Recipe: Skillet Bruschetta with Beans and Greens

Skillet Bruschetta with Beans and Greens
Bon Appetit Magazine, May 2014, p. 54
5 stars

I could eat this really basic, hearty (and inexpensive!) dish every day.

The ingredients are few:  kale, cannellini beans, bread, chicken broth, olive oil, lemon, garlic, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper

It's such a simple dish, and yet the various textures (crunchy bread, soft beans, fibrous kale) and flavors (garlic, spice, salt, citrus) come together so very nicely.

Recipe: Noodle Salad with Chicken and Chile-Scallion Oil

Noodle Salad with Chicken and Chile-Scallion Oil
Bon Appetit Magazine, Apr 2014, p.85

I had one of those days where I didn't want to cook after work, but we didn't have leftovers to eat for dinner -- and we had planned to make this recipe anyways that evening.  I was happy to see how easy and quick this recipe was.

A pretty healthy (and spicy!) meal that paired nicely with my lychee plum ginger drink (1/2 oz lychee liqueur, 1/2 oz plum vodka, Fever Tree Ginger Beer).

Ingredients for the dish:

• Chile-Scallion Oil:  scallions, garlic, star anise, red pepper flakes, fresh ginger, Sichuan peppercorns, vegetable oil
• Noodles, etc:  Japanese wheat noodles, scallions, cucumber, radishes, cilantro, chicken, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, sesame oil

We used udon noodles and also added daikon.

Recipe: Skirt Steak Fajitas with Grilled Cabbage and Scallions

Skirt Steak Fajitas with Grilled Cabbage and Scallions
Bon Appetit Magazine, Feb 2014, p.52
4 stars

We took the essence of this recipe and created our own fajita tacos.  (I wasn't feeling like grilled cabbage; it just didn't sound appealing.)

For our tacos, we used what we had in the fridge:  flour tortillas, lettuce, diced tomato, crumbled cotija cheese, grilled red onions, cilantro, chopped scallion and avocado.

A quick and delicious weekday meal.

By the way, the marinade for the steak = excellent.  Ingredients for the marinade: pureed garlic, lime juice, oil, hot smoked Spanish paprika, cilantro, cumin, salt and onion powder.

Recipe: Cucumber Salad

Recipe:  Grilled Hanger Steak with Cucumber Salad
Bon Appetit Magazine, April 2014, p. 16

We haven't made the hanger steak yet, but I know it's DELICIOUS because our friends made the recipe for us for dinner.

The cucumber salad pairs so nicely with it.  It's a nice, fresh crunchy Asian-y salad.

Ingredients:  cucumber, carrot, daikon, red onion, cilantro, peanuts, unseasoned rice vinegar, sweet chili sauce, salt & pepper

Only tip on the salad:

• Use a 1/4 of a small onion rather than 1/2

Recipe: Vegetable Ramen Recipe

I was looking for a vegetable ramen recipe and found this one on Chef Marcus Samuelsson's site.

Not a traditional ramen recipe, per se, but it was good and took us only 20 minutes(!!!) to make -- which was great for a weeknight meal.

Note:  While I thought the addition of avocado was a little odd, it's a must!  It adds a nice creaminess and texture to the soup.

When we made this, I excluded the following:  celery, corn, savoy cabbage

But added:  ginger, tofu, daikon and shitake mushrooms (instead of regular mushrooms)

Next time, I need to add a poached egg and seaweed (which I bought but forgot to add).

Recipe: Black Bean Soup with Roasted Poblano Chiles

Black Bean Soup with Roasted Poblano Chiles
Bon Appetit Magazine, Nov 2013, p. 69
My rating:  5 stars!

Really not a great photo above (I almost considered not including it) because it doesn't give this dish justice on how amazing it tastes.

This soup is restaurant quality.  It could be on Stephan Pyles' or Dean Fearing's menu in Dallas because of its southwestern profile and great flavor and texture.

Ingredients include:  poblano chiles, onion, garlic, fire-roasted diced tomatoes, black beans, chicken broth, dried pasilla or ancho chile, pepitas (raw shelled pumpkin seeds), queso fresco, oil, salt, lime

• Used pasilla chile (vs. ancho)
• Used fire-roasted diced tomatoes (vs. plain)
• Topped it with cilantro
• Stirred in some Spicy Salsa Roja that we had from a recipe we made earlier in the week (to add yet another layer of flavor and heat) -- the salsa recipe was from Food and Wine Magazine's March 2014 issue (p. 99) -- Zucchini Quesadilla with Spicy Salsa Roja.  The quesadilla would actually be a nice accompaniment to this soup recipe!

Recipe: Jalapeno-Cheddar Popovers

Jalapeno-Cheddar Popovers
Southern Living, March 2014, p.104
My rating:  3 stars

Of all the popover and savory muffin recipes I've made, this one was ok -- not my favorite.  It didn't have a ton of flavor (yet they smelled amazing), but I think I'll try the recipe again with the following tweaks:

• Add more (maybe double) the amount of cheese
• Add red pepper flakes

Notes:

• The batter was very watery but was fine!
• I let the batter stand for 10 min instead of 30

I'll update this post after I make the recipe again. . .

Recipe: Farro and Green Olive Salad with Walnuts and Raisins

Farro and Green Olive Salad with Walnuts and Raisins
Food and Wine Magazine, Dec 2013, p.150
My rating:  5 stars!

I'm digging this plant-based diet, although as you can see from the attached photo, this one has meat(!) in it.

This recipe was the salad of the month in Food and Wine Magazine's Dec 2013 issue.  I don't know if I'd consider it a salad, per se.  (When I think of salads, I think lots and lots of vegetables.)  For us, this was a main entree, and I was full after eating this hearty dish.

Ingredients include:  farro, walnuts, green olives, scallions, raisins, cheese, chives, red pepper, olive oil, lemon juice, honey.

Tips:

• Omitted the chives since we didn't have any handy
• Used regular raisins instead of golden raisins
• Shaved Manchego cheese on top instead of Pecorino cheese
• Added cucumbers
• Added ground lamb
• Need to whisk the olive oil, lemon juice, honey and red pepper together and then dress the dish

Recipe: Double-Beet Salad with Radicchio & Blue Cheese

Double-Beet Salad with Radicchio & Blue Cheese
Food and Wine Magazine, Aug 2013

A hearty entree salad that actually made me think, "This would be a $14 salad in a restaurant."
5 stars!

To give you an idea of what's in the recipe (see recipe at link above), ingredients include:

• 3 golden beets  (we used red beets)
• Walnuts
• Radicchio  (we used a spring mix)
• Maytag blue cheese
• Minced shallot
• Walnut oil, extra-virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, smoked sea salt, pepper  (we didn't have walnut oil or smoked sea salt so used EVOO and Hawaiian sea salt that we had in the pantry)

Pretty simple!

Tip:

• Instead of steaming the beets and sauteing them, we may try peeling the beets and roasting them next time

Drink Recipe: Italian Refresher

Here is a cocktail that I concocted (when I couldn't decide between making an Aperol Spritz and something with Campari).  I call it the Italian Refresher.

• 1 oz Aperol
• 1/2 oz Campari
• Squeeze of 1/2 a lime
• 1 oz Sprite
• 1 oz Club Soda

Recipe: Warm Cauliflower and Herbed Barley Salad

Warm Cauliflower and Herbed Barley Salad
Bon Appetit Magazine, March 2013, p. 44

Honestly, I wasn't sure if I was going to like this recipe but blog contributor the grandcruman was open to trying it, so I was in.  And, I LOVED IT.

Here is the ingredient list, and you have to admit, it doesn't sound like it'd taste great:  barley, cauliflower, beans, salt & pepper, lemon juice and zest, mayo, Dijon-mustard, olive oil, parsley and tarragon.

As we try to eat more of a plant-based diet, this recipe is a keeper.  Filling and flavorful.  (I'm actually craving it right now as I write.)  It's also a quick weekday recipe since it only took about 20 min to make.

Tips:

• Used farro instead of pearled barley (since we had farro in the house)
• Used cannellini beans instead of gigante, corona or butter beans
• Didn't need to use all of the dressing

Recipe: Jumbo Pancetta, Thyme and Gruyere Muffins

What to do with extra buttermilk we had in the fridge?  I hate waste.

Fortunately, I saw the Jumbo Pancetta, Thyme and Gruyere Muffins recipe in Food and Wine Magazine (April 2014, p. 55) and made these this past weekend.

Warning:  They're addictive.
I'm definitely making these again.

Tips:

• We made half the recipe which filled 8 regular muffin cups (I don't have a jumbo muffin pan)
• Used finely diced prosciutto instead of pancetta
• Used dried thyme instead of fresh
• The batter was thick (thicker than I thought it'd be)
• It only took 27 min to bake, not 30

Bon Appetit!

Hearts of Palm

Did you know that hearts of palm is also called "swamp cabbage?"  I learned that today while reading Ask Marilyn in Parade Magazine.

I knew that my beloved salad ingredient is a "long, slender vegetable that is actually the innermost portion -- the heart -- of the stem of the palmetto tree, the state tree of Florida."

But "swamp cabbage"?  That doesn't sound appealing at all.  It has no resemblance to cabbage!

Drink Recipe: Chocolate Bulleit - Revised

This is admittedly not the best drink photo -- I was halfway through the drink before I thought about writing about this.  

I was craving a drink with bourbon perhaps influenced by the Kentucky Derby being on TV, yet didn't want a Mint Julep.

I had just used part of an orange for another recipe and decided to make my own version of the Chocolate Bulleit cocktail, but using different proportions of ingredients since that drink is a bit too strong for me.

The Bistro 31 Chocolate Bulleit recipe is as follows:

• 1 oz Bulleit Bourbon
• 1 oz Licor 43
• Squeeze of orange juice
• 6 dashes of Aztec Chocolate Bitters
• Garnished with a fresh orange slice

My "revised recipe" that is a little sweeter:

• 1 oz Maker's Mark (we were out of Bulleit Bourbon)
• 1/2 oz Licor 43
• Juice of a whole orange
• 3 dashes of Aztec Chocolate Bitters

Cheers!

Recipe: Our "Chipotle" Bowls

As we continue to strive to eat a more plant-based diet, we made our own "Chipotle" salad bowls for dinner which were quite tasty and included the following:

• Brown rice

• Black beans (cooked with onion and garlic)

• Tomato
• Lettuce
• Roasted corn
• Jalapeno (diced)
• Avocado
• Radish
• Green onion
• Cilantro

• Salsa

And just a little of the following which we already had in the fridge:

• Shredded cheese 
• Sour cream

I'm realizing that our new way of eating is requiring more time prepping ingredients (namely, chopping vegetables!).