Garlicky sauteed broccoli

I really did NOT want to cook tonight, however really wanted some broccoli for dinner. The solution? Prepared black bean soup from Trader Joe's and quick sauteed broccoli.

Here's my recipe for a delicious and very fast side way to prepare broccoli.

1 Tbs. olive oil
4 C. broccoli florets
8 oz. chicken stock
2 cubes frozen garlic
1 tsp. soy sauce
toasted sesame seeds

Heat a large nonstick pan on high heat and add olive oil. When oil shimmers, add rinsed broccoli florets and chicken stock. Stir to combine and add frozen garlic. Continue cooking until most of the liquid has evaporated and broccoli is bright green.

Remove from heat and add a drizzle of soy sauce and sesame seeds (optional).

The kids don't like the seeds, so I add them to my bowl.

Asian quinoa salad

I had some leftover quinoa, steamed broccoli and roasted kale that I wanted to use up and decided to make an Asian salad.

You could use whatever leftover grain, brown rice or couscous you have available, as well as any leftover cooked vegetables.

1 C. cooked quinoa
1 C. chopped steamed broccoli
1 C. roasted kale a.k.a disappearing chips, see recipe in blog search
handful of shredded carrots
1 tbs. soy sauce
1 tbs. rice wine vinegar
1 pinch toasted sesame seeds
1/2 Tbs. sesame oil
3 Tbs. toasted almonds
1 scallion chopped
Chili paste (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and enjoy!

Quinoa... pronounced Keen-waahhhh

Last week I was at my friends house for lunch and she served us quinoa, and yesterday we were at a friends house and she made the most delicious soup with beans, quinoa, tomatoes and a few other veggies.

I forgot how much I love the texture of quinoa and promptly went to Trader Joe's to buy a box. I remember making it many, many years ago when Graham Kerr was still the Galloping Gourmet. It was early in my adventures in the kitchen and I distinctly remember the quinoa not turning out so great.

This time was different. I boiled 2 cups of water and added in 1 tsp. of "Better than Bouillon" and a dash of olive oil. When the water came to a boil, I added 1 C. of quinoa and let it cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the liquid evaporated, about 12 minutes. It tasted delicious and NOTHING like my first go around so many years back.

We ate it for dinner tonight with some assorted leftovers. I told the girls it was couscous to get them to try it, but later told them it was one of the oldest grains, over 5000 years old, and It is not a true cereal grain; rather, it is the botanical fruit of an herb plant. My pickier eater oddly asked for more and my Hoover wasn't interested...

We will have to add this to our list of "super foods"!

Sauteed rainbow chard

Tonight I made a staple in our house, panko crusted pork chops and couscous. I decided to throw a new veggie into the mix, rainbow Swiss chard. I've made it for the kids before, but not in ages.

I bought a bag of fresh, prewashed, chopped rainbow Swiss chard at Trader Joe's today. I heated a large nonstick pan on high heat, added in a Tbs. of olive oil and 2 cubes of frozen garlic. Next I added in the bag of chard. Don't get worried if the chard seems to form a small mountain, it will cook down a lot. I then added in about 3/4 of a cup of chicken stock. If you don't have it, you can use water, but the stock adds a lot of flavor.

Saute the chard for about 8 minutes until the stems become soft and most of the liquid has evaporated. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

The kids were a little unsure of the chard, but I assured them they should only eat a little as it is a Super Food and they might become uncontrollably strong. The elder (who usually makes the bigger fuss) ate it quickly but didn't fuss. She then jumped off her chair and began doing push ups on the floor! Abby began to laugh and quickly polished off her serving, promptly asking for more.

They both ended up having 2 servings of chard and we enjoyed a dinner and a laugh together. I love when we can get though a dinner without fusses!

wilted spinach salad with feta, pine nuts and cranberry

I had a lovely evening with some girlfriends tonight and one of them brought over a delicious recipe for a wilted spinach salad, it's very easy and we added a few ingredients to improve upon it.

Here is our take on the recipe:

2 purple onions, finely diced
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 bags of baby spinach leaves
8 oz. feta cheese, cut into chunks
2 Tbs. sherry vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
handful of toasted pine nuts
handful of dried cranberries or cherries

Place spinach in a large bowl. Heat 1 Tbs. olive oil in a large nonstick pan on medium high heat. Once hot, add diced onion and saute until brown, about 7 minutes. Add a pinch of kosher salt and pepper. Once browned, remove from pan and add to spinach. Add 1 Tbs. olive oil to the pan and add feta cheese. Warm through for about 45 seconds, add sherry vinegar and another pinch of pepper and add to spinach and onions. Toss in pine nuts and dried cranberries and serve warm.

We all loved the salad and I can't wait to make it again.

Thanks Jody!

Lentils and kale, it's kid food?!!

We had a fantastic trip to California last week. Everyone enjoyed themselves thoroughly and I spent today getting back to the grind. Went to the market, attempted to clean house (didn't get far...) and made a yummy dinner tonight.

Made our standard roasted chicken (check old blog entries for recipe), some rice, roasted kale, which we call "disappearing chips" in our house and some delicious lentils.

I got Emma to help me prepare the kale by tearing the leaves from the stem, I drizzled the olive oil and she added some pinches of salt. (recipe is also in old blog entries).

Was craving some whole grains so I made some lentils, they are so easy and really good mixed in with rice and kale.

I boiled 2 cups of water and a little bit of chicken bouillon. When the water was boiling, I added in 1 C of rinsed lentils and a Tbs. of butter. I reduced the heat to medium low and covered. I let the lentils cook for about 25 minutes until they were soft, but NOT mush. I turned them off, tasted them and seasoned with a little salt and pepper.

I still can't believe my eyes when I see my kids piling on roasted kale to their plates followed by spoonfuls of lentils and rice. They didn't really even want the chicken! My girlfriend dropped in and I had her kids eat a "disappearing chip", they both liked them, and I whispered to her what it was!

Don't be intimidated to give your kids foods you think they will NOT eat, you will probably be suprised.

We also packed our food for the plane trip home yesterday.

Here are some foods that travel well.

Boiled edamame in the shell
Baby carrots
Presliced apples in the bag (these come straight from the market)
Roasted chicken roll ups- perdue cooked chicken breast rolled up in a tortilla, easy and clean to eat.
Rinsed and dried garbanzo beans
Any kind of nut, preferably NOT salted.
Small bag of chopped lettuce (can be purchased chopped from the market) with a little package of lite dressing (also prepackaged). SImply open the bag of lettuce, add the dressing and eat with a fork directly from the bag. Clean, healthy and you can add in some of the apple, carrot, garbanzo bean and almond to spice up your salad.

Glad to be home and a BIG THANK YOU to those of you who told me what you were having for dinner. Your meals sound delicious!!

Herbed orzo with feta, pine nuts, and chicken

It was a quiet day here today, I made banana muffins which the girls dug into after school, I have a good recipe if anyone's interested, let me know.

I am doing a fundraiser for the Autism Society tomorrow night down at Christopher Peacock Cabinetry and am going to be doing a quick cooking demo as well as a book signing. I wanted to share my recipe for a great main dish that travels well and can be prepared in advance for a buffet, picnic or outing.

Here's the recipe:

Serves 4-6

8 ounces orzo pasta
1 C. frozen peas
¼ C. olive oil
¼ C. fresh lemon juice
½ C. chopped green onions (about 3 stalks)
2 Tbs. chopped fresh mint
2 frozen garlic cubes
3 frozen basil cubes
3 frozen parsley cubes
½ tsp. ground pepper (or to taste)
pinch of Kosher salt
8 oz. crumbled feta cheese
1 C. toasted pine nuts
2 C. cooked chicken breast strips (Trader Joe’s makes good ones)-chopped

Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Add the orzo and cook until tender, about 8 minutes. Drain under cold running water. Add frozen peas.

In a large bowl, toss the orzo with olive oil and lemon juice. Add the green onions and mint. In a small bowl mash the frozen garlic, parsley, and basil cubes in 1 Tbs. of olive oil with the back of a fork, and add to the orzo. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add crumbled feta cheese, pine nuts and chopped chicken breast. Gently stir to combine.

Serve at room temperature or slightly chilled.

*This dish is also delicious with grilled shrimp or salmon.

I just found a container of freshly poached salmon from Trader Joe's which I am anxious to try. I hope it's good as it would be a great addition to the pantry.

I'll let you know.

Roasted Parmesan potatoes wedges

The girls go back to school tomorrow-yippee!!

I made them fish sticks tonight but added a little cornmeal to the seasoned flour mixture and it was crispy and flavorful. I also made little roasted potatoes wedges which were really easy and pretty fast.

I preheated the oven to 500, layed a silpat mat on a cookie sheet and cut 4 yukon gold potatoes into 1/8th's, don't worry too much about their exact size, they should be small and evenly sized. I drizzled a little olive oil over them, added a good pinch of black pepper and a sprinkling of Adobo. I baked them for 10 minutes, then tossed them around on the sheet so they could brown on all sides, added about 3 Tbs, of grated Parmesan cheese and baked them for another 10 minutes.

They were brown and crisp and went well with our fish sticks, steamed green beans and pineapple which we all enjoyed tonight.

Garlicky swiss chard and mustard seed carrots

I worked this weekend and we had an early dinner with our dear friends up the street. It's something that I really enjoy doing. A meal always feels special to me when it is shared with people I love.

We did our usual, bring what ever is in the fridge and we'll make something out of it. I brought some rainbow Swiss chard, some shrimp, and a bag of shredded carrots. I made some garlickly Swiss chard which is both delicious and very easy.

Heat a large nonstick pan on high, add either frozen garlic cubes or garlic paste- a good amount (4 cubes or a tbs.) Wash and chop the chard. When the oil begins to sizzle, add the chard to the pan and saute for 6 minutes or until the stem pieces have become soft and the leaves have cooked down. Add a pinch of kosher salt and pepper. Serve.

My friend turned me on to mustard seeds and I decided to saute the shredded carrots in some olive oil and mustard seeds. Basically, heat a little oil in a large nonstick pan and add in a couple tbs. of mustard seeds, when they start to pop, add in the shredded carrots and saute for about 8 minutes or until the carrots have become soft. Add a pinch of salt and sugar and serve. I think this might be one of my new favorite side dishes.

My kids wouldn't touch the carrots, but her kids ate it- go figure!!!

Merry Christmas.

It's Christmas Eve, the stockings and cookies and reindeer food and milk and carrots have alllll been laid out for the big man's arrival tomorrow morning, the girls are really excited and I have to admit, it's fun to get caught up in their excitement. I am grateful for so many things on this Christmas eve, a healthy family, a roof over our heads, lovely friends. It's so easy to get caught up in the gift buying, I've enjoyed remembering the gratitude I feel for all of the gifts we already have.

We prepped most of our meal for tomorrow. I am baking a fresh ham, I made orange cranberry sauce, a sweet potato and Yukon gold gratin dauphinoise. It is decadent and delicious. We are also having roasted brussel sprouts, fennel and carrots with dried cranberries and roasted chestnuts.

I wanted to share my recipe for this decadent potato dish:

3 sweet potatoes, peeled and VERY thinly sliced, use a mandolin if possible
3 yukon gold potatoes, also peeled and thinly sliced.
4 C. heavy cream
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp. cracked black pepper
1 pinch of grated nutmeg
2 C. grated Gruyere cheese
1 tbs. butter
Chives for garnish

This dish can be prepped a day in advance and baked the next day for your meal.

Warm heavy cream in a large wide pot. Add salt, pepper and nutmeg. Add thinly sliced potatoes and cook in warm cream for 3-4 minutes. Grease a deep casserole pan with butter and pour 1/2 the potatoes and milk into pan. Sprinkle 1 C. of the grated Gruyere cheese, and layer the remaining potatoes and cream to the top. Sprinkle remaining cheese to the top of the casserole and bake uncovered at 375 for 35-40 minutes or until top becomes golden. Garnish with finely chopped chives and serve. It is rich and delicious.

May your day be filled with love and warmth. I wish you all a very Merry Christmas.

Let them eat Brussel Sprouts

Abby had a Thanksgiving party, well feast, at school today and I volunteered to bring in brussel sprouts. Although most consider them the bastard child of vegetables, they've been given a bad rap. Brussel sprouts are tasty and so easy to prepare, this is the recipe I always use.

2 C. brussel sprouts
2-3 slices pancetta or proscuitto
1 C. chestnuts (the kind that come cooked in a jar)
1 C. dried cranberries
1 tbs. olive oil
pinch of salt and pepper
1/2 C. frizzled onions

Preheat oven to 425. Wash and slice brussel sprouts in 1/2. Slice proscuitto into thin slices and mix in with sprouts. Lay out on a cookie sheet, try not to overlap them. Drizzle a little olive oil atop sprouts and add a pinch of salt and pepper. Roast for 12-15 minutes, shaking the cookie sheet after about 7 minutes to rotate the sprouts.

When the sprouts and crisp on the outside, but a knife can be inserted into them, remove from heat. They shouldn't take more than 15 minutes to cook.

Toss sprouts with chestnuts, either kept whole or sliced in half, and stir in cranberries. Top with frizzled onions before serving.

We eat these year round, and although chestnuts aren't available year round, they are still delicious with the cranberries and proscuitto.

ENJOY!