tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24182232524797249122024-03-05T15:48:04.020-05:00hashbrown reclusehashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.comBlogger48125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-18940718867093183652011-03-04T16:19:00.001-05:002011-03-04T16:20:24.517-05:00Easy Dijon-Crusted Salmon<em><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Jill</span></em><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlyonAIK0iuijTgpC8lh-P-0qb1Oqh8oiliiipmCjj1okZQgwOyTFnP4HM4gWWd1lMGp7xMs40wi4tyqjpqrZ7WlvyEhHjpDM1bfRrqXO3k0KdmHQzW3nfDFMVOEeEaOqfBkQThPu6fI4/s1600/dijonsalmon1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="281" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlyonAIK0iuijTgpC8lh-P-0qb1Oqh8oiliiipmCjj1okZQgwOyTFnP4HM4gWWd1lMGp7xMs40wi4tyqjpqrZ7WlvyEhHjpDM1bfRrqXO3k0KdmHQzW3nfDFMVOEeEaOqfBkQThPu6fI4/s400/dijonsalmon1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>I hear a lot that some people are afraid to cook fish at home, but fresh fish is actually one of the easiest things you can make. When I moved into my first apartment, I was completely new to cooking and I harbored some of these same fears. I figured salmon would be my best bet since I was pretty familiar with it, plus it completely changes color when it's been cooked. I went on a bit of a googling frenzy and I ended up in the possession of one of the easiest, most delicious salmon recipes I've ever tried (still to this day).<br />
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This recipe calls for THREE ingredients. It's also ready in just 10 minutes, so combine those two factors and you have yourself a really healthy, delicious dinner that's ready in about the same time it will take you to throw together a salad or a side. Since your main flavors in this dish are salmon and dijon, it's really important that you get a really good quality grainy dijon mustard. Once broiled, it forms a flavorful crust on top of the fish and it really seals in a ton of flavor while keeping the fish from drying out.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrrwC3Cu4etIfU_nLzrc2IRHfMCFlrLMuIRzd9D8GMESukNMGkjVCfxZEFSYHWD7BmZ4EBe2gX0drxxQcjkCeIVpdEXWQV3Em_FvMwaPS7W7C1kVc66yENk_Q5nO9ONYD3tnRNIo2ZTQI/s1600/dijonsalmon2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrrwC3Cu4etIfU_nLzrc2IRHfMCFlrLMuIRzd9D8GMESukNMGkjVCfxZEFSYHWD7BmZ4EBe2gX0drxxQcjkCeIVpdEXWQV3Em_FvMwaPS7W7C1kVc66yENk_Q5nO9ONYD3tnRNIo2ZTQI/s320/dijonsalmon2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<strong>Easy Dijon-Crusted Salmon</strong><br />
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Grainy dijon mustard<br />
Salmon fillets<br />
Soy sauce<br />
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Preheat the broiler. If your broiler is inside the regular oven, cover a baking tray with foil and spray with non-stick spray. If the broiler is in a separate drawer, spray your broiler tray.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLaOZPjKxyowGuEhpv9njG7ZCi0Lqbd-qeE9DxPhBBSNZsFOYstZ2RzCLoetfIHs3BReTSLtu74Dovo3vx8u3PT64hrtfmFpYTEpF9-juHfyEt1zO90uEdbgddhOK2UDVqfNyHp4Onlro/s1600/dijonsalmon3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="247" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLaOZPjKxyowGuEhpv9njG7ZCi0Lqbd-qeE9DxPhBBSNZsFOYstZ2RzCLoetfIHs3BReTSLtu74Dovo3vx8u3PT64hrtfmFpYTEpF9-juHfyEt1zO90uEdbgddhOK2UDVqfNyHp4Onlro/s320/dijonsalmon3.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coat the entire top of the fillet</td></tr>
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Brush the fish with dijon mustard, making sure to cover the entire top surface. Once covered, sprinkle the fish lightly with a little soy sauce. Broil the fish for 10 minutes. I like to serve this with spinach or baby potatoes and a cucumber salad.hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-47765551536519603682011-01-31T13:19:00.000-05:002011-01-31T13:19:26.164-05:00Lemony Chickpeas with Chicken Sausage and Spinach<em><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Jill</span></em><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="166" s5="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNKxEYcTbgQx8xn3WbG-2_OaSvENHoJgtKhDK8YrvUhAVaPw7k9DCL6MmTJP6O7nJyMHqRIoblLak8L0-EhH5vRk1N3idc0B77fMxftSyCG8CKamfISYv8BCi3uHdsUNqRVbTCE_7MdfQ/s200/chickpeassausage1.jpg" width="200" /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So here I am again! After quite a long hiatus from this blog, my life has begun to regain something resembling order and I can fit these updates back into my schedule again. The boxes have been unpacked (except for the ones that probably never will be) and the new semester has started to kick in. My new kitchen is almost sorted out, complete with a brand new range.</div><br />
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I'm now the proud owner of my very first gas cook top, although there is definitely a strong learning curve involved. We opted for the most basic, no-frills range we could possibly find. This means no clock, no timer, no oven light, and no indication that the oven is pre-heated. This was a little scary at first, but I've been catching on to the oven's various quirks and learning to work around them. I burned a lot of food before I realized that the left side of the oven gets a lot hotter than the right side for some reason. I also burned some things in the broiler drawer before I realized that I could actually lower it, but I've never had a broiler drawer before so I'm cutting myself some slack. <br />
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I have to say, I do really enjoy cooking in this kitchen. I've never had enough room for appliances, all of the oils, vinegars, and spices that tend to collect over time, or the counter space necessary to actually relax. All of this added space makes cooking feel like a different experience.<br />
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And of course, the never-ending challenge remains: finding ways to eat healthy on a busy schedule. This recipe involves pretty simple, easy to find ingredients that really work well together. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4PcHSnPTnJe0jb_xlGZS_Ap37qTdjwxULZFLQkO2b2eDrhG2_wNRz4Mhyn7eM3szyDxP7vGZ3GqGVEtRCuyGsRhHuW5OG66cBlhd-qxHBaNkb7v_gOuDsP-LDb_sJjtHj81DaL1D1Zb4/s1600/chickpeasausage2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="315" s5="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4PcHSnPTnJe0jb_xlGZS_Ap37qTdjwxULZFLQkO2b2eDrhG2_wNRz4Mhyn7eM3szyDxP7vGZ3GqGVEtRCuyGsRhHuW5OG66cBlhd-qxHBaNkb7v_gOuDsP-LDb_sJjtHj81DaL1D1Zb4/s400/chickpeasausage2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<strong>Lemony Chickpeas with Chicken Sausage and Spinach</strong><br />
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1 medium yellow onion, sliced<br />
12oz (about 4 or 5) italian style chicken sausages, sliced<br />
1 can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained<br />
6-8oz baby spinach<br />
1 tsp or more spike seasoning (or another season salt)<br />
the juice of one lemon<br />
olive oil<br />
salt and pepper<br />
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Heat a thin layer of olive oil in a large skillet or frying pan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until they begin to brown. Add the sausages and continue stir-frying until lightly browned on the outside (if your chicken sausages are not pre-cooked, make sure they are no longer pink on the inside). Add the chickpeas, spike seasoning, salt, and pepper. Cook until heated through.<br />
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Add the spinach and the lemon juice. An easy way to juice the lemon without a reamer is to cut the lemon in half, hold it over the pan, and stick a fork inside the lemon half. Then squeeze the lemon over the fork, pushing the fork around in a circular motion to remove all of the juice. Continue heating, gently incorporating the spinach into the rest of the ingredients, until it begins to wilt. Remove from the heat. Taste, and add more salt, pepper, and spike if necessary.hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-6201981946564719612010-11-07T08:46:00.003-05:002010-11-11T15:09:50.610-05:00Sick-Day Chicken Soup<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Jill</span></i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfDIdtDrF4Jb_L99I-Wt8EERqXS2MDzthCw1E8gil6aDKQ5Z3S8jmXuW_P8Jtu2D_rbZNoeWuAoVd5by8_z35Xe1A_YPxUCnx2bJcmq4LHHwYDxXVgBHbbaLKLxSX2sLAvhOOyBXvkDgA/s1600/chickensoup1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfDIdtDrF4Jb_L99I-Wt8EERqXS2MDzthCw1E8gil6aDKQ5Z3S8jmXuW_P8Jtu2D_rbZNoeWuAoVd5by8_z35Xe1A_YPxUCnx2bJcmq4LHHwYDxXVgBHbbaLKLxSX2sLAvhOOyBXvkDgA/s320/chickensoup1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
It's bound to happen. Every year, the temperature drops significantly over night, and then one of us gets a cold. Blech. Everybody knows that home made chicken soup makes you feel better when you're sick, even if it's only helping you mentally. If you've got some kind of full-time commitment like work or school (or screaming children), you may think that making a pot of chicken soup from scratch is an impossibility given your super-busy schedule. WRONG, IDIOT. JEEZ. DON'T YOU KNOW ANYTHING? Um, I'm kidding, but seriously, I've learned along the way how to cut some serious chicken-souping corners and still come out with a huge pot of something that tastes just as good as chicken soup from complete scratch.<br />
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I'm not dissing soup from scratch. In fact, I love it. My mom used to make us her Bubby's chicken soup recipe at least once a year, and it smelled amazing all day. I haven't been brave enough to ask for the recipe, but it's on the to-do list, along with my mom's brisket and my grandma's matzah balls (which always taste better than the ones I make.) What I love about the forthcoming recipe is that I can get home really late, throw everything on the stove, and still have dinner ready at a reasonable hour without too much fuss. This holds even if <i>I'm</i> the one who isn't feeling so great.<br />
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I first learned this shortcut secondhand by reading the <a href="http://www.amateurgourmet.com/">Amateur Gourmet's blog</a> several years ago, and he apparently learned it from a recipe on epicurious, which in actuality was from a 1998 issue of Bon Appétit Magazine (what a tangled web of passed-down information!) The short-cut here is that you boil your fresh chicken in pre-made broth. It sounds like a food abomination, but dear lord is it delicious. Plus, making the chicken stock, the part of making soup from scratch that usually takes forever, is cut down to 20 to 30 minutes and you come out with a very rich broth.<br />
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This recipe, like any soup recipe, is very easily customizable to your own tastes. However, if it's starting to get late and somebody isn't feeling well, short-cuts are your best friend. If chicken anatomy and the prospect of undoing it are not something you're really comfortable with, you can actually buy a whole chicken cut up into 8 pieces at your grocery store nowadays. And just like in the last recipe I posted, I opted for a package of fresh soup greens to fill my soup's vegetable quota.<br />
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<b>Sick-Day Chicken Soup</b><br />
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A 3-4 lb chicken, cut into 8 pieces (breasts, thighs, wings, and legs)<br />
4 32oz cartons of chicken broth (16 cups)<br />
One package of soup greens, or the following vegetables:<br />
-one parsnip, peeled and diced<br />
-two large carrots, peeled and diced<br />
-the white part of one leek, cleaned carefully and diced<br />
-one turnip, diced<br />
-a few hearts of celery, diced<br />
-one small onion, quartered<br />
-a few sprigs of parsley and dill, chopped<br />
1/2 to 1 cup of rice or small pasta<br />
salt and pepper<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYd5y4H46Ph33Owrlbl3EMnUijVzyaU7gEA7G4INOcdRHKmGagFW9_8PWhnL86Np2MEmOS0COekYxOgACtq0gzGw6XGjuh9sf1swyoab2gh22VWAtPMwCRVUeUJksqPBWI63m3v_l9eMI/s1600/chickensoup2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYd5y4H46Ph33Owrlbl3EMnUijVzyaU7gEA7G4INOcdRHKmGagFW9_8PWhnL86Np2MEmOS0COekYxOgACtq0gzGw6XGjuh9sf1swyoab2gh22VWAtPMwCRVUeUJksqPBWI63m3v_l9eMI/s320/chickensoup2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Pour the chicken broth into a large stock pot. Add the chicken pieces and bring the mixture to a boil. Turn the soup down to a simmer, and with the cover partially off, simmer for 20-30 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. If you're not sure if your chicken is cooked, test a piece with a cooking thermometer.<br />
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Remove the chicken pieces and set aside. Skim any fat off the top of the soup and discard. Add the vegetables and rice or pasta. For rice, let the soup simmer for about 20 more minutes, and for pasta, follow the amount of time on the box. When the soup is almost done, add back some shredded or chopped chicken meat from the chicken you set aside (maybe a cup or so). Test to make sure your vegetables and rice/pasta are tender. Season with salt and pepper to taste.<br />
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Note: You'll have a lot of leftover cooked chicken from this recipe. It's pretty bland to eat on its own, since you boiled a lot of the flavor out of it. I almost always end up making chicken salad with it the next day. I've been using a <a href="http://ezinearticles.com/?Easy-Classic-Chicken-Salad&id=1788423">recipe almost identical to this one</a> forever, and it makes awesome use of all of that chicken.hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-31821612478063609682010-10-28T13:02:00.001-04:002010-10-28T13:02:48.693-04:00Moving<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Jill</span></i></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD9E_T2mYRyajRAA8y4EN1fUYd53C-eyXs3m6ij2GiwIBtBumBHHh5_7lMJtRRrkGF8INgNQ6PTvpJOMt7_3IEy3uptMYaLkEmh1BxzfzwcC4ecHSSv1lZuwDIlot5l9ZKYC2WiT04soc/s1600/carpet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD9E_T2mYRyajRAA8y4EN1fUYd53C-eyXs3m6ij2GiwIBtBumBHHh5_7lMJtRRrkGF8INgNQ6PTvpJOMt7_3IEy3uptMYaLkEmh1BxzfzwcC4ecHSSv1lZuwDIlot5l9ZKYC2WiT04soc/s320/carpet.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><br />
</div>I've noticed that a lot of blogs go through the cliche where weeks pass by without a single post, followed by some sort of sorry explanation to account for the laziness. Well, this blog is no exception, but I promise I have a great reason!<br />
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<a name='more'></a><div>Through an incredible stroke of luck, Keith and I have landed an extraordinary deal on renting a house (through his boss) and should hopefully be moved-in by December 1st. The place has the potential to be really great, but the condition it was in when we first saw it was a little scary. Gross carpets that were pretty much coming up on their own lined most of the house, not to mention a couple of mystery rooms with some random wood-blocks nailed to the walls (maybe they partially ripped out some built-ins?), mixed in with the general feeling that the place could really use a good scrubbing. </div><div><br />
</div><div>The room I am most excited about, however, is the kitchen. Unlike any of the other apartments I've lived in, this kitchen is actually its own room. It has tons of cabinets (even though they're filled with curling nasty contact paper) and a double sink, which is another "first" for me. When I saw the kitchen for the first time, I was really excited, and then a little nauseous from its current color scheme. The previous owners must have REALLY liked pink, since the walls, floors, cabinets, and even ceiling were all painted a really gross fleshy pink color. I've never been much of a pink person, but I'm sure even pink's biggest fan would've gotten a little dizzy in that room.</div><div><br />
</div><div>We have been given permission to do absolutely anything we want to the house, but since it still doesn't belong to us, we're trying to avoid investing too much money in this project. We've made a ton of progress so far, especially on the wood floors that we found underneath the carpet, two layers of old linoleum, and old newspapers. Having an actual floor in the house has made so much of a difference.</div><div><br />
</div><div>So that's my lame excuse. Every ounce of spare time has been spent fixing up this house, but I really hope we have something to show for it. I'll post some "in progress" pictures below, and hopefully I'll have some "after" pictures to post in a few months.</div><div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQCVgalasg9dSl6bTtWoFNBtmGuzov7Zp6WecvmHkITaskaySi9M3eocjIAS89mCrdXhKQ4tLdS74bsxpEYTM_A8nqdVsF5kNx7pfFSD7c80Epo-onKZJZsidfEoPQo8CIrsmeBtza9nE/s1600/kitchen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQCVgalasg9dSl6bTtWoFNBtmGuzov7Zp6WecvmHkITaskaySi9M3eocjIAS89mCrdXhKQ4tLdS74bsxpEYTM_A8nqdVsF5kNx7pfFSD7c80Epo-onKZJZsidfEoPQo8CIrsmeBtza9nE/s400/kitchen.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My kitchen-to-be</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjNqFM5PP9Y7nZbva_Fm3hlQ6vAvJZc4ay0W8vjYAd_UIWUUf7kjcuNeyhh-3GuKqu21KslBVXfBQtw0MdovqsXvvkrbgU1WJtjQWmN9YvtsGnd0sZ5n0XKeSv49jRZbXVeLbDSojRKZQ/s1600/sopink.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjNqFM5PP9Y7nZbva_Fm3hlQ6vAvJZc4ay0W8vjYAd_UIWUUf7kjcuNeyhh-3GuKqu21KslBVXfBQtw0MdovqsXvvkrbgU1WJtjQWmN9YvtsGnd0sZ5n0XKeSv49jRZbXVeLbDSojRKZQ/s400/sopink.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Extreme two-tone pink attack</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigWSMhRNH4nAwVX-cgIKe8FZ92ABuW8P18OcC4YgA7K4YU7rsWLp78woAE5idLGLFRqZPooVFwnelwB0-wixAjsnala-6iIPZJCEk9cTdBYbTkU1_mchuzLv4CYd8S-zoa0-VzK7koOkI/s1600/counters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigWSMhRNH4nAwVX-cgIKe8FZ92ABuW8P18OcC4YgA7K4YU7rsWLp78woAE5idLGLFRqZPooVFwnelwB0-wixAjsnala-6iIPZJCEk9cTdBYbTkU1_mchuzLv4CYd8S-zoa0-VzK7koOkI/s400/counters.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Your eyes do not deceive you. Faux-brick linoleum partially covered with laminate make up the kitchen counters</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYzWImcdSR8JEe7KNp3wJAx1WDkV9zaf1UWLHxNAuyHKTisvvHRyaSAB9zXatBHfTcmjmV50KRtJ39gH-BvZGedxYFMfNkZs6wwvaW2alK_AnbvUZO8biL3Fnx6rs8ErfNh7plwBFWNOw/s1600/woodburning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYzWImcdSR8JEe7KNp3wJAx1WDkV9zaf1UWLHxNAuyHKTisvvHRyaSAB9zXatBHfTcmjmV50KRtJ39gH-BvZGedxYFMfNkZs6wwvaW2alK_AnbvUZO8biL3Fnx6rs8ErfNh7plwBFWNOw/s400/woodburning.jpg" width="298" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My favorite! Wood-burning stove</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMUA6u_LUue1vAKrn89QmdizRJiTYHLIDsGg6UEXjejCHajhH01N7Jwqw9TLQNkxLdrQM1gJZbF2ZzL4XuOP7kgNeCiG4MMMGU6pdCOQn9HA5AAoLGUNkg6KhhDx-peWbkkyqfp9hriwQ/s1600/weirdlinoleum.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMUA6u_LUue1vAKrn89QmdizRJiTYHLIDsGg6UEXjejCHajhH01N7Jwqw9TLQNkxLdrQM1gJZbF2ZzL4XuOP7kgNeCiG4MMMGU6pdCOQn9HA5AAoLGUNkg6KhhDx-peWbkkyqfp9hriwQ/s400/weirdlinoleum.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Weird Carpet-esque linoleum upstairs found under actual carpet and another layer of linoleum</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJE-pY-ty3A1l0bOk9Y5f934N_hxY7OprQ9rEFIVuusbte9tIBgDJ5vHqOilDNu64_IWW66i7qG6NSlVrrDCSsL6uWZ_bkvCfG9zl4hWXgVsNtqXToGSY8M6BkoeMMu5vas-6Q2fg_FrU/s1600/oldpapers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJE-pY-ty3A1l0bOk9Y5f934N_hxY7OprQ9rEFIVuusbte9tIBgDJ5vHqOilDNu64_IWW66i7qG6NSlVrrDCSsL6uWZ_bkvCfG9zl4hWXgVsNtqXToGSY8M6BkoeMMu5vas-6Q2fg_FrU/s320/oldpapers.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Under the linoleum... '20s newspapers and wood floor. $3.98 frocks!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC_wrC8wUxRFlbpZAjA-KYJqc9OG7vdaKx0ExzI1HazFKcmMx_TxMQfHNTgMm40xFAkCnr80KeXgzNt4lBdIfPn39qc2i_Av8hBy0Ua4n2PwlVn31IVfSF0oae5C5AwVctHUpRNeHcxn8/s1600/actionshot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC_wrC8wUxRFlbpZAjA-KYJqc9OG7vdaKx0ExzI1HazFKcmMx_TxMQfHNTgMm40xFAkCnr80KeXgzNt4lBdIfPn39qc2i_Av8hBy0Ua4n2PwlVn31IVfSF0oae5C5AwVctHUpRNeHcxn8/s320/actionshot.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blurry carpet-ripping action shot! He actually caught the lamp before it fell</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPehxnc5VrpaBfLJIR9yb6IhNxEOqAw2zm1PXZXm3_7c0_BnZCiaSUAlMUqM0vXLRmZqrMDA9SP4xIM3npV3yhipr65e_L5cpY0yjteyvnaJlqaz8eP3XQWO_c8lV0MoiHDnXm2eDixjo/s1600/floors.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPehxnc5VrpaBfLJIR9yb6IhNxEOqAw2zm1PXZXm3_7c0_BnZCiaSUAlMUqM0vXLRmZqrMDA9SP4xIM3npV3yhipr65e_L5cpY0yjteyvnaJlqaz8eP3XQWO_c8lV0MoiHDnXm2eDixjo/s320/floors.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Under the carpet. Who would cover this up?</td></tr>
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</div>hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-51264440695913858322010-10-03T13:41:00.001-04:002010-10-03T13:51:01.456-04:00Asian-Inspired Vegetable Soup with Shiritaki Noodles<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Jill</span></i></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlhi4pMpsqLPXwcL6_JryDJB8xoFMADDiMNK4-OXlaCqCmg0Z8X48sixZsoWJlUf6dkDsVARxD8MgM8N163VEeL-kecIiaZHTr3YjskcFPVu8THGXmduHcQYWLpEPPfLLdpAdlRdw6U5g/s1600/shiritakisoup2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlhi4pMpsqLPXwcL6_JryDJB8xoFMADDiMNK4-OXlaCqCmg0Z8X48sixZsoWJlUf6dkDsVARxD8MgM8N163VEeL-kecIiaZHTr3YjskcFPVu8THGXmduHcQYWLpEPPfLLdpAdlRdw6U5g/s400/shiritakisoup2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Making soup used to seem mysterious and time-consuming, but now I've come to the conclusion that it's got to be difficult to screw it up. Boil water with something to make stock, or buy premade stock and save yourself buttloads of time. Then you just add anything you like. I've gone through those steps multiple times and I've yet to come out with anything inedible or gross.<br />
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<div>Since it's been pretty soup-weathery outside, I wanted to try something that I've been dying to try for ages. It all revolves around shiritaki noodles, a low carb, low fat, low calorie wet-packaged noodle made from yam and tofu. They have a different texture than any other noodle I've tried. Instead of the "bite" that you get from al-dente cooked pasta, these noodles have kind of a "snap" to them.</div><div><br />
</div><div>Since cutting back on some of the super-fatty foods in my diet, I've tried shiritaki noodles a few times. I've had them with regular old pasta sauce, and while it wasn't horrible, it also wasn't that great. These noodles seem better suited to some things than others, which is why I have been dying to try them in a soup. I suspected that the texture would really hold up well in a soup, and I have to say I was really happy with the way it all turned out. </div><div><br />
</div><div>In the lazed-out mood I was in while shopping on this particular day, I picked up a package of soup greens for the veggies in this soup and only added a package of frozen peas and scallions to the mix. These pre-assembled packages usually contain all of your chicken soup basics: a few carrots, a couple of hearts of celery, a big parsnip, the white part of a leek, a turnip, a small yellow onion, and a small handful or so of herbs. I used all of those veggies in this soup, making it pretty American-style with added Asian flavors. I think this soup should be very versatile as far as vegetables go, so if you have something you want to get rid of, chuck it in. I really wanted to add some napa cabbage, but the idea didn't strike me until long after I was at home with my groceries with a big pot bubbling away on the stove. I also didn't add the herbs from the package and reserved them for later use. </div><div><br />
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</div><div><br />
</div><div><b>Asian-Inspired Vegetable Soup with Shiritaki Noodles</b></div><div><br />
</div><div>8 cups of vegetable stock</div><div>2 cloves of garlic, minced</div><div>about a teaspoon or more of minced ginger (or powdered ground ginger)</div><div>soy sauce</div><div>sesame oil</div><div>sriracha sauce (optional)</div><div>3 scallions, sliced</div><div>one small package of frozen peas</div><div>3-4 8 oz packages of tofu shiritaki noodles</div><div>vegetable oil</div><div>A package of soup greens, or any combination of the following vegetables:</div><div>-one parsnip, peeled and diced</div><div>-two large carrots, peeled and diced</div><div>-the white part of one leek, cleaned carefully and diced</div><div>-one turnip, diced</div><div>-a few hearts of celery, diced</div><div>-one small onion, quartered</div><div><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOwvUrlXo4BO0Xtk4YXS_GQvH7leBRo70FMQKhxYWsaUT0dEqLjgKzqL1IjMlD8I4KW3G1rsWgms903QXgaHrUnQ0vL9RPdgoyKBkcB02Vvf392fCv4wcBmztpZYf1yEpOQWFEr1_pOr8/s1600/shiritakisoup1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOwvUrlXo4BO0Xtk4YXS_GQvH7leBRo70FMQKhxYWsaUT0dEqLjgKzqL1IjMlD8I4KW3G1rsWgms903QXgaHrUnQ0vL9RPdgoyKBkcB02Vvf392fCv4wcBmztpZYf1yEpOQWFEr1_pOr8/s320/shiritakisoup1.jpg" width="277" /></a></div><br />
</div><div>Heat the vegetable oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and ginger (if fresh, not powdered) and stir until they become fragrant but not brown. Add the leeks and stir for a moment longer. Add the vegetables to the pot, excluding the peas and scallions, and then pour in the stock. Bring the soup to a boil, then turn down to a simmer. Allow the soup to boil for 30 minutes to an hour, until the vegetables are softened to your liking.</div><div><br />
</div><div>When the vegetables are soft, get a separate pot of water boiling for your noodles. While you are waiting, to the soup, add about 1 Tbsp of soy sauce, a few drops of sriracha sauce, and a very small drizzle of sesame oil. Taste the soup and salt and pepper to taste. My soup at this point wasn't nearly gingery enough, so I added some additional powdered ground ginger. Adjust these seasonings to your liking, then add the peas. (Note: be careful with sesame oil, it is extremely potent and you can easily add too much and over-sesame your soup. Add very small drizzles at a time, tasting as you go.)</div><div><br />
</div><div>Drain the packages of noodles in a colander and rinse well in the sink. The liquid the noodles are packaged in isn't the greatest smelling stuff, so you will want to rinse them and boil the noodles in a pot separate from the soup. Add the noodles to the boiling water and let them boil for about 3 minutes. Drain again, then either add them directly to the pot of soup or add some to individual bowls and ladle the soup over them. Garnish with chopped scallions. </div><div><br />
</div>hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-83854023533643714512010-09-17T15:45:00.001-04:002010-09-17T15:45:41.700-04:00Weeknight Vegetarian Chili<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Jill</span></span></i><br />
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Don't get me wrong, I LOVE making a big ol' pot of meaty chili and letting it slowly simmer together. However, it's not always practical to pull one together from thin air. For instance, you may not always have fresh beef or its defrosted alternative ready to go at a moments notice. This vegetarian chili can be thrown together from stuff that can be kept in your cabinets indefinitely (almost), takes about half as much time from start to finish, and tastes pretty darn good if you ask me. <br />
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<div><a name='more'></a></div><div>This chili is also pretty open to interpretation. You don't need to add the carrots if you don't have any. I had the better part of a bag of baby carrots in the fridge, so they got diced up and thrown into the pot. You don't like kidney beans? Don't add them. Replace them with more pinto beans, or try some black beans for something different. This recipe is guaranteed to give you leftovers if you're serving two, like me, but if you want to polish this off in one night, cut the quantities in half.</div><div><br />
</div><div><b>Weeknight Vegetarian Chili</b></div><div><br />
</div><div>about 1 Tbsp minced garlic</div><div>2 yellow onions, diced</div><div>about a cup of carrots, diced (optional)</div><div>one large bell pepper, diced (or two small ones)</div><div>1 28oz can of diced tomatoes and their juices</div><div>2 tsp cumin</div><div>1 tsp chipotle chili powder (less if you like it less spicy, more if you want to burn your socks off)</div><div>2 14oz cans of pinto beans, rinsed and drained</div><div>2 14oz cans kidney beans, rinsed and drained</div><div>salt & pepper</div><div>oil</div><div><br />
</div><div>Heat some olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and stir fry for about 30 seconds, then add the onions, peppers, and carrots. Cook for about 10 minutes, until soft (probably more time with the carrots, less without). Add the cumin, chili powder, and a little salt and pepper, stirring to coat all of the veggies. Cook for a few moments further.</div><div><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJwAyl39oIjchZWGxsmPW5Zg_yWe74e1xZtU5DAZVplwhMiTy9jIJafh7MJt5WJ7-MbOdRssOLy-cFmX8jNwIM6iOJvomoLRdFA7Z4HScsVyAso3pd0qRTUBkXZ3tnl3smijhMYV4_dYM/s1600/veggiechili2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJwAyl39oIjchZWGxsmPW5Zg_yWe74e1xZtU5DAZVplwhMiTy9jIJafh7MJt5WJ7-MbOdRssOLy-cFmX8jNwIM6iOJvomoLRdFA7Z4HScsVyAso3pd0qRTUBkXZ3tnl3smijhMYV4_dYM/s320/veggiechili2.jpg" /></a></div><div><br />
</div><div>Add the beans and the can of tomatoes. Bring the mixture to a boil, then simmer for about 20 minutes until most of the liquid is absorbed. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.</div>hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-76584747087274174172010-09-07T22:42:00.004-04:002010-09-07T22:55:49.779-04:00Baked Pasta Puttanesca<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Jill</span></span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3JfAwvEJklW3S9TYl_e60CVut-B4FjU64V2FwWCTZIpsUQ42myyl3NReLBEufRTZnxJ8b2uyNVuskLTDebJzKxZxLwHgRf8lcPxwuao7PT6ret_IpHXo7RRxgUoJHMSVDAofwNWdR8U4/s1600/puttanesca1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3JfAwvEJklW3S9TYl_e60CVut-B4FjU64V2FwWCTZIpsUQ42myyl3NReLBEufRTZnxJ8b2uyNVuskLTDebJzKxZxLwHgRf8lcPxwuao7PT6ret_IpHXo7RRxgUoJHMSVDAofwNWdR8U4/s400/puttanesca1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
I'm not sure if this is a universal statement or not, but when I go back to school, my stress level skyrockets. The amount of time I have for planning and creating elaborate meals shrinks, and I pretty much just want to curl up in a ball and have somebody take care of everything for me. Since I don't live in fantasy land, I have to make due with what I can. I think this semester I'm really going to try making quasi-healthy cooking a priority so that I don't get on the train to Bloatsville, USA.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Since Keith and I have been pretty good in terms of healthy eating, I decided to reward us with some good old fashioned comfort food. Baked ziti was probably my favorite thing to order off of the Italian take-out menu before lactose intolerance, but I haven't even attempted to re-create it since the dairy-ban. Pasta puttanesca is actually kind of a recent discovery for me, but I love it so much I would probably eat it every day if there were no consequences. The forthcoming recipe is an attempt at merging these two things together. I used my <a href="http://www.lanascooking.com/2010/04/02/pasta-puttanesca/">favorite puttanesca recipe</a> from "<a href="http://www.lanascooking.com/">Never Enough Thyme</a>," although I have to cut the anchovy paste out of the recipe if I want Keith to eat it too. I used some really nice italian pasta called Pennoni, similar to a penne rigate, but you can use any pasta you like. And as always, my recipes are dairy free, but just switch out the non-dairy ingredients for real cheese if you want to try a more decadent version. Adding cheese to puttanesca sauce and baking it may be the biggest bastardization of real Italian cooking you can come up with (other than Chef Boyardee,) but Keith and I both agreed that these flavors were really outstanding together.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbVR03IzlYAHHMEWqeq8sSaKVJ1mkE1Bv8RZcNsn5wjGshjh30N4HoMUhDvG00rfMc6hDpzjlniT3rfRejdgGKIf37x_rETKoL7x0NYcd5bGmHVR_BhCjknP1NB1gL7acT4tq059jLIG8/s1600/puttanesca4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbVR03IzlYAHHMEWqeq8sSaKVJ1mkE1Bv8RZcNsn5wjGshjh30N4HoMUhDvG00rfMc6hDpzjlniT3rfRejdgGKIf37x_rETKoL7x0NYcd5bGmHVR_BhCjknP1NB1gL7acT4tq059jLIG8/s320/puttanesca4.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<b>Baked Pasta Puttanesca</b><br />
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3/4 lb pasta (ziti, rigatoni, etc.)<br />
about 1&1/2 tbsp minced garlic<br />
olive oil<br />
1/4 to 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (depending on how spicy you like it)<br />
28z can whole tomatoes<br />
1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives, chopped<br />
2 tbsp capers<br />
about 10 leaves of fresh basil, chopped<br />
8 oz of non-dairy mozzarella cheese shreds *(see note below)<br />
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Preheat your oven to 375º. Spritz a 2 qt. rectangular casserole with some olive oil spray and set aside. Cook pasta in salted boiling water until al dente according to package directions.<br />
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In the meantime, heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large frying pan or skillet over medium. Add your minced garlic and crushed red pepper and cook until fragrant. Add the juice from the can of tomatoes, then add the tomatoes themselves, crushing each one individually in your hands to break them apart as you add them (be careful! They squirt!)<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSWQZTc98SsYJTGHKe5smsCmUec79AFJeO0oVaacCpAryBgeMByGWDiuOMh7dX4hpDb2cUFNwSRS_ZL_GymSidpqYSaylvO3PFpKsISE_GYw4X8hgdS_W4_U0xeNmHPWh80z6-Sx5Xtw8/s1600/puttanesca3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSWQZTc98SsYJTGHKe5smsCmUec79AFJeO0oVaacCpAryBgeMByGWDiuOMh7dX4hpDb2cUFNwSRS_ZL_GymSidpqYSaylvO3PFpKsISE_GYw4X8hgdS_W4_U0xeNmHPWh80z6-Sx5Xtw8/s320/puttanesca3.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Steamin' up the lens</div><br />
Add the olives and capers to the sauce and stir to combine. Allow the sauce to come to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and allow it to cook down for about 10 minutes (until it isn't watery.) Turn off the heat and add the basil.<br />
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Drain the cooked pasta and add it to the sauce in the pan, allowing it to soak up the flavor. Toss Gently to combine.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYORuhcen_rQ6KfOR-w7u44XM31UnCZpPrd20uAYzah7k9iNwKwzjkYUM5NUJBbM8729h6AVAm4ctEUojZ64iWFWf132UGPFpY1slTPW8rR1BqPj7zxU8E5QI-zXjl7Ro_jePgryV2OSg/s1600/puttanesca2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYORuhcen_rQ6KfOR-w7u44XM31UnCZpPrd20uAYzah7k9iNwKwzjkYUM5NUJBbM8729h6AVAm4ctEUojZ64iWFWf132UGPFpY1slTPW8rR1BqPj7zxU8E5QI-zXjl7Ro_jePgryV2OSg/s320/puttanesca2.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Layer half of your pasta mixture on the bottom of the casserole. Add half of your shredded "cheese", distributing evenly over the pasta. Add the remaining pasta to the casserole, and top with the rest of the cheese.<br />
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Cover the casserole with foil and bake in the oven for about 30 minutes.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd4W2hCgRqz-bGINg_kE0BtnVD5j-Ebir_8n1LHfHXamiBYwJ5G7k7OV3AiMm86oKpXTIyiLp5PYQDt2E79LNBIROlq3vHC__N6A2UjpSn36pYS4cy4IwW5H-6WXGMy5233Qc34tTI5hE/s1600/puttanesca5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd4W2hCgRqz-bGINg_kE0BtnVD5j-Ebir_8n1LHfHXamiBYwJ5G7k7OV3AiMm86oKpXTIyiLp5PYQDt2E79LNBIROlq3vHC__N6A2UjpSn36pYS4cy4IwW5H-6WXGMy5233Qc34tTI5hE/s320/puttanesca5.jpg" /></a></div><br />
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*On the "cheese": Wow, there sure are a lot of non-dairy cheeses available on the market now! This particular time around, I used mozzarella flavored Daiya shreds, and it made the pasta very gooey and cheesy. However, I have used Veggie Shreds brand in another pasta casserole in the past, and I may actually prefer those in this particular application. The Veggie Shreds seem to mix into the pasta and retain a lot of stretchiness, while the Daiya shreds leave a "snowy" looking layer on top and become rather gooey. I do like gooey cheese, but in a casserole it might be nice to have something with a little more body. This of course comes down to personal preference, and if by chance you are going for a vegan version of this dish, the Veggie Shreds are not among the options for you.hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-65565130746534627092010-08-28T11:54:00.003-04:002010-08-28T12:06:26.600-04:00Mediterranean Swordfish in Parchment Packets<div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>Jill</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: inherit; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpK5HE3wMK6mEof-FehGUvVtTP3SK-Afu3HrDsART8_2XWdUPBfeB80yjApGRp5VrZoIRMPwGds5_xnbYtIg6cGhOLKg_Uhvmeky60j6XyC-JKHXmizZ8JZr_KOsSXsKRVF-oGnHbOPys/s1600/swordfish3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="322" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpK5HE3wMK6mEof-FehGUvVtTP3SK-Afu3HrDsART8_2XWdUPBfeB80yjApGRp5VrZoIRMPwGds5_xnbYtIg6cGhOLKg_Uhvmeky60j6XyC-JKHXmizZ8JZr_KOsSXsKRVF-oGnHbOPys/s400/swordfish3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Usually for Keith's birthday, I ask him what he would like me to make him for dinner. This year he decided he wanted to eat swordfish, and all I can say is thank goodness for food blogs. Prior to that, my entire fish-cooking repertoire consisted of salmon, haddock, cod, and tilapia. That's it. Swordfish has always seemed like something out of my league. Why? Because I told myself so, and then it becomes the truth. I did a little food blog searching and came up with a recipe that seemed relatively simple to prepare.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><a name='more'></a></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://sassandveracity.typepad.com/sass_veracity/2008/06/i-cook-such-a-w.html">The recipe</a> (which comes from "<a href="http://sassandveracity.typepad.com/">Sass & Veracity</a>", who found it <a href="https://www.napastyle.com/recipe/recipe.jsp?productId=2542&parentCategoryId=614&categoryId=700&subCategoryId=728">here</a>) has you bake the fish in little parchment packets. You prepare a salad of tomatoes, roasted peppers, onions, olives, capers, and lemon juice, along with a couple of herbs and spices. This recipe calls for pasta to be baked along with the fish, but something about that pairing rubs me the wrong way, so I replaced the pasta with some rice. On the parchment, you layer the rice, salad, and fish, then close the whole thing off and bake.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">HOLY COW. We were both so blown away by this recipe. The rice soaked up the flavors of both the fish and the Mediterranean salad, and the fish came out juicy and perfect. The flavors of the olives and capers were so strong in this recipe, but they meshed with everything so nicely. I honestly have ordered fish at a Mediterranean restaurant that didn't taste half as delicious as this. The presentation is also pretty awesome, as you just plop the individual parchment packets on a plate and unwrap it at the table.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: inherit; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh69IHqYBrnJ8M6ryLuKCE5c8QNuJfmd_Z3T4TZ7avg01X_xRFxB3DcssSLOjr16ZhLT5aJbJhnwNdeJYaZS_KpFkqa3eQ8u3pVQOhQ2tA_H2grg5dKB8tEycyPSkc_6AM1VJbXq0BLFt4/s1600/swordfish1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh69IHqYBrnJ8M6ryLuKCE5c8QNuJfmd_Z3T4TZ7avg01X_xRFxB3DcssSLOjr16ZhLT5aJbJhnwNdeJYaZS_KpFkqa3eQ8u3pVQOhQ2tA_H2grg5dKB8tEycyPSkc_6AM1VJbXq0BLFt4/s320/swordfish1.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Out of the oven</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">For a salad, in an attempt to make something different than my usual dinner salad, I did some more food-blog-scouring. I popped out with a <a href="http://www.whatwouldcathyeat.com/2010/08/beet-orange-and-arugula-salad/">recipe (from "What Would Cathy Eat")</a> for a simple salad made with arugula, red onions, beets, and oranges. I won't re-post the recipe here since I really didn't change anything, but I will admit I took a shortcut and used canned pre-sliced beets. I know the flavor is different when you cook fresh beets yourself, but I honestly like canned beets. I also used the juice of half of a small orange in the dressing.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: inherit; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpvyK3yzTKR9RfaM9h7rOfd8n0DDKsUFZ393Lt7PGJ50jokEzWU9g7-YYfVfMcpCtRf0_s1uCCMjBKize4doXsb2ZmagnRFaJ9LWZa3Sep5VzfMUWnjK7N28ujD4S_ybHvDc7a37yyXhM/s1600/swordfishsalad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpvyK3yzTKR9RfaM9h7rOfd8n0DDKsUFZ393Lt7PGJ50jokEzWU9g7-YYfVfMcpCtRf0_s1uCCMjBKize4doXsb2ZmagnRFaJ9LWZa3Sep5VzfMUWnjK7N28ujD4S_ybHvDc7a37yyXhM/s320/swordfishsalad.jpg" /></a></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Below is the recipe for the swordfish with a few slight changes. Originally, the recipe lists 3 cups of fresh tomatoes, chopped, but that was just way too many tomatoes for me. Instead, I used two large heirloom tomatoes, and I couldn't imagine having any more in the finished product. They also list pepper-infused olive oil as an ingredient, but I have no idea where to get this and I really didn't want to spend the money on a whole bottle of fancy olive oil that I would be using just two tablespoons of. Instead, since I purchased pre-roasted bell peppers in a jar, I used two tablespoons of the oil that they came packed in, which was pretty pepper-infused if you ask me. And, as mentioned before, I switched out the pasta in this recipe for rice, and I'm really glad I did. The swordfish steaks I bought were also MASSIVE, as compared to the 5oz steaks called for originally. I just increased the cooking time very slightly and everything turned out.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><b>Mediterranean Swordfish in Parchment Packets</b></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">2 footlong sheets of parchment paper</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">2 swordfish steaks</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">2 large tomatoes, seeds and insides scooped out and sliced (somewhat like a pepper)</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">1 1/2 roasted bell peppers, any color, chopped</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">2 Tbsp each of chopped fresh parsley and oregano</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">1 1/2 Tbsp minced garlic</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">1 quarter of a red onion, sliced</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">2 Tbsp capers, chopped</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">12 Kalamata olives, pitted and sliced in half (I realized after the fact that they meant to cut it in half widthwise, while I sliced them lengthwise... I don't think it matters at all)</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">2 Tbsp lemon juice</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">2 Tbsp red pepper oil, or oil from the jar of roasted peppers</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Regular olive oil</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">1/2 cup uncooked long grain white rice</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Sea salt and freshly ground pepper</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Add your tomatoes to and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add the next eight ingredients to the bowl (bell peppers through pepper oil) and drizzle with about 2 Tbsp regular olive oil. Stir this mixture to combine and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Put this mixture aside on your counter and let it sit for about an hour.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Preheat your oven to 450º and prepare your rice. Boil 1 cup of salted water in a saucepan. Once boiling, turn down the heat and add the white rice. Stir briefly and cover, allowing rice to cook for 15 minutes. Once cooked, fluff the rice with a fork.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">On a baking sheet, prepare parchment packets. In the center of one sheet of parchment, add half of the cooked rice. Top this with a generous spoonful of your pepper/tomato mixture. Place the swordfish on top, and then spoon on some more of the pepper/tomato mixture. To close off the packets, I just kind of folded two opposite sides of the parchment into the middle, then twisted and scrunched the other two sides together. Any way you can figure out to close the parchment is acceptable... one of the packets opened slightly during cooking and this had no affect on the fish. Repeat this with the other piece of parchment with the remaining ingredients.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: inherit; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr10O0Be0D3CsKcmd2ZxoCaFPMjP-zrHy43JvjODGNsc0X41-a8IRMQPA48fQsi4qDiaJPl0BUJSTpI-WAykxWYo6qu2kR_X-hS_-DoMmYgE6VWfp2TSsZ41RFEpYJNSzPhSecsoxyMJw/s1600/swordfish2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr10O0Be0D3CsKcmd2ZxoCaFPMjP-zrHy43JvjODGNsc0X41-a8IRMQPA48fQsi4qDiaJPl0BUJSTpI-WAykxWYo6qu2kR_X-hS_-DoMmYgE6VWfp2TSsZ41RFEpYJNSzPhSecsoxyMJw/s320/swordfish2.jpg" /></a></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Scrunched together packet</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Bake the packets in the heated oven until cooked through. The original recipe states 12-15 minutes should do the trick, but since these swordfish steaks were so huge, I left them in for 16 minutes and they were cooked perfectly.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"></div>hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-38737240218436789672010-08-15T11:38:00.001-04:002010-08-15T11:39:33.106-04:00A Review of Daiya Vegan Cheese<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyL5h-KgjHRMkuqvjLHXktW4nxL92y7NL9dREMDCe72NEpG_sdoZdS7q_Z3HGmtraMPd201dlpWh8QCW4_ndL-7ZA2A53AlNfFuIb8mABNQ2HzLB3MCqd4yRatIz0ApX07ftqJ9F8KVQo/s1600/daiya1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="313" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyL5h-KgjHRMkuqvjLHXktW4nxL92y7NL9dREMDCe72NEpG_sdoZdS7q_Z3HGmtraMPd201dlpWh8QCW4_ndL-7ZA2A53AlNfFuIb8mABNQ2HzLB3MCqd4yRatIz0ApX07ftqJ9F8KVQo/s400/daiya1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
I think it would be a lot more difficult to live lactose-free if there weren't all of these wonderful products on the market that cater to people with issues or lifestyles similar to mine. Replicating cheese is obviously a HUGE deal, as tons of childhood comfort foods revolve around this ingredient. Some of the available products I've encountered, however, have been either baffling or downright gross. <br />
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<a name='more'></a>A common ingredient in a lot of these non-dairy cheese replacements is casein, milk protein, which makes them a non-option for vegans or those who are allergic to dairy, as casein is usually exactly what they are reacting to. The huge difference I've noticed between casein containing products and those without it is structure. This makes sense, as I'm sure adding milk protein to something gives it the cheese-like stretch and texture that's so crave-able. I've actually encountered a supposed "cheese replacement" that contained casein and also stated "may contain lactose." Who the hell is eating that stuff? Who CAN eat it? And why wouldn't they just eat real cheese at that point?<br />
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If you're going for something baked and melted, that's where the non-casein containing stuff usually falls short. I tried the "Follow Your Heart Vegan Gourmet" stuff raw, and it wasn't too bad. The cheddar flavor especially, sliced and put on sandwiches is actually really delicious. I made the mistake once of grating the mozzarella flavor and trying to bake a pizza with it, and it turned into some kind of wet grossness that slid off the crust when I picked it up. Yuck. Lesson Learned. As I've mentioned before, I think the "Tofutti" brand cheese slices taste like gasoline, so I never tried melting it as I really have no desire to eat melted gasoline.<br />
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A year or so ago, a product called "Daiya" started generating some buzz on the internet. It's another shredded cheese replacement, but the stuff is completely vegan friendly and therefore contains no dairy whatsoever. I was intrigued and looked into buying some, but it seemed to be only available for wholesale. I was disappointed, but also excited to learn that a few pizzerias were making vegan pizzas with the stuff. I reasoned that if they were selling it to the public, it couldn't be disgusting. When I walked into the little independent supermarket in my neighborhood the other day and saw that they started carrying it, I immediately snatched up a bag, excited to try it.<br />
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In an attempt to cling to my diet, I baked small pizzas on little individual flat bread rounds. I made plain pizza, black olive pizza, and chopped pepper and onion pizza. A lot of the "cheeses" I've tried have trouble becoming pizza when I start loading on the toppings... they don't melt quite right, so I wanted to make a gradient of plain pizza to loaded pizza. I tried some of it unbaked right out of the bag and the flavor was different, maybe even better than some of the other products I've tried. Hope!<br />
<br />
I popped them into the oven at 425º for about 10 minutes. Non-dairy cheeses have the tendency to stay as separate shreds, even after melting, and the Daiya seemed to be no exception from this. However, it seemed to turn into one mass, like real cheese, directly under the top layer. It's possible that if I left it in the oven for longer it would have completely melted together, but I was afraid of another wet blob incident and possibly took it out prematurely. This is only a visual concern, however, and has no effect on the taste. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDw4W1WQlDCg5mWj4-8FXW1uFjj8Ek2O0YAighO8I2OFpYkPMurVWn3FLGj7lHLs7dicdX0mjgVqnggN2BvMz4sW8ivNBluGqPHBFMY-glpUwzrgTzYCbIsJ8rBR4-8Zsqn5Q1liWZQJQ/s1600/daiya2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="246" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDw4W1WQlDCg5mWj4-8FXW1uFjj8Ek2O0YAighO8I2OFpYkPMurVWn3FLGj7lHLs7dicdX0mjgVqnggN2BvMz4sW8ivNBluGqPHBFMY-glpUwzrgTzYCbIsJ8rBR4-8Zsqn5Q1liWZQJQ/s400/daiya2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
So, the verdict? Out of all of the non-casein containing, completely vegan products I've tried, this is a clear winner. On taste alone, especially once it's baked, I prefer it to anything else I've tried. On texture, it beats out the vegan stuff. It still doesn't quite have the same stretchiness as the casein products, but it has more stretch than any other vegan product. It also has a very satisfying gooey texture once it's completely melted. <br />
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Surprisingly, the toppings didn't influence the way the daiya cheese melted at all. The cheese on the pepper and onion pizza (which ended up being our favorite) melted just as much as the cheese on the plain version, so it seems that this stuff can probably take more abuse than some of the other products out there. Keith even told me that I should use Daiya in lasagna from now on instead of what I was using before. <br />
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I think we're going to start seeing a lot of new developments in dairy substitutions in the near future, as I've been noticing tons of stuff popping up on the market. I used to have trouble finding chocolate chips, and now I can just walk into a store and pick up a bag that says "dairy-free" in huge letters. There used to be a couple of tubs of soy-yogurt to choose from, and now there are tons of companies making yogurt in a gazillion flavors from soy and even coconut milk. I hope this isn't a fad, because it's certainly been making my life a lot easier!hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-65899271312684844692010-08-12T14:37:00.004-04:002010-08-12T16:00:51.350-04:00Lentil Salad with Dill<div><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Jill</span></span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi40LqcxfxyhaoVlvdAqH_mIGFZcvyhtqKSkKAXgEQTFGDcsOSGx3UFd1f9W_NcOlFMkJrjeNlq_udJAYAInvalSAzX70xYjuBJmvIXLLCUP5XOZ4dzgI5V2NPzldZdvuiea9Os3HFeVFU/s1600/lentil_salad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi40LqcxfxyhaoVlvdAqH_mIGFZcvyhtqKSkKAXgEQTFGDcsOSGx3UFd1f9W_NcOlFMkJrjeNlq_udJAYAInvalSAzX70xYjuBJmvIXLLCUP5XOZ4dzgI5V2NPzldZdvuiea9Os3HFeVFU/s400/lentil_salad.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br />
</div><div>I can't believe that summer is winding down already! It's almost time to bring out the warmer clothes and spend hundreds of dollars on required textbooks that I'll probably open once or twice. I can still cling to the warm weather for a few more weeks and experiment with the last of the season's cold dishes that I'll have in my repertoire for next summer.<br />
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There are two stores that I generally head out to without a plan in mind for food. One is Trader Joe's, which would be a little more addictive if it wasn't so out of the way, and the other is a little independently owned market about 5 miles away from my apartment. They always have produce from local markets and interesting products that actually make it fun to go inside and see what you can come up with. At the little market, I found some really beautiful dark, almost purplish tomatoes and decided to make a salad.</div><div><br />
</div><div>I didn't come up with anything revolutionary, just a simple lentil salad. It was fresh, uncomplicated, and light, and I think that's all anybody can ever ask for during the last dwindling weeks of summer.</div><div><br />
</div><div><strong>Lentil Salad with Dill</strong></div><div><br />
</div><div>about 2 1/2 cups of cooked and cooled lentils or a package of prepared steamed lentils</div><div>1 bell pepper, any color - diced</div><div>1/2 an english cucumber, peel on - diced</div><div>2 small tomatoes</div><div>1 large stalk of celery - diced</div><div>2 lemons</div><div>2 scallion stalks - sliced</div><div>1/4 cup sliced almonds</div><div>fresh chopped or dried dill, to taste</div><div>olive oil</div><div>salt and pepper</div><div><br />
</div><div>Add the cold lentils to a large bowl. Add the pepper, cucumber, celery, almonds and scallions. Add some of the dill, a drizzle of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Juice one lemon and add it to the salad, stirring very gently to combine. Taste the salad. If it isn't lemony enough, begin adding the juice from the second lemon. Add more dill if necessary. </div><div><br />
</div><div>Chill in the fridge for several hours to allow the flavors to develop, or serve immediately. Before serving, dice the tomatoes and scrape out the seeds. This will keep your salad from getting to gooey. Stir in the diced tomatoes and serve. </div>hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-1931651494195415212010-08-02T22:29:00.004-04:002010-08-03T10:11:16.055-04:00Vegetable Tian<em><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Jill</span></em><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHXSDscNgOJYijVOB3p1cG8veBcTItEwnrB6xH-SaMjMzfYG1LcOYq4qdpjXW_gF29PyDo2LX29svcfVeNTLlR7zJBLubILsWxxxrafbPq_sQYEbqjiRd0tyip2kQq_nv7bQKOupx15f8/s1600/tian4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" bx="true" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHXSDscNgOJYijVOB3p1cG8veBcTItEwnrB6xH-SaMjMzfYG1LcOYq4qdpjXW_gF29PyDo2LX29svcfVeNTLlR7zJBLubILsWxxxrafbPq_sQYEbqjiRd0tyip2kQq_nv7bQKOupx15f8/s400/tian4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
I realized recently that it had been a while since I spent an afternoon in the kitchen, relaxing and preparing a dinner that takes a little more care and effort than the usual throw-together-and-devour meal. As I was pondering this idea, I came across some beautiful photos on <a href="http://tastespotting.com/">tastespotting</a> of vegetable tian, a French casserole composed of rounds of vegetables layered over a bed of sautéed onions and garlic. As I researched this dish, I found that most of the recipes were more or less the same. They all seemed to involve potatoes, tomatoes, and zucchini at the very least, with eggplant and yellow summer squash occasionally present. Many of the recipes topped the casserole with melty gruyere cheese, which I would love to taste, but obviously that isn't an option. <br />
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<a name='more'></a>I decided to give it a shot, using all of the vegetables I saw in other recipes and guessing the quantities I would need. I also tried out a brand new mandoline slicer, which should save a lot of slicing time and help to make the slices uniform in thickness. <br />
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When I took the slicer out of the box, I noticed that the thickness setting was fixed and that I could only make one type of slice. This was a little disappointing, as the photo on the box clearly showed a pile of cucumbers of various thicknesses. I figured I could deal with this since the slicer had many other blades for julienning and grating (I also bought it at TJ Maxx, spending a whopping 8 bucks.) I previously owned a much cheaper looking hand held mandonline that worked beautifully, and I literally used it until it fell apart.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsLYtY4XJ5kBbIG7n88KvvcNeRDBZXzvqhuH_XonLX2WeXnOCnQclWOLDdURvKa-Z2KjRS37rpZsAzEX1q4QJ03cR4wuZ02XQO4FOgiWGxAGuQUEXSYROcpUDTKFPezHjtC8GWZuJDRU0/s1600/tian5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" bx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsLYtY4XJ5kBbIG7n88KvvcNeRDBZXzvqhuH_XonLX2WeXnOCnQclWOLDdURvKa-Z2KjRS37rpZsAzEX1q4QJ03cR4wuZ02XQO4FOgiWGxAGuQUEXSYROcpUDTKFPezHjtC8GWZuJDRU0/s320/tian5.jpg" /></a></div><br />
First I tried the eggplant, something that my old mandoline had no issue with tackling. As I tried to drag the eggplant over the slicer, it would get stuck halfway through each slice and then basically rip the slice off of the eggplant at the end, leaving an extra chunk on each slice. Great, I thought, the blade is dull. Slices of eggplant were getting stuck in the mandoline. I went to push one of the slices out of the other side with my finger, and if you have ever used a mandoline in your life, you know that red flags should have been going off in my head at this moment. Instead, I barely touched the blade, making a nice little slice in my finger. It was was only about the size of a papercut, but now I was bleeding and irritated. On the bright side, I knew the blade wasn't dull. <br />
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After bandaging myself up, I proceeded with the rest of the vegetables (except the tomatoes and onions, which I sliced by hand.) The other vegetables went much more smoothly, and I started feeling better and relaxing again. After arranging all of the vegetables in a baking dish, I realized I had bought too many potatoes and had some extra squash, which I had already cut into rounds. I quickly threw together a gratin, which I baked alongside the tian for dinner tomorrow. If it's any good, I'll post that recipe as well. <br />
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All of the annoyances seemed to make the final product that much more delicious. Keith agreed, proclaiming that he even liked the tomatoes (a vegetable that he usually avoids if given the opportunity.) I topped the baked casserole with a sprinkling of vegan parmesan in place of the gruyere, and it was a lovely addition.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiHwA-p4DyKNJfaU7PuYdnN-Vb5xkTH8y0lxtTGo30bypnFIgmbJyE-J2RYgH0sLKKmfqxLUGatu3YivU-r1vPOw5igTmWR6ygZ3bSu-uNbbY79ApoLiPJ99wLFs17UXEkzUc_JQYQcDg/s1600/tian2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" bx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiHwA-p4DyKNJfaU7PuYdnN-Vb5xkTH8y0lxtTGo30bypnFIgmbJyE-J2RYgH0sLKKmfqxLUGatu3YivU-r1vPOw5igTmWR6ygZ3bSu-uNbbY79ApoLiPJ99wLFs17UXEkzUc_JQYQcDg/s320/tian2.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<strong>Vegetable Tian</strong><br />
<br />
2 small eggplants<br />
4 or 5 tomatoes (I bought a bunch of on-the-vine tomatoes, figuring I would have some for later, but I ended up using them all)<br />
1 large russet potato, skin on (I bought two and ended up with double what I needed)<br />
1 to 1 1/2 zucchini<br />
1 to 1 1/2 summer squash<br />
2 yellow onions<br />
2 cloves of garlic<br />
olive oil<br />
dried thyme<br />
vegan parmesan topping (optional)<br />
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Slice the eggplant, potato, zucchini, squash, and tomatoes into rounds of uniform thickness, either by hand or with a mandoline. Slice the onions and chop the garlic. <br />
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Drizzle olive oil into a skillet or frying pan and heat over medium. Sauté the onions until they are very tender, then add the garlic and cook for another minute. Remove from the heat. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifIo0avmyU4AB2gIoURwl0n30LYM-3pLQUi7C7RSudh8Jfb2cGhL0-jXsLScBqYAf4IIuLoqAzNw6anqzhaDLTSyTVEHgbWDG2okWIp6WT2zt2SY8BUSfjKDt9MhmKsVhLwgYZkM0LVKg/s1600/tian1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" bx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifIo0avmyU4AB2gIoURwl0n30LYM-3pLQUi7C7RSudh8Jfb2cGhL0-jXsLScBqYAf4IIuLoqAzNw6anqzhaDLTSyTVEHgbWDG2okWIp6WT2zt2SY8BUSfjKDt9MhmKsVhLwgYZkM0LVKg/s320/tian1.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Preheat your oven to 375º. Layer the onions and garlic on the bottom of a baking dish. Many of the recipes used a 9x13 inch dish, but I used a rectangular 2 1/2 quart casserole that was smaller. In retrospect, the height of the baking dish may have been working against me in terms of cooking time, but everything still turned out. <br />
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Begin placing your slices of vegetables into the pan vertically, repeating the same pattern over and over again. Don't worry if your rounds are different sizes, as they are bound to be. Align the tops of your slices with each other and use the pressure that will be created by the stacks pressing against the dish to keep them in position.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioF1GGSJPNX32JLEJTcspvtR1GWDPmH23OIyx7FElRiI8F_5dnTQwYdpc4pAAk3wOr4XNEjmlG20UQuDsQz5mVvZbZdb6zoFegc3hTz_5-0vA3WfHEnwA3HqOQqbW3zLpqmU1-oqnnWXA/s1600/tian3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" bx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioF1GGSJPNX32JLEJTcspvtR1GWDPmH23OIyx7FElRiI8F_5dnTQwYdpc4pAAk3wOr4XNEjmlG20UQuDsQz5mVvZbZdb6zoFegc3hTz_5-0vA3WfHEnwA3HqOQqbW3zLpqmU1-oqnnWXA/s320/tian3.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Sprinkle your vegetables with salt, pepper, and dried thyme. Drizzle some olive oil over the top. Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 45 minutes to an hour. It took about an hour in the oven for my potatoes to be completely tender.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW6g5difZLB-NWmhEMobHTNwa6luVKFKDt1oDO_PWW_1DsNVul874chVbKctTu5DTiecSHD_rweL6L1cCVoqgPd1d_DhyxiGp1cvLQDEBb95bbn7Gz6l4ZjJpzGPlhVNYgqnw66WmtR3M/s1600/tian6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" bx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW6g5difZLB-NWmhEMobHTNwa6luVKFKDt1oDO_PWW_1DsNVul874chVbKctTu5DTiecSHD_rweL6L1cCVoqgPd1d_DhyxiGp1cvLQDEBb95bbn7Gz6l4ZjJpzGPlhVNYgqnw66WmtR3M/s320/tian6.jpg" /></a></div><br />
If you want, sprinkle your casserole with vegan parmesan and return it to the oven for a moment. I wouldn't recommend leaving it in the oven too long, however, since unlike real cheese, it will not melt together and instead may burn. If you don't have a dairy issue, you can add gruyere cheese to the top of the casserole and return it to the oven until it is bubbly.hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-66479814831571086352010-07-25T11:54:00.000-04:002010-07-25T11:54:10.519-04:00Fish Tacos<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>Jill</em></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="300" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdpw47WJ1QxMZqxz7Tct5l6fcuWm_f-0Euyct-gvqSuUYBF4f6fK-pvyYrpxLqYZ-z3dt-lDHlJCq4Vq31saiEcJEwk7g4Dn0K7vMFIEmD2uj2VYRGYq2RqM780KLhJdZF9EBYgJhdpB8/s400/fishtaco1.jpg" width="400" /></div><br />
Last night was one of those nights where it was really just too hot to think. I went to the store planning to get a couple of nice pieces of tuna to marinate and sear, but when I got there, the tuna didn't look so hot. Instead, I grabbed some haddock, a fish that I'm familiar with cooking. I usually bake the stuff in a hot oven with tons of heavy ingredients on top, but there was no way I was going to heat up my whole apartment.<br />
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The first time I heard the words "fish" and "taco" in the same sentence, I thought I might barf. I've lived on the east coast my entire life and never even ventured out west (though I really would like to), so my idea of what constitutes a fish taco was way, way off. I keep seeing pictures of these tacos in the food blog community and they don't involve heavy cheese, gloppy salsa, and flat wilty looking lettuce. They always look so fresh and delicious. That being said, when I made the decision to try making my own fish tacos at the store last night, I still had no idea how to make the real thing. I tried to string together a bunch of pictures that I had seen on other blogs and I actually came up with something that really tasted great.<br />
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This recipe is far from whatever a traditional fish taco might be, but it has fish, and it's in the form of a taco, so I'm still calling them fish tacos. I used sweet onions and peppers as filler, but I left them raw. I really liked having something crunchy and juicy to bite onto next to the soft avocado and fish. You can buy taco seasoning in the little packets, but it's also easy to make your own out of stuff you probably already have in your spice rack. <a href="http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/taco-seasoning-i/Detail.aspx">Here's a quick little recipe for taco seasoning</a> if you need some inspiration. I also found some pre-made corn relish in a jar while I was poking around the store, and it really added a nice kick.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVe_edXpFq5sP1_zFtqsh3I9vUWe7gxtSx_Ly6uiC14Edbjb7EgenUpSnWh5MQGxKV7a2onsI4ylJwYLCPmfuwharukfOnVkID2sZOH_Rc1AIts2Zcb3aFTgTyeCUHwSVAovla5WEzC4Y/s1600/fishtaco3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVe_edXpFq5sP1_zFtqsh3I9vUWe7gxtSx_Ly6uiC14Edbjb7EgenUpSnWh5MQGxKV7a2onsI4ylJwYLCPmfuwharukfOnVkID2sZOH_Rc1AIts2Zcb3aFTgTyeCUHwSVAovla5WEzC4Y/s320/fishtaco3.jpg" /></a></div><br />
I'll definitely be making these again as they were better than I expected. If I had planned them out in advance, I would have added a couple of things. In the future, I'll let the fish marinate in the seasoning mixture in the fridge for a few hours before I make the finished product. The fish was flavorful the way it was, but I could only imagine what marinating it would have done for the taste. I also wish I had remembered to buy some cilantro, but I added both of these things to the recipe below. <br />
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<br />
<strong>Fish Tacos</strong><br />
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1 lb white fish like haddock<br />
taco seasoning - store bought or home made<br />
1 lime, zest and juice<br />
1 bell pepper, any color (a banana pepper might be really good too)<br />
1/2 of a sweet onion<br />
corn relish<br />
1 avocado<br />
tortillas<br />
taco sauce<br />
olive oil<br />
salt and pepper<br />
cilantro (optional but recommended)<br />
<br />
<br />
Cut the fish into 1 inch cubes and place them in a bowl with the taco seasoning, lime juice, lime zest, and a little salt and pepper. Drizzle the fish with a little olive oil and stir to combine. If you have time, I would let the fish marinate in this mixture in the fridge for at least an hour (the longer you let it sit, the more flavor develops, so let it go all day if you can.) If you don't have the time, do this step first and let the fish sit in this mixture while you chop the veggies.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioQ5EXNa8hBegXiHbjOn_d1I0eDMhWugDUNxA3Isz9_2YJz4KnQmbsHFqk6hZt37mqdrRTM2fDp8FVe_C-pcise50zMW8Ve0iCb01DGNghl_LWGwCI25e3PJZbXPNon_FdT0d5F1xwvME/s1600/fishtaco2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="260" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioQ5EXNa8hBegXiHbjOn_d1I0eDMhWugDUNxA3Isz9_2YJz4KnQmbsHFqk6hZt37mqdrRTM2fDp8FVe_C-pcise50zMW8Ve0iCb01DGNghl_LWGwCI25e3PJZbXPNon_FdT0d5F1xwvME/s400/fishtaco2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Slice the onions and peppers into thin strips. Chop a handful of cilantro if you have any. I wouldn't recommend slicing the avocado until after the fish is cooked to prevent it from turning brown. If you feel the need to slice the avocado at this point, drizzle the slices with a little lime juice. The acid will temporarily delay the oxidation reaction that causes the color change.<br />
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Heat a layer of olive oil in a skillet or frying pan on medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the fish, making sure it is in a single layer. Stir fry gently until cooked through, about 5 minutes. The haddock was very delicate, so try to let the fish cook completely on one side before you flip or stir it to prevent it from breaking apart too much. Once the fish is completely opaque, turn off the heat.<br />
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To the tortillas, layer the fish, sliced avocados, onions, peppers, corn relish, and cilantro. Drizzle with taco sauce.<br />
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Note: A lot of people quickly fry the tortillas in a little oil before adding the other ingredients. I skipped that step this time around because I've been trying to cut back on my fat intake. However, if you would like to fry them, simply heat up a small amount of oil in a pan, add a tortilla and wait until you see bubbles forming inside. Then flip the tortilla over and repeat.hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-82577906957913661342010-07-19T13:40:00.001-04:002010-07-19T13:42:41.383-04:00Healthy Breakfast. No, Really.<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>Jill</em></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1V4CiwsdhF1JhlvwQnM8unS68cePVhGDAUHZMVKb0DLQCGd3Gep0WJ5OTo6gAJ-wkTSKJnhMPVblWI0FffAvH2Wk2Y6fMZw0SqDiE2wumGhpBVILrSOugzMADKwBMypgvc21CGDDRKBg/s1600/healthybreakfast1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1V4CiwsdhF1JhlvwQnM8unS68cePVhGDAUHZMVKb0DLQCGd3Gep0WJ5OTo6gAJ-wkTSKJnhMPVblWI0FffAvH2Wk2Y6fMZw0SqDiE2wumGhpBVILrSOugzMADKwBMypgvc21CGDDRKBg/s400/healthybreakfast1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
So I love food. I love a LOT of food. However, this poses a little problem, or a big problem, depending on how you want to look at it. It occurred to me a month or two ago that I had reached the heaviest weight I'd ever been in my entire life. I couldn't understand how this could be possible. I cut out every single scrap of dairy from my whole diet. I stopped consuming the obscene amounts of meat I used to consume. I hardly ever ate candy, cake, or cookies, simply because I couldn't due to the dairy, and yet my weight was still gradually climbing.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>The reasons behind this dilemma are actually pretty obvious. I was barely ever active, and on top of that, the amount of food I was eating (even if the food itself was healthy) was pretty ridiculous on its own. It wasn't uncommon for me to make a large amount of food for dinner with the intention of packing away leftovers for the next day, only to have Keith and myself polish off the entire batch in one sitting. Not great.<br />
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At first I blamed only the fact that I was basically sedentary and attempted to become more active without changing my diet at all. We started going for walks several times a week in a state park a mile or two away from our apartment. This was an important thing for me to do, but taking an hour-long walk in the woods followed by two platefuls of pasta had no affect on my weight whatsoever. <em>Surprise</em>.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNo18B_JEDiPmW-Qgdc4e_x013Z5ckqFzBObhH9R2RqaGGEqN5qrXn0B18LhgA70YflUTK3S0UaBVOCSRQBj__P0idyKdsLGz2RFbY-aDWqQeNyHtvwsBz0wtOyzSBrCRscn4Iju61qr8/s1600/100_0635.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNo18B_JEDiPmW-Qgdc4e_x013Z5ckqFzBObhH9R2RqaGGEqN5qrXn0B18LhgA70YflUTK3S0UaBVOCSRQBj__P0idyKdsLGz2RFbY-aDWqQeNyHtvwsBz0wtOyzSBrCRscn4Iju61qr8/s400/100_0635.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">A pretty view from one of our walks </div><br />
The solution? It was mostly paying more attention to nutrition labels and serving myself more human-sized portions of food. I'm really only at the beginning of this process, but there has definitely been a happy surprise every time I step on the scale. It's been as simple as paying attention to the fat, calorie, cholesterol and carbohydrate contents in the food I buy and really trying to get those numbers to be as close to zero as possible. It seems like a pretty obvious solution, but apparently observing the obvious isn't one of my strong suits. <br />
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Breakfast was also something I had been neglecting, and when it wasn't neglected it was filled with greasy eggs, potatoes, and corned-beef hash from a diner. Hunting around for healthy breakfast ideas, most of the things google and even tastespotting turned up were not particularly healthy. Powdered sugar, gooey cheese, and greasy bacon were only a few of the things that topped some of these "healthy" breakfast ideas. I did however come across a recipe for adorable, perfectly portioned <a href="http://whatsgabycooking.com/petite-vegetable-frittatas/">mini-frittatas</a> that could be customized in any way imaginable, and better still: they're baked instead of fried.<br />
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This alteration of the recipe (courtesy of "<a href="http://whatsgabycooking.com/">What's Gaby Cooking</a>") is my attempt to make as healthy of a breakfast as possible from this idea. I switched out the eggs for egg beaters, a no fat and no cholesterol replacement for eggs. This was my first time tasting egg beaters, and they were pleasantly fluffy and delicious. The vegetables here are steamed rather than stir-fried in oil, and only the smallest amount of vegetable spray was used to help the "eggs" pop out of their cups.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJsAU6esFSkzcQxZxVgkqExaypcp99ed97kAyQtCdMlHbI5tBXxDzrnWrhn52YjEgGNMuypsu4heFV4ODHVNReDk7Oe5964Yx5-fDYJuq-W0WCA1gP0XQRqh-T0VJAD95mgFIAEj_cS1s/s1600/healthybreakfast2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJsAU6esFSkzcQxZxVgkqExaypcp99ed97kAyQtCdMlHbI5tBXxDzrnWrhn52YjEgGNMuypsu4heFV4ODHVNReDk7Oe5964Yx5-fDYJuq-W0WCA1gP0XQRqh-T0VJAD95mgFIAEj_cS1s/s320/healthybreakfast2.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<strong>Healthy Breakfast: Mini Frittatas with Veggies</strong><br />
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Egg beaters<br />
A handful of your favorite vegetables - I used broccoli because I had some rolling around in the fridge<br />
Parchment paper or muffin liners<br />
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Preheat your oven to 350º and line a muffin tin with either parchment paper or muffin liners. I will most likely use parchment paper the next time I make these as the finished product doesn't really pop out of the muffin liners very easily (though they are cute.) I lined four cups to make two frittatas per person.<br />
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Chop your veggies relatively finely. I quickly steamed the broccoli in the microwave in special steaming bags, though you could also blanch them in boiling water for a minute or steam them in a colander set over a couple of inches of boiling water. Distribute the veggies evenly into the lined muffin tin. Pour the egg beaters over the vegetables until the cups are slightly more than half full (about one egg's worth.)<br />
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Bake until set. The egg beaters took 15 minutes to set in my oven, though you may want to check them periodically beforehand to make sure you aren't over-cooking them. Serve with a side of fruit for a very healthy breakfast.hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-68243487753434069872010-07-10T12:25:00.010-04:002010-07-10T14:45:23.763-04:00Blackberry Gel Pudding<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Jill</span></span></i></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTPM6ATlKUf4qcuhAPHnCiwiPe3euuZTKvcHPPZQhs8zH9coNaPxAPJRJFvEMdaQDFrtGzehl58L8Rdtsbg95wyp2uTxL7LfLXqLbM8S6A8gJReBjJdtCYrmimoxtqQCj6sqva4PDbubk/s1600/berrypudding1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTPM6ATlKUf4qcuhAPHnCiwiPe3euuZTKvcHPPZQhs8zH9coNaPxAPJRJFvEMdaQDFrtGzehl58L8Rdtsbg95wyp2uTxL7LfLXqLbM8S6A8gJReBjJdtCYrmimoxtqQCj6sqva4PDbubk/s400/berrypudding1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Chocolate has always been my favorite dessert flavor, but the older I get, the more I start veering away from chocolate and heading into fruit-related territory. I had some blackberries hanging around in my fridge and decided to try out a blackberry pudding because hey, why not. This is actually more like a blackberry gel dessert. If you want something with a more pudding-like consistency, halve the amount of cornstarch. The texture may be a bit deceiving after first cooking the pudding, but the after a few hours in the fridge, the gel really sets up.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Blackberry Gel Pudding</b><br />
2 cups of fresh blackberries<br />
2 tbsp cornstarch<br />
1/3 cup agave nectar<br />
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Puree the blackberries in a blender or food processor until very smooth. Strain the puree into a saucepan. My "strainer" was actually just a mesh colander, so a few seeds got left behind, but it didn't matter too much. Something finer will take out all of the seeds.<br />
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Mix your cornstarch with a small amount of the puree in a separate bowl, then add it directly to the puree in the saucepan (to reduce the risk of lumps). Add the agave nectar and stir until combined. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring constantly, then simmer until the mixture thickens. Pour the pudding into two ramekins and refrigerate several hours until set.</span>hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-51733964090265510842010-06-29T10:52:00.001-04:002010-06-29T10:56:01.335-04:00Vegan Pesto<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>Jill</em></span> <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc88UzYrbv19xQ5Qj2i7fKk2XuQjStN7YspskJ5NuIV8n0WEtNIxoPDcnXKVheq-KAfschP-iOQGJSgRyu-lyDSVvjmwdLk5YqI1NvIjWWsxPplhDX8p6H0JDcoMNEeQJ77cmc69A7h2s/s1600/pesto1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" ru="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc88UzYrbv19xQ5Qj2i7fKk2XuQjStN7YspskJ5NuIV8n0WEtNIxoPDcnXKVheq-KAfschP-iOQGJSgRyu-lyDSVvjmwdLk5YqI1NvIjWWsxPplhDX8p6H0JDcoMNEeQJ77cmc69A7h2s/s400/pesto1.jpg" width="377" /></a></div><br />
It's weird how the prospect of not being able to have something makes you want to have it more, even if you never really wanted it in the first place. I used to always take my coffee black with sugar, way before all of this lactose-intolerance nonsense. Now I've tried almost every non-dairy creamer on the market (and I've become pretty loyal to one made from coconut milk). I find myself wanting to try a lot of dairy foods that I never really cared about when I could actually eat them.<br />
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Honestly, I never even used to care about pesto sauce. Occasionally when I was rushing to grab something from the store and get it on the table, I would just buy a package of gnocchi and a tiny jar of tomato sauce for myself, and a separate tiny jar of pesto for Keith (who isn't a big tomato fan). I would eat that jarred pesto on rare occasion, but the super-oilyness and weird taste never really appealed to me. It didn't occur to me that I could make my own pesto until after I could no longer make it with real parmesean, but despite the obvious setback, I tried it and became a born-again pesto convert. It's so ridiculously easy to make, and there's really no need for measurements. It's kind of a taste-as-you-go sauce, but they seem to be more fun anyway. You just need a collection of the following ingredients and a food processor, blender, or my equipment of choice: a cheap supermarket-bought mini food chopper.<br />
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<strong>Vegan Pesto Sauce, Non rocket-science version</strong><br />
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A few good handfuls of fresh basil<br />
Pine nuts, about 3 or 4 tablespoons<br />
Vegan Parmesean flavored topping* (see note below)<br />
2 fat cloves of garlic<br />
Olive oil<br />
Salt & Pepper<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOPM-2byRfl_UpPhOYksPGJSj7BQklah_yiLewZbGbQBwxpmogpbNtgPwgNYZ9-63OGS__ZiCjQQuqEyiToFwGH7JtoRCsbH5JXXA27ZMnn7c0yEvZVxhN6-1koNQAfrvLY6SzWRmvmuU/s1600/pesto2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ru="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOPM-2byRfl_UpPhOYksPGJSj7BQklah_yiLewZbGbQBwxpmogpbNtgPwgNYZ9-63OGS__ZiCjQQuqEyiToFwGH7JtoRCsbH5JXXA27ZMnn7c0yEvZVxhN6-1koNQAfrvLY6SzWRmvmuU/s320/pesto2.jpg" /></a></div><br />
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Add the pine nuts to the processor and pulse until they break down. Add a little bit of basil and a splash of olive oil and process. Continue adding basil with small amounts of oil and processing until you feel that you have a sufficient amount and the sauce is nice and green. Trust me, it is impossible to mess this up. If you're really stumped about amounts, I've been noticing that a lot of supermarkets have started selling their fresh herbs in plastic tubs, and two regular-sized tubs seem to do the trick. Add the garlic and your vegan parmesean (I added at least two heaping tablespoons, but feel free to go crazy). Season with salt and pepper. <br />
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Taste your sauce. If it is too dry, add more olive oil. If it is too nutty, add more basil. If it isn't nutty enough, add more nuts. Feel free to add as much cheese as you like, which adds to the salty-factor of the pesto. The nice thing about making pesto sauce is that it is completely open to customization, and you can perfectly cater the sauce to your own tastes. Toss with your favorite pasta. My favorite choices are spaghetti, gnocchi, or ravioli.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_UJe1Fla1IkdD9Ct3QtV93-rBRoDQvZzql1T8WANBY2ccdKXmxTX6e95cIAc9uiNYybvPdwQ992QP03pDYob-vP0abUJiwOSaUgp7uqR1XSfcKRNHQcN8sl3gOm_mZneHP9wFe3n1fig/s1600/pesto3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="277" ru="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_UJe1Fla1IkdD9Ct3QtV93-rBRoDQvZzql1T8WANBY2ccdKXmxTX6e95cIAc9uiNYybvPdwQ992QP03pDYob-vP0abUJiwOSaUgp7uqR1XSfcKRNHQcN8sl3gOm_mZneHP9wFe3n1fig/s400/pesto3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
*On the vegan parmesean: I've only ever come across two different types of this "cheese". One comes in a green tub and is lactose free, but once again, it contains casein which is non-vegan and non-friendly to those allergic to dairy. The texture and taste of the non-vegan version is far superior when you're straight up dumping it on spaghetti, but I've used both the vegan kind and the non-vegan kind in pesto sauce and I couldn't tell the difference between the two once it was mixed in there.hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-51772185551815049272010-06-24T15:14:00.001-04:002010-06-24T15:16:44.867-04:00Cucumber Avocado soup with Prosciutto-wrapped Melon<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>Jill</em></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiebxxbrYis_zPshgdh5KjCxlJWXA_71TLOOfCsY85odTiBx0BkrGObGQwIv3l1hzVLMG2JbO2SMnDN1T9C8EbMoHcK8X8mc4UfeUoaOmqvaCa36stL6eFhz_KmGsOd1BJBwfVf4F9r4zE/s1600/prosciuttomelon1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="255" ru="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiebxxbrYis_zPshgdh5KjCxlJWXA_71TLOOfCsY85odTiBx0BkrGObGQwIv3l1hzVLMG2JbO2SMnDN1T9C8EbMoHcK8X8mc4UfeUoaOmqvaCa36stL6eFhz_KmGsOd1BJBwfVf4F9r4zE/s400/prosciuttomelon1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
It's finally fixed! It seemed like forever, but my computer is finally fully functioning and operational. In celebration, I'd like to post some of the things I've been hanging on to for the past few weeks.<br />
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Lately, there have been a lot of unbelievably hot, muggy nights. They're the type of nights that don't really lend themselves to standing over a hot stove or cranking the oven. If you're in the same boat, try this combo out and see how quickly you become refreshed.<br />
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<strong>Cucumber Avocado soup with Prosciutto-wrapped Melon</strong><br />
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(The soup is an adaptation of <a href="http://www.citronetvanille.com/blog/appetizers/ready-for-a-chill-chilled-avocado-and-cucumber-soup/">this soup</a> from <a href="http://www.citronetvanille.com/blog/">Citron & Vanille</a>)<br />
For the Soup:<br />
2 Haas avocados<br />
3 Tbsp of unflavored coconut-milk based yogurt (or soy yogurt if you can't find coconut)<br />
1/2 English cucumber<br />
1 Lemon (the original calls for a meyer lemon, which I'm sure is better, but I couldn't find any)<br />
2 Scallions<br />
1 cup of veggie stock<br />
Ground Cayenne pepper for garnish<br />
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Cut the avocado into chunks. Peel the cucumber, cut in half, and scrape out the seeds with a spoon. Chop the cucumber roughly. Slice the scallions.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj7T6nslI-dLeYzTM6rwrZELKbBxQPryqeRTB5jFJMhW_8Ilw4QCIZZBRUr93S8W9AVVmDWD2ndSF6asaBl2Ne3w4keIIFFQWT5PiS65M5JE69k6rDPLN9-gEaj0rWoLxw2AS083Ddh4Q/s1600/cucumbersoup1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ru="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj7T6nslI-dLeYzTM6rwrZELKbBxQPryqeRTB5jFJMhW_8Ilw4QCIZZBRUr93S8W9AVVmDWD2ndSF6asaBl2Ne3w4keIIFFQWT5PiS65M5JE69k6rDPLN9-gEaj0rWoLxw2AS083Ddh4Q/s320/cucumbersoup1.jpg" /></a></div>Add the avocado, cucumber, yogurt, scallions, and stock to a blender. Juice the lemon into the blender and puree. Chill in the fridge, or serve immediately. When ready to serve, garnish with a little sprinkle of cayenne pepper.<br />
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For the Melon:<br />
This really doesn't require much of a recipe. I used a honeydew melon, but I've seen this done with cantaloupe and even watermelon. If you want to be fancy, you can use a melon baller and secure the prosciutto in place with a toothpick. I was starving and not really thinking about presentation, so I just chopped the melon into chunks and wrapped a strip of prosciutto around each one. Here is a <a href="http://thoughtfuleating.blogspot.com/2009/05/chopping-honey-dew-melon.html">handy link</a> if you're looking at a honeydew melon, like I was, and wondering how the hell to chop your way through it.hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-71171805771165779362010-06-14T13:14:00.003-04:002010-06-14T17:33:07.132-04:00Mini Chocolate Berry Tarts<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>Jill</em></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1nZukCgyECxGM-kLhvV9efycGgHJ9P2kwUAERSSq4_EH1gXsAOW-U6-cx69OdALM3kkgp2bzYUNUXYnGxlPkrzAf6gxR9rP2N2JUNn2wzbpt-XtcHl48loSrpoP4jQUP-oMFHNFw0s9Y/s1600/100_0548.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" qu="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1nZukCgyECxGM-kLhvV9efycGgHJ9P2kwUAERSSq4_EH1gXsAOW-U6-cx69OdALM3kkgp2bzYUNUXYnGxlPkrzAf6gxR9rP2N2JUNn2wzbpt-XtcHl48loSrpoP4jQUP-oMFHNFw0s9Y/s400/100_0548.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div>So it's been pretty impossible to post updates lately, and this problem stems from the fact that my computer is in a semi-permanent state of dead. The computer is less than a year old and therefore still under warranty, but for some reason it's been taking an ungodly amount of time for it to get fixed. I have photoshop installed on that computer, and though you might not be able to tell from the horrible state of most of my own photography, I do like to touch up a couple of things before I upload pictures. For instance, the lighting in my apartment isn't always that great for taking pictures of food, and things that are actually in vibrant delicious colors end up being captured in sad, flat, unappetizing colors (with a little help from my non-pro point & shoot camera). With a few lighting adjustments on photoshop, I can get the colors in the photo to be pretty close to how they are on my kitchen counter. <br />
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That being said, I realize I can't really hope to keep a blog going if I don't continue to update it (plus I miss writing about whatever I ate the day before), so I'll make a couple of posts without my precious photoshop until this problem can be fixed. <br />
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On to the food! Last week, a friend and I were basically whining to each other about how stressful the past few weeks had been. Early in the week, we began dreaming about the weekend and how we could relax by the lake at her house and do absolutely nothing. The idea of mojitos sprang up pretty quickly, and then all that was left was some kind of ridiculously girly looking snack. <br />
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I came up with the idea of miniature berry tarts since I always see tiny pastry shells in the freezer aisle at my supermarket, and I've really wanted to try making something with them for a long time. I was even more surprised when I looked on the back of the box and saw that they were already baked. All I had to do was fill them with something and serve. <br />
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For the filling, I really wanted to use nutella, a chocolate hazelnut spread, but unfortunately it's loaded with dairy. However, my supermarket stocks something called chocolate "soy-nut butter," which is essentially a similar concept to nutella using toasty soy beans instead of hazelnuts. The taste isn't an exact mimic, but the flavor is very smooth and chocolatey with nutty overtones.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilXXC9mHhs8Bc6nwcBWK1m6KCXrY29DM9qE7i9JFV79xGySu_dJDJH8DQY79RaJL-9Mc4wvRqKM3S4QVmZakYtIdoFXFNZICUVIwGJgTO5meY8d-GDy-xPw41Uo35yMFBMIHtG20Fybo0/s1600/100_0545.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" qu="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilXXC9mHhs8Bc6nwcBWK1m6KCXrY29DM9qE7i9JFV79xGySu_dJDJH8DQY79RaJL-9Mc4wvRqKM3S4QVmZakYtIdoFXFNZICUVIwGJgTO5meY8d-GDy-xPw41Uo35yMFBMIHtG20Fybo0/s400/100_0545.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Blackberry and Raspberry Tarts, hangin' out in my fridge</span></div><br />
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<strong>Miniature Chocolate Berry Tarts</strong><br />
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Prebaked frozen phyllo shells (the ones I purchased came 15 to a package, but since they were tiny, I bought two and made 30 tarts)<br />
Enough berries to top each tart: raspberries, blackberries, or both (or whatever you have, blueberries might be good too)<br />
A jar of chocolate soy-nut spread, or nutella if you don't have dairy issues<br />
Mint leaves for garnish (optional; I had them lying around because of the mojitos and had the idea to add them last minute)<br />
Zipper sandwich bags<br />
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Follow instructions for defrosting your pastry shells on the back of the box. Mine came in a little tray to keep them from breaking, but leaving them in the tray while I worked helped to keep them steady. Spoon a few tablespoons of chocolate spread into a zipper sandwich bag, trying to get most of it into one corner of the bag. With scissors, snip off the very edge of the bag (like a frosting bag), being careful not to make too large of a hole. I initially cut too much of the bag off and the chocolate began oozing out on it's own, leaving me to put the oozing bag inside of ANOTHER bag and snip another hole. <br />
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Using the sandwich bag like a frosting bag, squeeze a small amount of chocolate spread into each pastry shell. Don't worry if they aren't very attractive at this point. Gently shake the shells in their tray. This will cause the chocolate to level out. <br />
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Gently press a berry into the chocolate spread in each shell. Tear the tops off of some mint leaves if they are too large, and press the ends into the chocolate. I actually used the leaves to cover any spots on the tart shell where I accidentally globbed on chocolate. Chill them in the fridge for a little while before serving. It will make the chocolate spread harden just a little bit, and keep them from being too runny.hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-41181571403396331422010-05-09T12:50:00.002-04:002010-05-09T12:52:50.107-04:00Zucchini "Pasta"<i><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Jill</span></i><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ9p-IlTgBE7f2NnaZBwagpFoB6xkAqRJ7HMQiC-DQr_0OQqlknQkmqmT0BXoZWpMl6Wf4NJPMsZXhmbpM5ezujRWSUUy8OxTDZyrQYd9EeBOWaoJBhrT6VLSB6h0hndO4B4ax3HYq03I/s1600/zucchinipasta1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ9p-IlTgBE7f2NnaZBwagpFoB6xkAqRJ7HMQiC-DQr_0OQqlknQkmqmT0BXoZWpMl6Wf4NJPMsZXhmbpM5ezujRWSUUy8OxTDZyrQYd9EeBOWaoJBhrT6VLSB6h0hndO4B4ax3HYq03I/s400/zucchinipasta1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
So, it's been a while! Georgeanne and I are both in positions that have been making it difficult to post. She's staying at her sister's in Edinburgh (and eventually moving back here), and I have a lovely combination of final exams and a computer that keeps randomly shutting itself off. I have a ton of stuff saved up that I'd like to post, but I'll start with something really simple and easy to make.<br />
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Pretty much everybody loves pasta smothered in tomato sauce, but I stop craving the heaviness and carby-ness of pasta dishes as the temperatures get higher. Zucchini pasta was something that I assumed you needed some kind of fancy machine for or impeccable knifing skills, but I was wrong. Apparently, all you need is a couple of good zucchinis and a sturdy vegetable peeler.<br />
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This is less of a recipe and more of a set of instructions which I learned over at<a href="http://summertomato.com/better-than-pasta-subtitutes-summer-squash-noodle-recipe/"> Summer Tomato.</a> You need about 1 large zucchini per person (and the ones I grabbed were LARGE) and your favorite sauce recipe. Make this even easier with your favorite jarred sauce and cut the effort in half. <br />
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Lay one zucchini flat onto a cutting board and steadily glide your peeler from one end of the squash to the other. For large flat "noodles", rotate the zucchini and and run the peeler in a similar manner. For skinnier noodles, run the peeler over the edges you create as you rotate. My "Y" peeler made this task really simple. Deposit your noodles on a plate or in a bowl as you go so that you don't crowd your workspace. Stop peeling once you get to the seedy core. In the beautiful instructional video over at summer tomato, the author explains that the seedy part at the middle makes very squishy pasta, so it's best to reserve them for some other use. I ended up with cores that look like giant snail eyestalks.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGZ_w9TAGFB7afr0TlZHWO8QNrS7eAL6d4G2aih4VFIsSUkBLZpNaCtPFucBJQ3wYGkI2ePc2V218X4DKdcn0Vw4in8TBDf7_VH6vMO7-6xzTx2vy0Qr9PiG4UG9hXswvp80nwC__n1HA/s1600/zucchinipasta2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGZ_w9TAGFB7afr0TlZHWO8QNrS7eAL6d4G2aih4VFIsSUkBLZpNaCtPFucBJQ3wYGkI2ePc2V218X4DKdcn0Vw4in8TBDf7_VH6vMO7-6xzTx2vy0Qr9PiG4UG9hXswvp80nwC__n1HA/s400/zucchinipasta2.jpg" tt="true" width="312" /></a></div><br />
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Sprinkle some salt over your noodles. Coat a large, flat pan with oil and heat to medium. Quickly sauté the noodles until hot, then remove them from the heat to prevent them from getting too floppy. Top them with your favorite sauce. I thought that these noodles might make a really nice shrimp scampi since I LOVE the combination of shrimp and zucchini. However, I just got Keith to try actual shrimp scampi for the first time since he has some kind of aversion to seafood and pasta together (he liked it), so I might have to take it slow. The instructions at <a href="http://summertomato.com/better-than-pasta-subtitutes-summer-squash-noodle-recipe/">Summer Tomato</a> also have a lovely recipe for a quick tomato sauce using a combination of canned and fresh chopped tomatoes.hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-4890539265900188232010-04-19T12:19:00.007-04:002010-04-19T12:51:13.775-04:00Vegan Bolognese<i style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Jill</i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgddlZ8nliyDqtOL3zVOg4AgcvKnOgMZbMLe1ta26LlC2A4vOPzfljj1NW1JPsn_J7K1q2i7j37iWjveXE46VDVeaJH-r3_NC6JpUz9ldLx3BhgxbvGOiMsYpf3L5Uf3dSZZmYMDdrXbpU/s1600/bolognese4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgddlZ8nliyDqtOL3zVOg4AgcvKnOgMZbMLe1ta26LlC2A4vOPzfljj1NW1JPsn_J7K1q2i7j37iWjveXE46VDVeaJH-r3_NC6JpUz9ldLx3BhgxbvGOiMsYpf3L5Uf3dSZZmYMDdrXbpU/s400/bolognese4.jpg" width="400" wt="true" /></a></div><br />
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From the amount of vegan recipes I post here, a person might assume I'm a vegan. I'm actually neither a vegan or a vegetarian. A while back, I thought about the amount of meat both Keith and I were consuming on a daily basis. Without making any conscious effort to do so, I realized we were both eating meat at LEAST once a day, and sometimes even with every meal. I'm pretty sure we take the availability and inexpensiveness of meat in this country for granted to be able to eat so much of it without even realizing it. We both decided to cut back our meat intake to one day a week. It's not super strict, and nobody is getting yelled at for ordering a steak if we happen to go out to dinner even if we already had meat that week. We both ended up feeling a lot healthier, and strangely enough, I find myself not even desiring meat the same way I used to. If you combine the effort to cut out some of the meat in my diet with the lactose intolerance, a lot of the things I make end up being vegan kind of by coincidence.<br />
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The next challenge was re-adjusting my weeknight cooking repertoire to include meatless dishes. The transition actually went pretty smoothly since it's always exciting to try out new recipes, but after a while I began wondering if there was any way to re-introduce some of my old favorites without the meat. <br />
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After a ton of tweaking and many different versions, I was able to adjust my <a href="http://whatsforlunchhoney.blogspot.com/2008/05/cooking-school-spaghetti-alla-bolognese.html">favorite bolognese recipe</a> into something that tastes almost identical to the meaty version. There were a few serious challenges, especially since I was convinced that the flavor added to a real, delicious, bolognese by frying your veggies with pancetta was irreplaceable. Pancetta is a cured pork product, kind of similar in flavor to bacon, so in some early incarnations of this recipe I tried adding bacon bits (did you know there isn't actually any meat in bacon bits?) to replace the flavor. It kind of worked, but really, who wants to eat a sauce made with bacon bits? I felt like it kind of cheapened the whole dish, and I would never serve it to friends.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiETkKBxv-kiSGgFrg06zaj4Fot1IZDdt_BPIfuuTVKgBDfkxBnWZt2rsH6WrDnl6b2MJnQovyUO6vb8nZf8nOx2RgQsWM_SH5qLT6w9Ti1sFu5uLoQ8btO3y2G_gvsrDWTtSlKziGWhhY/s1600/bolognese3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiETkKBxv-kiSGgFrg06zaj4Fot1IZDdt_BPIfuuTVKgBDfkxBnWZt2rsH6WrDnl6b2MJnQovyUO6vb8nZf8nOx2RgQsWM_SH5qLT6w9Ti1sFu5uLoQ8btO3y2G_gvsrDWTtSlKziGWhhY/s320/bolognese3.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Then came the discovery of a magical spice called "bacon salt." It's simply a spice mix, nothing scary or weird here (except for MSG,) but somehow it really tastes like bacon without actually containing bacon (not to mention it's kosher... a kosher bacon flavoring? Who knew.) Be careful though if you're really going for a vegan version, because the "original" and "natural" blends contain dairy, but you're pretty much good to go with any of the other blends. The resulting sauce after using this bacon salt was so insanely close to real bolognese that both Keith and I could hardly tell the difference. I found the stuff at my local super market, so I can't imagine it's too difficult to find. <br />
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One last explanation and then I promise I'll get to the recipe. A glaringly obvious omission in this meat sauce is the actual meat itself. A few years ago I was at a party enjoying a homemade bowl of deliciously meaty chili when the woman who made the chili informed me that there was actually no meat in it at all. I was more than a little confused since what I was eating tasted, looked, and felt like ground beef. I later learned that this ground beef substitute was called smart ground, and it's also available at my local super market in the produce section. I was seriously skeptical of this stuff at first, but after trying to use it myself I was totally hooked. It's made from a combination of soy, wheat gluten, and spices, and it replaces ground-beef well enough in most recipes that it can fool the most avid meat-lover.<br />
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<b>Fauxlognese</b> (adapted from <a href="http://whatsforlunchhoney.blogspot.com/2008/05/cooking-school-spaghetti-alla-bolognese.html">Spaghetti alla Bolognese at "What's for Lunch, Honey?"</a>)<br />
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One package of smart ground "beef"<br />
2 cloves of garlic, minced<br />
2 or 3 carrots, diced<br />
1 leek, chopped and washed thoroughly<br />
2 yellow onions, chopped<br />
2 tsp dried thyme or about 1 1/2 tbsp fresh chopped thyme<br />
2 tsp dried oregano or about 1 1/2 tsp fresh chopped oregano<br />
2 tbsp or more chopped fresh basil (you really can't substitute anything for fresh basil, it just doesn't work)<br />
1 28oz can of diced tomatoes<br />
2 tbsp tomato paste<br />
1/2 - 3/4 cup vegetable stock or white wine or a combination of the two (I usually do a combination because I have both and want to get rid of them)<br />
olive oil<br />
bacon salt<br />
salt & pepper<br />
a bay leaf<br />
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Heat a layer of olive oil in a large pot over medium heat and add garlic, onions, carrots and leeks. Add about 1 tsp of bacon salt to the veggies and cook, stirring, until soft. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Add a little extra olive oil to the pot and then add in the smart ground, breaking it into crumbles with your spoon. Smart ground starts out extremely dry, so if it begins to stick to your pot, add more olive oil. Once the smart ground is heated, add in the tomato paste and stir until combined. Pour in the liquid, tomatoes, thyme, oregano, and a bay leaf. Season with salt and pepper to taste (and more bacon salt if you feel it's lacking.) <br />
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Let the sauce simmer over low heat for 30 minutes or longer, until it has become thick and rich. Fish out the bay leaf and stir in the basil once you turn off the heat. Serve over pasta.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwOG4gzSPW7s0HXh2rVd3oBHtA7lALd4PcllMt9-YryB6vVA-SfLSxAdhxslMpNyytTXC1u5qxrq4VSUwoGvf0Uu3tItIVa7dEtsVi9anxlisYk1uE0XpprDJzMcwKwVNiBlF5TxGu5ik/s1600/bolognese1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwOG4gzSPW7s0HXh2rVd3oBHtA7lALd4PcllMt9-YryB6vVA-SfLSxAdhxslMpNyytTXC1u5qxrq4VSUwoGvf0Uu3tItIVa7dEtsVi9anxlisYk1uE0XpprDJzMcwKwVNiBlF5TxGu5ik/s320/bolognese1.jpg" /></a></div>hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-69030114871115389472010-04-18T16:06:00.000-04:002010-04-18T16:06:47.394-04:00Home Brewing Update<i style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Jill</span></i><br />
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My beer has spent about 3 weeks fermenting, and something tastes off. I gave it a little taste-test and it seems to be a little too sweet for the amount of time it's spent in the container. That could mean a number of things, but I'm hoping that the yeast just took a little break. Usually, sweetness could mean that the fermentation isn't finished. If the temperature of my beer dropped below 68º, the yeast would stop fermenting. Luckily, once the temperature returns to an appropriate level, the yeast will pick up right where it left off. If this is the issue, all I have to do is allow the beer to sit for a little while longer. However, if things don't start tasting right in about a week, I'll have to scrap it and start over.hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-50764454443573528392010-04-06T17:20:00.011-04:002010-04-19T13:43:05.388-04:00Balsamic Risotto with Roasted Red Peppers<div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;"><em><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Jill</span></em></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHte9HOOE8kgxymCPsNUPTjaYNf0yGGCDzopK6Ev3u8fPYs21NGBnDTUHe29WTWYVTctPK17Aek02w5qEswTBMm6JiBedzvkTwNsf7Zg3zps-IybEpdts1SjbN9qVQNdVwKfXwgUTyT-g/s1600/risotto5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="337" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHte9HOOE8kgxymCPsNUPTjaYNf0yGGCDzopK6Ev3u8fPYs21NGBnDTUHe29WTWYVTctPK17Aek02w5qEswTBMm6JiBedzvkTwNsf7Zg3zps-IybEpdts1SjbN9qVQNdVwKfXwgUTyT-g/s400/risotto5.jpg" width="400" wt="true" /></span></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">After getting comfortable with the idea of risotto, I realized it's actually a pretty easy thing to throw together on a weeknight. It's also a great base recipe to start with to get rid of some of the things in your fridge (like I keep saying I want to do more of.) I had a half of a jar or roasted red peppers in my fridge, so I used that as a starting point for this recipe. Since Keith loves the flavor of balsamic vinegar on anything and I just acquired a bottle of some really delicious stuff, I figured it might be a good addition to the risotto. I started with a pretty small amount of the vinegar and I'm really glad I did. It lent just the right amount of flavor to the dish, but I think any more might have been too much. </span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a name='more'></a></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Balsamic Risotto with Roasted Red Peppers</b></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span></span></b></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">2 cups of arborio rice</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">3 1/2 cups of chicken stock (or vegetable stock for vegetarian version)</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">1 cup of white wine</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">2 1/2 cups water</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">1/8 cup of less of good quality balsamic vinegar (to taste)</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">1 yellow onion, diced</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">a couple of cloves of garlic, minced</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">1 roasted red bell pepper from a jar (or roast your own), chopped finely</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">olive oil</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">salt and pepper</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Heat a layer of olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the onion and pepper and cook until the onion is soft and the red bell pepper is heated. </span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Add the rice into the pot along with some salt. Toast the rice, coating it with the oil, stirring frequently for about two minutes. Add the wine to the pot and stir, cooking until the wine absorbs into the rice (this may take up to 10 minutes depending on your rice.) </span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">In the meantime, measure out two cups of your chicken stock. I'm pretty sure that the liquid you add to risotto is supposed to be warm, thought I'm not quite sure why, so I just microwaved the liquid I was about to add for about a minute (before each addition.) So, if you desire, microwave your stock for about a minute until it is warm. I also made risotto without warming the liquid at all, and it seemed to come out fine. Once the wine has been completely absorbed into your rice, add the two cups of warmed stock and stir, just like with the wine, until absorbed. </span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span></span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: inherit; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMeI2U9JDIKs5XFx31HfdvXbk_SYiHGbrtH_94jWSXIXaNQK0Zl-PDtoGD3qtBF67Vx8c8kuGJLiwbZt959XwgQTu4q705gNxfblbAVZzLpeFLynqQ4tLpEzirNQctiFeIW3OGHEz4CU0/s1600/balsamicrisotto1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMeI2U9JDIKs5XFx31HfdvXbk_SYiHGbrtH_94jWSXIXaNQK0Zl-PDtoGD3qtBF67Vx8c8kuGJLiwbZt959XwgQTu4q705gNxfblbAVZzLpeFLynqQ4tLpEzirNQctiFeIW3OGHEz4CU0/s320/balsamicrisotto1.jpg" /></a></span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Add the remaining (warmed) stock and stir as before until absorbed. Measure about 1/8 cup of balsamic vinegar and add it to the rice along with a cup of (warmed) water. Stir the rice mixture until the liquid becomes absorbed, as before (starting to sound familiar?) The rice will take on a darker color. Add the rest of the warmed liquid, one cup at a time in the same fashion until no more liquid remains. Taste the rice to make sure that it is cooked through (if it isn't, continue adding small increments of liquid.) Salt and pepper to taste.</span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></div>hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-6385495419700691132010-03-27T13:54:00.003-04:002010-03-27T14:13:52.193-04:00Home Brewing Part 1<div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>Jill</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqnnGIHIoSzAZm-8mCUHjZaBrPj2TfhPf8mJPQom6LevXgSy8V_0cpe6ip5Mx82xfEL-dUUjF6ehZHR-0isQ4R0WjsrgszMJM7vi577Va4fJ47QvJw-GYz_YT5NYzh7P_IZ9l-U7CcSvU/s1600/mrbeer1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqnnGIHIoSzAZm-8mCUHjZaBrPj2TfhPf8mJPQom6LevXgSy8V_0cpe6ip5Mx82xfEL-dUUjF6ehZHR-0isQ4R0WjsrgszMJM7vi577Va4fJ47QvJw-GYz_YT5NYzh7P_IZ9l-U7CcSvU/s400/mrbeer1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
A few years ago, my brother got me a Mr. Beer kit for my birthday. The idea of brewing my own beer had never occured to me, but as a biology major the process of fermentation was nothing foreign. I always imagined home brewing as something extremely time consuming and easy to screw up, and it probably is. Luckily, the "Mr. Beer" kit is kind of foolproof. Think of it as the EZ bake oven of home brewing.<br />
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The first batch of beer I ever made was the one that came with the kit, and I didn't veer from the instructions at all. I was terrified that after months of conditioning and fermenting, somewhere along the line some unwanted microbial pest would make its way into my keg and spoil my whole batch. Surprisingly, the results of my first try were delicious: not too weak on the alcohol content, but not strong enough to be undrinkable. It was pretty balanced, and I was excited to be drinking something that I brewed at home.<br />
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Yesterday, I started the process again. The kit comes with a convenient little packet of powdered sanitizer. How does it work? I have no idea. You mix it with water in your two-gallon plastic keg, swish it around to coat everything, and then drop all of your tools into the keg. After 10 minutes, everything is sanitized and ready to use. You also need to place your tools onto a plate that you coated in the sanitizer/water mixture so that they remain clean throughout your process.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoH1EZ4xb-9ML2E8BrXareI4__coRSDqYOdNvdQtMhyYukHf2KB02nvdVV5nVdzkX3CeLNN15TPPaNv_IrfDKLRfgcbKp9kHuH2CJpfKZUMPsA81X6ScdQLw54Oq39e0Cik17G7_tT4MM/s1600/mrbeer3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoH1EZ4xb-9ML2E8BrXareI4__coRSDqYOdNvdQtMhyYukHf2KB02nvdVV5nVdzkX3CeLNN15TPPaNv_IrfDKLRfgcbKp9kHuH2CJpfKZUMPsA81X6ScdQLw54Oq39e0Cik17G7_tT4MM/s320/mrbeer3.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">The sanitized tools (yes, even your can-opener needs to be sanitized) </div><div></div><div><br />
The brewing procedure starts when you measure out four cups of cold water into a pot and dump in a packet of stuff called "booster". The manual says that this stuff is composed of dextrose (I'm assuming this gets converted to alcohol during fermentation after yeast is added) and maltodextrins. You bring the solution to a boil, remove it from the heat, and add a can of Mr. Beer's hopped malt extract. This recipe is supposed to make a nice, red beer, which is one of my favorites. I also added some molasses for flavor and to jack up the alcohol content just a tad. This mixture is called the "wort". My brother is a little braver and adds stuff like orange peels and other yummy sounding things to his beer, and the ones I've tasted are always delicious. I'm not brave enough yet, but if I didn't somehow ruin this batch maybe next time I'll get a little more experimental.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Bcmk0DYjnlxfWJQXlFgt46Z-KZHubTolKh1FxqcE8JUydUEVHXMQftv9xU_rtCYMiCpA7oiYDO4iehyphenhyphenf3fc6n7TU7XewQJVyhwC4aJWphTdoKtGR8PqjVdkn8eXRvAnTWqxmcNOrIkE/s1600/worf01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Bcmk0DYjnlxfWJQXlFgt46Z-KZHubTolKh1FxqcE8JUydUEVHXMQftv9xU_rtCYMiCpA7oiYDO4iehyphenhyphenf3fc6n7TU7XewQJVyhwC4aJWphTdoKtGR8PqjVdkn8eXRvAnTWqxmcNOrIkE/s320/worf01.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">That's "Wort", not Worf </div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div><br />
The wort (the word always makes me think of Worf from The Next Generation) gets dumped into your plastic keg and diluted with cold water. The kit comes with a little packet of brewer's yeast that you sprinkle into the keg. After five minutes, you stir everything up and screw on the lid (which has vents in the sides, so no exploding kegs.)<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh05apCygZTbCKvNYoSvUDMYnBUiCpj3JK5MifC891GwO_JPxvJh5-wmDa7GcdRvO_JGCXDT1nWAEjycFV7TybSEBMs1GP08d5jBq-j_b3D-zCSPxqVRRIcSSvZSO-hMGpc1VS18xskT8Q/s1600/mrbeer2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh05apCygZTbCKvNYoSvUDMYnBUiCpj3JK5MifC891GwO_JPxvJh5-wmDa7GcdRvO_JGCXDT1nWAEjycFV7TybSEBMs1GP08d5jBq-j_b3D-zCSPxqVRRIcSSvZSO-hMGpc1VS18xskT8Q/s320/mrbeer2.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">The good stuff, before screwing on the lid </div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div><br />
That's the whole process! I just have to leave my little keg out of direct sunlight in an area with a relatively stable temperature for about two weeks until the fermentation process is complete. It will probably take a little longer since I added the extra sugar. Afterwards, I'll bottle the stuff and let it sit for even longer to condition the flavor, and then I'll update again. I should be able to taste if it's ruined by that point.<br />
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It seemed long overdue, but we can finally turn off the heater and open the windows. That also means that pancakes and oatmeal are going to be off of the Sunday breakfast menu for a while. In this weather, I would rather have something refreshing that's going to leave me energized, as opposed to the usually carb-laden faire that causes me to veg around on the couch for at least an hour afterwards. <br />
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Smoothies are a lot of fun to drink for some reason, and they couldn't be easier to make on a Sunday morning. Simply chuck all of your ingredients into a blender and you're done. They're also deceptively healthy, even though you feel like you're having a milkshake or ice cream. I love using frozen fruit in smoothies because you don't need any ice, and that means your smoothie won't start getting watered down if you're slow enough to let it start melting. These are also great snacks, or even healthy summer desserts. This recipe is dairy free, but switching the soy ingredients out for dairy ingredients will also yield delicious results.<br />
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<b>Peach Smoothie (Dairy-Free and Vegan)</b><br />
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2 cups of frozen peaches<br />
1 6oz tub of vanilla soy yogurt<br />
1 banana, sliced into chunks<br />
1 cup of soy milk<br />
A squirt of honey (not vegan) or agave nectar, or a few pinches of sugar<br />
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If your frozen peaches are in huge chunks or slices, put about 1/3 of them into your blender with a splash of soy milk and pulse until they break down a little. Continue this with the rest of your peaches, 1/3 at a time. This just makes life a little easier for your blender. I didn't do this the first few times I made smoothies and the results were the same, but it involved a lot of stabbing around with a butter knife in my blender to get the huge chunks to go towards the bottom.<br />
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Add the remaining ingredients to your blender and blend until smooth. This makes two large smoothies.hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-11196130187379643712010-03-15T17:58:00.005-04:002010-03-15T18:21:00.158-04:00Dairy-Free (and vegan) Blueberry Ice Cream<div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>Jill</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqZleM1GV4il0wyZxPKD9xFcc9DMARVY_DTod6ggRVHpauoBknyXyqx4l9rEXnV20XjoZ6gcxaImao354sazsO8_Aa5Z64v2vxeOW32qlTMnbSanhWIKd7FpJ_l1wguempbtaiA2EwvJg/s1600-h/blueberryicecream1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="356" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqZleM1GV4il0wyZxPKD9xFcc9DMARVY_DTod6ggRVHpauoBknyXyqx4l9rEXnV20XjoZ6gcxaImao354sazsO8_Aa5Z64v2vxeOW32qlTMnbSanhWIKd7FpJ_l1wguempbtaiA2EwvJg/s400/blueberryicecream1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
It's been pretty rainy and gross in Connecticut for the past few days. Spring seems to be taking far too long to get here, and I've been taking the opportunity to make a lot of the heavier, blazing oven foods that I know I won't be in the mood for once things start warming up. This weekend, however, I decided that we needed a little taste of summer.<br />
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Ice cream is another one of those foods that I thought I'd have to give up once I started getting sick. There are some non-dairy brands available, but they're either pretty pricey or pretty bad, not to mention very limited on the flavor front. Making ice cream at home is actually very easy, and all you really need is a decent ice cream maker (or not: here's a <a href="http://www.davidlebovitz.com/archives/2007/07/making_ice_crea_1.html">tutorial from David Lebovitz</a> that shows you how to make ice cream without a machine.) I've used a few kinds of machines to make ice cream, but I really like the kind that has a freezable bowl. There's no rock-salt required and they're pretty fool-proof.<br />
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Blueberry ice cream sounded like a great idea, so I searched for some pre-existing recipes. Most of them required that you cook the blueberries down before blending them with milk. I like blueberry sauce, but it wasn't exactly what I was hoping for, so I ditched the recipes and came up with one of my own. I used agave nectar to sweeten the ice cream and I didn't miss the sugar for a second. I also followed the guidelines that I learned over at <a href="http://veganicecream.blogspot.com/">A Vegan Ice Cream Paradise</a> for making deliciously creamy vegan ice cream.<br />
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<b>Dairy-Free Blueberry Ice Cream (vegan)</b></div><div><div></div><div><br />
1 cup of soy milk</div><div>2 cups of soy creamer (like unflavored silk creamer, which conveniently comes in a 2-cup carton)</div><div>About 1 cup + 1/4 cup blueberries</div><div>3/8 cup agave nectar (or measure slightly less than 1/2 cup)</div><div>2 tbsp arrowroot powder </div><div>A splash of vanilla extract</div><div></div><div><br />
Whisk the arrowroot powder and about 1/4 cup of soy milk together in a small bowl and set it aside. In a blender, combine 1 cup blueberries, soy creamer, remaining soy milk, agave nectar, and vanilla. Taste the mixture and adjust if necessary. I started with a cup of blueberries, tasted it, and decided it needed to be more blueberry-y (can that be a word?) and added about 1/4 cup more. Don't worry about the color at this point, it will be almost like a very light pink. </div><div><br />
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Pour the blended mixture into a medium saucepan and bring it to a boil. Once the mixture begins to look like it's boiling, remove it from the heat. You don't really want to cook the mixture, you just want to bring it to the right temperature for the arrowroot powder to thicken it. ONLY after the mixture has been removed from the heat, add the arrowroot slurry and stir or whisk to combine. During this process, the mixture turned from light pink to deep purple (smooooke on the waaaater.)</div><div></div><div><br />
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Allow the mixture to cool in the fridge for about 2 or 3 hours. If you're impatient, you can cool it in the freezer but make sure to keep an eye on it and stir it very frequently. You don't want it to freeze, just get cold.</div><div><div></div><div><br />
Follow the instructions on your ice cream maker once your mixture is chilled. </div></div></div>hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2418223252479724912.post-25891409697214824842010-03-06T15:30:00.002-05:002010-03-06T15:32:25.724-05:00Garlic and Lemon Baked Chicken with Potatoes and Carrots<div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>Jill</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbdscYaEZhDUzRF3-jmdLaYK9y3Urzy8msq9n2bppa4ZnbYILl6l50i-_4laFXFd2nIFwOCR00GmogETx8ekj_u29fZpV7I-_cuMiIZvqkn9J7Hx0WxwNC1Dj0O_ICAGUKZ_lX0G7iaKE/s1600-h/chicken1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbdscYaEZhDUzRF3-jmdLaYK9y3Urzy8msq9n2bppa4ZnbYILl6l50i-_4laFXFd2nIFwOCR00GmogETx8ekj_u29fZpV7I-_cuMiIZvqkn9J7Hx0WxwNC1Dj0O_ICAGUKZ_lX0G7iaKE/s400/chicken1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div></div><div>I love chicken. Baked or roasted chicken is one of my favorite comfort foods, and although the end result is fantastic, there really isn't that much effort required in the preparation. The first time I made <a href="http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/classic_baked_chicken/">Elise's classic baked chicken </a>, I was stunned at what came out of the oven. The only ingredients that went into it were chicken, olive oil, salt and pepper, and yet when I took my first bite it was so flavorful. (If you noticed that both Georgeanne and I link to <a href="http://simplyrecipes.com/">Simply Recipes</a> a lot, it's probably because I basically learned to cook from Elise's blog when I got my first apartment, and I often link Georgeanne to some of her recipes.)<br />
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Two of my favorite flavors on chicken are lemon and garlic, and whenever I roast a chicken, I almost always end up putting garlic cloves and sliced lemons into the cavity. This version of baked chicken incorporates those two flavors. I think that one of the reasons baked chicken is so delicious in the first place is that it's so simple and uncomplicated, so this variation is an attempt to stay along those lines. I almost always throw some kind of vegetable into the roasting pan when making chicken because they soak up a lot of the juices and become chickeny and wonderful, but the potatoes and carrots in this recipe can be substituted with any other veggie that roasts well. </div><div><br />
<b>Garlic and Lemon Baked Chicken with Potatoes and Carrots</b></div><div>A 3 or 4 pound chicken, cut up (breasts, thighs, legs and wings)</div><div>1 lemon</div><div>3 or 4 large garlic cloves</div><div>Baby potatoes (I like the red ones because I love the skin)</div><div>Baby carrots</div><div>Olive oil</div><div>Salt and pepper</div><div></div><div><br />
Preheat the oven to 400º. Zest the lemon and mince the garlic finely. Pour some olive oil into a bowl and mix it with the garlic and lemon zest. Place the prepared chicken into a relatively large roasting pan (I like the aluminum ones because they make cleaning up easy, not to mention I really don't have room to store a huge roasting pan in my apartment.) The chicken pieces shouldn't be touching and there should be quite a bit of room between each piece. </div><div></div><div><br />
Brush both sides of each chicken piece with the garlic and lemon oil. Cut the baby potatoes in half (or quarters if there are some larger potatoes). Place the carrots and potatoes in the spaces around the chicken and drizzle them with any remaining garlic/lemon oil. Generously salt and pepper both the chicken and the veggies. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM5vwiZG04f0LSnmneI769Vd_AVb4W2VekTYJBJKbac7PLkKrVzid5jKsPYktW6_3sMBL4NrMMhwLXhaQq7b23gfs58pDNwhLQFwn3liD5NpjTUpn3dEA8GnGOrHUueJOBDsjXzACbcVg/s1600-h/chicken2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM5vwiZG04f0LSnmneI769Vd_AVb4W2VekTYJBJKbac7PLkKrVzid5jKsPYktW6_3sMBL4NrMMhwLXhaQq7b23gfs58pDNwhLQFwn3liD5NpjTUpn3dEA8GnGOrHUueJOBDsjXzACbcVg/s400/chicken2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Don't the colors in this picture look like somebody's '70s curtains? </div><div></div><div><br />
Optional: I sliced the lemon and put a slice on top of each chicken piece. It made the skin very lemony, but it also prevented that section of the skin from browning, so depending on how you like your chicken you may want to skip that step. </div><div></div><div><br />
Bake the chicken in the oven for about 30 minutes. Lower the heat to 350º and continue cooking. My chicken was slightly over 4 lbs, so it took the chicken an additional 40 minutes to cook at 350º. </div><div></div><div><br />
There's a great method for making gravy back at the original recipe (if you like gravy,) but I usually just end up heating the cooking juices with a slurry made from 1 TBSP of the juices and 1 TBSP of cornstarch until it thickens. </div>hashbrown reclusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09217550893122700297noreply@blogger.com0