Easy Blueberry Flax Pancakes

Yummy!

2 c. Bisquick

1 c. Milk

2-3 tablespoons finely milled golden flaxseed

2 tablespoons sour cream

1/3 c water

1 1/2 c. Blueberries

Mix ingredients except blueberries. Lumps okay. Adjust liquids for desired consistency. Fold in blueberries. Cook on a griddle and top w butter and syrup.

Add daughter.

Soup Coup Chicken Stew

This entry is a follow-up in my Soup Coup series.

We had a rotisserie chicken for dinner early last week.  My kids pretty much scour the drumsticks for every last morsel, and that's about it.

After dinner, the dog promptly dragged the chicken off the table and onto the floor.  Wha?

All I could think was "Bumpusesssss!"

At any rate, I rinsed off the chicken and made chicken stew the next day.  Since we had just picked up our CSA share, the stew had an even greater variety of veg than it would have, and it helped me use up some odds and ends from the pantry and freezer.

Here's what I did:

Sauteed small onion, 4 stalks of celery, 1 bulb thinly sliced fennel with a few crushed garlic cloves in the bottom of my soup pot.  Salt and pepper.

1 c. white wine (an inexpensive Pinot Grigio)
2 bay leaves

Added a can of chicken broth, a quart of homemade veggie stock, and some water.

Added, chopped up:
3 carrots
3 small-medium turnips (First time I've cooked with turnips.  They smelled like nasturtium greens when they were raw.  Nice and mild in the stew, though.)
1 yam (peeled)
3 red potatoes

Salt and pepper. Thyme, marjoram, sage. Let cook until just about tender.

Added
2/3 bag of frozen pearl onions
1/2 bag of frozen peas
The rest of the rotisserie chicken, shredded.

Let cook until it was all hot.

Added a couple of tablespoons of cornstarch mixed in with a few tablespoons of water, and 1 c. milk (I meant to get cream, but forgot.)

The stew wasn't thick.  I could have made it thicker, but didn't really care much about that.  I totally forgot to put parsley from out back into the pot.  It was getting late and the kids were hungry.

Served with artisan bread from Barrio bakery and butter.

Spaghetti Squash Parmesan Casserole (Easy)

I just ate the leftovers of this -- tasty.  Whenever I cook spaghetti squash, it seems like a single squash makes too much.  Usually I serve it tossed with marinara sauce but we never make it through all the leftovers, so this made sense as a way to freeze half the squash and use it up later in a slightly different format.  I think next time I'll make the casserole and freeze that since it uses similar ingredients to how I usually serve the squash anyway.

Ingredients (approx):

• 2 c. spaghetti squash, prepared. (Mine was frozen and thawed... I included all the juices.)
• Handful of dried pasta (Maybe 1/2 cup?  I used some leftover egg noodles.)
• Half a jar of tomato/basil marinara (Mine was Trader Joe's organic marinara, but I'm sure any sauce you enjoy is fine.)
• 1 tsp. granulated garlic
• 1 c. shredded mozzarella.
• 1/3-1/2 c. grated parmesan (I just used the good ol' green shaker variety... but go ahead and get fancy.)

Method:

• Preheat oven to 350
• Spread spaghetti squash in bottom of medium casserole pan (I have a sort of 6x9 Pyrex oblong that I use). You could butter or spray the pan first.  I don't think I did.
• Place individual dry noodles throughout the casserole.  Press them into the squash to soak up juices. (I did this because my squash looked really watery.  If yours if pretty dry, this might not work out.)
• Sprinkle granulated garlic around the squash.  Salt and pepper the squash to taste.
• Pour the marinara over the squash.  Spread around fairly evenly.
• Sprinkle the mozarella over the sauce.
• Sprinkle the parmesan over that.
• Cover with foil and bake until really bubbly.  Mine looked pretty sloppy/juicy.
• Remove foil.  Bake until cheese looks a little toasty/ yummy.
• Maybe 30 minutes total in the oven (?)

The casserole sort of congealed as it cooled a little.  It cut into portions with somewhat the consistency of lasagna.  

This dish was hearty enough for a lunch entree or a light dinner.  I enjoyed it more than my kids, but we all ate it!  

Big Lagoon Blackberry Balsamic Vinaigrette with Blackberry Heaven Salad

Dylan or Misty took a great photo of the salad...

After a week of picking blackberries like a delighted child, this is the salad and dressing that I made along with my brother and sister-in-law, to take to the rehearsal dinner for my brother Jeff's wedding.  It's tongs-ful of late summer coastal heaven. As with most of my recipes, we made it first and determined amounts afterward.  You can measure if you want to, but you'll probably want to taste and adjust for sweet/ salty/ acid afterward.

  

Salad: 
Greens (we had probably two or three gallons of torn, farmers-market fresh greens)
1-2 firm pears, sliced fairly thinly
1/2 c. toasted walnuts chopped into large pieces
1 1/2 c. heirloom cherry-sized tomatoes
3 c. blackberries, whole
8 oz. feta cheese, crumbled (goat cheese would be good, too)

Nasturtium flowers (7-8) and 2 c.greens (large greens torn)
Cilantro flowers (for garnish)

Vinaigrette: 
2/3 c. balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 large shallots, chopped roughly
2 tsp. dijon or whole-grain mustard
2-3 c. blackberry puree w/ seeds strained out
2 tbsp honey or sugar
2/3 c. olive oil
salt and black pepper to taste

Place shallots and vinegar together into blender first, and then add other ingredients.  Blend until smooth.  Taste and adjust salt/ pepper/ sweet/ acid.  Makes about a liter of dressing, just enough to fill a leftover wine bottle from the week's festivities.  My 6 year-old daughter made the custom label.  Isn't it awesome?  That's her imaginative rendition of the bride and groom.  Such a little artiste.

Happy Wedding, Jeff and Natalynne!

Butternut Squash Soup

One of my weapons for the soup coup.

As always, amounts are approximate and variable.

1 huge butternut squash (3 lb?  More?)

1 1/2 med onion

6 cloves garlic

2 carrots

5 ribs celery

1 1/2 qt. homemade vegetable stock (just because that's how much I had)

3 bay leaves

1 cinnamon stick

grated nutmeg (fresh)

dried ginger (1/2 tsp?)

dried thyme leaves (1/2 tsp?)

dried sage (1 tsp?)

dried marjoram (1/2 tsp?)

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tbsp brown sugar

olive oil

salt

pepper

I started the pot with a couple tablespoons of olive oil and the garlic cloves, whole (crushed would work, too.) 

Chopped and threw in the onions, carrots, celery and let them sautee as I added each ingredient.

Added salt and a little pepper.

Poured the vegetable stock over it.  

Added the bay leaves, cinnamon stick and other herbs/spices.

Chopped and added the butternut squash (peeled first, and cleaned out the seeds & membrane w/ large spoon.  Chopped about 1" cubes more or less)
Added enough water to cover

Added the brown sugar, more salt and a little more pepper (don't go too crazy with the black pepper).

Let it cook for close to an hour.

Removed cinnamon stick and bay leaves.

Used the immersion blender to mix it up.  Left a few chunks.

Served with a little drizzle of olive oil.

Probably a dollop of plain yogurt or sour cream, or some sharp cheese might go well on top, too.

Summer Cooking

This summer, I found an electric juicer at a thrift shop for $3.  A good juicer.

I also had a hard time choosing watermelons.  No matter what, they all seemed a bit spongy or mushy.  Sweet, juicy, but with an unappealing texture.

The result was that I enjoyed a lot of watermelon juice.  "I" instead of "we" enjoyed it because my children are freakish changelings who for some reason don't like watermelon juice.  Weird.  Thankfully, they have redeeming qualities.

With my watermelon juice, I invented and modified other recipes to create watermelon limeade, watermelon-lime granita and tasty watermelon margaritas.  I have a thing about lime juice.


Watermelon Margaritas
Four reasonably-sized margaritas, or two Saturday-Night-At-Home sized margaritas
(As usual, my measurements are approximate.  If I ever write a cookbook one day, I'll get it more down to a science.)
3 cups fresh watermelon juice
2 tbsp - 1/4 c lime juice (to taste)
2 tbsp simple syrup
4-5 oz good tequila (or however strong you want it)
2-4 oz triple sec

Amounts of simple syrup and triple sec will adjust how sweet it is (plus a little alcohol).  If you don't like super-sweet drinks, you could probably leave out the simple syrup altogether.
Serve over well-crushed ice.  I think a sprig of mint would be nice, too, but I didn't have any.


Apple Buttermilk Scones with Apple Spiced Caramel Glaze
I made these on a day my kids asked me to bake something for them like muffins.  Then out of nowhere after morning tennis camp, one of them said, "Actually, I feel like a scone."  I thought that was a funny thing for them to crave, given how limited their scone-sperience is.  So, although it heats up the kitchen miserably in the summer, I baked.

Apologies to Nigella Lawson, who would slap me silly for making her simple, beautifully textured buttermilk scones into a complicated American-style mess.  However, they still aren't too sweet (the sin of many coffee-shop scones) and we really enjoyed them.  Plus, I can't follow a recipe.  I start getting ideas along the way, and I can't hold back, which is why I did the following in the first place, and I think Nigella could appreciate that.

So, I started with her recipe:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/nigella-lawson/buttermilk-scones-recipe/index.html

I mixed the dry ingredients as listed, substituting brown sugar for white, adding a bit of salt and adding an additional 1 tbsp flour 

I prepared apples:

• Dice 1 large apple (I used red delicious because that's what we had but a tarter apple would add more flavor.
• Grate about 1/2" of fresh ginger over the bowl and scrape all the juice and pulp into the apples (probably about 1tsp fresh ginger; the recipe could have taken even more)
• Grate about 1/4 tsp nutmeg into the apples
• Add about 1 tsp cinnamon
• Toss lightly with fingers so the spices coat the apples

When preparing wet ingredients, I added about 1 tbsp honey, just because I had some and it couldn't hurt.

Before mixing wet into dry, I tossed the apples throughout the dry ingredients to coat them with flour.

Shaped and baked as directed.

For the glaze I started with this recipe because it was a caramel glaze that called for buttermilk, and hey, I had buttermilk from making the scones:
http://www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,186,159187-229197,00.html

While cooking, I added the same spices to the glaze as were in the scones:  Cinnamon (maybe 1 1/2 tsp), nutmeg and ginger.  Instead of grating the ginger, I sliced a thick coin of it and cooked it in the glaze mixture.  The fresh ginger lent a great little punch of true spiciness.  I almost eliminated the vanilla, but I'm glad I included it because it adds to the caramel side of the flavor and lends a caremelly color. I cooked the glaze extra long because it didn't seem to develop much caramel color with the cooking time specified.  

When the scones came out, I let them cool a few minutes and then glazed them, let the glaze cool a little and gave them a second drizzling.  The glaze was really, really good, though pretty gooey.  I would love to get these flavors but figure out how to get more of the texture of a powdered sugar glaze.  It might have hardened up better if we hadn't eaten all the scones so soon.

I did freeze some unbaked ones, and they baked up nicely a week later.  The glaze kept in the fridge and I rehydrated it with some buttermilk and warmed it in the microwave. 

Summer Blogging Hiatus... Over

Well, for a variety of reasons (many of which will be blogged-about at a later date) I've taken a couple weeks of hiatus from my blog.

During that time I've tried a watermelon granita recipe, explored my new Kindle Fire and loaded it up with apps like Scrabble and Tune-In, bought a Krups juicer for $3 at a thrift shop, moved from one household to another (several bins and boxes still pending unpacking), slept in, stayed up late, broken up about 50 sibling battles, battled extreme irritability due to previous, sweated it out to Just Dance 3 with my daughter, scored a used trumpet from a friend who wanted to get rid of it, found out I have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, explored my husband's company's new website (they are launching their foot soon!) and read Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen (finally.)  See, now I am qualified to read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.  Then I can read about Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.  (Then I can see the movie.)  Then I will be a tiny bit on my way to catching up on my paranormal literature and pop culture (almost a job requirement for me.)

At any rate, I've had some lying-around time, but things have been darn busy.  I still have a laundry list of to-do items that have been waiting around for months.  It'll all get done by the time school begins.

My review of Pride and Prejudice:

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had great fun reading this book, especially at the end of the school year. I felt that I already understood the broad lines of the plot because there are just so many references to this book in popular culture (movies, etc.) My literature professors would probably be disappointed to know how many times I had Bridget Jones Diary flashbacks while reading. Jane Austen is of course awesome, and it was fun to finally read the original.

I've been moving houses, too, and reading this during my moments of complete exhaustion has made me realize that moving houses has a strange way of bringing out the Victorian in me. I find in myself a renewed interest in household furnishings, whether things match, where items are hung on the walls, or which way they are placed onto surfaces. I stand and unwrap the most frivolous and unsentimental knick-knacks thoughtfully, evaluating whether they can be of good to anyone. I am temporarily convinced that children are to be seen and heard as little as possible-- can't someone else be in charge of feeding them after a day of moving? I can't be bothered. A governess seems highly desirable. I invent a thousand small projects I can do to beautify things-- armrest covers for our child-worn couch, touch-up grout in the shower, the exact combination of color and design and economical value for the shower curtain. All these domestic details would have amused Jane Austen. As I read I imagined Lady Catherine de Bourgh making her way through my tiny abode, disapproving of every room.

Also, I love the story between Elizabeth Bennett and Darcy. Jane Eyre is one of my favorite books, but this one is superior in terms of the balance of power in the relationship. Jane Eyre still wins out in terms of the Gothic good-times and the mousy heroine, but from a feminist perspective and within the limitations of the culture and time period, Lizzy Bennett is awesome.

View all my reviews

Fennel Orange Celery Salad Recipe

Fennel Orange Celery Salad (wish I had a decent camera.)

1 large bulb fennel, very thinly sliced against the grain.
4-5 stalks of celery, very thinly sliced on the bias
two navel oranges, supremed (cut off ends, cut off peel and white pith with your knife by working your way around the outside of the orange, hold the orange in your hand and carefully slice out the natural wedges leaving behind the membrane).
1 small/medium lemon
1-2 tsp. honey
1-2 tbsp. olive oil

Combine the veggies and orange supremes in a larger bowl.  Use your clean hands to squeeze the leftover orange membranes for all they're worth into a small bowl.  Add also the juice of one lemon (or to taste).  Add honey, salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle olive oil in while whisking.  Go light on the olive oil or the dressing is too heavy.

Banana Lime Sorbet

Here is a fantastic little recipe I invented this summer when I wanted something cool and sweet.  I was inspired by Alton Brown's show Good Eats in which he talks about using avocado in ice cream because you can use less sugar, since avocado is a natural emulsifier.  He mentioned that bananas were similar, and I had been meaning to test the theory since then.

This sorbet is even more fantastic with a shot of tequila over the top.  Ay, ay, ay!

I used our small Krups ice cream mixer-- the one where you freeze the bowl in the freezer and then the motor mounts on top.  It worked great for this purpose and this small batch.
As always, amounts are approximate!

Ingredients:
5 ripe bananas
1 c. simple syrup
lime zest finely ground/chopped
lime juice (1 or two limes total for zest and juice—4 tablespoons of juice?)

Blend all ingredients in blender until smooth.

Freeze in ice cream mixer.

Adult Slushie:
Add a scoop of the sorbet, squeeze of lime and tequila in a cup and eat!

Additional note (Summer, 2012):  I tried making this recipe as a granita by pouring it into a shallow pan and putting it in the freezer, and scraping it every 40 minutes or so.  It worked great and tasted great.   Also worth noting, the color of this can be off-putting.  It's the color of ripe banana flesh, of course, an unappetizing sort of pukey taupe.  Sorry.  There's nothing I can really figure out to do about that.  If you have any ideas, let me know.  Otherwise, it is a really great way to use up ripe bananas.

Chile Lime Pork Tenderloin

Here is a recipe I made over the summer that turned out quite tasty.  As in all my recipes, amounts are approximate!  Make with Love, and ENJOY!

Ingredients:
3-4 pounds pork tenderloin, silverskin removed.
¼ cup mild red chile, ground (New Mexico)
2 tablespoons cumin
1/2 -1 teaspoon Mexican oregano
1 tablespoon garlic powder (or to taste)
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. salt
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1-2 teaspoons liquid smoke
4-5 chopped scallions
zest of three limes, in larger pieces.
juice of three limes (1/4 cup? More would be okay.)
¾ of a Corona beer (drink the rest)

Mix everything but the meat in a gallon sized Ziploc bag. Squish to mix ingredients and dissolve the honey.

Add meat to the bag and seal, pressing out as much air as possible. Squish the meat and marinade around gently to evenly distribute the marinade.  Place bag in a 9x9 square baking dish or similar dish or tray to prevent spills if there is leakage.

Marinate for at least 4 hours in the refrigerator; more would be better.

Before grilling, pat meat dry with towels. remove most big chunks of scallion and lime zest. Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper.  Grill over coals until it reaches a safe internal temperature (I stopped at 145 degrees) & allow to rest before slicing.

Good accompaniment: grilled vegetable skewers.

Yummy Potato Broccoli Soup

I had some leftover baked potatoes in my fridge, along with some chopped up onion and celery from making stuffing, and I invented this recipe. As usual, all amounts are only appoximate and can easily be changed to suit your tastes or what is in your fridge.

In a good sized soup pot, sautee 1/2 c. chopped onion and 1/2 c. chopped celery in about 1/2 stick of butter.

When they are almost translucent, add maybe 1/2 tsp. dry thyme and 1 tsp. dry basil (or fresh if you've got it-- larger amounts.) Put in about 1 lb. or a little more of frozen broccoli (I used the cheap broccoli cuts, and I think it was closer to 1 1/2 lb.)

Pour in 1 qt. of vegetable broth or stock. Season with about 1 tsp. salt and pepper to taste.

Heat to simmering and cook at a low simmer until the broccoli is tender (about 15-20 minutes?) This is enough time to take a shower with your two-year-old and even shampoo and condition both of your hair. I even had time to put away a little laundry on the way into the shower.

I started with four baked potatoes. I peeled two and chunked them into the soup. Season again w/ a little salt and pepper. Heat through.

Turn off heat.
Carefully, run the soup through the blender in two batches. Add a handful of parsley leaves into one of the batches. Use a towel over the top to prevent spills.

Return the soup to your pot over low heat. Season it again to taste. Peel and dice the remaining two potatoes and add them to the pot. Heat through. Squeeze 1/2 lemon into the soup and remove from heat.

You end up with a creamy-style soup without all the cream. Use olive oil instead of butter to make it a little more healthy.

It's easier than it sounds, and much cheaper and more tasty than canned soup!