Pinks Posts...

Strawberry Goat Cheese Salad

2012-01-28T11:14:00.000-06:00

My daughter is spending this year abroad and is planning on cooking a special meal and wanted the recipe for my strawberry goat cheese salad - something that I usually save for special occasions, not because it's that fancy, but it's beautiful and refreshing to have alongside what usually amounts to heavier, richer dishes that we tend to enjoy at the holidays. While I don't have an EXACT recipe, (I just sort of toss it all together), here's the gist of it (and a crappy picture from another post 3 years ago)...

If you don't have access to the fresh herbs, you can just leave them out or if you have dried, you could mix them into your dressing. I have made the dressing without the herbs de provence and just used dried basil and mint when I haven't had anything else available. If you cant find the chevre with herbs, just use whatever soft goat cheese you can find.

Strawberry Goat Cheese Salad

Ingredients:
1 - 8 oz package mixed greens (or use an assortment that you like - you could also just use baby spinach)
1 small package fresh basil, about 2 oz, very thinly sliced
1/2 small package fresh mint, about 1 oz, very thinly sliced
1 lb strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 - 4 oz log chevre goat cheese with herbs, crumbled
2/3 cup honey roasted pecans, chopped (recipe to follow)
Balsamic Dressing (recipe to follow)

Directions:
Place salad in large serving bowl
Arrange strawberries on top of the salad - you can make them pretty or just throw them all on there
With a fork, crumble the cheese over the salad
Sprinkle with the chopped pecans over the salad

Sprinkle basil and mint over the salad
Pour dressing over the salad

Eat immediately

*Honey Roasted Pecans:

Preheat oven to 350. Combine pecans and 2 Tbsp honey, spread on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray and bake 10 minutes, stirring halfway through. Let them cool and then chop for the salad

*Balsamic Dressing:
In a small bowl whisk together 1/4 cup balsamic dressing, 2 Tbsp Olive Oil, 1 tsp honey, 1/2 tsp Herbs de Provence, kosher salt and fresh black pepper to taste.

Cuban (err...Minnesota) Black Beans

2012-01-24T10:16:00.002-06:00

I hated beans as a kid - thought they were disgusting, gross, yuck! A pot of chili? No thanks. I don't know if I ever had them any other way as a kid but I remember hating chili. I also hated tomato sauce, so there was that.

It's good to be an adult and try things again that I thought I didn't like and realize that I actually DO like them - love them even! Black beans, mustard, marinara, chili...the list goes on and on.

Anyway, my favorite thing is often a big pot of black beans - we'll have them plain one night alongside something from the grill. I'll mash up the leftovers with extra cumin and chili powder the next night and cover them with cheese and cilantro and onion for "chips and dip dinner", (my kids favorite). I can also freeze these and add them into a pot of rice or to a pot of jambalaya, since we like our jambalaya with black beans in it.

They're easy and versatile.

Feel free to adjust the heat or leave out the lime - cuban black beans usually use red wine vinegar or sherry. The nice thing about this recipe is that you can just use what you have. Sometimes I cover them with fresh chopped white onion, sometimes green - just depends on what I have in the fridge. I often make a double or triple batch so I can freeze some because a pound of these disappears pretty quick around here!

Ms. Pinks Minnesota Black Beans

Ingredients:
1 lb dried black beans

6 cups water

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, diced
2 sweet peppers, diced (you can use any combo - I typically use 1 red and 1 green)
2 jalapenos, minced (you can use just 1 or you can remove the seeds to reduce the heat or just leave them out altogether if you don't want any heat- it's up to you!)

3 cloves garlic, smashed and minced with 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp black peppercorns in a mortar and pestle (if you don't have one, you can just mix them together but I find this way gets the most flavor)

1 tsp oregano
1 tsp cumin
1 bay leaf

3 Tbsp lime juice
1 tsp sugar
Kosher salt and fresh black pepper to taste

2 Tbsp olive oil to drizzle over the beans

Instructions:
1. Cover the dry beans with water and let them stand covered overnight. Drain and discard the water.
2. Put the beans in a large pot, add the 6 cups of water and a Tbsp of olive oil. Bring the beans to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and cook until they're tender - about an hour.
3. When the beans are almost cooked, add the other Tbsp of olive oil in a large pan over medium heat - add the onion, peppers and jalapeno and cook until slightly tender, 3-5 mn. Add the garlic and cook another minute or until fragrant.
4. Add the cooked beans with 4 cups of the cooking water, oregano, cumin and bay leaf. Cover and simmer 20-30 mn, stirring occassionally, adding more of the reserved water as needed to reach your desired consistency.
5. Remove from heat and discard the bay leaf. Add the lime juice, sugar, salt and pepper and taste to adjust if needed. Drizzle with the 2 Tbsp olive oil and cover the pot, off the heat, for 5-10 minutes.
6. If you like a thicker pot of beans, take a cup or so of the mixture and mash it and then add it back to the pot of beans - when I make these the 2nd night, I usually take a few cups and mash them for our "dip".

Enjoy!

Banana Walnut Muffins

2012-01-12T07:18:00.002-06:00

I created this recipe one morning when we were out of both cereal and toast and the bananas hanging on the loop were more brown than yellow. The kids needed to have breakfast before a busy day and I wanted them to have something halfway healthy, so I made these.

The recipe makes 24 muffins so of course you could just halve it to make an even dozen, but I tend to make big batches here with all these boys. Even if by some miracle they're not all gone in two days, I can throw some in the freezer for later and toast them in the oven for a bit before breakfast one morning.

You could also fold in a handful or two of blueberries into these and have them that way as well and sub out the nut or even just leave them out but I have a TON of walnuts left here and like my muffins nutty, so...

Banana Walnut Muffins

Ingredients:
3 cups flour
2 cups oats
4 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp kosher salt
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1.2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp ginger
2 eggs
2 cups banana - or 3 medium sized ones, softened and smashed
1 cup dark brown sugar
8 Tbsp butter, melted and cooled
1.5 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup walnuts, chopped

Directions:
Mix together the first 8 ingredients in a large bowl and set aside.
In the bowl of your mixer, whisk together the egg, banana, and brown sugar on med-high until just mixed. Turn speed to low and add the butter, milk and vanilla until just incorporated.
Add the dry ingredients, a 1/2 cup at a time on low speed until the mixture just comes together.
Fold in the walnuts.

Divide batter into 24 muffin tins (I prefer nonstick that have been coated in cooking spray (we use olive oil) but you can also certainly use muffin wrappers. I just never have them and sort of like the crispy edge that results from not using them and they're less messy for preschoolers (and more green!).
Either way, wrapped or not, they'll be good.

Bake at 400 for 15-17 mn or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Eat warm with butter and honey for a real treat! Mmmmmm

A year of updates and some seriously good chicken...

2012-01-09T11:01:00.000-06:00

Not too big on posting in 2011, I'm going to try and start up again - I originally started this blog to post updates about our family for those far away and it sort of morphed into a cooking blog when Pipps and I decided to start posting the "good recipes" that I made. We have a few things that make a rotation in our house but mostly it's just me experimenting with food and cooking things from magazines, books and online sites.

Last year brought a big surprise - this guy!

We weren't expecting to be parents again - thought for sure we were done with 4 but it looks like God had other plans for us. Our giant baby boy, who we affectionately call "Cheeks" was born on October 22nd and we all instantly fell madly in love with him. Even Pipps, who is spending a year abroad, loves him.

My pregnancy was long and hard, my labor ridiculously long and hard, and so I hadn't felt up to really being creative in the kitchen since almost a year ago. We ate a lot of take out and noodles with butter and Parmesan and I'm pretty sure we lived on PB&J's this summer. Thankfully my husband took up a big interest in grilling, so that was a life saver.

It's been 11 weeks since Cheeks was born and we're starting to get a handle on things. Sort of. Five kids is a tough gig and somewhat overwhelming at times but slowly and surely, we're figuring it out. My brain is constantly scattered, I start things and never finish them (that's not really new), I struggle to get us out of the house so we're not so cabin-feverish, I do my best. That's all I really can do.

My New Years Resolution, something I never ever do, was to simplify our lives, to slow down, to enjoy these little buggers while they're young and still think we're the most awesome people on the earth. Having a teenager, especially one living abroad, is bittersweet. I'm happy for her and her new experiences but I miss her being a baby and feel like it went by entirely way too fast.

With a newborn and 3 kids under 5 in the house, prepping meals and cooking is difficult. Finding the right window of time between when Daddy gets home, (IF he's home - between work and school we miss him a lot), Cheeks needs to nurse, big kids off to sports and activities...well, it's a small window. Especially if I want to actually sit down and eat with my family instead of nursing as soon as everyone eats (it happens a lot - that kid has impeccable timing!).

Part of simplifying our lives means no more complicated, "fancy", recipes. A short list of ingredients is nice, limited hands on time is a must. Crock pots are sometimes a nice idea, but since my 1970's one broke this fall and I bought a new one, nothing has turned out, so I've sort of ditched it for now...we've been eating a lot of soup. Not homemade. It's been slim pickings around here - lol.

I get a few cooking magazines every month and so I've been bookmarking those and vow to actually cook out of them. The chicken I made last night was AMAZING - and I made enough extra to serve as a base for 2 more meals this week. Plus, it was on sale last week! So Sunday dinner was roast chicken, tonight it's a curried chicken salad with rolls and for tomorrow - green chicken enchiladas with black beans. This recipe will go into our regular rotation although the leftover recipes may change, it was a big enough hit and easy enough that I'll make it every time breasts go on sale.

I adapted this finecooking.com recipe for what I had on hand and to minimize waste - sure, whole fruits are great but do I need to buy them when I already have the juice on hand? Probably not...fresh garlic is lovely too but I find that in roasting, it often burns and gives things a bad taste so I used powdered. Cutting up 2 whole chickens when breasts are on sale for half the price? Well...less work and less money = a very happy girl :) Plus, I really hate cutting up chicken. Yuck.

Anyway, here's my version of the recipe. I have a few more written down in my notebook that I'll be sharing over the next couple days as well - or as Cheeks permits - that little sucker is so sweet but also pretty colicky so I don't get much "hands free" time these days. And that notebook? That's also part of my resolution but I'll update more on that later so this doesn't get too wordy.

Citrus-marinated Roast Chicken Breasts

Ingredients:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
5 lbs bone-in, skin-on, chicken breasts (I had a family pack that was a little over 5lbs and had 5 breasts)
2/3 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup orange juice
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp dried oregano
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 Tbsp honey
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper

Directions:
Pour olive oil roasting pan big enough to fit the breasts in a single layer.
Mix together the next 7 ingredients and pour over the chicken breasts, turning to coat.
Cover with plastic wrap and marinate in the refrigerator for 6-12 hours, turning every few hours.

Position rack in the center of the oven and bring to 425.
Turn chicken so they're all skin side up and sprinkle with kosher salt and black pepper.
Roast for 20 mn at 425 and then turn down the heat to 375 and roast 30 mn or until cooked through.

Remove the chicken to a platter and cover with foil to rest.
Meanwhile, pour the pan juice into a fat separator or pot and remove the excess fat - boil over med-high heat until reduced by half, about 1.5 cups, about 10 minutes.
Pour a little over the chicken and serve the rest of it at the table.

We had this with brown and wild rice cooked with chicken stock and saffron, and some Parmesan green beans. It was simple and it was delicious.

Spicy Salmon and Corn Chowder

2011-07-13T10:34:00.000-05:00

Sorry! No picture this time - it was gone before I had a chance.
I ordered 5 lbs of sushi grade salmon this year before I knew I was having another baby - I haven't been able to stand cooking the stuff since I was pregnant with Moo and ended up giving away 2 lbs of it and the rest has been in my freezer. Knowing that this expensive fish doesn't keep forever, I figured I might as well start getting my act together and cook it!
I love a good fish chowder - fell in love with it when I lived in Sweden and have tried a few different variations of it. My mother makes a really good jalapeno corn chowder that has bacon in it/on it and so I figured I'd use that as my inspiration and go from there.
The results were a creamy, spicy, filling delicious salmon chowder that I was even able to stomach with this growing baby making me ill at every corner. My husband ate 3 bowls of it! Bobalu ate 2 - I consider that a definite success.

Spicy Salmon and Corn Chowder:

Ingredients:

4 slices thick cut pepper bacon, diced (or regular - it's just what I had)

2 small white onions, diced

2-3 stalks celery, diced
1 large carrot, diced
1 jalapeno, minced
3 Yukon Gold Potatoes, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

3 cups corn - fresh cut would be wonderful, all I had was frozen

1 carton Pacific Natural Foods Creamy Potato Leek Soup (Equal to 4 cups. I thought I had broth but when I went to grab it, this is what I found instead. It worked out really well, so...)
2 cups water
1 lb salmon, cut into 1" pieces
1 cup cream
4 green onions, green and white parts, finely chopped

Instruction:
Fry bacon in bottom of large dutch oven until crisp - remove bacon and save for garnish
Add Onion, Celery, Carrot and Jalapeno, salt, and black pepper and cook 5 mn or until tender
Add Potato and stir until coated.
Add Garlic and stir until the fragrance releases, about 30 sec - 1 mn
Add soup, water, corn and red pepper flakes - bring to a simmer and lower heat
Cook about 20-30 mn or until potatoes are tender.
Add salmon and cook another 5-10 mn
Add cream and cook about 5 mn more
Garnish with reserved bacon and green onion
Salt and Pepper to taste

Enjoy!

Strawberry Rhubarb Cake

2011-06-07T20:16:00.000-05:00

I bought a bunch of rhubarb at the farmers market this weekend thinking that I would make this pie again.

Sadly, I didn't have pie crust and my counters were a mess from making blue cheese dressing, rubbing steaks, and butchering and marinating a chicken (seriously, I was so disgusted...I'll post more about it soon).

Don't worry - my counters were bleached in between all that meat juice, but I had a TON of dirty dishes and wasn't feeling like making pie crust.

I needed to use up the rhubarb so I perused one of my favorite sites, epicurious.com and found this recipe that I could use. I modified it a bit. I used a metal 9" pan instead of a glass 8"pan, buttermilk instead of whole milk, and salted butter instead of unsalted. It was WONDERFUL. Better yet, it was EASY. In fact, it was so wonderful that my eldest son requested it for his birthday. He's had my version of chocolate mud cake the last 5 years without ever even considering anything else so I consider this a pretty great accomplishment.

Here's the recipe! Make it! It's scrumptious.

Strawberry Rhubarb Cake ala Bobalu

Ingredients:
1/4 cup water
1-1/2 tsp cornstarch
1/3 cup plus 1/2 cup sugar
2 cups chopped fresh rhubarb stalks
1 cup chopped fresh strawberries
1 cup all purpose flour
1-3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 large egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 stick butter, melted and slightly cooled
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Preparation:

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 400F. Butter a 9" nonstick cake pan.
Stir together water, rhubarb, cornstarch and 1/3 cup sugar in a small saucepan. Bring just to a boil, lower heat immediately and simmer 3 minutes, stirring so it doesn't stick to the pan or burn. Remove from heat and stir in the strawberries.
Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and remaining 1/2 cup sugar in a small bowl.
Whisk together egg, buttermilk, butter and vanilla in a large bowl, then whisk in flour mixture until just combined.
Place 1/2 of fruit mixture in bottom of buttered pan, top with the batter, spreading evenly, then drizzle the remaining fruit over the top.
Bake 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Cool at least 5 minutes - we let it sit during our dinner and while I made homemade almond whipped cream to top it with - about 45 minutes. It was still slightly warm and very delicious.

Enjoy!

Rhubarb Lemon Jam

2011-06-07T20:00:00.000-05:00

I made this rhubarb jam a couple weeks ago. My pictures and my jam weren't quite as rosy and my water tends to leave a white film on my canning jars, so please, look at the photos from the link instead of my own. In fact, I'll post mine just so you can see how much paler my rhubarb was and how much my canning bath films up my jars. Anyone have a good solution for that? I fear it's our water.

In any event, it was a nice way to use up the bagful of rhubarb I'd bought. I actually found it at a garage sale and the woman sold me an entire grocery bag of it for $3! I couldn't believe my luck! The jam is super easy to make, doesn't require pectin, (which I adore!), and is great either on ice cream or on a bagel with cream cheese. It also makes a pretty killer PB&J, if you're into that sort of thing - which we are. If you halve this recipe, you could probably just use it all right away and not worry about canning it. I think it should be good in the refrigerator for a couple weeks.

Since you can access the recipe on their site and I didn't modify anything, I'll just let you mosey on over to leitesculinaria.com and check it out for yourself. It's one of my favorite recipe sites.

Oh, and p.s. Yes, I did use a plastic IKEA plate to test my jam on...don't judge.

Italian Meatloaf

2011-03-11T09:24:00.001-06:00

There are certainly a gazillion meatloaf recipes out there and I have tried a lot of them. I think the best one was from my friend Zimmy but I lost that recipe and he's too lazy to send it to me again so I've been trying different ones along the way. (I'm pretty sure he's going to read this - he should RESEND IT!)

Fine Cooking had a whole feature on what I like to call "the meatloaf" in their Feb/March issue. I used the article as a starting point and worked with what I had and what I've found successful in the past. I had beef and some hot italian sausage in the freezer which I'd never combined before but I love anything with a little kick to it so decided to go for it! It made the biggest meatloaf I've probably ever seen, but I brought some to a friend and we had it for dinner/lunch a couple days so all was good in the world. This really is a pretty good comfort food for long Minnesota winters...

Italian Meatloaf:

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
2 carrots, finely chopped

2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

1/2 cup red wine

1 cup oatmeal

1/4 cup milk

2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1.5 lb ground beef

.5 lb hot italian sausage
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
Salt and Pepper to taste

6-8 thin slices bacon

1/4 cup bbq sauce (I used Famous Daves Bold and Sassy)

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 375.
2. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium low heat. Cook onion, celery and carrot until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add wine and simmer until almost dry, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and let cool until warm but not hot.
3. In another bowl mix together the oatmeal, milk, Worcestershire sauce and fresh parsley. Stir until well combined and saturated.
4. Combine meat and eggs with the vegetables and oatmeal mixture. Season with salt and pepper and
using your hands, gently mix all the ingredients until just combined.
5. Transfer meatloaf mixture on a 9 x 13 baking pan and shape into a 4 x 10 rectangular block. Spread your bbq sauce over the top and lightly down the sides of the meatloaf and then criss cross the bacon strips over the meatloaf, trimming or tucking under if needed.
6. Bake 45 - 55 minutes or until done. Broil about 3 minutes to crisp up the bacon, if needed.
7. Let the meatloaf rest for 10 minutes and then cut into 1" slices and enjoy!

Mojo Chicken and Sticky Rice for Pete...

2011-03-11T08:56:00.003-06:00

A good friend asked me for a chicken breast recipe this week and I have to say that they are the hardest thing for me to cook. I don't know why, but they just don't really do it for me during the winter months. Maybe because I really only love them marinated and grilled? I don't know. I often just make cutlets with them but other than that, I'm not all that creative with Chicken other than hotdish and enchiladas...

Anyway, I ADORE this recipe. Made it the first time 10 years ago and it's one of my favorite meals. It came from the cookbook, Bowl Food, which is also one of my favorite cookbooks. You should check it out!

Although this recipe is best when grilled, I've also made it indoors in a grill pan and even a regular frying pan - just make sure to drizzle a little olive oil in there and get it nice and hot before you start cooking.

Mojo-Marinated Chicken:

Ingredients:

1 cup fresh OJ
1/2 cup Olive Oil
1/2 cup chopped fresh tomato or canned, drained
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
2 Tbsp chopped garlic
2 Tbsp chopped peeled fresh ginger
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp green curry paste
1 tsp ground turmeric
4 whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts
salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:
1. Combine the oj, oil, tomato, lime juice, vinegar, garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, curry paste, and turmeric in a blender or food processor and process until blended.
2. Place the chicken in a large glass baking dish. Pour the marinade over the chicken and turn the chicken to coat it. Cover and refrigerate for at least 5 hours, and as long as 8.
3. Preheat a grill until hot. (If cooking indoors, go ahead and set the stove for medium to medium high heat and lower the cooking time to 12-15 minutes.)
4. Drain the chicken, reserving the marinade. Arrange the chicken on the grill grate and cook until cooked through, about 20 mn total time, turning once. Slice into 1" thick pieces. Season with salt and pepper, then transfer to individual serving bowls.
5. Just before the chicken is done, bring the marinade to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Boil for 3-4 mn. Drizzle over chicken and serve.

Mango Coconut Rice:

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped shallots
2 cups sticky (pearl) rice, rinsed, drained and air dried (I've also just used regular rice and it worked out fine - just a little different texture)
3 cups water
1 cup unsweetened canned coconut milk
(NOTE - I use the whole can of coconut milk which I think is about 1.5 cups and then just use water to make up the difference otherwise what do I do with 1/2 cup of coconut milk?)
salt/pepper to taste
1 cup diced ripe mango
1/4 cup chopped scallions

Directions:
1. Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
Add the shallots and saute' until translucent, about 5 mn.
2. Add the rice and stir for 5 mn. Add the water and coconut milk, season with salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer, until all liquid has been absorbed, 15-20 mn.
3. Remove from the heat and fold in the mango. Spoon the rice into individual serving bowls and sprinkle with the scallions.

Pita Bread

2011-01-31T17:30:00.000-06:00

My daughter is in love with pita bread so we've been making it a lot lately at home.

I based my recipe off one in The Bread Bakers Apprentice Book and love it.

3 cups regular flour
3 cups whole wheat flour
2 tsp salt
1 pkt instant yeast (about 2 - 2-1/2 tsp)
4 Tbsp honey
4 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 - 1-1/2 cups water, room temperature

1. In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, salt, yeast,. honey, oil and just enough water to bring everything together into a ball. You may not need all the water, but be prepared to use it all if needed.
2. Sprinkle flour on the counter and transfer the dough. Knead for about 10 mn or until the ingredients are evenly distributed.
3. Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover it with plastic wrap.
4. Ferment at room temperature for 90 mn, or until the dough doubles in size
5. Separate the dough into 6 oz pcs (about 1/2 cup) and roll out into 9" circles, about 1/4" thick.
6. Preheat oven to 500 with a pizza stone on the bottom most rack
7. Bake pita just until they inflate and form a pocket. Count to 10 and then remove them from the oven

Fabulous!!!

Asian Pork Lettuce Wraps

2011-01-28T12:46:00.000-06:00

I love lettuce wraps. They make me happy. They make me SO happy in fact that I can't remember to take pictures of them before I gobble them up.
Here's a super easy recipe for how to make them!

Asian Pork Lettuce Wraps:

Ingredients:
1 Head Bibb lettuce or other full leaf lettuce. Iceberg even works well here.
1 Tbsp Olive Oil or Vegetable Oil
1 lb ground pork
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp fresh ginger, grated
1 can water chestnuts, chopped
1 small onion, diced
1/2 red pepper, diced
Any other vegetable you'd like, diced (sometimes I add mushrooms, green beans, etc. )
1/2 cup hoisin, divided
1 tsp honey
juice from 1 lime
cilantro for garnish
green onion for garnish
sesame seed for garnish
chopped peanuts for garnish
peanut sauce (optional) to serve

Directions:
1. Seperate lettuce, rinse and drain. Set aside.
2. Mix 1/2 hoisin, honey and lime juice. Set aside for serving with the wraps.
3. Heat 1/2 Tbsp olive oil in large pan over medium heat, add ground pork and cook until no longer pink. Drain and set aside.
4. Heat remaining olive oil in the same pan and add garlic and onion. Cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
5. Add onion, red pepper and any other veggies you like and stir, 3-5 minutes
6. Add water chestunts and 1/4 cup hoisin, stir to combine and add pork back into mixture. Heat through.
7. You can either serve the garnishes on the side or sprinkle them all on top (what I do!) and serve alongside the lettuce wraps. Fill each cup with mixture and either the peanut or hoisin sauce.

Delicious!!

Owl Ring Holder

2011-01-28T11:34:00.000-06:00

I have a weird personal dislike. I hate lotion, I hate the feeling of anything squishing between my fingers. This is probably why I rarely make anything that requires me to handle raw meat, although I suck it up and do it because I know that sometimes it's really worth it.

Recently, I discovered these really neat little ring holders that a friend of mine from college makes. They're made specifically for when you have to slip a ring off your finger (gross meat!) when you're cooking!
I seriously love this idea and am getting one for my kitchen. Plus, I sort of have a thing for Owls...

Here's a picture of my favorite one and a link to her etsy site: http://www.etsy.com/shop/Saltydapleco

Broccoli Beer Cheese Soup with Tarragon

2011-01-28T11:25:00.001-06:00

I had 2 bags of frozen broccoli in the freezer and we don't really love it around here. I like the fresh, but the frozen stuff usually ends up a little mushy so I figured we'd try to make soup. I found this recipe on epicurious.com and thought I'd mix it up with my beer cheese soup. Seriously, I basically just winged it and it turned out pretty good!

Broccoli Beer Cheese Soup with Tarragon:

Ingredients:
4 Tbsp butter (1 stick)
2 - 12 oz bags frozen broccoli, defrosted
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup flour
1 - 12 oz can beer (I used miller lite since it was all we had...ATK recommends Miller High Life!)
4 cups chicken stock
1 cup whipping cream
8 oz cheddar cheese, finely grated
4 oz american cheese, finely grated or cut into small cubes.

Directions:
1. Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft and translucent but not browned, 5-6 mn. Add the garlic and cook another minute.

2. Stir in the flour and cook until golden, about a minute.

3. Slowly whisk in the broth and beer. Bring to a simmer, then add all but 1 cup of the broccoli.

4. Bring entire mixture to a simmer and reduce the heat to low and simmer gently (do not boil) until the broccoli is soft, about 20 mn.
5. Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until completely smooth (safest done off the stove).

6. Return soup to the stove, add the cream and simmer over medium low heat about 5-10 mn.

7. Whisk in the cheese a handful at a time, until smooth.

8. Add the remaining broccoli and simmer until cooked through, about 10 mn

8. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve with homemade crackers!

Homemade Crackers!

2011-01-28T11:10:00.000-06:00

I promised no more low-res phone pictures. I lied. Cooking with kids is challenging enough without bringing the expensive camera into the kitchen sometimes...

We got stuck home last week...partly because of a sick kid, partly because I'm really tired of winter. It was coming up on lunch time and the thought of buttered noodles or PB&J's again was killing me. Sooo...I made a pot of broccoli cheese soup (post to come!) and then Monkey and I made some homemade crackers. It was pretty fun. You can roll them out and use cookie cutters which we did with half the dough, or you can roll out into long pieces and then break apart. Either way they're easy and good and pretty adaptable. Next time I'd add a TON more seasoning as I thought they were fairly bland, but the kids gobbled them up!

I found a couple recipes that required what I already had at home and just sort of winged it, but they were a fun project to do with the kids. The texture and taste sort of reminded me of a biscuit type cracker. Maybe because they weren't as thin as they could be, I don't know, but they're super easy and fun to try!

Crackers:

Ingredients:
4 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 cup shortening or bacon fat (yes, I'm one of those people that saves it...)
1 cup milk
1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese (or whatever else you want)
salt or seasoning to taste (I actually used Tony Chachere Creole Seasoning)

Directions:
Mix flour, baking powder and shortening
Add milk and blend well
Form a ball of dough and divide so you can roll out and cut
Roll out dough very thin and cut with cookie cutters or else roll into planks
Poke all over with a fork and transfer to a baking sheet
Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes or until golden

That's it! Very easy :)

A Different Kind of Vampire Book...

2011-01-10T12:29:00.003-06:00

Tandem by Tracey Bateman

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

Although not a huge fan of vampire type books, I thought this one looked interesting and I was right. Although it's a sequel, (I didn't realize this until I was finished with the book!), I don't feel like I was missing too much having not read the first book.

The book is about a woman running an auction house while dealing with Alzheimer's taking it's toll on her father. She's pulled into the vampire plot when a fire claims the life of a man and woman who were vampires (I'm not spoiling this since it was laid out in the first book). The woman who was killed had a sister (also a vampire), who comes to the small town to claim items found in the house. The story continues to follow these two story lines with twists and turns that were sometimes surprising but often predictable...

I really got into Anne Rice when I was younger but hated the Twilight series. I think that this series is a little more akin to the Rice books because the characters are more believable, the suspense builds and leaves you guessing (although honestly, it wasn't too hard to figure out who the "other" vampire was), and overall it was a decent read. Would I recommend this? Maybe, if you like vampires and want an easy read. I didn't have any problems getting through this and actually added the first of the series to my "easy books to read" list

Tortellini and Spinach Ribbons in Saffron-Romano Broth

2011-01-09T18:31:00.001-06:00

The weather this week-end is bitterly cold. Driving home last night from my girlfriends house, I had to alternate hands on the steering wheel because they kept freezing! No fun...totally worth a fun night with the girls though :)

My original plan today was to roast a turkey but I forgot to take it out yesterday morning. So today I thought I'd make a huge pot of marinara, but I was short a couple ingredients and when my husband came home with them I was taking a nap, so....I was looking for something easy.

This soup is perfect for a cold night - it's basic yet filled with great flavor - not too many ingredients and easy enough for even the beginner cook. Try it. You'll like it! It made enough for all of us, (2 adults, a teen, a tween and 2 toddlers), to finish and a bit left over. Double it if you want to serve a crowd...

Ingredients:

5 oz piece Romano cheese with roughly 3"x3" rind, or enough area to cover approximately the same area
8 cups low sodium chicken broth
4 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
4 sprigs fresh parsley
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads, crushed
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 cups cheese tortellini
4 cups loosely packed baby spinach leaves, cut into 1/2" wide ribbons
1/2 lemon, juiced - about 2 Tbsp
Homemade or good quality croutons

Directions:

Cut rind off cheese
Combine rind, stock, garlic, saffron, parsley and olive oil in a medium sized pot and simmer gently, partially covered, about 30 minutes.
Discard parsley and rind and season broth with salt if needed (probably not, depends on your broth)
Add tortellini and simmer, partially covered, until al dente, about 10 minutes
Add spinach and simmer, uncovered, 1 minute.
Remove from heat and add lemon juice.
Divide among serving bowls and shave remaining cheese on top to taste.
Top with croutons.

Crazy Potato Squares! (Ham and Potato Gratin)

2011-01-05T12:27:00.000-06:00

Monkey is my #1 fan in the kitchen. I don't mean that he loves everything that I make, but every time I'm in there, he really really wants to help. He's a natural and will actually eat anything he helps make, so it's a good motivator for me to try new things with him.

For Christmas, he made an apron at a playtime, and got these knives and this cookbook from his Nana. We haven't made anything with the cookbook yet, but I promise we will and post how it went!

Last night my plan was to make a quick potato gratin - I bought 20 lbs of the suckers on impulse at my grocer when they had organic bags on sale for $3.99. It's a lot of potatoes! I also had some ham in the freezer from Christmas that my Grandmother sent home so the gratin seemed like a good idea. I also almost always have cheese and cream in my fridge. What can I say, it's a good thing I'm not lactose intolerant!

Enter my little Monkey.

He tried to help cut up the ham with his trusty knife but it was a little tough going so I helped with that. We cut up the potatoes in my Cuisinart using the julienne attachment, or as he likes to call it, the crazy potato squares! (Side note, my Cuisinart is still semi-broken and while I can get it to make salsa without too much effort, putting things through the feed tube means an entirely different headache...I put this on my Valentines wishlist...)

Anyway, Monkey assembled the entire dish with very little help from me and loved doing it. It turned out wonderful and the entire dish was gone! No leftovers! I couldn't believe it...

Crazy Potato Squares aka Ham and Potato Gratin with Cheese!

Ingredients:

Approximately 5 cups of potatos cut into 1/4" julienne, from about 2.5 lbs
2 cups leftover ham, diced
1 small yellow onion, minced
2 cups heavy cream
1 tsp Marjoram
Salt and Pepper to taste
6 oz Cheddar Cheese, shredded
2 oz Romano Cheese, shredded
2 Tbsp Butter

Instructions:

1. Preheat Oven to 375
2. Butter the inside of an 11 x 15 pan

3. In a large bowl, mix together potatoes, ham, onion, marjoram and salt and pepper. Stir to combine.

4. In another bowl, or food processor, combine the shredded cheeses

5. Place 1/3 of the Potato mixture in the pan

6. Sprinkle 1/3 of the cheese mixture on top

7. Repeat with the remaining potatoes and cheese, ending with a layer of cheese.

8. Press the mixture down flat with the back of a spatula and bake in the oven for 90 minutes or until golden and bubbly. Let it rest for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

p.s. Because he ate all his dinner and because he's so dang cute, here are a couple pictures of him eating his pumpkin pie for dessert!

Turkey Tomatillo Tamales

2010-12-31T09:23:00.001-06:00

Again, pictures from my phone. I'll never ever do it again, I promise...

Tamales! I've always wanted to make them and when Heavy Table posted this recipe last year, I knew that someday I'd have to do this myself...I've eaten La Loma's tamales and they're wonderful so it's been bookmarked forever and I finally made them yesterday with the leftover turkey from this post.

To be fair, this recipe is unusually vague and so I had to consult my Rick Bayliss cookbook, Mexico One Plate At A Time, for some pointers. If you don't own it, check it out. Every recipe I've tried from here has been a hit!

Also, the recipe says it makes 30 tamales and it made about 50 for us and I'm pretty sure we overfilled them since a few were leaking out the top...

The nice thing about tamales is that they're actually really easy to make and pretty adaptable. Every family, I'm told, has a different recipe and everyone thinks theirs is the best so have fun, experiment and make your own.

Also, get a friend to help you because the assembly is a lot more fun when you have a friend. Shellville, my trusty cooking cohort and author of The Road to Shellville helped me. I love her for it! (and many other reasons, of course...)

One other thing - if you like sauce on the side or on top afterwards, DOUBLE THE SAUCE RECIPE! I really wish I would've because I could have had some on the side or saved for enchiladas...

Turkey Tomatillo Tamales
Yield: 50 tamales

Approximately 3 lbs of turkey left over from this recipe, shredded

(You can also just cook your own chicken or even use a rotisserie...)

2 ½ lbs tomatillos, skin removed and quartered

8 jalapeno peppers, stems removed, cut into chunks

1 medium white onion

4 cloves garlic

Chicken bouillon to taste - (This instruction left me wondering if they meant just the boullion cube or in liquid form or what...I chose to throw in a cube and then added enough water so that my total sauce was 40 oz.)

Instructions:

Boil the tomatillos, jalapeno peppers, onion, and garlic in water until cooked, about 5 mn.

Discard the water and process the sauce ingredients in a blender with the chicken bouillon.

Add 12 oz of the sauce to the shredded chicken; set the remainder aside for use in the following dough preparation.

Tamale Dough

1 ½ lbs dried corn husks for tamales, picked clean of stringy fibers

6 cups of Maseca Brand Corn Masa

4- 5 cups chicken broth, to reach desired consistency

1.5 tsps baking powder

28 oz green sauce (from recipe above)

1 lb lard or crisco (we had crisco although I'm sure lard would make a much better flavor)

Instructions:

1. Soak the corn husks in hot water for 10-20 minutes, wash them and allow them to drain.

2.Mix the masa and baking powder together - add broth, green sauce and lard or crisco until the mixture resembles that of cake batter.

3. Into each tamale wrapper, spread 1/4 cup of the masa dough and on top of that, place 1-2 Tbsp of meat mixture and wrap with the corn husk, folding the bottom up or tying with a strip of wrapper. More detailed instructions can be found here.

4. After all tamales are assembled, place them upright (closed end down) in a 20-qt tamalera(tamale steamer) or a really large pot. I ended up using my Ball Canning Bath with the steamer handles flipped under and the top lined with leftover corn husks. Pour about a cup of water into the pot and Steam for two hours; making sure to check that the water doesn't evaporate. Keep a small pot with simmering water next to the steamer so that you can refill it if needed (I needed to twice).

5. After they're done steaming, let them sit at least 15 minutes and then warm up if you're eating them immediately. Otherwise, they can be refrigerated and re-steamed (or microwaved) within 3 days or frozen and saved for up to 3 months.

Chile-Rubbed Roast Turkey aka Turkey Heaven!

2010-12-31T08:49:00.001-06:00

I'm going to apologize in advance for the shoddy photos - I used my phone thinking it would be the same. It's obviously not.

I discovered this recipe when I was searching for a brine recipe for Thanksgiving and just knew that I had to bookmark it and save it for later. I don't know about you, but although I love holiday food, I really start craving SPICE right after Christmas. Too much starch and ham and sausage and meatballs and....well, you get the picture.

I got a little impulsive around Thanksgiving and bought 3 turkeys! They were such a great price and I had room in my freezer at the time...so I had that going for me. I adapted the recipe only slightly because I had forgotten my list when I got to the store and so bought guajillo peppers instead of the pasilla. They're close enough I guess, or maybe this is even better because I'm absent minded....either way, you should totally make this. It's SO SO good - and although I used all the leftovers to make a mad amount of tamales, (recipe to come), they could also be used to make some killer enchiladas! In fact, I froze the rest of the gravy to use as a base for enchiladas that I'll probably make with chicken next week - I'll let you know how that goes.

p.s. My husband had THIRDS of this - he was pretty leery at first, but everyone loved it, even picky little baby Moo who NEVER eats dinner unless we have pizza...

Chile-Rubbed Roast Turkey

6 guajillo chiles, stemmed and seeded
30 cloves garlic (5 finely chopped) - (yes, this seems like way too much, but it mellows and is lovely, I promise)
1/3 cup orange juice - I used fresh squeezed from about 2 naval oranges
3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
2 tbsp. honey
1 tbsp. kosher salt, plus more to taste
1 tbsp. whole black peppercorns
1 12 lb. turkey
1 large onion, quartered
1 orange, quartered
1/2 cup red wine
2 tbsp. butter
4 cups turkey or chicken broth - I used low sodium Pacific Natural - it's my favorite to buy when I don't have any of my own in the freezer.
1 1/2 tbsp. cornstarch mixed with 3 tbsp. water
1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
2 tbsp. finely chopped cilantro

1. In a 10" cast-iron skillet over high heat, toast chiles, turning once, until fragrant, about 30 - 60 seconds per side. Transfer to a small bowl and cover with 1 cup boiling water; let soak until soft, 20 minutes.

2. Transfer chiles and their liquid to a blender along with 25 cloves garlic, orange juice, oil, honey, 1 tbsp. salt, and peppercorns and purée until smooth, about 2 minutes. Set chile rub aside.

3. Heat oven to 475° and place rack in bottom third of oven. Season inside of turkey with salt. Stuff the turkey with the oranges and onions and then pour the rub all over the turkey.

Transfer the turkey breast side up to a roasting pan. Roast for 30 minutes; lower heat to 325° and cook for 30 minutes more. Remove turkey from oven and, using kitchen towels to protect your hands, flip turkey breast side down. Roast, basting every 45 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into a thigh but not touching the bone registers 165°, about 3 hours total for a 12 lb turkey - mine was about 10.5 lbs and so only took 2.5 hours. Lower oven to 150°. Transfer turkey, breast side up, to a baking sheet; return to oven to keep warm. Remove turkey from oven 15 minutes before serving.

3. Meanwhile, add wine to roasting pan and heat over high heat. Scrape up any brown bits; cook, stirring, until mixture has reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Set a sieve over a bowl; strain liquid and discard solids. Put liquid into freezer and leave for 30 minutes. Skim and discard fat; set liquid aside. Melt butter in a 12" skillet over medium heat. Add remaining 5 cloves of minced garlic; cook until soft, about 2 minutes. Add broth and reserved liquid; turn up heat to medium high and boil to reduce by half, about 15 minutes. Whisk in cornstarch mixture; bring back to a boil and cook for 2 minutes; strain through a sieve into a 1-qt. saucepan. Stir in nutmeg and cilantro and season gravy with salt and pepper. Carve turkey and serve with the gravy.

Cran-Neño Jam!

2010-12-28T08:46:00.000-06:00

I put out a feeler on my facebook a week or so ago about what my family would like better for a gift, a salted caramel pear butter or a cranberry jalapeno jam. While most of my friends voted for the butter, the family weighed in with a vote that was almost unanimous towards the jam.

So today I made it! And it's delicious!

A complex layer of flavors that hits your palate when you try it - the heat from the jalapeno, the sweet from the sugar, the tart from the lime and cranberry. Again, something that pairs wonderfully with cream cheese and crackers...seriously, do I can anything that DOESN'T pair well with cream cheese and crackers? Thank you Amy for introducing me...life hasn't been the same since.

This is a really simple, straightforward project and I encourage you to try it. I made 13 pints as well as having another 2 that I just stuck in the fridge for Christmas Day.

Ingredients:
6 cups water
6 cups sugar
3 lb bag of cranberries
6 jalapenos
2 limes, zested and juiced

Instructions:

Chop 1/2 of the cranberries and all of the jalapenos (you can deseed or remove the pith first if you don't want it too spicy) in your food processor. I pulsed mine maybe 12-15 times.

Bring water and sugar to a boil in a large stockpot. Cook until sugar dissolves and then boil hard for 5 minutes.

Add all the cranberries, jalapenos and the zest of the lime

Bring back to a boil and cook hard for 15 minutes or longer, making sure that the cranberries pop and release their juices.

Take off the heat and stir in the lime juice. Fill pint or jelly jars 1/4" from top, release bubbles, and process for 15 mn. Let sit for a minimum of 24 hours before opening.

p.s. I'm finally publishing this now, after Christmas - a couple notes - I accidentally let this boil over after I had added the fruit and the peppers and all my seeds (a source of most of the heat) rose over or stuck to the sides of the pan. The batch that I stuck in my fridge had most of the seeds and so was really spicy and wonderful, but all the ones that I canned were really tame. However, the flavor was still really good. I served it at two different parties and it was hit both times, so have fun with it and enjoy! Even mistakes turn out wonderful sometimes...

Beer Cheese Soup - Round 2! The American Version...

2010-12-04T09:18:00.002-06:00

My sister sent me an email a while ago asking for a good beer cheese soup recipe and I knew I had posted one previously and liked it but don't remember it being amazing or anything...(that one is here).

There was a recipe in the ATK magazine recently that inspired me to try again and so I did. It was good but lacked the beer taste and zip of the other soup, however, this one was MUCH creamier and less gritty which I attribute to a bit o' American.

My sister hates american cheese, but M - if you're reading this - just try it! It doesn't taste like yucky american cheese, you just use 3x more extra sharp cheddar and it balances out perfectly - no gritty oily soup!

I'm just going to plug my lodge dutch oven here for a sec...
It's sort of really awesome and I make so many things in it. Perfect for soup and I can finally make rice perfectly!!! I got it as a present from my husband a couple years ago and it was the best thing he's ever given me. He loves technology and so usually gets me gadgets but that particular year I specifically requested this and he obliged. Mine is blue, like above, because someday when I can afford to remodel my kitchen, it will be filled with blue things. My friend just bought one too and I don't know if she loves it yet, but I think she will :)

AMERICAN! Beer Cheese Soup

Ingredients:
4 Tbsp butter
1 yellow onion, chopped fine - about 1 cup
2 carrots, finely diced
1 large celery stalk, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup flour
2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 - 12 oz bottle beer (I actually used miller lite this time since it was all we had - I think the lack of beer taste definitely had something to do with it. ATK recommended Miller High Life! which I thought was funny, but my husband reminded me that it's the "champagne of beers", so hey...who am I to judge.)
12 oz sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
4 oz american cheese, frozen for 15 mn and then shredded
2 tsp cornstarch
Salt and Pepper to taste
POPCORN!!! for garnish (Mmmmmmmm)

Directions:
1. Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots and celery and cook until lightly browned, 8 -10 mn. Add the garlic and cook another minute.
2. Stir in the flour and cook until golden, about a minute.
3. Slowly whisk in the broth, beer and milk. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low and simmer gently (do not boil) until the carrots are very soft, about 20 mn.
4. Meanwhile, toss the cheeses together in a large bowl. Sprinkle with the cornstarch and toss until well combined.
5. Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until completely smooth (safest done off the stove)
6. Return soup to the stove and simmer over medium low heat.
7. Whisk in the cheese a handful at a time, until smooth.
8. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve garnished with popcorn (lots of it!)

Enjoy!

Crockpot White Beans with Kielbasa and Spinach

2010-12-03T07:39:00.000-06:00

I ate Cassoulet once at this cafe in Stockholm and it was so delicious that it's haunted me for years. I don't know what it was...the soft white beans, the sausage (I love sausages!), the spinach that wasn't gross (I didn't care for it much before this)...who knows. At the time, I really didn't know what else was in it. For reference, here's a recipe, including a link to make your own duck confit. Seriously.

When I saw that recipe in my Fine Cooking magazine I thought about it for a second and realized there is NO WAY I could ever make that within our grocery budget and with 4 kids constantly interrupting me. Not going to happen. Cooking is like therapy to me, but there's a fine line between good therapy and overpaying someone to stress you out.

So Cassoulet goes on the back burner along with Classic Beef Wellington and Croquembouche and a few other recipes I have stashed away for when my kids have all grown and moved out of the house.

For this recipe, I just sort of used the inspiration of Cassoulet and did it with what I had on hand and it was delicious. Pair it with a baguette to soak up the juices and it's the perfect dinner for a cold evening. Oh, and I totally made it in the crock pot because I wanted to try making beans in the crock pot, so it was even that much simpler and dried beans make it even cheaper so I had the extra money to buy the GOOD baguette and a bottle of Cabernet to go along with it. Mmmmmm....comfort food at it's best.

Crockpot White Beans with Kielbasa and Spinach

Ingredients:
8 oz dried white cannelini beans, picked through and soaked overnight
1 small yellow onion, diced small
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp fresh thyme
1 Tbsp fresh rosemary (I was out this time so used 1 tsp dried)

2-3 cups low-sodium chicken broth (or make your own!), enough to cover beans by 1"

1 large Kielbasa ring or smoked sausage - I think it's about 1 lb, (how do you call this out on a recipe? I have no idea)

8 oz spinach (or, if you buy it in bags, I think they come in 6 oz bags?) - chopped
olive oil - a little for sweating the onion/garlic, a little for a final drizzle

Directions:

Heat olive oil in small pan over medium heat - add onion and cook, 3-4 minutes or until translucent. Add garlic and cook another minute or two. De-glaze pan with a little of the broth and transfer to a crock-pot set on high.
Add white beans, remaining broth, thyme, rosemary and black pepper. Cover and cook on high, 4 hours. (or, if you make this when you go to work, cook on low and then finish with the steps below)
After 4 hours, add the kielbasa - cook another hour to allow flavors to meld and kielbasa to plump up. I cut mine in large chunks because it was too large for my crockpot, but you could also leave it whole or slice up.
Right before serving, add spinach and stir around until it's wilted - it should only take a couple minutes. Drizzle with a Tbsp of high -quality olive oil and serve in bowls with fresh shaved parmesan on top.

Yummy!

The BEST mashed potatoes EVER...

2010-11-24T11:55:00.001-06:00

I know this is sort of a lame post, especially since I won't have a picture until tomorrow, but hey...a girl has to post what a girl CAN post...

These can be made ahead and reheated in the oven or kept warm in a crock pot. I've mostly made them a day ahead and then warmed them up in a crockpot or baked them in an oven for 45-60 mn.

I promise that these are great - super delicious. I found the recipe 4 years ago and haven't looked back. I'll post a picture tomorrow, (or sometime this wkend). Seriously, make them tomorrow!

RECIPE:
5 lbs potatoes (preferably yukon gold, but russets work well too), peeled and diced
1 8 oz container Top the tater OR 8 oz cream cheese plus 1 tsp garlic powder
1 8 oz package cream cheese
1 package fresh chives, snipped/chopped into little pieces :)
salt and pepper to taste

Cook potatoes in boiling water until tender
Drain
Add the rest of the stuff and mash! mash! mash!
salt and pepper to taste

EAT!

or...put them in the fridge and re-warm tomorrow. That's what the original recipe was intended for :)

ENJOY!

Roasted Cranberry Sauce

2010-11-22T08:37:00.001-06:00

Thanksgiving is coming! Thanksgiving is coming!

My favorite holiday of the year...no surprise there, but really, this is my least creative holiday...we just stick with the basics - turkey, potatoes, stuffing, etc. What I really love about this holiday is that it's just about getting together with people you love, sharing a good meal, maybe a glass of wine, and relaxing. No worrying about presents or baskets or anything else, just good old fashioned family time :)

My Mother used to always buy Cranberry sauce from this fancy grocery store around here and they were SO good - I decided this year to try making my own and I am SO glad that I did - they are delicious! ...or as my cranberry making cohort and I would say: some kind of...AWESOME!

(I'm still working on that label!)

I was skeptical about roasting them, but I think it really makes the dish. It just adds a depth to them that you won't find otherwise. Thank you Bon Apetite for the inspiration.

p.s. We didn't have the fresh herbs so we used this blend that Shellville had in her cupboard that contained ALMOST the same stuff...or was at least close enough for us to decide that another shopping trip wasn't worth it. It was really good all the same. I think we probably used 1-2 Tbsp per batch.

Roasted Cranberry Sauce with Grand Marnier and Pecan
(Makes 2-1/2 pints)

1 - 12 oz bag fresh cranberries, or frozen, thawed
1-1/4 cups sugar
3 Tbsp vegetable oil (the original recipe called for walnut, we made 1 batch without because we forgot, and 1 batch with peanut - both were really good)
1 Tbsp minced fresh rosemary
1 tsp minced fresh thyme
1 tsp minced fresh sage
1/2 fine sea salt

2 Tbsp Grand Marnier
2 Tbsp Sherry
1 orange - zested and juiced
3/4 cup pecans, chopped

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425.
Mix first 7 ingredients on heavy rimmed baking sheet and roast until the edges begin to bubble, about 15 mn.
Meanwhile, mix together Grand Marnier, Sherry and orange juice.
Remove cranberries from oven and add liquid mixture and orange zest, stirring to deglaze the pan and coat the berries.
Return to the oven and roast 10 mn more. Add pecans, toss to coat, and roast an additional 5 mn.

Fill jars and refrigerate or, if you're canning a larger batch, like we did, fill the pint jars to within 1/4" from top, process in a boiling water bath for 10 mn, take cover off pot and turn off heat and let rest 5 mn, set on towel on counter and let cool - at least 24 hours.

YUMMY!

A Refreshing Step Forward...

2010-11-19T19:37:00.000-06:00

Just got this email from the school...and I'm happy that they're starting to change things. This is good news!!!

Healthy Food Options for Students

At YOUR SCHOOL, learning doesn’t stop when students enter the lunch line. The food services program is helping students make healthy choices that are good for kids and the environment.

With childhood obesity rates soaring, choosing healthy meal options is becoming more important than ever before. That is just one reason YS is launching a new initiative to offer healthier foods that are lower in fat, salt and sugar while serving meals kids love to eat.

The following are some ways YS is beginning to change the way they offer school lunch to students:

In all six of the district’s elementary schools, the a la carte options including fruit roll-ups, baked chips, flavored water and more are no longer being offered.
Schools, K-12, are no longer offering 2% milk. The three choices available are skim white milk, 1% white milk, and skim chocolate milk.
All schools are embracing the Farm to Table philosophy of supporting locally based agriculture through purchasing apples from AppleWood Orchard in Lakeville, watermelon from Prior Lake and rice blends from Indian Harvest in Bemidji.
A COUPLE OF YOUR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS have implemented a Birthday Book Club to replace student birthday treats. Instead of students bringing treats to school, they now have the option of purchasing a “birthday book” for the media center with the child’s name featured in the front of the book.
THE HIGH SCHOOLS AND MIDDLE SCHOOLS are reducing the portion size of cookies in their a la carte selections.

WE'RE is also working to reduce its impact on the environment.

All schools have switched from using Styrofoam trays when dish machines are down to a totally compostable tray.
YOUR HS is also using eco-friendly cleaning agents in its kitchens from Minnesota-based company, Sunburst Chemicals.
Elementary and middle schools have contracted with a local pig farmer who picks up the food waste after lunch. Students have learned how to separate all of their lunch trash so that only food goes to the farmer.
Students in every school are trying to improve their recycling efforts from last year. In the 2009/10 school year, YOUR HS recycled nearly half of its trash.