Monday, May 13, 2013

Falling off the To-Do List


Every mom knows that when life gets busy, your stuff is the first to fall off of the to-do list. Well, my blog took a big fall off the to-do list but I'm back. I'm still cooking but the writing just wasn't happening. But, I'm determined to finish telling this story. So, on to the next meal from Jamie Oliver's Meals in Minutes…


Have I mentioned that my favorite food is sweet potatoes? I have been eyeing this meal for awhile because it included sweet potatoes but the "branzino" scared me off. First of all, I had never heard of branzino and couldn't find it anywhere. When I finally did research and found out that it is another name for Chilean Sea Bass I was relieved that I would be able to find the ingredients for this one. However, Chilean Sea Bass seems to be a bit pricey, at least in my neck of the woods, and this meal set our grocery budget back a bit. You may want to try this one with some other kind of fish if its equally pricey where you live. My family loved this meal! It was easy, looks beautiful and made everyone happy. Taking on a menu with five recipes was a bit intimidating but I had lots of little helpers in the kitchen which made this lots of fun!

Here's the menu:
Branzino & Crispy Pancetta
Mashed Sweet Potatoes
Asian Greens
1-minute Berry Ice Cream
Sparkling Lemon Ginger Drink

Now, let's start with those yummy potatoes. Jamie used this method in an earlier meal and I've made these countless times since then. Wash 1 1/2 pounds of sweet potatoes, cut lengthwise and put in a microwave safe bowl. Cut a lime in half and add it to the bowl then cover with a double layer of plastic wrap. Cook in the microwave for 12-14 minutes or until cooked through. Finely chop some cilantro on  a large wooden cutting board. Add 2 tablespoons of mango chutney (check the international section of your grocery store), a splash of soy sauce, the juice from the other half of the lime and a little olive oil. Mix well and chop everything together. Feel free to add some chili for a bit of kick. When the potatoes are done, add them to the board and chop and mash everything together. Yum!


The other recipes were so simple yet the combination of everything together would impress even the pickiest dinner guest. The branzino and pancetta was cooked on top of the stove together while the asparagus and broccoli cooked in a pot nearby. For the greens, it was all about the asian dressing made of soy sauce, lime juice and garlic. And the food processor makes quick work of the frozen berries turning them into an impressively quick dessert.  


All in all, a big success!


Meals cooked: 23
Meals left: 27
Weeks left: 5
(Yes, you read that right. 5 weeks left and 27 meals to cook. Wondering if I made it? Keep reading!)




Thursday, March 14, 2013

Meals in Minutes?


My husband's big hang up on Meals in Minutes is that I have yet to get dinner on the table in less than an hour. This one came in around 45 minutes which impressed him a bit. Even better, I really had it together and there wasn't any banging or cursing sounds coming from the kitchen. A huge accomplishment. I would definitely make this again. It really was quick and easy. I overdid it on the sauce for the veggies so I would advise you to be a bit conservative, start with a small amount and then add more to taste. This meal also has a "special drink" involved and for some reason this little bit of effort puts huge smiles on my family's faces. I also love that with just a few ingredients  and a bit of time, you can cure your take out craving. Love it.

Here's the menu:
Rib Eye Stir Fry
Dan Dan Noodles
Chilled Hibiscus Tea





Check out the recipe on this new website that I recently discovered that I really like….

http://www.lovefood.com/guide/recipes/10739/ribeye-stirfry-dan-dan-noodles-and-chilled-hibiscus-tea

Meals cooked: 22
Meals left: 28
Weeks left: 7

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Scallops, Brownies and Memory Loss


To say that I have writer's block is an understatement. Its more like a big brick block wall! I'm trying to come up with something clever to say about this next meal and honestly I'm having a hard time remembering because I made it over a month ago. The cooking is going great and the writing is slowing me down. Of course I don't want to get too far ahead of myself so now the writing is slowing down the cooking. So, I ask the Kid what she remembers about this meal hoping to jog my memory. "The brownies were really good, I remember that."  She's right, I was really impressed with how easy and quick it was to make these brownies and the use of parchment paper makes for quick clean up.

"What about the scallops?" I ask.
"Oh, yeah! I liked those, can we make those again?" she says as her face lights up.
"Nope. Sorry! Too many other things to cook."

Here's the Menu:
Sticky Pan-Fried Scallops
Sweet Chili Rice
Dressed Greens
Quick Brownies


The sad part is, I remember there was a story that went along with this that I wanted to share but I honestly can't remember. I need to take better notes.

Sorry gang!
Moving on…


Meals cooked: 21
Meals left: 29
Weeks left: 8


Thursday, February 28, 2013

Rethinking Fishcakes




As many of you know, I grew up on the Eastern Shore of Maryland where blue crab is King. Steamed crabs, crab imperial, soft shell crab sandwiches and crab cakes were regulars on our table. If the crab was the king than my great grandmother Maggie was queen of cooking them. She was the best and her secret crab cake recipe is still the best in the world as far as I'm concerned. To this day, I will not order crab cakes anywhere because I know they will not live up to hers. Before my Food Revolution, there were only a few things that I could manage pretty well in the kitchen and thanks to my mom (who carries on the crab cake legacy), duplicating Maggie's crab cake recipe was one of them. Unfortunately, making crab cakes every night is not economically possible and I needed to learn how to cook other things. Tonight, that other thing was fishcakes….

The menu:
Swedish-Style Fishcakes
Roasted Baby Potatoes
Sprout salad
Fresh Zingy Salsa

pg. 148 Meals in Minutes


Now, I was intrigued by Jamie's Swedish fish cakes when I made a similar recipe out of the Food Revolution cookbook during Round One of Amy's Food Revolution. But as I was making them I couldn't stop comparing them to crab cakes. They turned out fine, everyone else liked them, but they just left me wanting a crab cake. In fact, that was all I thought about while making them. After watching the TV episode for the Meals in Minutes version of Swedish fish cakes though I had high hopes of redemption. I decided to give the fishcake a second chance.  I knew the first step was that I couldn't compare it to my yummy crab cake. Mind over matter, as they say. I gave them another chance and they turned out crispy, full of flavor and I ended up liking these fish cakes!



There's a video that goes with this one too so take a peak, and maybe give them a try. 


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqIRDcLqgUU


Meals cooked: 20
Meals left: 30
Weeks left: 9




Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Chicken to Impress Your Friends!


The Menu:
Stuffed Cypriot Chicken
Pan-fried Asparagus & Vine Tomatoes
Cabbage Salad
St. Clement's Drink
Vanilla Ice Cream Float


One thing that I love about Meals in Minutes is the accompanying videos online to help with various techniques. This video on stuffing the cypriot chicken for this recipe saved me. 


Mine still did not come out all neat and tidy but I can't imagine how bad it would have been if I hadn't watched the video. I am already excited to try this one again because even with the stuffing falling out, this chicken ROCKS! The stuffing is a delicious mix of Italian parsley, basil, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, feta cheese and lemon zest that you whiz up in a food processor before stuffing it into the chicken breasts. It tastes like you are eating al fresco on a hillside in Tuscany and would be a great meal to make if you had company. It is unique and different without being too much work and have I mentioned how good it is yet?





This whole meal has everything: a main course, two sides, a drink and a dessert.  Despite the fact that the five recipes seemed a bit overwhelming at first, it was still one of the most fun meals to prepare so far. It is also a great one to get the kids involved in (except for the chicken stuffing part). My oldest made the St. Clement's drink all by herself while I told her Jamie's story of how he used to make it when he was her age for the people in his families' pub. Don't be surprised if you pull up to my house one day and she is serving this curbside at a fancy lemonade stand!



Meals cooked: 19
Meals left: 31
Weeks left: 9





Monday, February 11, 2013

Chowder for Lena




I grew up living next door to my great-grandfather and his wife, Lena. My great-grandmother died and my great-grandfather remarried a decade before I was born. In my eyes, Lena was the real deal. I never considered her anything less than my great-grandmother. Lena was a strong, amazing woman who was born in 1903 and passed away when she was 92 years old. She is a major inspiration for this blog. One of Michael Pollan's Food Rules is don't eat anything your grandmother or great-grandmother would not have recognized. She is the first person that comes to mind when I hear this rule. She was a tough cookie who had survived the great depression and had worked in Washington D.C. during World War II but I think a go-gurt or a bottle of electric blue sports drink would have frightened her!

In my small coastal hometown, she had a huge garden in the backyard, a grape orchard, peach trees, she grew potatoes in galvanized trash cans and canned everything for her cold cellar. On New Year's Day everyone had to eat black eyed peas for good luck and her basement was the epicenter of all social events. Something was always cooking in one or both kitchens and people would go out of their way to bring her venison, seafood or their other culinary prizes to prepare.
She also wasn't afraid to get the food stuffs herself, I remember her surf fishing well into her 70s.

I think our society has come so, so far from this lifestyle. And like me, we don't have the time or the need to learn these skills. Families are busier, and with hundreds of choices of fast food and restaurants in a local radius, its just easier to grab something quick instead of making it yourself. But there is more to cooking at home than just the food we eat. Its time with family, food made with love and also knowing just what is going into our bodies. Lena's lovely boisterous laugh filled a room and when I took her the mail in the afternoon after I got home from school she beamed and couldn't wait to hear about my day. She was almost always in the kitchen and there was usually a little something set aside for me too. 

This Jamie Oliver recipe reminded me of her and something that would be simmering on her stove. 

So, find your inner Lena and try something new and adventurous this week!

On the menu:
Finnan Haddie Corn Chowder
Spiced Shrimp
Rainbow Salad
Raspberry & Elderflower Slushie

The whole menu is delicious but if you'd like to try the chowder, here is the recipe

Chowder, Jamie Oliver's Meals in Minutes, page 166.

Ingredients:
4 slices of smoked bacon
a small bunch of scallions
8 oz. red skinned potatoes
4 corn cobs
12 oz haddock
3 fresh bay leaves
3 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 quart organic chicken broth
2/3 cup heavy cream
8 oz. cooked salad-size shrimp
1/2 10 oz box large matzo or plain crackers

Thinly slice the bacon and put it into the saucepan with a good lug of olive oil. Stir until golden. Trim and finely slice the scallions, add to the pan, and stir. Wash the potatoes and chop into 1 inch chunks. Add to the pan and mix well. Keep an eye on the pan, stirring often. Meanwhile, put a clean tea towel over a board and ruffle up the edges to catch the corn. Hold a corn cob upright on the board and run a knife gently down to the base of the kernels, all the way round. Repeat with the rest of the cobs, discarding the cores. Tip the kernels directly from the towel into the pan. Add the haddock to the pan with the bay leaves and the thyme. Cover with the chicken broth, then put the lid on and cook for 12 minutes. (confession: Since I was making this in the winter, I used frozen corn)

Add the 2/3 cup heavy cream and the salad size shrimp to the chowder and stir well. Put the lid back on and turn the heat down to low.
When you are ready to serve, you can leave it corse and chunky or use a potato masher to mash it up a little bit and make it silky, or puree.

I highly recommend checking out the book to add the other recipes, this was a great meal!

Meals cooked: 18
Meals left: 32
Weeks left: 10



Saturday, February 2, 2013

Motivate


I clearly remember the day I was standing in my kitchen in January 2010 when I made the only New Year’s Resolution I’ve ever kept. I guess I had just had one too many nights where I was feeding my family junk, or one too many house guests that got take out pizza for dinner, or one too many home cooked meals from neighbors that I couldn’t reciprocate. It was the final straw. I found myself in my kitchen with two children and a husband and I had no idea how to feed them. How did I get here, I wondered? My family was full of amazing cooks who used real food every day to make wonderful meals full of love for their families to eat. They all asked me to help them in the kitchen, but time and time again I politely declined and now, here I stood, with a family of my own to feed and no idea how to do it. 

All of those memories of shared family meals around the dinner table filled my brain and I wanted my kids to have those same memories. Some day I want my kids to say, "Well that was good X, Y or Z but it wasn't as good as MOMs." At the moment, I did not corner the market on anything. That was my motivation for my Food Revolution three years ago.  When I cooked my way through Jamie’s Food Revolution cookbook, the writing part came very easily; it was the cooking that I struggled with. This time, it’s the other way around. I’ve had a bit of writer’s block and I decided to return to that initial motivation, my family of great cooks and what I learned from them.  Many of the meals I’ve cooked this year have reminded me of these important people in my life, many of them are now gone and the memories are bittersweet. Bitter because I wish I had pulled up that stool and helped chop while hearing their boisterous laughter and fascinating stories. Sweet because I’m so glad I have the memories of the table where we shared the food and the examples of food made with love.

When I made this next meal, it made me think of the one important lesson that we have all probably heard at the dinner table from the cooks in our lives.

“You are never too old to try new foods,” And of course, “your taste buds change every 7 years so even if you didn’t like it before, you might like it now.”

In that vein, my family tried (and to my amazement liked) smoked salmon. I cannot believe it was my first time trying the stuff too!

The Menu:
Smoked Salmon
Potato Salad
Beets & Cottage Cheese
Rye Bread & Homemade Butter

Serves 4
Page 162 of Meals in Minutes


You won't believe how ridiculously easy it is to make your own butter and (more importantly) how impressed your family is when they hear you did it!


Meals cooked: 17
Meals left: 33
Weeks left: 10





Thursday, January 10, 2013

Quiet Christmas Roast


For the first year in a long time, it was just the four of us on Christmas Day. It was a relaxing and quiet morning. The kids played all day with their toys in their pajamas, we watched the Disney parade on television and took our time assembling dinosaurs, Star Wars spaceships and playing new board games. Since it was just us, I knew I didn't need to make a big meal but I still wanted something festive so I picked this:

Jamie Oliver's Meals in Minutes pg. 194-196
Serves 4

Roast Beef
Baby Popovers
Little Carrots
Crispy Potatoes
Super-Quick Gravy

I was terribly sick the week before Christmas, which for a mother of two wreaks havoc on your holiday planning. Ironically, I had done Food Revolution's Google+ Hangout with some other Food Revolution Ambassadors and meal planning was one of our big messages. Now, I am not very good in the meal planning department, so much so that it is now this year's Food RESOLUTION. But, the Hangout had inspired me and before illness struck I had all of my Christmas shopping done and meals planned. Despite all of the planning, I was too sick to go shopping so I needed to send Husband out for the things we didn't have on hand, the main thing being the Roast. He must have looked petrified at the meat counter because in addition to the perfect roast, they sent him home with a special book on how to cook meat. 

So, on Christmas Day, after the presents were opened and the parade was over, we all huddled around the TV to watch Jamie's episode on the Roast Beef meal. The kids were glued to it and I was hoping that meant I would have a few helpers in the kitchen later. The toys were just a little too tempting even for my oldest one who is usually right by my side when I'm cooking.



What I liked best about this menu is that you can get the payoff of delicious comfort food (who doesn't like a hot roast beef dinner) but it doesn't require all day to cook. I will most definitely be making this one again! 




Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Happy New Year


Three years ago, in January 2010, I made the only New Year's Resolution I ever kept. I don't usually make resolutions, much less write them down, but that year I did and I found that piece of paper last night. I remember that year that I decided to try and make the resolutions sound positive and use the word "more" in each of them. Here's what I wrote…

For 2010, I will:
1. laugh more.
2. walk more.
3. cook more.

For #1, I started watching Modern Family. For #2, I started walking around the three-mile loop in our neighborhood more often. But #3 stumped me. I had tried this resolution before and failed miserably. That's when I saw the movie, Julie and Julia and the inspiration for how I would accomplish #3 hit me. It was a few short weeks later, after letting the idea fester in my brain for awhile, that I stumbled upon Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution Cookbook and I knew that it was the key to accomplishing #3. So, I started to cook more. In 365 days, I cooked all 173 recipes in the book. I not only cooked more but I started this blog, taught cooking classes and became a Food Revolution Hero and then an Ambassador. While I still watch Modern Family and I am still walking that three-mile loop occasionally, cooking more has been a journey that outlived its New Year's Resolution status. 

So, for 2013, I hope you will resolve to spend more time in your kitchen. "More" can simply mean to eat out a little less or cook a new recipe with your family just once a week. Who knows, you might find out that it is the easiest and best resolution you ever kept.

Happy New Year!

Here's a yummy soup recipe to get you started. I made this just before the holidays. Try it and you will never buy tomato soup again!

Menu:
Tomato Soup
Chunky Croutons
Crunchy Veggies & Guacamole
Sticky Prune Sponge Desserts



Jamie Oliver's Meals in Minutes pg. 78
SERVES 4

INGREDIENTS
TOMATO SOUP AND CROUTONS
  • 2 1/4 lbs ripe cherry tomatoes on the vine, red and yellow
  • 4 large tomatoes
  • 1 fresh red chili 
  • 4 cloves of garlic
  • 1 ciabatta loaf
  • 2 small red onions
  • 4tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • A small bunch of fresh basil
  • A few dollops of créme fraîche or sour cream, to serve
GUACAMOLE PLATTER
  • A handful of mixed-color cherry tomatoes
  • 1-2 fresh red chillies 
  • A handful of fresh coriander
  • 2 ripe avocados
  • 2 limes
  • ½ bulb of fennel
  • 1 carrot
  • ½ cucumber
  • ½ a 125g pack of grissini, breadsticks or tortilla chips
SEASONINGS
  • Olive oil
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • Sea salt and black pepper
PRUNE PUDDINGS
  • 1 1/4 canned prunes, drained with some juice reserved
  • heaping 3/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup soft dark brown sugar
  • 3 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 heaped tsp ground ginger
  • ½ level tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 1/3 cup milk
  • 1 egg
  • Golden syrup and whipped cream, to serve
METHOD

TO START: Get all your ingredients and equipment ready. Preheat oven to 425 and put a large saucepan on a low heat. Put the standard blade attachment into the food processor. 
TOMATO SOUP: Pull the tomatoes off the vines, but leave some of their green tops on. Quarter the larger tomatoes, then put all the tomatoes into a roasting tray. Drizzle over a good lug of olive oil and season. 
Halve and deseed the red chili and add to the tray. Crush in 4 peeled cloves of garlic. Quickly toss everything, then put on the top shelf of the oven for 12 to 15 minutes. 
CROUTONS: Get another roasting tray and rip the ciabatta loaf into 8 equal chunks. Add a good lug of olive oil, a pinch of salt and whack on to the bottom shelf of the oven. 
TOMATO SOUP: Peel and roughly chop the onions and put them into the hot saucepan with a lug of olive oil and a good pinch of salt. Turn the heat up to medium and leave to soften, stirring occasionally. 
PRUNE PUDDINGS: Get 4 cups that will all fit into your microwave at the same time. Tip the prunes into a bowl, then spoon 1tbsp of their syrupy juice into each of the cups. Divide all the prunes between the 4 cups. 
TOMATO SOUP: Stir 4tbsp balsamic vinegar into the onions and let it cook away and reduce down. 
PRUNE PUDDINGS: Put the flour, sugar, butter, ground ginger and bicarbonate of soda into a food processor and whiz. Crack in the egg, then add the milk. Let it whiz until smooth (you may need to scrape round the edge and whiz again), then divide between the cups (they should be two-thirds full) and put to one side. 
GUACAMOLE: Squeeze a handful of cherry tomatoes on to the biggest board you have, then finely chop up the flesh with 1 to 2 red chillies and a handful of coriander leaves, including the top part of the stalks. 
TOMATO SOUP: Take the tray of tomatoes out of the oven and add everything to the pan of onions. 
CROUTONS:  Check them  -  if they are crisp and golden turn off the oven, but leave them in there to keep warm.
GUACAMOLE: Halve and stone the avocados, then squeeze them over the board so the flesh comes out of the skins. Discard the skins, add a pinch of salt, squeeze over the juice of 2 limes and chop everything together until fine. Taste and adjust the flavors if needed, then use your knife to sweep everything to one side of the board. 
Cut the ½ bulb of fennel into wedges. Peel the carrot, quarter lengthways and cut into batons, then do the same with the cucumber. Sprinkle over a pinch of salt, then arrange the vegetables next to the guacamole. 
Put a handful of grissini into a glass and take them to the table with the board of guacamole. 
TOMATO SOUP: In two batches, carefully pour the vegetables from the saucepan into a blender. Add most of the basil, put the lid on, cover with a tea towel and whiz to a fairly rustic consistency, pouring the mixture into a large pan or serving bowl as you go. 
Once finished, mix well, season to taste and top with a dollop of créme fraîche, a few basil leaves and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Take to the table with a stack of soup bowls and the tray of croutons from the oven. 
PRUNE PUDDINGS: Just before serving, pop the puddings into the microwave to cook on full power for 6 minutes. 
TO SERVE: Put a crouton or two in the bottom of each soup bowl. Ladle the soup on top, then dig in and let everyone help themselves to the guacamole. 
When the desserts are ready, bring to the table, drizzle over a little golden syrup, top with whipped cream and go for it (use a spoon to turn them upside down in the cups and you'll be in for a treat). 



Meals cooked: 15
Meals left: 35
Weeks left: 13