Gourmet Gal

Fall is here!

2011-09-24T21:03:00.000-05:00

Well, it has been a year since my last post. You could say that I've been slacking as it pertains to blogging. We welcomed our baby girl, Madison Taylor Blanchard, into the world on January 20, 2011; she is now 8 months old.

Toward the end of my pregnancy, I just didn't have the energy to cook a lot and trying new recipes was more exhausting then fun.

Once Madison arrived, we would just eat whatever was fast & easy (or whatever food friends/family brought over). It took a few months, but we are back in our groove and enjoying cooking, trying new restaurants, reading food blogs & experimenting with new recipes.

Additionally, my hubby & I found out about 5 months ago that he has high cholesterol. Since we are both young, we typically just ate whatever sounded good. We weren't necessarily unhealthy eaters as we both like fruits & veggies, but we both agreed it was time to make some changes.

We cut red meat out of our diet (except for special occasions or a family get together), switched from white breads & rices to whole grains and upped our fruits & veggies. We also replaced processed turkey meat & 100 calorie chips for lunch with carrots & hummus, veggie sandwiches or extra fruit.

My husband had a new blood test a little over a week ago. With our new diet & his dedication to exercising, he lowered his cholesterol 100 points into the "ideal" range. As an added bonus, he has lost nearly 30 pounds! We have 1-2 splurge meals on the weekends, but 90% of the time, we are watching what we eat.

Looking forward to blogging again about healthy cooking and of course some delicious splurges & recipes.

Things are a'changing!

2010-08-11T21:04:00.000-05:00

Well, I am pregnant ...

Pregnant! Had to take 2 tests to make sure...

...and rather than devote an entire blog to pregnancy, I figure I'll just do a post or two about food and pregnancy. It is a bit strange & fun at times!

Everything changes when you are pregnant in regards to your taste for food, smells, and your cravings.

Apparently chicken is one of the most common things to have a food aversion to which definitely applied to me. The other food that I still find to be revolting is broccoli. At least the gag reflex to broccoli has diminished some.

Dinner of Champs

Shopping at the grocery store is like a whole new experience. Things that you've NEVER bought all of a sudden sound really interesting. Like salt & vinegar almonds...hmmm?

One night for dinner, nothing sounded good. I decided to go with a bagel, cream cheese & orange juice. Wow - that hit the spot! I never buy bagels with cream cheese anymore, but it was really great.

Fruit has been my new best friend. I can smell fruit across the room- fresh peaches, fresh strawberries, sliced watermelon! And summer really is one of the best times for fruit.

A co-worker brings in big fresh peaches from East Texas every other week or so- and they are freakin' huge!

While some of my cravings has been quite healthy, of course, when you're preggers, you are going to give into a few guilty pleasures.

Maple Bacon, White Chocolate & Turtle Donuts

Such as Donuts! We tried this new place in Plano/North Dallas called Hypnotic Donuts. They remind me of Voodoo Donuts (if you watch the food channel) in Oregon. Weird creations (like jalapenos or bacon) on donuts!

The concept of this place is kind of neat- they don't seem to advertise, just word of mouth through the technology world- Facebook, Twitter, etc.

They are located in a Pizza Shop & are open only on Saturdays & Sundays until 10 am (cash only).

They make donuts & just started this awesome biscuit creation with jalapeno honey mustard, bacon, honey & fried chicken (that has been marinated for 24 hours). This thing was really delicous.

And Fried Chicken Biscuits with Bacon, Jalapeno Honey Mustard & Honey!

Luckily now that I'm into the 2nd trimester, I can finally eat veggies & salad again...and some chicken. The cravings are kind of fun - have gone through 2 jars of pickles and currently have about 5 varieties of popsicles (most I've never bought before in my life). The journey continues!

Diet Soda: Good or Bad?

2010-03-17T11:33:00.000-05:00

Diet Soda: Good or Bad?

As all articifical sweeteners cause me to have a terrible migraine (even the "healthier" types like Stevia, Purevia, etc), you can guess my opinion of Diet Soda: Good or Bad?

As my mom's friend, Tish, once told her, "My body doesn't know what to do with the artifical stuff. At least my body knows how to process a little sugar!"
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My blog

2009-12-23T22:26:00.002-06:00

Just wanted to invite my friends & family to view my blog!

Baking is HARD!

2009-12-22T21:36:00.013-06:00

I am not a baker; that has been proven! But the idea of baking sure sounds nice. The house smelling of fresh bread & sweet treats. Always having freshly baked cookies or a piece of pie if your mother-in-law or next-door neighbor stops by (see cute snowmen picture!). Martha Stewart makes it look so easy! Her cookie lady is a cookie gangster (*more on the cookie gangster to come...)!

I tried to make a Pecan tart at Thanksgiving, and the crust had little holes in it, so the filling went through the crust....filling was everywhere. It tasted ok, but was not pretty!

I made sugar cookies from scratch this Christmas holiday...the dough alone takes forever! Chill the disks for 2 years (typo, but I'm choosing to leave it)...roll out, chill another hour, cut shapes, chill 30 minutes, preheat oven, bake! Geez!! I tried doing this on a Saturday when we had people coming over so I had to stop- midway through, and needless to say it took me two days just to get the two batches of dough completely cut out & baked into sugar cookie trees & snowmen! And don't even think about those intricate cookie cutter shapes- Rudolph will lose all of his antelers, legs & tail by the time I am done with him.

Then for the icing... I read online about how to make royal icing from scratch. I bought the piping tips, the meringue egg whites and the sprinkles, and for some reason my cookies are still sitting in tupperware unfrosted. Part of this can be blamed on the fact that I have been sick, and don't want to get others sick by icing cookies while I am ill, or it could also be the fact that it's a huge pain in the butt!

*Cookie gangster: Martha's cookie b*tch made these snow globe cookies and thinks we can too. She's crazy!

A few weeks ago, I did make a banana bread loaf with some leftover bananas that I didn't completely F up!

It didn't have to chill for 3 hours, didn't involve pie crust or cookie cutters, and we ate every last bite. You can basically just dump all the ingredients into a kitchenaid mixer, hit the magic button & throw it in a loaf pan. 45 minutes later- banana bread!

Just so I know that I'm not the only "BakeTard" in the world, here are some pics from CakeWrecks' blog, which makes me

laugh!

Reindeer poop cake anyone?

Or maybe a Christmas elf to take home for the kiddos?

New Breakfast Ideas

2009-10-10T16:40:00.004-05:00

I have pushed the bagels & english muffins aside, and have found 2 quick, grab on-the-go breakfast ideas that I take to work & eat at my desk. I love them because they are full of protein, low in fat & calories, and keep my full. Also, for the laziness factor, I don't have to toast a bagel, or do anything but grab a spoon!

I have always loved yogurt for breakfast as well as cottage cheese. Here are my two finds that are so delicious:

1. Greek Yogurt, specifically Voskos

Greek yogurt is thick & creamy and certain varieties contain up to 24g of protein! That is like eating a chicken breast for breakfast...lol. Really, no stirring required here.

The wild strawberry (5.3 oz serving) contains 120 calories, 13g protein, 13g sugar (some of yoplaits contain up to 27g of sugar). Gluten free, etc.

Yoplait light yogurt (6 oz serving) contains 100 calories, 5g protein, & I believe sucralose (fake sugar, which gives me headaches).

All of the ingredients on the Voskos label are pretty self-explanatory. Although the calorie count is a bit higher (20 calories), I don't really care!

Other Voskos flavors include: greek honey, wild blueberry, honey vanilla bean, & exotic fig.

Another good brand of Greek Yogurt is Fage (pronounced Fa-Yeh). However, this yogurt is super thick! I buy this yogurt in the non-fat or low-fat version in the larger container, and use it in anything, that I'd use sour cream in (i.e. black bean soup), or make a quick salad dressing with it. Just google, "Ways to use Greek Yogurt," and you'll be surprised what comes up!

2. Rachel's Cottage Cheese, Cucumber Dill flavor (but they have lots of fun flavors)

This cottage cheese is creamy which was a surprise to me - the good stuff is at the bottom, so you will need to stir. The cumumber & dill is light & pretty addicting. The nutritional value for cottage cheese (1 prepackage container) is awesome- 110 calories, 2g fat, 5g sugar, 14g protein, 20% calcium. I read that cottage cheese is actually a very good bedtime snack too - due to the casein protein that is slowly absorbed into the blood stream (takes about 7 hours)! Good for building muscles too.

Other flavors of Rachel's include: Sun Dried Tomato Pesto, Roasted Red Pepper, Pear Mangosteen, Pomegrante Orange Cranberry, & Lemon Verbena Berry.

Super Foods

2009-07-16T22:58:00.007-05:00

Working on eating healthier- bought the book "Eat This, Not That" by David Zinczenko, and it is a pretty great book. Has very useful information.

Working on eating some of the Super Foods or Power 12:

1. Almonds & Other nuts
Super Powers: Builds muscle, curbs cravings, Protein, vitamins, fiber, etc

2. Beans & Other Legumes
Super Powers: Builds muscle, burns fat, aids digestion, high fiber & protein, fights against disease

3. Spinach & Other green veggies
Super Powers: Neutralizing free radicals (molecules that increase the aging process), vitamins, fibers

4. Low-fat Dairy
Super Powers: Building strong bones, firing up weight loss, vitamins & minerals

5. Instant Oatmeal (unsweetened/unflavored)
Super Powers: Boosting energy & sex drive, reducing cholesterol, maintaining blood sugar levels, fiber

6.Eggs
Super Powers: Building muscle, burning fat, protein, vitamins

7. Turkey & other lean meats
Super Powers: Building muscle, improving immune system, protein & vitamins

8. Peanut Butter (all-natural sugar free)
Super Powers: Building muscle, burning fat, protein & vitamins

9. Olive Oil
Super Powers: Lowers cholesterol, boosts immune system, vitamin E

10. Whole Grain Breads & Cereal
Super Powers: Prevents your body from storing fat, fiber, vitamins & minerals

11. Extra-Protein Whey Powder
Super Powers: Building muscle, burning fat, protein

12. Raspberries and other berries
Super Powers: Protecting your heart, enhancing eyesight, improving memory, preventing cravings, antioxidants, fiber, vitamin C

Most of these are easy for me to fit in...the only ones that I haven't gotten around to: Sugar Free PB & Extra-Protein Whey Powder (only had it at smoothie king, haven't bought it at home). I actually love the rest of this stuff.

Pretty easy to incorporate most of this stuff for daily snacks or meals.

Fro' YO

2009-04-11T00:13:00.003-05:00

Frozen yogurt shops are popping up everywhere. It is actually getting a little annoying... Orange Cup, BerryBerry, Natsumi, Yogilicious, Gooey's, Bliss and the good ol' TCBY- I mean can they all have these amazing concepts? What is the freakin' difference? Ok- sure, some are Organic, some are healthy & post the calories (see below)...but at the end of the day, I want the fun toppings & delicious flavors of yogurt!

So, we had just finished dinner in Plano & saw "Spoonfull" Grand Opening. And there were tons of people inside-like at least 20! This place has something to be proud of, a very smart concept,

Do It Yourself (DIY) Yogurt:

1. Grab a cup "the size of a bucket!"

2. Choose from about 10 flavors- because you are serving yourself, here is your chance to mix & match, take your time, taste a flavor with a tester cup first. Traditional flavors like chocolate & vanilla & fun flavors like raspberry & cappuchino, or cookies & cream.

3. Move to the toppings bar- also self serve. 4 kinds of syrup, tons of toppings- again some very traditional like chocolate sprinkles & M&M Candy and creative toppings like marshmallows, fresh fruit-strawberries, blackberries, kiwi, mango, or cereal: cocoa puffs or fruity pebbles, also had granola, coconut, the list goes on & on.

4. Move up to the cash register where they weigh your yogurt creation by the ounce- $.35 cents/oz. My husband & I's creations were right around $6 total.

I asked the store employee if this new store was a franchise? He said, "No, private store, this is the first one." I told him that they had a great concept- he thanked me. People love taking their time, not feeling rushed & customizing things their way.

My creation: 1/2 chocolate & vanilla swirl, 1/2 cappuchino & raspberry swirl with strawberries, marshallows, mini chocolate chips & chocolate fudge syrup.

Hubby's creation: Cookies & Cream & Cappuchino plus mini chocolate chips, chocolate fudge syrup, & oreos (everything chocolate in the store).

Time for Tea

2009-04-10T23:30:00.004-05:00

I love going to certain restaurants where I know the tea is great (and hate certain places where I know the tea sucks). Examples of great tea: Dream Cafe (Strawberry Hibiscus)-so delicious with breakfast, Corner Bakery, Luna de Noche (they can brew plain ol' tea really well), Nordstrom Bistro, Anywhere that serves "China Black plain or flavored teas"-yum! Asian Mint serves a great hot green tea (as do most Asian restaurants).

Sucky tea: Subway (they can't brew it right!!), most fast food joints (Wendy's), Nestea flavored or sweet tea or raspberry from the soda tap- ew!

My favorite tea to drink at home is loose leaf tea- I loved the Bodum store when it was open on Knox/Henderson. It was delicious! For the best bagged tea, I like Harney & Sons http://www.harney.com/. You can find it at Williams Sonoma & Macy's.--probably Central Market too.

New Year

2008-12-31T16:52:00.005-06:00

Since the holidays are almost over, I am ready to start my healthy(ier) eating & exercise. Lord knows that the last two weeks have been fabulous. Between my mother & my mother-in-law, there has been a plethora of amazing food & leftovers, but I am feeling a bit glutinous. Not to mention that at work, we have had a never-ending supply of chocolate, popcorn & nuts to munch on. Although I tried to stay away from all the goodies, once the Cheryl & Co cookies (http://cherylandco.com/) were delivered, it was all downhill after that. These things are amazing....

Cheryl & Co's mission statement: Our mission is to be the best gourmet food and gift company, ever. They aren't kidding! These individually wrapped cookies are soft & you won't taste any artificial ingredients. They bake from scratch. They usually offer free shipping on a lot of selections and their prices are really great! You get a lot of stuff in each gift. Their frosted buttercream are so delicious, but they also have decadent flavors like Chocolate Peppermint, Cinnamon Pumpkin, Chocolate Buttercream Chip, Frosted Chocolate Peanut Butter (yum!), and then more traditional: Chocolate Chip, Macadamia White Chip, Snickerdoodle, & Oatmeal Raisin. And they are not all cookies- they also have stuff like: Oatmeal Scotchie Brownie's, Chocolate Pretzels, Lemon Cake, Cheryl's Oh's (cookie sandwiches!), etc.

Oh yeah, but this blog was supposed to be about being healthy...guess I got a little carried away with those darn Cheryl's cookies.

Maybe later.

Williams Sonoma Hot Chocolate on Sale

2008-12-24T21:31:00.002-06:00

Williams Sonoma has their hot chocolate on sale!

http://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/fd399/index.cfm?pkey=cview-all-sale

This is my favorite, and this is a very good price!

You'll find many other items on sale online & also in stores tomorrow.

Cookie Time!

2008-12-24T21:01:00.004-06:00

Sablés au Citron
(from Paris Sweets by Dorie Greenspan)
(makes 50 cookies) - These buttery, lemon cookies melt in your mouth!

8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened at room temp.

2/3 cup confectioners' sugar (measured then sifted)
2 large egg yolks (divided use: 1 for dough, 1 for coating)
pinch of salt
2 tsp vanilla extract
2-4 tsp finely grated lemon zest (to taste)
2 cups all purpose flour
approximately 1/2 cup granulated sugar (for coating)

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter on medium speed until smooth, add the confectioners' sugar and beat until smooth. Beat in 1 egg yolk, followed by salt, vanilla and lemon zest.

On low speed, add the flour and mix just until flour is incorporated.

Turn dough out onto a counter, gather dough into a ball, divide in half, and wrap each piece in plastic wrap. Chill dough for 30 minutes in refrigerator.

Form each piece of dough into a log that is about 1 to 1 1/4 inches in diameter. (If the diameter is right, the length you end up with is fine. Mine are usually about 6 inches long.) Wrap logs in plastic wrap and chill dough for 2 hours in refrigerator. (Dough logs can be wrapped airtight and kept refrigerated for up to 3 days or stored in freezer for up to 1 month.)

Preheat oven to 350F. Line your baking sheets with parchment paper.

If you are coating your cookies with sugar, whisk the remaining egg yolk until it's smooth and liquid enough to use as a glaze. Spread granulated sugar out on a piece of waxed paper. One log at a time, unwrap your chilled dough log and brush lightly with the egg yolk. Roll the log in sugar, pressing gently to help the sugar stick.

Slice each log into rounds about 1/4 inch thick. Place on baking sheets, leaving about 1/2 inch between the cookies.

Bake at 350F for 12-14 minutes until they are set but not browned. (It's okay if the yolk-sugar edges brown slightly.) Transfer cookies to cooling rack.

Notes:
You can use a different citrus zest in this recipe.
Definitely give the dough logs the 2 hour rest in the refrigerator.
It's optional to coat the edges in sugar

Mushroom Panini

2008-12-14T20:17:00.003-06:00

We made tasty Mushroom Panini sandwiches tonight. We used sliced Portobello mushrooms and rather than provolone or swiss cheese, we used a Mexican Queso melting cheese for something a little different. I found a crusty sourdough bread & spread melted butter with a little salt & pepper on the outside of the bread.

I made an olive tapenade (see below), layered the cheese & roasted portobello mushrooms (see below), and made our panini's. Yum! The cheese & olives together with the mushrooms were nice & salty, and roasted portobello's have such a nice meaty flavor.

Roasted Portobello's:

Ingredients:

2 large portobello mushrooms (or a package of sliced portobello's)
Olive oil
Salt & pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Brush portobello mushrooms with a brush or paper towel removing any dirt.

Drizzle or brush olive oil over both sides of the mushrooms.

Sprinkle salt & pepper on both sides.

Roast for 7-10 minutes (flipping once) until al dente (sides will begin to curl).

Olive Tapenade (you can add or subtract any of your favorite ingredients):

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

20 pitted Kalamata olives, coarsely chopped (you can always use black, green or a mixed variety)
1 Tbsp rinsed, drained, and chopped capers
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp anchovy paste (optional)
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp rice wine vinegar
Fresh cracked black pepper

Preparation:

Combine all ingredients- chop or throw into a food processor to combine. Mix well. Refrigerate and use within two weeks. Use as a spread for sandwiches, paninis, muffaletta or as a condiment.

Yield: about 1 cup

Follow me!

2008-11-14T22:37:00.000-06:00

On the right hand side of the page, you'll see a section called "Followers." Click "Follow this blog" link. Then we can stay in touch & we'll know when we post updates!

Also, feel free to leave comments- stuff you liked, didn't like or if you have general comments or links you want me to check out, I'd love to see it!

Walmart Wine

2008-11-14T22:05:00.000-06:00

We saw Walmart's cheap-o wine for $2.97 called Oak Leaf wine. We debated on whether we would end up pouring it down the drain, but apparently people like it. And it is winning contests....and people are choosing it over the $50 bottles. And it is getting gold stars.

The chardonnay won a gold medal at the 2008 S.F. Chronicle Wine Competition. The merlot & the cabernet savignon earned bronze medals. Who woulda thought? We have a bottle sitting in our fridge, but have yet to open it up.

Top 10 Slogans for Wal-Mart Wine
By DAVID LETTERMAN
10. "When Kmart Wine Just Won't Do"
9. "I Can't Believe It's Not Wine"
8. "Show Your Friends How Little You Care"
7. "Kills Germs on Contact"
6. "Recommended by 4 Out of 5 Drifters!"
5. "Crack Open a Can Today!"
4. "Fresh From the Vineyards of Aisle 6"
3. "Here's to Making Bail!"
2. "Feeling Down After Being Thrown Out by Britney?"
1. "Goes Great With a 20-Dollar Hooker"

They ran out of dessert!

2008-10-30T22:08:00.000-05:00

My mom & I attended KRLD's 82nd anniversary party last night at the Dallas arboretum. We really enjoyed ourselves- great catered food, full open bar, notable speakers, pretty flowers & a great place to people watch! One of the highlights for me was the avocado bar: They served up a half of a Haas Avocado still in the rine sprinkled with salt and drizzled with olive oil. Then you choose from a variety of toppings to "stuff" your avocado like black bean & corn salsa, shrimp and cucumber ceviche, pineapple pico, bacon!, sour cream or habanero cream. While the concept was amazing, the habanero cream was freaking HOT! I can stomach hot food (thai food, super hot salsa, etc), but for your average eater, I know they had to be turned off. This stuff had a serious kick & definitely should have come with a warning. But, I really liked the idea.

After all the salty and spicy food, we were craving some dessert. We went to the dessert station & they had run out- no plan B, just plain out! My mom & I were joking that we would throw some butter & cinnamon sugar on some tortillas & come up with something! They were still serving dinner, so people were not happy that they ran out that early.

Bummer...

Cool weather, warm food

2008-10-28T21:29:00.000-05:00

As we had our first "cold-front" and the temperature here in Texas dropped into the 40s, everyone quickly pulled out their scarves, heavy coats and even some people pulled out their gloves. As we left for work for our lunch break, we all decided since it was "so cold," that we needed something warm- soup! We drove over to Panera which apparently everyone in Dallas thought the exact same thought. The parking lot was jammed & there was not a free table. Every tray that I saw go by had soup on it. I got the creamy Tomato soup with chunks of Sourdough bread in it:

Tomato, Cheese and Bread Soup

8	ounces crusty Sourdough croutons
2	tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
9	garlic cloves, minced
3	large onions, finely chopped
8	cups chicken stock or low-salt chicken broth
2	28oz cans peeled plum tomatoes, drained and crushed
1/4	cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
	Parmesan Reggiano rind (optional)
1/4	cup thinly sliced fresh basil leaves (for garnish)
1/4	cup Parmesan cheese shavings
1/4	cup freshly grated Asiago cheese HEAT OLIVE OIL in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add onions and saute until very tender, about 25 minutes. Add minced garlic and cook 1 minute. Add chicken stock, crushed tomatoes, cheeses and cheese rind. Simmer soup uncovered 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season to taste with salt and pepper. For smoother texture, puree in blender or food processor before serving. Ladle soup into Panera Bread Sourdough bread bowls. Add croutons, torn basil, and Parmesan cheese shavings just before serving.

MAKES 6 SERVINGS

So as the season starts to change into fall & colder temperatures, there are just certain foods that sound so great that I always look forward to.

Hot Chocolate- My favorite: Williams Sonoma Hot Chocolate (worth every penny & the extra time on the stove)
Soups & Chili- I was always intimidated to make soups, but it is quite easy. You can start almost any soup with a little olive oil in the bottom of a pan & then throw in some diced onion, celery & carrot (the french call it a mirepoix, but who really cares). A lot of soup recipes called for diced or crushed tomatoes. I like to throw these in for a little kick: Muir Glen Fire Roasted Tomatoes (can find these at Central Market & Tom Thumb). Then just follow your favorite recipe or combine a few together that sound good.
Baked Goods- I guess because the holidays are getting close, I figure "Hey, maybe this year, I'll bake cookies for everyone I know!" Yea right... But I do tend to bake a bit more around the house at least.

Hope you are enjoying some of fall's foods!