Katatethat @ Pinterest

As you can see I've been taking a break from blogging but I thought it might be of interest to some that I am pinning regularly to My Pinterest food board. Here you'll find the recipes I'm making or planning on making, with just a few notes.

Enjoy!

Parsnip Parmesan Bread

I'm currently having a another revival of my Delia Smith books. For those not in the UK, I've written about the TV chef I grew up watching before, but this time round I'm obsessed with her breads in "How to cook book 1". She has a couple of interesting breads; one using potatoes and the other parsnips. Her recipes really are pretty much foolproof; she pays good attention to detail to ensure the end product really does look (and hopefully taste) like hers.

With bread in mind, I got some fresh parsnips at my local farmers market; my town of Suffern is having a fabulous monthly winter market.  I love parsnips but the supermarket ones are usually bendy and thoroughly unappetizing, so I happily snapped up a couple of lbs of the fresh ones.

In addition to the bread, I was planning on making a fantastic parsnip gratin with some of them.  That will have to wait, as my husband and I  enjoyed the bread so much that I made it twice, the second time doubling the recipe. No parsnip gratin this weekend.

As an aside, my kids are not so fond of this bread.; it's got quite an assertive flavor for a 3 year old. I did try the hard sell on "cheesy bread"; it oozes parmesan goodness when still warm, but still "no thank you" was the response. Onwards in my veggie eating quest.

I have changed a few things about this recipe as usual; Delia recommends sage in this recipe but I was all out so I added Dijon mustard. No regrets, although the sage would be delicious. I also subbed in some wholewheat flour and found it needed more milk than her recipe.

Parmesan Parsnip Bread

Ingredients

3/4 cup /4oz self rising flour (see below)
3/4 cup/ 4oz whole wheat pastry flour or white whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
6oz peeled and grated parsnips
2 oz Parmesan cheese roughly chopped into 1/4 " cubes
3 tablespoons milk
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flours salt and baking powder 
3. Add the parsnips and toss together ( I find clean hands work best) 
4. Toss in the cheese and mix again 
5. In a medium bowl, lightly beat together the eggs, milk and mustard 
6. Add the egg mixture to the flour.
7. Mix until just combined; Delia suggests using a pallet knife, I use my hands but with a light touch
8. The dough will be loose and sticky, if it seems too dry (such as in the winter here) add another tablespoon of milk 
9. Form the dough into a ball and place on a floured baking sheet or pizza pallet 
10. Flatten the ball into a disc approx 6" diameter 
11. Cut a cross on the top and place the bread in the oven 
12. Bake for about 50 mins or until golden on top 
13. Cool on a wire rack and serve

I love this with soup or a creamy cheese and sliced apples or pears.

Tips on this recipe:
Don't have self rising flour? For each cup of regular all purpose flour add
1  1/2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt. In this recipe where only 3/4 cup self rising flour is required, I would add 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt to a scant 3/4 cup all purpose flour.

Enjoy!

Healthier Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Healthier Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
(with cranberries)

I was reflecting on my posts from this time last year and unsurprisingly my thoughts are moving in a similar direction; panic about what the winter months have done to my waistline. How on earth will I fit in my summer clothes without too closely resembling the muffins I make?

So, when it came time for my monthly girls get together, and therefore another excuse for me to bake, I chose to take the high road. I pulled out my Food and Wine Magazine, March 2011 issue and there was the perfect healthier recipe. It hit all my requirements; wholesome and yet totally quick and easy.

The cookies do have some butter for flavor but also a little canola oil, plus they are made entirely with whole wheat pastry flour. If you can't get that, I would suggest white whole wheat flour or half and half regular flour with regular whole wheat flour. You can choose to bake them as bars (as I did) or cookies (a little more time than I had available). The original recipe calls for toasted chopped pecans in addition to the chocolate chips but I didn't have any so added some cranberries.

My guinea pig buddies were enthusiastic and the recipe was requested; a good sign of success I think. They are really quite like a blondie with an extra bite.

Healthier Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

2 tablespoons canola oil

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons light brown sugar

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup dark chocolate chips (I used 60%)

1/2 cup cranberries 

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F
2. Butter a 9 x 13" baking pan then line with parchment paper
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside
4. Using your mixer, beat the butter, oil and sugar until creamy
5. Add the egg and vanilla and beat again until smooth
6. With the mixer on low speed, beat in the dry ingredients until just incorporated
7. Finally add the chocolate chips and beat on low again until just mixed
8. Turn the dough out into the baking pan and smooth out the top evenly using a spatula 
9. Place the baking try in the oven and bake for about 18-20 minutes or until golden and just set in the center
10. Cool the bars in the pan and then lift them out onto a cutting board
11. Peel away the parchment from the sides and cut into squares

Alternative substitutions that I think would be tasty: 

• white chocolate chips and chopped dried apricots
• Dark chocolate chips and cherries

You could successfully freeze the cookies in the pan prior to baking (if well wrapped) or after baking. After baking I would not cut them, leave them as a slab and triple wrap in cling film.

Enjoy!

Pea and Broccoli Soup

Pea and Broccoli Soup

My husband's parents recently visited us from Scotland. Actually they were at the end of an enviable round the world trip so were full of great stories. My Mother in law makes a great soup, so I immediately put her on soup duty while staying with us. She did not disappoint.

After they left and inspired by her, I resolved to make soups more often. My little one who is extremely veggie averse, will often eat a soup. It needs to be pureed into an orangy red color though... This one unfortunately doesn't meet her requirements but is nevertheless a delicious soup. It's creamy and smooth, hearty and healthy. I loved it, my older daughter enjoyed it and my husband could not get enough.

In was in "use it up" mode when I made this soup; I had a small amount of split peas needing finished, broccoli reaching the end of it's life and half a carton of veg broth needing used up. Here it what happened:

Pea and Broccoli Soup

Ingredients

1 medium onion chopped finely
3 cloves garlic, minced or chopped finely
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 pinches dried thyme (or fresh if you have it)
3/4 cup split peas
3 small heads of broccoli chopped into small florets and stems chopped
1 1/2 quart/ approx 1 1/2 litres broth/stock ( I used half chicken half veg broth)

Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot on medium heat 
2. Add the onions and garlic and reduce to medium/low for approx 15 mins 
3. Cook the onions until softened and translucent not caramelized 
4. Stir in the thyme and cook a further couple of minutes 
5. Add the broth and split peas and bring to a boil 
6. Reduce to a simmer and cover for approx 15 minutes 
7. Add the broccoli and simmer a further 10 minutes or until everything is soft 
8. Adjust seasoning as needed the puree the soup

This soup has a creamy almost cheesy note to it, but if it's not hitting the spot, crumble either feta or goats cheese on top.


Enjoy!

Cheesy Soda Bread

Cheesy Sodabread

As promised weeks ago, I give you Cheesy Soda Bread! Who doesn't like the sound of that?!

This recipe is largely Rachel Allen's from her "Food for Living" book. However, unlike traditional scones or most wheaten bread recipes, these contain no butter. The small amount of cheese is not worth worrying about, particularly if you use a very strong cheddar which will yield lots of great flavor for a small sprinkling. Finally, I subbed in whole wheat pastry flour for half of the regular flour to up the wholegrain ante. You could just as easily sub regular whole wheat flour or white whole wheat flour if you cant get whole wheat pastry.

All in all, you can feel good about your waistline while you tuck into these babies. As I explained in my last post, I served these with eggs poached in home made tomato sauce and they were just the ticket to sop up the sauce. Who doesn't love a bit of cheese with their eggs too? Obviously these are suitable for endless occasions. Rachel recommends a number of changes to the basic recipe; chopped chives, or other herbs, or go the sweet route with raisins or chocolate. Amazingly I haven't tried the chocolate option yet but it's just a question of time. It would be really delicious.

Cheesy Sodabread

Ingredients

1/2 lb/ 1 3/4 cups regular flour

1/2 lb 1 3/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour (or whatever ww flour you have on hand)

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

400 ml/ 1 3/4 cups buttermilk

3 oz grated strong cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 475°F or 250°C. If you have a pizza stone put it in the middle of the oven
2. Place the dry ingredients on a bowl and mix well using a whisk
3. Make a well in the center and pour in the buttermilk 
4. Stir in a circular motion using your hands until just mixed 
5. The dough will be soft but not so sticky that you cannot work with it.
6. Place the dough on a floured board and shape it into a large flat round approx 3/4 in deep.
7. Cut out the scones using a cutter of your choice or cut them into shapes (see above for my random ones!)
8. Sprinkle and press a little cheese on the top of each scone
9. Place the scones on a floured baking tray and into the oven. If you're using a pizza stone, slide the scones off a floured pizza paddle onto the pizza stone already in the oven
10. Bake for 10-20 mins depending on the size of your scones.The scones will be done when they look golden and sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.

Master this most basic of recipes and take it in 10 different directions. Chocolate chips are next on my list of add ins!

Enjoy!

Eggs Poached in My Best Ever Homemade Tomato Sauce

My Best Ever Homemade Tomato Sauce

This is the tale of  4 yummy things:

Homemade Tomato Sauce
Cheesy Sodabread
Poached eggs
Basil olive oil

I've been thinking about eggs for dinner all week, but my husband is not such a fan. So I held off until he left for a business trip today, when I unfolded my plan. Eggs poached on homemade tomato sauce have long appealed to me, but only today did I actually get off my behind and make them. This dinner is ridiculously easy but rams home how good ingredients can result in the tastiest food.

Having bought a sizable quantity of San Marzano tomatoes last weekend I decided the moment was right to make a batch of tomato sauce. My 3 year old was (sort of) resting on the couch after lunch, so I set to work. I don't have a standard method of making tomato sauce, in fact we don't often eat it in this house. When I was pregnant with my second child the mere smell of store bought tomato sauce gave me instant nausea. To this day I still dislike most store bought tomato sauces but homemade is a different matter. Nevertheless, I knew it needed to be good, so I opened my "Jamie's Dinners" for advice.

Simply using garlic, tomatoes and a little of my new favorite ingredient; O&Co basil olive oil (Thanks Kirsty!) I made a simply delicious tomato sauce. If you can get your hands on some of this olive oil, buy it! It's subtle and yet amazing in it's ability to enhance the flavor of all sorts of dishes. I've used it in dressings, with my pea puree, and tonight, in the absence of fresh basil, it infused my sauce with an extra richness and extra something yummy. That said, fresh basil and good extra virgin olive oil would make a perfect substitute in this or any other recipe.

My Best Ever Homemade Tomato Sauce

Eggs poached in Homemade Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

6 garlic cloves, finely chopped or minced

3 large (28oz) cans of whole tomatoes (the best you can get; I used San Marzano) Do not break up the tomatoes until after the sauce is cooked. The tomato seeds may make the sauce bitter; yuck, I learned from experience in the past.

2 teaspoons olive oil (I used basil olive oil)

salt and pepper to taste (Go easy on the salt; your tomatoes may already be quite salty)

To finish:

1 tablespoon basil olive oil

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 

Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in a large pan on medium and add the garlic.
2. Cook gently for approx 3 minutes then add the tomatoes
3. Cover and simmer the sauce for approx 30 minutes
4. Turn the heat off and glug in the basil olive oil (or chopped basil leaves and olive oil) and balsamic vinegar. 
5. Gently break up the tomatoes with the back of a spoon or a potato masher

To make the poached eggs, simply crack the eggs in a small bowl then gently place in the sauce. Cover and cook on a medium heat for approx 5 minutes.

I served mine on top of Cheesy Sodabread Rolls. I thought it was simply delicious and it went down pretty well with the 5 and under crowd. The only objection was a yolk, but we worked around that!

Enjoy the sauce endlessly with pasta, fish, poached eggs, or cook your sausages in it.

Cheesy Sodabread recipe is next in line for the posting.

Quinoa Pancakes

Quinoa pancakes; sorry about the poor photo quality; it was before 7am...

It's been a month of excess and enjoyment in this house. I may be behind the majority but my New Year healthier approach to cooking and baking really only started yesterday.

And finally I am inspired to share again thanks to one of the (many) new cookbooks I got for Christmas. The King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking Book has been a fabulous addition to my already overflowing bookshelves. It contains a wealth of information, tips and recipes on how to use whole grains without sacrificing any taste whatsoever. However, given my overdose of Christmas baking (some frozen) lasted us until last week;  I could not, in all conscience, add more goodies to the snack cupboard until we were all done with the reserves.

Today, however, a cold is moving through our house and my little one woke up asking for pancakes. I couldn't say no; partly because (selfishly) it gave me the perfect excuse to try out the pancake section of my new book. The book gives me an excellent opportunity  to use the whole grain flours I have been storing in my freezer, unused for months. Apparently whole grains go off much faster than their processed cousins so I now keep the less often used ones in my freezer. Today it was the quinoa flour that shouted to me.

So at 6:30a.m. I got out the baking bowls and we set to work. The batter has no fat or sugar added but manages to turn out a light, slightly sweet and earthy pancake. Very well received by all and it pleased this Mummy no end to send her brood off to school and work with a protein packed breakfast. My husband made some comment about feeling like he was in a hotel; I guess I haven't made a decent breakfast in a while! We had them with pumpkin butter and a touch of maple syrup but the recipe recommends maple syrup mixed with ginger syrup which sounds lovely to me.

Quinoa, ginger and cranberry pancakes

Ingredients

1 cup (3 7/8 oz) quinoa flour
1/4 cup (3/4 oz) whole wheat pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (4 oz) milk
1/2 cup (4 oz) applesauce
1 egg
1/2 cup (2 oz) dried cranberries

1/4 cup minced crystallised ginger ( I omitted; my kids have given it the curly lips in the past, but it would be delicious)

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients ( not including the cranberries) 
2. In another bowl, whisk together the milk applesauce and egg.
3. Mix the wet with the dry and stir until well mixed together; it will be quite runny.
4. Finally stir in the cranberries and crystallized ginger if using .
5. Leave the batter to sit for 10 minutes
6. Heat a heavy skillet or griddle pan on medium
7. Pour a 1/4 cup of the batter for each pancake.
8. Cook until bubbles form and the edges just start to turn golden.
9. Turn them over an cook another 1-2 minutes until golden.

Enjoy!

Christmas Cookies, Cakes and Gingerbread Houses...

Happy Christmas to all or should I say Happy Baking Season! 

My homemade Peppermint bark to rival Williams Sonoma

I am from a long line of 'fill the biscuit tin, in case someone pops in' women. Traditionally we also delivered Christmas biscuits (cookies) to a few lucky folks at Christmas time. So when the calendar hits December, I start big time planning. Who am I kidding, it happens long before December.

So you'll understand, we've been busy in this house over the last few weeks. Like many others, I love to give cookies at Christmas. The giving list gets longer every year; and despite having some tried and true Christmas cookie recipes I always feel compelled to try out a few new ones.

This year I am linking the recipes I have used alongside a few snaps of the final products. This is as much for me next year as it is for any readers so apologies for poorer grammar than usual. I'm in a rush to get back to the kitchen action.

Here goes:

My particular favored new recipe is for Peppermint Bark. I was determined not to pay $25 a box this year at Williams Sonoma, so found a recipe for me to make my own. Success!!

I have a ginger obsession at this time of year so one of the many recipes I use is the following Ginger Chocolate Chip Blondies. They are so good...

Continuing on the theme and desperately trying to harness my control frickery, my girls and I got up to gingerbread men and house making, using the following healthier recipe from Heidi at 101 cookbooks. These are wholewheat gingerbread men!

This is the girls playing with the scraps at the end

House components and little guys

Decorating time

The finished product; again an exercise in self control for me!

My Mum usually makes me my Christmas cake, in fact, I'm ashamed to say, I've never made one before. This year I was going to skip it as we are not having any family visiting. However Nigella got the best of me with her Chocolate Fruit Cake from Feast. It looks amazing, is soaking in Kahlua as I type and boasts one of my favorite combinations prunes and chocolate. Haven't tasted yet but can't imagine it will disappoint. It did take me a whole morning on my own to complete though; even the lining of the tin requited a lot of concentration and 25 minutes! 

These little fellas below are ready to go out; in the packages are Chocolate Crackle Cookies, a recipe. surprisingly, from McKormick spices. They include Roasted Saigon Cinnamon and Ancho Chile Pepper but are basically a double chocolate cookie with a kick. Yummy adult cookies but my kids love them too. They freeze amazingly too.

The other cookies in the packages are a recipe from the boys at Baked. The cookies are Oatmeal Cherry Chocolate chip from "Baked; New Frontiers in Baking". Very delicious.

Oatmeal Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies

Today, Nigella linked to her Christmas Chocolate Biscuits, and they looked so easy and sounded so simple, I just had to give them a go:

They're similar little chocolate shortbreads with chocolate frosting...mmm

One last link; as yet I've only made the dough (it's sitting in the fridge) but no mention of Christmas cookies/ biscuits whatever you want to call them, is complete without these. This recipe for Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies was posted by me way back in March, but it is "Christmas in a cookie" for me.

Happy Baking!

Merry Christmas! 

Happy Holidays!

My favorite Cut Out Cookie Recipe...aka Jock Cookies!

Christmas Stars

A couple of years ago, our good friends visited us for Thanksgiving. Jayne is a great cook and also Northern Irish, so she came armed with many, goody stuffed Tupperware. The best of the best were these AMAZING sugar cookies that she had cut out in "Jock" (their dog) shapes and covered with melted butterscotch chips. Oh boy! They were so good. We (I particularly) could not stop eating them and I think even she was surprised how good the butterscotch tasted on a sugar cookie. If I remember correctly she was trying to avoid a supermarket trip so she used the butterscotch in a pinch. Anyway, Jayne was kind enough to fork over the recipe and now we need little excuse to whip up a batch in this house. So, it's time to share.

A wee bit of fun for the kids; Candy Cane Copycats

These cookies are in no way healthy; but they are not everyday cookies or lunch box snacks. They're for special occasions; it's up to you how many occasions you nominate special, after you taste them.

Cut Out Cookies

Sparkly Snowflakes

Ingredients


1 cup/ 1/2 lb butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. 
3. Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium, until whitened.
4. Add the egg and vanilla and continue to beat on medium until well incorporated.
5. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture slowly. Mix until just incorporated.
6. Take the dough out of the bowl and shape it into a disc approx 1" thick.
7. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for about 30 mins
8. Roll out the dough on a floured surface to approx 1/4" thick. 
9. Cut out your shapes til your hearts content and re-roll as necessary.
10. Be careful not to overwork the dough and if the scraps get too warm, wrap again and place back in the refrigerator for another 10 mins or so.
11. Bake for approx 5 minutes then turn the tray around and bake another 5 minutes. 
12. They will be done when they begin to turn golden around the edges. 
13. Cool for 2-3 minutes on the tray before transferring them to a cooling rack
14. leave to cool completely before decorating

This Christmas, I used the simplest of frosting/ icing, borrowed from Nigella. The ratios are as follows:

1 cup confectioners sugar

1 1/2  tablespoons hot water

This will give you a pretty runny icing which you can flood the cookie with. It will dry to hard in a few hours. 

The cookies will keep (unfrosted) for about a week in an airtight container and apparently they freeze too. I am testing that out; I've frozen a sample and will add a comment when I defrost them.

My Halloween Cut Outs this year

A Healthier Take on Cornbread...and rambling on Thanksgiving

Cornbread muffins

I didn't grow up eating cornbread; soda and wheaten bread were my staples but when in Rome and all that. My first impression of cornbread was that it was distinctly dry and honestly a bit tasteless. However, I have come to enjoy it with some changes. I particularly think it makes a delicious stuffing.

A few years ago I tried a great version by Giada Di Laurentis.  She added cheese, garlic, fresh corn kernels and sundried tomatoes to a basic boxed cornbread mix. It was delicious, especially with chili and much more moist than my previous experience; I was a cornbread convert.

This Thanksgiving I need cornbread for 2 purposes; one for the stuffing and I also am on cornbread muffin duty for my daughters school Thanksgiving Feast. So, inspired by Giada's idea, I added fresh corn to a basic but healthier cornbread recipe and hey presto; I thought the sundried tomatoes might not go over so well with the 3 year old crowd.

The basic cornbread recipe is from Eating Well Magazine; which substitutes the usual high butter content with more buttermilk and just a little canola oil. In fact, I used light olive oil as I was all out of Canola. No harm done!

A Healthier Cornbread

based on an Eating Well Recipe

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups yellow stone ground cornmeal

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 large egg

1 1/4 cup buttermilk

2 tablespoons canola or light olive oil
1 cup of thawed, frozen corn (or fresh)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F
2. Grease or butter a 8 " square pan, a 12 count muffin pan or 24 mini muffins (as in the picture)
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt
4. In a large bowl whisk together the egg, buttermilk and oil
5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet. Stir until just combined 
6. Finally add the corn and stir gently until just mixed through.
7. Pour into the pan or into muffin cups.
8. Bake for approx 25 minutes (square pan), less for the muffins; approx 15 mins for the mini muffins and 18 for the regular muffins. They will be done when a toothpick comes out clean.
9. Cool the cornbread in the pan. For the muffins, remove them from the pan and place on a wire rack to cool.
10. Like all muffins and quick breads, these will freeze nicely. I recommend triple wrapping in cling film before doing so.

A note on the recipe:

You can easily double this recipe and bake in a 9x13" pan. 

I plan on using my cornbread for the following stuffing recipe. 

I am churning the pumpkin ice cream as I write, thanks to David Lebovitz.

Brownie Pie was made and frozen last night thanks to Rachel Ray; sorry can't find a link to it but it's in the November magazine.

Finally, I plan to brine my turkey tomorrow night using the following recipe. I'm changing it up this year as I usually use this recipe, which is a total winner, if you're looking for inspiration.

Happy Thanksgiving from my family to yours! Time for me to be thankful for great food, family, friends and health!

Enjoy!

Thanksgiving Prep...and Cranberry, Pear and Ginger Chutney

After much deliberation (understatement of the century) I have finally decided on our Thanksgiving menu. I have pored through cooking Light, Eating Well magazines, Nigella Feast, Baked (both books) to name but a few. As you'll remember,  I'm Irish so I don't feel so tied to the usual traditions. Therein lies the problem; apart from turkey, I feel we can go in any direction with the food. My only fixed point is for the vegetables to be seasonal. So this morning, off we went to the Farmers Market to scoop up whatever looked best. I'm home with a purple cauliflower, butternut squash, brussels sprouts, parsnips, sweet potatoes, pears and apples. That helped me finalize the menu.

Here goes:

Thanksgiving menu

Breakfast: 

Pumpkin cheddar muffins

Appetizers

Green goddess dip
Crudites
Artichoke dip
Trader Joe's Store bought appetizers (my one concession)

The Main Deal


Maple Cider Brined Turkey
Cranberry Pear and Ginger Chutney
Cornbread stuffing
Purple Cauliflower sauteed in olive oil and garlic
Parsnip Gratin
Pureed Sweet Potato with smoked paprika


Dessert

Chocolate Brownie Pie
Pumpkin Ice Cream
Rustic Apple Pie


Random snack (who doesn't need one of those tucked in the cupboard?)

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Loaf


What did I miss? The cocktail of course, but that can wait for a couple of days to be finalized.


Last year I noisily proclaimed I was going to take shortcuts via Trader Joe's ready made choices. People who know me might find that ironic; even on a busy week night, it pains me to put a store bought meal in front of my family; so why Thanksgiving of all times?!

The truth is the greatest holiday excitement of my year is Christmas. I have incredibly happy memories of Christmas as a child. Unsurprisingly, most of the fun for me was food, not gift related. I love to recreate some of that for my children but a couple of years ago, after going all out for both holidays, I really did not enjoy my Christmas dinner.

Time to rethink the plan;  I decided to take a very simple approach to Thanksgiving going forward. It worked out for us last year; I used Trader Joe's Cranberry Sauce, Stuffing, Pumpkin pie and appetizers. It made for a very relaxing Thanksgiving Day. However this year I just can't bring myself to go the store bought route. So, make ahead is my strategy this year, plus I have assigned an appetizer to my husbands cousin who will be coming with her friend.

Today I made the Cornbread for the stuffing and the Cranberry Chutney. Tomorrow the Pumpkin Ice Cream is on my radar. The Pumpkin Chocolate Loaf is already made and in the Freezer. The plan is coming together! I'll share as much as I can.

Cranberry Pear and Ginger Chutney

based on a Epicurious recipe

Ingredients

2 cups apple cider vinegar
1 cup onions, finely chopped
1/4 cup grated fresh ginger (peeled first, I freeze mine in a ziplock bag and find it so much easier to grate when frozen)
2 1/2 lemon zest (finely grated)
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 12 oz bag fresh cranberries, washed and picked through
1 1/4 cups packed light brown sugar
2 large firm pears, peeled cored and chopped into small pieces

Directions

1. Combine the vinegar, onions, ginger, lemon zest, cinnamon stick, pepper flakes and cloves in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil
2. Simmer for about 10 minutes to reduce by about half
3. Add the cranberries, sugar and pears and stir until the sugar dissolves
4. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes or until the pear is tender and the flavors have combined.
5. Store in the fridge for 3 days, or freeze until needed and thaw at room temperature.

This would be a great idea to can but that's not in my skill set...yet, so I always freeze. It works out just fine. I always make extra so we can have it at both holidays (when I'm not get TJ's help) and we like it with crackers and cheese also...

Enjoy!

Aromatic Butternut Squash Stew

Aromatic Butternut Squash Stew

I am continuing my love affair with the humble squash and here's my latest offering. This is a very versatile stew; you could switch in any number of other vegetables (but stick with the squash, please) and it will still taste great because of the combination of spices. I used the newest ingredient to my pantry; Saigon Cinnamon. I was keen to try it out in something, but you could absolutely replace this with regular cinnamon.

The recipe I used as a base was vegetarian but I added a little chicken sausage for an extra bite. Honestly, the meat is really not necessary to make this recipe a success; just use what you have and go for it! I do think this would make a great side dish for Thanksgiving. It fits my criteria for a restful Thanksgiving; you can make it ahead and simply warm it up. Like many a stew, the flavors even improve over a day or two.

Just one caveat; the photo above was taken after simmering 20 minutes longer that I would have liked. Hey, it was the witching hour in this house and I forgot to turn the stove off after a final taste. I have to say, that although the squash was a little mushier than I might choose, the stew was still utterly delicious. A very forgiving recipe.

Aromatic Butternut Squash Stew

loosely based on a food network kitchens recipe

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 fully cooked chicken sausages, cut lengthwise and chopped into bite-sized pieces
• 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
• 1 14 1/2 oz canned tomatoes (whatever you have on hand)
• 1/4 teaspoon saigon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 medium butternut squash , peeled and cut into approx1-inch cubes
• 1 (16-ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed ( I used cannellini beans but chickpeas would be better)
• 3 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
• the zest of 1/2 a lime
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• 2 cups of frozen corn, thawed
• Juice of 1/2 lime
• salt and pepper to taste
• a small handful of breadcrumbs (optional according to how you like your stew consistency)

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan and add cook the onions on medium heat for about 10 minutes
2. Add the garlic and sausage and cook a further 3-4 minutes
3. Add the tomatoes, cinnamon, coriander, cumin and red pepper flakes and cook a further 3-4 minutes
4. Add the broth, squash, chickpeas, zest and raisins and simmer with the lid half on, for approx 20 minutes or until the squash is tender but still has a bite. 
5. Finally add the corn and lime juice and warm through.
6. Add a sprinkling of breadcrumbs if the stew seems a little watery (optional)
7. This is delicious served with couscous but, as always with a stew, crusty bread would be a winner too.

A note on the recipe:

Vegetable switch-ins which would work nicely include; fresh spinach, shelled edamame or peas. 

Enjoy!

Bread Bread and more Bread

Ahh....fresh bread

Be forewarned; this post has no recipes but, since I have been rather obsessed of late with the Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day , I felt I needed to write something up to justify my slow output! At the end of the summer, a good friend of mine, whose cooking and baking skills I greatly admire, introduced me to the concept of Artisan bread in 5 minutes a day. So I promptly checked the first book out of the library and had a go. I was hooked! Their basic white rustic loaf is amazing! My kids and their friends just could not get enough.

But, I do regard this bread as a treat; it's ingredient list boasts not even a hint of my other obsession; wholegrains. Hence, next on my list was their 2nd book; Healthy Bread in 5 minutes a day; if I was going to continue the bread habit, better make it healthy. So I tried their Wholegrain Master Recipe . Again delicious and very popular with my kids too.

These breads are truly are very easy and quick to rustle up, but there are a number of detailed steps that should not be rehashed by me, for fear of missing an important point. Example below; I forgot to cross the top with my knife before putting the bread in the oven and this is what happened:

a rather bizarre shaped loaf (still tasted good though!)

Instead I would strongly encourage you to get a hold of one of the books and give the concept a try. I recommend reading the first section in the book thoroughly and do follow each detailed step meticulously for each recipe. It won't take you long to do so, but the authors' attention to detail in their recipes, really pays off with a beautiful rustic loaf.

If you're hungry for a little more information now though, in a nutshell, here's how it works. Mix together a batch of the bread dough in 5 minutes flat (yes, really). No kneading is required, very few ingredients and only 1 bowl or tupperware. The dough rises in a large tupperware on the counter for about 2 hours. Then you place the tupperware containing the dough in the fridge until you feel like some fresh bread. When you get the urge, take the dough out of the fridge and using scissors, snip off a grapefruit sized piece. Shape it into a round (again no kneading) , leave it to rest again then, bake in a super hot oven. What could be easier??? Honestly, not a lot.

I probably should add that this is my first time using yeast as a rising agent; I'm Irish for goodness sake! We use baking soda and buttermilk! Anyway, for whatever reason, I was somewhat intimidated by yeast, but I'm so glad I gave it a go. It's very satisfying to have this dough in your fridge knowing fresh bread is just a notion away. They have amazing ideas for add ins, shapes and sizes to make all manner of bready baked good.

This one even has my beloved butternut squash baked in

And if the bread gets a chance to go stale...whip up a little panzanella or crostini

Have a go!

Halloween Brownies anyone?

The m and m's may suggest "kid" food, but the brownie is all about the adults

Full disclosure; the following recipe is not my usual healthy take on a classic recipe. This is pure unadulterated sugar, butter and CHOCOLATE...but oh so good on an occasional basis; particularly over Halloween.

That said, the brownies described are a new recipe to me. I typically make either a healthier version or if I'm going all out, I use a recipe that calls for many more eggs than I had left in my refrigerator.  So I set out on a google search for a rich, no holds barred, brownie recipe that only required 4 eggs.

Enter David Lebovitz. He calls these his absolute best brownies and the man does not lie. I didn't change the recipe much, except I recommend using  parchment instead of foil and I doubled the recipe to bake enough for a party. Also, to Halloween-ify them, I dotted the top with orange m and m's, 10 mins before they finished baking.

Something I learned from the Baked gods, you can freeze a brownie very successfully. Who knew? You just triple wrap them in cling wrap and let them defrost at room temperature when you feel the craving. Having learned that useful snippet, I see no point in ever baking a small pan.

Anyway, these are super-decadent, fudgy rich brownies. Bake them at your waistline's peril. I had hoped to take some to a Halloween party, but there's no way they'll last that long.

Halloween Brownies

Ingredients

12 tablespoons butter
16 oz dark chocolate (chips or chopped)
1 and 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 large eggs, beaten
1/2 cup all purpose flour
Orange m and m's

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F
2. Butter a 9x 13" baking pan, line it with parchment, leaving 2" extra on 2 sides. Then butter the parchment paper.
3. Using a low heat, melt the butter in a medium sized pot 
4. When melted, turn the heat off 
5. Add the chocolate and stir until melted 
6. Stir in the sugar and vanilla 
7. Stir in the eggs beating or whisking vigorously until combined 
8. Finally add the flour and stir "energetically" for 1 full minute until the mix looks glossy and the graininess of the sugar has gone (apparently this is the key to success with this recipe)
9. Pour the mix into the prepared pan and into the center of the oven 
10. Cook for 20 minutes then remove the brownies and push in the m and m's to the almost set batter
11. Return the pan to the oven for a further 10-15 minutes or until the center of the brownies is just set.
12. Cool the brownies in the pan
13. When completely cool, lift the brownies out of the pan by the parchment paper and cut them into squares

These will keep in an airtight container for 4 days (good luck with keeping them that long!) and will freeze beautifully (see above).

Enjoy!