Italian Sausage and White Bean Stew
Posted: December 21, 2009 Filed under: Cooking, Entrées 2 Comments »
It’s been a long time since I’ve tried a new recipe. I’ve had my eye on this one ever since Kate posted it, and I finally got around to making it today. It did not disappoint — it was super tasty and easy, like chili. Next time I will probably make a double batch.
My mods:
::Used a 15oz can of cannellini beans because my supermarket did not carry 19 oz cans.
::Used hot Italian turkey sausage instead of sweet. Decreased amount to about 10 oz (about half the package) to compensate for less beans.
::Tripled garlic because we love garlic.
Chicken Salad Croissant Sandwiches
Posted: September 10, 2009 Filed under: Cooking, Entrées 2 Comments »
This yummy and easy recipe came from a colleague, who brought these sandwiches to a potluck a few months ago. When I made them over the weekend, I scaled down the recipe to use two cans of chicken, and there was enough (and then some) to stuff six large croissants. For a potluck, mini croissants would probably work best.
3 cans (12.5 ounces each) cooked chicken, drained (I bought the 6-pack of Costco Kirkland Canned Chicken Breast)
1 cup chopped celery
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon lemon juice (I used bottled)
1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon curry powder or to taste
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Mix and refrigerate above ingredients. Before serving inside croissants, add:
1 1/2 cups red grapes, sliced in half (I omitted these completely)
1/2 cup toasted almonds (I used sliced almonds from the baking aisle and didn’t bother toasting them)
1/4 cup chopped green onions
Enjoy!
Red Bean Chili
Posted: February 28, 2009 Filed under: Cooking, Entrées 7 Comments »I learned recently that Hubby loves chili. I have only eaten it once in my life — just a few bites at a potluck last year — and I can’t even remember how it tasted. So I was searching for a “good,” simple chili recipe without exactly knowing the definiton of “good.” Luckily, I came across Smitten Kitchen’s post on a Red Bean Chili recipe adapted from Real Simple magazine. Kate raved about it as well, so I decided to give it a try.
It was fabulous. Hubby really liked the flavor, and I thought it was very good too (even though I’m not a huge chili fan in general). Best of all, it was super easy! Now I just need to find two things: a less expensive source of chili powder (because the 1/3 cup used almost my entire jar from McCormicks), and a great cornbread recipe to go along with the chili!
Spice-Rubbed Baked Chicken
Posted: February 16, 2009 Filed under: Cooking, Entrées 5 Comments »
A couple of weeks ago, we saw an old episode of Everyday Food on PBS that included Spice-Rubbed Grilled Chicken. It looked delicious, but we don’t like to grill on the stove because it makes a huge mess. So I adapted the recipe for baked chicken. We used about four pounds of chicken drumsticks and baked them for 30 minutes at 400 degrees. Then I lowered the temperature to 350 and baked them for an additional 30 minutes. The flavor was good and the chicken was tender and moist, but I didn’t enjoy it as leftovers so unfortunately this one is not a keeper.
Cinnamon Rolls
Posted: February 8, 2009 Filed under: Baking, Breakfast 10 Comments »
A couple of days ago, I was in the mood to make cinnamon rolls after reading this post. Cinnamon rolls aren’t on my list of favorite foods — I can’t even remember the last time I ate one — but Hubby likes them a lot, so I figured I would give them a try.
For the dough and filling, I followed Elise’s adaptation of the recipe from Oprah magazine. However, I omitted her pecan topping entirely and substituted the frosting from the Clone of a Cinnabon recipe. The verdict? We loved them! The texture is light and the frosting has just the right amount of sweetness. Below are the various parts of the recipe, adjusted to create a half batch of 10 small rolls. But next time, I will likely make the full batch!
For the Dough:
1/8 cup warm water (105° to 115°)
1 1/8 teaspoons active dry yeast (half of a 1/4 oz package)
1/6 cup sugar
3/8 cup milk
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
2 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 to 2 1/8 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees, and then turn it off.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine warm water, yeast and 1/2 teaspoon sugar. Stir to dissolve and let sit until foamy, about 5-10 minutes.
3. Add milk, butter, remaining sugar, egg yolks, salt, and 1 1/2 cups flour. Mix on low speed until blended. Switch to a dough hook and slowly incorporate the remaining 1/2 cup of flour (on low speed). Increase speed to medium, kneading dough until smooth and slightly sticky (adding a little more flour if too wet), 3 to 5 minutes.
4. Shape the dough into a ball and place in a large, buttered bowl. Turn dough over in bowl to coat with the butter from the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place it in the oven (which is warm but not on). Let rise until doubled in volume, about 1 hour (or longer if needed — I waited about 1 hour 30 minutes).
5. After the dough has risen, remove from oven and punch down. Turn out onto a lightly floured cutting board and let sit 20 minutes.
For the Filling:
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 Tbsp ground cinnamon
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1. Combine brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Melt butter; keep separate.
2. Roll dough out into a rectangle (approximately 14″ x 10″). Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar mixture. Starting with the long side, roll dough into a cylinder. Place seam side down on a flat surface and cut crosswise. (Dental floss was very helpful in making the cuts. I made 10 rolls, but they are definitely on the small side.)
3. Place dough slices, flat side down, in greased baking dish. Crowd them so they touch. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
For the Frosting:
3 Tbsp cream cheese, softened
2 Tbsp butter, softened
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
very small pinch of salt
1. Remove the rolls from the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature while preheating the oven to 375°. Bake buns until golden, 20 to 25 minutes.
2. While rolls are baking, beat together frosting ingredients.
3. Spread frosting onto rolls while they are warm. Enjoy!
Sweet and Sour Pork Stir Fry
Posted: January 8, 2009 Filed under: Cooking, Entrées 4 Comments »
Recipe from the January/February 2009 issue of Everyday Food (found here).
Mods made for a doubled recipe
:: 2 lbs boneless pork chops instead of pork tenderloin
:: Several hours prior to cooking, seasoned the sliced pork with salt, pepper, and garlic powder
:: 20 oz can of pineapple chunks
:: doubled marinade ingredients
:: 2 fresh broccoli crowns instead of frozen broccoli florets
:: 2 large bell peppers were sufficient even for a doubled recipe
:: green parts of scallions only
While the sweet and sour sauce doesn’t taste like the ones served in restaurants, it is still quite good. I think it is a little off because I can taste a hint of the rice vinegar; Hubby thinks maybe adding sugar would have helped. The rice vinegar taste did go away completely the following day, though. Next time we will probably experiment with the sauce, but we were definitely pleased with this recipe because the flavor was good and it came together relatively quickly. We also liked having our meat and veggies all together in one dish. Yay, a winner!
My Mother’s Oatmeal
Posted: December 19, 2008 Filed under: Breakfast, Cooking 6 Comments »
I have fond memories of the “real” oatmeal that my parents would occasionally cook on the weekends when I was growing up. My definition of “real” is the type that is prepared in a pot, not the instant just-add-boiling-water stuff. I loved it on chilly winter mornings. In the summer, I would eat the leftovers cold. Yum.
Last month, I decided to make “real” oatmeal for the first time. I followed the instructions on the container to the letter. The end result was so disgusting that I ate three bites and threw the rest away. I told my sister about my disastrous results, and she mentioned that my father soaked the oatmeal in water prior to cooking and that sugar was added. Obviously, I never actually watched either parent making oatmeal.
I called my mother and got some general directions from her. This morning I had time to experiment again, and was so pleased that my oatmeal tasted just like hers. Here is the “recipe”. Please note that measurements are approximate and may need to be adjusted depending on your preferences for consistency and sweetness.
3/4 cup old-fashioned oatmeal
1 cup water, plus a little extra
1/2 cup milk
2-3 tablespoons sugar
Pour 1 cup of water into a small pot and bring to boil. While waiting, measure out the oatmeal into a bowl. Add just enough water to the bowl so that all of the oatmeal gets dampened. Using a spoon, mash the oatmeal around for several minutes.
When the water is boiling, pour the oatmeal+water mixture into the pot. Reduce heat and cook on medium-low heat for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add milk and stir. Add sugar (to taste — I used 3 tablespoons), stir, and heat for an additional minute. Remove from heat and cover pot for 10 minutes. Makes 2-3 servings.
Baked Ziti with Spinach and Tomatoes
Posted: December 11, 2008 Filed under: Cooking, Entrées 5 Comments »
I came across the Baked Ziti recipe via one of Minty’s Flickr photos last month. It was pretty tasty and would definitely be a good option if you need to feed a crowd. Below is the recipe, with my notes in brackets.
3/4 pound hot Italian sausages, casings removed [increased to 1 lb]
1 medium onion, chopped
3 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 28-ounce can diced peeled tomatoes [on top of this, added a 14-oz can of diced tomatoes]
1/4 cup purchased pesto sauce [used entire 7 ounce package]
[Added 1 13-ounce can of mushrooms, drained]
10 ounces ziti or penne pasta (about 3 cups), freshly cooked [increased to 1 lb]
8 cups ready-to-use spinach leaves (about 2/3 of 10-ounce package) [used 5 cups of fresh bagged baby spinach. Could have used 6 or 7 cups.]
6 ounces mozzarella cheese, cubed [used about 5 ounces of shredded mozzarella]
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 3 ounces)
Heat heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add sausage, onion and garlic and sauté until sausage is cooked through, breaking up meat with back of spoon, about 10 minutes. [We cooked the onions and garlic by themselves, then removed them from the pan. Then we cooked the sausage. I was worried about the garlic burning if we left it in with the sausage.] Add tomatoes with juices to pan. [Added the onions and garlic back in at this point, and also added the can of mushrooms. Simmer until sauce thickens slightly, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Stir in pesto. Season sauce with salt and pepper. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Bring to simmer before continuing.)
Preheat oven to 375° F. Lightly oil 13 x 9-inch glass baking dish. Combine pasta, spinach, mozzarella and 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese in large bowl. Stir in hot tomato sauce. Transfer mixture to prepared baking dish. Sprinkle remaining 2/3 cup Parmesan cheese over. Bake until sauce bubbles and cheeses melt, about 30 minutes. [While baking, I covered the dish with foil for the first 15 minutes to prevent it from drying out too much.]
Beef Stroganoff
Posted: November 30, 2008 Filed under: Cooking, Entrées 4 Comments »
Last weekend we made Beef Stroganoff using the recipe from Cook’s Illustrated/America’s Test Kitchen, and honestly I wasn’t impressed at all. The beef turned out quite bland, and overall there wasn’t much flavor. But on the upside, I was happy that it was at least edible and not disgusting!
Enchiladas
Posted: November 6, 2008 Filed under: Cooking, Entrées 7 Comments »
Last weekend we made The Pioneer Woman’s Favorite Enchiladas, and wow, they were good. Really really good. They are somewhat time-consuming to make, but Hubby and I thought they were well worth the effort. This is an excellent cold-weather/comfort food dish! I have posted Ree’s recipe below, with my notes in brackets, but if you intend to make them you should check out Ree’s website with the photo tutorial of this recipe.
THE SAUCE
1 tablespoon canola oil [I used olive oil because that's what I have]
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 large (28-ounce) can enchilada or red sauce [I used Las Palmas enchilada sauce]
2 cups chicken broth
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper [omitted the pepper, because I bought picante/hot enchilada sauce and there was plenty of heat in it for me]
2 tablespoons chopped Cilantro [omitted from the sauce]
In a large saucepan over medium heat, add oil and flour and whisk together to make a paste, cooking for 2-3 minutes. Pour in the enchilada sauce, chicken broth, salt, and pepper [if using], and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30 to 45 minutes. [If using cilantro in the sauce, add it right before you are about to use the sauce in the "Assembly" part of the instructions.]
THE MEAT
1 1/2 pounds ground beef [I think 1 1/4 pounds would be enough]
1 medium onion, finely diced
2 4-ounce cans diced green chilies
1/2 teaspoon salt
Brown meat with onions in a skillet. Drain off fat. Stir in 2 cans diced green chilies and season with salt. Set aside.
TORTILLAS
10 to 14 corn tortillas [I bought 20 tortillas that were each about 5 inches in diameter. I used 19 tortillas, and would have certainly used the last one if I could have fit it in the pans! So, I recommend buying extra tortillas.]
½ cup canola oil
Heat canola oil in a small skillet over medium heat. One by one, using tongs, fry tortillas oil until soft, not crisp—about 30 seconds per side. Remove to a paper-towel lined plate. Repeat until all tortillas have been fried. [I'm not a fan of frying tortillas in oil. So I heated them in a non-stick skillet with no oil. For the second batch, I skipped this step entirely. Next time, I may just heat them in the microwave with a wet paper towel over them.]
ASSEMBLY
Sauce (above)
Meat (above)
Tortillas (above)
3 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese [We bought a Mexican grated cheese mixture with cheddar jack and jalapenos. We only used 2 cups.]
½ cup chopped black olives
1 cup chopped green onions [didn't measure; just chopped the whole bunch]
½ cup chopped cilantro [again, just chopped the whole bunch. We love cilantro so we used it all here.]
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Pour ½ cup red sauce in bottom of baking pan. Spread to even out.
Dip each tortilla into red sauce, then remove to work surface. Spoon meat, a little grated cheese, a little black olives, and green onions in the center of tortilla. Roll up and place, seam down, in baking pan. Repeat until pan is filled. Pour extra red sauce over enchiladas. Top with remaining cheddar cheese. Bake for 20 minutes or until bubbly. Sprinkle chopped cilantro over enchiladas before serving.
