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This just in: Risotto alla Carbonara IS the Ultimate Comfort Food

September 28, 2011 in Entrees

Risotto alla Carbonara

I love it when the need for a dish creates the dish itself. Necessity is always the mother of invention, ‘mother’ being the key term in this particular case. A mom in our circle of friends recently had her second baby, and had smartly registered on MealBaby to ensure that a regular rotation of nourishing food arrived on their babymooning doorstep.

On MealBaby, you can be as general or as specific as you like about your dietary needs and preferences. In my friend’s case, I thought risotto sounded like a great comfort food for them, but they need to make sure a good amount of protein is in every entree. So I started wondering about what kind of meat would be the most harmonious in a risotto. Bacon came to mind – and then the idea struck: what about a risotto . . . . rendered in carbonara form?  Did I dare???

The first time I made this, I tried it with turkey bacon, and thought it was already a resounding success (the family agreed). The second time, I decided to go all the way, with full-on 100% bacon bacon. And all I have to say is that unless you have a dietary reason to avoid any of the admittedly decadent ingredients herein, you must, MUST make this, preferably as your autumn weather begins to make its turn into the coming chilly months. Read the rest of this entry →

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Grilled Pepper Ring Pizza on the Grill – An End of Summer Meatless Monday Feast

August 29, 2011 in Entrees, Vegetarian Entrees

Pepper Ring Pizza Square

My life improved about a million percent when I discovered that you could make pizza on the grill (or flatbread, or crostini, or garlic bread, or pretty much any bread that requires toasting).

When it is summer, nothing is better than grilling, I say!

I was thrilled to see a veggie pizza on my Secret Recipe Club blog for this month – Searching for Spice.

Corina from the UK has a lovely recipe for Vegetable Pizza on her blog – she said it is her first-ever homemade pizza! – and with my garden overflowing and my desperate attempt to keep up with it, I knew this is the recipe I had to make for this month’s Secret Recipe Club.

I was intrigued by her method of rolling out the dough by using not flour but OIL. Seemed strange at first, but then I thought that this would add a crispiness to the crust as well as making rolling easier. It worked like a charm, without adding more flour to the dough and making the dough tougher. Thanks, Corina, for this fabulous trick! I never would have guessed this is your first attempt at homemade pizza crust – it is delightful!

I changed up the sauce and just brushed Corina’s delightful crust with olive oil and herbs, sprinkled on some Parmesan and the grilled pepper rings and the result: OMG Deeeee-lish End-of-Summer Pizza on the Grill!

Happy Meatless Monday, Everyone!

– posted by Donna

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Dutch Baby Pancakes and The Magical World of Six-Year-Olds

August 23, 2011 in Entrees

Thaya Dutch Baby

Dutch Baby Kitchen Magic

Once in awhile, I get lucky enough to enjoy a weekend of tea parties, toenail painting and Dutch Babies.

My darling 6-year-old niece Thaya showed up last weekend with a backpack full of little girl treasures: glittery fingernail polish; stickers and paper scraps; floppy cuddly stuffed animal friends.

Thaya brightens our home with constant cheery chatter and occasional pleas like : “Let’s Make Dutch Babies!” she squeals.

And then my kitchen fills with laughter, cracking eggs, poofs of flour. I get to see the world with six-year-old eyes again for a moment in time.

The iconic American dish Dutch Babies are, like six-year-olds, full of magic and wonder. You whisk together eggs, flour, milk and pour the mixture into a hot buttered skillet and slide it into the oven, Then, in amazement, you pull out a puffed brown cloud. Magical!

I hope every child in the universe gets to make a Dutch Baby at least once. Life is just better with Dutch Babies. It just is.

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Zucchini Shirred Eggs Lower Fat Recipe – A Whole New Way to Use Up All That Zucchini for Meatless Monday

August 1, 2011 in Entrees, Healthy Fare, Vegetarian Entrees

Zucchini Shirred Eggs Square

Lower-fat Zucchini Shirred Eggs Baked in Ramekins

Shirred eggs are delicious and creamy on their own, but they are a little on the bland side. Just eggs baked in cream, basically. So, I decided to experiment with adding produce from our garden. I tried Swiss chard, spinach – but honestly, they were nothing to write home about. Then, I thought about slicing zucchini into paper-thin planks and use them like you would a leafy green to cradle the eggs. This was the winner by a landslide!

The roasted zucchini adds a subtle garden freshness to the eggs and dairy, and improves on the one-note flavor of the baked eggs. I also healthified it even more by using lower fat dairy than is usually called for – and a teaspoon of half and half instead of a tablespoon of cream.

In the early ’70s, I remember laughing out loud the first time I heard of a thing called “Zucchini Bread.” WHat?! Zucchini in Bread?! Absurd. Ridiculous. And then I tasted it. I was in shock for days. And  I never looked at zucchini the same way again.

This recipe is one of those recipes. You will look at zukes in a different way.

If you need to get rid of some zucchini, I highly recommend baking it with some eggs. And what the heck, you could even serve it as a Meatless Monday entree!

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Pesto Pecan Chicken: 3 Ingredient Entree

July 29, 2011 in Entrees, Healthy Fare

Pesto, presto.

Here’s a short, simple, yet highly scrumptious one for Friday: The title essentially gives you the recipe. This was a gem I found in Rozanne Gold’s “Low Carb 1-2-3″. Kind of a dry name, but honestly, the recipes are anything but! As long as you have a jar of prepared pesto on hand, it really is 3 ingredients. Read the rest of this entry →

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No-Cook Raw Corn and Chilled Shrimp Soup Recipe – Sublime Summer Bliss in a Bowl in Just 20 Minutes

July 27, 2011 in Appetizers, Entrees, Healthy Fare, Side Dishes

Corn Soup Square

No-Cook Raw Corn Chilled Soup with Shrimp, Avocado and Cherry Tomato Garnish

About a year ago I discovered raw corn.

Oh, sure, I have feasted for years on the whole-cob hot-and-steamy dripping-butter-to-your-elbows cooked corn. Summer just isn’t complete if you haven’t had your fill of that all-American summer staple. But RAW corn? I never would have tried it in a dish until the last few years of my adventurousness in the kitchen.

Let me tell you what: this soup will make you a believer in raw corn. This is not just any old raw corn recipe. This is Oooh and Aaaahhhhh raw corn. Crave-worthy raw corn. Raw corn to write home about.

This soup, the creation of my culinarily talented mom, Carol, takes minutes to make and yet is sublime and elegant. (Did I just say “elegant” and “corn” in the same post?) I was lucky enough to be in Carol’s kitchen and she and I made it together for the very first time.

Do yourself a huge favor: RUN – do not walk – to your nearest corn stand and scoop up a trunkful of cobs and make this soup. Today. Best summer dish I have had in years!

DSC_6138

Carol Hicks and her Raw Corn Chilled Soup

– posted by Donna

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Caribbean Vacation on a Stick: Jerk Chicken Kebabs with Mango, Pineapple and Peppers

July 7, 2011 in Entrees, Gluten Free

Carribean Kabobs Square

Caribbean Vacation on a Stick - Jerk Chicken Kabobs

“These are the best kebabs I have ever eaten.”

Such is the comment my husband made when he tasted these kebabs. This, coming from a man who LIVES for grilling in the summer, is truly a “noted for the record” remark.

The two things I did to make these a success were: 1) use chicken thigh meat, which holds up better and is moister than breast meat; and 2) have a really flavorful marinade with lime zest and not just juice. (Remember the experiment we did a while back? I am convinced that zest is the key to flavorful marinades!)

I like to cook my kebabs so that all the meat chunks are on skewers together, all the hearty vegetables are together, and all the fruits are together. This way, you can cook the skewers the perfect amount of time for each type of food.

Happy Summer Everyone!

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Dos Gazpachos: The Classic and The Remake

June 24, 2011 in Entrees, Gluten Free, Healthy Fare, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Entrees

Gazpacho with a kick!

You guys might remember me talking about my upbringing with my beloved adoptive mom, who, God bless her . .  was just not a foodie. She wasn’t TERRIBLE, mind you – I didn’t have to worry about her giving dinner guests food poisoning the way Ruth Reichl described in her memoir “Tender at the Bone”, but she simply wasn’t a food lover the way I was, and the way Donna also was, I was later thrilled to discover.

But that doesn’t mean she didn’t have a few delicious things up her sleeve – and one of them was gazpacho. This cold tomato soup from Spain isn’t something you’d think your average American kid would like, but I absolutely devoured it. Mom made it by the vat every summer, and thus, every summer I look forward to making it myself.

We called it “liquid salad”, and though that makes it sound a bit less appetizing than it actually is, it’s a fair description of the raw veggie content. I can’t think of a more healthy recipe, for the life of me, and it’s one that can be dressed up with any number of garnishes. Also? Easy. SO EASY. This is my own definitive version, having tweaked it for literally decades now. Read the rest of this entry →

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The Secret to A Perfect Glaze on the Grill: Recipe for Pomegranate Molasses Glazed Butterflied Game Hens

June 20, 2011 in Entrees

Pomegranate Chicken Square

Pomegranate Glazed Butterflied Cornish Game Hens

What’s a more classic barbecue dish, more “summer-on-a-plate” than barbecued chicken? I can’t think of a single thing.

Even one of my my kids who was vegetarian tells me that the meat dish he missed most is barbecued chicken. Sticky, sweet, savory, smoky, moist and delicious barbecued chicken.

To change things up, I decided to use a glaze this time, and I used Cornish game hens butterflied for the same homey retro feel, but more “WOW” presentation than chicken.

And, I am very excited to share with you all the secret I just mastered to getting the perfect sweet, tangy, sticky glaze without burning the sauce. It requires three things: 1) Turn!; 2) Turn!; and 3) Turn! your meat. That’s it really. How did I not get this all these years? You cook your meat over very high heat almost to the point of being done. Then, turn the heat down very, very low on your grill. If you are cooking over charcoal, move the meat to the indirect heat part of the grill. Then, baste and turn; let sit just one minute; baste and turn; let sit just one minute, and, OK, you get the idea. Just keep basting and turning over very low heat until you get the perfect coating. Your glaze will have a beautiful shiny surface with no burn.

That’s it. I’m cooking glazed chicken every single day the rest of the summer.

Pomegranate Chicken Square II

Second Helping of Pomegranate Glazed Cornish Game Hens

 

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El Charro’s Chilaquiles: Easy Mexican Casserole for Meatless Monday

June 13, 2011 in Entrees, Vegetarian Entrees

Simple, layered, delicious chilaquiles.

I fell in love at first bite when Donna first took me to her own all-time favorite restaurant, El Charro, the famous family-owned Mexican cafe in my birthplace, Tucson Arizona. When Donna visits her family there, they’ve been known to stop at El Charro directly from the airport, and ever since visiting there for the first time in 2003, I can see why. This is both as regionally authentic as it gets AND cooking from the heart of family traditions. And it’s now my favorite, too. (Seriously. It’s that good.)

A Belated Birthday Bash

We had started a new tradition not long before the visit photographed here: every visit would include a “birthday party” for me, so as to make up for some lost time – hence the sombrero of honor and carrot cake with candle. Donna’s favorite dish is carne seca, a dish that involves slowly drying beef in the open air (a tradition that is often a matter of contention for the Tucson health department). I’d be hard pressed to choose only one favorite, but it would probably be a toss-up between one of several varieties of enchiladas or their chilaquiles.

Since we just shared some of our own enchiladas, I’d love to pass on this very easy, very flexible recipe for chilaquiles, which happens to be a great fit for a Meatless Monday. This is also a bit of a hat tip to our former incarnation as Fab Frugal Food, as it is extremely inexpensive and a great way to use up old, stale tortilla chips.  Read the rest of this entry →

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