Pistachio crusted jerk tofu

Posted on September 10, 2013 by ds331

Remember my jerk tofu recipe from  few weeks ago? I improved upon it. How? I got an idea from a recipe for pistachio crusted tofu. That one seemed a little too plain jane (and seemed like it wouldn’t have enough flavor). So again, I hybridized.

  • 1 recipe jerk tofu. The change: i used extra firm tofu instead of baked tofu for this
  • 1/4 c pistachios ground up
  • a handful of panko breadcrumbs
  •  handful of coconut flour (to dry out the tofu a little)
  1. Make the marinade. Cut tofu into 6 pieces (I did triangular pieces but I don’t think it really matters). Marinade for 20-30 mins. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400.
  2. grind up the pistachios (I used a spice grinder). you will have some bigger pieces–use that for the end.
  3. Mix the bread crumbs, coconut flour, and pistachio. Coat each piece of tofu with this mixture (like breading).
  4. Mix the remaining marinade into the leftover topping. spoon on top of each piece, but save a little for when you pull it out of the oven.
  5. Place on a baking sheet.
  6. Bake for 15-20 mins–until golden.
  7. top with remaining topping.
  8. Enjoy!
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Olan Kichidi (a hybrid dish)

Posted on September 10, 2013 by ds331

Last night, after  long night at work, I tried to think up a quick, easy dish. I remembered my cousin making kichidi for her kids in about 20 mins  few months ago. But I also wanted to mix it up little. so…I combined two recipes into what I realized today when I ate it for lunch, tasted like “olan kichidi”. Olan is a keralan dish made of coconut milk, a squash, and black eyed peas.  Kichidi is a comfort food made of lentils and rice.

What did I do?

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup rice (I used a mix of purple and jasmine rice that I had in the cupboard)
  • 1/2 cup black lentils
  • 1/4 cup adzuki beans (instead of black eyed peas)
  • 1 can of coconut milk
  • 1/4-1/2 c frozen veggies (you can use fresh or butternut squash or pumpkin. I used what I had handy)
  • 1 t coriander seeds
  • 1 t cumin seeds
  • 1 t turmeric
  • 1 t ginger
  • 1 t gram masala
  • 1 t chili powder

I threw all of the ingredients into a rice cooker along with 2 cups of water. About 20-30 mins later (when the rice cooker thought it was ready), I stirred it up, added salt to taste, and added another cup of water (it wasn’t fully cooked. you want it a little mushy, but not soupy or porridge like, so use as much as you need to get it to cook and be  little mushy). Enjoy.

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Popsicle Experiment: Moscato, Ginger beer, and Strawberries

Posted on August 10, 2013 by ds331

I wenphotot wandering today around my neighborhood, under the guise of picking up some last minute things for my trip. I ended up picking up those things (books, travel charger for South Africa’s weird plugs, etc)…and a few other things, too: popsicle molds (i’ve been wanting to for a few weeks), moscato wine, and ginger beer. So tonight, I present: Moscato-Ginger beer-Strawberry-Basil Popsicles. Update: I froze them overnight…and they worked!

The inspirations:

  • ImageI went to a cute home gadget store. and saw a popsicle mold I liked…and wasn’t too expensive.
  • I went into the local wine shop just because. They were tasting an awesome moscato d’asti. I didn’t get that for today’s experiment–why use a $20 bottle of wine when mixing with other ingredients and playing around? Instead, I hit up the $9 bin at the schmancy liquor shop down the street and also saw some ginger beer while I was there. Inspiration born.
  • We had strawberries and basil laying around

The Ingredients


  • Image8 oz Moscato (I figured sweetness was good in a popsicle) (i may actually have to cut the amount down for next time)
  • 1 bottle of ginger beer
  • 4 strawberries minced small
  • 3 pieces watermelon (I forgot I dropped these in too) minced

The Method

  1. Mix up the wine and the ginger beer–the fizziness created the feeling of moscato d’asti (sparkling moscato)
  2. Drop in the fruitImage
  3. Chiffonade the basil (roll it up and slice it finely)
  4. let the fruit sit in the wine for a while
  5. Pour into popsicle molds and freeze!
  6.  Update: Freeze overnight…success!
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Split pea falafel/meatless meatballs

Posted on June 22, 2013 by ds331

This recipe is versatile. I made it intending to make felafal, but didn’t have pita at home. And I was making barbecue sauce for a marinade for kabobs we are making for tomorrow…so I decided to use that with these.

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup split peas (soak overnight in some water)
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2-3 green onions
  • 1 T coriander seeds
  • 1 T cumin seeds
  • 2 T garlic paste
  • 2 T Tahini
  • 1/2 t cayenne pepper
  • salt & pepper to taste

Equipment:

 

  1. Soak split peas for at least a few hours. I soaked them in the morning and used them in the evening.
  2. The food processor makes this an easy to make recipe. Toss all of the ingredients in (chop up the onion). Grind. Some chunks are ok, but you could also make a smooth paste.
  3. Preheat oven to 450 (i was baking something else and tossed this in with it)
  4. Line a cookie sheet with parchment and spray a little cooking spray over it
  5. Using an ice scream scoop, make small round mounds on the cookie sheet a few inches apart.
  6. Bake until golden brown

Serving suggestions

1. As Falafel: Serve in a warmed pita with tomato and tahini.

2. As “meat balls” you could douse with marinara or

3. Brush with barbeque sauce (see previous recipe for an option). I served this along with some zucchini and eggplant that I roasted along with the lentil balls. I brushed barbeque sauce on those as well.

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homemade barbeque sauce

Posted on June 22, 2013 by ds331

This is my adaptation of the Culinary Institute’s BBQ sauce recipe, which as you will see I use for several things–part of a kabob marinade, just slathered on roasted veggies, and as an accompaniment to my split pea “meatballs”.

Ingredients

  • 1/4 c vegetable oil
  • 1 onion
  • 3 cloves garlic (or 3 tsp garlic paste)
  • 1 T Dijon mustard
  • 1 T ground cumin
  • 1 T ground coriander
  • 1 t cayenne (mine is really spicy)
  • 2 T molasses
  • a drizzle of honey
  • 1/2 cup vinegar (they say apple cider. I just used what I had)
  • 1 carton pomi tomatoes

The method

  1. In a saucepan, saute onions
  2. Add the tomatoes and boil all of the other ingredients.
  3. cover and cook over medium, stirring occasionally, for at least 20-30 mins. You can reduce to simmer if it is getting too hot…and leave on simmer for a bit longer.
  4. salt to taste.
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Homemade Granola

Posted on June 13, 2013 by ds331

I never realized it was so easy. I guess I never thought about it. But it is simple. With one wee little caution–don’t let it burn. Mine was just about golden, I thought “i’ll leave it a minute or two”…and the next thing I knew, it had been in too long. And the fruit & raisins had burned to a crisp. (also–add them at the end, don’t bake them the entire time as I did). OOPS. i mixed in new fruit and it’s mostly edible. But excited to try it again.

  • 1 cup rolled oats
  • 1/4 cup shredded coconut
  • 1/2 cup sliced almonds
  • 1/8 cup olive oil
  • drizzle of honey  (3 Tbs)
  • a handful of pecans
  • a handful of raisins
  • a handful of dried cranberies
  • a few mini dark chocolate  chips
  • a few chopped dried apricots
  • a dash  of cinnamon
  • a dash of nutmeg

The method

  1. Line a cookie sheet with parchment.
  2. pour the oats, honey, oil onto sheet stir around
  3. bake at 350 for 20-30 mins.
  4. Add the fruits and nuts at the end. Bake a few more mins
  5. let it cool and enjoy.
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Crockpot squash and lentil stew

Posted on June 13, 2013 by ds331

This started out as the moosewood recipe…but then it required some substitutions…

Equipment: Crock pot

Ingredients

  • 1 butternut squash pre baked (ie: roast in the oven/toaster oven until semi-soft. 1/2 hour)
  • 2 ears of corn
  • 1/4 cup lentils
  • 1 onion
  • 1 bell pepper
  • a few portabella mushroom caps
  • 1 t chilli seasoning (chilli powder)
  • 1 t cumin
  • 1 t coriander
  • cinnamon
  • 1/2 can coconut milk
  1. Scoop out the seeds from the butternut squash. Scoop out the flesh in rounds (a mellon baller would work). why? interesting chunks.
  2. Chop onion, bell pepper, and mushrooms.
  3. Add onion, a dash of olive oil to the crock pot and turn on.
  4. Grind cumin, corriander and a cinnamon stick. Dump into the crock pot
  5. De cob the corn.
  6. Add the veggies and lentils to the crock pot.
  7. Add a cup of water
  8. Cook for 2 hours-ish. When the flavors have come together, add in the coconut milk.
  9. Salt and pepper to taste.

 

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Oat-Rye bread

Posted on June 13, 2013 by ds331

So how did last week’s recipes turn out? Overall, I’d give it a B. Some were really good (this one, for example). And my version of the daal and veggie stew were pretty good. The sweet potato pizza could have used a little more flavor, as could the empanadas. Oh and I kind of burned the granola–but it’ something I’ll definitely be trying again, with a wee bit less time in the oven. I was distracted by the marshmallows!

It was the bread, however, that earned rave ratings. My husband said “why do we buy store bought bread?…why don’t we just make this all the time?” Score!

I used King Arthur Flour’s recipe as my base–but modified in a few ways: I halved the recipe-2 of us really can’t eat 2 loaves before they go stale. And I didn’t have whole wheat in the house (empty flour bin)…so I used Rye instead. Sugar instead of maple sugar. Oh and olive oil instead of butter. This was done by mixer.

Equipment: stand mixer.

My Rye-Oatmeal Bread

Ingredients

  • 1 Cup boiling water
  • 1/2 cup oats
  • 1/4 cup sugar (was tempted to use agave but wasn’t sure of the substitution proportion–it’s sweeter)
  • 1 t salt
  • 1/2 T honey
  • 2 t yeast (I kept the yeast the same). I used bread machine yeast
  • 3/4 cup rye flour
  • 2 cups bread flour
  • 1/8 Cup olive oil
  • 1/2 t salt
  • 1 t cinnamon

The Method

  1. Boil water. Add the water, oat, sugar, honey, salt, oil, cinnamon to the mixer bowl. Let it sit for about 10 mins while it cools to lukewarm.
  2. Add the yeast and the flours to the bowl.
  3. Mix on speed 2-3 for 2-3 mins. Kick it up faster for maybe 30 secs to pull the dough away from the sides of the bowl. Pull it back down to 2 or 3 and let it knead for another 3-4 mins. You will know when it is done when the dough forms a shiny ball by itself. Or, when your mixer shuts off from overload (oops). If that does happen, unplug, wait a few mins, and plug back in. it should restart.
  4. Wrap the dough ball in plastic wrap. Cover with a towel and place in a bowl. Let it sit for at least an hour. I left it  for about 3 or 4 last weekend. I went out to do stuff and came back.
  5. Line a loaf pan with parchment. Spray a little olive oil in it.
  6. Unwrap your dough ball. Press it gently into the loaf pan.
  7. Cover with the plastic wrap again.
  8. Let the dough rise another hour or so–it will rise above the top of the pan rim.
  9. Preheat oven to 360 and bake for 33 mins (that’s what the recipe says). The more important measure–the internal temp should be 190.  Mine got to 185, i let it sit a few more mins, turned off the oven and let it sit a little longer.

There’s lots of passive time…def requires some patience.

Next week, i’m pondering trying out a recipe for english muffins…

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Homemade Vegetarian Marshmallows!

Posted on June 9, 2013 by ds331

I did and made a lot of things today, but my personal crowning achievement: making homemade vegetarian marshmallows! Not sure why I find this so exciting–perhaps because the store bought vegetarian ones aren’t quite right (good enough for s’mores, but too sweet)…and the regular ones are guilt-inducing (gelatain).

Or perhaps it was because after watching “America’s Best Bakers” (or whatever it’s called), and I declared I was making marshmallows, my husband said “you can’t make marshmallows!” Oh, is that a dare, a challenge, I hear. You lose, I win, but I’ll still share my marshmallows with you. 😉

So thank you “ Tasty trifles” for the recipe. I did tweak it a wee bit. And when it was done, I made mini s’mores.

photo 3

Finished product pre refrigeration

 

  • 1/4 c water
  • 3/4 c. sugar syrup (I used “sugar in the raw” syrup. the orig called for corn syrup)
  • 1 1/4 c regular sugar
  • 1/2 t cream of tartar (more than the orig)
  • 3 egg whites
  • drizzle of vanilla (1/2 t?)
  • 1 t xanthan gum
  • corn starch and powdered sugar to sprinkle in the pan on top of greased parchment paper

Equipment

  • Stand mixer–it really makes this a fast and easy process.

The method

  1. Pour your water, sugars and vanilla into a saucepan on medium high. let it boil until it hits the “hardball stage”–ie it forms thick ropes when you lift the spoon out of the pan and when you drop a little into cold water, it forms a firm ball. Remember to keep stirring and to scrape down the sides of your pan.
  2. With an electric mixer, whip up your egg whites for 3 mins to “soft peak” stage.

    photo 1

    Post whipping

  3. Add cream of tartar and xanthan gum. keep whipping
  4. Drizzle your sugar syrup into your whipping eggs.  (try not to let any get onto the sides of your mixer bowl…it’s hard to clean off)
  5. Whip until shiny, stiff, and fluffy.

Transfer into an 8×8 or 8×12 pan. Right now it is “fluff”–i used this to make my mini s’mores. Refrigerate and cut into squares.

Bonus–if you have figured this out, you can now make italian merangue too. (who knew!). This might be what goes on my bday cake, since I can’t do dairy.

mini smore--choc not visible

mini smore–choc not visible

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Low Iodine challenge, year 2…menu plan

Posted on June 8, 2013 by ds331

It’s time for my one-year/year and a half follow up scan…which means for the next 3 weeks I’ll be eating a low-iodine diet. Exciting? No, but like last year, I take it as a challenge to find things to eat when I have to really limit my diet.  Like that Cosby show episode with Rudy’s tap teacher, I say, “chaaallenge….”! Here’s what I have to eliminate:

  • dairy
  • things from the sea=no agar agar/carageenan which is in almost all non-dairy milk.
  • egg yolks
  • soy (no or limited tofu, fake meat, soy sauce, edamame). I use soy sauce and
  • iodized and sea salt
  • iodine (duh)=no bread with dough conditioner
  • limit grains to 4 servings (ok fine really that’s prob all I need to be eating)
  • pre-made ingredients that use salt (that I cant’ verify) and restaurant food (unless I want to go on faith)

What does that leave me as a vegetarian?

  • lentils and egg  whites, quinoa for protein
  • veggies and fruit
  • things I make myself at home with kosher salt
  • bread I make myself so it doesn’t have iodate dough conditioner
  • nuts

Mostly it means a lot of planning, and a little more cooking than normal since eating out is not a great option when you have to ask things like “is that sea salt? is that kosher salt sea salt?” or “is there dairy in that?”  Low iodine? Easy peasy? no…but doable.

Here’s a plan:

Game on…challenge on. The bread is rising, pizza dough is done. About to soak the boatload of almonds I bought to make almond milk and almond cheese (yowza, expensive). And make some peanut butter.

keep cam, carry on?

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Kale-jerk tofu enchilladas

Posted on May 20, 2013 by ds331

Really, you ask? that sounds kind of random. And perhaps it is. But it’s what I had in the fridge!  It was inspired by a fellow blogger’s recipe for a kale/sweet potato tortilla casserole. We still have a mega ton of kale in the fridge, as well as a portabella, a sweet potato, two ears of corn, pre-marinaded jerk tofu, two tortillas, and some salsa I bought the other day.  In the end, I used some, but not all of the ingredients. The sweet potato I saved for later. And I subbed out the tofu for the black beans in the original recipe. And…I added some other spices.

  • 2-4 tortillas
  • 1 portabella mushroom
  • 1/4 large onion
  • 1-1/2 cups kale
  • 1 ear of corn
  • 1 T cumin seeds
  • 1 T corriander seeds
  • salsa to use as a sauce
  • 1 recipe of jerk tofu
  • 2 oz cheddar cheese shreds

Note: You will have leftovers of the filling if you just use 2 tortillas like I did tonight.

The method

  1. Chop the onion into fine strips and sautee in a large skillet/wok.
  2. Add a chopped portabella mushroom (cut into 1″strips)
  3. Pull the kernels off of the corn and toss into the pan.
  4. Add the kale (cut into strips) into the pan.
  5. grind the cumin & corriander seeds and add to the pan.
  6. Add the jerk tofu
  7. Stir and cook until the kale is soft.
  8. line a small casserole dish with some salsa
  9. Add two tortillas overlapping–they will be sticking up.
  10. Add the filling.
  11. Sprinkle 1/2 the cheese on top
  12. cover with the tortilla ends that are sticking up.
  13. cover with some more cheese and salsa
  14. bake at 350 for 15-20 mins.
  15. enjoy!
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Jerk tofu

Posted on May 20, 2013 by ds331

This is probably one of the most flavorful tofu marinades I’ve discovered–the tofu really soaks up the flavor. I merged a few recipes…one here on Meatless Monday and  a moosewood recipe

Ingredients (I halved the original recipe the first few times I made this to make 2 decent sized portions). that’s what’s below.

  • 1 cake of baked tofu
  • 1 onion
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 1 T ginger
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 1 T soy sauce
  • 1 T olive oil
  • 1 1/2 T maple syrup or honey
  • 1 t allspice
  • 1 nutmeg
  • 1 t cloves
  • 1 t cinnamon
  • 1 jalapeno pepper
  • lime zest

♠ Equipment: food processor

The method:

  1. Place all of the ingredients except the tofu into a food processor. Grind into a paste.
  2. Scrape paste into a gallon sized ziploc bag.
  3. Chop tofu into small pieces–2″ cubes.
  4. Put tofu into ziploc. Seal and shake up
  5. Refrigerate tofu in bag for a few hours–min 2 hours. overnight probably would be even better.
  6. When it’s marinaded sufficiently, drizzle a little olive oil into a large skillet. heat. add tofu and marinade. cook until brown on all sides. (you can bake per other recipes, too).
  7. enjoy. I paired this with a mango salsa.
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The mattar paneer challenge

Posted on May 19, 2013 by ds331

Yesterday, a friend gave a beautiful dance performance. To help out, friends from our class made the dinner that followed the performance. I volunteered–to make a dish for 80. Now I know lots of aunties do this all the time, and I have made this dish before, but this  quantity was new territory for me. I’ve had 4 dishes on the stove before, too, but not usually double batches of the same recipe! Lastly, I wanted to make it extra good so I combined ideas from various recipes.The best–using a combo of ground and whole spices.

It came with a challenge or two–two of the pots needed some extra special scrubbing attention–didn’t stir effectively enough? And there were a lot of things to stage and prep. Kudos to my husband for cutting 14 cups of onions (which he claims was just 4 onions!).

Mattar Paneer for 4 (which I then multiplied into a crazy amount)

The almost finished product

  • 2 onions
  • 1 T garlic-ginger paste or 2 cloves of garlic and 1.5″ ginger
  • 1 t chilli powder
  • 1 t garam masala (mine is a combo of a cinnamon stick, and one T each of cloves, cumin, corriander, black pepper, cardamom. lots of people do different variants) I toast all of these and then grind them. a recipe here
  • 2 cardamom pods–one ground with the garam masala ingredients and one whole–but out of the pod

    Spices needed

  • 1t coriander seeds
  • 1 t cumin seeds
  • 1 sprinkle hing (asafoedita–sprinkle it into the oil)
  • 1 t turmeric powder
  • 1 dry red chilli–soaked in water
  • 3-4 sundried tomatoes (i had them laying around. soaked in water, too)
  • 14-16  strained tomatoes (i use Pommi strained tomatoes–a little more than half a box)
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1 lb frozen peas (small bag or 1/2 big bag)
  • a handful of cilantro
  • 2 t lemon or lime juice
  • 1 block of paneer (should you be ambitious, you could make this yourself–a gallon of milk, a lemon or a T of vinegar and some cheese cloth yields you enough for 2 batches–you can freeze half for later. bring the milk to a rolling boil–stirring constantly, and being careful not to let it boil over. Add lemon juice or vinegar. the curd will separate from the whey. put a cheese cloth over a colander. pour out contents. wrap the curds in the cheesecloth with twine. rinse once. hang overnight (put a bowl underneath to catch drippings.)

The method

  1. Chop onions. In a skillet with a touch of olive oil ( you really don’t need much–i actually forgot to use oil and it was fine), sautee onions until they soften and begin to release some water.

  2. Grinding the onions

    Transfer onions into a food processor or blender. Add ginger, garlic, the softened dried chilli and the sun dried tomatoes. grind into a paste–about 2 mins.

  3. Scrape the paste into the pan and let it cook for about 2-3 mins. You may need to add a little water.
  4. scrape the paste to one side. Add a drizzle of olive oil. Add the garam masala, turmeric, and hing, as well as the whole coriander, cumin, and cardamom. Sautee until it releases fragrance.
  5. Add tomatoes. Cook for 15-20 mins.
  6. Taste your sauce. if it is flavorful, it’s ready for the next step.
  7. Add peas. Cook on medium-low for another 15-20 mins until the peas are soft.
  8. Meanwhile, cut your paneer block (if you are using store bought) into half lengthwise. Cook on medium heat on a flat skillet until it begins to brown slightly and soften.
  9. Flip over and cook on the other side too.
  10. Put on a cutting board and let cool. When cool, chop into 1″ cubes.
  11. Add paneer to peas when peas are softened.
  12. Reduce heat to low or a simmer. Simmer for approximately 20 mins (longer is fine–just stir).
  13. Squirt a little lemon or lime juice (2 tsp max) into the dish. stir. Salt to taste.
  14. Garnish with cilantro if you wish.
  15. Eat with chapati or rice. or a wheat tortilla heated up.

 

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Kale “ceasar” salad

Posted on May 19, 2013 by ds331

This was an experiment on my husband and neighbors. Hubby bought a rather LARGE bag of kale. What to do with it? I made spinach with it (using the kale instead of spinach), I made baked kale, braised kale…and this.

dressing

  • 1 clove garlic (i had used 2 and it was a bit strong)
  • drizzle olive oil
  • 2 T tahini (to make it creamy/ceasar dressing-like)
  • 1 T balsamic vinegar
  • 1 squirt dijon mustard
  • 1 T soy sauce
  • a sprinkle of parmesan cheese or nutritional yeast should you want to keep it vegan

Salad

  • 3 handfuls of kale–chopped finely
  • 4-6 cherry tomatoes, chopped
  • basil torn
  • 1/4 red onion in thin slices
  • sesame seeds
  • croutons, should you wish them

Combine the dressing ingredients in the food processor and blend. Mix well with the kale–I just mixed with tongs and let it sit–but some people say to “massage” the dressing in.  Then add tomatoes, and onions. Sprinkle on sesame seeds and croutons if you wish.

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Cabbage Ginger Salad v2

Posted on May 12, 2013 by ds331

Last year we went to a great Burmese restaurant (Mandalay) in Silver Spring. We loved the cabbage ginger salad and I came home wanting to figure out how to make it. The New York Times and this blog had a good recipe, but the fish sauce (in the NYT recipe) and a few other ingredients had me searching for ways to modify it. so here’s my take. This is my second version–I made a slightly different version last summer that had crispy noodles in it

for the dressing:

  • 1 T garlic paste
  • 1 T soy sauce (roughly)
  • 1-2 T teriyaki sauce
  • 1-2 dashes of sesame oil (didn’t measure)
  • 1/2 T peanut butter or tahini
  • dash of rice wine vinegar
  • a pinch of coconut flakes
  • sesame seeds

for the salad

  • 1/2 small cabbage (shred in food processor)
  • 2 carrots (shred in food processor)
  • 2 inches ginger (shred in food processor can use less)
  • 1/2 jalapeno (in food processor
  • handful cashews toasted
  • a few crushed up tortilla chips added at the end for crunch.
  • 1 shallot (i sauteed this in a little olive oil until it got crispy)
  • 2 plum tomatoes

Mix the veggies from the food processor bowl with the tomato and dressing. enjoy.

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Sriracha and Wasabi Deviled Eggs

Posted on April 20, 2013 by ds331

I saw this recipe, and wanted to try it but thought it was a little much…(soaking in soy?). Maybe next time. For this purpose, I simplified. We also went back and forth about whether people eat deviled eggs…they did. they were all gone. I served them on a platter on top of a bowl of ice…so they stayed cold. And…I made them the night before, to boot. I did a few test runs where I just made a few eggs for my husband and me–in that case, just a squirt of sriracha, a spoon of wasabi and a spoon of mayo suffices.

https://i0.wp.com/www.seriouseats.com/recipes/images/20110129-135212-sriracha-deviled-eggs.jpg

ingredients

  • 1 dozen eggs
  • 1/4 c mayonnaise (you could probably use yogurt…but would need to add salt)
  • 2 T sriracha
  • 2 teaspoons wasabi powder
  • a drizzle of soy sauce
  • 1/4 c scallions
  • a ziptop bag

the method

  1. Boil the eggs. (I saw a few recipes saying to boil the water. Add the eggs, turn off the heat and cover for 10 mins).
  2. Refrigerate the eggs for a while (helps to crack them). I boiled thurs and cracked and filled on Friday.
  3. Crack the eggs carefully (don’t dent the eggs)
  4. Cut each in half, put the yolks into a bowl.
  5. Line a flat container with papertowels. Lay down the whites on the papertowels. Do this between layers. refrigerate the whites.
  6. Mix up the yolk mixture (wasabi, mayo, sriracha, scallions, soy sauce).
  7. Pop the mixture into a ziploc. (you could go fancy and use a piping bag with a wide tip).
  8. Snip the tip. Pull the whites out
  9. Squeeze a bit into each egg white cup. You could top with a little paprika or some of the spices they mentioned but I didn’t have (five spice, star anise).
  10. I stored two layers separated by paper towels in the fridge. Paper towels absorb the moisture and keep the whites from getting soggy.
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Butternut Squash & Ricotta Crostini

Posted on April 20, 2013 by ds331

The third of the birthday boy recipes…

Original recipe here. My modifications: Added a pesto, cut out the olive oil.

https://i0.wp.com/www.epicurious.com/images/recipesmenus/2011/2011_october/367711_116.jpg

photo from original recipe. i forgot to take one

  • 2 loves french bread
  • 1 butternut squash
  • sage, basil
  • a handful of arugula
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 2 oz walnuts or pesto
  • a drizzle of olive oil
  • 8 oz ricotta
  • pecans for garnish

the method

  1. Preheat oven to 450. Wrap butternut squash in foil and toss in the oven for 35-40 mins. You want it soft but not mushy.
  2. While the squash is baking, make a pesto:
  3.  My pesto recipe: Put the following in a blender or magic bullet: 2 handfuls of basil, sage, and arugula. Add walnuts and garlic. Add a drizzle of olive oil. Pulse until well blended. Thin with a little water. The pesto gets a little spicy from the arugula.
  4. Cut the bread into thin slices. Spritz with a little olive oil. Put in the oven and bake until just golden.
  5. Cool the butternut squash. Slice into thin 1-2″ pieces.
  6. Top each piece of bread with a spoon of ricotta (spread), a spoon of pesto (spread), and a slice of butternut squash.
  7. Put back in the oven on low (200) for a few more minutes. just to rewarm.
  8. Add pecans to garnish. I actually candied the pecans I used by tossing them into a pan with a spoon of sugar and a little smidge of chilli powder. after a few mins, add in a little drizzle of water and cook until the water has been absorbed. nuts will cool crispy and sweet.

 

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Salty, Sweet & Spicy Mixed Nuts

Posted on April 20, 2013 by ds331

to serve a crowd. original recipe here. My modifications (different nuts, different herbs, different spice)

https://i0.wp.com/www.foodandwine.com/images/sys/200809-r-wine-bar-nut-mix.jpg

ingredients

  • 2 packages mixed nuts (i bought a version with no peanuts)
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup
  • 5-10 leaves of basil, sage, rosemary (it’s what I had)
  • 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder

the method

  1. Preheat oven to 350.
  2. Line pan with parchment.
  3. Toss nuts on pan.
  4. chiffonade the herbs. (ie: roll them up and chop finely). Add to the nuts.
  5. Sprinkle on maple syrup and chilli powder
  6. Mix well
  7. Bake for 15 mins until the syrup is absorbed.
  8. sprinkle with a little salt and freshly ground black pepper (if your nuts are salted, don’t add salt)

Yum. good snack with wine

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Birthday Boy Chocolate Cake Pops (in Salted Caramel and Peanut Butter)

Posted on April 20, 2013 by ds331

Birthday cakes are an elaborate affair in my house–the last few years they have involved dark chocolate, marscapone, pistachios, and ganache. YUM. but have done it to many times. So this year….I went with cake pops. I was inspired by a cake pop truck we visited in Austin. It also seemed to fit the retro (70s) feel of the rest of the menu.

These are somewhat elaborate too…but totally worth it. And you can do it over a few days–just keep freezing them. You can store in the freezer for up to a week. my fave: salted caramel. my husband’s: peanut butter. Could you do this with cake mix and bought frosting? sure…but this is so much better.

Salted Caramel and peanut butter cake pops

Part 1: Chocolate cake.

I modified this Martha recipe. The good news-you are breaking up the cake, so you can bake it in thin layers, which means the bake time is like 10 mins (ok 20 for two oven fulls), rather than an hour.  This made enough for 40 cakepops.

  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 cups packed light-brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs plus 2 large egg yolks, room temperature
  • 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup low-fat buttermilk (I used 1/2 cup greek yogurt and 1/2 c skim milk instead. it’s what I had)
  1. preheat oven to 350
  2. In a mixer, cream butter and sugar.
  3. Add eggs and yolks.
  4. Mix together flour, cocoa, salt, and baking powder & baking soda.
  5. Add part of the flour mixture slowly to the mixing bowl. alternate with the buttermilk mixture.
  6. Line 3 cookie sheets with parchment. Spray with cooking spray.
  7. Spread batter thin on cookie sheets.
  8. Bake for 10 mins. Prick with knife.
  9. Cool.

While that’s baking, start on part II, the frosting. You only need a little bit…

  • 1 stick butter–softened
  • 1/2 cup  cocoa (I was temped to use melted chocolate)
  • 1 1/4 c powdered sugar
  • 2 T milk
  • Vanilla extract

Cream the butter and sugar in a mixer. add cocoa, then milk and vanilla extract. beat until fluffy.

Parte III: Make little balls of heaven

  1. Destroy your cake. Yes, this feels really wrong. but it’s necessary. Crumble it into a bowl.
  2. Mix with 1 T at a time of your frosting. You want it just moistened. 
  3. Use a mellonballer or mini icecream scoop to form balls.
  4. Lay your cakeballs down on the same parchment lined pans you used for baking (repurposing)
  5. Stick in the freezer for 1 hour (I left them overnight and then proceeded to step 4 the next day)

Parte IV: Inner Coverings…Enrobings, shall we say

  • Caramel
  • heath bar crunches
  • 1 C peanut butter
  • 1 bar semi sweet or bitter sweet (60 percent) chocolate

salted caramel covering

  1. I bought caramel–you can make your own. I didn’t have time.
  2. Dip each ball into caramel until lightly coated. shake off.
  3. Place back on a parchment lined pan
  4. put in freezer for 20-30 mins (or overnight)

peanut butter chocolate covering

  1. melt your chocolate (I use the double boiler method)
  2. mix in peanut butter into melted chocolate
  3. dip the balls into the mixture until lightly covered. When chocolate gets too thick, rewarm.
  4. freeze the cakeballs again

Parte V: The final chocolate coat–going through enrober on “I Love Lucy” 

(ok there’s no enrober, but that’s what I imagined)

  • 2 bars of chocolate, melted over a double boiler
  • 1 C heath bar bits (For salted caramel ones) set aside in a bowl
  • 1/4-1/2 peanuts, ground. set aside in a bowl
  1. Dip each ball into melted chocolate. Shake and quickly dip into the appropriate topping.
  2. caramel balls get a dip in heath bar bits
  3. peanut butter balls get a dip in peanuts. you could mix sugar into the peanuts. i didn’t.
  4. Freeze again. I froze for 3 days
  5. defrost in the freezer (prevents condensation)
  6. stick lollipop sticks in them. Note, this sometimes cracks the choc coating so I switched to think toothpicks.

170 cals, 9 g fat per pop. (indulgence)

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The Birthday boy menu (recipe posts to come)

Posted on April 19, 2013 by ds331

Last week was my husband’s birthday…we did a number of things, but the one that involved cooking was our rooftop happy hour that stretched over six hours. The good sign…almost all the food was gone :). Here’s the first of several posts-the menu:

It was cocktail party fare:

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