Smashed Potatoes

This is the other side I made last night for part of our Shabbat meal.  It was easy to make and I liked the lemon zest with it a lot.


Ingredients:
1 bag small white potatoes
salt, pepper
olive oil
fresh thyme leaves
zest of 1 lemon

Directions:

Boil the potatoes for about 20 minutes or until tender when pierced with a knife.  Drain and dry well.  Heat olive oil to coat a large pan over medium high heat until smoking.  Add potatoes in a single layer.  Push down to pop the skin of the potatoes and slightly flatten them.  Cook a few minutes to brown on each side.  Add thyme, lemon zest, salt and pepper to a serving bowl.  When potatoes are nicely browned, add to the bowl and toss before serving.

Broccoli and Roasted Apple Soup

I saw this recipe on foodgawker and made my own version of it last night.  I did not add the feta topping because some of our guests do not eat cheese.  Blake really liked this soup so if I make it again I'll try it with that topping.

Ingredients:
1/2 onion, chopped
2 red potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 large head of broccoli, chopped
3 granny smith apples, cored and chopped
chopped sage, fresh thyme
salt, pepper
olive oil
2 cans vegetable broth

Directions:
Toss the apples with some olive oil, salt, pepper, sage and thyme and roast at 400 for about 20 minutes.  Meanwhile, heat some olive oil over medium heat and sautee the onion until softened.  Add the potato and the broccoli and cook for a few minutes.  Add the apples when they are ready and cook for a few more minutes before adding the vegetable broth (I only had 1 can so I added another can of water and a vegetable bullion cube).  Bring to a boil, cover and simmer until potato chunks are soft.  Puree using an immersion blender.  Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Ottolenghi Roasted Eggplant with Buttermilk sauce

I have loved Ottolenghi since I lived in London.  I finally got his first cookbook a few months ago and I just got another one for an early Chanukah present.  This is the cover recipe from his book, Plenty.  I have read some reviews that said it was not as good as expected, but I thought it was delicious, and the leftovers were even better the next day.

Ingredients:
3 eggplants
1/3 cup + olive oil
salt, pepper
thyme
1/2 cup greek yogurt
about 9 tbsp buttermilk
1 garlic clove, crushed
za'atar
pomegranate seeds

Directions:

Cut the eggplant in half long ways.  Score each half diagonally, cutting deep, but not all the way down.  Brush the olive oil over the eggplant.  (I used more than 1/3 cup because I had an extra eggplant than the recipe called for).  Try to get the olive oil in the scored slits.  Season well with salt and pepper, rub the seasoning into the scored marks.  Sprinkle with fresh thyme leaves.  Roast at 375 for about 40 minutes until softened and brown on top.

Meanwhile, make the topping.  Mix the yogurt and buttermilk together.  I used 1 small container of full fat greek yogurt and counted out 9 spoonfuls of buttermilk, but did not measure.  Use a good pinch of salt to crush the garlic and break it down before mixing it in.  Add a swirl of olive oil.

To assemble, drizzle about 2 tablespoons of sauce onto each eggplant, sprinkle with za'atar, and top with pomegranate seeds.

before going in the oven

just out of the oven

Beef Roulade with mushrooms, carmelized onions and goat cheese

A while ago my sister pinned a recipe similar to this and asked me to make it.  I made it last night, but unfortunately for her she did not get to enjoy it.

Ingredients
1 2 lb flank steak, pounded thin
balsamic vinegar
olive oil
3 cloves crushed garlic
salt, pepper
butcher's twine
1 1/2 onion, sliced thin
1 bag sliced brown mushrooms, chopped
marsala wine
fresh spinach
1 container crumbled goat cheese

Directions:
The night before, pound the flank steak out as thin as possible between sheets of plastic wrap.  Score one side of the meat, add it to a plastic freezer bag and pour in some olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and the garlic cloves.  Marinate overnight.

To caramelize the onions, first slice them into thin wedges.  Heat about 2 tablespoons olive oil per onion over medium heat until almost smoking.  Add the onions and stir to coat.   You want the onions to get some color so only stir about every 10 minutes at first, lowering the heat a little if browning too quickly.  After some time when they start to get darker, you will need to stir them more often.  It takes a while - about 40 minutes to get them sweet and brown.  When ready, remove the onions to a bowl.

There should be plenty of oil still in the pan for the mushrooms.  Add the mushrooms and stir to coat with oil.  After a few minutes the mushrooms will give off their juices.  At this point, season with salt and pepper and add a splash of marsala wine.  Continue to cook until juices are evaporated.  When ready, remove mushrooms to a bowl to cool.

To assemble the roll, lay the flank steak scored side down, narrow end closest to you.  Add a layer of spinach leaves first, leaving about 2 inches at the far end, and about an inch on all other sides.  Next add the onions, then the mushrooms, and top with the goat cheese.  Start rolling at the end closest to you.  Tie with butcher's twine so that it does not unroll.


Place in a baking dish, seam side down and cook at 350 for about 40 minutes.  Allow to rest at least 10 minutes before removing twine and slicing.

Here is my plate with the beef roulade slice, smashed potatoes, and Ottolenghi eggplant.  I also made broccoli and roasted apple soup and a challah.  I used half the amount of dough I made, so a regular sized one.  This time I baked the challah for 35 minutes on 375.  I turned it at 20 minutes and tented it soon after.  It was softer than the previous ones.  

Turkey Taco Pasta

I was attracted to this recipe because it is a one pot meal.  I did not do a low carb version though and I probably added more cheese than necessary so I don't know if I can call it healthy.  It was very easy and comforting though if not the most beautiful thing I've ever made.  It made a ton and we'll have leftovers for a couple of days.  

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, minced
salt

1 lb ground turkey
1 package taco seasoning (I usesd a chipotle one)

1 14oz can diced tomatoes
1 lb Rotini
1 can chicken broth, plus about half a can of water

1 can red kidney beans
1 cup grated cheddar cheese, divided
1 avocado, chopped, for garnish

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat until hot but not smoking. Add onion and salt and cook until soft and translucent, about 4 to 5 minutes.  Stir in the ground turkey and taco seasoning and cook until turkey is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Break up any clumps with the back of a wooden spoon.  Stir in the diced tomatoes with their juices, and then add rotini. Pour broth and water over pasta and stir to combine. Cover and bring to a simmer, then lower heat and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until pasta is cooked, 9 to 10 minutes.  Season with salt if needed.  Stir in 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese. Serve with avocados and remaining cheese for garnish.

 

Pistachio Crusted Chicken and Roasted Acorn Squash

I made this on Monday because the recipe looked so easy and because I'm a little obsessed with acorn squash.  I felt like this was a very healthy meal and I enjoyed the leftovers for lunch the next day.  I served it with some Uncle Ben's minute wild rice. 

Ingredients:

Boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 egg white
about 1 cup chopped pistachios
salt, pepper
1 acorn squash
brown sugar
olive oil

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375.  Cut the acorn sqaush into slices about a 1/4 inch thick.  Toss with some olive oil, salt, and pepper on a foil lined baking sheet.  Sprinkle with a couple of tablespoons of brown sugar and roast for about 35-40 minutes. 

Meanwhile, chop the pistachios.  Whisk one egg white until foamy and season with salt and pepper.  Dredge chicken breasts in egg mixture and then press into pistachios until coated.  Place in a pyrex dish and bake for about 30 minutes.

Balsamic Brussel Sprouts

I made these brussel sprouts for Thanksgiving.  They were so good freshly prepared, but not as good after being reheated since they lost their crispness.   I wanted to make this recipe again so Blake could have try it as it was meant to be served.  Last time I par boiled the sprouts whole, then sliced them and browned them in butter.  This time I roasted them in the oven.  They were just as good both ways.

Ingredients:
1 container brussel sprouts, trimmed and halved
olive oil
salt, pepper
balsamic vinaigrette dressing
shredded parmesan
toasted pine nutes
pomegranate seeds

Directions:  Trim the brussel sprout outer leaves and stem.  Cut in half and spread on a foil lined baking sheet.  Toss with some olive oil, salt and pepper.  Roast on 375 for 20 minutes.  When ready, toss with the balsamic vinaigrette.  Top with parmesan, pine nuts and pomegranate seeds and serve immediately.

Slow Cooker Cranberry Chicken

This week we made the second of many, many frozen slow cooker meals.  This cooked for about  hours on high and another 2 on low.  I tasted it before we served it and it was extremely tart from the lemons.  I fished the lemon rind out and reasoned it with salt, pepper, a little cayenne, chili powder and paprika.  We served it with israeli cous cous and a sprinkle of chopped chives.

Cranberry Chicken:

2 medium apples, cut into wedges
1 medium onion, chopped
2 pounds boneless chicken breasts 
2 lemons cut into wedges
2 tablespoons honey
1 can of cranberry sauce (or you can use fresh cranberries if they are in season)

The other frozen slow cooker meal that I posted previously was beef stew.  I wrote and saved all my slow cooker recipes in a label template so that I could print them directly on to label sheets for sticking on the freezer bags.  I do not know how to attach a document to the blog, so I won't post all the slow cooker recipes I assembled until I either figure that out or actually make them all.  :(

Stuffed Acorn Squash

I went the grocery the other night with nothing in mind to make for dinner.  I ended up buying 2 acorn squash.  I love butternut squash, but I think acorn squash might be my favorite.  It is so buttery.  

I cut it in half, and sliced the ends off so that it would sit flat in a pyrex dish.  I seasoned it with salt and pepper, and dropped half a tab of butter in the center.  Then, fill the dish with water halfway up the squash.  Cover with foil and roast on 375 for about 35-40 minutes until tender.  

Meanwhile, make the stuffing.  This time I took the easy way out and used a steamable bag of wild rice, broccoli and carrots.  I sautéed some onion and then added 2 steamed bags of the vegetables.  I also mixed in some chopped tomatoes.  When the squash was ready, I filled it with the stuffing, topped with some parmesan cheese and stuck it back in the oven for about 10 minutes just until the cheese was bubbly.  

While I was doing all of that, I also sliced the other acorn squash I bought.  I seasoned it with salt, pepper and some brown sugar and roasted it for about 40 minutes.  Since we had so much extra stuffing, I made myself 2 lunches of extra stuffing and sliced, roasted acorn squash, which was delicious.  I did not take pictures of that, because I plan to make it again as soon as possible for Blake to eat too.  

Thanksgiving

This year Blake and I hosted our first Thanksgiving. We started the Monday before and cooked everything ourselves. It turned out to be a success. We were proud of ourselves and happy so I think we agreed to do it again next year.

The turkey recipe came from Ina but I made it with a 22 pound turkey.  I used a stick of butter and about a tablespoon of white truffle oil to make the truffle butter. It cooked for 4 hours on 350. I turned it and tented it at 2 hours. When we took it out the internal temperature was about 170-175. It rested over an hour and was juicy and still hot when we carved it. I could taste the truffle in the dark meat but it was not very detectable in the white meat.

Baked brie

My enormous plate, which I emptied :(

My fall salad

Stuffing with apples and apricots

I also made a massive challah, no drippings gravy, brussel sprouts with balsamic dressing and pomegranates, stovetop stuffing with apples and apricots and a salad with figs, pear, blue cheese and pecans.  Blake made his own cranberry sauce (we also had the canned kind), Martha Stewart macaroni and cheese and potato apple gratin. He doubled both those recipes but not the liquid parts.  We also made a green bean casserole from scratch based on this Alton Brown recipe.  We sautéed the onion though instead of frying rings and added French's on top before baking.  We could have doubled the amount of green beans for the amount of cream in this recipe.

Gooey Butter Cake

Madeleines and chocolate chip cookies

Massive challah

Sliced challah with cranberry sauce

Blake's grandmother made a roast.  My mom brought the sweet potatoes with marshmallows and my sister brought a baked brie.  Blake made madeleines and his adaptation of Alton Brown's chocolate chip cookies.  Blake uses brown butter and a smaller scoop.  I made gooey butter cake.  We also had a variety of pies.

The crowd serving themselves

Our table setup

Beef Stew

We ate the first of many slow cooker meals tonight.  I'm glad we liked it because we have leftovers and another whole bag of this same recipe in the freezer.  It all cooked for about 9 hours and then we warmed it for another hour or 2 before eating it.  Blake put it in the crockpot after I left for work and added a little more liquid than it said, so I thickened it when I got home with a corn starch slurry which worked well.  I forgot to add the chickpeas and spinach at first and then when Blake reminded me, we decided it didn't need it.  

Beef Stew

·       1 1/2 pounds beef chuck, cut into chunks

·       2 sweet potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch-thick half-moons

·       1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes

·       1 large red onion, cut into wedges

·       1/2 cup dried apricots

·       2 teaspoons ground cumin

2   2 teaspoons ground ginger

·       1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1   1/2 teaspoon cayenne

·       kosher salt

·       1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed

·       2 cups baby spinach (1 1/2 ounces)

·       1/4 cup roasted almonds, chopped

Directions

1. In a bag, combine the potatoes, onions, tomatoes, apricots and spices. Top with the beef and sprinkle with salt. Label and freeze. 

2.  Defrost the bag for about 20 minutes before adding to slow cooker.  Add 1/2 cup water.  Cook on low for 7-8 hours.  

3.      Add the chickpeas to the slow cooker and cook until heated through, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the spinach. 

4.  Serve with the couscous or rice and sprinkle with the almonds. 

Slow Cooker Freezer Meals

I have gone crazy.  I don't know why I let pinterest make me think it was a good idea to make 11 slow cooker meals to freeze for use at a later date.  It actually turned in to be 15 meals that I assembled in 3 hours.  I am exhausted.  I will post recipes later.

Banana Bread

Per the request of my brother in law, I made banana bread this week.  It was convenient since HISD wastes probably hundreds of bananas a day delivering breakfast to the classrooms.  I HATE breakfast in the classroom.  It is the stupidest idea ever.  But at least I got free bananas for banana bread.

This recipe is from the wife of one of my dad's partners.  I left out the nuts this time.  I have it sliced in the freezer now and I just microwave a slice each morning for breakfast.

1 Stick Butter                                      

1 Cup Mashed Bananas (About 4 Ripe)

1 Cup Sugar                                         

2 Cups Sifted Flour

1 Egg Beaten                                     

1 Teaspoon Baking Powder

½ Teaspoon Baking Soda                   

½ Cup Chopped Nuts

3 Tablespoons Sweet Milk

Cream butter and sugar together.  Add beaten egg.  Dissolve soda in sweet milk and add bananas.  Add banana mixture to sugar mixture.  Combine sifted flour and baking powder.  Add to sugar, banana mixture.  Add nuts. Bake in a greased 9” loaf pan for 50 – 60 minutes.  This freezes well.   

Shabbat Feast

We were ready to make a lot of food for Shabbat this weekend.  We wanted to use our new silver set so we invited Blake's parents over.  It ended up that they couldn't come so we ate soup, challah, and salad on Friday and then finished everything else today for a large late lunch.  The soup tasted better, but a little spicier after 2 days and the chicken had extra long to marinate.  It turned out to be a really nice meal.  In addition to the soup, chicken and mushrooms, I also made some wild rice, salad, and used the leftover half a spaghetti squash with some pesto sauce and sliced tomatoes to make a nice side dish.


Pumpkin Soup
Ingredients:
2 cans pumpkin puree
1 apple, peeled and chopped
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 sweet potato, peeled and chopped
1 large box chicken broth (minus about a cup - used to marinate chicken)
ground coriander, ginger, cayenne pepper
salt, pepper, olive oil

Directions:
Sautee the onion and sweet potato over medium heat until softened.  Add the apple and sautee a few minutes more.  Add pumpkin puree and stir to heat through.  Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and then season to taste.  Serve with a drizzle of olive oil, and chopped chives.

Ottolenghi Chicken with Sumac, Zaatar and Lemon

Ingredients:
6 large bone in skin on chicken breasts
2 red onions, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
4 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
1 1/2 teaspoons ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon sumac
1 lemon, thinly sliced
about 3/4 cup chicken broth
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons za’atar
50g pine nuts, toasted
4 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley

Directions:  Combine the onion, lemon, garlic, oil, allspice, cinnamon, sumac, salt and pepper with the chicken in a large bowl.  Marinate for at least a couple hours or overnight.  Preheat oven to 400 and spread chicken out on baking sheet with all of the marinade.  Sprinkle with Zaatar and bake for 35-40 minutes.  Sprinkle with additional zaatar, olive oil, pine nuts and parsley before serving.

Ottolenghi Mixed Mushrooms with Cinammon and Lemon

• Ingredients: 
• 1 bag of sliced white mushrooms
• 1 bag of sliced baby portobello mushrooms
• 1 container shitake mushrooms
• 1 container dried morels, rehydrated
• 50g roughly chopped parsley, plus extra for garnish
• herbs de provence
• 6 cinnamon sticks
• 4 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 60ml olive oil
• 40ml lemon juice
• Salt and pepper

Directions:  

Heat a large pan over medium high heat.  Add about a 1/2 cup of olive oil and heat slightly.  Add the cinnamon sticks, garlic, salt, pepper, herbs de provence and parsley.  Stir to mix.  Add the mushrooms, except for the morels, bring the heat to high and leave alone for 5 minutes.  After mushrooms have started to soften, give them a shake and add the morels.  Cook until well softened. Add lemon juice and season again with salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm or at room temperature.  

Massive Challah

This is my usual Joan Nathan challah recipe, but I baked the whole ball of dough.  I wasn't sure how long to bake it but after 45 minutes it looked done and it actually came out perfectly.  I like the size too because we an use it for sandwiches etc.



Ingredients:
1 package active dry yeast
1 3/4 cups lukewarm water
1/2 to 3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
5 large eggs
5 cups bread flour
3 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
approximately 1 tablespoon salt

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Add the sugar and the oil and mix well with a whisk or a wooden spoon. Beat in 4 of the eggs, 1 at a time; then gradually stir in the bread flour, 2 cups of the all-purpose flour, and the salt. When you have a dough that holds together, it is ready for kneading.

2. To knead by hand, place the dough on a lightly floured surface. Knead well, using the heels of your hands to press the dough away and your fingers to bring it back. Continue, turning the dough, for about 10 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and elastic, adding the remaining 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour or as needed.  Add the rum-soaked raisins with any leftover rum to the dough after 5 minutes of kneading, adding a few tablespoons more flour to absorb the liquid. 

3. After kneading, place all the dough in a large oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let it rest in a warm place for 1 hour, until almost doubled in size.

4. When the dough is almost doubled in size, remove it from the bowl and punch it down -- the rougher you are, the more the dough likes it. Return it to the bowl, cover it again and let it rise in a warm place for 30 minutes more. Or, if you have to go out, let the dough rise slowly in the refrigerator several hours or overnight and bring it to room temperature when ready to continue.

5. Braid the challah. Then, let the challah loaves rise another hour, uncovered. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Fifteen minutes before putting the loaves in the oven, beat the remaining egg and brush it gently over them. Five minutes later, lightly brush them again.

6. Bake the loaves on the middle rack of the oven for 15 minutes. Then reduce the temperature to 375 degrees and bake for 15 minutes more, then rotate the challah.  Tent with foil if browning too quickly.  Bake another 15 minutes (45 minutes total).  Remove and cool on a rack.

Greek Tilapia with Israeli Slaw

This meal was a version of this epicurious recipe, but I deviated.  I served it with a fennel slaw which I call Israeli salad.  Usually I make it with shaved fennel, a whole lot of chopped garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper.  This time I added some vine ripened tomato wedges, without the seeds.  It really brightened the flavor and helped balance the strength of the garlic.  I also served this with some leftover baked penne which I froze before baking the other night.

Ingredients:

2 filets of Tilapia

mayonnaise

reduced fat crumbled feta

dried oregano

1 lemon

Directions:

Season tilapia with salt and pepper.  Coat with mayonnaise and sprinkle with dried oregano and crumbled feta.  Top each filet with 2 thin slices of lemon and squeeze remaining lemon juice over the fish.  Broil for about 15 minutes or until cooked through and lightly crisped.

Spaghetti Squash with Chicken and Ricotta

Blake had never tried spaghetti squash so I wanted to do something with it.  I googled recipes for it with ricotta which I had left over from the baked pasta from the other night, and found this recipe.  I think it would have been a lot tastier had I used regular ricotta instead of low fat.  I also could hardly taste the sage flavor.  Next time I would add a lot more.  I only used half of the spaghetti squash and about 5 chicken breasts for this, so it made enough for 4 or 5 servings.  The other half of the squash is in the fridge for another day.  

Ingredients:

• 1 small spaghetti squash (about 2 pounds)
• 3/4 cup part skim ricotta
• 1 clove garlic, mashed
• Olive oil (about 1/2 to 1 full tablespoon)
• 6 to 8 fresh sage leaves
• Salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
• boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed and seasoned with salt, pepper, and lemon zest 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°F.  Pierce the whole squash in several places with a knife or fork, place it in a baking dish, and bake until flesh is tender (easily pierced with a fork), about 60 to 75 minutes.  Meanwhile, heat a little bit of oil in a small pan. Quickly fry sage leaves until crispy but not burnt. Crumble sage leaves into a large bowl and combine with ricotta and garlic. Set aside. Remove squash from oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes.  Season the chicken pieces and cook over medium high heat until browned and cooked through.  Cut squash in half lengthwise and remove seeds. Pull a fork through the flesh to separate and remove the strands from the shell. Add to bowl with ricotta mixture.  Combine squash and ricotta mixture and season to taste with salt and pepper.  Serve with chicken.  Sprinkle with pine nuts before serving.