Spinach Basil Hummus

My extended family has an annual summer picnic complete with swimming and bocce, and I was assigned to bring chip and dip.  There is some seriously good food at this picnic, including several traditional recipes like my favorite Zucchini Appetizer, my Mom’s Potato Salad and Lemon Squares, and even Pizzelles.

I wanted to bring something relatively simple but flavorful.  While I am definitely not the first person to put spinach in hummus, I threw this dip together without working from a specific recipe.  I think it came out pretty well, although it had to compete with a lot of other great appetizers.  But with fresh basil, this dip would be good for any summer party.

 

 

 

Spinach Basil Hummus

10 oz. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
2 (15 oz.) cans chick peas, rinsed and drained
1/2 c. olive oil
1/2 c. lemon juice
2 T minced garlic
1/4 c. chopped fresh basil
1/2 t salt
1/2 t black pepper

Puree all ingredients in a food processor.  Chill and serve.

Bento Carrots and Edamame

You can only live on Vegetable Pasta Salad for so long; eventually you have to make something else for dinner.  I took a quick survey of ingredients on hand: shredded carrots in the refrigerator,  shelled edamame in the freezer, and Japanese Roasted Sesame Oil in the cabinet.  Using a recipe for Carrot Kinpara as inspiration, I threw together this dish.

‘Bento’ is a Japanese term which refers to a lunch box with sections for different foods.  I don’t know whether you would really find a recipe like this in a section of a bento box, but let’s pretend.  It’s spicy and flavorful, and could easily accompany a rice based dish.  Although this satisfied my craving for dinner, I still think I need to head to a Japanese restaurant soon.

 

 

 

Bento Carrots and Edamame

1 T sesame oil
2 c. shredded carrots
Dash cayenne pepper
1 T soy sauce
1 c. shelled edamame, cooked and drained
1 T sesame seeds

Heat sesame oil in a small frying pan.  Add carrots, and saute for 5-10 minutes.  Add cayenne and stir.  Add soy sauce and edamame and cook for 1-2 minutes more.  Garnish with sesame seeds and serve.

-Inspired by Makiki Itoh’s recipe on Just Bento

Kale with Grilled Sausage and White Beans

I told you I was in a cooking rut in July, but thankfully my family kept me well fed on the weekends.  My Mom found this recipe for Kale with Grilled Sausage and White Beans in the Hartford Courant, and decided to give it a try.  With greens and beans and sausage, she figured there would be something for everyone in this dish.

There are so many nutritional benefits to eating kale, but it just doesn’t cook as easily as other greens like spinach.  In my experience, you generally need to give kale two things: time and liquid.  The recipe says to cook the kale for 6 minutes until wilted, but we cooked it much longer than that for a more tender texture.  This recipe also uses a combination of wine and water for liquid, but any broth would also work nicely.  The sundried tomatoes were a good addition.

The kale and beans turned out soft and flavorful, and I loved it, but not everyone in the family was sold on this dish.  Anticipating that, we served the sausage on the side.  It worked out well for me, because I got to take home all the leftovers!  In fact, I think this dish was even better the second day.  Whether you already like kale, or want to try it for the first time, I would recommend this recipe.

 

Dark Chocolate Brownies with Ginger and Sea Salt

Sometimes it’s tough to be a food blogger.  I have to ask difficult questions like, “can brownies be too fudgey”?  Because these are the most fudge-like brownies I’ve ever made.  I used Ghiradelli Dark Chocolate Chips, cocoa powder, and Trader Joe’s 72% cacao Dark Chocolate.  That’s some serious chocolate power!  These brownies not only have a rich texture, but they also have an interesting flavor with the addition of crystallized ginger and sea salt.

I was not entirely sure that I was happy with how the recipe turned out.  Of course, that didn’t stop me from bringing them to a party.  It also didn’t stop me from eating the brownie edges.  (You know, the pieces that weren’t suitable to bring to the party.)  These are not classic brownies, but rather like squares of ginger and sea salt fudge.  Once your taste buds know what to expect, they’ll be happy indeed.

 

 

 

 

Vegetable Pasta Salad

In traditional pasta salad, vegetables are usually an afterthought.  You might add a little red pepper for color, or throw in some diced tomatoes or olives to add some bulk.  But in this recipe adapted from Budget Bytes, the vegetables are really the star of the show.  I used broccoli, yellow squash, zucchini, and carrots but the possibilities are endless.  I wanted the broccoli, squash, and zucchini to be just slightly cooked, but you can leave them raw if you prefer a little more crunch.

The pasta, vegetables, and beans are tossed in a creamy Ranch-style dressing.  The original recipe suggests buying buttermilk, rather than making it using a splash of vinegar.  I agree that store bought buttermilk has a much thicker consistency which would make the dressing richer, but I didn’t have any on hand so I made my own with non-fat milk.  The original recipe also included fresh parsley, and I think any freshly chopped herbs would brighten up this salad, so next time I’ll try that as well.  Still, this recipe made a large bowl which I enjoyed for several meals.

 

 

Vegetable Pasta Salad

3 c. dry whole wheat rotini
3-4 c. broccoli florets
1 yellow squash, quartered lengthwise and sliced thinly
1 zucchini, quartered lengthwise and sliced thinly
2 c. shredded carrots
1 (15 oz.) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 c. buttermilk
3/4 c. light mayonnaise
2 T Dijon mustard
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 t celery salt
1/2 t. black pepper

Add whole wheat pasta to boiling water, and cook for 5 minutes.  Add broccoli, and cook for 2 more minutes.  Add yellow squash and zucchini to the pot, and cook for 1 minute more.  Drain the pasta and vegetables and rinse in cool water.  Allow to drain for a few minutes.

In a large bowl, mix pasta, vegetables, shredded carrots, and beans.  In a small bowl, mix buttermilk, mayonnaise, mustard and spices.  Toss dressing with salad.  Allow to chill before serving.

-Adapted from Budget Bytes

Carrot Cake, Take II

Birthday cakes are a pretty big deal in my family, and my sister’s request this year was a carrot cake with thick cream cheese frosting.  We made this Alton Brown Carrot Cake back in 2010, which was pretty good, but there’s always room for improvement, right?

I found this Spiced Carrot Layer Cake recipe from Saveur and then my family pretty much did the rest.  My Mom managed the cake baking process and once again, my Dad was in charge of grating the carrots.  The frosting in the original recipe uses mascarpone cheese and probably tastes amazing, but we went with a more traditional cream cheese and powdered sugar frosting.  I did actually help with this part, and finally we were ready to sing.  Someone was pretty excited to help blow out the candles!

 

 

This carrot cake was really unique with fragrant spices, coconut, and orange juice and zest.  The orange flavor in particular really stood out and made the cake taste very fresh.  There are a lot of ingredients, but even my Mom agreed that this cake was worth the effort.  Be sure to note that the recipe makes an exceptionally large cake.  We actually ending up freezing the 3rd layer to use another time.  Then again, perhaps we should have had a larger party.  🙂

 

 

 

Spicy Chicken Nuggets

I can’t believe it’s been a month since I’ve blogged!  It wasn’t that I was in a blogging rut, I was truly in a cooking rut.  For the first time in years, cooking felt like a chore.  It happens to the best of us I guess.  But I am happy to be back, so thanks for waiting.

These Spicy Chicken Nuggets were slightly adapted from a Giada recipe.  I know, chicken nuggets are often associated with a popular fast food chain, but these nuggets are homemade with real ingredients. First, you dredge the chicken pieces in flour.  Then you dip them in a mixture of whisked egg and tabasco sauce, although I skipped the hot sauce.  Finally, you toss the chicken pieces in a mixture of cornmeal, chili powder, and cayenne pepper.  The chicken is baked at a high temperature in the oven so that the meat cooks quickly and stays moist.

 

 

This method really works.  The chicken was crispy with just the right amount of spice.  You could dip them in honey mustard sauce as suggested, or you could place these on a big green salad.  These nuggets would also be good for little people who like to ‘dip’ their food, if they can handle some cayenne.  If you’re bored of all the usual chicken recipes, give this one a try!

 

 

Kayem Lean Franks

I am not going to lie, one of the best parts about being a food blogger is getting free samples of new products.  The generous folks at Kayem sent me two packages of the their new ‘Lean Franks’.  My family planned a BBQ, complete with the hot dogs, homemade baked beans, and salad.  All I had to do was bring the hot dogs, and they did the rest!

The hot dogs are made from skinless chicken and compared to most other hot dogs on the shelf, they are low in both calories (80 per dog) and saturated fat (1.5g).  But they still grilled up quite nicely, and had the distinctive smoked flavor you expect in a hot dog.  We all enjoyed them, and would have them again.  Of course, there are lots of great things you can grill, but if you’re craving a hot dog I would give these a try.

 

Asparagus Wrapped in Prosciutto

Oh my, I fell off the blogging wagon again, thanks for being patient.  But I am getting pretty tired of eating cereal for dinner so I better find my cooking motivation!

I made this asparagus wrapped in prosciutto for my cooking club, and it turned out pretty well.  First, I blanched the asparagus spears in boiling water for about 3 minutes, and then rinsed them in cold water.  I’d recommend reducing the cooking time to keep the asparagus a little more crunchy.

Once the asparagus was cool, I spread a thin layer of herbed cheese (like alouette) on a slice of prosciutto, and used it to wrap 3 spears.  I saw some recipes online that called for wrapping each spear individually, but that seemed time intensive.  I think this ended up being the right amount.  It was a great make-ahead appetizer, and I’ll keep this one in my annual rotation for asparagus season!

 

Spicy Baked Potato Fries

All this rain makes me want comfort food, and these Spicy Baked Potato Fries from Budget Bytes really fit the bill!  This is the kind of thing you’d order at the dive bar down the street (at least the dive bar down my street!)  These are still french fries after all, but I did measure the oil and used reduced fat cheddar cheese and nonfat plain Greek yogurt.  The key here is the spice mixture with lots of chili powder which gives the fries so much flavor.  Who needs a dive bar when you can make these fries, serve them with cheap beer, and crank up the music?