Cooking and Eating in the Windy City

Christmas Spanakopita

2010-12-27T11:50:00.007-06:00

Before I tell you about a couple of the Christmas appetizers I made, let me just tell you I am officially going to take a break from this blog. I've been cooking a ton lately, but most of it is either recipes at work, or stuff you've already seen on here. There has still been some inspiration to try new recipes (like this spanakopita), but even when they're great recipes I'm not really feeling the urge to blog about them. So, I feel a break is in order... which is probably not a huge surprise since my last post was almost a month ago!

Brie en Croute (with homemade ginger peach jam!) and Sausage stuffed mushrooms on Christmas Eve

This blog started out as a bit of a recipe journal, and as a result I'll keep it live as long as blogger will let me. Even if I'm not adding new content, I'll go back to old favorites like this Chicken and Mushroom Ragu and the best Brussels Sprouts EVER. Also, I might put some links to successful recipes I find online, so I know where to find them. Joe and I got a total of 8 food or beer related books for Christmas, so I'm going to try to test some cookbook recipes in upcoming months, too. I might be back to posting really soon... or maybe never... I don't want to put any pressure on myself, so I'll just say to enjoy this spanakopita before the New Year's Resolutions kick in, and to keep in touch!

Spanakopita

adapted from Epicurious.com, originally from Gourmet magazine

1 stick (1/2 cup) plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 lb baby spinach

1 large clove of garlic

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

1/2 lemon, juiced

3 Tbsp pine nuts, toasted

1/2 lb feta, crumbled (scant 2 cups)

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1 egg

10 (17- by 12-inch) phyllo sheets, thawed if frozen

Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, then cook spinach, stirring, until wilted and tender, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat and cool, about 10 minutes. Squeeze handfuls of spinach in a clean towel to remove as much liquid as possible, then coarsely chop. Transfer to a bowl.

Saute garlic and red pepper flakes in the same saute pan until fragrant, about 30 seconds, then add to the spinach. Stir in pine nuts, lemon juice, feta, nutmeg, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Check for seasoning, then add the egg and mix well.

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Melt remaining 1 stick butter in a small saucepan, then cool.

Cover phyllo stack with 2 overlapping sheets of plastic wrap and then a dampened kitchen towel.

Take 1 phyllo sheet from stack and arrange on a work surface with a long side nearest you (keeping remaining sheets covered) and brush with some butter. Top with another phyllo sheet and brush with more butter. Cut buttered phyllo stack crosswise into 6 (roughly 12- by 2 3/4-inch) strips.

Put a heaping teaspoon of filling near 1 corner of a strip on end nearest you, then fold corner of phyllo over to enclose filling and form a triangle. Continue folding strip (like a flag), maintaining triangle shape. Put triangle, seam side down, on a large baking sheet and brush top with butter. Make more triangles in same manner, using all of phyllo.

Bake triangles in middle of oven until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool slightly.

Happy Holidays!

Green and White Bean Gratin

2010-11-30T15:41:00.005-06:00

This green and white bean bake was a perfect vegetarian main course for a cold winter night. We paired it with a salad, some bread, and a movie. Exactly what you want to eat when it's cold and rainy outside, and you're snuggled up under a blanket. The pureed beans made the gratin seem so smooth and creamy, and even with cutting back on the cheese it was nice and cheesy. I liked that the cheese was balanced out with a lack of cream, to keep the dish from being too rich.

This makes a great vegetarian main dish, and would also be great served with roast chicken or pork tenderloin. The lunch leftovers were terrific as well. I'd also like to experiment with using broccoli or sauteed kale for the vegetable portion of the gratin.

Green and White Bean Gratin

From Moosewood Restaurant Farm Fresh Meals

2 cups fresh green beans, cut into 2 inch lengths and blanched (or frozen green beans-- don't bother defrosting)
2 cans white beans
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons of dried thyme, finely chopped rosemary or sage
Pinch of salt and black pepper
1 cup grated Gruyere or cheddar cheese
1 cup bread crumbs
1 cup Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 9 inch square baking dish, and spread the green beans in the bottom of the dish.

In a food processor, combine one can of white beans (undrained) with the garlic, herb(s), salt and pepper until smooth. Pour over the green beans in the baking dish, and sprinkle with the Gruyere or cheddar cheese. Drain and rinse the second can of white beans, and spread the whole beans on top.

In a small bowl, mix the bread crumbs, Parmesan and melted butter. Sprinkle lightly over the top of the gratin. Bake, covered, for 25 minutes. Uncover and bake about 10 minutes more, until golden brown and bubbling.

Herb Roast Chicken with Root Vegetables

2010-11-21T17:10:00.002-06:00

As soon as temperatures drop, I switch my cooking style from frequent grilling to roasting. I love roasting pretty much any kind of vegetables, and a nice whole chicken is such an easy and elegant main course. I saw a recipe like this at work, and loved the idea of roasting the chicken and veggies all in one pan.

I rubbed an herb butter all over the raw chicken, making sure to get some butter under the skin. I chopped a couple carrots, parsnips, and potatoes into bite sized chunks, and tossed them with some olive oil, salt, and pepper. I spread the vegetables in the bottom of my cast iron casserole pan, and placed the chicken right on top of the veggies. When the chicken was done, I let it rest on the cutting board, and placed the pan back in the oven so the vegetables could finish cooking. Served with a salad, this was a simple and comforting Sunday night dinner.

I could never write a cookbook, because I'm way too lazy when it comes to writing down recipes. This was made up on the fly, but I'll do the best I can to tell you what to do :) This is a recipe you could easily play around with, depending what you have around the kitchen.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Mix the following ingredients to make an herb compound butter:

6-8 Tbsp butter, softened

1 tsp fresh rosemary, minced

1 tsp fresh thyme, minced

1 tsp fresh lemon zest

1 clove of garlic, minced

salt and pepper to taste

Peel and chop your root vegetables, trying to cut the pieces into a consistent size. I used 2 large carrots, 2 large parsnips, and 4 or 5 new potatoes (skin on). Toss the vegetables into your roasting pan or cast iron pot, and toss with a couple tablespoons of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.

Rinse a whole chicken and pat dry. Season the inside of the cavity with salt and pepper, and put slices of lemon inside. Rub the herb butter all over the chicken, pushing lots of the butter under the skin. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables, and place into the preheated oven.

Cook the chicken until a thermometer reads 165 degrees. If the vegetables are not soft and getting crispy, remove the chicken and put the vegetables back in the oven until they get to the level of doneness you desire. Serve the roasted vegetables alongside slices of the roast chicken.

Lamb Stew with Mashed Potato Topping

2010-11-11T09:52:00.007-06:00

I have recently been working on expanding my horizons when it comes to tasting and cooking different kinds of meat. Up until last spring, I was a member of the "No Red Meat" Club, and had been for for almost 15 years. I was picky about meat as a kid, and chose to cut red meat out of my diet. Eventually I realized I had no idea what red meat even tasted like, and I felt like I couldn't be a very good foodie if I was so picky about what types of meat I would eat.

I started slow, with a couple hamburgers and tastes of more exotic cuts of meat that Joe would order. Being around plenty of meat at The Chopping Block has given me the chance to taste many different kinds of meat, and I've liked what I have tasted. I think meat is very trendy in Chicago right now, and most restaurants are offering exotic choices and tons of charcuterie options. I've now enjoyed things like duck liver pate, bone marrow, and good old fashioned steak. I'm not a crazy meat eater, though, and still eat vegetarian multiple days a week, to balance things out.

Joe brought home some Turkish leftovers recently, and I gobbled up the lamb dish that he left in the fridge. It was so flavorful, and immediately inspired me to try to cook some lamb. I am still pretty intimidated by large pieces of meat, so some kind of roast lamb was out. I got hooked on the idea of a lamb stew, with nice tender pieces of meat cooked up with lots of wintery vegetables. I'd seen a recipe in Jamie's Food Revolution, and kept thinking back to his suggestion to top the finished stew with mashed potatoes, like a Shepard's pie.

Jamie's stew recipe is very basic, with lots of room for interpretation. I like how flexible his recipes are, and how approachable he makes cooking. This recipe is actually four different recipes, depending which type of meat and booze you put into your stew. I did the lamb and red wine combination, and plan to experiment with others during the cold Chicago winter. The recipe was so straight forward, but you did have to plan for the long cooking time. It was mostly hands-off, though, and I loved having almost all the dishes taken care of before dinner was ready. I made this on a Sunday, so we had plenty of time to let the meat get tender. It was rich and satisfying, and the mashed potato topping was fantastic. It was a little crispy on top, and the softer potatoes closer to the stew soaked up some of the red wine stewing liquid. This was the best cold weather dinner I have made in a long time!

Basic Stew Recipe

from Jamie's Food Revolution

Main Stew Ingredients:

2 stalks celery

2 medium onions

2 carrots

Olive oil

1 heaped tablespoon all-purpose flour

One 14-ounce can of diced tomatoes

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Then choose one of the following:

Beef and Ale (3 hours)

3 fresh or dried bay leaves

1 pound diced beef stewing meat

2 cups brown ale, Guinness or stout

Pork and Cider (2 1/2 hours)

3 sprigs fresh sage

1 pound diced stewing pork, preferably free-range or organic

2 cups medium-dry hard cider

Chicken and White Wine (1 1/2 hours)

3 sprigs fresh thyme

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs

2 cups white wine

Lamb and Red Wine (2 1/2 hours)

3 sprigs fresh rosemary

1 pound diced stewing lamb

2 cups red wine

1. If using the oven to cook your stew, preheat to 350°F.

2. Trim the ends off your celery and roughly chop the stalks. Peel and roughly chop the onions. Peel the carrots, slice lengthwise, and roughly chop.

3. Put a Dutch oven on a medium heat. Put all of the vegetables and your chosen herb into the pan with 2 lugs of olive oil and fry for 10 minutes. Add your meat and flour. Pour in the booze and canned tomatoes. Give it a good stir, then season with a teaspoon of sea salt (less if using table salt) and a few grinds of pepper.

4. Bring to a boil, put the lid on, and either simmer slowly on your cooktop or cook in the oven for the times shown above. Remove the lid for the final half hour of simmering or cooking and add a splash of water if it looks a bit dry.

5. When done, your meat should be tender and delicious. Remove any bay leaves or herb stalks before serving, and taste it to see if it needs a bit more salt and pepper.

Jamie offers multiple suggestions of toppings for the stew recipe. While the lamb stew would have been wonderful as is, I couldn't resist his suggestion to make it like a Cottage Pie, with a mashed potato topping. He also has suggestions for dumplings or puff pastry topping.

Mashed Potato Topping

2 1/4 lbs potatoes, peeled (I used two russets and some smaller new potatoes)

splash of milk

tablespoon of butter

sea salt and freshly ground pepper

olive oil or melted butter

sprig of rosemary (I omitted because my rosemary plant is looking pitifully small these days)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Fill a large baking dish with the fully cooked stew (or keep it in your cute new orange Le Cruset buffet casserole that you cooked the stew in). Boil the potatoes in salted water, and drain when they are tender all the way through. Mash by hand or in your stand mixer, adding in the milk, butter, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Mash until creamy, adding a splash of extra milk if needed. Roughly top the stew with the potatoes, not worrying about making the topping smooth and even. Top the potatoes with rosemary leaves, and brush the top with olive oil or melted butter. Cook in the oven for 20-25 minutes, until the potato topping is golden brown and the stew is bubbling on the sides.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

2010-11-05T07:53:00.009-05:00

Last weekend I made those fantastic pumpkin cupcakes, and at the end of the day I was left with every bakers worst dilemma... extra icing! I hate to just waste it, especially when the icing is of the cream cheese variety. So I started brainstorming about other good uses for this creamy, rich icing. It didn't take me long to decided cinnamon rolls would be a great way to use this icing, and going along with the change of season, the cinnamon rolls needed to be pumpkin flavor. I checked one of my favorite online baking resources, King Arthur Flour's website, and found a recipe that they had blogged about last fall.

What can I say? These were great! Rich, sweet, and intensely bad for you... a perfect fall treat. I'm actually a pretty healthy eater overall, so I almost feel guilty eating these for breakfast! But I do think these would be wonderful on a special occastion, like a holiday brunch or breakfast on Thanksgiving morning. You can make the dough the night before, and let the rolls rise in the fridge overnight. Then, let them come back to room temperature for 30 to 45 minutes the next morning before you bake them.

If you want advice on this recipe, or for other great baking inspiration, check out the King Arthur Flour blog. They give great step by step instructions, and always respond to peoples questions in the comments section. You can see the original recipe there, too. Now I'm headed to the gym, to work off a few of the calories I packed on from eating these things :)

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

from kingarthurflour.com

Dough

1 cup canned pumpkin or squash

2 large eggs

1/4 cup (plus 2-4 Tbsp) lukewarm milk

1/4 cup soft butter

2 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

1 3/4 cups King Arthur White Whole Wheat Flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves, optional

3 tablespoons brown sugar, light or dark

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons instant yeast

*Adjust the amount of milk by the time of year or your climate. For summer, or in a humid enivronment, use the lesser amount of water. In winter, or in a dry climate, use the greater amount. It's always best to start with the lesser amount; you can always add more liquid a lot easier than taking it away.

Filling

3/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon cinnamon

water to brush on dough

1/2 cup dried cranberries

Cream Cheese Icing

Directions

1) Mix and knead all of the dough ingredients together — by hand, mixer, or bread machine — until you've made a soft, fairly smooth dough.

This is a really easy dough, with all the ingredients going into one bowl. Less mess, yeah! I think a stand mixer makes a big difference for this dough, because it's a wetter dough that would be hard to knead by hand.

2) Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover the bowl, and allow the dough to rise for 1 1/2 hours, until it's almost doubled in bulk.

3) Turn the dough out onto a lightly greased surface. Roll it into a 14" x 22" rectangle; the dough will be thin.

4) Mix the cinnamon and sugar. Brush a thin layer of water over the dough, then sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture, leaving one short edge free of filling.

5) Sprinkle with dried cranberries.

The recipe also recommended sprinkling with crystalized ginger, which sounded great but for me meant another trip to the store. I might try that if I plan better next time. I also think chopped nuts would be nice tucked into the rolls.

6) Starting with the short end that's covered with filling, roll the dough into a log.

7) Cut the log into nine 1½"-thick rolls.

8) Place the rolls into a lightly greased 9" x 9" pan that's at least 2" deep. Set aside, covered, to rise for 1 hour, or until the rolls look puffy.

9) Bake the rolls in a preheated 375°F oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until they're lightly browned and feel set. Remove them from the oven, and set them on a rack. Turn them out of the pan, and allow them to cool for about 15 minutes. Towards the end of the cooling time, spread cream cheese icing over the rolls.

Fresh Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing

2010-11-01T12:08:00.007-05:00

This Saturday was a wonderfully relaxing day at home, and as we watched football and cleaned up the house I was hit with a major baking urge. The pie pumpkin that had been sitting on my kitchen counter was my main inspiration, and I wanted to roast and puree the pumpkin, then bake it into something tasty. I searched tons of recipes online, and ended up choosing a classic pumpkin spice cake. While I'm not a huge cupcake fan, it seemed like a much easier way to share treats at the party we were going to that night. I wanted to pipe the icing, which lead me to pick a simpler, more sturdy looking icing recipe. The pumpkin cupcakes were moist and dense, and the combination of spices added more flavor to the cake. The icing was rich and just sweet enough. While these weren't the most creative cupcakes you'll find on cooking blogs, they are a great simple recipe that captures the flavors of fall. The cupcakes received rave reviews at Saturday's Halloween party, and leftovers were quickly taken care of when I brought them to work on Sunday!

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

from epicurious.com

3 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 1/4 cups vegetable oil

4 large eggs

2 teaspoons finely grated orange peel

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a cupcake pan with paper liners. Whisk first 9 ingredients (through cardamom) in large bowl. Using electric mixer, beat pumpkin, sugar, and oil in another large bowl. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating to incorporate between additions. Mix in orange peel. Add flour mixture; beat on low speed just to blend. Fill liners about 2/3 full with batter.

Bake cupcakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 15-20 minutes. Move cupcakes to wire rack, and cool completely before frosting.

Makes 25-30 cupcakes

Cream Cheese Frosting

from allrecipes.com

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until creamy. Mix in the vanilla, then gradually stir in the confectioners' sugar. Store in the refrigerator after use.

Want to try to make your own pumpkin puree? It's really easy, as long as you have a little time and the right equipment. I used some tips from The Pioneer Woman, and added a little of my own insight. Basically, quarter and seed the pumpkins, then roast at 350 until they are tender when pierced with a fork. Don't rush this part-- if the pumpkin is not tender enough, it will not puree well. When it's nice and tender, scrape the cooked pumpkin into a food processor, and process until the pumpkin is completely pureed. If it seems dry, or isn't getting very smooth, add a little water. When the pumpkin is a nice puree, drain it in a mesh strainer lined with cheese cloth, to let some of the extra water out. If you're not using all the pumpkin, freeze in 1 cup portions for later use.

I hope everyone had a great Halloween! Next up is every foodies favorite holiday... Thanksgiving! I've already started thinking about what I can contribute to this year's feast. Have you?

Vegetarian White Chili

2010-10-27T17:17:00.006-05:00

I can't believe it's been a month since I last posted. Life sure got crazy for a while there! It's good to be back, though, to cooking in my kitchen and to sharing some of the results with you. I have cooked much less over the last month, thanks to long hours at work and more stress than I wanted to deal with. But eating is a necessary part of life, and I pushed really hard to not fall back into the habits of prepared, over processed food. This meant lots of weekend cooking, and planning for simple weeknight meals. I fell back on some favorites during this time, and it was a great chance to revisit some of my blog favorites from the past. Below are links to some previous recipes that I recently made again.

Butternut Squash, Spinach, and Wheat Berry Salad

Pumpkin Banana Muffins

Black Bean and Quinoa Burgers

"Lower Fat" Chocolate Chip Cookies

While it's nice to revisit some favorites, I have been eager to get back to exploring new recipes. This past weekend offered me an opportunity, when Joe and I were finally taking a day to lounge around. It was cool weather, and football was on the brain as we waited eagerly for the Mizzou game to begin. Chili sounded perfect for this type of day, but I'd recently made a wonderful Chicken Chili. Not to mention we'd been eating a lot of meat for the last few days, so I was in the mood for a vegetarian dinner.

Somehow I came up with the idea of doing a white chili, using cannellini beans and corn. I didn't find any recipes online that fit what I was looking for, so I found a White Chicken Chili to use as a model. The end result was a flavorful, hearty alternative to traditional chili. It was also a great dinner to eat before a crazy night watching the Missouri Tigers beat Oklahoma!! Go Tigers!! Now I just need to figure out another creative chili to eat before we show Nebraska what's up this weekend ;)

Vegetarian White Chili

•1 large onion, chopped

•1/2 stick (4 Tbsp) unsalted butter

•1/4 cup all-purpose flour

•2 cups vegetable stock

•2 cups 1% milk

•1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder

•1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

•1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

•1/2 teaspoon white pepper, or to taste

•two 4-ounce cans whole mild green chilies, drained and chopped

•2 cans of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

•2 cups of frozen corn kernels, thawed

•¼ cup cilantro leaves, rough chopped

•Garnish: chopped avocado, 1 1/2 cups grated white cheddar cheese

In a skillet cook onion in 1 tablespoon butter over moderate heat until softened.

In a 6- to 8-quart heavy kettle melt remaining 3 tablespoons butter over moderately low heat and whisk in flour. Cook roux, whisking constantly, 3 minutes. Stir in onion and gradually add vegetable stock and half-and-half, whisking constantly. Bring mixture to a boil and simmer, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes, or until thickened. Stir in chili powder, cumin, salt, and white pepper. Add beans, chilies, corn, and cilantro, and cook mixture over moderately low heat, stirring, 20 minutes.

Garnish chili with grated cheese and chopped avocado.

Original Recipe: White Chicken Chili from epicurious.com

Chicken Chili

2010-09-26T21:18:00.008-05:00

One of my closest friends from high school is about to have her first baby, and I couldn't be more excited for her! As Cathy and her husband await the arrival of their little girl (only 10 or so days to go!), I started thinking about what I could do for them once the baby is here. Cathy is a great cook, but I know she's going to be tired and stretched thin as she adjusts to motherhood, so I wanted to help make a couple nights after baby's arrival that much easier.

As I searched for great freezer-friendly recipes, I came across this Chicken Chili on Annie's Eats. It sounded like a nice twist on a classic, and I figured it was a recipe that would suit their tastes well. The weather was decidedly fall-like today, which made it a perfect day to open the kitchen door and put a pot of chili on the stove. I managed to put most of this into Tupperware containers that went straight into the freezer, but not before I tasted a bowl for myself. I had to make sure it was tasty before I gave it away! I think this chili was perfect for freezing, and will make a healthy and comforting meal for the new parents. And the overflow will be great for my lunch tomorrow, too :)

Chicken Chili

From Annie's Eats, originally from Barefoot Contessa Parties by Ina Garten

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Salt and pepper

4 cups chopped yellow onion (2-3 onions)

2 tbsp. olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 bell peppers (I used 1 red, 1 green and 1 yellow)

2 tsp. chili powder

2 tsp. ground cumin

¼ tsp. red pepper flakes

½ tsp. cayenne pepper

½ tsp. dried oregano

1 chipotle chili in adobo sauce, finely diced

2 tsp. kosher salt

2 (28 oz.) cans whole peeled tomatoes in puree, not drained

2 (15 oz.) cans beans, drained and rinsed (I used 1 can black and 1 can pinto beans)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375˚ F. Line a baking sheet with foil. Place the chicken breasts on the foil, and season with salt and pepper. Fold the foil over the chicken breasts to make a “packet”. Roast 30-40 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. Allow to cool enough to handle, then shred or chop into bite-sized pieces.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sauté the onions 10-15 minutes, or until tender and translucent. Add the garlic to the pot and sauté just until fragrant, about 1 minute. Mix in the chopped bell peppers, chili powder, cumin, red pepper flakes, cayenne, oregano, chipotle, and kosher salt. Cook 5 more minutes.

Place the canned tomatoes in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse briefly so the tomatoes are cut to large chunks. Add the tomatoes with the puree to the pot and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes, uncovered, stirring occasionally.

Stir in the shredded chicken and the beans, and allow to simmer for another 20 minutes.

Oatmeal Pancakes with Apple Topping

2010-09-24T17:42:00.006-05:00

I almost made pumpkin pancakes last weekend, now that it's feeling a little more like fall. But before I defrosted the pumpkin that I roasted a few weeks ago, I remembered another pancake recipe that sounded just as good. My mom and sister were recently raving about oatmeal pancakes, and they sounded like a healthy and filling way to start our lazy Saturday. I didn't have a specific recipe to use, so I searched online and found one with great reviews from Epicurious.

Heading into the kitchen, a quick survey showed that I had all the ingredients (except buttermilk, but it's soooo easy to make you own. Who really keeps a lot of buttermilk around their house?). I got these put together really easily, and sautéed a diced apple to use as topping. The combination of oatmeal pancakes with cinnamon apples and maple syrup was a fancy version of what we would usually make for breakfast, but it was still really easy to pull together. I think mixing apples into the batter would also be great, and I'm thinking about experimenting with a pumpkin-oatmeal version as the weather continues to change. These are a wonderful weekend breakfast, perfect when paired with coffee and a movie to start a lazy Saturday.

Oatmeal Pancakes
from epicurious.com

3/4 cup quick-cooking oats
1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons well-shaken buttermilk, divided
3/4 cup whole-wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

Soak oats in 3/4 cup buttermilk 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a large bowl.

Stir egg, butter, brown sugar, remaining 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk, and oat mixture into dry ingredients until just combined.

Heat a griddle over medium heat until hot and lightly brush with oil. Working in batches, pour 1/4 cup batter per pancake onto griddle and cook until bubbles appear on surface and undersides are golden-brown, about 1 minute. Flip with a spatula and cook other side, about 1 minute more. (Lightly oil griddle between batches.)

**Note: I did find the batter to be thinner than I like, so I added about 1/4 cup of extra flour to get the consistency I wanted. I also might add just a little more brown sugar next time, for some extra sweetness**

Mediterranean Lentil Salad

2010-09-21T18:17:00.004-05:00

This is a great meal for this time of year, as we savor the last tastes of summer. The air is getting cooler (except in my condo, which is very good at retaining heat!), and I'm starting to crave fall flavors. These lentils are really satisfying, and are good either warm or at room temperature. I got the recipe from Elly's blog, and I only made two slight changes. I used fresh tomatoes, since I'm trying to enjoy them before fall really hits us. I also decided to serve it on a bed of spinach, to make it more of a main dish. I served it with some roasted beets, pita chips, and a glass of wine, for a perfect late summer dinner.

Mediterranean Lentil Salad
from Elly Says Opa!

1.5 cups lentils
1 bay leaf
1/2 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
1/3 cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
1 carrot, peeled and shredded
1/3 cup chopped parsley
1 shallot, minced
1 Tbsp fresh thyme
3 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tsp. dijon mustard
2 Tbsp. good quality extra virgin olive oil
3 oz. goat cheese, crumbled
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Baby spinach- tossed with olive oil and balsamic vinegar (or make extra dressing, and toss with the spinach, too)

Bring a pot of water and the bay leaf to a boil. Rinse and pick over the lentils, and then add them to the boiling water. Cook until soft, about 20-25 minutes.

Drain the lentils and set aside to cool slightly. Toss with the sundried tomatoes, olives, carrots, and parsley.

Whisk together the shallot, red wine vinegar and dijon. Slowly add the olive oil, whisking constantly until the dressing emulsifies. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Pour the dressing over the slightly warm lentils and mix to combine. Top with goat cheese crumbles. Serve at room temperature.

Tomato & Corn Pie

2010-09-12T17:15:00.001-05:00

I'm still here... barely! I'm back to a 40 hour work week, and while that really isn't too big a deal (everyone else does it!), I find it's taking me some time to adjust. And right when I get used to my current job, I'll be switching jobs again! But it's a good switch, because starting in October I'll be teaching high school math. That's what I spent the last crazy year working towards, and the long term sub job I'll be doing is a great first step towards getting back into my own classroom. I can't wait to get started, although that means my blog posts will probably continue to be sporatic for a while longer. I'm still cooking, because eating is a necessary part of the day and I can't just force myself to eat pre-made junk. But finding time to cook creating new things, and then finding time to blog about them is a little more that I can handle most days. Weekends are an exception, though, which is why I had the time to make this lovely corn and tomato tart last night.

I'm lucky to be part of a wonderful book club, full of interesting, intelligent 20-something women here in Chicago. We meet once a month to catch up, using a book as the excuse to get together, and I really look forward to those meetings. Now that I'm not working evenings any more, I'm going to be a much more regular participant in these gatherings. Last night we got together for purely social reasons, inviting significant others and friends to join in an end of summer cookout. It was a wonderful night of catching up with friends and enjoying the cooler weather of September... I would be happy to live in this type of weather for most of the year!

When I was choosing a dish to share at the cookout, I first thought of a couple of my usual standbys. My potato salad always gets rave reviews, and this broccoli salad was a major hit last time I made it. But I had the whole day to prepare a dish, and I have piles of cookbooks and cooking magazines thave have been sorely neglected recently. I remembered this Tomato & Corn Pie from a recent issue of Eating Well magazine, and thought this was the perfect chance to test it out. The olive oil crust was simple to make, and I was able to use fresh corn and tomatoes given the time of year. This dish was an absolute hit at the party, for the meat eaters and the vegetarians in the crowd. It was a perfect showcase for this end of summer produce, and was so pretty to look at, too!

Tomato & Corn Pie

from Eating Well magazine, July/August 2010

CRUST

3/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour (see Note)

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

5 tablespoons cold water

FILLING

3 large eggs

1 cup low-fat milk

1/2 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, divided

2 medium tomatoes, sliced

1 cup fresh corn kernels (about 1 large ear; see Tip) or frozen

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried

1/2 teaspoon salt, divided

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

PREPARATION

To prepare crust: Combine whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper in a large bowl. Make a well in the center, add oil and water and gradually stir them in to form a soft dough. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Roll the dough into a 12-inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Transfer to a 9-inch pie pan, preferably deep-dish, and press into the bottom and up the sides. Trim any overhanging crust. Line the dough with a piece of foil or parchment paper large enough to lift out easily; fill evenly with pie weights or dry beans. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil or paper and weights. Let cool on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes or up to 1 hour.

To prepare filling: Whisk eggs and milk in a medium bowl. Sprinkle half the cheese over the crust, then layer half the tomatoes evenly over the cheese. Sprinkle with corn, thyme, 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper and the remaining 1/4 cup cheese. Layer the remaining tomatoes on top and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Pour the egg mixture over the top.

Bake the pie until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes. Let cool for 20 minutes before serving.

TIPS & NOTES

Ingredient note: Look for whole-wheat pastry flour in large supermarkets and natural-foods stores. Store it in the freezer.

To remove corn kernels from the cob, stand an ear of corn on one end and slice the kernels off with a sharp knife.

Back to Basics: Preserving Local Food

2010-08-22T10:20:00.005-05:00

In the world of cooking, there has been a continual push back towards eating like previous generations. I am all for this trend, and am working on limiting the processed food in our house. I am also trying to make more food from scratch, and to pay attention to local and seasonal food. My favorite part of this new way of thinking is canning food, which is a wonderful way to preserve local fruits and vegetables to last through the upcoming colder months. Last summer I tested the water by making a batch of fresh peach jam, and I have now developed a full-blown obsession with canning food.

I've gotten lucky the past two summers, and have gotten to 'work' the canning and preserving class at The Chopping Block. Last summer it inspired the peach jam experiment, which was a delicious success. The season ended to quickly, though, and I didn't get the chance to try any other preserving. This year I was a bit more on top of my game, though, and bought a wonderful canning and preserving book as the summer farmers markets started up around Chicago. The book, Put 'em Up, is an excellent resource. I would highly recommend it not only for canning, but for advice on freezing, drying, and other methods of preserving.

These are the recipes I've made so far. The carrots were picked up at Green City Market, and were pickled with dill, onions, and garlic. I also made dill cucumber pickles with that dill and some small CSA cucumbers. I did some simple beets that were a perfect balance of sweet and tart. And the Italian zucchini spears had fantastic herb flavor that I can't resist! Plus I have some dilly beans that were from this year's Chopping Block class. I've also been carefully freezing some veggies that will be wonderful in soups and stews this fall.

I'm not going to post any canning recipes, but would be happy to share if anyone is interested. Just let me know! Mostly, I don't feel like typing them out if no one is going to use them, since it's Sunday evening and I'm feeling lazy :) I do recommend you try canning-- it's really not hard! And the reward is cans of local produce, preserved and ready to feast on in the colder months. People worry that it can be dangerous to can your own food, but as long as you use fresh produce and follow recipes and directions, you'll be fine. You can't play with these recipes as much as with regular cooking, because you need a proper ph level in order to keep the food safe. Every book on canning starts with some sort of primer on how to do it safely, and as long as you heed their advice there shouldn't be a problem. I already can't wait to try more preserving! It's going to be such a treat as the weather turns cooler here in Chicago... something I'm starting to look forward to.

Check out this pantry!

Black Bean and Quinoa Burgers

2010-08-19T16:47:00.005-05:00

When I was about 13 I decided I no longer wanted to eat red meat. This was after years of being far too pickey about the meat I would eat, and it just felt easier to avoid this whole category of protein. This decision was followed by an introduction to veggie burgers, a food group I have been studying closely ever since that time. As I've become a better cook I have experimented with different veggie burger recipes, but too often the mushy product was flavorful but hard to eat.

These Bulgur Burgers were the first breakthrough we've had with homemade veggie burgers, and Joe and I have made them a couple times in the last year. But I was still searching for the perfect recipe, one that I could double and freeze. I've been wanting to end our relationship with grocery store frozen veggie burgers, which are filled with too many questionable things to be considered good for you. The recipe below is one I discovered at a grilling class at The Chopping Block, and I think it has won the coveted spot of best homemade veggie burger. The recipe made 8 burgers, and after grilling them all we froze the leftovers. They were perfect to pull out on a busy night, as a more natural alternative to the boxes of frozen patties that we'd gotten so used to. I loved serving it on a bed of lemony arugula, and we also enjoyed these on a traditional bun. Even our meat-loving guest we served these to said she loved them!

Take a minute to check out The Chopping Blog, where I also shared my experiences with this recipe and other creative grilling ideas!

Quinoa and Black Bean Burgers with Chipotle Mayonnaise

From The Chopping Block Vegetarian Grill class

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 onion, medium dice

1/2 cup quinoa

1 cup water

1 cup cooked or canned black beans, rinsed and drained

1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce

3/4 cup walnuts

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup packed cilantro sprigs

3/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

Salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup flour

1/2 to 3/4 cup panko bread crumbs

2 eggs, lightly beaten

Chipotle Mayonnaise (recipe below)

2 cups arugula

Lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil to taste

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat a sauté pan over medium heat and add the olive oil. Sauté the onion until caramelized, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the quinoa and toast for 1 minute.

2. Add the water, bring to a boil, and then lower the heat to a simmer. Cook, covered, until the water is absorbed, 18 to 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and rest, covered, for 10 minutes.

3. Place the cooked quinoa in a food processor and add the black beans, soy sauce, walnuts, garlic, cilantro, cumin and cayenne in a food processor until finely chopped. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a mixing bowl and fold in the flour, 1/2 cup panko and eggs. If the mixture is very loose, stir in the rest of the panko.

4. Form rounded 1/2 cups of mixture into four (3 1/2-inch-diameter) patties. Chill until firm, at least 20 minutes. (Patties may be frozen at this point.)

5. Preheat a grill to medium-high heat. Set up a grill grate with narrow slats to support the burgers.

6. Place the burgers on the grill and cook until browned and crisp on the outside and warm all the way through, about 5 minutes per side.

7. Place the burgers on a platter and top each with a dollop of Chipotle Mayonnaise.

8. Toss the arugula with the lemon juice and olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Top each burger with the dressed greens and serve.

Chipotle Mayonnaise

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 chipotle pepper, minced

Juice of 1/2 lime

2 tablespoons cilantro, rough chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Mix together the mayonnaise, chipotle pepper, lime juice, cilantro, salt and pepper.

Bran Muffins Two Ways

2010-08-09T14:51:00.004-05:00

A month or two ago I had a sudden urge to find a recipe for healthy bran muffins. I am not sure what gave me this idea, but I am so glad I took the time to test out these two recipes. They are the PERFECT portable breakfast! I am amazed at how moist and flavorful these two muffins are, and they are seriously low in fat and calories without compromising flavor at all. Between the blueberry and banana muffins, I have probably made at least 6 dozen of these in the last month or two. I keep a few fresh ones, and put the rest in the freezer. They hold up really well, and can be pulled out and microwaved one or two at a time. Muffins are such a great portable breakfast, and these ones give you that convenience without giving in to a sugary, fatty alternative.

Banana Bran Muffins
from allrecipes.com

1/4 cup unsweetend applesauce
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 bananas, mashed
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup wheat flour
3/4 cup wheat bran
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

1.Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a muffin pan or line with paper muffin liners.

2.In a large mixing bowl, mix applesauce and brown sugar together until fluffy. Add bananas, milk, vanilla and egg; mix well. Stir in both flours, bran, baking powder, soda and salt; blend just until moistened. Stir in walnuts. Pour batter into prepared muffin cups.

3.Bake at 375 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes, until the top of the muffin springs back when lightly tapped. Cool in the cups for 5 minutes, then remove muffins and place on a wire rack to cool completely.

Blueberry Bran Muffins
from allrecipes.com

1 1/2 cups wheat bran
1 cup nonfat milk
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 egg
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup blueberries

Directions

1.Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease muffin cups or use paper muffin liners. Mix together wheat bran and milk, and let stand for 10 minutes.

2.In a large bowl, mix together applesauce, egg, brown sugar, and vanilla. Beat in bran mixture. Sift together all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir into bran mixture until just blended. Fold in blueberries. Scoop into muffin cups.

3.Bake in preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until tops spring back when lightly tapped.

Focusing on our food

2010-08-05T20:28:00.005-05:00

Lately I haven't been posting very often, for a variety of reasons. First, I'm working as a nanny for two families, plus working at the Chopping Block. I don't get to cook dinner more than a few nights a week, and dinners tend to be what I blog about most often. But there is another reason, too. I have been cooking much more based on the season, as I am inspired by the ingredients I find at farmer's markets and in our bi-weekly CSA box. I admire the people who are able to create their own accurate recipes, to instruct you on how they make up their own dishes. I, however, am not one of those people. I start with a basic recipe in mind, and then add a little of this and a splash of that until it's right. Sometimes I model my cooking off a published recipe; other times I get a vision and just go with it! Here are a couple examples of what I've cooked lately:

Grilled polenta squares with chard and onions, topped with zucchini, cannellini bean, and tomato sauce.

Clean the fridge pesto-- the usual basil, garlic, pine nuts, Parmesan, etc... plus some random cheese, fresh baby spinach, and whatever else I could find! I just kept adding and tasting until it was perfect.

I found 8-ball (or round) zucchini at the farmers market, and knew they would be great if I stuffed them. I grilled them, then hollowed them out. I filled them with an herbed ricotta mixture, then sauteed mushrooms, and topped them with a yellow pepper and tomato mix. They were a little more soggy than I would have liked, but the flavor was great!

Paying attention to what is local and in season has been so much fun! I am challenging myself to be a creative cook, and Joe and I have been eating some delicious meals. Additionally, we've been paying more attention to limiting our processed food intake, and I think we both feel better overall about the food we're eating. It does take some commitment to eat this way, but I feel so much better about the food that is going into my body. Eating this way is better for me, the planet, and the local economy!

**stepping off my soapbox**

Sorry if that got preachy! I just wanted to let you all know that I'm still cooking and eating quite well here in the windy city... just in a way that doesn't involve much sharing of recipes :) I hope you are enjoying fresh summer produce where you live! And if you have some time and grocery money to spare, I will encourage you to look into local, organic meat, eggs, and milk. It takes more legwork, but in my opinion is worth it!

(when did I become such a hippie?!)

Tuna Potato Salad with Green Beans

2010-07-21T16:08:00.004-05:00

When I'm pressed to choose a favorite food, potatoes are always towards the top of my list. I love them as a part of every meal, from crispy hash browns to creamy mashed potatoes. Potatoes are great on their own, and also work very well as part of a dish. I love potato salad, and I think this recipe finally gives me an excuse to purely eat potato salad for dinner!

I must also point out that the dressing for this salad is amazing. It is a classic French dressing with shallots, white wine vinegar, and grainy mustard. We had a little extra left over, and I used it to dress a salad we made later in the week. It was a perfect complement for this salad, comprised of butter leaf lettuce, colorful tomatoes, wax beans, and feta cheese.

But, back to the point, this potato and tuna salad is amazing. It's a complete meal on it's own, and would also be beautiful as part of a larger spread. It is fresh and bursting with flavor, especially when you use the farm-fresh produce that is so abundant this time of year! My salad included farmer's market potatoes and tomatoes, and basil from my own back porch. Make sure to buy chunk light tuna, especially if you can find it packed in olive oil instead of water. It gives it the European flair that this salad deserves. Sit on your porch with a little chilled french wine, and you'll almost be able to taste the French countryside!

Warm Tuna and Potato Salad

from My French Kitchen by Joanne Harris and Fran Warde

For the Dressing:

2 shallots, finely diced

3 Tbsp white wine vinegar

2 Tbsp grainy mustard

sea salt, to taste

freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

For the Salad:

1 lb small red or white skinned potatoes

6 oz hericots verts (or thin green beans)

olive oil, for the pan

8 oz cherry tomatoes

6 oz tuna, in olive oil, drained

4 salt packed anchovies, filleted and cut lengthwise into thin strips

1 large bunch of basil

For the dressing, put the shallots, vinegar, mustard, salt, and pepper into a jar and shake, or combine with a whisk in a medium bowl. Then, add oil and shake again, or slowly whisk the oil into the bowl.

Gently cook the potatoes in their skins, in a saucepan of lightly salted, simmering water for 20 minutes. Drain potatoes, cut them in half, and place in a salad bowl. Pour the dressing over, and toss to coat the warm potatoes.

Plunge the green beans lightly into salted boiling water and cook for two minutes. Drain well and add the warm beans to the potatoes. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 400 degrees. Lightly brush a baking sheet with olive oil, toss the cherry tomatoes in oil, and roast for 10 minutes. Add the hot tomatoes to the potatoes and green beans.

Flake and add the tuna, along with the anchovy strips, and gently mix. Tear up the basil, scatter over the salad, and serve at once.

Barley 'Risotto'

2010-07-09T13:59:00.001-05:00

The weather in Chicago has been kind of crazy this summer. This week it's been oppressively hot (at least in my opinion), but a couple weeks ago it was raining daily and not feeling very summery at all. I made this dish during that time, and I will be the first to admit I would only serve it in this heat if it were a chilled version. But if you're having cooler weather in your part of the country, give this a try soon. And if you're in an area with crazy humidity and too many hot days in a row, then file this away for later. Trust me, you want to try this recipe.

Barley risotto is not something I made up, and if you look at food blogs very often then you've probably seen it numerous times already. But it sometimes takes me a while to catch on to these things, which is why I'm posting a 'risotto' in July! This recipe came from my desire to use some ingredients I already had in my kitchen-- specifically, spinach, artichokes, and barley. I guess the artichokes were in a can, so I could have left them for a while, but I can't resist the combination of spinach and artichokes.

I modeled my recipe off of one I found on Smitten Kitchen, but it's a pretty flexible recipe. The absorption cooking method is the same as with a rice-based version, and there is no end to the add-ins you could use. Add whatever veggies look good at the store, or brown some sausage and mix it in towards the end. Play around with the type of wine, or try a different type of stock. This recipe is a keeper either way!

Barley Risotto with Spinach and Artichoke Hearts
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen, who adapted generously from Food and Wine

5 cups low-sodium vegetable stock
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/2 cup white wine (optional)
1 cup pearled barley (7 ounces)
3 cups chopped baby spinach
1 can quartered artichoke hearts, drained

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus more for serving
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
Salt and freshly ground pepper

In a medium saucepan, bring the vegetable stock to a simmer over moderately high heat. Reduce the heat to low and keep warm.

In a large, deep skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the onion and thyme and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened, about 6 minutes. Add the barley and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the wine if using and cook, stirring until absorbed, about one minute. Add 1 cup of the warm stock and cook, stirring, until nearly absorbed. Continue adding the stock 1/2 cup at a time in six additions — you’ll have a cup of stock left in the pot — stirring until it is nearly absorbed between additions. Most barley risottos are done when the barley is al dente and suspended in a thick, creamy sauce, about 35 minutes. Stir it in until the risotto is on the loose side, then add the spinach and let it wilt and then cook for an additional minute. Add the artichokes and cook until they are warmed through, adding more stock if the risotto becomes too thick. Stir in the 1/2 cup of Parmigiano-Reggiano and the butter and season with salt and pepper. Serve at once, passing more cheese at the table.

Mediterrenean Grilled Vegetable Wraps

2010-07-08T18:06:00.000-05:00

These wraps were inspired by a recent lunch we hosted at The Chopping Block. I love eating wraps at restaurants, but haven't messed around much with making them at home. When we made a bunch of these sandwiches at work, I realized how easy it was, and how one night of grilling could result in 3 nights of lunch or dinner. The pieces of this wrap stayed separate until it was time to make dinner, so everything was fresh tasting and ready to go. I did all the grilling at once, then peeled and sliced the red peppers, and sliced up all the other veggies. I mixed the cooked vegetables with salt, pepper, and just a little olive oil and balsamic vinegar. This mix of grilled vegetables went into the fridge, where it sat waiting to become a fresh Mediterranean wrap.

Grill the peppers until they are completely charred, then put them into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let them steam in the bowl for 15 minutes or so, and then take the plastic wrap off to let them cool. When the peppers are cool enough to handle, the skins should easily peel off. Then, cut out the seeds and core inside the pepper, and slice the peppers into bite sized pieces.

Grill each vegetable until it is done. The mushrooms are easy on skewers, or also great in a grill basket. The eggplant, mushrooms, and zucchini will cook at different rates, so take each vegetable off the heat when it is grilled to your taste.

Now, to assemble the wraps, start with a large tortilla. Mine were spinach flavor, and made specifically for wrapping. Smear on some hummus, and top with fresh spinach leaves. Pile on some grilled vegetables, then top with crumbled feta cheese and freshly ground pepper. Wrap like a burrito, cut into two halves, and enjoy!

I made a total of six wraps out of the following ingredients:

Wrap-size tortillas (pack of 6)

One tub of hummus

1 pack of organic baby spinach (some spinach was leftover)

2 red peppers

1 large eggplant

2 medium zucchini

1 package baby bella mushrooms

4 ounces Greek feta cheese

Black Bean and Corn Salsa

2010-07-07T17:10:00.002-05:00

We are in the midst of summer party season, with holidays and weekend cookouts abounding. I decided to mark the beginning of my 27th year of life by having a party this year, and of course even a late-night, beer drinking party can't be done without tasty party snacks! I promised myself I would keep it simple, with bags of tortilla and pita chips. I made a regular hummus and a lemon basil version, using fresh herbs from my little "garden" out back. These two dips were a hit, served with the pita chips and fresh veggies. I knew I wanted salsa, and this vegetable filled version is quick and so much more flavorful than a jar of processed salsa from the grocery store.

I have been making this salsa since I set out on my own, and my mom made it for years before that. It's from the Colorado Collage cookbook, a great collection put out by the Junior League of Denver. I took it up a notch this time by grilling fresh corn, but it's also great with a simple bag of the frozen variety. You just toss together the fresh ingredients, let the flavors marry, then toss in fresh tomatoes right before serving. It's especially good later in the summer, when you can get local, in season corn and tomatoes. The salsa is amazing as a part of a Mexican spread, but is also great as part of any American cookout menu. It is rare to see a warm weather party at my house where this salsa doesn't make an appearance. Enjoy!

Black Bean and Corn Salsa
from Colorado Collage Cookbook

15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed

16 oz corn, fresh or frozen and defrosted

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions

1/4 cup chopped red onion

1/3 cup fresh lime juice

3 Tbsp vegetable oil

1 Tbsp cumin

salt and pepper, to taste

1/3 cup seeded and chopped tomatoes

Combine all ingredients except the tomatoes. Cover and chill at least 2 hours, or overnight.

Just before serving, chop the tomatoes and fold into the corn and bean mixture. Adjust seasoning as needed, and serve with tortilla chips.

Tuna Pasta Salad

2010-07-01T16:32:00.001-05:00

About three years ago, Joe and I made a big decision and decided to give city living a try by moving to Chicago. We liked Kansas City, but felt drawn towards a bigger city, full of people and excitement. It was quite a leap of faith, and thankfully it has worked out better than we ever expected. I always thought I was a city person-- when I was little I used to talk about owning an all black and white apartment in New York City! Now, I have to laugh at what a city slicker I've become. I love tall buildings and busy sidewalks (well, except busy, slow sidewalks on Michigan Ave where everyone walks so slow I want to scream!), and I usually want to just visit other cities when I leave this one. Some people love the open sky in the countryside at night, but it just makes me jumpy because it gets so dark out there!

I wasn't always such a fan of the cement jungle, though, because growing up in Colorado meant there were lots of outdoor adventures with our family. I went to summer camp a couple times, had a season pass to snowboard at Breckeridge and Keystone, and used to really enjoy hiking on the weekends. My mom, ever the gourmet, made sure we were fed well even when exploring the parks and hiking trails. This salad was a staple of many of our hikes, and I always get nostalgic when I make it. I love dill and don't cook with it often enough, and I think it's that herb that makes this dish taste like summer. And besides cooking the pasta, this meal avoids the oven and stove. Being a one dish combination of protein, carbs, and veggies makes it a simple dinner, and I always make extra to take to work for lunch. Doesn't this beat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for your next hike or day at the beach?

Tuna Pasta Salad

from my mom... and maybe a cookbook from her collection?

4 cups cooked small pasta shells

1 1/2 cups tuna (cooked shrimp are also great for this!)

1/2 cup peas

1/2/ cup green onions

1/4 cup parsley

Combine above ingredients in large bowl.

Make dressing:

1/2/cup plain yogurt

1/2/ cup mayonnaise

2Tbsp chopped fresh dill

2 Tbsp lemon juice

2 tsp lemon zest

salt and pepper

Toss pasta mixture with dressing. Chill and enjoy!

CSA Cooking: Blueberry and Rhubarb Crisp

2010-06-29T17:01:00.005-05:00

Last week we picked up the first share of our CSA for this summer. CSA stands for Community Supported (or sponsored) Agriculture, and it means you buy into a share of the farm and get fresh, organic produce on a weekly (or bi-weekly) basis. It's a great way to get beautiful, fresh produce, and to support local family farms. Also, as someone who loves to cook, it is a great challenge to try new ingredients and recipes. I can give our previous CSA credit for introducing me to kale, which we now eat on a regular basis.

This week's share included rhubarb, garlic scapes, mushrooms, oregeno, snap peas, lettuce, and kale. It was all so fresh!

This year we are doing a half share from Simply Wisconsin, which is actually a group of farms that work together for the CSA shares. It means we get to support lots of different farms, and we should get better quality and variety that we would get from a single farm. Some might say that this is a kind of weak way to do a CSA, and that you should really commit to supporting a single farm, but I really like the idea of getting produce from so many places. And the woman who organizes the whole operation, Deb, is so informative and helpful! I think it's going to be a great experience, and next year we'll most likely commit to more than the half share we're doing this year.

A colorful mix of rhubarb and blueberries

The first pick up included a lot of great looking produce, and I was most excited about the rhubarb, which I have never cooked with before. I thought about doing some kind of muffin or scone, but most of the recipes I found were for sweet desserts or rhubarb chutneys or sauces. I didn't want to do a strawberry and rhubarb combination, because that seemed too easy. I have been eating a ton of blueberries lately, though, because the organic half pints have been on sale at my grocery store a lot lately. I found this recipe for Blueberry Rhubarb Crisp with Pistachio Crust online, and couldn't resist the combination. It came together easily, and was a nice mix of sweet and tart. The crust was buttery and rich, and the pistachio made this a better than ordinary topping. A wonderful summer dessert!

Blueberry Rhubarb Crisp with Pistachio Crust

from epicurious.com

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

3/4 pound rhubarb

2 cups blueberries (about 11 ounces)

For topping

1/3 cup shelled natural pistachios

3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 375°F. and butter a 2-quart shallow baking dish.

In a bowl stir together sugar and flour. Trim rhubarb and cut enough of stalks into 1/2-inch pieces to measure 2 cups. Add rhubarb and blueberries to sugar mixture, tossing well, and spread mixture in baking dish.

Make topping:

Finely chop pistachios. In a bowl whisk together flour and sugars. Cut butter into 1/2-inch cubes and with your fingers or a pastry blender blend into flour mixture until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add pistachios and toss well.

Squeeze a handful of topping together and coarsely crumble in chunks over filling. Squeeze and evenly crumble remaining topping over filling in same manner. Bake crisp in upper third of oven until filling is bubbling and topping is crisp and golden, about 50 minutes.

Serve crisp warm or at room temperature.

A pizza revelation

2010-06-19T15:20:00.008-05:00

For as long as Joe and I have been together, pizza has been an important part of our lives. In college Joe worked at Shakespeare's, the quintessential college town pizza joint in Columbia. Back when I had a crush on him, I dragged my friends to there just so I had an excuse to run into him. On our first date, we spent a couple hours talking over beers at the downtown location. Some of his best friends from college were a result of his pizza making days, and he had plenty of fun nights working and hanging out with that motley crew.

Obviously, this means Joe is the chief pizza maker at our house. He still loves making fresh dough and topping it with various combinations of veggies and meat. I love this, too, because it means I should just get out of the kitchen and let him work his magic. And there are some nights when I've worked a few shifts in a row and have feet that are aching more that usual, when I like nothing more than to let him take the reigns with dinner. The results of this tend to be pretty delicious!

Last week I suggested we grill the pizza, which I've played around with a couple times before. In the summer it is a great way to make pizza without overheating your whole kitchen. We figured out the ideal pizza making technique this time around, and I think I will insist on having Joe grill our pizza from now on. You see, I am not the skilled pizza tosser that he is, and when I've grilled pizza in the past the crust has always been a little bit on the thick side. This never seemed like a problem, but once Joe pulled his thin crust pizza off the grates I knew his pizza had just blown mine out of the water. The thin crust had a perfect chewy texture from being cooked on the grill, since it is hotter than our oven, and it gets little charred bits in spots. It's reminiscent of the fancy wood oven pizzas that you pay $2o bucks for at trendy pizza places, and you can't beat the comfort of your own porch on a beautiful summer night. Even when it gets cold, I'm going to encourage Joe to keep grilling the pizza, because the texture of this crust is something we've never managed with our pizza stone in the oven. Give it a try, and thank me later ;)

Here's what you do. First, roll out your dough as thin as you can get it. Feel free to play around with tossing the dough, but have extra dough available if you're a novice. Get your grill nice and hot, and wipe an oiled rag over the grates to avoid having your pizza stick. Transfer the pizza dough to the grill, close the lid, and walk away for 3-4 minutes. Start checking the pizza every minute, and remove onto a cutting board or pizza peel when you start to see charred spots on the crust. Flip the pizza over, so the well done side is facing up, and top the pizza however you like. Then transfer the pizza back to the grill to finish cooking the bottom of the pizza. If it starts to look too crisp on the bottom, transfer to the upper rack on the grill until the cheese and other toppings are warm. Use the peel to get the pizza off the grill, slice, and enjoy!

If you make a pizza with fresh tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil, the leftover ingredients can be tossed with pasta, tuna, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar to make a quick and easy lunch!

Quinoa Loaf

2010-06-13T15:43:00.002-05:00

I love grilling out and dining al fresco during the summer months, but there are times when traveling and enjoying the season with friends leads to too much indulgence. We've already had a few weekends full of excessive eating and drinking, and by Sunday night I'm swearing that the upcoming week we'll only eat vegetables and drink water. This healthy dinner recipe is perfect for when you need to detox a little without sacrificing flavor.

This quinoa loaf caught my attention on the Whole Foods website a few months back, and I've enjoyed it a few times already. It is a vegan recipe, with minimal fat and tons of flavor. The loaf is satisfying without being too heavy, and works great for lunchtime leftovers. You can play around with the vegetable mix-ins, although it's really good as the original recipe is written. And it was a great excuse to use some of the fresh thyme from my tiny little patio garden!

Quinoa Loaf

from the Whole Foods website

Ingredients

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, plus more for greasing

8 ounces button mushrooms, sliced

Salt and ground black pepper to taste

1 (15-ounce) can no-salt-added garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained

3/4 cup rolled oats

2 cups cooked quinoa ( How to Cook Quinoa)

1 cup frozen green peas

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley and/or 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme

10 sundried tomatoes packed in oil, drained and chopped

1 cup (about 1 onion) chopped red onion

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease an 8-inch loaf pan with oil; set aside. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms, salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are golden brown, 6 to 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, put beans, oats and 1/2 cup water into a food processor and pulse until almost smooth. In a large bowl, combine mushrooms, bean mixture, quinoa, peas, parsley, tomatoes, onion, salt and pepper. Transfer mixture to prepared loaf pan, gently pressing down and mounding it in the middle. Bake until firm and golden brown, 1 to 1 1/4 hours. Set aside to let rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Homemade Vegetable Stock

2010-06-10T10:37:00.002-05:00

This homemade vegetable stock has been a part of my soups, risottos, and other vegetarian cooking for a couple months now. Before this I was pretty addicted to the Trader Joe’s vegetable stock concentrate packets, but they’re only sporadically available in the stores. I live in fear of them being discontinued, so I decided I needed to try my hand at making my own veggie stock. This version was recommended to me by a coworker, who had developed the recipe for a vegetarian cooking class. It does take more time (and potentially money) to make this stock, but I love knowing exactly what is in my food! And I took another coworker’s advice to reduce the stock by about half, and then to freeze it in ice cube trays. These little concentrated cubes are great to have in my freezer, ready for any vegetarian cooking needs.

Homemade Vegetable Stock

from The Chopping Block

Yield: 8-10 cups stock

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

3 medium onions, large dice

3 medium carrots, large dice

3 stalks celery, large dice

2 bulbs fennel, large dice

3 cups cremini mushrooms, rough chopped

1 cup white wine

12 cups water

3 roma tomatoes, cut into large pieces

1/2 bunch parsley stems

6 sprigs fresh thyme

10-15 black peppercorns

1. Preheat oven to 425º.

2. In a heavy roasting pan, toss together the olive oil, onions, carrots, celery, fennel and mushrooms. Roast until lightly caramelized, about 25-30 minutes. Transfer the roasted vegetables to a stockpot.

3. Deglaze the roasting pan with the white wine, scraping up any browned bits. Add the wine to the stockpot.

4. Add the water, tomatoes parsley, thyme and peppercorns to the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for about 45 minutes.

5. Strain the stock through a fine sieve, chill until room temperature and refrigerate for up to 5 days.

Summer Fruit Crostada

2010-06-08T09:41:00.003-05:00

Last summer I worked numerous kids and teens cooking camps with my friend Allie. We had a lot of fun with the little ones, and I think we would both agree that this crostata is one of the best recipes that came from those curriculums. The sweet crust has a great texture thanks to the cornmeal, and you can’t beat making this with fresh summer berries. I love the rustic look of this dessert, and think it is a wonderful end to any summer cookout or dinner party. Allie and I finally made this over spring break, and used a combination of strawberries and blueberries. It is sweet and indulgent, and is an especially good treat now that fresh local fruit is starting to show up in the markets.

If you live in Chicago and have children, check out the kids and teens cooking camps at The Chopping Block. They're so much fun, and the kids learn a lot!

Fruit Crostatas

from The Chopping Block

1 1/2 pounds seasonal fruit, such as strawberries or peaches, cut into 2” pieces

1/4 teaspoon grated orange zest

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup granulated or superfine sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted

Cornmeal Pie Dough (see below)

1/2 cup heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks

1. Preheat oven to 375º.

2. Toss the fruit with the zest, flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, allspice and melted butter until evenly coated.

3. Roll pie dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Mound fruit filling into the middle of the rolled out dough, leaving a 1 ½” border.

4. Fold edges inward, partially covering the filling.

5. Bake until the filling is bubbly and the crust is golden brown about 30 minutes.

6. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Serve slices with a dollop of whipped cream.

Cornmeal Pie Dough

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup cornmeal

1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 egg yolks

3 tablespoons cold water

8 tablespoons cold butter, cut into pieces

1. In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, cornmeal, sugar and salt.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the yolks and water.

3. Add butter to flour mixture and process until the consistency of wet sand. Slowly add in egg mixture until a ball is formed.

4. Form into a flat disk, wrap in plastic, and allow to rest in refrigerator for at least 2 hours or up to 3 days.

Moules a la Portugaise

2010-06-03T13:10:00.001-05:00

A major perk of my job with The Chopping Block is the delicious food I get to sample. Usually, it's a bite of this or a little plate of that at the end of class. Sometimes the employee fridge has leftover treats that trump the sandwich or yogurt I brought to work with me. And every once in a while, the food gets to come home with me. That was the case on Sunday night, when 4-5 pounds of live mussels were leftover and headed towards the trash. They were still in good shape, but since we were closed on Memorial Day it would have been too long before we could have served them to students. Obviously, I couldn't let the little guys meet their demise any way except by being steamed in delicious broth!

We realized this was a perfect excuse to use Anthony Bourdain's Les Halles cookbook, which has at least 5 or 6 different recipes for preparing mussels. After careful consideration we decided on Moules a la Portugaise, or Portuguese style mussels. We were mostly swayed by the chorizo in this recipe, because who doesn't love that greasy, smokey, amazing sausage?

I wish you could really grasp how huge this bowl was. And we ate every last one, soaking up the flavorful broth with torn pieces of baguette. What a feast! White wine, braised carrots, and roasted fingerling potatoes rounded out our Memorial Day dinner. I'll admit that mussels are a bit of work to make at home, but this recipe will really wow any of your shellfish loving friends. Next time I stumble across multiple pounds of free mussels, I'll be testing out another Bourdain recipe from the cookbook. (Hell, this was good enough I might even buy the mussels!)

The fingerling potatoes were another fresh find at Saturday's Green City Market. Joe cut them in half lengthwise, then tossed them with olive oil, dried oregano, and salt and pepper. They were roasted for about 15 minutes, turned, and roasted for 10 minutes more. When they were just about done, he sprinkled pecorino romano cheese on top. Perfect with the mussels!

Moules a la Portugaise

from the Les Halles cookbook, by Anthony Bourdain

1/4 cup olive oil

1/2 onion, thinly sliced

6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

1 oz chorizo sausage, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced (feel free to double this, as we did)

1 cup white wine

salt and pepper

6 lb mussels, scrubbed and debearded (just before cooking)

1 bunch cilantro, leaves only, rough chopped

4 sprigs flat parsley, finely chopped

In a large pot, heat the oil. Add the onion, and cook until soft and beginning to brown, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and the chorizo and cook for another 2 minutes. Stir in the wine. Season with salt and pepper.

Add the mussels and cook with the lid on until the mussels are all open, about 8 to 10 minutes. Shake. Add the cilantro and parsley (and 2 Tbsp of unsalted butter). Shake again. Serve with crusty bread for soaking up all the amazing broth.

Summertime Chilled Asparagus Soup

2010-06-01T12:47:00.007-05:00

On Sunday I had to work until 6:30, so Joe volunteered to make us dinner. He wanted to use some of the beautiful produce we'd purchased at the Green City Market on Saturday, and decided to try out this asparagus soup from Jamie at Home. The soup came together really easily, and since it was chilled it was perfect to make in advance. It tasted so light and fresh, which was wonderful on a humid evening. It's so nice that Joe and I both love to cook and appreciate good food, because it makes a simple night at home into such an enjoyable experience! And, I have to brag a little... Joe even poached the eggs for on top of the soup! I've actually never poached an egg before, so I was really impressed!

The chef! In addition to a wonderful dinner, he bought me roses, and a grower of Daisy Cutter Ale from Half Acre brewery. I'm too lucky!

The soup was really a beautiful bright green color, but I was too excited to take time for better pictures! It looked so pretty, and tasted even better!

The soup was served with rosemary and garlic grilled chicken thighs, and grilled vegetables. A beautiful summer meal!

Creamy Asparagus Soup with a Poached Egg on Toast

from Jamie at Home, by Jamie Oliver

• 1 lb asparagus, woody ends removed

• olive oil

• 1 medium white onions, peeled and chopped

• 1 stick of celery, trimmed and copped

• 1 leek, trimmed and chopped

• 1 quart good-quality chicken or vegetable stock, preferably organic

• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

• 5 small very fresh free-range or organic eggs

• 4 slices of ciabatta bread

• a knob of butter

• extra virgin olive oil

Chop the tips off your asparagus and put these to one side for later. Roughly chop the asparagus stalks. Get a large, deep pan on the heat and add a good lug of olive oil. Gently fry the onions, celery and leeks for around 10 minutes, until soft and sweet, without colouring. Add the chopped asparagus stalks and stock and simmer for 20 minutes with a lid on. Remove from the heat and blitz with a hand-held blender or in a liquidizer. Season the soup bit by bit (this is important) with salt and pepper until just right. Put the soup back on the heat, stir in the asparagus tips, bring back to the boil and simmer for a few more minutes until the tips have softened.

Just before I’m ready to serve the soup, I get a wide casserole-type pan on the heat with 8 to 10 cm of boiling water. Using really fresh eggs, I very quickly crack all 10 into the water. Don’t worry about poaching so many at the same time. They don’t have to look perfect. A couple of minutes and they’ll be done, as you want them to be a bit runny. Toast your ciabatta slices. Using a slotted spoon, remove all the poached eggs to a plate and add a knob of butter to them. To serve, divide the soup between eight warmed bowls and place a piece of toast into each. Put a poached egg on top, cut into it to make it runny, season and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.

Turn off the Oven! Cool Summer Tomato & White Bean Salad

2010-05-28T16:01:00.000-05:00

I don't know about where you live, but here in Chicago it's been hot! I'm usually kind of crazy, and keep using my oven and stovetop all summer, but this week I decided to actually try to keep our kitchen cool. This white bean and tomato salad was part of an easy weeknight dinner, and I didn't turn on a single burner as I prepared our meal. I served this with grilled veggies that I had put on skewers, and with a chilled avocado soup (which I didn't love). This salad was a gem! I felt like it was a good source of protein, with lots of vitamins from the tomatoes, and enough olive oil to keep it from tasting healthy! I can't wait until local tomatoes show up at farmers markets in our area, because I know fresh tomatoes would take this salad over the top!

The original recipe called for dill, which I think screams summer. But I happened to have a ton of extra rosemary in my fridge, so that's what I used! Rosemary is a natural pairing with the dressing that this salad marinates in, so it blended really well. This was great for lunch, too, and extra frozen (then thawed) or grilled veggies could be mixed in for a complete 1-dish meal.

I couldn't resist these colorful "Mixed Medley" cherry tomatoes from Trader Joe's!

Tomato and White Bean Salad
Modified from Bon Appetit, June 2o10

•2 15-ounce cans cannellini (white kidney beans), rinsed, drained
•2 1/2 cups halved grape tomatoes (about 12 ounces) or cherry tomatoes
•2/3 cup diced red onion
•2 sprigs rosemary, minced
•1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
•3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
•1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
•2 garlic cloves, pressed

Toss all ingredients in large bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Let marinate at room temperature 1 hour.

DO AHEAD Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill. Bring salad to room temperature before serving.

Graduation Celebration!

2010-05-19T13:44:00.006-05:00

I've been traveling for the last 10 days, and head out again this afternoon for a long weekend visit to D.C. Most of the last bit of traveling was in St Louis, where I was able to help my mom adjust to (temporary) life in a wheelchair. She's home now, and doing really well! She'll be stuck in the chair for about 12 weeks total, and then will have to do lots of physical therapy once she can put weight on her hip again. It was wonderful to be able to help my family out for a while, to ease some of the burden on my dad, and to cook them some good food! I stuck to simple classics that were easy to transport to the hospital, such as my favorite couscous salad.

I also got to take the lead on planning my sister Colleen's graduation party. She's worked so hard in high school, and my family was thrilled to come together to celebrate her success! She's the baby in the family, and I'm still having a hard time believing she's headed towards college in the fall. Colleen and I decided to have a classic cook out, with burgers and BBQ chicken, plus all the necessary side dishes. I've blogged all these recipes before, but they're so great for summer that I had to share them again!

The potato salad and baked beans recipes both came from the Food Network website, and they are the best versions of two of my favorite foods! Plenty of bacon, good balance of acid and sweet, and just so satisfying. Next time you're planning to fire up the grill, try one of these recipes. Trust me, you won't go back to your old recipes.

We also made the Brewmaster Burgers from the Brooklyn Brewery website. They were so well received at the beer pairing dinner we went to in April, and I was excited to introduce the recipe to my family. Can life get any better than butter in your burgers? This is a perfect example of eating amazing food in moderation. Most days, I'll reach for a veggie or turkey burger, but this burger deserves a place at any celebratory cookout. Everyone thought Joe and I were crazy as we made the burgers, but the silence as people started eating spoke for itself!

Cooking with Common Threads

2010-05-09T16:25:00.003-05:00

As I've shared previously, this year I've had the exciting opportunity to work as a chef instructor for the non-profit organization Common Threads. You might have heard of this wonderful charity when Art Smith competed on Top Chef Masters, or maybe you saw an article in People magazine a couple years ago. The organization works to bring kids together to connect over a good meal, and to learn about cooking, nutrition, and different cultures. The kids are just amazing, and I've had a lot of fun connecting with them over our shared interest in cooking great food. It's impressive how these 8-12 year old kids can cook!

The last three weeks I co-taught field trip classes, where two groups of kids from opposite parts of the city came together for a special class. We learned about food and culture from Papua New Guinea, an island near Australia where many different tribes live together. The third class, last Friday, was the last class of the semester, which meant there were a lot of extra people in the kitchen.

Common Threads is working on a documentary to share with our leaders in Washington, D.C., to encourage more support and legislation for keeping kids healthy. Our local NBC station was filming for a segment about what we're teaching kids, too. This meant two cameras on me as I instructed the kids... talk about nerve wracking! That was only the beginning, though. We also had Bill Kim, the chef I love from Urban Belly, instructing the kids on some of the recipes. Additionally, three professional athletes from the Chicago Bears and Fire (soccer) came to cook with the kids. The extra 5,000,000 adults in the room made things a little crazy, but I was able to just relax and have fun with it! This is saying a lot for my type-A, control freak personality :) It was such a fun day, and I know the kids won't forget it for a long time!

If you want to learn more about Common Threads, check out their web site, or ask me for details. What a worthy cause to support!

The Sausage Superstore and Encased Meat Emporium!

2010-05-09T15:03:00.004-05:00

Last week, my good friend Cathy and I decided it was time to conquer a major Chicago foodie right of passage. I've heard about Hot Doug's since we rolled into town three years ago, but the long lines on the weekends had scared me off more than once. People have sworn to me it's worth it, but I just haven't been able to bring myself to wait in line for an hour or two just for the duck fat fries and gourmet sausages. Call me crazy, but with Urban Belly right down the street, I still leave the area well fed and quite satisfied.

Last Tuesday, Cathy and I were trying to decide what to do on our day off, and I suggested Hot Doug's. She had also never been, and we agreed there was no better time than the present. There was one down side to a Tuesday visit to the "Sausage Superstore and Encased Meat Emporium"... they only serve their infamous duck fat french fries on Fridays and Saturdays. While I would still love to try these fries, I have no complaints about their regular french fries, and even fewer complaints about the practically non-existent line!

The hot dogs we had were seriously fantastic! Cathy had the "game of the week" buffalo sausage, and I had a Portugese linguisa. The have a standard menu that doesn't change, but also tons of special combos that they rotate. Check out the current specials here. There were so many dogs that I wanted to try, and I'm pretty sure I'll come back on other weekdays when I know the line will be shorter. I am still dying to try the duck fat fries, though, so maybe one of these weekends I'll suck it up and brave the line. Anyone want to visit this summer, so I have an excuse to go back?

Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars

2010-05-03T07:46:00.005-05:00

A common problem with home cooks like myself is a love of cookbooks. In this day and age, I get more of my recipes online, yet I can't help but be addicted to cookbooks. It's the feeling of holding the book in your hands, skimming through pictures and recipes, and displaying it on your specially reserved cookbook section of the bookshelf. Not to mention I get 40% off cookbooks at my job, which makes it that much harder to resist adding to my collection. I know that it is easy to have an excessive collection of unused cookbooks, though, so I try my best to exercise restraint.

One way I curb my cookbook addiction is my checking out cookbooks from the library. I can't go into the library without heading for that section, just to see what's on the shelves. There is usually something that catches my eye, and I'll take a couple books home at a time to explore in depth. This recipe came from Barefoot Contessa at Home, which I have really enjoyed looking through. I've tried out a couple of the recipes, and as usual, Ina Garten has pulled together a collection of reliable, approachable, and delicious recipes. I thought these bars were perfectly buttery, without being overly rich. The flavor really did remind me of a sweet version of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. These came together so easily, and I think they would make a great snack for kids and grown ups alike!

Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars

From Barefoot Contessa at Home, by Ina Garten

Ingredients

* 1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
* 1 1/2 cups sugar
* 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
* 2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
* 2 cups (18 ounces) creamy peanut butter (recommended: Skippy)
* 3 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
* 1 1/2 cups (18 ounces) raspberry jam or other jam
* 2/3 cups salted peanuts, coarsely chopped

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Grease a 9 by 13 by 2-inch cake pan. Line it with parchment paper, then grease and flour the pan.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until light yellow, about 2 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the vanilla, eggs, and peanut butter and mix until all ingredients are combined.

In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the peanut butter mixture. Mix just until combined.

Spread 2/3 of the dough into the prepared cake pan and spread over the bottom with a knife or offset spatula. Spread the jam evenly over the dough. Drop small globs of the remaining dough evenly over the jam. Don't worry if all the jam isn't covered; it will spread in the oven. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts and bake for 45 minutes, until golden brown. Cool and cut into squares.

Fire up the Grill!

2010-04-28T08:18:00.003-05:00

Last night I grilled our entire dinner, and it made me long for the days of summer that still seem so far away. School is done for me next week, and I feel like the weather should be sunny and warming up, instead of windy and cold enough for a jacket. No matter what the weather is acting like, I'm going to start grilling as though it's warm outside.

This was a simple dinner, all based around the fact I had some Gorgonzola I wanted to use up. I grilled cremini mushrooms (on skewers), zucchini (cut into planks), and a red and yellow bell pepper. I sprinkled the veggies with a little Herbes de Provence, crumbled Gorgonzola, and a splash of balsamic vinegar and olive oil. I also grilled some chicken sausages from Trader Joes, and some slices of rosemary bread that I brushed with olive oil. The flavors were fresh, the colors were beautiful, and the dishes were almost non-existent. This is a dinner I'll repeat in various ways throughout the upcoming warm months. Does it feel like summer (or at least spring) where you are?

A Tribute to my Inspiration (and some special gnocchi!)

2010-04-22T09:23:00.011-05:00

You know the saying when it rains, it pours? It may sound cheesy, but it's the only way I can think of to describe my last few weeks. After the whirlwind trip to Colorado for my sister's wedding, I came home to Chicago and settled in for one last week of studying before my certification testing on Saturday. There were a few days of busy calm, and then on Thursday I got a phone call that shook my world up. My mom had been in a serious car accident on her way to the airport, and was being transported to a major hospital in Saint Louis. For a couple horrible hours we didn't know a lot, and Joe and I hopped in the car to go down to see her. It was nothing shy of a miracle, but she came out of it with a broken pelvis and some broken ribs. She's having surgery as I type this, and will hopefully be home before too long. She's going to be off her feet for at least 2-3 months from what the doctors told my dad, which means there is a long road to recovery ahead. We're all so thankful that it is a recovery, though, and everyone is ready to jump in and help however possible.

Now, what does this all have to do with food? Plenty! If you've read many of my previous posts, you've most likely noticed that my mom has had a huge impact on my cooking. She is an amazing cook, and I credit her for inspiring so much of what I do in the kitchen. We love sharing recipes back and forth, and I've been slowly gathering the recipes that define my childhood.

A couple months ago I read about gnocchi alla Romana, or Roman style gnocchi, on The Wednesday Chef blog. Luisa's recipe looked quite tasty, but there was only one recipe I'd use for gnocchi alla Romana-- my mom's recipe! This dish was always a staple when she hosted dinner parties, usually with pork terderloin and some nice veggies. The gnocchi were fluffy and cheesy, and just a little crisp around the edges. Luisa's post reminded me that I hadn't had this style of gnocchi in years, and I immediately emailed my mom to request the recipe.

The recipe sat in my in box for a couple months, mostly because I gave up meat for lent and couldn't picture eating this dish without some sort of meat on the side. Then, it sat in my in box for long enough I kind of forgot it was there. After my mom's accident I was thinking about her all the time, and I realized it was the perfect opportunity to finally make her gnocchi. It was as good as I remembered it, and I soaked up memories of my childhood as the smells and tastes of this dish came back to me.

Gnocchi Alla Romana

from my wonderful mom!

This is a combination of a couple of recipes and some research! Originally my recipe didn’t have an egg in it. But I noticed that most of them do so I experimented and I think this is the best.

2 cups milk (whole milk)
2 cups water
(some recipes use all milk but I think this is just fine. See what you think and let me know)
½ tsp. salt (or a bit more)
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, divided
1 cup semolina
1 egg
½ cup grated parmesan cheese.

Tear off a long sheet of foil and butter it well. Butter a 9x13 baking pan.

Combine milk, water, salt, and 4 Tbsp butter in saucepan and heat without boiling. When butter is melted, start stirring in the semolina. When all the semolina is in the pot, turn up the heat and bring to a slow boil, stirring. Cook, stirring, until smooth and very thick and stiff. Beat in egg.

Pour mixture out onto foil and smooth to a thickness of about ½ inch. Allow about an hour for it to set and cool.

Cut into 2” squares or rounds and place into butter dish, slightly overlapping. Dot with remaining 2Tbsp butter and sprinkle with ½ to ¾ cup parmesan cheese.

Bake at 350° until golden and bubbly – 50-60 mins.

A Brief Intermission

2010-03-28T17:24:00.003-05:00

I have to put into writing that I'm going to take a couple weeks off from blogging. I have a busy few weeks coming up, with wrapping up job applications, studying for my certification tests, and traveling to Colorado for my sister's wedding. I always feel like I need to be blogging about the tasty creations that come out of my kitchen, but I need to officially stop pressuring myself for the next 3 weeks. I'll still be cooking, and promise to report back on anything worth sharing! See you in a few weeks!

Butternut Squash, Spinach, and Wheat Berry Salad

2010-03-28T16:49:00.008-05:00

If you are a regular food blog reader, you have maybe seen a variation of this recipe before. Cate of Cate's World Kitchen first called it to my attention, and the original recipe was posted by Molly of Orangette. I had some wheat berries that I thought would make a great addition, and through googling I discovered Kevin from Closet Cooking had already successfully tried a version of this salad with wheat berries. I ended up mostly following Kevin's recipe, but added in spinach like the original recipe called for.

I knew Joe would have questioned my judgment if I served the simple spinach, butternut squash and chickpea salad for dinner. Adding the wheat berries was a perfect way to add some heft to the salad, creating a healthy and filling dinner entree. We both loved this, and found the chilled salad made excellent lunchtime leftovers. I'm going to try to stop cooking with butternut squash now that we're getting closer to spring... but I might have to make this one more time before the cutoff!

Butternut Squash, Spinach, and Wheat Berry Salad
Adapted from so many other great bloggers!
(makes 4 servings)

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 pound squash (peeled, seeded and cut into bite sized pieces)
2 1/2 cups cooked wheat berries
1 can (15 oz) chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
1/4 cup red onion (chopped)
2 tablespoons cilantro
4 cups fresh baby spinach
1/4 cup tahini, lemon and yogurt dressing

Directions:
1. Toss the squash in the oil, salt and pepper to coat.
2. Bake in a single layer in a preheated 400F oven for 30 minutes flipping once in the middle.
3. Mix the warm squash with the spinach so that the spinach wilts. Add the wheat berries, chickpeas, red onion and cilantro and toss with the dressing.

Tahini, Lemon and Yogurt Dressing

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons tahini
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 cup cup Greek yogurt (or regular plain yogurt)
1 clove garlic (finely minced)
salt and pepper to taste
½ to 1 cup water

Directions:
1. Mix everything and add water to get it to the desired consistency.

Spring Vegetable and Bean Soup

2010-03-23T20:37:00.009-05:00

Hi, remember me? I used to blog, and then I started working far too much! I don't have a day off until Sunday, and I will have worked 13 days in a row at that point. When it rains, it pours, right? Between school, babysitting, and the Chopping Block I've been going non-stop. I have managed a couple good meals when I've had a brief quiet moment at home... but I can't take any credit for this one. I had to work from 8 am to 7 pm on Sunday, so Joe volunteered to cook dinner. I love when he does that! It is so nice to come home to a warm and freshly made meal like this after such a long day of work.

I love that this soup was so healthy, but still satisfying. I had eaten chips with guacamole and gougeres for lunch (busy day at work!), so I was dying for a healthy meal for dinner. This soup replaced all the nutrients I'd been lacking during the day, and gave me energy to help Joe bottle our latest batch of homebrew before hitting the sack. I think the only change Joe made was extra seasoning at the end-- extra salt and acid was needed to kick up the flavor. A fantastic soup for this time of year, as we slowly transition to springtime weather.

Spring Vegetable and Bean Soup

from Jamie's Food Revolution by Jamie Oliver

2 carrots

2 celery stalks

2 medium onions

2 cloves of garlic

1 3/4 quarts vegetable stock

olive oil

1 15 oz can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

2 cups cauliflower florets

2 cups broccoli florets

7 cups (7 oz) spinach leaves, roughly chopped

2 large ripe tomatoes, quartered

sea salt and freshly ground pepper

extra virgin olive oil

Peel and slice the carrots. Chop the celery and onion, and peel and dice the garlic. Put the broth in a saucepan and heat until boiling. Put a large saucepan on medium heat and add 2 Tbsp olive oil. Add all your chopped and sliced ingredients and mix together with a wooden spoon. Cook for around 12 minutes with the lid askew, until the carrots have softened but are still holding their shape, and the onion is lightly golden.

Add the boiling broth to the vegetables in the pan. Add the cannellini beans, cauliflower, broccoli, and tomatoes. Stir well, and bring the soup to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes with the lid on. Add the spinach right before serving, and cook for 3o seconds. Remove the pan from the heat. Season with salt and pepper (and some white wine vinegar if you want), and ladle the soup into bowls. Finish the soup with a drizzle of olive oil, and serve with garlic bread.

Tempeh Tacos with Spinach, Corn, and Goat Cheese

2010-03-12T15:39:00.003-06:00

I love creative combinations for tacos, and this quick recipe from Real Simple fits the bill perfectly. I'm sometimes underwhelmed with the simplicity (aka blandness) of some Real Simple recipes, but a little extra seasoning made this dish flavorful and so easy to pull together! I originally planned to serve this filling in homemade tortillas, but we got caught up shopping on State Street got home later than I expected. I scored TWO Juicy Couture hoodies for a total of $40, though, so I think it was worth sacrificing homemade tortillas this time around. This filling was so good, and Joe and I kept raving about it after each bite. That's a really good sign, isn't it? Imagine how good this would be with fresh corn and homemade tortillas in the summer!

Tempeh Tacos with Spinach, Corn, and Goat Cheese
Adapted from Real Simple Magazine

Ingredients

* 1 tablespoon olive oil
* 1 package tempeh, crumbled
* 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
* 1 teaspoon cumin
* 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
* kosher salt and black pepper
* 1 10-ounce package frozen corn (2 cups), thawed
* 1 5-ounce package baby spinach (about 6 loosely packed cups)
* 8 small flour tortillas, warmed
* 3/4 cup crumbled fresh goat cheese (3 ounces)
* 3/4 cup store-bought refrigerated salsa

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the tofu, chili powder, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Cook, tossing occasionally, until golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes.
2. Add the corn and cook, tossing, until heated through, about 2 minutes. Add the spinach and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper and toss until wilted.
3. Fill the tortillas with the tofu mixture, goat cheese, and salsa.

If you live anywhere near us, save some effort and buy fresh guacamole from Harvest Time. It is better than I've ever made by myself! Then you can spend that extra time and energy making margaritas! Just make sure to invite me over, ok?

Irish Brown Soda Bread

2010-03-05T14:34:00.011-06:00

I have 50% Irish blood running through my body, so this time of year I start feeling all sorts of cultural pride. I had a lot of Irish experiences growing up, with a step dancing sister, a bag piping brother (sorta Scottish, I know), and a father obsessed with tracing his Irish ancestry. We got to take a couple trips to Ireland when I was younger, and I have such fond memories of exploring the Irish countryside with my family. I know all six of us have a fond spot for anything Irish.

My brother played the bagpipes at our wedding, as we exited the Cathedral. It was awesome!

Last weekend I was visiting my sister in Colorado, and she pulled a loaf of this bread out for breakfast one morning. She must have been reading my mind, because I'd seen this recipe from Bon Appetit on the flight to Denver, and I was planning to make soda bread as soon as I got back to Chicago. Her version was so good, however, that I ended up looking it up online. This recipe for Brown Soda Bread is from Cooking light, and it was dense, healthy, and just subtly sweet. It is amazing for toast in the morning, with just a little butter melted on top. I imagine it's also excellent for sandwiches, especially with smoked salmon. The best part? It's QUICK, and so easy! Just toss the ingredients together, then go study abstract algebra for an hour while it cooks. Or I guess you could watch TV, or do something a little more fun!

This is a page from the scrapbook I made in high school. Thankfully I didn't save any dorky pictures of myself from this trip to Ireland in 1999. I'm sure my parents have plenty, but there is no way they're getting on this blog!

Next weekend my mom and other sister will be in town for a concert (Flogging Molly! Another important part of any Irish American youth's experience!), and I am sure I'll make this again. Now I just need to think of a vegetarian meal to make for St. Patrick's day... any suggestions? (Also, did I mention we gave up meat & seafood for lent? That's why there have been so many vegetarian recipes lately. We're doing ok, but the other day I was totally craving a chicken burger, thanks to Annie!)

Have a great weekend everyone!

Brown Soda Bread
from Cooking Light, March 2010

* Cooking spray
* 11.25 ounces whole-wheat flour (about 2 1/2 cups)
* 2.25 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1/2 cup)
* 1/2 cup steel-cut oats (such as McCann's)*
* 2 tablespoons brown sugar
* 1 tablespoon wheat germ*
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 2 cups low-fat buttermilk
* 1 large egg, lightly beaten

1. Preheat oven to 325°.

2. Coat a 9 x 5–inch loaf pan with cooking spray. Line the pan with parchment paper, and coat with cooking spray.

3. Weigh or lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine flours and next 6 ingredients (through salt). Combine buttermilk and egg; add to flour mixture. Stir just until combined.

Don't smooth the batter out too much; you want it a little rustic looking on top.

4. Spoon the mixture into prepared pan. Bake at 325° for 1 hour and 5 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Invert bread onto a wire rack; cool completely. Remove parchment; slice bread into 12 slices.

* I got my steel cut oats and wheat germ at Whole Foods, but I bet you could find them at a decent sized regular grocery store. I'd check the cereal aisle for both, or the bulk foods section. And pay attention to how much you need, because I have about 2 cups of extra steel cut oats! Guess I'll be searching for another recipe soon... or making this bread a lot more!

Perfect for breakfast toast.
(Also, perfect plates for blogging. Right Laura?)

Moroccan Style Stuffed Acorn Squash

2010-03-02T18:40:00.005-06:00

I was first inspired to make acorn squash when I saw a recipe for quinoa and mushroom stuffed acorn squash at work. It was part of a vegetarian thanksgiving class, and I thought it sounded like something I'd enjoy making for a regular weeknight dinner. I grabbed the whole packet of recipes from that class, and managed to make the Sweet Corn and Gouda Bread Pudding as part of Thanksgiving dinner at my parents house. Then, I lost the recipes, and forgot all about acorn squash.

It didn't take long for it to come up again, though, when Cate blogged about Stuffed Acorn Squash in December. After that I felt like I saw acorn squash at every grocery store I went into, but I was always in a hurry, or already had a week's worth of meals planned. Trying acorn squash was always just one recipe below the weekly cut off. Finally, this week, I realized spring would be here before I knew it, and then I will soon be trading squash for asparagus and peas. The time had finally arrived; I would try acorn squash this week!

I searched the internet for various recipes, and ended up back where I started. Cate's recipe was a vegetarian adaption of a Martha Stewart recipe that had been blogged about multiple times, and Cate had already done the hard work for me. The bulgur was mixed with onions and garlic that had been sauteed with cinnamon and nutmeg, and the sweet and spicy smell was amazing! Joe and I were both practically drooling from the smell alone. The mixture was perfectly seasoned, and the golden raisins added the perfect touch of sweetness. A half squash paired with a salad was a perfectly balanced meal, satisfying and also really healthy. Make this before the weather becomes too spring-like, or else try to remember it for next fall when it'll really hit the spot!

Moroccan-Style Stuffed Acorn Squash

adapted by Cate's World Kitchen, from Arugulove, originally from Martha Stewart, October 2009

3 small to medium acorn squashes halved and seeded

1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 medium onion, finely chopped

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

2 tsp. course salt, divided

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup bulgur wheat

2 1/4 cups water

1/4 cup golden raisins

1/4 cup Italian flat-leaf parsley, chopped

3 tbsp. toasted pine nuts

1 1/4 cups cooked or canned garbanzo beans

Preheat oven to 400 F. Place the squash halves cut-sides down in a greased 9×13 inch casserole dish or roasting pan. Bake until tender, 35 to 40 minutes.

While the squash is in the oven, heat the oil in a large saucepan with a tight-fitting lid over medium heat. Add the onions, cinnamon and nutmeg, and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are very soft and fragrant (5 to 7 minutes) adding 2-3 tbsp of water after the first two or three minutes to keep the onions from drying out or burning.

Add garlic, and cook for an additional minute.

Add remaining teaspoon salt and the bulgur, and stir to combine. Add water, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and cook for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the pot sit covered for 5 minutes.

Fluff the bulgar with a fork, and add the raisins, parsley, pine nuts and garbanzo beans. Stir together to combine and adjust seasonings if necessary

When the squash is soft, take it out of the oven. Let it cool a little and scrape out enough of the flesh to form 1/4 inch thick bowls.

Mix the squash flesh into the bulgur mixture. Divide among squash halves, and return them to the oven. Bake until warmed through and tops are browned, about 12 to 14 minutes.

Serves 6.

Spicy Corn Cakes with Black Beans

2010-03-01T21:48:00.007-06:00

My mom and I frequently rehash our best dinner recipes when we're catching up on the phone. We both love cooking and trying new recipes, so we have a lot of fun sharing our most successful meals with each other. This recipe came from her, and it sounded so good I requested she send the recipe my way immediately. It took a little extra nagging, but my patience paid off and I had the recipe in my inbox within a week.

I was so glad I begged for this recipe! The corn cakes were delicate and studded with pieces of corn, and they were perfect for scooping up the soupy black beans. I played up the seasoning on my black beans, so there was cumin and oregano with a bit of spice from the paprika and jalapeno. The can of tomatoes was important, because my mom had advised that the beans have some "saucy-ness" to them. Cheese, sour cream, and avocado slices topped off a satisfying and flavorful vegetarian meal. This was a simple weeknight dinner, and could also be a fun different approach to a taco bar when having friends over for dinner. Just add some Mexican beer or margaritas and you're party ready!

Spicy Corn Cakes with Black Beans

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 jalapeno, seeds removed, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 1/2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp hot smokey paprika
1 can black beans, drained
1 can diced tomatoes, with liquid
2 tsp. dried oregano, chopped

Heat the olive oil over medium heat, and add the jalapeno. Saute until starting to soften, about 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic, and saute an additional 30 seconds. Sprinkle the chili powder, cumin and paprika, and stir. Saute for about 30 more seconds, until the spices are fragrant. Stir in the black beans, tomatoes, and oregano. Bring to a slight simmer, then turn down to low to keep the beans warm as you prepare the corn cakes.

2/3 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup flour
¼ tsp baking soda
1 tsp. chili powder
salt and pepper
3 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg
½ cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
2 tsp. canola oil

Whisk together cornmeal, flour, baking soda, chili powder 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/8 tsp pepper.

Whisk together butter, buttermilk and egg until well combined.

Quickly mix wet and dry until just blended, leaving small lumps, fold in corn.

Heat large cast iron frying pan over med. High heat. Brush with 1 tsp oil. Working in batches, add batter ¼ cup at a time. Cook pancakes until brown and fluffy, about 4 mins., turning once. Transfer to warm plate and cover loosely. Stir batter and wipe pan with oil between batches.

Divide pancakes among plates and top with beans.

You can add cheese, or sour cream, cilantro, etc….as toppings.

Vegetarian Chili

2010-02-22T21:47:00.000-06:00

A while back, I ran across a post on Erin's Food Files that caught my attention. First of all, the recipe for Braised Tuscan Chicken with Fennel and White Beans sounded like something I would really enjoy. Tuscan flavors always appeal to me, and I am pretty much addicted to white beans. It sounded like an excellent dinner recipe, but I noticed that there was more to her post than this recipe. Erin had gotten the recipe out of the "Diary of a Tomato" cookbook that she had received as part of a case of Muir Glen 2009 Reserve Tomatoes. I have gotten in the habit of buying Muir Glen organic tomatoes recently, and the idea of getting 4 cans of their limited edition tomatoes for $7 appealed to me!

The box of tomatoes was like a gift, but since it was really just groceries I didn't even have to feel guilty about ordering it! The Fire Roasted tomatoes were perfect for this vegetarian chili, which I made last week. Joe and I are giving up meat for lent, and this year we're going all out. The last two years we've had some loop holes, like it's ok to eat the meat in the freezer, or seafood is on the good list. This year we said no meat. Period*. So veggie chili it is!

I usually just make up chili recipes depending on my mood, using a "bit of this, bit of that" type approach. But this recipe was really good, and I'm posting it partially to remind myself to make it again! The ratio of beans: tomatoes: peppers: onions was right on target, and I have to admit that sometimes my invented chili recipes end up to thick. I thought this was a perfect meal with some sour cream and cheese on top, and with masa bread on the side. And really, if you're a meat lover and can't live without it, I don't see why you couldn't just brown some ground beef or turkey and add it in. It's a solid chili recipe either way!

Vegetarian Chili
from Muir Glen's "Diary of a Tomato" cookbook

Ingredients

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped (1 cup)
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped (1 cup)
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 fresh jalapeño or serrano chiles, seeded, finely chopped
2 cans (15 oz each) black beans, drained, rinsed
2 cans (14.5 oz each) Muir Glen® organic fire roasted or plain diced tomatoes, undrained
1 1/2 cups water
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon coarse (kosher or sea) salt
1 cup frozen organic sweet corn

Sour cream or plain yogurt, if desired

Shredded Cheddar cheese, if desired

Chopped fresh cilantro, if desired

The various Fire Roasted tomatoes are great for chili

1. In 4-quart saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper, garlic and chiles; cook 5 to 7 minutes, stirring frequently, until tender.

2. Stir in black beans, tomatoes, water, chili powder, cumin and salt. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in corn. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered 5 minutes longer.

3. Top each serving with remaining ingredients.

I love colorful meals, and this is a perfect example of why.

* Ok, so that was a tiny bit of a lie. Our only exception so far has been our lunch on Saturday at Mercat a la Planxa. But it was Restaurant Week, and we've been wanting to go to Mercat for months, so we decided it wasn't our fault that Restaurant week falls during lent. Right?!? Maybe next year we should give up eating out!

Urban Belly

2010-02-19T16:41:00.005-06:00

Living in Chicago, there is always plenty of good food to be had. Joe and I try to get out and sample as much as we deem financially responsible, and we have pushed ourselves to try new places frequently. One place we had heard a lot of buzz about was Urban Belly, a casual Korean noodle joint owned by chef Bill Kim and his wife. We actually went over the summer (seems so long ago!), but I never got around to actually blogging about it. I guess I was just waiting for the right time, and it seems that that time is now!

Yesterday, the James Beard Foundation announced the Semifinalists for the 2010 awards, and I was excited to see that Bill Kim was among the Best Chef nominees for the Great Lakes region. Based on the meal we had at Urban Belly, I felt like this was something he really deserved. What I really like was that Urban Belly is casual, non-pretentious, and relatively inexpensive. This restaurant is an example of a classically trained, accomplished chef doing his take on food from his childhood. You can tell this place is a labor of love, and this nomination shows that the James Beard foundation is not only focused on the kind of fancy, expensive food that none of us "real folks" can eat. If you're in Chicago, I'd recomend trying out Urban Belly for yourself. Or, if you're coming to visit me some time soon, remind me and we can go together!

YUM!

Cranberry Oatmeal Nut Bread

2010-02-16T09:14:00.000-06:00

Recently I've been in the mood to experiment with more yeast bread recipes, so I picked up The Bread Book by Betsy Oppenneer from the library a couple weeks ago. I was trying to convince Joe that I needed a bread baking cookbook, because it is a totally different genre than any of the other cookbooks I own. I really want to buy The Bread Baker's Apprentice, but I felt like I should play around with bread baking recipes a bit more before I invest in another new cookbook.

So many of the recipes in this book appealed to me, but I decided to start out with a breakfast bread that sounded perfect for toast. This Oatmeal Cranberry bread was originally a recipe for all-purpose flour, but I decided to do half AP and half whole wheat. I used dried cranberries and pre-chopped walnuts, and this bread really came together easily. It was hearty and dense, with a nice subtly sweet flavor. I thought my loaf ended up a little doughy, which could have been from subbing flour. I would probably cook it a little longer next time, because I'd really like to keep it at least partially whole wheat flour. The doughiness wasn't an issue at all once I toasted it, and we ate the loaf of bread within a few days. I would highly recommend this recipe to any breakfast toast eaters out there! Look for more bread baking in the future, as I continue to explore various yeast bread recipes.

Cranberry Oatmeal Nut Bread
from The Bread Book by Betsy Oppenneer

Yield: 2 loaves (I did 1/2 recipe and it worked well)

2 cups boiling water
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (not instant)
1 1/2 cups dried cranberries
2 (1/4 oz) packages active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (105 to 115 degrees)
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
4 1/2 to 5 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 large egg plus 1 Tbsp cold water, for egg wash

Pour the boiling water over the rolled oats and cranberries. Stir, cover, and let cool for about 45 minutes.

In a large bowl, stir the yeast into the warm water. Add the brown sugar, salt, oil, 2 cups of the flour, the walnuts, and the cooled oats and cranberries. Beat vigorously with a dough whisk or heavy handled spoon for 2 minutes. Gradually add more flour, 1/4 cup at a time, until the dough forms a mass and begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl.

Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface. Knead, adding more flour, a little at a time as necessary, until you have an elastic dough and blisters begin to develop on the surface. Put the dough into an oiled bowl, and turn the dough to coat. Cover with a towel and let rise for about an hour, or until doubled in size.

Turn the dough out onto an oiled work surface. Divide the dough in half and shape into loaves. Fit the loaves, seam side down, into well-greased loaf pans. Cover with a towel and let rise for 45 minutes. About 15 minutes before the end of rising, preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Just before baking, brush the egg wash over the top of each loaf, taking care not to let it drip onto the pans. Sprinkle with rolled oats. Bake the loaves for 30 to 35 minutes or until they are browned and shrink lightly from the sides of the pan. Immediately remove the bread from the pans and cool on a rack.

Homemade Lasagna

2010-02-07T10:06:00.000-06:00

Like I mentioned in the last two posts, last week I made multiple Italian dishes. This lasagna was inspired by my new pasta rollers, which I'm always looking for excuses to use. Lasagna is the easiest way to use homemade pasta, because you only have to roll the dough into sheets. You can trim the sheets to fit the pan, and that's basically all the work you have to do with them. Fresh pasta doesn't need to be boiled before baking the lasagna, which makes things a bit easier.

This is the type of dish that I make a little differently each time, depending on my mood and what ingredients I have on hand. We wanted this version to be vegetarian, but I prefer using a red sauce instead of a creamy white sauce like most vegetarian lasagnas. I used a sauteed mix of mushrooms, asparagus, and spinach for the veggie layer. I added fresh thyme to the ricotta to boost the flavor, since I had extra in the fridge and hate wasting fresh herbs. For the sauce I used Spicy Tomato Basil sauce from earlier in the week. I knew I would be making this lasagna, so I planned ahead and doubled the sauce when I originally made it.

My layering always starts with sauce on the bottom, to avoid having the noodles really get stuck on the pan. Then I go noodles -> ricotta -> veggies -> sauce -> cheese -> repeat. I like to end with noodles, sauce & cheese on top. That's pretty much the extent of the recipe I'm going to give you, though, because I think lasagna is a perfect dish to play around with and make your own.

The finished product

Lasagna is not a dish for people who avoid cheese. The more the better!

Fresh Pasta Recipe
2 cups of flour
3 eggs
1/4 cup semolina
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt

Process the ingredients in a food processor. Dump onto the counter, and knead until the dough is elastic and pretty smooth. Wrap in plastic, and let rest for at least 30 minutes before using the pasta rollers.

Ricotta Layer
1 (15 oz) container ricotta
1 1/2 tsp fresh thyme, minced
salt and pepper to taste

Veggie Layer
1 package baby bella mushrooms
1 lb fresh spinach leaves
1 bunch asparagus
2 cloves garlic
salt and pepper

Tomato Sauce
Spicy Tomato Basil Sauce

Cheese Layer
1 package shredded mozzarella cheese (fresher would be better, but I'm kind of lazy!)
freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Leftover bow-tie pasta!

My pasta recipe made 4 layers worth of noodles, but I only needed 3 layers. I made the last of the pasta dough into bow-ties, which I froze for future use. Bow-ties are really easy to make. Just cut squares, and pinch the middle of opposite sides together. Freeze them in a single layer, then move to a plastic bag.

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Biscotti

2010-02-01T13:00:00.009-06:00

I went on an Italian food kick last week, and these biscotti were an excellent recipe discovery that came from my binge. While biscotti are an Italian treat, I'm pretty sure this peanut butter and chocolate version was strictly Italian American! It was my first time making biscotti, which is a shame for any half Italian foodie to admit. They weren't hard to make at all, although they're a little more time intensive than some cookies because you have to flip them a couple times as they cook. The end result was so worth it, though. I've been snacking on these all week, and would highly recommend you give them a try!

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Biscotti
from foodnetwork.com

Ingredients

* 10 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick plus 2 tablespoons)
* 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* 2 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
* 3 large eggs
* 1 1/4 cups sugar
* 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
* 1/2 cup smooth natural peanut butter, room temperature
* 1 1/4 cups dry roasted peanuts
* 1 1/4 cups chopped dark chocolate or chocolate chunks (about 6 ounces)

Directions

Position racks evenly in the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Melt the butter over medium heat, swirling the pan occasionally. Continue to cook until the butter browns and gets a nutty aroma, about 5 minutes. Let cool slightly.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl.

Beat the eggs in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until light and pale yellow, about 2 minutes. Gradually add the sugar while beating. Then slowly add the butter and vanilla until evenly mixed, about 30 seconds more. Add the peanut butter and mix until combined.

While mixing slowly, add the dry ingredients to the wet, in 2 additions, mixing just until absorbed. Fold in the peanuts and chocolate pieces.

Divide the dough evenly into thirds, and put each portion in the center of a baking sheet. Shape the dough with slightly wet hands into logs about 2-inches wide and 15 inches long. Bake until set and brown around the edges, about 25 to 30 minutes. (For even baking take care to rotate the pans-- top to bottom and front to back--about half way though.) Cool logs on the baking sheets for about 10 minutes.

Lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees F. Carefully transfer the logs to a cutting board. Cut logs crosswise, with a long serrated knife at about a 45 degree angle, into 1/2-inch thick cookies. Place cookies cut side down on the baking sheets. Bake until crisp, about 8 minutes. Flip the cookies over and bake until golden brown, about 8 minutes more. Cool biscotti on the baking sheets. Serve.

Store cookies in a tightly sealed container for up to 3 days.

Crispy Polenta with Spicy Tomato Sauce

2010-02-01T12:26:00.004-06:00

This recipe jumped out at me from a recent email I received from Epicurious, and I remembered originally seeing it in Bon Appetit a month ago. I love polenta, but prefer it when it's not really soft. Crispy, pan-fried polenta appeals to me much more than the traditional bowl of cornmeal mush! I also liked the idea of trying a new tomato sauce recipe, with pine nuts and some spice to change things up. I loved this meal! We had it for dinner one night, but it could have been a great recipe to serve to guests, with a vegetarian and meat sauce to serve with the polenta.

I made the sauce almost exactly as the recipe was written, and was very pleased with the results. I did add more red pepper flakes, for just a little more spice. I also skipped the fennel seeds, just because I didn't have any on hand. I made a double batch, and used some for the lasagna I made a couple days later. I still had some sauce left over to freeze, so there is another easy pasta dinner in our future.

You can find the original polenta recipe here. It seemed far more complicated than it needed to be, though, so here is what I did instead. First, I buttered a 9 x 13 inch pyrex dish. I bought a box on instant polenta, and followed the package directions to cook it. It thickens up really quickly, and then I spread it in the baking dish. I used a spatula to spread the polenta out, then let it cool. Once it was cool, it was very easy to cut into squares. If you're making this for multiple people, you can go ahead and fry it all up according to the directions below. Or, if you're only eating some of the polenta, I would recommend just frying as much as you're planning to eat, and putting the rest back in the fridge. Then it'll be nice and crispy each time you make a new batch!

To cook the polenta, follow these directions from the original recipe.

Preheat oven to 325°F. Cut polenta lengthwise into 4 strips. Cut each strip crosswise into 6 squares. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches, add polenta squares. Sauté until crisp and beginning to color, about 8 minutes per side. Transfer polenta to small baking sheet; place in oven to keep warm. Repeat with remaining polenta, adding oil to skillet as needed.

Divide polenta among plates. Top with warm Spicy Tomato-Basil Sauce. Garnish with fresh basil sprigs, if desired.

Spicy Tomato-Basil Sauce
from epicurious.com

* 4 1/2 cups canned crushed tomatoes with added puree (from two 28-ounce cans), divided
* 1/4 cup pine nuts
* 4 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 3/4 cup finely chopped onion
* 4 large garlic cloves, minced
* 1 teaspoon fennel seeds (finely crushed in plastic bag)

* 3/8 teaspoon (or more) dried crushed red pepper
* 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh basil, divided
* 1/3 cup dry white wine
* 1 teaspoon dried oregano

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Preparation

Freshly ground black pepper Place 1 cup crushed

tomatoes in blender. Add pine nuts and blend until very smooth, about 1 minute.

Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-low heat. Add onion, garlic, fennel seeds, and 3/8 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper. Sauté until onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add remaining crushed tomatoes, 2 tablespoons chopped basil, wine, and oregano. Scrape in tomato mixture from blender and stir to combine. Simmer sauce

until flavors blend, 5 to 6 minutes. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and more dried crushed red pepper, if desired. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cool, cover, and chill.

Rewarm sauce. Mix in remaining chopped basil.

I served the polenta with roasted cauliflower. I tossed cauliflower florets with olive oil and Tuscan Seasoning from the Spice House, then roasted at 375 for 15 to 20 minutes.

Irresistible Indian

2010-01-25T21:35:00.000-06:00

As I've mentioned before, recipes from work frequently inspire me at home. A couple weekends ago I worked an Indian cooking class, and this bread recipe jumped out at me as a 'must try'. Aloo Paratha is an Indian potato-stuffed griddle bread, and it is basically a carb and spice lovers dream. Potatoes are peeled, boiled, and then mashed with a mix of Indian spices. The bread dough is rolled out into big circles, then folded around the potato filling. Finally, the package is carefully rolled out again, to allow for even cooking. I only had a quick taste of these at work, because everyone wanted to take their leftovers home. That was a good sign to me, so I made them myself a few days later. My only issue was that it took a while to make the breads one at a time on my smaller skillet, but in the end I decided the effort was worth it.

The bread paired really well with Spinach Dhal (or lentils) from the blog Cate's World Kitchen. I remembered this recipe sounding really great when I first saw it, and I happened to have just about all of the ingredients on hand. We added a little extra seasoning (salt and curry powder), and found that improved the taste. It also tasted noticeably more flavorful the second day, after the flavors really had time to marry. I think that is usually a pretty cheesy idea, but in this case it was so true! The lunchtime leftovers were such a treat!

Aloo Paratha (Potato-Stuffed Griddle Bread)
from Irresistible Indian at The Chopping Block

For the dough:
2 cups chapatti flour (see note)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon ghee or vegetable shortening
3/4 cup warm water or more if needed

For the filling:
1 large russet potato or 2 small white potatoes, boiled, peeled and mashed
1/2 small onion, minced
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin seeds
2 teaspoons ground coriander
Salt to taste
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1/8 teaspoon cayenne

Grapeseed oil, for the griddle

1. To make the dough, mix the chapatti flour, all purpose flour, salt, sugar and ghee. Mix in the water and knead until smooth; add a small amount more water if needed to make a soft, pliable dough. Cover and rest for 30 minutes before using.
2. To make the filling, mash the potatoes in a bowl.
3. Fold in the onion, brown sugar, cilantro, cumin, coriander, salt, lemon juice, garam masala and cayenne pepper.
4. To assemble the parathas, divide the dough into 9 equal parts, and roll each into a thin disk about 10 inches in diameter.
5. Place a 1/4 cup of the filling in the center.
6. Gather the edges to the center to form 4 or 5 points, overlapping so they do not leave an opening.
7. Press gently, dust with dry flour, and proceed to roll 6 inches wide and 1/4 inch thick.
8. To cook the parathas, heat a griddle over medium heat and drizzle with oil.
9. Cook the paratha until golden brown on each side. If the griddle becomes dry, drizzle with more oil.
10. Serve warm.

NOTE: Chapatti flour is an Indian flour made from whole wheat and malted barley. If you can’t find chapatti flour, substitute a mixture of equal parts whole wheat flour and all-purpose flour.

Spinach Dhal
from Cate's World Kitchen, originally from Fresh Indian by Sunil Vijayakar

2 cups red lentils, rinsed and drained
5 cups water
1/4 tsp turmeric
2 tsp freshly grated ginger
1 medium bunch spinach, washed well and roughly chopped (leaves only)
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon olive oil
5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp mustard seeds
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 fresh jalapeno, thinly sliced (for garnish)

Put the lentils, water, turmeric, and ginger in a dutch oven or large pot. Bring to a boil and skim off any foam that collects on the surface. Turn the heat down so the mixture is simmering, and let cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally and adding more water in 1/4 cup increments if it begins to look dry. If they are particularly soupy, turn the heat up slightly so some of the water evaporates.

Add the spinach, cilantro, and a few pinches of salt, cover, and simmer for about 5 minutes.
Taste and add more salt if necessary.

Heat the oil in a small frying pan over medium high for about 30 seconds. Add the garlic, cumin, mustard seeds, ground cumin, and ground coriander. Stir fry for about 2 minutes, then pour into the lentils and stir well.

Serve immediately, with slices of fresh jalapeno (if desired)

Italian Wedding Soup

2010-01-19T17:02:00.005-06:00

Sunday dinner is my favorite meal of the week. At this point it's usually just me and Joe sitting in the couch, watching TV and enjoying a meal that we've cooked together. In later years I'm sure I'll enjoy Sunday night dinners as a time to reconnect as a family, sitting around the table catching up and getting ready for the week ahead. At this point in our lives, Joe and I are pretty well up to date on what's going on with each other, so my focus is more on the food! Sunday usually means extra time to cook, and a chance to make something more involved than our usual weeknight dinner.

I needed to prove my worth in the kitchen after last week's not so great new recipes, so I knew Ina Garten was the person to turn to. I personally can't stand her Barefoot Contessa show on Food Network, but I adore the two cookbooks of hers that I own. I can't remember making any recipes of hers that I didn't enjoy, so I pulled out the Back to Basics cookbook when it was time to plan this week's recipes. I knew right away which recipe was perfect for a January night at home with Joe... Italian Wedding Soup!

This is a type of soup I'd never tried before, because it has meatballs in the soup, and meatballs are usually made with beef. But Ina's recipe is different, and calls for a combination of chicken sausage and ground chicken. Perfection!

The meatballs were baked, and turned out tender and full of flavor. The pasta added some heft (I don't like wimpy soup), and the spinach made it seem nice and healthy (which really it was!). I think the best part of the soup was the addition of minced fresh dill, which gave it such a fresh, herby flavor. We ate Ribiola Due Latte Italian cheese from Whole Foods with the soup, with bread and roasted garlic. The meal paired nicely with the tripel style beer that Joe had gotten for Christmas, from the Boulevard Brewery Smokestack series. It's high quality KC beer, and I'm bummed out we can't get it here in Chicago. It does make it a treat when we get a chance to down some!

Italian Wedding Soup
from Back to Basics, by Ina Garten

Serves 6-8 (we did a half recipe, and it easily serves 4)

Ingredients
For the meatballs:

* 3/4 pound ground chicken
* 1/2 pound chicken sausage, casings removed
* 2/3 cup fresh white bread crumbs
* 2 teaspoons minced garlic (2 cloves)
* 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
* 1/4 cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano
* 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for serving
* 3 tablespoons milk
* 1 extra-large egg, lightly beaten
* Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the soup:

* 2 tablespoons good olive oil
* 1 cup minced yellow onion
* 1 cup diced carrots (3 carrots), cut into 1/4 inch pieces
* 3/4 cup diced celery (2 stalks), cut into 1/4 inch pieces
* 10 cups homemade chicken stock
* 1/2 cup dry white wine
* 1 cup small pasta such as tubetini or stars
* 1/4 cup minced fresh dill
* 12 ounces baby spinach, washed and trimmed

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

For the meatballs, place the ground chicken, sausage, bread crumbs, garlic, parsley, Pecorino, Parmesan, milk, egg, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a bowl and combine gently with a fork. With a teaspoon, drop 1 to 1 1/4-inch meatballs onto a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. (You should have about 40 meatballs. They don't have to be perfectly round.) Bake for 30 minutes, until cooked through and lightly browned. Set aside.

This picture illustrates the large size of my wonderful new stockpot... no more boiling pasta in my Le Creuset dutch oven!

In the meantime, for the soup, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat in a large heavy-bottomed soup pot. Add the onion, carrots, and celery and saute until softened, 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the chicken stock and wine and bring to a boil. Add the pasta to the simmering broth and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until the pasta is tender. Add the fresh dill and then the meatballs to the soup and simmer for 1 minute. Taste for salt and pepper. Stir in the fresh spinach and cook for 1 minute, until the spinach is just wilted. Ladle into soup bowls and sprinkle each serving with extra grated Parmesan.

Redemption!

2010-01-17T22:19:00.002-06:00

After a rough week of less than stellar new recipes, I knew I had to get my kitchen skills back in line. Who better to go to than Ina and her Back to Basics cookbook? Tonight's dinner was fantastic... but you'll have to wait to hear about it! Until then, check out the Beer Bread I posted about on my other blog. Sunday night dinners are always one of my favorite parts of the weekend, and this evening was no exception!

Better Luck Next Time

2010-01-16T10:55:00.004-06:00

Some weeks I have big plans about all the dishes I want to cook for my blog. This week I was excited to try a couple new recipes that I had found online. While we didn't starve, I ended up totally underwhelmed by what came out of my kitchen this week, so I'm here to tell you about what really happens in my kitchen. I usually just share my successful recipes, to offer ideas of things my friends and family might like to try. But I'm not perfect, so I figured it's better to post my less amazing attempts at dinner, instead of no posts at all!

I'll start with the worst... Tofu and Green Beans in a Coconut Sauce, from epicurious. I used baked tofu instead of marinating and searing my own, but that was really the least of my problems. The sauce was slimy, and totally flavorless. I thought it tasted ok when I sampled it, but once I put the tofu and green bean mixture onto rice noodles, all flavor disappeared. Maybe the worst part was that I used full-fat coconut milk, so it was not even healthy! I mixed a bunch of extra stuff in before Joe ate some leftovers, and he said it was decent, but I won't bother trying to make this dish any better. Blah!

Second attempt was Tempeh Curry from 101 Cookbooks. This dish wasn't really bad, but it wasn't as good as I hoped it would be. I think a problem might have been that I was using pretty low quality curry powder, an issue I've already remedied. I will most likely try this again, but will tweak the spices to get more flavor out of it. Also, I might try to encorporate a veggie into the curry, along with the potatoes. It was a good start, so don't be surprised if you see a full post for this recipe in the future.

These beautiful spices looked so promising...

At least I got to use my super-awesome Shun utility knife when cutting my tempeh. This knife is ridiculously amazing!

I also made fajitas, which were awesome. But I'm not going to blog about fajitas, because I think it's something we all know how to make. Season some chicken, saute it, add some peppers and onions, saute more... then top with cheese, salsa, sour cream, or whatever suits your fancy. To go with the fajitas, I made black beans and rice from my new I Love Trader Joe's Cookbook. The cookbook is a lot of fun, and the beans had really good flavor. The only problem was that the drained beans were pretty dry, and Joe and I agreed we like our black beans a little soupier. This is another recipe that I might play around with, then post when I achieve better results. The cookbook is a good one, though, full of quick and flavorful recipe ideas. I'm sure you'll see me reference it again soon!

I'm not going to bother trying to get this picture to turn the right way... the sideways picture is a nice visual representation of my cooking this past week!

Next week will be better, I swear! Feel free to send me any winning recipes that you really enjoy, because I could use some inspiration. Have a great weekend everyone!

Portabella Pizzas

2010-01-10T18:56:00.005-06:00

These portabella mushroom pizzas were an idea from a blog I really enjoy, Proud Italian Cook. She had posted them as a New Year's Eve party snack idea, but I thought they would also be perfect for a regular dinner. I made the pizzas with a salad and some slices of No Knead Bread... perfect dinner! This could easily have been a vegetarian dish, but I saw some chicken Italian sausage at whole foods that I couldn't resist.

This recipe was so easy! Just scrape the gills out of the mushrooms, and roast them under the broiler for about 5 minutes on each side. Them top with tomato sauce, sausage (pre-cooked in a skillet), spinach, and cheese... or whatever you want! So much flexibility. Portabellas are not the cheapest ingredient, but I'll keep an eye out for them at a decent price, because I'd love to make this again. It was so easy for a busy weeknight, but still felt special and slightly gourmet. Check out Proud Italian Cook for tons of other fresh and deliciously simple Italian recipes.

Celebrating 3 years of marriage!

2010-01-06T15:55:00.002-06:00

Want to read about our anniversary dinner? Check out our new family blog, A Perfect Pairing. I'm not giving up on this blog, but I will be writing about some food stuff, along with life experiences & Joe's brewing. Enjoy!

Quinoa Salad with Broccoli Pesto

2010-01-05T20:23:00.003-06:00

This quinoa and broccoli salad screams new year health food. Perfect for the post-holiday detox. It was pretty quick to put together, although it did dirty more pans than I would have liked. Mostly because I am sick and didn't want to do the dishes! I did end up adding extra salt and lemon juice once I mixed it all together, but the couple bites I had seemed pretty tasty. Joe had seconds, if that's any indication. I had ramen noodles, which was not as tasty but felt good with my cold & stomach ache. Hopefully I'll feel better tomorrow, because I have a feeling this would make an excellent lunch!

Double Broccoli Quinoa
from 101cookbooks.com

3 cups cooked quinoa*
5 cups raw broccoli, cut into small florets and stems

3 medium garlic cloves
2/3 cup sliced or slivered almonds, toasted
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
2 big pinches salt
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup heavy cream

Optional toppings: slivered basil, sliced avocado, crumbled feta or goat cheese

Heat the quinoa and set aside.

Now barely cook the broccoli by pouring 3/4 cup water into a large pot and bringing it to a simmer. Add a big pinch of salt and stir in the broccoli. Cover and cook for a minute, just long enough to take the raw edge off. Transfer the broccoli to a strainer and run under cold water until it stops cooking. Set aside.

To make the broccoli pesto puree two cups of the cooked broccoli, the garlic, 1/2 cup of the almonds, Parmesan, salt, and lemon juice in a food processor. Drizzle in the olive oil and cream and pulse until smooth.

Just before serving, toss the quinoa and remaining broccoli florets with about 1/2 of the broccoli pesto. Taste and adjust if needed, you might want to add more of the pest a bit at a time, or you might want a bit more salt or an added squeeze of lemon juice. Turn out onto a serving platter and top with the remaining almonds, a drizzle of the chile oil, and some sliced avocado or any of the other optional toppings.

Serves 4 - 6

*To cook quinoa: rinse one cup of quinoa in a fine-meshed strainer. In a medium saucepan heat the quinoa, two cups of water (or broth if you like), and a few big pinches of salt until boiling. Reduce heat and simmer until water is absorbed and quinoa fluffs up, about 15 minutes. Quinoa is done when you can see the curlique in each grain, and it is tender with a bit of pop to each bite. Drain any extra water and set aside.

Cold Weather, Warm Risotto

2010-01-02T20:30:00.005-06:00

One of my favorite cold-weather meals is risotto, and the weather in Chicago has been VERY risotto worthy for the last couple days. Hello January! This Jamie Oliver recipe is the best risotto I've made at home, and any other mushroom fanatics out there will probably agree with me. I did double mushroom flavor, because Jamie calls for chicken stock but I wanted to keep it vegetarian. I found mushroom stock at Whole Foods, and also packs of mixed wild mushrooms. I believe these were cremini, oyster, and shiitake.

This is a beautiful cookbook, and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys Jamie Oliver's fresh, simple take on sustainable foods. And check out his show on Food Network... he's so funny!

Grilled Mushroom Risotto
from Jamie at Home, by Jamie Oliver

Ingredients

* 6 1/3 cups chicken stock (Use mushroom or vegetable stock to make this vegetarian)
* Handful dried porcini mushrooms
* Olive oil
* 1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
* 2 sticks celery, trimmed and finely chopped
* 14 ounces risotto rice
* 2/3 cup vermouth or white wine
* Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 4 large handfuls wild mushrooms (try chanterelles, shiitake, black trumpet or oyster - definitely no button mushrooms, please!), cleaned and sliced
* Few sprigs fresh chervil, tarragon or parsley, leaves picked and chopped
* 1 lemon, juiced
* 2 tablespoons butter
* 2 handfuls freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for serving
* Extra-virgin olive oil

Heat stock in a saucepan and keep it on a low simmer.

Place the porcini mushrooms in a bowl and pour in just enough hot stock to cover. Leave for a couple of minutes until they've softened. Fish them out of the stock and chop them, reserving the soaking liquid.

In a large pan, heat a glug of olive oil and add the onion and celery. Slowly fry without coloring for at least 10 minutes, then turn the heat up and add the rice. Give it a stir. Stir in the vermouth or wine - it'll smell fantastic! Keep stirring until the liquid has cooked into the rice. Now pour the porcini soaking liquid through a sieve into the pan and add the chopped porcini, a good pinch of salt and your first ladle of hot stock. Turn the heat down to a simmer and keep adding ladlefuls of stock, stirring and massaging the starch out of the rice, allowing each ladleful to be absorbed before adding the next. Carry on adding stock until the rice is soft but with a slight bite. This will take about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, get a dry griddle pan hot and grill the wild mushrooms until soft. If your pan isn't big enough, do this in batches. Put them into a bowl and add the chopped herbs, a pinch of salt and the lemon juice. Using your hands toss everything together - this is going to be incredible!

Take the risotto off the heat and check the seasoning carefully. Stir in the butter and the Parmesan. You want it to be creamy and oozy in texture, so add a bit more stock if you think it needs it. Put a lid on and leave the risotto to relax for about 3 minutes.

Taste your risotto and add a little more seasoning or Parmesan if you like. Serve a good dollop of risotto topped with some grilled dressed mushrooms, a sprinkling of freshly grated Parmesan and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.

Julia's Broiled Chicken

2009-12-29T08:56:00.008-06:00

Ever since I became interested in cooking, it has been a given that I'll get some foodie gifts for Christmas. This year was no exception, and Joe got me the perfect set of gifts that I hadn't even asked for! As I've written about before, I really enjoyed the book My Life in France, and the movie Julie & Julia. I have cooked a few Julia Child recipes that I've found online or in magazines, but I didn't own a copy of the cookbook that started it all. Joe surprised my with the combination of the book Mastering the Art of French Cooking and the movie Julie & Julia! I am married to the most thoughtful guy (as of today we've been married 3 years! Yeah, it's our anniversary today!).

Cute movie, classic book, happy cook named Erin :)

Being the cheesy person that I am, I knew I needed to make dinner from the cookbook the same night that I watched the movie. My recipe of choice was Poulets Grilles a la Diable (Chicken Broiled with Mustard, Herbs, and Bread Crumbs). I did kind of change the recipe to suit our tastes and to be a little healthier, but for the most part I did what Julia said. The chicken was tender and flavorful, and just buttery enough to pair nicely with the movie. I also made the Brussels sprouts from Thanksgiving, and boiled some small potatoes to serve on the side. This ended up being a better dinner then I planned, although the work I put into it was evident when Joe went into the kitchen to do the dishes!

I'll type the recipe pretty much how it appears in the book. My changes were pretty simple. First, I used chicken legs (thighs & drumsticks, still in one big piece). I cut most of the skin off before cooking, because I knew we wouldn't eat the skin, and I didn't want all the mustard sauce to come off with the skin. Julia would probably shake her head at this slightly healthier adjustment, but I know I'll never use this cookbook if I make the recipes exactly how she wrote them! I used dried thyme, because it is what I had at home already, but I think fresh herbs would be really nice. For the breadcrumbs, I toasted some french bread cubes that I was going to put in the food processor, but then I was talking to my sister on the phone and burned the crap out of the bread. So, I used store bought from the can bread crumbs, because I really didn't feel like toasting more bread. I think fresh bread crumbs would be way better, so next time I'll try to pay more attention!

Poulets Grilles a la Diable
from Mastering the Art of French Cooking

2 ready-to-cook, 2 1/2 lb broiler chickens, halved or quartered
6 Tbsbsp butter, 2 TB oil, melted in a saucepan
6 Tbsp Dijon mustard
3 Tbsp finely minced shallots
1/2 tsp thyme, basil, or tarragon
1/8 tsp pepper
pinch of cayenne pepper
4 cups fresh bread crumbs

Preheat oven broiler to moderately hot. Dry the chicken thoroughly, paint it with the butter and oil, and arrange it skin-side down on the broiling pan. Place it about 5 to 6 inches from the broiling element, and broil 10 minutes on each side, basting every 5 minutes. The chicken should be lightly browned. Salt it lightly.

Blend the mustard with the shallots, herbs, and seasoning in a bowl. Drop by drop, beat in half the basting fat to make a mayonnaise-like cream. Reserve the rest of the basting fat for later. Paint the chicken pieces with the mustard mixture. Pour the bread crumbs into a big plate, then roll the chicken in the crumbs, patting them on so they will adhere. (I only painted the mustard on the top of the pieces of chicken, then sprinkled the bread crumbs on top. Partially because the bottom of the pieces of chicken was mostly bones, and partially because I was feeling lazy and didn't see the need to dirty another dish for the crumbs!)

Arrange the chicken pieces skin-side down on the rack in the broiling pan and dribble half the remaining fat over them. Brown slowly for 10 minutes under a moderately hot broiler. Turn, baste with the last of the fat, and brown 10 minutes more on the other side. The chicken is done when the thickest part of the drumstick is tender, and when the juices run clear. (Since I only did mustard & bread crumbs on the top of the chicken, I finished it by only broiling it with the mustard side up, for about 15 minutes. And yes, I did pour the extra fat over the chicken! Made it extra crispy. And tasty.)

Seasons Greetings!

2009-12-22T18:12:00.007-06:00

Hello everyone! I think this might have been my longest absence from this blog since I started writing it. School was CRAZY busy the last couple weeks of the semester, and as much as I wanted to blog, I had to force myself to study and do final projects instead. And, really, I didn't have much to blog about. My kitchen was sorely neglected the month or two, between working evenings, having a night class, and just being too darn busy. I've been eating too much junk from my freezer and dining out more than I'd like, and I can't wait to get back to planning meals like before!

Next semester I'm only taking one class, and I've quit one of my part time jobs. I hope to start substitute teaching this spring, to help my job prospects for next year. My schedule will still be sporadic, but at least I know I'll be home (and less stressed) more often than this semester. And what better time to get back to cooking and blogging than this time of year? I LOVE CHRISTMAS! I think it's my favorite holiday because of the fact it is spread out over a month, and everyone seems to get more friendly and easy going as they run around more crazily than usual. I know, it's not quite that perfect, but don't you find yourself with an extra spring in your step come December? Great example- I went to lunch with a friend at the huge Macys on State Street today, and even thought it was a total zoo, I just smiled and enjoyed the whole experience. Typically, I can get totally bitchy in these crowded store/slow tourist situations, but somehow at Christmas I just deal with it a lot better. Anyone else feel this way?

I also love the traditions that surround Christmas. Every family has them, and it is so fun to compare notes with friends. In the last three years of marriage, Joe and I have worked some of our old family traditions into the holidays, and have also started trying to incorporate some of our own. One non-negotiable tradition I've taken from my mother is baking and sharing TONS of Christmas cookies. Last year I told you about the three recipes I have that my mom has baked for as long as I can remember. They showed up in my kitchen again this year, but I also decided to mix things up and add a couple recipes of my own.

The first recipe I made was Chocolate Hazelnut Crinkles, which I found on epicurious.com. They had kind of mixed reviews, but I found the recipe to be a total success. They were chewy and had a rich chocolate flavor, and the hazelnuts really added a special holiday flavor. I loved the way they looked, too, with the powered sugar and cracked appearance. Most likely I will make these again next year, and I might not reserve them just for Christmas!

I also made sugar cookies, which is nothing new, but I challenged myself by decorating them with royal icing. What a fun project it was! I used a box of sugar cookie mix, because someone had given me a cookie making gift, but next time I will try Annie's recipe. I used the Royal Icing recipe from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes book, which I borrowed from a friend. I think royal icing is pretty standard, though, so I'll probably just try Annie's recipe for that next time, too! No matter what recipes you use, check out her tutori al before you decorate, because it's amazingly helpful. Thanks Annie for all your great ideas! I put off royal icing for a long time, but now I'm brainstorming all the reasons I might have to make decorated cookies in the future. So much fun (and yes, Joe thought I was a little crazy... but cute, too!).

Gel food coloring is important, so you don't thin out your icing.

First we outlined the cookies, with thicker icing.

Then, we thinned out the icing, and filled in the shapes.

The finished product! Not bad for a first attempt, right?

Happy Holidays everyone! I hope you have a wonderful holiday season, and that 2010 is a year to remember!

Chocolate Hazelnut Crinkle Cookies
from epicurious.com

* 2/3 cup hazelnuts
* 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
* 6 oz fine-quality bittersweet
* chocolate (no more than 60% cacao if marked), finely chopped
* 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
* 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 3/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
* 1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
* 2 large eggs
* 1/4 cup whole milk
* 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
* 3/4 cup confectioners sugar

* Special equipment: parchment paper

Directions

Make dough:
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F.

Toast hazelnuts in a shallow baking pan in oven until skins split and nuts are pale golden, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven (turn oven off), then wrap hazelnuts in a kitchen towel and rub to remove any loose skins. Cool nuts completely. Pulse nuts with granulated sugar in a food processor until finely chopped.

Melt chocolate in a metal bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water or in top of a double boiler, stirring until smooth. Remove bowl from heat and set aside.

Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.

Beat together butter and brown sugar in another bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in melted chocolate until combined. Add milk and vanilla, beating to incorporate. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture, mixing until just combined. Stir in nut mixture. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and chill dough until firm, 2 to 3 hours.

Form and bake cookies:
Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

Sift confectioners sugar into a bowl. Halve dough and chill 1 half, wrapped in plastic wrap. Roll remaining half into 1-inch balls, placing them on a sheet of wax paper as rolled. Roll balls, 3 or 4 at a time, in confectioners sugar to coat generously and arrange 2 inches apart on lined baking sheets.

Bake, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until cookies are puffed and cracked and edges feel dry (but centers are still slightly soft), 12 to 18 minutes total. Transfer cookies (still on parchment) to racks to cool completely.

While first batch is baking, roll remaining dough into balls. Line cooled cookie sheets with fresh parchment, then coat balls with confectioners sugar and bake in same manner.

And so it begins!

2009-11-29T17:12:00.000-06:00

It's hard to believe that another holiday season is already begun! The last year has flown by, and I'm looking forward to a wonderful holiday season this year. It was off to a great start this past week, when Joe and I got to spend Thanksgiving with my family for the first time since 2003. My family moved overseas while I was in college, so I spent the last handful of Thanksgivings either with extended family or with Joe's family. I have yet to have a bad Turkey Day, but nothing compares to spending the day with my parents and siblings.

The master chef prepares the table.

I think Thanksgiving is a lot of foodies favorite holidays, and I can see why. My mom, sister, and I had been discussing menu ideas for weeks, and we ended up cooking quite a feast. My future brother in law is a vegetarian, so his dietary restrictions added a fun challenge to planning our meal. I planned two dishes to contribute-- a savory bread pudding (like stuffing on steroids), and maple glazed Brussels sprouts. The bread pudding was vegetarian and everyone seemed to love it. I couldn't resist making Brussels sprouts with bacon, because I really believe there is no veggie friendly alternative to bacon. They were amazing, and I think these will be a side dish that could fit in with any fall or winter meal. We also had 3 kinds of home brewed beer-- an E.S.B. from Dan, a Pumpkin Ale from Joe, and a Grand Cru from my dad. They are a talented bunch of brewers!

My Savory Bread Pudding is in the top right corner of the picture, and the Brussels sprouts are in the middle on the left.

Our after dinner tradition is a nice long walk around the neighborhood, and this year the weather in St. Louis was perfect. It wasn't warm, but the brisk temperature was the definition of great Thanksgiving weather. We finally invested in a copy of the movie Elf this year, and enjoyed that while eating apple and pumpkin pie. It was a relaxing day, full of fun family bonding, and I couldn't have asked for a better Thanksgiving! I hope everyone else had a great holiday weekend!

These recipes are all from Thanksgiving classes at The Chopping Block.

Sweet Corn and Gouda Bread Pudding with Gravy
Yield: 6-8 servings

1 sourdough loaf, cut into 1 inch pieces (about 8 cups)
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 red onion, sliced thin
1 pound Tuscan kale, torn into 1 inch pieces
4 cups frozen corn, defrosted
Salt and pepper to taste
7 eggs
2 1/4 cups half and half
6 tablespoons dry white wine
1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon thyme, rough chopped
3/4 pound Gouda cheese, grated
Salt and pepper to taste
Mushroom Gravy (recipe below)

1. Lay the cut up bread out to dry for about 2 hours.
2. Preheat the oven to 350° and butter a large baking dish.
3. Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat and add the olive oil. Sauté the red onion, stirring occasionally, until lightly caramelized. Add the kale and cook until wilted. Fold in the corn and season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, half and half, white wine, Dijon mustard and thyme.
5. Fold in the bread, kale mixture and cheese. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Allow this mixture to soak for 30 minutes.
6. Pour into the buttered baking dish and bake on a parchment-lined sheet tray until the center is set and the top is golden brown, about 40 minutes.
7. Allow to rest for 10 minutes and then serve with the Mushroom Gravy.

Mushroom Gravy
Yield: 3 cups

1/2 stick butter
1/2 pound mushrooms, thinly sliced
1/4 cup flour
2 1/2 cups vegetable stock
1/4 cup red wine
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon parsley, rough chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat a saucepan over medium heat and add the butter. Sauté the mushrooms, stirring occasionally, until lightly caramelized, about 8-10 minutes.
2. Stir in the flour. The mixture will look very pasty. Cook the roux for about 2 minutes.
3. Whisk in the stock, wine and soy sauce. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook, stirring frequently, until thickened, about 10 minutes.
4. Whisk in the parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Glazed Brussels Sprouts
Yield: 4-6 servings

1/4 lb bacon, cut into matchsticks
1 1/2 lbs Brussels sprouts, ends trimmed & cut in half
3 Tbsp walnut mustard
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 cup chicken stock
salt & pepper to taste

1. Heat a heavy, wide pan over medium-low heat and add the bacon pieces. Cook, stirring occasionally, until just crisp.

2. Toss in the Brussels sprouts, and saute until lightly caramelized.

3. Add the mustard, maple syrup, and chicken stock, and mix well. Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has reduced to a glaze and the sprouts are just tender, about 5-7 minutes.

Ready for the feast to begin!

Lounging around, recovering from far too much good food.

I wish I remembered what was so upsetting ... either Elf of the black Friday deals!

A perk of my family living in St. Louis is that I get to see awesome friends like Danielle when I go back for the holidays! We had dinner and drinks in Lafayette Square, a really cute area near downtown. Miss you Dani!

A New Kind of Fajita

2009-11-11T18:10:00.004-06:00

You know you've found a good recipe when you make the same exact thing for dinner two nights in a row. This is totally different from leftovers... I literally went back to the store and bought more of the ingredients to make the same exact dish again a day after trying it the first time. I can say this happened for a few reasons. First, it was stinking good! This taco filling was a twist on typical fajitas, with red onions, baby bella mushrooms, and poblano peppers. The flavors blended but still held their own, and the cumin sprinkled over top tied it all together. Adding slices of avocado and fresh pico de gallo put it over the top. I have to admit the other reason I made this was because the ingredient list is short and simple, and I was just not inspired to create anything that involved actual thinking. This recipe will be showing up in my kitchen again, I promise. Black beans on the side add protein and make it a well rounded meal, and I also think cut up grilled chicken would be amazing.

I saw this recipe in Bon Appetit when it first came out, but I have to give props to my friend The Kitchen Witch for inspiring me to actually try it. I owe you girl, because these were awesome!

Here's the full recipe, and if you're like me you can just make the filling and put it into plain soft tacos, or even make bigger burritos. Do follow the Kitchen Witch's advice to add avocado, and other yummy taco toppings you have around. Sky's the limit here! Also, I discovered that the leftovers are quite tasty over some brown rice, topped with cheese of course :)

Poblano and Mushroom Tacos
Makes 4
from Bon Appetit Magazine

2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
1 fresh poblano chile, halved, seeded, thinly sliced into long strips
1/2 small red onion, sliced
3 ounces crimini(baby bella) mushrooms, thinly sliced (about 1 1/4 cups)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
4 corn tortillas
4 thin slices Monterrey Jack cheese
chopped fresh cilantro
crumbled feta or Cojita cheese
Assorted toppings (such as shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, and hot sauce or salsa)

Heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add poblano chile, red onion and mushrooms; saute mixture until brown, about 5 minutes. Mix in ground cumin. Season to taste with salt. Transfer mixture to medium bowl.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in same skillet over medium-high heat. Add tortillas in a single layer, draping up the sides of skillet to fit. Divide mushroom mixture among tortillas, mounding on only 1 side. Place slice of Monterrey Jack cheese atop filling in each tortilla. Fold plain tortilla halves over filling and press firmly. Cook until tortillas are brown, about 1 minute per side. Transfer tacos to plates. Open tacos; sprinkle with chopped cilantro, crumbled feta or Cojita cheese, and toppings.

A Revolution Worth Joining!

2009-11-03T19:40:00.004-06:00

After drooling over the new Jamie Oliver cookbook, Jamie's Food Revolution, for about a week, I broke down and bought a copy of my own. I really like Jamie's overall approach to food... for one thing, he's all about seasonal, local, and natural food and cooking. His recipes aren't overly fussy, and he really seems to practice what he preaches. This cookbook is a bit different from his others, though, because it's got a huge (maybe revolutionary?) message behind it. If you read much in the online food world, maybe you've already heard about it. Jamie's twittered about his project, and I've read about it on Tasting Table last week. His goal: by having people "pass on" recipes and cooking advice to friends, family, coworks, or other people they know, maybe we can get huge portions of our population into their kitchens to start cooking for themselves and their families.

The recipes in this book are based around the idea that everybody can cook. They're simple, with tons of beautiful photographs, but Jamie has mastered the idea of keeping flavor and some sophistication even in simple recipes. I strongly agree with Jamie's point of view, and I love the idea of sharing recipes and inspiring other people to cook. Both of my part time foodie jobs are related to this mentality-- assisting with classes at The Chopping Block and working as a chef instructor for Common Threads. Jamie is actually a member of the Chef Advisory Board for Common Threads! So, overall, I love this book not only for the yummy recipes and adorable Britishness, but I also really support the message Jamie is trying to spread. He's actually taping a TV show about the Food Revolution in America right now, which will be airing on ABC in early 2010. If you want to know more, you can check out this New York Times article.

Also, if you are my friends and family that have been inspired by my blog, know how much it means to me! Every time one of you mentions trying a recipe I posted, I get so excited. I guess I see this blog as my version of the food revolution :) If you ever want any more recipes, or if you want to come over to my house and cook together some time, just let me know! Ask my friend Christie... we made homemade pasta a couple weeks ago, and it was so fun!

And now, how about a recipe? This is the first recipe I have made from Jamie's Food Revolution, and it was awesome! Joe and I were blown away by this version of meatloaf. Take everything you've ever thought about meatloaf and throw it out the window, because this one is totally different and a fantastic departure. The original recipe was for ground beef, but as you know by now I don't eat beef, and the ground turkey in our fridge made a great substitution. The tomato-chickpea sauce is what really made this dish, and Joe and I talked about potentially just making the sauce and spooning it over rice sometime. We did skip the bacon, to be slightly healthier, but obviously it would be delicious with some pieces of bacon to top it off!

There was enough sauce to drown our meatloaf, so we cooked some of it in a separate container.

Pot-Roast Meatloaf
by Jamie Oliver, in Jamie's Food Revolution

2 medium onions
olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp ground cumin
1 heaped tsp ground coriander
12 plain crackers, such as saltines
2 tsp dried oragano
2 heaped tsp dijon mustard
1 lb good quality ground beef or turkey
1 large egg
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 to 1 fresh red chili, to taste
1 tsp smoked paprika
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 15 oz can garbanzo beans
2 14 oz cans of diced tomatoes
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
12 slices of smoked bacon (I omitted)

Preheat oven to 475. Peel and finely chop on of the onions. Place in a large frying pan on medium high heat with 2 lugs of olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Add the ground cumin and coriander, and fry, stirring every 30 seconds for around 7 minutes. When the onions are softened and lightly golden, put them into a large bowl to cool. Put the crackers into a plastic baggie or kitchen towel and smash until fine. Add the crackers to the bowl of onions with the oregano, mustard, and ground meat. Crack in the egg and add another good pinch of pepper and salt.

With clean hands, scrunch and mix the meat up well. Shape into an oval shape, rub with a little oil, and place the meatloaf into a dutch oven or baking dish. Put into the preheated oven and turn the temperature down immediately to 400 degrees. Bake for 30 minutes.

To make the sauce, first peel the other onion and chop into 1/4 inch pieces. Peel and slice the garlic, and finely dice the red chili. Place these three ingredients into a large pan on medium high heat with 2 lugs of olive oil, the paprika, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook for around 7 minutes, stirring often, until softened and lightly golden. Add the Worcestershire sauce, garbanzo beans, tomatoes, and balsamic vinegar. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down and slowly simmer for 10 minutes. Taste the sauce, and season with salt and pepper as needed.

Pick the rosemary leaves off the stalks and put them into a little bowl (next time I'll mince them first). Remove the meatloaf from the oven and pour all the fat from the pan over the rosemary leaves and mix well (not much fat from Turkey, so I mixed the rosemary with olive oil). Spoon your sauce around the meatloaf, and lay the bacon over the top of the meatloaf and sauce. Scatter the rosemary leaves over the top. Put the meatloaf back into the oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until the bacon turns golden and the sauce is bubbling and delicious.

This was great served with Liz's Twice Baked Broccoli Stuffed Potatoes, which you can read about here. They were really good, especially if you add some cheese like she recommends!

Butternut Squash Baked Pasta

2009-10-30T17:58:00.000-05:00

I have been dying to tell you all about this dish for at least a week and a half, but school was more busy than usual and kept me away from blogging more. But this baked pasta is so good I considered blowing off my homework to tell you about it... or maybe blowing off my homework in order to go make more! I was able to talk myself out of it, but I hope you now understand how good this pasta is! It is creamy and silky, almost reminiscent of mac and cheese, but other than the carb overload it's pretty darn healthy. If you like pasta and butternut squash, you will love this.

I added a couple things in order to make this a complete meal. First, I crumbled up tempeh, and added it in as I was finishing up the onions. It added protein, and also a nice nutty flavor. If I haven't' convinced you yet, maybe this will be the dish that inspires you to try tempeh. I also added some spinach, for extra nutrients. It had good flavor, and I wished I had added even more spinach (I happened to have some in my fridge, so it initially went in as part of a fridge cleaning). Also, I didn't feel like going to the grocery store just for three slices of crusty baguette, so I just sliced up some regular wheat sandwich bread. Just as good, and maybe even healthier! This is a satisfying dinner and perfect cold weather comfort food.

Baked Shells with Winter Squash
From Everyday Food by Martha Stewart Living
Serves 4

Butter, for baking dish
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 large onions, halved and thinly sliced
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 8 oz package of tempeh, crumbled
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1 pound small pasta shells
1 package (12 ounces) frozen winter squash puree, thawed**
4 cups of baby spinach leaves
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 slices crusty baguette, cut into 1/4-inch cubes (1 1/2 cups)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Heat 3 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add onions; season with salt and pepper. Cover; cook until onions are soft and release liquid, 15 minutes. Uncover; raise heat to medium. Cook, stirring, until onions are browned, 20 to 25 minutes. Add the crumbled tempeh with about 10 minutes of cooking time left for the onions. Stir in 1 teaspoon rosemary.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water 2 minutes less than package instructions suggest. Drain, reserving 1 1/2 cups cooking water. Return pasta to pot.

Stir squash and reserved pasta water into onions; simmer 2 minutes. Toss squash mixture, the spinach, and 1/2 cup Parmesan with pasta. Transfer to prepared dish.

Combine bread cubes with remaining Parmesan, rosemary, and oil; season with salt and pepper. Top pasta with bread cubes; bake until golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes.

** Want to make your own squash puree? Take a whole butternut squash, cut it in half, scoop out the seeds, and roast in the oven. I sprinkled a little salt and pepper on top, and roasted for about 45 minutes in a 400 degree oven. When the squash is very soft, remove from the oven and let cool. Scoop out the squash, and puree in a food processor or blender. It's easy, but make sure you plan the extra time for it to roast!

Weekend Breakfast Treat!

2009-10-23T14:45:00.000-05:00

I mastered the art of pumpkin pancakes a few weeks ago, and have been dying to tell you about the recipe I officially adore. But I wanted to be strategic, and hopefully inspire you a little! That's why I couldn't do this post any old day... if you heard about pumpkin pancakes on Tuesday, you might forget all about them by the time the weekend rolled around. And this is a recipe you don't want to forget. You want to grab a post it, jot down ingredients you might need, and head to the store on your way home tonight. If your weekend is going to be as rainy and mellow as mine, then it is perfect timing to cook some of these babies for breakfast.

While you're at it, check out the awesome blog I got the recipe from. It's Pinch My Salt, and I don't know how I hadn't run across it before. It's great! I am kind of in awe of Nicole's pictures... maybe some day I'll try to learn more about taking great pictures and editing them to look like hers. For now, I'll just admire other people's pictures and work on my cooking skills. One thing at a time, right? My friend Katie gave me the excellent suggestion to try this recipe when I had leftover pumpkin, and now in the last month I've made pumpkin pancakes on multiple occasions.

Before I share the recipe, let me give you a pancake tip if you're like me and only cooking for one or two people. Pancake batter can make a lot, right? And while you could scale down the recipe, that is a lot of dishes and effort for only 4 or 5 pancakes. I like to put in the effort once, and eat the results on multiple occasions! But pancakes are only good in the fridge for a couple more days before you have to throw them out. So... why not freeze them? The trick is to freeze them in a single layer on a cookie sheet, then put them into a ziplock freezer bag once they're already frozen. They go from frozen to delish about about 45 seconds in the microwave, and can be a great way to get yourself moving on a weekday morning that's really dragging. And while I'm on the subject of freezing stuff, it turns out canned pumpkin also freezes well. Put 1 cup portions into baggies to freeze, then grab a bag and thaw in the sink when you're craving these pancakes!

And in case you guys think my fridge is out of control, here's proof that I'm not crazy :

See, look at all that space! I have some frozen meat, ice cream, pasta sauce... all normal stuff, and not too much of it! And Matt, I'm glad to hear you're freezing bananas at your house, too :)

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Pancakes
From Pinch My Salt

1 C. whole wheat flour

1/2 C. cake flour

1 t. baking soda

2 t. baking powder

1/4 t. salt

1 t. ground cinnamon

1/2 t. ground ginger

1/2 t. ground nutmeg

1 C. buttermilk

1 C. canned pumpkin puree

2 eggs

2 T. oil

1 t. vanilla

2 T. dark brown sugar

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the first eight ingredients (whole wheat flour through nutmeg). In a separate bowl, whisk together the last six ingredients (buttermilk through brown sugar).

2. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and blend together with a wooden spoon until just combined. Lumps are ok, just make sure all the flour on the bottom of the bowl is mixed in. If batter seems too thick to pour, you can gently stir in a little more buttermilk.

3. Drop pancakes by ladleful onto a medium-hot griddle. Pancakes are ready to turn when the edges start to look a little dry and you can see small bubbles forming on the surface.

If you really want to enjoy these pancakes, splurge on real maple syrup. It is so worth it on these pancakes!

The best quiche I've ever made...

2009-10-20T18:55:00.005-05:00

Working at the Chopping Block, I see a lot of great recipes that I'd like to try at home. But there are not enough meals in the day, especially when I'm only cooking dinner a couple nights a week lately! So I try to be really selective about which recipes I see in class and want to make at home. This quiche recipe jumped out to me as soon as I saw it. I didn't even get to taste it, because the people in the class took their leftovers home, but I knew I needed a copy of the recipe. I made it within a day or two, which is a quick turn around for me. Boy was I glad I did make it quickly, because it was amazing!! The flavors blended together perfectly, and I felt like it was a great balance of protein, dairy, and veggies. Ever since we started consciously trying to eat less meat, quiche has been one of my favorite things to cook. It's not the healthiest option out there, with a buttery crust and cheese on top, but I do think quiche is a great way to get a well balanced meal out of one dish. Add a salad on the side, and this makes the perfect lunch. I also loved a little slice for breakfast, with yogurt or fruit on the side.

Sun Dried Tomato, Spinach, and Goat Cheese Quiche
from "The Breakfast Club" class at The Chopping Block

2 tbsp butter
2 shallots, sliced thin
4 cups baby spinach
1 cup sun dried tomatoes
2 Tbsp parsley, rough chopped
4 eggs
2/3 cups half and half
1/3 cup whole milk
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste
blind baked tart/pie crust (see note below)
3/4 cup goat cheese, crumbled

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Heat a large saute pan over medium heat and add the butter. Gently saute the shallots until lightly caramelized, about 3-4 minutes. Add the spinach and cook until just wilted. Fold in the oven dried tomatoes, parsley, salt and pepper.

Whisk together the eggs, half and half, milk, nutmeg, and salt and pepper. Stir the spinach mixture into the eggs and pour into the blind baked crust. Dot the top of the quiche with th egoat cheese and bake until puffed and golden brown, about 45 minutes. Cool for about 15 minutes and then cut into wedges.

** My Note: With my busy schedule I've been looking for shortcuts to help me maximize the time that I'm in the kitchen. One shortcut I've been loving is buying pre-made pie crusts. I've made a couple quiche recipes using these crusts, and I think they are worth the time I save! The pre-made crusts that come in their own pan are smaller than a regular pie dish, though, so you'll need to scale back your liquids accordingly. I did about 2/3 cup total of heavy cream and skim milk (the dairy I had on hand already- worked perfectly), and I used only 3 eggs. I kept the spinach the same, and did about 3/4 cup of tomatoes. I also did a little less cheese on top, to keep it from being too rich. Don't be afraid to experiment!

Masa Bread is the new Cornbread!

2009-10-11T20:40:00.000-05:00

Quick, when I say "chili", what is the first accompaniment that comes to mind? It's cornbread, right? That's been my answer every since I started making chili a few years ago. I love inventing new types of chili based on my mood, but the side dish never varies. And even though I usually like trying new things, this corn bread requirement never really bothered me.

Last week I planned to make a big pot of chili, and for whatever reason I stopped myself before I gathered the ingredients for cornbread. I had finally reached my limit, and determined that I needed something else to fill the "yummy carb" food category of this meal. That lead me to pull out a few cookbooks, and when I stumbled across a bread recipe from my mom I knew I had found my answer. Masa bread is something she used to make all the time when I was younger, and I loved it. I can't tell you what it is about this bread, but it's amazing! Maybe it's the texture... it's pretty dense but not tough or doughy. Maybe it's the flavor... it tastes like corn, but only subtly. Whatever it is, this bread is a wonderful alternative to cornbread, especially with chili or any type of mexican stew (like my Mexican Chili or Chile Verde).

Masa Bread
from Breads of the Southwest, by Beth Hensperger

-3 3/4 to 4 1/4 cups all purpose flour
-1 1/4 cups masa harina para tortillas (the masa I found said "instant for tamales" and it worked great!)
-1 Tbsp/package active dry yeast
-3 Tbsp packed brown sugar
-2 tsp salt
-2 cups warm water (about 115 degrees)
- cornmeal, for sprinkling
- 2 Tbsp corn oil, for brushing

In a mixer with a paddle, mix 1 cup all purpose flour with the masa, yeast, sugar, and salt. Add hot water and beat until smooth- about 1 minute. Add remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, and mix on low until dough just clears the sides of the bowl.

Switch to a dough hook, and knead until soft and springy- about 1-2 minutes for the machine. Dust with flour 1 Tbsp at a time to prevent sticking. The dough should be smooth and springy, not dry. Put the kneaded dough into a greased bowl, and turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, about 1-1/12 hours at room temperature.

Turn the dough out onto the counter to deflate, and form into two loaves. Place the loaves onto a baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal, at least four inches apart. Brush the loaves with corn oil, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise until double, about 45 minutes.

About 20 minutes before baking, preheat the over to 375 degrees.

Brush the tops of the loaves again with corn oil. Bake on the center oven rack for 30 to 35 minutes, or until golden brown and hallow sounding. Place the loaves onto a cooking rack immediately. Bread is best warm or at room temperature on the day its baked.

My Notes-- since it makes two loaves, I slice one and put it in the freezer. Then I can easily grab a slice or two without defrosting the whole loaf. This bread is fantastic for breakfast, toasted with butter and honey on top.

Julia's Ratatouille

2009-10-06T15:14:00.000-05:00

If you're like me, you probably had not idea what exactly ratatouille was when that cute animated film by the same name came out a couple years back. I saw the movie, actually, I insisted on purchasing the movie, yet I still had no clue what the actual French dish was. I'd heard reference to it being some kind of vegetable casserole, but couldn't have picked it out if someone set a dish right in front of me.

Thankfully, that all changed when Julie and Julia came out this summer, and recipes from Mastering the Art of French Cooking started popping up all over the place! I found the recipe for Julia Child's Ratatouille in Bon Appetit, and knew I had to try it. Basically, I would describe it as a mix of stewed vegetables, including peppers, eggplant, and tomatoes. While the ingredients are mostly summer vegetables, the method of cooking makes it so that you could use sub-par out of season veggies and still pull off a good dish. I think it would be great this time of year, when you still have some veggies around, but also want a warm and satisfying dish. You'll be amazed at the great flavor you get from such simple ingredients!

Ratatouille
by Julia Child, reprinted in Bon Appetit

1/2 pound eggplant
1/2 pound zucchini, trimmed
1 tsp salt
7 Tbsp olive oil, divided
1 8-oz onion, thinly sliced
2 green bell peppers, thinly sliced into strips
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1 pound firm but ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, cut into 1/4 inch thick strips
3 Tbsp minced fresh parsley

Peel eggplant; cut lengthwise into 1/4 inch thick slices, then cut into 3-inch-long, 1-inch-side strips. Cut zucchini into same size strips. Place vegetables in large bowl, sprinkle with 1 tsp salt. Let stand 30 minutes. Drain; dry with paper towels.

Heat 4 Tbsp oil in large skilled over medium-high heat. Working in batches, add eggplant and zucchini to skillet; saute until light golden, about 1 minute per side. Transfer to plate; reserve. Add 3 Tbsp oil to skillet; heat over medium heat. Add onion and peppers; saute until just tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in garlic. Season with salt and pepper.

Place tomato strips atop onion-pepper mixture in skillet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover skillet; cook over low heat until tomatoes begin to juice, about 5 minutes. Uncover; baste vegetables in skillet with juices. Boil until juices are almost evaporated, 2 to 3 minutes.

Transfew 1/3 of onion-pepper-tomato mixture to 2 1/2 quart pot; sprinkle with 1 tbsp parsley. Top with half of eggplant and half of zucchini, then remaining onion mixture; sprinkle with 1 Tbsp parsley. Cover; simmer over low heat 10 minutes. Uncover; tilt pot and baste with accumulated juices. Increase heat to medium; simmer uncovered, basting several times with pan juices until only 2 to 3 Tbsp juices remain in pot, watching closely to avoid scorching, 10 to 15 minutes loger. Season with salt and pepper, and serve warm or at room temperature.

I served the Ratatouille with chicken flavored by a simple
lemon and herb marinade and oven roasted potatoes.

Banana Muffins with a Seasonal Twist

2009-09-23T09:48:00.004-05:00

What do you do with bananas when they get a little too brown for eating? Do you stick them in the freezer to use for baking? That was always my mom's strategy, and ever since I've lived on my own I've done the same thing. That way, whenever I get the urge to make banana muffins, I have the main ingredient waiting in the freezer. I've had some roommates in the past who thought I was weird for freezing too many random things (Chris, Matt, are you reading this?), but it's so convenient to have softened bananas on hand for baking!

Sometimes, however, the blackened bananas start taking over the freezer. This weekend I noticed that was starting to be the case, so I decided it was time to make some banana muffins. I was headed straight towards my regular muffin recipe, from the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book, but something caused me to pick up my binder full of handwritten recipe cards. As I flipped through my old recipes, one from last year caught my attention: Pumpkin Banana Muffins. Perfect! This recipe allowed me to use up a couple of the bananas that were taking up precious freezer real estate, and also gave me a chance to make my first pumpkin recipe of the season. These muffins were as good as I remembered from last year, and were the perfect breakfast to usher in this fall-like weather.

I do have a problem that I might need your help with. I had to buy a big can of pumpkin, since that was all my little local grocery store had. This recipe only calls for 1/2 cup of pumpkin, which means I have at least two cups of pumpkin puree sitting in my fridge. What's your favorite pumpkin recipe that you think I should try?

Pumpkin Banana Muffins
I wrote down this was from allrecipes.com, but can't find the recipe on the site any more

1/2 cup pumpkin
1/2 cup mashed bananas
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg

1 3/4 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp salt

topping
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup oats/nuts
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Mix the wet ingredients in a medium bowl. Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl, make a well in the center, and add the wet ingredients. Mix until just combined. Spoon into greased muffin tin, and top each muffin with 1 Tbsp of topping. Bake at 375 for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Notes: Since we don't eat a dozen muffins very quickly at my house, I tend to freeze at least half of them. They microwave well in about 20 to 30 seconds. The topping on these was kind of a pain, and didn't stick very well. Any suggestions?

Something's brewing in our kitchen...

2009-09-17T07:52:00.005-05:00

As you can imagine, I haven't been making very good use of my kitchen recently! I'm still cooking, since 2 of my part time jobs involve cooking lessons, but have had very few chances to actually get into my own kitchen. For example, the next two nights I work at the Chopping Block until late, then Saturday I'm in a food safety class all day, then I babysit Saturday night and work all day Sunday. I've eaten more Turkey sandwiches in the last month than I'd eaten in the last couple years, and granola bars or goldfish crackers have become essential parts of my diet. I'm eating like a six year old a lot of the time, which is kind of sad.

But the kitchen has been getting some use from Joe. He's made a couple dinners on nights when I've been working all day while he's at home. He made a fantastic butternut squash soup from Jamie at Home on Sunday, which I'm bugging him to blog about. He's cooked other dishes here and there, but that's not what I want to tell you about today. What I want to tell you about is his new hobby... brewing beer!

The brew master takes over the kitchen!

I'm not sure if I've emphasized enough that Joe and I are big beer fans. We've been known to choose a craft brew over wine even at a fancy restaurant, and would be content hanging out at a beer-centric bar in Chicago any night of the week. We used to live only a block or two from the Hopleaf, one of the best beer bars in the city, and would walk there on a random weeknight to enjoy one of the over 100 beers they had on hand. We've toured a few breweries together, and have spent many evenings talking with my beer obsessed father about different brews that we enjoy. My dad has been brewing his own beer for years, and finally inspired Joe to try his hand at the art of home brewing.

Last summer we visited Lakefront Brewery in Milwaukee,
which I would highly recommend if you're ever in the area.

A few weeks ago my dad and I visited the Schlafly Bottleworks in St. Louis.

One of the things I love about Joe brewing is that he's as obsessed with it as I am with cooking. He's started hanging out on the message boards of homebrewtalk.com, and more than once apologized for talking about brewing too much. He didn't want to use a pre-packaged kit, and ambitiously used a recipe his first time. His first batch of wheat beer was a success, and we enjoyed sharing it with friends and family. Like cooking, brewing gives you a sense of pride for creating something for people to enjoy.

The first day of brewing... this is when the kitchen is a bit of a mess! After this day it goes into a huge jug to ferment. At that point we store it in the basement, to keep it in a cool environment and also to get it out of the way!

Two to three weeks later it's time to bottle. Once the beer is in bottles and caps have been securely attached, it has to condition for another couple weeks. It gets bubbly during this part of the process.

Our first batch made around 45 bottles, which went pretty quickly when we started sharing it with everyone.

Sharing the fruits of his labor is probably Joe's favorite part... and everyone has enjoyed the brew so far!

Right now we have a Pumpkin Ale fermenting, and I think Joe will be bottling it this weekend. It should be prime for drinking in October, just in time for the change in season. If you want to know more details about the specifics of brewing, let me know and I'll put you in touch with Joe. And maybe I can convince him to do a guest post one of these days to tell you more about the process. If you have a second, I'd love to hear a comment about your favorite brew! I think Magic Hat #9 is one of my favorites... but I also really love the Goose Island reserve brew called Sophie, which I think you can only buy in Illinois. Cheers!

A Breakthrough: Tempeh Tacos!

2009-09-10T15:04:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone! Remember me? Classes started two weeks ago, and as I expected life has become pretty much insane! Not too much cooking, and even less time for recording my cooking stories on here. But I'm not giving up! I've cut out time-sensitive blog commitments (like Daring Bakers), but I am still going to push myself to update my blog whenever I do have a chance. So if you promise not to give up on me, I'll do my best to share my food adventures whenever I have some free time!

This recipe is one I discovered earlier this summer, when Joe and I took a vegetarian cooking class at the Chopping Block. I had experimented with tempeh before, and felt like it was a better texture and flavor then tofu. But I had only though of one main way to use it... cut up cubes, marinate (any flavor works here- asian, italian, bbq), then stir fry it. The tempeh soaks up marinade flavors really well, but I was getting sick of only cooking it one way.

The revelation at our cooking class came when we discovered that tempeh could be crumbled. For some reason I had not though of using it that way, and as soon as I heard the idea I was off and running. Basically, crumbling the tempeh means you could sub it most places where you would use ground meat, adding protein and bulk without using an animal product. AND, for you meat eaters out there, think how easily you could use this knowledge to make a vegetarian friendly meal when you're inviting tree huggers over for dinner. The recipe below is using tempeh in tacos, and think how fun it would be to have a taco bar that included tempeh, ground beef, and shreaded chicken.

The original recipe called for making peach salsa to put on top.
We didn't plan ahead enough to make peach salsa, but that didn't
stop me from chopping up a regular peach to top the tacos. The
sweet fruit was a great complement to the spicy tacos.

And don't worry, I'm not turning into some holier-than-thou veggie eater... I've eaten meat most days this week, mostly because I keep eating leftovers from work and that means lots of varieties of meat! But I have lowered my grocery bill by minimizing the meat we buy, and I hope that our reduction has a teeny, tiny, slight impact on our environment. Not to mention the meat area at my nearby grocery store can smell kind of questionable, and since I don't have a car during the day it's my easiest grocery shopping option!

Public Service Announcement: Wondering where to buy tempeh? They sell it at Whole Foods, and also at Trader Joe's for almost $1 cheaper per package. You'll find it near the tofu and other meat alternatives, usually near the produce department or the cheese & dairy. Give it a try!

Spiced Tempeh Tacos
from The Chopping Block cooking school in Chicago

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, sliced thin
1 red pepper, sliced thin
8 ounces tempeh, crumbled
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp of your favorite Mexican spice blend (I did some cumin, cayenne pepper, chili powder, and a touch of paprika)
2 roma tomatoes, cut in a small dice
1/4 cup cilantro, rough chopped
juice of one lime
salt and pepper, to taste
corn tortillas

Heat a saute pan over medium heat and add the olive oil. Saute the onion, red pepper and tempeh, stirring occasionally, until lightly caramelized. Add the garlic and spices and continue cooking for an additional minute. Add the tomatoes and cook until they start to break down, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat and fold in the lime juice, cilantro, salt and pepper.

Toast the tortillas over an open flame or in a skillet. Fill with the tempeh mixture, and garnish with peach salsa, sour cream, etc.

Layers of Celebration

2009-09-02T16:57:00.000-05:00

Nothing says birthday like layer cake, right? Joe recently had his birthday, and I knew I needed to make him something special. He made me a cherry upside down cake from scratch for my birthday, so not just any cake would do. His request was that it be a cake with chocolate, and my vision was to make it a layer cake. When I was browsing Smitten Kitchen and saw Deb's cake for her husband's birthday, I knew I'd found the perfect birthday cake. Espresso Chiffon Cake with Fudge Icing
The recipes and comments below are all from Smitten Kitchen. If you've never checked our her blog, you MUST, because it's full of amazing things that I want to cook now, if not sooner! I will add a couple notes of my own, though, because I wouldn't want to leave you without some insight from your favorite Chicago foodie ;)

I made this as a six inch cake, because Joe and I enjoy being relatively healthy people and didn't need a giant cake around. Plus, I only had one six inch pan, that was just made for cakes like this. The sides on the cake are about 3 or 4 inches high, so I made a half recipe of the cake, and just baked one taller cake. I let it cool completely, then released it from the pan and sliced it into three layers. It held the shape really well, and my serrated bread knife went right through. I also did half recipes on the icing and espresso syrup, and it worked just about perfectly. Also, check out the fudge frosting recipe, because it's made in the food processor and it is brilliant!

Espresso Chiffon Cake
Adapted from (what else?) Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes

Despite picking one, I actually have all sorts of biases against chiffon cakes; mostly, that they’re lovely and fluffy but dry, namely because they have just smidgens of oil or butter in them. But this one called to me. I was hoping that the lightness of the chiffon cake layers would allow the strong espresso taste to come through, and that it did, though it didn’t hurt that it was brushed with a 1:1:1 ratio syrup of sugar, rum and straight espresso [or in other words, I think I briefly forgot that I was pregnant or something. Officially the most caffeine and booze I've had in 34 weeks and completely worth it.] that made the cake so ridiculously moist, I will never talk smack about chiffon cakes again.

Makes an 8- or 9-inch triple-layer cake

1/4 cup neutral vegetable oil, such as soybean, canola or vegetable blend
6 eggs, separated
6 tablespoons freshly brewed espresso, cooled to room temperature (Huntsman recommends freshly-brewed over hydrating espresso powder, which she feels can be too bitter)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups cake flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line the bottoms of three 8- or 9-inch round cake pans with rounds of parchment or waxed paper, but do not grease.

In a medium bowl, combine the oil, egg yolks, espresso and vanilla; whisk lightly to blend. In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, 1 cup of the sugar, the baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Set the dry ingredients aside.

In a large mixer bowl with an electric mixture, whip the egg whites with the cream of tartar on medium-low speed until frothy. Raising the mixer speed to medium-high and gradually add the remaining half cup of sugar. Continue to beat until soft peaks form; do not whip until stiff or the cake will shirk excessively upon cooling.

Add the espresso-egg yolk mixture to the dry ingredients and fold together just enough to combine. Add one-fourth of the beaten egg whites and fold them in to lighten the batter. Fold in the remainder of the whites just until no streaks remain. Divide the batter among the three prepared pans.

Bake the cakes for about 18 minutes each, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely in the pans. When cooled, run a blunt knife around the edge of the pans to release the cakes. Invert onto wire racks and remove the paper liners.

To assemble the cake, place one layer, flat side up, on a cake stand or serving plate. Soak the cake with 1/3 cup of the Espresso Syrup (below). Spread about 1 1/3 cups of the Instant Fudge Frosting (below) evenly over the top of the layer. Repeat with the next layer, more syrup and more frosting. Finally, top with the third layer. Soak it with the remaining syrup and frost the tops and sides with the remaining frosting.

Espresso Syrup

Makes one cup

1/3 cup hot, freshly brewed espresso
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup dark rum, such as Meyer’s

In a bowl, stir together the espresso and sugar until the sugar dissolves. Add the rum and let cool to room temperature.

Don’t want to use rum? (I know someone will ask.) I’d swap it with water, perhaps flavored with some vanilla extract. Worried about the caffeine? Use decaf espresso.

Instant Fudge Frosting
Adapted, barely, from a Sky High recipe

Now, this is, to be honest, a fancy name for a quick buttercream but it’s got two things going for it that are worth mentioning: One, the frosting isn’t flavored with cocoa (too mild) or even good semisweet chocolate, but unsweetened chocolate. Brilliant, I tell you. I find most quick buttercreams way too sweet, and although this one still is quite sugary, the super-bitter chocolate goes a long way to mitigating it. The second thing worth mentioning is this: Did you know you can make quick buttercreams in the food processor? I had no idea, I hadn’t even considered it before. But there I was whirling everything together in ten seconds flat and I will make it no other way from now on.

Makes about 5 cups

6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
4 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar (no need to sift)
3 sticks (12 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
6 tablespoons half-and-half or whole milk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Place all of the ingredients in a food processor and pulse to incorporate, then process until the frosting is smooth.

4 Ingredients, amazing results

2009-08-30T11:02:00.001-05:00

I'm starting school this week, and also my new job. This means 10 hours of class and three part time jobs. As you can imagine, I'm anticipating being quite busy this fall! But the last few weeks have been scattered through with days of doing nothing around the house, and I've worked hard to soak up that calm feeling. I made this pasta for lunch one day, which was a luxury I won't have with my new busy schedule.

Honestly, this recipe came about as I was working on cleaning out my fridge and pantry. I had two partial boxes of short pasta, some green beans that were starting to turn a little less green, a potato that was growing sprouts, and some pesto Joe made last week. I was flipping through my Everyday Food cookbook looking for dinner ideas for the week, and I happened upon a recipe that called for all the ingredients I wanted to use up. Perfect!

Pasta with Pesto, Potatoes, and Green Beans
from Everyday Food

serves 4

2 medium potatoes, cut into 1 inch cubes (peeled if you want, I skipped it)
salt
8 ounces short pasta
8 ounces green beans, trimmed and halved
1/2 cup pesto
pepper

Place the potatoes into a large pot of boiling water, bring to a boil. Add one tsp of salt and the pasta, return to a boil, and cook two more minutes. Add the green beans, return to a boil, and cook until the vegetables are tender and the pasta in al dente, about 6 minutes. Drain, toss with the pesto, and season with salt and pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Summer Corn Chowder

2009-08-28T10:05:00.002-05:00

While I was in St Louis, Joe went out to the outskirts of Chicago to visit his parents. As you might know, outskirts of Chicago = farms and lots of open space. He drove by a farmer selling corn at a roadside stand, and bought a bunch of ears for us to enjoy at home. I never liked corn as a kid, unless it was on the cob. As I got older I realized that this meant I only liked fresh corn... none of that canned or frozen stuff. When it is fresh corn, I could it it in just about anything... salads, pastas, soups, anything!

This batch of fresh corn came right around the time I was craving chowder. I looked up recipes online, but a lot of them called for gross stuff like creamed corn in the soup. That was NOT the refreshing summer chowder I was dreaming of! I also wanted some potatoes in my chowder, so I went off searching for "corn and potato chowder". This recipe came from the Whole Foods website , and added cheese into the mix. What that meant was corn chowder perfection. I used my fresh corn instead of frozen junk, and I mixed a little half and half in with my milk for extra creaminess. Joe and I agreed that this was the perfect way to highlight the crunchy, sweet corn. The soup was indulgent without being too rich, and the potatoes added enough bulk to make this really fill you up. We had BLT sandwiches on the side, and thought this was the epitome of a late summer dinner.

Cheddar, Corn, and Potato Chowder
from www.wholefoods.com

Ingredients

3 tablespoons butter
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 tablespoon flour
32 ounces vegetable broth
2 1/2 cup diced Yukon Gold potatoes (about 4 large)
2 cups frozen yellow corn
2/3 cup milk
1 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
Pinch of cayenne pepper (garnish)
Chopped parsley (garnish)

In a large saucepan over medium high heat, melt butter and sauté onion about 5 minutes, until tender. Mix in flour, coating the onion. Add broth and bring to a boil, whisking constantly until smooth. Reduce heat, add potatoes and simmer 20 minutes until tender. Slightly mash potatoes in soup, then stir in corn and milk. Cook another 5 minutes, remove from heat and stir in cheddar cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish, if desired.