Spinach salad, weekend plans, and a song

I love a good spinach salad.  It's an easy side dish to throw together with whatever additions you have on hand.  I vary the nuts, fruit, and cheese, but those elements are always included.  When I make a salad, I don't use exact measurements.  I just keep adding ingredients and tasting until I think it is right.

Spinach Salad

1 orange supremed (here is a tutorial)
Juice squeezed from the membrane of the fruit
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Fresh Baby spinach (washed and dried)
1 Small Shallot
1 small cucumber sliced
Dried Cranberries
Toasted Walnuts
Feta cheese

Place the orange juice in a large bowl, slowly add the olive oil and whisk until it is the consistency that you like.  Add salt and pepper. 
Add the spinach.  I like about 4-5 handfuls for this amount of dressing, if it is a large orange that is.
Add the remaining ingredients, toss and serve.
Salad tip:  If we are having friends over and I want to make a salad ahead of time.  I place the dressing in the bottom of large bowl and add all of the salad ingredients.  DO NOT TOSS.  Cover, place in the fridge.  Right before I serve the salad I toss it.  No last minute prep. Thanks to the Barefoot Contessa for the tip. 

Weekend plans:

Katie's gone for the weekend (youth group event)

Date night tonight. Brian's making a new recipe...woo hoo!

Saturday clean and hang out with Ian.

Sunday, Brunch with my Mom and sisters (Meritage)

The game and good food...Go Steelers!!!

Yesterday Brian and I shut off our computers until the kiddos went to bed. It was so nice, we need to do that more often.  I was also thinking about soaking up all these special memories that we are making with our children.  Weather they are 2 or 22.  I am going to embrace all those moments.  The texts, talking in the car, sharing our day.  All those little things I take for granted.  Here is a pretty song, sung by an angel.

Mindy Gledhill ~ Hourglass

Have a great weekend!

Rachel

Avocados two ways

We love avocados and I'm always looking for new ways to eat them.  Here's what I came up with.

Avocado with balsamic vinegar

Half of an avocado sliced
Balsamic vinegar
kosher salt
pepper

Drizzle on the balsamic sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Avocado with Blue Cheese dressing

Half of an avocado sliced
3 Tablespoons crumbled blue cheese
3 Tablespoons low fat buttermilk
Pepper

Combine the blue cheese and buttermilk.  Mash the ingredients together.  Add pepper.  Drizzle over avocado.

Source: Young Adventures

Hugs ~

Rachel

Roasted Garbanzo Beans

Here is another easy and healthy snack.

Be careful though, they are addicting.  If you eat a whole bowl by yourself you and your family will pay the consequences.  They are beans after all.

Roasted Garbanzo Beans

*1 cup dry garbanzo beans, soaked overnight and cooked

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 400F.

Drain the beans and shake out any excess water.  Lay paper towels on a rimmed baking sheet.  Place the beans on top of the paper towels.  Using another paper towel gently press and dry the beans.  Roll the beans around with the paper towel, this helps remove the moisture.  If any of the thin skin comes off, just discard them.  Remove the towels.

Drizzle the olive oil on top of the beans, toss them around to coat.  Roast the beans for 30-40 minutes until they are golden brown and crunchy.  Watch carefully so they do not burn, especially at the end.  Place in a bowl and toss in the salt and spice mixture.  Enjoy!

You can use canned garbanzo beans.  Rinse and drain them well.  Steamy Kitchen has linked up a variety of spice options, so check those out.

Source: Steamy Kitchen

xoxo

Rachel

Spicy Edamame

Quick. Easy. Healthy.

I like to serve this as a side dish, but I think it would be great as a snack or appetizer.

Spicy Endamame

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 14 oz. bag of frozen Edamame

Steam the edamame for 4-5 minutes.  While the edamame is steaming.  Mix together the spices in a large bowl.  Place the steamed edamame in the bowl with the spices.  Toss and serve. Enjoy!

xoxo

Rachel

Holiday Recipes ~ Sweet Potato Casserole

We really do love our sweet potato recipe, but I was unfaithful a few weeks ago. I was flipping through the pages of the latest Penzey's catalog and this Sweet Potato Casserole recipe caught my eye. Brian was making roast poulet and I thought this would go with it nicely. Wow!! We were really amazed by these sweet potatoes, they are sooo Yummy!! Please make these, you will love them. I made mine in individual dishes because I thought Ian might be more drawn to them, but no such luck. He just eat the brown sugar topping. Next time I will make it in one casserole dish like the recipe suggests.

Sweet Potato CasseroleI actually halved the recipe since it was just the four of us. I am giving you the orginial measurements. I also used skim milk instead of cream.
6 medium sweet potatoes

1/4 tsp. salt

2 TB. butter, softened

2 eggs

1 1/2 tsp. PURE VANILLA EXTRACT

3/4 tsp. PENZEYS CINNAMON

1/3 Cup sugar

1/4 Cup cream (Beth uses heavy cream, half & half works as well). I actually used skim milk and I thought it was great.

Streusel Topping:
4 TB. chilled butter (1/2 stick)

1/4 Cup flour

3/4 Cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 Cup chopped pecans (optional) I would probably use more than this amount.

Preheat oven to 350°. Lightly grease a 9x13 baking pan and set aside. Peel, quarter and boil sweet potatoes for 10-15 minutes until fork tender, drain and dry well. Or, pierce 3 sweet potatoes with a fork and microwave until softened. This can take anywhere from 6-15 minutes, depending on your microwave and the size of the potatoes, so pay attention the first few times you do it! Repeat with the remaining sweet potatoes. When cool enough to handle, peel the sweet potatoes and place in a mixing bowl. Mash with a fork or potato masher. Add the salt, butter, eggs, VANILLA, CINNAMON, sugar and cream and mix until smooth. Spoon into the baking dish and spread evenly.

For the Streusel topping: In a medium bowl, combine the butter, flour and brown sugar. Mix with 2 forks or knives, a pastry blender or your fingers to the consistency of coarse meal. Stir in the pecans if using. Sprinkle over the sweet potato mixture. Bake at 350° for 30-45 minutes or until the topping is crisp and lightly browned.

Enjoy!

Rachel

Dried beans

This last week I stocked up on dried beans. Thanks, for the heads up Pocket Your Dollars! Rainbow had a huge variety of beans on sale this week for $1 a bag. I decided to get eight different variety's. We don't cook that much with dried beans, but I really want to. I mean the cost savings is pretty big. I'm not bashing canned beans at all they are easy to use, and as a Mom who works outside of the home I totally get that. Sometime ago I was alerted to sodium level in canned beans, and I was shocked! Lower sodium and organic are available, but a little bit more spendy. I figure if I have the beans at home, I will incorporate them in our cooking more. Talk about veggie protein! I can't wait to make lentil soup again. I'm sure Brian would be more than willing to make ham hocks and beans. This Indian Dal Nirvana from Steamy Kitchen was awesome! This is a good Indian dish to try if you are hesitant to try Indian food. I would love to try black bean soup, spilt pea soup, homemade hummus the list goes on!

How about you guys do you cook much with dried beans?

xoxo

Rach

Ina Garten's Tomato and Goat Cheese Tarts

Well, Ina's done it again. This recipe comes from her latest cookbook Back to the Basics. We made these delicious tarts for date night a few weeks ago and they were incredible. We had never really used puff pastry before, and boy have we been missing out. It bakes up in these beautiful layers, and is very light and flaky. It was also quite easy to work with. The hardest part is remembering to take it out of the freezer to thaw.

The filling is equally amazing. Caramelized onions, goat cheese, fresh tomatoes and herbs. I mean what's not to like about all of that.

I knew that I would like these, and figured Brian would. But he really liked them (he ate two)!

These are not low-fat, but for a special treat/occasion I think they are very nice. It is also a great way to show case fresh tomatoes from your garden.

Tomato and Goat Cheese Tarts

The original recipe called for adding dry white wine to the onions. I didn't have any on hand, so I omitted it. As a result I believe that my onions took a lot longer to brown than the original recipe states.

1 package (17.3 ounces/2 sheets) puff pastry, defrosted
olive oil
4 cups thinly sliced yellow onions (2 large onions)
3 large garlic cloves, cut into thin slivers
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves
4 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan, plus 2 ounces shaved with a vegetable peeler
4 ounces garlic-and-herb goat cheese (recommended: Montrachet)
1 large tomato, cut into 4 (1/4-inch-thick) slices

3 tablespoons julienned basil leaves

Unfold a sheet of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface and roll it lightly to an 11 by 11-inch square. Using a 6-inch wide saucer or other round object as a guide, cut 2 circles from the sheet of puff pastry, discarding the scraps. Repeat with the second pastry sheet to make 4 circles in all. Place the pastry circles on 2 sheet pans lined with parchment paper and refrigerate until ready to use.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium to low heat and add the onions and garlic. Saute for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring frequently, until the onions are limp and there is almost no moisture remaining in the skillet. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and thyme and continue to cook for another 10 minutes, until the onions are lightly browned. Remove from the heat.

Using a sharp paring knife, score a 1/4-inch-wide border around each pastry circle. Prick the pastry inside the score lines with the tines of a fork and sprinkle a tablespoon of grated Parmesan on each round, staying inside the scored border.
Place 1/4 of the onion mixture on each circle, again staying within the scored edge. Crumble 1 ounce of goat cheese on top of the onions. Place a slice of tomato in the center of each tart. Brush the tomato lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with basil, salt, and pepper. Finally, scatter 4 or 5 shards of Parmesan on each tart.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown. The bottom sheet pan may need an extra few minutes in the oven. Serve hot or warm.

In other news, the children had immunizations yesterday. That was LOADS of fun!!! They have been practicing their rowing skills so they don't get stiff arms.

Today is orientation/open house for both of them. I can hardly believe that school starts next week! We are ready though... well at least I am.

xoxo

Rach

Bits of Encouragement

"But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord for he has been good to me." Psalm 13:5-6

Brian making dinner = AWESOME dinner!

He made grilled ratatouille last night (yes, like the movie)...seriously awesome! As you can see we pretty much cleaned the bowl. Plus it was a great way to use up a lot of veggies. Now, I'm trying to negotiate an apple pie. We got two bags from our CSA last week. Have a great week!

P.S.

We're going to the fair today!!!!

xoxo

Arch

Zucchini Vichyssoise, Brown Rice Salad, and Butter Chicken

When we were childless last week. We decided to try a couple of recipes that we knew wouldn't be favorites of Ian. Brian and I really liked both of these dishes and we will make them again for sure. The soup is a great way to use up some of the zucchini in your garden. Speaking of Zucchini, I saw the recipe for this Zucchini Cake with Crunchy Lemon Glaze. I have been waiting for the weather to cool down, so I can bake this. I think today might be my day.

Zucchini Vichyssoise

This recipe comes from Ina Garten's Barefoot in Paris. I made a few changes.

2 Tbs. good olive oil

3 large leeks white and light green parts, chopped

5 small red potatoes chopped

5 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 tsp. kosher salt

freshly ground pepper to taste

2 tbs. heavy cream (I forgot to add this)

Fresh chives.

Heat the olive oil in a large stockpot, and the leeks, and saute over medium-low heat for 5 minutes. Add the potatoes, zucchini, chicken stock, salt, and pepper; bring to a boil; then lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Cool for a few minutes and then blend in batches with your blender. Add the cream and season to taste. Serve either cold or hot, garnish with chopped chives.

Brown Rice, Tomatoes and Basil

This is a perfect summer salad! The recipe comes from Ina Garten Barefoot Family Style. I slightly altered the recipe.

1/2 Cup brown rice

1 tsp. kosher salt, divided

1/8 cup cider vinegar

1 tsp. sugar

1/2 tbs. olive oil

Fresh ground pepper

I used a few small cherry tomatoes and 1 medium size yellow tomato

1/2 cup fresh basil leaves

Bring 1 1/4 cups water to a boil and the rice and 1/2 tsp. salt. Return to a boil, cover and simmer for 30 minutes , until the rice is tender and all the water is absorbed. Transfer the rice to a bowl. Whisk together the vinegar, sugar, olive oil, remaining salt and a bit of pepper. Pour over the rice. Add the tomatoes and basil. Mix well and adjust seasonings as needed. Serve at room temperature.

This is Butter Chicken. It was good, but we all like Tikka Masala much better. Why, you might ask? We all felt the Tikka Masala has more flavor and had a richer consistency. The Butter Chicken uses butter and 2 cups of heavy cream. I'm sure you could switch out some of those ingredients, but I still don't think it would have the same flavor or consistency as the Tikka Masala. The Butter Chicken recipe is pretty simple to make. Katie pretty much made it, with my supervision. It is not as spicy either, which might appeal to some. Since I will most likely not make this again. I have linked the recipe. I know it might sound like I am give this recipe a negative review, but that is not my intent. Like I stated previously it is good. It's just that it is very similar to Tikka Masala, so it seems silly to have two recipes that are so similar. With one that blows the other one out of the water.

xoxo

Rachel

BLT Salad and thoughts on this past week

We have been childless this past week. Kate is at camp until Saturday and Ian has been at Amachi and Appachen's. I went back to work this week.

I had high expectations for a lot of quality time with Mr. Young. Alas that didn't seem to really happen. I mean we did have some fun. We ate out three different times this week: India Palace, Szechuan, and Bucca. That isn't what I had imagined though. I thought we would make wonderful dinners together and take walks around the lake (which he promised), oh and ice cream was also promised. Late nights reading in bed with the cool air blowing in to our room. You get the idea. He got sick one day, so that kind of threw a wrench in my dreams. Since I got my iphone, I like to call Brian on his iphone in the morning when he is downstairs getting ready for work. I ask him very sweetly to come up and cuddle with me. He always says "I love you, and I'll be right up." Well this morning I called four times and he didn't answer! He came up to say goodbye just as he was leaving. I explained my frustration to him and he said he was sorry, he didn't hear the phone ring (because he had it on vibrate). I was not happy as it was and this didn't make this better. He said goodbye and was on his way. Then a few minutes later he called and said he loved me. I still wasn't happy though. When I got home he asked me what was wrong and I frankly told him "I need a little romance!!" A little later I asked him if he thought I was being too hard on him, he said Well, I could use a little help here...you're shooting down all my ideas. We ended up watching a movie and then we made this salad together. The movie was o.k., but the salad was great! We'll make this again for sure. As for the romance...we'll see.

BLT Salad

I found the recipe on Steamy Kitchen, but it seems the original recipe came from Fresh Flavors Fast Cookbook, Martha Stewart Everyday Food. I halved the recipe and used chives instead of green onions. I also threw in an avocado.

4 slices of bacon

1/4 of a baguette, sliced into cubes

olive oil

salt and fresh ground pepper

1/3 cup low-fat buttermilk

3 tablespoons low-fat mayonnaise

2 tsps. apple cider vinegar

a handful of chives

half a head of romaine lettuce, coarsely chopped

Half a pint cherry tomatoes, halved

1 avocado cut into bite size pieces

1. Preheat your oven to 375. Place the bacon in a single layer on 1/2 of a rimmed baking sheet. On the other side of the baking sheet, add the bread cubes and toss with a little bit of olive oil. The bread cubes should take about 15 minutes, half way through baking time toss them. The recipe said the bacon should be done in 15 minutes also but ours took about 25. When the bacon is done crumble into large pieces.

2. Meanwhile in a large bowl, whisk together buttermilk, mayo, vinegar, and chives. Add salt and pepper to taste. Then add in lettuce, tomatoes, bacon and croutons; toss to coat with dressing. serve immediately.

xoxo

Rachel

P.S.

You may have noticed that I added a new tab at the top of the page...take a peek. I also have changed our favorites tab a bit and will add to it. Let me know what you think please!

Mushroom Bourguignon

I know it is officially spring now and most of us are not thinking about making stew, but I made this awhile ago and it was so good I had to share it with you. You all know how I feel about Brian's Boef Bourguignon, but when I saw this recipe on Smitten Kitchen I knew I had to try it. You might want to check out her original recipe which is fancier than mine, and I am sure better. I wanted to make it more of a week night version, and adapted it that way. Although my version was a big hit with our family. I just might need to seek this in one last time, before it really warms up.

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon butter, softened

2 pounds button mushrooms,

2 carrots, cut into coins

1 small yellow onion, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups beef or vegetable broth (beef broth is traditional but vegetable to make it vegetarian; it works with either)

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (1/2 teaspoon dried)

1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Light Sour cream

1. Heat one tablespoon of olive oil in a med. dutch oven over high heat. Cook the mushrooms until they are fully cooked and have released their liquid. Remove them from the pan.

2. Turn the heat down to medium and add another tbs. of olive oil. Add the carrots, onions, thyme, salt, and ground pepper and cook for 10 minutes stirring occasionally until the onions are light brown. Add the garlic and cook for about a minute.

3. Add 1 cup of water, scraping any bits off the bottom of the pan, and reduce it by half. Stir in the tomato paste and broth. Add the mushrooms back with their juices. When it comes to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

4. Combine the butter and the flour with a fork until combined; stir it into the stew. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. If the sauce seems thin, boil it down until you reach the right consistency. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve with mashed potatoes and a dollop of sour cream.

Happy Monday friends! Enjoy.

xoxo
Rachel