Eating as I Go

Key Lime Pie

2010-06-30T18:30:00.000-05:00

Summer is here, specifically the Fourth of July, and that means it is time for backyard barbecues and fireworks! That, or staying inside to watch the weather channel. Either way, have yourself a piece of pie.

Key lime pie, specifically. Did you know there was a 25-year long period of my life when I wouldn't touch a piece of pie? It's true. No chocolate, custardy pie. No pumpkin at Thanksgiving. Nothing fruit-based. Actually, I still don't really like very many pies at all. But then one day, last summer, for a reason that I still cannot explain, I made a key lime pie from scratch. And it was delicious. Seriously, this pie is out of this world and would make a wonderful accompaniment to whatever Americana-esque gathering you are going to this weekend.

I upped the crust to filling ratio on this recipe because I really cannot get enough of the graham cracker crust. Please, please take the time to squeeze your own key limes. I concede that it is a gigantic pain to squeeze 85 key limes to get 1 cup of juice. But I promise you it is worth in and will taste one thousand times better than anything that comes in a bottle that resembles a baby's booger sucker (I went there).

Shout out to my bud Leslie, who has myriad pie experience. I think we are due a summer pie week, no?

Key Lime Pie

Adapted from Gourmet (RIP)

Ingredients

For Crust

9 (5x2.5 inch) graham crackers, broken into small pieces

1 cup slivered almonds

1/3 cup sugar

3/4 stick unsalted butter, melted

For Filling

1 (14 oz) cans sweetened, condensed milk (NOT evaporated milk)

Grated zest of 2 key limes

1 cup fresh key lime juice, from about 2 lbs fresh key limes

4 large egg yolks

Directions

Make crust:
Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle. Butter a 9-inch pie plate. Pulse together graham crackers, almonds, and sugar in a food processor until finely ground. Transfer to a bowl and stir in butter until the crust is moldable. Press crumb mixture evenly onto bottom and up side of pie plate. Bake until lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool completely. (Leave oven on.)

Make filling and bake pie:
Gently whisk together filling ingredients in a medium bowl until smooth and pour into crust. Bake until just set in center, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool completely (filling will set as it cools). Chill pie, loosely covered, at least 8 hours.

Toasted Granola with Dried Fruit

2010-04-24T13:44:00.006-05:00

I normally travel for my job about once a month, but this April has been my busiest travel month ever. I have been gone every week for at least one night, and, on top of that, we have taken two trips on the weekends to visit family and friends. So, needless to say, there hasn't been a lot of cooking happening in my kitchen. A lot of sandwich-making and handful-of-chips-grabbing, but no cooking. So, when I got home on Tuesday night after being gone (again), all I wanted to do was taste something homemade.

Enter this granola. Perfect for a busy week, this is something that, even if you don't have time to make elaborate dinners, you can feel good about eating at least something that you made at home. I made this at 9:00 at night and it was done in time to go to bed by 10:30 (as in, fully cooled and in the tupperware). And all of you, "I don't like to cook for one" people, this stuff will last at least two weeks, so no excuses.

Toasted Granola with Dried Fruit

Adapted from Cooking Light

Ingredients

1/4 cup unsalted pumpkin seeds

1/4 cup unsalted sunflower seeds

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

1/3 cup maple syrup (I used pure maple syrup, but I am sure the corn syrup stuff would also work)

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons canola oil

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups rolled oats

1/4 cup wheat germ

2 tablespoons ground flax seed

1/3 cup dried cranberries

1/3 cup dried apricots

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees.

Place pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, and walnuts on a baking sheet. Bake at 325 degrees for 5 minutes. Cool seeds in the pan on a wire cooling rack.

Combine maple syrup and next 5 ingredients (through salt) in a medium bowl. Stir in toasted nuts and seeds, barley, wheat germ, and flax seed.

Spread mixture in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake at 325 degrees for 25 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring twice during baking.

Remove from oven and cool granola in the pan on a wire rack. Stir in dried, chopped fruits. Store in an airtight container and serve with plain or vanilla-flavored yogurt.

Gluten-Free Banana Bread

2010-03-21T21:30:00.000-05:00

This post is for my friend Jennifer, who is in denial about her gluten allergy. To be honest, I love baked goods and bread. Love the stuff. And, if I thought I had a gluten allergy, I would probably try and endure the discomfort also, just to be able to continue to enjoy my favorite things. But, hopefully my friends that love me would try and get me to come to my senses and do what is right for my body. (Ahem ahem.)

The gluten allergy has always been really fascinating to me because it is so prevalent, and there are probably folks that have the allergy that aren't even aware of it. A friend of mine at work thought that she had a "weak stomach" until she was in her 40s before she discovered this allergy. Changing her diet literally changed her life.

I am not allergic, but I am a nerd. So, I was intrigued at the grocery store with Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Flour, and thought I would give it a whirl. This gluten-free flour substitute is made from garbanzo beans, as many flour substitutes are, which is just cool.

I had some bananas on hand, so I thought I would try out the banana bread recipe on the back of the flour bag, with a few modifications. The result was delicious! This banana bread is really, really good, and I honestly would not have thought that it was anything less than the "real thing", whatever that means.

I also used coconut oil in this bread, which is a newfound love of mine. Coconut oil is incredibly good for you and can be used as a butter and/or oil substitute in many cooking and baking applications. On top of that, if you run out of conditioner or lotion, you can just melt some coconut oil and lather up!

Anyone out there deal with this and have any favorite gluten-free recipes they want to share?

Jennifer - your friends, we care about you, and we don't want you to live life in misery and upset stomach-ness. I made this bread for you. And I tried really, really hard to save you some. I promise, I did. But it just tasted so good, you see. Which should be encouraging to you. I really have done you a favor here by showing you how good the other side can be. You are welcome.

Gluten-Free Banana Bread

Adapted from Bob's Red Mill Natural Foods

Ingredients

1/3 cup coconut oil

2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 3/4 cups gluten free flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspooon salt

1 1/2 cups mashed bananas

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease a 9x5 inch pan. Cream together oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl with an electric mixer. Mix flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl and add to oil mixture, alternating with mashed bananas. Blend until just smooth. Transfer to pan and bake for 1 hour.

Community Supported Agriculture

2010-03-14T18:00:00.000-05:00

I don't know about you, but I am one of those people that really, really wants to eat healthy, local, fresh, organic food. This sounds amazing, and I support it for both health and ethical reasons. But there are these things called Digiorno Rising Crust frozen pizzas that are so delicious, so cheap, and so easy to make, that it can thwart any "eat health, local, fresh, and organic" plan in its path.

My point is that sometimes major lifestyle changes seem so difficult, and so overwhelming, that it prevents you from making any changes at all. But, a little over a year ago, we visited our friends Jeremy and Michelle in beautiful Palo Alto, California, and we were introduced to Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs). CSAs provide everyday folks like you and me with the opportunity to get healthy, local, fresh, and organic produce every week, with very minimal time or effort.

The concept is like this: you buy a membership to a local farm. In exchange for your membership fee, you receive a box of the farm's yield every week. It sounds simple, but this concept is literally changing the face of agriculture in our country and making local, sustainable produce possible.

We recently renewed our CSA with Johnson's Backyard Garden, an organic farm in East Austin. For $30 per week, we receive enough produce to feed a family of four for an entire week. Since there are two of us, we share with another couple and split the cost. And, the pick up location is actually closer than the grocery store where I shop. (Most CSAs recruit members to use their homes as distribution points to ensure that there are convenient pick-up spots throughout the city.)

I cannot tell you how excited we are to get to participate in something like this. We are blessed to live in a city where enough people care about organic produce that we have access to it. For more information on JBG and the state of agriculture in Texas, see this article from Sunday's Austin American Statesman.

To give you a little taste of the magic, I thought I would give you a tour of our CSA box from this week.

Lots of treasures to be found inside.

First up, collard greens. Not going to lie here, I thought it was bok choy. I was wrong.

Green onions.

Fresh spinach. Used this method at Simply Recipes to make this, and it was incredible.

Ummmmm. What the what? I think, I think that these are a different variety of collard greens. Jury is still out on this one.

This is where my mind was blown. This strange little guy is called a kolhrabi, and the flavor is similar to broccoli stems. Simply Recipes has an entire page dedicated to kolhrabi recipes here.

Lettuce.

Fresh broccoli. Still haven't made it, but am excited to.

Ok, this just got awesome.

To top it off, oranges, grapefruit, and avocado. These are actually not grown in the area, but JBG partners with other farms to be able to offer more variety.

I hope this inspires you to find a CSA near you.

Easy Apple Crisp

2010-03-05T20:00:00.000-06:00

We went to a fantastic new restaurant (Perla's on South Congress) recently on the basis of having a gift card. We normally wouldn't gravitate toward a seafood restaurant, but really enjoyed what we ate. Travis courageously ordered a baked whole fish, and I got an amazing white fish (I think it was halibut) in a tomato-based broth. We started with tuna tartare in the spirit of ordering things at a restaurant that we don't know how to cook at home(or, not cook, I guess).

Anyway, at the end of the meal, the waiter brought the dessert menu. Looking at a dessert menu normally involves finding the option that has the most synonyms for "chocolate" in the title. Travis like all kinds of desserts, but I typically abide by a strict chocolate-only policy. But, this time, for a reason that I still cannot explain, the thing that looked best to me was a blueberry tart. Travis, still skeptical, decided to go along with my temporary chocolate lapse and order the thing. I think it was what he wanted anyway.

This thing was incredible. I seriously could eat it every day of my life. It was a blueberry tart a la mode with perfect crust, topped with slivered almonds and powdered sugar. In that moment, I became determined to make it at home.

Which resulted in this.

Not quite what I was going for.

This easy (emphasis on easy) apple crisp was my solution to reassembling the shattered pieces of my cooking self esteem from the blueberry tart incident. It is easy, delicious, and crowd pleasing, and I actually like it! I kid you not, this is the first apple dessert I have ever liked. I think that blueberry tart (the Perla's version) changed me for good.

And speaking of being a changed person, go ahead and try the Pioneer Woman's easy caramel sauce as a topping. Homegirl knows what she is doing when it comes to things that involve half and half and sugar.

Easy Apple Crisp
Adapted from Better Homes & Gardens Cookbook, 14th Edition

I served with this caramel sauce from The Pioneer Woman Cooks. And I had to use all of my self control to not drink the sauce by itself.

Ingredients
5 cups sliced apples (approximately 5 medium apples)
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Peel and slice apples and coat with granulated sugar. Place apples in a layer no more than two or three deep in a baking dish. (I split mine into two smaller dishes, but a larger 9x13 inch dish would also work.)

To make the topping, combine the oats, brown sugar, flour, and spices in a medium bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry cutter (or your fingers) until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle topping evenly over the apples.

Bake for 35 minutes or until fruit is tender and topping is golden. Serve with caramel sauce, whipped cream, or ice cream.

Mishaps

2010-02-26T09:15:00.006-06:00

I realize that I haven't posted here in a while. Do forgive me. Between working on stuff for Get Trained at the Austin Stone and going on a diet for about eight days, my cooking has been quite boring. On the diet, it was salads, rice, beans, and more salads. Off the diet, let's just say we have been eating a lot of turkey sandwiches and frozen pizza at my house. I'm a flip flopper.

In the meantime, I have been absolutely dying to try and share some recipes and techniques from this little guy that Travis got me for Christmas:

I finally got the time and the energy to make some potatoes au gratin this weekend, and so I whipped out my favorite Le Creuset ceramic baking dish and my mandoline slicer and was having at it.

And then.

And then.

Julia told me to put my baking dish on the stove before putting it in the oven. But she didn't tell me that you aren't supposed to put ceramic baking dishes over direct heat or they snap in half. And mine definitely did. I couldn't bring myself to take a picture because it was so sad, but my favorite baking dish literally snapped and there was milk and cheese running all over my stove. It was a ghastly scene.

Julia, aren't you supposed to warn us idiot American housewives about these things? Isn't that why you are who you are, because you save us from our own ignorance? How can I trust you again?

Ok, over reaction. But I really liked that dish.

Luckily my birthday was Wednesday, and Travis not only replaced my baking dish but got me two others of smaller sizes. And I fully intend to use them this weekend for the good of this blog. It may be savory, it may be sweet, but it definitely won't be on the diet. Stay tuned.

Chicken Cacciatore

2010-01-25T21:57:00.000-06:00

In looking over my posts, I am embarrassed to notice that almost every dang one of them includes a trying-to-be-artistic photo of a tin can. Maybe it's part of my recovery. Maybe it's that I'm cheap. You never can tell. To all of the real foodies out there: cut me some slack! Don't stop reading! Please?

Begging and pleading aside, I do actually have a recipe to share here. (It does include canned tomatoes. Oops.) From time to time, I travel for work. One of the hardest things for me about being away from my husband is knowing that he will not so much as set foot in the kitchen while I am gone. He won't make coffee. He won't grab a piece of fruit or yogurt. Don't even think for a second that he will put a frozen pizza in the oven. My husband, who devours everything I cook like he has never eaten before, just can't be bothered to eat food when I am gone. My only hope is to make food ahead of time that he might consider warming up in the microwave.

Enter this Chicken Cacciatore. Fancy Italian for chicken "hunter's stew", it basically is chicken braised in a tomato sauce with vegetables and white wine. What I love about this is that it really keeps its flavor and texture if eaten the next day. Or the next. And even the next one. I have been known to eat some very questionable leftovers, folks. This characteristic makes it a good option to take to a family with a new baby, take to work for lunch, or leave with your spouse while you are away. They may even eat it.

Chicken Cacciatore
Adapted from Ellie Krieger, Healthy Appetite with Ellie Krieger
Yields 4 Servings

A couple of notes: If you can make yourself go there, please try this with the skin ON the chicken breasts. The skin creates more flavor, and I promise you don't actually have to eat the skin. Also, if you prefer to avoid wine in your cooking, you can substitute chicken stock. However, white wine reduces the need for salt, so you may have to adjust for seasoning at the end.

Ingredients
4 chicken breast halves on the bone, about 2 pounds
Kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 pound white mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 (15 ounce) can whole tomatoes in juice, chopped and juice reserved
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup italian parsley, chopped

Directions
Rinse the chicken and pat dry with paper towels. Season the chicken on both sides with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (evenly divided among all 4 breasts)and black pepper.

Heat the oil in a saute pan over medium-high heat. Brown the chicken on both sides, about 8 minutes. Remove the chicken.

Reduce the heat to medium. Add the onion and pepper, season with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms begin to brown, about another 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the wine and cook until reduced by half. Add the tomatoes and juice, oregano, red pepper flakes and 1/4 teaspoon of salt and simmer the mixture covered for 10 minutes.

Return the chicken breasts to the pan and simmer, covered, until the chicken is fully cooked, about 25 minutes longer. Top with chopped parsley and serve.

Lemony Hummus

2010-01-18T15:30:00.000-06:00

The first time I ever made hummus was also the first time I ever ate hummus. It was one of the (few) things that I thought I didn't like, but, inspired by the Pioneer Woman's post about it, I thought that maybe the home-made version would change my mind. Did it ever.

I probably made hummus every day last summer after coming home from work. It was so good, and the perfect after-work-ruin-your-dinner type of snack. I was, and continue to be, completely hooked.

The awesome thing about hummus is that, as long as you have the basic ingredients and understanding of how to make it, you can adjust the proportions based on your own taste. I like to feature the flavor of the olive oil and lemon rather than the tahini, but play with this on your own and decide what you like best. The basic ingredients are:

Chickpeas (also called Garbanzo Beans)
Tahini (middle-eastern sesame paste, which is pretty widely available)
Lemon
Garlic
Cumin
Olive Oil

Ruin your dinner this week with some delicious hummus. You'll be glad you did.

Lemony Hummus

Ingredients
1 15-ounce can garbanzo beans
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
3 tablespoons cold water
2 tablespoons tahini
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 clove minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
Chopped fresh basil or italian parsley, for garnish

Directions
Combine garbanzo beans, lemon juice, water, tahini, cumin, garlic, and salt in a blender and pulse until almost smooth. (You will probably need to use a spatula to push down the sides in between pulses.) Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while continuing to pulse the blender. Transfer to a serving bowl and drizzle with additional olive oil. Top with chopped fresh herbs.

Spicy Three Bean and Beef Chili

2010-01-06T20:09:00.000-06:00

This will be a short post, given that I have some packing to do before getting on a plane to sunny Pasadena tomorrow.

This chili has become a staple in our house. It is inexpensive (see all of the canned goods above), easy, really tasty, and can feed a crowd without a lot of effort. The spiciness comes from the chipotle chilies with adobo sauce, and they can pack quite a punch. If you are sensitive to heat (read: a wuss), try using a couple of teaspoons of the adobo sauce instead of the actual pepper. Or, if you really can't handle any spice, omit the chilis completely.

Try it! I know you'll love it.

Spicy Three Bean and Beef Chili
Adapted from Ellie Krieger, Healthy Appetite with Ellie Krieger

Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound extra-lean ground beef (90 percent lean)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes (fire roasted tomatoes preferred)
1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, seeded and minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
Freshly ground black pepper
1 (15.5-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15.5-ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15.5-ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
Grated cheddar cheese, for garnish (optional)
Sour cream, for garnish (optional)

Directions
Heat the oil in large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the ground and cook, breaking up the meat with a spoon, until the meat is no longer pink. Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt to season the meat. Remove the cooked meat with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add the onion, bell pepper, carrots, and another 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the pot, cover and cook, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes. Add the cumin and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes, chipotle, and oregano. Fill the empty tomato can with water and add to the pot. Simmer, partially covered, stirring from time to time, for 30 minutes. Stir in the beans and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt and continue cooking, partially covered, 20 minutes longer. Add cracked black pepper to taste and serve with grated cheddar cheese and sour cream.

Five Minute Guacamole

2010-01-05T20:30:00.000-06:00

It's the last week of college football season. That means it is your last chance to eat guacamole with reckless abandon.

When I was growing up I had this crazy idea that I didn't like guacamole. I don't remember when I reached the critical turning point (I think it had something to do with Kerbey Queso), but I never looked back.

Since then, I have made guacamole at home many, many times for myself and friends and myself some more, and I must say, this is a dang good recipe. So good, it will be gone in five minutes, as the name indicates. We had people over for New Year's Eve dinner, and I purposely did not put this stuff out until all of our guests arrived because I knew the late-comers wouldn't get any.

Guacamole is one of those things that can be made 150 different ways, and everyone has their strong opinions on what is or is not acceptable to include in it. Here is my approach, for what it is worth.

1. As shown above, the key things I like to include are shallot, lime juice, orange juice, cilantro, and jalapeno. Pretty straightforward, but tastes awesome.

2. I prefer not to mash my avocados with a fork. I love the chunky texture that requires a manly chip and not those dainty thin ones that you have to fish out of the bowl with a spoon. You know you've done it.

3. I don't really care for tomatoes in my guacamole. I think they take away from the distinct avocado-ey flavor, to put it technically.

4. Cilantro is a must! If you think you don't like cilantro, c'mon, give it a chance! I have never had someone STOP eating this guacamole because they don't normally like cilantro.

Make this for your BCS National Championship game watching party, and take advantage of the opportunity to spend time investing in good friends and family.

Five Minute Guacamole
Yields 1.5-2 cups guacamole

Ingredients
4 large Haas avocados
1 lime, juiced
1/2 shallot, diced
1 tablespoon fresh orange juice
1/2 jalapeno, seeded and diced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions
Peel and roughly chop avocados (do not mash) and immediately add lime juice to prevent browning. Add shallots, orange juice, jalapeno, cilantro, and salt. Mix together until the guacamole is fully combined and has achieved the desired texture. Serve with tortilla chips.

Football Food Week!

2010-01-04T10:21:00.000-06:00

(Image courtesy of longhorntailgaters.com)

It is going to get down to 20 degrees on Thursday in Austin. Luckily for me, I will be in sunny Pasadena, California watching the Longhorns rip up on Bama!

In celebration and anticipation of the BCS National Championship game and the upcoming NFL playoffs, I will be featuring two (maybe three) of my go-to recipes for football, cold weather, and feeding a crowd. If you have known me for any length of time, there is a strong chance that you have eaten two of the three.

Whether you are throwing a Longhorn watching party or a Longhorn-hater watching party, make some good 'ol hearty, crowd pleasing football food! And I would love to hear about what you made in the comments!

Ham & White Bean Soup

2009-12-28T22:30:00.000-06:00

WARNING: It is this recipe that resulted in my finger cut that resulted in a trip to the ER that resulted in four stitches. As such, this recipe includes some important safety tips.

Important Safety Tip: When working with canned ingredients, please cautiously remove lid before moving on with the cooking process. This has been a public service announcement.

Injuries aside, this recipe is so easy and so fast, I had to post it anyway, as there is virtually no excuse not to make it. "I don't have enough time to cook" will not get you through this one. "I hate chopping vegetables" also won't get it done. "I can't find pre-cooked ham." Nice try. Surely you have some leftover from Christmas.

Since pre-cooked ham is the central protein in this soup, it can make seasoning a bit tricky. When I made this, I found that a quarter teaspoon of salt was plenty. However, to be on the safe side, my advice is to season at the very end, little by little, in order to avoid a complete sodium overload.

Ham & White Bean Soup
Adapted from Gourmet

Ingredients
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1 (14 ounce) can stewed tomatoes
2 cups low-sodium chicken stock
2 (19-ounce) cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1/2-pound piece baked ham (1/2 to 3/4 inch thick), cut into 1/2-inch cubes (results in about 2 cups of cubed ham)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
5-ounces of bagged baby spinach or baby arugula (a standard bag is about 10 ounces, so use half of the bag)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Parmesan cheese, for garnish

Directions
Cook garlic in 1/4 cup oil in a 3 1/2- to 4 1/2-quart heavy pot over medium heat, stirring, until golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Coarsely cut up tomatoes in can with kitchen shears [AFTER REMOVING THE LID FROM THE TIN CAN], then add (with juice) to garlic in oil. Stir in broth, beans, ham, and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 5 minutes. Stir in greens and cook until wilted, 3 minutes for spinach or 1 minute for arugula. Add salt, if needed (salt may not be needed depending on the seasoning level of the pre-cooked ham). Garnish with toasts and shaved parmesan cheese.

Chewy Molasses Spice Cookies

2009-12-23T08:50:00.000-06:00

When it comes to baking, I like to keep it simple. Baking elaborate desserts that take more time to decorate than to eat is just not my style. I also am not patient or exacting enough to really be successful at making great desserts. For elaborate-ness, I recommend that you visit Bakerella's site for inspiration.

Therefore, when it comes to Christmas cookies, I have to apologize in advance that you will not see any fun shapes, icing, sprinkles, or glazes. There are no ginger-people or Christmas trees. My cookies are circles, as cookies should be.

Molasses cookies are wonderful for Christmas because they have that spicy flavor that we expect to have during Christmas time. But, they also are pretty light (relatively speaking) and won't leave you feeling like you can't drag your butt off of the couch to finish your laundry so that you can pack to drive to Arkansas. Figuratively speaking.

And, they are easy! My dear friend Jennifer was the one who first introduced me to molasses cookies, and she is not one to fuss around in the kitchen. But she executes these puppies beautifully, every time. Hi Jenn!

This is not the greatest picture ever, but the most recent one I could find! From left to right, Kim, Jenn, me, Amanda.

Important baking tip of the day: This recipe calls for softened butter, which is different than room temperature butter. To soften butter, remove from the fridge 45 minutes to 1 hour before using until the butter is, um, soft. (This is the kind of genius commentary you can expect from this site.) It may take longer in the winter than in the summer, depending on how aggressive you are with your heater. To speed up the process, do NOT put the butter in the microwave (that, my friends, is melted butter). You can soften butter more quickly by cutting it into smaller pieces before letting it sit. This may seem nit picky, but butter temperature can cause really drastic differences in the texture of baked goods, especially cookies.

Chewy Molasses Spice Cookies
Adapted from Martha Stewart
Yields about 3 dozen cookies

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 large egg
1/4 cup molasses

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. In a shallow bowl, place 1/2 cup sugar (for rolling the cookies) and set aside.

With an electric mixer, cream the softened butter and remaining 1 cup of sugar until combined and fluffy. Beat in egg and then molasses until combined. Reduce speed to low and gradually mix in dry ingredients until the dough forms.

Pinch off and roll dough into balls, each equal to about 1 tablespoon. Roll balls in reserved sugar to coat.

Arrange balls on baking sheets, about 3 inches apart. (Note: The cookies will spread quite a lot when baking so it is important to have adequate space in between.) Bake, one sheet at a time, until edges of cookies are just firm, about 10 to 12 minutes. Cool 1 minute on baking sheets before transferring to racks to cool completely. Store in an airtight container up to 4 days.

Baked Squash Gratin

2009-12-15T21:52:00.000-06:00

Christmas means many things to many people. To the people of the Austin Stone Community Church, in addition to a celebration of the birth of Christ, Christmas also provides an occasion to throw a potluck dinner. Or ten.

Potluck dinners are fantastic. Everyone brings that "one thing" that they make better than everyone else, so you get a collection of everyone's best dishes. And, at least in Texas, everyone brings about three times as much as is needed so everyone gets their fill.

Potluck dinners can also be challenging for several reasons. First, it is hard to figure out what type of dish travels well in the car and can sit for a little while without being ruined. Second, you need to be creative so that there aren't six casserole dishes of mashed potatoes. And third, you are going to a party, so you need to have ample time to get yourself, your husband, and maybe even some rugrats ready to G-O.

This Baked Squash Gratin meets all of these criteria. Travels well? Check. Unique enough to not be duplicated? Check. Time to get dressed? Check! And, did I mention that it only requires THREE (3!) ingredients?

I made very limited changes to this recipe, as it is pretty simple. But, I do have a few pointers.
1. Make sure to steam the squash as opposed to any other method of cooking it. Steaming ensures that no excess moisture gets into the puree.
2. Store-bought pesto is best for this dish, since you really wouldn't be able to appreciate the added effort of making your own. But, make sure that the pesto you choose is not overly oily. Too much oil can make the final product greasy.
3. Parmesan cheese has a salty bite to it, so be careful to not over season the squash puree.

Baked Squash Gratin
Adapted from Giada de Laurentiis, Everyday Italian

Ingredients
1 (3-pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1/4 cup purchased basil pesto
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, plus more for greasing

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Lightly butter an 8-inch baking dish and set aside. Fill a large pot with enough water to come 2 inches up the sides of the pot. Set a steamer rack in the pot, cover, and bring the water to a boil over high heat. Add the squash and steam over medium heat until the squash is very tender, about 20 minutes. Transfer the squash to a food processor and blend until smooth and creamy. Season the squash to taste with salt and pepper.

Spoon half of the squash evenly over the prepared baking dish. Dollop half of the pesto all over the squash in the dish. Sprinkle half of the cheese over the squash. Repeat layering with the remaining squash, pesto, and cheese. Dot the top with butter and bake until the gratin is heated through and golden brown around the edges, about 40 minutes.

Adventures in Cooking: A Trip to the ER and Why I Started this Blog

2009-12-02T09:34:00.000-06:00

A couple of weeks ago, on a Tuesday night, I cut my finger on a tin can and had to go to the emergency room to get four stitches.

After I cut myself, in a state of more annoyance than anything else, I had to call Travis to come and take me to the ER. When he walked in the door from work, one of the first things out of his mouth was, "what on earth are you making?"

The answer to the question: I was making a lot of things. I had a red sauce for pasta in the sauce pan. There was a soup in the works, involving, as it were, a can of stewed tomatoes with a very sharp lid. I also had shredded a rotisserie chicken for a to-be-determined dish for later in the week. And various elements of all of these dishes were scattered in mid-preparation throughout my kitchen.

This scene, minus the blood and gore, is a common one in my house. I love trying new recipes, often many at the same time, and I get a big kick out of learning how to cook. And, like virtually everyone else that starts a food-related blog, I am starting this site as a way to share my recipes - and my injuries - with any fellow wannabe foodies who might be interested.

Now, I realize that there are a lot of people out there for whom reading a food blog is a more of a chore than a hobby. If this is true of you, I hope that you can use this site as a place to find recipes that work the first time, aren't too fussy, taste good, and are worth making again.