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.