The Weekend Trip...

This weekend I got to play with my food. Unfortunately, in my excitement to eat the results, I forgot to take pictures of the beautiful goat cheese, tomato and garlic ravioli I made from scratch. This means I'll just have to make some more!

I also had a day trip to the not-so-local Findlay Market, where farmers sell their fresh produce at absurdly low prices and immigrants living their own American dream sell their amazing goods- be it perfectly crafted sausages or delectable gyros that can satisfy anyone's "oh crap i'm in a food store and forgot to eat breakfast" hunger. Andrew & I bought 3 of these gyros, thinking we'd have the third as a back-up if once of us was still hungry. Neither of us finished our first gyros.

At the meat counter (Kroeger & Son's Meats) I settled on 6 different sausages to sample. This included creative varieties, (such as the "Reubenwurst" which is made with corned beef and saurkraut and bound with 1000 island dressing and "Chicken Shiitake Mushroom") as well as a few traditional recipes (i.e. Bratwurst & Mettwurst). These little beauties are currently snuggly nestled in my refrigerator basket, just waiting for the day when I can enjoy them with mashed potatoes (recipe to come) or pasta.

We also enjoyed a few hours in the largest international market I have ever had the pleasure of setting my feet in! Jungle Jim's is a treat for me, as again, it is not nearby. This particular trip was in celebration of reaching a few goals I've been workign toward for the past 2 months. I was able to purchase almost everything I could dream of.... which I might add, is similar to the amount of food that it takes to feed a fully grown panda for a month.

I found myself nearly skipping down the aisles of honey, prancing around the arena of fresh produce, and oogling at the displays of every cut of every farm animal imaginable. Truly, I have found a little peice of foodie Heaven on Earth. I managed to keep myself under a reasonable level of control, given the deafening rejoicing in my head. I settled with fresh smoked salmon, imported prosciutto, and the most amazing salami I have ever tasted. I found lemongrass and nectarines, and stocked up on antipasti treats like whole Roman artichokes, caperberries, teriyaki marinated mushrooms, and a whole host of olives.

In the Asian section of the store, a young man was givign a demo on japanese noodles with vegetarian oyster sauce & sesame oil. I had a sample and decided I had to make it at home, adding vegetables to up the nutritional content. As I type, I am contentedly slurping up my experiment.

Japanese Stirfry with Noodles...

Water, for boiling
4 oz uncooked "Fusheng Dried Noodle" (a small handful)
2 Carrots, sliced thin
1/4 onion, diced
1/2 baby bok choy, stalks & leaves separated & sliced
4 green onions, chopped

3 Tbsp Sesame Oil
2 Tbsp oyster sauce

Bring water to a rolling boil, drop in pasta and cook until your preferred texture. I like mine al dente, but these are one of the few noodles that I will eat when very soft. Drain & set aside.

Heat 1 to 2 Tbsp oil in a fry pan & add all vegetables except for the bok choy leaves. Cook until tender, but still crisp- about 3 minutes. Add bok choy leaves and cook until wilted.

Put a serving of noodles in a bowl & add 1 Tbsp oyster sauce & 1 Tbsp sesame oil. Top with about 1/2 of the vegetables and mix until everything is evenly coated with the sauce. :)

Summer faves!

Seeing as the heat wave seems to finally be rearing it's ugly head, I thought I'd cheer myself up with some refreshing NO HEAT NEEDED food.

I will say that the Cucumber Dill Salad and Tabouleh recipes are adapted from dishes my boyfriend's mother makes for her family. I'll note the differences in case you'd like to try it her way for comparison purposes. :)



Cucumber Dill Salad

2 large cucumbers, sliced thinly
1/2 Cup sour cream
1/4 cup mascarpone cheese*
1/4 cup mayonnaise
small handful Fresh Dill, chopped
2 T minced dried onion**
1 T garlic powder
s & p, to taste

This recipe is really complicated. Are you ready?

Mix all ingredients (except cucumbers) in a bowl until homogeneous. Add cucumber and mix. Refrigerate for at least an hour to let the flavors blend. Enjoy.

PHEW! I thought I wouldn't get through that one! ;)

* I use mascarpone because it has a more mild and more buttery flavor than mayo. It is also healthier for you- 1/2 the calories, almost no sodium, a solid amount of protein and more nutrients.

**If you don't have minced dried onion in your pantry, don't sweat...

Actually, do sweat- Sweat 1/2 an onion (diced small) in a bit of butter until translucent and beginning to brown. For once I really do prefer the dried stuff, but this does just as well in a pinch :)

Tabouleh

large couscous*
strong chicken broth*
1 large cucumber
2 medium tomatoes
1 bunch scallions
1 bunch parsley
1/4 cup Lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup wheat germ
s & p to taste

Romaine lettuce, if desired

Cook the couscous according to the packaging instructions. Substitute the water with the strong chicken broth. Set cooked couscous aside to cool.

Dice the cucumber and tomatoes, making sure to keep the sizes the same throughout. Slice the scallions (we're using the entire scallion here- green & white parts. I know some people swear by one or the other, but I love the whole thing!)

Chop the parsley, discard the stems. In a large bowl, mix the lemon juice, olive oil, wheat germ and S & P. (Note: I tend to fudge a little on the lemon juice. I like my salad a bit more on the sour side, so sometimes the amount can creep up to 1/2 cup depending on my tastes for a given day.) Add in the veggies and herbs. Toss to coat. Add in the cooled couscous. Toss to coat, and VIOLA!

I love this salad as is, or served piled high on romaine leaves. Delicious either way!

*I like the couscous in my tabouleh, because it adds flavor and texture. Plus it makes the dish capable of stand- alone deliciousness, and needs no "main entree" to go with it. It makes the dish more filling, so the "rabbit fare" will go further. The recipe given to me did not have couscous, so try it both ways and see what your preference is.

Chicken Salad

1 store bought rotisserie chicken (regular flavor or a garlic/ onion is best. My warning: Do NOT use lemon-pepper seasoned for this recipe!)
1/4 cup Mayonnaise
3 T sesame dressing
1/4 cup craisins
1/4 cup sliced almonds
5 scallions, sliced

Remove all the meat from the chicken and chop it into bite size pieces. Put the chicken, along with the remaining ingredients into a bowl and mix. Delicious.

I switch this up sometimes, using raisins or grapes instead of craisins, walnuts instead of almonds, and onions and celery (cut very small) instead of scallions.

Pics of these to come...

Also!!! After an unfortunate lunchtime craving today, I've determined my next mission: to create a FAST solution to a lemon bar need. There has got to be a better option than tasteless microwaved processed lemon cake with a texture somewhere between an old sponge and damp cardboard... I resorted to chugging a can of cola to get rid of the taste, leading to yet another taste catastrophe. STOP THE MADNESS! >:-P

Quick Question:

Have any of you ever used mayonnaise instead of butter for the outside of a grilled sandwich???

Too tired for more now, will post a few of my recently created faves tomorrow! (...today...???)

Mixed Cabbage Salad with crunchy noodles

May I present to you today's lunch: simple, healthy, happy.




Mixed Cabbage Salad is a recipe that has been floating around potlucks and office meetings for a while now, so I decided to try it for myself the other day, in leiu of my goal of "going veg." (No worries, I've come to terms with the fact that I cannot, in NO uncertain terms, do it overnight. My willpower for controlling my diet is just too weak for that sort of life overhaul.

Instead, I'm sticking to chicken and fish for the next few weeks, and avoiding pork and beef. For someone who has been a borderline canivore for nearly their entire life, let just say it's a challenge. One of the earliest pictures my family posseses of me is from before I had teeth. My grandparents were having my mother and I to dinner, for which my grandmother had prepared an old standby: pork chops, applesauce (etc...). The image was taken following my infant decision to grab hold of the pork chop placed elegantly on my mother's plate with both of my chubby little hands and gum that thing to death. While I was sitting on my mother's lap, she had turned her head to look at something other than me (how darst she!) and came to a full realization of what had happened at the exact moment the camera went flash!

SO! clearly, the going veg thing isn't an easy thing. But when the road to veg is paved with cabbage salad and chicken sausage... Well... things might be looking up!

Oriental Mixed Cabbage Salad

1/4 head thinly sliced green cabbage
1/4 head thinly sliced purple cabbage
2 carrots, cut into matchsticks or shaved
6 green onions, sliced

1/2 cup slivered almonds
3 tbsp. sesame seeds
1 pkg. Oriental Ramen (save the seasoning pkt for the "dressing")

1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup oil
Pepper to taste

Mix the first four ingredients in a bowl- its best if said bowl has a cover, for later.

Take the vinegar, oil, pepper and oriental seasoning packet and whisk away. Pour the "dressing" over the cabbage and set aside so that the flavors can blend and the acid can soften the vegetables.

Toast almonds and sesame seeds in oven at 350 for a few minutes. Do not forget them! They're ready quickly, and they become inedible (really, really gross inedible, not going to kill you or break your teeth inedible) the second they turn brown. Brown! not black! Black... let's just not talk about black. Just let them go golden and they're perfect.

Break up the ramen noodles into small peices, about the size of small croutons- and combine with the sesame seeds and almonds in a bowl. Set aside until its time to serve.

Continued...

As implied by the title of my previous post, the postings will continue for a while today. This is cupcakes, continued. After making the previous cupcakes, I stumbled across some peppermint extract in my pantry. Between the excitement I felt welling up inside me and the request my mother had made earlier for me to make some MORE, I couldn't resist. Same basic recipe, flavors changed. I'm ecstatic. Let me just say that I may be the world's only cake-hater. These cupcakes changed my mind.

So far today I have eaten 2 whole cupcakes. Yeah, You might think thats nothing, but for someone who might be convinced to try ONE- count it, one- bite of cake or cupcake and then run for the hills, this is a big deal. And I think one of the other cupcakes, now frosted and glimmering in the overcast light, may be making eyes at me. Oh. This is happening. #3 here I come.

Chocolate Espresso Cupcakes with Mint Buttercream Frosting

1 cup unsweetened Vanilla Almond milk
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup oil (I split the 1/3 and did half extra virgin olive oil and half canola oil)
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract + 1/4 tsp
1/4 tsp peppermint extract


1 & 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder (dutch baking cocoa is more expensive, but seriously worth it)
1 & 1/2 Tbsp instant coffee granules
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp kosher salt

1/3 cup vegan chocolate chips

(I'm reposting the directions from my previous post, as it is the same base recipe...)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Mix first group of ingredients (milk -> peppermint extract)it may not come all the way together for you, dont worry about it for now.

Mix in the next group of ingredients (flour -> salt). Make sure that the batter is smooth and has no clumps.









Line your cupcake pans with the paper cups and fill the cups to about 2/3 full- I used a 2oz scoop to make sure all my cupcakes would come out the same size. Once all the paper cups are filled with delicious batter, sprinkle the chocolate chips on top of the batter. I don't mix them in the batter, because they're likely to sink to the bottom and burn there. :( No one wants sad chocolate chips in their cupcakes.




Bake 'em! ~ 22 minutes per pan, or until their characters have developed, so you can poke the little dears and have them spring back!



Now... Wait for those suckers to cool down. I suggest taking a walk or cleaning so you wont be tempted.

Frosting time! :D

1 Tbsp peppermint extract
3 cups powdered sugar
2 Tbsp almond milk
1 stick margarine

mix


Frost onto the cooled cupcakes. Go ahead. Do it. dooooo itttt. ISN'T THAT THE BEST THING EVER? Dessert lover made here. discovered hiding in the minty coffee chocolatey perfection of a vegan cupcake. Who knew? :D

The Post-Semester Series

Having finished my final week of my final semester, I've had enough time to breathe. This of course means I am cooking again! With a number of HUGE life decisions looming in the not- so- distant- future, I'm dealing with my stress by stocking the fridge so full of food that anyone who takes a peek may or may not be able to see the shelves, nevermind the back of the fridge.

That said, I believe it is time for me to finally post my recent food fun!



I know its backwards, but I'm going to have to start with the recipes I made ... err... am still making as I type... CUPCAKES!!!!

I found an amazing- let me repeat- A-MA-ZING recipe for cupcakes on someone else's blog, which I've adapted a bit. Everyone should go check her site out- www.ohsheglows.com. She's got a number of awesome recipes and I love the goal of her blog.

Ok! So the Recipe(s)

Mocha Maple Cupcakes with Maple Buttercream Frosting

1 cup unsweetened Vanilla Almond milk
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup oil (I split the 1/3 and did half extra virgin olive oil and half canola oil)
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp pure maple extract


1 & 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder (dutch baking cocoa is more expensive, but seriously worth it)
1 tsp instant coffee granules
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp kosher salt

1/3 cup vegan chocolate chips


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Mix first group of ingredients (milk -> maple extract)it may not come all the way together for you, dont worry about it for now.

Mix in the next group of ingredients (flour -> salt). Make sure that the batter is smooth and has no clumps.

Line your cupcake pans with the paper cups and fill the cups to about 2/3 full- I used a 2oz scoop to make sure all my cupcakes would come out the same size. Once all the paper cups are filled with delicious batter, sprinkle the chocolate chips on top of the batter. I don't mix them in the batter, because they're likely to sink to the bottom and burn there. :( No one wants sad chocolate chips in their cupcakes.

Bake 'em! ~ 22 minutes per pan, or until their characters have developed, so you can poke the little dears and have them spring back!

If you can't wait, go ahead. Eat one. I did.

For the maple frosting:

1 Tbsp maple extract
3 cups powdered sugar
2 Tbsp almond milk
1 stick margarine

Mix! spread on cooled cupcakes- and for pete's sake PLEASE don't try piping maple frosting on anything... you'll see.



I told you... just say no to piping here. Unless your intent is to serve crappy cupcakes... Just use a flat icing knife for these. The eaters will thank you.





Oh and by the way. These are vegan. YEAH. THAT'S WHAT I SAID. AMAZING, RIGHT?

Long Time, no food posts...

Oops! Post #2 consisting of an announcement of my regret in not posting my most recent meals.

I ended up taking a number of horrible photos of my lasagna- just before it was completely consumed by myself and the hungry inhabitants of my apartment complex. Only one of the photos is even slightly acceptable, as you see.




That said, I've made a number a reasonably delicious foods lately. The one of which I am most proud is my gumbo! Not to brag, but even my Ohio- grown "southern" fellow (who has an authentically southern Mi-maw) loved it! :)


2 sticks butter
3/4 cup flour

1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
4 sticks celery, chopped

3-4 cloves garlic, minced

5 cups shrimp stock (I made mine, by boiling the shrimp shells w/ s&p)
1 bottle clam juice

1 (12 0z) frozen chopped okra
1 can stewed tomatoes (juice & all!)
2 cups smoked sausage
2 Tablespoons Bay Seasoning
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika
4 bay leaves
2 Tablespoons Italian seasoning
1 Tablespoon garlic salt

2 cans chopped clams (juice & all!!!)
2 (16 oz) bags frozen raw shrimp (make sure to remove all inedibles- i.e. shells...)


Melt the butter in a large, heavy bottomed pot, then add the flour. Heat, stirring frequently, until roux is deliciously dark-ish brown. Note: If you burn the roux, it'll all taste bad. Unless you like the taste of Carbon all through your food (I don't). I'm only saying this because I've done it before. It was a very sad, carbony, UNsavory day in my kitchen. You can't fix it. Honestly? I'm not even sure the Neely's, Paula Dean, or Alton Brown could fix burned roux... And we all know how highly I think of A.B. That man can do almost anything with food...

Ahem. Back to my gumbo....

Once you have a beautiful roux... add the veggies, namely the onion, celery, and bell pepper. Cook about 10 minutes, or until barely translucent and add the garlic. cook another few minutes, then SLOWLY add the liquids (shrimp stock & clam juice, including juice from the canned clams- reserve the clams themselves for later! Overcooked seafood is gummy, chewy, unhappy seafood).
Add the okra, tomatoes, sausage, and spices. Cook about 30 minutes.
Add the remaining ingredients, which should only amount to the shrimp and clams, at this point, and cook until the raw shrimp turn a pretty pink. Watch the shrimp! They only take a few minutes to cook, and again, if you overcook seafood, it gets cranky, which will make you cranky. and your guests cranky. Can't say I didn't warn you.


I ate my gumbo as they do in L.A. -that's Lower Alabama- over rice, and was soon consumed by the warm, cozy feeling that only perfectly executed gumbo can provide.

As I'm not *hugely* tolerant of super-spicy foods, my recipe only has a moderate amount of spice to it, so if you use this recipe, be sure to alter it to your tastes. Level of Spice is just so relative!

In my seafood-rice-spice-food love craze, I didn't have the sense to take pictures. My house smelled too good and my brain turned off. I'm actually pleased that I even remembered everything I put in that pot... Hopefully I'll have my wits about me next time I make this.

Soon to come:

Vanilla Rice Pudding
Crab Rangoon
crepes???