Sweet Potato Chili

I bought a bag of sweet potatoes from a farmer at a gas station in Florence, SC. When I saw the about 10 medium sized sweet potatoes staring at me in the brown paper bag, I felt like I got a steal for $2! Sweet potato chili, sweet potato pot pie, and sweet potato fries are some of the uses thus far.

Slow Cooked Sweet Potato Chili (canyoustayfordinner)
Ingredients:
28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
14 ounce can diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1” pieces
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
15 ounce can kidney beans
15 ounce can black beans
1 lb ground beef sirloin (optional)
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in the base of your slow cooker and stir to mix well. Cook on low for 10 hours.

Chicken Pot Pie with Sweet Potato Biscuits

We are here in 80 degree weather where the college students in this town walk around in shorts and a t shirt. I was beautiful weather this week!

Chicken Bones Soup
This is how you can make chicken broth or chicken soup out of leftover chicken (bones, back, wings, etc).
Ingredients
raw chicken carcass
water- enough to cover body
1/4c salt
Add ins: carrots, potatoes, celery, corn, peas, pasta, rice, quinoa

Directions
1. Cook chicken body in water and salt. Boil up to 3 hours. Strain and remove bones and fat. Add broth and chicken back to pot.
2. Add in vegetables, etc and cook till tender.

Chicken Pot Pie with Sweet Potato Biscuits
I made chicken pot pie with leftovers of a soup I made while still in Charlotte (and therefore had a stove). I saved all the vegetables and made these sweet potato biscuits to put on top. It was great!

Sweet Potato Biscuits
2 sweet potatoes, cooked
1 ½ c flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
6 Tbsp butter
½ c milk
(another recipe used less butter and an egg)

Directions
Combine dry ingredients. Chop in butter. Stir in milk, don’t over mix. Bake biscuits at 425 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

Note: When I added it to the pot pie, I first cooked/warmed the pot pie. Then I topped it with dollops of the biscuit dough and returned to the oven until cooked and golden brown. This allows the pot pie to be done without over cooking the biscuits.

Quinoa Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

Today, with the extra cabbage from the egg rolls, I made cabbage rolls!

Quinoa Stuffed Cabbage Rolls (loveandlentil)

Ingredients:
2 cups dry quinoa, cooked
1 head of cabbage
cooking oil
1 onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 zucchini, diced
salt, to taste
1 tsp chili flakes
fresh basil, finely chopped
1 can stewed tomatoes or ~ 4 fresh, chopped
more basil
2-3 cloves garlic
pepper, to taste
2 Tbsp olive oil

Directions:
1. Cut the stalk off from the bottom and slowly peel out the layers. Be gentle and try to peel the whole leaf.
Heat up water in a big pot and bring to a boil. Also set a bowl with cold water and ice together on the side. Put a few cabbage leaves at a time in the almost boiling water and leave it there for a min.
Remove the blanched leaf gently and dunk it immediately in cold water for another minute to stop the cooking process. This also helps in maintaining the nice green color. Then gently lift the leaves out of the cold water and set aside so that all the excess water drains out.
2. Now its veggie time! In a wide pan, add about 1 tsp olive oil. Throw in the onions and saute till translucent. Next, throw in the red bell peppers, saute for a min. (Don’t overcook the veggies; they will be oven baked later.) Add green and yellow zucchinis. Sprinkle salt to taste, red chili flakes, and basil. Add the cooked quinoa to the veggies. Mix well and cook for a couple of mins.
3. Now assemble. Place one leaf on a working surface. Fill the center with a good amount of quinoa. Fold like an egg roll: top of the leaf, sides, base of the leaf. Place in a baking dish.
4. For the topping, head a can of stewed tomatoes (or about 4 fresh). Add in a handful of fresh basil, garlic, salt and pepper to taste and 2 tbsps of olive oil. Move to a pan and cook at medium heat for a few mins until the raw smell of the tomatoes go away.
5. Spread sauce over cabbage rolls. If you have a lot of sauce, you can just pour the sauce at the bottom of the pan. Seal the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake in a preheated oven at 375F for about 20-30 minutes or until the cabbage leaves are tender.

Homemade Egg Rolls

I had extra wonton wraps so Patrick said I should make egg rolls! We didn’t use the ginger because Patrick doesn’t like it, but they were still great!  Here they are.

Baked Vegetable Egg Rolls (For the Love of Cooking.net)

1 tsp olive oil
2 cups of savoy cabbage, chopped
2 cups of shredded carrots
2 cups of bean sprouts
1 can of water chestnuts, chopped
2 tbsp green onions, sliced
1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp corn starch
1/4 cup water
14 egg roll wraps
Sweet chili dipping sauce or sweet and sour sauce (for dipping)

1. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot add the cabbage, sprouts, carrots, chestnuts and ginger to the pan and cook, stirring frequently for 4-5 minutes, until the vegetables just begin to wilt but still remain a little bit crisp. Mix the corn starch with the water and mix thoroughly. Add the corn starch mixture and soy sauce to the pan along with the green onions. Cook for an additional 1-2 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Remove from heat and let cool.
2. Place two tablespoons of the cooled mixture on the center of the egg roll wrap. Fold the bottom up over the filling. Next, fold the two sides over, making it look like an envelope, then roll it up like a burrito.
3. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Place the rolled up egg rolls on a baking sheet. Once you have rolled them all, spray the top of each egg roll with cooking spray.
4. Place in the oven and bake for 8-10 minutes then turn them over. Bake for an additional 5-7 minutes or until crispy and golden brown. Serve with sweet chili sauce or sweet and sour sauce. Enjoy!

Around the World: Morocco

For our Moroccan dinner, we ate on a low table, sitting on cushions on the floor. We began by eating eggplant salad with bread made of semolina flour. Next, we ate the tajine on couscous with the bread and our (clean) fingers, like in Morocco. We ate melon slices next, which would typically be dessert, but with guests, there are pastries too. So we finished with a cup of mint tea and semolina cookies.

Batinjaan Zalud- Eggplant Salad (upenn cookbook)
Yield: 8 small salads. This Eggplant Salad may also be served as an appetizer. Be sure that the salad is very cold when served.

Ingredients
1-2 eggplants, peeled and cut in 1” slices
½ cup olive oil
1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
4 Tbs. lemon juice
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 Tbs. sugar
tomato for garnish
olive for garnish
parsley for garnish

Directions
1. In a large skillet, fry eggplant in olive oil until soft.
2. Mash eggplant and add onion, garlic, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and sugar.
3. Chill in refrigerator.
4. Presentation: Heap 1/2 cup eggplant mixture on a 6- to 7-inch plate. Mash it down to form a circle within 1 inch of edge of plate.
Dribble with 1/2 tsp. olive oil (if mixture appears dry).
Place: 1 slice tomato in center of circle and 1 black olive in center of tomato. Garnish with parsley sprigs.

For the Moroccan Semolina Bread Recipe (Khobz dyal Smida), I used about.com. I didn’t like it and wouldn’t make it again, but it was fun. Therefore, I’m not even adding this recipe.

Moroccan Chicken with Olives and Lemon (aka Chicken Tagine)
(America’s Test Kitchen)

Serves 4
Bone-in chicken parts can be substituted for the whole chicken. For best results, use four chicken thighs and two chicken breasts, each breast split in half; the dark meat contributes valuable flavor to the broth and should not be omitted. Use a vegetable peeler to remove wide strips of zest from the lemon before juicing it. Make sure to trim any white pith from the zest, as it can impart bitter flavor. If the olives are particularly salty, give them a rinse. Serve with couscous (see related recipe).
Ingredients
1 1/4teaspoons sweet paprika
1/2teaspoon ground cumin
1/4teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2teaspoon ground ginger
1/4teaspoon ground coriander
1/4teaspoon ground cinnamon
3strips lemon zest (each about 2 inches by 3/4 inch)
3tablespoons fresh lemon juice, from 1 to 2 lemons
5medium cloves garlic, minced or pressed through garlic press (about 5 teaspoons)
1 whole chicken (3 1/2 to 4 pounds), cut into 8 pieces (4 breast pieces, 2 thighs, 2 drumsticks; wings reserved for another use) and trimmed of excess fat
Salt and ground black pepper
1tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, halved and cut into 1/4-inch slices (about 3 cups)
1 3/4cups low-sodium chicken broth
1tablespoon honey
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick coins, very large pieces cut into half-moons (about 2 cups)
1cup Greek cracked green olives, pitted and halved
2tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
*I also added chopped green pepper, chopped tomato, apricots, raisins and chickpeas!

Directions
1. Combine spices in small bowl and set aside. Mince 1 strip lemon zest; combine with 1 teaspoon minced garlic and mince together until reduced to fine paste; set aside.
2. Season both sides of chicken pieces liberally with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large heavy–bottomed Dutch oven over medium-high heat until beginning to smoke. Brown chicken pieces skin side down in single layer until deep golden, about 5 minutes; using tongs, turn chicken pieces and brown on second side, about 4 minutes more. Transfer chicken to large plate; when cool enough to handle, peel off skin and discard. Pour off and discard all but 1 tablespoon fat from pot.
3. Add onion and 2 remaining lemon zest strips to pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions have browned at edges but still retain shape, 5 to 7 minutes (add 1 tablespoon water if pan gets too dark). Add remaining 4 teaspoons garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add spices and cook, stirring constantly, until darkened and very fragrant, 45 seconds to 1 minute. Stir in broth and honey, scraping bottom of pot with wooden spoon to loosen browned bits. Add thighs and drumsticks, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Add carrots and breast pieces (with any accumulated juices) to pot, arranging breast pieces in single layer on top of carrots. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of breast registers 160 degrees, 10 to 15 minutes.
5. Transfer chicken to plate or bowl and tent with foil. Add olives to pot; increase heat to medium-high and simmer until liquid has thickened slightly and carrots are tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Return chicken to pot and add garlic-zest mixture, cilantro, and lemon juice; stir to combine and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.
TO MAKE AHEAD: The recipe can be prepared through step 4, cooled, and refrigerated for up to 2 days. To serve, gently warm until the chicken is heated through, then proceed with the recipe from step 5.

Basic Couscous (America’s Test Kitchen)
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
2cups couscous
3tablespoons unsalted butter
2-3 shallots, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1cup water
1cup low-sodium chicken broth
1teaspoon table salt
¼ cup parsley
½ tsp lemon zest
2 tsp lemon juice
¾ cup toasted almonds

Directions
1. Heat butter and shallots in medium saucepan over medium-high heat, aprox 5 min. Add garlic, cook till fragrant. Next, add couscous and cook, stirring frequently, until grains are just beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add water, broth, and salt; stir briefly to combine, cover, and remove pan from heat. Let stand until grains are tender, about 7 minutes. Uncover and fluff grains with fork. Season with parsley, zest, juice, and almonds and serve with chicken tagine.

Moroccan Semolina Cookies – Ghoriba dyal Smida (about.com)
Fine semolina (smida) provides great texture and flavor in this light, traditional variation of a Moroccan cookie known as ghoriba. Additional flavor comes from orange flower water and either lemon zest or vanilla.

Ingredients
3 eggs, separated
1 1/2 cups (175 g) sifted powdered sugar
3 1/2 tablespoons (50 ml) melted butter
3 1/2 tablespoons (50 ml) vegetable oil
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons vanilla (or the zest from 2 lemons)
2 3/4 cups (500 g) fine semolina, plus additional if needed
orange flower water, for shaping the cookies
powdered sugar or granulated sugar, for garnish

Directions
1. Preheat your oven to 350° F (180° C). Line two or three baking sheets with lightly oiled parchment paper.
2. With an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until stiff. Set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar until thick. Beat in the melted butter, vegetable oil, baking powder and vanilla (or lemon zest). Gradually add the fine semolina, mixing to ensure even distribution of ingredients. The mixture at this point will be sandy and coarse.
4. With a rubber spatula, fold the beaten egg whites into the semolina mixture until the egg whites are fully incorporated and a soft dough has formed. If the dough is too soft to mound without spreading or drooping, fold in more semolina, one or two tablespoons at a time, until the dough can be scraped with the spatula into a mound and hold its shape. Allow the dough to rest a few minutes.
5. Set out small bowls of orange flower water and sugar. Wet your hands and fingers with a little orange flower water, take a small portion of dough and gently shape it into a 1″ (2.5 cm) ball. Roll the ball in sugar and place on the prepared baking pan. Repeat with the remaining dough, allowing two-inch spacing on the pans between the balls of dough.
6. Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes, or until light golden with slightly darker edges and cracked tops. Remove the pan from the oven and transfer the parchment paper with the cookies to a wire rack. When the cookies are cool enough to handle, gently loosen them from the parchment paper and then leave to cool completely.
Store the semolina ghoribas in an airtight container at room temperature for several days, or in the freezer for up to two months.

Family

Some of my family came up this weekend- Mom and Dad, Laura and Tamara. :-) Our first visitors! We had fun exploring the city. Last night, we went out to a neighborhood of Charlotte called NoDa (stands for the main street NOrth DAvidson). They had an Art Walk. It was fun and adventurous- by the time we got there, after 8pm, it was dark. We walked along this artsy area of the city lit by buildings and streetlights and stepped in the businesses and strolled along the sidewalks. Oh, and I made dinner! Reuben Rolls as appetizers (=awesome, will for sure make these again!), Vegetable Salmon Chowder, Popovers, and Pumpkin Whoopie Pies. I think I cooked an amazing meal!

Reuben Rolls (from spabettie)

Makes 12-14 rolls
1 can chickpeas, drained
1/2 cup thousand island dressing (recipe follows)
1/2 sweet onion, caramelized
12 thin slices cheese – cheddar or swiss
2 large dill pickles, chopped
12-14 egg roll wrappers
oil for frying

Mash chickpeas, combine with thousand island dressing, set aside to ‘marinate’. Caramelize the onion.
To assemble rolls: arrange a wrap in a diamond shape, place 2 tablespoons thousand island chickpeas in bottom corner. Top with one slice cheese, one tablespoon caramelized onion, one tablespoon chopped pickles.
Heat 1-2 tablespoons oil in pan over medium heat, add 3-4 rolls at a time, turning frequently so they get an even light brown crunchiness all around. Remove to a drying rack or paper towel. Serve warm with thousand island dressing.

Thousand Island Dressing
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup ketchup
1/4 cup dill pickle juice
1 dill pickle, finely chopped
1/3 red bell pepper, finely chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon sugar

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Keeps covered in fridge for 2+ weeks.

Vegetable Salmon Chowder (adapted from eatingwell and a slow cooker mag)

Ingredients
olive oil
1 medium onion
2 cloves garlic
1cup chopped carrot
1 cup chopped celery
2 1/2 cups frozen cauliflower florets, thawed and coarsely chopped
4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 cups water or milk
2-3 6-ounce boneless skinned salmon, preferably wild-caught
3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives or scallions, or 1 1/2 tablespoons dried chives
1 1/3 cups instant mashed potato flakes, or 2 cups leftover mashed potatoes
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste

Preparation
1. Heat oil in a large pot or saucepan. Saute onion, garlic, carrot, celery, and cauliflower, until the vegetables just begin to brown. I cooked it in 2-3 batches (since I love veggies and added so many, it was better to not brown it all at once).
2. Add broth, water or milk, salmon, chives, potato flakes (or leftover mashed potatoes), and dill and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook, maintaining a gentle simmer, until the until potato flakes are cooked. Season with salt and pepper (or try to omit for a more sodium friendly version).

Popovers (bakewithamy)

1 cup flour
1 cup milk, at room temperature
1/2 tsp salt
3 large eggs, at room temperature
2 Tbs unsalted butter, melted

Instructions
1. Butter or spray nine 3/4-cup glass custard cups or 10 1/2-cup muffin cups. If you’re using custard cups, place them on a jelly-roll pan, leaving space between each cup. If you’re using muffin pans, you’ll need to use two 12-hole muffin tins because, to give the popovers ample air circulation, you won’t be filling all of the holes.
2. Pour all the ingredients into the container of a blender and whirl until smooth. (this can also be done in a food processor or in a bowl, using a rotary or hand held beater) Strain the batter if it is at all lumpy.
3. Baking the Popovers For the custard cups, pour 1/3 cup batter into each cup, dividing any extra batter among the cups. For the muffin cups, use 1/4 cup of batter for each cup, filling alternate cups in each tin so that every popover has puffing space. Bake, without opening the oven door, at 425 for 25 minutes, until the popovers are puffed, nicely browned and crisp on the exterior. Turn the temperature down to 350 and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes to help dry out the interior, which, no matter what you do, will always be a little doughy in the center. However, my correction would be to turn down the temp and decrease the time! Mine came out slightly burnt so I would suggest 425 for 15 min then 350 for 20 minutes. Serve immediately.
Note on storing: Popovers are at their puffiest right out of the oven. You can hold them at room temperature for a few minutes, or wrap them airtight, freeze them for up to a month, and reheat them in a 350 oven for 10 to 15 minutes, and they’ll taste good–but never as good as just baked.

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Cream Cheese Filling (adapted from Martha Stewart)

Makes 12-14
3 cups Flour
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
1 cup brown sugar*
1 cup oil
3 cups pumpkin
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
*I used ½ the sugar the recipe called for, and I also used a combination of ½ cup br sugar and ¼ cup agave syrup.

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Shift together the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, beat together brown sugar, oil and pumpkin. Add eggs one at time, mixing well after each addition, followed by the vanilla. Slowly incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined.
3. Using a pastry bag with a round tip, or a big zip top plastic bag with one corner snipped, squeeze out concentric circles of batter, starting from the middle and working outward until the circles are about 2 inches in diameter. Bake for 11 minutes and cool on a rack.

Cream Cheese Filling
1 – 8 oz. package of cream cheese, softened
4 oz unsalted butter, room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
a pinch of cinnamon (optional)
3 Tbsp maple syrup or agave (optional)

Beat together cream cheese and butter. Stir powdered sugar, vanilla. Add cinnamon or maple syrup if desired. Frost flat side of half the pies and top with another piece. Enjoy right away or chill overnight.

Around the World: Portugal

We were in Whole Foods and were admiring the vast array of dried beans one day, when I saw Fava beans. I knew I had found a recipe I wanted them for but couldn’t exactly remember why but I bought them anyways. I found the recipe and remembered it was for my Around the World Series- Portuguese Favas. Therefore, we are eating foods selected from Portugal tonight. And might I add that the dessert was one of our favorites. Patrick, not really being a dessert person, put this up there as his #2 on the favorite dessert list, with his most favorite of all time being my Peach (and Blueberry) Galette. He said “I never thought a pastry would be one of my favorite desserts” but this simple custardy dessert is indeed. And this potato/kale soup was very good as well, a nice compliment to the spicy fava/onion dish.

Caldo Verde (Portuguese Green Soup) 

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 onion, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes
1 quart cold water
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
ground black pepper to taste
1/2 pound kale or collard greens

Directions:

1. Rinse the kale/collard greens and dry with paper towels. Cut and discard the stems. Roll up the leaves and cut into thin slivers, julienning the leaves. Set aside.
2. I a large pot, cook olive oil, garlic, and onion for 3 minutes. Add sliced potatoes, cook until browned about 3 more minutes. This browning gives the soup a good flavor!
3. Add 1-2 cups of water and boil for about 20 minutes until potatoes are soft. Mash or puree the potatoes with some small chunks still in the soup.
4. Stir in the rest of the water and add salt and pepper. Simmer for a few minutes. Then stir in kale and simmer for about 5 more minutes, until kale is tender. Stir in another tablespoon of olive oil for flavor.

Portuguese Favas**

Ingredients
5 tablespoons olive oil
2-3 large onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons red pepper flakes
1 mini can (about 1 cup) tomato sauce
2 cups hot water
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons paprika
salt to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 (19 ounce) cans fava beans*

Directions
1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic until golden brown. Stir in red pepper flakes, tomato sauce, hot water, parsley, salt (add this at the end if using dried favas), pepper and paprika.

2.Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Gently stir in fava beans. Remove from heat and let stand for several minutes to allow flavors to meld.

*I used dried fava beans. These require a bit more work! They need to soak overnight. In order to easily shell the beans, I would also suggest boiling them for 10 minutes, draining, and rinsing in cold water. Next, squeeze each fava so it pops out of its shell. These uncooked beans must be cooked for at least one hour, adding salt only at the end so the beans don’t dry up. I had a hard time figuring out how long to cook and how to get them out of the shell with a lot of contradicting sources on the web. I finally figured it out. This is a good reference.

**This a great sauce. The concept of using so many onions to thicken is genius. We put leftovers on pasta mixed with regular pasta sauce. Delicious! This would probably also be good as a base for cooking meat or casseroles.

Queijadas

Ingredients
3 eggs
2 cups white sugar*
3 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. In a blender, combine eggs, sugar and butter. Blend until smooth. Pour in flour and milk, a little at a time, blending until smooth again. Stir in vanilla.
3. Pour into muffin tins, filling 3/4 full. Bake in preheated oven 45 minutes, until golden brown. Serve hot or cold.

*Use less. I used ½ cup of sugar, ½ cup agave and it was plenty sweet. Very delicious!

Suggestion: Top with fresh fruit, jam, or coconut before or after baking. Substitute almond or lemon extract for vanilla. Try alternative sources of sweetener like agave.

Chipotle chicken, black bean, veggie soup

The past couple nights were simple tacos and spaghetti. Today, I made another good soup! I saved half the chicken I cooked in the shiitake soup and put it in this. I also had carrots and celery on hand so I added those in, turning the soup into nothing like the described it as, but so delicious. Also, Patrick wasn’t feeling spicy food tonight, so I left that out and added a couple drops of super hot sauce to mine later. This recipe is from the Soup Chic’s blog and she heated her soup up more with chilies and hot sauce. Here’s my version of the recipe:

Chipotle chicken, black bean, veggie soup

Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic
3 cups chicken stock
2 cups water
1 cup corn, roasted
1 cup carrots, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 can diced tomato, drained
1 cup chicken, cooked and shredded
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
Salt and pepper

Directions
In a big pot, heat the oil, brown the onion, garlic.

Add broth, water (use less if you prefer it to have a stronger flavor), corn, carrots, celery, tomatoes, chicken, and black beans and simmer for about a half an hour or until veggies are cooked. Season with salt and pepper.

I made rice to make it more filling and added it to individual bowls. For it to be more Mexican, you could top with sour cream and tortilla chips.

Ratatouille Tacos

Tonight I made some tacos, titled below and when eating, realized we were eating ratatouille in taco form. Yum and I really love guacamole.

Smoky Chipotle Roasted Summer Vegetables

Ingredients:

• 1 eggplant
• 1 bell pepper
• 1 yellow squash
• 1/2 yellow onion
• 1 1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
• 1/8 tsp garlic powder
• 1/8 tsp onion powder
• 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/8 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

Instructions:

1. Trim & discard ends of eggplant & squash. Stem & seed bell peppers. Cut eggplant, squash, & pepper & onion into 1 1/2-inch chunks.
2. Combine spice mixture, vegetables, & olive oil in a mixing bowl & toss, coating the vegetables in the spices & oil.
3. Transfer to an roasting pan & spread evenly. Bake at 400 degrees F, for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are fragrant & tender. While the vegetables roasting away, make salsa.

To make the salsa, I made a spin-off of this Spicy Summer Salsa recipe using a jar of mom’s canned salsa (tomatoes, onions, mild peppers, carrots) and adding a banana pepper, poblano pepper (less spicy than a jalapeno), onion, roasted corn, cilantro.

Then I made a quick guac. I mashed 2 avocados with some salsa, some garlic, a bit of the chopped poblano pepper, and a little cilantro.

Once the veggies were done, I prepared our blue corn tortillas, piled on lettuce, the ratatouille-like veggies, salsa, and dollops of guacamole.

Spicy Sauté Sandwich with Almond crusted Veggie Fries

Spicy Sauté Sandwich- a variation of Kathy’s blog

Ingredients
1 boca burger, eggplant burger, hamburger burger
1/2 red pepper, sliced
1/2 sweet onion, sliced

olive oil
1/4 cup salsa (I made my own)
fine black pepper
Hummus
Bread, bun, or tortilla

Directions:
1. Cook veggies red pepper, onion, and black pepper in olive oil.

2. Thaw your burger of choice, slice into strips, then cook in another pan.

3. Warm salsa or mix in with veggies.

4. Toast bread or crisp tortillas. Spread hummus, add burger slices, add veggies, top with salsa.

Almond-Crusted Sweet Potato Oven Fries

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into thin strips

3 Tbsp smooth natural almond butter

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/2 tsp sea salt

1. Preheat oven to 400- 425F. Spray baking sheet with nonstick spray.
2. Place the “fries” in a large bowl.  In a small bowl, combine the almond butter, oil, and spices. Drizzle the coating over the fries, and toss the mixture until evenly coated.
3. Put the fries up the baking sheet in a single layer.  Bake 35-50 minutes (depending on thickness of your fries), until the coating is browned and a bit crispy, and the fries are fully cooked.

From dietdessertndogs– She suggests using other root veggies too!

Chicken, Shiitake Mushroom, and Rice Soup

Chicken, Shiitake Mushroom, and Rice Soup

adapted from skinnytaste

Ingredients

1 TBSP butter

1onion

1 TBSP flour

4c chic broth (I always use low-sodium)

3c water

1 cup chopped carrot

3 garlic cloves

3 celery stalks, chopped

2-4 boneless chicken thighs or breasts

2 cups rice

4oz shiitake mushrooms

Rosemary, parsley, salt & pepper

1. Saute butter and onions until soft, add flour and sauté another minute.
2. In a large pot, add chicken broth, water, carrots, garlic, celery, chicken and simmer for 20 minutes. Add rice, mushrooms, and spices and simmer covered for 25minutes.
3. Remove chicken and with forks, shred chicken; add it back into the soup. Serve!

Some suggestions are adding sour cream for creaminess and half white rice, half wild rice for variety. Next time, I would have added more carrots, onions, celery, and mushrooms.

Apartment Searching

It’s that time. The boss says we should get an apartment in Charlotte, NC within the next couple of months. This is good and bad (mostly good though). It will be nice to have a home base, a place to keep our stuff so when we go to hotels (which we will still live in hotels when Patrick is on the jobsite far away). The downside is that we will now face real world bills- after researching, looks like we’ll pay $900-$1200 a month for an apartment in a safe area of Charlotte.  Patrick researched in the morning and I chopped vegetables. Then we went out and were able to visit four places before the leasing offices closed at 5 pm.

The first two places were in a more expensive neighborhood. It is a very nice area (South Park) with a nice mall and lots of stores. These were the first and they were kind of price shock for me. They were about $1,000/month and unfurnished plus utilities, cable, internet, trash, insurance, etc. I wasn’t sold, thinking we could find something a little cheaper. Then we went to a $750/month apartment and I realized that while I don’t care about living in a nice place (I felt they were more fancy then we needed), safety is a concern and it seems like you have to put in the money if you want a safe area.  The last place we visited was one which we are still considering. It is about $1000/month but it’s nice because it’s about a half a mile to Patrick’s work and right on the Lynx rail line, meaning we wouldn’t have to worry about parking when going in the city. We’ll keep researching.

For lunch before we went out, I made some tasty tuna melts (recipe below) and for dinner we ate at Greek Isles (and yes, we did just go to the Greek festival last weekend). The restaurant was near our last stop of the apartment search for the day and it was tasty! We ate Melitzanosalata (eggplant dip) for an appetizer and for dinner, we ate a whole fish! I have never eaten a whole fish and felt pretty brave being served one with all the bones inside and its eyeballs staring at us (though not as brave as Kristen Drake who didn’t even like fish and ate them fresh for a whole summer while a missionary in another country). The Bronzini (fyi $22) was served with grilled veggies which were great dipped in an olive oil, lemon juice, and black pepper mixture. I’m usually the dessert person, but Patrick, seeing their display cart of desserts, decided we should order three of the six dessert, choosing Baklava, Galaktobouriko (custard with phyllo), and Rizogalo (rice pudding) and a to-go box.

Tuna Melts

Ingredients

2 cans tuna

½ red onion

½ red pepper

1 jalepeno

2 hard-boiled eggs (omitted)

4 sweet pickles, splash of juice

3 TBSP mayo

1 TBSP Dijon mustard

salt & pepper

4 english muffins

cheese

1. Combine all ingredients, except the e. muffins. I substituted some of mom’s homemade pepper/onion relish instead of the pickles and did not have any eggs on hand.
2. Put mixture on English muffins, top with cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes until browned.
3. When done, eat whole, or cut into quarters for party food!

Around the World Series: Turkey

A little while ago, I bought some fresh figs. I realized they’re not my favorite to eat plain, but I made a really good dessert with them- Turkish Fig Cake! This dessert was accompanied by Gozleme and Turkish Cacik (cucumber yogurt kind of dish). This was a fun meal! After dinner we dreamed of our future house and ended up deciding on how we would like our driveway. After that we packed up for an early rise and leaving for Virginia the next day. And for the record, when trying to get egg whites stiff without beaters, it can be a challenge, haha!

Gozleme is a turkish hand rolled pastry. One common version is spinach and feta, I made that with a little more elaboration. I found this random recipe with a dough that I wasn’t too sure of. I had never made a dough out of only flour, water, and salt before- I’ve always added oil or butter or eggs or something else. It worked out in the end, but would have been better if I had a rolling pin. I also cheated-we bought  a lamb meal at the greek festival. I shredded it and used that precooked meat.

Turkish Gozleme

Dough: 1 ½ c flour, 3/4c water, dash salt

Filling: spinach, onion, olive oil, lamb or beef, chili powder, garlic, pepper, red pepper, feta

Directions:

1. Clean spinach, then cook in a little water until wilted.  Then dry on paper towels. Chop onion and red pepper.
2. Cook onions. Add spices and meat until browned.
3. Make the dough by adding the flour, half the water, and salt. Slowly add more water until a ball forms, then knead the dough on a lightly floured surface. Let rest for a few minutes then divide into three balls.
4. Roll out the dough into a thin rectangle. Add spinach, meat mixture, red peppers, and feta to one side and fold over. Cook in olive oil for about five minutes, flipping every minute.

For the cacik:

Mix a cup of yogurt with 2 cucumber (seeded, peeled, and diced), 3 tbsp chopped walnuts, 2 tbsp dill, 1 tsp lemon juice, and a garlic clove. Drizzle 1 tbsp oil on top.

Turkish Fig cake. Have you ever tried to whip egg whites into stiff peaks with a whisk? Have you ever tried it with a fork? We have. The recipe called for stiff peaks, and without having a blender or a whisk, it can be difficult. We whipped the whites for no joke, a half an hour… and ended up with soft peaks. The trick is using a whip motion that pulls air into it. This was a really good recipe and could use any fruit on it. Next time, I want to try it with beaters and a springform pan so it can be about quadruple the thickness. Mmm.

Turkish Yogurt Fig Cake

Ingredients

4 eggs, separated

½ c sugar

3 TBSP sifted flour

1 ½ c Greek yogurt

1 lemon, grated and juiced

Orange zest

½ tsp vanilla extract

3 fresh figs, sliced

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cream egg yolks and sugar until light and fluffy. Add flour and mix until combined.
3. Add yogurt, orange and lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla extract.
4. Whisk egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold into yogurt mixture (Do not overmix.)
5. Grease springform pan. Pour into pan and arrange fig slices on top. Bake 45-60 minutes until browned.

Mmmm, Cauliflower Steak and Indonesian-Style Fried Rice

We had a good, flavorful dinner tonight with lots of fresh ingredients. I made cauliflower steaks and fried rice.

To make the cauliflower steaks, I literally took the head of a cauliflower and sliced two meaty cross sections out of the middle of the head, it was about half of the cauliflower. The other half, I used in an earlier recipe of cauliflower mac n cheese. Then rubbed on some olive oil and spices (I used oregano, garlic, salt, and pepper) and put it in the oven for about 20 minutes at 400 degrees, flipping once and baking until tender. Other flavoring suggestions are: tomatoes, olives, onion, basil, parsley sun dried tomatoes, artichokes, and olive oil or olive oil, lemon juice and paprika. Patrick even said he wanted to try it with a gravy, like salisbury steak.

I found a recipe for Indonesian-Style Fried Rice, well actually I watched a video on it (from America’s Test Kitchen) and my own version with the ingredients I had readily available. My version: Saute half a chopped onion in olive oil and add 2 chopped serrano peppers. Add some garlic, then add leftover cooked rice, soy sauce, sugar (they called for molasses, fish sauce, and dark brown sugar but I only had sugar). Meanwhile, Using 4 eggs (I used 3 whole, 2 whites), add some milk, salt, and pepper and mix. Then cook the eggs in butter in two batches, forming 2 omelets. When the omelets have cooled for a min or two, roll them up (like a crepe) and cut into strips/spirals. Now time to serve. Put some fried rice on the plate with egg spirals and garnish with tomatoes and cucumbers.

The meal was so delicious. The flavor combination was surprising with the warm rice and steaks mixed with the cold tomatoes, cucumbers, and pear, but it was great!

Quinoa Salad

Today is a little rainy, but the news is that the hurricane will mostly miss us and head towards the Gulf (we’re on the Atlantic Ocean). For dinner we had another Mediterranean dish- Quinoa Salad. I realized we didn’t have a microwave (or stove obviously) so I had to figure out how to make quinoa in the oven. Turns out you can just bring the water to boil (in a covered dish) then add the quinoa for about 20 minutes or until cooked. We actually decided this wasn’t our most favorite quinoa dish.

And it was also $5 movie night so we watched the new Borne movie (Borne Legacy).

Quinoa Salad with Black Beans, Avocado and Cumin-Lime Dressing
serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 1 cup dry quinoa, rinsed
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 3/4 cup water
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed (I only had chickpeas so I used those)
• 1 avocado, chopped into chunks
• handful cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 1 small clove garlic, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped into chunks
• small handful cilantro, diced
• 1 limes, juiced
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tbsp olive oil
• salt, to taste

Directions

1. Warm the olive/coconut oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Once it’s hot add the rinsed quinoa and toast for about 2-3 minutes until it starts smelling nutty and lovely. Add water, stir once, cover, and simmer with a lid on for 20 minutes (or see above about cooking in oven).
2. While the quinoa is cooking, prepare all other ingredients. Prepare the dressing by combining the lime juice, oil, cumin, and salt. Whisk it aggressively. Adjust seasoning as necessary.
3. When the quinoa has finished cooking, remove it from heat and fluff with a fork. Add black beans and toss to warm them through.
4. Let the quinoa cool for about five minutes and then add all the remaining ingredients, including the dressing, and mix. Adjust seasoning if necessary.

Mediterranean Dishes

I prepared some food for the drive and made some things today. It was all fresh Mediterranean food, and was awesome. We had Falafel and Baba Ganoush on the drive and more of it along with pita, Greek Dip, and Cucumber Yogurt for lunch. For dinner, I prepared Fattoush.

Falafel (Martha Stewart)

Ingredients

•  1 15.5 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 2 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1 small yellow onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• 2 tablespoons chopped mint
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander (I didn’t use)
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 3 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
• 1/2 cup safflower or canola oil
• For serving: pita bread, sliced tomatoes, thinly sliced red onion, romaine lettuce leaves, and store-bought tahini sauce.

Directions

1. Place half of chickpeas in food processor and pulse a few times until chopped, transfer to a large bowl.
2. Place remaining chickpeas in food processor with garlic, onion, herbs, spices, baking soda, salt, and lemon juice. Pulse to a thick, chunky paste, about 30 seconds. Transfer to bowl with chopped chickpeas.
3. Add egg and sesame seeds to bowl and stir to combine. Cover and chill batter in fridge 30 minutes.
4. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When oil shimmers, drop heaping tablespoons of batter into skillet and gently press batter into 2-inch-round patties. Cook, turning once, until deep golden brown on both sides, about 4 minutes total. Transfer to paper towel-lined plate to drain.

Baba Ganoush (food.com) (Patrick said it was the best baba he’s ever had, an we’ve purchased it a few times.)

Ingredients

• 1 large eggplant
• 1/4 cup tahini, plus more as needed
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice, plus more as needed
• 1 pinch ground cumin
• salt, to taste
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions

Tip: Salt first for less oily eggplant. Eggplant soaks up oil like a sponge, but you can reduce its ability to absorb oil by salting the cut flesh and letting it sit for 30 min. or more. Then drain, pat dry, and proceed with cooking. This “sweating” the eggplant also helps it to tenderize the flesh’s texture and to reduce some ot the naturally occurring bitter taste.

1. Wipe the eggplant clean and slice them in half lengthwise. With the tip of a knife, score the flesh deeply in a diamond cross-hatch pattern by making two or three long cuts, cutting at a steep angle, and then rotating the eggplant to make another set of similar cuts. Press on the edges of the halves to open the cuts and sprinkle salt (1 to 1-1/2 tsp. total for all the halves) over the surface and into the cuts. Set aside, cut side up, for 30 min. Heat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment.
2. Over the sink, gently squeeze the eggplant to extract the salty juice and wipe them dry with a paper towel.
3. Place the eggplant on the foil, cut side down. Place in the oven and roast large, fat eggplants for 20 to 25 minutes, depending on the size; small, narrow Japanese eggplants (and other varieties) should be roasted for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven when skin has begun to shrivel, the edges and cut surface are browned, and the eggplant has softened but not collapsed. Remove from the oven, let cool slightly, and peel off and discard the skin.
4. Place the eggplant flesh in a bowl.Using a fork, mash the eggplant to a paste.Add the 1/4 cup tahini, the garlic, the 1/4 cup lemon juice and the cumin and mix well.Season with salt, then taste and add more tahini and/or lemon juice, if needed.
5. Transfer the mixture to a serving bowl and spread with the back of a spoon to form a shallow well.Drizzle the olive oil over the top and sprinkle with the parsley.Serve at room temperature.

5 Layer Greek Dip

-Hummus

-red bell pepper

-kalamata olivws

-cucumber

-feta cheese

-fresh dill

1. Finely chop olive, bell pepper, cucumber, and dill.

2. Spread hummus about 1-2 inches thick in the bottom of a wide serving dish.

3. Sprinkle the vegetables evenly over the hummus.

4. Crumble feta cheese on top.

5. Sprinkle bits of dill and serve with warm pita slices. Enjoy!

Cucumber Yogurt Dip Recipe (Khiyar bi Laban)

Ingredients

• 4 persian cucumbers (or equivalent), finely chopped
• 4 cups of plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup of water
• 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
• a few leaves of green mint finely chopped, or 1 teaspoon of dried mint powder
• a dash of salt
• 1/2 teaspoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice (optional)

Preparation Method

1. In a bowl, whisk the yogurt, water, crushed garlic, salt and lemon juice well.  If you’re preparing this in summer, you can add 2-3 ice cubes in the mix to cool the yogurt and make it even more refreshing
2. Finely Chop the cucumbers into cubes of ~ 1/3 inches, add to the mixing bowl
3. Add the finely chopped green mint or the dried mint powder and salt, mix well
4. Serve in small soup bowls as an appetizer or snack.

Fattoush (Lebanese “Crumbled Bread” Salad with Sumac and Pita Chips)

Makes 4 large main-dish salads or 6 small side salads
Ingredients:
2 whole wheat pita pocket breads, cut into strips about 3/4 inch wide, then toasted and crumbled
1 tsp. chopped garlic (2-4 cloves garlic)
1 tsp. salt (I used fine grind sea salt)
1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice, about 2 large lemons (I love lemon, so adjust the amount to your own taste)
1 tsp. powdered Sumac, plus more for sprinkling on individual salads if desired)
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 heads Romaine lettuce, chopped
1/2 cup thinly sliced green onion
1 cup diced tomatoes (let drain a minute or two if extra juicy)
1 cup diced cucumber (same size as tomatoes)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh mint leaves
1/2 cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley (leaves only, no stems)
optional ingredients: chopped green pepper or radishes (I didn’t use either of these but Lori’s recipe had green peppers and I saw several recipes that added chopped radishes.)Instructions:

Preheat oven or toaster oven to 400F/200C. While oven heats, mash together the chopped garlic and salt using a mortar and pestle, or the side of a knife or spoon. Put garlic-salt paste in a small bowl, then add lemon juice and 1 tsp. Sumac. Whisk in olive oil and set dressing aside. (You can also make the dressing in a glass jar and shake to combine.)

Cut whole wheat pita into strips about 3/4 inch wide and arrange on baking sheet. (Some recipes call for brushing the pita with olive oil, but I didn’t do that.) Bake until pita strips are crisp but only barely starting to brown, less than 10 minutes. Watch carefully because they can go from crisp to overly brown rather quickly.Remove outer leaves from Romaine, trim stem end, then wash and spin dry or dry with paper towels. Cut Romaine into fourths lengthwise, then turn and chop crosswise into small pieces. (If you have a salad spinner, you can chop the Romaine first, then wash.) Put chopped Romaine into salad bowl large enough toss all ingredients.Chop tomatoes, green onions, cucumbers, mint, and parsley and add to lettuce. Add about half of the dressing and toss, then add crumbled pita chops and toss again with more dressing. (You may not want all the dressing, but this salad should be quite wet.) At this point the salad should sit for a few minutes (or longer) to let flavors blend and so the pita chips absorb some of the dressing. To serve, arrange salad on individual plates and sprinkle with a bit more Sumac. You can also serve it in a large bowl with the Sumac sprinkled over.

When I first tested the recipe I made enough for two large salads, ate one for dinner, and put the rest in the fridge overnight. I was surprised how great it still tasted the next day, even though the vegetables were fairly wilted. When I made this for guests I tossed the salad together before they arrived, and it was perfect when I served it about 30 minutes later.

Mushroom Steaks and Risotto with Parmesean Green Beans

Wednesday, we ate a potpie that I had made previously and froze. That was good and filling, but this Thursday, I tried something new and it became another of my favorite meals! The mushroom steaks were delicious and but the risotto was my favorite! The texture and flavor were awesome combinations in this dish!

Sweet Corn Risotto

Yield: 6 – 8 Servings

Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 small onion, chopped
2 ears fresh sweet corn, cut off cob
1 cups arborio rice
½ cup sauvignon blanc wine
3-4 cups chicken stock
¼ cup Romano cheese (parmesan), grated
2 tablespoons minced parsley

1 tablespoon butter
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

In a large heavy bottomed pot, over medium-high heat butter. Add olive oil and garlic, stirring until garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add onion and cook till soft.

Add corn and arborio rice, stirring constantly, until the edges of the rice are translucent, about 6 minutes. Add wine, stirring constantly, until almost completely absorbed, 2-3 minutes.

Add 1 cup chicken stock, stirring constantly, until the stock has been absorbed. Continue adding stock, 1 cup at a time, stirring the risotto until the stock is absorbed before adding more. It is important to add the next cup only after all of the last has been absorbed in order to make the starch form a nice sauce. The risotto is done when the rice is tender (begin tasting after 12 minutes).

Stir in the cheese, parsley and butter. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately!

Marinated Portobello Mushroom “Steak”

Ingredients:

2 Portobello Mushroom Caps (3-4 oz. mushroom cap)
4 Tbsp. Olive Oil
2 tsp. Fresh Garlic (minced)
2/3 tsp. Basil
2/3 tsp. Oregano
2/3 tsp. Thyme
1/2 tsp. Rosemary

Directions:

Measure Oil and Seasonings, Mix, and Marinate

Measure your olive oil and seasonings, and pour into a microwave-safe cup.
Heat the oil and seasonings for about 20-25 seconds in the microwave. This is to warm up the oil and draw out the seasoning flavors. Cover and set the oil aside, in room temperature, for approximately 6 hours. Once every couple hours, microwave the oil/seasonings for 20-25 seconds. I find this to be a lot of work and not completely necessary to do for such an extended period of time.

Set the mushroom out a couple hours ahead of time so it can get to room temperature.

Prepare and Marinate Mushroom
Remove mushroom stalk.
Place the mushroom cap in a bowl, smooth side up.
Brush a very small amount of the oil onto the smooth side of the mushroom cap.
Turn mushroom upside down (smooth side down/gill side up).
Pour the remaining oil and seasonings into the cup-shaped mushroom cap.
Allow to marinate for approximately 20-30 minutes.

Broil or Grill
Place the mushroom, smooth side down, into your broiler.
Broil for approximately 4-5 minutes. Keep a close watch on it to avoid burning.
Remove from broiler. Once the mushroom comes out of the broiler, it won’t stay hot for long, so be ready to eat immediately.

Patrick experimented by putting the finished mushroom and cooking it a little in a pan. He preferred this crispiness to the mushroom.

Roasted Parmesan Green Beans

Skinnytaste.com
Ingredients:

• 12 oz green beans, trimmed (make sure they are dry)
• 2 tsp olive oil
• kosher salt + fresh cracked pepper to taste
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1 1/2 tbsp shredded parmesan

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425°F. (Line a baking sheet with aluminum for easy clean-up.)
Lay green beans out on the baking sheet and drizzle oil over them. Season with salt, pepper and garlic powder and toss to evenly coat.

Spread them out on the sheet so that they all lay flat and place on the lower third section of your oven. Bake 10 minutes, shake the pan to turn; bake 5 additional minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with grated cheese.

Around the World Series: Spain

The menu for this week was developed with advice from Clint, who had recently returned from about a month in Spain. The first course was a vegetable, Green Beans with paprika, for the second course, we had Tortilla Espanola, and dessert was Flan. The Tortilla Espanola was difficult to do with an old pan and probably a little too many potatoes to flip.

Tortilla Espanola

By The Skinny Gourmet
Serves 8-10

7 large eggs (used more egg whites and less of the yolks)
4 medium potatoes (1 lb total)
1 small spanish onion (1/4 lb)
2 Tbsp plus 1 tsp olive oil
2 tsp kosher salt
black pepper

Wash potatoes, peel (or leave the skins on), and slice the potatoes ~1/8 inch thin. Peel the onion and slice thin.

Layer the potatoes in a microwave or steamer and steam until a slightly firm al dente. They will still cook up somewhat in the olive oil (four plus minutes).

Add the 2 Tbsp of olive oil to a skillet on medium heat. Add the onions and saute until soft and fragrant. Add the potatoes and cook for another 5 minutes until al dente.

In a separate bowl, vigorously whisk the eggs together with the salt and pepper until foamy. Pour the egg mixture onto the onions and potatoes. The egg mixture should just cover them. Cook on medium until the bottom is firm and begins to pull away from the sides.

The dish can either be finished on the stovetop or oven. To finish on the stovetop, you will need to do the classic flip. Non-stick pan is preferable, but with a pan that is not non-stick, use more oil. With a spatula, work your way around the edges of the tortilla, loosening. Agitate the pan to be sure that the bottom is not stuck. Cover the pan with a plate. Flip the pan upside down so the tortilla winds up on the plate with the cooked side facing up. Return the pan to the stove-top and add more olive oil. Using the spatula, slide the tortilla off the plate and back onto the pan. Continue cooking until the tortilla is set throughout.

Soymilk Flan

1/2 cup granulated sugar (or less)
2 Tablespoons water (little less if less sugar)
1 cups soy milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1 egg yolks
pinch salt
1/4 cup sugar

1. You can use a loaf pan and make one large flan or smaller ramekins. Three 6-ounce ramekins or 2 larger ones work well for this recipe. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Put water on to boil.

2. Combine sugar and water in a small saucepan I would use less- this makes a sauce that ends up on top of the flan. Cook over low heat until sugar melts and mixture begins to darken; stir occasionally. When the sugar mixture turns a dark golden brown – about 15 minutes, remove from the heat. Pour enough to coat the bottom into each ramekin, if using, or pour all into the bottom of the loaf pan.

3. Heat the soymilk and the vanilla in a small saucepan until it is just about to boil. Turn off burner and put aside.

4. Beat eggs, egg yolks, salt and sugar in a bowl with a whisk or electric mixer until they are a light yellow color.

5. Stirring constantly, pour the milk mixture in a thin stream into the egg mixture until they are completely combined. Pour into loaf pan or divide equal among the ramekins.

6. Put the loaf pan or the ramekins into a deep roasting dish and put it on the middle shelf in the oven. Pour boiling water into the roasting dish until the water comes about halfway up the sides of the custard dishes.

7. Bake for about 45 minutes to 1 hour or until the custard is almost set, but the middles are still wiggly. Remove from oven and let cool. Refrigerate until ready to eat.

8. To serve flan, place ramekin (or loaf pan) into hot water for 20 seconds, run a thin sharp knife around the edge of the dish and invert it onto a dessert plate. For a finishing touch sprinkle the top with cinnamon.

I had chocolate soymilk and so it turned into a delicious chocolate flan (although I didn’t think it looked pretty enough to take a picture). I also used my flexible muffin cups. Just remember if using that they will probably all need to be flipped out at the same time (but in my case, with filling four muffin cups, two on each side, I could flip it out two at a time).

Egg-less Vegetable Quiche

Another favorite, and a different way to make a quiche.

Egg-less Vegetable Quiche

Crust:

• 1 c. Whole wheat flour
• 1/2 c.  Oats
• 1/2 tsp. Salt
• 1/2 tsp. Baking powder
• 1/3 c.  Olive oil/melted butter
• 1/2 cup water/milk

For the Crust:

1. Dry roast oats (not necessary though) for a few minutes. Grind oats with flour, salt, baking powder. (Oops, I didn’t’ have a blender so I just mixed them and the oats were larger in the crust. I had to add more flour to make the crust a better consistency.)
2.  Add oil/butter and toss until resembles breadcrumbs.  Add water or milk. Make a hard dough; increase the quantity of liquid if needed for a firm dough.
3.  Roll out dough and place in a pie pan. Put small holes in the bottom with a fork.
4. Bake the pastry shell for about 10-15 minutes at 400°F till crust is golden brown.

Filling:

• 1 c. Spinach, washed and shredded
• 1/2 c.  bell pepper, diced
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. red chili flakes
• 1/2 tsp. dry herbs: thyme, basil, etc.
• 1/2 c. Tofu
• 2 TBSP Olive oil
• Salt as desired
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
• 1/2 c.  Cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1 TBSP Milk

Could also add mushrooms or other vegetables to quiche. Cottage cheese could be a replacement for cheddar cheese, just mix it in with the filling.

For the Filling:

1.  Heat oil and sauté onion and garlic. Add the pepper and cook for one minute. Add spinach & salt and cook for another minute. Take the filling out from the stove and cool it a little. A little extra water from the cooked spinach is ok and should be taken care of by baking the quiche.
2. Crumble the tofu, mix it with milk, and add it to the cooked spinach mix.
3. Pour the cooked spinach mix over the pre baked tart shell. Sprinkle crushed pepper and herbs over the spread and add the grated cheese on top of the assembled quiche.
4. Bake the quiche for 40-50 minutes at 375°F or till done. Cool it for 10 -15 minutes before slicing the quiche.

Quinoa-Stuffed Peppers after a visit back home

Over the weekend, we went home to visit Patrick’s parents. The visit also included a first time golf outing for Patrick. During our visit, we acquired some lovely peppers from their neighbor. It was great timing too, because I was craving stuffed peppers!

Quinoa-Stuffed Peppers

I substituted many of the ingredients fore example I used fresh tomatoes instead of canned and an assortment of peppers instead of only bell peppers. The cheese was an organic swiss, purchased in Amish Country with my family while in Ohio. Also, since I didn’t have a stove, the vegetables (minus the peppers) were all steamed with a food steamer.

• 1 medium onion, finely chopped (1 cup)
• 2 Tbs. olive oil
• 2 ribs celery, finely chopped (½ cup)
• 1 Tbs. ground cumin
• 2 cloves garlic, minced (2 tsp.)
• 1 10-oz. pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed & squeezed dry (I used fresh)
• 2 15-oz. cans diced tomatoes, liquid reserved (I only used 1 fresh tomato)
• 1 15-oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
• ¾ cup quinoa
• 3 large carrots, grated (1 ½ cups)
• 1 ½ cups grated reduced-fat pepper Jack cheese, divided
• 4 large red bell peppers, halved lengthwise, ribs removed

1. Heat oil in saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and celery, and cook 5 minutes, or until soft. Add cumin and garlic, and sauté 1 minute. Stir in spinach and drained tomatoes. Cook 5 minutes, or until most of liquid has evaporated.

2. Stir in black beans, quinoa, carrots, and 2 cups water. Cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 20 minutes, or until quinoa is tender. Stir in 1 cup cheese. Season with salt and pepper, if desired.

3. Preheat oven to 350°F. Pour liquid from tomatoes in bottom of baking dish. Fill each bell pepper half with heaping 3/4-cup quinoa mixture, and place in baking dish. Cover with foil, and bake 1 hour. Uncover, and sprinkle each pepper with 1 Tbs. remaining cheese. Bake 15 minutes more, or until tops of stuffed peppers are browned. Let stand 5 minutes. Transfer stuffed peppers to serving plates, and drizzle each with pan juices before serving.

For dessert, Patrick surprised me by taking us to a deli where he ate lunch. It was so cute! They had one counter displaying some delicious looking pizzas, fresh bread in bushels, and three counters with little desserts!! Mmmmm! It was a beautiful feast for the eyes. We left with seven little items. I forget what they all were (except delicious) but some included: an eclair, cannoli, date bar/cookie, and raspberry petite four (cake). The winners were the date bar and the raspberry petite four. What a lovely evening!

Beet and Bean Burgers

By now, you may have noticed that I live veggie burgers. This time I made burgers using red beets and they were so good! This is something that I’m sure not many are brave enough to try but I made it and it was great! I would make it again. I would even make it for friends and family that I thought were daring enough to try it.

Best-Ever Beet and Bean Burgers
Inspired by the veggie burgers at Northstar Cafe in Columbus, Ohio
makes about 6 burgers

1/2 cup brown rice (doubled if you want more rice)
1 onion, diced small
3 large red beets (about 1 pound), diced small*
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons cider vinegar
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
juice from 1/2 lemon
1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tablespoons parsley, minced
1 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon thyme
2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
salt and pepper
thin slices of provolone or monterey jack cheese (optional)

* The key is to dice the beets very small and then cook all the ingredients until they’re very tender and soft. Don’t be tempted to use a food processor – that would give you the mushy texture we’re trying to avoid.

(I didn’t have vinegar, or parsley, coriander, thyme, and used an Italian spice mix instead and mozz string cheese.)

Bring a large amount of water to a boil. Add a handful of salt and the rice, and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook the rice until it’s a little beyond al dente. You want it a little over-cooked, but still firm. This should take about 35-40 minutes. Drain the rice and set it aside.

Heat a teaspoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, reduce the heat to medium, and cook until the onions are translucent and softened. Stir in the beets. Cover the pot and cook until the beets are completely tender, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook until it is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Deglaze the pan using the cider vinegar.

Empty the black beans into a large bowl and use a fork to mash them up a bit. Add the cooked rice, the beet and onion mixture, the lemon juice, the olive oil, and all the spices. Stir to combine and then taste for seasonings. Add salt and pepper to taste. Once it tastes the way you like it, add the flour and stir until you see no more dry flour.

Heat a cast-iron skillet over the highest heat. Add a few tablespoons of olive oil – the oil should completely coat the bottom of the pan. When you see the oil shimmer and it flows easily, the pan is ready.

Using your hands, scoop up about a cup of the burger mixture and shape it into a patty between your palms. Set it in the pan, where it should begin to sizzle immediately. (If it doesn’t sizzle, wait a minute or two before cooking the rest of the burgers.) Shape and add as many more patties as will fit in your pan. Once all the patties are in the pan, reduce the heat to medium-high.

Cook the patties for 2 minutes, then flip them to the other side. You should see a nice crust on the cooked side. If they break apart a little when you flipped them, just reshape them with the spatula – they’ll hold together once the second side is cooked. If you’re adding cheese, lay a slice over the burgers now. Cook the second side for another 2 minutes.

Serve the veggie burgers on soft burger buns or lightly toasted sandwich bread along with some fresh greens.

Cooked burgers should be eaten that same day. You can also save leftover mix in the fridge for up to a week and cook just one or two burgers as you want them.

My Oh My, Peach Pie, I mean Galette

Dinner this evening; I thought we were having company so I made an eye pleasing and tasty dinner. It ended up that they had to work late (this is a busy week), but Patrick and I enjoyed it together. :-) We had: Spinach and three-bean enchiladas, Roasted red bell pepper hummus in cucumber cups, and Peach galette. Patrick loved it all! He even said that this was the best dessert he’s ever had (and he doesn’t like dessert)!

Spinach and Three Bean Enchiladas (found in FamilyCircle magazine)

 

 Ingredients:

½ large onion chopped

4 cloves garlic chopped

1 can kidney beans

1 can black beans

1 can pinto beans

2 tomatoes, blended

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 tsp cumin

1 bag baby spinach

½ cup chopped cilantro

6 whole wheat tortillas

1 ½ cups shredded cheese.

Heat oven to 350 degrees, coat a cake pan with cooking spray.

Saute onion and garlic, stir in beans tomatoe and spices.  Simmer 3 minutes

Gradually stir in spinach until wilted, stir in cilantro and lightly mash bean mixture with a potatoe masher.  Spoon into tortilla, wrap place in pan. Sprinkle cheese over top bake for 30 minutes.

Roasted Red Bell Pepper Hummus

I added sesame seeds, it made them look like sushi! To make the cucumber cups, scoop out most of the center of the cucumber slice.

Ingredients:

• 2 cans (each 15 oz.) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, roasted, peeled, seeded and roughly chopped
• 2 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup tahini
• 1 tsp. smoked sweet paprika
• 1/4 tsp. toasted ground cumin seed
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Kosher salt, to taste
• Pita bread or pita chips and crudités for serving

Directions:

In a food processor, combine the chickpeas, garlic, bell pepper, lemon juice, tahini, paprika and cumin and pulse until the mixture just comes together. With the processor running, slowly pour in the olive oil until incorporated. Season with salt. Serve with pita bread or pita chips and crudités for dipping. Makes about 3 cups.

Peach Galette

I ended up adding blueberries and toasted almonds.

INGREDIENTS

Crust:

• 1 1/4 cup flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 oz (1/2 cup, 1 stick, 8 Tbsp) butter, cut into small (1/2-inch) cubes, chilled in freezer at least 15 minutes, preferably an hour
• 4 to 6 Tbsp ice water

Filling:

• 2 large, not-overly-ripe yellow peaches (about 3/4 pound total), pitted, sliced into 1/4-inch to 1/2-inch slices
• 3 Tbsp sugar
• 1 Tbsp flour
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 Tbsp almond paste (optional)
• 1 teaspoon butter

• 1 egg
• A sprinkling of coarse sugar (optional)

METHOD

1 Make the crust dough. In a food processor, pulse the flour, sugar, and salt, until well mixed. Add the cubed butter, and pulse 8 times. The butter should still be the size of peas in the mixture. Slowly add the ice water, a tablespoon or two at a time, pulsing after each addition, until the dough just begins to clump. Turn out onto a clean surface. Use your clean hands to form into a disc. Do not over-knead. Work the dough only enough to bring it barely together into a disk. Sprinkle with a little flour on all sides, wrap with plastic, and place into the refrigerator to chill for an hour. (See our pate brisee recipe for more detailed instruction if you are new to making crusts.)

2 Preheat the oven with the rack in the middle position to 425°F (220°C). Place the peach slices in a bowl and sprinkle with the flour and sugar. Toss gently to coat. Sprinkle vanilla extract over the peaches.

3 In a small bowl, whisk the egg until smooth and set aside.

4 On a lightly floured, clean, smooth surface, roll out the dough to about a 12-inch diameter. Gently lift up the rolled out dough and place it on a rimmed baking sheet.

5 If you are using almond paste (not necessary, but a nice addition if you have it), dot the middle 6-inch circle of the dough with the almond paste. (If you can spread it, great. Otherwise, just dot with little bits.) Arrange the peach slices in an overlapping pattern in a single layer in the center of the dough, forming about a 7 or 8-inch circle. Dot with a little butter.

6 Fold the outer edges of the dough round over the filling, by about 2-inches all the way around, in an accordion fashion. Use a pastry brush to coat the exposed dough with an egg wash (you can cook up the leftover egg as a little scrambled egg, by the way), and sprinkle with coarse sugar if using.

7 Place in the oven and cook for about 15-20 minutes, until nicely browned. Remove from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet, over a rack, about 15 minutes.

Great served with a little vanilla ice cream.

MMmmmmmm!

Long days

Yesterday, Patrick worked a 14 hour day. It was also conveniently leftover night (because I didn’t know when he would be home). Today was another long day, but not that long. our dinner is mentioned below. Note, I made Beet Hummus, and I wouldn’t try that again. The combination of the sweet/savory beets, lemon juice, and tahini was a little much for my tastes!

Corn and Roasted Tomato Grilled Flatbread Recipe

2 flatbreads

1 small package smoked mozzarella

Store bought pesto

Store bought roasted tomatoes (I found these at Trader Joe’s near the pesto)

Handful of arugula

1 ear of corn cooked, kernels removed

Parmesan cheese

Preheat your grill to medium low. Place the flatbread on the grill and cook for about 5 minutes (more or less depending on thickness of the bread). Flip and grill for another 3 minutes or until both sides are crisp. Remove from the grill and add the mozzarella, pesto, roasted tomatoes, arugula, corn, and parmesan in that order. Place the flatbreads back on the grill for 5 minutes. Remove from grill, slice and serve!

(I used whole wheat sandwich rounds, homemade pesto (thanks Patrick’s parents!), corn, farmers market cherry tomatoes, and string cheese)

Spicy Rainbow Rice and Beans

• 1 cup uncooked brown or basmati rice
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1 sweet onion, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2-3 Tablespoons soy sauce
• 1.5 cups frozen peas
• 2 cups fresh cooked corn (or frozen)
• salt to taste

1. Cook the rice in a medium pot according to package directions.

2. In a large skillet, heat olive oil and add sweet onions, garlic, and spices. Sauté 4-5 minutes, until golden and sizzling. Add the black beans, soy sauce, peas, and corn to the skillet. Heat on medium-low for 6-7 minutes, until hot, stirring often.

3. Stir in the cooked rice. Add an additional splash of soy sauce if necessary.

(This wasn’t a really exciting dish., but it is a good filler dinner for Patrick. Like usual, I didn’t have all the ingredients… like coriander or soy sauce.)

Around the World Series: France

Patrick had the idea of trying another country’s cuisine once a week*. Since I like to cook and I like to learn about other countries, I thought that sounded like a good idea! This week I chose France because since I took French for four years in high school, it is a good place to start.

*Once a week will be my goal, however things come up… like traveling to another city, or wanting to wait to go to a farmer’s market, or Patrick knowing he will be home late from a job. Some of these reasons have already happened.

Menu:

Tarte a l’Oignon, Ratatouille, and Gateau de chocolat (I almost went with a chocolate mousse but will save that for another time when I have the ingredients. I decided not to make coq au vin, boeuf bourguignon, quiche lorraine, a bisque or bouillebaisse, pain au chocolat, creme brulee, and tarte aux pommes, among many others. )

Tarte a l’Oignon (Onion Tart) Recipe

SERVES 6

For the Filling:

• pie crust
• 1 Onion, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• salt & pepper, to taste
• nutmeg, a pinch

1. Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium low heat. Add the onions and cook about 30 minutes until they are very soft and caramelized. Add salt and pepper to taste.
2. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F and prepare the custard. Combine the egg with the egg yolk in a small bowl with a whisk.
3. Add the milk, cream, salt, pepper and nutmeg, whisking gently until combined. Do not over whisk and create bubbles or froth/foam.
4. Spread the onions on the bottom of the prepared tart shell and pour the custard over the onions filling the shell completely.
5. Bake for 30 minutes until the custard is just set. Do not let the custard rise, as this is a sign of overbaking. Serve warm or at room temperature.

(Note, I added a pinch of pumpkin spice- which I wasn’t too sure how it would taste- and it was wonderful! I also added more eggs, well egg whites, and did not add the heavy cream).

Ratatouille

INGREDIENTS

• 2 large eggplants
• Kosher salt
• 2 red peppers
• 2 yellow peppers
• About 1/2 cup olive oil, for cooking
• 4 small zucchini, cut into thick rounds
• 2 onions, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 2 pepperoncini, crushed
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary
• 8 medium tomatoes, seeded and roughly chopped
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Handful or 2 chopped fresh basil leaves

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to broil.Thickly slice the eggplant, and lay the rounds on cake racks which you’ve placed in the sink. Salt, very generously, and leave 30 minutes for the excess water to drain off. When they are ready, rinse them well under the tap and pat them dry with a towel.While the eggplant drains, put the red and yellow peppers in the oven and broil to blacken the skin on all sides, 20 minutes total. Remove to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let sit 5 minutes. The skin will now peel off easily. Peel and seed, then slice the flesh to julienne and put it in a large bowl.Turn the oven down to 450 degrees F.Put some oil on a baking sheet and toss the zucchini slices in it. “Grill” in the oven, turning once, about 10 minutes. Remove, and add to the peppers. Finally, cut the rinsed and dried eggplant into large chunks, toss in oil, and spread on the baking sheet, and “grill” also, about 15 minutes. As things are done, add them to the bowl.While the vegetables are in the oven, heat a spoonful of olive oil in a saute pan, and fry the onions until soft. Add the garlic,pepperoncini, bay leaf, and rosemary, and saute 1 minute. Add the tomatoes. Cook the tomatoes until they are very soft and the whole mixture thickly soupy, about 15 minutes.Pour the tomato over the vegetables, and toss everything. Check the seasonings. Serve at room temperature with the basil scattered over.

(Note: this is called “Lazy” Ratatouille, but there is nothing lazy about it!)

The secret of a good ratatouille is to cook the vegetables separately so each will taste truly of itself.

—Joël Robuchon, The Complete Robuchon

And it was good.

Ghirardeli Individual Chocolate Lava Cakes

Ingredients

• Centers:
• 2 ounces Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate baking bar, broken or chopped into 1-inch pieces
• 1/4 cup heavy cream

Cakes:

• 4 ounces Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate baking bar, broken or chopped into 1-inch pieces
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 2 large whole eggs
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1/3 cup granulated white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup cake flour
• Raspberries for garnish
• Whipped cream for garnish

Directions

1. To make the centers, in the top of a double boiler or in a heatproof bowl over barely simmering water, melt the 2 ounces of chocolate with the cream. Whisk gently to blend.
2. Refrigerate for about 2 hours, or until firm. With your hands, form into six balls; refrigerate until needed.
3. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Spray six 4-ounce ramekins or custard cups with cooking spray.
4. To make the cakes, in the top of a double boiler or in a heatproof bowl over barely simmering water, melt the 4 ounces of chocolate and the butter, stirring occasionally until smooth.
5. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, whisk the whole eggs, egg yolks, sugar, and vanilla on high speed for about 5 minutes, or until thick and light. Fold the melted chocolate mixture and flour into the egg mixture just until combined. Spoon the cake batter into the ramekins. Place a chocolate ball in the middle of each ramekin.
6. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until the cake is firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and let sit for about 5 minutes. Run a small, sharp knife around the inside of each ramekin, place an upside-down plate on top, invert, and remove the ramekin. Garnish with raspberries and a dollop of whipped cream.

(I really only used this recipe as an outline and substituted for about half the ingredients. It was still really good!)