Finally!

I have been planning to make this meal for about a week, and last night we finally made it! And, it totally exceeded my expectations. Start by putting a butternut squash in the oven to roast. Wait. Then, mix it with gnocchi, spinach, and sage, and top with melty Roquefort cheese. You will be in weeknight-meal bliss.


Roasted Butternut Squash Gnocchi with Spinach and Roquefort

1 medium-sized butternut squash, halved lengthwise
olive oil
4 cups fresh spinach
1 pkg. gnocchi
1 Tbs. fresh sage, chopped
2-4 oz. Roquefort, crumbled
salt and pepper, to taste

1. Preheat oven to 400.
2. Place butternut squash halves, flesh-side down, in a baking dish. Roast in oven for approximately 40 minutes, or until completely tender. Allow to cool slightly, then peel off the skin and chop into bite-sized pieces.
3. Prepare gnocchi according to package directions.
4. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add spinach and allow the leaves to wilt. Then, add the butternut squash, drained gnocchi, and sage; mix together. Plate and then crumble the Roquefort on top. Serve and enjoy!

Family Favorite

One of Adam's favorite meals is his mom's fajitas. Every single time we go home, she makes them for him. She makes the fajitas with flank or skirt steak, marinating the meat for a day or two to make it tender and flavorful. Last night, we made the fajitas with chicken and tofu, which still passed the test of Adam's approval. We rounded out the meal with a homemade mango salsa, guacamole, and home-fried tortilla chips. All-in-all, a perfect fajita experience.


June's Fajitas

You can make the fajita filling with any type of meat: beef, pork, or chicken (or even tofu). You definitely don't need a fancy, expensive cut of meat to make the meal fantastic.

meat/tofu
soy sauce
lime juice
garlic, minced
olive oil
onion, sliced
green pepper, thinly sliced
red pepper, thinly sliced
tortillas
shredded cheddar cheese

1. Place the meat/tofu in a plastic Ziploc bag. Pour in soy sauce, lime juice, garlic, and olive oil. Use your discretion and personal taste as to determine how much of each ingredient you use. Allow to marinate for at least 6 hours but up to 2 days. If you are using tofu, only marinate for about 1 hour.
2. Grill the meat on medium-high heat until thoroughly cooked. Slice into strips.
3. Heat a bit of olive oil on medium heat in a large skillet. Add onions and peppers; saute until tender and slightly browned.
4. Heat tortillas to make supple. Serve tortillas topped with meat, vegetables, and cheese.


Mango Salsa with Tortilla Chips

Corn or flour tortillas work for this recipe. If you use corn tortillas, you will have a more traditional chip, but if you use flour tortillas, you will have a crispy outside with a chewy inside chip that is a nice variation to the usual.

1 mango, diced
2 serrano peppers, minced, or pepper to taste
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 (15-oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup red onion, minced
2 limes, juiced
splash of white wine vinegar
salt to taste

corn or flour tortillas, cut into eighths
vegetable oil
salt

1. Mix all ingredients, mango to first salt, together.
2. Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add tortilla pieces a few at a time, making sure not to crowd the pan. Allow to brown on one side, then flip and brown on the other. Place on a paper towel to drain the oil and salt to taste. Serve warm.

A Winter Salad

Adam went to Rochester this past weekend and came home wanting only vegetables and other healthy foods. Luckily, as I was looking over cookbooks and magazines throughout the weekend, I picked out a winter salad with roasted beets and parsnips in anticipation of Adam's health-food craving. We served it with warm, hearty, crusty bread. It made for a wonderful weeknight meal that felt good for the body and soul.


Roasted Beets and Parsnips with Black Olives and Oranges (Vegetarian Times, January 2009)

The only change I made to the recipe was I substituted shallots for the fennel bulb. The shallots turned out perfectly caramelized and delicious; they definitely did not detract from the wonderfulness of the salad.

4 beets, peeled and diced (3 1/2 cups)
4 parsnips, peeled and cut into matchsticks (2 cups)
1 fennel bulb, cut into bite-size wedges (1/4 cup)
3 Tbs. garlic-infused olive oil, divided
8 cups baby arugula (8 oz.)
2 oranges, peeled and sectioned, each section thinly sliced
1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives, coarsely chopped
2 Tbs. balsamic vinegar

1. Preheat oven to 450. Place beets, parsnips, and fennel in large bowl. Add 2 Tbs. oil, and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper, if desired, and evenly scatter vegetables on baking sheet. Roast vegetables 20 minutes, turning 2 or 3 times with spatula. Increase oven temperature to 500. Roast vegetables 10 minutes more, or until tender.
2. Place arugula, orange slices, and olives in a large salad bowl. Add roasetd vegetables, balsamic vinegar, and remaining 1 Tbs. olive oil. Toss well to mix, and season with salt and pepper, if desired.

Birthday Celebration

Last Wednesday, the 14th, was Adam's birthday. Since it was on our usual Wednesday night dinner with our neighbor, Scott, we decided to cook in and do it up. We were watching our Sunday morning cooking shows, as is our weekend ritual, and saw Ina Garten making a feast of filets with a roquefort sauce, sauteed mushrooms, and onions rings. Adam's eyes lit up and he declared, "I want that!" So, that is exactly the meal we had for his special day. To adapt the meal for me, I simply had a grilled portobella mushroom instead of the steak. We also added grilled asparagus for a little something green. I don't think Adam could have been happier.


Steakhouse Steaks Recipe (Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa, "Steaks and Sides")

2 (10-oz.) filet mignon
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 Tbs. fleur de sel
1 Tbs. coarsely cracked black peppercorns
2 Tbs. unsalted butter, at room temperature, optional
Roquefort Chive Sauce, recipe follows

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Heat a large, well-seasoned cast iron skillet over high heat until very hot, 5 to 7 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, pat the steaks dry with a paper towel and brush them lightly with vegetable oil. Combine the fleur de sel and cracked pepper on a plate and roll the steaks in the mixture, pressing lightly to evenly coat all sides.

4. When the skillet is ready, add the steaks and sear them evenly on all sides for about 2 minutes per side, for a total of 10 minutes.

5. Top each steak with a tablespoon of butter, if using, and place the skillet in the oven. Cook the steaks until they reach 120 degrees F for rare or 125 degrees F for medium-rare on an instant-read thermometer. (To test the steaks, insert the thermometer sideways to be sure you're actually testing the middle of the steak.)

6. Remove the steaks to a serving platter, cover tightly with aluminum foil and allow to rest at room temperature for 10 minutes. Serve hot with Roquefort Chive Sauce on the side.

Roquefort Chive Sauce

We used fresh sage instead of the chives, because we already had sage in the fridge. The flavors worked quite well; so if you don't have chives on hand, don't be afraid to try another fresh herb.

1 1/2 cups heavy cream
2 oz. French Roquefort cheese, crumbled (4 ounces with rind)
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbs. chopped fresh chives

1. Bring the heavy cream to a boil in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook at a low boil, stirring occasionally, until the mixture has become thick and creamy, about 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, add the cheese, salt, pepper and chives and whisk rapidly until the cheese melts.

Sauteed Wild Mushrooms (Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa, "Steaks and Sides")

We followed the recipe for the most part except that I didn't use quite as much olive oil or butter. The shallots and garlic gave the mushrooms enough flavor that not all of the fat is necessary.

2 lbs. mixed wild mushrooms, such as cremini, shiitake, porcini, and portobello
1/2 cup good olive oil
1 cup chopped shallots (4 large)
4 Tbs. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbs. chopped garlic (6 cloves)
1 cup chopped flat leaf parsley

1. Brush the caps of each mushroom with a clean sponge. Remove and discard the stems. Slice the small mushrooms thickly and cut the large ones in a large dice.

2. Heat the olive oil in a large (11 - inch) Dutch oven or saucepan. Add the shallots and cook over low heat for 5 minutes, or until the shallots are translucent. Add the butter, mushrooms, salt, and pepper and cook over medium heat for 8 minutes, until they are tender and begin to release their juices, stirring often. Stir in the garlic and cook for 2 more minutes. Toss in the parsley, sprinkle with salt, and serve warm.

Cornmeal-Fried Onion Rings (Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa, "Steaks and Sides")

These are some of the best onion rings I have ever tasted. They are salty and crispy; everything you would want from an onion ring.

2 large Spanish onions (or 3 yellow onions)
2 cups buttermilk
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (medium) yellow cornmeal
1 quart vegetable oil

1. Peel the onions, slice them 1/2 to 3/4-inch thick, and separate them into rings. Combine the buttermilk, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Add the onion rings, toss well, and allow to marinate for at least 15 minutes. (The onion rings can sit in the buttermilk for a few hours.) In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Set aside.

2. When you're ready to fry the onion rings, preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with paper towels.

3. Heat the oil to 350 degrees F in a large pot or Dutch oven. (A candy thermometer attached to the side of the pot will help you maintain the proper temperature.) Working in batches, lift some onions out of the buttermilk and dredge them in the flour mixture. Drop into the hot oil and fry for 2 minutes, until golden brown, turning them once with tongs. Don't crowd them! Place the finished onion rings on the baking sheet, sprinkle liberally with salt, and keep them warm in the oven while you fry the next batch. Continue frying the onion rings and placing them in the warm oven until all the onions are fried. They will remain crisp in the oven for up to 30 minutes. Serve hot.

January Comfort

For Christmas my sister gave us beautiful soup crocks and a handful of soup and stew recipes from Moosewood Restaurant. Ever since Christmas day, I've been itching to make one of the delicious recipes, so I finally did. We decided to make the Pepperpot stew, which has a perfectly seasoned combination of potatoes, peppers, and mustard greens. We paired this tasty stew with flaky biscuits to make for a fabulously cozy meal.


Pepperpot Stew (Moosewood Restaurant Soups and Stews Deck)

Eventhough there are quite a few ingredients in this stew, most of them are probably in your pantry already. Plus, all of the preparation steps don't take too long, so this could definitely be made to comfort and soothe even the busiest of people during the week.

2 Tbs. olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
3 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1 small fresh chile, minced, seeds removed for a milder "hot"
1 cup diced celery
1 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
1 cup diced red bell peppers
1 cup diced green bell peppers
1 cup cubed potatoes (1/2-inch cubes)
4 cups water or stock
1 1/2 cups undrained, canned diced tomatoes (14-oz. can)
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 Tbs. unsulphered molasses
4 cups chopped mustard greens, loosely packed
salt to taste

1. In a nonreactive soup pot on medium heat, warm the oil. Add the onions, garlic, chile, celery, thyme, cinnamon, and salt. Cook, stirring often, for about 10 minutes or until the onions are translucent. Add the bell peppers and potatoes, reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, stirring often, until the bell peppers are just tender.
2. Add the water or stock, the tomatoes with their juice, the black pepper, and the molasses. Cover and cook for about 10 minutes or until all of the vegetables are tender. Add the mustard greens, cover, and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, until just wilted. Add salt to taste.


Featherlight Blue Mountain Biscuits (Moosewood Restaurant Soups and Stews Deck)

2 1/4 cups unbleached white pastry flour or 2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbs. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup buttermilk

1. Preheat the oven to 450. In a mixing bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the oil and buttermilk. Using a fork, stir just until mixed--overmixing will make the biscuits tough.
2. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead 5 or 6 times, adding more flour if necessary. Pat or roll out the dough to a 1/2-inch thickness. Cut out 10 to 12 rounds with a biscuit cutter or a glass and arrange them on an unoiled baking sheet. When you place the biscuits touching one another, they seem to rise better.
3. Bake on the top shelf of the oven for 10 to 12 minutes, until golden brown. Serve immediately.

An Accidental Dinner

The other night we had this huge plan to make enchiladas, Mexican rice, and some refried beans for a full-fledged Mexican meal. We prepared the enchilada filling, made the enchilada sauce, went to roll the enchiladas, and then found out that our corn tortillas just wouldn't hold up to the challenge. So, on a spur of the moment thought, we made Mexican lasagna! It turned out to work wonderfully and taste equally delicious.


Mexican Lasagna

This lasagna is a mixture of my own recipe and an enchilada sauce recipe from Betty Crocker's Cookbook with the addition of chipotle peppers in adobo. We used a combination of chopped spinach, mushrooms, and tofu for the filling, but any combination of meats and vegetables could be used.

1 tsp. olive oil
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup tofu, cut in 1/2-inch cubes
1 box frozen chopped spinach, thawed and dried
2/3 cup water
1 Tbs. chili powder
1 1/2 tsp. chopped fresh or 1/2 tsp. dried oregano leaves
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 can (15-oz.) tomato sauce
1-2 cups cheddar cheese, depending on taste, shredded or sliced
6 corn tortillas

1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Heat olive oil in skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms and saute until starting to become tender. Add tofu and continue to cook until slightly browned on all sides. Combine spinach with mushroom and tofu mixture.
3. In a 2-quart saucepan, heat remaining ingredients except for the tortillas and cheese, stirring occasionally; reduce heat. Simmer uncovered for 5 minutes.
4. Dip two tortillas into the sauce and place in a medium-sized baking dish. Place half of the vegetables on the tortillas, followed by a third of the cheese. Repeat produre with torillas, remaining half of vegetables, and another third of the cheese. For the final layer, layer the dipped tortillas, cheese, and remaining sauce into the dish. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until heated through and cheese bubbles.


Mexican Rice Pilaf (Safeway Select Brown Rice bag)

2 Tbs. olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1 cup brown rice
2 1/4 cups vegetable broth
1/3 cup salsa
1 tsp. chili powder

1. In a medium saucepan, heat oil over medium-high heat until hot. Add onions and cook until soft, 4-5 minutes. Add rice and saute for 2 minutes. Pour in broth, bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 45-50 minutes or until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender.
2. To cooked rice, mix in the salsa and chili powder.

Impressively Easy

Here's another one of the recipes we chose to make this week while flying over the United States. It is in the "20 Minute Dishes" section, which makes it a perfect recipe for a weeknight. Chicken with Dried Plums and Sage has a rich, complex flavor but only takes a short time to prepare. To adapt for a vegetarian, I took the chicken and replaced it with tofu. Other than the tofu and changing the chicken broth to vegetable broth, the rest of the recipe remained exactly the same. Adam made his the original way. Neither one of us was disappointed in the least! We completed the meal with a slice of warm bread and roasted broccoli. This meal could be made for a weeknight dinner party; it is that scrumptious.


Chicken with Dried Plums and Sage (Cooking Light, December 2008)

4 (6-oz.) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 Tbs. chopped fresh sage, divided
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper, divided
4 tsp. olive oil, divided
2 cups thinly sliced onion (about 1 large)
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
12 pitted dried plums, halved (about 1/2 cup)
1 1/2 tsp. balsamic vinegar

1. Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/2-inch thickness using a meat mallet or small heavy skillet. Sprinkle chicken with 1 Tbs. sage, salt, and 1/8 tsp. pepper.
2. Heat 2 tsp. oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add chicken to pan; cook 3 minutes or until tender. Stir in wine and broth; bring to a boil. Add remaining 1 Tbs. sage and plums to pan; cook 4 minutes or until mixture thickens. Stir in remaining 1/8 tsp. pepper and vinegar.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! There is no better way to celebrate the holidays with family and food. I know that I, for one, show my love and appreciation through food. If I cook for you what in my mind is a good meal, it's because I care. Unfortunately, I didn't have enough time to track my cooking and baking while on the east coast for the holidays. But now that I am back home in the Bay Area with the Nutcracker and holiday season passed, I am dedicated to sharing my 2009 cooking adventures.

I received Cooking Light Annual Recipes 2009, which includes all of the recipes in the 2008 Cooking Light magazines, for Christmas. On the plane ride home, Adam and I looked through it and picked out a few recipes for the week. Last night we made Goat Cheese-Stuffed Jalapenos with Ranchero Sauce and Bacon-Chipotle Twice-Baked Potatoes, both from the December 2008 magazine. They paired quite nicely together; the potatoes helped to soothe the fire in our mouths from the jalapenos.
Goat Cheese-Stuffed Jalapenos with Ranchero Sauce (Cooking Light, December 2008)

Although this recipe serves 10, we made the whole batch. They are so delicious we ended up eating more than just one jalapeno each.

Ranchero Sauce:
1 tsp. canola oil
2 cups vertically sliced onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup water
1 tsp. cumin seeds
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. Mexican oregano
1 (15-oz.) fire-roasted diced tomatoes
1 (8-oz.) can no-salt-added tomato sauce

Jalapenos:
Cooking spray
10 large jalapeno peppers (about 4 inches long)
1/4 cup (2 oz.) block-style fat-free cream cheese, softened
1/4 tsp. salt
1 (4-oz.) package goat cheese, softened
1 garlic clove, minced

Remaining ingredient:
10 corn tortillas, warmed according to package directions

1. To prepare ranchero sauce, heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion to pan; saute 3 minutes. Add garlic; saute 1 minute. Add 1/2 cup water and next 5 ingredients. Cover and simmer 20 minutes. Unconver and simmer 5 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 400.
3. Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add jalapenos to pan; cook 9 minutes or until tender and blackened, turning occassionally. Cut a lengthwise slit in each jalapeno; discard stems, seeds, and membranes.
4. Combine cream cheese and next 3 ingredients. Fill each jalapeno with about 1 Tbs. cheese mixture. Place jalapenos on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400 for 7 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Serve with tortillas and ranchero sauce.

Bacon-Chipotle Twice-Baked Potatoes (Cooking Light, December 2008)

We made these without bacon, but Adam is convinced that these would be phenominal with it. I, having not eaten bacon in 12 or so years, didn't feel like I was missing out on anything.

6 baking potatoes (about 3 lbs.)
1 1/4 cups low-fat buttermilk
1 1/4 cups (5 oz.) shredded extrasharp cheddar cheese, divided
1/3 cup thinly sliced green onions
2 Tbs. finely chopped chipotle chile, canned in adobo sauce
1 tsp. salt
4 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled

1. Preheat oven to 450.
2. Pierce potatoes with a fork. Bake potatoes at 450 for 50 minutes or until done; cool slightly. Cut each potato in half lengthwise; scoop out pulp, leaving 1/4-inch-thick shells. Combine potato pulp, buttermilk, 3/4 cup cheese, and remaining ingredients in a large bowl.
3. Spoon potato mixture evenly into 10 shells; discard remaining 2 shells. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup cheese evely over potatoes. Bake at 450 for 15 minutes or until thoroughly heated.