Kalyn's Kitchen

Happy Fourth of July and Time to Start Grilling!

2009-07-04T08:10:00.001-06:00

Happy Fourth of July to everyone in the U.S. I'm guessing lots of you will be cooking outside today. If you're looking for something to grill for the holiday, pictured above is Carol's Completely Fabulous Steak Marinade and Grilled Tri-Tip, one of the all-time most popular things I've posted in the Grilling Recipes on Kalyn's Kitchen. I also featured some of my favorite grilling recipes in

Friday Night Photos: Lunch at the New Yorker and New Restaurant Options in Utah

2009-07-03T20:00:00.001-06:00

With a long-awaited change to Utah liquor laws taking place on July 1, diners gained a lot of new restaurant options when fine dining establishments that had previously been private clubs became open to the public. One club I'd always been rather wowed by the few times I went there are someone's guest was The New Yorker, so when I got an invitation to try out their new fixed-price menu for lunch

Recipe for Spicy Shrimp and Cucumber Salad with Mint, Lemon, and Cumin

2009-07-02T05:00:00.001-06:00

This week there are big holidays for people who live in Canada or the U.S., and in my family a summer holiday celebration usually includes shrimp and macaroni salad. I'm not sure if I'll be making that one this year, but I'm guessing my shrimp-salad-loving dad would like this shrimp salad with mint, adapted from a recipe by Ellie Krieger. Truthfully, I'd never paid much attention to Ellie

South Beach Diet Phase One Recipes Round-Up for June 2009

2009-07-01T05:00:00.001-06:00

Kalyn's favorite phase one recipe for June 2009 wasTomato, Olive, and Fresh Mozzarella Saladwith Basil Vinaigrette.I'm not sure which is harder to believe, that it's the end of June already, or that I'm retired! I can tell you, I definitely don't feel retired with all the work I've done this month getting ready for the house to be painted, and other chores related to house renovations. I'm

Recipe for Asparagus and Fresh Mozzarella Frittata with Parmesan and Chives

2009-06-29T08:39:00.000-06:00

Since I've been raving about how much I love the Bel Gioioso Fresh Mozzarella Pearls I found at Costco, I thought I'd show you one more thing I made with them, plus some asparagus tips my sister Pam gave me. (Thanks Pam!) If you're one of the people who commented you can't find the fresh mozzarella pearls, this recipe is one where you could substitute regular grated mozzarella, but the fresh

Kalyn's Kitchen Picks: Bel Gioioso Fresh Mozzarella Pearls

2009-06-27T21:00:00.001-06:00

You can tell how much I've been loving these fresh mozzarella "pearls" by Bel Gioioso from Costco, because I actually used a part of this container before I remembered I wanted to take a photo for the blog. I guess the fact I couldn't wait to eat some is proof enough that I'm endorsing these as one of my Kalyn's Kitchen Picks, the feature where I rave about products I'd happily buy over and over

Friday Night Photos: House Renovations v. 2.1.7 (Paint, Steps, Sprinklers, and a Garden Path)

2009-06-26T20:55:00.000-06:00

There've been a lot of exciting additions to the house renovations since the last update, but I decided to start with the front steps, because after months and months of plywood steps, I'm so happy to have real steps again. There are even flowers that survived by the front porch, and today I planted a few things to fill in by the steps, hence the garden clogs in the photo.Last time I ended with

Recipe for Parsley Hummus with Whole Wheat Pita Chips

2009-06-25T05:00:00.008-06:00

Hummus is one of those foods I'd never get tired of eating. I'm pretty sure this particular version of hummus with lots of parsley, tahini, sesame oil, cumin, and lemon juice wouldn't be a hit with everyone, but if you like parsley and enjoy middle eastern flavors, you might love it like I did. If you have friends who like interesting flavors, make this and ask them what the seasonings are,

Recipe for Onion Gratin with Rosemary and Thyme

2009-06-23T05:00:00.002-06:00

Creamed Onions was one of the dishes my family used to consider a "must have" for Thanksgiving dinner, and I started thinking about them recently when it rained for days and I had a ten pound sack of Vidalia onions to use up. I knew I'd have to get creative, since the old family version had butter, cream, and lots of full-fat cheese. Then I remembered the Broccoli Gratin I made for

Recipe Favorites: Easy Strawberries Romanoff

2009-06-21T10:13:00.002-06:00

(Updated and added to Recipe Favorites June 2009) I keep noticing ripe juicy strawberries every time I go to the market, so I decided it's time Strawberries Romanoff gets featured as one of my Recipe Favorites. I learned to make this in college, when I worked at a French restaurant in Salt Lake called Le Parisien. The restaurant closed in 2001, but I have great food memories of the place, and

Friday Night Photos: 2009 Garden Update #4 - Little Tomatoes, Veggies, and Herbs

2009-06-19T21:30:00.001-06:00

I believe there are lessons everywhere you turn in life, and right now perhaps my garden is trying to teach me that the cycle of life continues no matter what, because the garden is thriving, even though I've been doing a lot of house organizing and cleaning and not much gardening. Not only that, the weather in Utah has been rainy for days on end, but the plants seem to be loving it. Above are

Recipe for Marinated Fresh Mozzarella with Herbs

2009-06-17T17:00:00.004-06:00

This tasty mixture of mini mozzarella balls and fresh herbs might be the easiest appetizer you've ever whipped up, and I'm guessing it will impress your friends. After I discovered mozzarella pearls at Costco and made Tomato, Olive, and Fresh Mozzarella Salad, I heard from a lot of readers who loved the idea of the little balls of fresh mozzarella. I thought it might be fun to try another way

Recipe Favorites: Blue Cheese Coleslaw

2009-06-15T19:43:00.000-06:00

(Updated and added to Recipe Favorites, June 2009.) I'm a huge fan of coleslaw, and this version with a bit of crumbled blue cheese in the dressing is unique enough to be really interesting. Blue cheese is high in fat, so I cut down the amount of blue cheese quite a bit when I adapted this recipe, and reduced it even more for this updated version, but it takes only a small amount to give this

Recipe for Tomato, Olive, and Fresh Mozzarella Salad with Basil Vinaigrette

2009-06-13T20:30:00.004-06:00

This is the perfect salad to make when it's fresh tomato season and your garden is bursting with tomatoes and fresh basil. However it can also have mood-enhancing properties if it's a very rainy first week of summer where you live, even if you have to buy tomatoes from Costco and it takes every basil leaf you can manage to snip from your puny plants. I have to confess though, it was the

Friday Night Photos: House Renovations v. 2.1.6 (Sidewalks, Decks, Blinds, and a Real Office!)

2009-06-12T20:59:00.004-06:00

Today marks seven months since I started my house renovations. Of course things take a bit longer when you change the plan in the middle and decide to tear off your teeny-tiny office and add a big new part on to the back of your house. I won't say I haven't ever been discouraged, but mostly I've been feeling grateful, and all day today I've been looking around thinking, "I can't believe I live

Greek-Seasoned Grilled Pork Chops Recipe with Lemon and Oregano

2009-06-10T21:10:00.000-06:00

All year I wait for grilling season, so I'm trying to be patient about the fact that it's June and my grill is still packed away in the neighbor's garage, where it's been for quite a while! I guess not having a grill is making me think about things I'd *like* to be grilling, and the thought of grilled pork chops with a marinade similar to Souvlaki popped into my head last week. Luckily I have

Recipe for Baked Lemon-Curry Rice with Onions and Pine Nuts

2009-06-08T22:04:00.001-06:00

I think it's entirely possible that I'll grab on to any excuse to use pine nuts, because I love them so much I can hardly be objective about whether a dish really needs them or not. This rice dish that starts on the stove and then finishes cooking in the oven already had lots of flavor from the onions, curry powder, and lemon juice, but I loved the way pine nuts added that extra something. Of

Recipe for Roasted Mushrooms with Garlic, Thyme, and Balsamic Vinegar

2009-06-06T19:00:00.002-06:00

If I ever decided to make a list of "foods I'd never get tired of," there's no doubt that mushrooms would be on that list. This interesting mushroom recipe, where they're partly roasted and then tossed with garlic, fresh thyme, and balsamic vinegar, comes from Vegetables Every Day by Jack Bishop, one of my all-time favorite cookbooks. I think mushrooms are good no matter how you cook them, but

Friday Night Photos: 2009 Garden Update #3 (Tomatoes, Herbs, and More Time to Garden!)

2009-06-05T21:00:00.000-06:00

Today was the last day of school and the end of my teaching career, and although hugging the kids goodbye was a little bittersweet, I'm ready to move on to the next phase of my life. I'm hoping that next phase includes more time for gardening, but so far this year I haven't done much more than throw the plants in the ground and try to water them. As I mentioned in the last garden update, it's

Recipe for Feta Cheese and Avocado Mini-Frittata for Two

2009-06-03T05:00:00.000-06:00

Currently I'm in serious countdown mode since Friday is my last day of school (ever!) and the always stressful end of the school year is being increased by the need to pack up 30 years of classroom stuff that's my personal property. I've had a table out in the hall by my classroom door for weeks and as I sort through things, I put what I don't want on the table and other teachers snap them up.

South Beach Diet Phase One Recipes Round-Up for May 2009

2009-06-01T05:00:00.002-06:00

Kalyn's favorite Phase One Recipe for May wasSpicy Cilantro-Peanut Slaw.I've been counting down all during May, towards my retirement day and the end of my teaching career (five more days!) The end of school is always filled with stress, and this year I've had the added stress of house renovations. Even though I'm pretty committed to my low-glycemic way of eating, when I'm overly stressed I eat

Recipe for Steel-Cut Oats in the Crockpot and Steel-Cut Oats with Agave and Pecans

2009-05-30T21:01:00.001-06:00

One of my favorite breakfasts is Peanut Butter Oatmeal, which I usually make with Extra Thick Rolled Oats cooked in the microwave, using a method I learned from Alanna. Since I've become such an oatmeal fan, I've been wanting to try steel cut oats, but I wasn't sure about the longer cooking time, reported to be as much as 45 minutes on the stove. Then I heard about cooking steel cut oats in

Friday Night Photos: House Renovations v. 2.1.5 (New Rooms Ready to be Filled with Memories)

2009-05-29T19:14:00.003-06:00

This has been a week filled with end of school stress, plus an amazing retirement party on Wednesday night, hence not much cooking or blogging. I'm grateful to my beautiful sister-in-law Amy, who handled all the details for the party, and it was a fun-filled, kid-centered party, just like I wanted. I felt loved and honored by how many former students, parents, friends, and family members

Recipe for Spicy Roasted Green Beans (or Broccoli) and Shrimp

2009-05-25T20:44:00.002-06:00

It was months ago when I first started hearing about Roasted Shrimp with Broccoli from Melissa Clark in New York Times. The recipe had good reviews from The Wednesday Chef, Amateur Gourmet, Orangette, Superspark, We Heart Food, Batter Splattered, and probably a bunch of other blogs as well. Then about a month ago I cooked it for my dad (adapting the recipe a bit since I was using a toaster

Grilling Recipe Ideas for Memorial Day Weekend 2009

2009-05-23T21:25:00.004-06:00

Greek Souvlaki will always be one ofmy favorite things to cook on the grill.It's Memorial Day Weekend in the U.S., the unofficial start of grilling season. I'm a big fan of cooking on the grill, but because of house renovations, this year my grill is still packed away in the garage. The house will get done, and I'll be grilling soon, but meanwhile here are some ideas from the recipe archives