Breakfast Quinoa

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone!  I hope you all had a wonderful and treat-filled holiday season.  If you are like me, and LOVE to eat, then you are probably also feeling a little more rolly-polly that you did in early December--I know I am. So much good food (and drink) over the past month has made me need to rethink some of my eating habits.  Now, I'm not going to go all boring on you with plain brown rice and grilled chicken breasts every night, but I've been on a little bit of a search for something as good as it is healthy.  So, when I came across the Food Lovers' Cleanse by Bon Appetit magazine, I was thrilled.  I'm not sure I'm going to go whole hog on the cleanse, but let me tell you, there are some fantastic recipes in there.

I'm only 3 days into it, but I've found the most fantastic breakfast that I need to share it.  It's a breakfast quinoa with cinnamon, blackberries and toasted pecans. I've adjusted the recipe a little from the magazine, mainly because I couldn't get my hands on some of the ingredients.  But my version of it is below.

If you aren't familiar with quinoa, it's actually pronounced KEEN-wah.  It's a seed from South America that is packed with protein (and is considered a complete protein, since it contains all of the required amino acids--a little nutrition trivia for you). There are two varieties, a red and a white, but I've only seen the white in the grocery store.  It cooks up nice and soft and sort of similar to couscous in texture, although it is a little hardier.  Quinoa also has a natural coating of saponins, which taste like soap, and need to be rinsed off in several changes of water before using (although, I've found a brand that is sold pre-rinsed, so check out the packages before you buy).

This dish is a nice warm breakfast alternative to oatmeal, and has more protein to it, so you'll be fuller throughout the morning.  It also warms up well the next day, so make a bigger batch if you really like it.  As far as substitutions go, you could use real milk instead of almond (or any other milk, really), and I would think almonds or walnuts could be good too.  Blueberries or apples could work as well.  So give whatever you have on hand a try.  Hope you enjoy...and here's to a happy and healthy 2011!

Warm Breakfast Quinoa
Printable recipe

1 cup Vanilla-flavored Almond milk
1 cup water
1 cup organic quinoa, (note: rinse quinoa)
2 cups frozen blackberries, thawed (fresh would be better, but they are super-expensive right now, and I couldn't justify paying $7 for 2 cups...)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup chopped pecans, toasted (see below)
4 tsp honey

Combine almond milk, water and quinoa in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer 15 minutes or until most of the liquid is absorbed. Turn off heat; let stand covered 5 minutes. Stir in blackberries and cinnamon; transfer to four bowls and top with pecans. Drizzle 1 teaspoon honey.


To toast pecans, put in a dry pan over medium heat for 3-5 minutes until fragrant.

Salad dressing...

With the holiday eating season upon us, I though I would throw in a little healthy blog in here to counter balance the shear amount of tasty treats I'm going to be eating in the next few weeks!  So, I decided upon salad dressing.  Why salad dressing?  Well, I think that it is the easiest way to make or break a salad.  Nothing turns me off of a salad more (aside from wilty lettuce) than gross, thick fatty salad dressing.  I've been through my fair share of store-bought dressing that has tons of MSG and preservatives, and all sorts of ingredients that have more than 15 letters in them.  

I had always wanted to make my own dressing, but I had always relied on the special bottles that had all the measurements on the side, built-in-mixer-things and "stay fresh" lids.  I always ended up making like 5 times as much as I needed and most of it would go bad. 

 

What really amazed me was how a little Grey Poupon jar helped it all change.  All you need to make great salad dressing at home is a small (8 oz or so) jar.  It's the perfect size to make dressing in-I was always making what seemed like a gallon of it.  I actually use an old mustard jar that is square, it helps me out with the "measuring".  The best part about these jars is I always seem to have one on hand, they're free, clean up nicely in the dishwasher and if you break it, well, it's replaceable!

So, after all this talk of salad dressing, I'm not even going to give you a recipe.  What my whole goal is for this blog is to give you a start on how to make your own dressings, with only a few little ratios to remember, some hints, and let you go to it!  I should admit here, that I figured a lot of this stuff out with the help of Jamie Oliver and his "Cook with Jamie" cookbook.  But I've found that nearly every recipe I've come across, has a similar foundation for building dressings.

• 3:1. By that I mean your ratio of Oil to Vinegar (or another acid).  It doesn't matter what oil you use, or what vinegar or acid you use.  You could use olive oil and red wine vinegar like I did here or even Balsamic or white wine vinegar. Or skip vinegar all together and use lemon juice.  Go Asian style and use canola oil with a little sesame oil (it's a little stronger flavor, so you need to cut the sesame oil with something neutral like canola) and rice vinegar.

• Emulsify.  Sounds complicated but isn't.  A little Dijon mustard goes a long way in preventing the dressing from separating.  I just use a little scoop (like for the above amounts, 1/4-1/2 of a dessert spoon).  For a creamier dressing add sour cream or yogurt.

• A little sweet.  Now, don't go adding scoops and scoops of sugar!  I add about the same amount of honey as I do the mustard.  It rounds out the flavors a bit and takes a little of the bite out of the acid.

• Season.  All you need now is a little salt and pepper.  I couldn't even begin to tell you how much to add.  For the amount above, a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper.  If you have a favorite spice blend, add a few pinches here, too. Fresh herbs, garlic, anything goes...

• Shakey shakey. No fancy blenders or food processors here, shake away (just be sure your lid is on securely).

 

• Taste for seasoning.  Take a leaf of lettuce (or your finger) and test it.  Does it need more salt/pepper?  Is the vinegar too much/not enough?   Just add whatever you think it is lacking and go from there.

• Dress the salad.  Sounds simple and obvious, but this is the most important. Have you ever had a salad that was just swimming in dressing or had been sitting in the dressing for an hour or so?  Yuck.  The key in this is not to drown the salad.  It's best to dress the entire salad at once in a large serving bowl.  Just a light coating is all you need.  Pour a little over, toss gently with your fingers (or salad hands, which are my favorite). And serve.

So don't be afraid to make up your own combination of flavors/seasonings/ingredients.  You've got a basic ratio to start out with, and just run from there.  It is just so simple and delicious, you'll never want to buy another bottle again.

Spinach Soufflé

It's time again for my Daring Cooks' Challenge (which I missed last month).  This is my 3rd one and I think the most challenging in terms of blogging and photographing.

Dave and Linda from Monkeyshines in the Kitchen chose Soufflés as our November 2010 Daring Cooks’ Challenge! Dave and Linda provided two of their own delicious recipes plus a sinfully decadent chocolate soufflé recipe adapted from Gordon Ramsay’s recipe found at the BBC Good Food website.


I chose to make the Spinach (well actually it was watercress, but spinach was easier for me to acquire) Soufflé.  Now, I have always been intimidated by the thought of soufflés.  They were this "gourmet" super time consuming dish that should be left to the professionals.  But the only truly difficult thing about this dish was taking the photos for the blog!


Before I began my soufflé adventure, I watched this video by Julia Child, it's about 20-25 minutes long.  Amazing.  She has a way of breaking things down in such a way that it no longer seems like a daunting task.  After watching this, I was no longer afraid of the soufflé.  I highly recommend you watching this episode of The French Chef before starting out.  Any recipe notes I could give you would be straight from this episode anyway.

So without any further ado, here is the recipe...


Spinach Soufflé
printable version

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp  butter plus additional for the soufflé dish
3½ Tbsp plain (all purpose) flour
1 cup milk
½ cup parmesan cheese, finely grated plus additional for the soufflé dish
1 cup finely chopped spinach

4 large eggs, separated
½ tsp prepared mustard
¼ tsp cream of tartar*
Salt and pepper to taste
* If you can’t find cream of tartar, a dash (~ ½ tsp) of lemon juice can be substituted

Directions:

1. Butter the soufflé dish(es) thoroughly, then grate a small amount of cheese in each dish and tap so that the sides are evenly coated with the cheese. Place the dish(es) in the refrigerator until needed (according to some sites, this helps the soufflé climb). 

2. Preheat the oven to moderate 350º F 

3. Wash and chop the spinach if you haven’t already.

4. In a medium sized saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat, then stir in the flour to make a roux. Cook 1 minute, then add the milk, a little at a time, and stir until just thickened, about 1 minute. Add the cheese and stir until it’s just melted. Remove from heat then add the spinach, mustard, salt and pepper.

Roux

5. In a larger pan, bring water to a gentle simmer. Whisk the egg yolks in a bowl set just over this water until pale and slightly foamy – about 6 minutes. 

6. Mix the egg yolks into the spinach sauce.
7. Beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until they form stiff peaks yet are still glossy.

8. Fold the egg whites into the sauce in 3 additions so that it’s evenly mixed, but you don’t lose too much volume.

9. Remove the soufflé dish from the refrigerator and spoon the mix into it. Use a spatula to even the tops of the soufflés and wipe off any spills.

10. Bake 25 minutes for small dishes or 40 minutes if using a large soufflé dish, then serve immediately with a nice green salad and a glass of wine.

Banana Bread

This summer I went to my cousin Summer's wedding in Dublin.  And I fell in love with Ireland...it's so green, has so much interesting history, and don't even get me started on the accents--I could listen to it all day!  I could be getting yelled at or insulted, but it wouldn't matter.  That accent is awesome (that being said, the Irish are about the nicest people you'll ever meet, so you probably won't be yelled at or insulted).  It was a fantastic trip.

During our stay there I was introduced by the groom's family to a wonderful cafe/concept/cookbook called Avoca.  During one of the family dinners, they served several dishes from this cookbook, and I was hooked!  As soon as we got back from our trip, I ordered one of the cookbooks, appropriately titled "Avoca Cafe Cookbook" (it's also available on Amazon.com if you are interested).  It's got all sorts of recipes that call for all sorts of fresh veggies and fruits. It's all very fresh, uncomplicated food.  

This banana bread is one of the recipes I fell in love with.  It works out pretty well for my lifestyle, which is to say I buy lots of fruit with the intention of eating it and being oh so healthy, but then it goes bad before I get to it.  Which is where banana bread comes in handy.  For me, bananas are at their raw best when they are just barely still green and firm. As soon as a brown spot appears, though, the flavor and texture changes, and I just can't eat it.  But add some flour, sugar and nuts, it's a whole different story.  The browner the bananas the better!  They somehow get more banana-y or something in recipes and this one really seems to highlight it.

Some notes about this recipe:  If you've got a kitchen scale, use the weights...those are better measurements.  I've converted to volume measurements from the weight.  But of course once you start moving flour around, so much air can get incorporated that the volume can change, but I don't think the differences will be too tragic.  Also, don't get too enthusiastic with the mixing of the batter/dough.  Beating all the ingredients will work to make the bread tougher, so just get the stuff more or less incorporated.  The bananas, I like to keep them a little chunky, so when you bite down into the bread, you get some good bits of banana, but that's just me (the original recipe also only calls for 4 bananas, but I think the extra one adds a little more moistness).  And last, but not least, if you need a little portion control, this recipe also makes 12 great muffins.  Just follow the same recipe, divide into 12 lined muffin cups, and bake for approx 20 minutes.


Banana Bread
adapted from The Avoaca Cafe Cookbook
click here for printer friendly recipe

8 oz all purpose flour (somewhere between 1 3/4 and 2 cups)
1 tsp salt
1 heaped tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
4 oz sugar (a heaping 1/2 cup)
1 egg, beaten
3 fl oz canola oil
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 oz pecans, chopped (heaping 1/2 cup, or to your taste)
4-5 medium-sized ripe bananas, mashed

Sift the flour, salt, baking powder and cinnamon into a bowl and stir in the sugar.  Mix in the egg, oil and vanilla, but do not beat.  The batter/dough will seem way too dry, but don't fret, that's OK. 

Fold in the pecans and mashed bananas, using a fork.  It will start to look a little more like a batter, but again don't beat.

Spoon into a lined loaf pan and bake in an oven preheated to 350F for 50-60 minutes, until the loaf is golden brown and springs back when prodded gently with you finger.  Leave in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

 

Double Chocolate Biscotti

Hello everyone! I must first apologize for being so absent the past month or so.  Life got a little ahead of me...and all of a sudden its the 2nd of November and I don't know where most of October went!  But I went on a cooking spree yesterday, and have plenty of raw material for posts and I'll be back with more tasties more frequently--that's my goal!

I rummaged around through all of my cookbooks for some good treats, and found some good ones in the old plaid stand-by.  That is the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook.  The very first cookbook I ever owned.  I've been caught up recently in the celebrity chefs, restaurants, fanciness of the Food Network recently, that I've forgotten my "roots" as it were.  This is the very first cookbook I can remember seeing. My mom still has it in her pantry with her cookbooks, too!

So I randomly flipped to the Cookie tab (OK, maybe not randomly.  I really wanted to make some cookies).  This recipe sounded fantastic to me and I figured it would travel well, since (most of) the cookies will be headed to Afghanistan for my brother's enjoyment.

These turned out really well, nice and crispy, and chocolate-y.  I've never been successful with biscotti before, but I think it was because I had a bad recipe.  I didn't realize that these actually get baked twice: once as a loaf and once as slices to crisp up.  They are great with a cup of coffee, and standup well to being dunked.  I hope you all enjoy them with a nice hot cup o' Joe!


Double Chocolate Chunk Biscotti
Adapted from Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook
printable version

Ingredients
1/3 cup butter
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 eggs
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
4 ounces white chocolate chips
3 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. Grease a large cookie sheet or line with parchment paper; set aside. In a large mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, cocoa powder, and baking powder; beat until combined. Beat in eggs. Beat in as much flour as you can. Slowly.  You don't want a huge cloud of flour in your kitchen. Stir in any remaining flour. Stir in the chocolate chips.

2. Divide dough in half. Shape each half into a (not entirely appetizing-looking) 9-inch-long roll. Place rolls 4 inches apart on prepared cookie sheet; flatten rolls slightly to 2 inches wide.

3. Bake in a 375 degree F oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the centers comes out clean. Cool on cookie sheet on a wire rack for 1 hour. Using a serrated knife, cut each roll diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Lay slice, one cut side down, on an ungreased cookie sheet.

4. Bake slices in a 325 degree F oven for 8 minutes. Turn slices over and bake 7 to 9 minutes more or until slices are dry and crisp. (Do not overbake.) Transfer to a wire rack; cool.

A Twist on Chocolate Chip Cookies--Bacon!

"Bacon Tastes Goooood"--Samuel L. Jackson as Jules Winnfield in Pulp Fiction

"Mmmm. Move over, eggs. Bacon just got a new best friend - fudge."--Homer Simpson

Well, in this case, not fudge, but chocolate chip cookies.  I know it sounds like a horrible combination, but I discovered it a little while ago in a blog called Pete Bakes! and I knew I had to try it.  Chocolate chip cookies were the first thing I really ever cooked on my own.   I was maybe in 4th grade, I can't remember.  But what I do remember is how much I loved them.  Now, I figured I also love bacon.  Why not combine them?

It does sound crazy, I fully acknowledge that.  But I've tried salted caramel--awesome.  Chocolate covered pretzels--yummy.  Chocolate dipped potato chips--so wrong and yet so right.  So that salty-sweet combination is something that I find fantastic.  The best of both worlds and they are again brought together, and include bacon.

I do love bacon, but I rarely eat it.  It's just one of those things, that when you want it, you need it.  I'm not quite as bad as the Bacon Explosion guys, that is just a lot of pork products in one sitting.  But cookies with bacon is just a little way to incorporate a little more love into the day.  In this recipe, I made candied bacon, which is pretty simple, and could be good in a variety of recipes (spinach salad w/bleu cheese and pears, sprinkle some candied bacon on, that kind of thing....)

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this as much as I did...and I hope my bro in Afghanistan does, too, because there are some on the way!

Candied Bacon
6 oz sliced bacon
Brown sugar for sprinkling

Preheat the oven to 350 F.  Lay bacon on a parchment covered baking sheet so they are not overlapping. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly on each strip of bacon (I really have no idea how much I used, check out the pictures for the general idea).

  

Bake for 8 minutes, remove from oven, flip bacon and drag it through the syrupy liquid that’s collected on the baking sheet and put the it back in the oven for another 5-8 minutes, until it is fully cooked and a very dark mahogany color.  

From Left: too done, just right, not enough

The length of time will depend on how thick the bacon is sliced.  If you buy the thick cut, which would work a little better, you'll need to leave it in the over for a little while longer, just keep an eye on it.  

Remove the strips from the sheet and cool on a wire rack. Once they are cool and crispy, chop them up roughly.

Chocolate chunk cookies

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
10 oz bitter sweet chocolate (I used bars and just chopped into chunks) 
Candied Bacon from above recipe

Preheat oven to 375° F.

Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in chocolate and bacon. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.  

 

Cookies for the troops!

My brother left for Afghanistan about 3 weeks ago.  He's in the Marine Corps and will be there about 6 more months. I've been wracking my brain to figure out what sort of care package to send to him (and the guys he's with) that would bring smiles to their faces.   That's when it hit me.  Since I'm living overseas with the military, it should be fairly easy to send him some treats that will still be good in the time it takes to get to him...

I was pleasantly surprised when I got a note from him yesterday saying he had already gotten the package...it was only a week! That means, as long as I can find recipes for treats that can travel well, he'll be getting more.  The other great part of this, is I can enjoy making tons of cookies, blog about them, and I don't have dozens of cookies sitting around the house begging me to eat them!  So, Brother (and your guys), these (as well as my thoughts and prayers for a safe return) go out to you, and expect more!

These cookies actually turned out oh so tasty.  They are a chocolate cookie with both white and dark chocolate chips.  I think adding walnuts or pecans would be a good addition, too.  Or maybe even macadamia nuts.  Now I'm just brainstorming.  Anyway, without any further ado, here are the cookies...

Reverse Chocolate Chip Cookies
From Food and Wine Annual Cookbook 2009

Makes 28 large cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa, sifted
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 sticks (8 oz) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped into chunks
12 ounces white chocolate, coarsely chopped into chunks

1. Preheat oven to 350F.  Line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper.  In a medium bowl, sift the flour with the cocoa, baking soda and salt.
2. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle, beat the butter with the sugars at a medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Beat in the eggs and vanilla.  Add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed until incorporated.  At low speed, beat in the chocolate chunks until they are evenly distributed.  This batter will be very thick.
3. Scoop eight 1/4 cup mounds of batter onto each of the prepared cookie sheets, leaving about 3" between them.  Flatten the mounds into 2" rounds.  Bake on the lower and middle racks of the oven for 20 minutes, until the cookies rise and then flatten slightly; switch the cookie sheets half way thru cooking.  Let the cookies cool for 10 minutes, then slide the parchment paper onto racks and let the cookies cool completely.  Line the cookie sheets with fresh parchment and repeat to make the remaining cookies.