September 2011
2 posts
5 tags
Vegan Lemon Lentils
Lentils are supposed to be really good for you. I wouldn’t know, since I almost never eat them. They seemed like one of those things that would take all day to cook (flashback to my mom’s SEB pressure cooker hissing on the stove - lentil soup from scratch). It turns out they don’t take long at all and I have no idea why my mom used a pressure cooker: they cook in 25 minutes in a...
4 tags
August 2011
6 posts
4 tags
9 tags
Summer Granita
Granita is like ice cream for people who can’t afford an ice cream maker; sorbet for people who are still wondering whatever happened to sherbet. It’s like Italian ice without the fake tan and high fructose corn syrup.
Granita is simple: make a tasty, fruit-based liquid; pour into a shallow baking dish; place in the freezer; stir every once in a while. The composition of the fruit...
1 tag
Vindicated:
Spicy Asian Pear Apple Sauce is delicious on vanilla gelato. I love being right.
7 tags
Spicy Asian Pear Applesauce (and science)
4 Asian Pears
4 Apples (I used Gravensteins, because they’re in season in California now and are good for cooking)
1/8 c. Apple cider vinegar
1/8 c. Water
Big squirt of agave nectar (plus more to taste)
Spices: cayenne pepper, chile powder (to taste)
Peel and core the asian pears and apples. Chop them into small chunks, say 1/4 inch pieces. Put the chunks into a medium sized pot and...
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Maxicat's Trial and Error Vegan Thai Yellow Curry
So, most curry recipes call for fish sauce or fish oil. Through trial and error I discovered a way to round out the flavor and texture of a vegan thai curry sans fish by using hoisin sauce. This is the curry recipe you tried at mi casa:
for this recipe you should either invest in a good curry powder or assemble the following spices: cumin, coriander, mustard, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, ginger,...
June 2011
7 posts
This is how I feel when I read this blog
Cornbread Donuts (aka oh my god make this right...
Ingredients:
2/3 cup yellow cornmeal
1/3 cup all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder (1/2tps for altitude)
3/4 teaspoon baking soda (1/2tps for altitude)
pinch of salt
1 egg (lightly beaten)
1 6 oz container of non fat yogurt
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 to 3 tablespoons butter (melted)
Preheat the oven to 400...
Butter
8 tags
Like pudding, but good for you! Chia pudding
Remember chia pets? Yeah. Well those seeds whence sprout the chia hair are edible and actually pretty damn tasty. Chia seeds are a grain (like sesame or quinoa) and people in Central and South America have been eating them forever. The name of the Mexican state Chiapas comes from the word chia. Chia seeds are really good for you: lots of protein (10% daily requirement) and fiber (40% daily...
7 tags
Like yogurt, but bad for you. And some science.
Best summer dessert I’ve invented, ever. It’s like yogurt, but bad for you!
For each serving you’ll need:
1 ripe peach, sliced/chopped into small pieces
1 /3 c. full fat coconut milk
1 squirt of lime
1 drizzle agave nectar
Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and set in the freezer for 30 minutes. Go do your laundry or something. Contemplate what you’re going to...
4 tags
Watchwildfood:
In short, while farming fish seems like a good solution to depleted wild supply, the process actually ends up using even more natural resources.
(by Nigel Upchurch)
In my opinion, if you’re not catching it yourself, you have no business eating it. But, if you are going to eat fish, please do so responsibly! The Monterey Bay Aquarium has this incredibly helpful user friendly...
7 tags
Baked (stuffed) Artichokes
I thought you’re supposed to steam artichokes, so that’s what I’ve been trying to do this whole time. In my grad student way I’d mix and mismatch enormous pots and ill-fitting lids. I’d fabricate some kind of tin foil contraption to keep the heat of the bubbling, steamy broth in. No matter what, my artichokes would still be inedibly raw after an hour and half and...
April 2011
5 posts
6 tags
Sage brown butter spaghetti squash
Why did all the online recipes want me to put feta and basil in my spaghetti squash? I can’t be the only person who isn’t into warm feta. I didn’t even enjoy writing the words “warm feta”; my nose kinda crinkled inadvertently. In lieu of the crummy online suggestions, I decided to make something WAY BETTER: spaghetti squash drenched in sage brown butter and parmesan....
5 tags
4 tags
Apple and Endive Salad
Way before it was cool to put apples in salad, my mom was making apples and endive salad. Endives are bitter little lettuces, related to radicchio. To counterbalance the bitter, my mom added tart Granny Smith apples and sour mustard/vinegar vinaigrette. the flavors are all really intense, but they work together. My addition to this perfection is walnuts, mostly for health sake. You could add some...
4 tags
Applesauce cake and muffins
Pretty simple (possibly healthy?) but mostly just tasty. This recipe made enough for one bountiful 8x8 cake, which my book club promptly devoured and six muffins, which will be my breakfast for the rest of the week.
(photo via loscheiner)
3/4 c. white sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. (1 stick) butter, softened
1 egg
2 1/2 c. flour (I usually substitute in about 1/2 whole wheat flour)
...
5 tags
March 2011
2 posts
4 tags
Baller baby bok choy
Whole Foods was selling baby bok choy at the salad bar for $7.99/lb. Not one to be taken for a ride on the highway robbery train, I decided to learn how to prepare my own baby bok choy. It turns out it’s incredibly easy to make delicious.
You’re going to need:
Baby bok choy (five are probably enough to make a side dish for two people)
Broth (I made my own, which I’ll describe...
4 tags
Breakfast biscuits
For my book club we’re reading a book about growing up in Iowa during the Great Depression. I was asked to make a recipe out of the book as a snack for the group. Being the lazy sod that I am, I picked what appeared to be the easiest option: biscuits. In fact, they may be the easiest thing I’ve ever made. You can prep them while only semi-conscious in the morning and have them ready...
February 2011
3 posts
3 tags
3 tags
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
Upside-down topping:
3/4 c. butter
3/4 c. dark brown sugar
1 large can crushed pineapple in juice, drain the juice and set aside (If you’re a baller, you can use chopped fresh pineapple)
spices: cinnamon, ginger
Cake batter:
1 1/2 c. flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
3/4 c. butter, softened
3/4 c. white sugar
1/4 c. pineapple juice (from the can)
1 tsp. vanilla
...
2 tags
Tasty Bread!
My friend Reed down in Yuma gave me his super-simple recipe for homemade pizza-style bread. I’ve pretty much never forayed into bread-making, but I thought this was really easy, even or a beginner.
2 Tbs. dry active yeast (this is about 1 1/2 packets - you can close up the leftover package and keep it in the freezer)
3/4 c. hot (not boiling) water
1 Tbs. sugar
1 1/2 c. flour
...
January 2011
3 posts
2 tags
Cookies!
I recently drove across the country from New York to Colorado. You can see some pictures of my adventures on my flickr.
Along the way, I was lucky enough to meet a bunch of tumblr folk that I absolutely adore: Alexwhines, Heatherwis, Korybelle, Tristan and Amanda, and Southtwelfth. I didn’t get to meet Eush, but she got a consolation prize anyway. My time with each was brief, but they...
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1 tag
Hot Chocolate with a Kick
highamplitudesucking:
I just made a cup of hot chocolate with a sliver of Naga Jolokia pepper (second hottest in the world after a recent upset) and a dash of ground chipotle. Both of which were given to me by an unnamed benefactor as part of a thank-you gift for carrying them a short distance while they happened to be covered in tears and vomit.
Long story short… hot cocoa success. Two kinds...
November 2010
4 posts
Black Forest Trifle
It looks really pretty and complicated, but it’s so simple it’ll blow your mind. The hardest part is making the layers even, but that’s just presentation…
1 pkg brownie mix (9x13 inch pan size)
2 (2.8 oz) pkgs chocolate mousse mix (you can sub similar-sized instant pudding or do one of each)
1 (21 oz) can cherry pie filling
1 (16 oz) ctn Cook Whip
4 Crunch candy...
Reese's Chewy Chocolate Cookies
I realize this is a dessert, not dinner. But dammit, you’re an adult, and if you want to have cookies for dinner you can have cookies for dinner! And trust me, these cookies are worth it. I did not create this recipe out of my own brilliance, it’s on the back of the bag for Reese’s pb chips. Don’t make any modification for high altitude, they’re actually better...
Baked Pumpkin Oatmeal
Cinderella pumpkins might get all the press, but sugar pumpkins are where the flavor is hiding. For breakfast I made oatmeal in one. It is very easy and if you have time to make this I highly recommend it.
1 sugar pumpkin
1 cup oats (Instant will work but rolled is better)
1/2 cup apple sauce
1 egg
1 cup water
cinnamon
brown sugar
Preheat oven to 375. Cut a lid off the pumpkin and...
5 tags
If you were here, we'd be eating fresh-baked...
Ruggelach are tasty Jewish pastry swirls, kind of like vertical cinnamon rolls, except with chocolate, raisins and nuts. As far as I’m concerned Fairway makes some of the best chocolate ruggelach I’ve ever had, but we’re a far cry from Red Hook here in Boulder, so it comes down to making your own. Luckily, a for-real Jewish grandma gave me her recipe.
Sara-Jane’s...
October 2010
3 posts
2 tags
Rich Autumn Stew [recipe] →
kendalgrowe:
Is it just me or did it all of a sudden feel like fall outside today? There’s definitely a chill in the air. Perfect season for soups and stew with lots of fall flavors.
I try to avoid pork usually, but being the German I am, sometimes its consumption is absolutely necessary. I saw this recipe and decided to try it out tonight. I cut all the ingredients in half (the joys of cooking...
3 tags
In which Tristan and I come to a culinary impasse
Tristan: Calico bean hotdish; swiss steak; an ice cream bucket of chicken dumpling soup. . .
Lo: I dont even know what a calico bean is? Is that a thing? And what's a swiss steak? Like steak with swiss cheese?
Tristan: I need to culture you on midwestern rural Norweighian/German cuisine.
4 tags
Duck prosciutto wrapped scallops
The nice old couple at the market sold us a piece of duck prosciutto for 5$ (the husband was pissed about this) and this is the delicious thing we did with it:
Ingredients:
4oz duck prosciutto
8 large sea scallops (cleaned)
1 tbsp butter (clarified butter will work better)
1 extra piece of duck fat from the meat (about 1 tbsp)
the leaves of 3 red beets
salt, pepper and grains of paradise
...
September 2010
9 posts
5 tags
Slow Cooker Chile Verde
I’m always on board with anything I can make in my Crock Pot. It’s God’s gift to women (it’s just cleaning it that sucks, but with any luck we can make the men do that).
Along those lines, you simply must try this fabulous Chile Verde recipe. As Meredith pointed out, it’s not classic Chile Verde; so, like Meredith did, please don’t judge me. Just make and...
4 tags
(Almost but not quite) Philly Cheesesteak
For years I have been appalled at people’s inexplicable failure to be able to make a passable Philly Cheesesteak. Now there is nothing wrong with calling something a “steak and cheese sandwich” but if you call it a Philly Cheesesteak you are holding yourself to a higher standard. I have seen some incredible things passed off as a Philly Cheesesteak: in Baltimore they sold me a...
4 tags
Packet Roasted Salmon
Another brilliant Alton Brown inspired dinner. This one is perfect for when you are cooking for one and really don’t feel like putting a lot of time into a tasty meal.
Ingredients:
8 oz salmon fillet (a thin piece will work best)
1/2 cup dry couscous
1/2 orange, sliced
1/2 onion, sliced
hand-full of fresh basil
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup white wine
2 carrots, sliced thinly
5 green...
1 tag
The 20 Healthiest Foods for Under $1 →
A great list with lots of serving suggestions and yummy recipes included.
laughifitisallowed:
This is amazing! It is reassurance that most of the stuff I eat everyday because it is cheap and delicious is also healthy! Love that beets made the list!
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Thai Drunken Noodles
On my first attempt at cooking Thai food, I made it up as I went along, added and subtracted ingredients, and came out with a fan-freaking-tastic result!
So here’s my (super easy) recipe for Drunken Noodles, adapted from the Drunken Noodles recipe at epicurious.com:
Ingredients 1/4 packet of Taste of Thai rice noodles 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil 6 garlic cloves, chopped 1/8 cup fish...
3 tags
Honey Mustard
I realize that I might be late to this game. Unlike me, you probably already knew how to make honey mustard. But I went at this blind. I decided to risk the cost of two ingredients on the off-chance that mixing them would produce something tasty.
In a bowl, I mixed equal parts:
dijon mustard honey
Even as I stirred the two together I was skeptical. Honey and mustard are both such strong...
August 2010
10 posts
4 tags
Spinach Pesto
Pesto is easy. Typically, it’s made with basil, but basil is expensive, so I supplemented this one with spinach (I had some left over from my potato and spinach gratinée). It turns out that you can make pesto out of anything green and leafy: parsley, cilantro, and apparently, spinach.
Besides being delicious and visually appealing, the best thing about pesto is that it freezes...
5 tags
Peach and Blueberry Pie
Oh my god, why have I never made this before? Apparently, pie is hard to mess up, but easy to make. Get it: easy as pie!
1 whole wheat pie crust (I used a pre-fab frozen kind, but feel free to make you’re own if you’re a baking rock star.) 1 qt. (18 oz.) fresh blueberries, washed, drained, and dried 3 ripe peaches 1/4 c. brown sugar 1/4 c. white sugar 5 Tbs. flour (I used about 1/2 white flour...
6 tags
Vichyssoise: cold potato leek soup
My dad always sad that hot soup is the best thing on a hot day. That may be true. But cold soup is damn good, too. Vichyssoise is puréed leek and potato soup, served chilled, and it is pretty much ideal for a hot summer night.
I’d always assumed that vichyssoise was French. Its name is French (it literally means, “from Vichy”- a town in France) and my French mother cooked...
4 tags
Fresh Pickles (and science)
It’s pickle season. I guess, really it’s cucumber season, but the two go hand in hand. The farmer’s market had super cheap pickling cucumbers, so I brought a bunch home to make fresh pickles. Fresh pickles are easier to make than canned variety. The canned kind last longer, but who wants to spend time boiling glass jars? Not this girl.
There’s no limit to what you...
3 tags
Baked Bleu Cheese-Stuffed Figs
Bleu cheese and figs: you didn’t even know you were missing these flavors together. After you make these, you’ll know.
(photos via loscheiner)
Figs are not in season for very long, so make these while the making is good. Bonus points if you bring them to a cocktail party. You will be the height of elegance, and everyone will adore you.
To serve as an hors d’oeuvre:
Figs...
5 tags
Potato and Spinach Gratinée
Gratinée sounds fancy, but it really just means a casserole with a crispy top: gratinée comes from the French word gratter, “to scrape”, because you put cheese scrapings on top of the dish before it goes under the broiler.
I make my gratinées with potatoes and whatever tasty veggies I have around (tonight that meant spinach) and top it off with any old cheese (tonight that meant...