Read on for step by step photos and the recipe
Sorry I've been so bad about keeping up with the blogging! I have a couple new recipes to add as well as a fun sushi making experience = ) But first! My favorite meal at Chinese restaurants and now I can make a delicious version at home...without the MSG. The recipe suggested broccoli, which is the dish's usual accompaniment, but I have been loving cauliflower a lot recently (and we'd just run out of broccoli), so that's what I used.
Read on for step by step photos and the recipe
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This was the 2nd best part of the meal! Keep brushing the salmon with the honey orange glaze and pour the rest of it over the quinoa when serving and the flavors will hit you in the perfect way. Definitely proof that Passover food can be gourmet and flavorful...!
Ingredients 4 5-oz. salmon fillets 1 orange (1/4 cup juice, 1 tsp finely grated orange peel) 1 tbsp honey 1/2 tsp ground cumin 2 tbsp olive oil 1 tsp curry powder 1 1/2 cup reduced sodium chicken or vegetable broth 1 1/2 cup quinoa 2 green onions, chopped 1/2 cup shredded carrots Salt & Freshly ground Black Pepper to taste Can't you smell the orange-spicy goodness? For St. Patty's Day, I decided to do something involving Guinness...cause that and Bailey's are the best part of the day! Although I must say I was reminiscing about my old elementary school and how they'd leave green foot prints and glitter on the paths to the old gym where we'd find mint milkshakes, irish potatoes, and green cupcakes every year. Even though we knew what was coming it was so exciting!
But now that I'm old(er), it was time for something a little more grown up. After realizing all the recipes I found for beer braised short ribs required a slow cooker for 10 hours, I decided to do a little combining of recipes. Basically I used parts of Hubert Kellers Red Wine Braised Short Rib recipe and substituted beer for the wine and left out a few of the ingredients that wouldn't have paired well with the heavy, stouty goodness of Guinness....mmm. Read on for the recipe and step by step photos! I came home early Tuesday because we had gotten 2 inches in the span of two hours and that led to baking chocolate chip cookies (at John's suggestion)...then making Aloo Paratha (because we finally had potatoes and whole wheat flour)...then making a fast version of Chicken Korma from Madhur Jaffey's Quick & Easy Indian Cooking (because we were in charge of dinner all of a sudden). We ended up getting 15 inches over the span of 20 or so hours. Pretty amazing!
Read more for the recipes and (mostly) step by step photos! I have this great recipe for Chicken Biryani that I made with my beloved roommate last year and our good friend Mischa. That time we had most of the spices, but I have to say I was missing a few this time: cardamom, mint, and saffron...so I took a short cut and covered for those with garam masala. But you'll notice that the biryani isn't it's normal yellow color and that's because it's lacking saffron.
It's still delicious though! Read more for the full recipe and step by step photos! Finally got to use up our last Butternut Squash! This recipe is from Cooking with Michele, but I have to say it wasn't clear enough and I had to use my knowledge of roux-making to make it work out! So below you can find my version of the recipe, and if you're interested in seeing the original, you can find it here.
New Year's Eve Dinner 2009-2010 We decided to have a quiet dinner in on New Year's Eve this year since my boyfriend had to work late. This of course gave me lots of playing room, so I decided to make Red Wine Braised Beef Short Ribs a la Hubert Keller (with some adjustments) and Caramelized Shallot and Crispy Sage Mac & Cheese. We accompanied all of this heavenly food with some simple green beans, just to give the impression of a healthy, balanced meal ; ). Red Wine Braised Beef Short Ribs a la Hubert Keller One of the many gems I found on Tastespotting! (I did a half recipe, which was more than enough for 2 meals!) Ingredients: 4 lbs bone-in short ribs Salt & Pepper Cayenne and Chili Peppers 4 tbsp olive oil 2 small onions, peeled and sliced 2 carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped 2 celery stalks, chopped 1 2" piece fresh ginger, peeled and sliced thinly 2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped M. Keller's recipe suggests 1 stalk of lemongrass. I didn't have this on hand but I substituted 1/2 tsp of lemon juice for the half recipe 1 1/2 cups red wine, pinot noir. We used a 2006 Bourgogne. 1 cup strong coffee (not in the original recipe) 1 14-oz can diced tomatoes with juice 2 tbsp brown sugar 2 tbsp parsley, chopped 3 tbsp tomato paste 3 cups beef stock 1 sprig fresh sage Directions:
Caramelized Shallot and Crispy Sage Mac & Cheese A favorite on Tastespotting and I can absolutely see why! You won't need extra salt and pepper for this dish...the warm flavor of the shallots, garlic, and sage do everything to make this a perfectly seasoned plate. Be careful though, this recipe is enough to feed at least 10 when used as a side! Ingredients: 1 lb orecchiete pasta (we used medium shells as our local store didn't have orecchiete...the horror!) 2 tbsp olive oil 2 large shallots, chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced 5 tbsp butter 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 1 1/2 cups buttermilk 1 cup heavy cream (we actually substituted Half-and-Half...that whole faking healthy thing) 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese (we used XXX Sharp Cheddar. It's amazing! Almost as good as British cheddar...almost) 2 cups Gruyere cheese 1 tsp kosher salt (seriously, don't add more!) 1/4 cup chopped fresh sage Directions:
No New Year's Eve is Complete without a Yule Log! I decided to try my hand at a Yule Log this year, but I've always found them rather bland, so when I found this recipe for a Mocha Yule Log, I was raring to go! In all honesty, I think this recipe could use more cocoa in the cake part..but overall very taste and fun and easy to work with. Ingredients: For Cake~ 6 eggs, separated (make sure no yolk gets into the whites or they won't whip the way you want!) 3.5oz (just under 1/2 cup) + 1.7oz (just under 1/4 cup) caster sugar 1.7oz (just under 1/4 cup) cocoa (I used Ghirardelli cocoa powder...You could probably go up to as much as 1/2 cup of cocoa) 2 heaped tsp of instant coffee powder (crystals work fine, too) 3 tbsp icing sugar (or confectioner's sugar) to sieve over the log as decoration Directions:
Ingredients: For Icing~ 6 oz dark chocolate (I used 3 oz Semi-Sweet baking chocolate, 3 oz Ghirardelli 100% Cocoa baking chocolate) 1 tsp instant coffee powder 8.8oz (just over 1 cup) icing sugar (confectioner's sugar) 8oz (2 sticks) butter, softened Directions:
Spread the icing across the cake going up to the edges.
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