Salmon with Balsamic and Roasted Potatoes

Typically, I really enjoy roasting my food as opposed to any other method of cooking, but for some reason I hadn’t ever tried roasting potatoes, a pretty standard vegetable to cook up in that way. A few days ago, in a pure food conundrum I realized I had some untouched salmon and a few red potatoes up for grabs. I’m so glad I chose to pluck them up from their little mesh bag! Roasted potatoes are my new favorite food. Even though it takes awhile to cook, the result is a slightly crispy exterior with a flaky potato cushion on the inside. The salmon was really good too, and once again, I had somehow missed a culinary staple. I love reducing liquids down into some sort of sauce but I had never done the standard-balsamic vinegar. All in all, this dinner really took very little effort on my part for such a nice looking (and healthful-bonus!) plate at the end.

Salmon

Brush some olive oil and sprinkle some salt on the top of a fillet and cook it however you normally cook your salmon. I just put mine in a foil pouch in the oven for about 15 mintues. I don’t even know if that’s a legitimate way to cook fish but it seemed like the right thing to do at the time?

In a saucepan, boil down some balsamic vinegar. I put about half a cup in and ended up with a few tablespoons.

Potatoes

Cut your favorite kind of small, round potato with a thin peel into 4 pieces. Toss with olive oil, salt, pepper, parsley and a bit of fresh grated Parmesan cheese. Roast on 425 for around half an hour.

Put the salmon on a bed of spinach and drizzle the reduced balsamic over top. Serve with the potatoes!

Oatmeal and Apples

A dear and tired friend of mine recently requested a recipe inspired by foods loaded with energy, something that college students always complain about lacking. When she googled “energy foods” all the classics came up including oatmeal and apples. I immediately thought of those little packets you can buy at the grocery with sweetened oatmeal and teeny little cubes that upon adding water might resemble the flavor of a long forgotten apple.  Whenever I have time in the morning (when I decide to get up with more than 5 minutes before the bus comes), I really do enjoy eating oatmeal. It keeps me full for longer and at the risk of sounding like a broken record, I have more energy than when I pop in a poptart or two. The ingredients I ended up tossing in do indeed include some brown sugar and butterwhich is probably frowned upon by some serious health foodies out there, but generally I’d say it’s pretty good for a morning start.

Apples

• one sweet red apple (a whole one will make at least two servings)
• one teaspoon vanilla
• two teaspoons packed brown sugar
• one tablespoon flour
• about a tablespoon of butter
• two cinnamon sticks (or just a teaspoon or so of ground cinnamon)

Chop the apple up into small cubic squares, roughly the same size. Throw them into a pot on medium heat with the vanilla, brown sugar, butter and cinnamon sticks. After they’ve been heating for about 10 minutes, put the flour in which should thicken the sauce up. I took out my cinnamon sticks and attempted to grind them up in a coffee grinder but then of course I realized that they were wet so it wouldn’t work very well. Perhaps some planning ahead could have solved that issue.

Toss the apple mix with your oatmeal and you’re good to go! A breakfast of champions.

Kroger Expansion!

I’m writing to spread the joy I felt several weeks ago upon entering my college town’s newly expanded Kroger. Although I had gone in before, it wasn’t until a few days ago that I decided to explore around and discover all of the new food items available. Usually I only allow myself an hour in Kroger because if I don’t set a time limit I’ll walk around forever, but this time I let the wanderlust I feel for grocery stores inspire a little more exploration. Even though I try to support non-chain food consumption such as buying from our farmer’s market, I can’t deny the inevitable happiness that comes from being able to buy ingredients used halfway around the world.

What I will ever do with tamarind pods I have no idea as I’m not skilled with South Asian cooking (or any kind of cooking for that matter-hah), but I can tell you that seeing them whole, hanging in cellophane near the produce (as opposed to the occasion powder in the spice section) got me really excited. Same goes for the cactus that was sitting next to the peppers and cucumbers. I don’t have a clue how to use cactus in any kind of digestible way  but seeing the spiky green-ness available for consumption rather than decoration certainly does open up a lot of doors. I’ve never tried either but I plan on it, hoping of course that they’ll taste somewhat fresh and not so well traveled (what does a fresh cactus taste like?).

I also found Greek yogurt which isn’t really any kind of special thing, (although I guess neither are tamarind pods or cactus to those who use them regularly), but this was particularly exciting because last year when I made my first attempt at Tandoori chicken without Greek yogurt, using regular instead, it was a big flop.  And just to add to the Greek yogurt excitement, it has 16 grams of protein in less than a cup of the vanilla flavor (and no fat), as opposed to about 8 grams of protein for a cup of regular vanilla yogurt. I’m not typically one to count calories and be super health conscience but I have to admit, that’s impressive. Those are going to become a staple item after workouts for sure…once I start working out regularly that is *bashful face*.

Sort of going along with the tamarind pods, there was also lemon grass available, another Asian staple that I don’t know how to use. The other day I decided to branch out from my usual Chinese American food (vegetable stir fry rice and egg rolls) and get some kind of soup on the menu that had no little peppers next to it indicating spiciness. I can only imagine what the soup with three chili peppers next to it would do to me since even eating the kind with none left multiple beads of sweat on my upper lip about half way through. I’m such a spice wimp. Anyways, the soup’s ingredients had two things I remember; coconut milk which kept separating from the soup and settling on the top, creating a swirly cloud of sweetness, and lemon grass, a flavor I cannot recognize on its own yet. The Vietnamese woman who did my nails a few weeks ago told me lemon grass was used in just about every dish she can remember eating from home so at some point I’d like to buy a few stalks and see what happens in the pot I throw them in. My cart at Kroger will always have grapefruit, hotdogs, onions and orange juice in it but it’s definitely a fun surprise to carry home a new something for a new flavor. Even if it ends up in disaster at least the apartment will smell like cooking, right?

My creative juices are in short supply tonight and like everything else in my life I’ve procrastinated on procrastinating so that I have about 20 minutes of unused caffeine left until I fall asleep on my couch, cat in lap. However, I would like to discuss with you one meal that I’ve been enjoying a lot lately thanks to Wal-Mart’s discounted meat cuts [yay mass-marketed, anti-biotic fed cow meat (*sadface*)]. My urges for meat seem to overpower my animal friendly personality most of the time, especially when it comes to thick-cut, slightly over-crispy bacon. I can’t help but think about our chickens we had as pets whenever I eat anything that was once living. Goldilocks and  Midnight (our first two chickens that were golden yellow and black—there’s my 9 year old creative name-giving genius) would often take a stroll through our kitchen, stopping along the way to ride on my dad’s shoulder or hang out with the family for awhile. They were our family chickens and I miss them. After midnight died we got another black rooster that was decidedly much more rooster like and far less friendly so my dad started calling him MTET-Midnight the Evil Twin.  Surprisingly to some who may not have had the luxury of having a house-roaming farm animal growing up, every chicken has their own personality. It’s always sad to me that my taste buds win out in the battle against my conscience. Anyways, I found out how to make a good steak and a simple sauce to go with it. My mom preferred it grilled but I think it’s pretty tasty cooked this way.

1) Heat up enough olive oil on high heat to just cover the bottom of a cast iron skillet (or a normal skillet).

2) After patting each steak dry with a paper towel and salting and peppering both sides of your steaks, put them in the skillet and after about 30 seconds, flip them over.

3) After 30 seconds on the other side, put the steaks, skillet included, in a 500 degree oven. After three minutes, open the oven and flip the steaks over letting them cook for 3 minutes on the other side. The time will vary depending on the size of your steaks and how well done you prefer them.

4) Take the pan out and let your steaks rest on a foil covered plate. Put the skillet back on high heat and pour the red wine of your choice over all of the steak bits stuck to the pan. For 4 steaks, I used about half a bottle.

5) The red wine will reduce down as far as you let it. I reduce it to about half a cup of sauce.

6) Enjoy!

Gingerbread Cookies!

Today as I reached for the foil wrapped candy, carefully set in the December 7th spot in my old Christmas countdown calendar, I was reminded of the small pleasures this season so often brings. They’re usually subtle and all too easy to get whisked in to the everyday scramble, but this time, I took a guilty second to let the sentimentality of Christmas do its work. Plucking those candies from their respective pockets is something I look forward to every day of December, right up to the 24th. Being 20 years old, approximately 5 times the age when I can first remember partaking in this activity, doesn’t lessen the flurry of excitement when I realize I’m one day closer to German potato salad and a Honey Baked Ham. Even though a Hershey’s chocolate kiss isn’t a culinary masterpiece, the sensation of eating one merits some special attention. Last year I tried using bite size Milky Way’s and little red and green lifesavers, but that’s not what I remember eating in the first house I lived in with a shaggy, protective dog by my side hoping for a bite. Sometimes, particularly gorgeous and made-up rooms in magazines like Martha Stewart, make me depressed for their lack of silly, over-themed holiday decorations. The tables on those pages are set with decadence, but the old time comfort isn’t there. The sparkle of the unused, over polished silverware shines that humbleness right out and the flowers aren’t missing a petal, untouched by curious noses. What I love about Christmas isn’t the meticulously placed candles or the abundance of gold and silver painted decorations, but the memories associated with the activities surrounding them, like my tattered countdown calendar.

One memory that’s made new every year is when my mom and I decorate sugar cookies. I wish I had some genius recipe but actually the Betty Crocker mixes made with Crisco instead of butter turn out wonderfully and bake to a perfectly textured sweetness that I can’t seem to replicate on my own. The same can generally be said for cake mixes although I was thoroughly scolded from a relative over Thanksgiving for admitting to such a well known convenience (-a convenience for those of us who don’t like to bake that is, as it’s a huge time saver and requires no sifting, separating or sieving. Perhaps an indulgence for you weird people who enjoy all of that preciseness…). Anyways, there is one cookie recipe that proves to be exceptional every year and worth all the measuring and such. I’m pretty sure my little brother or sister got this recipe from school and it makes the best gingerbread cookies I’ve ever had.

Gingerbread Cookies:

• 1 cup brown sugar

• 2 boxes instant butterscotch pudding

• 2 eggs

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1 tsp cinnamon

• 3 tsp ginger

• 3 cups flour

• 1 cup margarine

Mix it all together and bake at 350 for 15 minutes!

Southwestern Vegetable Soup (with turkey)

Over break, my family accumulated the pile of gluttonous leftovers that every family does around the holidays and unsure of what to do with them we decided, “hey! Let’s make more food!” My mom had a really good soup recipe and we modified it to include turkey so that we could at least incorporate some of the bird. This is probably the easiest soup I’ve ever made and it’s really hearty. It reminds me of something cowboys might have made in a big rusted pot over a fire. Mostly, it’s just a good way of using random cans of vegetables you have in the pantry, as you can substitute most of these ingredients for things you have.

Ingredients:

• Half an onion
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 stalks of celery
• 2 green chilies
• juice of one lime
• 2 cans black beans/pinto beans/your favorite beans
• 2 cans corn
• 2 cans crushed tomatoes
• 2 packets powdered ranch dressing
• 1 packet taco seasoning
• 2 cans of chicken stock
• left over turkey, or whatever meat you have

Directions:

• Saute the onion, garlic, chopped up celery, and chopped up chilies in some olive oil.
• squeeze the lime over the vegetables
• Mix in the ranch and taco packets
• add the chicken stock
• add all of the canned ingredient

My apartment is already prepared for the season of lights, the smell of pine, and some serious cold- even if that last part seems to come a little later, and with a few less snowflakes every year. The halls here aren’t decked with holly, Walmart was out, but there are gold, blue, red, and green spheres of light strung throughout my small space and the orange bowl of candy corn has been replaced by a cheesy plastic snowman filled with minty Hershey kisses.  Normally, I take on the role of Autumn Crusader, dutifully lavishing in the red, orange and yellow decorations until Thanksgiving has passed. This year however I was burdened with a particularly large amount of work before break finally came around, so the transition between seasons seemed liked a good distraction. While my roommate and I were getting festive, I enjoyed a small glass of eggnog and it got me thinking about holiday drinks. Hot chocolate is a favorite of course but I wanted to make something different. Butterscotch is a flavor that’s often used for alcoholic drinks but I basically used it in a white hot chocolate recipe for more of a hot drink.

Ingredients

• 1 cup skim milk
• 1 cup half and half (I guess you could just use 2 cups of 1 or 2 percent or something)
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup butterscotch morsels
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• one cinnamon stick

Directions

• melt the butterscotch chips and heavy cream over low heat
• add the milk, half and half, vanilla, and cinnamon stick and simmer for 5 minutes or so consistently whisking it all

Since it will soon be The Day of gluttony where pies and their fattening counterparts get the spotlight, today’s post will feature a menu item less inspired by Santa’s portly figure and more oriented towards a pre-holiday stocking up on nutrition. Salads really don’t get enough credit for taste and its probably due to the fact that most often, a house salad at a restaurant is made up of several large chunks of iceberg lettuce sailing on a river of ranch dressing with a few shreds of dried out cheddar cheese floating along beside them. Now I’m not saying I don’t enjoy an occasional dunk in the proverbial Ranch River but generally, it’s just as easy to make a healthier and better tasting salad as it is to throw together a sub par one. Dewey’s Pizza has a really delicious salad that I get every time I go called a Candied Walnut and Grape Salad. I don’t know how they make their dressing unfortunately but sometimes I try to replicate the salad. The recipe below is just what I use, but substitutions are always fun.

Salad!

• mixed baby greens
• Gorgonzola cheese (a rather fattening cheese, I know. Just use a tablespoon or so)
• halved purple grapes (you can use green ones but purple and red grapes are sweeter and pair well with the tartness of the Gorgonzola)
• candied walnuts (recipe below)
• dressing

Candied Walnuts

The recipe I use is Laura Werlin’s and I think it’s magnificent:

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 4 ounces walnuts (about one heaping cup; don’t use pieces)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium sized bowl, mix together the sugar, cayenne and salt.

Bring a small saucepan of water to boil. Add the walnuts and blanch them for 3 minutes. Drain well and then immediately roll the walnuts in the sugar mixture until thoroughly coated. The sugar will melt slightly. Transfer the walnuts to a baking sheet or pan and bake, stirring occasionally, until they are a deep golden brown, about 10 minutes. Watch carefully because the sugar can burn easily. Let cool completely before serving.

Dressing

1 tablespoon apple butter

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar (or white wine vinegar if you don’t have red)

olive oil

Whisk the apple butter and vinegar together and as your doing that, slowly drizzle in the olive oil. I think I used a few tablespoons but a taste test every few seconds would be your best bet. If you don’t have apple butter, jelly or jam is a decent substitute.

Homemade Pizza

I came across little rounded bundles of potential culinary creativity in the form of frozen pizza dough at Kroger. Somehow these had escaped my notice before, which is shocking since I spend upwards of two hours in the grocery store once a week, glancing over the bright, unpackaged glory of the produce section and sometimes, the red, marbled variety in the meat area. Unfortunately, the two or three portions of the frozen isles dedicated to Cincinnati’s best contribution to the world (Graeter’s ice cream), often get priority. Anyways, the pizza dough got me thinking that I haven’t tried making a homemade pizza. If DiGiorno’s can do it, so can I. The best thing about making your own pizza is that it’s a blank slate. Pretty much anything goes but I decided to use asparagus and spinach. Here’s my recipe.

Pizza Sauce:

Half of a medium yellow onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

olive oil

1 tablespoon dried rosemary

1 tablespoon dried basil

2 teaspoons honey

raw ginger

12 oz crushed tomatoes (i think? it was about the size of a can of soup)

Once again, I feel like it’s necessary for me to start this out by saying that I never go by a recipe. I’m trying my best to remember the basics, but use your own judgment.  Saute the onion and garlic in olive oil for one or two minutes. Zest some ginger in, probably half a teaspoon, and let that a saute for half a minute more. Add the crushed tomatoes, rosemary, basil and honey and let it all simmer for 15 minutes or so.

The Pizza

Take your thawed out pizza dough and flour the outside. Flatten it out to the desired size and dust off any extra flour. Put the pizza sauce on top and then top it off with (in my case) rinsed off, chopped pieces of asparagus and roughly chopped spinach. For the cheese, I bought good, fresh Parmesan (a pricey, but worth it investment)  and a ball of smoked mozzarella. Grate some Parmesan on first and then slice thin slices of the mozzarella and place on top. Depending on the pizza size, it should take about 15 minutes at 375 degrees.

Pumpkin Soup

Halloween is officially over. Somehow without noticing, the pumpkins my friends and I carved decided to be festive a little too late, if being a pumpkin isn’t festive enough, and leaked their fermented fall-colored juices (mostly a neon-ish yellow with a slight red tinge where it stained the table) all over our designated spots for them in our apartment.  I can only assume it was some form of revenge for our early enthusiasm at the beginning of the month. The premature butchery we took so much joy in has now effectively created a permanent reminder of the gourd’s sacrifice in the form of a hard, immovable spot on the carpet. I hope our land lady doesn’t notice.  Ironically, the transparent, somewhat fragrant pumpkin innards reminded me that I hadn’t yet attempted a pumpkin soup. As Ina Garten says, “how bad can that be?”

Cutting the pumpkin in half that I had designated to turn into my dinner probably looked, appropriately, like a scene from some scary movie with a cleaver as the deadly weapon. Raised high above my head, my little paring knife did little damage as in collided with the orange flesh that seems more like rock. Apparently pumpkins of smaller size have tougher exteriors. The thing had short man’s syndrome. I finally just got a pumpkin carving knife to cut out the stem, and then did my best to slice it into two separate halves. Once you get past that part, the rest is easy.

Roasting the Pumpkin

Before we continue… Pumpkins might be hard to find by now if you don’t frequent the farmer’s market. If you can’t find a little 2 1/2 pound pumpkin at the grocery, a butternut squash of equivalent size will work just fine.  With either one, you’ll need to split it open vertically, and scoop out all of the seeds. Drizzle some olive oil on the inside, salt and pepper it, and put it flesh side down in the oven, covered with foil, at 400 degrees for around 45 minutes. Butternut squash won’t take that long. To check it for doneness, poke a fork in the flesh. When it’s tender, it’s ready. Scoop out the pumpkin with a spoon and set aside. If you have a food processor, put the pumpkin in and pulse a few times until blended.

Make a Spice Pouch

Put the following into a pouch made of cheesecloth (which you can find at hardware stores. I just used a longer strand of the cloth to use as a tie, but you can use string as well).

2 cinnamon sticks, 1 bay leaf, 6 allspice berries (whole, not ground), and three cloves. Set that aside.

Soup!

1. Heat 3 tablespoons butter in a medium sized pot.
2. Add one small to medium chopped yellow onion and two cloves of minced garlic in to the butter. Salt and pepper those and cook for two or three minutes, until transparent.
3. Add one tablespoon grated ginger and one tablespoon fresh chopped mint. Cook for another minute or so.
4. Add the cooked pumpkin, and immediately add two cups of chicken broth. You can add more if your soup is too thick. Mix it all together so that it has a relatively smooth consistency.
5. Add the spice pack, and let is all simmer over low heat for 20 to 30 minutes. If there’s foam on top, try to remove that as best you can.
6. Remove the spice pack and transfer to a food processor if you have one. If not, use a hand held blender or a regular blender to create a smooth consistency.
7. Finally, add 1/3 cup pineapple juice into the blender and blend one last time. Strain through a fine sieve for extra smooth soup.
8. Cut a crusty baguette into slices for dipping. Just a recommendation.