new “skinny” tag
I’m adding a new tag to the blog. “Skinny” is the name. My long-time friend, Karen Mock (seen below with her husband, Bob) has become a Health Coach for the Take Shape for Life program. I started working with her last week. So from now until, who knows when most recipes I post will be “lean and green” and tagged with “skinny.” It’ll take a while for “skinny” to show up on the tag cloud over there on the left, and who knows, it may knock “vodka” off of there. That would be kinda sad!
I don’t think you’ll mind my new skinny recipes, in fact, the last three recipes I posted have been “skinny.” Some of them, I will create, others I’ll be modifying from recipes that Karen has sent me from the Take Shape for Life recipe files.
I modify them to add more flavor; not more fat, calories, or carbs. Mostly, I’ll be achieving this with the addition of spices and herbs, or with a change to the cooking technique.
For instance, the recipe I’m giving you today was a TSL recipe, but instead of just throwing the raw boneless ribs into the slow cooker, I brown them first in a skillet that I’ve sprayed with Pam and then deglaze the skillet with water and pour that in the slow cooker too. More Flavor – No Added Fat!
One of the products that Karen turned me onto that will help me boost flavor is the line of condiments from Walden Farms. All Walden Farms items are currently “BOGO Free” at Sprouts. The sale goes through 3/13/13. I saved $16 on my purchase of the eight products shown below!
I honestly don’t think you’ll even notice a difference in the recipes I post.
If you’re interested in finding out more about the TSL Program, you can email Karen at [email protected]. You will LOVE her! And be sure to tell her that you learned about her here.
March 11, 2013 2 Comments
chowder
On the second day after Christmas, we had no food left in the house. OK, we had food, but nothing much to make for dinner. All I could scrounge up was the ham bone from HoneyBaked left from Christmas Eve. It had less than a cup of meat left on it.
What to do?
I dug around and found a package of diced pancetta with an expiration date of 12/29/12. Score!
I had a few potatoes, a bell pepper, a chunk of cheddar cheese, and some leftover mushrooms that would soon be going south. Hey, this might constitute a meal, after all!
December 28, 2012 1 Comment
mushrooms for the Mayans
How about a fun salad to celebrate that the world didn’t end yesterday?
Wild mushrooms and citrus may seem like an odd pairing, but they are delicious together, especially in this light and lovely salad where the mushrooms are grilled and the salad is garnished with a touch of goat cheese and toasted hazelnuts.
December 22, 2012 No Comments
a quick holiday appetizer
Today, it’s another of the recipes from Saturday’s Christmas Craft Party, stuffed mushrooms. What’s not to like? Bacon. Cheese. Mushrooms. Pepper Jelly. It’s all good! This would be perfect to bring to a holiday party.
But, before I get to it, I have to share with you just how clever my friend, Sheila is and how she “constructed” a second long table for our crowd in her craft room.
See this table? It’s really drywall set atop two sawhorses. Next, she cut up two twin bed skirts and used them as the table skirt. Finally, Sheila used her Kitchen Papers Flourish Paper Table Wrap to cover the top. So resourceful and so darn pretty!
OK, on to the recipe!
Bacon-Wrapped Cheesy Mushrooms
15 to 18 slices bacon, cut in half
12-ounces (1 1/2 packages) cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup diced green onions
3/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup pepper jelly
30 to 36 fresh medium to large crimini or white mushrooms, stems removed
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two large baking sheets with foil. Place a rack atop one of the baking sheets.
Place the bacon pieces, in a single layer, on the prepared baking sheet without the rack. Partially cook the bacon in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool while you prepare the mushrooms.
In a medium bowl, mix together the cream cheese, green onions, cheddar cheese, and jelly.
Use a small spoon to stuff the mushroom caps with the cheese mixture, really pack it in there.
December 7, 2012 1 Comment
bonus salad and bonus pics
I am naming this “bonus salad” because while creating it, my intention was to include it in the “Take your Lunch to Work Week” that I just wrapped up for my sweet Marissa. But once I got into it, I slowly came to the realization that this takes far too much time and effort than required for an easy lunch to brown bag… that is unless you use it as leftovers… from dinner the night before. In that case, it’s perfect!
I made this a week ago Sunday and, as with most Sundays, we had my dad over for dinner. Dave and Dad devoured this thing. They loved it so much that they each had not only seconds but thirds!
If you are lucky enough to have leftovers and want to brown-bag them the next day – here is what you do: Pack the greens and the feta together in one container or zip-lock. Pack the mushroom-asparagus-rice mixture in a microwave-safe container. Nuke the mushroom mixture to just warm it through. Place your greens and feta on a plate and top it with warm stuff. Yum… makes me wish I would have had leftovers of my own last Monday. 🙁
The “bonus pics” in the title refer to some iPhone pictures of a few of the beyond delicious courses we had at Binkley’s last night. How I love that place! You’ll find them below the recipe.
May 5, 2012 3 Comments
brunch deux
Next up is the recipe that my sweet sister, Sloane, made. It’s one of my favorites!
A few of the other guests brought recipes that have already been featured here on the blog… for instance, Peggy made THIS great salad that I wrote about back in September 2009. And Peggy’s fabulous sister, Terrie, made a beautiful platter of roasted asparagus that was generously topped with crumbled goat cheese, crispy bacon, and lemon. Regretfully, I didn’t get a picture of either Terrie’s asparagus or Peggy’s salad, (you can go to the link above to see the salad). But thankfully I did snap a lovely picture of gorgeous Peggy!
January 6, 2012 No Comments
festive duck
First things first – Happy Birthday to my BBF, Jennifer Markett, who lives in Illinois! I LOVE YOU! And if you were here with me, I would be serving you this wonderful duck strudel! xoxo
Pictured above is my collection of authentic vintage French confit pots. Pretty, aren’t they? Duck confit has been a preservation method, for cooking and keeping duck in its rendered fat in France, for centuries. It results in supremely tender, moist, and extremely flavorful duck. You can then sear the duck legs in a hot skillet and serve them as is, shred the meat and add it to salads, or into the delicious and festive strudel recipe, I have for you below.
One of the great things about this strudel is that you can assemble the entire thing a month in advance and freeze it. Pop it in the oven for your Christmas celebrations and impress your guests! It is out of this world glorious!
A sealed glass jar of confit may be kept in the refrigerator for up to six months, or several weeks if kept in a reusable plastic container. To maximize preservation, the fat should top the meat by at least one inch. As the fat turns solid and prevents any air from reaching the meat, so basically the confit technique is a way of hermetically sealing the meat. The cooking fat acts as both a seal and preservative and results in a very rich taste.
I have been collecting authentic confit pots from France for a while now. Before refrigerators, the pots were used to “refrigerate” the confit. The entire inside of the pot is glazed and the glaze drips decoratively down the outside rim of the pot. The rest of the outside of the pot is left unglazed. The pot was filled with the duck and sealed with the fat. The pot was then buried in the cold mud and the unglazed outside of the pot would soak up that coldness and keep the duck confit perfectly chilled until ready to dig out and use.
The amount of duck confit used in this recipe is small, only 4 ounces. So instead of going to the trouble to make my own confit, I purchased a leg quarter from Chef Vincent Guerithault of the famed Vincent’s on Camelback. Call ahead, and Chef Guerithault will happily sell you some too. Or you can make your own duck confit, I’ve included a recipe from Epicurious.com at the bottom of this post. It is not difficult, just time-consuming. You will need to salt the duck for at least 24 hours before beginning and you have to render duck fat from the duck skin, which I have posted about before. The link on how to do that is there in the recipe too. But if you just purchase the confit, you can get going on the strudel recipe…. right now!
December 3, 2011 1 Comment
boletus edulis
The boletus edulis (botanical name) is beloved around the world for it’s firm texture and distinctive flavor. It is known as Cèp in France, Porcini in Italy, Penny Bun in Britain, Steinpilz in Germany, and King Bolete, or just King in the United States. In most stores and restaurants, you’ll find them called by their Italian name, porcini. At the market you will most often find them dried in little bags. In France and Italy, they are sold not only in bags but often in bulk at the outdoor markets.
If you see them fresh in the grocery store at a reasonable price, snatch them up, they are a wonderful treat. You can grill them, make them into a delicious sauce, even into a mushroom stew. Or just call me and I’ll help you put them to good use!
August 25, 2011 No Comments
living high on the hog (or turkey)
Here is the recipe I made yesterday on the Valley Dish, especially for Memorial Day weekend. (And here is the LINK if you would like to watch it online.)
PLEASE don’t be scared off by the long laundry list of ingredients. There are six different condiments/toppings for your sliders, and each one is very easy to make, you can do as many or as few as you like. Seriously, when I say easy, I’m talking about slicing a couple of tomatoes, drizzling them with olive oil, and sprinkling them with salt and chives, that’s easy! Or laying slices of bacon on foil, sprinkling with rosemary and pepper, and tossing in the oven, super easy! And I guarantee your family and friends will be impressed, Enjoy!
May 28, 2011 3 Comments
tri-tip
On Sunday I taught a demonstration cooking class as part of a bridal shower. It was a lovely afternoon with 21 delightful ladies and a beautiful bride-to-be. This was our main course. P.S. Thanks to my own lovely daughter, Marissa, for assisting me! xoxo
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February 8, 2011 1 Comment
