Ingredients
2 pounds beef
1 tbsp dijon mustard
3 tablespoons of flavorful olive oil
1/2 teaspoon of dry thyme
2-3 teaspoons of fresh chopped garlic (best to put in small chopper to keep bits small)
1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
1 teaspoon ground pepper
Directions:
mix burger meat , form patties 3 ounces
set your burgers in fridge for a few hours before grilling.
Ingredients:
2-4 pieces of 6 ounces of salmon fillets
Sauce sized for 4 portions
1/4 teaspoon of salt (adjusted for taste)
1/4 teaspoon of pepper (adjusted for taste)
3 tablespoons brown sugar (glaze)
1 tablespoon of low sodium soy (glaze)
4 teaspoons of grain or dijon mustard (glaze)
1 teaspoon of rice vinegar (glaze- try not to skip ingredient)
2-4 sweet potatoes scrubbed and dried
dash of olive oil
Directions:
For sweet potatoes preheat oven or toaster to 400
Prick dried potatoes with a fork in a few places for each potato
Rub a little bit of oil on each potato
Place on a tray or cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil
Loosely cover potatoes and rotate half way through for a total of 55-60 minutes.
These can be done successfully in a toaster in a small pyrex (just make sure to line with foil)
For salmon preheat oven or toaster to 425
Sliver with knife once or twice across short side about half way down fillet
Place in a foiled line baking pan and sprinkle with salt and pepper (to your taste)
Bake uncovered at 425 for 10 minutes
In small pot prepare the sauce over medium low heat
Add all the ingredients brown sugar, soy, mustard, vinegar bringing to a boil (will happen quick in small pot)
Brush / pour sauce over fish. Broil 6-8 inches from heat for 1-2 minutes. Do not turn eye away while in the broiler. Fish should fall apart when touched with a fork.
Ingredients:
Approx. 5 cups of cooked brown or white rice – Get your rice started early especially if using brown rice
1 Can of Black Beans, Drained and Rinsed
1 Cup of Corn (frozen fine)
2 cups chopped vegetables + 1 cup diced onion
1 8 to 12 ounce bottle of enchilada sauce
1/2 cup low fat shredded cheese
2 cups already cooked shredded chicken (see previous post on gimmeoven’s awesome slow cooked shredded chicken or pull to pieces a store bought fresh rotisserie chicken)
2 tablespoons of olive oil
Directions:
Preheat Oven to 375 Degrees
Cook rice (highly recommend a rice cooker for perfect rice every time)
Saute with oil the vegetables for 10-15 minutes on low to medium low heat while the rice is cooking
Mix all ingredients in a VERY large bowl except for cheese. Make sure to stir the enchilada sauce well into the ingredients. I add my last.
Pour mixture in a large baking dish (at least 9 x 13) or a very high sided smaller casserole dish.
Bake for 20 minutes or a bit longer if using a smaller but deeper casserole dish
Remove dish from oven an sprinkle with shredded cheese.
Bake for another 10 minutes or until is melted and serve.
The dish is easy to freeze and defrost at a later date. Rewarm low heat 300/325 or use the microwave.
This dish is healthy especially with brown rice and tastes very good. Best of all you can be cleaned up quick before the final dish comes out of the oven.
Enjoy!
FYI When I make the slow cooker chicken, I freeze the leftovers in two cup portions. The morning before making this casserole I defrost one of the bags with two cups of chicken. While the dish works without chicken, it adds a little more heft to the meal.
Pair with fresh sliced tomatoes drizzled with oil, balsamic glaze and a dash of kosher salt and ground pepper.
It is hard to go wrong with this recipe. It produces a cookie with a nice blend of crisp and chewy. The dough will freeze well for up to 30 days. I found the recipe years ago on a cookie sheet purchased from Williams-Sonoma. It is not the recipe on their website today. If price is no object, I recommend Williams-Sonoma’s “Goldtouch” cookie sheet pans (with raised sides). I am not being paid to mention this. Cookies, in particular, tend to produce an extra nice texture using their high end sheet pans. http://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/usa-pan-goldtouch-nonstick-half-sheet-pan/ I enjoy the versatility of the sheet pan with sides for many non-cookie recipes (meat loaf, roasted vegetables etc).
At full speed this dough can be prepared in less than 15 minutes assuming you have softened your butter in advance by setting it out on a counter for 30 minutes to an hour.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Ingredients:
Note how short and simple the list is!
2 1/3 cup of flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
¾ tsp salt
2 sticks or 16 tbs unsalted butter room temperature [Plan this step well in advance]
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
12 oz semisweet chocolate chips
Directions:
Makes 36 good sized cookies or many more smaller ones- William Sonoma
I like to freeze at least half of the dough in a flat one inch high square/rectangle (like the packages you see in stores) or a round log (shown below that you may see in stores as well). Wrap the dough in parchment and then place in freezer bag. Defrost cookie straight from freezer by setting out or place in fridge a few hours before you want to use the cookies. If the dough still seems hard from prior freezer storage, cook the cookies an extra minute or two.
Don’t overcook the cookies. They will continue cooking on the cookie rack. At the same time do not leave the cookies on the sheet pan too long before transferring the actual cookies to the rack. The cookies will continue to cook some outside the oven if they remain on the cookie sheet.
Beating the butter below
After adding the sugars below
Adding the flour in
Dough should be somewhat thick
Slowly add your chips in batches
Freeze excess dough in a log or a flat rectangle inside parchment paper and then placed in a ziplock bag
Enjoy!
I was on an airplane ride returning from vacation with free TV and Giada from the Food Network made this recipe. It sounded good so we tried it out. It got the thumbs up from me, my husband, and our young daughter. It is definitely flavorful, easy to make, and can be on your table in under an hour including cleanup especially with some quick advanced planning. Her web link says prep is 1 hour, cook 1 hr 30 minutes. You likely will not need this much time. This dish listed below does not have much “heat”. If you want more keep some chili seeds in and use more chili powder.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/california-turkey-chili-recipe.print.html
Serves 6-8 large bowls
(This recipe has been grossed up from the web link.)
Ingredients
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4-6 large cloves garlic, smashed, peeled and chopped (short cut pop the peeled cloves in a small cuisinart, or just use jar garlic)
1-2 large poblano chiles, stemmed, seeded and diced (I used one large; she lists two)
2 celery stalk, chopped small pieces
1 1/2 large onion, chopped small pieces
2.5-3 pounds ground turkey (use at least half dark meat to keep flavor up)
1 1/4 tablespoon all-purpose flour
6-8 tablespoons tomato paste
4-5 generous tablespoons chili powder
1 1/2 tablespoon ground cumin
3 generous teaspoons (packed) dark brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano, crushed
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (see measurements below to start with, add more if desired)
little less than one teaspoon ground cinnamon
little more than 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
4 cups low-salt chicken broth (preferably organic)
One 15 to 16-ounce can white or brown kidney beans rinsed and drained
Simplest Quinoa and Pine Nut Pilaf, recipe follows
Assorted garnishes, such as chopped onion, shredded white Cheddar, chopped tomatoes and/or sour cream
Quinoa and Pine Nut Pilaf: This won’t look like much pre-cooked but will make a lot.
1 1/4 cups whole grain quinoa (about 7 ounces)
1 3/4 cups low-salt chicken broth (preferably organic)
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro or Italian parsley
1/3 cup pine nuts
Directions
Peal and prep your garlic. Set aside.
Mix your spices and sugar in a small bowl. Precision not required. Set aside.
Now heat the oil in a heavy, large pot over medium-high heat for a few minutes until shiny.
While the oil is heating, quickly prep your carrots, poblanos, celery and onion. Rough but small cuts are fine.
Add the poblanos, celery and onions to warmed oil pot. Saute until the vegetables soften, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the garlic. Stir 1 minute.
Add the turkey and saute until no longer pink, breaking up the turkey with the back of a spoon, about 7 minutes.
Sprinkle the flour over and stir to blend.
Add the tomato paste, and spice/sugar bowl (chili powder, cumin, sugar, oregano, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, cinnamon and cloves).
Cook 1 to 2 minutes, stirring to blend.
Add the broth and beans.
Bring to a simmer – 5-10 minutes.
Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the flavors blend and the chili thickens to desired consistency, stirring often, 20 to 30 minutes.
Season with more salt and pepper.
To serve, spoon Simplest Quinoa and Pine Nut Pilaf into deep bowls. Ladle chili over. Serve with garnishes.
Simplest Quinoa and Pine Nut Pilaf **
Place the quinoa in a fine sieve. Rinse under cold running water 1 full minute. Set aside to drain.
Bring the broth, salt and pepper to a boil in heavy, medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in the quinoa. Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the quinoa is tender and all the broth is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Turn off the heat. Let the quinoa stand, still covered, for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Scatter pine nuts on a small rimmed baking sheet. Toast the nuts until golden, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet.
Mix the cilantro and pine nuts into the quinoa.
** Dishthistoday Quinoa Note: For me, I did the quinoa in my Zojirushi rice cooker, quick setting – using 1 cup quinoa to 2 cups chicken broth). I set it in the morning before work and it stayed warm once cooked with very little degradation of taste. It usually finishes within a half hour so if you are making as the same time as chili get it started before you start the chill. I also prepped the veges and spices the night before so that when I got home from work putting the dish together took even less time. If you have never tasted quinoa, don’t be turned off. It is a grain and when cooked properly tastes great and is relatively healthy for you. Also to save time I skipped the pine-nuts but I am sure they are a good addition if you have the time.
Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/california-turkey-chili-recipe.print.html?oc=linkback
Finished Dish: Shrimp with Coconut Dipping Sauce over Quinoa
The recipe comes from Modern Spice by Monica Bhide. Her inspiration for the recipe per her cookbook is from Chef Jose Andres from Washington DC who owns a few restaurants in DC. It is very easy to make and tastes and smells wonderful. I added the quinoa, removed the shrimp tails and served over quinoa versus the recipe presented in Bhide’s book. It is incredibly tasty and not a typical India heavy dish.
This recipe makes enough for 4 small appetizer servings or 2 dinner dishes. To bulk up the counts increase your shrimp count. If you multi-task the quinoa, shrimp, and sauce well, this dish can be completed in well under an hour easily and cleanup is painless. You can use the same large pot to cook the tomatoes, the shrimp, and the sauce. You only need one cutting board.
Ingredients Coconut Sauce and Shrimp
1 small red onion minced
2 small tomatoes pureed * instructions below
1 13.5 ounce can unsweetened coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin (her recipe called for 1 teaspoon of the actual seeds which I don’t stock in my pantry)
1 teaspoon red chili powder (or less if you prefer less spicy)
1 inch piece fresh ginger peeled and minced (go fresh if you can versus ground ginger spice)
1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce
Pinch of sea salt
Cooked 1 pound of nice sized shrimp **
* Puree tomatoes – WikiHow has great instructions on how to do the puree. I left the seeds and juices in. I stopped after Wiki step 8 because I was just needed simple tomato puree. You can reuse the pot from the tomato puree step for the recipe later.
After a few pulses (above)
http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Tomato-Puree
** For cooking the shrimp, I keep it pretty simple because I want the sauce to be the flavor of the shrimp.
Remove shells, tails, and devein the shrimp (dark brown or black vein) with a sharp knife.
Rinse what you just prepped in cold water and drain.
Fill pot with enough water to cook shrimp; then boil the water on high heat.
Add shrimp and push under water initially, allow the shrimp to cook 1-2 minutes until you see small bubbles to break the surface of the water. Stop at that point and remove pot from heat. Shrimp cook quick and should start to have a nice pink tinge (you will need to peak at a shrimp because the water will be murky). Cover the pot and let the shrimp cook in the hot water off the heat for about 5-10 minutes depending on the size of shrimp. They will now fully have that nice pink color you are looking for. Don’t overcook. Drain the shrimp and set aside.
Above 3 shrimp photos – prepped, in the pot on heat with bubbles surfacing, fully cooked
Directions for Coconut Sauce
1) Combine the onion, tomatoes, coconut milk, cumin, chili powder, ginger, pinch of salt, and Worcestershire sauce in a large bowl and mix well. Add more salt after tasting if desired.
2) Pour mixture into a large pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Begin to prepare your Quinoa ***
3) Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes stirring occasionally.
4) Remove from heat and allow to cool at room temperature
5) Process in a blender until smooth – can serve sauce cold or warmed
After blending thoroughly (immediately above)
*** Preparing Quinoa – I admit I am spoiled here and use my Zojirushi rice cooker which makes it perfectly with little fuss in less than a half hour. Rinse one cup of quinoa over a fine mesh strainer and once drained place in rice cooker pot. Add 2 cups of either water, vege stock, or chicken stock (my preference), add a pinch of sea salt, set on the quick start and wait for it to be done. As for stove top methods there are tons of options online or follow the instructions on your Quinoa container. Again for this recipe I keep the quinoa flavor simple because I am counting on the coconut sauce to flavor the shrimp and quinoa.
Serve
Layer a plate with quinoa bottom, add shrimp portion, and pour over some sauce.
Pulled BBQ Chicken
Yield: 12+ meaty sandwiches
Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 6 hrs
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts + 1 pound boneless, skinless thighs
2 cup (16 oz) barbecue sauce (a flavor you like)
2/3 cup Italian dressing – good brand
2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
4 tablespoons cornstarch
4 tablespoons chicken broth (I have used water too but chicken stock is more flavorful)
additional barbecue sauce, if desired
rolls, for serving as sandwiches
bread and butter pickles, optional
1. Place chicken in the slow cooker. You should enough meat to cover the bottom layer of your cooker. In a medium bowl, whisk together the barbecue sauce, Italian dressing, sugar and Worcestershire sauce. Pour the sauce over the chicken. Cover and cook on low for 4 1/2 to 5 hours.
2. Remove the chicken to a cutting board. In a small bowl, mix cornstarch and chicken broth (or water). Stir it into the sauce in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on high until the sauce is thickened and heated through (10 to 15 minutes). Meanwhile, use two forks to shred the chicken. Return the shredded chicken to the slow cooker and stir. Add additional barbecue sauce if more sauce is needed or desired. Cover and continue cooking on low for 45 minutes. Serve chicken piled onto rolls. Add pickles, if desired.
*The brand of barbecue sauce that you use can make a big difference in the flavor of the chicken. Many people on line like Sweet Baby Ray’s!
Source: RecipeGirl.com (Adapted slightly from All You)
Close Up Look
Getting ready to freeze leftovers.
I am sorry I don’t have a great photo but this pie is worth every bit of effort to make it. Crust recipe is incredibly forgiving even for a novice. I got it from a friend of mine and use it for all my pies. The cherry filling piece of the recipe came from another friend. Lastly I credit Mark Bittman for general baking instructions.
Double Crust 9-Inch Pie Crust
Will work with a deep dish 9 or low 10 inch
Make in Cuisinart with regular dough blade
Key is to keep all the ingredients cold. Even put the dry ingredients in the freezer for a few minutes before starting…but especially important that the butter and shortening are chilled. (cut butter and then chill, measure Crisco). For me keeping cold was about 20-30 minutes.
Crust Ingredients
– 2 1/2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the work surface
– 1 tsp salt
– 2 tbsp sugar (will also need a little sugar to sprinkle on top pie crust)
– 1/2 cup vegetable shortening, chilled
– 12 tbsp (1 1/2 sticks) cold, unsalted butter cut into 1/4 inch pieces
– 6-8 tbsp ice water
– note need a little milk for top of second pie crust
Directions for Pie Crust
Mix dry ingredients in a food processor, then add shortening (about ten seconds). Then cut the butter into the flour mixture until pale yellow, coarse crumbs. Pulse the processor to do this. Then add ice water until dough sticks together. Add little bit of ice water as needed to make dough stick. Divide the dough into two even balls and flatten into 4 inch disks. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least an hour (up to two days) before rolling. Roll out on well dusted surface to prepare the crusts.
Ingredients Cherry Filling
– 5 cups pitted cherries (slice the larger ones in half) – try to drain and keep as dry as possible. William Sonoma sells a Cherrymat Cherry Pitter for $29.95. I have a seen a similar one for slightly less. This gadget works incredibly well and if you plan to make this pie a few times a year, suck it up and buy it. It will save you oodles of time. Freeze any unneeded cherries and consider making a fruit topping for waffles/pancakes.
– little less than 3/4th cup sugar
– 1/3 cup flour
– 1 generous tablespoon of cornstarch
– 2 tablespoons of butter cut into small pieces
Directions for Filling
Toss lightly all but the butter
When ready to make pie – preheat oven to 450
1) Roll out first dough (if from fridge, let sit for 10-15 minutes max) from center out
2) When close to 10“ check diameter large enough with upset down pie plate
3) Transfer first crust – fold in quarters, move, then unfold
4) When dough is in place, press firmly in the bottom, sides and junction of bottom and sides
5) Trim excess dough to about ½ inch all around, then tuck under edge of plate
6) Fill the pie with the cherry mixture – little heavier in the center of pie
7) Dot with the 2 tablespoons of butter throughout.
8) Place second crust on top of pie dish (using quarter method above)
9) Trim if necessary
10) Decorate edges of pie crust with fork
11) Place pie on a baking sheet and brush top lightly with milk. This step saves your oven from becoming messy.
12) Sprinkle with sugar throughout lightly
13) Use sharp paring knife cut to to three 2 inch long vent holes in top crust for steam escape
14) Place in oven 450 for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 for 40-50 minutes (mine was ready at 40 minutes exactly). Pie should be golden brown. Do not underbake
15) Cool on rack before serving warm.
Fresh Whip Cream Ingredients and Directions
– Put mixer bowl and whipping beater in freezer for 20-30 minutes
– 1 cup heavy whipping cream (do not pull out of fridge until ready to make)
– 1 tablespoon + of sugar to taste
– Slowly bring heavy whipping cream (no sugar) up to high speed for a few minutes
– Before starting to near the consistency of peaks you should add 1 tablespoon of sugar and keep beating
I serve the whip cream on the side versus placing directly on the pie.
Delicious!!!!!!!!!!
Today my daughter wanted oatmeal but wanted something creative. I said how about we look for some oatmeal pancake recipes and she said what about oatmeal waffles. I never heard of oatmeal waffles but figured with Google an arm’s length away- sure I said. 30 minutes later, I was super excited to have stumbled upon this healthy recipe. It was a great switch up from our regular Bittman waffles. It came from the tasteofhome.com website (I website I had never seen). The recipe says it will make 6 waffles – our batter produced 7 good sized waffles. Prep time was about 10 minutes and I was cleaned up before waffle 3 was out.
6-7 Waffles Servings Prep/Total Time: 30 min including cooking waffles and cleanup
Before you start mixing, plug in your waffle iron and melt your butter in the microwave to get cooled
Picture of batter; uncooked batter in waffle iron; fully cooked waffle
http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/oatmeal-waffles-2/print
Nutritional Facts: One serving equals 1 bread, 2 fats; also, 176 calories, 223 mg sodium, 65 mg cholesterol, 21 gm carbohydrate, 5 gm protein, 8 gm fat.
This waffle recipe is easy. You will never want frozen waffles again!
I have never had it fail and I have made it at least 50 times. I always make one extra set of the dry ingredients which I set aside in a large zip lock bag. I label the outside of that ziplock well and then inside in a small separate plastic bag I put a note card with the wet ingredients to add. This way me or my husband can whip up a batch quick.
Effort to make 1 batch – 10 minutes plus time to cook the waffles. To cook a full batch allocate 30 minutes. I love my waffle iron which came from William Sonoma. It does not have any bells and whistles but it does the job well. The only choice is the doneness setting. Usually I cook on setting 2 (out of 10).
Before starting the mixing, turn on your waffle iron, and put the butter in the microwave and set aside to cool.
Ingredients:
2 cups of all-purpose flour (dry)
1/2 teaspoon salt (dry)
2 tablespoons of sugar (dry)
3 teaspoons of baking powder (dry) (underlined to make sure you measure this precisely and that you use powder not soda).
1 1/2 cups of milk
2 eggs
4 tablespoons or 1/2 stick of butter melted and cooled – I use the microwave cutting the butter into a few pieces before setting it to 40 seconds.
1 teaspoon of good vanilla extract (worth adding but is labelled optional in Bittman’s recipe)
Preparation:
Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
In a smaller bowl mix the eggs into the milk (I usually separately scramble the eggs before mixing with the milk).
Add to the smaller bowl the cooled butter and vanilla if using.
Add the wet smaller bowl to the dry ingredients and stir until mixed well but not obsessively well.
If the mixture is dry add a little more milk but if you measured correctly additional milk should not be necessary.
Spread batter into center of your waffle iron (using a large spoon, poured from a measuring bowl, or using a ladle).
Bake until waffle is done 3-5 minutes – my waffle iron beeps and turns green when done. There is no guesswork.
Carefully peel waffle off iron and pour in more batter until done.
I like to lay the done waffles on a cooling rack to keep crisp and get air below the waffle. If I am serving a few minutes later I reheat on a cooling rack laid on top of a cookie sheet.
Once cooled I freeze all leftovers in a freezer bag. They last well in the freezer for at least 2 months. I have not tried longer.
I defrost the night before if I remember and then just place in the toaster in the morning. Even without defrosting one toast or a preheated toaster at 325 for 5-10 minutes warms the waffle right up.
This recipe is super easy and doubles perfectly. I almost always make a double batch if I have time and freeze as many as possible.
DO NOT MAKE THE BATTER THE DAY BEFORE THINKING YOU WILL SAVE TIME IN THE MORNING. Results will be sub-par. If you need to save time, set aside the combined dry ingredients the night before on your counter and pre-measure the milk and vanilla and leave those two ingredients in the fridge. Then cut your butter and place in the bowl you will put into the microwave but return the butter back to the fridge as well. This will save you 5 minutes out the 10-15 minutes it takes to make the whole batter start to finish.
If you have a kid helper, ask them to measure all the dry ingredients and place in the bowl. Ask them to help stir the wet ingredients as well.
dishthistoday 
