Anytime Fritatta

In keeping with breakfast recipes (see last weeks delicious 'big pancake')... I introduce you to Martha Stewart's Anytime Fritatta.

(noticing the cayenne sprinkled on top? whoops! forgot to add it. tasted fine on top, i thought)

Big pancake wasn't your thing last week? Too sweet? (if you answered 'yes' to that, I can't help you) No matter, this is EVERYONE'S thing. Unless you're vegan.

This is easy, it's quick (prep your potatoes the night before) and it's delicious. Great meal for guests, or to keep all to yourselves on a lovely Sunday morning. (Mmm, monday morning leftovers!)

Anytime Fritatta
from Martha Stewart Living

Serves 8

1/2 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup water
4 leeks (about 1 pound), white and pale-green parts only, rinsed well and sliced into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 pound Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
Coarse salt
8 large eggs plus 2 large egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese, drained
1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Brush a 9-inch square baking dish with oil. Bring water to a simmer in a medium skillet over high heat. Add leeks, garlic, and potatoes; season with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Reduce heat to medium-low, and cook, covered, until potatoes are just tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool.

Whisk together eggs, whites, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and the cayenne. Fold in potato mixture and ricotta. Mix in 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Pour mixture into dish, and sprinkle with remaining Parmesan. Bake until edges are set, about 12 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees, and bake until set and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.

Let cool for 10 minutes. Cut into 8 squares.

Guten appetit!

The Perfect Baked Potato

Yes, I said 'baked potato'. You may be asking yourself, does someone really NEED a recipe for 'baked potato'? And again, the answer is 'yes'. But thank you for asking.

It may be simple, but that's the beauty of it. And frankly, for all other recipes requiring a baked potato (such as twice baked potato), you simply wash and throw the potato in the oven to cook. That's all I'd ever done.

Well, if you want to eat a plain potato with a few toppings, that simply wont do. There is a way to make a potato pop with flavor.

Skeptical? You'll have to make this super simple recipe and tell me what you think.

I made it for Tim and I when we caught the flu a couple weeks ago. It was the perfect lunch for people whose tummy's couldn't handle anything heavy, spicy or rich. I loved it so much, I've made it a couple times since. I can't believe I forgot how delicious baked potatoes are - especially loaded with broccoli and cheese, or cottage cheese and butter. Mmmm.

Enjoy my friends. The flu and colds are among us. I hope you're all staying healthy!

The Perfect Baked Potato
from FoodNetwork

Heat oven to 350 degrees and position racks in top and bottom thirds.

Wash potato (or potatoes) thoroughly with a stiff brush and cold running water. Dry, then using a standard fork poke 8 to 12 deep holes all over the spud so that moisture can escape during cooking.

Here is the key: Place in a bowl and coat lightly with oil (there was nothing light about my oil coating, but it wasn't dripping oil). Sprinkle with kosher salt and place potato directly on rack in middle of oven. Place a baking sheet on the lower rack to catch any drippings.

Bake 1 hour or until skin feels crisp but flesh beneath feels soft. Serve by creating a dotted line from end to end with your fork, then crack the spud open by squeezing the ends towards one another. It will pop right open. But watch out, there will be some steam.

NOTE: If you're cooking more than 4 potatoes, you'll need to extend the cooking time by up to 15 minutes.

Guten appetit!

Justin's Secret Broccoli

My cousin Justin started a food blog: Organic Recipes on a Budget. What a great idea! However, I don't mean to get you all excited, because he hasn't posted since August. Justin? Hello? Is the site defunct? Sad. I'm sure there's an audience for your recipes. Like, say... me.

Justin's wife is a veggie, like us, and apparently loves this recipe. Since I'm always looking for easy, delicious side dishes, thought I would give it a try.

Other than cooking it a bit too long, which I didn't mind (I like most things overdone, yikes!), it certainly was scrumptious. And for a minimal amount of extra effort, you get a bit more zing from your broccoli side dish. I give it two big thumbs up! Thanks for a delish new recipe J. I hope you return to your blog soon.


Justin's Secret Broccoli
from Organic Recipes on a Budget

Said to only cost $5! Pair it with lemongrass tofu and some rice. Mmmmm.

Ingredients

1 Big Bunch Organic Broccoli - Cut into big florets
1 Organic Lemon
From the cupboard - 1.5 Tbls Olive oil, 2 cloves garlic - peeled & pressed, 1 tsp Salt & pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees, or preheat the grill for indirect heat.

Put the broccoli in a good sized bowl and pour the olive oil on top. Throw in the pressed garlic, salt & pepper and toss the broccoli to get the goodness spread around.

Pour the broccoli into a 13x9 inch pan or onto a foil lined baking sheet and put it in the oven for 20 minutes (I greased my pan with Pam, just to make sure it wouldn't stick).

Pull it out of the oven and squeeze the lemon juice onto the broccoli, making sure you get it onto all of the florets. Serve warm.

Guten appetit!

Potato Pie with Leeks and Feta

Are you seeing a theme here? I'm into leeks. Big time! They may be my new favorite vegetable. Nah, that's a false statement. Nothing can usurp the avocado.

But back to the recipe... I originally found this dish because I had some leftover feta to use. When I read this recipe, I realized I also had a forgotten leek in the fridge to use. Oh, how I love it when the stars align. The only thing I needed from the store for this recipe were the potatoes.


Know what else this recipe is good for... satisfying picky side dish eaters. Namely, my dad. Ahem, and me. Guess we know where I got it from! Every vegetable or side dish I liked, he seemed to dislike... zucchinis (actually, all squash), peas, fresh green beans (canned were OK, yuck), salad was OK if it had ranch dressing (I don't buy/eat ranch), and the list goes on. But this recipe, we both agreed was a winner! My dad even had seconds. Yay.

I'm telling you, there's something addictive about leeks. I hope you try this one. It's not only great for cleaning up a few odds and ends from your fridge, but it gives a pretty good bang in the presentation department for the limited effort you will put in.

Potato Pie with Leeks and Feta
from Cafe Chocolada

For the dough:
1 medium sized potato
1 cup flour
5 tbsp margarine, melted and cooled a bit
2 tsp baking powder
½ smaller leek, chopped up (optional)
½ tsp Salt
¼ tsp black pepper

For the filling:
5-6 medium sized potatoes
½ leek chopped up
½ cup sour cream
3 eggs
½ cup crumbled feta cheese, or cubed
Pinch of salt


First wash, and cook potatoes with their skin. Peel, and mash one immediately, and let the rest (for the filling) cool down.

Preheat oven to 390 F.

In a bowl with mashed potato, add margarine, flour, baking powder, salt, and pepper, and knead with hands to get a smooth dough. Add half of chopped up leek (I left this out and was great), knead it in, then transfer the dough to a medium sized spring form pan, spread it around to cover pan bottom with it.

Peel and slice the remaining potatoes, or chop them up, and place them on top of the dough, along with half of chopped up leek. Sprinkle with some salt (you be the judge as to how much), and pepper.

Mix eggs with sour cream, add a pinch of salt, and feta cheese. Pour this over the potatoes, and place the pie in the oven. Bake for about 40 minutes, depending on the oven. Cool a little, then remove the spring form, and serve. Best if eaten right away, as most potato dishes.

Guten appetit!

Tomato Leek Tart

Oh my goodness, oh my GOOD-ness! We have a winner. Winner, winner, chicken dinner.

Yes, this recipe is THAT good.

Sometimes it's the random nights that become the unexpected happy surprise. I hadn't planned to make anything special this night. I simply had a pint of cherry tomatoes that needed to be used. For some reason, I've craved pies most of this summer. Preferably the kind with a lot of sugar and fruit, but that's off subject, as I had tomatoes to use. But, I think I originally chose this recipe because of it's pie crust. Seriously.

Yes, that's a foil wrapper I served off of. I'm classy. In my defense, I did warn you that this was not expected to be a special dinner. I was just trying to use up some tomatoes! And look what happened... pure deliciousness.

I hope you make this soon. The leek, the tomatoes, the cheese, the pie crust... it all works. It works so well, it dances on your tongue. Ok, not really. But it tastes good.

Tomato Leek Tart
from All Recipes

1 (15 ounce) package refrigerated pie crust
4 ounces provolone cheese, shredded
1 pound leeks, white portion only, sliced
6 medium plum tomatoes, thinly sliced (I used cherry tomatoes)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese


Place both pastry sheets on greased baking sheets. Sprinkle each with provolone cheese, leaving 1 in. around edges.

Arrange leeks and tomato slices over provolone cheese. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, garlic powder and pepper. Top with mozzarella cheese. Fold edges over filling.

Bake at 425 degrees for 18-22 minutes or until crusts are lightly browned. Cut into wedges. Serve warm.

Guten appetit!

Blue Cheese Coleslaw

Loosen the belt buckles... this is a rich, delicious summertime food that will be feasted on. Have a large family picnic or friend's BBQ coming up? This coleslaw would be perfect. It goes soooo well with veggie burgers, or for the meat eaters, I bet it would be smashing with BBQ chicken.

You can adjust the richness based on how much blue cheese you put in it. And by how long you let it sit. The day I made it, I thought it was perfect. The next day, the richness had exploded and I could only eat a few bites.

I normally prefer a lighter 'salad' side, but I have to admit, this was really good the day-of. Really, really good. I also really liked the mix of veggies used (nothing out of the ordinary for coleslaw, but I don't use cabbage a lot and it was a nice change from the norm). Try some variations, based on what sounds good or what you have in the fridge. I bet this would be great with some green beans, cauliflower or broccoli added. I can also imagine the sauce used on things other than a traditional coleslaw, such as a broccoli, sunflower seed and carrot mix. Yum!


One last note: Because of the richness of the blue cheese, I think the serving sizes are a bit smaller than normal. This makes quite a bit of coleslaw, so for 5-6 adults, I would half the recipe. If you want leftovers, make the full amount.

Blue Cheese Coleslaw
adapted slightly from Deb (aka: Smitten Kitchen) on NPR

1/2 small head green cabbage
1/2 small head red cabbage
1 10 oz. package shredded carrots
2 cups (16 ounces) mayonnaise
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons whole grain mustard (I only used dijon)
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (rice vinegar also works)
1 teaspoon celery salt (I omitted this)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) crumbled Roquefort blue cheese
1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Cut the cabbages in half and then in quarters and cut out the cores. Slice the cabbage into long strands, then chop a bit more until you have reasonable sized pieces (for me, that means 'bite sized'). Add carrots to cabbage.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, both mustards (see my note above), vinegar, celery salt, kosher salt and pepper. Pour enough mayonnaise dressing over the grated vegetables and toss to moisten well. Add crumbled blue cheese and parsley and toss with vegetables.

At this point, the original recipe says to: "Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour or more to allow the flavors to meld." However, we ate ours within a half hour of making it, and it was perfect. Serve cold or at room temperature.

Guten appetit!

Zuchinni and Chickpea Ratatouille

For breakfast, lunch or dinner, I could eat Zucchini and Chickpea Ratatouille. (True, I prefer blueberry pancakes for breakfast, soooo delish. But this was beyond good, to where I actually though I could eat it for breakfast.)

Since we're on the subject, I will make a confession. Aside from the very occasional blueberry pancakes, I've been making Eggos a lot for breakfast. And quite often, frozen pizza for dinner. Hey, I told you that I have been tired! I wasn't exaggerating.

This recipe really did help pull me out of my recent cooking funk. After I made it for the first time about 2 months ago, I sent it to some friends as a 'must try' recipe. When I decided to make it again this week, I got excited. Excited to cook, and excited to share it on the blog. Yay, maybe my old self really is coming back!

This recipe is olive oil, tangy goodness. A delectible mix of tomatoes, zucchini and rice. The chickpeas are a great addition, and help add depth and protein.

Rice helps soak up the sauce, mmmm.

One of my new favorite summertime dinners. I don't even make a side dish for this one! Treat yourself to dessert instead. This recipe has the veggies, protein and starch, all rolled into one. Love it.

Zucchini and Chickpea Ratatouille
from Family Circle

2 med zucchini, about 1 1/4 lb, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 large red pepper, cored, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 T olive oil
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 cans (14 1/2 oz each) Italian-seasoned diced tomatoes
1 can (15 1/2 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/4 t salt
1/8 t black pepper
1/8 t red pepper flakes
3 cups cooked brown rice

Heat oven to 425.

Coat baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Add zucchini and red pepper; toss with 1 T olive oil. Bake at 425 for 30 min or until tender.

Heat remaining 1 T oil in a large nonstick skillet over med-high heat. Add garlic, cook 30 seconds to 1 min. Stir in tomatoes and cook for 5 min. stirring occasionally. Add zucchini, peppers, chickpeas, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Cook an additional 5 min, stirring occasionally. Serve with cooked brown rice. Makes 4 servings.

Another rat-a-tat-touille:
- Pasta with Halibut and Oven-Roasted Ratatouille

Have a bumper crop of zucchini? Make enchiladas:
- Black Bean, Corn and Zucchini Enchiladas

Guten appetit!

Parmesan Roasted Potatoes

Fast, easy, and... not worth making again. Darn. Don't you just hate when you try a new recipe and you're excited at how simple and delicious it sounds, and then, it doesn't deliver? Double darn.

The owner of these potatoes raved about them, so I hate to say otherwise. Maybe if I used a different Parmesan or added some extra herbs (but then it wouldn't be the fast, easy side dish I was hoping for). Darn, darn, darn.

I'm still going to post the recipe, and I'm not telling you to never make these. Maybe they will strike one of you as a tasty side dish, who knows. Maybe my taste buds were simply on strike. Yeah, maybe that was it.

What went wrong?! You LOOK so good....

Ho hum. My quest for a simple, yummy roast potato recipe continues. (Not that I'm searching in earnest, mind you)

Although the potatoes were not my fav, I have many, many more recipes to try from For the Love of Cooking. She has some great dishes posted and 106 vegetarian recipes! Go check her out.

Parmesan Roasted Potatoes
from For the Love of Cooking

9-10 small baby Dutch yellow potatoes
3-4 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1 tbsp olive oil
Garlic powder, to taste
Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste
Fresh chopped parsley, for garnish (Notice I didn't use parsley! Maybe that was my downfall)


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Boil a large pot of water and boil the potatoes for 4-5 minutes. Remove from water and let cool. Once cooled, slice into quarters and combine with olive oil, garlic powder, sea salt and black pepper as well as the Parmesan. Mix thoroughly and place in a baking dish that has been sprayed with olive oil cooking spray.

Place into the oven and roast for 20-25 minutes. Remove from the oven and taste, re season with sea salt, cracked pepper, or garlic powder if needed. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley.

Guten appetit!

Pasta with Halibut and Oven-Roasted Ratatouille

This should be a guest post, as I'm stealing the real chef's hard work. While Jamie & Chria visited us in December, they made this delicious Ratatouille. I simply sat back and snapped the pictures, then savored the meal. Lucky me!

The dish idea came about because of a discussion with Jamie over Tim's and my dislike of eggplant. I don't understand why so many vegetarian dishes include eggplant, and the general public assumes a vegetarian loves two things: portabella mushrooms and eggplant. I'm sure some people do, but not me. Don't like either.

However, Jamie promised me that I would like eggplant when made in one of her favorite recipes: Pasta with Halibut and Oven-Roasted Ratatouille.

If she's cooking, I'm game to try it! I get lots of yummy recipes from her, so the trust is there. And who knows, maybe my eggplant aversion could be turned around (Jamie, when are you going to start eating tomatoes?).

I must say, she was right. Cut up small, and roasted to soft goodness, I didn't mind the eggplant. I even think I liked it! I preferred the zucchini and other veggies, but there were so many flavors mixing in this dish, I didn't really notice the eggplant. Next time someone asks if I like eggplant, I can say 'yes, when made in pasta with halibut and oven-roasted ratatouille'. This is a major step (pat, pat on my back).


This dish was delicious, filling and very healthy. Looked easy to prepare too, just a bit of prep and waiting for the roasting process to happen (I think our oven is slower than most though). For a vacation day, or weekend evening, this is a great recipe to try.

Thanks Jamie & Chria!

Ratatouille
from Epicurious, and graciously cooked for us by Jamie & Chria

Nonstick vegetable oil spray
1 1-pound eggplant, unpeeled, trimmed, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 pound plum tomatoes, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 small zucchini, trimmed, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 small red bell pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves, flattened
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons herbes de Provence*
1 12-ounce halibut fillet
2 cups medium-size pasta shells


Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray large rimmed baking sheet with nonstick spray. Spread next 5 ingredients on sheet. Drizzle with oil. Sprinkle with herbes de Provence, salt, and pepper. Roast vegetables until tender, stirring occasionally, about 35 minutes. Push vegetables to sides of sheet. Place fish in center of sheet; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast until just opaque in center, about 12 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup cooking water. Return pasta to pot. Add roasted vegetables and enough reserved pasta cooking water to pasta to moisten; toss. Cut fish into 1/2-inch pieces; add to pasta and toss gently. Season with salt and pepper.

*A dried herb mixture available at specialty foods stores and some supermarkets.

More rat-a-tat-touille:
- Ratatouille Tart, from Smitten Kitchen
- Ratatouille on Polenta with Baby Greens, from Karina's Kitchen
- Seasonal Ratatouille, from Serious Eats
- The movie!

Guten appetit!

Fried Spring Rolls

Do you ever have cravings for certain types of food? I think most people do. Maybe it's mexican, or could be italian. Since I eat both of those regularly, my cravings usually come in the form of chinese or thai. I wouldn't say I crave fried food, but I will say that sometimes, a fried spring roll sounds utterly delicious. The kind of delicious that only fried can offer.

For this recipe, I'm torn on how to describe it. Basically, they were an experiment by Jill at Hey, that tastes good!, and one that I decided to replicate.

Typically you would not use rice paper wrappers for frying spring rolls. That was the experiment. Jill even called her post 'ugly, but delicious'. That should tell you a lot about why you don't use rice paper.

I almost bought both kinds of wrappers to do a comparison test. But in the end, I decided to try it Jill's way, and then remake another spring roll in the future with the typical, flour wrappers for frying. Plus, using the rice wrappers would leave me with a few sheets leftover to make fresh spring rolls later.

In fact, Jill was right, they are 'ugly but delicious'. Both Tim and I enjoyed them and quickly ate 2-3 each. If you pile them on a plate, as I did, be forewarned that they will stick together.

In the end, I'm not sure I would remake them this way, just because my curiosity is peaked to use the regular wrappers (this was my first time making fried spring rolls). I have to try the other wrappers to decide which is better. But these were fun, different and tasted pretty darn good! Definitely satisfied my fried spring roll craving.

If you are adventurous enough and had some small hands lurking around the kitchen, wrapping and rolling the spring rolls could be a fun project for kids.


Fried Spring Rolls (using rice paper)
from Hey, that tastes good!

8 ounces mixed mushrooms
3 baby bok choy (I substituted ¼ green cabbage head)
1 teaspoon grated ginger
2 scallions
1 carrot, peeled
A handful of spinach (I didn't use)
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon mirin (rice wine)
1/4 pound chopped tofu
1/4 package of rice noodles
1 egg white (not necessary, water holds the paper together just fine)
1 package rice paper wrappers


Soak the rice noodles in a bowl of hot water until softened. Thinly slice your mushrooms and carrots and put in separate piles. Cut the leaves off the bok choy and set aside, thinly slice the bottoms and add to the carrot pile. Slice the scallions thinly and set aside. Cut the spinach and boy choy leaves into strips.

Heat 1 T oil in a pan (wok if you have one - a large skillet works fine). Add the ginger and scallions and cook for a few seconds, then add the tofu, carrots and bok choy bottoms. Cook together a few minutes, then add the mushrooms. Once those have cooked most of the way through, add the spinach, bok choy leaves, soy sauce, noodles, and mirin. Cook until liquid is mostly gone and greens are wilted. Pour filling into a strainer, and set aside to cool/drain for a few minutes.

Once cooled, fill a shallow bowl with hot water. Dip one rice wrapper into the water and hold it there until softened. You will know when it’s ready. Lay the wrapper carefully on your work surface, and put a tablespoon of filling in the center.

Pull the bottom half up, then fold over the right side and then the left.Squoosh the filling in as tight as you can, wet the last side with egg white, and then fold over. Set aside, and repeat until all the filling is gone. Heat about an inch of oil in a pan, and when shimmering, slowly drop in the first roll. Let fry for a few minutes, then flip, carefully. It will puff up all crazy but don’t worry. That’s why they’re ugly. Once you feel they’re fried enough, drain on a paper towel and repeat.

Serve immediately with a sweet chili sauce.

Because sometimes you just want it fried:
- Vietnamese Crispy Spring Rolls, from Sunday Nite Dinner
- Southwest Spring Rolls (omit the chicken for veggies), from My Kitchen Snippets
- Veggie Wontons, from Chef Michele's Adventures

Guten appetit!

Zucchini Spears with Parmesan Cheese

This is my quick, go-to side dish 2-3 times a week. We both love it.

My mom made it a lot for us while growing up too, probably because of how easy it is and cheese makes everything taste great (especially for kids!).

I also find that sometimes I focus on the main dish, and forget about buying anything for a side dish. However, I always have a zucchini in the refrigerator. Every time I'm at the store, I pick one up automatically, knowing that I'd be making spears sometime during the week. And voila, I'm saved. A side dish is ready in 10 minutes (2 minutes to prep, 8 to broil). These also go with almost everything - italian, mexican, fish, etc.


Next time you're at the market, spy the zucchini's and pick one up for spears this week.

Zucchini Spears
from my mom

1 medium zucchini
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons grated parmesan (use more or less, as desired)
Salt and Pepper, to taste


Preheat broiler on high, and place a rack in the upper 1/2 of your oven. (If you place the rack on the top level, the spears with brown faster but not cook as much and be a bit crunchy. If you place it one level below the top, the cheese will brown while also mostly cooking the zucchini. We prefer the latter best, but it's up to you!).

Wash, then cut the ends off zucchini. Cut in half crosswise, then slice each half vertically into quarters, creating spears. You should end up with 8 spears.

Place zucchini in a baking dish, skin side down (I cover my pie plate with foil because the excess parmesan makes a mess).

Drizzle zucchini with olive oil, be sure to smear the olive oil around on the zucchini and coat the exposed spears as much as possible. Sprinkle zucchini with pepper (salt as well, if desired), then sprinkle spears evenly with grated parmesan.

Place in oven, under broiler, for 5-8 minutes, until browned. (We like ours extra crispy, so I sometimes leave them in for 10 minutes.)

More quick zucchini recipes to love:
- Roasted Zucchini Spears with Garlic, from Simply Recipes
- Zucchini and Tomato Gratin, from Pinch My Salt
- Zucchini with Toasted Almonds, from Smitten Kitchen

Guten appetit!

Thai-Style Tofu and Vegetables

If Mexican is my favorite food type, Thai would be second. After living in Japan, I know that many of the asian cultures share foods. While there are Thai curries, there are also Japanese curries, Indian curries, etc. Almost every Thai restaurant will have fresh spring rolls, similar to the Vietnamese versions, and probably some wok fried dishes.

But I love the thai flavors and styles the best. Coconut milk, pairings of savory and sweet, and the spicy 1-2 punch they give to their dishes. I eat it up.

When I saw this easy recipe for Thai-Style Tofu and Veggies, I had to make it. Smelled so good while cooking, and when I added the coconut milk, I could barely wait to taste it!



Un-forrr-tunately, it smelled better than it really tasted. It was good, I had no problem finishing my dish. But it wasn't wow-ing, and could be described as a little bland. I had higher expectations. But, if you're looking for a super easy, coconut milk, thai dish, this could fit the bill. Good for weeknight fast dinners. Just not if you're having company.

Thai-Style Tofu and Vegetables
from Food & Wine

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 medium onion, thinly sliced lengthwise

1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger

1 garlic clove, very thinly sliced (add an extra garlic clove)

1 large jalapeno, thinly sliced crosswise with seeds

1 teaspoon turmeric

4 large shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded, caps thickly sliced (I didn't use)

2 cups small broccoli florets

1 medium carrot, thinly sliced crosswise

3 canned plum tomatoes, chopped

1 1/4 cups light unsweetened coconut milk

1 pound firm tofu, cut into 1-inch cubes

1/2 cup water

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1/2 cup coarsely chopped basil leaves

Lime wedges, for serving

In a large skillet or wok, heat the vegetable oil. Add the onion along with the ginger, garlic and jalapeño and stir-fry over moderately high heat for 2 minutes. Add the turmeric, then add the shiitake mushrooms, broccoli and carrot and stir-fry for 3 minutes.

Add the tomatoes, coconut milk, tofu, water and soy sauce to the skillet and simmer over moderately high heat, stirring a few times, until the vegetables are al dente, about 4 minutes. Stir the chopped basil into the vegetables, transfer to plates and serve immediately with lime wedges.

Guten appetit!

Sweet Potato Patties

I may have mentioned this in the past. But I'm a creature of habit. I have a typical routine in the mornings, which I like. When Tim and I go to town and eat out, there are literally 3 restaurants we always go to. I can branch out on occasion, but when I know what I like, I generally stick with it.

As such with sweet potatoes. When I make them, my go to recipes are the Herb Roasted Sweet Potatoes or Sweet Potato Fries. I love them, and when I get sweet potatoes into my hot hands, I decide which of those two recipes I'm in the mood for and go with it.

While browsing and clicking through some food blogs one day (who am I kidding? I do that everyday! It's become a visual addiction), I spotted these sweet potato patties. Interesting. They would serve up as a main dish, instead of the side dish I usually use my sweet potatoes for, AND it would take advantage of the sweet chili sauce I just bought for another recipe. Well, those are good enough reasons for me to give it a go.

They turned out just as expected, delicious. I like the mix of rice and veggies with the potato, as plain potato patties can seem like eating mush. These were firm, and held up well. Gave a nice sweet flavor, but had some spice to them with the cumin. And we really liked the addition of the sweet chili sauce.

While the patties don't trump my other two favorite sweet potato recipes, it's definitely a solid option when I want to branch out or have a few leftovers (cup of rice, frozen peas, etc) to use up.


Sweet Potato Patties
from Exclusively Food

1/3 cup fresh breadcrumbs
1/4 cup cooked rice
1 large sweet potato (approx. 1 cup) peeled and roughly chopped
1/2 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup frozen mixed corn kernels and baby peas
1/3 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 garlic clove, minced
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon flat leaf parsley, chopped
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon oil, for frying
Sweet chili sauce, to serve


If you want to make your own breadcrumbs, place day-old bread in a food processor and process to make fine crumbs.

Boil, steam or microwave sweet potato until tender.

In a large bowl, roughly mash the sweet potato with a fork. Add the breadcrumbs, rice, onion, peas/corn, parmesan, cumin, garlic, egg, parsley, salt and pepper and stir until just combined.

Form the mixture into 8 patties.

Heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Cook patties for approximately 4 minutes on each side, until golden brown and cooked through.

Serve patties hot, with sweet chili sauce. Cooked patties can be stored in the refrigerator and reheated in the oven or microwave.

More sweet potato recipes from other food bloggers:
- Sweet Potato and Leek Latkes, from Gluten-Free Bay
- Spicy Crockpot Sweet Potatoes, from Kalyn's Kitchen
- Sweet Potato Buttermilk Rolls, from Pinch My Salt

Guten appetit!

Curried Cauliflower with Chickpeas and Tomatoes

This was a fun recipe, as it allowed me to try something new: making Ghee. Ghee is clarified butter, used often in Indian dishes. You use it as you would regular butter or oil, but it has a more distinct flavor.

It wasn't hard to make, and when called for in a future Indian dish, I will definitely whip up another batch to try and make the taste as authentic as possible.

My only change in the recipe was not to cook the ghee as long as requested, or based on time. From other ghee recipes I read, there's no time requirement. You need to watch the butter and will know when it's ready based on the appearance.

Super easy recipe, very filling, and made excellent leftovers. Great weeknight meal!


Curried Cauliflower with Chickpeas and Tomatoes
from Serious Eats

1/4 cup butter
1 onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons curry powder
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 head cauliflower, stem removed and chopped into florets
3 cups canned chickpeas
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Salt
Fresh cilantro, chopped


Add the butter to a small saucepan. Melt the butter over medium heat, and bring to a boil. Turn the heat to low; cook for 45 minutes. Strain the liquid. (I did not follow these directions, see my notes above)

Pour the ghee into a large pot. Raise heat to medium; add the onion, curry powder, and ginger. Cook until onion is softened.


Add the tomatoes; cook for 6 minutes more.

Add the cauliflower, chickpeas, tomato paste, and 1 cup of water. Cover pot; cook 15 minutes. Remove lid; cook until liquid thickens. Stir until everything is coated. Season with salt and sprinkle with cilantro.

More recipes that use Ghee:
- Ghee Rice, from Kitchen Wonders
- Venkaya Pakora/Onion Pakora, from The Art of Cooking Indian Food
- Vegetable Biryani, from Dil Se

Guten appetit!