Ringing in the New Year in Style

For many years, we tried going to parties or out with friends on New Year's Eve but eventually, the Grillmaster and I realized that staying at home was our best bet.  However, in spite of the comfortable clothes (okay, pajamas) and watching television, we have developed some simple but exceptional menus.  Here is a great choice for a "romantic" dinner.  I put it in quotes because we were deep into parenthood when our attitudes about New Year's Eve developed.

So how about serving some fresh artichokes and grilled wild salmon?  Sound better than what you get at a party?  This is an easy menu.

First the artichokes...I rarely cooked them although I often cook with them because of the mystery surrounding the preparation.  Here is a sinfully simple way to bake fresh artichokes.  They are delicious and you look like an expert.

Select two medium to large artichokes in the market.  Look at the stems.  They should still look fresh and should be 2 to 3 inches long.  The outer leaves should be a dark green to reddish color.  Trim off the spines at the top of each leaf.  This will give you the classic appearance you are use to.

Cut each artichoke in half, length-wise, and remove the choke ( the fuzzy stuff)

Use a spoon to scrap out the balance of the choke and the smallest leaves.

Liberally douse the cut artichoke with lemon juice.

This prevents unattractive browning.  

Put 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil and about 1 teaspoon Italian seasonings in a plastic quart bag. Place each half individually into the bag and coat all surfaces with the mixture.  Then place them, cut side down in a baking dish that has been lined with foil.  The foil needs to be sprayed with cooking spray before you add the artichokes.  Mix about 1/4 cup basil pesto with 1/4 cup water and pour over the artichokes.  Seal with foil.  Bake at 350 for 45 minutes to an hour as needed.

Chop the lettuce and shredded carrots and then rinse in cold water and let it drain in the colander.  

Marinate the thawed Salmon in a mixture of 1/4 cup olive oil and 2 tablespoons lemon juice, to which you have added about 1/2 tablespoon of Italian Seasonings.

Sit down with your sweetheart and have a glass of wine, or beer.  Have a nice conversation.  Put the kids to bed, or start a movie for them.

After the salmon has marinated for 20 to 30 minutes, heat to 400 a grill or grilling pan.  Check your artichokes for doneness (soft enough to eat?). If the artichokes are done, turn off the oven and place the salmon on the grill, skin side down.  After two to three minutes, turn the salmon over and pour the remaining marinate over the fillets.  Add about 3 tablespoons water to the grill and cover with a domed lid.

The salmon is done when it begins to be flaky and is no longer translucent.

Plate the salads individually.  Add dressing as desired. Put the salmon and artichokes on a plate.  No sauce should be needed.  Add some warm bread and a dry white wine.  

Enjoy your dinner at home.

Don't forget that it is always Midnight somewhere.  Happy New Year.

Crock Pot Chicken Noodle Soup

Oh, how my life has changed... I used to love snow days so I could sleep in, watch movies and then order take out.

Now on a snow day, I somehow end up getting up earlier than on a normal work day (how do kids know?!?) and getting all jazzed about trying those recipes that I've pinned on Pinterest or dog eared in one of my favorite cookbooks. Most of them are exactly what I expected, but this was a big surprise. It was super easy, I only had to buy one ingredient (!), smelled great and tasted as good.  I also had plenty left to freeze, which is also a plus.

I made tons of adjustments to the original recipe, so I'm just posting my version.

Crock Pot Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients

2 lbs chicken (I used 2 freezer packs of breast cutlets from Costco-since it was all white, I added about 1/2 tbsp of butter, but you could leave that out)

1 1/2 cups carrots chopped

2 1/2 stalks celery chopped

1 onion sliced

2 squirts of ginger from a tube (the recipe called for 2 peeled 1/4 inch slices-who has time for that?)

1 tsp freeze dried oregano (recipe called for 3 stalks rosemary-but I subbed oregano in)

6 cups chicken broth (Recipe called for 4, but my soup got really thick so i added 2 more cups broth + 2 cups water the last hour. I used bullion cubes so I can quick make some more if I need to)

1 cup white wine (TJ box special!!!)

Salt and pepper to taste

2 cups egg noodles (plus an extra handful or 2 if you want more noodles)

Instructions

Put everything except the noodles into the crock pot. Cook on low 8 hours.

Shred chicken and return to crock pot.

Add egg noodles and more water/broth if needed and continue cooking on high 20-30 minutes or until noodles are done.

I served it with biscuits and it was a huge hit! My husband said it was the best chicken soup he'd ever had. My 14 month old son ate 2 bowls and sad, "mmm mmm mmm!" and my 3 year old voluntarily tasted it. That's a pretty big success in our house. Enjoy!

Cold Weather Comfort Food

Just about the only thing I like about cold weather is that most evenings, I can serve a hearty soup or stew for supper.  My absolute favorite is 15 Bean Soup.  I made this the first time using a dried bean mix.  Now I usually purchase all fifteen of the beans. ( Technically though, one or two aren't really beans.) One cup of each and you are good for a year since it takes three cups of the dried beans to make a batch.  You can freely sub a different bean if one on this list isn't available at the grocery.

Fifteen beans (more or less)

Northern, Pinto, Large Lima, Black-eyed Peas, Garbanzo beans, Small white, Baby Lima, Split Green Peas, Pearl Barley, Kidney Beans, White Kidney Beans, Dark Red Kidney Beans, Pink Kidney Beans, Small Red beans, Black Beans, Yellow split peas, Lentils, Navy beans.  You could also add Quinoa if you like.

Or you can buy  the beans pre-mixed called HamBeen's. Just skip their  smoke seasoning. It is full of salt you don't need and the flavor is decidedly artificial. 

To start the dry beans, 

Rinse 3 cups beans in colander and discard any debris. Also throw away broken beans.

Place the dry beans in a large pot and cover with water. Soak over night.  Rinse, cover with water and soak for an additional several hours. Or  skip the over night step and put the beans and about 5 to 6 cups of water in your slow cooker and set the timer for four hours. Now your beans are ready to cook in the soup.

Place the beans in a large stock pot and add one large onion, coarsely chopped, three stalks celery, sliced, one large carrot peeled and chopped. Add about1 1/2 tablespoons chopped garlic and several real ham hocks if you can find them. I always save the bone from spiral cut hams to use, one bone per batch  Also add one can diced tomatoes or if you like spicier soup, use a can of Rotel tomatoes with chilies. I like to add about 1cup of diced ham but this is optional as the stew is already full of flavor and protein. Increase the heat to boiling and add about 2 quarts water.  Simmer for an hour or two until the beans are cooked and serve.  I like a splash of vinegar in mine but the Grillmaster prefers Tabasco in his. This is a complete meal so just add some bread or crackers if you like.

My Favorite Things

(Kathleen's older daughter, Elissa, here)

I love The Sound of Music and enjoyed watching the remake last night.  As a musician, I am friends with a lot of people who had critical reviews of it.  I enjoyed it, I though it was entertaining and refreshing that NBC dedicated an entire prime time to a special without profanity, sex or violence that isn't an athletic event!  Without completely meaning to, I ended up cooking a dinner that is inspired by The Sound of Music, hence the title "My Favorite Things."

I really love Mexican food, so taco night is a common occurrence in the V casa. I also really love to repurpose leftovers.  It is a great source of pride to me how little food my family wastes.  And today was a snow day-who doesn't love those?!?!  And nothing says "snow day" like taco night... Right?

Tonight's taco night was a classic leftover creation.  I used homemade tortillas and hot sauce leftover from our Thanksgiving trip to my husband's hometown of Lamesa, TX.  I had a sweet and spicy pork roast left over from earlier this week (that recipe is in an earlier blog post).  I broiled the veggie portion of the "fajitas two ways" recipe (also featured in an earlier post).  I decided to do that because I had a baggie of sliced bell peppers that I would have packed for lunch... But it was a snow day, and I don't want to waste that either, so I sliced an onion and voila!  I had a delicious side dish.  

I even grated some Monterey jack sandwich cheese that I let sit too close to a warm dish and it melted too much to put on sandwiches.  Yep, I could've tossed it, but by now I'm sure you're starting to understand the extent to which I hate to throw away food.  Plus, it was a slightly creamier cheese thn what I normally serve, so it was a nice treat for my kids.

Add some guacamole (a staple in our house) and you're good to go!

The only part of my meal I actually made new tonight was the seasoned black beans-So at my Mom's encouragement I'm sharing that simple recipe tonight.

I've got a recipe for nearly every variety of beans you could want... but until recently my husband swore that he did not like black beans.  Then I came across this recipe for seasoning black beans.  It is actually a small component of another recipe I found on Pinterest, but the beans are hands down the best part of that recipe.

Seasoned Black Beans

Ingredients

2 cans black beans

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 cloves minced garlic

1 seeded and minced jalapeño (I use Trappy's jarred jalapeños)

1/2 teaspoon cumin

Instructions

Sauté vegetable oil, garlic and jalapeño in a medium pot for one minute. Add cumin and sauté one minute more.

Add the black beans, stir and heat through.  Depending on the texture you like, you can cook it with the juices from the can, or rinse and drain the beans.

It's that easy!!!  Seriously, they are so good.  Take my freshly seasoned beans, plus my repurposed leftovers, and you're all set.  The only thing missing is a delicious local brew and a family to eat with :-).

Look at all those delicious leftovers...

The Grillmaster's French Onion Soup

French Onion Soup is a real treat.  There are many "easy" or quick recipes but they do to yield the rich flavor of this recipe.  You may wonder why this is the Grillmaster's recipe and not mine.  Well that's simple, he loves to spend the time to prepare more complicated recipes.  I guarantee that this one is worth the time.

French Onion Soup

6 yellow onions, sliced

1tablespoon olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup sherry (or brandy)

8 cups beef stock

2 tablespoons dried or fresh parsley, chopped

1bay leaf

5 sprigs fresh thyme or 1 tablespoons dried

Salt and black pepper to taste (the Grillmaster doesn't add salt)

Slice the onions and add to a large pot or Dutch oven along with the olive oil. Cook over medium heat until the onions are caramelized.  Stir frequently. The onions will be dark brown.  This is the most importent part of the recipe because this is what gives the soup it's rich flavor.  It also takes about one hour.

Once the onions are cooked, add the minced garlic and the wine and sherry.  Cook until the liquid is reduced by half.

Tie the parsley, thyme and bay leaf into a bouquet garni so that it can be removed before serving.

Add the beef stock and herbs.  Simmer an additional hour. Remove the herbs.  Season to taste with pepper and salt.

Toast some bread rounds, and top with Swiss cheese or gruyere cheese.  Ladle the soup into heat resistant bowls and put a cheese round on top. (We actually skip this step because I don't like soggy bread.). Toast  until the cheese is melted and bubbly.  Serve immediately.  I like the toasted cheese toast served on the side.

This soup freezes well should you decide to make a double batch.

Sugar and Salt

Often times, I will complain that restaurant food is too salt for my palate while many other people complain that it is too bland.  There are tremendous amounts of hidden salt and sugars in pre prepared and processed foods which is why I started reading labels and cooking from scratch many years ago.  My Dad was a diabetic with high blood pressure from the time I started cooking as a teenager.  I started altering recipes at about age 20 when I could see the toll it was taking.

So often, what we perceive as moisture or richness is just fat.  Now I don't think we need to remove fat from our diets.  Quite the contrary, good fat is very beneficial.  I cook mostly with olive oil.  I like the flavor and it is beneficial.  However, there are things that just taste better in butter.  I say then, use butter.  Do not make it a daily habit.  It is a well deserved treat.  When I was younger, I would make pies with my Grandma Utesch, using lard.  They were delicious but not so healthy.  Substitute the latest version of Crisco which virtually eliminates partially hydrogenated vegetable oil and you can replicate the texture if not the taste of lard.

Salt is insidious though.  I mostly cook with coarse textured Kosher salt.  However, salt is an ingredient in most prepare armed foods.  You have to be careful.  If you use canned tomatoes, you probably do not need to add salt.  If you fix a box of macaroni and cheese, definitely skip the salt.  It is already included in abundance.  Worcestershire Sauce, fish sauce and soy sauce are naturally salty.  Think about it before you add any additional salt.

If you think your cooking is bland, consider adding basil, oregano, paprika, Cheyenne pepper, Tabasco sauce, then think about salt.  If our sweet things are bland, consider vanilla, lemons and almonds first. Then add more sugar.

Have a clean palate before you taste.  Keep an open mind.  The best flavors in this world are not sugar or salt.

Love the food you eat. 

It is time to think about Christmas Cookies

Although Christmas is still several weeks away, it is never too early to think about Christmas cookies.  I am neither a big baker or sweet eater, but these cookies are a guilty pleasure for me.  I got this recipe almost forty years ago from a friend who got it from her grandmother.  These are more of a pastry that a cookie but delicious and worth the effort. 

These cookies go by many names but we call them Christmas Snowballs

Preheat oven to 325 before baking.

Dough should be chilled for at least 1 hour before baking.

1 cup butter, slightly softened but colder than room temp.

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons water

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup chopped pecans

Cream butter and sugar, (I usually process in my food processor.) add water and vanilla and mix well. Blend in flour and nuts.

Form the dough into a ball.  It will be both stiff and sticky.  Wrap in plastic wrap. Chill. After chilling, Shape into tablespoon sized balls.  (I use a rounded tablespoon measuring spoon to get the right amount of dough and roll into balls. Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet for 20 minutes.

Cool to room temp on a cooling rack and then roll in confectioners( powdered) sugar.

Makes approximately 3 dozen cookies.

Yes, that is the entire ingredient list and there are no leavening agents.  You can place them very close together on the cookie sheet because they will not rise or expand. If you roll them in confectioner's sugar when they are too warm, the sugar will "melt", just let them cool a little longer and try again.

Greek salad is wonderfully versatile not to mention delicious.

There are many recipes for Greek Salads and I confess that I have never tried one that I didn't love.  There are versions of this salad made from cucumbers and tomatoes from all around the Mediterranean and although they are similar, this one is my favorite because with a piece of warm bread, this is a hearty lunch and add a piece of grilled chicken and you have a satisfying dinner that even the Grillmaster approves of.  Another plus for this recipe is that the dressing which is super easy, works well on a whole variety of salads. This particular salad, in Greek is called Horiatiki Salata

Dressing

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil,( Greek if possible although I like Spanish olive oil as well.)

2 tablespoons dried Greek oregano.  ( I like the wide leafed oregano that I grow and fresh makes it really great.)

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 dashes Tabasco  (I know, not authentic but I prefer it anyway.  You can use 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper.)

Put in a liquid tight container and shake well to mix.  If you use dried oregano, let this sit at least 30 minutes before you pour over the salad. An hour or more is better.

Salad

4 medium Roma tomatoes. Cut into wedges ( I will substitute 15 to 20 grape tomatoes. Cut in half)

1 Persian/English cucumbers cut in half length-wise and cut into thin slices

1 red bell pepper, cut length-wise, seeded and then sliced into narrow slices

1 green  bell pepper, cut same as the red

1 medium red onion quartered and then sliced paper-thin

20 Kalamata olives. ( I always cut them in half so no one is surprised by a hidden pit)

1/2 pound feta, coarsely crumbled

Combine all the salad ingredients in a very large mixing bowl.  Add the feta cheese and dressing just before serving.

This makes 6 to 8 meal sized portions.  It is also a great salad for potlucks and buffet meals.

Long time coming

Wow! It has been a long time since I last posted a blog.  I started a new job and was really involved in what I was doing.  But I did not stop cooking.  In fact the recipe I am describing today was one I made the first week of October.

Do you ever wish for a recipe that looks like a million bucks but is so easy, you almost feel guilty.  That would be this main dish/salad dish.  It is good for potluck dinners and banquets because it can be fixed in advance and is very attractive.  I like it especially for the Christmas holiday parties  because it is so easy and colorful.

It is all red and green in this picture as I usually use tricolor end pasta but you could use plain pasta and it would still taste great and be photogenic.

Tortellini salad

1 9oz. Package refrigerated cheese tortellini (I like the tri-color, five cheese variety)

8 oz. sugar snap peas ( you can use frozen but fresh is better)

1pint grape tomatoes (I like to mix yellow and red)

1/4 cup grated Romano and Parmesan cheese

1/2 bottle Girard's Light Champagne Dressing

Cook tortellini according to package directions.  Put the sugar snap peas in a colander and pour the boiling water/ tortellini into the colander. This will blanch the snap peas.  Rinse under cold water, drain and put into a 2.5 quart or larger mixing bowl. Add the salad dressing. Cover.  Refrigerate. When the tortellini and peas are chilled, cut each tomato in half lengthwise and toss into the mixture.  Add the shredded cheese and mix. Usually, I double or triple the recipe.

This is really attractive served in a clear glass bowl. Stand back and enjoy the complements.

Salmon Burgers with Lemon Caper Mayo

Younger daughter here! Tonight Wisehubby and I made this recipe with just a few tweaks to ingredients, and it was a big 'ole hit in our house.

I used 1 tbsp. of lemon juice from a bottle and 1 tsp. of lemon peel out of a can because I didn't buy a lemon on accident. Plus, grating your own lemon peel? Ain't nobody got time for that!

I used two 7 oz. individually frozen salmon fillets because that's what I had. I just had to defrost those puppies.

I used Italian bread crumbs because that is what I had and I was too lazy to toast up some wheat bread and food process it.

I ended up using salt and pepper on the outside of the burgers because I forgot to mix the salt in the salmon to begin with.

I accidently used too much Italian bread crumbs in the patties because I didn't catch that you put half in the blend and half on the outside. It was ok. I just sprinkled a little on the outside before we grilled it.

We grilled on some foil because I had a suspicion that the patties might fall apart. They didn't, but rest assured, had we not used foil they would have.

Finally, we used one white bread bun and two slices of sourdough instead of wheat buns. Again, it was a situation driven by what was available and defrosted.

Any day is a good day for Tex-Mex

On Sunday, the Grillmaster and I went to lunch at a local Mexican Restaurant and sampled the brisket fajitas.  Well the servings were enormous so we ended up bringing just under 1 pound of brisket fajita meat home.  Tonight, the Grillmaster and I wanted to eat the leftovers but didn't want it to feel like leftovers.  So this is what I came up with.  It is a recipe that I modified from a Sunset, Cooking Light and Easy cookbook so it also has the benefits of being calorie controlled.

Brisket with Fiesta Rice 

1 lb prepared (cooked) brisket (I only had 15 oz.)

1/2 cup grilled sliced yellow onions and bell peppers

( This is what  came home in my food container from the restaurant.)

Rice Recipe

1 cup uncooked long grain rice

1 cup water

1 14.4 oz can diced tomatoes in tomato juice

1 10 oz can Rotel brand or Pace brand diced tomatoes with green chilies

1 Tablespoon chili powder

Combine in a medium sized Dutch oven.  Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for about 20 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed.

Add one 15 oz can of black beans, drained but not rinsed.

Return to low heat. Stir in the beans.

Layer the brisket meat on top of the rice and beans.

Top with 2oz Queso Fresco (Mexican white cheese) crumbles

Cover until the cheese starts to melt then you are ready to serve.

Notice, there are NO added fats or oils.  It still tastes pretty amazing.

This serves 8 about 250 calories per serving.  Since it was dinner time, the Grillmaster had 2 servings and he was stuffed.  I served a side salad with salsa ranch dressing.  Since I substituted non-fat Greek yogurt for the sour cream in my Ranch dressing and then mixed it 50-50 with salsa, the salad dressing was non-fat and full of flavor as well.

Enjoy!

Sorry for the picture but it didn't look like much until we served some.

Steak on a Diet?!?

This is Elissa, Kathleen's older daughter, again. I got some positive feedback from my last blog, so at least a few of my friends read it, and their approval is all I really need. Sarah mentioned in the previous entry that we started the 7 Years Younger Diet with our mom about a week ago. My mom found the plan and I agreed without a second thought... I mean just the title got me... Heck yes, I'd like to look 23 again! 

You see, I've done my fair share of dieting over the years. I've even had good success through both old-fashioned calorie counting and Weight Watchers, but there was one mortal flaw. I always ate the same food I had been eating... Just much, much less of it. Yes, I lost weight, but I was always hungry, and I'm sure very, very cranky.

So a couple kids and a full time job later I needed a change! I like the cookbook and pre-fabricated menus. I use them as a guide because I try to choose food that my husband and kids will also like. I must say, so far my kids have eaten, and the hubby hasn't complained that I'm starving him to death (at least to my face).

Here's his favorite so far:

Steak Sandwich with Grilled Onions

Ingredients

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon brown sugar (optional) I left it out, but I don't normally cook with it, either.

1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

Pepper

1 1/4 pound flank steak

1 medium red onion, cut into 4 thick slices

8 slices whole grain sourdough bread, toasted on the grill. I used whole wheat hoagies because the bakery was out of sourdough, gah!

2 tomatoes, sliced

1 bunch arugula, I used spinach, well, because I had spinach.

Steps

1. In large baggie, mix soy sauce, vinegar, sugar (if using), thyme and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Add steak and marinade for 15 minutes at room temperature or an hour in the fridge.

2. Preheat gas grill and skewer the onions for easier handling. 

***Yeah, if you don't have a grill basket, go buy one immediately. YOU WILL NEVER SKEWER VEGGIES AGAIN!!! It's so much easier and carries less of a chance of burning yourself. I bought mine at Albertsons for like $10. Trust me and just say no to skewers! (see below).

2. Remove steak from marinade; pour marinade into 1-quart saucepan. Boil 2 minutes. 

**It smells amazing!**

4. Grill steak and onion 12-15 minutes until onion is browned and meat is tender. Brush both with marinade occasionally and turn each once. Grill bread last. Transfer steak to cutting board, separate onion into rings.

5. Thinly slice steak diagonally across the grain. Arrange onion rings and steak on 4 slices of bread; spoon any meat juices over onion and meat. Top with tomatoes, arugula and 4 remaining slices of bread.

Yes, it's as delicious as it looks. There is a suggested grilled banana dessert, but we were both too full. So ladies, if you want to fool your man into dieting, or just need a break from salad, indulge in one of these :-).

Fajitas Two Ways: Diet Indulgence

Hi, it's Sarah here, younger daughter extraordinaire. 

Here's the original recipe for fajitas as taken from 7 Years Younger, the diet/anti-aging program that our clan has undertaken to help us all look and feel better, especially since Elissa and I are both shedding postpartum pounds and our husbands may have gained a few themselves during our pregnancies.

Here are some things that I did differently and why:

• I crushed the garlic with my mortar and pestle because, oddly, I have that setup, but no garlic press.
• I made more than 12 ounces of chicken. I used one of the freezer packs (approximately 1.25 pounds) from Costco because, frankly, I already owned it. Furthermore, what grocery store sells 12 ounces of chicken? I don't own a kitchen scale, so I didn't get too wound up about it. 
• I used chicken tenderloins. Again, this was because I already had it. Would I do it again? Yes, because you get greater surface area for seasoning and browning during the broil. I think it gives it more of a skillet texture and flavor.
• I used normal chili powder because, let's be honest, I do my grocery shopping at Walmart, and Walmart just ain't classy enough for Ancho Chili Powder. It tasted great with McCormick's Chili Powder, which is actually a blend of spices. Here's an article with more details on the difference.
• I used two anaheim peppers instead of a green bell. Again, I had anaheim instead of a green bell, and I didn't want to go to the store unnecessarily. I would do it again, since anaheim peppers have a less bitter flavor and more heat. Here's more on peppers.
• I used lime juice from a plastic lime because its easier to get 3 TBSP that way. I didn't cut up the limes, which I did have, since I didn't think we would want them after tasting the dressing on the cabbage.
• I used full fat sour cream because I had some before we started the diet, and I didn't think a 1/4 cup would make or break the recipe's health.
• I chopped up the cilantro, stems and all. I've never prepared fresh cilantro before, and when it said leafs only, I thought, "Wow! What a pain in the ass!" So, I went ahead and just cut up everything. It took the better part of a bunch, and tasted just fine.

All in all, this has been our favorite recipe from the diet so far. We'd definitely make it again, diet or not. I straight up loved the cabbage and cilantro salad. You could definitely eat it by itself as a side. 

As far as the prep goes, it was pretty easy and fast. I cut my fingers because my dull knife bounced off of my onion, which sucked, but can definitely be avoided by the more coordinated and sharp among us. The recipe only produced a few dirty dishes considering how many components there were: 1 large bowl, 1 jelly roll pan with foil, 1 cutting board, the mortar and pestle (could have been a garlic press) and a few knives and measuring cups. This makes my husband happy since he's in charge of doing the dishes when I cook.

Finally, if I were preparing this with my hubby during the summer, I might choose to have him prepare the meat and veggies on foil on the grill instead of under the broiler, to avoid heating the kitchen.

Chicken thighs Provençal

This recipe is called chicken but it is really all about the vegetables.  It is a French inspired stew that has been fine-tuned to be reduced calorie and low fat.  I took it from the Good Housekeeping,  Light and  Healthy Cooking cookbook.  I pretty much fixed it as written and liked the results without too much tweaking except for adding oregano and some red wine. BTW, the cookbooks says it is 30 minutes of active cooking time and a total of 1 hour 45 minutes, but since I started with bone-in, skin on chicken thighs, it took me longer.

2 pounds, skinless, boneless chicken thighs ( purchased that way, you pay about double the price for the convenience.), cut each thigh into 4 pieces..

3/4 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons olive oil ( I probably used a little more)

2 red peppers cut into 1/4 inch wide strips ( I used one red, one orange)

1 yellow pepper cut into 1/4 inch wide strips

1 jumbo onion, thinly sliced ( I used two medium/large yellow onions)

3 cloves garlic, crushed.

1 can (28 oz.) plum tomatoes ( the recipe is silent on whether to use the juice so I did add the juice.)

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme ( I used 1/2 teaspoon)

1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed (I used 1/2 teaspoon)

3 strips 3" by 1" orange peel ( I used 1  1/2 teaspoon dried orange peel)

1/2 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves chopped ( I left them whole)

I also used 1/4 cup dry red wine which the recipe doesn't call for. And added 1/2 teaspoon oregano.

 I guess I did modify it a good bit!

1 sprinkle chicken with 1/2 teaspoon salt in a non- reactive 5-quart Dutch oven, ( I used a really large frying pan.), heat a teaspoon oil and then add the chicken and cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate.

Reduce the heat to medium, add to the pan 1 teaspoon oil,peppers, onion and 1/4 teaspoon salt. (I omitted this salt). Cook, stirring frequently until vegetables are tender and slightly browned, about 20 minutes.  Add garlic and cook an additional minute or two.

Return chicken to pan.  Add remaining herbs except the basil.  Add the tomatoes, breaking them up with a spoon. (I pulverized them with my hands as I added them. Here is where I added the tomato juice and the recipe is silent on that.)

Reduce heat and simmer until chicken loses its pink color throughout, about 15minutes.  Transfer to serving bowl and add the basil. If you add the basil too soon, it will lose the pretty green color.

This makes 4 servings at about 215 calories per serving.  In other words about 1 thigh per serving.

I served this with couscous.  It was delicious.

I changed more than I realized but I think that is the right of every experienced cook.

Three cooks, one recipe, three variations

Last evening, Elissa, Sarah and I did something we have never tried before.  We all cooked the exact same recipe in our individual kitchens and then compared our results and impressions.  Selecting the same recipe was a coincidence but it was fun.  Sarah's husband liked the generous portions and Elissa's one-year old thought it tasted great.  I generally don't serve the grill master meatless meals for dinner but even he didn't seem to mind.  (Cleaned up his plate) As you might expect, we each improvised a little depending on our kitchen and I'll let you in on all that too.  Here is the basic recipe:

Big Fusilli Bowl

12 oz. Whole-grain fusilli or rotini pasta

12 oz. fresh broccoli florets

1pint grape tomatoes

2 large garlic cloves, peeled and smashed

1 1/2 tablespoons Olive oil

Salt and pepper

1/4 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese

1/2 cup (2oz.) diced, part-skim mozzarella cheese

1 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil

1 1/2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted

Preheat oven to 450.  Toss tomatoes with garlic, oil and 1/4 teaspoon of salt in a bowl.  Spread mixture on a jelly roll pan  and roast for about 8 minutes or until the tomatoes wrinkle and begin the burst.  Stir the mixture and return to oven and bake for an additional 7 to 8 minutes.

Cook the pasta according to package directions, when three minutes remain, add the broccoli to the boiling water.  When the pasta is finished, retain 1/2 cup pasta water and then drain the pasta, broccoli  mixture. Return the pasta to the sauce pan and add the tomato mixture.  Pour the 1/2 cup pasta water to the jelly roll pan and scrape the browned bits up and then add the liquid to the pasta mixture. Add the Romano cheese, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper.

Sprinkle with mozzarella, basil and pine nuts.

 

The casserole  pictures is Elissa's.  She used veggie rotini pasta so hers was more colorful than the casserole that Sarah or I made since we both used whole wheat pasta, again rotini which tends be be an unattractive shade of brown.  I purchased name- brand pasta because it came in a 12 oz box, but Sarah used the generic version which was in a 13.5 oz box so her dish was slightly larger.

I didn't have block mozzarella cheese so used grated so it melted in and I didn't get the festive results that Elissa's dish had. Sarah used basil in a tube and Parmesan Romano instead of Pecorino Romano Romano cheese.  

My casserole had to sit in the warming drawer so I added a 6.5 oz V-8 juice. I also used frozen broccoli since I already had it and minced garlic instead of smashed.

If I needed to have a vegetarian dish for a potluck, I would definitely consider making this because it has such a wide appeal.  The caveat is that if you actually purchase pine nuts, fresh basil and Pecorino Romano cheese for the expressed purpose of preparing this recipe, meat would probably be cheaper.

Also, if you aren't watching your weight, or even if you are, this would be a good side dish with roast beef.

Jalapeño and Cilantro Dip

This is Elissa, Kathleen's oldest daughter, in my first ever blog entry! I'm actually pretty jazzed because about a month ago I was telling my husband how much I'd love to write a food blog, but don't have the time... or know if I'd be any good at it. So now I can drop in when I have the time (and remember to take pictures) and contribute to my Mom's blog. I've been an avid blog reader for years, and have recently discovered a few new ones thanks to the magic of Pinterest. So here we go...

I really love Mexican food, and have been privileged to learn many of my sweet mother-in-law's amazing family recipes. I won't post any of those without her permission, but I am fairly certain that she will enjoy this dip when I see her at Thanksgiving. I stumbled across this recipe on Pinterest, and unlike so many recipes you find there, it needed very few tweaks to be amazing.

Jalapeño and Cilantro Dip

Ingredients

6-8 jalapeño peppers

1 bushel of cilantro

1 cup mayonnaise

1 cup sour cream or Greek yogurt (I recently unknowingly fed my kids recalled Chobani yogurt so I'm still a little iffy towards it and used sour cream)

1 package Ranch dressing (3 tablespoons if you buy it at Costco like many good southerners)

Directions

1. Wash cilantro and jalapeños. Remove seeds from jalapeños and roughly chop. The original recipe says to include the seeds if you want a spicy dip.

**Word to the wise - REMOVE the seeds. Raw jalapeños are plenty hot without them. You can always add "heat" to a dish later, but you'll destroy the cilantro flavor if you leave the seeds in. I cook with fresh jalapeños a lot, but the only recipe that I leave seeds in is my MIL's hot sauce, which is so good that it's life-changing, but not for the faint of heart. I also recommend wearing gloves while you handle the peppers.**

2. Food process jalapeños and cilantro until it forms a paste. 

3. Mix the paste, mayo, sour cream and dressing mix.

See? I've read a lot of food blogs. Mad props to those bloggers who make the ingredients look so beautiful in these pre-mix photos...

4. Refrigerate dip for at least an hour and enjoy! It's great with chips, as a dressing on burgers, as a dressing on salad, or veggie dip. Seriously, today we had it with burgers and chips. Tomorrow I'm making a southwest chicken and black bean salad and using it as the dressing. Yum!

 

So there you go, whip this up sometime and see what you think :-) EV

Thai- style Cucumber Salad

Thai-style cucumber salad is my husband's favorite salad.  If I would keep it in the house, he would eat it every single day.  And why not, it is cool, refreshing, crunchy, crisp and best of all extremely low in calories and completely non- fat.  I actually learned this recipe in Thailand at a cooking school although I will give you one modification that does not affect the flavor yet cuts the caloric count by 30 to 50 calories per serving.

First a word about cucumbers.  This versatile fruit can be used in so may ways.  I'll be including more recipes as I go along.  The common American garden cucumbers are abundant starting in early summer and running to first frost.  Living in Texas, you have to watch out because hot weather causes bitter cucumbers.  If you end up with a bitter one, slice it and soak the slices for about 20 minutes in cold salt water.  Then taste again.  The bitterness should be gone.  If it isn't, you really just have to discard the cucumber.  Because I find the wax that growers put on cucumbers disgusting, I would peel a cucumber that has been waxed even though it is safe to eat.

I prefer this recipe with Persian cucumbers also known as English cucumbers.  They re longer and thinner than regular cucumbers, with a ridged skin.  Since they are usually hydroponically grown and shrink wrapped in plastic wrap, bitterness and wax are not issues.  However, choose carefully, the plastic wrap can disguise a spoiled cucumber.

So here goes the recipe:

 

2 Persian cucumbers sliced thinly (horizontally)

1/2 large sweet yellow onion sliced thinly longitudinally (roots to stem)

Sauce

1 cup sugar (I replaced the sugar with Splenda to reduce calories, no adjustments needed!)

1 cup white vinegar

2 Tablespoons fish sauce

Stir until dissolved

Bring to a boil and remove from the heat.  Add six to seven slices jalapeños. You can use fresh or canned.

When the sauce cools, remove the jalapeños,  pour over the cucumbers and onions. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.  This salad will keep in the refrigerator for about one week.

Don't call the dishes sides!

For the next few blogs,I am going to concentrate on the lowly "side" dish.  Often when I ask what people want for a meal, they will name a meat, but meats should really be considered the sides and the vegetables, fruits, and starchy foods that we serve should be the show stoppers.  

Growing up in the Midwest, in the 60's and 70's, well that wasn't so easy three seasons out of four.  No wonder I preferred canned green beans to fresh into adulthood and am still suspicious of green peas, unless I know exactly where they came from and how they were cooked.

Truth is, I love vegetables, but I am no where near a vegetarian.  Fruit has been a struggle since I suffered through salads made with marshmallows, whipping cream, and canned in heavy syrup fruit as a child.  The only food I liked less was fruit in flavored gelatin salad with cottage cheese.  As an adult, living in an urban area, I now know that there are apples more delicious than Red Delicious Apples and that you can get Mandarin Oranges and pineapples fresh, not just canned.

So tonight I will show you one of my favorites from my childhood, the acorn squash.  Although it is called a winter squash, you can find it almost year around in stores and farmers markets.  It is genetically in the same family as zucchini and yellow crooked-neck squash. They are dark green and deeply ridged.  Choose one with a smooth skin and you will want one that feels heavy for its size.

Cut each squash in half.  Scrape out the seeds and discard. One squash will easily serve 2.

You can cook two ways.

Grandma Donna's Method

Preheat oven to 350

Place a pat of butter (about 1 tablespoon) in the bowl of the squash and generously salt and pepper each half.

Place on a cookie sheet cut side up and bake for about 45 minutes to 1 hour or until tender.

Remove from the oven and serve.

My Method

Preheat oven

Spray the cut side of the squash with a high quality cooking spray and place cut side down on a cookie sheet.

Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until tender.

Remove and scrape the cooked flesh from the green skin into a casserole dish.  Mash into a uniform consistency

. Add about 1 tablespoon butter, 1 teaspoon seasoned salt, 1/4 teaspoon hot sauce (Tabasco Sauce) or more to taste.

The taste differences are subtle.  It is really in the appearance.  My husband prefers not to fight with the tough skins and I think most children would prefer not to see the green skins either.

Savory "sweet "Potatoes

The sweet potato, which is also sometimes called a yam in the United States, is only a distant relative to the potato and not really a yam at all.  But these are only labels and if you really want to know about the biology and history of the sweet potato then I suggest you visit the sweet Sweet Potato Museum in Raleigh-Durham, NC.  Growing up, I thought that sweet potatoes were a disgusting canned mess, reserved for Thanksgiving, that could only be served if disguised under liberal globs of pecans, brown sugar, butter and marshmallows.  I am not a big fan of sweet except for dessert so I didn't like sweet potatoes.  Sweet potato pie really didn't capture my imagination either. 

Now though, I am a huge fan of sweet potatoes.  I love to eat them in curries.  I could eat them instead of regular French fries every time but the recipe I am sharing today you will have to trust me on.  It sounds ridiculous. It is delicious. It is easy! Your kids will eat it.  Your mother-in-law might even ask you for it but you can claim it as a family secret.

Savory Sweet Potatoes

Peel and cube 14 to 16 ozs. Of fresh sweet  potatoes

Cut into 1/2 in square cubes

1 large red onion peeled, halved length-wise and cut into about eight total wedges

1/3 cup olive oil

2 teaspoon fresh thyme ( what! No fresh thyme, the next ingredient is ketchup, use dried thyme, a generous teaspoon, maybe more if your thyme is a little old, more than 6 months since you opened it )

1 tablespoons ketchup ( Yes this hurts to share but this recipe is no good with any substitute. You must use ketchup.  Don't be a snob!)

2 teaspoons chili powder

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon  ground pepper

Place all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir until well mixed.  Pour onto a double layer on heavy-duty aluminum foil. If you are grilling, place packet on the grill as you preheat it and cook for about 30 minutes with the grill at 350 to 400. Same instructions for in the oven.  This keeps for up to an hour very well at warm (175) so you could cook ahead and serve later if needed.

This is good with pork or turkey.

Two fun facts.

1. The sweet potato skin isn't really  a skin. When the tubers are harvested, they are heated for a time and the outer layer dries out and get tough for the trip to the grocery store.

2. If you do not want your sweet potato to split while cooking, round all the edges.  Then it will hold together.