Portobello “Pepper Steak”
This recipe is a quick and delicious way to incorporate more vegetables into your diet. Portobello mushrooms have a meaty taste when cooked, so you won’t feel like you’re missing out on any flavor. Appropriate as a side dish, although I served mine on a bed of fresh spinach for more of a meal.
Ingredients:
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, cut into wedges (I didn’t have onion on hand)
water for sauteeing
1 large red bell pepper
2 large portobello mushroom caps, de-gilled and sliced
2+ tsp low sodium shoyu (aka soy sauce), to taste
2+ tsp oyster sauce, to taste
dash of cayenne pepper or chili pepper oil, to taste
Sprigs of oregano or thyme *optional
- Heat some olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, saute the garlic and onion until fragrant.
- Add bell peppers, mushrooms, herbs if you like and water to the skillet for 5-10 minutes. Add just enough water for the veggies to absorb and create a slight broth, but not enough to cover them *amount depends on size of skillet and veggies. We want to start creating a glaze with the liquid, so use your discretion…
- Once veggies are tender and water has turned slightly brown from the juices, add shoyu, chili oil or cayenne and oyster sauce.
- Mix well and turn heat to simmer for a couple of minutes. Remove veggies and serve alone, over rice or over spinach but allow the sauce to simmer longer.
- After 1-2 more minutes the sauce should have reduced into a thicker glaze; pour over vegetables and serve.
Homemade Maple Dijon Chicken (recipe here) and Rosemary Roasted Root Vegetables including sweet potato, rutabaga, parsnip, carrots and onion.
This is by far my new favorite chicken recipe— it contains only four ingredients and no prep, yet yields the most tender and flavorful chicken thighs I’ve ever made.
For the rosemary veggie side dish: choose and clean your root veggies then cut them into like sizes. Coat thoroughly in quality olive oil, salt, pepper, and rosemary sprigs. Roast for about 40 minutes at 400*f turning occasionally.
Homemade Lemony Chicken Saltimbocca for dinner. Chicken always tastes too healthy and boring for me, so I’m trying out ways to dress it up- here with prosciutto, lemon and sage.
Recipe found »here«
Roasted Marsala Strawberry Marscapone Frosting
For cakes, cupcakes, brownies, cookies, toast or just to drink. I won’t judge you. Pictured »here.«
I thought it would be a good idea to put roasted marsala strawberries over a marscapone frosting… but it wasn’t visually appealing. So I thought it would be a good idea to blend the strawberries into the marscapone frosting… and it was the best idea ever.
Ingredients
8 oz marscapone cheese, room temp
1/2 cup half & half, or heavy cream if you’re really living
1/3 cup powdered sugar, or 1/2 cup with the heavy cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 box of strawberries
2 tbsp pure maple syrup
1 tbsp fruity olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp marsala
1 tsp. vanilla extract, additionally
1/4 tsp salt
-Preheat oven to 350*F. Halve strawberries then, in a bowl, combine with the salt, maple syrup, 1 tsp. vanilla extract and olive oil. Toss well then arrange on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Roast for 30-40 minutes.
-Remove from oven and scrape into a bowl. Add marsala and balsamic, mix well then cool.
-While your roasted strawberries are marinating while cooling, whisk together marscapone, 1 tsp. vanilla extract, powdered sugar and cream until soft peaks form.
-Puree roasted marsala strawberries and whisk into frosting, or lazily blend marscapone frosting with marsala strawberries and enjoy
(The marsala strawberries alone are really great as a fruit compote with breakfast, with toast or waffles)
I also made an assortment of puff pastries this week. Strawberry and Brie Puff Ravioli with a chocolate drizzle, as well as Cinnamon Coated Banana and Nutella Puffs.
Homemade brownies with a roasted marsala strawberry marscapone frosting. (Original frosting recipe to be posted shortly)
Shaved Asparagus Quinoa Salad
Simple and light, dressed in olive oil and lemon juice.
Ingredients:
3/4 to 1 cup cooked quinoa
6-7 stalks of asparagus
1 small lemon
olive oil, to taste
sea salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
2 tbsp pine nuts
1 -2 oz parmesan, shaved
-Shave asparagus with a vegetable peeler. Hold the ends against the cutter board, and peel from the tough end to the tip
-Toast the pine nuts in a skillet over medium heat, stirring often
-Zest the lemon and slice it in half
-In a bowl or on a plate, combine cooked quinoa and shaved asparagus. Squeeze in the juice of half a lemon and a good drizzle of olive oil. Sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper then toss. Sprinkle with pine nuts, lemon zest and parmesan. Serve immediately~
Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Garlic and Bacon
What’s with everyones aversion to brussels sprouts? They’re great, especially with toasty garlic and crispy bacon. Eat this.
Ingredients:
10-ish brussels sprouts, washed and halved
1/4 cup chopped bacon
5 cloves garlic, sliced thickly
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
pepper to taste
-Preheat oven to 350* F.
-In a bowl, toss brussels spouts with olive oil, salt, pepper and sugar.
-Arrange on a baking sheet with sliced garlic and chopped bacon. Bake for 40 minutes, flipping brussels sprouts after about 25 minutes.
Honey Whiskey Glazed Carrots
These carrots, >pictured here,< are delicious and must be eaten with every entree. Anything involving honey and whiskey is fool proof.
Ingredients:
2-3 lbs carrots, peeled and cut into thick slices (they are cut differently in my representation)
4 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 cup Crown, or whiskey on hand
2/3 - 1 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
freshley ground pepper
minced herbs for garnish, optional
-In a large skillet, heat the butter over medium-high heat until melted. Add half of the carrots to the pan and cook briefly to sear, 60-90 seconds. Repeat with second half and set aside.
-Add whiskey to the pan (may spark at you) and allow to evaporate for about 30 seconds. Reduce heat to medium and sprinkle in brown sugar. Mix in the carrots, stir well and cover for about 5 minutes.
-Remove the lid and season with salt and pepper. Cover until carrots are fork-tender and glaze has thickened, about 5-10 minutes. Garnish and serve.
“Overnight oats” oatmeal for breakfast with some fresh fruit and a drizzle of honey, accompanied by my morning tea. Eating healthy to kick this cold!
Todays no cook, very basic Overnight Oats recipe consisted of:
6 tbsp raw oats
1/3 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/2 melted, mashed banana
some water
generous sprinklings of cinnamon
-Mix the above ingredients thoroughly and set in fridge overnight
-In the morning, heat for about a minute and top with sliced fresh fruit and honey
My homemade Ratatouille a la Remy, aka Confit Byaldi is finished! It looks pretty good, if I do say so myself. Here is the Thomas Keller recipe from the New York Times- I won’t rewrite and post it since I was too scared to make any changes.
Here is my homemade Ratatouille a la Remy — aka Confit Byaldi, the exhaustively involved version of Ratatouille from the Pixar movie (in its beginning stages). This Thomas Keller recipe differs from traditional Ratatouille in that, traditionally, the dish is more of a stew. Instead, Confit Byaldi rests upon a piperade and will be topped with a vinaigrette after it bakes and “rests” overnight. The result will be a much more beautifully plated dish. I hope the hours of prepwork spent on this dish pays off tomorrow!
Just say “yes”
How do we feel about steak tartare? We’re crazy about it, right. A must order if it’s on the menu.
Now… how do we feel about homemade steak tartare? A little bit scared, right? I mean, I get it— the threat of bacteria schmacteria is daunting. Like maybe I should start with hamachi tartare or something less possibly life threatening if done wrong.
Long story short: I’m scared to poison my friends but this is just something I feel I need to make this month. Bare with me.
