Rewind: Christmas Dinner

I got to make Christmas dinner this year! For me, that is a good thing. Since it was just me, my brother, and my parents, it was the perfect time to try something fancier since I was only cooking for four.

We started off the day with stockings and brunch, and then opened the rest of our presents. I started cooking and getting everything organized. We then had a sit-down appetizer of cracked crab around 4 or 5. This was a tradition that I guess my mom's family had done, and my brother thought it sounded really cool, so we figured we'd go for it this year.

My Dad's bday is in December too, so my brother and I got him this beer with an assortment of edible goodies and he waited til my brother came home for Christmas to open it (brother works/lives in NY). And yes, we each got him beer glasses from our respective colleges.

My brother's only task was to crack the crab. He did a very excellent job.

We had the crab with little bowls of shallot-butter sauce and cocktail sauce for dipping and Anchor's Christmas beer. Such a fun thing to do! Not only do people not have the chance to fill up on chips and snacks, it's an unusual enough dish that it made the evening feel extra-special.

I'd started the pork the night before, so my first plan of attack was the roasted red onions.

A friend of mine told me about this recipe from Not Without Salt which is apparently also adapted from Bon Apetit

-5 T extra-virgin olive oil
-1/4 c pomegranate molasses or syrup. I couldn't find the molasses so I went with a syrup which worked perfectly.
-2 T red wine vinegar
-1 T minced fresh rosemary
-salt and pepper to taste
-5 medium red onions, peeled, each cut into 8 wedges through core, with some core still attached to each piece.

1. Preheat to 425°F. Line a pyrex baking dish sheet with parchment paper.

2. Whisk all but the onions together in a large bowl, add onions and toss. Arrange onions close together in the pan and pour the rest of the juices from the bowl over.

3. Roast 20 minutes and carefully turn onions over. Continue to roast onions until tender and thickly coated with glaze, 20 to 25 minutes longer. If they start to get too brown, cover loosely with foil.

4. Remove when tender and cool slightly. These can be served at room temp.

Gremolata:
-2/3 c fresh pomegranate seeds
-1 T chopped fresh Italian parsley
-2 t finely grated orange peel

Combine all in a bowl and toss together. Sprinkle on the onions once they're cooked.

Rewind: Christmas Day Breakfast

This year I got to make all of Christmas dinner. This might not sound quite so exciting to some people, but I was really happy. We always do a big multi-family Christmas Eve event, and this year it was just my parents, myself, and my brother for Christmas dinner, so I figured it was the perfect time to try cooking it all.

Our family always starts with stockings and then breakfast once we've opened them. My brother and I have gorgeous stockings that my mom adds buttons to every year (yes, still). This year my brother and I decided that it was about time our parents got stockings too. They loved them!

I'd found Shutterbean's recipe for spiced orange popovers recently, and remembered that I'd found a cast iron popover pan last time I was at my Grandma's. I figured it was the perfect brunch item to make.

They're popping! So exciting to watch this happen.

Here's the recipe:

• 2 eggs
• 1 cup whole milk (and def use whole--I read up on this and the fat in the milk apparently helps the consistency or something)
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted (I usually do a little less)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt (or a pinch. I can never be bothered to measure salt)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 teaspoons vegetable oil*

*Note: I have a popover pan with eleven cups...yeah I dunno. I guess it's a normal thing. We tried to figure this out. Anyway, I put about a 1/4 t of oil in each and it worked perfectly.

1. Preheat the oven to 450 F. Blend the eggs, milk, flour, melted butter, salt and vanilla in a blender until smooth. Let the batter rest for 30 minutes.

2. While the batter is resting, measure 1/4 t of oil into each cup (or more if you have the bigger 8-cup pans). After the batter has rested for 20 minutes, put the pan in the oven to heat the oil for 10 minutes.

3. After the pan has been heating for 10 min and the batter resting for 1/2 an hour, pour the batter straight into the hot pan, dividing between the cups.

4. Bake for 20 minutes (don’t open the oven door) until golden brown on top. Turn out on a rack and let cool. They're really steamy inside so be wary.

For the orange cinnamon clove sugar topping:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 tablespoon grated orange zest
• pinch kosher salt
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

This made more than I needed but I wasn't complaining. It's amazing.

1. Mix the sugar, cinnamon, cloves and orange zest in a small bowl.

2. Brush each popover all over with the 1/4 cup of melted butter, then roll it around in the sugar mixture. Apparently they're especially awesome with coffee.

Rewind: Christmas Eve

Yes, I'm behind. But these recipes are worth it!

Last year, I received a massive hardbound copy of Bon Appetit Desserts. It is wonderful...it is also dangerous because everything in it looks amazing.

My parents hosted my dad's Christmas party and my way of "helping out" was to make desserts. Actually, I lied. Not desserts, but sweet appetizers since we weren't serving dinner and thus could not serve dessert (which implies dinner)...sure, Dad.

I made a double recipe of truffles, not realizing how much I'd made. They came in handy though, since we gave them to neighbors, took them to parties, and brought them to Christmas Eve.

Chocolate-Honey-Lime Truffles

*Note: I do not really like fruit with chocolate. I love both individually, but see no need to combine them. This recipe is an exception. Also, we have a lime tree in our backyard and can never use up the limes quickly enough, so I'm always on the lookout for new lime recipes.

-1 1/2 t lime zest, divided

-2/3 c sugar

-1 c unsweetened cocoa powder

-15 oz bittersweet or semi sweet choc (I used a combo and did my best to get close to 15 oz because that's just tricky)

-1 c heavy whipping cream

-1/4 fresh lime (I added a bit more to really punch up the flavor)

-1/4 c honey

-6 T butter at room temp

1. Finely chop 1 t lime zest and combine with sugar in a bowl, mushing with fingers until combined and moist. Add cocoa and spread on baking sheet. Let dry at room temp 1 day. *Note: I didn't do this. I made it first and then made the truffles and it was fine. Also it made way more than I needed.

2. Put chocolate in a bowl. Put remaining lime zest and cream in a pan and bring just to a boil on medium heat. Cover and set aside 10 min. Uncover and return to a boil, then pour warm mixture over chocolate, let stand 30ish seconds, and whisk til chocolate is smooth.

3. In a small pan combine honey and lime juice. Stir over low heat til honey melts/everything's warm.

4. Stir honey/lime juice into chocolate mixture. Add butter a few T at a time, stirring until the ganache is smooth. You may not use all of the butter.

5. Cover until firm. *Note: It says "at least 4 hours or overnight" and I found 5 hours to not be enough so start this early.

6. Line some baking sheets w aluminum foil and scoop the ganache into lil balls, returning it to the freezer when it gets too warm. *Note: I used a small spoon and my hands. It was ridiculously messy, but at least I got the size and shape I wanted

7. Chill/freeze for about an hour and then roll in the lime zest mixture and eat all of them.

Chive-Lime Sweet Potatoes

Happy New Year!

Yes, it's Feb already and I'm so behind on this. Luckily, even though I haven't been blogging, I have been cooking.

Here's the first of a barrage of posts:

Chive-Lime Sweet Potatoes!

This is so easy and unexpectedly delicious.

Zest a lime, chop some chives, boil agave+lime juice, roast potatoes, mix. The end!

"Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Lime Syrup and Chives" discovered on the wide, wonderful world of Epicurious and slightly tweaked:

3 1/2 lb sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup water

1 T agave

1 T fresh lime juice

1/2 t lime zest

2 T finely chopped fresh chives

oil to coat potatoes

1. Preheat oven to 450°F and spread potatoes out in a casserole dish (or more pans as needed), sprinkle with salt n pepper, and oil to lightly coat.

2. Roast for 15-30 min, depending on your oven. They should be tender when poked with a fork.

3. While the potatoes cook, bring water, agave, and lime juice to a boil in a little saucepan, then simmer until reduced to a few Ts (3-5 min).

4. Toss the the potatoes w the sauce, add the lime zest, and finish with the chives!

Japaleño-Lime Tilapia with Coconut-Ginger Rice

Marinated Tilapia with Coconut-Ginger Rice

as (barely) adapted from The Wednesday Chef and Steven Raichlen
(Serves 4)
To Make the Fish:
-1/3 cup fresh lime juice (I mixed in Meyer Lemon juice, too)
-1 large jalapeno, with seeds, minced
-4 tilapia fillets (the original recipe calls for grouper or red snapper. Red snapper works well too, but tilapia can be easier to find and cheaper.)
-chopped fresh cilantro (or not. We didn’t use cilantro because I’m not such a fan and it was fine without it)

*Serve with steamed zucchini and sugar snap peas (or snow peas), extra lime juice, and chopped scallions or green onions (as pictured below in their individual containers, ready for steaming).

Make the rice first! (Recipe below)

Combine the citrus juice and jalapeño in a shallow glass dish. Add the fish and coat with the marinade. Let stand for 20 minutes, turning once.

After you’ve made the rice, preheat the broiler. Remove fish from marinade and put it on a baking sheet or broiler pan (oil this pan! Otherwise your fire alarm will go off according to the recipe). Broil until fish is just cooked through, about 6 – 8 mins total. Season with salt and pepper.

To Make the Rice:
4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
4 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
1 cup rice
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1 cup water

Sautee the ginger and garlic briefly in oil, just until not raw (like a minute or two. You might not even have to do this step…but the ginger and garlic might be overpowering)

Put the rice, milk, and water in to the rice cooker. Add the garlic and ginger. Turn on the rice cooker and cook it!

This might not be the most gorgeous meal I've ever made, but it's one of the most impressive for the amount of flavor it packs given how easy it is to make!

Freezer Burritos

Hello!

This is the second time I have made these spectacular freezer burritos from Shutterbean. They are great because 1. they actually reheat well (unlike many frozen burritos, in my opinion), 2. you can customize them, and 3. you can make them in different sizes.

Check out my assembly line above clockwise from the top:

-a mix of black beans and low-fat refried beans (1 can of each) plus a bunch of spices (cumin, salt, pepper, cinnamon, cloves, and tumeric, I think)

-homemade corn salsa

(-water--for me, not the burritos)

(-remotes since I tend to watch food network while I cook)

-tortillas. I use enchilada size tortillas since I don't like eating an entire burrito at once. This way they're smaller and you can eat half for a snack or all for a meal

-nonfat greek yogurt which I use instead of sour cream

-fresh lime, tomatoes, and onion

-tin foil, 2 sheets, ready and waiting

-cheese -- this time I got a pre-shredded "mexican blend" because I hate grating cheese

-rice made with a pinch of chili powder, a can of chopped tomatoes, 1 glove of garlic (minced), and a pinch of cumin. This was the coolest thing that I learned from Shutterbean: add things to your rice cooker! SO. EXCITING. And more on that soon.

A close up. You can really add whatever you like/dislike. I don't really love cilantro, but most people would have that nicely chopped on their cutting board. Other things to add: hot sauce, veggies (I may try corn and zucchini next time), meat, etc!

Ready? Set? Go! Proportions are the hardest part of this for me--I tend to over-fill my tortillas. Still, I got the hang of it, mostly, by the time I was finished. Also: I got I think 8-10 burritos out of all of this (with bigger tortillas you wouldn't make as many) but I have lots of leftover salsa.

Burrito time! I spared you the photos of my horribly rolled burritos. I can't roll them. Sad, sad story for me. Luckily, freezing them mostly solves this problem.

Once frozen, remove tinfoil, wrap in a damp paper towel and heat in the microwave for 2-3 min. Enjoy with more nonfat greek yogurt and salsa!

Layered Salad

Salads are one of those things that I really don't make very often. I like them, don't get me wrong, but since I don't usually like just lettuce and dressing for a meal, I can't justify buying all of the ingredients. I love Caesar salads, but they aren't the most healthy or nutritious option in the salad world. I don't like nuts or carrots, which are easy additions to bulk up salads, and I never eat enough lettuce before it goes bad. However, I think I've found a way to eat more salads! I discovered my new favorite salad about a month ago when I was searching for a light summer meal that I could prep ahead of time. I came across an Asian steak salad and was immediately intrigued. It was fantastic. More on that later once I recreate it and take some photos, though.

This got me thinking about other ways to bulk up salads besides with meat. I have the Epicurious ap on my phone (and I'm obsessed!) so I typed in "summer," "salad," and "dinner" into the search categories and discovered this one. Well, my version is variation of the actual salad since I substituted artichoke hearts for olives and left out the fennel since I didn't have any). Anyway, what I love about this salad is that you can make it ahead of time (you're supposed to!) and it's unusual and filling enough to be a lovely dinner.

Layered Salad
as adapted from Epicurious

-1 heads of lettuce. I used a variety of greens but it calls for romaine.
-6-8 oz garbanzo beans (3/4 of a can, or more or less to taste)
-8 artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
-3 tomatoes, chopped (or 8 oz or so cherry tomatoes sliced in half)
-1 zucchini*, thinly sliced. I used a mandoline.

Dressing:
-1 head roasted garlic
-1 tsp olive oil
-1/2 c mayo
-1/4 c buttermilk
-2-3 T chopped, fresh basil
-salt/pepper to taste


In a large bowl, place the lettuce (washed and torn into bite-sized pieces), top with garbanzo beans, then artichoke hearts, then tomatoes, and finally, cover the entire top of the salad with zucchini, overlapping so you can't see anything underneath.


(*this is how you know how much to use. Slice part of the zucchini and start layering it, and stop when the salad is covered) Top with dressing and refrigerate at least 1 hour and up to 8. Toss and serve.

Dressing: blend all ingredients. Note: there will be more dressing than you need, most likely.