Vegetable Red Curry

nless you have fish sauce, galangal, shrimp paste and lemongrass lying around your kitchen, I recommend doing yourself a favor and buying a $4 jar of red curry paste. Even though the jar I bought is labeled "hot", I found it very mild in the context of this particular dish. Rather, it packs enormous flavor thanks to its numerous spices, and you'll find a thousand dishes to put it in.



Vegetable Red Curry
1 T vegetable oil
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 C white rice
1 T mustard seeds
2 1/2 C chicken stock, divided
1 T red curry paste
1 C fat-free half and half
1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed
1/2 head cauliflower, chopped
1 C frozen peas
1 16-oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 14.5-oz can diced tomatoes, drained
Flat-leaf Italian parsley

In a medium pot, heat 1 t oil on medium-high heat and cook 1/2 the diced onion until soft, 3 minutes. Add rice and mustard seeds, tossing just enough to coat. Add 1 1/2 C chicken stock, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 15 minutes; fluff with a fork. Meanwhile, add 2 t vegetable oil to a medium pot on medium high and cook other 1/2 diced onion 3 minutes until soft. Add curry paste and heat through; about 1 minute. Add half and half and remaining chicken stock, bring to boil and reduce heat to simmer. Add potato and cauliflower, cooking 10 minutes or until fork tender. Add peas, chickpeas and tomatoes, increasing heat to medium, cook 1-2 additional minutes until heated through. Spoon vegetables over rice, garnish with chopped parsley.

Chicken with Cous Cous and Apricots

aking homemade chicken stock starts paying off when a simple grain like cous cous is elevated to levels far above where water could take it. The stock started out as a roasted chicken, the meat of which is a big part of the salad, and continues to reconstitute the apricots into flavorful jewels. Add some crunch from the slivered almonds, and you have a satisfying, wholesome meal.

2 C cous cous
2 C + 1/4 C chicken stock, divided
3 C shredded chicken
1 1/4 C dried apricots, chopped
1 C blanched, slivered almonds
Kosher salt and ground black pepper

Place cous cous in a medium mixing bowl. In a microwave safe container, bring 2 C stock to a boil. Add boiling stock to cous cous, cover tightly with plastic wrap and let steam for 5 minutes; remove wrap and fluff with fork. Heat remaining stock 2 minutes in microwave until hot; add apricots and cover in plastic wrap until liquid is absorbed. Combine cous cous, apricots, chicken and almonds, seasoning to taste -OR- divide into 5 2-cup servings.

Spaghetti Squash with Chicken, Zucchini and Olives

ny vegetable with the good sense to pose as a pasta is certain to be a hit with me. This veggie-laden dish packs in loads of flavor with roasted zucchini, red pepper flakes, lemon and olives.



2 yellow squash
2 small zucchini
olive oil
1/2 t garlic powder
kosher salt
black pepper
crushed red pepper flakes
1 large spaghetti squash
2 C roasted chicken
1 C kalamata olives, pitted
1 lemon

Preheat oven to 450 F. Slice yellow squash and zucchini in half lengthwise, rub with oil and sprinkle garlic powder, salt and red pepper flakes on cut side. Turn squash and zucchini cut side down, add cracked black pepper. Roast 10 minutes, allow to cool.

Meanwhile, cut spaghetti squash in half and remove seeds. Place cut side down in a microwave safe dish with a half C of water; cover dish plastic wrap. Microwave on high 10 minutes. Once cool, use fork to separate "spaghetti noodles" from outer skin.

Combine "noodles" with 2 T olive oil, zest and juice of one lemon, roasted vegetables, chicken, olives and salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm.

Roasted Chicken and Vegetables

oasted chicken is touted as one of the easiest and most inexpensive meals any cook can make. Yet until this weekend, I'd never tried it. Hooray for trying new things, right? I combined advice from the Food Network's Ina Garten (whose recipe I sought) and Melissa D'Arabian (whose show was on at the time; she was also making roast chicken). The result: yup, pretty easy alright! I just wish I'd roasted the vegetables separately, or at least clumped everything under the chickens where they wouldn't burn.

2 4 lbs whole chickens
1 large yellow onion
1 lemon
6 carrots, peeled and halved
1 lb white button mushrooms, halved
8 red potatoes, scrubbed and halved
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 425 F. Thoroughly rinse and dry chickens outer skin and cavity; add salt, pepper, onion and lemon quarters. Tie drumsticks together with kitchen twine or silicone bands. Rub oil onto chicken skin, add salt and pepper, and place breast-side down on wire rack. In large roasting pan, toss carrots, mushrooms and potatoes with oil, salt and pepper. Center vegetables in pan and place chickens on rack atop vegetables. Roast 15 minutes and turn chickens breast-side up, returning to heat for another hour or until juices run clear.

Caramel Brownies

y favorite brownie recipe yields goodies that are tall like cake-style brownies, but with the gooey center of fudge-style brownies. How could I possibly make them better? With caramel sauce baked in, of course.

When I started this blog, I knew I wanted to include all the dishes I attempt, regardless of how successful or unsuccessful they end up. While these brownies were far from a fail, they weren't oozing smooth caramely goodness. This can only mean more attempts the next time I'm in the mood for brownies.

Caramel Sauce
Recipe courtesy Ina Garten
* 1 1/2 cups sugar
* 1/3 cup water
* 1 1/4 cups heavy cream
* 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

Mix the water and sugar in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cook over low heat for 5 to 10 minutes, until the sugar dissolves. Do not stir. Increase the heat to medium and boil uncovered until the sugar turns a warm chestnut brown (about 350 degrees F on a candy thermometer), about 5 to 7 minutes, gently swirling the pan to stir the mixture. Be careful – the mixture is extremely hot! Watch the mixture very carefully at the end, as it will go from caramel to burnt very quickly. Turn off the heat. Stand back to avoid splattering and slowly add the cream and vanilla. Don't worry - the cream will bubble violently and the caramel will solidify.

Simmer over low heat, stirring constantly, until the caramel dissolves and the sauce is smooth, about 2 minutes. Allow to cool to room temperature, at least 4 hours. It will thicken as it sits.




Brownies
1 C unsalted butter
8 oz semisweet baking chocolates
1 t kosher salt
3 C granulated sugar
5 eggs
1 T vanilla
1 1/2 C flour

In a medium microwaveable bowl, melt together butter and chocolate. Mix in the salt. Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl beat together sugar and eggs with an electric mixer for 5 minutes. Add chocolate mixture into sugar mixture, combine well. Fold in vanilla, salt and flour, mixing only until incorporated. Transfer to a greased and floured 9x13 baking pan, bake for 37 minutes at 375 F.

Carrot Ginger Soup

inger - aromatic and exotic with some heat. Carrots - sweet, mild flavor in a designer color. Together they should be a "wow!"; unfortunately, this recipe from the Food Network turned out to be an "... oh". I can imagine lots of ways to alter this dish; either playing up to its sweet dessert relatives with some brown sugar, nutmeg, and cinnamon, or even exploring its more lush tones by roasting the carrots and adding cumin and cayenne.

With all this criticism, I must say - the creamy finish makes this a very satisfying soup that I could imagine serving as a small course between more intense dishes. A crisp escarole salad, followed by a spicy fish entree, perhaps? Its really not bad, it just needs some lovin'.

* 2 tablespoons sweet cream butter
* 2 onions, peeled and chopped
* 6 cups chicken broth
* 2 pounds carrots, peeled and sliced
* 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
* 1 cup whipping cream
* Salt and white pepper
* Sour cream
* Parsley sprigs, for garnish

Directions

In a 6-quart pan, over medium high heat, add butter and onions and cook, stirring often, until onions are limp. Add broth, carrots, and ginger. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until carrots are tender when pierced.

Remove from heat and transfer to a blender. Don't fill the blender more than half way, do it in batches if you have to. Cover the blender and then hold a kitchen towel over the top of the blender*. Be careful when blending hot liquids as the mixture can spurt out of the blender. Pulse the blender to start it and then puree until smooth. Return to the pan and add cream, stir over high heat until hot. For a smoother flavor bring soup to a boil, add salt and pepper, to taste.

Ladle into bowls and garnish with dollop sour cream and parsley sprigs.

Spinach Chicken Pasta Salad

f you ever find yourself wandering what to do with leftover sun dried tomatoes, and you've already made a tasty Albacore Penne Salad, might I suggest you combine and refrigerate the following:



3 cups chicken meat
8 oz frozen chopped spinach leaves, thawed and drained
8 oz Farfalle pasta (dry wt), cooked
2 T olive oil
juice of one lemon
1/3 C sun dried tomatoes
salt and ground black pepper
1/3 C grated parmesan

Meatloaf, Horseradish Mashed Potatoes and Carrot Salad

neaking unexpected flavors into familiar old favorites is a fun way to update the classics. This menu delivers not only punches of bold tastes, but also lighter approaches to an otherwise heavy meal. For instance, the meatloaf starts with super-lean beef and turkey, and finishes with an earthy, spicy sauce to keep everything impossibly moist. The tangy potatoes back off some of the fat and calories with skim milk and neufchatel in place of regular cream cheese. Rather than a sugary glaze, these carrots feature a zippy dressing sure to wow any palate. Enjoy!

Meatloaf
1 T vegetable oil
1 T unsalted butter
1/2 large yellow onion
1 large orange bell pepper
2 cloves garlic
1 lb 96% lean ground beef
1 lb 93% lean ground turkey
1/4 C bread crumbs
1 egg
1 T chili powder
1 1/2 t kosher salt
1/4 t garlic powder
1/4 t ground cumin

For the sauce
6 oz Tomato paste
14.5 oz diced tomatoes, drained, liquid reserved
1 T honey
1/2 t kosher salt
1/4 t cayenne powder
1/4 t oregano
1/8 t garlic powder
1/8 t ground cumin

In a medium saucepan, heat oil and butter. Sautee onions and pepper until onions are slightly translucent; add garlic. Cook approx. 2 additional minutes, until soft. Remove from heat. Meanwhile, combine meats, egg, bread crumbs and seasonings in a large bowl. Add cooled onion mixture, kneading until ingredients are evenly distributed. Transfer to a greased loaf pan.

In a large mixing bowl, combine all sauce ingredients. Add 4 T of reserved tomato liquid to form a sauce. Pour tomato mixture onto meat in loaf pan; cover with foil and bake 45 minutes on 400 F. Remove foil and bake another 20 minutes or until cooked through.

Horseradish Mashed Potatoes
4 large baking potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
8 oz. Neufchatel cheese, room temperature
4 T unsalted butter
3 T prepared horseradish
1 - 1 1/4 C skim milk
Kosher salt and pepper

Boil potatoes 15-20 minutes until fork tender, drain. Add cheese, butter, horseradish and 1 C milk, beating with an electric hand mixer until smooth. If consistency is too thick, add up to 1/4 C more milk. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Carrot Salad
6 large carrots, peeled and cut into thirds
Juice of 1 lemon
1 t kosher salt
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 t ground cumin
1/4 t cayenne powder
2 T olive oil
1/4 C parsley, chopped

Boil carrots 10-12 minutes until fork tender, drain. In a mixing bowl combine lemon juice, salt, garlic, cumin, and cayenne. Mix vigorously with fork while drizzling in oil. Add parsley and toss with carrots to coat.

Jasmine Kimono Knit Project

nitting season is finally upon us, and I couldn't wait until the weekend to get started on my first project of the year. I chose this gorgeous Nature's Choice Organic Cotton by LBY in dusty sage:



The nice lady at Crafty Planet helped me with the yarn, which wasn't exactly what the pattern called for. She also suggested I switch to a smaller needle than used in the pattern; as I've knit the first few rows, I'm growing nervous that I am making the cardigan too small. Here's how it should turn out:



I'm still really excited about how this project will turn out. More to come!

Tarragon Chicken Salad

hicken salad is one of the most versatile deli-style salads I know, and in this variation I put tarragon from the garden to work as the key seasoning. Sweet apples and carrots, crunchy celery and creamy homemade mayo bring combine with roasted all white-meat chicken in this scrumptious sandwich.

Tarragon Chicken Salad

3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 C diced celery (one large rib)
1 C grated carrot (one large)
1 diced apple, skin on (I chose Pink Lady)
2 t dried tarragon
Salt and Pepper
1 C mayonnaise (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 350 F. Season chicken with salt and pepper, and place in a foil-lined roasting pan. Bake 35-45 minutes, until cooked through. Allow chicken to cool, then cube. Combine all ingredients with prepared mayonnaise. Chill for at least 2 hours; serve on pumpernickel or rye.

Mayonnaise
Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

2 egg yolks
2 T dijon mustard
Pinch salt
1 T lemon juice
1 C extra virgin olive oil

In blender, combine yolks, mustard, salt, and lemon juice. Slowly drizzle in oil while blending, approx 2 minutes until desired consistency is achieved.

Chicken Noodle Soup

omemade chicken noodle soup has magical healing powers - it can cure colds, ease sore throats, and satisfy a sick but hungry tummy. The secret might just lie in the chickeny infrastructure's contribution to the stock. Regardless, this is a soup you're sure to love.



Chicken Noodle Soup
2 T vegetable oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 large celery ribs, sliced
2 large carrots, sliced
10 C chicken stock (recipe follows)
4 C boiled chicken, cubed
8 oz dumpling-style egg noodles (dry wt.)
salt and pepper

Heat oil in 3 qt stock pot over medium heat. Sautee onion, garlic, celery and carrot until carrots soften slightly, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, boil pasta and drain. Add stock to pot, along with chicken and pasta. Heat to simmer, seasoning to taste.

Chicken Stock
1 4-lb whole chicken, cleaned
2 ribs celery, chopped into thirds
2 carrots, chopped into thirds
1 large parsnip, cleaned and halved
1 bunch fresh parsley
1 head garlic, halved crosswise
1 large yellow onion with skins on, quartered
2 T salt
2.5 qt water




Combine all ingredients in a 3 qt stock pot, bring to boil. Reduce to simmer. After 1 hour, remove chicken. Once cool enough to handle, remove skin, fat and bones from chicken meat; return skin, fat and bones to stock and simmer 3 more hours. Strain solids and transfer stock to glass or Pyrex bowl; refrigerate overnight. Remove fat solids before using. Makes about 10 cups.

Albacore Penne Pasta

right, tangy sun dried tomatoes and lemon team up to add zip to this light, tasty tuna salad. Featuring added crunch from the sugar snap peas and nuttiness from the parmesan, you might just question everything you thought you knew about tuna pasta salad.



Albacore Tuna Pasta

8 oz Penne pasta(dry weight)
1/4 C extra virgin olive oil
1/3 C sun dried tomatoes
1/2 C sugar snap peas, chopped
10 oz. albacore tuna packed in water, drained
1/2 C grated parmesan cheese
1 lemon
salt and pepper

Boil pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, chop sun dried tomatoes into bite-size chunks. During final 90 seconds of pasta cook time, add peas; drain pasta and peas together, then rinse with cold water to remove excess starch and seize cooking. Combine pasta, peas, tomatoes, oil, tuna, and lemon. Toss to coat, adding cheese and seasoning to taste. Chill before serving.

State Fair Fun Times!

innesota's State Fair marks the end of summer, and given how miserably hot and humid this season's been, I couldn't be more ready for a break. Thankfully, we lucked out with a gorgeous 74 degree, partly cloudy day.



There's too much to see and eat in one trip to the state fair, so we made a list ahead of time for what we wanted to be sure to experience. Food wise, our strategy was to nab one order of each item to share between the five of us. This allowed each of us to taste everything without consuming 3,500 calories and 60 grams of fat in one day.

We started our adventure with a quest to find deep fried pickles, the big hit from last year's Great Minnesota Get Together. Having missed them during an earlier visit to the fair, they were our first stop this time. Here we see a sampler, including original, cajun, and cream-cheese stuffed. Delish!



Next up, Jer wanted to try a Scotch Egg. This delicacy is a boiled egg, wrapped in sausage, deep fried and served on a stick. While the rest of us were initially skeptical, it turns out this was quite the treat, and we all agreed that breakfast could take notes from the Scots.



Following a stop for root beer, we continued the hunt for my idea of novelty, sausage-and-cheese-stuffed jalapenos. A new item this year, these jalapenos were stuffed with white cheddar and sausage, wrapped in bacon, baked, and served on a stick with ranch dressing. We all agreed that these would have been better battered and deep fried.



When Jamie, Ben, Clara, and I were at the fair previously (with Kara, of course!), we discovered deep-fried cheeseburger sliders from Axel's. These were a surprising win, and though we didn't go back this time, they were truly a delicious dig.



Jer got it in his mind early that he wanted a Nut Roll, and wow, what a mouthful it was! The nuts and caramel were indeed tasty, but the filling had us all on nougat overload.



On our way out, we shared the ultimate state fair food, deep fried cheese curds. They're rich, crispy, gooey, and salty. One order would have been plenty for the five of us, but Ben talked me into a second order. Needless to say, not a curd went to waste, though I'm sure they all went to *waist*.



Kara's face says it all as Ben gets her ready for a ride in her Snugli. We had a great time taking in all the gastronomic delights detailed above, as well as the visual delights - the state's largest boar, pygmy goats, enormous horses, rat tails, neck tattoos, and grown out bleach jobs.



Can't wait to do it again next year!