Chili con carne

I found this Chile Con Carne recipe on Epicurious and I just had to try it. It has over 200 reviews and 92% of people said they loved it. Sounds like a winner to me!

For those of you who don't know about Epicurious...you should check it out! It's where you can find recipes from Gourmet, Bon Appetit and other yummy cooking magazines. There is even an iphone app which is really cool...I actually came across this recipe on my phone while at the grocery store. Its great for those times when you don't know what to make for dinner.




Recipe from Gourmet Magazine - February 1990
Serves 6
(Note: items with ** are those that I have changed from original recipe)

2 large onions, chopped (about 3 cups)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 carrots (Chop most of carrots in mini chopper and then coarsely chop the rest by hand) **
2 pounds boneless beef chuck **
1/4 cup chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon crumbled dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried hot red pepper flakes, or to taste
1- 29 ounce can tomato sauce **
1 - 14 ounce can beef broth **
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
2- 16-ounce cans kidney beans, rinsed and drained **
1 green bell pepper, finely chopped **

In a kettle cook the onions in the oil over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until they are softened, add the garlic, carrots, bell pepper, and cook the mixture, stirring, for 1 minute.

Add the chuck and cook it over moderate heat, stirring and breaking up any lumps, for 10 minutes, or until it is no longer pink. Add the chili powder, the cumin, the paprika, the oregano, and the red pepper flakes and cook the mixture, stirring, for 1 minute.

Add the tomato sauce, the broth, and the vinegar, bring the mixture to a boil, then simmer it, covered, stirring occasionally, for 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until the meat is tender.

Add the kidney beans and salt and black pepper to taste, and simmer the mixture, uncovered, for a few more minutes (until beans are warmed through)

Serve with garlic bread, corn bread or chili cheddar shortcakes

We loved this recipe. Its definitely a keeper! Oh, also this can be frozen for up to 2-3 months and reheated.

Pear Galette

I received an abundance of pears in our CSA box last week so decided to try making a galette. If you haven't seen one before its like a free form pie or tart. It turned out great and looked impressive plus it was really easy!

The recipe I used is actually for a plum galette from Martha Stewart. It worked out nicely using the pears and I think you could do apples too. A combo of pear, plum and apple might be great as well.

Prep: 30 minutes
Total: 1 3/4 hours

2 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for rolling
1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
5 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup ice water
1/4 cup whole, skin-on almonds, toasted
5 to 6 plums, halved, pitted, and sliced 1/4 inch thick. Keep slices together. (**see cooks notes below)
1 to 2 tablespoons heavy cream


In a food processor, combine 2 1/2 cups flour, butter, 1 teaspoon sugar, and salt; pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup ice water. Pulse until dough is crumbly but holds together when squeezed (if necessary, add up to 1/4 cup remaining ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time). Don't over mix. Remove dough from processor and shape into a disk; wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least 1 hour (I kept it in fridge overnight).

Meanwhile, wipe bowl of food processor clean and add almonds, 3 tablespoons sugar, and 2 tablespoons flour; pulse until ground to a coarse meal. (**see cooks notes below)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet; sprinkle almond mixture over dough. With a spatula, transfer plums to dough; press lightly to fan out, leaving a 2-inch border. Fold edge of dough over fruit. Refrigerate 20 minutes. Brush crust with cream; sprinkle galette with 2 tablespoons sanding sugar. Bake until crust is golden and underside is cooked through, about 60-70 minutes.

* Cooks notes:

- I purchased almond meal from Trader Joe's rather then grinding up my own. It was much easier. I took 1 cup almond meal and combined with 1/4 cup sugar and 2-3 tbs flour then spread that on dough before layering on fruit. This is important because it soaks up the juices released from fruit and prevents crust from being soggy on bottom.

- You can substitute pears or apples for the plums. To prep the pears I sliced off stem and bottom part of fruit then sliced in half. I used a small melon baller to scoop out center part with seeds.

- Sanding sugar can be found at most craft or party supply stores in the baking section. Its nice to have some on hand because it adds a special touch to the final look of the pastry.

- I sprinkled toasted sliced almonds on top of the galette once it was done baking. This is optional but thought it looked pretty.

Enjoy!

A visit to the islands

A few weeks ago I had a bridal shower at my house for my good friend Natalie. Since she is having a destination wedding in Kauai we thought it would be fun to play off the Hawaiian theme. After a little searching around I found a great luau themed party menu in Sunset magazine that would give us a taste of the islands yet be sophisticated and modern (no tiki torches or plastic leis at this party..haha)

You can find the full menu from Sunset Magazine by clicking HERE. We did alter a few things because Natalie is allergic to fish so we didn't do the coconut shrimp skewers (don't want to kill the bride, right?). Instead my friend Kerry found an awesome chicken skewer recipe with avocado crema dip. It was super tasty and fit in great with the rest of the menu.

Also, I couldn't resist buying some of the macaroni salad from L&L Hawaiian BBQ. If you have tasted it you know why. Its the best mac salad EVER.

Papaya and Avocado Salad with Hawaiian Vanilla Vinaigrette
(We used the presliced mango from Trader Joe's just because it was easier then papaya)


Macaroni Salad from L&L Hawaiian BBQ

Glazed Pork and Pineapple Buns
Ohhh boy. These were really good. I marinated the pork tenderloin overnight and grilled it about an hour prior to guests showing up. Also, I used canned pineapple slices just because it was much easier (and cheaper) then buying, coring and slicing a whole pineapple.

Lime marinated chicken skewers with avocado crema dip (see recipe below)

Pineapple drops (of course you MUST have the perfect cocktail)

My girls, Joy and Kerry...the most awesome bartenders

The full spread...yum.

Recipe: Lime marinated chicken skewers with avocado crema dip

1. Cut chicken breast into 1 inch cubes (for a party of 20 people I used 4-5 breasts). Prepare lime marinade..find recipe here

2. Place marinade and chicken cubes in Ziploc bag and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

3. Thread marinated chicken on to presoaked bamboo skewers (you want to soak the skewers in water for at least 1 hour so they don't catch on fire in oven or on grill).

4. To make things easier on party day I precooked the skewers in oven the night before (350 for about 20-30 min) then refrigerated overnight. About an hour before guests arrived I put them on grill to reheat.

5. While skewers are on grill prepare crema dip

1 avocado, remove pit

3 scallions, chopped

1 tbs red wine vinegar

1 tbs olive oil

1/2 cup sour cream

salt and pepper to taste

Add all ingredients to blender and pulse until smooth.

This is a great menu for a shower or any sort of party. Try it! I know your guests will be impressed.

Clam Chowder

I'm back to blogging after a wonderful and relaxing trip to Maui!

I should be posting about something summer-y but H and I had a craving for clam chowder the other day so despite the warm weather I decided to give it a try. Its a good thing even in summertime we get fog here in San Francisco. That way we were able to pretend we were eating soup on a cozy winter night even though the rest of the Bay Area is dying of heat.

This recipe is from the November 2003 issue of Gourmet Magazine (via Epicurious). I modified it a bit because I didn't feel like dealing with the hassle of fresh clams (I used canned) or leeks (I used shallots). OK, OK leeks are not a hassle...I was just being cheap and didn't want to buy them.

See my cooks notes at the bottom. After making it once I would do some things different the next time.



Makes about 4-6 servings

3 medium leeks (white and pale green parts only), quartered lengthwise and cut crosswise into 1/3-inch-thick slices (*Note- you can substitute with about 3 shallots, diced)
1 cup water
40 small (2-inch) hard-shelled clams (4 pounds) such as littlenecks, scrubbed well (*Note-I used two 6.5 oz cans of diced clams, drained & rinsed)
3 bacon slices, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-wide strips
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large onion, chopped
5 celery ribs, cut into 1/3-inch dice
1 Turkish or 1/2 California bay leaf
2 pounds russet (baking) potatoes (4 medium)
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 1/2 cups bottled clam juice or water
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
1/8 teaspoon cayenne, or to taste

1. Wash leeks well in a bowl of cold water, then lift out and drain well (if using shallots as a substitute skip this step).

2. Bring 1 cup fresh water to a boil in a 5-quart heavy pot, then add clams and cook over moderately high heat, covered, until clams are fully open, checking every minute after 5 minutes and transferring clams with a slotted spoon to a bowl as they fully open. (Discard any clams that have not opened after 8 minutes.) Pour cooking liquid through a fine-mesh sieve into another bowl. Remove cooked clams from shells, discarding shells. Coarsely chop clams and transfer to a bowl, then coarsely chop raw oysters and transfer to another bowl. Pour reserved oyster liquor through sieve into bowl with clam cooking liquid. (If using canned clams you can skip this step)

3. Cook bacon in cleaned pot over moderate heat, stirring, until crisp, about 6 minutes, then transfer bacon with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain. Add butter to pot and when foam subsides, cook onion, leeks/shallots, celery, and bay leaf, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened, 12 to 15 minutes.

4. While vegetables are cooking, peel potatoes and cut into 1/2-inch cubes. Add wine to softened vegetables and boil until reduced by half, 1 to 2 minutes. Add potatoes and bottled clam juice. (If potatoes aren't fully covered with liquid, add more clam juice or water.) Simmer, covered, until potatoes are tender, 20 to 25 minutes.

5. Purée 2 cups soup in a blender until very smooth (use caution when blending hot liquids) and return to pot. Add cream, salt, pepper, Old Bay, and cayenne and cook at a bare simmer, stirring, until soup is heated through (do not let boil). Add clams and cook, stirring, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat and discard bay leaf. Serve topped with crumbled bacon.

COOKS NOTES:

1- As mentioned above you can use canned clams rather then fresh. I put in two 6.5oz cans but will add more next time. Maybe 1-2 more cans. The soup wasn't very clammy tasting.

2. I used 1 bottle of clam juice but will add 2 next time so I don't have to add water in step 4 when cooking potatoes. I wanted to have a bit more clam taste and didn't get that because I had to put in about 1 cup of water to cover potatoes.

3. The bacon topping is good but next time I will double the bacon and mix the cooked crumbles in with the soup to give it a deeper smoky flavor.

4. Recipe calls to puree 2 cups of the soup at the end but I did 4 cups because I wanted it more creamy then chunky. This turned out to be the perfect ratio. It was really creamy with just a few potato chunks mixed in.

All in all this was a yummy soup and tasted great leftover too.

I have lots of blog updates to come...a great menu for a Hawaiian themed party and the status on our worm farm! I know you cant wait!

BBQ pizza: It's easy!!

I have heard about BBQ pizza but never tried it at home. Last week I saw that one of my favorite bloggers Sweet Paul posted a recipe and video about it so I decided to get off my butt and give it a go.

I like making pizza at home but usually go the easy route by buying dough at Trader Joe's. I don't know why I've been so lazy!!! Making dough at home is sooooo simple plus it tastes much much better then store bought.

Recipe:

Makes 2 pizzas
2 teaspoons dry yeast
1 1/3 cup lukewarm water
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 1/2 cups plain flour

Mix yeast and water in a bowl. Leave for 5 minutes and add honey, salt, oil and flour. Mix until you have a smooth dough. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise for at least 1 hour. Get your grill going, remember it needs to be really hot!

Here is my dough after it has been left to sit for about 1 hour .

Divide your dough in two and place it on well greased parchment paper.

Press it out using your fingers and coat it with a layer of olive oil (coating with olive oil is an important step. It prevents dough from sticking to your hands, parchment and the grill)


Get your toppings all ready- I used prosciutto, goat cheese, pesto, heirloom tomato and basil. You can use anything you want. Have fun with it!

Once your grill is nice and hot flip the paper upside down on grill and slowly remove the paper. Let the pizza cook for 3 minutes.


Flip dough over, place toppings on and let grill for another 3 min or so. Mine got a little charred but that's OK. It added to the flavor. Once the dough seemed cooked I turned the heat off to allow cheese to melt. Remove from grill, cut and serve. YUM!

I really loved this pizza and had a good time making it.

Thanks to Sweet Paul for the great recipe. If you don't follow his blog, you should!! Hes a food stylist, crafter and cook. He has some really amazing projects, recipes and drool worthy food photography. If he lived in San Francisco I might force him to be my friend. Hes so crafty!!

Blueberry peach cobbler w/ oatmeal cookie topping

I made this a few weeks ago and it was SO good. The blueberries were something not in original recipe but I thought they would pair well with the peaches and I was right!! I loved the combo. Also, the oatmeal cookie is so different...not your average crumbly cobbler topping.



With fresh fruit overflowing at farmers markets this summer I bet you could make this with just about anything and it would be good.

* Note: I halved the recipe and used a 8x8 baking dish. It was enough for 4 people plus some leftovers.

Recipe from Cooking Light

12 servings (serving size: about 1 cup)

Ingredients
Topping:
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 large egg
4.5 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 cup)
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Filling:
11 cups sliced peeled peaches (about 5 pounds)
2 pints blueberries ** STK addition
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Cooking spray


Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 350°

2. To prepare topping, place first 3 ingredients in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and egg; beat well. Weigh or lightly spoon 1 cup flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine 1 cup flour, oats, baking powder, and salt; stir with a whisk. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture; beat at low speed until blended. Cover and chill 30 minutes.

3. To prepare filling, combine sliced peeled peaches, 1/3 cup granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons flour, and fresh lemon juice in a bowl; toss to coat. Spoon mixture into a 13 x 9–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Dollop 12 mounds of chilled dough over peach mixture at even intervals. Bake at 350° for 40 minutes or until lightly browned and bubbly.

Freezer meals: Artichoke manicotti in pesto cream

Here is one of those recipes that works great straight out of the freezer. You can prepare a bunch in advance then save them for later. Everyone has those nights where they just don't feel like cooking. Right?

As mentioned in a previous post. I purchased a bunch of tins from the Dollar Tree (3 for $1). They are perfect size for a 2 person meal, store easy and can be popped straight into the oven then thrown away. No cleanup!!

The only real work you have to do is preheat the oven, open a bottle of wine and put on some So You Think You Can Dance. Now that's what I call the perfect night...but maybe its just me.

Here is what they looked like after assembly but prior to freezing

Recipe from Robin to the Rescue by Robin Miller

Total time: 40 min

Makes about 3-4 meals (I doubled recipe to make more)

1lb manicotti shells

1 14oz can artichoke hearts, drained (not marinated)

1/2 cup ricotta cheese

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella (plus more for topping)

1 tsp dried oregano

Pesto Cream

2 tbs pine nuts (toasted in oven or in skillet)

2 cups packed fresh basil

1 cup heavy cream

2 tbs olive oil

2 tbs grated parmesan cheese (plus more for topping)

2 cloves garlic

1. Cook manicotti shells according to package directions. Once done remove from water and let drain on paper towels.

2. Meanwhile, in blender or food processor combine artichoke hearts, ricotta, mozzarella and oregano until smooth.

3. Fill shells with ricotta mixture. An easy technique is to fill a large ziploc with the mixture. Snip of one corner of bag then squeeze into shells. This is faster and less messy then spooning it in by hand.

4. Make pesto cream: Blend toasted pine nuts, basil, cream, oil, parmesean and garlic in a blender or food processor until smooth (don't over mix as the sauce might separate a bit. This happened to me. Didn't look as pretty as it should have but still tasted great)

5. Assembly: Spoon layer of pesto cream on bottom of foil container. Place 4 filled manicotti shells on top. Layer on more pesto cream then sprinkle parmesean and shredded mozzarella on top. Once cool you can place the lids on and freeze. Don't forget to label the containers so you know whats inside!!

**NOTE: Can be kept frozen for up to 3 months.

6. Cooking:

From freezer: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Remove cardboard lid from foil tray, cover with tin foil. Bake for 40-50 min (no need to defrost first). If you want the cheese to brown a little remove foil for last 5 min of baking.

If defrosted or fresh made: Preheat oven to 375 degrees and bake for 25 min.

Enjoy!!

I have 2 other freezer meals to share with you. All of them are really easy. You can make all 3 at once over the span of a few hours then package them up so you have a nice size supply of dinners for later.

Blueberry waffles with strawberry, peach, blueberry compote

I made Hamish a special Father-to-be breakfast this morning. I have to say....it was deeeelicious!

Waffles are a nice treat on any given weekend. They are really easy and make breakfast extra special. I jazzed these up by adding a little ground flax seed to the batter (shhhhhh...its healthy!) and also topped them off with a fresh fruit compote.

(im hoping the omega-3's in the flax seed are going to counteract all the butter and syrup. Wishful thinking perhaps?)

This waffle recipe is from the Joy of Cooking cookbook.

Makes 8 6-inch waffles

Preheat waffle iron

Whisk together:

1 3/4 cup flour
1 tbs baking powder
1 tbs sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup ground flax seed (STK addition)

In another bowl whisk together:

3 large eggs
5 tbs unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cup milk

1-2 pints fresh blueberries, rinse and set aside.

Combine wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Do not over mix.

Pour approx 1/2 cup batter onto waffle iron. Sprinkle 5-6 blueberries on top and then close the lid. Bake waffle until golden brown. Serve immediately or keep warm on a wire rack in a 200 degree oven.

For compote:

In a small bowl combine sliced strawberries, peaches and remaining whole blueberries. Mix well. Use compote to top waffles in addition to other goodies like butter, syrup and whip cream. Enjoy!

Chipotle shrimp tacos

This is a recipe I just made up on the fly and it turned out pretty tasty. The shrimp were really flavorful and juicy. YUM!

Makes 4-5 small tacos

1 lb med size raw shrimp (31/40) - deveined, shells removed
1 tbs olive oil
2 tbs chipotle sauce (from the can)
2 tbs chopped fresh cilantro
1 tsp salt
White corn tortillas and any other taco fixins you want

Toss all ingredients together in a small bowl then allow to marinate 30 min in refrigerator.

If you have a veggie basket for the BBQ you can cook shrimp on the grill. That's what I did and they turned out really good. If you don't want to BBQ them you could saute in a nonstick pan.

Once cooked through, remove tails and give meat a rough chop. Assemble your tacos!! Enjoy!

Roasted chipotle-honey mustard chicken

As mentioned in my previous post im going to be cooking a bunch of recipes from the Robin Miller cookbook I just purchased. This roasted chipotle-honey mustard chicken is one of them. It was really good although, I went a bit heavy on the chipotle, lesson learned...wowza! It was spicy. (note to self: measuring out ingredients is a good thing)

The best part about this recipe is that by making a few extra chicken breasts (I did 8) you can save them for other recipes later in the week. Tonight im using them for fancy chicken and sausage sandwiches then I will use them again on Friday for nutty asian chicken over noodles.

Recipe from Robin Rescues Dinner by Robin Miller

Notice that beautiful salad...the spinach is straight from our garden! (cant help but brag...it was really good)

Prep time : 10 min
Cook time: 30-45 min
Serves: 2-3

Cooking spray
2-3 chicken breast ( I did 8 so we would have leftovers)
Salt and Pepper
1/2 cup honey
1 tbs olive oil
1 tbs minced chipotle chili in adobo, plus 1 tsp sauce from can
2 tsp dijon mustard

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line baking sheet with foil and coat with cooking spray (don't forget this part as the honey will burn onto sheet pan while cooking). Arrange chicken on prepared pan and season with salt and pepper.

Whisk together honey, oil, chipotle chile with sauce and dijon in small bowl. Brush mixture over chicken.

Roast in oven 30-45 min or until chicken is cooked through.

Slice chicken and serve with brown rice.

Roast beef and two-chile grilled cheese (can be made veggie too!)

This was a recipe I sampled at the Sunset Celebration Weekend. It was so good that I had to make it immediately. You could easily make this vegetarian by substituting a big 'ol slice of heirloom tomato for roast beef.

{Recipe from Sunset Kitchens}



Makes 4 sandwiches
15 min

1/4 c mayonnaise
1 tbs canned chipotle chile (minced)
4 onion rolls or fresh kaiser rolls
2 tbs olive oil
1/2 lb pepper jack cheese
1/2 lb sliced roast beef (or heirloom tomato for veggie option)
1 small can mild green chili. Seeded and split in half.

1. Combine mayo and minced chipotle chili in small bowl.


2. Preheat panini press or grill pan. Brush outsides of rolls with olive oil. Spread rolls with chipotle mayo then top with 2 slices cheese, 2-3 slices roast beef (or thick tomato slice), 1 green chili and 2 more cheese slices.


3. Place in panini press or in grill pan (I don't have a panini press so I used a pie plate as a weight on top of sandwiches while they cooked). Grill until cheese is melted. Slice in half and serve.

Next up...I want to tell you about all the great things I saw and learned at Sunset Celebration!