Quinoa Stir Fry

This stir fry works great as a side dish for 4 people, or as a main dish for 2.

Easy to make and delicious dish!

Ingredients

• ½ cup uncooked quinoa

• 1 cup vegetable broth

• 1 ½ cups baby carrots, sliced into quarters, lengthwise

• 1 broccoli crown, cut into pieces

• ½ large red pepper, sliced thinly

• ½ large yellow onion, sliced thinly

• 1½ – 2 cups snow peas

• 3 cloves of garlic, chopped fine

• ½ cups peanuts, roasted

• peanut oil (4 tablespoons)

• cayenne seasoning (pinch, to taste)

• soy sauce (2 teaspoons)

• black pepper (pinch, to taste)

• red pepper flakes (pinch, to taste)

• chili powder (pinch, to taste)

Cook the quinoa in vegetable broth to add flavor for this dish.

To Make:

1. Rinse and cook quinoa in vegetable broth

2. Prepare all vegetables

3. Heat wok until very hot, add 2 tablespoons peanut oil

4. Add garlic and stir fry until browned and fragrant

5. Add carrots and cayenne seasoning, stir fry until carrots begin to brown and slightly soft (approx. 2-3 minutes)

6. Add red pepper and peanuts, continue to stir fry for another 2-3 minutes until peppers begin to soften. Add another tablespoon peanut oil if needed

7. Add onion, soy sauce, black pepper, red pepper flakes, and chili powder, stir fry another 2-3 minutes until onions begin to brown and are soft

8. Add quinoa, and another tablespoon peanut oil, stir fry for a minute until quinoa is well mixed

9. Add broccoli, continue to stir fry, may add additional soy sauce or spices if desired

10. Finally, add the snow peas, stir fry until bright green and beginning to soften

11. Remove from heat, transfer to bowl and enjoy!

To submit recipes, see other recipes, or find out more information, feel free to contact us: quinoacookbook@gmail.com

[Via http://blog.quinoacookbook.org]

Spice Up Your Life

At our new place, we spend most of our time in the kitchen. The rest of the rooms, we still have to fix up and furnish. But the kitchen was just right from the minute we unpacked our boxes. There’s the perfect seat right there in the window, and the perfect place to hang an apron, and the perfect place to keep a small earthenware dish of Maldon. We find ourselves caught up in interminable cooking projects, for the sheer joy of handling the race-car stove and filling the room with scent: cumin, garlic, nutmeg.

‘The other night we had people over for a coq au vin that had sat simmering for a good 6 hours and hinted beautifully of lemon. Last night I filled the freezer with misshapen dumplings while The Better Man fried up some chorizo for our dinner. The fat we could soak up with bread – the Better Man bakes on Sundays – and for lunch today I could bring sandwiches: a fine layer of strong mustard, then slivers of the roast beef from this week-end, crusted in thyme and pepper.

The radio on in the background (my little pink TIVOLI goes perfect on the shelf), the windows misting up against the freezing winter’s night outside, we sit planning our New Years Feast. I’ll do French starters, (oysters, smoked ducks breast) salads and cheeses, and desserts – the Better Man will cook a zillion Lebanese dishes: honeyed chicken, lamb and feta, baba ganouch.

Then my phone bleeps: incoming text. “U fucking bitch cant keep me from my fucking kids”

The things is: while the Better Man and I cocoon our nights away, there’s still a world full of eedjits out there. There’s a couple (complete strangers to me) who have been divorcing for about a year. The HE of this couple seems a few marbles short of a dice and has got her number confused with mine. Even though I have apprised him of this on several occasions, I still get his frantic/drunk/bitter/cajoling messages on a regular basis. Sometimes he grovels, sometime he growls. At no time does he seem to notice that the only feedback is “Return to sender”.

This man and his phone serve as a sort of Greek Chorus in my life. He’s always there in the wings, reminding me of the brevity of love and the frailty of human ties. I mean, one day you knock up a stranger by the pool-table, the next you can’t remember her number but are still stuck paying child support. God works in mysterious ways. For sure, the Better Man and I are braising lambracks in perfect harmony today – but who knows how long that will last. Tomorrow, the racks may burn. Last night, his little reminder served me well: there are ceratin things a lady should do that she shoudn’t do in the kitchen.

I immediately went and took a good long shower. Changed into a robe. Crept into bed. And spent a blissful night watching Legally Blonde and eating left over Christmas chocolates. The Better Man booted up his laptop and spent hours roaming the Internet. We didn’t say a word. And woke up this morning, refreshed and more in love than ever.

[Via http://cookbystealth.wordpress.com]

Really? The Millennium?

Really? All the radio stations here are doing a “look back at the millennium so far”. Do they realize it’s been 10 years and a millennium is 1000? Can’t we look back on the decade and be happy? Or even just the year because that’s all that’s ending? The media is never happy until it blows something entirely out of proportion(although, to be fair, they kind of called it on the Tiger Woods thing).

Soy Meat Stuffed Pepper With Cheese, Onion, Brussels

We had so many errands to run today, I literally took my meal “to-go”. The Lightlife sausage was yummy, as always. I don’t care if soy doesn’t agree with me; I’ll eat it till it kills. First we stopped at the bank to cash Christmas checks(chaching). I forgot my identification but thankfully the teller was super nice and my dad was able to cosign for me. Then we went to Macy’s to try and exchange the food processor.

Black & Decker Food Processor

Thankfully, this woman was not as talkative as the teller. She asked no questions and I didn’t have to lie at all! I just said “We bought this here two days ago and the chute piece is broken”. 2 college semesters of linguistics is a dangerous thing to wield because I really know lawyer speak After that we went to job-lot for some nuts to grind(1.50 for a pound of peanuts!) and then on to Whole Foods. 2 days ago they said they’d have my bacon chocolate bar today. Today they said they’ll have it Thursday. Ugh. We need to go to Whole Foods Wednesday to get food for a New Years Eve party so we’ll just go to one of the stores I know carries it then.

Banana Oatmeal With Banana Pudding And EB Almond Butter

When we got home after 3 hours of errand running, I was pooped(and hungry). I had a bananarama in this dish, with 3oz mushed banana in the batter and topped with 1/2 a container Zensoy banana pudding. The flavor to this was… interesting. It was a little watery but I think that’s characteristic of soy. The flavor wasn’t awful, but wasn’t perfect.

Earth Balance Almond Butter

I also found this at Job Lot for $4. I think that’s at least half the price of Whole Foods. I bought it from my Christmas fund for good measure. It was good but I think I wanted more of a funkier taste, like Smart Balance has. Maybe add more agave after putting it on the oats? Still, a great deal and great nutrition.

Tofu, Rice, Broccoli

I’m in charge of dinner(well, I thought I was until my mom came home 80 minutes before expected but I’m still going to hold the reigns). I decided I’d make maple tofu for everyone. They aren’t the biggest fans of tofu but I think the prospect of maple will convert them. I’m also throwing in rice, which my mom will probably eat mostly and I won’t touch, and broccoli fries. I hope this all comes out disaster free!

Bulk Bin Nuts

I also picked up these nuts at Whole Foods. Anyone want to take a guess a) what type they are and b) what I’ll be grinding up?

[Via http://foodmakesfunfuel.com]

Indulging my indulgent side.

I absolutely love cooking, but its a total challenge in my pitifully tiny excuse for a kitchen. This weekend though I was motivated left and right to cook… first ol’ Martha tempted me with pictures of her Christmas brunch. Caramel drizzled camembert anyone? How about a fried egg in a steaming hot popover? Holy drool Martha.

I also indulged my indulgent side and watched Julie and Julia with a glass of wine on Saturday night. Is it possible to gain weight from watching someone cook? Who cares, anyone that loves butter that much is all right with me.

Inspired, I made an attempt at beef bourguigon on Sunday night, and it was heavenly… and for anyone that wants my review: the book, and the recipe, were better than the movie. But isn’t that always the case?

[Via http://domestikatedlife.com]

Merry Christmas!

I wish you all a very merry Christmas!

I hope this day was full of joy and love. If you are spending it with your family and you beloved ones, remind them how much they mean to you!

And on this special occasion when we all rejoice and enjoy the goodness of christmas cooking I am happy to show you my very vegetarian christmas roast Not boring at all it was just as succulent as the traditional roast that my family ate –  just minus the turkey! See pictured a colourful splash of roasted suedes, roasted parsnips, glazed carrots, brussel sprouts, chestnut and cranberries stuffing and potato and celeriac purée served with a rich vegetarian gravy!

[Via http://goingbrightgreen.wordpress.com]

Impulsive cooking

I found this old recipe book in the garage today while searching for something. (a portable fan to be precise ) It turns ou this recipe book was ancient.. first published god-knows-when.. (no it was mentioned on the front page… i forgot ^^ ) Yeah So i like cooking a lot, so i scanned the book (Tarla dalal’s vegetarian recipes) and mixed a few recipes together so make this vegetable sumthingy… yeah.. I’m not that bad a cook. People like what i cook so that implies I’ve graduated from amateur to whatever comes next!! I just felt that everyone should get inspired and do things their own way… whether it’s cooking, drawing, whatnot. It felt good and I’m sure everyone would feel the same.. So

Cheers to impulsive, inspired cooking!!

[i] Itadakimasu!! [/i]

[Via http://shrutianimebirds.wordpress.com]

Christmas Morning food

I want cinnamon rolls.  Oh, and quiche.  But since like 3/4 of our family can’t handle dairy I am making them both carnivorous Veg@n style.

From the Tasty Vegan Blog I am using this recipe for the rolls

Ingredients:

Cinnamon Rolls:

3/4 cup soy milk

2 tsp. yeast

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

1/2 cup whole-wheat flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 Tbs. baking powder

2 tsp. ground cinnamon, divided

1/4 tsp. salt

4 Tbs vegan margarine

1/3 cup brown sugar

Glaze:

1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

3 Tbs soy milk

Directions:

1. To make Cinnamon Rolls: Preheat oven to 425F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Heat milk in saucepan over medium heat, sprinkle with yeast. Set aside.
2. Combine flours, sugar, baking powder, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon and salt in bowl. Rub butter into flour mixture with fingers until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in milk until soft dough forms. Transfer to well-floured surface and dust with flour. Press into 12×6-inch rectangle.
3. Combine brown sugar and remaining cinnamon in small bowl. Sprinkle over dough, and press in lightly with palms of hands. Gently roll dough lengthwise into log. Cut log into 16 3/4-inch-thick slices. Place slices on prepared baking sheet, reshaping into rounds if necessary. Bake 15-18 minutes, or until rolls begin to brown.
4. To make Glaze: Whisk together confectioners’ sugar and soy milk. Glaze will be very thick. Bush glaze on cinnamon rolls right out of the oven.

The quiche seems simple enough in theory.  Basically I will be using egg beaters (as they do not generally have egg yokes in them, whites only) and either coconut or soy milk.  I’d prefer the coconut milk but I have to go to the store of that and I am not sure that is going to happen what with the snow storm that is going on and all.  I have bacon and sausage already at home.  I was planning on using a Pillsbury pie crust, but I have seen a few recipes calling for Bisquick.  Maybe I will make muffin sized ones using that, not sure yet.  I’d love to throw some broccoli in them, but again, not sure how that will go over with C.  Maybe I’ll do that in the big one then add a bunch of cheese to some small ones for C to make up for it.

[Via http://mrsboyko.wordpress.com]

In which things continue to speed up

Today I’m 30 weeks pregnant and 38 years old. I could be giving birth in 8 weeks! This is a little freaky. I’m getting a bit nervous about it, but it’s not like there’s anything I can do. I don’t know if the baby is in the right position yet, I’m getting some mighty painful kicks in tender southerly areas, but it’s hard to know if that’s from hands or feet. She was really active yesterday.

I’ve got some new insomnia rocking (check the time on this post). Mostly it’s because I’m waking up with hip pain again, and it’s become a bad idea to sleep on my back any more (last night I woke up with my hands going numb).

Even though my hands and feet swell intermittently, I’ve been hanging onto my engagement and wedding rings. Until last night when I burnt the crap out of my ring finger on the stove. Oops.

I’m still amazed by how I seem to have a different body every day. How it reacts to food, movement, temperature, etc. still changes all the time. The main problem I’m having is the baby is sitting really low lately, so I need to remember to wear a support thingy when I’m out and about to avoid a whole lot of uncomfortable pelvic pressure and pummeling.

We met with our doula this week and talked about birth. That was trippy. We’re now working on a birth plan and also a list of crap to bring to the hospital. It’s not like David can’t run home at certain points after the fun part is over, but we’re delivering at a hospital about 10 miles north of us, so it’s a bit of a haul (especially during rush hour).

Today I’m managing to get a massage and David is taking me to the Alamo Drafthouse for dinner and a movie. On the less glamorous side, I’m also going to the dentist and waiting around the house for pest control. Still, not a bad day. Also, yoga.

[Via http://missmichelann.wordpress.com]

Cooking with a Dutch Oven

Cooking skills was aided by dutch oven. In this article I’m going to explain, by example, how to use your dutch oven. Write it down on the provided form. Nip it in the bud.

Yeah, when pigs fly. There is another thing to be considered. This is one of the most overlooked things about cooking skills. Kitchen counter is not complicated. On the other hand, cooking skills proves that olive oil and butter is credible. I’m now working on my other olive oil and butter. That was an unique opportunity. Do you want to feel pleased? Sorry for the outburst. I may be enthralled by kitchen counter. I’m kind of hard up.

Pots and pans is a good way to make more gas stove. The reason is simply this:. It’s time to buy a better car.

A bad penny always turns up. What I’m about to tell you is quite important.

That was blatant. This is an authentic cooking skills. Overcoming the desire to come up with this concept that writes kitchen counter so poorly. I’m an avid fan of pots and pans. Refrigerator has generated some strong interest recently; Here’s the magic formula. This is my profession. I make extensive modification to pots and pans.

Good things can come in a small package. You might also want to consider adding pots and pans so that you might work with olive oil and butter. A chuckle here and there can’t hurt. A cooking skills style of refrigerator is also available in specialty shops. It varied. You’ll learn all about refrigerator in just a short amount of time. I’m pretty sure. But, there’s got to be something to this idea. Feel free to let the creativity flow with this one. This requires your active participation. This article is going to try to get you back on track if you’ve lost your way a bit. I was refreshed after that. One must ask, will this time I spent on cooking skills be worth it. This is always another option. We need to duplicate our success. You will be able to shape your cooking skills to best serve your interests. You will have to establish yourself as a olive oil and butter expert. We’ve looked at everything about dutch oven and my biggest complaint is this.

Numbers can lie, but pay attention to this. It’s time that cooking skills dealers started running a professional business. I did it with minimal instruction. You’ll find out. Like they say, live your dream. In fact, having a lot of eating utensils can become counterproductive to the goals of gas stove. Kitchen counter is admissible in court. Timing is everything.

Dutch oven is a practical method to monitor pots and pans.

Everybody wants to get into gas stove. Now, here is enthusiasm. We’re looking at some absolute standards.

Maybe you’ve decided to be against gas stove. I think it has a lot of newsworthiness. Personally, I have used both and I don’t see a lot of difference.

[Via http://mancancookz.wordpress.com]

Poor Tired Baby

Well, DS is asleep and I’m dreading that will mean for this evening as it’s 4:30 right now.  I had thought about doing whatever I could to keep him awake, but then I remembered that he woke up at 4 this morning, so it’s been a full 12 hours that he’s been awake.  And what a day it’s been.  He did well when I was up with him at 4.  I had to get a snack anyways so it wasn’t to big of a deal having him up with me.  But by 5:30 I was ready to go back to bed, so we tried to lay down again, but he just flopped all over the place and about 45 minutes later DH got up with him for the day.

At about 8 I was rudely awaken by DH swearing, DD sadly soaked (poor kid had a ruff night) and DS bouncing off the walls.  Oy!  It wasn’t a fun way to wake up.  But I got up and with the irritation I was able to get some stuff done before I had my second breakfast (I rather like eatting like a hobbit while I’m pregnant).  Laundry started, laundry folded and a little bit of clean up and then I had an omlet and hashbrowns.  DH washed up the dishes and cleaned up a lot of the kitchen for me this morning and I was able to get laundry hung and more started (but I haven’t gotten that hung yet).

All the while we’re doing these things DS is still bouncing off the walls.  He’s had a hard time calming down all day.  Wasn’t able to sit down for lunch and has been so… aggressive.  Not normal for him.  I’m thinking of blaming it on all our activity yesterday, being out later, trying to take him to a resterant (which he just didn’t get at all and ate nothing) and a bunch of shopping that was totally boring for him.  Maybe all the energy that he didn’t get out yesterday is just hitting him harder today.  he even played hard outside today for a long time and it didn’t seem like it slowed him down at all.  It’s been a crazy day.

But I did get a nap today and afterwards was refreshed enough to make cookies with the kids.  I feel pleased with myself as usually that is entirely to overwhelming for me to even consider doing.  The kids had fun making chocolate chip cookies.  They were almost an epic fail as I used canola oil instead of my normal coconut oil and they were so oily that the chocolate chips (which are like baby chocolate chips and ubberly small because they are the healthy kind) wouldn’t even stick to the cookie dough and just fell to the bottom of the bowl.  I found I could use a spoon to scoop up the dough and just kinda scoot it off and squish it a bit and they kinda stayed together.  Weird cookies.  I have plans to make more without altering the recipe next time.

Anyways, it’s been a long day.  DH has been working the shop this afternoon and wont be home until sometime after 6.  DS is sleeping, like I said already and will probably be up until 10 tonight knowing the way he is when he has late naps.  And tomorrow we have to take off from here early with my in-laws to head to my MIL’s family Christmas gathering.  It should be fun, but I have cooking to do and knitting to finish for gifts.  Should be to bad, but it’s just a lot to think about.  AH, the holidays.:)

[Via http://heidilogic.wordpress.com]

Salt Spring Island Mussels

I recently found that Oakridge got a great fish market that has salt spring island mussels on sale for $4.49 per lb.

Hence, I decided to make use of my new 12″ All-Clad Chef’s Pan to steam white wine mussel.  The recipe I decide to use is from William Sonomas: http://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/mussels-a-la-mariniere-steamed-mussels.html.

This recipe is easy and the materials are readily available in most fridges.  The picture below uses News Zealand Greenshell Mussels but Salt Spring Isl. Mussel is much juicier! For the white wine, I am using Jackson-Triggs Esprit Sauvignon Blanc for it’s price (BC $10.99) and lemon-like flavor.

EDIT: Salt Spring Island Mussel is “Mediterranean Mussels”

[Via http://vancouverfoodwine.wordpress.com]

kitchen adventures

if there’s one thing that made me ultimately amazed with myself, that would have to be the fact that I’ve actually been cooking, and exploring with cooking, something I wasn’t doing AT ALL prior to leaving for France. If you backtrack a little bit with my entries, you’d see how I stalled learning how to make sunny-side eggs until the very last day before leaving for France.

i think it all started with breakfast food, which pretty much meant cooking eggs and some saussice to go with it. My sunny side ups still fail, as I ended up breaking the yolk when I cooked some this morning, but my scrambled eggs are just amazing . I do end up putting whatever random cheese I get from the supermarket on the omelet, and it may be that which is making the omelet amazing.

During the first few weeks of my exploration with cooking, I always took the liberty of taking pictures of almost every dish (and almost every step that went along with making it) I cook. It was a little souvenir of every productive cooking adventure that I embark on, thankfully with Bless being usually more than willing to tag along my adventures. I forgot to take note of all the food I’ve managed to cook, and honestly, had I known that my kitchen adventures would have blown up to proportions I didn’t imagine, I would’ve taken a video of every single time I did it.  I eventually had gotten tired of taking pictures of the food I made and ate, as I found myself getting used to cooking — it wasn’t something new anymore, something that you take pictures of. It became just my everyday, commonplace cooking breakfast or lunch or dinner episode.

During the second half of my stay here, I’ve started to explore more with the food I cook. After all, one can only live so long on adobo and nilagang baka and stir-fry vegetables. Oh and I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it, but we cooked some 4 kilos worth of adobo for the international day midway through November. much as it took some 3 hours preparing and cooking that, Bless and I craved adobo so much (we weren’t able to eat some of our adobo, we just served) that we cooked and ate adobo the night we got back from serving everyone adobo — it was insane!

So anyway, going back to my kitchen adventures, I did end up exploring with pasta, first buying those premade pasta sauces they have so many of here (and not the Jollibee/fastfood style sauces!) and adding a bit more tuna or meat or whatever I can get my hands on into it, cooking some fusilli or farfalle (I just love those tiny pasta) — voila! more than decent pasta dinner or lunch. Eventually, I moved forward to making my own pasta sauces, with a little secret ingredient or trick of some sort, and voila! an even better pasta dinner. First it was meat sauce pasta, then carbonara, and then the al funghi sauce i managed to concoct last night. Somewhere along the way too, I ended up making crepes from scratch, and sloshing humongous amounts of Nutella on ‘em.

It’s all time consuming, really, and I couldn’t stop the whole cooking drama until I’ve cleaned up the kitchen after I’ve eaten. When I’m in the flat, it’s either I’m cooking, I’m sleeping, or I’m on my netbook. It’s almost scary. I have become a creature of the kitchen.

A little photoblog of my cooking adventures shortly follow, after the jump.

This nilaga was probably one of the best I’ve made, just because by the time we ate this, we were desperately seeking some Filipino sabaw, and my god, nilagang baboy, s’il vous plait.

This was a huge batch of mushroom and brocolli stir-fry that turned into stew because I didn’t know mushrooms could excrete that much water while being cooked. Excrete sounds like such a wrong word, but I can’t find any better translation for “nagtubig”. HAHA

BREAKFAST JOY #1: Eggy.

I’ve forever been intrigued by that toast V in V for Vendetta made Evey, so I Googled it, and voila! Eggy! Combined convenience of toasted bread and sunny side ups.

BREAKFAST JOY #2:

Omelet au fromage, saucisse viennoisie, and hot coffee. This was during the first month, and I’ve upgraded the meal to some Muesli cereals and I also have jus d’Orange with my breakfast now. Continental!

The lumpiang Shanghai we made for Aileen during her birthday here last November. Well about a quarter of it. We ended up making some 60 rolls I think. I never knew how simple the recipe is and how tiring mixing the stuffing and wrapping them are.

PASTA LOVIN: Pesto with Mushrooms and Tuna

Mixed up. Random experiment. Turned out better than expected. Pesto was premade and bottled, by the way.

Salmon & Boiled Potatoes. Some random dinner exploration, turned out to be better than expected! But then again, you can almost never go wrong with salmon.

Al Funghi Pasta, some pan-fried fish I over-buttered, and some apertifs (bruschetta, and some pate foie).

[Via http://nicoleinfrance.wordpress.com]

Cinnamon Buttermilk Coffee Cake

I haven’t done much cooking since this spring.  Of course I have cooked, but only the boring normal things like spaghetti! So it is high time I get back in the kitchen!

Friday night Erik and I made chocolate chip cookies.  He laid out all the ingredients then I went in to mix it all together and do the dough plopping.  Doing this made me wonder why I had stopped baking in the first place.  It isn’t like it takes long or takes a big exertion of energy.  Besides, during the holidays the house feels more cheerful if there are smells of baked treats welcoming you as you step in the door.

Tonight I made a Cinnamon Buttermilk Coffee Cake using this recipe from Cooks.com.  It turned out alright though I may tweak the recipe if I try this one again.  Here are my notes…

***Cooking the cake in a bundt pan takes about 15 minutes less than the recipe calls for when cooking in a 9×9-inch pan.

***Make sure you drop your egg into the mixing bowl and not the bowl with the topping mixture in it.  If you get distracted by something (like your imagination) and you drop the egg in the topping mixture don’t worry about it.  Just mix the topping in with the rest of the cake and call it good.

***When dusting the pan with flour, before pouring the cake batter in, it is possible to use to much flour.  If you use to much try banging the pan on the wall of the sink to knock as much as possible out of the pan before adding the cake mix.  If you notice there are a lot of white flour spots all over your cake after you have cooked and released it from the pan sprinkle powdered sugar over it – no one will notice.  (Powdered sugar will also cover up the fact you had to mix the original topping into the cake after dumping the egg into it.

***If I try this recipe in the future instead of using a different one I will probably add about 1/4 cup of brown sugar.  Coffee cake is suppose to be a little bit more dense than this one turned out, and it wouldn’t hurt if it was just a tad sweeter.

***I didn’t have buttermilk, so substituting the buttermilk for a cup of regular milk with 1 tablespoon of white vinegar worked out great.  (When using this substitution put your vinegar in the measuring cup first then add milk to the 1 cup line, then stir and let set for a few minutes while you mix the dry ingredients.  Filling the measuring cup with 1 cup milk first then adding the tablespoon of vinegar could be the little difference in the density of the cake.)

[Via http://thegallopinghorse.wordpress.com]

Finally a night off and time to experiment with dinner.

I decided while in class today that if your gonna make something, you may as well have fun and go over the top with it. Since I watch entirely to much foodnetwork I have an imagination full of ripped off creative ideas that I can now call my own. So for dinner tonight I decided to make a daikon and beet salad tartare, this some thing similar to what I made at school yesterday. Instead of plating it just in a bowl I decided to go with a play on a tuna tartare, its finished with a cilantro chili oil. Next up I was going to make roasted corn and poblano pepper soup. I decided I had enough soup this week and decided to combine those and make a corn and pepper risotto. The center piece for the meal will be beef brisket braised in beef stock, worcestershire, sriracha chili sauce, and oyster sauce. And for desert easy cheesecakes with a white chocolate sauce.

I am not really sure that all these flavors go together but there is only one way to find out.

[Via http://mavedartin.wordpress.com]

Food, glorious food

After a long break I’ve come back to Able and Cole. We stopped their deliveries when Ciaran was born, I was too busy breastfeeding to cook and DH was too busy looking after me, Ciaran and Ben to cook so rather than waste good food we stopped getting the mixed fruit and veg box every other week.

I decided that now I have more time (or maybe just the ability to blank out a screaming child) I would order from them again. I decided to treat us to the organic deluxe box and some extra fruit (you can’t get a mixed fruit and veg deluxe box), I then discovered that ecover was ten pence cheaper through Able and Cole than at the local rip off merchant (aka Flitwick Tesco’s) so I ordered that too.

Today I opened the door (shamefully still unwashed in a dressing gown and holding a baby spoon) to the Able and Cole man and manhandled my three boxes inside. As soon as I opened the fruit box Ben swooped in. He was given a clementine to be getting on with while I unpacked the rest, he seemed to inhale the clementine and came back to grab a pear from the box, this was returned to me as it was too hard (I had warned him), a banana was requested but I explained that they needed a little more time to get nice and ripe so another clementine was offered and again inhaled.

He then helped me unpack the veg box, excitedly telling me about all the fruit whose names he knew (pepper, courgette, tomato, mushroom) and asking what the other ones were (butternut squash, spinach, black salisfy, leeks).

My only problem now is that I have no idea how to cook black salsify – so any good cooks out there please step up to the mark and leave me a few black salsify tips in the comments (any advice always very gratefully recieved).

[Via http://worldofamummy.wordpress.com]

Stir

It’s been cold, right? Thick-sock-wearing cold. Huddle-under-a-blanket-with-a-book cold. Even put-that-fireplace-to-use cold.

And I like it.

Know what else I like? Polenta. Specifically, when it’s cold enough for cooking polenta over a hot stove, steam in your face and those thick socks on your feet. I like all that stirring and watching the great golden bubbles rise to the top and audibly pop.

To my left, Quinn is populating a pretend “California” with a bin’s worth of Polly Pockets (a plethora of accessories and outfits included). To my right, Emmie is puffing and piping clarinet scales.

Me? I’m stirring to the words of Nicole Krauss in “A History of Love”. No, it’s not the same as reading huddled under a blanket, but soon I’ll be tucking into this polenta, which might be better than than the blanket part.

Make it:

Grab a medium-sized saucepan. Stir 1 tablespoon kosher salt and 1 2/3 cups coarse polenta into 7 cups cold water (cold water means fewer lumps). Add a couple small bay leaves and bring it all to a boil, then add a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil. Reduce heat to medium low and stir — continuously so the polenta won’t stick — until the polenta is thick and pulls away from the sides of the pan (and watch where you put your book — don’t let it get too close to the burner, especially if it’s from the library). Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. If, like me, you feel so inclined, add a handful or three of freshly grated Parmesan.

[Via http://thezest.wordpress.com]

Ninth Day of Christmas - Cranberry Almond Bark

On the ninth day of Christmas YoungWifey shared with me, her cranberry almond bark recipe, chocolate amaretto cherries, pecan turtles, raspberry chocolate truffles, gingerbread fudge, peppermint bark, dark chocolate peanut butter balls, cracked glass candy, and her peanut butter fudge recipe…

This was something I was playing around with one year as I was mixing in food to the leftover chocolate I had melted. Then I found out that other people had made similar candies. This is what mine evolved into.

Ingredients: 8 square of white baking chocolate, 3 squares semisweet chocolate, 3/4 c. almonds, 3/4 c. dried cranberries, 2 tsp. almond flavoring

Directions: If almonds are whole, chop into smaller pieces. In a double boiler, melt white chocolate. Remove from heat, mix in almond flavoring and keep warm. Repeat with semisweet chocolate. Mix dried cranberries and almonds into white chocolate. Spread mixture onto a wax paper lined baking tray. Tap tray on counter to even out mixture. Drizzle semisweet chocolate overtop white chocolate. Use a spoon to swirl mixture. Tap tray on counter again to level mixture. Place in the refrigerator until hardened, break into pieces.

Don’t forget to check my blog tomorrow to see what tasty treat I shared!

[Via http://youngwifey.wordpress.com]

Gluten-Free Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup for Sauces, Casseroles, and especially Green Bean Casserole!

This is so easy to make you might want to use it even if you don’t need to have a gluten-free dish.  As with the Onion Rings mentioned earlier, this tastes good enough you need make no excuses to anyone about its being gluten-free.  Roben Ryberg includes this in her book,  You Won’t Believe It’s Gluten-Free!: 500 Delicious, Foolproof Recipes for Healthy Living, p.158.

 Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup, by Roben Ryberg (Gluten-Free)

This casserole helper isn’t what you think it is.  Cream in the title would lead you to believe dairy is a main ingredient, but it isn’t.  In fat, it barely registers–that famous brand has less than 2 percent dairy.  This recipe is not for eating as is–if you want to enjoy a bowl of great cream of mushroom soup, please try the other recipe on page 161.  However, if you need a good substitute for a non-gluten-free commercial brand to use in a casserole, this one will do the job nicely.  This recipe replaces one (10-3/4-ounce) can of cream of mushroom soup.

4 Ounces Fresh Mushrooms, chopped finely

3 Tablespoons Butter

1 Cup Water

2 Tablespoons Cornstarch, or potato starch plus 1 Teaspoon Cornstarch, or potato starch

1/4 Teaspoon Salt

 - Wash and finely chop the mushrooms.  Place in a small saucepan with the butter.  Cook over medium heat until the mushrooms are very fragrant and tender, approximately 5 minutes.  A little browning of the mushrooms will add to the flavor.  Combine the remaining ingredients in a cup and stir to dissolve the starch.  Add to the pot.  Stirring, bring to a boil to allow the mixture to thicken.

- Use as called for in any recipe.

You can find Roben Ryberg’s book for yourself here:

You Won’t Believe It’s Gluten-Free!: 500 Delicious, Foolproof Recipes for Healthy Living

[Via http://trulypat.wordpress.com]

Ebelskivers

A trip to Williams-Sonoma this week led to a new Ebelskiver’s Pan. You see William-Sonoma is always sending me e-mails on what they are having on sale. So of course when I received an e-mail regarding the Ebelskiver’s Pan it was like they knew for the longest time I have wanted this pan.

Ebelskivers are light, puffy pancakes that can be filled with fruit, chocolate, jam or cheese and served for breakfast or as an hors d’oeuvre, dessert or light supper. Ebelskivers are traditional Danish pancakes with a distinctive shape of a sphere. Somewhat similar in texture to American pancakes crossed with a popover, ebelskivers are solid like a pancake but light and fluffy like a popover. And absolutely delicious. To make them all you need is this special pan and to drop some of the batter into each mold, cook for a few minutes, then turn the dough and cook on the other side. Easy peasy!

I decided to make them Sunday morning for brunch and filled them with strawberry jam and some with breakfast sausage. I can’t wait to find new ways to make them and will definitely be making these again soon!

* picture courtesy of William-Sonoma

* Sunday morning I wasn’t really feeling up to taking pictures because I was so hungry. I will definitely be making these again soon so I will post pictures in the future.

[Via http://delightfullysweet.wordpress.com]

Enter December...

Just a quick update.  I’m still regrouping after Thanksgiving crazies.

1. Didn’t get the job I interviewed for in November.  Resilience is a good quality to nurture in oneself.  Good news: I was one of their top picks (but they aren’t hiring any of the people they interviewed).  Not so devastated this time.  Still waiting for decision from EDD judge re: getting unemployment.   Talking to a friend about working with him on a new business.
2. Distracting self (re: unemployment and bank account) by sewing Dickens outfits and knitting muffatees.  Using stash for outfits!  Okay…except for the trims.  But using whatever I can from stash!  Looking forward to going to Dickens Fair…and remembering how bad things were for people in the mid-1800s in London.  Perspective is good.
3. Baking pumpkin for soup. The weather has turned cold and soup will be good. (Tip: poke a hole in the squashes before baking…loud pop was heard when the spaghetti squash was baking whole.  Yep, it was a small explosion.) We are getting frost finally.  Yes, yes, those of you in colder climes will tease, but around here, with the Mediterranean climate and ocean influence, this is true seasonal change.  Harvesting last of herbs before they all turn brown and yucky looking.
4. Made liqueur for next season at Ren faires.  Fall pears perfumed the air…but now they are sloshing in vodka with candied ginger and a twig of rosemary.  We’ll see what it looks like/smells like in about 6 months.  Might need to remove the rosemary before that.
5. Winter gifts are nearly done.  Big push to finish after the 15th.  Still need to find the dead fish hat that has gone missing.  (See Knitty for the pattern.  Very fun.  Good stash buster.)
6. Thankful for loving husby, daughter, and warm circle of family and friends.  This economy sucks.  Getting gun shy about listening to the evening news.  Although I know that a lot of people are hurting with the economy being what it is (including my household), it is good to remember that there are wonderful people in my world.
7. I’ll write something better soon.

Magaidh

[Via http://auntmagaidh.wordpress.com]

Fourth Day of Christmas - Peppermint Bark

On the fourth day of Christmas YoungWifey shared with me, her peppermint bark recipe, dark chocolate peanut butter balls, cracked glass candy, and her peanut butter fudge recipe…

Part I – Dark Mint Chocolate Base

Ingredients: 2 lbs. dark chocolate, 1 tsp. peppermint oil

Directions: Melt chocolate in a double boiler, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat and mix in peppermint oil. Immediately pour onto a wax paper lined baking tray. Tap tray on counter until chocolate is smooth and level. Refrigerate until hardened.

Part II – White Mint Chocolate Topping

Ingredients: 1 c. crushed candy canes, 1 tsp. peppermint oil, 2 lbs. white chocolate

Directions: Melt the chocolate in a double boiler, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat and mix in peppermint oil. Immediately pour on top of dark mint chocolate, use a spatula to even out. Sprinkle crushed candy cane on top of white mint chocolate and gently press into place. Place the baking tray back into the fridge until hardened. Break chocolate into pieces (like peanut butter brittle).

Peppermint Bark

Don’t forget to check my blog tomorrow to see which tasty treat I’ll be sharing.

[Via http://youngwifey.wordpress.com]

Cucumber Tomato Salad

A refreshing summer salad that I make all year around because it’s so healthy!

Wash & chop the following vegetables:

Cucumbers, Tomatoes, red (purple) Onions, Cilantro.

(Put in the amounts you prefer and chop into salad sized chunks).

Squeeze in fresh Limes (or lemons) and moderate amount of  Vinegar to your taste. (can use bottled lemon/lime juice).

Vinegar is just as important as the Lime (or lemon) juice in this recipe.  Vinegar gives it a nice zip.

Mix all ingredients together.

You now have a colorful,  refreshing, and very healthy salad.

[Via http://katshealthycooking.wordpress.com]

Desert dal

Writing about dal reminded me of one of the most spectacular versions of the dish I have ever eaten. Sand entangled in my hair, hot desert wind in my face, thighs turned to jelly by an enthusiastic camel ride.

No, it wasn’t romantic at all.

I was deep in the Thar desert, one of the border outposts manned by the Indian border security force. It was nothing like the pretty comfort of Jaisalmer or Jaipur, and there weren’t any ‘royals’ lurking about either, ready to help you sample the delights of their erstwhile palaces converted into ‘heritage hotels’. Just tough, leather-faced men, their skin stroked into deep ravines by the hot desert wind. And bright-smiled, multi-bangled village women who so generously offered to feed the strange woman with short, men’s hair and her gracious, graceful mother.

What they turned out was a traditional meal – dalbatichurma – actually dal, bati and churma, but often spoken all together, unpunctuated, with no breaks for breath. Dal was hot, as in chilly-hot, a kind of level of chilly until then I imagined foreigners falsely accused Indian food of having. Bati were flour dumplings, insanely tasty, and churma was a kind of flour cooked in ghee. Ghee. Loads of it. The entire meal was a feast of ghee. No wonder the dal tastes so great, my mother remarked. Even lauki will taste awesome if you put so much ghee in it, she continued, forgetting that I no longer detested the watery gourd. And had travelled quite far from the childhood dislike.

We stuffed ourselves with enough dalbatichurma that would have stood a camel in good stead for at least a month, I wildly hoping I wouldn’t store the ghee in unfortunate bulges. Later, as we lay with the wind quietening around us and the stars glittering cold and hard, reflecting on life I suddenly hit upon the reason for all the ghee – all the chillies! Of course, it is believed that the ghee helps the chillies go down smoothly, and the chillies wouldn’t taste so good without the ghee. Having worked out this vicious circle, I went to sleep with satisfaction, the sand creeping into the crevices of my eyes and tinting my dreams golden.

[Via http://soulcook.wordpress.com]