Saturday, December 19, 2009

Butternut Squash Pizza

Ok, so, I seem to have redirected my obsessions with roasted butternut squash, toasted walnuts, and gorgonzola- which have previously been seen together in a wheatberry based format this time, into pizza.

Basically, this is the story:
--herb pizza dough from Trader Joes- you could make your own, or use a Boboli-type crust, but this stuff, which comes in dough form, is just awesome. roll it out, and coal with olive oil.
--1 little pack of butternut squash, also from TJs. or, just roast one, but that is going to be a much bigger commitment. cook it in the microwave until its really soft, and cut into even smaller pieces.
--a few handfuls of fresh spinach
--some crumbled gorgonzola
--a handful of toasted walnuts
--a shallot, sliced, and browned

Roll out the dough, brush with olive oil. Spread the spinach leaves, then layer on squash, gorgonzola, walnuts, and shallots. Sprinkle with pepper. Bake in 400 degree oven until crust seems done.

You'll note that this is not a cheesy pizza. You can add a bit of shredded cheese to hold it together (since you're already going to TJs, I get the Quattro Fromagio)- but, I only added about a quarter of a cup on the entire thing. There are so many flavors, its kind of nice to enjoy them and not have the focus be a pile of cheese (not, for the record, like I'm ever opposed to piles of cheese).

Anyways, if you want something warm and comforting, and a little different, this pizza's your man!

Monday, December 14, 2009

The Mother Lode

I think we all know that I'm a sucker for a deal on spices. This is mainly because if you're going to cook on a budget, you're going to need to take action to keep things interesting... very cheap ingredients (lentils, beans, grains, and so on) can take on a huge range of flavors if you do things right.

Well, this weekend... I hit the mother lode. A friend and I went to an area of town full of every kind of Indian store you can think of- clothes, food, groceries, everything. (this, by the way, is why I love L.A... I spent the morning there, then went to little Ethiopia for dinner, then I came home to my place, which is in little Brazil). ANYHOW. Check this out... I think I may never need to buy cumin, ever, for the rest of my life. This beat the ethnic section of my regular grocery store, which I had previously been all excited about, hands down- $1.80 for half a POUND of cumin? Holy smokes!

I got a couple of things I'm particularly psyched about...

1. cardamom pods
Why am I all excited about this? Mainly because I find cardamom fascinating- my family is Scandinavian, and growing up, I completely associated the taste with desserts made by my Grandmother (in addition, it is an ingredient in Glogg, which is the spiced wine you'll find on the stove of everyone I'm related to during the holidays). Only as an adult did I learn that its a huge component of Eastern cooking as well- I had this very surreal experience at the home of a friend, when her Mom used it in a rice dish- it took me half the meal to figure out what the strangely familiar flavor was. And only 10 minutes ago when I googled it, did I learn that together the Near East and Scandinavia consume half the worlds cardamom. I really like the idea of these two completely diverse regions and cultures independently landing on a same favorite spice. Plus, apparently its related to ginger, and, I do love ginger.

2. Garam masala
in seed form:
I didn't even know you could get this. I always have garam masala on hand, but its usually a mysterious powder. Now, the mystery is unveiled and I can see all the raw components (of course, I have to figure out how to grind it up, but thats another adventure).

3. Moong beans
One of my favorite things is to buy ingredients I've never used before, and just figure out what to do with them once I'm home. Thats not totally the case with these beans because I'd heard you could use them for daal. But, I've definitely never cooked them myself, and just spent part of the evening looking around for recipes. A pot of daal is currently bubbling on the stove, destined to be my lunch tomorrow if it works out. If its edible, you'll be seeing it soon! (it smells good, so my hopes are high).

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Search Term Hilarity

So, google analytics is awesome, because it lets me see how many of you come visit, what you come for, and how long you stay. The most popular, by far are people looking for things made with adzuki beans and people who want to know about the blonde children of the corn (except that the Children of the Corn aren't blonde. thats the Village of the Damned kids. just FYI).

But, every once in a while something completely mysterious and awesome comes up, like this:

don't have a monobrow but something close to it that is bad

I'm guessing he somehow got here because of this post on monobrow.com. But, what really gets to me is the tone of desperation. I wish I could help, I really do. Unfortunately the best I can do is to advise him to seek the help of a professional, or else, just curl up on the couch with some rice krispie treats...

Friday, December 11, 2009

Peppermint Krispies, Oh My Goodness

We all know rice krispie treats are pretty much the pinnacle of awesomeness, in terms of things-that-can-happen-to-cereal. And, normally, I'm a big fan of the traditional treats. HOWEVER. This rendition of the treats is so delicious, and so holiday appropriate, you're going to need to go out and make it immediately. See below.

I wanted to make peppermint krispies, but just wasn't sure they'd work. It was important that at least some of them turn out, because I had to take them to work, because at work we have a longstanding tradition that on your birthday, the "Birthday Pirate" comes through the lab and leaves treats next to the coffee machine. He also miraculously knows the email address for the list serve and sends a pirate themed announcement of the treats. So, it was my turn to be the pirates secret helper (he's a terrible baker, really), and I couldn't make the pirate look bad. Therefore, I did the recipe in halves, but if I could go back in time (even pirates can't do that) I'd just do them all peppermint. Nevertheless, I will give you the full and accurate rendition...

Half-batch #1: Peppermint Krispies
-half a cube of butter (yeah, sorry, it makes them delicious)
-3 candycanes, crushed however you can figure out to crush them (I smushed them with a glass)
-half a bag of marshmallows
-3 cups rice krispies (I used generic krispies, because really, they're identical)

Melt the butter, and when its about half melted, throw in half the candy cane pieces. These are going to totally melt. If they look like a clumpy mess, don't panic- it'll all work out when the marshmallows go in. When the butter is melted, dump in the marshmallows. Stir pretty much constantly, until they are all just melted and its all smooth. Turn off the heat, and dump in the 3c krispies. Now, with the krispies, put in the remaining candy cane (these pieces won't melt and will look cute). Pour it all into a greased glass pan, and press down with waxed paper if you need to. Prepare to be amazed. Yum. Seriously amazing.

Half Batch #2- Chocolate Krispies
These were the back up batch, and they were great on their own, and also in combination with the peppermint. Basically, make the entire recipe above, minus the candy cane. After the krispies are about half stirred in, pour in some chocolate chips. They're going to kind of melt, and make swirls of chocolate through the bars (it shouldn't be uniform, this is part of the charm. otherwise you might as well have used cocoa krispies, which are scary and wrong). Put in pan, as above. These need to cool a bit longer than normal bars, because the chocolate needs to get hard. If you're in a time emergency, you can stick them in the freezer for a bit. These are also delicious, and totally worth making. But, make the peppermint ones, too :).

I've had a long internal debate about whether, really, the next logical step is to do peppermint-chocolate krispie treats. It would be over the top, but its just a question of whether its in a good way or not... if you try, by all means let me know!

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip Cookies

OK, I made some cookies. They're not going to win any beauty contests but they have two big things in their favor. They are : 1. almost ridiculously easy and 2. very tasty.


Here's what you need (really, this is all):
1 box spice cake mix
1 can pumpkin
1 bag white chocolate chips
a little cinnamon sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Dump the pumpkin and cake mix in a bowl and mix. Add white chocolate chips until the cookie:chip ratio looks like how you would want it. (feel free to taste! no eggs = no salmonella from raw dough!).

Spoon the batter out on a cookie sheet, and then take the bottom of a glass, run it under the faucet, and then dip it in a bowl of cinnamon sugar. Use it to flatten the cookies out a bit.

Bake about 10 minutes, or until they look done.

I took these to a party, and they were a hit!

(ps. did you know there is a canned pumpkin shortage? Apparently there was a combo of a lot of rain and a small harvest, and some places are out of pumpkin (OUT OF PUMPKIN. the horror, the horror). Anyhow, if you see some, snap it up).

Saturday, December 5, 2009

Pasta e Fagioli

A friend of mine passed on this recipe which turned out to be really delicious. Its that magical combination of delicious and easy... try it! You'll like it!



The stuff:
--1 T olive oil
--6 ounces hot turkey Italian sausage (I don't usually eat sausage, but this was a key component of the flavor here. if you veggie-fy it, be sure to amp up the spices, and consider adding some extras, like sage and rosemary)
--1.5 T bottled minced garlic (how easy can you get?)
--2 cups water
--1 (16-ounce) can chicken broth (can use low sodium, fat free)
--1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce (no salt added)
--1 cup uncooked small shell pasta, or other similarly sized pasta, like bows
--.5 cup parmesan cheese
--1.5 teaspoons dried oregano
--1/4 teaspoon salt
--1/4 teaspoon white pepper
--2 (15-ounce) cans white beans, drained
-- red pepper flakes


What to do with it:
Brown the crumbled sausage and chopped garlic in a very large saucepan, or soup-type pan. Add water, broth, beans, tomato sauce, oregano, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes; bring to a boil. If you happen to be having a glass of red wine while you cook, pour in a slosh or two. Lower and let it simmer for about 40-45 minutes- its going to smell awweeessooommmmeee, you want all the flavors to blend and get to know each other. Stir in pasta, bring this whole thing to a boil, cover, reduce heat, and simmer for about 15 more minutes or until pasta is done- if you need a bit more water, just add it. Once its done, let settle for 5 minutes and stir in the cheese

You can serve it with a nice salad, or some crusty bread. The hands on cooking time is really minimal, but you get that nice wintery feeling of having something delicious simmering along on the stove, its the absolute perfect thing for a cold winter day!

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Wheat Berries Round III: Butternut Squash, Walnuts, Gorgonzola, mmmmm....

Well, I told you you were done with Wheat Berries, but clearly I lied.

I have to post this, because I just made it for dinner AGAIN, and I LOVE IT. It is heavily inspired by the previous 'Balsamic Gorgonzola Deliciousness' recipe, but that was more summery, with crispy apples and fennel, and this is more wintery.



The stuff:
--Butternut squash (I told you that was my new food kick!), cubed and roasted
--wheatberries, about a cup and a half or 2 cups, cooked
--toasted walnuts
--crumbled gorgonzola
--carmelized onions
--balsamic vinegar
--olive oil
--salt & pepper

Now basically, the reason that this is so awesome and delicious and easy, is that you just mix together that list of stuff, taste to make sure you like the proportions, and gobble up. (and trust me, you will gobble). But, some of that stuff is kind of time consuming, so now I'm going to share the system I arrived at for making it weeknight-friendly.

Wheatberries- now, I have mentioned these previously, and they take a LONG TIME to cook. As in, over an hour. Anything cooking for over an hour is not weeknight friendly at all. Knowing full well that I'm obsessed with these things, obviously I had to take action. So, a while ago, I bought a big bag of these little lovelies from Whole Foods, filled up my biggest pot with water, and then let them boil and boil until they were edible (1-1.5 hours). After they were cooked, I scooped them up in 1 or 2 cup increments, dumped them into individual ziplock baggies, and stuck them in the freezer- voila! microwave, and you have instant wheatberries!

Butternut squash- these little bags from trades joes are awesome. Just buy, open, toss with a little olive oil, and put in the oven at 400 until nice and soft and browned (stir as needed). Obviously its always fine to buy a whole squash, seed, peel, and cube it, but thats a lot of work.

Onions- carmelizing onions takes a while, but luckily you have to roast the squash so you have time, because just frying them would not be as delicious. Basically, stick the squash in, and then quickly slice about half an onion, and put it on LOW LOW HEAT with some butter or olive oil. cook them slowly and let them become delicious and sweet and brown (since they're on low, you can just leave them, and go over and stir occasionally).

Roasted walnuts- buy them pre-chopped, and store in the freezer. pull out a handful, put on a cookie sheet, and let them heat up while you stir up all the other ingredients

Gorgonzola- you can buy this crumbled. it is more expensive, but its in a nice sealed container, and is pretty easy to deal with, and is very week-night friendly.

The skinny:
So, here is your system- walk in the door. Toss the squash in the oven and the onions in the pan, remove walnuts and berries from freezer. For the next 30 min or so, do whatever you do when you come home, occasionally going in the kitchen and stirring the onions and squash. When its almost ready, just pop the wheatberries in the microwave and the walnuts in the hot oven. Pull it all out, dump in a big bowl, pour some olive oil, balsamic, salt, and (lots of) pepper, stir in copious amounts of cheese, and you're good to go! So warm and savory and delicious!!

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Super Easy Walnut Brussel Sprouts

I may have previously mentioned that, against all odds, as an adult I have been converted to an unabashed, full-fledged, Brussel sprout eater.

Here is a super easy, fast, simple, delicious version ...

You need:
-olive oil or butter
-a big pile of brussel sprouts
-chopped walnuts
-salt and pepper

Slice up the sprouts so their kind of leafy (see picture). Heat up some oil/butter, and toss in the walnuts so they get a little toasty. Throw in the chopped sprouts, and saute... you want to make them get a teeny bit brown, but not soggy (overcooking them is a top cause of nasty sprouts). Sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve! yum!

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