Curried Roasted Carrots

This recipe is originally from onceuponachef.com

INGREDIENTS
2 pounds medium carrots, sliced into thirds on the diagonal
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon honey, or to taste

INSTRUCTIONS
Set oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 425 degrees. 

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Toss carrots with olive oil, curry powder and salt directly on baking sheet until evenly coated. 

Roast, stirring with a rubber spatula a few times to prevent sticking and burning, until tender, 25-30 minutes. 

Toss roasted carrots with honey directly on baking sheet. 

Taste and add more salt, pepper or honey if desired.

Lentil Mushroom Walnut Balls with Cranberry-Pear Sauce

We made these for AJ and Eleen's wedding banquet, and many times since. A little (okay, a lot) labor-intensive, it makes sense to double, triple up the recipe and keep some in the freezer! Here's the link.

Cauliflower Steaks

Sarah made this for us at our sister reunion Summer of 2015. Worth repeating.

Sweet Potato Casserole

So I was boiling sweet potatoes for use on the Super Food Salad which I was going to make for our lunch. But then I got doing Espanol con AJ y las olivde' and they boiled to mushy! Here's what I did. They're in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes and we'll see if it is good:

Mashed two medium large skinned sweet potatoes (bet there was a cup and a half to two of potato) with two tablespoons butter, 3 egg yolks, several shakes of sea salt, large shake of cinnamon (1/2 tsp?), medium shake (1/4 tsp?) of ginger, and small shake (1/8 tsp) of cloves.

Beat till peaked the three egg whites and stirred into potato mixture about a half cup of them. Then folded in till smooth half of what remained, then folded in the rest. Piled it in a 1.5 or 2 qt buttered baking dish.

Maybe I'll reheat Sunday's pork loin roast to go with a late lunch...

Stuffed Peppers

Just in time for a third to join us, I'm getting really good at creating meals just big enough to feed two mouths. This should serve as a disclaimer––since I never measure things, I'm guesstimating in my head how much of each following ingredient you'll need to make this kicky Mediterranean flavored meal for 6 people.

You'll probably need

• 1 c rice (I used basmati)
• 1/8 c capers, with their brine
• 1 large onion (or 2 red)
• 5-6 cloves garlic
• 1/4 c walnuts
• 2 T dried thyme (or twice that, fresh)
• 3 t ground black pepper
• 3 t ground allspice
• 12 sundried tomatoes (jarred or softened)
• 1 c ground lamb
• 1/2 c beef broth
• 3 T red wine (or red wine vinegar)
• 1/4 c sour cream or Greek yogurt (optional)
• feta or goat cheese, to taste
• 6 bell peppers (red, yellow, or orange, not green!)

Cook the rice according to directions, first adding the capers and their brine to the water. When done, fluff and set aside.

Cut the tops off of each pepper and scrape out any seeds and membrane. Place them in a casserole dish and make sure they all stand upright; if not, cut off the tiniest piece of the bottom to make them stand, without perforating the bottom.

Preheat the oven to 400ºF.

Finely chop onion, garlic, walnuts, and the sundried tomatoes. Heat a large skillet over medium heat, then add enough extra virgin olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Gently fry the herbs, spices, and walnuts (not the tomatoes) in the oil, adding more oil if it seems dry. The walnuts will absorb plenty of the moisture. When the mixture is browned, add the lamb and stir until everything is well combined and the lamb is browned.

While the meat mixture is cooking, whisk together your beef broth (bullion is fine) with the red wine. I used vinegar, but afterwards realized wine would have been better. Optionally, you can add a dollop of sour cream or Greek yogurt, something I can't get here but I bet would pull everything in this dish together beautifully.

Spoon the rice in with the meat mixture, stopping when you have equal parts rice and meat. Fish out any capers if you like them! Pour in the liquid mixture, and turn the heat up to high. Bring to a boil while stirring until the liquid is absorbed or cooked off but everything is still moist and holds together.

Turn off the heat and crumble in the cheese. Stir to combine, then spoon the mixture into each pepper until either it's used up or each pepper is packed full. Put the tops back on and, if necessary, press down. Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until the peppers are tender.

Serve with tzatziki, fresh mint or mint sauce, yogurt. Whatever suits your fancy.

Notes:

-You will not need ANY extra salt in this recipe; the beef broth, caper brine, sundried tomatoes, and vinegar or wine will give it all the zing it needs.

-Cooked lentils could be substituted with lamb to make this dish vegetarian. Omit the cheese and sour cream/yogurt to make it vegan.

-You could substitute couscous or quinoa for the rice.

-Finally, fresh parsley would probably be a nice flavor addition and a lovely garnish.

Roasted Eggplant, Tomatoes, Garlic & Pasta

Sitting captive to daytime tv in the doctor's waiting room this morning I was intrigued with a Rachel Ray recipe that I wanted to come home and try. But I was sure all the nightshade veggies (eggplant and tomatoes) would have made both Cal and me ache. So I'll post it here, hope that my daughties enjoy it, and try it on company sometime.

Roast an eggplant
Roast garlic

Roast/dry out a cookie sheet full of sliced open cherry tomatoes (about 1-1/2 hours, she suggested; on what? 325?)Chop roughly just before serving.

Process in food processor the eggplant, a handful of flat leaf parsley, a large can of tomatoes, a clove or two of the roasted garlic, a fresh pepper or red pepper flakes, extra-virgin olive oil (it looked like a good splash), salt & pepper to taste. Simmer this down to a reduction. Just before tossing it with your pasta you will add back a cup of starchy pasta water, so that gives you an idea about how far down to reduce the sauce.

Separately wash and chop both fresh sweet basil and a handful of spicy argulak, drizzling over it olive oil and juice of one lemon and a little salt. Set aside to use as topping after pasta is mixed.

Boil your pasta, transfer one cup of starchy water to the sauce and stir well, maybe turning up the heat a little. Then toss the sauce and pasta together. Add the cherry tomatoes which adds a nice texture and flavor to the whole dish. Top with shredded ricotta salata (the relatively dry, slice-able ricotta). Top with lemon dressed greens and serve. I hear it smells fantastic.

Bumped-Up Brussel Sprouts

Sister Sarah sent me this recipe which I am saving here to use next Christmas...

Twice-baked potatoes

Leigh, you asked how I made the double-baked potatoes we had for Kilby's wedding. I don't have an exact recipe but here is what I did.

Bake potatoes at high temp until soft inside, and crunchy outside.

As SOON as they are cool enough to hold, cut them in half and scoop out the insides, begin careful not to get too close to the skin. If you let them cool too long the steam of the potato will soften your skin so it is hard to scoop. Arrange potato shells on cookie sheet or baking pan.

To the scooped potato stuff I added a stick of butter, about a cup or two of sour cream (remember I made about 12--that is 24 halves--potatoes! What you want to effect is some nice mashed potatoes...), maybe a cup of mayo, and a cup or two of shredded cheddar cheese, fresh ground pepper and salt to taste. You COULD add onion or parsley or bacon bits if you like. Mash this all together, adding milk if you need it to be a little creamier. Don't overmash or it gets starchy-sticky.

Spoon your potato mix into a large ziplock bag and cut the tip off one corner. Squeeze the mix into each potato shell. Top with a little more cheese and/or paprika. Bake about a half hour at 350 or until hot through.

Good luck. They're never the same way twice!

Aunt Marcia’s Carrot Pickles

And this post is for Mark.

Combine:

2 bunches carrots
4 jalapeno peppers split
2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
½ tsp red pepper flakes

Mix, boil, and cool:

1 pt. cider vinegar
1/4 c water
3 T salt optional
3 T sugar
2 t mustard seed

Pour over carrots and let marinate. Keeps in refrigerator for several weeks.

Khosla Coleslaw

We had tilapia for lunch today, broiled quickly with just salt and pepper. Along with that were snap peas blanched, a souffle casserole made out of 3 eggs, a cup of milk, and about a 1/2 c of feta cheese with leftover mashed potatoes and green beans; surprisingly a hit. But the piece most commented on was the coleslaw made with the pickles given me by Kimberly Khosla (sounds like "coleslaw") last month. We were making room for Thanksgiving dinner groceries so I needed to put the remaining pickles in a smaller container than what we'd been using. There was one whole dill pickle left over and a couple cups of brine. So here goes, to be repeated:

1/2 head cabbage, processed quickly in food processor
1 dill pickle, also processed
1/2 tsp dill weed
salt and pepper to taste
1/3--1/2 c mayo
1 T dill pickle juice

Toss, chill, and if you're into health nutty things, sprinkle with whole flaxseed.

Cheers!

Esther Hamm's Parmesan Potatoes

Cut 6 large potatoes into wedges.

Toss in a bag with:
1/4 c flour
1/4 c parm cheese
3/4 t salt
1/8 t pepper

Place in large, shallow roasting pan with 1/2 c melted butter.

Bake at 350 degrees 1 hour, turning once.

Pat Dennison's Mashed Cheese Potatoes

Thought you girls would be happy to have this if you remember how delicious and smooth they were. Happy Sabbath feasts!

8 medium to large potatoes, cooked and mashed

Add 5 oz. cream cheese, 3/4 c sour cream, 1/2 to 3/4 c velveeta, 1/4 c butter

Cook 1/2 hour at 350 degrees

This can be mixed ahead and frozen, and then baked for one whole hour instead.

Double the recipe for a large casserole dish.

Preparing Acorn Squash

I guess there are lots of ways to do any kind of squash, and they're all good. This fall I've been especially attracted to acorn squash, since it's so easy to prepare and it's got such a unique flavor. My favorite way yet to make it is a little bit of sugar and a little bit of spice, on the verge of savory.

Cut the squash in two and shave off a piece of the rounded side of each half so it sits solidly on a foil-covered baking sheet. Coat the flesh lightly with butter. Then sprinkle with the following:

brown sugar (about a tablespoon for each half)

salt (maybe half a teaspoon for each half)

fresh cracked black pepper (depending how spicy you like it)

ground cumin (about a quarter of a teaspoon for each half)

ground nutmeg (a bit more than the cumin)

Then bake at 400º for an hour; after turning the oven off, leave it in the oven for a little longer to let the skin loosen. Then you should be able to scrape the flesh out of the skin with great ease. You can spoon it into a dish and stir it up to serve, or cut the squash into wedges and let people spoon it out themselves. The taste is mildly sweet with a peppery kick. The cumin and nutmeg mix very well with the flavor of acorn squash. You might want to add a little more salt in the end.

Refried Beans

Time to throw away the empty Goya pinto beans bag but not before copying off a recipe I want to try soon:

1/2 lb. dry pinto beans

4 slices bacon (or 1/2 c oil)

1 small onion, chopped

salt & pepper to taste

2 T crumbled fresh cheese or shredded mozzarella

Soak beans and drain. In large saucepan, combine beans and 4 c water. Cook until beans are tender. Add more water if necessary. Drain, reserving about 1/2 c liquid. Mash the beans. Adding as little of the liquid as necessary. Heat oil in a medium skillet. Stir in onion and cook until tender. Add beans, salt and pepper. Continue cooking until bean liquid starts to evaporate. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Serve with crumbled fresh cheese, or sprinkle with Mozzarella. Serves 4.

Peas & Peanut Salad

Connie Watson brought this to our last church lunch and I thought it was refreshing and interesting enough, not to mention delicious and nutritious, that I got the recipe to share with all of you.

Combine:

1/3 c mayonnaise

2/3 c sour cream

1 tsp. lemon juice

Fold in:

2 cups frozen peas, thawed but not cooked

2 c Spanish peanuts

1 T diced onion.

Refrigerate.

Cuban Black Beans recipe shamelessly harvested from Barbaranne Kelly's facebook

Black Beans, Cuban-Style

From Justo & Coleen Escobar

4 cans unseasoned Black Beans
4 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 link Chorizo Sausage, chopped
2 Onions, chopped
Garlic, (to taste) chopped
1 handful green Olives, chopped
½ can diced Tomatoes, drained

Heat the oil in a large skillet or dutch oven; add sausage and cook slowly to infuse the flavors of the sausage into the oil. Add onions, garlic and olives and cook until onions have softened. Add tomatoes and cook slowly until reduced. Add beans and simmer for 2-3 hours.

Serve right away with rice, or refrigerate overnight and warm in the oven the next day. The flavors only improve with time!

Stanton Pea Casserole

Now, this probably should not be on this blog as it is not a favorite of everyone's, but I like it and I started this blog so here goes:

1 bag frozen peas

1 can sliced water chestnuts, drained

Saute:

1 stick butter

1 onion, chopped

1 stick celery, sliced

Mix together with one can cream of mushroom soup, peas, and water chestnuts and bake at 350 degrees until bubbly.

Eggrolls

Technically called Springrolls, as eggrolls are really thin omelettes stuffed with goodies, I'd best show you how to make these if you dasn't know, as they have a bit o' technique in the rolling. BUT, I post this for Wendy and my daughties who might want recipe details. If you need help with technique, experience is a great teacher.

One package eggroll wrappers from the produce department of a grocery store (Walmart carries them, too), room temperature, preferably.

One head green cabbage, shredded thinly, steamed only until tender enough to squeeze, but not overcooked. Squeeze out extra moisture. You want it to be totally soft, but not yet having lost its bright greenness.

One chicken breast, cooked, pulled apart into small shreds to match your cabbage. Mix with cooked cabbage.

Generously salt and pepper your cabbage-chicken mix. Some add chicken bullion powder. Optionally you could add thinly sliced green onion or shredded carrot.

Lay out your first wrapper as a diamond. Pick up about 1/3 cup cabbage mix and plop in the middle. Pick up the closest corner and wrap upward. Pull sides in in a couple of folds, then using a fingerful of warm water (from a cup you already placed nearby) glue the corner farthest from you down onto the folded wrapper. Hope nothing is exposed that can fall out during the cooking. \

We piled the wrapped cabbage rolls on a serving dish while the oil is heating. If you don't have deep fryer that tells you what temp it is, my Chinese friend taught me to stick a chop stick down into the heated oil. If teeny bubbles come upward from that action, it supposedly is hot enough. If the roll doesn't cook and brown nicely in a matter of about five minutes you have the oil either too cold or too hot. You can use a sturdy sauce pan and fill with about four or five inches of vegetable oil and heat on a burner if you haven't got a deep fryer. I find I have to turn the rolls, sometimes holding them down into the oil in order to cook the other side.

Once your rolls are golden, crispy brown and driving everyone nuts from the delicious smells, you can serve them with a delicious sauce made of soy sauce and freshly crushed garlic, and a tablespoon of sesame oil if you have it.

Grain and vegetable and meat, these make a great meal all in themselves!

Dana Skogen's Oo La La Potatoes

6 potatoes

1 c shredded cheddar cheese

6 T butter

3/4 c sour cream

3 chopped green onions, or 1/2 c chopped onion

1 t salt

1/4 t pepper

Cook potatoes with skins (boil, sliced in half). Cool, peel, mash with potato masher. Combine 4 T butter and cheese in saucepan until melted. Remove, blend in sour cream, onions, salt, pepper. Fold into potatoes. Spoon into greased baking dish and dot top with 2 T butter. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

Oo la la!