Kat with a K

Yummy Sandwich from Aspirations

On Wednesdays, the women in my department go out to lunch together. Yesterday, we went to one of my favorite local places, Aspirations Bistro. Why is it my favorite? Just take a look at this sandwich:

YUM. Tomato, fresh mozzarella, tons of basil, oil and vinegar, all on a multigrain asiago roll, with a pickle on the side. It's like everything I like in the world, all on one plate.

Faux-Recipe: Mini Corn Chocolate Chip Muffins

Question: What do you do when someone invites you to their house for breakfast, but you get the invitation at 1 am and have to leave for breakfast at 8? Additional complications: you don't know how many people will be there, and you're not in your own kitchen.

Answer: Make mini muffins, of course!

I just found a box of Jiffy corn muffin mix in my mom's pantry and prepared the batter according to the instructions on the box. Instead of making six regular-sized muffins, I make 24 mini muffins, which took care of the "don't know how many people are there" issues. Plus, anything "mini" is automatically cuter and more impressive. Before I put them in the oven, I placed about three chocolate chips on the top of each one, and then baked them at 400 until they were golden brown. Put them in a basket with a brightly colored cloth, and voila! A perfectly respectable breakfast contribution.

Recipe: Not-Spicy Fruit Salsa

Last weekend, I decided to bring tortilla chips and a few dips to a friend's house. A few of the people present really don't like spicy things, so my challenge was to make a salsa that was flavorful but not at all spicy. Here's what I ended up with...

Not-Spicy Fruit Salsa

(Adapted from the Peach Melon Tomato Salsa recipe in Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian: Simple Meatless Recipes for Great Food - which is, by the way, an amazing cookbook.)

1 peach
about 1/4 of a canteloupe
1 tomato
about 1/3 of a red bell pepper
juice of one lime
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup fresh dill
1-2 tbsp dried mint flakes*
salt and pepper to taste

1. Chop peach, canteloupe, tomato, and pepper into very small, approximately uniform pieces. Dump them all in a mixing bowl and stir.

2. Add lime juice and oil oil, and stir so that all the fruit and veggies are coated.

3. Chop the dill, and add it and the mint. Stir well.

4. Taste, and add salt and pepper as necessary. Enjoy!

* This would also probably be great with fresh mint, but my grocery store was all out.

Breaking News on the Cookie Front

The Oreo invades Britain. Read it, really. It's hilarious. Example:

I tell her that, according to the ads, it should be "dunked" before eaten.

"In tea?" she asks. (Dipping biscuits - we Brits call all cookies "biscuits' - in a steaming hot cup of tea is an almost sacred ritual here.)

"No, in milk," I reply.

"Milk?! A biscuit dipped in milk? Who does that?"

Don't you wish you worked in my department?*

Tomorrow, being as it is the last Friday of the month, is Random Dessert Friday at work. It is also one friend/coworker's last day, so I made him his favorite dessert:

And another friend/coworker's birthday was earlier this month, so I wanted to make her a cake. Unfortunately, she can't eat wheat. Luckily, Chris came to the rescue with her One-Bowl Flourless Chocolate Cake recipe. (I mostly followed it - the birthday girl really likes her chocolate sweet rather than dark, so I used semisweet in the cake instead of bittersweet, and milk chocolate in the glaze instead of semisweet.) The recipe included that dreaded phrase: invert the cake onto a plate. I'm always afraid that my cake won't come out of the pan at that point or will fall apart or crack or something. So when it didn't, I was so proud of my inversion-onto-plate skills that I had to take a picture:

And here's the completed cake, smothered in glaze:

I think it will be a yummy Friday at the office tomorrow.
___
* Actually, in case anyone does wish they worked in my department: we're hiring a bunch of people. Leave a comment if you want more info.

No previously ocular food.

Slate has an essay up on debunking vegetarian myths. It's pretty great. I should print it out and have some copies on hand when dining out or attending family events...

Yum.

We're having lovely spring weather in New Hampshire this week, and this morning I was reunited with my favorite warm-weather breakfast: Stonyfield Farm Nonfat French Vanilla Organic Yogurt with a sprinkling of granola and fruit. I really need to start making my own granola, because it's so ridiculously expensive, and really, how hard could it be? Anyone have any favorite recipes?

Pretty green stirfry

Supper tonight:

First challah

Last week I was reading about various teachings on the observance of the Lord's Day (more about that later, perhaps), which led me into reading about Jewish Shabbat practices, which made me want to learn to bake challah. The booklet that came with my bread machine had a recipe; the machine did the dough part and then I took it out to shape and bake. Here's the result:

Honestly, I don't know if it's "right" because I've rarely tasted challah before, but it's yummy! I think the top is a bit browner than it's supposed to be, because I was having oven temperature regulation issues. Overall, though, I think it was quite a successful experiment.

Bread Machine Issues

Recently, I've been having major problems using my bread machine. My loaves keep coming out something like this:

Is it me? The machine? The recipes? (I've tried more than one.) Any ideas? It tastes fine, of course, but it's certainly not pretty, and the weird shape isn't very conducive to sandwich-making.

Holly Shortbread

I've had a productive day while being snowed in. I made four pans of the above shortbread, plus a batch of fudge, so I am officially ahead on my holiday baking schedule. Actually, I'm hoping that by bedtime tonight I'll be ahead on both my baking and knitting schedules. I have a few knitted things to show you over the next few days, and then the rest will have to wait until they've been given at Christmas.

Saturday Morning Baking

It's cold and windy out, so I got up this morning and started baking. First, chocolate chip muffins, just because I'd been wanting them for a while:

I substituted whole wheat flour for half the regular flour, so that makes them healthy, right? ;-) They're yummy for breakfast with a piece of fruit, some milk, and a big mug of tea. This morning, I had a mug of Celestial Seasonings Nutcracker Sweet Holiday Tea while I was baking and then some Twinings Irish Breakfast Tea with breakfast.

And then I made some holiday M&M brownies to bring to a friend this afternoon:

I'll admit I "cheated" on these. I usually like to do my baking from scratch, but I do keep a few mixes around for when I'm rushed or need something last-minute, as was the case today. This was a Ghirardelli walnut brownie mix; I just scattered the M&Ms on top before I put them in the oven.

Okay, now I should actually get some work done...

Onion goggles!

I have an awful time chopping onions. Awful. It takes me forever, because I keep having to stop to wash my face. So I'm rather excited to see these onion goggles. I'm tempted...

Vegetarian Stuffing and Gravy?

I've been thinking about Thanksgiving, and what I would and wouldn't be able to eat, and what I actually cared about. I quickly realized that I never really liked turkey, even when I ate meat, so that's no loss. I do like stuffing and gravy, though. (And most of the rest of the meal is pretty veggie-friendly.) So I've decided that I should make and bring some vegetarian stuffing and gravy - enough to share, of course, and if no one else wants it, I guess I'll have lots of leftovers. Yum. I want to try a few different options so I know that what I bring actually tastes good. Anyone have any favorites? I have a few options from various cookbooks, but it's always nice to know of personal recommendations.

My criteria:
1. Relatively easy-to-find ingredients.
2. Not terribly long to make or kitchen-hogging, as I'll probably be doing this at my mom's house Thanksgiving morning and bringing it to my aunt's, and my mom will likely be cooking something to bring as well. (Hi Mom! Mind if I share the kitchen? I'll call you tonight to talk about it!)
3. Not mushroom-centric. I don't like mushrooms. I'm considering trying to get over this, as 98% of vegetarian options in restaurants, for one thing, involve mushrooms. So... a few mushrooms are okay, but nothing completely mushroom-flavored.
4. Bonus points if the stuffing involves mostly whole grains.

I'll let you know what I try and how it works!

Recipe: Whole Wheat Oatmeal Apricot Cookies

I was in one of those "must bake!" moods today, so here's what I came up with:

Whole Wheat Oatmeal Apricot Cookies

This is loosely based on the Oatmeal Cookies recipe in Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything, which is my all-purpose go-to cookbook. I made some substitutions in order to not use white flour or sugar, and I added the apricots and nutmeg and generally played with some of the quantities, etc.

Ingredients:
8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
6 tbsp maple syrup
2 eggs
1.5 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
pinch salt
2 tsp baking powder
6 tbsp milk
1 cup dried apricots, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Cream the butter, sugar, and maple syrup, then add the eggs.
3. Mix the flour, oats, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and baking soda in a separate bowl.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet, alternating with the milk. Stir.
5. Stir in the apricots.
6. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto a cookie sheet covered in parchment paper.
7. Bake for about 14 minutes.

Makes about three dozen yummy cookies.

Recipe: Artichoke Ricotta Pasta

I found myself craving red pepper flakes yesterday, oddly enough, so I decided I had to make something that involved them for dinner. This is what I ended up with. Note: I didn't actually measure anything as I was going, so the amounts are estimates. Use more or less of whatever, based on what you have or what you like.

Ingredients:
12 oz. pasta (I used tricolor rotini)
2-3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/4 to 1/3 cup chopped onion
heaping tablespoon minced garlic
14 oz. can whole artichoke hearts, chopped into bite-size pieces
1/4 to 1/3 cup white wine (I used Riesling)
about 1/2 cup ricotta
about 1/4 cup grated romano (parmigiano would work too)
salt
crushed red pepper

1. Put a large pot of salted water on to boil.
2. Sautee onion and garlic in olive oil. Once the onion has softened, add artichoke hearts and cook for a few minutes. Then add the wine.
3. Add pasta to boiling water. Let the artichoke mixture simmer while the pasta cooks.
4. When the pasta is done, drain it and stir in the cheeses.
5. Add the artichoke mixture and mix thoroughly. Add crushed red pepper to taste.

Simple but tasty weeknight meal!

Recipe: Easy Tofu Marinara

This is adapted from the various baked tofu recipes in a great vegetarian cookbook called Enemy of the Steak.

1 pound extra firm tofu, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1-1.5 cups marinara sauce (when I don't have time to make my own, my favorite is Newman's)
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
optional: minced garlic, to taste
optional: other herbs or spices, to taste (I added fresh basil from the garden)
optional: grated romano or parmigiano cheese (if you leave this out, the recipe is vegan)

1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Mix sauce, vinegar, garlic, herbs, and spices.
3. Spread about half of the sauce mixture in the bottom of a shallow baking pan (9x13 or so).
4. Place the tofu in a single layer in the pan.
5. Top with the rest of the sauce mixture. Spread out the sauce so it covers the surface of the tofu - I find it's easiest to do this with a spatula.
6. Optional: Top with grated cheese.
7. Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes.

Serve with salad and the grain of your choice (suggestions: pasta, couscous, risotto), or use as a sandwich filling.

Cupcakes!

I took a little break from homework to do something much less stressful. I made cupcakes!

And then I made frosting!

Recipe: Cheesy Dip

This was just a quick dip I threw together to contribute to a dinner with friends the other night, but people really seemed to like it and a few asked for the recipe, so I thought I might as well post it here too. As is my wont, I read a bunch of recipes and combined them. Note: this is written for the crockpot/slow cooker, but if you don't have one, you could probably achieve similar results by simmering in a large heavy stockpot.

Ingredients:
2 lbs. Velveeta, cubed
2 10 oz. cans RO*TEL
1 16 oz. can refried beans
1 3.8 oz. can sliced black olives

Put cubed cheese in the slow cooker and pour other ingredients over it. Cook on Low for a few hours, stirring frequently, until the cheese is melted and all ingredients are blended. Serve with corn chips.

Super easy, but oh so yummy.

Onions without tears!

I can't be the first one to think of this, but I've never heard it anywhere, so I thought I'd share. I usually have a horrible time chopping onions. I don't just tear up: I sob. I've tried most of the remedies I've heard, and none of them do much.

But today I was washing an onion, because it seemed a little dirty, and I decided to cut it down the middle to make sure that the dirt was just on the outside rather than related to some sort of internal rotting or something. And I realized that I wasn't feeling the slightest bit teary. So I went ahead and cut the whole onion up while holding it under the cold running water, and I was totally fine. Sheesh. Why isn't this standard practice? Does it do something horrible to the onion's flavor that I don't know about?

Green Tea Latte, Reincarnated

Remember how I was all sad that the coffee stand on campus stopped selling the green tea latte I had just discovered that I loved? Well, VERY shortly after that, I read on Starbucks Gossip that Starbucks was going to start making one. And it was set to premiere April 4! Today! So I stopped by on my way to class and got one, and yay! It's virtually identical to the late lamented one. (Of course, this has led to all sorts of wild speculation regarding the likelihood of Starbucks using the campus coffee stand as some sort of super-secret test market.)

This latte and the really, really good mocha I got at Starbucks on Sunday might just tip the balance to making it more often worth my while to go a bit out of my way to get to a Starbucks. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on your point of view, there is no Starbucks really convenient to any of my regular commutes. (There are, however, 33 Dunkin' Donuts locations within 20 miles of my house, and I'm not sure whether that even counts those in supermarkets or gas stations.) But I spent a lovely interlude at one of the inconvenient ones this past Sunday morning, with a friend and a New York Times, and I think that will have to be repeated. Oh yeah, that's another reason I like Starbucks - the people working there don't laugh at me for spending $4.50 on a newspaper, because they're charging me almost as much for a cup of coffee. Sigh.

Updated to add: And, yes, I feel vaguely guilty about going to Starbucks, or Dunkin' Donuts, for that matter. I do try to patronize independent coffee places when possible, I promise.

Caramel Apple Cider for One

A bunch of people on Chatty have been talking about caramel apple cider recently, and making me really want some. Alas, I have no convenient Starbucks. I do, however, have a kitchen, and rather a "How hard could it be?" attitude about cooking. (Don't scoff; this attitude led to a pretty successful wedding cake, if I do say so myself.) Most of the recipes I've found used three million spices and/or made fifteen gallons of the stuff. I just wanted one mug. So I decided to wing it. Here's my recipe for Caramel Apple Cider for One, made with ingredients found in your kitchen (or at least mine).

Pour a mugful of generic grocery-store apple cider into a small saucepan. Throw in a one teabag of Cardamon Cinnamon Herbal Tea from Republic of Tea. Turn the heat on low and let it simmer while you do the dishes, clean the bathroom, and sort the junk mail (or, um, for a while). Stir occasionally.

When a taste test determines that it is sufficiently hot and spiced, pour it back in the mug and add some caramel syrup - the kind they use in coffee bars, not the kind you put on ice cream - to taste. (Maybe a tablespoon or so?) I used Torani. Da Vinci is another popular brand. Stir. Top with whipped cream and caramel sauce (not syrup, the ice cream kind) if desired. I used Smuckers Sundae Syrup. Enjoy.

(It occurred to me while I was writing this that some sort of alcohol might be a good addition, but I don't know what you'd put in cider. I'll ask my roommate when he gets home from his trip and let you know. Unless anyone would like to educate us in the comments, of course.)

Recipe: Spicy Southwest Broccoli Cheese Soup

Spicy Southwest Broccoli Cheese Soup

I adapted this recipe from a broccoli-cheddar soup recipe in a
crockpot cookbook, but this version is easier and yummier!

Ingredients:
16 oz frozen broccoli
1 can (10.75 oz) Campbell's Southwest Style Pepper Jack soup
1 can (12 oz) evaporated milk

Equipment:
Crock pot (slow cooker)
Wooden spoon

Dump everything into the crock pot. Stir a bit so the soup and milk
are mixed and the broccoli's not all stuck together. Cook it on low
until you want it to be done (at least five or six hours of course).
Stir it every once in a while so the cheese doesn't burn. Serve with
bread or tortilla chips.

See? Told you it was easy. This makes 3-4 servings. If your family
(and crockpot) is bigger, you can easily double it. Enjoy!