Yet Again...

I had a conversation with one of my co-workers about Martha Stewart.  Understand that this woman not only loves food and cooks all the time, but is someone who enters cooking contests.  She is a self proclaimed food snob and believes that Martha Stewart is not all she claims to be.  It's more about Martha's team then it's about Martha.  Despite this I think a tasty recipe is a good recipe no matter where it comes from and my subscription to Martha Stewart Everyday last year was a great way to start trying more and more new recipes on a regular basis.

I love brussel sprouts and last year I ate more in one year than I ever have in my life.  I found roasting them in the oven with olive oil, salt and pepper was always a good way to cook them, but doing that every time seemed to grow old.  I wanted to see what else I could do with the vegetable.  I was looking on Martha Stewart's website one day and came across a recipe for Pasta with Brussel Sprouts and Bacon.  Bacon does make some things taste better.  In this case I love the way it seasoned the sprouts.

Ingredients:

• 6 ounces bacon (about 7 slices), cut into 3/4-inch pieces
• Up to 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 4 large shallots, cut into thin rounds
• 1 1/4 pounds brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved (quartered if large)
• 1 1/4 cups homemade or low-sodium store-bought chicken stock
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 12 ounces rigatoni pasta
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
• 1/3 cup coarsely chopped fresh sage leaves, about 20 leaves

Directions:

1. Heat a dry large skillet over medium heat. Add bacon; cook, stirring occasionally, until crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain. Add enough oil to bacon fat in skillet to total 2 tablespoons. Add garlic, shallots, and sprouts; cook, stirring occasionally, until pale golden, about 3 minutes. Add stock; season with salt and pepper. Cook until most of the liquid has been absorbed and sprouts are tender, 10 to 12 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil; add 1 tablespoon salt and the pasta. Cook according to package directions until al dente. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid; return pasta to pot.
3. Stir in sprouts mixture, reserved 1/2 cup cooking liquid, and cheese. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil; add sage and bacon. Toss until combined. Serve with more cheese.

 

Retailers

Two things came out of eliminating dairy from my diet.  I started cooking a larger variety of food and now I am more likely to read ingredients before I buy something at the store.  It's pretty amazing how much pre-processed food has some form of dairy in it.

After seeing my doctor last month I found out that I no longer need to worry about eliminating dairy.  I found out that nobody is 100% lactose intolerant.  Everyone can handle some form of dairy.  How much is different for each person and in my case I am more intolerant than ever after having eliminating it for over a month.  On my birthday I decided I wanted a Blizzard from Dairy Queen.  I ordered the kiddie size and took my lactaid like I always do.  Normally this would not be a big deal, but unfortunately my body could not handle it very well and now I know that if I want to eat ice cream in the future I will either have to make sure it's a very small amount or get a non-dairy variety.  The great thing is I can eat cheese again and that makes me happy.

One of the things I attempted to do was to find recipes that are dairy free.  In my quest to find something good I took my co-workers advice and checked out the Williams-Sonoma website.  I had no idea that they had recipes on the site and my co-worker told me that she had make a couple of things that turned out fabulous. 

Since I had a friend coming over I wanted to make something nice.  I decided to go with chicken with 40 garlic cloves.  Despite the amount of garlic, because you don't mince, crush or cut the cloves, the flavor is not as garlicy as you would imagine.  The hardest part of making this is peeling the garlic.  I made it with Yukon Gold mashed potatoes.  Perfect side to this dish.

Couple of things to note.  Instead of cutting up 2 chickens I just bought a large package of chicken thighs.  I think the package came with at least 10 pieces.  The other thing is I did not wait the full 30 minutes at the end as the recipe says.  I only cooked the chicken for 15 additional minutes.  I would suggest you cook the chicken for 15 minutes, check on doneness and then decide if the dish needs to be cooked longer.

Don't be alarmed by the number of garlic cloves called for in this recipe. The garlic mellows as it roasts, imbibing the finished sauce with a subtle flavor.

Ingredients:

• 2 chickens, each 4 lb., cut into 8 serving pieces
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 3 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
• 40 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 Tbs. minced fresh rosemary
• 1 Tbs. minced fresh thyme
• Zest of 2 lemons
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 3/4 cup chicken stock
• 3 Tbs. unsalted butter, at room
  temperature, cut into pieces  

Directions:

Preheat an oven to 400°F.

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. In a wide Dutch oven over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil. Working in batches, brown the chicken, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate.

Add the garlic to the pan and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat. Add the chicken, rosemary, thyme and lemon zest and stir to combine. Cover the pan, transfer to the oven and roast for 20 minutes. Baste the chicken with the accumulated juices. Continue roasting, uncovered, until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear when the meat is pierced with a knife, about 30 minutes more.

Transfer the chicken to a platter; leave the garlic in the pan. Cover the chicken loosely with aluminum foil.

Set the pan over medium heat and mash the garlic with the back of a spoon. Add the wine and cook for 3 minutes. Add the stock and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Whisk in the butter a few pieces at a time. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer the sauce to a sauceboat. Serve the chicken immediately and pass the sauce alongside. Serves 8.

Willams-Sonoma

Food Porn

I was looking at Gluten Free Girl and noticed she had a twitter feed.  I don't use twitter, but was curious to see what was posted.  In looking at the tweets I noticed a link to another food blog that had amazing photos of food. 

The photographer's name is Honey & Jam Photography.  You can check them out on Flickr and if you see something you really like you can see if it's available for sale on Etsy.

http://www.honeyandjam.com/

Martha Strikes Again

Have to admit that although I have this great gift from my friend, I haven't really been using it.  Life has been very busy lately and when it comes down to it cooking something a little bit simpler has been way more appealing then planning out a new meal.

Despite this one night after work I felt really motivated to try something new.  The weather was just starting to change, temperatures were dipping into the high 50's during the day.  I felt like something hearty and seasonal. As it turns out I had just received a new Martha Steward Food Everyday magazine in the mail.  I was flipping through it seeing if there was anything interesting and I came across a recipe for Cider-Glazed Chicken Sausages with Butternut Mash.

What really appealed to me was the butternut mash as I love butternut squash.  I've been known to eat sausage from time to time and in a pinch, but typically I'm not really a fan.  Despite this I decided to take a chance and try it.  Something new, something different.

Turns out that it was absolutely delicious and even better reheated the next day!  The butternut mash is a perfect compliment to the sausage and onions especially since the sauce on the meat is so sweet. 

Good things to note about this recipe.  It doesn't specify what type of sausage to buy.  I found out that there are quite a few varities out there.  I used apple sausages and they worked out perfectly since the meat is cooked in apple cider.  Also note that it is a pretty rich dish, not something that I will make very often despite how tasty it is. 

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 large yellow onion, cut into 1-inch wedges
1 pound chicken sausages
7 fresh sage leaves
3 cups apple cider
coarse salt and ground pepper
1 small butternut squash (1 pound), peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 large russet potato (10 ounces), peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
1/3 cup 2 percent Greek yogurt

Directions:
1. In a large skillet or shallow heavy pot, heat oil over medium-high.  Add onion and sausages and cook until sausages are deep golden brown, 6 minutes, turning sausages and stirring onion halfway through.  Add sage and cider and season with salt and pepper.  Bring to a rapid simmer and cook until cider is syrupy and coats the back of a spoon, about 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan combine squash, potato and apple.  Cover by 2 inches water and bring to a rapid simmer over medium-high.  Cook until squash and potato are tender when pierced with a knife, 15 minutes.
3. Drain vegetables and apple and transfer to a food processor.  Process until smooth.  Add yogurt, season with salt and pepper and pulse to combine.  Divide butternut mash amoung four plates and serve with sausages and onion.

http://marthastewart.com

Wedding Showers

One of the things I love about my friend Rachel is how she surrounds herself with people who love to cook.  Her wedding shower was a perfect example of this.  The food was amazing.  I mean how could you not love a dish that includes cinnamon, sugar and two sticks of butter? 

What am I talking about?  French toast.

Paula Dean has the most delectable Baked French Toast Casserole with Maple Syrup recipe.  It's the perfect dish to make if you are having people over for brunch.  It needs to refridgerate overnight, so all you need to do is put it together the night before and pop it in the oven the next day before everyone arrives.

Ingredients:

1 loaf French bread (13 to 16 ounces)
8 large eggs
2 cups half-and-half
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Dash salt


Praline Topping, recipe follows


Maple syrup


Directions:
Slice French bread into 20 slices, 1-inch each. (Use any extra bread for garlic toast or bread crumbs). Arrange slices in a generously buttered 9 by 13-inch flat baking dish in 2 rows, overlapping the slices. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, half-and-half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and beat with a rotary beater or whisk until blended but not too bubbly. Pour mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly with the milk-egg mixture. Spoon some of the mixture in between the slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.


The next day, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spread Praline Topping evenly over the bread and bake for 40 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden. Serve with maple syrup.


Praline Topping:
1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup chopped pecans
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg


Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and blend well. Makes enough for Baked French Toast Casserole.

Enjoy!

http://www.foodtv.com/

Old Boss

I'm not much of a dessert person, I'm not known to be one to bake very often.  I have inspirations once every few years when I have something going on like the cookie exchange in my old office where I solicited the help of my mom to help me make the very labor intensive hamentashen or when I was co-hosting my friend Jen's baby shower.

A couple of summers ago Jen invited me to go with her to her ex-boss's wedding party at her boss's house. Amongst all the delicious food that was served was also the most amazing strawberry tiramisu. Because I loved it so much I decided to make that instead of your everyday, ordinary baby shower cake at Jen's baby shower.  It was a huge hit.  Everyone loved it.  It's really simple to make, although you have to make it the night before you want to serve it as it has to set in the fridge at least 8 hours before serving.

Enjoy!

Addiction

This year for Hanukkah my friend Megis decided to give me a subscription to Martha Stewart's cooking magazine. I'm always looking for new recipes I can add to my list of favorites and the very first month I received did not let me down.


I am a huge fan of black beans and my friend Rachel, after coming back from El Salvador, sealed my love of the bean after making El Salvadorian breakfast for me several times. In the January/February 2011 issue of Food Everyday is an amazing, easy, totally vegan, gluetin free (for those of you who are cooking for people with food allergies or preferences) recipe for spicy black bean soup. If you like black beans I highly recommend trying this:

Serves 4

3 cans black beans (drained and rinsed) or 1 pound dried black beans (see note below)
3 cups water
2 yellow onions, diced small
2 jalapenos, minced
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
course salt and ground pepper
2 tbsp ground cumin
1 1/4 cups vegetable broth
1 tbsp cornstarch
2 tbsp fresh lime juice (from 2 limes)
diced avocado, diced onion, cilantro, sour cream or low-fat yogurt and tortilla strips for serving


Drain and rinse beans in a colander. In a large dutch oven or heavy pot heat oil over medium-high. Add garlic and onions. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often until onions are soft and golden brown, 10 minutes. Stir in remaining jalapenos, cumin, beans, water and broth. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook until beans are soft, 20 minutes (if necessary add up to 1 cup water to keep beans covered).


Transfer 2 cups soup to a blender and add cornstarch. Puree until smooth (use caution when blending hot liquids). Return to put. Cook, stirring until soup thickens, 1 to 2 minutes. Add lime juice and season to taste with salt and pepper. To serve top with avocado, diced onion, cilantro, sour cream or yogurt and tortilla strips if desired.

**If you would like to use dried black beans use 1 pound dried beans, picked over, soaked overnight and drained.  If you use these follow this as step number 1.  In a medium saucepan cover beans with cold water by 2 inches.  Add 1/4 each of onions and jalapenos and bring to a boil over high.  Reduce to a rapid simmer, cook until beans are tender, 45 to 50 minutes.

Good thing to note.  This recipe does really serve 4 adults.  If you want seconds or would like leftovers you should make a double batch.

For crunchy tortilla strips cut corn tortillas into strips, toss with a little olive oil and bake at 350 degrees until crisp.