Cookin with the Cuz

My cousin Diana came to visit last Friday and I knew there was only one thing we could fill the night with--cooking! And that's exactly what we did! With some damn good food too, if I may say so myself. We started the night off with an odd, but fantastic, almond-orange dip with veggies and pita chips. Then, we moved on to portobello veggie burgers and a roasted potato salad. We completed the evening with a limoncello sorbet. Cooking for and with the people you love is absolutely the best thing in the world (and it doesn't hurt if you make fantastic things either).


Almond-Orange Dip (The New Enchanted Broccoli Forest, Mollie Katzen)

You could dip practically anything in this dip, because it is that good. You could even put it on sandwiches for some flair.

1 12-oz. box silken tofu
1 cup almond butter
2/3 cup orange juice
2 tsp. grated fresh ginger
1 medium clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. soy sauce
2 Tbs. minced fresh parsley
2 Tbs. minced fresh chives
1/2 tsp. grated orange rind
3/4 tsp. salt
fresh black pepper, to taste
cayenne, to taste

1. Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and puree until smooth.
2. Season to taste, cover, and refrigerate until cold.


Portobello Burgers (Vegetarian Planet, Didi Emmons)

We made the suggested variation of this burger, which is to add 3 oz. goat cheese to the mixture. Delicious!

2/3 cup dried lentils
6 oz. portobello mushrooms
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 1/2 cups minced onions
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp. ground cumin seeds
1/2 tsp. salt, or more, to taste
fresh-ground black pepper, to taste
5 slices stale or toasted sandwich bread
1/2 cup chopped parsley

1. Bring 2 quarts water to a boil, and add the lentils. Simmer the lentils for 20 to 30 minutes or until they are tender. Drain the lentils, and let them cool.
2. Cut off the dirt-laden base of each mushroom stem, then chop the remainder of the stems and the caps fine.
3. Heat 1 Tbs. of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, and add the onions. Cook them, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until they soften. Add the garlic, and cook 2 minutes more, stirring constantly. Add the chopped mushrooms and the cumin to the skillet, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season well with the salt and pepper, and take the pan off the heat.
4. Break the bread into pieces, and whirl them to crumbs in a food processor. Transfer 2 cups crumbs to a large bowl. Put the lentils into the processor, and run the machine in spurts until they are coarsely chopped and somewhat pasty. Add the chopped parsley and sauteed mushrooms and onions to the bowl, and mix well with your hands or a sturdy spoon. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Add more bread crumbs if the mixture is too wet to form a patty. Chill the mixture from 1 hour to a week.
5. Form the burger mixture into four 4-inch patties. Heat the remaining oil in a large skillet (not non-stick) over medium heat. Pan-fry until the undersides are a deep golden brown, about 3 minutes. Flip the burgers, and cook them about 3 minutes more. Serve the burgers hot.


Roasted Potato Salad with Mint Vinaigrette (Cooking Light, May 2005)

3 cups (2-inch) cut green beans
3 cups (1-inch square) cut red bell pepper (about 2 large peppers)
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
1/2 cup fat-free less-sodium chicken broth [or veggie broth]
4 garlic cloves, sliced
2 lbs. small red potatoes, quartered
2 Vidalia or other sweet onions, trimmed and quartered
cooking spray
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
1/3 cup white wine vinegar
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 tsp. salt
1/2 to 1 tsp. coarsely ground black pepper

1. Preheat over to 400.
2. Combine first 7 ingredients; toss well. Arrange vegetable mixture in a single layer on a jelly-roll pan coated with cooking spray; cover with foil. Bake at 400 for 20 minutes. Uncover and stir; bake, uncovered, and additional 40 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring after 20 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes. Place vegetable mixture in a large bowl.
3. Combine 1/2 cup mint, vinegar, oil, salt, and black pepper, stirring well with a whisk. Drizzle vinaigrette over vegetable mixture, and toss well to coat. Serve at room temperature or chilled.


Limoncello-Mint Sorbet with Fresh Blackberries (Cooking Light, May 2009)

This is extremely flavorful and refreshing. I could actually only eat a few bites because it was so intense. I think that this would work really well for a palate cleanser in the middle of the meal or as a hot summer night's dessert.

2 cups water
1 1/3 cups sugar
1/2 cup limoncello [we used our own homemade limoncello]
1 cup fresh lemon juice (about 6 large lemons)
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
2 cups blackberries
lemon slices (optional)

1. Combine first 3 ingredients in a saucepan over medium-high heat; bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat; add lemon juice and mint. Cover and chill.
2. Strain juice mixture through a sieve into a bowl; discard solids. Pour mixture into the freezer can of an ice-cream freezer; freeze according to manufacturer's instructions. Spoon sorbet into a freezer-safe container; cover and freeze 1 hour or until firm. Serve with blackberries; garnish with lemon slices, if desired.

Desserts Galore!

We have been making quite a few desserts lately, so I am going to group a few of them together. In particular, we have been making a lot of ice cream. My sister gave us an ice cream maker for Christmas, and it works so well that we can't help but use it all the time. While my parents were here, we made coffee ice cream and paired it with a perfectly gooey Hot Chocolate Cupcakes. And, while Adam's parents were here, we made a wonderfully chocolate ice cream that we topped with freshly sliced strawberries.


Coffee Ice Cream (Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker Recipe Booklet)

1 cup whole milk, well chilled [we actually used the skim milk we had in the fridge; use whatever milk you have]
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2-3 Tbs. instant espresso or coffee, to taste
2 cups heavy cream, well chilled
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1. In a medium bowl, use a hand mixer or a whisk to combine the milk, granulated sugar, and espresso powder until the sugar and espresso are dissolved, about 1-2 minutes on low speed. Stir in the heavy cream and vanilla. Turn the machine ON, pour the mixture into freezer bowl and let mix until thickened, about 25-30 minutes. [We always put the ice cream in the freezer for a few hours before eating.]


Hot Chocolate Cupcakes (Cupcakes!, Elinor Kilvans)

These didn't really end up in cupcake form, but they sure were delicious!

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces
1 1/3 cups (8 oz.) semisweet chocolate chips or chopped semisweet chocolate
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 Tbs. chocolate fudge sauce, cold

1. Position a rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350. Line 6 extra-large muffin tin cups with large paper liners. Spray the paper liners with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Put the butter and chocolate chips in a heatproof bowl or the top of a double boiler and place it over, but not touching, a saucepan of barely simmering water (or the bottom of the double boiler). Stir until the butter and chocolate chips are melted and smooth. Remove from the water and set aside to cool slightly.
3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the eggs, sugar, salt, and vanilla until thickened and lightened in color, about 2 minutes. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed during mixing. On low speed, mix in the melted chocolate mixture. Mix in the flour until it is incorporated.
4. Fill each paper liner with slightly more than 1/3 cup of batter, to about 1/2 inch below top of the liner. Put 1 tsp. of the cold chocolate sauce in the center of each cupcake and use a small metal spatula or clean finger to spread the batter over the chocolate sauce, covering it completely.
5. Bake just until the to9ps are firm and a toothpick inserted near the edge comes out with a little sticky, but not wet, batter clinging to it, about 20 minutes. (If you test the center, you will hit the melted filling.) Cool the cupcakes for 10 to 20 minutes in the pan on a wire rack.
6. Carefully lift the cupcakes by their papers from the pan. Carefully remove the papers, and use a wide metal spatula to slide the cupcakes onto serving plates. Place a scoop of ice cream beside each cupcake and serve immediately.
Note: The cupcakes can be left in their paper liners, covered, and stored at room temperature for up to 2 days. Rewarm them for about 10 minutes in a preheated 225 oven.


Ben's Chocolate Ice Cream (Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream and Dessert Book, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield with Nancy J. Stevens)

We didn't use a double boiler to melt the chocolate, and the ice cream came out a little grainy, but the flavor was absolutely delicious.

4 oz. unsweetened chocolate
1 cup milk
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup heavy or whipping cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 pinch salt

1. Melt the unsweetened chocolate in the top of a double boiler over hot, not boiling, water. Gradually whisk in the milk and heat, stirring constantly, until smooth. Remove from the heat and let cool.
2. Whisk the eggs in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Whisk in the sugar, a little at a time, then continue whisking until completely blended, about 1 minute more. Add the cream, vanilla, and salt and whisk to blend.
3. Pour the chocolate mixture into the cream mixture and blend. Cover and refrigerate until cold, about 1 to 3 hours, depending on your refrigerator.
4. Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker and freeze following the manufacturer's instructions.