Butternut Squash and Tomato Soup

I admit it, I've been on a bit of a soup kick lately.  I don't usually make soups, but I've realized this is because The Husband and I largely do not agree on soup styles.  He's big on stews and the like, and while I can eat a bowl of those, I cannot eat the leftovers.  Well, with him gone, I can make whatever soups I want! When I was home for the holidays, my mom made a batch of this and I fell in love.  It's delicious, thick enough to suit my taste, thin enough to drink from a mug, and oh so healthy, with no cream.  What's not to love?

Ingredients

3 T butter
5 cloves garlic
1/2 onion, diced
5 carrots, sliced
3 ribs celery, diced
2 lbs butternut squash, peeled and cubed
14 oz whole tomatoes (canned works well enough)
8 c stock (I used turkey, veggie or chicken would also be fine)
1 c cream sherry
splash bourbon
1/2 c fresh basil leaves
1 T balsamic vinegar
1 T Worcestershire sauce
dash cayenne
salt and pepper to taste

Saute the garlic, onions, carrots, celery and butternut squash in the butter for about 10 minutes.  Add stock, sherry, and bourbon.  Boil, then reduce heat to medium.  Simmer until the squash is tender, about 30 minutes.  Add the remaining ingredients and puree with an immersion blender.  Adjust seasoning to taste.

Oven Roasted Pork Chop with Fruit Salsa over Mango-Eggplant Risotto

So really, I have been cooking.  I've just been incredibly slow on the blogging front.  And I started having trouble with some of my photos, which just won't do.  And yadda yadda yadda.  Enough on the excuses.

This recipe I made for me, not for The Husband.  Sometimes he's very adventurous - I was so proud the other day in Charleston when he ate and enjoyed a pesto-based pizza!  But other times, not so much.  Pork chops are one of his boring things.  He thinks they should be grilled with bbq sauce.  Period.  End of story.

Well that just wasn't going to cut it for me.  I had a mango that needed to be used.  I had an eggplant that needed to be used (by the way, expect a lot of eggplant recipes, I'm swimming in them!).  I was going to use them!  And boy am I glad I did!  The meal even got a tolerable "I guess it's okay but BBQ sauce is better" from The Husband as he cleaned his plate.

The mango really added an interesting flavor to the risotto.  The sweetness was subtle, but the way the mango interacted with the chicken stock and the eggplant was - to my mind - quite fantastic.

Ingredients

Fruit Salsa

3 small heirloom tomatoes, diced
1/2 small onion, diced
1/2 bell pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 peach, diced
1/2 mango, diced
1 cayenne, minced
handful of fresh cilantro
juice from 1/2 lime

Combine all ingredients in a bowl.  Let sit for at least 4 hours but preferably overnight.

Pork

Pork chops
juice from 1/2 lime
splash of white wine

Loosely wrap chops in tinfoil with the lime juice and the wine.  Bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes or until cooked through.

Risotto

2 T evoo
1/2 c rice
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 eggplant, diced
1 quart chicken stock
1 cayenne, minced
1/2 mango, diced
1/2 c white wine

Heat the oil in a saute pan.  Heat the chicken stock to a simmer in a separate pan.

Add the rice and garlic to the saute pan.  Stir until the rice becomes transparent.  Add the eggplant and cook for another minute or two.  Add a ladle of hot chicken stock to the pan, stirring constantly.  When the stock is nearly evaporated, add another.  Continue in this manner, always stirring constantly until the rice becomes tender and creamy.  At this point, add the cayenne and mango, and then the wine.  Stir and cook a minute or two more, then serve hot.

Chicken and Basil Ravioli with Veggies in a Garlic Sauce

The other day I was able to harvest the first veggies from my garden!  It was a very exciting day!  I got a zuchinni, a handful of green beans, and a handful of basil.  I looked at them, debating what to use them for, and this dish sprang into my head.  I had leftover shredded chicken in the fridge, so all I had to do was make the raviolis - and that really doesn't take long, though I am out of practice and did not get the dough as thin as I would have liked.  I also spazzed out and forgot how to use my ravioli maker, but I muddled through and it turned out delicious in the end!  As a side note, I tried out a new pasta dough recipe and did not like it so in the future it will be back to the old standby.

Ingredients

Pasta dough, rolled out thinly
1/4 - 1/2 c cooked and shredded chicken
4 large basil leaves, sliced
2 T olive oil
handful diced onion
6-8 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 zuchinni, sliced
handful green beans, chopped
2 T olive oil
3 basil leaves, sliced
1/2 tomato, diced

Mix together the chicken and the sliced basil, let sit while you roll out the pasta dough.  Stuff the raviolis with the chicken and basil mix and seal firmly.  Cover and set aside.  Start a pot of water heating for the pasta.  Heat the first 2 T olive oil in a skillet and sautee the onions and garlic until fragrant.  Add the zuchinni and green beans.  When the zuchinni begins to soften, add the remaining 2 T olive oil and the remaining basil.  Cook until the beans are soft, adding more oil as needed.  Add the tomato in the last minute or two.  Meanwhile, once the water for pasta is at a boil, add the raviolis.  Cook for three to four minutes, then drain.  Top raviolis with the veggie and garlic oil mix.  Enjoy!

Bang Bang Shrimp

Until Friday, April 6th, I never met a shrimp I liked.  Sometimes I'd find shrimp that I liked the flavor of, but the texture always killed it for me.  Last friday, though, we headed into The City to do some shopping - and to use the gift cards the in-laws had given me for my birthday.  The gift cards to Bonefish Grill.

Yeah, Bonefish is a chain, but despite our relative proximity to the ocean, we live in a bit of a seafood desert and Bonefish is wayyyy better than Red Lobster!

Anyway, my husband has been wanting bang bang shrimp for a while.  Wednesdays are bang bang days, with specials and whatnot, but it was Friday.  It was also happy hour, and we noticed that bang bang tacos were on the cheap appetizer list, so we got that.  Warily, I took a bite.

I was in heaven.  The sauce was divine, the shrimp crispy and not at all bothering me (the tortilla did, though, they really need to make their own!).  I devoured my share.

I needed more.

When I got home, I started looking up how to make my own.  Fortunately, it's a simple process.  I made The Husband run out and get me some shrimpies and we celebrated Easter with the oh-so traditional Bang Bang Shrimp dinner.  Yum!  I tossed them with roasted veggies to make it a bit healthier.

Ingredients

1/2 c mayo
1/3 c sweet thai chili sauce
sriacha to taste
2/3 lb peeled and deveined shrimp
cornstarch
vegetable oil

Make the sauce ahead of time to allow flavors to blend.  Mix mayo and chili sauce (maybe a bit extra of the chili sauce), and add sriacha to taste.  Add a LOT of sriacha to taste.  Don't be a wimp, get some spice in your life!

Heat oil to 350.  Pat shrimp dry and toss in cornstarch.  Let shrimp sit for 10-15 minutes.  Fry in oil until browned, 2-5 minutes depending on the temp of your oil.  Drain on paper towels.  Toss shrimp with some veggies and sauce to taste.  We had a lot of extra sauce but no extra shrimpies!

Thai Take-In

Okay, so, I took some fantastically gorgeous pictures of this dinner!  Lots of them!  ...Without a memory card in my camera.  Ooops.  I promise I'll take some more (WITH the memory card) when I'm eating leftovers next week.  Unless I forget because I'm busy with the new job (had I mentioned that yet?  I'm employed again!), in which case I'll just have to make this whole thing over again and eat even more Thai and you know, that sounds like an amazing idea really!

ANYWAY!

Rewind four months.  I was just coming back from the Grand Canyon Adventure with Adventure and Cooking Buddy Stacey.  Traditionally, we make our first meal after a backpacking trip a special one.  In Alaska, it was always Moose Tooth.  This time we tried the steak house at the Canyon, but the food was not up to our ridiculous foodie standards.  I thought Stacey was going to cry when her dessert came out covered in cool whip.  So we needed another, better post-Canyon celebration dinner.  Well, plans changed and Stacey came back to Vegas with me before returning home, and she declared that we should feast at Lotus of Siam.  This was a place that had been recommended to me by several people but I just hadn't made it there yet (something which I now regret).  So, off to Lotus we went.

Oh.  My.  God.

We ordered drunken noodles with crispy duck and khao soi with braised short ribs.  I was in heaven.  Absolute heaven.  Unfortunately, we only had a few more weeks left in Vegas at that point.  I set about going to Lotus every chance I got.

Back to the present:  I have been Lotus-less for four months now.  I swear I have actually been dreaming about that khao soi.  I had to have some.  So, I had to make some.  I spent a few days looking at various recipes on the internet, then set about winging it with my own recollection of the dishes from Lotus.  I was very pleased with how the Khao Soi turned out.  The Drunken Noodles weren't perfect, but The Husband loved them anyway.

Khao Soi Braised Short Ribs

Ingredients

6 beef short ribs
salt and pepper
1 T evoo
2 T vegetable oil
1 T minced garlic
1 T red curry paste
1 c red wine
6 c water

1 package thin rice or egg noodles
1 T evoo

2 T vegetable oil
1 T minced garlic
2 T red curry paste
1 can (2 c) coconut milk
2 c braising liquid or beef stock
1 1/2 t turmeric
1 T soy
1 T sugar
1 t salt

Optional:
1 diced serrano chili
pickled veggies*

Place dutch oven** on lowest rack.  Preheat oven to 350.  In a large skillet, heat the evoo.  Rub the ribs with salt and pepper, then brown on each side.  Set aside.  In a sauce pan, heat up the vegetable oil until it is sizzling.  Add the garlic and the red curry, stirring well.  Add the wine and simmer for three minutes.  Add the water and return to a simmer.  Carefully pour liquids into dutch oven.  Add ribs and cover.  Cook for 2-2.5 hours or until meat is falling off the bones.

When the ribs are almost done, make the curry sauce.  Heat the vegetable oil, then add the garlic and red curry, stirring well.  While stirring, add the coconut milk, then the braising liquid.  Simmer for three minutes.  Stir in the turmeric, soy, sugar and salt (for a spicier dish, add the diced chili).  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.  Cook for 10 minutes.

While the curry is cooking, cook the noodles according to the package instructions.  Drain.  Heat the evoo in a skillet and toss the noodles in, stirring constantly until noodles are slightly toasted.

Serve curry and short ribs over noodles, topping with pickled veggies.

*I tried pickling my own but I wasn't happy with the result.  I will try again.
**If you have a flat bottomed dutch oven, no need to preheat, just use it instead of the saucepan in the following steps.

Drunken Noodles with Veggies

Ingredients

2 T vegetable oil
3 cups diced veggies - baby corn, bell peppers, green beans
2 T minced garlic
3 serrano chiles, diced

1/2 bag of wide egg noodles

4 T soy
1 1/2 T oyster sauce
1 T rice vinegar
3 T brown sugar
lime juice from 1 lime

dash white pepper

Heat the oil in a large wok.  Add the veggies, garlic, and chiles, stirring well.  Cook until vegetables are tender, stirring frequently.  While vegetables are cooking, boil noodles according to package directions and drain.

Once the vegetables are tender, add the noodles and continue to fry for 3 minutes or so.

Meanwhile, mix together the soy, oyster sauce, vinegar, brown sugar and lime juice.  Pour over the noodles and veggies, stirring well.  Cook until the sauce has reduced, stirring constantly.  Top with a dash of white pepper and serve.

Marsala Risotto, Crispy Roasted Veggies, and the Holy Grail of Chocolate Cake

February's HH6 (as a side note, I really need to update my HH6 blogs tab) (side note two, I'm also a few days early with this) cooking challenge:

In celebration of Valentine's Day, create a dish that represents your relationship with your significant other. (example: the meal you had on your first date, on a vacation together, what you ate before you got engaged, the meal you had at your wedding etc.)

I have changed a lot over the course of my relationship with my husband.  I count myself as very fortunate that he has changed along with me.  Those who knew me in high school are continually amazed at the person I've become and I owe much of that to my husband who has always encouraged me to be a stronger, better person (even if he doesn't realize he's doing it!).

When we got married, I couldn't really cook.  I was student teaching right before we tied the knot and I'm pretty sure I lived on Kraft mac and cheese, Hamburger Helper, and frozen bagged stew mix.  The problem with this?  My husband hates cheese.  Insanity!  So there went the mac and cheese and most of the Hamburger Helpers!  What's a girl to do?  Why, learn to cook real food, of course.

One of the first real dishes I learned to cook was Chicken Marsala.  I've blogged this recipe before, so just follow the link to see.  I chose to use it for this challenge because it is pretty much the only thing that I cooked during our first year of marriage that survived my transition into a crazed foodie - and The Husband absolutely adores it.  The fact that he's been begging for it lately also might have played a part in my decision.

Back when we first got married, I'd serve the chicken with bagged instant rice and frozen veggies.  No more!  Now my chicken is accompanied with a creamy risotto flavored with marsala wine (no cheese, dear), and crispy roasted broccoli and brussel sprouts, both of which we would be content to eat like popcorn.  You never knew brussel sprouts could taste this good!

Marsala Risotto

Ingredients

1 c white rice
2 T butter
1 c marsala wine, divided in half
1 quart chicken stock (preferably home made!)

Always stir risotto CONSTANTLY!  This means if you need to cook something else at the same time, make sure that everything is mis en placed and within arms reach.

Heat the chicken stock until simmering.  Reduce heat and continue to simmer.  In a separate pot or saucepan, melt the butter until bubbly.  Add the rice and stir constantly until just toasted, not browned.  Reduce heat to medium.  Add in 1/2 c marsala wine.  Stir constantly.  Once the liquid is mostly gone, add a ladle of chicken stock.  Again, stir constantly.  Once the liquid is mostly gone, add another ladle of chicken stock.  Getting the picture?  Keep going until the stock is gone and/or the rice is creamy and fully cooked (if you run out of stock and it's not cooked, use hot water).  When the rice is cooked, add in the last 1/2 c marsala and keep on stirring.  Serve immediately.

Crispy Roasted Veggies

Ingredients

1 broccoli head, sliced into bite-sized pieces
4 brussel sprouts, quartered
EVOO
Pepper
Garlic salt

Preheat oven to 500.  Toss veggies onto a tray, drizzle with EVOO and sprinkle with pepper and garlic salt.  Bake for 10 minutes.

Now, about the cake.  Valentines Day also happens to be The Husband's birthday, so I like to go all-out.  Last year was strawberry tartlets.  The two years before, though, he was deployed and got cake-in-a-jar (I should blog that sometime).  This year is all about the chocolate.

When I was in college, I went around making giant chocolate layer cakes for Christmas.  Of course, I used box mixes and what have you, but I think this tendency is part of the reason The Husband fell in love with me.  He comes from a family of chocoholics, and has been occasionally dropping hints that I have failed in providing him with Epic Layer Cake Goodness.  I needed to fix that.  So here we go, the Holy Grail of Chocolate Cake: chocolate fudge cake layered with cream cheese filling, chocolate-caramel butter cream and caramel cream drizzle.  You will never need another cake again.

*with the exception of the cake, which makes a full 13x9 sheet cake, the other recipes have been reduced because I only wanted to layer and frost a mini-cake, there being only two of us here.  If you are making a full-sized layer cake I recommend doubling the filling and the frosting.

Holy Grail of Chocolate Cake

Cake (Adapted from Alton Brown's Devil's Food Cake)

Ingredients

1 c boiling water
4 oz cocoa powder
1 1/2 c brown sugar, packed
1/4 c sugar
4 c flour
1 t baking soda
pinch salt
1 c vegetable oil
4 oz sour cream
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
1 t vanilla

Preheat oven to 325.  Line a 13x9 pan with parchment paper and grease the paper.

Combine water and cocoa powder until smooth.

Mix sugars, flour, baking soda and salt in your stand mixer.  In a separate bowl, whisk oil, sour cream, eggs, yolks, and vanilla.  Carefully add the chocolate mix to the wet ingredients, stirring well.  Slowly add the wet mixture to the dry, blending until smooth.  Pour into pan and bake 50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Cool completely before removing cake from pan.

Cream Cheese Filling

Ingredients

6 oz reduced fat cream cheese
2 T butter, room temperature
1/2 T vanilla
2-3 c powdered sugar

Beat the cream cheese and butter together until well mixed.  Add vanilla, then carefully add powdered sugar. Taste and add the final cup of sugar if you feel it necessary (I like my filling a bit tart).

Chocolate-Caramel Buttercream

Ingredients

1/2 c butter, room temperature
2 oz cocoa powder
3-4 c powdered sugar
1/3 c milk
2 t vanilla
2 t caramel coffee syrup

Combine powdered sugar and cocoa.  In a different bowl, beat butter for a minute.  Carefully add the sugar and cocoa, then the milk, vanilla and syrup.  Beat until fluffy.

Caramel Cream Drizzle

Ingredients

1/2 c brown sugar
2 T butter
2 T milk
powdered sugar to taste (2 T-1/3 c)

Melt the butter and sugar together in a saucepan, stirring constantly.  Cook until the mixture is quite bubbly, then whisk in milk.  Keep stirring and cook two more minutes, then set aside to cool.  Whisk in powdered sugar to taste (more if you want to use as frosting, less if you want to drizzle).

Building the Cake

Chill your cake layers (covered in plastic wrap) for at least an hour before building the cake.  Use a knife to level each layer if necessary.  Place first layer on a sheet of parchment paper.  Spread thickly with cream cheese filling, but leave a margin of 1/4 to 1/2 inch around the edge.  Place second layer on top and press down gently.  Spread the second layer with filling, again leaving a margin.  Top with third layer.  Spread cake thinly with buttercream - this is a crumb coating, don't make it perfect or thick.  Refrigerate at least 30 minutes before continuing.

Remove cake from fridge.  Spread with final layer of buttercream, then carefully transfer to the serving plate. Drizzle with caramel cream and enjoy!

Chinese Take-In

Sometimes, you just want Chinese food.  And sometimes, you're in a new place with little in the way of food options, and there's just no where good to go.  Therefore, tonight was Chinese Take-In.  I don't know why I hadn't thought of this earlier, making my own.  It's brilliant.  Just as delicious, cheaper, and nearly as easy.  Plus, it's kinda fun!

I wanted to surprise The Husband tonight.  Things have been pretty hectic the past few weeks and it's been difficult for me to cook more than spaghetti, so we've been eating out a lot.  This was our first evening home in several days, so it deserved something special.  Now, I think these will be regulars in our home!

Our Chinese Take-In consisted of the following:  Egg drop soup, lo mein, beef and broccoli, and kung pao beef.  I like egg drop soup a lot, but The Husband prefers wonton.  Egg drop was easier though, so that won out tonight.  We both love lo mein.  He usually gets something like beef and broccoli (or orange chicken, that will be a later dinner!) and I prefer spicier options, so I made both beef entrees.  As it turned out, he actually preferred the kung pao!

Given that my knowledge about cooking chinese food is... limited, I had some help with dinner tonight.  The recipes I modified, I posted here along with a link to the original.  Those I did not modify just get linked!

Egg Drop Soup

Lo Mein

Beef and Broccoli

Ingredients

1/2 lb stir fry beef, cut into strips
1 large head of broccoli crowns, sliced


Marinade
1/2 t baking soda
1 t sugar
1 T soy sauce
2 T peanut oil
1 T sherry
1 t ginger

Sauce
1/2 c soy sauce
2 T teriyaki sauce
3 clove garlic, minced
1 t cornstarch
2 T sherry

3 T vegetable oil

Whisk together the marinade.  Toss the beef in the marinade.  Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour.  Turn once, halfway through.

Mix together sauce.

Heat 2 T of oil in a wok.  Saute broccoli 2 minutes.  Remove from wok and set aside.  Add 1 T of oil to wok.  Saute meat and 1/2 of sauce for 4 minutes.  Add broccoli and the rest of the sauce.  Cook two more minutes.

Kung Pao Beef

Ingredients

1/2 lb stir fry beef, cut into strips

1/4 c teriyaki sauce
1 T cornstarch
1/2 t ancho chili powder
1/2 t cayenne
1/2 t ginger

1 T peanut oil

2 scallions, sliced.




Mix together the sauce.  Toss the beef in the sauce.  Cover and refrigerate at least an hour, turning once.  Heat oil in wok.  Add steak and cook 4-5 minutes.  Sprinkle with scallions.

Chili Rellenos

I apologize for the long hiatus, but we spent all of December moving again.  We're still not all unpacked here at the new place, but I made the kitchen a priority.  It's the only room in the house that is 100% functional.  With that said, I'll kick off my return to blogging with this month's HH6 challenge (due to the holidays there was no December challenge so I didn't miss one)!

Prepare a dish that you have never made before but always wanted to try.  Tell us why you have taken quite some time to make this dish.

Back in August of 2009, just before school started (you know, the days the teachers are there working but the kids aren't), I remember going out to lunch with my co-workers.  We headed to Mexican place down the street.  I had the chili rellenos.  I'm not sure how the conversation ended up where it did, but I made some comment about how it was probably hard to make chili rellenos or something along those lines.  One of my friends then pointed out that I was no slouch in the kitchen and certainly I could make chili rellenos if I wanted to.  Huh, I thought to myself, I guess I could!  So I decided that I would learn to make chili rellenos by the end of the year.

Yeah, that never happened.

I did go and read up on how to make them and I think that intimidated me.  It seemed like a whole lot of steps, between roasting and skinning the chili and making the batter and the tendency of things to go horribly, horribly wrong when I have hot oil around... So the whole thing sort of fell to the wayside.  Until I got this challenge in my email, that is.  So I began researching once more and as soon as I had the kitchen put to rights, I whipped out the frying oil and dove right in.

Honestly, it wasn't all that difficult.  The batter got nice and crispy, the poblano was tender, the salsa perfectly spicy.  I think I'll continue questing for a different sauce, but other than that both The Husband and I enjoyed this dinner very much.

One of the big decisions in making a chili relleno is what to stuff them with.  Cheese is, of course, the standard.  But why be boring?  I happened to have some pulled pork on hand (the first thing I did when I got my Traeger back was smoke a pork butt!) so I mixed that up with some spinach and grated cheese to make the filling.  Be creative!

The basic recipe came from Macheesmo, whom I had never heard of before.  They're really awesome though - go check them out!

Ingredients

1 poblano pepper per person, plus one extra
1 head garlic, peeled
4 tomatoes
1 jalapeno, seeded and halved
1/2 onion, quartered
1 lime
1 c flour
1/2 c beer
4 eggs, separated
vegetable oil

Filling
handful pulled pork
grated mozzarella and cheddar
handful of spinach, coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 450.  Spread the poblanos, garlic, tomatoes, jalapeno and onion out on a baking sheet and roast until tender, turning the poblanos every few minutes.  If some things are cooking faster than others, pull them out early.  It should take about 30-40 minutes.

Carefully place one poblano per person into a plastic or paper bag.  Fold up and set aside to steam.

Combine the remaining poblano with all the other roasted goodness in a food processor.  Squeeze in the lime juice and process briefly until you have salsa!  Set aside.

Combine your filling ingredients in a bowl.

Now, back to the poblanos.  This is a bit tricky, so be very careful with every step here!  Remove the poblanos from the bag.  Peel the skin off, but don't tear the pepper!  It's ok if there's a bit of skin left on there.  Then make a small slice along the side.  Reach in and cut/scoop out all of the seeds.

Time to make the batter!  Mix egg yolks, flour and beer together in a bowl.  In another bowl, whip your egg whites until frothy.  Carefully fold the whites into the flour mixture, keeping as many air bubbles as possible.

Stuff the peppers!  Gently fill each pepper with your stuffing mix.  Don't over fill!

Heat oil in a skillet.  You should have about 1/4 inch of oil in the bottom.  Once it is hot, carefully dip the stuffed peppers in the batter.  Lay in the skillet seam side down.  After 2-3 minutes, turn and fry the other side.

Drain on paper towels.  Serve with salsa spooned over top.

Thanksgiving Roundup 2011

So... Thanksgiving.  Yeah.  I started out awesome and took pictures of my cute appetizers (I particularly like the turkey-shaped veggie platter!), but after that my poor camera sat neglected on a side-table while I got distracted with cooking, serving and eating!  On one hand I'm sad because the food was beautiful and delicious.  On the other hand though, we're TDY en-route here which is secret code for "All of my nice stuff is in South Carolina and we're eating off of paper plates," so the plating wouldn't have looked so good.  I mean, I roasted the turkey in one of those tin-foil pans from the commissary which also doubled as our cutting board (bad idea, by the way, never ever do that).

Anyway, here's the breakdown of our Thanksgiving dinner:

Like last year, I used Alton Brown's brine for my turkey.  I don't have my smoker here though, so oven roasted it was!  I rubbed it with Memphis BBQ's Magic Dust and it was the juiciest bird ever!  Next year it will be a hard choice between smoking and oven roasting - we might need two birds!

Making repeat appearances at our table this year were the Olive Bread, Rosemary Epi, Mashed Potatoes, and Magic Pumpkin Pie.

New guests to the menu were Apple-Sausage Stuffing, Corn Casserole, and Bobby Flay's Pumpkin Bread Pudding (add some dried cranberries to the pumpkin bread).  I also made my own pie crust thanks to Cooks Illustrated and my good friend Stacey!  Smitten Kitchen has already blogged about it, so I will leave you in their capable hands.

Onto the stuffing!

I have a confession to make.  I kinda like stovetop stuffing.  There, I said it.  But Thanksgiving is Thanksgiving and one simply cannot have stovetop stuffing, even if it is really really good.  So I ended up heavily modifying Double Musky's Sausage-Apple Dressing.  As always, the key to a good stuffing is a really good stock.  It MUST be homemade!  If you want to know why, Stacey has the answer.  It's worth it to buy some turkey necks and make up a large batch of stock prior to Thanksgiving - you need it for gravy too!  Also, for bread crumbs, just get (or make) some good bread and leave it out for a day before shredding it.  I used 1/2 sourdough bread and 1/2 wheat.

Ingredients

1 T oil

1 head garlic, minced

1/2 onion, diced

1/2 tube ground sausage

Poultry seasoning

3-4 stalks celery, diced

1/4 c mixed bell peppers, diced

1 ancho chili, diced (optional)

1 granny smith apple, diced

dash nutmeg

1/2-1 c turkey stock

3-4 c bread crumbs

In a skillet, saute the garlic and onion in the oil until onion is translucent.  Add the sausage and brown, using poultry seasoning to taste.  Transfer to a pot and stir in the celery, peppers, apple and nutmeg.  Cook for two minutes, then add the stock (start with 1/2 cup, use more if needed).  Simmer for another 2-3 minutes and stir in the bread crumbs.  Adjust bread and stock until you reach the desired consistency.  Remove from heat.  Transfer to oven-safe pan and cook until the top is toasted.

PS.  We're starting the second half of our PCS shortly, so updates will be unreliable until we've moved into our new place sometime after Christmas.  Have a happy and safe holiday!!

Stuffed Acorn Squash

"Orange, brown and rust are the colors of Fall. Create a dish using these colors. You can only use one of the colors as a non food, ie a rust colored plate to hold the dish. You can incorporate other colors but these 3 colors have to be the dominant colors that you feature. "




Time for this month's HH6 challenge post!  Pretty much as soon as I read the challenge I was sure I wanted to do a stuffed squash, and here it is!  Orange peppers, toasted almonds, and wheat stuffing make up the three colors, with the yellow from more peppers and the acorn squash just make everything prettier.  And delicious.  The toasted nuts and the squash complement each other VERY well!


Ingredients


1 acorn squash
2 c wheat stuffing
1/4 c sliced almonds
1 orange pepper
1 yellow pepper


Preheat oven to 400.  Slice the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the strings and seeds (you can toast the seeds if you'd like!).  If you have trouble cutting the squash, microwave it for a minute to soften the skin.

Place the two halves in the oven and bake for 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, slice the peppers into bite-size pieces.  Lightly toast the almonds in a skillet, then stir both nuts and peppers into the prepared stuffing.

Carefully mound the stuffing mix into the cup of each squash half.  Bake for another 15 minutes or until tender.

Lentil Chili

Healthy, hot, filling, and delicious!  This is an amazing vegetarian recipe from Wegmans.  And to prove how delicious it is, I made it for my husband.  He told me it looked funny.  I told him to take a bite.  Next thing I know I was having to keep him away with one hand while I snapped this picture with the other.  He devoured every bit set in front of him!  It's that good.  So, what are you waiting for??

To make this even better, make the veggie stock yourself - just simmer some onions, carrots and celery for a few hours!

Ingredients

1 c red lentils
2 c water
2 T olive oil
1/2 c diced onion
1/4 c diced celery
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tomato, diced
2 c veggie stock
2 c water
1 1/2 T tabasco
1/8 t tumeric
1/8 t cumin
1/8 c cayenne
1/8 c chili powder
1 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1 green pepper, finely diced

Combine lentils and 2 c water in a pot.  Bring to a boil over high heat.  Remove from heat.  Puree half the lentils and liquid.

In another pot, heat olive oil.  At medium low heat, add onions, celery and garlic.  Stir, cooking for five minutes.  Add tomatoes and cook another five minutes.  Add stock, water, tabasco, and all other spices.  Bring to a simmer.  Add all of the lentils (whole and pureed) and stir well.  Cook 10 minutes.  Add green pepper and cook another five minutes or until lentils are tender.

Herbed Hen Pasta

The upcoming challenge involves using only what is currently in our pantries, so here's my proof of what I have at the moment.

More later!

Update:

September's Challenge: We all need to be prepared in the event of a disaster.  You have stuff in your pantry and fridge/freezer.  If a disaster should strike today and you have no access to going to a grocery store but your stove/grill is still working, what would you make with what you have on hand?


For this one, I went with a one-pot meal, easy to do even if we can only use our little camp stove.  I feel a bit uncreative using pasta, but hey, it works and it's easy.  This is a nice simple dish that's pretty as well as flavorful, and different every time depending on what spices you use.


Ingredients

1 game hen (or chicken)
2 cloves garlic, diced
1/4 onion, diced
Your favorite herbs and spices
water
1 T olive oil
1 box pasta
1 can diced tomatoes
4 T pesto
grated parmesean

Take the olive oil and gently brown the onions and garlic in a saucepan.  Add in the herbs and spices, the hen, and about 1/2 c water.  Cover and simmer for 30-40 minutes or until bird is cooked through, adding more water as needed.  Remove hen and set aside to cool.  Once it has cooled sufficiently, shred the meat.

Meanwhile, cook and drain the pasta.  Stir in the shredded hen, tomatoes, and pesto.  Top with grated cheese.

Coconut Curry Rice and Beans

It's time for another HH6 post again!  This month's challenge:

With the mercury continuing to rise this month, let's once again give ourselves a break from the stove. Create an original 5 ingredient slow cooker recipe. Salt and/or pepper do not count as one of the 5 ingredients.

I made it just in time.  I was planning on doing this challenge while I was on the east coast vacationing with my family, but thanks to Hurricane Irene that didn't happen.  Now this particular challenge was a bit difficult, simply because I never ever limit my ingredients.  I'm very much a throw this and that into a pot sort of cook, especially when it comes to spices.  So I decided that instead of making a meal for me, I'd aim this one at my brother, who is just moving into his first apartment.  Like all young adults, money and time are a bit tight, so having easy, cheap meals is a plus.  I was going to make this with chicken, but he's vegetarian, so I switched that out for beans.

Ingredients

1 c brown rice

1 can pinto beans

1 can coconut milk

1 c water

2 t curry powder

1/2 c peas

salt and pepper

Combine all ingredients except for peas into the crockpot.  Cook on low for 4 hours, adding the peas in the last 30 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Vegetable Stew with Turkey

A few weeks ago, I was lucky enough to win a copy of Vegan Family Meals from Saraplicious! Kitchen.  Now, anyone who knows me knows that I am the FARTHEST thing from a vegan that there is, but I was really excited about this book as a chance to learn how to make veggies tasty.  Both The Husband and I are focusing a lot more on our diet and getting the proper amount of veggies is usually a struggle.  If this recipe is anything to go by, I think our struggles might be over!

As soon as the book showed up in the mail, I was off to the grocery store.  I decided to try a variation (meat good!) on the book's South American Veggie Stew.  One of the best things about this recipe is how simple it was to make.  I didn't have to spend hours chopping and dicing, or prowl through six stores to find some weird ingredient.  Easy-peasy, and amazingly delicious!  The dried fruit gives the whole thing a sweetness that I never would have expected.  So, here is my decidedly non-vegan variation on Ms. Gentry's theme.

Ingredients

6 dried apricots, chopped
6 dried plums, chopped
2 c warm water
2 T olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can plain diced tomatoes
6 oz tomato paste
a handful of baby red potatoes, chopped
1 green pepper, cut into bite-size pieces
1/2 c corn
1 can kidney beans
Roasted turkey, cut into bite-size pieces
pepper to taste

Soak the dried fruit in the water for 3-24 hours.  Strain, reserving both fruit and liquid.  Heat the olive oil in a pot and sautee garlic and onion until translucent.  Add tomatoes and sauce, stirring well.  Cook for three minutes, then add the potatoes and the liquid from the fruit.  Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 12 minutes.  Add the rest of the ingredients and cook until the bell pepper is tender.

Gazpacho My Way

Here's the HH6 challenge for July: Since it's getting hotter and hotter as we head into full summer, the challenge is to cook a meal without using heat - oven, stove, microwave, anything.  Bonus points if your meal isn't a salad!


The first thing I thought of making was ceviche.  Unfortunately, we're in the desert now, and the only fish I could find was, well, trash.  I knew this would happen, but really, when I saw the local commissary marketing snow crab legs as king crab, I was still shocked!  So, ceviche was out.  Then my husband suggested gazpacho.


Now, mind you, I have never tasted gazpacho.  The Husband, on the other hand, spent a significant amount of time in the sandbox with the Spanish.  He sang so many praises of this dish that I decided to give it a try!


Upon tasting it, though, he declared that this was "not really gazpacho" but that it was still "very good," which he proved by downing copious amounts of it, so I guess I'll chalk this one up in the win category.


Hint: it's also delicious on toasted bread!


Ingredients


3 tomatoes, chopped
3 cloves garlic
1/4 onion
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 cucumber, chopped
dash cumin
a bit of cilantro
salt and pepper to taste
1 can jalapeno diced tomatoes


Place all ingredients except diced tomatoes in food processor.  Blend until smooth.  Still in tomatoes and chill for at least four hours.

Burrito Skins

I dearly love Mexican food.  One thing that is not bad about living in Mos Eisely is that there is actual, authentic Mexican here.  Yum!  Of course, we've been eating out a lot, so I'm trying to do more at home with Mexican flavors.  Cilantro in particular - I've only really had it dried before and fresh is soooo much better!

This here is a play on potato skins.  Use any pepper or chili you'd like for the base.  The Husband is a bit of a wimp so I used pasillas.  The meat can also be swapped out for anything.  In fact, the whole thing is pretty customizable!

Ingredients

2-4 pasilla peppers, cut in half lengthwise, seeds removed
1 can pinto beans, drained
2 c brown rice, cooked
1 c carnitas, pulled pork, etc
1/4 c salsa (home made is best, of course)
fresh cilantro
shredded cheese

Roast the peppers at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes.  Meanwhile, combine the other ingredients (except cheese) in a skillet, stirring together until well blended and warmed.  Stuff each pepper half with as much filling as it will hold.  Top with shredded cheese and more cilantro.  Bake an additional 30 minutes.

Crab Cake Pizza

A few weeks ago, The Husband and I were down on the Kenai looking for bears.  Long story short, we were unsuccessful, but we did find ourselves spending a night in Seward, one of our favorite towns.  I really wanted to spend some time there before we PCSed, so I was pretty excited.  After heading down to Lowell Point to look for sea otters (they obliged!) we wandered through town debating where to eat for dinner.  We finally settled on a particular place based on the fact that they had halibut cheeks on their menu.  If you've never had halibut cheeks, you are Missing Out.  It is, without a doubt, the best part of the fish, deliciously tender.  Of course, each fish only has two, and we'd eaten our last for Christmas.  Since it's nearly impossible to get cheeks outside of the state, I wanted some!

Anyway, we choose poorly.  I hadn't realized it was POSSIBLE to ruin halibut cheeks, but they did, and it made me very sad!  They also ruined the seafood salad we had.

Fortunately, I'd splurged and ordered an appetizer of king crab cakes.  Unlike the rest of our meal, they were fantastic!  So good that I fantasized about them all the way home.

Then, it occurred to me.  This month's HH6 challenge was to make a pizza without tomato sauce.

Crab cake.  Pizza.  The two terms sounded strange together, but I KNEW they would be delicious.

I was right.

Ingredients

Pizza Dough (Peter Reinhart's version, or use your own)

4 1/2 c flour
1 3/4 t salt
1 t yeast
1/4 c olive oil
1 3/4 c ice cold water

Blend ingredients into a smooth dough (5-7 minutes with dough hook).  Divide into 6 pieces and refrigerate overnight.  You can also freeze the dough at this point.  On the day you make the pizza, pull out the dough at least two hours before.  Pat it into a rough oval, cover, and rest for two hours.


Roasted Red Pepper Aioli

1 red pepper
1/4 c mayo
1 clove garlic
dash onion powder
dash cayenne
1 T lemon juice

Roast the pepper, either in the oven or on the grill.  Peel off skin and discard seeds.  Place pepper in food processor with other ingredients until sauce forms.


Topping

1 leg king crab (or equivelant of other crab, but red king is best! ...I love Alaska!)
1/4 c diced celery
1/4 c mayo
1 T Dijon mustard
dash onion powder
dash hot sauce
1/4-1/2 c panko crumbs
1/8 c shredded Parmesan or asiago cheese

Place pizza stone in oven and preheat to 550 or as high as it will go.

Gently stir first six ingredients together.  Fold in about half of the bread crumbs.

Roll pizza dough out to the desired size.  Spread a thin layer of aioli across.  Top with crab mixture and sprinkle with the remaining panko and cheese.  Transfer to pizza stone and bake 5-8 minutes or until golden brown.

Easy Greek Chicken

Last week was Appreciation Week at work.  We were quite well appreciated, particularly in the culinary department.  This was Tuesday's lunch and it was so good I just had to try my hand at it!  The chicken comes out deliciously juicy, and it's a great way to eat a lot of veggies!  Unfortunately, The Husband tossed out my recipe card, so I don't have all the exact measurements.  I'll have to see if I can get another copy!

Ingredients

1/4 c olive oil
3 T lemon juice
salt
pepper
oregano
garlic powder
onion powder
2 chicken breasts
2 peppers, cut into squares
1 onion, cut into slices
1/2 c yogurt
1/4 c sour cream
1/2 c chopped cucumber
1 T lemon juice
garlic powder
salt
pepper

Mix the first 7 ingredients together.  Add the chicken and marinade overnight.  Mix the yogurt, sour cream, cucumber, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper together and refrigerate.

Soak skewers in water.  Cut chicken into pieces and alternate on skewer with peppers and onions.  Grill until done.  I cooked them on my traeger at medium for about 30-40 minutes.  Serve with sauce for dipping.

Salmon Salad

A few months ago, we were wandering through New Sagaya and were offered samples of their crab salad.  It was, not to put too fine a point on it, one of the most delicious things I've ever tasted.  Since then, I've had a hole in my heart and tried to fill it with this.  Now, this isn't QUITE as good as the crab salad (but really, when does salmon compare to king crab?), but it's still a great little snack, hors d'oevre, or even sandwich!

Be sure to make this the day before serving - it benefits immensely from having a day for the flavors to meld.  Additionally, do not neglect the tomato!  This is one of those magical combinations where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts!  The proportions are easily adjustable.  The amount below made two meals for me.

Ingredients

1/4 salmon fillet

Season salt, ground pepper, garlic, cayenne

1/4 granny smith apple, diced

1/2 stick celery, diced

1/8 c grated asiago (substitute fresh Parmesan if you'd like)

2-4 T mayo

pepper, cayenne, cajun seasoning

1 tomato, sliced

Rub the salmon fillet with the salt, pepper, garlic, and cayenne.  Grill until flaky.

Shred the salmon with a fork and mix with apple, celery and cheese.  Stir in the mayo a little at a time until the salad reaches the right consistency.  Blend in further seasonings to taste.  Serve on sliced tomato.

Jambalaya a la Double Musky

I have, in the past, raved about the Double Musky, the fantabulous Cajun restaurant about five miles from nowhere (or Girdwood, Alaska).  This is another from their cookbook.  Beware if you order it at the Double Musky - one order usually gives me four meals worth or more!  This version below should easily feed four people.  Another warning: this is not for wimps!  As the Double Musky says "It comes in two versions, hot and hotter!"

As usual, I tossed out the shrimp in favor of chicken.  Your mileage may vary.

Ingredients

1/4 c butter
2 t garlic
1/4 onion, diced
2 sticks celery, diced
1 bell pepper, diced
1/2 c chicken stock
1 tomato, diced with juice
1 bay leaf
1/8-1/4 c Cajun seasoning (below)
2 hot link sausages
1 breast chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
Cooked rice, seasoned with garlic

Cajun Seasoning
2 t basil
3 t oregan
1 t salt
2 t thyme
3 t back pepper
2 t cayenne pepper
1 t white pepper
2 t garlic

First, brown the sausages, cut into slices, and set aside.

Melt the garlic and butter together.  Once it's nice and bubbly, add in the celery, pepper, and onion.  Stir until vegetables are cooked through.

 Add in the stock, tomato, Cajun seasoning, and bay leaf.

Simmer for several minutes, or until liquid is reduced by half.  Add in the meat.

Simmer until the chicken is cooked through and sauce thickened.  Serve over rice.