Lebanese Lentil and Rice Pilaf with Blackened Onions

This recipe is wonderful. It's vegetarian and exactly what we needed after a week of overindulging in Puerto Rico. I usually slice up cucumbers and tomatoes to eat alongside. I also make the flatbread that is in Cook's Jan/Feb 1999 issue.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Lebanese-Lentil-and-Rice-Pilaf-with-Blackened-Onions-108813

strawberry sauce

I made this last night to go on top of ice cream and brownies. It was so good. I got the recipe out of a B&B cookbook - the original intent was to put it on top of fancy French toast.... I can see where that would be good, but it just screamed vanilla ice cream and chocolate brownie to me.

• 1 Qt strawberries
• 2 TBS orange liqueur (I used Cointreau)
• 2 TBS water
  
• 1/3 cup sugar

Slice the strawberries. Put all ingredients into a sauce pan and cook on medium heat for 5 minutes. Stir. Let cool before you burn your mouth.... Can be easily reheated in the microwave.

Almost-No-Knead Baguettes

This recipe was in the King Arthur Flour Baker's Catalog earlier this year. It makes enough dough for four loaves, so I have halved the recipe successfully. (Also, who can manage EIGHT CUPS of flour?!) I've made it three times successfully without a baguette pan.

Apologies to you high-elevation people for another bread recipe...

"Better is half a loaf than no bread" -- John Heywood

3 cups lukewarm water
8 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 tablespoon table salt or 1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon instant yeast
(or, by weight:)

24 ounces lukewarm water
34 ounces King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 tablespoon table salt or 1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon instant yeast

Directions
1) Find a large (6-quart) bowl or bucket, for dough storage in the fridge. Lightly grease the bowl or bucket.
2) Place the water directly into the bowl or or other large container.
3) Add the dry ingredients to the water, and stir to combine. Mix until there are no dry spots; the texture of the dough should be fairly soft.
4) Knead the dough gently for a few minutes, by hand; it'll be very sticky. Or knead for 1 or 2 minutes in a stand mixer. Cover the container, and let the dough rest at room temperature for 2 hours.
5) Refrigerate overnight, or for up to 7 days.
6) To bake bread: Scoop out a scant 1 pound of dough (about ¼ of the batch, about 14 ½ ounces). Place on a greased work surface.
7) Shape the dough into a rough, slightly flattened oval, cover with greased plastic wrap, and let rest for 15 minutes.
8) Fold the dough in half lengthwise, and seal the edges with the heel of your hand. Flatten slightly, and fold lengthwise and seal again.
9) With the seam side down, cup your fingers and gently roll the of dough into a 15" log.
10) Place the log seam-side down onto a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet, or into the well of a baguette pan.
11) Cover and allow the baguette to rise till it's very puffy, about 1 1/2 hours. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat your oven to 450°F.
12) Slash the baguette three or four times on the diagonal.
13) Spritz the baguette heavily with warm water, and bake until a very deep golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on a rack.

roasted brussel sprouts

I found this recipe today in an attempt to get rid of some of the random bags of frozen vegetables that JR seems to buy two at a time and then forget about. So after looking at all the cookbooks I had here and not finding anything simple or anything AT ALL to do with brussel sprouts I went online to try my luck. What I loved most about this recipe was how simple it was and to top it off I used grated Gouda that someone suggested on another website. It was awesome and b. sprouts might be making a comeback into our regular diet.

Note: the recipe is from the Barefoot Contessa on Food Network

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts (I used a bag of frozen ones)
• 3 tablespoons good olive oil
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Cut off the brown ends of the Brussels sprouts and pull off any yellow outer leaves. Mix them in a bowl with the olive oil, salt and pepper. Pour them on a sheet pan and roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. Shake the pan from time to time to brown the sprouts evenly. Sprinkle with more kosher salt ( I like these salty like French fries), and serve immediately.

Grilled Snapper with Olives & Oranges

This sounds like an unlikely combination but the fruit "salsa" is pretty and quick and really good.

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 8 mins

Serves 4

1-1/2 c. orange sections, chopped (sweet is good: I used mineolas)

1/3 c. sliced green olives (I used queens)

1/4 c. diced red onion

2 T. finely chopped fresh Italian parsley

3 T. fresh lime juice, divided

(I used double the amounts listed above. The more salsa per filet, the better.)

4, 6-oz. snapper fillets

2 T. olive oil

1.

Coat grill rack with nonstick cooking spray. Preheat grill to medium (300-350F). In a small bowl combine oranges, olives, onion, parsley and 1 tablespoon of lime juice. Set aside.

2.

Season fillets with salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle with oil and remaining lime juice.

3.

Place fillets on grill. Grill 4 to 5 minutes per side or until fish flakes easily with a fork. Spoon orange-olive salsa over filets (and extra on the side if you made double per my instructions!).

Serve with rice.

(From a free recipe card given away at our local grocery store (!).)

mallorcas!

- Makes 9 rolls -

Ingredients

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter
1 package active dry yeast
1/4 cup lukewarm water
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 egg yolks
1/2 cup milk
2-1/2 to 3 cups all-purpose flour
flour for dusting work surface
butter to grease bowl and pan
confectioners' sugar for dusting

Procedure

1. Melt the butter and let it cool slightly. In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in the water. Add the sugar, salt, egg yolks, milk, 4 tablespoons of the cooled butter, and 2-1/2 cups of the flour. Mix well.

2. Lightly flour a work surface. Turn out the dough and knead for 5 minutes. Add enough of the remaining flour so that the dough is not sticky.

3. Grease a bowl with butter. Pur the dough in it and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm place for 45 minutes.

4. Grease a 9-inch square baking pan. Set aside. Punch the dough down. Knead it on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle about 18x9 inches. Brush with the remaining melted butter. Roll up the dough from one short end and cut it into 9 slices; trim the ends to make them neat. Arrange the slices in the baking pan. Cover and let rise for 40 minutes.

5. Preheat the oven to 375 F. Bake the rolls for 30 minutes, or until lightly browned. Let the rolls cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Transfer to a platter and dust with confectioners' sugar.

Peach Pie

Here's the recipe link and picture. Forgive me for not re-posting.

Carmelized Tomato Tatin -- at last!

I finally made this tonight (served with simple grilled steaks) and it was ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Check my blog for real-life photo and details.

Brownies

This is from Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home.

1/2 cup butter
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1/2 cup white flour

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Butter an 8- or 9-in square baking pan.
• In a medium or large saucepan melt the butter and chocolate together. When the butter and chocolate have melted, remove the pot from the heat.
• Add the brown sugar and vanilla and mix with an electric mixer.
• Add the eggs. (If you aren't using an electric mixer, be sure the beat the eggs first. If you are using the mixer just crack the eggs right into the pot.)
• Stir in the flour, and mix until the batter is thoroughly blended and smooth.
  
• Pour batter into the pan and bake for 20 - 25 minutes.
  

Blackened Salmon with Blue Cheese Sauce

Yesterday afternoon the four of us settled on the couch for some food tv time. While we were waiting for Jacques Pepin to come on PBS we caught part of "Big Daddy's House" on FN, starring the latest "Next Food Network Chef" Aaron McCargo Jr.

This sounded so good that I put on shoes and went to the store to buy salmon. We had everything else in the house, save for heavy cream, so I used half and half. I halved the spice rub (for our 2 fillets), but still had a lot left.

It was as delicious as it looked. The spice and the sauce is almost reminiscent of buffalo chicken.

Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 10 min
Level: Easy
Serves: 4 servings

Ingredients
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon cracked black pepper
2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons salt
1 1/2 tablespoons cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon grapeseed oil, for frying
4 (6-ounce) portions skinless and boneless salmon fillets

Blue Cheese Sauce:
1/4 cup white wine
1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup blue cheese crumbles

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a small bowl, combine the Italian seasoning, black pepper, paprika, salt, and cayenne. Season each piece of fish with the rub.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the butter and oil. Once the butter has melted, add the fish and cook about 2 minutes per side.

Transfer the whole pan to the oven and cook for another 4 to 6 minutes.

For the sauce:
Place the white wine into a medium saucepan and reduce by half. Add the heavy cream and allow to reduce. Add the blue cheese and whisk until smooth. Serve on top of the salmon.

marinade for chicken and ribs

This is from Nigella Express. I made the chicken and ribs for when Clark and Ash came down this past weekend. Super yum. The marinade is good for 12 pork ribs and 12 chicken thighs (skin on).

1 cup apple juice
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 TBS vegetable oil
2 TBS soy sauce
2 star anise
1 cinnamon stick, halved
6 unpeeled cloves of garlic

I mixed all the wet ingredients together, put the ribs in one freezer bag and the chicken thighs in another. I poured the wet ingredients into both and evenly divided the spices and garlic into both. I marinated everything overnight and roasted at 400 degrees for about 1.25 or 1.5 hours.

Cavatelli w/ Italian Sausage and Broccoli Rabe

I found this recipe on epicurious while trying to figure out what the heck to do with broccoli and sausage (the two ingredients I had sitting on my counter). I loved that the sauce was very light tasting - opposed to some of the heavier cream-based or tomato-based. And also, it's super quick!

yield: Serves 2

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound (about 2 cups) dried cavatelli or other small shell-shaped pasta
• 1/2 pound (about 3 links) sweet Italian sausage
• 1 bunch (about 3/4 pound) broccoli rabe, tough and hollow stems discarded, washed well
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 1/4 cups low-salt chicken broth
• 1/4 cup golden raisins
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

• Accompaniment: freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation

In a kettle of boiling salted water cook pasta until al dente.

While pasta is cooking, squeeze sausage from its casings into a large heavy skillet and sauté over moderately high heat, stirring to break up chunks, until no longer pink. With slotted spoon transfer sausage to a bowl, reserving drippings in skillet.

Cut broccoli rabe into 1-inch pieces and sauté in reserved drippings, stirring occasionally, until it begins to brown. Add garlic and sauté, stirring frequently, 1 minute. Add broth and raisins and simmer until broccoli rabe is just tender, about 3 minutes. Add butter, stirring until incorporated.

Drain pasta and return to kettle. Add broccoli rabe mixture and sausage and heat through if necessary.

Serve pasta with Parmesan.