Sunday, August 11, 2019

Recipe: Cheddar Chive Mini Popovers



3 stars
KerryGold.com recipe

I love popovers, plus we had chives that we needed to use so I tried out this recipe.  It wasn't as good as other popover recipes I've tried.  These were denser (not light/fluffy).  They were fine -- and I'd make them again if we need to use up chives in the future but wouldn't serve these at a dinner party.

Ingredients: eggs, milk, cheddar cheese, flour, unsalted butter, chives, salt

Tips/Notes:

Recipes: Magic Crispy Chicken



4.5 stars
Bon Appetit Magazine, June/July 2019, p.38

I was craving fried chicken -- this recipe didn't satisfy my craving 100% but was really delicious and pretty fast for a weeknight meal.  It's a better version of "Shake and Bake."  The side sauce was delicious!

Ingredients: chicken, panko, egg yolk, mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, extra-virgin olive oil,  honey, cayenne pepper, chives, Kosher salt, black pepper

Tips:
  • Our cayenne pepper has lost its oomph -- didn't taste any heat so may add red pepper (or get new cayenne for next time)
  • Served this with Cheddar Chive Mini Popovers and Skillet-Roasted Cauliflower with Panko

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Recipe: Spicy Pork Bowls with Greens

Before adding gochujang

Spicy Pork Bowls with Greens
Bon Appetit Magazine, May 2019, p. 26
4 stars

Another good, easy weeknight recipe that's pretty healthy.  We've made some other really delicious Asian dishes like the Spicy Green Beans and Tofu Stir-Fry with Ground Bison, the Better-Than-Take-Out Stir-Fried Udon or the Weeknight Mapo Dofu with Ground Pork recipes which is why I didn't rate this as 5 stars; however, we'd make this again!

Ingredients: rice, pork tenderloin, carrots, collar greens or Tuscan kale, sambal oelek, light brown sugar, ginger, garlic, soy sauce, seasoned rice vinegar, scallions, gochujang, sesame oil, vegetable oil, Kosher salt

Tips
  • Used kale instead of collard greens
  • Used half the amount of pork (as we are trying to limit our overall meat consumption)
  • Added tofu
  • Added Sriracha at the table as well as the gochujang
  • Need to make double the amount of the soy sauce, seasoned rice vinegar and sesame oil dressing

Saturday, July 13, 2019

Recipe: Ginger-Scallion Ramen Noodles



Ginger-Scallion Ramen Noodles
Bon Appetit Magazine, Apr 2019, p.64
4.5 stars

Really easy weeknight recipe to make -- just a lot of "hot" flavors ~ ginger, garlic and scallions. I love the texture of the ramen.

Ingredients:  ramen, ginger, garlic, scallions, grapeseed/neutral oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, black pepper, ,sugar, Kosher salt, sesame seeds

Tips:
  • Added broccoli 
  • Added firm tofu (seared it separately)
  • This is a bit of an oily dish so didn't need the chili oil but added Sriracha at the table

Sunday, July 7, 2019

Recipe: Sausage and Ricotta Baked Cannelloni


Sausage and Ricotta Baked Cannelloni
Bon Appetit Magazine, May 2019, p.95
5 stars

Restaurant-worthy and most delicious pasta that we've made in a long time.  Instead of rolling the filling into cannelloni, we basically made this into an amazing lasagna.

Ingredients: green Swiss chard, sweet Italian sausage, whole-milk fresh ricotta, fresh pasta sheets, extra-virgin olive oil, store-bought marinara sauce, grated Parmesan

Bechamel ingredients: unsalted butter, all-purpose flour, whole milk Parmesan, cayenne pepper, ground nutmeg, Kosher salt

Tips:
  • Used hot instead of sweet Italian sausage
  • Add red pepper
  • Add oregano
  • Add parsley on top

Sunday, June 23, 2019

Recipe: Weeknight Steak and Rice Noodle Salad


Weeknight Steak and Rice Noodle Salad
Bon Appetit Magazine, Apr 2019, p. 64
4.5 stars

I loved this dish but blog contributor thegrandcruman was not as big of a fan because of the fish sauce.  I think this is a good rendition of a cold vermicelli dish found on almost all Vietnamese restaurant menus.  Really tasty to me especially with our modifications below.

Ingredients: skirt steak, rice noodles, Napa cabbage, Persian cucumbers, daikon, mint, dry-roasted peanuts, lime juice, fish sauce, honey, vegetable oil, serrano chiles, garlic, Kosher salt, flaky sea salt

Tips:
  • Substituted kale for the Napa cabbage
  • Used regular cucumbers
  • Not a fan of peanuts so left them out
  • Seared some firm tofu with togarashi and added it to the dish
  • Made gyoza for the side

Saturday, June 15, 2019

Recipe: Better-Than-Takeout Stir-Fried Udon



Better-Than-Takeout Stir-Fried Udon
Bon Appetit Magazine, Apr 2019, p.61
5 stars

This dish was delish!  I love chewy udon noodles -- they're my fave.  This recipe is easy to make for a weeknight meal.  It reminded us of Pei Wei's Dan Dan noodles.

Ingredients: green cabbage, instant udon noodles, ground pork, scallions, ginger, red pepper flakes, mirin, soy sauce, sesame seeds, sesame oil, vegetable oil

Tips:
  • Used kale instead of cabbage and used more than the 4 cups it called for
  • Added Sriracha to taste at the table
  • Next time, need to double the recipe so there are more leftovers!
  • Also add shiitake mushrooms and cucumber

Saturday, June 8, 2019

Recipe: Garganelli with Speck, Peas and Scallion Cream


Garganelli with Speck, Peas and Scallion Cream
Food and Wine Magazine, Apr 2019, p.30
5 stars

Delicious, restaurant-worthy dish.
We've made other dishes with peas and mint similar to this one, but this recipe had the most depth of flavor with the garlic and scallion cream.  This is a "I can't wait to eat the leftovers" dish.

Ingredients: garlic, scallions, bronze-cut garganelli pasta, sweet peas, speck, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, mint, lemon zest, lemon juice, unsalted butter, heavy cream, Kosher salt

Tips
  • Added red pepper
  • Added a little salt as the speck did not impart enough salt to the dish
  • Used bronze-cut penne pasta

Saturday, June 1, 2019

Recipe: Baked Goat Cheese Salad


Baked Goat Cheese Salad
Food and Wine Magazine, Sep 2018, p. 60
4 stars (5 stars if you love goat cheese)

This recipe was a "Top 40" recipe in the "40 Years of Food & Wine" magazine issue.  I'm not a huge goat cheese fan, but thought we'd give this a whirl.  I thought it was an upscale take on a salad (though we didn't make the croutons this time).  I'd try it again, but what I'm really wanting to try next is a polenta crouton recipe.  If anyone has a good one, let me know!

Ingredients: lettuce, croutons, goat cheese log, plain dry breadcrumbs, dried thyme, red wine vinegar, thyme sprigs, extra-virgin olive oil, Kosher salt, black pepper

Tip:
  • Used panko for the breadcrumbs

Saturday, May 18, 2019

Recipe: Steak-and-Carrot-Tacos


Steak-and-Carrot Tacos
Food and Wine Magazine, Mar 2019, p.30
4.5 stars

From reading the ingredient list, I wasn't quite sure about this one but it looked like a simple weekday meal -- it was easy and delicious... this will be our new alternative to Alice Waters' Garden Salad Tacos that we love to make.

Ingredients: skirt steak, carrots, tortillas, cumin seeds, extra-virgin olive oil, kosher salt, black pepper

For serving: sour cream, cilantro, jalapenos, lime wedges

Tips:
  • Definitely will use a marinade for the meat next time
  • We used regular large carrots; will use small multi-colored ones next time (especially if we serve this to guests)
  • Great with a margarita!

Saturday, April 6, 2019

Recipe: Fettuccine with White Chicken Ragu



Recipe: Fettuccine with White Chicken Ragu
Food & Wine Magazine, Jan 2019, p. 99
4.5 stars

A simple-looking dish with a depth of flavor.  Restaurant-worthy.

This recipe calls for quite a few ingredients, including the making of a sofrito, and there's a reason for it -- FLAVOR!  With every bite, there's this depth of flavor that made me think, "Where is this flavor coming from?" since you don't necessarily see it.  The flavor is coming from the chicken stock, wine, bay leaf, thyme, rosemary, sofrito, pancetta, garlic....

Ingredients: chicken thighs, pancetta or guanciale, leek or scallions, frozen peas, Parmesan cheese, rosemary sprigs, thyme sprigs, bay leaf, garlic, dry white wine, chicken stock, heavy cream or half-and-half, butter, lemon zest, fresh parsley, sea salt, black pepper, olive oil

Sofrito Ingredients: celery, yellow onion, carrot, parsley, olive oil

Tips:
  • Never want to burn or overcook garlic so add it all later with the sofrito, not with the chicken
  • Instead of using rosemary and thyme sprigs and "bundling" them up, chop up the rosemary, thyme and scallion and leave in the dish vs. removing later (but DO remember to take out the bay leaf!)
  • Need to use heavy cream instead of half-and-half next time to produce a thicker sauce

Saturday, February 9, 2019

Recipe: Emeril Lagasse's Shrimp Creole


Shrimp Creole
Food & Wine Magazine, Sept 2018, p.30
4.5 stars

This Emeril Lagasse recipe was named one of Food & Wine Magazine's 40 best recipes (ever) in 2018.  The ONLY reason why I didn't rate this 5 stars is because of the level of heat.  When I think something is hot, it is HOT!!!!  Perhaps I didn't measure the spices correctly because I made one-sixteenth of the creole seafood seasoning and was trying to do the calculations in my head.  Our mouths were burning while eating this delicious dish.  We'll be more careful to measure out the spices next time!

Tips
  • Substituted the shrimp with andouille sausage (sauteed it separately with no seasoning)
  • Remember to remove the bay leaves!
  • Served with rice

Saturday, February 2, 2019

Recipe: Dan Dan Noodles with Shiitake Mushrooms




Dan Dan Noodles with Shiitake Mushrooms
SplendidTable.com
5 stars

I have to admit that I like the Dan Dan Noodles at Pei Wei -- I love the texture of the noodles with the sauce and vegetables, but it, like the rest of Pei Wei's menu, is an Americanized version.  Searching for a recipe that we could make at home, I found one at SplendidTable.com, and the recipe was, well, splendid!!!

Wow to flavor, flavor, flavor.  This is in my top 5 favorite Asian dishes we've ever made.

Ingredients:  fresh ramen noodles, shiitake mushrooms, scallions, garlic, ginger, five-spice powder, sesame oil, black vinegar, sea salt, white pepper

Dan Dan Sauce Ingredients:  Sriracha, tahini, tamari, sesame oil, chile oil, Szechuan peppercorns, small pickled chile with oil, sugar, vegetable stock

Tips:
  • Didn't have fresh ramen so used soba noodles
  • Didn't have Chinese black vinegar but found the following substitute:  1 part balsamic vinegar, 1 part rice wine vinegar, 3 parts water
  • Roasted white onions with the mushrooms
  • Sauteed tofu and added to the dish
  • Added julienned cucumbers
  • Added cilantro
  • Didn't use the small pickled chile with oil
  • Didn't blend the Dan Dan Sauce -- whisked it in a bowl (after grinding the Szechuan peppercorns separately)
  • Next time, make double the amount of shiitake (+ white onion and tofu)


Saturday, January 26, 2019

Tomato Toast with Chives and Sesame Seeds


Tomato Toast with Chives and Sesame Seeds
Bon Appetit Magazine, Aug 2018, p. 92
5 stars

Need a simple side accompaniment when you don't have much in the fridge?  This was a nice side to our steak and was our lunch when we added bacon and lettuce on top (BLT!).  The garlic mayo and Aleppo pepper add nice oomph and a little bit of complexity to this easy and trendy toast.

Ingredients:  country-style bread (toasted), tomatoes, chives, sesame seeds, Aleppo-style pepper, extra-virgin olive oil, garlic, mayo, lemon, Kosher salt, flaky sea salt, black pepper


Saturday, January 19, 2019

Spicy Egg Noodles with Vegetables


Spicy Egg Noodles with Vegetables
Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges Cookbook (sorry, no link to this one)
4.5 stars

Great Asian dish when you're trying to eat healthy!  Loved it!

Vegetable Sauce Ingredients:  garlic, lemongrass, green Thai chile, soy sauce, salt, cornstarch, a neutral oil

Main Spicy Egg Noodles Ingredients:  egg noodles, broccoli stems, asparagus, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, orange bell pepper, carrots, Guilin chili sauce, hoisin, sesame seeds, neutral oil, garlic, garlic chives, red pepper flakes

Tips
  • Did not do step 5 in the recipe (basically frying 1/2 cup of garlic) to top the dish
  • Replaced asparagus with tofu
  • Used broccoli florets instead of broccoli stems
  • Used regular chives instead of garlic chives
  • Used serrano pepper instead of green Thai chile

Saturday, January 12, 2019

Recipe: Citrus Shrimp Rice Bowls


Citrus Shrimp Rice Bowls
Bon Appetit Magazine, November 2018, p. 32
4.5 stars

This is more of a summery dish, but we have so much citrus in our fridge (Harry & David gift from Christmas) that we decided to try it out.  Overall, it was a good and healthy dish (and a quick one for a weeknight meal).  I really liked the dressing.

Ingredients:  shrimp, oranges, Persian cucumbers, scallions, avocado, steamed rice, orange juice, Sriracha, honey, soy sauce, vegetable oil, lim juice, Kosher salt

Tips for next time:
  • Add cilantro
  • Add Sriracha to taste at the table

Sunday, January 6, 2019

Recipe: Khinkali (Meat-Filled Dumplings)





Khinkali (Meat-Filled Dumplings)
Food and Wine Magazine, October 2018, p. 86
4.5 stars

This is a recipe from Georgia, not the state but the country.  When I was reading the recipe, I was wondering if these would turn out like Chinese bao-zi or xiao-long-bao (soup dumplings), and they did!  This was my first time making "bao-zi-like" dough, and it turned out nicely.  It's a lot of work to roll out the dough (be ready for a workout), but it's worth it.

I'll probably tweak this recipe in the future and add soy sauce and ginger -- with those 2 ingredients, this will taste like a Chinese dish.

Dough Ingredients:  all-purpose flour, fine sea salt, water, egg, olive oil

Meat Filling Ingredients:  ground beef, ground pork, water, yellow onion, cilantro, butter, sea salt, kondari (summer savory) or mild thyme, coriander seeds, caraway seeds, black pepper, crushed red pepper, ground cumin, garlic

Perhaps next time, I should read this article before making the recipe:  https://www.foodandwine.com/travel/everything-you-didnt-know-you-needed-know-about-georgian-soup-dumplings

Saturday, December 22, 2018

Recipe: Ancient Grains Buddha Bowl (like at True Food!)



Ancient Grains Buddha Bowl (like the Ancient Grains bowl at True Food)
5 stars
See link above to the recipe on UrbanFoodieKitchen.com

I heart the Ancient Grains bowl at True Food (restaurant) -- it's so healthy, hearty and flavorful, and I never feel bad eating it.  I can't recall exactly how much it costs at the restaurant, but it's at least $14 (not inexpensive).  I could understand why because there are so many components to it (miso glazed sweet potato, turmeric, charred onion, snow pea, grilled portobello, avocado, hemp seed).

In an effort to eat healthier, I searched for an "ancient grain bowl" recipe and found one from Urban Foodie Kitchen.  It was absolutely delicious and I would say at least as good or BETTER than the one at True Food.

There are a number of steps to making the dish (there are 3 sauces), but it's easy and worth it especially for the leftovers.  In short, the bowl consists of farro, sweet potato, onion baby bella mushrooms, tofu, avocado, a cilantro pesto, miso sauce and a turmeric-tahini sauce.
  • Bowl Ingredients:  extra-firm tofu, baby bella mushrooms, sweet potato, onion, farro, avocado, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, dried thyme, garlic salt, water
  • Cilantro Pesto Ingredients:  cilantro, toasted pepitas, garlic, parmesan cheese, fresh lime juice, olive oil
  • Miso Sauce Ingredients:  rice vinegar, honey, lime juice, white miso, sesame oil
  • Turmeric-Tahini Sauce Ingredients:  tahini, turmeric, fresh lemon juice, water, maple syrup

Tips/What We Changed:
  • Used walnuts instead of pepitas
  • Used a mix of regular and purple sweet potatoes
Bon Appetit!

Monday, December 10, 2018

Recipe: Almond Torta with Chocolate Chips


Voila!

Before baking

After baking

Almond Torte with Chocolate Chips
4.5 stars
Recipe from Lidia Bastianich (Lidia's Italy)

The torte was a lovely end to our Italian meal this past weekend.  It was easy to make and turned out beautifully.  I was afraid that it was going to be too dense of a cake after a carb-laden meal, but it wasn't.

Tips:
  • Added extra 1/2 cup of chocolate chips
  • Created our own "topping" of chocolate snowflakes 
  • Might add a tad more almond extract next time

Wednesday, November 21, 2018

Recipe: Party Posole Rojo



Party Posole Rojo
Bon Appetit Magazine, April 2018, p.77
5 stars

Best. Soup. Ever. 
Well, so far until we find another better soup/stew that beats this and America's Test Kitchen Chicken Tortilla Soup.  This is not a hard recipe but does take some time to simmer (about 3 hours).  The flavor of this is complex, amazing, delicious.

Posole ingredients:  hominy, onions, bay leaves, peppercorns, Kosher salt, pork ribs, ground cumin, garlic

Chile puree ingredients:  dried New Mexico chiles, ancho chiles, onion, garlic, apple cider vinegar, light brown sugar, Kosher salt

Toppings:  avocado, cilantro, cabbage, jalapenos, radishes, lime wedges, sour cream, torilla chips, hot sauce

Tips:
  • Couldn't find dried hominy so used two 15 oz cans; will use three cans next time
  • If using canned hominy, add it to the stew so it's only cooking for 1 hour
  • Create a bouquet garni for the peppercorns and bay leaves (using cheesecloth and twine) and remove when done cooking
  • Since we're trying to eat less meat, in general, used 2.5 lb pork ribs instead of 4, and it still turned out great
  • The ancho chiles, New Mexico chiles and jalapeno didn't have much heat at all so make sure there is some heat in the dish
  • Couldn't find New Mexico whole chiles so used New Mexico ground powder instead 
  • Consider rubbing the pork ribs with some chipotle powder as well next time to add heat