Plantains to Petits Fours

Apple-Pear sauce!

2011-10-16T16:35:00.001-05:00

Our farm share has been inundating us with apples & pears over the last few weeks. Unfortunately, with the wedding and all, several bags of fruit ended up going bad before we got a chance to do anything with them. This afternoon, we decided to change that trend and make and can some applesauce. Since we had mostly apples and only a few pears, and most of the recipes I had for pear sauce had the same needs as apple sauce, we decided to mix the fruit together.

I like to leave the skins on when I make applesauce. It adds fiber, and you puree the fruit regardless, so why not?

Apple-Pear Sauce
6 lb Apples & Pears, cored & coarsely chopped
3 TB Lemon Juice
Water
1 Stick Cinnamon
Sugar, if desired.

Combine ingredients in a big stockpot. Cook on medium heat, stirring & mashing occasionally for about 20 minutes or until fruit is soft and saucy.

Remove and discard cinnamon stick. Put hot applesauce in a food processor or use an immersion blender to puree the apples to a nice, even consistency.

Return to stockpot and cook a little longer.

Can or freeze according to the Ball Blue Book recommendations.

New Addition to our staff of Domestic Robots!

2011-10-15T15:54:00.001-05:00

I HATE cleaning floors. Because of this, I have bought into just about every floor cleaning gimmick out there (up to and including microfiber dust mop slippers). Several years ago, I got an iRobot Scooba, which has been great for mopping, but since there's water involved, it tends to get done far less often than I would hope. It also will only do one room at a time, as I have somewhat tall trim pieces on the floor of my doorways.

So, thanks to several Macy's gift cards and a 20% off coupon, Sean and I bought the Neato Robotics XV-11 vacuum off our wedding registry. Its design is slightly more sinister looking than the Roomba, but it boasts a beater brush, impressive amount of suction, the ability to climb over floor trim pieces, and an eye (Robot Positioning System).

After charging it overnight, we gave it a test run this morning. The first thing I noticed was how it saw obstacles coming its way and smartly avoided them. It did get caught on a few power cords behind the sofa that I had missed in my attempt to clear the floor for the robot, and I had stupidly forgotten to put down the black perimeter marker around the cat's bowls, so there was a minor emergency when the neato knocked over Pixie's water bowl. Luckily, I witnessed it happen and rushed over with towels and dried the neato (and the floor).

I was very impressed at its ability to clean a room, and then proceed on to the next room. I was less impressed with it insisting on getting stuck under my dresser multiple times, and it insisting that it needed its path cleared when it was in the middle of our bedroom floor. However, I told it to go to bed, and it wheeled its way back into the living room and to its charger without incident.

Watching this robot find its charging base is pure joy. It just backs right up into it and there you go.

I was amazed and somewhat horrified at the amount of cat hair in its bin after the cleaning cycle. I've scheduled it to vacuum just about every other morning, so hopefully the amounts of cat hair will decrease as the apartment becomes cleaner.

Neato's first scheduled cleaning is tomorrow morning. I'm curious to see how that works out.

Arugula Pear Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette

2010-01-03T17:41:00.008-05:00

My good friend Adam of the Coozer Files served this unbelievably delicious salad the other night. It was so yummy, I demanded he give me the recipe to share here.

Pear & Arugula Salad (from the kitchen of Adam Coozer)

Vinaigrette:
1 tbsp champagne vinegar (apple cider vinegar should also work)
1 tbsp honey (I use clover honey)
1/2 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt & 1/2 tsp coarse ground pepper

Combine the above together, then slowly mix in 2 tbsp of olive oil. Mix well.

Salad:

Arugula
2 bartlett pears, halved, cored, then thinly sliced
Shavings of ricotta salata (salted & dried ricotta). Other cheeses could work too for a slightly different taste - goat cheese, bleu cheese, etc.

Toss everything together and make sure the vinaigrette coats everything! Don't worry if there doesn't seem to be that much vinaigrette - a little goes a long way!

New Year's Resolution: Eat Tasty, yet Healthy Food!

2010-01-01T12:33:00.005-05:00

Hello dear readers, happy New Year! Here's a favorite of mine, Curried Pumpkin Soup. My mother found the original recipe somewhere, but I've lightened it up quite a bit, with no loss of yum. It's delicious, healthy and very comforting in the cold winter months. :)

Curried Pumpkin Soup (Serves 6)

1 cup skim milk (you can use other kinds of milk, if you want it creamier)
2 tsp curry powder (I prefer the Jamaican kind)
3 cups broth, any type (vegetable bouillon works well)
1 medium apple, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cup canned pumpkin (1 15 oz can works fine)
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 Tbsp olive oil

Put the olive oil in the bottom of a Dutch oven. Saute the onion and apple in the olive oil until tender (5-7 minutes.)
Stir in the canned pumpkin and remove from heat. Blend in food processor until smooth. Return puree to Dutch oven. Add broth and milk. Whisk in seasonings. Heat gently and serve.

This is really nice paired with whole wheat biscuits.

Enjoy!

Garlic & Spinach Chicken Sauté

2009-07-19T12:48:00.006-05:00

This is a quick, easy and healthy summer supper with minimal prep and cooking time.
Ingredients:

1/2 lb. Boneless, skinless chicken breast, sliced thin and cut into 1/2" strips.

2 TB Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 cloves garlic, chopped or crushed

dash black pepper

dash sea salt

1 (10 oz) package spinach, washed

1/4 cup Low Fat, regular, or fat-free feta cheese, crumbled.

Directions:

Sauté the garlic & olive oil in a large skillet for a minute or so .

Add the salt and pepper.

Add the chicken strips, and sauté until no longer pink.

Add the spinach, a handful at a time, stir and cook until the spinach is wilted and bright green.

Remove from heat. Mix in crumbled feta cheese

Serve over whole wheat couscous or brown rice.

Serves 4

Valentine Cupcakes!

2009-02-23T21:32:00.004-05:00

Well, it's a few weeks later, but these are the cupcakes I made for Valentine's Day. I used a yellow cake recipe, added a little bit of red food coloring to tint them pink, and then frosted them with chocolate icing. I then put a sweetheart candy in the center of each, and surrounded it with a circle of Valentine M & M's.

Bananas And Cream Oatmeal

2008-11-16T11:47:00.005-05:00

This is a super healthy, warm, tasty and filling breakfast, that's super easy to do in the morning before work.
(serves 1)

1/3 cup instant oats

1/3 cup skim milk

1/3 cup water

1 tsp milled flax seed

1 banana, sliced

Sprinkling of ground cinnamon

Mix together the oats, milk, water and flax seed in a microwavable bowl. Slice in the banana, stir again, sprinkle with cinnamon, and microwave for 1-2 minutes, depending on your microwave oven. Stir again, and serve! Yum!

Cinnamon Espresso Ice Cream

2008-11-15T10:43:00.005-05:00

Well, now that Winter is fast approaching, why not post an ice cream recipe? I assure you, if you make this for your friends, they will brag about you to strangers.

Cinnamon Espresso Ice Cream (makes 1 1/2 quarts)

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 1/2 TB Instant Espresso Powder

1/2 Tsp. Ground Cinnamon (get the good stuff)

1 Cup Milk (I use lactose free milk, and then I have lactose-free ice cream! Woo!)

2 Cups Cream (again if you use heavy whipping cream= no lactose and you get lactose-free ice cream)

1 Tsp Vanilla Extract (again- live it up and get the good stuff. ALSO- you can sub with pure almond extract, and it's super extra wonderful tasty)

In a medium-sized bowl, combine the sugar, espresso powder, and cinnamon. I like to mix it up with a whisk, because I like to say "whisk." Sounds exciting, no?

Then add the 1 cup milk, and whisk together the ingredients until the sugar is completely dissolved. It'll take a little while.

After the sugar is completely dissolved, add the 2 cups cream and the vanilla extract.

Freeze in your ice cream maker for about 30 minutes. (It will be about the consistency of soft-serve at this point)

Transfer to an airtight freezer container and allow to "ripen" overnight. (AKA harden to regular ice cream consistency)

Enjoy! And don't forget that it does contain espresso, so if you eat a whole bunch of it, and then try to go to bed, there may be some difficulty...

Halloween Brain and Eyeball Cupcakes!

2008-11-15T10:11:00.004-05:00

Hurrah for confections shaped like body parts!

I made these pumpkin cupcakes with cream cheese frosting using the recipes from Krystina Castella's EXCELLENT book, Crazy About Cupcakes, the best cupcake book I've found. The idea for the brains came from Martha Stewart Living, but the blood was all my friend Jason's idea.

The brains were pretty easy to do- I just divided the cupcake into two halves, and piped a big pile of squiggles of frosting onto each half, using a round pastry tip, until the heaps looked suitably brainy. Then I just drizzled a little red frosting on top for blood, as red cake decorating gel is rarer than hen's teeth in Brooklyn grocery stores.

The eyeballs were super easy, as well. I just frosted the cupcakes as smoothly as possible with the plain cream cheese icing. Then I piped a big dollop of blue frosting in the center of each cupcake, and inverted a dark chocolate chip into the center of the "eye" for the pupil. Then I piped red blood vessels out in squiggly lines from the center, and voila! Bloodshot eyeballs!

Super Tasty Baked Macaroni and Cheese

2008-09-07T14:49:00.005-05:00

I love this recipe, as do all of my friends. Definitely a rich and tasty treat.

Macaroni and Cheese

1/2 Pound whole wheat pasta, cooked al dente ( macaroni elbows and fusilli seem to work best, but other smallish pastas are fine, shells, bowties, etc.)

1/2 pound sharp cheddar cheese, grated

2 cups milk

3 TB Butter

3 TB Flour

1/2 Tsp. sea salt (more or less to taste)

a generous amount of fresh ground pepper

1/2 TB Coleman's mustard powder mixed with 1/2 TB water

1/2 Cup Breadcrumbs

2 TB butter, melted.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare the pasta according to its package directions, drain and put aside.

In a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat, melt the 3 TB butter, and mix in the 3 TB flour. Cook and mix until the flour is all bubbly and a beige-y color. Congratulations, you've just made a roux!
OK, now mix in the milk, a bit at a time, whisking and letting the sauce thicken as you add it. Now stir in the salt, pepper, and prepared mustard. Once the white sauce is lovely and thick and hot, add 2/3 of the shedded cheddar cheese to the sauce, and cook on a low flame until the cheese is completely melted and the sauce is well mixed.

Now, dump the pasta and the cheese sauce into an appropriately sized casserole dish.

In a small bowl, mix the 2 TB melted butter, 1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs, and the remainder of the shredded cheddar cheese.

Spread the breadcrumb mixture over the macaroni and cheese in the casserole dish, and bake at 350 degrees F for approximately 30 minutes, or until browned and bubbly.

Enjoy! :)

Variation-- Jalapeno Macaroni & Cheese-- Substitute the cheddar cheese with pepper jack cheese and leave out the mustard. Spicy!

Pasta Salad- perfect to bring to BBQs!

2008-09-03T23:56:00.001-05:00

La's famous pasta salad

Dressing (OK I have NO measurements for this, I just sort of eyeball it)

equal parts Balsalmic vinegar & Olive oil, maybe like 3/4 cup each??

a few shakes mixed Mediterranean herbs ( I use the stuff from whole foods that's meant for fish)

lots of black pepper

a few shakes sea salt

a whole bunch of shakes of crushed red pepper

maybe about 1/2 teaspoon chopped basil (fresh, dried, from a jar, whatevs)

In a little bowl, mix the above ingredients together, let the dressing sit while you prep the salad ingredients below

Salad Ingredients

1 pound whole wheat fusilli, cooked and cooled

1 package grape tomatoes (or cherry tomatoes, halved)

1/2 pound fresh mozzarella (I like to use the marinaded braid one, if the store has it) cut into 1/2" cubes

1 little can sliced black olives, drained

1 can artichoke hearts, drained and cut into little pieces

Sliced sauteed zucchini is good to put in there, too.

In a big bowl, mix together the salad ingredients and toss with the dressing. This tends to taste better the longer the pasta and stuff have to absorb the flavors from the dressing, so you might want to make it the night before, or earlier in the day. Do taste it, though, and make sure it doesn't need more salt or vinegar. I'm always adding more of those two things...

Lazy Girl Lo Mein

2008-04-05T11:25:00.004-05:00

This is a healthy, yet quick and easy weeknight supper for 1. It's easily doubled for 2. :)

1 serving (2 oz) whole wheat spaghetti, cooked al dente
1 1/2 cups frozen stir fry vegetables
3 oz. soy stir fry faux meat strips
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce (Thai peanut sauce is very good, too)
Spray canola oil

Prepare the spaghetti.

Lightly coat a medium fry pan with spray oil. Stir fry the frozen vegetables and faux meat strips until the vegetables are nearly cooked. Add the teriyaki sauce and heat through. Add spaghetti, mix thoroughly, and serve.

Curried Whole Wheat Couscous with Chickpeas

2008-01-27T10:12:00.001-05:00

1 box whole wheat couscous (1 and 2/3 cups)

1 15 oz. can chickpeas, drained

2 1/4 cups vegetable or chicken broth (bullion works, too)

1 TB olive oil

2 TB Jamaican curry powder

Mix the broth, curry powder and olive oil in a medium to large saucepan. Add the chickpeas. Bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, add the couscous, stir, and cover. Let stand covered for 5 minutes. Fluff the couscous with a fork and serve.

This makes 5 servings. For an individual serving, use 1/2 cup of broth, 1 tsp. of olive oil, 1/3 cup couscous, and 1/3 cup chickpeas.

I love this recipe because it's cheap and easy to make, super healthy, has loads of protein and tastes yummy. And the yellow color is very cheerful. :)

Recipe-- Whole Wheat Penne with Sausage, Asparagus, & Tomatoes

2007-02-10T19:36:00.001-05:00

1- 12oz box of whole grain penne ( I like the kind with milled flax-seed)

1/2 lb Fresh Asparagus, with the ends cut off and then cut into 2" pieces.

1- 14.5oz Can of organic diced tomatoes with Italian herbs

1 lb Italian-style turkey sausage, cut into 1/2" slices (if you're veggie, the "Lightlife Lean Italian Links" faux sausage also works quite nicely- just use a little more olive oil)

2 cloves garlic, minced

Olive oil

Salt & pepper to taste

Shredded Parmesean, Asiago & Provolone Cheese

In a large frying pan, fry the minced garlic in a couple tablespoons of olive oil at medium low heat. Add the sausage, salt and fresh ground pepper, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sausage is cooked through. Drain off half the fat/juices. Add the can of diced tomatoes and heat through. After the tomatoes are heated through, add the asparagus, mix in thoroughly, cover, and turn off the burner.

In a separate big pasta pot, bring salted water to a boil. Once water is boiling, add the asparagus. Boil the asparagus for 2-3 minutes, JUST until done. Remove the asparagus with a slotted spoon, and put aside in a bowl.

Now add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to package directions, just until al dente. Drain the pasta.

Dump the drained pasta and the sausage/vegetable mixture back into the big pasta pot and mix thoroughly.

Spoon onto plate and sprinkle shredded cheeses and more freshly ground pepper on top, if desired.

Serves a lot of people, let's say 6.

Recipe- Dark Chocolate Cinnamon Muffins

2007-02-10T15:43:00.002-05:00

Dry Ingredients:
1/2 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
1/2 Cup Unbleached White Flour
1/4 Cup light brown sugar (like sugar in the raw)
1/4 Tsp Salt
1/2 TB Baking Powder
2 Tsp Cocoa Powder
1 Tsp Ground Cinnamon

Wet Ingredients:
1/2 Cup Milk
2 TB Oil (I use Olive oil, 'cause that's all I buy)
1 Large Egg, Beaten

Mix-Ins:
3/4 Cup Ghiradelli or other good-quality semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 500 degrees F.

Combine dry ingredients in a medium-sized bowl.

Combine wet ingredients in a small bowl.

Pour Wet ingredients into the dry mixture and mix just until combined.

Fold in the chocolate chips.

Spoon into muffin tin, lined with paper cups, or greased if you have no paper cups.

Sprinkle Cinnamon Sugar Topping(2 TB Light brown Sugar mixed with 1/2 Tsp Ground Cinnamon) on to the muffin batter.

Reduce the oven temperature to 400 degrees F and bake the muffins for 15 minutes.

Recipe makes 6 muffins, which is just the right amount for just a few people. :)

(recipe adapted from an awesome basic 6 muffin recipe from Lauren Daniels)

Maple Cinnamon Apple Sauce

2007-02-01T21:17:00.001-05:00

6 medium sized apples
½ cup water
½ cup maple syrup
2 small cinnamon sticks

Core and cut the apple into wedges. (I use one of those apple corer-wedger thingies) dump the apple wedges into a stockpot or large saucepan with a heavy bottom. Dump the ½ cup water, ½ cup maple syrup and 2 cinnamon sticks into the pot and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover and simmer for 25-30 minutes, until apples are very tender. Remove the cinnamon sticks. Dump the mixture (in stages, if necessary) into the bender and blend the apple sauce until smooth. Some people use a sieve and throw away the apple skins, but they’re full of fiber and good for you, so I don’t recommend it. Allow to cool a bit and serve warm, or chill. You can also freeze it for up to 6 months, if so inclined.

Recipe-- Whole Wheat Pumpkin Raisin Muffins

2007-01-28T20:02:00.001-05:00

1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 cup olive oil
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 1/2 + 1/3 cups whole wheat flour
2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 Teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
2/3 cup water
1 15 oz can of pumpkin
1 cup raisins

Line the muffin pans with paper muffin cups

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the white sugar, brown sugar and olive oil at your mixer's medium speed. Then add the eggs and beat until quite mixed and smooth

In another large bowl, mix together the flours, baking powder, salt and spices.

Alternate between adding the flour mixture and the water to the sugar mixture, making sure to mix at your mixer's medium speed just until combined between additions. After you've mixed all the flour and water into the batter, add the canned pumpkin and mix thoroughly. At the very end, fold in the raisins at your mixer's lowest speed.

Spoon the batter into the muffin cups, filling about 2/3 of the way up, and bake at 350 degrees for about 20-25 minutes, or until they look done and a toothpick comes out clean.
Makes about 30 cupcakes.

YUM!

Drink Recipe- Hot Almond Joy

2007-01-16T21:12:00.001-05:00

A sweet and yummy drink for a cold winter's night curled up watching a dvd with your sweetie, be your sweetie human, furry, or imaginary.

1 cup milk

a generous swig of Godiva or other chocolate liqueur

a slightly more generous swig of Amaretto

a small squeeze of chocolate syrup (bosco, nesquik, hershey's, whichever you prefer)

Pour the milk into a microwave-safe mug. Microwave until hot (my Hello Kitty microwave takes 2 minutes, but I'll bet yours works a heck of a lot faster)

Pour the liquor and chocolate syrup into the mug of milk, stir and serve immediately. YUM!

If you want to be fancy, you could put some whipped cream and a dusting of cinnamon or cocoa powder on top.

Recipe- Chocolate Raspberry Layer Cake

2007-01-15T21:27:00.001-05:00

1 box chocolate cake mix, prepared using package directions in 2- 8 or 9" round cake pans

1 Tub chocolate frosting (try to get one without trans-fats)

1 Package fresh Raspberries

1 jar raspberry preserves (I prefer the whole fruit variety)

Cocoa Powder

After preparing the cake layers and allowing them to cool, invert one layer onto a plate (the "bottom" of the cake will be on top).

Mix up the raspberry preserves and smear a generous amount on top of this cake layer, leaving about 1/4-3/8" bare around the edge.

Invert the second cake layer onto a piece of waxed paper, and then flip it again, centering it on top of the raspberry-topped layer (the rounded top of the cake will be facing up)

Now smooth gobs of frosting on the sides with a knife and finish with frosting the top of the cake.

After the cake has been suitably frosted, place air dried rinsed fresh raspberries along the perimeter of the top of the cake, with the bottoms of the raspberries facing up (hollow side facing down) After you've completed the circle, put the remaining raspberries in an attractive cluster in the middle.

Finish by lightly dusting the cake with a sprinkling of cocoa powder.

Your friends will all think you a master pastry chef when you bring this to a party...

VARIATION-
Chocolate Hazelnut Cake- instead of raspberry preserves, spread nutella between the layers, decorate the top with chopped hazelnuts and a few ferrero rocher candies in the center!

Recipe- Lemony Mustard Chicken Breasts With Green Beans Amandine

2007-01-15T19:51:00.003-05:00

Lemony Mustard Chicken Breasts--

2 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts

1/2 TB Coleman's Mustard Powder

1 TB Lemon Juice

a little more than 1 TB Olive Oil

Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

Mix together the mustard, lemon juice and olive oil in a little cup.

Brush mixture all over the chicken breasts and place on a greased (I use canola spray) broiling pan.

Broil the chicken breasts for about 20 minutes, or until they're done all the way through, but still moist and yummy. (this recipe is easily doubled if you need to feed more than two people)

Green Beans Amandine

1 pound fresh green beans or haricots verts

2 1/2 TB Olive Oil

3 TB Sliced blanched almonds (pine nuts may be substituted for those with tree nut allergies)

Salt and Fresh ground pepper to taste.

Break or cut off the ends of the green beans and wash in a colander (or as I have no dishwasher, I use the steamer basket) Then steam the green beans for about 7-10 minutes- (less if using haricots verts)- just until bright green and slightly cooked.
While the beans are steaming, toast the almond slices in a skillet with the olive oil just until they reach a medium tan color. Remove from heat.
Toss the cooked green beans with the almonds and olive oil, and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve alongside the lemony chicken breasts for a tasty, pretty much carb-free meal.