Palak Tofu

Spinach season is almost over! I loved getting tons of spinach in the CSA this year. I'm a little behind on posting recipes (silly grad school) but I'm trying to get caught up. This is just in time for the last part of the spinach season, so go out and make this. It's sooooo good.

As before with the Mattar Tofu, I used tofu in this recipe instead of paneer. And just to blow your health freak socks off, I totally served this over brown rice. Yeah, that's right. Health. Food.

Palak Paneer
Adapted from my Kaanan's recipe for Palak Paneer

1 package extra firm tofu
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp butter
2 bunches spinach, washed and torn
1 shallot (or small onion), diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup milk
1 tbsp flour
2 heaping tsp Garam Masala
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp chile powder

In a medium nonstick skillet, heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, add the tofu and fry on all sides until golden brown. Set aside.

While the tofu is frying, melt the butter and remaining oil to a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the shallot and garlic and cook until soft, about 3-4 minutes. Add the spinach in batches and cook until wilted. Continue cooking spinach until it is all wilted. Add flour and stir to coat spinach. Pour in milk and stir until combined. Cook for a few minutes, then remove from heat.

Blend the spinach using either an immersion blender right in the pan or carefully transfer spinach to a food processor and pulse until mixed. Return to pot and add Garam Masala, coriander, turmeric and chile powder. Salt to taste.

Add tofu to spinach and mix to combine. Cook until tofu is heated through. Serve over rice or with naan.

Enjoy!

Oh, and if you happen to be cooking this on a 90 degree day with the threat of blackouts due to every single air conditioner being run at full capacity, you might need one of these.

Whole Wheat Pancakes with Whey

Made ricotta cheese recently? Have a whole lot of leftover whey and no ideas on what to do with it? Never seen whey in your life and you're wondering why it looks mildly like uncooked egg whites? Well, friends, you've come to the right place.

I made ricotta cheese the other day and I thought it would be fun to try something with the leftover whey from the cheese making. I figured if the cheese could be that amazing then anything made with the whey would be just as good. Simple reasoning, right? Right.

I googled for a bit about what exactly to do with all this whey and once I got past all of the body building websites (yikes) I found a couple of helpful forums. Mostly, people talked about adding it to baked goods where you would normally add buttermilk. So.... the experiment began.

Side note about pancake making which has absolutely nothing to do with whey but has a lot to do with nostalgic memories of making pancakes at my Dad's house on Saturday mornings. My Dad used to have this awesome griddle in his kitchen. Why someone decided to put a gigantic griddle in his condo is completely beyond me... I think it must have been a 70's thing to go with that amazing avocado refrigerator  Anyway, we made a lot of pancakes on that thing. We would wake up on Saturday mornings and I would dump half of the ingredients on the counter help make the batter (things haven't changed much, have they Dad?). Then he would let me help cook them and when I got old enough I would actually cook them myself. He was always very specific about how much the batter was mixed and exactly how to cook the pancakes. They had to start bubbling on the edges and look just the slightest bit dry. I still make pancakes exactly like that. And they always turn out perfectly. Except now I add crazy things to the batter... like whey.

Whole Wheat Whey Pancakes
Adapted from Joy the Baker

If you don't want to use whey or you're scared of whey or you haven't made cheese in a while (sheesh) then go ahead and use whole milk in the recipe instead of the whey like I used here. They would be just as delicious.

1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup cornmeal
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1 cup whey
1.2 cup whole milk
2 eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla

Combine flour, corn meal, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk whey, milk, eggs and vanilla. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the liquid. Whisk until combined, and then let it sit for 5 minutes to thicken.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat and melt a pat of butter in the center. Add about 1/3-1/2 cup of batter to the pan and let it cook until the edges get all bubbly and slightly dry. Then flip and cook the other side until done.

Serve with strawberries and homemade ricotta from the other day if you have it.

Enjoy!

Fresh Homemade Ricotta

OK, I understand that making cheese sounds like an insane proposition. I understand that it sounds like a ton of work. And I understand that it sounds completely and utterly insane to do when the weather outside is amazing and you just want to sit outside in the sun and do nothing. Believe me, I almost didn't make this cheese for all of these reasons.

But, then I thought about sitting on the deck eating freshly made ricotta and sipping a glass of wine, and that sounded better. So I did it. And I was shocked. Completely shocked with how simple this could be. I never even dreamed of making my own cheese because I thought it would be complicated, involved, all that. I'm here to tell you it is easy. Really easy. Easier than making most breads. No joke. It takes maybe 15 minutes of real actual work and 2 hours of patience. Honestly, waiting two hours for it to strain is the hardest thing about this recipe.

Make it. Today. For real.

Homemade Ricotta
Source: Smitten Kitchen

3 1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp coarse sea salt
3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

In a medium sauce pan fitted with a candy thermometer, heat milk cream and salt to 190, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and add lemon juice. Stir once or twice just to combine all of the ingredients and then let it sit for 5 minutes.

While the cheese is sitting, line a fine mesh colander with several layers of cheese cloth set over a large deep bowl to catch the whey. After the 5 minutes are up, pour the cheese over the strainer. Let sit for 1-2 hours. 1 hour of straining will give you a smoother spreadable cheese. 2 hours will make it a little thicker. I let it strain for 2 hours and it was wonderful.

Store in a air tight container in the refrigerator.

Serve as normal ricotta on top of eggs or pancakes or in creamy pasta dishes. We had it fresh on top of little slices of toasted baguette. Delicious.

Enjoy!

PS. Wondering what to do with all that leftover whey? Stay tuned. Don't throw it away! It makes pancakes. Really good pancakes.

Multi-Grain Waffles

Happy Sunday everyone! Here's a little taste of what this morning looked like over here.

Yum yum yum. Multi-Grain waffles, how can they be so awesome and healthy? I think it's because you add oats, whole wheat four and wheat germ and then douse these with butter and maple syrup. Awesome.

Multi-Grain Waffles

Source: Eating Well

2 cups buttermilk*

1/2 cup old-fashioned oats

2/3 cup whole wheat flour

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup toasted wheat germ

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

2 large eggs

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp vanilla

In a medium bowl, mix buttermilk and and oats. Let sit for about 15 minutes to let the oats soften. 

Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, combine wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, wheat germ, salt and cinnamon. Once the oats are done soaking, add eggs, olive oil and vanilla. Whisk until combined. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. 

Heat up a waffle iron and cook waffles according to the manufactures instructions.

Serve with warm maple syrup and butter or, my favorite, strawberry jam. 

This recipe always makes more waffles than John and I can eat in one setting. I use up all the batter and make as many waffles as I can. Then, I stick them in the refrigerator and heat them up in the toaster all week for breakfast. Super easy and delicious weekday breakfast!

Enjoy!

*If you don't have buttermilk on hand (which I usually don't), measure 2 tbsp white vinegar into a measuring cup. Fill with milk until it reaches 2 cups. Let sit for 5 minutes.

Tortellini with Parsnip Bolognese

I love tricky ways of making pasta healthy. Small things like sneakily changing out butter and cream for vegetables. I'm pretty sure that swapping parsnips for the roux in a traditional bolognese sauce cancels out of the cheese I sprinkle on top.

Right? You're all with me here. I know you are.

There's a delicious Parmesan butternut squash pasta that I make sometimes that's just like this. It's good even if you're not a squash fanatic. I'll share it with you sometime. It will make you happy. In the meantime, make this. It's delicious.

Tortellini with Parsnip Bolognese
Adapted from Bon Appétit, March 2011

2 large parsnips
2½ cups milk
1 cup Parmesan cheese
nutmeg
4½ tbsp butter
1½ lbs baby portobello mushrooms
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp dried rosemary
3 8-9oz packages of cheese tortellini
1½ cups freshly grated mozarella cheese
salt
pepper

Peel and cut the parsnips into ½ inch rounds. In a medium saucepan, boil parsnips in salted water until very tender, about 20-30 minutes. Strain the parsnips and add to a food processor. Add 1½ cup milk and puree until smooth. Add the remaining 1 cup of milk with the processor running. If the sauce is thin, return it to the saucepan and reduce for a few minutes. If it is too thick, add more milk. The sauce should be a little thicker than a typical Alfredo sauce. Add ¾ cup of Parmesan cheese and a pinch of nutmeg. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, clean mushrooms and slice thinly. Melt 2½ tbsp butter in a large frying pan. Add the mushrooms. Add garlic and rosemary and cook until mushrooms are brown and the liquid released by them has evaporated. Season with salt and pepper.

You can stop at this point if you want, cooling and refrigerating the sauce and the mushrooms for up to 1 day. Warm the sauce before continuing.

Preheat the oven to 400°. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook tortellini according to package directions. Butter a 9x13 baking dish. Drain the pasta and mix with remaining 2 tbsp butter. Add the mushrooms to the tortellini and spread into baking dish. Pour the sauce on top. Sprinkle with Mozarella cheese and remaining Parmesan. Base until sauce is bubbly, about 20 minutes. To brown the cheese on top, broil for 2 minutes, turning once. Let rest for 5-10 minutes. Serve with a green salad.

Enjoy!

Beet Pasta

John has a seriously growing obsession with beets. The only other beet recipe I've posted here is Chicken with Roasted Root Vegetables, but I feel like we eat them all the time. I was looking around at the Bon Appétit website the other day and as soon as I came across this recipe I knew it would be an instant favorite in my house. Plus, I used red beets and then we got to eat pink pasta. Score.

Farfalle with Beets and Spinach

Adapted from Bon Appétit 

The recipe calls for a few things that I either couldn't find or didn't have. First were the golden beets. Normally my local grocery has delicious golden beets with beautiful beet greens. But of course, the one time I really wanted golden beets with beautiful beet greens, they were out. I resorted to using red beets (which is why my pasta turned pink) but the greens weren't exactly beautiful. I substituted spinach and it was delicious! If you can find beets with nice looking greens, use those instead of the spinach that I used in the recipe.

⅓ cup pine nuts

2 large bunches of beets (golden or red, depending on what color you want your pasta), peeled and cut into 8 wedges

2 tbsp olive oil

2 large onions, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

8 oz spinach

12 oz Farfalle pasta

⅓ cup Parmesan cheese

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Boil beets until tender, about 10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, drain beets. Return the water to a boil and cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid, and keep pasta warm.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, toast the pine nuts over medium heat, tossing often, 4-5 minutes until lightly browned. In the same skillet, heat 2 tbsp olive oil over low heat. Cook the onions on low until lightly browned, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for about 1 minute. Add the spinach (or beet greens) in bunches and sauté until wilted, 5-7 minutes.

In a large bowl, mix the pasta, beets, greens, and Parmesan cheese. Add enough of the cooking liquid, about ¼ cup at a time until sufficiently moistened. Mix until combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper. To serve, sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese and toasted pine nuts.

Enjoy!                 

Potato Soup

This is by far one of my favorite comfort foods in the entire world. Except for Macaroni and Cheese which can never ever be replaced. Ever. I can't even talk about it... I'm getting all verklempt.

But this ranks in a close second. It's one of those recipes my Mom used to make on cold rainy days for dinner and it always warmed me up.

My Mom grew up in a really (really really really) small town. We're talking small here. Small as in there aren't any stop lights in the entire town. Small as in they recently got a 3 way stop at the busiest intersection and it was kind of a big deal. Small. This is one of the recipes from the local Catholic church's collection of recipes. These small town cookbooks are treasure troves of delicious home-style recipes. You won't find gourmet truffle risotto in there, but you'll find some of the best casserole and soup recipes ever.

Potato Soup

5 large potatoes, diced (peeled or unpeeled, I do it both ways depending on my motivation level)
3 large onions, diced
5 stalks celery, chopped
1 tbsp salt
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp celery seed
freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup flour
2 cups whole milk
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup sour cream

In a large pot, cook onions, potatoes, celery salt and celery seed in just enough water to cover them. Boil for about 20 minutes, or until fork tender. In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour and whisk together to make the roux. Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly, being careful not to burn. Slowly pour in the milk, stirring constantly. Continue cooking milk mixture over medium heat until thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add sour cream and cheese, stir until combined and cheese is melted. Pour the cheese sauce into the pot of boiling vegetables (do not drain the vegetables). Stir until completely combined and cook for a few minutes. If the soup is too thick, add a little water. If the soup is too thin, cook longer until it reaches the desired consistency.

Serve with crusty bread and a small side salad.

Enjoy!

Butternut Squash Risotto

Oh risotto, how I love you so. Creamy, squashy delicious risotto.

I posted a streamlined version of a risotto recipe back in January, which is one of my go-to recipes when that risotto craving hits. Which, to be perfectly honest, is pretty often.

Like the Portuguese Chicken (which if you seriously haven't tried by now, I'm demanding that you get to it), this was once again from my new Bon Appétit magazine that John got me a subscription to for Christmas. I'm not completely sure that that wasn't a slightly self-serving gift since he and his stomach will be reaping the benefits for all the new and awesome recipes that come out if it (just kidding). But, I love it. It's my new favorite cooking magazine. Cook's Illustrated is always an awesome source of recipes, but Bon Appétit has more recipes... and more deliciousness.

Butternut Squash Risotto
Adapted from Bon Appétit February, 2011

I changed the recipe a little bit, mostly to accommodate what I had on hand. I also tried to streamline the recipe a bit, combining the steps a bit so that this wouldn't take so long to make.

1 medium butternut squash, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
4 tbsp olive oil
salt
pepper
1 tsp dried thyme
2 onions
3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1 1/2 cups arborio rice
1/4 cup sherry
3/4 cup toasted almonds
Parmesan cheese

In a small skillet, toast almonds over low heat until lightly browned. Set aside.

Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a skillet. Add onions, sprinkle with salt and cook over low heat until golden brown, about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a heavy bottomed pot over high heat. Add squash and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and add sage. Cook until soft, about 6 minutes longer. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

In a medium saucepan, add 3 1/2 cups water and vegetable broth to a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer.

Once the onions have caramelized, add the rice to the skillet and coo, stirring constantly until slightly translucent. Add the sherry and cook until it is fully absorbed by the rice. Slowly add the warm broth 1 cup at a time to the rice, stirring constantly until absorbed. Continue adding broth and stirring until all the broth has been added to the rice and the rice is creamy. Season with salt and pepper and add toasted almonds. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over risotto to serve.

Enjoy!

Mushroom Bourguignon

I'm continuing with the warm stick to your ribs cuisine until the 12 inches of snow on my front lawn melts. I thought about retaliating against all things winter and making fruit salad and unearthing the grill from the mountains of snow, but I figured that wouldn't do a whole lot to keep the chill away. Unless I huddled by the grill on the fire for a while... which would only really melt the snow on my porch... which would then refreeze as soon as I realized staying warm by a grill fire when the temperature is in the single digits is completely insane and the melted snow would then turn to ice and make the back porch an ice rink... which would be pretty hilarious when the dogs come sliding in from the backyard... which might end up in an emergency trip to the vet... which is never a fun experience for anyone involved... which means it might be a bad idea. Therefore, for the sake of my dogs well being, my sanity and the relative peace and quiet of the local vet office, I should just stick to soups and stews for the next few months. Obviously.

Mushroom Bourguignon
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp butter
2 lbs Portabella mushrooms, sliced
1 small carrot
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup red wine
2 cups vegetable broth
2 tbsp tomato paste
1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
1 1/2 tbsp all purpose flour
1 cup pearl onions, peeled
salt and pepper
egg noodles

Heat 1 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp olive oil in a medium dutch oven over high heat. Cook mushrooms until they just start to release liquid, about 4 minutes. Remove to a bowl. In the same pot, heat the rest of the olive oil over medium-low heat. Cook onion, carrot, thyme, a few pinches of salt and black pepper to taste. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until onions begin to brown. Add garlic and cook for about 1 minute, or until fragrant.

Add wine and cook, scraping all of the tasty bits from the bottom of the pan. Reduce wine by about half and add vegetable broth and tomato paste. Add the mushrooms and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 20 minutes. Add the pearl onions and cook for 5 minutes more. 

Add flour to the remaining tbsp butter and mix until a paste forms. Add the paste to the stew to thicken. Simmer for another 10 minutes, or until stew reaches desired consistency.

Cook egg noodles according to package directions. Spoon stew over noodles to serve.

Enjoy!

Tortellini Soup

I have seriously woken up every day this week wishing for summer. Every day. I'm so sick of cold and snow and sleet and snirt, which I learned the other morning when I was snowed in is a term New Yorkers coined for a combination of snow and dirt. Snirt. Gross.

I'm sick of it all. I want it to go away. I want to go outside and plant my garden and play in the yard with my dogs without my hands freezing off. OK, I'm done.

To get me out of this I wish winter would just hurry up and leave funk, I made soup. Like any normal person does, right?

This recipe was featured a few weeks ago on the Tasty Kitchen Blog. Have you been there yet? It's an awesome place for all kinds of recipes.I've found a few recipes on there, but the Mattar Tofu is one I've posted about.

This was unbelievably easy. I threw it all together in about 15 minutes and had a warm winter blues relieving soup on the table in a flash. And it' helped! (A little)

Tortellini Soup
Adapted from The Well-Fed Newlyweds on Tasty Kitchen

1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1/2 small onion
1 tsp dried oregano
5 cups vegetable broth
1 14.5oz can whole peeled tomatoes
1 19oz package cheese tortellini
4 cups fresh spinach
Parmesan cheese, to serve

Heat the olive oil in a large pot. Saute onions until soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the oregano, broth and tomatoes to the pot. Break up the tomatoes with the back of your spoon. Add salt and pepper to taste, then bring to a boil. Add the tortellini and cook according to package directions. When the tortellini has about 1 minute left to cook, stir in the spinach. To serve, ladel into large bowls and sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!

Butternut Squash and Carmelized Onion Galette

Ohhh I love finding new delicious vegetarian recipes. They always seem so creative to me instead of meals that are centered around a certain piece of meat. Not that I don't like meat. I do. Really, give me a cheeseburger and I am one happy lady. But, honestly, I usually find vegetarian recipes a lot more interesting. Unless it's a recipe for a cheeseburger...

 

The picture may look weird (bad lighting in my kitchen at 8pm...) but this was delicious. I mean, how can an open-faced pie type thing with butternut squash and caramelized onions be bad? In my book, it absolutely cannot be anything but awesome, which it was.

Butternut Squash and Caramelized Onion Galette
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

The ingredients I changed in this recipe were mostly a result of me being unprepared creative or unwilling to buy tons of new ingredients for a recipe thrifty. Oops. For example, I realized I only had 1/8 cup of sour cream when the recipe called for 1/4. Greek yogurt to the rescue! Honestly, you could use either and it would be fine. Also, I had enough leftover Swiss and Parmesan cheese from another recipe and I didn't want to buy a whole new package of Fontina just to make this. And couldn't find a smaller sized squash at the store and I didn't want the rest of the massive one I bought to go to waste. I just threw the whole thing in the galette and it worked out well. If you want to do things the proper way, please see the link above. If you're hungry and impatient like me, please see below.

Filling:
1 medium butternut squash
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, sliced
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp salt
pinch of sugar
1/2 cup Swiss cheese, shredded
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded

Crust:
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
8 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small bits
1/8 cup sour cream
1/8 cup greek yogurt
1/4 cup ice water

To make the crust, combine the flour and salt in a small bowl. Using a pastery cutter, cut in the butter until it resembles course meal. In another bowl, mix the sour cream, yogurt and water. Add to the flour mixture and combine by rubbing the dough between your fingers. Mix until the dough is combined, but do not overwork. Cover with plastic wrap and refridgerate for 1 hour.

While the dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 375 and peal and chop the squash into half-inch pieces. Toss the pieces with olive oil and 1/2 tsp salt. Spread evenly onto a baking dish and bake until tender, about 20-30 minutes.

While the squash is roasting, carmelize the onions. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Turn the heat to low and add the onions. Cook, stirring occaisionally, until onions are lightly browned, about 20 minutes.

Once the squash is cooked, turn the oven up to 400. On a lightly floured surface, assemble the galette. Roll the dough into a 12 inch round. Transfer to a baking sheet. In a medium bowl, combine onions, squash, Swiss, and Parmesan. Pour filling into the middle of the dough, leaving 1 inch around the edge. Fold the edge over the filling, pleating as you go. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown. Remove from the oven and let it rest for 5 minutes.Transfer to a platter and serve in wedges.

Enjoy!

Cheesy Baked Pasta

Ever look in your refrigerator and wonder what you can throw together from the random ingredients that are lurking behind milk that might have expired a few days ago and roasted chicken that you're not too excited about eating anymore? This was one of those meals on one of those nights where I wanted to clean out the fridge, but I was sick of leftovers and wanted something a little different. When I combined my scouring efforts between the pantry and the fridge, I had found a half of a box of pasta, leftover pizza sauce and lots and lots of cheese. First, I thought of just whipping up spaghetti, which sounded too boring for me that night. But cheese sounded good, which isn't exactly a stretch considering no one has ever had to force me to eat mass quantities of cheese. So some sort of cheesy pasta dish was in the works.

And then I remembered that John got me these super cute individual sized baking dishes for Christmas that I've been wanting to try out. Thus, cheesy baked pasta was born. And it was good.

Cheesy Baked Pasta
6 oz bowtie pasta (or any leftover pasta you have lying around)
1 cup pasta sauce
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
Parmesan cheese

Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Meanwhile, heat the sauce in a medium sized saucepan over low heat. Once the pasta is cooked, drain and add to the simmering sauce. Stir to coat the pasta in the sauce then pour it evenly into two small oven proof dishes. Top each with half of the shredded mozzarella cheese and then sprinkle with Parmesan. Turn on the broiler and place both dishes on the top rack of the oven, leaving a few inches between the broiler and the top of the pasta. After about 5 minutes, or when the cheese is starting to brown, flip the dishes so that they are both evenly browned on all sides. Broil for another 5 minutes, or until the cheese is completely melted and starting to turn golden brown. Carefully remove the dishes from the oven and serve with crusty bread and salad.

Enjoy!

Homemade Pizza Dough

Oh, how I love pizza. Especially homemade pizza. Remember that whole giant Italian dinner from Christmas (yes, I'm still thinking about it)? Well, as you might imagine, John's Mom also makes some of the best pizza on the planet. And no, I am not exaggerating this time.

You'd be shocked at how easy and delicious homemade pizza is. And I know you're probably sitting behind your computer screen shaking your head thinking, "easy?" Well trust me. It is easy. I didn't believe myself until I tried it.

Here I'm giving you the recipe for basic pizza crust. You can top it however you want, with tomato-based pizza sauce, cheese, meat, anything you want. I use a very basic pizza sauce with cheese most of the time. My newest favorite topping is to add spinach over the pizza sauce and cover with cheese. Yuuuummmmm.

Pizza Dough

This is my mother-in-law's recipe for pizza crust and it's amazing. Thanks Donna!

1 cup warm water
1 tbsp yeast
1 tbsp sugar
3 cups white bread flour
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil

Combine water, yeast and sugar and let proof for about 10 minutes.

In a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, combine salt and flour. With the processor running, add the water/yeast mixture. The dough should form a ball. If it does not, add a little more water. Add the olive oil with the processor running.

Form the dough into a ball and add to a lightly floured Ziploc bag. Press all of the air from the bag and seal. Either set in a warm place to rise for 1 hour, or let the dough rise in the refrigerator for several hours, or until doubled in size.

Preheat the oven with a pizza stone set on a rack in the middle of the oven as high as it will go at least 1/2 hour before baking.

Once the dough has doubled in size, divide into two equal balls. On a lightly floured surface, stretch the dough to about a 12 inch round. Transfer to a pizza paddle and top as desired. Bake on the hot pizza stone for about 10-12 minutes, until cheese is bubbly and and the crust is a light golden brown.

Remove from oven and let sit for a couple of minutes. Slice and serve.

Enjoy!

Sun Dried Tomato Risotto

This is my dutch oven. I cook everything in it from soup, roasted chicken, bread, risotto... everything. This is may "baby" version that I use on regular nights when it's just me and John. When I'm making a giant pot of soup or chili, I break out the big guns with the 7 quart guy. Seriously this is one of the things I use most in my kitchen and if you don't have one I highly recommend it. Also because if you are a risotto freak (like myself) it make the risotto cooking process about 10,000 times simpler.

And no, I never exaggerate.

Why do you ask?

Normally when you're cooking risotto you have to stand there and stir it for about 45 minutes. It's really not bad if you really like to cook, but don't even think about taking a few steps away from your stove during the entire cooking process. When I cracked open by May/June edition of Cooks Illustrated over the summer, I was so super excited when I read the title "No Stir Risotto". Yay.

Sun Dried Tomato Risotto
Adapted and combined from Cooks Illustrated and The Italian Cookbook

3.5 oz sun dried tomatoes
5 cups vegetable broth
1 medium onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 tbsp butter
2 cups Aborino Rice
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish
1 tsp dried parsley or 1 tbsp fresh chopped parsley
olive oil for drizzling

In a small saucepan, boil about 1-2 cups water. Pour boiling water over sun dried tomatoes and cover. Set aside for 20-30 minutes to rehydrate the tomatoes.

Bring the vegetable broth plus 1 1/2 cups of water to a boil on a medium saucepan. Reduce heat to low and keep on a simmer.

Melt 2 tbsp butter over medium heat in a medium Dutch oven (mine is a 5 qt and it works perfectly). Add onions and cook until translucent, about 5-7 minutes. Add garlic and cook for about 30 seconds, until fragrant. Add rice and cook, stirring constantly for about 3 minutes, until edges of rice are translucent. Pour the wine in and cook, stirring constantly until it is completely absorbed. Pour in 5 cups of the hot broth water mixture and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes, stirring once.

Drain the tomatoes and dry them on a paper towel. Carefully (they will still be warm) cut them into strips. Add the tomatoes to the rice and stir to combine. Continue simmering for another 5-10 minutes, or until most of the liquid is absorbed.

Once most of the liquid has been absorbed by the rice, add another 3/4-1 cup of the broth mixture and remove from heat. Let sit for 5 minutes, or until the liquid is absorbed. Add the Parmesan cheese and parsley and stir to combine.

To serve, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and Parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!

Brussels Sprouts and Potatoes

John has this recent obsession with Brussels sprouts. I swear, dude asks for them almost every week. Luckily they're super easy to cook, really tasty and full of vitamins and all that jazz. Besides roasting and sauteing with bacon, this is one of my favorite ways to cook Brussels sprouts.And it only uses just a handful of ingredients. It makes me happy when simple easy recipes like this are so good.

Brussels Sprouts and Potatoes 

3 cups Brussels sprouts cleaned and cut in half
3 red skinned potatoes cut into ½ inch cubes
2-3 tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 350. Melt butter in a large oven-proof skillet over medium heat (I would use either cast iron or a large stainless steel skillet). Add potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally until they are lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add Brussels sprouts and cook for a few minutes to brown. Add salt and pepper to taste. Put the whole pan in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork tender. Be careful when taking the pan out of the oven - the handle will be HOT!

Enjoy!

Zucchini Muffins

These are my favorite muffins ever! I'm so excited to share them with you!

My Mom used to make these when I was a kid and I was always so exited about them. When I got older and went to college she sent me care packages full of these. As soon as they arrived my roommates and I devoured them. After I hid half of them and stashed them for myself.

Just kidding on that one guys.

Kind of...

Speaking of roommates, this was one of them! She still comes around when she gets word of zucchini muffins.

She brought her adorable little son with her to spread the muffins on to the next generation. I think he liked them.

Zucchini Muffins

3 eggs

1 cup white sugar

1 cup brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

1 tbsp cinnamon

½ tsp ginger

¼ tsp ground cloves

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 ½ cups whole-wheat flour

3 cups shredded zucchini

Preheat the oven to 350. Mix together the eggs and sugar in a large bowl. Add the vanilla. In a separate bowl, combine, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and flour. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until combined. Add the zucchini and mix until combined. Pour the batter into greased muffin tins or muffin cups. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins in the middle of the pan comes out clean.

Enjoy!

 

Apple Cinnamon Rolls

As promised, this recipe does not contain potatoes. But look out. This week I'm going to be trying out some Thanksgiving recipes. And we all know that the best part of the entire Thanksgiving meal is the sides. And that's a lot of potatoes, my friends.

What today's recipe does contain is apples, cinnamon, flour, yeast and caramel. Yay!

And let me tell you: These. Are. Awesome. However, they were pretty time consuming to make. Between making the dough and the various rising and baking times, I spent most of the morning and early afternoon making this one Sunday. It wasn't a ton of actual work time, but they do need a little attention every so often. But believe me, one bite made me completely forget about how long these took to make. I was simply planning on when I could make more.

Seriously, make these tomorrow morning. You'll be happy you did.

Caramel Apple Cinnamon Rolls
Source: Annie's Eats

Rolls:
6 1/2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp  cinnamon
pinch ground nutmeg
5 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 large egg, slightly beaten
1 tsp lemon zest
3 1/2 cups bread flour
2 tsp instant yeast
1 cup plus 2-4 tbsp whole milk

Filling:
1 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter
3 granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch slices
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp  cinnamon
pinch nutmeg
pinch salt
1 tsp vanilla extract

3 tbsp plus 1 tsp sugar
3/4 tsp cinnamon

Glaze:
4 oz cream cheese
1 tbsp unsalted butter
3 tbsp caramel sauce
1 tbsp milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup powdered sugar


About 1/2 half hour before you start making the dough, set the butter, egg and milk out so that they are about at room temperature when you start cooking.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the sugar, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and butter on medium speed, until smooth. Add the egg and lemon zest, and mix until combined. Next, add the four, yeast and milk and mix until a dough forms. You may need to add a little extra milk or flour to get it to the right consistency. If your mixer has a dough hook, switch to that and knead on low speed for about 8 minutes. If you do not have a dough hook, transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead by hand for about 10 minutes. Drizzle a little oil into a new large bowl and transfer the dough. Turn to cover the dough in oil and the cover and let rise in a semi-warm place for about 2 hours, or until doubled in size. Since my kitchen is a little cold and drafty, I usually let my dough rise in the oven (make sure it's off) and it's pretty happy in there.

While the dough is rising, make the filling. Heat butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the apples, cinnamon, sugar, corn starch, nutmeg, and salt. Stir to combine and thoroughly coat the apples in the cinnamon-sugar goo (ohh delicious goo). Cook for about 18 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. In a small bowl, whisk together the rest of the sugar and cinnamon.

Once the dough is done rising, lightly spray a work surface with oil. Using a rolling pin or your hands, spread the dough into a large rectangle, with the wide end of the rectangle facing toward you. If the dough is sticking to your hands or the rolling pin, lightly dust with flour. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture all over the dough. Spread the apples evenly over the surface of the dough. Now get ready to roll!

Starting at the end closest to you (this should be the wide end of the rectangle), start rolling the dough away from you. When you get to the end of the dough, pinch the seam closed so the rolls don't unravel apart after you bake them. You should have one very long log of cinnamon apple goodness.

With the seam side down, cut the log into equally sized rolls. You can cut them as large or as small as you want. Make sure they're roughly the same size though so they bake at the same pace. Transfer the sliced rolls to a parchment lined baking sheet. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise for about 90 minutes.

(This is one place you can stop and put the rolls into the refrigerator and save them for a few days. This would be a great place to stop if you're making them the day ahead of time.)

Once the rolls have finished rising, preheat the oven to 350. Bake the rolls for 20-30 minutes, until golden brown. (Note: In the picture above I did not let my rolls bake quite long enough. If you pull yours out of the oven and they look like mine, throw them back in for about 5 minutes.) Once the rolls are cooked, let them cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes.

(This is another place you could halt this whole process. I actually make a TON of rolls, way too many for John and me to eat without gaining 30 lbs. each.  I froze a few of these in a large Ziploc bag to save for later. When you want them, just pull them out of the freezer and bake at 350 for about 30-35 minutes. When they're done baking, add the glaze.)

While the rolls are cooling, make the glaze. Combine the cream cheese and butter in a microwave-safe bowl and heat at 15-20 second intervals until you can whisk it together. Add the caramel sauce, milk, and vanilla and whisk until combined. Whisk in the powdered sugar until smooth. Drizzle over the rolls. Cool the rolls for another 15-20 minutes.

Enjoy!

Phew, I told you that was a long one. But seriously, these were some of the best things to come out of my kitchen in a long long time.

Potato Leek Soup

Fall is confusing me this year. One week it's freezing every day and I'm tempted to pull out my giant puffy winter coat. Then on my drive home from Washington, DC last week it was snowing up in the hills of Pennsylvania. Snowing. And now, this week it's supposed to be in the 60's. I really with it would make up it's mind.

I made this soup a few weeks ago during one of the first fall cold snaps. It's one of the few things that can make the first freezing days of fall better to me. Make it on the next cold days that you have. It will make those cold fall days that much better.

Potato Leek Soup
Adapted slightly from David Lebovitz

3 tbsp Butter
4 leeks
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp chili powder
6 cups water
1 1/4 pounds potatoes
2 bay leaves
freshly ground pepper

Melt butter in a medium size dutch oven or pot (I used a 5 quart dutch oven) over medium heat.

Add the slides leeks and salt. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes until soft.

Add the thyme and chili powder and cook, stirring, for about 30 seconds.

Add the potatoes, water, and bay leaves. Cover and simmer until the potatoes are fork tender, 15-25 minutes. Remove the bay leaves and turn off the heat. Using a food processor or a blender puree soup in batches or puree right in the pot using an immersion blender. I prefer the immersion blender, but use whatever you have.If the soup is too thick, thin down with water.

Reheat over low heat to warm the soup back up. Serve with a nice salad and a big slice of crusty bread.

Enjoy!

Fall Lentils

This was my first experience cooking lentils. It's something I've been wanting to do for a while. Well, "a while" is sort of relative. I was standing in the bulk bin isle at the grocery store two weeks ago and realized everything was 10% off. So I started loading up on everything I'd been wanting to cook. And then I saw lentils and though "I should cook with lentils. Wouldn't I be super cool if I made something out of dried lentils?" And yes, thank you, I realize that the word "cool" in that phrase is also relative.

This dish is a little sweet from the sweet potatoes and ginger but it's also spicy from the jalapeno and the garam masala. It also made a giant batch and it was the perfect lunch for the rest of the week.

Curried Lentils with Sweet Potatoes
Adapted slightly from Smitten Kitchen, originally from the New York Times

2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and minced (or grated, but I always just mince mine)
1.5 tsp garam masala
1.5 tsp curry powder
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
4-5 cups vegetable broth (I used all 5)
2 lbs sweet potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 1/2 cup dried lentils
1 bay leaf
1 lb Swiss chard, center stalks removed and torn into pieces
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley

In a large pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, jalapeno, garam masala and curry powder and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.

Stir in 4 cups of broth, sweet potatoes and bay leaf. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, cover and cook for 25 minutes. Add up to 1 cup of stock as necessary if lentils look too dry. Stir in chard, salt and pepper and continue cooking until lentils are tender, about 30-45 minutes total.

Stir in parsley and serve.

Enjoy!

Squash Fest Continues With Roasted Acorn Squash

Is it just me or does the title of this post make anyone else think about mosh pits at a giant outdoor punk rock music festival?

Anyone?

Did no one else experience being slammed against your will into other sweaty people while holding on to your 6'5 friend with a death grip so you don't get completely trampled by a group of rowdy teenagers?

Anyone? Bueller?

OK, so I went to the Warped Tour once back in my teenage years. And I "moshed" as much as you can call suddenly being in the center of a bunch of guys with mohawks jumping, pushing and shoving their way into everything and everyone within a 4 foot radius while you frantically flee for you life. I'll admit it. But can't you just hear, "And now Squash Fest 2010 continues with the Roasted Acorn Squash!!! Yeeeeaaaaaaahhhhhhh!!!" booming over the sound system?

I'll take that looming awkward silence as a no.

I can't help the random things my brain spits out. It just happens.

Let's all just forget that happened and return to the main topic, the continuation of Squash Fest 2010, for it is yummy.

We bought these two little acorn squash from the farmer's market last week. I'd been wanting to try this recipe even since I first saw it. And I was happy I did. A quick warning: this is such a sweet dish that you could practically have it for dessert instead. It reminded me of the candied sweet potatoes that my Mom serves with Thanksgiving dinner. And since she serves candied sweet potatoes with dinner, I decided I could serve candied acorn squash with dinner. It made eating near-dessert for dinner seem much more acceptable.

Roasted Acorn Squash
Adapted slightly from The Pioneer Woman
The only thing that I do differently from this recipe is not to score each of the squash before roasting them. I think this would allow the buttery sugary liquid to seep further into the squash flesh, but it thought it was just fine without it. I liked being able to taste some of the squash after dipping it into the vat of deliciousness at the center. I'm sure it would be completely amazing either way though. And mostly I forgot to do it.

2 acorn squash
4 tbsp brown sugar
4 tbsp butter
Salt
Pure maple syrup

Preheat oven to 400.

Cut each squash in half, lengthwise. The skin on these is super tough though, so be careful. Once you've gotten through the skin, the knife should slide easily. Scrape out the seeds and the gooey membranes.

Lay each of the squash halves skin side down onto a rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle each with salt. Add 1 tbsp butter to each of the squash halves, followed by 1 tbsp brown sugar. Drizzle each of the squash halves with a little maple syrup. Add 2 cups of water to bottom of the pan to give the squash some moisture while they roast. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 30 minutes, or until fork tender.

Turn the broiler on for about 5 minutes to let the squash get slightly browned and the sugary mixture to bubble. Remove from the oven and transfer the squash to a serving platter. Scoop a little bit of the brown-sugar butter mixture over the edges and sides of each of the squash halves.

Enjoy!