NY Style Bagels, by Diane

 Making bagels has been on my list for a long time now, because I love cooking projects that take a bit more time and teach you new skills. Also, it's rare that I get to have an authentic New York bagel, and while many in my area are close, I thought I'd see what it would be like to try it on my own. Plus- we have the goal of making bread for the month of January for our Cooking Class, and bagels fit perfectly into that goal!!! I found a recipe from an actual NY bagel maker who spent 20+ years making them in his own bagel shop (http://johndlee.hubpages.com/hub/Homemade_bagel_recipe_Make_great_nadrolled_water_bagels__its_as_easy_as_baking_a_loaf_of_bread).
I figured he might be a good expert to follow, plus this seemed like the best and easiest recipe to follow of all the ones I found online.

So, on New Year's Eve of all nights, I found myself stuck in the house with a crazy eye infection and antibiotics from strep that wouldn't let me drink, and I thought to myself- why not take on a cooking project to distract me! I know it's not January yet, but I'm using the bagels to ring in the new year tomorrow at brunch so I'm counting it!

For toppings, I chose sesame seed and a garlic/sea salt combo (they came together in a shaker I bought at Target!), but really you can choose any toppings you like! I also made fancy cream cheeses by mixing a block of cream cheese (I used lowfat) and whatever flavoring I wanted (I used scallions in one and strawberry jam in the other) in bowls with mixers on medium until they were whipped and blended! Yum!!

The final verdict: These bagels were DELICIOUS, though not quite on par with NY. But they were awesome substitutes. They were really easy to make and though they took a while to make most of that time was the wait between the steps. I had to add a bit more flour than called for because my dough was really sticky, and I'm not sure if that influenced the outcome or not. Otherwise, my only note is watch the sea salt- a little goes a long way as I unfortunately found out!!


Ingredients:


4 cups bread flour
1 Tbsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 tsp instant yeast
1-1/4- 1-1/2 cups of warm water



Directions:

(I'm just copying and pasting from the website since he states it best!)


Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. You don't have to worry about soaking the yeast when you use instant yeast (most yeast sold these days is instant yeast). The dough should feel stiff, but add the extra water if it's really stiff, or you can't get all the dry flour incorporated.
Plop the dough down onto the counter, and knead for about ten minutes, or until the dough is uniform and smooth.
Cut the dough into 8 equal sized balls, and let rest for 10-20 minutes.
Pre heat your oven to 425.
Now, take each of the dough balls and using two hands, roll it into a little snake on the counter. When the snake is longer than the width of your two hands, wrap it around your dominant roiling hand. The dough rope should be wrapped so the overlapping ends are together at your palm, near the start of your fingers. Now take the two overlapping ends, and use your palm to squish/roll these two ends together. Once the dough is fused, you should have a perfectly circular bagel-to-be! This is the only part of the process that can take a little practice before your bagels will look really professional. Don't get discouraged if they don't look perfect, it just takes practice!

First attempt at shaping bagels!! Not too bad!

Let your bagels rest on the counter for about 20 minutes, and meanwhile, bring a pot of water to boil, and grease a large baking tray lightly. You can just rub a splash of vegetable oil and rub it around.
After the 20 minute wait, your bagels will start to look puffy, and it's time to get them boiling! Add them as many at a time as you can to your boiling water without crowding them. Boil for about a minute, turn them over, and boil for another minute. Take them out a let dry for a minute and then place them on your oiled baking tray. Repeat until all the bagels are boiled. (You can add any toppings you like to these. To make sesame, onions, poppy seed, caraway etc. etc. bagels just have a dry plate ready with the seed or spice topping spread out on it. After the bagels have come out of the boiling water, place them face down onto the seeds, and then place the seed side up onto the baking tray. Bake and flip as for plain bagels.)

Toppings all ready to go

Look how big they got after boiling!! Ready for a bake in the oven.

Add the tray to the oven, and after 10 minutes, flip the bagels over, bake for another ten minutes; and they're done! Let them cool for at least 20 minutes.

Out of the oven!!! Just have to wait 20 minutes longer.....

Bean Burgers, by Cheryl

Continuing on with my health kick, I decided to try bean burgers from www.ashleyscookingadventures.blogspot.com. These are definitely a healthy option for burgers, although I'll be making them for one from now on since Jon was not too happy when I presented him with a "burger" that was not made of beef! He was not a fan, and I think if I make these again I need to use much less salt. I also need to figure out how to get them to stay together more, rather than them falling apart while eating them. Overall, they were a good option and with tomatoes, cheese, and avocado on top it was pretty tasty! Yum!

Ingredients:

1 can of kidney beans drained and rinsed

2 tablespoons whole wheat flour

1/4 cup finely chopped mushrooms

1/8 cup finely chopped bell peppers

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon paprika

Burger toppings of your choice: cheese, tomatoes, onion, ketchup, etc

Directions:

1) Combine beans, flour, mushrooms, bell peppers, and spices in a large mixing bowl. With a fork or potato masher, mash ingredients together until the beans are broken up. If ingredients get too dry, add 1/2 tsp of water or olive oil.

2) With your hands form mixture into patties the size of a standard burger . Spray skillet with cooking spray and heat to medium-high. Allow the patties to cook for about 3-4 minutes on each side. Complete burgers should be crispy on both sides and not fall apart easily.

3) Top with cheese and/or other toppings of your choice.

Southwestern Quinoa Salad, by Cheryl

I've been searching for some healthy meals to eat for lunch and dinner and came across this one on www.ashleyscookingadventures.com. I am in love with this recipe! It was so good that even Jon liked it and it is very hard to convince him to try some of my healthier recipes. Not only is this full of fiber and protein, but the quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) is super healthy and has all nine essential amino acids making it a complete protein source for humans (which is rare among plants). It also is a very good source of magnesium, iron, copper, and phosphorus, and is gluten free. I will be making this dish by the boatloads and having it for lunch or as a side dish at dinner. If Jon likes it then you know it tastes great! Yum!!!

Ingredients:

1 cup cooked quinoa

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

8 green onions, chopped

1 red bell pepper, seeded

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 cup corn (I used canned corn)

2 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained

Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

1) Cook 1 cup of quinoa according to directions and set aside. In a large bowl whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, vinegar and cumin.

2) Add green onions, red bell pepper, cilantro, corn, and beans and toss to coat.

3) Fluff the quinoa and break up any chunks. Add the quinoa to the bowl with the veggies and mix well. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve.

Chicken Pot Pie Stew with Dumplings, by Diane

 This week it suddenly got freezing, and that combined with me still recovering from being sick I graduated to the next best thing to chicken soup! My mom made up this recipe a few years back and it is exactly like a chicken pot pie (same ingredients) but in soup form. The best part though is these doughy dumplings that get tossed in in the last few minutes. Yum!!!


Ingredients:

1 tbsp. EVOO
6 carrots, peeled and chopped
3 celery stalks, chopped
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 bag frozen mixed vegetables (corn, carrots, green beans)
1/2 bag frozen peas
1 spring fresh thyme, leaves removed
1 tsp. poultry seasoning
3 chicken breasts, cubed (rotisserie chicken works too)
3 cans condensed cream of chicken soup (we use 99% fat free)
3 cans-worth of water or milk
3 cans-worth of chicken broth (we use 99% fat free and low sodium)
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 cups Bisquick baking mix (we use low fat)
2/3 cup skim milk


Directions:

1. In a large soup pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add in raw veggies and saute until tender, about 7 minutes. Add in frozen veggies and cook until thawed. Remove veggies (leave the juice in the pot) and set aside in bowl.

2. Add chicken into the pot along with thyme and poultry seasoning, cooking in the leftover veggie liquid until just white on all sides.

3. Add veggies back into pot, along with remaining ingredients through pepper. Use the empty cream of chicken soup cans to measure your other liquids, adjusting the amount of chicken broth until the stew is your desired consistency.

4. Bring to a boil, then reduce to low and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes or longer (it's ready after 30 but tastes better the longer it cooks, up to 1.5 hours). Stir occasionally.

5. In the last 20 minutes, add in your dumpling dough by the spoonful (mix the two remaining ingredients in a bowl to form dough). Cook uncovered for 10 minutes, then covered for 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Pie Milkshake, by Diane

This past week I've been sick with strep throat and couldn't swallow any solids. After a few days of tea and chicken soup broth, I needed something more substantial and since it was the holiday time I thought this was a good way of combining some ingredients I was seriously lacking towards the end of the week. It was so good that I think I'll bring it back next year, hopefully with no sore throat :)

Ingredients:

1/2 cup canned pumpkin (I picked the 100% pumpkin just to be healthier, but you can get the canned pumpkin pie mix now too which would have all your spices and sugars)

1/2 cup skim milk

1 cup light vanilla frozen yogurt

1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

2 packets splenda

Optional: whipped cream on top!

Directions: Blend and enjoy!!

White Chocolate & Cranberry Cookies, by Cheryl

I decided to make cookies for our landlords and security guard for the Christmas holiday. Besides them all being very nice people I thought it also be best to stay on everyone's good side :) Of course this really put my Italian on the spot since none of them speak English. I went up and said, "Ho cucinato questi per Natale e per tu e tua famiglia. Loro sono biscotti con ciocciolato bianco e mirtilli rossi". "I cooked these for Christmas for you and your family. They are cookies with white chocolate and cranberries". I was pretty proud of the fact that the only thing I had to look up was cranberries! I was also pretty proud that I used the past tense since I'm learning that right now. They were very thankful and appreciated the gesture. I also made a batch for me and Jon to share, which are almost all gone since they are soooo delicious! A very festive cookie for this time of year. Yum!

Ingredients (makes about 24 cookies), taken from www.allrecipes.com:
1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg
3/4 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup dried cranberries
1 tablespoon vanilla

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Combine the flour and baking soda; stir into the sugar mixture. Mix in the white chocolate chips and cranberries. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheets.
3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. For best results, take them out while they are still doughy. Allow cookies to cool for 1 minute on the cookie sheets before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

Healthy Pancakes, by Cheryl

I stumbled upon this recipe on my friend Ashley's cooking blog www.ashleyscookingadventures.com. I thought it would be a great alternative for pancakes since we eat so many carb laden foods in Italy. The result was a very healthy and good for you pancake! They definitely had the low carb taste to them so I didn't even attempt to make them for Jon! I plan to give this recipe to my dad who's always looking for low carb versions of his favorite things. Overall, I would make these again! Yum!

Ingredients:

4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature (I used the 1/3 less fat version)
4 eggs
6 tablespoons Flax meal
2 tablespoons coconut flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup pecans

Directions:

1) In a large bowl combine all of the ingredients and whisk to combine.

2) Heat a nonstick skillet or griddle over medium heat. Use a 1/4 measuring cup to drop your pancakes onto the skillet. Flip when golden brown on one side.

3) Serve with butter and/or syrup.

Apple-Beet-Carrot-Ginger Juice, by Diane

Before...

...After!!!

This year for Chanukkah I asked for a juicer, since juicing seems to be the latest health craze here and I've been pretty interested in it for a few months. Juicing involves taking fresh, raw, and hopefully organic fruits, vegetables, and plants and extracting the juice into a very healthy drink. The skin and leaves and even cores of most items are left on because you are trying to get the most nutrients possible in your drink. The idea behind juicing yourself (or going to one of the many juice bars that are popping up here) is that you drink what you juice on the spot, rather than drinking bottled juice, because there are several key enzymes that disappear after even a few hours of being extracted. 

I had been drinking Naked's Green Machine for a while now because of it's healthy ingredients, but hated the amount of sugars in the drink. So, after hearing several friends proclaim that it was making them feel amazing, I decided to ask for a juicer for Chanukkah. I started out with this recipe, because it's the sweetest and most "juice" tasting juice recipe I know while still being mostly veggies. It is an acquired taste because of the beet, but one that very quickly becomes delicious and is surprisingly filling. I have been using this basic recipe to add in other things like pears and cucumbers, too. So far I feel a bit better and it's definitely the healthiest meal of my day!!

Ingredients:

2 apples (I like gala for their sweetness)

4 carrots

1 small beet

1/4 inch slice ginger

Few drops fresh lemon juice (to keep the apples from browning)

Directions:

1. Prewash all ingredients with an organic wash to make sure you are getting rid of pesticides, etc. since the skin will remain on. Chop off any brown spots or rough ends.

2. Place ingredients whole in juicer, adding in the lemon drops after the apples.

3. Drink cold and immediately!

Beef and Butternut Squash Chili, by Diane

Cheryl and I started this blog with all kinds of ways to eat butternut squash, and a few months ago I found a new one- chili. This recipe looked unique, and it definitely tasted different. It wound up being like a cross between beef stew and beef chili. The red wine made it kind of tangy and the spices were really good. Overall it was a good dish to keep you warm (it's freezing here again!) and a nice new way to eat butternut squash!!

ps- this is another CL recipe...

Ingredients:

Cooking spray (I omitted this)
1 tablespoon canola oil, divided 
1 1/2 pounds boneless chuck roast, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes 
3/4 teaspoon salt 
1 1/2 cups chopped onion 
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper 
2 tablespoons tomato paste 
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic 
2 teaspoons diced jalapeño pepper
2/3 cup dry red wine 
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ancho chile pepper (I had to sub chili pepper)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes, undrained and chopped 
1 (15-ounce) can no-salt-added kidney beans, rinsed and drained 
2 cups (1/2-inch) cubed peeled butternut squash 
1 cup coarsely chopped carrot 
6 tablespoons reduced-fat sour cream 
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves

Directions:

1. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add 1 teaspoon oil; swirl. Sprinkle beef with salt. Add beef to pan; sauté 8 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Remove beef.
2. Add 2 teaspoons oil to pan. Add onion and bell pepper; sauté 3 minutes. Add tomato paste, garlic, and jalapeño; sauté 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add wine; bring to a boil, scraping pan. Cook 2 minutes. Return beef to pan.
3. Stir in ancho chile pepper and the next 7 ingredients (through kidney beans), and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium, and simmer gently for 1 hour. Add butternut squash and 1 cup carrot, and simmer for 1 hour or until beef is tender. Ladle 1 1/3 cups chili into each of 6 bowls, and top each with 1 tablespoon sour cream and 1 teaspoon cilantro.

Galaam Oop, by Diane

Tonight's dinner is another CL recipe (the November issue was a big source of inspiration to me, unfortunately the December one is not so much, so I'll be hunting for inspiration elsewhere!). The article it's from was about a literal dream come true for me- taking cooking courses overseas and then writing about it. The author went to Thailand (somewhere I've been dreaming to go to and would be the site of my next vacation if a certain someone hadn't just moved to the amalfi coast!) and the recipes she learned looked amazing. Having never cooked thai myself (outside of crappy boxes of pad thai from the grocery store) I picked out this recipe because it seemed really unique. Apparently the name means cabbage that is steamed with little or no oil. 

The dish was easy enough to make, and I liked the use of ground sirloin instead of other types of ground beef, but the problem was in the flavor. It was seriously lacking any. Once I added soy sauce, it turned out to be really addicting. I also had to omit the peanut oil (I subbed canola) because I couldn't find it, which may have altered the flavor a tad. Overall, this was a good dish once the soy sauce was added- but without it I'd never make it again. I also doubled the recipe because the serving size was only a cup per person which is really small.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons peanut oil
1 cup thinly vertically sliced shallots
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/4 pound ground sirloin
4 cups finely shredded cabbage (about 1 small head)
1 cup thin plum tomato wedges (about 2 medium)
1/3 cup coarsely chopped unsalted, dry-roasted peanuts

Directions:

1. Heat a wok or Dutch oven over medium heat (I used a saucepot with a tight lid).

2. Add peanut oil to pan, and swirl to coat. Add shallots, salt, turmeric, and red pepper; cook for 3 minutes or until shallots are tender, stirring frequently.

3. Add beef; cook for 2 minutes or until the beef begins to brown.

4. Add cabbage and tomato; toss well to combine. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and cook for 10 minutes or until cabbage wilts.

5. Stir in peanuts; cover and cook 10 minutes or until cabbage is tender.

Thanksgiving Turkey, by Cheryl

Living in Italy, this was the first time Jon and I were going to be without family for Thanksgiving. This also meant that this was the first time we were hosting T-day and the first time we were going to make a turkey! We invited about 8 other people to come over to eat. And eat we did! The turkey that we made came out perfectly... and it only took a maximum of 2 hours to cook for a 15 pound turkey! We brined the turkey beforehand and I think that accounted for a lot of its juiciness and retained flavor. All in all Thanksgiving was a success largely in part to this turkey! We plan on making it the same way next year. Yum!

Ingredients:

Whole turkey, with giblets, liver, and other junk removed
1 cup salt
2 1/2 gallons water
1/2 gallon chicken or turkey broth
1 onion, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
3 celery, chopped
butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
kitchen twine or unwaxed floss

For the brine (for a 15 pound turkey):

1) We had to use a cooler to put our turkey in so it required 3 gallons of liquid. If you use a big bowl you might just need 2. Half a gallon was chicken broth and the other half was water.

2) Add in 1 cup of salt and 1/2 cup of brown sugar. The ratio is 1/2 cup of salt to 1 gallon of water. We used brown sugar in one of the 1/2 cups to give it some sweetness. Mix.

3) Place turkey in cooler/bowl and refrigerate for 10-14 hours.

4) Afterwards, remove the turkey from the brine and pat dry. Refrigerate uncovered for another 8 hours.


Directions for cooking:

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2) Pour about a cup of water or chicken broth into a roasting pan. Scatter in half of the onion, carrots, and celery.

3) Use tin foil on the wire rack part of the pan. Poke a lot of slits through it.

4) Put the other half of the vegetables in the turkey and tie legs together with twine.

5) Brush turkey with melted butter. Do not open oven to baste the turkey.

6) Place turkey in pan, in oven, and cook for 2 hours or until the meat thermometer reads 165 degrees.

Dijon Encrusted Chicken with Roasted Root Veggies, by Diane

This recipe was inspired by a CL recipe, but it called for pork and had some funny directions. I switched the pork to chicken breasts and altered some of the directions but the flavors are still the same.

I have read about mustard flavoring different dishes, but I've been skeptical about it and always ended up changing the flavor to something else. But this week, not one but three mustard (Dijon, specifically) dishes caught my eye and I decided to give them each a whirl. Tonight's dinner was recipe #1.

This dish was SO good. This is the first chicken dish I've made that was completely gone by the time dinner was finished (we make 5 chicken breasts for 3 people so there are leftovers for lunches!). The crust came out really crunchy and the chicken itself was SO juicy it was almost like biting into fried chicken fresh out of the frier. The taste of mustard actually wound up being just a hint of flavor that was really good and complimented the thyme and the chicken really well. And the root veggies were soft and really addictive! All in all, this meal was a total hit and I might be a mustard convert from now on!!!

Ingredients:


(Chicken)
 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 
4 chicken breasts
1/2 cup panko
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1/8 teaspoon salt 
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons EVOO

(Veggies)
8 oz. small red potatoes, quartered
2 large carrots, sliced in thin circles
2 large parsnips, sliced in thin circles
1 tablespoon EVOO
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 minced garlic clove


Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450°.

2. Combine veggie ingredients in medium bowl, toss well to coat. Arrange veggies on baking dish and bake for 28 minutes. Stir after 10 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, rub mustard evenly over chicken. Combine panko, thyme, parsley, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Dredge chicken in panko mixture.

4. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add chicken; sauté 2 minutes or until golden brown. Turn chicken and sauté until the other side is golden.

5. Place chicken in a baking dish and into oven, bake for 8 minutes. Let stand 3 minutes.

Carrot Souffle, by Cheryl

The next few posts by me are going to be Thanksgiving related since we just hosted our very first Thanksgiving. Although this is not a traditional Thanksgiving dish is my house, I thought it was perfect to make on T-Day simply because of it's sweetness and color. This dish could actually be a dessert; it's sweet and almost looks like a pie. It was the perfect complement to the hearty meal of turkey, stuffing, biscuits, and whatever else you happen to throw on your plate that night. I think I could eat this everyday! And yes, the picture is not the best and it looks like there are some other foods that are here as well, but after a few bottles of wine and stuffing ourselves silly, we hurried to take it. This recipe comes from www.allrecipes.com. Yum!

Ingredients:

1 3/4 pound of carrots, peeled and chopped
1 cup white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons flour
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup margarine, softened
2 teaspoons confectioners' sugar (I didn't use this)

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2) In a large pot of boiling water, cook the carrots until very tender. Drain and transfer to a large mixing bowl.

3) While carrots are warm, use an electric mixer to beat with sugar, baking powder, and vanilla extract until smooth. Mix in the flour, eggs, and margarine. Transfer to a 2 quart baking dish.

4) Bake 1 hour in the preheated oven, or until the top is golden brown. Sprinkle lightly with confectioners' sugar before serving.

Cola BBQ Glazed Chicken, by Diane

Even though it's nearly December, we have been having a spell of beautiful weather here. Last night was so gorgeous that we decided to have a cook out instead of making one of my colder weather recipes. I immediately thought of a recipe from an old issue of CL that I had wanted to try but never got around to making it. It involves making both a dry rub and a sauce- both things I had never done before. The chicken came out REALLY juicy and packed with flavor. My only critique was that the BBQ sauce tasted a bit off while I was cooking it, so I added the entire can of cola and doubled the ketchup. Overall, a good summery recipe and even better tasting when it's November :)

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon canola oil
2 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
3/4 cup cola (such as Coca-Cola) (I used an entire can)
1/3 cup ketchup (I doubled this)
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1 1/2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
6 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
Cooking spray

Directions:

1. Preheat grill to medium-high heat.

2. Heat a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add onion to pan; sauté 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in cola and next 4
ingredients (through chili powder); bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until sauce reduces to 3/4 cup, stirring occasionally. Set 6 tablespoons sauce aside.

3. Combine sugar and next 3 ingredients (through cumin), stirring well. Rub spice mixture evenly over both sides of chicken.

4. Arrange chicken on a grill rack coated with cooking spray; baste with 3 tablespoons remaining sauce (there is a lot more sauce if you add the extra cola and ketchup like I did). Grill 5 minutes. Turn chicken over; baste with 3 tablespoons sauce. Grill 5 minutes or until done.

5. Serve with reserved 6 tablespoons sauce.

Southern Cornbread Dressing, by Diane

In our family, every other Thanksgiving is a Houston year, when we all reunite in Texas with my dad's side of the family. Being southern, my aunt and uncle serve deep fried turkey, candied jalepenos, and my favorite- cornbread dressing (aka stuffing in the south). This year is a Maryland year, but my family and I were missing our Texan relatives so much that I decided to make some cornbread dressing instead of the white bread stuffing we typically make. I added in a few ingredients (like sweet italian sausage, shallots, and pecans) and took a few out (like all kinds of fat and eggs) from my aunt's recipe. The result- a stuffing so awesome that we all agreed we are never making traditional stuffing again. Even my sister, who HATES sausage, said the flavor it added was subtle and really good. And it makes a TON- which is great because I'm already hungry for leftovers :)

ps- one trick I learned in the south is that using day-old cornbread is fine, but toasted cornbread soaks up liquid better!

Ingredients:

2 9x13 loaves of cornbread (I like Indian Head mix the best because it's just the right sweetness)

5 sweet italian sausage links

1/2 cup chopped pecans

3/4 stick of salted butter

1 bunch celery, rinsed and chopped

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 small shallot, chopped

6 fresh sage leaves, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

3-5 cups chicken broth

Salt, pepper, poultry seasoning

Directions:

1. Bake the cornbread according to the mix, then slice into width-wise strips and lay with the insides facing up on two baking trays. Place under a low broiler until the cornbread toasts, then flip the cornbread over and toast the remaining side. Crumble on the baking sheets and spread to let air dry anywhere from a few hours ahead to a day ahead.

2. Preheat the oven to 350. In a large soup pot, toast pecans on medium until they get golden brown, then place in bowl and set aside.

3. Break the sausage from the casings and brown in the soup pot, making sure to crumble with a spoon into little pieces. Remove the sausage and place into a bowl (drain any liquid in the bowl).

4. In the same soup pot (unrinsed) melt the butter. Add in celery, onion, shallot, sage, and garlic and cook for 5-7 minutes until the onions become translucent and the celery softens.

5. Add in the cornbread, then slowly add in chicken broth until you reach the desired wetness. Your dressing should be the consistency of wet cement- NOT runny. You want it to be thick enough so that you won't have to bake it forever to get the liquid out, but wet enough so that it's still moist after cooking.

6. Add in seasonings to taste, remembering that chicken broth has plenty of salt in it. 

7. Transfer dressing into a 9x13 pan with tall sides, and bake covered for about 40 minutes. Bake uncovered for another 10-15, or until the dressing gets a nice golden crust. Best if served with turkey gravy!

Grandma Ople's Apple (& Raisin) Pie, by Diane

The 'H' stands for my grandfather <3

Close-up shot of the inside

Thanksgiving is my grandfather's birthday, and this year for his special dessert he asked me to make him an apple pie from scratch with raisins added in. When I asked him what color raisins to use, he told me "It doesn't matter, they are all just dead grapes", lol. Anyway- I was excited to make an apple pie because I've actually never made one before, so I found the highest rated recipe online. It turned out to be really, really good but VERY sweet (next time I might cut the sugar by 1/3). Overall, he was really happy with it and it was a good completion to our Thanksgiving meal.

ps- here's the link for the recipe: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/grandma-oples-apple-pie/

Ingredients:

1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch double crust pie
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup water
8 Granny Smith apples - peeled, cored and sliced

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425. 
2. Melt butter in a sauce pan. Stir in flour to form a paste. Add white sugar, brown sugar and water; bring to a boil. Reduce temperature, and simmer 5 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, place the bottom crust in your pan. Fill with apples, mounded slightly. Cover with a lattice work crust. Gently pour the sugar and butter liquid over the crust. Pour slowly so that it does not run off.
4. Bake 15 minutes at 425. Reduce the temperature to 350, and continue baking for 35 to 45 minutes or until apples are soft (mine took 35).

The birthday boy blowing out his candle- 83!!!

Curried Brown Rice and Lentil Salad, by Diane

This recipe is one of those 'that sounds funny' or 'what a weird combo of ingredients' dishes that once blended and cooked magically come together to create a super healthy and super addictive creation. I found it when I was living in California (hence the use of very healthy, natural ingredients) and decided to give it a try. I'm so glad I did! Everyone I give this recipe to is at first skeptical and then after one bite a total convert. When you're chewing, you first get the earthy flavors of the wild rice and lentils and the nuttiness of the pecans, but that is quickly followed by the sweetness of the dates and raisins, the savoriness of the garlic and chicken broth, and finally a hint of smokey curry. Insanely good, and filling too (I make extra for lunch and I'm full until dinner). It's also great hot or cold

Ingredients:

½ package lentils (8 oz.)
1 package Uncle Ben’s Wild Rice Medley
½ c. chopped pecans
10 pitted dates, chopped
½ c. golden raisins
3 sprigs green onion, chopped (white and green parts)

2 tbsp. EVOO
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ bag frozen peas
10 oz. chicken broth

Curry powder 

Salt

Directions:

1. Cook lentils in 4 cups hot water, boil about 15 min. 

2. Meanwhile, toast pecans lightly over low heat, stirring and tossing often. 

3. Combine in bowl with dates, raisins, and green onion. 

4. Cook rice as instructed. 

5. Heat saucepan on medium high heat with EVOO, adding garlic until lightly browned. 

6. Add in lentils, rice, dates, raisins, onion, and peas. Mix and add chicken broth until moistened. 

7. Season with curry powder and salt to taste (I needed much more curry powder than anticipated, about 1 tsp. to taste it). 

8. Cook until broth is absorbed.

Egg Sandwich, by Cheryl

Yes, I know an egg sandwich could possibly be one of the easiest things to make, but this egg sandwich is to die for and I'm obsessed with it. While staying at our friends Dave and Carla's house over the summer, Dave cooked this up for breakfast and it is my go to breakfast on the weekends. The secret ingredient? Herbs de Provence. It adds a whole new dimension to this egg sandwich... and mixed with the gruyere cheese and runny eggs... mmm, I think I need to make another one right now. Yum!


Ingredients:

2 eggs
Italian bread sliced open
olive oil
gruyere cheese
herbs de provence
pam

Directions:

1) Spread olive oil on the bread and toast until light brown.
2) Spray Pam on a pan and heat. Open the eggs over the pan so they look sunny side up. After about a minute break the egg with a fork and let the yolk move around a bit (not too much... you don't want to fully cook the yolk, unless you hate runny yolks then cook it as you please).
3) Add the gruyere cheese and cook.
4) Flip one side over the other and cook to your liking.
5) Place the eggs on the bread, sprinkle a moderate amount of the herbs onto it, close it up, and enjoy!

Italian-Style Beef with Polenta, by Diane

This is yet another recipe stolen from Cooking Light. I hesitate to put up any Italian recipes anymore since my awesome counterpart is now living in Italy, but this is a recipe that I have always wanted to try and now I found a healthy way to recreate it. It was pretty tasty but nothing spectacular. The polenta was bland in the way that pasta is, so in a way it just tasted like pasta with meat sauce except with a different texture. If I tried to make it again, I think I would try to make my own sauce so it would taste more authentic. But, it was good and very filling.

Ingredients:

1 cup dry coarse-ground polenta

1 teaspoon dried oregano

Dash of kosher salt

2 cups water

1 cup 2% reduced-fat milk

3/4 cup (3 ounces) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided

Cooking spray

1 pound ground sirloin

1 cup chopped onion

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 cups lower-sodium marinara sauce (such as McCutcheon's)

1/2 cup torn fresh basil

Directions:

 

1. Place first 3 ingredients in a large saucepan. Gradually add 2 cups water and milk, stirring constantly with a whisk. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium, and cook 20 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in 1/3 cup cheese.
2. Heat a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; coat with cooking spray. Add beef; sauté 5 minutes. Stir to crumble. Remove beef; drain. Wipe pan; coat with cooking spray. Add onion, pepper, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and garlic; sauté for 4 minutes, stirring frequently. Add beef and sauce; simmer 8 minutes.
3. Divide polenta evenly among 4 shallow bowls. Top each serving with 1 cup beef mixture; sprinkle with 2 teaspoons cheese and 2 tablespoons basil.

Bruschetta, by Cheryl

Jon and I recently went to a cooking class where we made all kinds of delicious foods! Now that we have officially moved into our new house (yay, finally!) I am ready to cook! I'm starting off very easy until I can get up the courage to make the other courses. The bruschetta (which comes from the word "to burn" and pronounced "brusketta") that is made here is so good because of the tomatoes. The tomatoes grown in Italy have a special sweetness that make all dishes with them pop! I went to a vegetable, fruit, and fish market and really had to use my Italian skills when buying these ingredients! I bought Italian bread to go with the bruschetta, along with i pomodori (the tomatoes), and basilico fresco (fresh basil). The following is the recipe from the cooking class, but I didn't follow the measurements... I just tasted it as I went along. Yum!

Ingredients:

Italian bread, cut
Grape or cherry tomatoes, diced
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
salt
olive oil: a good amount, but not too much :)
a pinch of red pepper flakes
fresh basil, in pieces

1) Put all of the ingredients except the bread into a bowl and mix well.
2) Taste as you go along and add salt or oil as needed.
3) Toast the bread pieces.
4) Scoop out desired amount of tomatoes onto the bread.

Brussels Sprouts Hash, by Diane

I saw this recipe on Triple D, and it looked like a fun way to make one of my favorite veggies more exciting. It was made in a restaurant in the south, and they said it was a take on collard greens because it incorporates cider vinegar. I hate collard greens, but I thought the combination of flavors was unique enough and decided to try it. The end result: we all love this dish. I've made it twice now and literally have a hard time eating anything else at dinner. The tartness of the vinegar plus the sweetness from the shallots and the saltiness of the bacon (I use turkey bacon) pairs SO well with the brussels sprouts that they become addicting.

Unfortunately, the actual recipe wasn't posted, so I just had to watch them make it on TV and then try to recreate it from there. I'm still finding ways to tweak it, but I think this recipe is a good approximation of what it should be. Also, last night I ran out of cider vinegar and used red wine vinegar plus apple juice and I actually liked that better because it's not as much of a sour taste. So that's the one I'm posting today. :)

Ingredients:

3-4 cups fresh brussels sprouts
3 slices turkey bacon, chopped
2 tbsp. EVOO
1/2 shallot, chopped (can substitute red onion)
1 tsp. fresh thyme
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
3 tbsp. apple juice
1/2 cup radicchio, julienne style
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 tbsp. fresh parsley

Directions:

1. Boil water and blanch brussels sprouts and bacon for approximately 10 minutes before transferring to an ice bath.
2. Heat the EVOO in a large saucepan on medium high, add in brussels sprouts, bacon, and shallots.
3. Saute for 3-5 minutes until bacon and shallots start to caramelize, then add in remaining ingredients.
4. Cook until liquid boils out, approximately 10 minutes.

Simple Syrup with a Twist, by Diane

This is a very simple recipe (no pun intended) I've been using to perk up my drinks. Lately, I've been trying to make the switch to tea instead of coffee, and I get really bored with it. I love coffee because of all the fun flavors, and it occurred to me that I could do the very same thing with tea by creating a simple syrup base and adding in different ingredients during the cooking process. Usually, a simple syrup is just water and sugar in equal parts that is boiled down so that some of the water cooks out and it becomes syrup. Since I wanted a healthier version, I just put in much less sugar and boil it down longer. Same result. I also try stay away from white sugar, so I've been using honey instead since it pairs well with tea. Sometimes, even splenda works and then there's no calories in it.

So as for the flavors, you can really get creative and mix them or just pick one. Just try to stay as close to the natural source and as fresh as possible. Lately, I've been on a ginger kick, so I've been taking fresh ginger slices and adding it to the pot. You do an orange flavor (using orange rinds), lemon (lemon rinds), rose (rose petals), mint (fresh mint leaves), even fun fall flavors like apple cinnamon (bit of apple and a cinnamon stick). Some really great combos I've found are rose mint and lemon ginger. You can even mix in fresh plants like lavender to have a soothing effect.

Since there is flavor and sugar, you can just add it to your tea (or even soda or water) like coffee creamer to coffee. You can adjust the sweetness level as well, but know that the longer it boils down the sweeter it gets because the water is boiling out. I'm going to post the recipe for my current staple, lemon ginger simple syrup.

Ingredients:

10 slices fresh ginger, peeled
2 cups of water
2 tbsp. honey
1 packet splenda
1/2 of one lemon


Directions:

1. Heat water in a small saucepan on medium high.
2. Add in remaining ingredients, squeezing the juice from the lemon and discarding it afterwards.
3. Stir to blend and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a very low boil.
4. Stirring often, boil mixture until it reduces by 1/3 to a 1/2 of it's original volume (this should take quite a while, maybe around 30 minutes). Taste to make sure it's sweet enough, if not then add more honey.
5. Let cool, then store in a squeeze bottle (with the solid ingredients as well- in this case, the ginger slices- so the flavor intensifies) in the refrigerator.
6. When ready, squeeze 2 tbsp. of the syrup into a mug and fill the rest with water, heat in microwave, then add tea and brew for at least 5-10 minutes.

Mediterranean Brown Rice Vegetable Bake, by Diane

I grabbed this recipe from the September issue of CL. It was in an advertisement for a brand of brown rice, but it included ways to incorporate brown rice into dishes other than stir fry's and side dishes. I thought this was a really cool way to use it, and since I've had so many appointments to run to lately it was an easy way to make a healthy, filling lunch that I could grab a slice and go with and it would last me all week long! I also loved the mix of the ingredients which were unique as well.

As it turned out, I was not quite a fan of this dish. There were several problems that I found with the recipe. First, I baked it as directed, but it came out really moist and light-colored (in the photo, it had turned dark and hardened into a loaf-like consistency:

Even after cooking it uncovered in the oven for an additional 10 minutes so it could firm up, it barely darkened and simply fell apart when I tried to cut it. In the end, I took it out of the loaf pan and into a bowl and served it as a casserole. The other problem here was the spiciness that I was not really expecting. I think between the pepper and the red pepper flakes it was too much heat. I would have reduced them both in half at least.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 cup chopped fennel
2 cups finely chopped mushrooms
½ cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
½ cup low-fat ricotta cheese
2 eggs
¼ cup chopped fresh basil
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
2 cups brown rice, cooked
½ cup roasted almonds, chopped
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese




Directions:


1. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add onions, garlic, and fennel; sauté 6 minutes. Add mushrooms and tomatoes. Cook until all of the liquid has evaporated from the pan. Set aside and cool completely.
2. Preheat oven to 350°.
3. In a large mixing bowl, mix together ricotta cheese and eggs. Add cooled, cooked vegetable mixture and the remaining ingredients and mix well.
4. Lightly coat a 1½-quart ovenproof baking dish with oil. Place mixture in dish and cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 40 minutes.

Linguine con Vongole e Pomodori, by Cheryl

Alright! Let's bring this blog back from the dead!

So for the next couple of years my posts will most likely all be Italian dishes since what else is there to make while we're in Italy. I really want to hone my Italian cooking skills, although I might try some new recipes from other genres. This recipe is linguine with clams and tomatoes and back in the states it was always my go to dish at Italian restaurants. I've since found many others since living in Italy, but this is a great one to make. It was very interesting ordering the live clams since we didn't know how to ask for them in Italian or ask if they were scrubbed, cleaned, etc. After a lot of preparation with the clams it turns out that they were all set to go from the start. Oh well... some time and sanity was lost in the process, but that's okay. I got this recipe from the book Cucina Napoletana, which was a gift from Jon's parents' friends. This dish was very light for pasta and the tomatoes were bursting with flavor. Yum!

Ingredients:

2 lb clams
olive oil
2 garlic cloves, chopped
grape tomatoes, halved
linguine
handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
salt and pepper

Directions:

1) Boil salted water and cook the linguine until al dente.

2) Put the clams in a heavy saucepan. Add a little water, cover the pan, and steam over medium-high heat until the shells open (discard any that do not). Removed the flesh and discard the shells.

3) Heat the oil in a heavy frying pan over medium heat. Saute the clam flesh and garlic for a few minutes until the garlic is soft and starting to color. Add the tomatoes and season with salt. Stir through and cook for another few minutes until the tomato starts to break down. Lower the heat and simmer for about 5 minutes.

4) Add the linguine to the pan with the sauce and stir through. Serve with a sprinkling of pepper and parsley.

Granola with Honey-Scented Yogurt and Baked Figs

Wow- it's been a while since we've posted on here! I've been a bit lazy about it during the summer, but I made a recipe tonight I HAD to post. It involves two of my favorite things- figs, and greek yogurt. Plus, I've always wanted to know how to make homemade healthy granola, since it's usually so fattening and laden with sugar. This recipe was easy enough to follow (I got it from the latest issue of Cooking Light), and it was really good and filling.
My only complaint is that the article doesn't tell you how to make sure the figs are fresh or what the different colors mean, so I had a lot of research to do before I bought them! Soft figs are ripe regardless of skin color, but it's still hard to know when they are overripe. Plus, it's really hard to find good figs here in the US (esp. around the east coast), so that made things a bit trickier and I'm sure it would have tasted MUCH better if you were somewhere else in the world (maybe, ITALY!).

ps- this clearly is not a photo taken by me, and is totally and shamelessly stolen from the CL mag. My camera is on the fritz, and we all know how our cell phone pics turn out on this blog...

Ingredients:

1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/3 cup chopped pecans
1 large egg white
1 1/8 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
3/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon, divided
1/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 tablespoons maple syrup
Cooking spray
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons honey, divided
9 firm, fresh dark-skinned figs, stemmed and quartered
3 cups plain fat-free Greek yogurt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300°.
2. Combine oats and pecans in a small bowl. Combine egg white and 1/8 teaspoon vanilla in a medium bowl; beat egg mixture with a mixer at medium speed until foamy. Fold oat mixture into egg white mixture. Combine brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and nutmeg; fold the sugar mixture into oat mixture. Fold in maple syrup.
3. Spread granola evenly on a foil-lined baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 300° for 25 minutes, stirring once. Remove granola from oven; stir to loosen granola from foil. Cool on a wire rack.
4. Increase the oven temperature to 350°.
5. Combine 2 teaspoons honey and remaining 1 teaspoon vanilla in a large bowl, and add figs, stirring gently to coat the fruit. Arrange the figs, cut sides up, in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle figs evenly with the remaining 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon and remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt.
6. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes or until the fig juices begin to bubble. Remove from oven, and cool completely. Combine the remaining 2 tablespoons honey and yogurt in a small bowl. Spoon 1/2 cup yogurt mixture into each of 6 bowls; top each serving with about 2 1/2 tablespoons granola and 6 fig quarters.