Kale and Scallion-Fried Brown Rice

I've become pretty enthusiastic about kale, to the point where I got this t-shirt for Christmas as a joke (though I wear it often with pride).  Vince isn't completely convinced, but one batch of kale chips was enough to get Alexa onto my side too.  It makes it's way into soups and stews pretty often, and into my lunches as massaged kale salads, but I've been looking for more side dishes to use it in.

This kale and scallion fried rice was a great side for teriyaki salmon.  It came together quickly, and the earthiness of it balanced the sweetness of the teriyaki and the richness of the salmon perfectly.  The leftovers were perhaps even better warmed up and topped with a runny poached egg and a few dabs of Sriracha.  If you're not a fan of kale yet, this is a nice way to sneak some in.

Kale and Scallion-Fried Brown Rice
adapted from the The Kitchen Daily

What's in it:

1/2 lb kale, stems discarded
1 1/2 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
5 scallions, thinly sliced
2 1/2 c cooked brown rice
1 Tbsp soy sauce

How to make it:

Chop the kale into bite-size pieces.  Cook the kale in a deep saute pan with 1/4-1/2 cup water until tender.   Drain the kale and squeeze out the remaining water when it's cool enough to handle. 

Wipe out the pan, then heat the vegetable oil over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes, being careful not to brown the garlic. Raise the heat to medium and add the kale and scallions. Cook for 2 minutes and then add the rice and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring. Add the soy sauce and cook for 30 seconds more.

Corned Beef Hash with Poached Eggs

This round of A Taste of Home Cooking's recipe swap had a slightly different set up than usual; rather than being assigned a recipe, we were each given a blog to pick a recipe from.  Yes, that's right, a whole blog's worth of recipes to narrow down to one choice.  I was given The Jey of Cooking, one I already follow and pull recipes from quite often, and let me tell you, it was really hard to choose.  I checked what I already had outlined for our weekly meal plans, and found that what I really needed was an awesome weekend breakfast. 

As I scrolled through Jey's breakfast tag, I saw corned beef hash and how to poach an egg.  It was like the stars aligned- I knew I'd have corned beef leftover from St. Patrick's Day, and I've been looking for an excuse to try poaching eggs.  Perfect!  I didn't change much, just added some bell pepper since I had it, and used thawed bagged shredded potatoes. 

Corned Beef Hash with Poached Eggs

What's in it:

1 c frozen hash browns, thawed
1/2 medium onion, diced
1/4 red bell pepper, diced
2 Tbsp chopped chives
salt and pepper
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 c chopped or shredded corned beef
white vinegar for poaching
2 eggs

How to make it:

Mix potatoes, onion, bell pepper, chives, salt (go light on this, the corned beef will add a lot) and pepper to the potatoes and mix well to combine.  Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high.   Add potato-onion mixture and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.   Add the corned beef and stir to combine.   Cook, stirring occasionally, about 10-12 minutes, until potatoes are golden and beginning to crisp.  Keep warm in the skillet until the eggs are ready.

To poach the eggs, fill a saucepan with water, a little more than halfway full.   Add a splash of white vinegar.   Bring to a boil.  Break each egg into separate small dishes.   Swirl the water to create a tornado and carefully guide one egg at a time into the vortex.   Reduce heat to medium high.  Repeat with the second egg.  As each egg cooks, serve the corned beef hash onto a plate or into a shallow bowl so that it's ready to go when the egg is done.

For a soft center, cook for 2 minutes.   For a medium center, cook for 3 minutes.   For a hard center, cook for 4 minutes.  When the egg reaches your desired doneness, carefully remove with a slotted spoon and allow water to drip off.   Gently place on the hash and serve immediately.

Citrus Orzo and Shrimp Salad

Winter has been pretty non-existent here this year, with just a few dustings of snow and ridiculously mild temperatures.  I feel a little cheated out of snow days with lazy mornings and big pots of soup simmering all day.  But it's starting to get light out before I even leave for work, we're heading outside more often when we get home in the afternoons to run around and blow bubbles, and it's making me want lighter, more summery foods.

This salad was mostly me trying to use up some random stuff from the fridge and freezer, but the basic idea for it came from a couple of recipes on Ezra Pound Cake.  The bright citrus plays nicely off of the salty feta, and the spicy shrimp are perfect with the creamy avocado.  If I can't have winter, this is a nice way to welcome warmer weather!

Citrus Shrimp and Orzo Salad
serves 3-4

What's in it:

Zest and juice of one small orange
Zest and juice of one lime, divided
1 large or two small cloves of garlic, minced, divided
4 Tbsp olive oil, divided
2 tsp adobo sauce
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 lb peeled and deveined shrimp
1/2 c sliced dry-packed sundried tomatoes
2-3 c baby spinach, roughly chopped
1 c orzo pasta
1 tomato, diced
1/2 c crumbled feta
1 avocado, diced

How to make it:

Start water boiling for the orzo.  Whisk the zests, orange juice, half of the lime juice and half of the garlic together in a large bowl.  Drizzle in three tablespoons of the olive oil, still whisking.  Salt to taste and set the dressing aside.  Add the orzo to the boiling water, and cook until al dente, about 8-10 minutes. 

While the orzo cooks, combine the remaining lime juice, garlic and olive oil with the adobo sauce and brown sugar, and a little salt.  Add the shrimp and stir to coat.

While the shrimp marinates, mix the sundried tomatoes and spinach into the dressing.  Drain the orzo when it's cooked, and immediately add the to the bowl with the spinach, letting the heat from the pasta cook the spinach slightly and stirring to let the orzo absorb some of the dressing.

Heat a medium skillet over medium-high heat, and add the shrimp and marinade.  Cook the shrimp for a minute or two on each side, until pink, and add them and any sauce in the pan to the pasta.  Stir in the tomato, feta and avocado and serve warm or at room temperature.

Tomato Orzo Soup

A Taste of Home Cooking's recipe swap theme was soups and stews for this round, and with perfect timing.  Despite a pretty mild winter so far, we had a little cold snap this past weekend (though none of the snow that was predicted), and soup was exactly right.  My assignment was Tomato Orzo Soup from Melissa at Fried Rice and Donut Holes.

This soup was really good, and really filling despite being basically vegetarian.  I made a few adjustments based on what I had on hand, which meant using carrots to make up for the celery, whole San Marzano tomatoes instead of diced, and chicken broth instead of the vegetable broth called for.  I also used my stick blender to get a smoother texture, since I'm feeding someone who likes "just soup, no chunks."  The tanginess from the sour cream rounds out the flavors nicely, and I think plain Greek yogurt would work equally well.  If you're feeling fancy and have some time on your hands, basil puree and sour cream thinned with a little lemon juice make nice garnishes

Tomato Orzo Soup

What's in it:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 c finely diced onion
1 c finely diced carrot
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 can (28 oz) whole tomatoes
1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes
1 carton (32 oz) chicken broth
Salt & pepper, to taste
1 1/4 c orzo pasta
1/2 c sour cream
2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh basil

How to make it:

Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot.  Add the onions and carrots, and cook on medium-high heat for 6-7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook until the vegetables are tender, about 2 more minutes.

Add the whole and crushed tomatoes and simmer for about 10 minutes. Using a wooden spoon, break up the whole tomatoes.  Add the stock, blend to desired texture with an immersion blender, and return to a simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Add the pasta and simmer for 8-10 minutes, stirring often, until the pasta is firm but tender. Remove from heat, add sour cream, and fold in the basil.

Serve hot, garnished with additional sour cream, basil and parmesan if desired.

Moroccan-Style Lamb and Chickpeas

The first time I had Moroccan food was at Epcot at Walt Disney World.  I was about 8 or 9, and I just fell in love with the spiced richness of it.  Since I've been cooking, any recipe with "Moroccan" in the title goes onto the to-make list almost automatically. 

I didn't change much in this recipe, just added a little garlic, and swapped mint for the cilantro, since I really associate mint more strongly with Moroccan food than cilantro.  The original recipe suggests serving over couscous, but we had this over Moroccan Spiced Spaghetti Squash that I saw on the Jey of Cooking- delicious!  This was a really great meal, flavorful, fairly healthy, and a nice variation on the usual pasta with meat sauce.

Moroccan-Style Lamb and Chickpeas
adapted from Cooking Light

What's in it:

1 lb lean ground lamb
2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 c diced onion
1/2 c (1/4-inch) diagonally cut carrot
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 tsp ground cumin
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp ground red pepper
2 c fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth

1/2 c golden raisins
3 Tbsp tomato paste
1 1/2 Tbsp lemon zest

1/4 tsp salt
1 (15 1/2-ounce can) chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1/3 c chopped fresh mint
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

How to make it:

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add lamb to pan; cook until browned, stirring to crumble. Remove lamb from pan with a slotted spoon and discard drippings.

Add olive oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add onion and carrot to pan and sauté until softened and beginning to brown. Add garlic, cumin, cinnamon, coriander, and pepper.  Continue to cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds, stirring constantly.

Add reserved lamb, broth, and next 5 ingredients, through chickpeas, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer about 5 minutes or until mixture thickens. Remove from heat. Stir in mint and lemon juice.

Serve warm over couscous, rice or anything else you'd like.

White Chocolate Caramel Blondies

I generally provide dessert for a weekly get-together with friends, and often find myself making different types of brownies and cookies.  They're easy to make a day or two ahead of time, and travel easily when you're also juggling a preschooler, samples of the latest batch of home-brewed beer, and other assorted items that are being loaned out or returned, all on a two or three block walk.  And out of all the varieties I've made (and there have been a lot over the last two years), these blondies were by far one of the group's favorites. 

When I first read the ingredient list for these, I was a little surprised by the extra half stick of butter, and thought about just using two since I was running low.  But I went with it, and wow did it make these bars good.  Chewy and almost fudgy, with a ton of caramelly flavor, it was totally worth wiping out my supply of butter.  I also followed Jen's suggestion to cut back on the spices to shift these away from the original holiday-oriented gingerbread version of these bars, keeping just some of the cinnamon.  Eventually, I'd like to try a version with some orange zest, but for now, I'm not going to mess with what's become one of my favorite standbys.

White Chocolate Caramel Blondies
adapted (just slightly) from Martha Stewart via Beantown Baker

What's in them:

2 3/4 cups plus 1 Tbsp flour
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 1/2 sticks (20 Tbsp or 1 1/4 cups) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
1 1/4 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup unsulfured molasses
11 ounces white chocolate chips

How to make them:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 pan.

Whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.

Beat butter and sugars with a mixer on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy.  Add eggs and yolk, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Beat in vanilla and molasses.

Reduce speed to low. Gradually add flour mixture, and beat until just combined. Stir in white chocolate chips.

Spread batter into prepared pan. Bake until edges are golden, 30-35 minutes (the middle might not be set). Let cool completely in pan on a wire rack.  When completely cooled, cut into 24 bars (they're so rich that you really can get 24 from a 9x13" pan).

Beef Wellington Hand Pies

These hand pies were not what I intended to make for dinner the other night.  I had seen a recipe for steak and mushroom pot pies on Pinterest a few weeks ago, and really meant to make those.  But then I realized the day before that I didn’t have enough of an appropriate cut of beef in the freezer, and it was too late to retrieve more from the freezer of the friend that we split the cow with all those months ago.  Thinking to just increase the mushrooms to round things out, I continued rounding up ingredients, but found that I had used up the last of the beef stock I had made, and was now missing two pretty key ingredients.  It was starting to look like take-out night.

But then Vince and I started talking about separate trips to London we had made a few years ago, and I remembered some really good hand pies I’d had, including and ground beef and mushroom one.  With that, the ground beef, mushrooms and puff pastry I had started to sound a lot like Beef Wellington.  A quick visit to Google confirmed that the addition of wine, cream, thyme and onions (all things I already had in the house) would get me all of the flavors of traditional Beef Wellington.  And they turned out wonderfully.  Surprisingly quick to put together, and absolutely delicious, these made a really fun twist on Beef Wellington.

Beef Wellington Hand Pies

What’s in them:

1 sheet puff pastry, thawed

2 Tbsp olive oil, divided

1 lb. ground beef

1 Tbsp butter

1 c sliced cremini mushrooms

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ tsp dried thyme

¼ c red wine

2 Tbsp heavy cream

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 egg

How to make them:

Heat oven to 400°.

Heat 1 Tbsp of olive oil in a large sauté pan.  Crumble the ground beef into the pan to brown, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.  Set aside the beef, discard the drippings, and wipe out the pan.

Heat butter and the remaining oil in the pan, and add onions and cook until they begin to soften.  Add the mushrooms, continuing to cook until vegetables are browned.  Add garlic and thyme, and deglaze the pan with the red wine.  Stir in the cream and Worcestershire sauce, then add the beef back to the pan, gently stirring to combine.

Roll the thawed puff pastry into a 1/8” thick sheet, and cut into 4 equal portions.  Spoon the beef mixture onto the puff pastry, being careful to not over fill each and to leave a ½” border.  (You'll probably have extra filling; I used the leftovers to top some egg noodles for a quick lunch).  Whisk the egg with a little water, and brush the egg mixture onto the edges of the pastry.  Fold the pastry over and seal, using a fork to crimp the edges.

Arrange pastries on a baking sheet, brush each with the egg wash, and cut two small slits in the top of each.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown.

Salt and Vinegar Roasted Potatoes

Well, hi there.  Where did January go?  I can't believe it's been over a month since I last shared anything here.  I've still been busy in the kitchen, and even remembered to take some photos, but writing about the food has kind of gotten away from me.  To help me get back in the groove, I signed up for A Taste of Home Cooking's recipe swap again.  The theme for this round was potatoes, which I appreciate since side dishes are often an after thought when I'm planning meals. 

I received Melissa at Delicious Meliscious's recipe for salt and vinegar roasted potatoes.  I was pretty excited, since I've made potatoes with a very similar recipe before and knew they'd be a hit in my house.  I did end up using cider vinegar since the last of the malt vinegar had been used on some fries unbeknownst to me, and while the potatoes were still good, you should definitely stick with the malt vinegar.  These potatoes are really a year-round side, as great with barbecued chicken and a light green bean salad as they are with roast beef and Brussels sprouts.

Salt and Vinegar Roasted Potatoes

What's in them:

10 baby Yukon potatoes
2 Tbsp (or so) of olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Malt vinegar to taste (I used about 3 Tbsp)

How to make them:

Cook the potatoes in salted boiling water for 15 minutes or until fork-tender.   I did this the day before to reduce prep time during the dinner rush.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Drain the potatoes then place them, one at a time, on a paper towel. Fold the paper towel over the potato and carefully smash the potato with the palm of your hand so that is flattened but still in one piece. Repeat with the remaining potatoes. Place the smashed potatoes on a baking sheet lined with foil and drizzle with olive oil, coating well and making sure that it gets into all of the little crannies in the smashed potatoes.  Season liberally with salt and pepper.

Place into the oven and roast for 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown. Carefully flip the potatoes over and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and brush each potato with malt vinegar to taste and sprinkle with a bit more sea salt. Serve immediately.

Chewy Triple Ginger Cookies

Are you completely over cookies yet?  I have to admit that I just really started my holiday baking.  I'd made sausage balls and not-Chex mix, but as of this past weekend, I hadn't baked a single cookie yet.  But when I got home from a business trip, Vince asked if I would bake some cookies, as he'd signed up to bring some for his office's holiday potluck.  (He did say that we could just buy them, but where's the fun in that?!)  By Saturday evening, I'd made chocolatey Hello, Dollies and fruity shortbread thumbprint cookies, but didn't have anything spiced, which is pretty much mandatory at Christmas.

These aren't the traditional crunchy ones you cut out and decorate, but a chewy, richly spiced cookie.  The addition of both fresh and crystallized ginger gives these a kick that you don't get from a gingerbread man.

Chewy Triple-Ginger Cookies
Adapted from Cooks Illustrated and 101 Cookbooks via Forks, Fingers, Chopsticks

What's in them:

2 1/2 tablespoons fresh ginger, peeled and grated
1 1/4 cup crystallized ginger, finely chopped
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons ground ginger
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup unsulphured molasses
1 large egg, beaten
3/4 cup large grain sugar, for finishing (optional)

How to make them:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Adjust racks – one in top 1/3 oven – second in bottom 1/3 oven.

Peel and grate fresh ginger, finely chop crystallized ginger, and set both aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, baking soda and salt.  Add crystallized ginger, separate if it clumps and stir to incorporate. Set this aside too.

In a small pot, over low heat, melt the butter.  When it has melted almost half way, turn off the heat and add the fresh ginger, brown sugar, molasses.  Combine with a whisk, stirring carefully.  The mixture should be warm to the touch, but not hot.  Add beaten egg and stir to incorporate.

Pour over flour mixture and stir until combined, being careful to not overwork the dough.

Shape dough into balls (1/2 tablespoon dough for small cookies, ~1 1/2"; 1 heaping tablespoon dough for 3").  Balls should be placed at least 2 inches apart for smaller cookies/ 3 inches for larger.  For a prettier cookie, coat each ball with large granule sugar before baking.

Bake for 8 to 9 minutes for small cookies; 10 to 12 for larger. Cookies are done when they have risen and cookies crack. Do not overbake; underbaking is better. Store in airtight container for about 1 week.

Cinnamon Marshmallows

Last year it seemed like all of a sudden I started to need hostess and thank-you gifts around the holidays.  I don't know what changed (maybe it's another step toward actually feeling like a grown-up?), but I remember several last-minute trips to the craft store for festive packaging for holiday cookies, vowing to plan better this year.  And so when I made my holiday baking list, I added homemade hot cocoa mix and marshmallows to the list, to be packed up together and handed out as needed.

  

I'd made these marshmallows before for s'mores pops, and wanted to make them a little more obviously holiday-appropriate.  Adding some cinnamon extract, a swirl of red, and cutting some of them out in fun shapes like trees, candy canes and stars made these nicely festive.  With some hot cocoa mix (homemade or storebought), a batch of these is the perfect thing to have on hand for your neighbor, delivery guy, or anyone that could use some holiday cheer.

Cinnamon Marshmallows

adapted from Alton Brown via Beantown Baker

What's in them:

3 packages unflavored gelatin
1 cup ice cold water, divided
12 ounces granulated sugar, approximately 1 1/2 cups
1 cup light corn syrup
1/4 tsp kosher salt
3/4 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 tsp cinnamon extract
1/4 cup powdered sugar
2 Tbsp cornstarch
Nonstick spray

Red food coloring

How to make them:

Place the gelatin into the bowl of a stand mixer along with 1/2 cup of the water. Have the whisk attachment ready to go.

In a small saucepan combine the remaining 1/2 cup water, granulated sugar, corn syrup and salt. Place over medium high heat, cover and allow to cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Uncover, clip a candy thermometer onto the side of the pan and continue to cook until the mixture reaches 240 degrees F (soft ball temp, if you're a regular candy maker), approximately 7 to 8 minutes. Once the mixture reaches this temperature, immediately remove from the heat.

Turn the mixer on low speed and, while running, slowly pour the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl into the gelatin mixture. (Be very careful to not let the the syrup get wrapped up and around the mixer gears, unless you want it to be hard candy-coated.  Don't ask how I know this, just trust me.)

Once you have added all of the syrup, increase the speed to high. Continue to whip until the mixture becomes very thick and is lukewarm, approximately 12 to 15 minutes. Add the vanilla and cinnamon extracts during the last minute of whipping. While the mixture is whipping prepare the pans as follows.

Combine the confectioners' sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl. Lightly spray a 13 by 9-inch metal baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add the sugar and cornstarch mixture and move around to completely coat the bottom and sides of the pan. Return the remaining mixture to the bowl for later use.

When ready, pour the mixture into the prepared pan, using a lightly oiled spatula (or fingers) for spreading evenly into the pan. If you want colorful swirls, drop 5-10 drops of food coloring onto the marshmallows as desired.  Drag a toothpick or wooden skewer through the drops, creating swirls. Dust the top with enough of the remaining sugar and cornstarch mixture to lightly cover. Reserve the rest for later. Allow the marshmallows to sit uncovered for at least 4 hours and up to overnight.

Turn the marshmallows out onto a cutting board and cut into 1-inch squares using a knife dusted with the confectioners' sugar mixture, or cut out shapes using cookie cutters dusted with the mixture. Once cut, lightly dust all sides of each marshmallow with the remaining mixture, using additional if necessary. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.

Broiled Grapefruit

Breakfast during the week is generally limited to easily prepped and transported options for me: lots of oatmeal, Greek yogurt and granola, sometimes muffins or English muffins with a smear of peanut butter.  So when the weekend comes around, I’m usually ready for something a little more time-consuming that probably doesn’t travel well, and often plan for much more elaborate breakfasts, like breakfast tacos with eggs, chorizo and avocado or dressed up pancakes.  This time of year, though, I’m starting to get a little burnt out on heavy food, and with holiday baking, shopping and partying, spending a lot of weekend time on breakfast just isn’t always possible.

Then I saw broiled grapefruit on Serious Eats.  It’s perfect- not something I’d be likely to pack up for work, takes very little time to prep, and isn’t going to fill me up all morning when I’d rather be snacking on seasonal goodies.  The little bit of caramelized sugar softens the tart grapefruit, and the spices make you feel like you're eating something special.

Broiled Grapefruit

What’s in it:

1 grapefruit, halved
½ tsp sugar
¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
1 tsp butter

How to make it:

Preheat broiler and line a baking sheet with foil. Using a paring knife, carefully loosen grapefruit segments, separating them from the membrane and rind. Sprinkle cut sides with sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Dot with butter. Place grapefruit halves on baking sheet and broil 5-8 minutes, until sugar is beginning to brown. Let cook for a few minutes, then serve.

Sausage Balls

Yes, another snack and appetizer post.  I have been cooking real food too; check out my What's for Dinner? page to see what we've been eating.  But my focus lately has been our holiday favorites.  These sausage balls are another tradition from my family, a perennial favorite at my mom's annual holiday open house and one of our must-haves for Christmas morning brunch (the only rule- no flatware required.  Keep those hands free for opening presents!).

While I've seen variations of these a lot of places around the internet, with different ratios of sausage to cheese to baking mix and types of cheese and sausage, my mom first started making this more than 20 years ago from a recipe in the high school booster club's Jaguar Cookbook. 

Sausage Balls

What's in them:

2 c. baking mix
4 c. shredded cheddar cheese (I use sharp with the sage sausage and mild with the hot sausage)
1 lb. bulk sausage (I like to use hot or sage sausage)

How to make them:

In a large bowl, combine all three ingredients.  I usually put them in the bowl in the order they're listed to keep the baking mix from making a dusty mess.  Knead the mixture by squeezing handfuls to form clumps, then break up the clumps and repeat until everything is thoroughly and evenly mixed.  This usually takes about 10 minutes (and can be pretty therapeutic).

When you're done kneading, roll into 1" balls, about a generous tablespoon for each, and spread them on a baking sheet that fits in your freezer.  Freeze sausage balls (they'll hold their shape better when you bake them), and store frozen in an airtight container or bag.

To bake, preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Bake sausage balls until cooked through and browned, about 15 minutes.

Not-Chex Mix

This is one of those foods that instantly takes me back to the holidays during my childhood.  While snack mix is generally not a traditional Christmas treat, it was in my house growing up- we only made it at Christmas, and maybe for the Superbowl (which was almost as important).  Amid all of the sweet offerings, this snack mix was a welcome hit of savory.

While there are a million different recipes for snack mix, we have always stuck with the original (not the microwave version), with one notable exception- we don't use Chex cereal, but Crispix instead.  In my opinion, they're crispier, and even better, the recipe uses just about a whole box, rather than a third of three different cereals.  In the past few years, I've also started playing around with the seasonings, cutting back on the salt, adding some cayenne and Dijon mustard, and upping the Worcestershire sauce in my favorite version.  The result is addicting; I'm almost embarrassed to admit it took us less than three days to decimate the first batch.

Not-Chex Mix

What's in it:

9 c. Crispix cereal (about 1 17.9 oz. box)
1 c. mixed nuts
1 c. bite-sized pretzels
1 c. garlic bagel chips, minis or regular sized broken into 1" pieces)
8 Tbsp. (1 stick) unsalted butter
3 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

How to make it:

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.  Line two baking sheets with foil.

Mix first four ingredients in a large mixing bowl.  In a microwave safe bowl, melt butter, about 45 seconds to one minute on high in the microwave.  Whisk remaining ingredients into the butter.  Pour about half of the butter mixture over the cereal mixture, and stir to coat well, and repeat with the remaining butter mixture, making sure that everything is coated.

Divide the mixture between the two baking sheets, and spread into an even layer.  Bake for one hour, stirring every 15 minutes.  Let cool, then store in an airtight container. 

Rosemary Candied Cashews

Does anyone else remember Good Things Catered?  Sadly (for me and its other followers), its author Katie took it down due to a move and a new job.  It's really too bad, the recipes were always just right, had a ton of great tips, and really demonstrated that good food didn't have to be hard. 

One of my favorite simple recipes was for rosemary candied nuts; luckily for me this was also published on Recipes Tap, so all is not lost.  I usually add a little cayenne for some heat, and I really think the salty-sweet combo is impossible to resist.  I had these out as part of the pre-Thanksgiving dinner snack table and there wasn't much left when we sat down for dinner!

Rosemary Candied Cashews
Adapted just a little from Good Things Catered

What's in them:

4 Tbsp butter
1/4 c dark brown sugar, packed
1 Tbsp fresh rosemary, minced
Cayenne pepper to taste, I like about a 1/2 tsp here
2 c whole cashews (or nuts of choice)
coarse grain salt

How to make them:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare a baking sheet- I line mine with non-stick foil.

In medium saucepan over medium heat, heat butter, sugar, rosemary and cayenne, stirring until fully combined.  Add nuts and cook until the nuts covered in sugar mixture and lightly browned, about 5 minutes.
Spread nut mixture onto prepared baking sheet and bake until sugar has slightly hardened (will be bubbly), about 15 minutes.

Remove pan from oven and toss with large pinch of coarse salt.  Cool completely, tossing periodically to keep the nuts from sticking together.

Mashed Potato Cakes

Be honest, who still has Thanksgiving leftovers languishing in the refrigerator?  As much as I love the initial few rounds of turkey sandwiches, stage where there's a little of this and a little that left, but not enough for a meal can be tough to deal with.  Our delicious smoked turkey had been used up (or set aside in the freezer, designated for a future meal), roasted veggies snacked on, and rolls used for breakfast sandwiches, but we still had about two cups of mashed potatoes hanging out.

Looking for something a little different than another pile of mashed potatoes on the plate with dinner, I looked for a mashed potato pancake recipe that I had everything for, and hit gold when I saw a recipe that called for bacon fat on How Sweet It Is.  Every once in a while I save the rendered fat from cooking a package of bacon, and lucky for me, I had done this recently.  Let's be real; nothing makes a potato taste better than bacon fat.  I didn't change much here, just added a little cheese and some scallions for a little extra flavor.

Mashed Potato Pancakes

What's in them:

2 c mashed potatoes
3 Tbsp flour, more if your mashed potatoes are on the loose side
1/2 c shredded cheddar or colby jack cheese
1 scallion, thinly sliced
2 Tbsp bacon grease, butter or olive oil

How to make them:

Sprinkle flour on mashed potatoes, add in cheese and scallions (or any other mix-ins you like) and stir gently to combine.  Form into eight patties that are about 1/2-1" thick.  I like them on the thinner side for a higher crust to mashed potato ratio.

Heat a skillet on medium high heat. Add your fat of choice and let it heat for 30 seconds. Add patties and let them brown on each side, about 3-4 minutes per side.  Don't rush and try to flip them before they're ready, or you'll use that delicious brown crust.

Serve immediately, with more cheese scallion, or even a dab of sour cream.

Happy Birthday, Alexa!

No recipe today, just a happy birthday to my favorite kitchen helper who is turning THREE today!  Where has all the time gone?

Alexa requested cookies with pink frosting and sprinkles to take to school to share, which Annie provided the perfect recipe for.  These soft sugar cookies with plenty of frosting in bright colors were a hit when we had a couple as a pre-birthday treat- definitely much better-tasting than their grocery store counterparts!

Happy birthday, baby girl!

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Mushrooms and Cream

How are your Thanksgiving plans going?  Are you prepping for a big meal with family and friends, a cozy dinner for two, or are you kicking back this year and letting someone else do the cooking?  To help us all get ready for the holiday, this week's theme for A Taste of Home Cooking's recipe swap was Thanksgiving sides.  I know I'm looking forward to seeing the results- I'm expecting a great mix of family traditions and new favorites!

I received a recipe for Brussels sprouts from Brianna at Oishii that basically combined a bunch of my favorite things into one indulgent dish.  The sprouts are roasted, then combined with sauteed mushrooms and shallots that have been splashed with wine, and a drizzle of cream.  I use cremini mushrooms since I didn't get around to a trip to the specialty grocery store for chantarelles, and while they were delicious, I'm looking forward to trying these with the chantarelles.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Mushrooms and Cream

What's in them:

10 oz Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved lengthwise
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 Tbsp butter
3-4 oz mushrooms of your choice, halved or sliced
1 shallot, finely diced
1/4 c dry white wine
1/4 c heavy cream
freshly ground black pepper to taste

How to make them:

Place the halved Brussels sprouts on a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Toss to coat. Season with kosher salt. Roast in a 450 degree oven until lightly browned and tender, about 20 minutes. Set aside.

Add the butter to a skillet and heat over high heat. When the butter foams, add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden-brown and tender and the mushroom liquid (if any) has evaporated, about 5-8 minutes. Add the shallots, seasoning lightly with salt, cooking until the shallots just start to brown, about another 3 minutes.

Add the wine, scraping up the brown bits in the pan, and cook until reduced by half, about 1 minute. Add the Brussels sprouts and cream.  Toss to coat everything in the cream, then continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the cream thickens enough to really stick to the vegetables. Serve immediately.

Cumin-Roasted Carrots

I find that there are two pretty universal challenges for people when it comes to cooking.  First, the assumption that really good food is complicated, time-consuming, and requires exotic ingredients.  Second, that opinion that vegetables are bland, generally made as an after thought, steamed or boiled after the meat and starch have been carefully prepared.

Well, neither of these statements are true.  Good food can be amazingly simple, and vegetables can be delicious with just a little care taken.

The ingredient list here is simple- six total, and half of them, the salt, pepper and olive oil, are things that sit out on my counter all the time.  That just leaves carrots that become caramelized and sweet, cumin that complements the earthiness of the carrots, and a little lemon juice to balance the sweetness with some acidity.  Toss everything together, slide into a hot oven, and you're free to spend as much time and effort on the rest of dinner as you want.

Cumin-Roasted Carrots
adapted from Mark Bittman

What's in them:

1 lb. carrots, peeled and halved or quartered
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Juice of half a lemon

How to make them:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Combine all ingredients but the lemon juice, making sure the coat the carrots evenly with the olive oil and seasonings.  Spread the carrots on a baking sheet, and roast for about 25 minutes, until slightly caramelized.

Squeeze lemon juice lightly over the carrots, and serve hot, warm or cold.

French Onion Soup

Just in time for real fall weather, the theme for this week's recipe swap on A Taste of Home Cooking was soups and stews.  I was happy to get Hezzi-D's recipe for French onion soup.  I love it, from the rich caramelized onions in it to the gooey, crusty cheese and bread on top.  But sadly, I'm the only person in the house willing to touch it, so I rarely bother to make it for myself.

Since I am the only person who would eat it, I only made a third of the original recipe, and so simmered it stovetop rather than trying to get it to work in such a small quantity in the slow cooker.  Normally, I'd just use a smaller dish in the insert, but I was going to be home to keep an eye on the soup.  It was delicious, tons of onion flavor, with just a hint of sweetness from the caramelization.  I also really liked the addition of seared steak for a little extra beef flavor.  I used a skirt steak, and then sliced it up for sandwiches and quesadillas later in the week rather than leaving it in the soup.

French Onion Soup
adapted from a Paula Deen recipe via Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks

What's in it:

1 large sweet onion, thinly sliced
3 Tbsp butter, divided
2 tsp sugar
1 steak of your choice, cut into 1/2" dice if you plan to leave it in the soup
¼ c dry white wine
2 c beef broth
1 c. water
1-2 tsp Worcestershire sauce (I used 2 tsp because I love how it brings out the beef flavor)
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 bay leaf
baguette slices, for topping and serving
3/4 c Gruyere cheese, grated

How to make it:

In a medium soup pot, melt one tablespoon of the butter. Add the steak, cooking to desired doneness if leaving whole for another purpose.  Remove steak, and set aside or store as desired.

 

Add another tablespoon of butter to the pot.  Once it is melted, add the sliced onions. Sprinkle the sugar on top and sauté over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions are caramelized, about 20 minutes.  Add wine, and bring to a boil, making sure to scrape up all of the brown bits off the bottom.

 

Add the beef (if including in the soup), broth, water, Worcestershire sauce, pepper, thyme, and bay leaf to the pot.  Simmer for 2-3 hours.

About 30 minutes before serving, butter the baguette slices with the remaining tablespoon of butter, sprinkle with a little extra black pepper, and broil until golden brown, 5-10 minutes depending on your oven and where the rack is.

Turn on the broiler. Ladle the soup into oven proof bowls or mugs. Top with toasted bread and grated Gruyere cheese.  Broil 6 inches from heat for about 3 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and browned.  Serve immediately.

Smoked Gouda and Spinach Risotto with Bacon and Mushrooms

While cleaning out the fridge the other day, I came across an unopened block of smoked Gouda from Wisconsin, and it has become a little bit of an obsession.  I've had it on grilled cheese sandwiches with bacon and apple slices, cubes of it stirred into roasted tomato soup, and with apples and grapes as an afternoon snack.  It's creamy and rich, with just a hint of delicate smoke flavor.  I have to admit I'm a little sad that my regular trips to Wisconsin are at an end, since it means my access to high-quality, inexpensive cheese is now severely limited.

When I was trying to come up with other ways to use my prized Gouda, risotto came to mind, since it's delicious in it's own right, but also makes a great canvas for whatever other flavors your heart desires.  Earthy mushrooms and salty bacon always go well with Gouda, and spinach provided some color and freshness.  There is a lot of cooking something, then setting it aside, but the recipe makes up for that by needing just a single pan.

Smoked Gouda and Spinach Risotto with Bacon and Mushrooms
adapted from Cooking Light and Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations

What's in it:

6 sliced of bacon, diced
2 c sliced cremini mushrooms
5 cups chopped spinach (about 5 ounces)
1 tablespoon butter
2 shallots, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
1 cups Arborio rice or other short-grain rice
1/2 c dry white wine
3 1/2 c less-sodium chicken broth
1 c shredded smoked Gouda cheese

How to make it:

In a deep saucepan, cook the bacon over medium-high heat until the fat is rendered and the bacon begins to crisp; set bacon aside.  Remove all but about a tablespoon of the bacon fat, reserving it for later.  Add the mushrooms to the pan, stirring to coat with the bacon fat, and cook until golden-brown, about 8-10 minutes, then season with salt and pepper.  Set the mushrooms aside as well (I just use one big plate for all of the "set-asides").  If the pan is dry, add a couple of teaspoons of the reserved bacon fat back to the pan, then add spinach a handful at a time until it's all wilted, seasoning lightly with salt to draw out water.  Set that aside too.

Melt the butter in the same saucepan, add any remaining bacon fat, and then add shallots and garlic, cooking until just softened and fragrant, about a minute or two.  Stir in the rice, and cook until the grains become translucent, about 2-3 minutes.  Pour in the white wine, scraping up any brown bits from the pan surface.  Let the wine cook off, and when the rice looks mostly dry, pour in about a half cup of the broth.  Allow it to simmer, stirring often.  Continue to add the broth in half-cup portions, still stirring often.

When the rice is done, stir in the reserved spinach, half the bacon, and 3/4 cup of the cheese.  Serve the risotto topped with mushrooms, garnished with the remaining bacon and cheese.