Bon Appétit’s Food Lover’s Cleanse

The holidays are by far one of my favorite times of year, but let me tell you, I might as well start stapling cheese plates and desserts directly to my thighs and get it over with! That’s why I’m glad Bon Appétit has created their Food Lover’s Cleanse complete with recipes, menu plan and a shopping list. We did our shopping yesterday and yes, you will be SHOPPING until you drop, but, keep in mind, this is for two week’s worth of breakfasts, lunches, dinners, snacks and desserts. Also, after reading a few reviews from readers who tried last year’s cleanse, you shouldn’t feel compelled to do the entire plan or worry if you don’t want to spend mucho deniro on all the vinegars, crackers, produce, dairy blah, blah, blah. We were pretty committed to doing the entire thing but I still wanted to keep costs down regardless if it was two weeks worth of food, and the bulk bins at Whole Foods Market have become my super besties; trust me, they will save you money and time. Although, after having our first two meals on the cleanse, maybe I should have gotten boxes and boxes of quinoa, lentils and the like!

I’m sitting here typing the post and David just looked up at me and goes “I really liked that salad. I’m stilling thinking about it, that dressing was amazing! That was a labor-intensive though right?” Not in a million years actually. I think I’ve found a new crush and it’s white miso. Nom, nom, nom. Salty and savory and makes a saucesome salad dressing. We loved it on today’s butter lettuce, avocado, and orange salad, plus the lentils were a perfect and tasty addition to round out the plate. Having just had our lunch, and thinking about our 10-grain hot cereal breakfast, I can tell this is going to be very filling meal plan without making you feel like a million pounds. We still have a pumpkin smoothie to make and tonight’s dinner of Black Cod and Caramelized Onions and Apples looks amazing! I’ll keep you posted on our progress but so far, we are loving these recipes…let the cleansing begin!

Here Fishy, Fishy

It must be all of this cursed indulgence the holidays provide, but as I was menu planning last week I wanted something light, healthy and delicious. So, I laser-focused on salmon and lots and lots of vegetables. Food & Wine, I love you. I tried three amazing dishes this week and as I’m sitting here typing this we are eating the last of this AMAZING Crunchy Cabbage Icebox Salad.

 

Crunchy Cabbage Icebox Salad (Photo by Jenn Louis)

Let’s start with the beginning of the week. I made this delectable Slow-Roasted Salmon with Tarragon and Citrus and Cumin-Braised Swiss Chard for dinner. Ooooh, this was SO GOOD. I love slow roasting salmon since it tends to bring out its sweeter side and the blend of tarragon and citrus juices on top were perfect. To be honest, I chose the swiss chard dish because I really wanted a nice healthy green but hadn’t given it too much thought. Umm yeah, yowza. This was so amazing. For a side dish? Really? I could eat this every day!

Slow-Roasted Salmon with Tarragon and Citrus (Photo by Floyd Cardoz)

So I saved some salmon for the next night’s meal which was the infamous icebox salad. Poodles, you need to make this for your next dinner party. First of all, it’s stunning in the bowl, second it’s so satisfying with its crunch and mixture of textures, three it’s quite healthy, and four, if you do like I did and add salmon you will be sending me thank you cards. 😉 Definitely give all three of these a try as soon as you can or in the New Year, when those resolutions kick in…cue dry heave.

Nailed it!

There is a hilarious photo on the interwebs that just make me giggle and, after last Tuesday night, it definitely hits closer to home.

 

Although my situation had nothing to do with baking and creating what looks like a very difficult Cookie Monster cupcake, this recipe was actually much easier which makes it even more pitiful in my case.  I chose this Pumpkin Agnolotti from Bon Appetit because it sounded insanely good and was quick to boot. I was super tired after the kitchen, but got right to work on these when I got home. Reason number 4,023 I married David –  the two of us can sit and talk for hours and hours. So you can guess what happened, right? I made the pumpkin raviolis and then placed in the colander after boiling to sit while I made the sauce. Yep, we start chit chatting and I come back 30 minutes later to a pile of coagulated pumpkin won tons. Ha! I made the decadent butter and creme fraiche sauce anyway and plopped my now pile of pumpkin/wonton goodness in the sauce. It all fell apart, but I was so tired, I said “screw you agnolotti” as I threw my fist in the air as a very weak sign of defiance and then helplessly plopped the finished pumpkin/wonton mass in our bowls. But you know what? It was still freaking delicious and we ate with sloppy abandon. Heck, I’ll take that 30 minutes of talking to David over perfectly pretty pumpkin ravioli any day. And for your viewing pleasure (I’m sure you are giggling too right along with me), here is the photographic evidence.

 

 

Oooohh pretty Pumpkin Agnolotti from Bon Appetit

 

Not-so-perfect Pumpkin Agnolotti

Let’s Give Thanks…

…for these recipes that I think would make a delicious addition to your Thanksgiving spread. I’ve chosen some of my favorites from year’s past, most are a little non-traditional but I figured you would have your basics down (turkey, gravy, stuffing) so I included ones that I thought might bring a little more oomph to the table. We alway have turkey at our family’s meal in East Texas but heck, I would love to have that Pork Tenderloin Agrodolce at the table too!

Mix and match to your liking, but most importantly, have a wonderful Thanksgiving with you and yours. So excited to celebrate our first Thanksgiving as husband and wife, ahhhh, such a lucky gal. :)

Appetizers/Drinks:

Protein:

Sides:

Dessert:

Leftovers:

 

The Pie Society's Leftover Quiches (sweet potato and whipped cream; vegetarian shepard's pie; Thanksgiving leftover pie)

Truffled Pommes Anna

I love making dishes where you have people asking you for the recipe over and over again. This, my friends, was one of them. We went to a friends cookout last night and I thought I would test this for our upcoming Friendsgiving celebration to see if it was delicious as it sounded. Yes, and then some.

This was unbelievably easy to make especially when you have a mandolin (thank you Leigh and Raul!) to shave the potatoes on. I think I won the Darwin award however, because as I was testing the mandolin with a potato, I sliced my pinky on the blade. WOW. Yeah, don’t do that. I’m typing like a five year old right now and it took quite a chunk out of my poor finger…I so smart. After sanitizing and Neosporin, I got back to work. All you do is layer the potatoes with salt, thyme and truffle oil. So easy, so delicious and a real crowd pleaser. YUM! Bless you Cooking Light, bless you.

 

Truffled Pommes Anna (Photo by Charles Masters)

Pantry Party!

Typically through my menu planning process, I go through pretty much everything I purchase if not in the first week, then definitely in the next. But there are those rare occasions were the beckoning of a Polvo’s Crackerita is too strong or I’m just too darned tired to cook after baking in the kitchen. I decided to check my pantry for these rare occasion relics that might be lurking in my pantry and found cream of mushroom soup, piquillo peppers in a jar and canned whole cranberries. As I sat trying to remember what recipes these ingredients were for originally, I started researching some new fun ones to try and voila lambs, I found two!

Bobby Flay’s Loin of Lamb Marinated in Merlot, Garlic and Parsley with Piquillo Pesto. Now I didn’t change much except for, well, the main protein. We are on a tight budget after all the wedding festivities so I turned to my most favorite, cost-effective cut of meat – flank steak. It’s juicy, flavorful and worked beautifully with this marinade. Talk about simple and quick. I marinated the steak, made the pesto (in our new food processor, yippee!!) and then when David got home, I threw the steak on the grill and bam dinner was done. I turned this into a small salad with arugula, bleu cheese, halved cherry tomatoes and then placed the steak on the greens and drizzled the pesto on top. I also had enough pesto the next day to make David a snack with pita chips. Am I getting good wife points yet?

Moving on to the cranberries. I found this Jack Quesadillas with Cranberry Salsa from Cooking Light…yum! Keep this one in mind for the upcoming Thanksgiving holidays for sure. Although I substituted

Jack Quesadillas with Cranberry Salsa (Photo by Randy Mayor)

rotisserie chicken for turkey, what really makes it is the salsa. I can see canning this and giving it as pretty holiday gifts or it would even be great over some baked brie or on an old shoe, seriously it’s really good. I made extra and now we both have quesadillas and cranberry salsa for lunch today. YAY!

Now, what the heck am I going to do with that Cream of Mushroom soup?

New Cookbooks = Dry Heaves

I’m in the midst of menu planning now that things are starting to settle after the wedding and we received two cookbooks that look amazing but give me goosebumps just thinking of trying to tackle one recipe in them – Alinea and The French Laundry. So, I’m asking my food friends out there on the interwebs if anyone has tried a recipe from one of these and if so, how did it go? I’m going to try and see what I can do too and share with you here…there is a recipe that has bacon powder. BACON POWDER! Yippee!

Also, I won’t be the crazy, just married wife, but I did want to share with you two of my favorite photos from our wedding last weekend. Awww lambs! Such a magical evening and if you live in Austin be sure to get Altared Weddings, ILD Lighting, Primizie Catering, Pearl Events (Jessica Brightwell is the BEST), Premiere Rentals (love Jeremy and Ken!) and Say Cheese! Photobooths as your vendors. They were amazing and so was the ArtHouse at the Jones Center – if you haven’t visited yet, I say why not? Support the arts!

 

 

Beef Tenderloin with Cherry-Black Pepper Sauce

I’ve been meaning to post this Cooking Light recipe since I made it because it was absolutely INSANELY good.  And get this, it’s only five ingredients. Tack on three more and you’ve got a eight ingredient meal that was sinfully delicious and fast to boot.

If we were a band name while eating this it would Snarfy McSnarf and the Snarftones. We inhaled this in no time flat. I mean, how can you go wrong? Beef Tenderloin with cherry preserves, balsamic vinegar, shallot and butter? Yep, here’s your drool cup. To make this even better – yes it’s possible – I boiled chopped parsnips until fork tender and then mashed with a smidge of low-fat milk and creme fraiche, plus a little salt and pepper. Serve the tenderloin over the parsnip puree and you’ve got a winner for dinner. Here’s the before and after photos for proof the of the tenderloin annihilation.

Make this right now! I don’t care if it’s midnight, go, go, go!

 

 

 

 

Cabernet Braised Short Ribs with Parmesan Polenta

Cabernet Braised Short Ribs with Parmesan Polenta

 

Oh jeebus folks. WOW to infinity. I just ate this so my belly is really happy right now and I kinda have no words. Savory, beefy, herbalicious, melt-in-your-mouth polenta and cheesy – could this be any better AND it’s a Cooking Light recipe. Nom, nom, nom.

As you might know. I love doing low and slow things on Sundays, and since ACL is going on right in our backyard and we are hunkered down here in the casa, why not? Sure, there are a lot of ingredients, but once you get past all of the chopping it’s pretty easy. I did add two things. One, once the rib sauce started to boil down, I added a tablespoon of tomato paste plus a dash of nutmeg and half and half to the polenta to give it a bit more oomph.  We loved the fall-off-the-bone ribs, over the creamy polenta with the wicked sauce and that special touch of parsley gremolata that gave it a fresh zing. Plus, there are delicious leftovers the next day. I’ll be you that sauce is even better tomorrow!

 

 

Ribs braising in the sauce. YUM!

I couldn’t find the recipe online, so here you go:

Ribs:

  • 16 (3-ounce) bone-in beef short ribs, trimmed
  • 5/8 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons, olive oil, divided
  • 1 cup chopped onion
  • 3/4 cup chopped shallots
  • 1/2 cup chopped carrot
  • 1/2 cup chopped celery
  • 6 garlic cloves, sliced
  • 1 rosemary sprig
  • 2 1/2 cups cabernet sauvignon or other dry red wine
  • 1 1/4 cups lower-sodium beef broth
  • 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons water
  • 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Gremolata:

  • 1/3 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
  • 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon rind
  • 1 garlic clove, minced

Polenta:

  • 3 cups fat-free milk
  • 1 cup water
  • 5/8 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 cup quick-cooking polenta
  • 1/4 cup grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

1. Sprinkle ribs with salt and pepper. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add 1 teaspoon olive oil to pan. Add 8 ribs, and sauté for 6 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Remove ribs. Repeat procedure with remaining 1 teaspoon oil and the next 5 ingredients (through rosemary) to pan; sauté 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add wine to pan, and bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook for 13 minutes or until reduced to 2 cups.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

3. Add broth to pan, and bring to a boil. Return ribs to pan. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 hours, turning ribs after 45 minutes. Remove ribs from pan and strain liquid through a fine-mesh sieve over a bowl. Discard the solid. Skim fat; discard.  Return cooking liquid to pan. Combine flour and 2 teaspoons water in a small bowl, stirring well. Add to pan, and bring to a boil. Cook for 11 minutes or until reduced to about 1 cup. Stir in vinegar.

4. To prepare gremolata, combine 1/3 cup parsley, 1/2 teaspoon lemon rind and minced garlic.

5. To prepare polenta, bring 3 cups milk, 1 cup water, 5/8 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper to a boil over medium heat. Slowly stir in 1 cup polenta. Cook 5 minutes or until thick, stirring frequently. Stir in cheese. Place 1/2 cup polenta in each of 8 shallow bowls, and top each serving with 2 ribs, 2 tablespoons sauce and about 2 teaspoons gremolata.