I was browsing the aisles at the Whole Earth Co-op in River Falls and saw a package of Sturdiwheat Ginger Snappy Bars. I was very familiar with the Sturdiwheat brand as I have made their pancakes, but hadn't seen their dessert mixes. I love how easy their products are to prepare, but even more, I love how great they taste.
Start to finish, it took me 6 minutes to get the bars in the oven. After pulling the baking dish from the cupboard, I softened the butter in the microwave and preheated the oven to 325. As their slogan states, just add water! In a mixing bowl, I stirred all the ingredients until it had a sticky consistency. As is said on the back of the package, I pressed the batter into the dish and put it in the oven for 35 minutes.
Really, I can't say enough about the Sturdiwheat brand. It's a local company (Red Wing, MN) and I really love supporting local businesses. Plus, they don't add preservatives and their products taste extremely good and of high quality. If you ever need to make a quick treat for a party or to bring to work, look in the baking aisle for Sturdiwheat products. You'll receive praise for your baking abilities and the consumers will be very happy. You both win. I wonder if Sturdiwheat needs a national spokesperson...I'm willing.
Ingredients:
1 package Sturdiwheat Ginger Snappy Bar
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened
1/2 cup water
Music: Benny Goodman - Sing, Sing, Sing
Weather: 53-degrees, rainy
Breaking news: Joe Mauer is named American League Most Valuable Player
Showing posts with label Kevin Black. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kevin Black. Show all posts
Monday, November 23, 2009
Friday, November 6, 2009
Pad Thai with chicken
I was 20 years old when I experienced Thai food for the first time. I lived a fairly sheltered life in a small Midwestern town, so was not exposed to many ethnic flavors. When I left River Falls for Madison in the fall of 1998, I was excited to try food at many different restaurants. Sa Bai-Thong was the most popular establishment for Thai food in Madison and I was instantly became hooked on Pad Thai. In fact, I wouldn't go as far to say that I've eaten Thai food, only Pad Thai, but I've had it numerous times.
Last year, I stumbled across a jar of Peanut Satay Sauce at Trader Joe's. Next to the shelf of sauces is pasta. A homemade sign was attached to a package of rice noodles that indicated that they were noodle needed for "real" pad Thai. I was sold on their marketing campaign and bought the noodles and sauce and had my first experience making my own pad Thai. It was as easy as the meals I made in college - spaghetti with Ragu, etc. It was very good, too.
As I have progressed in my culinary creativity, I have been able to put more thought and effort into my pad Thai. I make it almost once a month. Tonight, my brother and his "guest" joined us for dinner, so I wanted to impress.
I was planning on making my own peanut sauce, but for time's sake, I went with the Peanut Satay Sauce from TJ's. It never misses. I had to use two jars, though.
First thing first, I boiled the rice noodles. They're tricky because the get very, very sticky. After I drained the water, I put a little olive oil on them to keep them from sticking together too badly. I also chopped a yellow onion, red pepper and baby corn along with garlic. In a large wok, I sauteed the vegetables in olive oil and Asian seasoning that included salt, cummin, chiles, ginger and red bell pepper. I was careful to not over-cook them because I was going to saute them again later.
In the same wok, I cooked the chicken. I chopped three breasts and cooked them in olive oil, garlic and red bell pepper seasoning. The chicken was extremely tasty by itself.
Finally, I put the chicken, vegetables, rice noodles and peanut sauce in the large wok and worked the sauce in. I added bean sprouts, pea pods and crushed peanuts and stirred everything together and served.
The portions were very large and full of flavor. This was the first time I used the extra seasonings and they gave it a little kick. I was very happy with how it turned out. The others raved about how good it was.
Ingredients:
1 package rice noodles (16 ounces)
3 chicken breasts
2 jars Peanut Satay Sauce from Trader Joe's
1 red pepper
1 yellow onion
3 gloves of garlic
1 cup baby corn
1 small bunch green onions
1 cup pea pods
1 cup bean sprouts
olive oil
Asian seasoning
Weather: 64-degrees
Last year, I stumbled across a jar of Peanut Satay Sauce at Trader Joe's. Next to the shelf of sauces is pasta. A homemade sign was attached to a package of rice noodles that indicated that they were noodle needed for "real" pad Thai. I was sold on their marketing campaign and bought the noodles and sauce and had my first experience making my own pad Thai. It was as easy as the meals I made in college - spaghetti with Ragu, etc. It was very good, too.
As I have progressed in my culinary creativity, I have been able to put more thought and effort into my pad Thai. I make it almost once a month. Tonight, my brother and his "guest" joined us for dinner, so I wanted to impress.
I was planning on making my own peanut sauce, but for time's sake, I went with the Peanut Satay Sauce from TJ's. It never misses. I had to use two jars, though.
First thing first, I boiled the rice noodles. They're tricky because the get very, very sticky. After I drained the water, I put a little olive oil on them to keep them from sticking together too badly. I also chopped a yellow onion, red pepper and baby corn along with garlic. In a large wok, I sauteed the vegetables in olive oil and Asian seasoning that included salt, cummin, chiles, ginger and red bell pepper. I was careful to not over-cook them because I was going to saute them again later.
In the same wok, I cooked the chicken. I chopped three breasts and cooked them in olive oil, garlic and red bell pepper seasoning. The chicken was extremely tasty by itself.
Finally, I put the chicken, vegetables, rice noodles and peanut sauce in the large wok and worked the sauce in. I added bean sprouts, pea pods and crushed peanuts and stirred everything together and served.
The portions were very large and full of flavor. This was the first time I used the extra seasonings and they gave it a little kick. I was very happy with how it turned out. The others raved about how good it was.
Ingredients:
1 package rice noodles (16 ounces)
3 chicken breasts
2 jars Peanut Satay Sauce from Trader Joe's
1 red pepper
1 yellow onion
3 gloves of garlic
1 cup baby corn
1 small bunch green onions
1 cup pea pods
1 cup bean sprouts
olive oil
Asian seasoning
Weather: 64-degrees
Monday, October 26, 2009
Homemade Salsa
The last Monday of every month, Athletes In Action has a large group gathering called FalconLife on the campus of UW-River Falls. Before each meeting, snacks and refreshments are provided for the athletes (free food is a great way to get college students in the door). I thought it would be nice to prepare my homemade salsa for these student-athletes. I remember being a college student and missing home. At times, the most loving thing that can be done for a college student is to bring them something homemade.
My little sister Amy was the first in our family to dive into making salsa. Since her first batch, she and I have constantly tried to put a new spin on her original recipe. The salsa that I made tonight, however, was the closest to her original recipe that I have made in a very long time.
Salsa is very easy to make and very difficult to screw up. Basically, it's a bunch of chopped tomatoes, olives and chiles. Everything else can be substituted, duplicated or omitted all together. I always use green onions and garlic, but some try to stay away from the onion/garlic breath. It all depends on the occasion and the mood that you're in.
I always chop the tomatoes first. Tonight I used my "As Seen On TV" onion chopper. I go back and forth between this, the food processor and cutting the tomatoes by hand. The tomatoes turn out differently with each option. In the food processor, the tomatoes become very runny or liquidity. The onion chopper has less liquid, but cutting by hand makes the least amount of liquid (best for tacos, etc.). I also chopped the olives and ORANGE pepper in the chopper. I used orange for the season, of course.
I chose not to add black beans or corn for this batch because I needed to whip it up quickly, but I usually put these two ingredients in. Tonight it contained tomatoes, olives, diced green chiles, green onions, garlic, olive oil, a pinch of sugar, salt, fresh cilantro, lime juice, lemon juice and the orange pepper. Orange peppers are typically "sweet," but this one was oddly spicy. It gave an unexpected kick to this salsa. It was a great addition.
Like always, the salsa was an absolute hit. Everyone loved it and a few of us even hung around after the meeting and mingled over what was left. Fortunately, for me, I did bring some home with me, so I'll be able to enjoy some at lunch tomorrow.
Ingredients:
7 tomatoes (chopped)
2 small cans diced green chiles
1 can large black olives
1 small bunch green onions
2 garlic cloves
1 lime (cut in half and squeeze all of the juice from both halves)
1/2 lemon (cut in half and squeeze juice from only one half)
1/2 small bunch fresh cilantro
1 orange pepper
salt (to taste)
a pinch of sugar
a small amount of olive oil
*I have put all of the ingredients in the food processor and chopped them together, but avoid turning into a puree.
Music: Brett Dennen - Ain't No Reason
Weather: 55-degrees
My little sister Amy was the first in our family to dive into making salsa. Since her first batch, she and I have constantly tried to put a new spin on her original recipe. The salsa that I made tonight, however, was the closest to her original recipe that I have made in a very long time.
Salsa is very easy to make and very difficult to screw up. Basically, it's a bunch of chopped tomatoes, olives and chiles. Everything else can be substituted, duplicated or omitted all together. I always use green onions and garlic, but some try to stay away from the onion/garlic breath. It all depends on the occasion and the mood that you're in.
I always chop the tomatoes first. Tonight I used my "As Seen On TV" onion chopper. I go back and forth between this, the food processor and cutting the tomatoes by hand. The tomatoes turn out differently with each option. In the food processor, the tomatoes become very runny or liquidity. The onion chopper has less liquid, but cutting by hand makes the least amount of liquid (best for tacos, etc.). I also chopped the olives and ORANGE pepper in the chopper. I used orange for the season, of course.
I chose not to add black beans or corn for this batch because I needed to whip it up quickly, but I usually put these two ingredients in. Tonight it contained tomatoes, olives, diced green chiles, green onions, garlic, olive oil, a pinch of sugar, salt, fresh cilantro, lime juice, lemon juice and the orange pepper. Orange peppers are typically "sweet," but this one was oddly spicy. It gave an unexpected kick to this salsa. It was a great addition.
Like always, the salsa was an absolute hit. Everyone loved it and a few of us even hung around after the meeting and mingled over what was left. Fortunately, for me, I did bring some home with me, so I'll be able to enjoy some at lunch tomorrow.
Ingredients:
7 tomatoes (chopped)
2 small cans diced green chiles
1 can large black olives
1 small bunch green onions
2 garlic cloves
1 lime (cut in half and squeeze all of the juice from both halves)
1/2 lemon (cut in half and squeeze juice from only one half)
1/2 small bunch fresh cilantro
1 orange pepper
salt (to taste)
a pinch of sugar
a small amount of olive oil
*I have put all of the ingredients in the food processor and chopped them together, but avoid turning into a puree.
Music: Brett Dennen - Ain't No Reason
Weather: 55-degrees
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Sunday Soup Day: Butternut Squash
It appears as though I'm no longer the only person who reads my blog pages. I've had comments (both complimentary and satirical) from a handful of people, so I thought I would give "my readers" an opportunity to have some say in what I'd make today on Sunday Soup Day.
I updated my status on Twitter and Facebook by mentioning my pumpkin cheesecake from yesterday and welcoming suggestions for soup today. My only prerequisite was that it had to be orange. I had three responses and they all suggested butternut squash. In addition, our cousin-in-law, Kim, sent me a tremendous recipe. I made a few adjustments and it turned out to be a pot of creamy goodness.
The first step was to bake the butternut squash. I thought I would get a head start on this because Sunday mornings I go to church (Five Oaks in the Hudson movie theatre--awesome) and knew that I would be short on time before the Packers game started. So, at 9:30pm last night, I put the squash in the oven. The directions indicated 50-60 minutes for the squash (face down) at 400-degrees, but I wasn't able to take it out until 11:20pm. Needless to say, the squash was cooked beyond recognition. It left a pungent smell throughout the entire house that interrupted my sleep cycle all night. I finally opened the windows at 5:00am this morning to get rid of the odor.
I went to the store early this morning and purchased two more squashes. I preheated the oven at 400 so I could bake them immediately. Remember, I was short of time because of church and the Packers. I baked them for 60 minutes and took them out before leaving for church. When I got home, I put the squashes in the oven again until they were warm.
In the meantime, I put Isaiah down for a nap (Liz was at work) and got to work on the soup. I chopped the onion, shallots and garlic before sauteeing them in butter. I added the sugar as Kim directed followed by the cream and chicken stock. I put in a little more stock than she suggested because I was cooking for 5-6 people.
After taking the skin off the squashes, I pureed them separate of the liquid in the pot. Once again, I added chicken stock in order to puree the squash. I did this two separate times because my food processor wasn't big enough for all of the squash. I put the puree in the cast-iron pot with the rest of the ingredients and stirred everything together until it was the creamiest texture possible. Then, I garnished it with dried green onions. Perfect.
When I dipped my spoon into the smoothest soup I had ever manufactured, I felt like a gourmet chef. Tasting it made me feel like I should have my own soup-making television show on the Food Network between Giada de Laurentiis and Rachel Ray. It was that good. I can't take all the credit, though. Kim's recipe did the trick. Afterall, her husband is a real gourment chef. I made a few adjustments of my own and everyone was surprised by how fabulous it was. By the way, the Packers won, too.
Ingredients:
2 butternut squashes (halved, cored, and sprinkle seasoned with salt and pepper)
1 cup heavy whipping cream
32 ounces organic free range chicken stock
1 stick salted butter
2 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 whole yellow onion (chopped)
2 shallots (chopped)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons pepper
Directions:
1. Take halved squashes and bake on sheet pan face down for 45 minutes-1 hour (or until fork or knife tender)
2. Using a hot pad hold squash in hand and scoop out cooked center into large pot (no skin)
3. On medium-low head, using a spatula, mix in butter, onions, shallots and garlic. Mix until butter is melted and onions are translucent.
4. Mix in brown sugar, stir until fully incorporated.
5. Pour in chicken stock, stir until warm
6. Pour in cream, stir until simmering.
7. Cook on medium heat being careful not to scorch the cream for 7 minutes.
8. Pour mixture into blender, or food processor, and puree until smooth. Or if you have a hand blender (immersion blender) you can leave it in the pot and blend, just take it off the heat first. 9. Return to heat cook 5 minutes to thicken soup.
10. SERVE.
Mind blowing. For serious.
Music: Addison Road - Hope Now
Weather: 48-degrees, gloomy
I updated my status on Twitter and Facebook by mentioning my pumpkin cheesecake from yesterday and welcoming suggestions for soup today. My only prerequisite was that it had to be orange. I had three responses and they all suggested butternut squash. In addition, our cousin-in-law, Kim, sent me a tremendous recipe. I made a few adjustments and it turned out to be a pot of creamy goodness.
The first step was to bake the butternut squash. I thought I would get a head start on this because Sunday mornings I go to church (Five Oaks in the Hudson movie theatre--awesome) and knew that I would be short on time before the Packers game started. So, at 9:30pm last night, I put the squash in the oven. The directions indicated 50-60 minutes for the squash (face down) at 400-degrees, but I wasn't able to take it out until 11:20pm. Needless to say, the squash was cooked beyond recognition. It left a pungent smell throughout the entire house that interrupted my sleep cycle all night. I finally opened the windows at 5:00am this morning to get rid of the odor.
I went to the store early this morning and purchased two more squashes. I preheated the oven at 400 so I could bake them immediately. Remember, I was short of time because of church and the Packers. I baked them for 60 minutes and took them out before leaving for church. When I got home, I put the squashes in the oven again until they were warm.
In the meantime, I put Isaiah down for a nap (Liz was at work) and got to work on the soup. I chopped the onion, shallots and garlic before sauteeing them in butter. I added the sugar as Kim directed followed by the cream and chicken stock. I put in a little more stock than she suggested because I was cooking for 5-6 people.
After taking the skin off the squashes, I pureed them separate of the liquid in the pot. Once again, I added chicken stock in order to puree the squash. I did this two separate times because my food processor wasn't big enough for all of the squash. I put the puree in the cast-iron pot with the rest of the ingredients and stirred everything together until it was the creamiest texture possible. Then, I garnished it with dried green onions. Perfect.
When I dipped my spoon into the smoothest soup I had ever manufactured, I felt like a gourmet chef. Tasting it made me feel like I should have my own soup-making television show on the Food Network between Giada de Laurentiis and Rachel Ray. It was that good. I can't take all the credit, though. Kim's recipe did the trick. Afterall, her husband is a real gourment chef. I made a few adjustments of my own and everyone was surprised by how fabulous it was. By the way, the Packers won, too.
Ingredients:
2 butternut squashes (halved, cored, and sprinkle seasoned with salt and pepper)
1 cup heavy whipping cream
32 ounces organic free range chicken stock
1 stick salted butter
2 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 whole yellow onion (chopped)
2 shallots (chopped)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons pepper
Directions:
1. Take halved squashes and bake on sheet pan face down for 45 minutes-1 hour (or until fork or knife tender)
2. Using a hot pad hold squash in hand and scoop out cooked center into large pot (no skin)
3. On medium-low head, using a spatula, mix in butter, onions, shallots and garlic. Mix until butter is melted and onions are translucent.
4. Mix in brown sugar, stir until fully incorporated.
5. Pour in chicken stock, stir until warm
6. Pour in cream, stir until simmering.
7. Cook on medium heat being careful not to scorch the cream for 7 minutes.
8. Pour mixture into blender, or food processor, and puree until smooth. Or if you have a hand blender (immersion blender) you can leave it in the pot and blend, just take it off the heat first. 9. Return to heat cook 5 minutes to thicken soup.
10. SERVE.
Mind blowing. For serious.
Music: Addison Road - Hope Now
Weather: 48-degrees, gloomy
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Pumpkin Cheesecake
To remain consistent with my attempt to use recipes that include the color orange, I decided to make a Pumpkin Cheesecake. Saturdays have been designated "Dessert Day" in the little world of Kevin Eats. Last week, I had a lot of success with pie, so I thought I would take another stab at it. This has successfully been the second real pie that I have ever made.
I searched the Epicurious website for a pumpkin cheesecake recipe that I could manage on my own. I'm shocked by how long the preparation time is for cheesecake. Most of the recipes recommended the cheesecake sit in the refrigerator overnight. I didn't want a NoBake Cheesecake, but I did want to eat it tonight. All that hard work should pay off, right?
I still haven't been able to taste the pumpkiny goodness, but it looks like it turned out well. I had a spoon full of the cream cheese and sugar mixture and thought I was briefly in heaven (actually, that's not true, heaven is going to be way better than cheesecake, but I bet cheesecake will be in heaven). I was concerned about the consistency of the filling before I baked it, but it looks like it has the perfect consistency. I didn't put enough fatty ingredients in the filling to promise Cheesecake Factory quality, but I'm still confident that it will satisfy my sweet tooth.
I bought a premade crust because I knew that I'd have had too much difficulty making a crust while taking care of Isaiah. The filling didn't take a lot of time and was very straightforward, which was nice. I fluffed the cream cheese and then added the sugar and brown sugar. I blended it until it was fluffy again. Then, I added the eggs and egg white one at a time and stirred them in separately. Finally, I put the rest of the ingredients in the bowl and mixed them together. It took roughly 15 minutes while I entertained Isaiah on the side with silly dancing and singing. He was amused (so was I).
I poured the filling into the pie crust and slid it in the oven at 350-degrees. I baked it for 65 minutes until the filling "puffed" up and the center moved only slightly.
I will post my review of this pumpkin cheesecake in the comments section as soon as I try it. I'm excited.
Ingredients:
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
1 cup canned pure pumpkin
3/4 cup half and half
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt
Music: Adele - Chasing Pavements
Weather: 55-degrees and sunny
I searched the Epicurious website for a pumpkin cheesecake recipe that I could manage on my own. I'm shocked by how long the preparation time is for cheesecake. Most of the recipes recommended the cheesecake sit in the refrigerator overnight. I didn't want a NoBake Cheesecake, but I did want to eat it tonight. All that hard work should pay off, right?
I still haven't been able to taste the pumpkiny goodness, but it looks like it turned out well. I had a spoon full of the cream cheese and sugar mixture and thought I was briefly in heaven (actually, that's not true, heaven is going to be way better than cheesecake, but I bet cheesecake will be in heaven). I was concerned about the consistency of the filling before I baked it, but it looks like it has the perfect consistency. I didn't put enough fatty ingredients in the filling to promise Cheesecake Factory quality, but I'm still confident that it will satisfy my sweet tooth.
I bought a premade crust because I knew that I'd have had too much difficulty making a crust while taking care of Isaiah. The filling didn't take a lot of time and was very straightforward, which was nice. I fluffed the cream cheese and then added the sugar and brown sugar. I blended it until it was fluffy again. Then, I added the eggs and egg white one at a time and stirred them in separately. Finally, I put the rest of the ingredients in the bowl and mixed them together. It took roughly 15 minutes while I entertained Isaiah on the side with silly dancing and singing. He was amused (so was I).
I poured the filling into the pie crust and slid it in the oven at 350-degrees. I baked it for 65 minutes until the filling "puffed" up and the center moved only slightly.
I will post my review of this pumpkin cheesecake in the comments section as soon as I try it. I'm excited.
Ingredients:
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
1 cup canned pure pumpkin
3/4 cup half and half
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt
Music: Adele - Chasing Pavements
Weather: 55-degrees and sunny
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Sunday Soup Day: Chicken, Sausage, Basil & Spinach
We have designated Sunday Soup Day. In the fall, we typically entertain a number of guests during Packers football games. I thoroughly enjoy making a large pot of homemade soup, so this becomes the ideal time to do just that. I'm sure we will still have Sunday Soup Day even if the Packers are not playing.
Today I paged through a few cooking magazines and found a chicken, arugula and orzo soup in Every Day with Rachel Ray. This gave me a few ideas and I ended up putting together my own new recipe that included chicken, sausage, basil, spinach and other fresh vegetables.
I was short on time after returning home from church behind schedule. I pulled out my "As Seen On TV" Onion Chopper to quickly chop my vegetables. I chopped one yellow onion, one zucchini, some leeks and one yellow pepper. Then, I poured some extra virgin olive oil into the pot and added the vegetables. I also added a lot of seasonings. I love the McCormick brand Italian seasonings. They're great. I used Garlic & Black Pepper, Garlic & Basil and Garlic & Roasted Peppers seasonings. It seems like a lot of garlic seasoning, but we were out of fresh garlic cloves. I sauteed everything for about 15 minutes until the vegetables were soft.
Next, I added about 8 ounces of vegetable stock and let the veggies cook while I pan fried two chicken breasts and microwaved the precooked Italian sausage (Johnsonville, of course). I sliced the chicken and sausage and added two boxes of chicken stock to the pot.Once the pot had all of the needed stock, I added sliced mushrooms, frozen spinach and chopped basil.
The final touch was the uncooked orzo. I let the soup simmer for about 20 more minutes until the orzo was fully cook.
The completed project looked very busy, but my soups are always very busy. It had a very simple taste, though. The spinach and basil balanced each other quite well. The basil was very strong, but the spinach was bland. The sausage absorbed the broth and was tenderly sweet. Overall, the soup was great.
I don't know if it is a combination of using a cast-iron pot and very good ingredients or if it is my creativity and desire, but everyone seems to be extremely happy about my soups. It makes me look forward to the next concoction that I put together. I know it is going to be every Sunday, at the least, because Sunday is Soup Day.
Ingredients:
1 yellow onion
1 yellow pepper
1/4 stalk leeks
1 zucchini
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
8 ounces vegetable stock
64 ounces chicken stock
2 medium chicken breasts
4 precooked sausage links
Music: Karen O & The Kids - All Is Love
Weather: 60-degrees and sunny
Today I paged through a few cooking magazines and found a chicken, arugula and orzo soup in Every Day with Rachel Ray. This gave me a few ideas and I ended up putting together my own new recipe that included chicken, sausage, basil, spinach and other fresh vegetables.
I was short on time after returning home from church behind schedule. I pulled out my "As Seen On TV" Onion Chopper to quickly chop my vegetables. I chopped one yellow onion, one zucchini, some leeks and one yellow pepper. Then, I poured some extra virgin olive oil into the pot and added the vegetables. I also added a lot of seasonings. I love the McCormick brand Italian seasonings. They're great. I used Garlic & Black Pepper, Garlic & Basil and Garlic & Roasted Peppers seasonings. It seems like a lot of garlic seasoning, but we were out of fresh garlic cloves. I sauteed everything for about 15 minutes until the vegetables were soft.
Next, I added about 8 ounces of vegetable stock and let the veggies cook while I pan fried two chicken breasts and microwaved the precooked Italian sausage (Johnsonville, of course). I sliced the chicken and sausage and added two boxes of chicken stock to the pot.Once the pot had all of the needed stock, I added sliced mushrooms, frozen spinach and chopped basil.
The final touch was the uncooked orzo. I let the soup simmer for about 20 more minutes until the orzo was fully cook.
The completed project looked very busy, but my soups are always very busy. It had a very simple taste, though. The spinach and basil balanced each other quite well. The basil was very strong, but the spinach was bland. The sausage absorbed the broth and was tenderly sweet. Overall, the soup was great.
I don't know if it is a combination of using a cast-iron pot and very good ingredients or if it is my creativity and desire, but everyone seems to be extremely happy about my soups. It makes me look forward to the next concoction that I put together. I know it is going to be every Sunday, at the least, because Sunday is Soup Day.
Ingredients:
1 yellow onion
1 yellow pepper
1/4 stalk leeks
1 zucchini
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
8 ounces vegetable stock
64 ounces chicken stock
2 medium chicken breasts
4 precooked sausage links
Music: Karen O & The Kids - All Is Love
Weather: 60-degrees and sunny
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Mom's Apple Crisp
Tonight I went for an old classic in the Black Family--apple crisp. My mom has made us apple crisp for as long as I can remember, particularly in the fall. I know it's apple crisp season when Honey Crisp apples hit the shelves. They are the sweetest apples known to mankind (and were first created only 40 minutes from here at the University of Minnesota).
My first step in making apple crisp fell short. I went to the farmer's market to purchase a bag of Honey Crisps from the Circle-K Orchard stand, but they were sold out! I had to settle for Fireside apples and they turned out to be just what I was looking for.
The recipe is quite simple. Cut a few apples, make the crust, sprinkle some sugar and bake. That's about it.
I started with seven apples, but that ended up being too many for my 9" x 14" Pyrex cake pan. I sprayed Pam on the inside of the pan then filled it to the top with sliced apples (I made applesauce for Isaiah with the leftover apples). Once the apples were in the pan, I sprinkled cinnamon and sugar over the top.
I mixed the ingredients for the crust in our Kitchen Aid stand-up mixer (I know, spoiled). Once mixed, I put the crust over the top of the apples. This was harder than I had anticipated. The dough stuck to the apples and was difficult to evenly spread.
I put the pan in the oven at 425 and waited 40-45 minutes before taking it out. As my brother says, wait until the crust is golden brown. I did and it turned out fabulous! The Fireside apples were not very sweet and it was exactly what I needed tonight. I didn't put the caramel over the top like I suggested in the video (always trust your gut instinct while cooking/baking).
Ingredients:
6 apples (I used Fireside, but Honey Crisp is best)
1 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 stick of butter (1/2 cup or 8 tablespoons)
Background music: Third Day - Born Again (and college football)
Weather: 39-degrees (F), early morning snow
My first step in making apple crisp fell short. I went to the farmer's market to purchase a bag of Honey Crisps from the Circle-K Orchard stand, but they were sold out! I had to settle for Fireside apples and they turned out to be just what I was looking for.
The recipe is quite simple. Cut a few apples, make the crust, sprinkle some sugar and bake. That's about it.
I started with seven apples, but that ended up being too many for my 9" x 14" Pyrex cake pan. I sprayed Pam on the inside of the pan then filled it to the top with sliced apples (I made applesauce for Isaiah with the leftover apples). Once the apples were in the pan, I sprinkled cinnamon and sugar over the top.
I mixed the ingredients for the crust in our Kitchen Aid stand-up mixer (I know, spoiled). Once mixed, I put the crust over the top of the apples. This was harder than I had anticipated. The dough stuck to the apples and was difficult to evenly spread.
I put the pan in the oven at 425 and waited 40-45 minutes before taking it out. As my brother says, wait until the crust is golden brown. I did and it turned out fabulous! The Fireside apples were not very sweet and it was exactly what I needed tonight. I didn't put the caramel over the top like I suggested in the video (always trust your gut instinct while cooking/baking).
Ingredients:
6 apples (I used Fireside, but Honey Crisp is best)
1 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 stick of butter (1/2 cup or 8 tablespoons)
Background music: Third Day - Born Again (and college football)
Weather: 39-degrees (F), early morning snow
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