Indian Spinach & Chickpeas

My husband and I love Indian food. Unfortunately our small mountain town only has 3 places to eat and an Indian restaurant is not one of them. Whenever we make it to Asheville, the nearest city we try to grab a meal at Mela, one of my favorites. But, in the mean time I am trying to add a few Indian recipes to the mix. I found a couple of fantastic books by Madhur Jaffrey that I am excited to start looking through but for now here is my first attempt at Indian cuisine, turned out pretty yummy.

Indian Spinach & Chickpeas

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• Salt and pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp curry powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 Tbsp grated ginger
• 1c golden raisins
• 1 cup Greek plain yogurt
• 3/4 cup half-and-half
• 1 zucchini, chopped into cubes
• 1 bunch of dark leafy greens (spinach, kale, or collards), chopped
• 2 cups cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 10oz couscous

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, zucchini, golden raisins, greens and saute until tender. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add garlic and cook for another minute. Add spices and cook until fragrant. Add yogurt, half-and-half and chickpeas. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook until heated through. Serve over couscous.

Vegetable Pasta with Lemon-Basil Dressing

I love this meal. Fast, fresh, simple, full of flavor and really healthy.

Lemon-Basil Dressing

• juice and zest of 1 or 2 lemons, depending on how strong you want the lemon flavor
• 2+ cloves garlic
• fist full of fresh basil
• 1/3c Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Salt to taste
• 1/4tsp crushed red pepper, optional if you want a little heat

Combine all ingredients in mini food processor and pulse until well combined.

Vegetable Pasta with Lemon-Basil Dressing

• 1c broccoli chopped
• 1 can black beans
• 3/4 to 1c cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 pound pasta of choice
• 1 recipe lemon - basil dressing
• 1/2 to 1c Lima beans
• 2+ cloves garlic
• Parmesan
• Lemon - Basil Dressing

Cook pasta according to package instructions. I like to season the water with salt first, bring it to a rolling boil, and then drop in the pasta. When the pasta is ready place it in a large serving bowl or platter. Pour the lemon - basil dressing over the pasta and gently fold the pasta to coat with the dressing. I like to use tongs so I can pick up the pasta and fold it over, it seems to be the best tool for mixing the pasta. Next pour all the veggies in the bowl and toss them with the pasta. Before serving top with Parmesan.

Strawberry Jam for Brooke

I love fresh strawberries. They take me back to summers when I was little girl playing outside with my sister. We would rise with the sun, eat as quickly as we could and then it was off for adventures, usually staying outside until we were forced to return indoors at the call of dinner. My sister and I were not the dresses and dolls kind of girls growing up. We were more the climbing trees and scraped knees type. We spent a large portion of our childhood in a house surrounded by woods. In the summer time we would spend entire days playing outside and eating fresh berries that we would pick. On more than one occasion my mother would dress us up for an event and then tell us to behave while she was getting ready. When she finally would call us to leave she was usually not very excited to find the two of us covered in bright pink berry juice from grinning sticky face to shoeless toes. So making strawberry jam from fresh, local berries always makes me smile with fond memories of growing up with my little sister.



Strawberry Jam

Ingredients:
3pounds fresh strawberries
1c sugar
Juice of one large lemon


Wash and cut the stems off the strawberries. Then cut then in half (or if they are really big maybe cut them into thirds) and place them in a large sauce pan with or pot. Pour the sugar over the berries and stir to coat. Cover and allow to sit at room temperature for 3 to 4 hours.
Place over medium heat and gradually bring strawberries to a boil. Pour in lemon juice. Cook at a high temperature and stir until mixture becomes thick, this will take 15 to 20min. It will look like jam when it is ready. Take off of the heat and allow to sit uncovered for about 12hours (or start eating by the spoon full like I did).

Favorite Trail Mix

This is my favorite trail mix. It is a great snack for around the house or when you are on the go. If I am in for a really long day then I might sneak a little chocolate in the mix but usually I enjoy it just fine without, one of the rare times you will ever hear that from me.

1 - 12oz package of Craisins
1 - 15oz box of Golden Raisins
1 - 16oz jar of dry roasted, unslated peanuts

Lemon-Dill Potato Salad

Tonight we get to go to a cookout at a friends house. What would a summer cookout be without a side of potato salad? Here is my twist on the summer cookout potato salad:

Lemon-Dill Potato Salad

Ingredients:

• 3lbs potato, cubed and boiled
• 1c mayo
• zest and juice of one large lemon
• hand full (2-3Tbsp) dill
• 4Tbsp white wine vinegar
• 1tsp celery salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 3 celery ribs
• 2-3 hard boiled eggs
• 6 pickles - the type of pickles that should go into a potato salad is a hotly contested subject in our house hold. The Boss is a firm believer in the sweet pickle. I, on the other hand, am 100% loyal to the kosher dill variety. For this recipe the lemon - dill flavor works best if you stick with the dill pickle, I think.
  

Red Cabbage Slaw & Black Bean Tacos

This is one of the fastest, most simple meals I have ever made. It is a perfect lite summer meal that is still filling. Even if you do not want to make the tacos the red cabbage slaw is an excellent side salad. Let me know what you think.

Ingredients:

- Corn Tortillas
- Feta

For the Red Cabbage Slaw:

1/2 head red cabbage, finely shredded
1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1/2 cup freshly squeeze orange juice
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4c lime juice
1/2c chopped peanuts

For the Black Beans:
2 cans or 2 c black beans
EVOO
Garlic Salt
Chili powder
Onion Powder
Crushed Red Pepper

For the Red Cabbage Slaw:
Combine honey, rice wine vinegar, orange juice, oil, black pepper, and lime juice. Stir well. Next mix in the rest of the ingredients coating well with the dressing. Cover and allow to sit at room temperature for about 30min.

For the Black Beans:
Place EVOO in a skillet over medium heat. Add black beans and warm them in the skillet coating them lightly in EVOO. Then add the spices and stir to coat. For the spices add a little at a time to taste.

Build your tacos and top with a little feta. Bon Appetit!

Kale and Basil Pesto

Basil is one of my favorite herbs, it reminds me of summer. I try to use it whenever I can, especially when I can walk outside and pick it. So I could not resist adding it to the mix and keeping a hit of that traditional pesto flavor. I served the pesto over handmade roasted tomato fettucini from The Pasta Wench. It was delicious. Honestly her pasta is so good I could eat it plain, strait from the pot, but it was even more delicious with the pesto sauce. This is another recipe inspired by Farm+House+Table. I really like the vegetarian meal list on their site. They are very creative. Here is my version of a Kale and Basil Pesto, I hope you enjoy.

Ingredients
- 3 cloves garlic, or more if you like garlic as much as I do
- 1/3c pecans, toasted
- 1/2c grated Parmesan
- 1/3c extra virgin olive oil
- 2/3c cottage cheese or Greek yogurt
- Salt & Pepper to taste
- 1 Bunch fresh Kale
- 1 fist full of fresh basil

Toast the pecans in the oven. Then combine the kale, basil, garlic and pecans in a food processor fitted with the metal blade and pulse several times until kale is well chopped. Add Parmesan cheese and puree until blended. Next drizzle in the olive oil, while the food processor is still on, until the mixture becomes the consistency of a thick pesto sauce. Add in cottage cheese and begin to season with salt and pepper to taste.

Dark Chocolate Cherry Brownies

I have been trying to pay attention to what I eat. Part of my effort has included cutting most sugar out of my daily diet. I say most because I believe in balance. Every now and then a girl needs a little chocolate. Lets face it, if I completely tried to cut all deserts out of my diet it would probably take a little over a week for me to end up sitting on the kitchen floor eating an entire cake on my own. So for the past 2 months I have been letting myself have desert once a week. This gives me something to look forward to. When I am disciplined during the week and resist the urge to eat sweets I feel like I am earning my weekend desert at which point I get to go big and not feel guilty. These brownies were inspired during a bike ride on Sunday afternoon where I road a little to far with no snacks. During one particularly hard hill climb my boss happened to drive by cheering. Luckly his sweet little girl was nice enough to share her organic gummy fish with me. Seriously those fish saved me. Needless to say I was thinking about my end of the week desert the entire way home. So here is my weekend, no guilt, go big desert:

Dark Chocolate Cherry Brownies with Walnuts

Preheat Oven: 350

Ingredients:
- 1/2 c butter
- 3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
- 1 c sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2/3 c all-purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 c chopped walnuts (optional)
- 1 c frozen, fresh or dried cherries (if you use dried then about 20min before you start to mix soak them in water so they rehydrate)
- 1/2 to 3/4 c dark chocolate chips (the quantity depends on how much you love chocolate)

Directions:
- Grease you baking pan (either 8x8x2" or 9x9x2")
- In a medium pan melt butter and unsweetened chocolate over low heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and let cool
- Stir sugar into cooled chocolate and butter
- Add the eggs one at a time beating until combined then stir in vanilla
- In a separate bowl combine flour and baking soda
- Add flour mixture to chocolate mixture and stir until combined
- Fold in nuts, dark chocolate chips, and cherries

Bake about 30-35min (until a cake tester or toothpick goes into and comes out of the brownies cleanly)

Southern Buttermilk Biscuits

Practice has taught me that making buttermilk biscuits is more about technique than ingredients. Yes, you need to know what to put into your mixing bowl but most recipes are pretty similar. I think I have tried almost all of them. Yet achieving that perfect buttermilk biscuit texture and consistency has always been just out of my reach, until now. I have finally figured out how to make the delicious, golden, fluffy biscuits I have been dreaming of. These are the lessons that I have learned through my many attempts at achieving the perfect buttermilk biscuit consistency and texture:

• Handle the dough as little as possible, over handling makes tough biscuits
• You want to keep the ingredients cold so mix quickly!
• Using a food processor allows you to work quickly and avoid over mixing (but can definitely be done by hand which is some times more fun anyway, especially if you are mixing with kids)
• While you are mixing the dry ingredients keep the butter in the fridge to keep it cold for as long as possible
  
• Using a rolling pin to flatten over works the dough so just pat out with our hands - part of the fun of cooking is playing with your food
  
• If you like crusty biscuits then space them about 1" apart, they will not rise as much as biscuits that are put closer together
• You can freeze the cut biscuit dough for up to one month uncooked then when you are ready to cook place frozen biscuits in oven at 450 for 20min

Now that I have shared all that I know about biscuit making technique here is the recipe that I have found works best:

Ingredients:

• 2cups all purpose flour (white lily is a good one for biscuit making)
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 6 Tbsp unsalted butter cut into small chunks and kept cold
• 3/4cup buttermilk

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 450
  
• Combing dry ingredients in a bowl or food processor
• Cut butter into flour until it looks like course meal (you can use your hands or if you are working with a food processor then pulse a few times until reaches the right consistency)
• Add the buttermilk and mix until just combined, if the mixture is dry then add a little more buttermilk, you want it to be a little sticky
• Turn the dough onto a floured surface
• Gently pat the dough out until it is about 3/4" thick
• Use a round cutter or pint glass to cut out the biscuits
• gently knead scraps together and form into a biscuit
  
• Bake for 10-12min

Bon Appetit!

Veggie and Tofu Tacos

This is one of our favorites. It is really simple and fast but still delicious. The fun thing about this meal is that every time we make it its a little different depending on what we happen to have in our pantry. I like recipes like that, no rules, just use what you like.

What we like to use:
- Extra Firm Tofu
- Taco seasoning packet
- Black Beans
- Homemade Guacamole (avocado, lime juice, EVOO, salt, garlic, red onion)
- Spinach
- Tomato
- Feta Goat Cheese (or what ever cheese you happen to have)
- Salsa
- Yellow or Red Pepper
- Frozen Corn
- Garlic
- Red onion
- Corn tortillas

Directions:
- Cooking the tofu properly is the key to enjoying tofu meals. It really needs to be browned well. So heat EVOO is a large skillet that will accommodate all of your ingredients as you add them.
- Cut the tofu into 1/2" to 1" squares and place in hot skillet
- Do not stir or flip until the tofu have had time to turn golden in the olive oil
- Make sure to brown all of the sides of the tofu squares
- Once the tofu has browned to you liking add the taco seasoning according to the directions on the packet, usually you stir the seasoning in water then pour over you meat or tofu then let it cook down
- after the water / seasoning mix has reduced to about half add the black beans to the skillet
- once the beans have warmed and absorbed some of the seasoning add in the veggies of your choice
- Allow so simmer over low to medium heat so the flavors have time to marry and the veggies soften a little
- Warm your tortillas in the toaster for about 20sec to soften, pay close attention because when they start to soften they fall down and you do not want to burn them
- Fill your tortillas with with the tofu and veggies then top with some cheese, guacamole, and salsa
- Enjoy!

Zucchini Gratin

When it comes to food the power of suggestion beats me every time. More often then not a beautiful food photo is what first inspires me to try out a new recipe. Usually once I have seen a delicious looking picture I cannot get whatever it is out of my head and must taste it. Yes, I am a food advertisers dream. Recently I saw a picture of this Zucchini Gratin dish on another food blog (Bless Her Heart) and thought it looked delicious. I will admit that I really like roasted vegetables, especially when they are smothered in cheese. So when my mother in -law asked us to bring something as a side for dinner I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to test out the recipe. The basic recipe I used can be found at finecooking.com (follow this link). The only adjustment I made was that I really wanted a little bit of a creamy texture. So I made a garlic-lemon cream sauce to drizzle over the gratin last, just before I put it in the oven. I highly recommend trying this recipe out.

Additional Cream Sauce:
- One Tbsp butter melted in a small sauce pan
- One clove minced garlic, simmered in the butter
- 1 to 2 Tbsp cream added to the garlic
- Juice from one lemon

Plain Old Bread

I will admit to being a little bit of a bread snob. I get mildly offended at the products that I find in the grocery store posing as bread. Just the thought of fresh bread coming out of the oven - the smell, the texture, the taste - makes my mouth water. Three summers ago I became slightly fixated on learning how to make my own bread. Every day it was a new loaf full of possibilities. The nice thing is that it is so simple: flour, water, yeast. And there are so many ways to be creative. The process is not that difficult either: mix, knead, wait, bake and ta-da you have your bread. I am a huge fan of mixing by hand although occasionally using a mixer is nice too. I have never used a bread machine and I probably never will. I would feel cheated out of the experience of baking the bread and would not feel like it was my own. If you are at all interested in baking your own bread there are two books I highly recommend: "Bread Alone" and "Tassajara Bread Book." Both are fantastic and well worth the investment. Here is a very simple bread recipe that I first started with and still use regularly. Once you feel like you have gotten the hang of it you should play with the ingredients. I like to mix wheat and unbleached white flour at different ratios. If I want a hint of sweet I add honey, never sugar. Occasionally a little EVOO is nice too, or some sunflower seeds or garlic. The possibilities are endless. Because the basic ingredients are so few and simple go ahead and splurge on a nice bag of flour. Here is a very simple bread recipe that I first started with and still use regularly. Once you feel like you have gotten the hang of it you should play with the ingredients. I like to mix wheat and unbleached white flour at different ratios. If I want a hint of sweet I add honey, never sugar. Occasionally a little EVOO is nice too, or some sunflower seeds or garlic. The possibilities are endless. Because the basic ingredients are so few and simple go ahead and splurge on a nice bag of flour. Yes, there is a lot of waiting during bread making so grab a book, go for a jog or jump on your bike, have a beer or glass of wine. Just relax and bake.



Plain Old Bread

Ingredients:
- One packet active dry yeast
- 2 1/4 Cup warm Water
- 1 Tbsp salt
- 6-7 Cup flour


Directions:
- In a large mixing bowl combine water and yeast. Allow to sit for about 5min
- Add about half the flour and stir until combined then stir in the salt
- Gradually mix in the rest of the flour. This will get increasing difficult and you will eventually need to mix by hand, or if you are using a mixer switch from the paddle attachment to the bread hook.
- Dump your dough onto a well floured, clean, dry surface and knead it by pushing down and forward with the heel of your hand and then pulling back from the top. Fold the dough over on its self. Repeat until it becomes smooth and elastic.
- Put a little EVOO into your mixing bowl and place your dough back in the bowl rolling it around in the EVOO to coat. Then cover with a wet towel or plastic wrap.
- Let the dough rise in a warm, draft free place for 3+ hours (you can even leave it over night or while you are at work this will give it a nice sour dough flavor).
- Deflate the dough with your fist by pushing in the middle then allow to rest for 30min.
- Shape your loaves. You can make 2 smaller loaves or one big. You can use a bread pan or shape on a stone or baking sheet that you have sprinkled with corn meal. (I love my baking stone and highly recommend getting one.)
- Let the loaves "proof" by allowing them to rise a little after you have shaped them: 30+min
- Heat your oven to 450F
- Bake at 450F for about 20min the loaves will look golden.
- Reduce heat to 400F and bake for 20 more minutes.
- Allow 15min to cool.
- Taste!

My Marinara Sauce

I started making my own marinara sauce the first summer we had a garden and ended up with so many tomatoes we did not know what to do. This recipe continues to evolve over time, mostly because I never write it down, a habit I am slowly trying to break. So here goes my first attempt at documenting something that I create. I think that sauces need to be flavored slowly as you go to fit your flavor preferences.

Ingredients:
- 1.5 pounds of ripe tomatoes (roasted)
- 2 Tbsp minced garlic
- 1 large yellow onion
- 1/4 Cup dry white wine
- 2 Tbsp soft garlic cheese spread
- EVOO
- 2 tsp crushed red pepper
- 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp salt
- Handful of chopped fresh Basil

Roasting the tomatoes:
Preheat oven to 420. Place the tomatoes in a baking dish with the stems cut out. Heavily drizzle the tomatoes with EVOO. Bake for about 40-45min. Remove from the oven and pour a little of the tomato water out of the baking dish.

The Sauce:
- There are several ways to liquify your roasted tomatoes. You can use a food processor, a blender, or one of my personal favorites a submersion blender. After you have reduced the tomatoes to the consistency and texture that you like add them to a large pot over low heat.
- In a small skillet simmer the onions in EVOO until they are transparent then add the garlic and crushed red pepper. Allow the garlic to cook for about 1min then add the white wine to deglaze the skillet. Let sit for a couple of minutes to simmer and reduce.
- Pour the contents of the skillet into the pot with the tomatoes. Add the rest of the ingredients (salt, balsamic vinegar, basil, and cheese) and now start to taste and adjust. I usually add more garlic and hot peppers from the garden if we have them. Stir and allow to sit over heat for a little bit for the flavors marry. Hopefully I remembered everything, let me know what you think. Bon apetit!