Mezze - It's What's for Dinner

The 2010 February Daring Cooks challenge was hosted by Michele of Veggie Num Nums. Michele chose to challenge everyone to make mezze based on various recipes from Claudia Roden, Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Dugid. This month's Daring Cook's challenge brought a whole new culture into my life. I've never eaten ANYTHING Middle Eastern before, although my sister loves it and has been telling me for months that I need to try it. I have to admit, Middle Eastern fare, never really thrilled me because when I think of that kind of food, I think of beans. *shudder* Chickpeas, lentils, black beans.. all of those lil pasty tastin' legumes. If you're new to this here lil blog, then you might not know of my strong dislike of beans. Frankly, I'd rather eat live bees. ;) But I am happy to say that I was completely wrong, which is nothing new. :P Yes, Middle Eastern food does contain beans, but there is so much of a variety of other foods - I had no idea! I wanted my Mezze to be special, so I called upon my home girls. My G's, if you will. June, Blimey & Amy - 3 of my favorite people in alla world. As per usual, they were up for it and all agreed to find a Middle Eastern recipe to bring to the party. Yay! I decided to make a cold Lebanese carrot salad, green beans (one of the few that I'll eat) Lebanese style, Kalamata olive tapenade as well as the mandatory hummus and pita bread. June brought a delicious Tabouli and Amy brought a refreshing and really delicious cucumber Raita. Unfortunately, Blimey got sick so she couldn't join us, and we missed her tremendously. We piled everything onto the kitchen table and started eating immediately. SO GOOD! My absolute favorite was the green beans Lebanese style. Holy cow, I could eat that daily. I wouldn't even share much of the left overs with the gals because I HAD. TO. HAVE. IT. the next night with a roasted chicken. Delish! I really enjoyed the small bites of everything.. and liked to combine different dishes to see what went best with what. My favorite combo was a lil Kalamata tapenade on some pita followed with a lil dab of cucumber Raita. Salty with a nice tang. *slurp* As for cooking this feast - no problems really at all. I got a lil nervous when my pita didn't balloon up like Audax's and it didn't really brown up on top. The bottoms browned up nicely though. And although parts were flat and parts were bubbly it was really good pita. June was the resident Middle Eastern connoisseur and she said the pita was excellent and she loved the other dishes as well. Score! I know it was good food because I realized afterward that we had no meat and didn't even miss it! It wasn't consciously planned that way, but since it happened, I'm going to say we dedicated our vegetarian dinner to Michele. :D Eating this way is definitely fun - true party food. Next I want to do a Tapas night and then a dim sum night.. I'm looking forward! Michele, thanks so much for turning me on to this delicious food and showing me how easy it is to make pita bread! I'll definitely be making it again! You did an excellent job hosting! Love you! Check out all the rest of the amazing Mezze feasts from our Daring Cook troops! Just seeing what they've uploaded to the forums makes me all kinds of hungry for Mezze all over again! ;) xoxo

Put to the "Challenge" with Butter!

A while back the nice people at Challenge Dairy asked me if I'd be interested in tasting their butter and using it in a side dish recipe. Butter! As if I'd say no. Did I mention... butter? *slurp* Okay so right off the bat, I'm going to say that Challenge Dairy needs to start shipping their products across the country so us dwellers of the "Armpit of the Midwest" (Ohioans) can purchase at our local stores. This is NOT FAIR that we cannot at this time. That's right, Challenge Dairy.. you've been called out. Now ship me a truckload of this stuff because we fakkin' loved it. :) The salted butter that is. I have to be honest, I haven't even opened the "spreadable butter" yet. It's not you, Challenge Dairy, it's me. You see, I've got this thing about butter being called butter when it's made with oil. And frankly, if ya'll (and by ya'll, I mean those of you who buy "spreadable butter" to use right from the fridge) can't think ahead a few minutes and take your REAL CREAM butter outta the fridge to allow it to soften before you need it.. well, dammit you aren't true butter lovers. By God, I think Paula Deen just fainted at the thought of spreadable butter. Anyhoo.. I will try to get over my mental thing (1 of many) and give it a shot, and I'm sure it'll taste just fine.. but well.. oil. squick! Along with a pound of their salted butter and a container of the spreadable butter, Challenge Dairy also sent me some nice surprises! I received a bottle of dill weed and smoked paprika from Spice Islands along with a very cool OXO Spice Keeper. And to make my cooking efforts a little easier, they were also kind enough to send me a whisk - how did they know?? I've got a big balloon whisk that I love, but it's big - I've been looking for a smaller version and this one is perfect - thank you Challenge Dairy, Spice Islands and OXO! :) So what did I do with all of these items? Actually asking me what I didn't do with them would be an easier question. But I goofed big time in not photographing most of it, mainly because I used them for my Thanksgiving dinner. Between 14 recipes, and cleaning the house for guests.. well, my camera was put away after the first dish and I only photographed it because it was new. But that's okay because I've blogged about some of the recipes before. I used the butter in my stuffing, the gooey pumpkin butter cake (just in the crust where you could taste it), my sweet potatoes, a new cauliflower dish. But the true test was the table butter that we used for our bread. Let me tell you, that was my favorite usage of this butter. Spread thickly (of course!) on a slice of fresh baked Italian bread and the rest of the meal wasn't as appetizing. I could have ate that whole damn loaf smothered in butter and been quite thankful for a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner. Seriously. This butter is very creamy, has just the right amount of salt and is basically The Bomb. Have I mentioned how cheated I feel that I can't buy this butter in my local grocery store? *sigh* The new cauliflower dish I tried was based on a recipe found on Recipezaar, called Roasted Parmesan Garlic Cauliflower by Marie. Of course I tweaked it towards my own tastes and the final dish was quite delicious. We'll be having this again. Roasted Romano Garlic Cauliflower 1.5 TBS mashed roasted garlic 1.5 TBS olive oil 1/2 head cauliflower, separated in florets 1/3 c. grated Locatelli Romano cheese, divided salt and black pepper 1/3 c. Panko 1/4 c. butter, softened 1 tsp. smoked paprika Preheat oven to 450º F. Fill a 3 quart pot with water, bring to a boil and then salt the water. Add the florets and cook for 5 minutes until they are JUST fork tender (try not to overcook) Grease small 8" x 8" Pyrex baking dish. Mix Panko crumbs and remaining Romano cheese together in small bowl, set aside. Place olive oil, roasted garlic paste and 1/3 of the Romano cheese in large resealable bag. Add cauliflower and shake to mix. Pour into prepared baking dish. Season with salt and pepper, top with Panko & Romano mixture. Place dabs of butter all over top. Sprinkle with smoked paprika. Bake for 20 minutes. xoxo

Some Schtuff... and Shrimp Fried "Rice"

*Long Ass Ranting and Raving Post - Prepare Yourselves!* Hold on to your chairs! I don't want anyone falling off because I'm actually posting something non-Daring Kitchen-y! :D As I mentioned in my last failure to get my Daring Baker challenge done, I spent some time in the hospital last month. I'm fine now - actually I feel fantastic! But I have a long road ahead of me and frankly, I'm scared shitless. :) Without going into the gory details, and in a semi-small nutshell, I was in congestive heart failure. I was retaining water like nobody's business and it was suffocating my heart/lungs. It's been over 3 weeks and I've lost FORTY pounds in water/fluid weight. Hello? I didn't think that could be possible, but apparently it is. Jebus. So now I'm working on living a low-carb lifestyle. Which is to say, I think it would be easier to cut out oxygen in my life. Kidding? Anyhoo, I've joined Weight Watchers and so far am doing pretty well. Their online tools keep me focused and I've kind of enjoyed lurking on low-carb blogs and recipe sites. It's been quite an eye-opener to read about alternatives to white sugar and white flour. I've purchased Stevia powder, erythritol, xantham gum and coconut flour and although I about had to take a loan out to pay for these items, I am looking forward to getting back into the baking thing once in a while. I've also "met" a new friend who has been sooooooooooo helpful in giving me tips and suggestions on how to stay on track. Thanks Michele! *hugs* And if all of this wasn't enough.. yesterday I went in for a bronchoscopy to make sure my tubes were open and to take a biopsy of the lymph nodes on my lungs. It seems that they are enlarged. When they were first discovered in this state, I was told it was pretty common in pneumonia patients, so to be safe, I was scheduled for another CT-scan 3 mos. later - which was the Friday before I went into the hospital for the CHF. Unfortch, the test results showed they were more enlarged than they were before, so the next step was a biopsy. *sigh* I'm not too worried about this. I mean, I'll know for sure on Thursday - but my pulmonary doctor (who is reportedly one of the best in these parts) and the doctor that admitted me to the hospital with the CHF both feel that this isn't c-word related. So I'm very optimistic. :) But I can't just let it go at that.. I must vent on how this bronchoscopy went down yesterday. I was told numerous times that I'd be put out and wouldn't feel anything or remember anything. This was very important to me. I can deal with pain, that wasn't my concern. My concern was my delightful gag reflex. It's horrible. Touch the tip of my tongue and I start to gag sometimes. It's quite sensitive and highly embarrassing when I'm at the dentist. Boo. So this "twilight sleep" they were going to put me under was suppose to just keep me slightly conscious so that my gag reflex would work, as I guess that's important when they shove a 50 foot hose down your throat. But I won't feel a thing! I won't remember anything that happened afterwards! BULLSHIT. I felt every fucking thing and I remember most of it. Bastards. I had two nurses, both under 5' 2" and 110 pounds. One of them comes at me with these 2 lil cups of "numbing medicine" so I won't feel the scope. "Uhh.. why do I need numbing medicine if I'll be out??" She stammered some and then said, "It helps the scope go down." :Uhh.. okay?" So I gargle with this stuff that tastes like bleach and lay back down. Then the doc comes in and asks if I've got any questions.. you'd think that I might have said.. "Dude, WTF is up with the numbing medicine if I'm going to be put the fuck out??" But noooo.. I just looked up into Ohio's version of McDreamy and smiled pretty and nodded my head. Gah. Then I hear tiny nurse no. 1 ask how much medication should she give me.. and he gives her 2 numbers.. there are 2 meds they mix together.. a highly potent narcotic for pain and for putting me into that "twilight" state and another medicine that will help me not to remember anything (I think?).. and then I heard him give her the two numbers. But then tiny nurse no. 2 says, "Are you sure? She'll need at least 120 to 140" and he then said, "Okay, 120 but that's it" and tiny nurse no. 2 says, "That's not going to be enough." and he said, "Shhhh." Again, at this point, wouldn't you sit up and say "Dude, I agree with tiny nurse no. 2, 120 isn't enough GIMME MORE GODDAMMIT" But.. nooooooo.. I don't say one fakking word. Now granted, I do not feel or remember him actually putting the cable in. But I DO feel and I DO remember him pushing it past my vocal cords and I DO remember just about shooting 10 feet up in the air when I felt that. I remember trying to say, "THIS HURTS" but I had some kind of plug thing in my mouth that prevented me from biting down on the cable, so it came out more like "cough - cough - gaggggg - cough - cough - OOD! GAHAMMIT!!!" Well that must have pissed off the tiny nurses, because the next thing I know, I've got one on each side gripping my lower JAWFUCKINGBONE and pulling down on it with all of their weight. I wanted to so give them both the evil "curses" eye but they had a towel over my face. How rude is that? The rest of it went pretty quickly, I'd say the bulk of time during this test is the actual prep and the nurses trying to figure out how to get the computer to work before 'he' gets there "or 'he' will be pissed.". I didn't feel the actual biopsy being taken, thank the baby Jebus. I am also proud to say that I did not projectile vomit at any point of the procedure. All in all, it wasn't THAT horribly bad.. but it wasn't THAT horribly good either. When it was finished, my friend Cindy (who got to babysit me all day, bless her cotton socks) came in and I could hear him talking to her and then she appeared at my side and the first thing I said was, "they lied to me." and she asked how and I said, "I FELT IT" and tiny nurse no. 1 said, "you did great!" and I'm like, "I'm so Delvecchio cursing you as soon as I can get this death grip off the bed rail." She laughed. Obviously, she has no idea how powerful the Delvecchio curse is. tisk tisk for her. Recovery was quick, after all I wasn't put to sleep AS PROMISED, so I came outta the fog after 15 min. or so and was allowed to leave. Next stop was a frosty beverage to cool the burning pipes and then back to my house, where we sat and laughed over the whole thing, then we put a movie in and I FINALLY passed out. Always a day late and a dollar short. Today the mild sore throat is gone, but I'm sporting a rather large face and neck. My cheeks are swollen as if I've been foraging for nuts and my neck is swollen quite like what a bullfrog looks like when he's offering his mating call to the sexy frogette on the next lily pad. That's hott. So what lessons have I learned from this experience? NEVER trust 2 tiny nurses and ALWAYS wear barbed wire around your neck when going in for a bronchoscopy, so they can't get to your jaw bone. Also? McDreamy or not.. always be prepared to administer the Delvecchio curse and DO NOT get lost in his sexy brown eyes, for he and his minions can be evil. Oh and I did find out why I couldn't be put under completely (had to do with low blood-ox levels).. and I understand that.. but maybe a lil heads up would have been nice? :P So anyhoo.. I've vented and I feel better. Back to the low-carb goodies! I found this recipe on a new blog for me. It's Healthy Indulgences written by Lauren. Lauren has taken so many high carb/high fat/high caloric dessert recipes and turned them into delicious looking low carb/low fat/lower caloric desserts that have just astounded me. So much so that I went and bought those alternative natural sugars and flours that I mentioned above. No more white sugar or regular all purpose flour for me! But I am not ready, quite yet (soon though.. very soon! hee!), to bake a dessert. I want to stay with my fruits and sugar free pudding for a bit longer. So when I found this vegetable recipe that was suppose to taste just like shrimp fried rice, I couldn't resist! And seriously, this stuff rocks. I'm not just saying it to make myself believe that CAULIFLOWER can taste like rice - it can! Actually it was better than the last batch of carry-out fried rice we had. It was super easy and super quick to put together and it's definitely going to stay on rotation often. Give it a whirl! Recipe is below with my minor changes, basically out of necessity than anything else. Thanks so much, Lauren! I'm looking forward to this being the first of many recipes from your blog that I will be enjoying in the future - guilt free! :)       Shrimp Fried "Rice" Adapted from this recipe by Lauren at Healthy Indulgences Makes 3 servings Ingredients: 2 heapings cups of grated fresh cauliflower 2 tablespoons coconut oil (any cooking oil is fine) - I used EVOO 1/2 cup sugar snap pea pods - I omitted these and used diced zucchini instead 1/3 cup onion, chopped 4 tablespoons wheat-free tamari or soy sauce - I used low-sodium soy sauce 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil 1/2 teaspoon sea salt dash of garlic powder 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 1-4 oz can of baby shrimp, or protein of choice 1/4 cup of green peas - I upped the amount to 1/2 c. since we like peas 1 cup of sliced baby portobello mushrooms since I needed to use them up! Not in original recipe 2 eggs, beaten green onion, for garnish (optional) Preparation: Grate cauliflower using a fine cheese grater. Heat up pan with 1 tablespoon of coconut oil. Mix together sesame oil, tamari, and seasonings in a bowl. Sautee onions (I also threw in the zucchini & mushrooms at this stage) for 3 minutes (I went for about 5 minutes to give the zucchini & mushrooms good coloring) over medium heat, or until translucent. Remove from pan and set aside. Sauté sugar snap peas until tender. Add more oil if necessary and all of the cauliflower, stir frying for a couple of minutes. Pour in 1/2 of the soy sauce mixture and stir fry to coat the cauliflower evenly. When the cauliflower is tender (this didn't take long at all.. maybe 4-5 min.), add cooked vegetables, shrimp, and peas along with the rest of the soy sauce mixture. Push "rice" to the side of the pan and scramble eggs on the other side, moving spatula quickly to incorporate eggs with the "rice" mixture. 7 grams net carbs xoxo

LiveSTRONG Day - May 13th, 2008

As mentioned in my last post, April and May bring two very important foodie events to me. Cooking to Combat Cancer was the first, and LiveSTRONG Day is the 2nd. LiveSTRONG is the motto behind Lance Armstrong's Foundation about cancer awareness, surviving cancer and living with cancer YOUR way. I think this is an amazing and unique organization and it's refreshing to know it's not all about money.. Lance's foundation truly helps those who are battling cancer. Last year, Barbara of Winos and Foodies hosted the first annual LiveSTRONG with a Taste of Yellow and an amazing 149 bloggers participated.. This year she is holding the 2nd annual LiveSTRONG with a Taste of Yellow 2008 and the deadline for participation is April 27th - I hope we all unify to surpass last year's number, especially since she's moved the participation dead line from April 19th. :) I'm quite happy about the extension as my last post kinda left me with nothing afterwards. Not to mention, I wanted to blog about an amazing dish in tribute to Lance AND Barbara and although I had two "yellow" dishes all ready to go, they weren't very special to me. So I decided to hang up my written post and think about what kind of dish I really wanted to submit. Well here in NE Ohio, I think it is safe to assume (am knockin on wood all over the place) that Spring has sprung! We've had lovely weather, not too rainy.. just the right temps - high 60's lower 70's and because we live right on the lake, there is a wonderful breeze coming off it each afternoon. There are Daffodils, Crocuses, Hyanciths, Irises and lots of other beautiful flowers popping up everywhere. The trees have started to bud and the smaller flowering trees are completely covered in their gorgeous blooms.. one cannot help but to think about new beginnings, fresh starts, and awakenings after a gloomy winter has passed by. Now, flowers and trees certainly do scream Spring! to me, but so do fresh vegetables.. for now is the time to start thinking about that garden you'll be planting in a few short weeks. Some of us already have our seedlings growing steady just waiting to be transplanted to their warm summer homes (San Marzanos! Thanks to my beautiful Creampuff! squeeeee!). The hubbs and I have been talking incessantly about what perennials we're going to plant this year and arguing over where the zucchini plants will go in the garden. hehe Last year we found the perfect spot and I had so many zucchini that I didn't know what to do with (thank God for neighbors, co-workers, friends, family and the occasional stranger off the street) and they pretty much took over the middle part of the garden. hee! So I knew I wanted this dish to represent Spring and all of the renewal it brings. Hope, if you will. A startling realization that after the gloom, there is sun. The corn from down south is starting to arrive in our supermarkets and I couldn't resist buying some this past weekend. I wanted to make something light that allowed the corn's sweetness to shine through and I think I did a damn good job of doing just that. :D I roasted 4 ears of corn on our grill until I could no longer stand the amazing fragrance coming from them. I let them cool for a bit and while I left them to do that, I thinly sliced up 4 green onions, diced half of a yellow bell pepper and 1/2 of an avocado. Once the corn was cool enough to handle, I cut the sweet kernals from their cobs and threw about 1/2 of them in with the onions, peppers and avocado. I dressed this mixture simply with a little lime zest, the juice of 1/2 a lime, a sprinkling of sea salt and a splash of good quality olive oil. I mixed gently and let all sit together for a while so that their flavors could meld. Next up was simple grilled, boneless pork chops with nothing but garlic, salt & pepper for seasoning. Once the chops were just cooked through, I topped each with 2 huge spoonfuls of the roasted corn relish. OHMYGOD. I can't tell you how shocked I was at how good this turned out! The bitterness of the lime with the sweetness of the corn and a background zing of the fresh spring onion.. all with the creaminess that the avocado lent.. my, my, my, my and my. I don't think I could have come up with a better tribute to Spring, the new hope it brings, and Barbara and Lance for all they do to keep spirits high. Thank you both for giving so many people the hope and awareness it takes to not look at living with cancer as a death sentence, because it's not. I firmly believe that mind over matter is very, very important. With a better outlook that can be obtained by knowledge, unity and strength the better the chances of kicking cancer's ass until it runs home screaming like a sissy girl to it's mommie. ;) xoxo

Beans! Beans! The Magical Fruit...

The more you eat.. the more you Hi! I just can't help myself from mentally singing that lil diddy everytime I think about beans. They are quite magical, aren't they? Not that I'd really know, as not many beans pass these almost 40 year old lips. Yeah.. I'm not a big bean lover. Nope, not so much hip on the legumes. I know. I'm weird. I realize I'm in the minority here and that most really enjoy beans. I, personally, can't get past the texture.. kinda fibery & creamy at the same time. And they sometimes get stuck at the back of the roof of your mouth - you know, where the hard palate rolls into the soft palate right before you hit the uvula? heh heh Nay Sayers.. you didn't know I was so fakkin educated on areas in the human mouth, now didja? I'm not really.. I just looked it up - but I was pleasantly surprised when I realized I could use the word "Uvula" in a sentence. I love that word. Uvula. I don't use that word often enough, yanno? Anyhooooo.. yeah the bean meat or whatever ya wanna call it.. the pasty stuff sometimes gets stuck in that area of the mouth and sometimes it's hard to get it off.. sometimes you find yourself chipping away at it with the tip of your tongue, or even worse, rubbing it with the base of your tongue in a way of trying to scrub it off. Quit looking at me that way. Are you trying to tell me that I'm the only person EVER to get the bean meat stuck on the roof of my mouth? The only one who could spend hours trying to chip away or scrub it off with her own tongue?? Whot. Evah. You've NEVER experienced that waxy, pasty, grainy, squicky feeling sometimes brought on by pasty bean meat? How about when it adheres to your two front teeth like little ill-fitting wool sweaters? So, I'm guessing you get the idea why I'm not a huge bean loving gal, eh? BUT! I want this to change! I dooo!! I know I'm missing out on all kinds of delicious salsas, hummus, nachos, southwestern eggrolls, rice & beans, layer No. 1 of most Mexican 7 Layer dips.. I mean the list could go on and on.. And what's more, I've heard that beans are good for you. Can you imagine? Well now, I gotta tell you how excited I've been for the past 48 hours. Squeeeeeeeeeeee! I made a bean dish - And - I LOVED IT! No, LOVE is not strong enough of a word.. I.. I.. I could make out with this bean salad. I could! Okay a lil background.. I'm going to spoil it for those of you who are waiting with bated breath (baited breath? like fish hook baited?) for the big Salad Stravaganza debut on July 1st, but I can't help it. Alanna of A Veggie Venture submitted a recipe for the Stravaganza that just made me NEED to run out for green beans and almonds. 'kay well, you know I gotta mess with everything.. so I opted for cashews in lieu of the almonds, BUT STILL! I RUSHED to get these ingredients and I RUSHED to get home to prepare this dish.. this amazing BEAN dish. Ohh.. uhhmmm.. all that stuff you just read up there - yanno, about the hate hate relationship I have with beans? 'kay that really had nothing much to do with this post because I like green beans. I've always liked them. heh heh So yeah, no, I've never really been known for shootin' straight from the hip. Ya dig? I kinda liked takin ya'll on a wild bean hatin' rant before I got to the point of this here post. heeee! So as I was saying, Alanna submitted this dish and I just fell in love with it, and honestly? I can't really say why. But I did and I tried it and it was the best bean salad I have ever had in my whole and entire life! The beans were crisp and flavorful, the dressing was tangy and zingy and was all about the Asian flavored love. And the icing on the cake was the Soy Glazed cashews that are sprinkled on top of the green beans. Those were so good on their own that Hubbs has informed me that no nut will pass his lips if they aren't soy glazed nuts. That didn't sound exactly right... If this description hasn't made you push yourself away from the screen in a mad dash to find yourself some green beans and the nut of your choice, then maybe this will help.. green beans are low in calories (only like 44 calories in 1 cup!), they are an excellent source of Vitamins C & K and something called manganese! And! And! They are really good for your heart and all the lil things attached to it! Dudes.. these green beans pack a major healthy punch! Since I only changed the type of nut used in Alanna's recipe, I'm not going to give the recipe here - but I am going to give you a word to click on that will take you to the recipe.. but kids? Single file, okay? Don't be jammin' up Alanna's site. :D Okay here's the word: --> UVULA <-- And because Alanna has already submitted a recipe to Ilva's and Joanna's Heart Of The Matter No. 4, and because The Heart Healthy gals prefer one-event submissions, I'm going to submit this recipe in Alanna's name just because I feel so strongly that it should be passed around and seen in events that are healthy eating related. So I'm hoping the gals won't see this as a recipe coming from another event as the Salad Stravaganza has yet to "debut". heee! PS - You might notice that I labeled this dish as a starter, a side dish and the main dinner dish, because I feel it would work as all three. =) xoxo

Crunchy Scallops with Citrus Sauce

We've started up the snow machine here in NE Ohio.. like I said before when we were having all that mild weather, when it starts to snow it's not going to stop! But I have to admit, grudgingly, that it is pretty - there's been a lot of it but it's been the big fluffy stuff. Normally when it's constantly snowing, I sink into cozy/hibernation mode when it comes to cooking. But since I've been on this "recreating" kick of late, I decided that the next restaurant recipe I wanted to try to figure out at home is a light, summery, scallop dish Hubbs had at that restaurant I told you about where I only ever ordered the pork tenderloin? Well he had this dish once and gave me a bite and I thought it had to be the best scallops I'd ever had. Unfortunately they were on special that night and never offered again after that. I've looked high and low for recipes that I could use as a platform to work off of but so far, nothing. And it's getting harder and harder for me because I'm trying to recreate something I had one bite of a good 4 years or so ago. This is my 3rd attempt and I knew just from reading the recipe, which I found on the Whole Foods website, strangely, that it wasn't going to be close either - but it was interesting enough on it's own to give it a shot - who knew maybe we'd find a good citrusy scallop dish that was just as good? These are breaded scallops, which I usually don't like at all - but I'd been having a craving for Panko so I subbed it for the regular breadcrumbs the recipe called for. Also I didn't have any baby bok choy on hand (imagine that!) so I served these with bite-sized chunks of roasted sweet potatoes with a lil drizzle of honey. Come to find out, they were the perfect side dish as the citrus sauce is quite tart. This dish was good - not one of my favorites - but Hubbs loved them. The scallops had a nice crunch and were tender on the inside. The sauce had a very good citrus flavor but ohhhh baby if you got a scallop with a lot of sauce on it you'd start to pucker! Not that that is a bad thing - for me the sauce really brought out the flavor of the scallop instead of over powering it, which was great. Crunchy Scallops with Citrus Sauce 1 1/2 c. freshly squeezed tangerine juice (3 to 4 tangerines) 1/4 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice (1 to 2 lemons) 1/4 c. freshly squeezed lime juice (1 to 2 limes) 1/4 c. chicken stock 3 garlic cloves, minced 2 TBS. honey or agave nectar (I used honey) 1 TBS. sugar 2 large egg whites 1 1/2 TBS. cornstarch or arrowroot 2 TBS. freshly squeezed lemon juice (I omitted this) 1/2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper, or to taste 30 large scallops, pat dry 1 1/2 c. sesame seeds (I used Panko) 1/4 c. canola oil (I used even less just enough to brown them without burning) 2 lbs. baby bok choy (Or 2 sweet potatoes chunked) To prepare the sauce, combine the tangerine juice, lemon juice, lime juice, chicken stock, garlic, honey and sugar in a heavy saucepan over high heat. Boil until slightly syrupy and reduced to 1 cup, about 15 minutes. Set aside. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Rewarm before using.) To prepare the scallops, in a large bowl, whisk together the egg whites, corn starch (or arrowroot), lemon, and cayenne pepper until blended. Add the scallops and toss to coat. Place the sesame seeds or Panko in a deep rimmed dish. One by one, dip the scallops in the coating, making sure to coat all sides. Place the coated scallops on a nonstick baking sheet, set aside. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until very hot. Carefully add half of the scallops to the hot skillet, and sear the scallops until golden, about 2 minutes. Turn the scallops over and continue to sear the other side for 2 minutes or more until golden on the outside and just opaque on the inside. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with remaining scallops. If using the bok choy the recipe says to trim it and cut it in half lengthwise. In a large deep saute pan with a fitted lid, place 1/3 c. water and 1/4 c. citrus sauce, stir to blend. Bring the liquid to a boil, add the bok choy and cover. Reduce the heat to low and steam for 2 to 4 minutes or until the bok choy is just tender and bright green. Remove from heat, toss in the liquid to coat. Place the bok choy on individual plates, arrange the scallops on top of the greens and drizzle with the remaining sauce. If using sweet potatoes, peel and chunk them into bite sized pieces. Lay them on a cookie sheet and drizzle olive oil and about a tsp. of sea salt over them then using your finger tips, toss to coat. Place sheet in a 425º F. oven and roast for about 25 - 30 minutes or until they are browned and tender. After plating, drizzle a small amount of honey over them.

The Day After... Part I

Well it's over. Hours upon hours of cooking. And then in a matter of 45 minutes or so those hours are a memory, your tummy is stuffed and all you can think about is that big over stuffed sofa with your heiney planted firmly upon it. Thanksgiving. Whadda ride. It started, for me, at 8:30 yesterday morning until 5:30 yesterday evening. I took about an hour break when I noticed there was a dog show on the tube. Can't pass those up, no I can not. My sister arrived during that time so we made a lil lunch and watched the cute puppies. My mom was due in a few hours and our other guests were due around 6ish. Everything was going well and I was pretty happy with myself and my progression through the day. At noon I had both desserts done, 3 side dishes prepped and ready to go into the oven later that night and 2 side dishes melding their flavors in my fridge. Not a bad start at all. So what the hell happened at 4 pm when I started freaking out because I wasn't even halfway through my list? It's like I left this dimension for a couple hours to be returned with hardly any time left to finish up! Appetizers had to be made! The stuffing wasn't prepared yet! The wine! Where the hell is the wine? Every single one of my lil candles needed a new tealight put in and My. God. is that dust on the TV? Just when I'm pattin' myself on the back, all the little stuff starts closing in on me and I panic. Much to the chagrin of Hubbs and my family, but they all know.. BACK OFF and let her go! I did finish everything with a 1/2 hour to spare to get myself presentable before our friends were due to arrive. Not too shabby, if I do say so myself. Quite a feat for the world's most unorganized cook. At 6 pm I was presentable and no longer smelling of flour, cinnamon and bananas (yes, bananas). I was ready to relax with my family and friends and to give thanks for another year of good fortune. No one died. I still own my house and vehicles. And my job? Regardless of how mind numbingly boring it is, I still have it. My 3 most favorite people were with me on this beautiful, sunny day and both of my kids were in good health and looking quite spiffy after their baths. Life is good. =) And then the phone rang at 6:01. They weren't coming. Someone is sick. I'm being told this story of dizziness and disorientation all the while scanning my counter tops, laden with various sized bowls and platters and baking dishes full to the brim with all that food. My party of 7 just got downsized to a party of 4. Well I guess it's better to have more than enough than too little, yes? And before anyone allows the thought to cross their mind that I'm a cold-hearted Thanksgiving chef who can only think of all the food she's made and not be concerned about her sick friend. Dizziness and disorientation also means, drunk with his buddies and most likely praying to the porcelain goddess while his wife called with her regards. Wayne saw his vehicle up at the local bar around 10:30 yesterday morning when I sent him out to procure more sweet potatoes and bananas because I feared the first batch just wasn't enough for 7 people. ha! And? This has happened before. Eh? Whatcha gonna do? What you do is carry on and enjoy the evening regardless! And that we did! Everything tasted wonderful, we got to play some games and watch a ridiculously stupid movie (You, Me and Dupree) and my sis and I got to have our giggling gossip time after everyone else went to bed. I thoroughly enjoyed myself :D So over the course of the next couple days I'm going to share with you some of the tried and true recipes we make each year as well as a new recipe I tried that really turned out well. Which is what I think I'll start with today. The morning of the Fabulous Food Show! I caught Tyler Florence's Ultimate Thanksgiving episode where he made all kinds of wonderful looking dishes including a recipe for Sweet Potatoes with Bananas and Honey. I was intrigued. Bananas and sweet potatoes? Kinda weird, but also kinda yummy sounding. I knew that morning that I'd be making it for Thanksgiving this year because it's the sweet potatoes that I haven't perfected yet.. always trying a new recipe each year. Here's to hoping that Tyler's would be the one! They were delicious, to say the least. The sweet potatoes and bananas really work well with each other. The only thing I wasn't crazy about what how sweet the dish turns out. A pretty heavy addition of honey to the mash and then the sweet topping of a brown sugar/butter/flour mixture was a bit too much. This could pass, easily, for a dessert. Now, I like my sweet potatoes sweet, but I need a lil savory there as well.. and there is no savory about this dish. But because of the banana/sweet potato combo, I will not give up on this recipe. I've already jotted down my notes for next year - I will cut the honey measurement in half, for sure. I will also go with a bigger sweet potato to banana ratio and will season this using more salt and pepper than called for. Finally, I will cut the brown sugar topping down to maybe a 1/3rd. With luck, those changes will create the ultimate sweet potato mash for my Thanksgiving dinners. I'm going to do something with the left over mash - possibly a pie or tart of some sort, maybe some muffins or a quick bread. We'll see what's left after Mom and Sis take their share of the leftovers later today. ;) Tyler Florence's Whipped Sweet Potatoes with Bananas and Honey 5 medium sweet potatoes, scrubbed 4 bananas, unpeeled 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature 1/4 cup honey Kosher salt 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 3/4 cup dark brown sugar 1 1/2 cups pecans, chopped (Hadda leave 'em off cuz I can't have them. *sigh*) Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Prick the sweet potatoes all over with a fork, put them in a roasting pan and roast for 30 minutes. Toss the bananas into the pan and continue roasting for 10 to 15 minutes, until both the bananas and potatoes are very soft. Remove the pan from the oven but don't turn the oven off. When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, scoop out the flesh into a large mixing bowl. Peel the bananas and add them to the bowl then give it all a good smash with a potato smasher or fork. Add 1 stick of the butter, and the honey. Season with salt and beat vigorously with a wooden spoon until everything's well combined and the mixture is fluffy. Spoon into an oven-proof serving bowl and smooth the top. In a separate mixing bowl, use your fingers to rub together the remaining stick of butter, the brown sugar, flour, and pecans until the mixture is the consistency of coarse crumbs. Sprinkle the crumb mixture over the sweet potatoes and return to the oven. Cook for about 20 minutes, until the crumbs are golden. Serve hot. My Notes: This dish can be prepared well ahead of time. I had my potatoes and bananas roasted early in the morning. Mashed them all together sometime during the afternoon and then put them in the baking dish with the topping a good hour or two before baking time. This could definitely be made a day ahead, stored in the fridge and maybe leaving the topping off until you're ready to bake.

A Night Off..

Hubbs had stayed home Monday with a sore back. Being the stubborn man that he is, did he stay off his feet and keep ice on his back all day? Uhhh no. His back must have been extremely painful as he NEVER misses work because of aches and pains.. but yet he managed to wash 3 loads of his work clothes, tidy the house, play with the kids outside - after he blew the leaves AND he made me dinner. I coulda killed him. ha! I had high hopes that the man would take it easy for ONE day.. just lay around and relax and do what had to be done to make his back feel better, as I've had back problems before and I know how excruciating the pain can get. He says moving around made it feel better - so move around he did. hehee! Course he ended up staying home Tuesday because it hurt worse, but who am I to say I TOLD YOU SO??!! :P So this dinner he made me.. Hubbs is a pretty good cook - he makes the best chicken soup I've ever had and his chili and beef stew aren't too shabby either. I refer to him, on occasion, as the "Bowl Chef" - if it is to be served in a bowl, he can make it well! hehe I was quite surprised with this dinner - he knows how much I lurve my Cooking Light cookbook so he took it down and went through it and picked two recipes to make - and neither required a bowl to serve it in! His first dish was Hashbrown Casserole with Bacon, Onions and Cheese. Out of the two this was my favorite. It was a creamy and smokey casserole that was really flavorful. I think it'd be the perfect side dish to pork chops, chicken or steak. He went with beef to serve with it, specifically Asian Beef. This was also very flavorful, but we both agreed, probably not the best to be served with a bacony potato side. It really needed a more benign side dish, to allow it's flavors to be the "star" of the dinner. Tender sirloin steak marinated in soy, ginger, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar and sliced green onions. The recipe called for the whole steak to be broiled until cooked the way we prefer, but he asked me if I'd mind showing him how to stir-fry. So he sliced it into bite sized strips while I heated the wok and just a few minutes later we had Stir-fried Asian Beef. I liked this, as it had a sweet tangy flavor and the onions really came through as well. I think this marinade would be much better on pork and I'd like to try it that way one day served with rice. All in all it was a very nice dinner made by a very nice man =) Hash Brown Casserole with Bacon, Onions and Cheese Adapted from Cooking Light's Annual Recipes 2006 6 bacon slices 1 c. chopped onion 2 garlic cloves, minced 2 (32 oz.) package frozen Southern-style hash brown potatoes (We just had plain refrigerated hash brown potatoes, so he doctored them up with red bell pepper) 1 c. (4 oz.) preshredded Classic Melts Four Cheese blend, divided (Never heard of that particular cheese, so he just used shredded 4 cheese Mexican blend) 1/2 c. chopped green onions 1/2 c. fat-free sour cream 1/2 tsp. salt 1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper 1 (10.75 oz.) can condensed 30%-reduced-sodium, 98%-fat-free cream of mushroom soup, undiluted Cooking spray Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, and crumble. Discard drippings in pan. Add 1 c. onion and garlic to pan, cook 5 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in potatoes, cover and cook 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Combine crumbled bacon, 1/4 c. cheese, green onions, sour cream, salt, pepper and soup in a large bown. Add potato mixture; toss gently to combine. Spoon mixture into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with 3/4 c. cheese. Cover with foil coated with cooking spray. Refrigerate 8 hours or overnight. Preheat oven to 350º F Remove casserole from refrigerator, let stand at room temperature 15 minutes. Bake casserole, covered, at 350º for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 30 minutes or until bubbly around edges and cheese begins to brown. Yield: 6 servings - serving size about 1 cup. Asian Beef Adapted from Cooking Light's Annual Recipes 2006 1/3 c. chopped green onions 3 TBS. low-sodium soy sauce 2 TBS. rice wine vinegar 2 TBS. brown sugar 1 tsp. toasted sesame oil 1 tsp. minced garlic - about 1 decent sized clove 1 tsp. minced ginger (recipe called for bottled, he used fresh) 1 pound flank steak, trimmed (he used a 1 lb. sirloin steak) Cooking spray Preheat boiler Combine first 7 ingredients in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Place steak on a broiler rack coated with cooking spray. Pour soy mixture over steak. Broil steak 3 inches from heat 5 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Let stand 5 minutes; cut around grain into thin slices. Yield: 4 servings - serving size 3 ounces Note: If using a more tender cut of meat, such as we did, you can get away with stir-frying this, by cutting the meat into strips, adding a tsp. of oil to a well heated wok and then placing the meat along with a couple TBS. of the marinade and stir-frying until meat is done the way you like it.

Funky lil salad

This lil crunchy salad is one of our favorites, the recipe given to me by my "therapist" also known as one of my bestest friends ever, Kim. Kim has given me a few recipes that I find interesting in a funky way.. and by funky I guess I mean kinda weird. Ingredients that aren't ordinary, put together to make something quite delicious. This is one of those recipes. Doesn't it look a lil funkdified? Wondering what exactly is in this bowl? Yeah, I did too when she first took it out of her fridge years ago. I snubbed my nose at it.. until she forced me to take a bite - literally shoved a forkful into my face while holding the back of my head so I couldn't get outta the way. Yeah, that's a fond memory. :P Of course I'm sure there was no beer involved in that little episode. heeheee Anyhoo, am glad she did it because it's delicious! An earthy and crunchy salad that becomes addicting once you've taken your first bite. The broccoli gives it that earthy taste and the crunch comes from everything else including roasted sunflower seeds, almond slices and ramen noodles. Yes! Ramen Noodles! Okay how to explain this.. the broccoli slaw itself. It's pre-bagged, I don't make it from scratch. So if you can't find it in your bagged salad section of your store, I would imagine that it'd be easy enough to make on your own - and although I've been way to lazy over the years and have never attempted to try to make my own, I suspect the salad would be even better tasting had I julienned my own carrots, red cabbage and broccoli stalks. There are no florets of broccoli, but again, my guess would be if you are forced (or not lazy like I am) the florets would be a wonderful addition. The other thing is the dressing. I have no idea exactly how much veggie oil and how much balsamic you use. I was taught when making this salad to use one of those lil bottles you can buy that comes with those little packages of Good Season's dressing mixes. You don't use the Good Season's dressing mix in this recipe, just the bottle. lol What you do is pour the balsamic in to the first line on the bottle and then fill the rest of the bottle (about to the halfway mark of the neck of the bottle) with veggie oil - and then the "seasoning" is the package of Ramen Noodle seasoning! Chicken preferably. I told you it was funky!! :D Broccoli Slaw 2 pkgs. Broccoli Slaw 2 pkgs. Ramen Noodles, chicken flavor 1 c. roasted & salted sunflower seeds 1 c. sliced almonds Balsamic vinegar - (I'll make a guestimate that it's at least 1/4 c.) Veg, Canola or Olive oil - (guestimate of maybe 3/4 - 1 c.?) Lay your bag of Ramen Noodles on your counter, unopened. Find something heavy - I use the flat side of my hammer like device that's made for pounding chicken or meat. What the hell is that called again? Give your ramen noodles a good smashing to break them up into bite sized pieces. Open the bags and take the seasoning packs out then pour the noodles, along with the rest of the ingredients, except dressing, into a large bowl that has a lid. Fill your cruet (or jar) with the balsamic & oil then add the seasoning packs from the ramen noodles. Shake it all up until it's emulsified. Pour the whole thing over your salad and put the lid on the bowl - shake, shake, shake.. shake your funkdified crunchy salad.. shake your funkdified crunchy salad (all the time humming the "Shake your Booty" song that creeps into your head and NEVER. LEAVES.) Refrigerate for a few hours.. every once in a while giving it another good shake to make sure the dressing is doing it's thing to soften the ramen noodles. Because, yes.. your salad should NOT have crunchy ramen noodles as they are not tasty and you can break a tooth on them. Enjoy! Shake, shake, shake.. shake, shake, shake.. shake your booty! shake your booty!

Spiced Pork Tenderloin with Grilled Zucchini

Have I ever mentioned how much I love my Cuisine at Home mags? Have I mentioned this about 89 kazillion times? Well I do, dammit! I'm even kind of feeling guilty for not going to all of my cookbooks for new recipes anymore.. I've got some serious change invested in them and mostly they are dust collectors because I'm so damn addicted to these cooking mags. Sheesh. Cuisine at Home has a section called 1-2-3 Weeknight, where they feature quick and easy recipes for the tired cook after putting their 8 in the dungeon, bless them. :D I chose this pork tenderloin recipe because of the rub. It has cayenne pepper in it, folks! Yessssssss I took a ride on the wild side last night! Okay well not really, the recipe called for 1/2 tsp. and I kinda only used about 1/4 tsp. small steps, people.. small steps! The rub was very good.. I could feel the heat on the back of my tongue, but it was actually pleasant and didn't make me want to run to my mommie. Now anyone else probably wouldn't even know it was there, but for me it was pretty damn good! The tenderloin was succulent, juicy and melt in your mouth tender. Yum! The zucchini was fabulous.. such a loverly lil summer squash (lurve you lil zucchinis!). I want to thank BNA of Peanut Butter and Purple Onions for reminding me of my grill pan sitting in my cupboard being neglected =) With all the rain we've been getting, firing up the big grill outside just wasn't gonna happen for me so remembering my grill pan came in very handy! Spiced Pork Tenderloin with Grilled Zucchini For the Pork 3 TBS. brown sugar 1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt 1/2 tsp. cayenne 2 pork tenderloins, trimmed (This rub was barely enough for 1 tenderloin, so I suggest doubling it if you are making 2) Preheat grill to medium Combine brown sugar, salt and cayenne; rub mixture over tenderloins. Lightly coat each with nonstick spray. Grill tenderloins about 20 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 145º F., turning to brown all sides. Let rest for 5 minutes before slicing. For the Zucchini 1 medium zucchini 1 tsp. kosher salt 1 tsp. pepper Olive oil for drizzling Cut your zucchini into coins. Drizzle a little of the oil on the grill pan (You want to start your squash about 10 minutes after the tenderloin went on) and place the zucchini in a single layer, salt & pepper and drizzle a little more oil over the top. Grill for about 2 minutes and flip, salt & peppering the other side. Grill for about another 2 minutes or until they are as tender as you like them. *Note: I have one of those large, cast iron, grill pans that sits over 2 burners on the stove, so I could grill my zucchini and tenderloin all at once. If you have a smaller grillpan, grill your zucchini after the tenderloin is done cooking.. while it's resting.

Are you starting to see a theme here?

After Friday night's bomb of Mushroom Ragù with Soft Polenta, I opted for an old standby on Saturday night that I knew would be delish and wouldn't take forever. I also realized.. wow I eat a lot of wings! There really isn't a "recipe" for this dish.. you simply salt, pepper and paprika your wings and place in frying pan with a teeny amount of oil in it.. just barely enough to cover the bottom. Brown your wings on each side and then add sliced up bell pepppers. The more peppers the better. Usually when I make a whole batch of these wings (a whole family-sized package - 14 to 16 whole wings?), and not just a few for just me, I end up using at least 4 whole peppers if not 5. When I cut it down to 6 wings last night I used 2 whole yellow peppers. The color of the pepper doesn't really matter, but the length of time you cook them does. You really want the peppers to get soft and carmelized. If a few of them look burnt, even better - they have a fantastic taste when they are soft yet almost black looking. The wings take between 25 and 35 minutes to cook all the way through, but if your peppers aren't quite done by then, you can remove the wings and allow the peppers to keep cooking. Sometimes I'll add onions with the peppers, which Hubbs loves. =) I did a simple roasting of zucchini and halved grape tomatoes with olive oil, salt & pepper and some herbs I had left in the fridge.. thyme and sage. But you can use any herbs you like or none at all. I roasted them at 450º F. for about 20 minutes. Wings with Peppers and Roasted Veggies

Mom's birthday - delish dinner for three...

For weeks I have been thinking about what to make for her birthday dinner. I wanted it to be something special but different from the norm. I came across a couple things that gave me some ideas but nothing that excited me.. until I saw Marianne's recipes for Mushroom Soup and Tenderloin "in Crosta". I immediately invisioned dunking a crispy, herbed bread paired with a tender and juicy slice of savory pork into a hearty broth then barely making it to my mouth before a single drop could hit my plate. My gawd.. it sounded just way too good. Tenderloin "in Crosta" Copied verbatim from Marianne's The Unemployed Chef serves 3-4 For the herb garlic rub: small handfull fresh rosemary leaves slightly larger hadfull fresh sage leaves zest of one lemon (this is my addition, I recommend it) 4-5 cloves garlic small handfull sea salt Chop all ingredients together until very, very fine--I actually grated the zest and garlic on a microplane and combined it with everything else. Spread out on a large dinner plate and leave out until dry--1 or 2 days. Once dry, you can store this for a week or two in a tightly sealed jar. Lebovitz recommends this for any number of purposes, including mixing it with olive oil and using it as a dipping sauce for bread. For the tenderloin: one smallish pork tenderloin 1 french batard (like a fatter baguette) herb garlic rub olive oil Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Heat some olive oil in a skillet over high heat and sear the pork quickly on all sides. Transfer to a plate. Slice the batard lengthwise and drizzle each half generously with some olive oil. Sprinkle with the herb garlic rub--be careful to not use too much or the bread will be too salty. Sandwich the browned tenderloin between the two slices and wrap tightly with aluminum foil. Cook directly on the oven rack for about an hour and fifteen minutes (the meat should reach 160 degrees and still be pink in the center. Yes, it is done enough). Remove from oven and let sit, wrapped in foil, for 5 minutes. Slice and serve. Mushroom Soup serves 2 2 Tbsp butter olive oil 1 medium shallot, finely chopped 1 8-oz. package button mushrooms, stemmed and thinly sliced 1 6-oz. package cremini (baby Bella) mushrooms, stemmed and thinly sliced 1 c. homemade chicken stock* 1 c. vegetable stock .5 c. dry white wine 1 beef bouillion cube fresh parsley, coarsely chopped fresh tarragon, coarsely chopped sea salt fresh ground pepper *The chicken stock I made was pretty thick and viscous, so I chose to mix it with some boxed vegetable stock I had on hand. Feel free to use 2 cups of whatever stock you have instead. Heat butter in a medium saucepan over medium high heat until foamy. Add mushrooms and saute until the excess moisture evaporates and they are golden brown. Mushrooms love to soak up oil, but they do release it, so fight the temptation to add more. Spoon into a bowl and set aside. I followed Marianne's recipes almost to the T. The only changes I made were cooking the pork until well done, because I know my mother.. she will not put a piece of pink pork near her lips! hehe Then, I couldn't find a french batard, so I chose an artisan roasted garlic bread, which was fabulous and I really think added to the herb/lemon/garlic rub. And finally, just doubling the recipe for the soup because there were 3 of us and I knew I'd want leftovers =) The tenderloin came out as tender as Marianne promised. The rub for the bread was well worth starting this recipe two nights before the "main event", as my mom and sister can attest to. I had to push them away from my counter where it was resting so that there would actually be some bread to go with the tenderloin. They wouldn't stop tearing off pieces and shoving it into their mouths! And the soup.. it was just so flavorful and EASY and QUICK! I know there are a lot of soups out there that you can whip up in a jiff.. but this soup tasted as if it had been simmering all day long. And wow.. it really did pair well with that tenderloin - dunking the bread along with the meat into the soup was every bit as good as the way I'd imagined it! I added a simple side dish of roasted new red potatoes and zucchini. Slice the veggies then throw 'em onto a baking sheet. Drizzle olive oil over them along with a good sprinkle of sea salt, freshly ground black pepper and snipped chives then toss them with the tips of your fingers before situating them in a single layer. Place the baking sheet on the rack below your tenderloin "in crosta" for the last 40 minutes of baking time, flipping them over once mid-way. Kids.. run. Do not walk to your kitchen to create these fabulous recipes for yourselves.. your lips will thank you!

A dinner for one...

My fiance, Wayne, is out of town on a job for work. He's been gone for 4 weeks now and still has another 4 to 6 weeks (if not longer) to go.. so it's just me and "the kids". I miss him tremendously, but the good news is, he's coming home for a long weekend in 10 days.. I'm so excited!! While he's been gone, I haven't really done too much cooking. It's not quite as fun when you are just cooking for yourself. Hmm.. well, I guess that's not a truly accurate statement. I have been cooking - but nothing new, like I cook when he's home. Normally I try to find something new for us to try as often as I can. I try to incorporate foods we don't normally eat, or preparations that we don't normally use. Sunday's are usually the big dinner day.. especially this fall/winter season, as we've been hitting the farmer's markets a lot on Saturdays. Today though, I decided to give in to a craving for a meatloaf I love and to try a recipe for a side dish that I had found on Culinary in the Desert (love that blog!). Tonight's dinner for one was a Meatloaf with Ranch Seasoning and French Fried Onions - a recipe I found off Allrecipes.com many, many moons ago and Carrot Coins in a Maple-Balsamic Browned Butter, thanks to Joe at C in the D. The meatloaf turned out fantastic as it always does and the carrots were absolutely yummy. I was a little hesitant cooking with maple syrup as I've never used it for anything other than pancakes & french toast. But the combination of the maple and the sweet tang of the balsamic vinegar along with the already sweet carrots was quite delightful.. a great compliment to the savory meatloaf. I like this meatloaf so much because it's quick and easy - and I usually always have the ingredients in my pantry. I usually double the recipe for the two of us, but this time I followed the recipe exactly and it was a perfect size for my dinner tonight, a lunch another day this week and nice dinner I can take to my mom. I also did a little baking today, again a recipe from C in the D. Chewy ginger cookies. I love homemade ginger cookies and these were definitely the very best I've ever had. They were crispy around the edges and chewy in the middle.. and so buttery! I don't think I've ever tasted such a buttery flavor in a ginger cookie before and really, this recipe doesn't call for any more butter than other recipes I've tried. I did leave 2 ingredients.. the crystallized ginger, as I didn't have any on hand and was too lazy to run up to the store for it and the cloves because I do not like cloves. That was pretty much my day.. it was cold, wet and foggy here today.. perfect for time spent in the kitchen. Unfortunately, all other energy and time was spent on lounging on the sofa with the dogs watching movies and reading.. ahhh the perfect Sunday :D Meatloaf with Ranch Seasoning and French Fried Onions 1 1/2 lbs. ground chuck 1/4 c. ketchup 2 eggs, beaten 1/2 pkg. ranch dressing seasoning mix 3/4 c. dry chicken flavored stuffing mix 6 oz. + 2 TB. french fried onions Preheat oven to 350º F. In large bowl, combine all ingredients (except 2 TB. onions) thoroughly. Press into a 9" x 5" loaf pan and sprinkle remaining onions on top. Cover loosely with foil and bake for 50 to 60 min.* *Note: I bake it covered for 45 min. and then take the foil off and bake for another 15 min. I find this really crisps up the onions on top. *Update* Because I think this is such a great meatloaf recipe, I'm going to submit it to the Meatloaf Madness round up at Eating for One! Check out all the rest of the delicious recipes at Eating for One =) Carrot Coins with Maple-Balsamic Browned Butter 3 1/4 c. sliced, peeled carrots - about 1 lb. cut 1/4 inch thick 1 TB butter 1 TB maple syrup 1 tsp. balsamic vinegar 1/8 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper 1 tsp. chopped fresh parsley Steam carrots, covered, 15 minutes or until tender. Melt butter in a medium non-stick skillet over medium heat. Cook butter 3 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring occasionally. Add syrup, vinegar, salt and black pepper, stir until combined. Add carrots, cook 1 minute or until thoroughly heated, stirring to coat. Stir in parsley. Chewy Ginger Cookies 3/4 c. butter, softened 1 c. sugar 1/4 c. molasses 1 egg 2 tsp. baking soda 2 1/4 c. flour 1/2 tsp. ground cloves rounded 1/2 tsp. ground ginger 2 tsp. cinnamon 3 oz. crystallized ginger, chopped coarsely Preheat oven to 375º F. In a large mixing bowl, combine softened butter, sugar, molasses and egg. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda and spices. Stir into the wet ingredients and mix well. Fold in the chopped ginger. Chill for at least 1 hour. Scoop out the dough to about 1" balls and gently roll in granulated sugar. Place on parchment lined cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart. Bake 8 to 10 min. Let cool on cookie sheet for about 5 min. before moving to a wire rack. Makes about 36 cookies. I have pictures of everything but haven't figured out the trick of getting them to show up yet.. will work on that another day.