Tag Archives: Bon Appetit

Menu Plan

This Week’s (Overly Ambitous) Menu Plan

2 Comments

So, I decided to give ALL of the food magazines in the universe love this week.  I’m so lying, not really all because all would be crazy but I did manage to encompass Food  and Wine, Cooking Light, Bon Appetit, Saveur, Everyday Food and one of my favorite recipes from the National Mango Board (my former client!).  That’s a lot of different food magazines and recipes in less than one week and I think  our kitchen is already tip toeing away from me as I type this… it knows what’s coming.

I’m so excited about the pizza tonight that I wish tonight would get here right now.  It’s 10:00 a.m., this is going to be a long day isn’t it?

Happy Friday everyone!

Friday: Sweet Potato, Balsamic Onion and Soppressata Pizza

Saturday: Vegetable Enchiladas with Spanish Rice

Sunday: Pan-Fried Chicken, Grilled Hearts of Romaine with Blue Cheese Vinaigrette and Pickled Red Onions

Monday: Tortilla Soup with Dried Chile, Fresh Cheese, and Avocado, Jalapeño Corn Bread

Tuesday:  Sausage and Caramelized Onion Bread Pudding and Hotel Russel Erskine Salad

Wednesday:  Cider-Vinegar Braised Chicken Thighs with Rice

Thursday: Mango and Bacon BBQ Pizza

Bacon is always awesome, Beefy McBeefy, David Favorite, Dose of Veggies, Emily Favorite, Includes Alcohol, Lengthy recipe but worth all the whisking, sweat and tears, Potato

The Anniversary Dinner

4 Comments

January 15, 2010 will be on of my favorite days of all time because it’s the day that David walked into my life. Neither of us were looking for any sort of potential partner, in fact I was against the idea before I met David, but then a mutual friend saw the potential and introduced us immediately. For the next few hours, we sat and talked and talked, something we are still very good at by the way. I owe our dear friend a lot for making the introduction and now one year later here we are. Just goes to show that life can you throw you very amazing curve balls – always embrace them lambs.

Beef Short Ribs with Red Wine Gravy and Swiss Chard (Photo by Craig Cutler)

It has been rainy, cold and just icky here in Austin the past week and on our anniversary day it was, wait for it, cold and rainy. Instead of going out to dinner we decided to stay in and make it ourselves. I chose this Braised Beef Short Ribs with Red Wine Gravy and Swiss Chard, Potato Gratin with Bacon and Thyme and Citrus Pudding with Whipped Topping. Over achiever much? I didn’t care, it was so worth it.

Potato Gratin with Bacon and Thyme (Photo by Mark Thomas)

I’ve made the Beef Short Ribs before so I knew this would be a huge win with David. I still don’t have a food mill but ran the sauce through the food processor and reheated as necessary. The potato gratin was creamy, bacony and so full of delicious flavor; a perfect complement to the ribs. After the ribs, chard and potatoes the pudding was a delightful, bright and not-too-sweet ending to a perfect anniversary meal. Paired with a 2002 Silver Oak Cab? Perfection all around and David loved all of it.

Citrus Pudding with Whipped Cream (Photo by Anna Williams)

Even if it’s not a special occasion this meal would be a great Sunday night supper or something to impress guests at a dinner party. One year down and hopefully many, many more to go right David? :)

Asian, Dose of Veggies, Pork-a-licious, Quick and Delicious, Uber Healthy

Miso Happy!

Leave a comment

This month’s At the Market section of the January Bon Appetit focuses on Miso. To be honest, I only know miso from the traditional soup you get at Japanese restaurants, so I was very intrigued to learn more about the mysterious miso. First, what the heck is it exactly? According to Bon Appetit: Miso is fermented paste with a bold, salty flavor. Most of the miso sold in the U.S. is made from soybeans and rice or barley, but it can also be made from brown rice, millet, garbanzo beans, and other beans.  It’s also a source of Umami or Savory, aka the fifth flavor, along with Sweet, Salty, Sour and Bitter.  We tried naming the four last night and it was like listing the seven dwarfs, you always manage to forget one no matter how easy it is! If you want an in-depth look at what Umami is, check out the UMAMI Information Center  (UIC).  Hi yeah, UIC? If you ever need a taste-tester call me, mean it!  Also, miso comes in three colors on a range of taste intensity from mellow white, a little bit stronger yellow and the kapow version, red. Naturally, I gravitated towards the red version.

Roast Pork Tenderloin with Apricot-Miso Glaze (Photo by Kenji Toma)

This Roast Pork Tenderloin with Apricot-Miso Glaze was well, just genius. You can find miso here in Austin at Whole Foods Market and I got mine for $8. A little pricey but considering the fact that it lasts up to a year in the fridge and now I would like to dollop it on my cereal, I consider it a good investment. I loved the flavors of the sauce: apricot preserves, red miso, Champagne vinegar, orange peel and garlic clove. You slather it on the tenderloin, roast, roast, roast, slather, slather, roast, roast and then let the tenderloin set. While the juices redistribute, you finish off the sauce with simple chicken broth to give it a silky texture and pour all over your pork. I took one bite and might have let out an expletive. This was heavenly and so simple to make. I served on the side with some garlic and soy sauce wok-seared baby bok choy. See, see, I’m still being healthy!

I realize purchasing miso might steer you clear of this dish but lambs, have I ever led you down the wrong path? Oy, I hope  not. If you are up for something adventurous give this dish the chance it deserves. I for one know I’m going to experiment more with my red miso. Maybe next time, salmon!

Asian, Dose of Veggies, Global Flavor, Lengthy recipe but worth all the whisking, sweat and tears, This may contain fish sauce or anchovies, Uber Healthy

Saigon Chicken Salad

Leave a comment

Or as I like to call it, the kitchen sink salad. Lambs, this has a SERIOUS ingredient list- 22 to be exact. The only reason why I was even pondering giving it a try is because it comes from the kitchen of one of my chef super poodles, Susan Feniger!This little beaut of a salad graces the January cover of Bon Appetit and is the centerpiece for their healthy eating focus. 

This salad requires a few unique ingredients so spots where you see Sparkled Unicorn Horns OR you can use light brown sugar or Fluffy Clouds from a 78 degree sky OR you can use red radishes, I always went with the latter. I’m being mean I know, but seriously who wants to go find palm sugar and keffir lime leaves? I sometimes don’t mind for a recipe,  but typically  if I’ve got cost-effective but still tasty alternative  that doesn’t make me go all over Austin then I’m down.

Saigon Chicken Salad (Photo by Jose Picayo)

Let’s get to the marinade shall we? AMAZING. Amazing. Amazing. That is all. I will use this for marinating chicken whenever I can. Wow. Granted there is lemongrass in it which can sometimes be hard to find but hey, it’s worth it.

Second, the salad. It was good. The dressing was spicy, sweet and easy to make. And this dish had a flotilla of vegetables. I swear lambs I felt my whole body getting healthier while eating this, just look you’ve got: cabbage, radishes, carrots, tomatoes, green onions, garlic, green beans, cucumbers etc, etc. You know what my inner Emily said when I read this recipe? “I seriously should think about purchasing a Slap Chop before I do this.” To be honest it wasn’t that bad and the chicken didn’t take too long. My goodness, I’m still thinking about how amazing that chicken was.

Overall, I would definitely make the chicken (you are saying “no crap Emily, really?” aren’t you?) and then pile on top of whatever salad vegetable goodies you have floating around the kitchen!

Breakfast, Fruit

Mark Bittman Strikes Again…

2 Comments

Last month I featured this delicious recipe by Mark Bittman featured in Cooking Light and now he is in the January issue of Bon Appetit for healthy breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert and even snack recipes. Before I dive into the recipe I tested, a few tips he shares on maintaining weight definitely struck a chord with me. The abbreviated version:

(1) Go (Mostly) Vegan: From the time I wake up until dinner I eat (almost) like a vegan.

(2) Minimize the Meat: Dinner is not heavy but omnivorous. It has more vegetables and grains than the typical American diet. I eat meat or fish many nights, but in smaller amounts than my former life.

(3) Weigh it out: I watch my weight. At what level weight becomes an indicator of health is debatable, but as an indicator of whether you’re eating too much, it’s perfect.

(4) Cut youself some slack: No individual meal matters. No individual day matters. Even a “bad” week doesn’t matter much…What does matter is that the pattern of my diets has moved from one that’s heavy on animal products and processed foods to one that’s dominated by unprocessed plant food.

(5) Make it your own: These rules are mine. Regard them as guidelines to create your own rules.

I liked his rules for a lot of reasons. Coming from a family that has a bad history of  type II diabetes and heart disease, I’ve always made it a point to watch what I eat. I’m not too strict on myself but do try to keep my balance of processed foods, meats and cheese to a minimum and load up on fruits and veggies. Or so I thought. David pointed out last night that a few of the categories that you see to your right with the most posts is bacon is always awesome, cheesy cheese, beefy mcbeefy and pork-a-licious. But on the flip side my dose of veggies is high too. I’m going to try and cut back on the bacon/meat intake just a bit and see if I can get my dose of veggies, fruit and uber healthy categories up in 2011.

Now to help me with that is Mark’s Spiced Coconut Pancakes with Tropical Fruit. First this is super duper simple and makes a boatload of batter. I smell a brunch option!  Second, these gentle little whole wheat pancakes don’t skimp on flavor one bit. With the coconut, nutmeg, allspice, coconut milk and maple syrup it is a decadent little pancake without the guilt. Plus with the added benefit of fresh mango, pineapple and banana, it’s a perfect sweet start to your day.  Plus it’s very filling to get you through your busiest of mornings. I saved the batter and some of the salad for this morning and we’ve enjoyed this two days in a row.  I think kids of all ages would love this dish, maybe with a side of bacon too? 😉

Spiced Coconut Pancakes with Tropical Fruit (Photo by Marcus Nilsson)
Lamb Lambs!, Quick and Delicious, Salad

A Perfect Dinner

Leave a comment

There are times after a meal, when you sit back and have loved the whole experience from start to finish. I chose this Roasted Lamb with Pomegranate Sauce from Cooking Light and Mixed Greens with Pears, Walnuts, Gorgonzola and Green-Tea Vinaigrette from Bon Appetit and we loved it.

The lamb was a simple sear and roast and then you let it stand for ten minutes to help all of the delicious juices redistribute. This is going to sound strange, but I liked that when measuring each liquid for the sauce the recipe used up my 1, 1/2, 1/3 and 1/4 cups all at once so I could easily mise en place them all and pour as I go. Anal retentive much? Me thinks so. After resting, the lamb came out perfectly medium rare and juicy to boot plus pomegranate sauce rocked. The only thing I would change is using one teaspoon of flour instead of two, as it was slightly thicker than desired and I think reducing the amount would do the trick if you are into a thinner sauce.

Onto the salad…shockingly easy and the vinaigrette is AMAZING. I was so happy to see a second use of the green tea (matcha) powder I purchased for this dish last week. I feel like matcha is quickly becoming the flavor enhancer of the day. The vinaigrette mixed with the toasted walnuts, cheese and pears was so light and delicious and worked perfectly as an accompaniment to our lamb dish.

I highly suggest giving these two a try lambs! The salad recipe originates from SENCHA in Colorado Springs and I couldn’t find it online so here you go. Heart you!

Mixed Greens with Pears, Walnuts, Gorgonzola and Green-Tea Vinaigrette
Prep 25 minutes
Total 25 minutes

2 tablespoons of Champagne vinegar
1 tablespoon minced shallot
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon match green-tea powder
3 tablespoons corn oil
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (thanks for the excellent olive oil Kari H.!)
6 cups (loosely packed) mixed greens
2 pears, peeled, halved lengthwise, cut into 1/2-inch-thick wedges
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
1/2 cup crumbled Gorgonzola cheese

Puree vinegar, shallot, chives, mustard, basil, and matcha in processor. With machine running, gradually add corn oil and olive oil. Season vinaigrette to taste with salt and pepper. Place mixed greens, pear wedges, toasted walnuts, and Gorgonzola cheese in large bowl. Add 1/3 cup of vinaigrette to salad mixture and toss to coat evenly. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Divide salad among plates and serve, passing remaining vinaigrette alongside.

– Compiled by Zinzi Edmundson and Janet Taylor McCracken

And now, I leave this for David…the Brie/Gorgonzola line is just too appropriate…There’s Something About Mary

Menu Plan

I Love It When A Kitchen Comes Together

Leave a comment

As I’ve mentioned before, we are renovating our kitchen and after countless hours installing new cabinets, sawing, hammering, sweating (but no tears!) and praying to the home gods, we finally get our new countertops in! Needless to say, my cooking will be a little quiet the next few days while we finalize but I did manage to create a menu plan for this week. I hope I get around to making them all but, hey, who cares, we are almost there lambs! Pictures to come, possibly one of me attempting to give the countertops a hug. :)

Monday: Roast Lamb with Pomegranate Sauce and a Mixed Greens with Pears, Walnuts, Gorgonzola and Green-Tea Vinaigrette (Bon Appetit, not on the website yet)

Tuesday: Fish with Orange and Saffron Broth (Bon Appetit, not on the website yet)

Wednesday: Pan-Fried Chicken Fingers with Spicy Dipping Sauce and Bacon and Ranch Mac and Cheese

Thursday: Halibut Provencal with Mixed Greens

Chicken, Emily Favorite, Fruit, Global Flavor, Potato

My (Sticky) Date with Dates

4 Comments

Every month Bon Appetit does an At the Market section highlighting a particular piece of produce or food item, in this case dates, that are at the peak of its season. One recipe that jumped off the page was the Braised Chicken with Dates and Moroccan Spices. Isn’t she a beaut?

Braised Chicken with Dates and Moroccan Spices (Photograph by Kiyoshi Togashi)

LOVE is the first word that comes to mind when I think about this dish. Holy smokes, I’m like Celine Dion pounding my chest saying “lurrrrvvee” loud and proud. This was quite simple to put together and the spices, oh my the spices, made this sauce absolutely incredible. The chicken was fall off the bone perfection. I loved the shallots, dates, cilantro and crunchy almonds. This was my first time actually cooking with dates and let me tell you those are sticky little suckers when I was pitting and cutting them but well worth it because it was an awesome addition to the dish.

I served this with mashed sweet potatoes and shazam, dinner was served. For the lurve people do not pass go, do not collect $200 just go to the store, get the ingredients and get home ASAP to make this. Hands down one of my favorites I’ve made on this blog.

Bacon is always awesome, Beefy McBeefy, Cheesy Cheese, Global Flavor, Includes Alcohol, Italian, Lengthy recipe but worth all the whisking, sweat and tears, Pasta

Me with a Chance of Meatballs…or Bolognese?

Leave a comment

So poodles, I tried one of my all-time favorites last night again, the Spaghetti and Meatballs All’Amerticiana (you should hear me say this out loud, it sounds like I’m having a seizure) from Bon Appetit . Now, I followed this recipe exactly as instructed again except we made the meatballs (as the recipe says you can do) the night before.

That’s it.

Spaghetti and Meatbals All'Amertriciana (Photo by Craig Cutler)

However our delicious meatballs as I cooked them fell apart and became a ground beef mixture with bacon paste…bacon paste, yes I’m still in awe thank you very much.

While this was good, it wasn’t as good as I recalled. I mean don’t get me wrong, it has delicious layers of flavor and the sauce rocked. I also noticed the marjoram this time around which gave it nice little floral notes if I do say so myself but it just wasn’t the same.

I’m getting all Sherlock Holmes about this because I can’t figure out why this failed this time. Could it be because I made them the night before? One would think that would hold them up even better due to the fridge/tightening up time. Could it be that I’m still practicing on the gas range and messed it up that way…most likely poppets. Either way it was delicious but in a less meatballish kind of way.

Oh well, onward and upward lambs, tonight it’s braised chicken with dates…fingers crossed!

Bacon is always awesome, Emily Favorite, Lengthy recipe but worth all the whisking, sweat and tears, Pork-a-licious, Soup

Recipe Retry of an All-Time Favorite

2 Comments

 

Milk Braised Pork Shoulder with Semolina Gnocchi (Photo by Elinor Carucci)

I can’t even begin to tell you the love I feel for this Milk-Braised Pork Shoulder with Semolina Gnochhi from Olivia restaurant right here in Austin. I made this dish exactly as directed some time ago and it is still one of my favorites. In fact, when someone ask me the one recipe they should make that I’ve tested, this one is always my first recommendation.

We are in full kitchen remodel mode and as anyone knows who’s been through one, an 1/8 of an inch off of one thing can derail you for days. We had plans to have our Wolf oven hooked up and ready to go – it’s a gas stove I can’t wait – but alas the cabinets threw us off. Thanks company-that-shall-not-be-named, thanks ever so much for making cabinets that require you to alter with a chainsaw, fairy dust and some Vaseline. I kid but only a little.

Since I already had the pork sitting in the nice combo of salt and cinnamon and didn’t want to waste it, I chunked cooking inside the lines out the door and threw all  of the ingredients from the butter to the tomatoes (I didn’t add the flour since I wasn’t making a roux but could not skimp on the butter, do you blame me?) into a large Dutch oven. I cooked this bad boy for 2 hours in our convection microwave and then let cool and sit overnight in the fridge. The verdict? AWESOME. DELICIOUS. PORK.

Sure, the depth of flavor was slightly better in the original but hey, in a pinch and less time in the kitchen this worked! I couldn’t make the semolina gnocchi so I served this as a stew with a Caesar side salad. David mentioned this has been his favorite dish that I’ve made so far…with that poodles make this, make this right now. Try the slow version (it’s seriously not that much trouble) or go rogue and try it my way. Either way, for the love, make this. Now if I could actually go eat at Olivia…