids by saying, "Woops! I put too much sweet stuff in the Chinese food! You're gonna love it." Even the three year old will eat a bunch before realizing it's just like regular Chinese take out, only a bit healthier.

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Satisfying and Healthy Lunch

A quick and yummy lunch that is full of raw goodies.

Hummus
Organic Spinach drizzled with Balsamic Fig Glaze or dressing of choice
Organic Carrot Sticks*
Jerusalem Artichoke**
Leftover Rice Mix
Organic Corn Chips

Don't have these ingredients? Use your favorite beans and vegetables, and wrap them in an tortilla. The main point is to make sure we get raw food in our bellies. Enjoy!

Our Hummus Recipe
Pour one can of chickpeas in a processor. Add about 1 tablespoon olive oil, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon salt and blend. If you need to add more water to blend into a paste. Adjust seasonings to suit your taste. If by chance you overpower it with a particular ingredient, don't panic. Add another can of chickpeas and try again, going a bit more cautiously this time.

Spoon into bowl, smooth with spatula, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with paprika and toasted sesame seeds. Or, do it the lazy way and add those into the blender and spoon directly onto your plate. It still tastes great!

Traditional hummus is made with tahini. My son doesn't like the taste of the one we buy. So I omit it for him.

If you have dried chickpeas, they are better than canned. Soak overnight or at least 8 hours. This deactivates the enzyme inhibitors on the bean. Drain and rinse. Place in a pot with water to cover two inches above them. Bring to a boil, skim any foam, drop the heat to a simmer and let simmer until tender. Depending on the age of the bean, this can take from 30 minutes to an hour. Just remember to keep checking them. If you happen to overcook them, strain as usual. You're turning them into a paste anyway!

Have you heard about sprouting? It activates all the good things in the bean for your benefit. Sprouting is an excellent way to get extra live nutrition during the winter months ahead. If you think you're too busy for it, you may find it actually helps with cooking dinners. Sprouted beans and grains cook MUCH quicker than unsprouted ones do.

Sprouting directions: Soak 1 cup beans overnight, drain, rinse and place in one or two jars (not more than half full). Cover with a cheesecloth, screen, or dish towel, and secure with a rubber band or canning jar lid. Leave tilted so air can circulate and excess water can drain. Rinse 3-4 times a day, every day for a few (2-3) days. If you use a dish towel, make sure you change it every day or two. You'll see little shoots start to sprout. When they are ready, follow the cooking instructions above, but be careful! They cook QUICKLY. The taste they give is lighter than an unsprouted bean. You may adjust your seasonings differently.

*Organic baby carrots, while convenient, have been dipped in bleach. Best to make your own.

**The Jerusalem artichoke is a little root vegetable. I love it raw. It can be shredded or cubed and added to anything (veggie medley, meatloaf, salads, soup, etc). For this lunch, the root I had was a small one from the community garden, so I just scrubbed it and ate it whole. It's a great prebiotic, which means it supports the probiotics that keep us healthy.
Want to know more about Jerusalem Artichokes? They are easy to grow and harvest up to zone 4. Check this site.

Stuffed Squash - A Party in a Bowl

There were two little confetti squash sitting on my counter saying "Eat me, you know you want to." But what to do with them? After a very short search, this recipe jumped off the screen.

http://www.epicurean.com/featured/pecan-and-wild-rice-stuffed-squash-recipe.html

Oh how exciting! Instead of my usual vegan dinner of brown rice and stir fry vegetables, I was making a party in a bowl! No hum drum boring routine dinner here! Where's the confetti?! (I SEE you two, I meant the paper confetti).

Using what was available without a trip to the store, here's the new version:

2 small organic confetti squash
1/2 cup wild rice (I used the organic Harvest Medley mix from Costco)
1 1/4 cups water
3-4 tablespoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 stalks organic celery, minced
1 small onion, chopped
3-4 large button mushrooms, chopped
a few sprigs fresh thyme, taken off the stem
1/4 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/2 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground ginger (optional)
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 toasted sunflower seeds
handful of toasted walnuts
1 tablespoon hemp seeds
1/4 cup raisins
3/4 cup leftover cooked quinoa and lentils

The leftover quinoa and lentils was cooked together with a clove of garlic and some thyme sprigs in water - ratio of 1:2.

Simmer the rice in the water for 25 minutes. Cut squash in half and bake at 350 in a bit of water with the cut side down. Do some web surfing.

Turn all the heat off, take the squash out of the oven. Toast the sunflower seeds, then the walnuts, dump into a big bowl with the rice. Break up any big pieces of walnut with your fingers, or mortar and pestle. Saute onion and celery. While cooking, dump in the mushrooms, some raisins, hemp seeds, all the herbs and spices into the bowl while talking on the phone. This will ensure some mistaken spice gets added. Mine was ginger. Try to take as much out as you can. Dump in the onion and celery when done. Scrape some of the squash flesh out, add to the bowl and mix well. If the squash is still a bit hard, chop it a bit, or smush it up with your fingers. Add in the leftover quinoa and lentil mixture to make sure you have leftovers for lunch. Stuff the squash and bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes. Put the extra rice mix into an ovenproof bowl.

When cool, put the leftover rice mixture into a lunch box for work the next day.

So yummy and exciting!! With fanfare I presented it to the children, much to their dismay. The ginger and nutmeg were too warm in their mouths to enjoy it. They loved poking at the squash though!

Both my husband and I loved the dinner. Next time, I think I'll skip the phone conversation and put in a pinch of nutmeg with a half teaspoon of cinnamon, and no ginger. There will definitely be a next time. This dinner was EASY to make, and could be made in advance too. Just make the rice, quinoa and lentils, and bake the squash in advance. Then saute the onions and celery and add the remaining ingredients before you stuff and bake for 45 minutes.