Moussaka

I have been wanting to make this for ages, but I know that it is quite an involved process. I finally worked up the courage to find a good recipe and try it out (this one I found on the Food Network by Bobby Flay, altered slightly). 

Lamb:

1/4 cup olive oil, divided

1 lb. ground lamb

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp ground allspice

1/8 tsp cayenne

salt and pepper to taste

1 large yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced

1 red bell pepper, stemmed, cored, and thinly sliced

5 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 T tomato paste

1 cup red wine

1 (28-ounce can) plum tomatoes, pureed until smooth with their juices

1/4 cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley, plus more for garnish

1 T dried oregano

Eggplant:

1 1/2 cups canola oil

1 1/2 pounds eggplant, cut crosswise into 14-thick slices

Bechamel Sauce:

6 T unsalted butter

1/2 cup flour

2 1/2 cups milk

1 bay leaf

1/8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

3 egg yolks

1/2 cup soft goat cheese

1 cup grated Romano

1 lemon, zested

LAMB

Heat 1 T of the olive oil in a large saucepan over high heat. Add the lamb, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cayenne, and salt and pepper and cook, stirring to break up the meat, until browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer the lamb to a large strainer set over a bowl and drain; discard any liquid left in the pan. Return the pan to the heat and add the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil and heat until it begins to shimmer. Add the onions and bell pepper and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute.

Return the lamb to the pan, add the wine, and cook, stirring occasionally, until almost completely evaporated, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato puree and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until thickened, about 30 minutes. Stir in the parsley and oregano and season with salt and pepper, as needed. Remove from the heat.

EGGPLANT

Heat the canola oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Season the eggplant slices on both sides with salt and pepper. Working in batches, add the eggplant slices and fry until tender and lightly golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes. Transfer the eggplant slices to paper towels.

BECHAMEL 

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and cook, whisking constantly, until pale and smooth, 2 minutes. Still whisking constantly, add the milk and bay leaf and cook until thickened. Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg and discard the bay leaf. Let the sauce cool for 5-10 minutes. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, goat cheese, and lemon zest and whisk into the bechamel sauce until smooth. Preheat the oven to 400 deg F. Spray a 3-quart baking dish or casserole dish well with cooking spray.

ASSEMBLY

Put half the eggplant slices in the dish and cover with half the meat sauce. Top the sauce with the remaining eggplant slices, and then the remaining meat sauce. Pour the bechamel over the top of the meat sauce and spread evenly with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle Romano evenly over the top, place the dish on a baking sheet, and bake until browned and bubbly, 45 to 50 minutes. Top with more chopped parsley, if desired. Let cool for at least 20 minutes before serving.

It was okay, but nothing like you'll find in Greece ;).

Banana Roll Treat

This simple snack/breakfast/or even lunch takes me back to my grad school days. I was living out in Utah attending grad school, had no money, and was struggling to eat healthy on a shoe string budget...and the scale was proof of that. Cheap food is, for the most part, NOT healthy. Determined to balance my budget with my waistline, I found a (free at the time) program online called eDiets that had pretty good recipes that were healthy but also wallet friendly. I downloaded these meals every week to make my meal planner and found great success both with cooking and balancing my diet. This was a fun little treat that I would eat for breakfast or for a snack. It is still good today, and in fact I actually made it for lunch today (admittedly because I desperately need to go to the grocery store and the ingredients for this are mostly "pantry" ingredients).

Banana Roll Treat

1 large banana

(2) 6" whole wheat tortillas

4 T peanut butter

4 T granola

2 T honey

Dash cinnamon

Cut the banana in half. Spread 2 T of peanut butter over each tortilla. Lay a banana half in the center of each. Sprinkle each banana with 2 T granola and 1 T honey. Season with a dash of cinnamon over each and wrap up like a burrito. Voila!

Although I didn't have kids at the time, and even now I eat this occasionally myself, this is a great kids dish as well. It's easy for them to help assemble and it is healthy too. My son in particular loves both bananas and peanut butter.  

Goat Cheese Salad

I'm not quite sure how to post this salad. I mean the salad part is pretty basic (mixed greens, pomegranate dressing, walnuts, dried cranberries, chicken breast), but the highlight was going to be on the fried goat cheese rounds (rather than just crumbling goat cheese on top). I have eaten these before and even seen them prepared, so I had the misconception that 1) it was easy and 2) it did not require any kind of research beforehand. I figured I would simply wing it. I failed pretty miserably. They tasted quite nice on the salad, but they were a disaster to try and make. 

What I tried to do was cut the goat cheese into rounds (like medallions) and coat them in a mixture of panko, flour, parsley, salt, pepper and bread crumb. I pressed the rounds into the mixture for full coverage, then put them in the freezer so they were nice and firm. Meanwhile, I heated some Canola oil (shallow) over high heat. I thought I could fry them on each side very quickly and create a nice golden crust. Buuuutttt, I just melted the cheese and made a huge mess in the pan. I scraped out the cheese best I could, drained it on a paper towel and let it cool. Again, they tasted good, but were more like fried goat cheese blobs than the pretty golden crusted medallions I had envisioned! 

Homemade Baked Beans

I got this recipe out of Real Simple (June '11). I was feeling the pull of the perfunctory summer fare: hot dogs. I usually make baked beans over the stove and use canned white beans, but this called for a totally from scratch method so I figured I would try it. The high level summary is they were good but totally not worth the time and effort required, particularly when you have a 2 yr-old and are trying to get dinner on the table on time (which incidentally did not happen).

Homemade Baked Beans

4 oz sliced bacon, cut into 1/2" pieces

1 onion, chopped

salt and pepper

1 pound dried navy beans (soaked in water OVERNIGHT and drained)

1/2 cup molasses

1/4 cup ketchup

1 T dry mustard

2 T cider vinegar

Heat oven to 300 deg F. Cook the bacon in a Dutch oven over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until nearly crisp (5-7 minutes). Add the onion and season with salt and pepper, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft.

Add the beans, molasses, ketchup, mustard and 5 cups of water to the Dutch oven and stir to combine; bring to a boil. Cover pot and transfer to oven. Bake until liquid is reduced by half, about 2 1/2 hours. Uncover and bake, stirring once, until the cooking liquid is thickened, about 1-1 1/4 hours MORE. Stir in the vinegar and serve. WHEW.

How NOT to make granola bars!

I do not know where I got this recipe...it was in a pile of recipes I had saved some time ago and stashed away. I had been wanting to make granola bars lately anyway, so I thought this was the perfect opportunity. Well, I don't know who authored this recipe but it is terrible. It tasted okay, but was chewy and did not form bars at all. In fact, it made a total mess of my baking sheet. I had to keep what survived the process in the freezer to make it edible. If you have a tested granola bar recipe, please send it to me!

Do Not Make Granola Bars this way:

1 1/4 cup chopped walnuts

1 1/2 cups puffed rice cereal

1 1/4 cups rolled oats

1 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup oat bran

2 T candied ginger, diced

3/4 cup + 2 T maple syrup

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

Toast walnuts and set aside. In a bowl mix the rice cereal, oats, dried cranberries, oat bran and ginger. In a saucepan mix together maple syrup, sugar, and salt over medium heat until thick, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Toss with dry mixture and add walnuts; stir until combined well. Press into a greased 8x11 baking dish and let cool. Cut into bars.

These were a gooey, sloppy mess!

Cherry Salsa

This is similar to the method of the mango salsa, just with cherries...which are also in season now. Fresh, wild cherries are so flavorful and are loaded with antioxidants and vitamins. As a runner, cherries or cherry juice are among the best things to consume. Wild Cherries went on a huge sale here at Whole Foods, so we stocked up, made some fresh dishes and froze the rest for smoothies later. 

Cherry Salsa

1 lb fresh wild cherries, de-stemmed and pitted, diced

1 shallot, finely diced (you could also use red onion)

2 fresh limes, zested and juiced

2-3 tsp ground cumin (adjust to your liking!)

salt and pepper to taste

Cilantro, chopped (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and combine well. Taste for adjustment to salt, pepper and cumin to your liking. Refrigerate for a few hours for the flavors to marry. Serve with quesodillas, burritos, grilled chicken, whatever! This can really be customized to your liking, so play with the flavors and even ingredients   

Egg White Ice Cream: Coffee

I have been looking for ways to reduce my sugar intake, but I also like a sweet treat every now and then. I have used a version of this ice cream recipe before, using egg whites and sour cream, but this time I reduced the sugar even more. I figure the best ice cream flavor with little sugar is coffee because you really want to taste the coffee flavor anyway (well I do since I drink my coffee black...if you load up on cream and sugar you probably disagree!).

This really works best in an ice cream maker, but I also have made it without one and it is a bit icey since it had less fat, but still tastes good!

Coffee (egg white) Ice Cream

2 cup very strong-brewed coffee (espresso like); cooled

1 cup milk

1/2 cup sour cream

4 egg whites

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 cup sugar

Make the coffee ahead of time, but the same day. You want it cooled, but not stale. Brewing flavored coffee makes it even better.

Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, whip the egg whites until soft peaks form. Slowly incorporate the sour cream and vanilla. Add the milk, cooled coffee and sugar and mix on low just to combine. Place in an ice cream maker and follow directions for your maker, or put in a freezer container and place in the freezer to freeze. If you are doing it this way, take it out about once an hour to stir so it's not so icey.

Another recipe I tried out of an old magazine tear out I found while cleaning is below. This is a very easy, basic ice cream recipe that does not call for heavy cream:

Basic Vanilla Ice Cream

1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk

1 (5 oz) can evaporated milk

2 T sugar

2 tsp vanilla

2 cups whole milk

Whisk all ingredients in a large container and chill for 30 minutes. Pour mixture into ice cream maker and freeze according to directions. 

Variations:

Chocolate: omit sugar, vanilla and whole milk, add 2 cups chocolate milk and 2/3 cup chocolate syrup

Strawberry: omit vanilla and reduce milk to 1 1/2 cups. Process 1 (16 oz) container fresh strawberries , 2 T lemon juice, and 1/4 tsp salt in a blender. Stir into milk mixture

Coconut: omit vanilla and sugar, reduce whole milk to 1 1/2 cups. Whisk 1 (13.5 oz) can coconut milk , 2 T lemon juice and 1/4 tsp salt into milk mixture. 

Fig-Mint: Make vanilla ice cream as directed above. Meanwhile, stir together 2 cups chopped fresh figs, 1/4 cup lemon juice, 2 T sugar,  and 2 tsp chopped fresh mint. Stir mixture into prepared vanilla (while it is soft right out of the ice cream maker) and freeze until firm. 

Turkey Burgers with Heirloom Tomatoes & Red Onion

This is another dish straight out of Runners World, a dish we love to make, and really is best with heirloom tomatoes, which are just now in season. I can't count how many times I have made this dish. The celebrity chef Rocco DeSpirito contributed the recipe to an issue of Runners World a few years ago and I have hung on to it. This dish is light, but filling, easy on the calories and great if you're watching carbs (as I am since I'm pregnant). The combination of the grilled veggies plus the sauce drizzled on top is what makes the dish...I mean the turkey burger part is good, but to eat it alone it is not a salient dish in itself. 

Turkey Burgers with Heirloom Tomatoes & Red Onion

1 1/4 lbs ground turkey

3 T chopped fresh rosemary (or about 1 T dried)

salt & pepper to season

Olive oil cooking spray

2 heirloom tomatoes, cut into 1/2" slices (I like to get one yellow and one red)

1 medium red onion, cut into round 1/2" slices

1 cup milk (I used 1%)

1 T cornstarch

1/2 cup shredded Provolone or Munster cheese (I have used both)

Preheat a grill on high heat. In a bowl, mix together the ground turkey and rosemary, season with salt and pepper. Divide into 4 portions and form into 1" patties. Place on grill. Spray tomato and onion slices with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place on grill. Grill meat and onions for 4 minutes per side. Grill tomatoes for 2 minutes per side (or less, keep an eye on them so they don't turn into mush!). 

In a bowl, whisk together the milk and cornstarch. Pour into a saucepan, bring to a boil, whisking constantly. Reduce heat to low and cook until thickened, about 1 minute. Whisk cheese into sauce until melted. Season with salt and pepper.

Pile onion and tomato slices on top of each patty and drizzle with sauce. Serves four. 

Red Potato Salad and Dijon and Red Pepper

This is just a twist on traditional potato salad. Also red potatoes are lower on the glycemic index than russet potatoes, or yukon gold, etc. (which is important to me right now since I'm watching the prego weight gain!). The dijon is a nice way to both add flavor and cut back on the mayo, and I  love the extra crunch of the red peppers!

Red Potato Salad and Dijon and Red Pepper

4 cups baby red potatoes, cubed

1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced

3 scallions, diced

1 tsp dijon mustard

1 T extra virgin olive oil

1 T red wine vinegar

3 T reduced fat mayo

salt and pepper to taste

Boil potatoes in water until soft, approx 10 minutes. Drain and let cool.

While the potatoes are boiling, combine red pepper, dijon mustard, olive oil, vinegar and mayonnaise and season with salt and pepper. Mix well and let the flavors marry while the potatoes cook. Once the potatoes are cool, mix into the bowl and add scallions and additional salt and pepper to taste, as needed. Serve room temperature or refrigerate until ready to serve.

The dijon, olive oil, red wine vinegar and mayo can all be adjusted to suit your tastes, just add a bit at a time and taste until you like it!

I served this with a chicken breast sandwich. 

Chicken & Cheese Quesadilla with Mango Salsa

The star of this dish is the fresh mango salsa...I mean the chicken and cheese filled tortillas are delicious, but the salsa makes the dish for sure. I have really enjoyed incorporating all the fresh summer fruits into meals now that summer is here...nothing against you, butternut squash, but winter is over. 

I won't bother with the recipe for the quesadilla (just whole wheat tortillas, cheese, grilled chicken and seasonings), the salsa is what you want:

Mango Salsa

2 ripe mangos, peeled and cubed off the pit

1 lime, zested and juiced

1 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground coriander

salt and pepper to taste
2-3 scallions, chopped (for garnish)


Combine all but the scallions in a small bowl and refrigerate for a few hours before serving. Top with chopped scallions to serve. 

Cauliflower Mac'n'Cheese

I got this idea straight out of Runner's World (March '11) ... a healthy way to incorporate cauliflower into a meal, and eliminate some of the not-so-innocuous culprits of mac'n'cheese! It was delicious! In fact, I may always make mac'n'cheese with this cruciferous vegetable! 

Cauliflower Mac'n'Cheese  
2 1/2 cups chicken stock
2 bay leaves
1 cauliflower, cored and cut into large pieces
8 oz. whole wheat pasta (I used elbow mac)
1/2 grated cheese (cheddar, gruyere, whatever you like)
2 T olive oil
1 tsp dijon mustard
1/8 tsp nutmeg
salt & pepper to taste
1/4 cup grated parmesan
1/2 cup whole-grain bread crumbs


Heat oven to 400 deg F. Boil a pot of salted water. In a saucepan, warm the stock and bay leaves on medium-low heat for 5 minutes; turn off heat. Cook cauliflower in boiling water for 25 minutes. Put cauliflower in a food processor. Cook pasta in boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain and rinse to cool; put pasta in a greased, 9" square baking dish. Process cauliflower with stock (discard bay leaves), cheese, oil, mustard, nutmeg, salt and pepper, working in batches. Pour sauce over pasta, toss, and spread evenly into dish. Top with parmesan and bread crumbs. Bake 20 minutes. Serves 4.


I served this dish alongside a pistachio-crusted chicken breast and a mixed green salad. Yum! 

Hiatus II

So clearly I should have saved my hiatus post for June. I literally have about 5-6 recipes piled up in my draft posts awaiting pictures and final touches before being published. Where did June go anyway? Here it is July 1st (nope, just glaned at the calendar, July 2nd) and poor coffee braised beef brisket has been holding down the blog for a solid three weeks. Pitiful, really. Add that we are on vacation and I'm not exercising any kind of ability to cook, and well you get the idea. We won't be back in the city until the middle of next week, so I suspect that post-worthy dinners will even scarce at best. My intention, at the very least, is to get the draft posts published, so may these whet your appretite in the meantime:

Cauliflower Mac'n'Cheese

Chicken & Cheese Quesadilla with Mango Salsa

Red Potato Salad with Dijon and Red Pepper

Turkey Burgers with Heirloom Tomatoes & Red Onion

How Not to Make Granola Bars

Egg White Ice Cream

Coffee-Braised Brisket with Potatoes & Carrots

I found this recipe in Real Simple recently and, knowing that I had a few pounds of brisket in the freezer, decided to try it out. It is really simple, and as long as you plan ahead for using the slow cooker, it comes together quick when it's time to serve. 

I'd like to think of this as an updated version of (enter your name here) mom's pot roast. I have not so pleasant memories of coming home from church to the smell of pot roast in the oven, and so does my husband. I guess this was a Southern staple for Sunday afternoon lunch. Ranks up there with meatloaf if you ask me. Anyway...it's a nice change up with the coffee flavor and if I make it again I'll be sure to spice it up with maybe some bright coriander, or even use a nice dark beer, like Guinness, instead of coffee. You could always change up the vegetables to for a modern update as well, such as using parsnips or sweet potatoes. 

I didn't take any pictures because a) it was getting late and we were hungry and b) even with it's updated flavor, admittedly it didn't look much more appetizing than a blob of pot roast with overcooked potatoes (although I assure you my carrots and potatoes were not overcooked).  

My husband used the leftover brisket to make sandwiches the following days after we had this; really good according to him!

Coffee-Braised Brisket with Potatoes & Carrots

1 medium onion, peeled and quartered, stem and end left intact

1 lb. red potatoes, quartered

1 lb. baby carrots

2 1/2 lbs. beef brisket, trimmed

Kosher salt and black pepper

1 6 oz. can tomato paste

3/4 cup strong brewed black coffee

2 T worcestershire sauce

2 T brown sugar

In the bottom of a slow cooker, combine the onion, potatoes, and carrots. Season beef with 1 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper and place on top of the vegetables.

In a small bowl, whisk together the tomato paste, coffee, worcestershore, and brown sugar; pour over the beef and vegetables. Cover and cook on low 7-8 hours until beef and vegetables are tender. 

Slice the beef across the grain and serve with vegetables and sauce.

(Recipe adapted from Real Simple)

Beetroot Pizza

Remember the beet risotto? Well, courtesy of my sister once again, I tried out this pizza dough that uses beets. What a great way to incorporate this super food into your diet, particularly if you have kids, or don't like vegetables yourself! The dough was easy to make and came together nicely in the food processor with the dough blade. I have to say that I chose an extremely non-traditional pizza topping to go with this non-traditional pizza dough. You may want try something a little more normal...or you could go whole hog and try my rendition: kale salad! What?! That's right, I took the recipe for Kale Salad (here) and dumped it on top of this pizza dough covered in grated black peppercorn Parmesan cheese.

The shaved asparagus idea would have been delicious, or really any veggie combo like broccoli or spinach would be nice as well. The dough did not taste like beets at all, but had a really nice color... sorry the picture looks kind of gross...between my low end camera and the pile of kale it does not look very appetizing! The take away here is try the beet dough!

Beetroot Pizza Dough

8 oz. package prepared beets (I found this in the produce section; beats peeling and cooking them yourself)

2 oz. warm water

1 package active dry yeast

1 tsp honey

3 cups white whole wheat flour (or bread flour)

1 tsp kosher salt

2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for the bowl

Place the prepared beets and warm water in a food processor and process until smooth; add more water if needed. It should be smooth but slightly thick. (If you buy fresh beets, use about 3/4-1 cup cooked beets + the water).

Add all the ingredients into a stand mixer bowl or large food processor. Mix with the dough hook until well kneaded.

Remove from the bowl and knead by hand for 2 minutes on an unfloured surface. (If you have a counter that stains find another place). Then pat into a ball.

Grease a large bowl with olive oil and add the dough, flipping once to coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm spot until doubled.

Roll out the dough on a floured surface, do the final stretches by hand by gently pulling the ends with your fingers. Place on a lightly oiled and coarse cornmeal covered pizza pan, and then add the toppings. 

Pad Thai

I finally tried my hand a Pad Thai, one of my favorites (and recently top pregnancy craving). My sister forwarded me a recipe/procedure she uses from Chez Pim. If you've ever made Pad Thai, then you know it's just as much about the method as the ingredients. It seems overwhelming, but as I moved through each step, it actually comes together pretty quick and easy as long as all of your ingredients are ready. I'm not going to re-post the lengthy instructions, but you can find them here. It does require specialty ingredients, such as tamarind pulp, but the recipe makes a lot of sauce you can freeze and use in the future, as I will do. 

I found success with this recipe and made little changes (gasp!); I was particularly impressed with how good it tasted for my first try with the wok and my first try at making Pad Thai. If you're feeling brave...well even if you're not, try this recipe! Beats take out any day!

Chicken Turnovers with Broccoli & Blue Cheese

Hmmm, what to do with the remainder of the rotisserie chicken? Well, upon survey of the refrigerator, I also have some left over blue cheese. Chicken and blue cheese...in puff pastry?! Yes. These chicken turnovers have chicken, broccoli, and white cheddar and blue clue cheeses all wrapped up in puff pastry. Easy and delicious. If I had to do it again, however, I would attempt to season the chicken a bit more...after sitting in the refrigerator for a few days, it lacked flavor that the cheese and broccoli just could not quite elevate.  

Chicken Turnovers with Broccoli & Blue Cheese

1 (17.5 oz) package puff pastry, thawed

About 1/2 of a rotisserie chicken, shredded

4 oz. white cheddar, shredded

4 oz. blue cheese, crumbled

8 oz. frozen broccoli, thawed, drained and chopped

pinch kosher salt

1 egg, beaten

Caramelized onion dip (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 350 deg F. Beat the egg in a small bowl to make an egg wash and set aside. 

Once the puff pastry is thawed, cut along each seam to make 6 rectangles. Working one at a time, place each piece between two pieces of plastic wrap and roll out slightly. Peel off the top piece of plastic wrap and begin layering cheddar cheese, chicken, broccoli then blue cheese on one half of the pastry. Sprinkle with salt. Pick up one end of the bottom plastic and gently fold over the pastry on itself. Roll in the three cut sides and pinch to seal. Pick up the turnover using the bottom plastic wrap and as you place it onto a greased cooking sheet, peel the plastic off. Cut two vent holes and brush with egg wash. Repeat with 5 remaining pastry sheets.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown. Serve with caramelized onion dip (below).

Caramelized Onion Dip

1 large onion, sliced

1 T olive oil

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/3 cup sour cream

2-3 scallions, chopped

Over very low heat, combine the onion, olive oil and salt. Toss and cover with a lid. Cook for about 30 minutes, stirring about every 5-8 minutes until onions are deep brown and caramelized. Place onions in a small food processor with sour cream and process until smooth. Fold in scallions and serve with turnovers.    

Curried Chicken with Ginger: Disaster!

I found this easy slow cooker recipe in my Real Simple magazine and immediately added it to this week's menu. I love slow cooker meals, although I don't utilize my slow cooker near as often as I should. The problem with juggling a 2 yr old, work and a pregnancy at the same time is that you often are forgetful. So I had planned this meal for tonight and totally forgot it was a slow cooker meal. Hello. So when 5pm rolled around and I saw that this needed 8 hours to cook, well. Plan B indeed. I thought I would go ahead and assemble and make this meal, refrigerate it when it was finished (although this would require setting an alarm to get up at 2am) and serve it for dinner tomorrow night. Can you see where this is going?

Short story: started slow cooker by 6pm, went on with evening routine, forgot to set alarm, woke up at 6am to burnt (BURNT) chicken gook. 

Hesitant to post anything about this disaster, I remembered that in the beginning I set out to chronicle kitchen successes and failures. Failure: check!

I would like to try this again some time, and if you would to here is the recipe from Real Simple:

Curried Chicken with Ginger

1/3 cup tomato paste

1 cup chicken stock (my addition)

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 T curry powder

1 T grated fresh ginger

1 tsp ground cumin

1 medium onion, chopped

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs

salt and pepper to taste

1 1/2 cups wild rice

1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt

2 scallions, thinly sliced

Whisk together the tomato paste, garlic, curry, ginger, cumin and chicken stock in your slow cooker. Add the onion and stir to combine. Place the chicken on top and season with 1 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper.

Cover and cook until chicken is tender, 8 hours on low.

Thirty minutes before serving, cook the rice according to package directions. Just before serving, add the yogurt and 1/2 tsp salt to the chicken and stir to combine. Serve with rice and sprinkle with scallions.  

Wild Blackberry Yogurt Parfait

Blackberries are in season, and were on sale this week. I eat them over cereal and with granola and yogurt, but I decided to take some of them and make a yogurt parfait. It's a little unique in that I added some goat cheese for a twist, so if you don't like goat cheese, just leave it out! I thought it turned out well and was quite a nice snack this afternoon! 

Wild Blackberry Yogurt Parfait

2 cups wild blackberries, divided

1/3 cup brown sugar + 2 oz water

1 cup Greek yogurt

2 T goat cheese

2 T honey

1/4 cup granola or muesli or bran flakes, etc.

Make the blackberry compote first (ideally the day before) by simmering 1 cup of the blackberries with the sugar and water over low heat until blackberries are soft and sweet, about 30 minutes. Keep checking on it and stir occasionally, taking care not to burn it! Cool completely (or refrigerate overnight)

Using a small food processor or hand mixer, cream the yogurt, goat cheese and honey. Adjust the goat cheese and honey to your taste for sharp versus sweet. 

To layer the parfait, scoop the yogurt mixture into the bottom of an 8 oz. glass. Top with blackberry compote and spread evenly over the top. Sprinkle with granola and a few wild blackberries. Serves 2. Using a small glass, this would serve 4.  

Buffalo Chicken Sliders

You know how I like my rotisserie chicken recipes. The week's that I buy a rotisseries chicken, I am guaranteed two easy dinners. This is one such week. With a full work schedule plus everyday activities and life with a 2-yr old, this is sometimes a must. Tonight's easy dinner: chicken sliders! I've never made these before, but my husband loves buffalo and blue cheese, so this is what I came up with.

The buffalo sauce I used is very mild because I literally have zero tolerance for spicy food...I'm talking I can't even eat medium salsa people. So, if you like spicy food, you could alter the recipe to use chili powder or cayenne powder...or just use your favorite hot sauce and skip the recipe altogether! It just so happens that nobody makes a mild buffalo sauce...I checked three grocery stores.

Buffalo Chicken Sliders

About 1/2 of a rotisseries chicken, shredded

For Buffalo Sauce (or use your favorite bottled hot sauce)

1/3 cup butter 

1/4 cup hot sauce

1/4 cup tomato sauce

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

4 oz. crumbled blue cheese

1/4 cup light mayo

Make the buffalo sauce my melting the butter and adding remaining ingredients in a small sauce pan over low heat. Don't cook too long. Toss with shredded chicken. In a small food processor, add the blue cheese and mayo and pulse until a thick, but creamy blue cheese sauce forms (it will be lumpy).

Assemble the sliders by topping the bottom bun half with a mound of the buffalo chicken, then pour blue cheese sauce as desired and top with other bun half. 

I served these with fried plantains (recipe here). 

Turkey Dogs with Avocado and Cotija

Okay, so admittedly two weeks ago I had never heard of cotija cheese. But then I was introduced to it in the kale salad recipe, and then again when browsing a cooking blog (here) I came across another idea for cotija cheese and it sounded simple but good. Hot dogs with avocado slices and cotija cheese. Well, it was indeed simple, but as my husband and I looked across the dinner table at one another our gaze suggested a longing for good old ketchup and mustard. Not that they weren't good, but if I am going to eat a hot dog, this fancy version would not be my first choice. Still a fun recipe, though.


Turkey Dogs with Avocado & Cotija
8 uncured turkey hot dogs
8 hot dog buns
2-4 oz. cotija cheese, crumbled (depending on how much you want on your dog)
1 ripe avocado, diced
Arugula pesto (recipe here)


Grill hot dogs and place in buns. Top with arugula pesto, cotija cheese and avocado pieces.   

Portobello Mushroom Burger

Portobello mushrooms were on sale this week at Whole Foods, which prompted the idea of a mushroom burger. Why not? They were very easy to prepare and tasted delicious...even my husband, who does not like mushrooms really, liked the flavor...true, he struggled with the texture of the mushroom, but anyone who likes, or loves, mushrooms will love this burger! I would eat it just the same as a regular burger any day of the week. Chalk one up for fungus!

Portobello Mushroom Burger

4 portobello mushroom caps, stems removed and cleaned

1/4 cup olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup light mayonnaise

Arugula pesto (recipe follows)

4 T goat cheese

4 hamburger buns, split and toasted

2 red bell peppers (or you could use caramelized onions)

Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Spray with non-stick cooking spray.

Brush mushrooms caps with olive oil; sprinkle evenly with salt and pepper (both sides). Grill mushrooms, for 3-4 minutes on each side, or until tender (don't grill them too long, they will become mushy!).

Meanwhile, using either your oven or gas stove, roast the red peppers until charred. Place charred peppers in an ice bath until cool, remove skin, seeds and membranes, and slice. Make the arugula pesto (recipe below).

In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, pesto, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Spread mixture evenly over cut sides of buns. Place mushroom caps on bottom half of bun, fill center with 1 T goat cheese each and top each evenly with red pepper. Cover with top bun half.

Arugula Pesto

2 cups arugula

1 lemon, juice and zest

1 T pine nuts

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 olive oil + more as needed

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and combine until well emulsified, adding more olive oil if needed. 

Shaved Asparagus Pizza

Full disclosure up front, I got this idea from a friend who posted it on Facebook after his wife made it, and it looked so good I followed the link to the original source...turns out she didn't think of this brilliant idea either, but it's still just as good! (http://smittenkitchen.com/2010/05/shaved-asparagus-pizza/)
Seriously, who would have thought of putting shaved asparagus on a pizza? In keeping with my cooking style, I did alter the recipe a bit. Below is how I prepared it:

Shaved Asparagus Pizza

1 package whole wheat pizza dough (I found one this week at Trader Joes for $.99!)

1/2 pound asparagus (thicker stalks are better than thin ones)

4 oz. peppered Parmesan cheese, grated (regular parm is fine too)

2 teaspoons black truffle oil (olive oil would be fine too)

kosher salt + several grinds black pepper to season

2 scallions, thinly sliced

Preheat your oven to the hottest temperature it goes, or about 500 deg F in most cases. If you use a pizza stone, as I do, you'll just have to wait to turn the oven on when you ready to put the stone in so you don't crack it.

To prepare asparagus: No need to snap off ends; they can be your “handles” as you peel the asparagus. Holding a single asparagus spear by its tough end, lay it flat on a cutting board and using a vegetable peeler (a Y-shaped peeler works best), create long shavings of asparagus by drawing the peeler from the base to the top of the stalk. Repeat with remaining stalks and don’t fret some pieces are unevenly thick (such as the end of the stalk, which might be too thin to peel); the mixed textures give a great character to the pizza. Discard tough ends. 

To assemble and bake pizza: Roll or stretch out your pizza dough to a 12-inch round. Sprinkle pizza dough with nearly all of the peppered Parmesan. Pile asparagus on top and grate what is left of the cheese on top. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and drizzle with truffle oil. 

Bake pizza for 10 to 15 minutes, or until edges are browned, the cheese is bubbly and the asparagus might be lightly charred. Remove from the oven and immediately sprinkle with scallions.

I have to note that shaving the asparagus was more time consuming than I anticipated. After the first few swipes, it gets kind of tricky to get a good strip off. I found that rotating the stalk around as I shaved off strips yielded more, otherwise since the stalks are thicker at the base and thin at the tip you run out of real estate, if you will. This is also why it's important to get the thicker stalks of asparagus versus the little skinny ones...those would have been a nightmare to shave, I imagine.