Pork Cracklins

Greek Bison Burgers

2009-03-15T04:36:32Z

The latest issue of Eating Well magazine had an article on bison - we've had it before in burgers and chilis but haven't made it at home. Our local Whole Foods carries a variety of bison meat - not only ground, but also steaks, top loin roasts and stew meat so we picked up some ground bison for these burgers - which were very tasty. The couscous salad was good, not something to definitely make again.

Greek Bison Burgers (Eating Well, March/April 2009)

Toasted Israeli Couscous Salad with Mint, Cucumber & Feta (Fine Cooking #98, May 2009, p. 44)

Cinnamon Squares

2009-03-14T07:49:34Z

I was surprised that Larry didn't like these more. They have a little chocolate in the middle, but mostly they're just very cinnamon-y. I actually think I like this cake better than he does.

Cinnamon Squares (Baking: From My Home to Yours, p. 210)

Barley & Turkey Chili with Jalapeño Sour Cream and Amaranth Crunch

2009-03-09T05:31:34Z

Edith, Mark and Jay came over for a very casual dinner - we ate in the living room, in front of the TV and watched a couple of videos on Peru for our upcoming trip. I served a menu of reliable favorites. This chili is fast becoming one of our most-liked chili recipes. It's different, but really good and healthy. I made the dessert the day before, and not only was it easy to make but soooo good. I'm nuts about honey.

Chive and Pine Nut Dip with Sourdough Toasts (Gourmet, June 2005)

Barley & Turkey Chili with Jalapeño Sour Cream and Amaranth Crunch (Whole Grains Every Day, Every Way, p. 186)

Napa Pantry World's Best Cornbread

Roasted Baby Beet and Rocket Salad with Walnuts and Gorgonzola

Honey Panna Cotta (Pure Dessert, p. 178)

Wine: - Ridge 2004 Buchignani Ranch Zinfandel (Alexander Valley, California). Just at the edge of not being enjoyable. It's losing its fruit. - Rockpile 2006 Cemetery Vineyard Zinfandel (Rockpile, California). One of my favorite appellations. A big, juicy wine.

Classic Banana Bundt Cake

2009-03-07T05:29:47Z

As I'm working my way through some of the more interesting-sounding recipes from this cookbook, I find myself liking it more and more and am thinking about buying it. I think what's so appealing about it is that it's really a home baking book. Lots of home-y comforting baked goods, just what I love. This banana cake was fantastic. Super easy to make, and really moist and full of banana goodness. I didn't make the optional glaze, because it really didn't need it.

Classic Banana Bundt Cake (Baking: From My Home to Yours, p. 190)

Turkey Fingers with Maple-Mustard Sauce

2009-03-02T05:08:41Z

A quick dinner for Larry and Jay tonight - I liked the chicken fingers, but Larry wasn't that crazy about the coating. However, he loved the barley pilaf, which used barley flakes instead of the standard whole barley. the beans were also very good. I'm still working through some recipes in the Dorie Greenspan book - this chocolate cakes is mostly flourless and very good.

Turkey Fingers with Maple-Mustard Sauce (Eating Well, November/December 1995)

Barley Pilaf with Fennel, Pecans & Cranberries (Whole Grains for Busy People, p. 142)

Borlotti Beans with Porcini & Trumpet Mushrooms (Heirloom Beans: Great Recipes for Dips and Spreads, Soups and Stews, Salads and Salsas, and Much More from Rancho Gordo, p. 117)

Almost-Fudge Gateau (Baking: From My Home to Yours, p. 218)

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

2009-02-26T04:11:27Z

I whipped together these muffins, mainly as a delivery vehicle for the lemon-ginger marmalade I made last weekend. These muffins are good and easy to make. Nothing overly special about them, but they're good with the marmalade.

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins (Baking: From My Home to Yours, p. 10)

Borlotti Beans in Tomato Sauce with Creamy Polenta

2009-02-23T05:07:22Z

I made a mostly make-ahead, simple dinner for Larry and Jay tonight. Rancho Gordo isn't carrying borlotti beans right now, but I found some at the Italian grocery across the street, and cooked them up last night along with the tomato sauce. The beans and polenta are hearty and vegetarian, but we added sliced chicken Italian sausage to the top. The beans weren't as tender and creamy as I'd like, but they were good. I ignored the recipe for the polenta and made it with milk. I don't make polenta with water any more!

I made up a simple vinaigrette for the beets - I was craving them, and knew I wanted to make a salad with them as soon as I saw the rocket at Trader Joe's. The lemon cream tart was also made yesterday. The filling is light and airy and really delicious. I used Meyer lemons. The irections say to whip up the filling and fill the pie, then serve. Really, the filling needs to set up in the pie in the refrigerator for at least an hour before serving.

Borlotti Beans in Tomato Sauce with Creamy Polenta (Heirloom Beans: Great Recipes for Dips and Spreads, Soups and Stews, Salads and Salsas, and Much More from Rancho Gordo, p. 147)

Chicken Italian Sausage

Roasted Baby Beet and Rocket Salad with Walnuts and Gorgonzola

The Most Extraordinary Lemon Cream Tart (Baking: From My Home to Yours, p. 331)

Lemon-Ginger Marmalade

2009-02-22T17:16:18Z

This beautiful, delicious marmalade isn't something I'd make all the time, but it's fabulous and this first batch was worth it. It's a very labor-intensive product, cutting all of that lemon zest up into threads. I used Meyer lemons - my lemon of choice when I happen to get my hands on some. The marmalade is perfect on a slice of just-baked bread, and I can't wait to try it stirred in some yogurt.

Lemon-Ginger Marmalade (Fine Cooking #97, February 2009, p. 19)

Salt & Pepper Shrimp with Garlic & Chile

2009-02-22T03:09:47Z

Just me for dinner tonight. Well, not really dinner, more of a snack while I was making the lemon tart for tomorrow. These are good and quick to make, but very spicy.

Salt & Pepper Shrimp with Garlic & Chile (Fine Cooking #97, February 2009, p. 90)

Milk Chocolate Mini Bundt Cakes

2009-02-15T06:01:36Z

I checked out Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours from the Library, and picked these little bundt cakes as my first recipe to try out of the book. Mainly because I have a mini bundt pan and am always looking for excuses to use it. In the end, they turned out okay tasting, but making them was a huge effort.

I generously buttered the mini bundt pan, but as I was buttering it, I remarked to Larry that I'd bet Pam would work better. I was right, the cakes ended up being stuck in the pans and we had to partially mutilate them to get them out.

The recipe says to put a little batter in, then sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar pecans, then more batter. The batter was really thick and I almost ran out at the end. It was a mess getting the batter spread over the nuts.

The last issue was with the chocolate glaze for the top, I don't know what the problem was but it was too thick. So it just glommed on. This photo was the best of the bunch, and that's not saying much. I just hope I have better luck with some of the other recipes.

Milk Chocolate Mini Bundt Cakes (Baking: From My Home to Yours, p. 188)

Creamy Breakfast Polenta

2009-02-14T18:40:34Z

I've been wanting to make this polenta for a while. A cold day, after we've gone out for our run - couldn't be a more perfect day for a rich and creamy breakfast. Was this good. Polenta made with milk and cream, plus a little butter, mascarpone cheese, brown sugar, cinnamon and dried blueberries. Very rich - I could only eat half a serving. The recipe calls for currents, but blueberries seemed more right to me, especially since they pair so well with cinnamon.

Food 2.0

Sour Cream Coffee Cake with Toasted Pecan Filling

2009-02-11T05:22:57Z

This coffee cake is pretty classic, with the crumb topping and the swirled filling. I think I overbaked it slightly so it wasn't as moist as I like. Passable, I'd say. And kind of time consuming to make.

Sour Cream Coffee Cake with Toasted Pecan Filling (Fine Cooking #96, January 2009, p. 70)

Wine-Braised Chicken with Shallots and Pancetta

2009-02-08T08:17:43Z

Mark, Edith and Jay were all here for dinner. The chicken is just a take on coq au vin. Good, but nothing special (I seem to say that a lot lately, wondering if I'm getting overly picky). The chocolate mousse was a hit and a definite make-again. Creamy and thick, and easy to make.

Creamy White Bean & Herb Dip (Fine Cooking #97, February 2009, p. 76)

Wine-Braised Chicken with Shallots and Pancetta (Fine Cooking #97, February 2009, p. 8)

Creamy Goat Cheese Polenta (Fine Cooking #57, May 2003, p. 86C)

Garlicky Braised Kale with Sun-Dried Tomatoes (Fine Cooking #42, January 2001, p. 49)

Real Chocolate Mousse (Fine Cooking #97, February 2009, p. 25)

Wine: - Rosenblum 2005 Carla's Vineyard Zinfandel (San Francisco Bay, California). Really, really good. Well balanced and what a Zin should aspire to be. - Thumbprint 2005 Zinfandel (Dry Creek Valley, California). Lighter than the Rosenblum, so we should have opened this first. Okay, but disappointing after the Rosenblum.

Popcorn-Crusted Turkey Cutlets with Cherry Tomato Salsa

2009-02-06T08:09:26Z

This was an interesting way to bread turkey cutlets. The recipe calls for salted popped popcorn that is then put through a food processor, then used like breadcrumbs. I had to figure out the popcorn thing first. We usually use SmartPop microwave popcorn, butter flavor. I don't think I know how to pop regular popcorn anymore, so I looked around at the store and settled on Orville Redenbacher's reduced fat Natural Popcorn. Basically just popcorn, oil and salt.

We really liked everything tonight. The turkey was interesting, and I pretty much like anything with farro. The sorbet was delicious and creamy.

Popcorn-Crusted Turkey Cutlets with Cherry Tomato Salsa (Whole Grains for Busy People, p. 78)

Farro with Broccoli Rabe & Prosciutto (Whole Grains for Busy People, p. 109)

Blood Orange & Mango Sorbet (Fine Cooking #97, February 2009, p. 47)

Cherry-Chocolate Scones

2009-02-06T06:18:04Z

The recipe for these scones calls for either barley or whole wheat pastry flour. I used barley flour but I thought they were too heavy. And too... barley. Like most of the baked goods from Whole Grain Baking, these aren't very sweet. They were okay, not spectacular.

Cherry-Chocolate Scones (King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking, p. 88)