Lately we've been . . .

1. Watching Oliver get adjusted to his new digs:

I admit, he looks really relaxed and content in these pictures.  He has moments where he feels like that, it seems.  However, he still spends much of the day hiding, and managed to get himself locked in the linen closet for most of the day yesterday!  We finally figured out where he was late afternoon, when we heard muffled meows coming from upstairs.  :)

2. Celebrating John's birthday with Pecan Pie:

And Nutloaf, buttermilk-chive mashed potatoes, roasted asparagus, and Quick Gravy:

3. Starting plants for our backyard urban farm:

We are ecstatic that we saved nearly enough TP rolls to make little pots!  (Egg cartons to the rescue!)  We spent a total of $4 on cheap baking sheets from the dollar store, and a few bucks at Target on some plastic pots for herbs.

4. Eating pizza:

(It's kind of a Sunday night "thing" at our house.)

5. And still getting organized:

Spice racks went up yesterday!  Wahoo!  Our kitchen is finally organized, which is a big deal for this cook.  Very few unpacking projects remain . . . .

What have you been up to?  Anyone else chomping at the bit to get gardening?

Happy Thanksgiving!

I think Thanksgiving might be my favorite holiday.  The perfect excuse to have an all-out cooking and eating extravaganza!

This year was no exception . . .

BREAKFAST:

Light and simple, and easy to make ahead.  Not that I didn't want to spend my day cooking on Thanksgiving; rather, I didn't want to spend my day washing dishes!  I did much of the prep in advance, which was a very smart idea, in my opinion.  We enjoyed Pumpkin Muffins (using my favorite baking ingredient . . . buttermilk!) and a beautiful fruit salad with some fresh mint from the garden for breakfast.  I used half whole-wheat flour in the muffins to increase their nutritional value a little bit; otherwise followed the recipe as written.  These muffins are FANTASTIC!  They call for very little oil, yet are moist and tender from the pumpkin and buttermilk.

LUNCH:

I decided we'd snack on a variety of appetizers for lunch, as we were possibly expecting company and didn't know what time they would show up . . .

Brie topped with Double Cranberry Chutney . . . so delicious!  I always want to make cranberry for Thanksgiving, but always end up with a huge amount of it leftover and never know quite what to serve it with.  This was perfect!

Deviled Eggs!

Veggies!  (With hummus, not pictured)

Spanakopita Triangles:

Using Ali's recipe as inspiration, I ended up simplifying a little bit . . . used one egg, one package of spinach, feta, juice and zest of half a lemon, and a little salt and pepper for the filling.  Perfect!  Now, what to do with all that leftover filo?

DINNER:

The big feast!  I really wanted to make everything, but I didn't want TONS of leftovers, (since I was likely cooking for just John and I,) so I selected my recipes, cut them in half (or sometimes in quarter,) and made most everything in 8-inch loaf pans.  Bonus feature?  Our entire dinner fit in the oven at once, even though John only has one rack in his oven!  Woo-hoo!

(P.S. I made everything, except for the mashed potatoes and gravy, in advance, covered the unbaked things with foil, and froze.  Everything thawed and baked up beautifully!)

Spiced Sweet Potato Casserole:

One of the most important parts of Thanksgiving dinner, in my opinion.  :)  I love, love, love this version from Cooking Light -- it is subtle in its spiciness, just sweet enough (although I do cut down the sugar to 1/4 cup in the full-size recipe,) and lively from the orange juice concentrate.

Creamy Corn Pudding:

This pudding may join the ranks with sweet potato casserole and compete for most important role!  We always had some kind of corn pudding in my family for Thanksgiving, and even though most people don't think to add it to their Thanksgiving repertoire, I want to keep a bit true to my heritage, ya know? This recipe is INCREDIBLE.  (With all that butter and heavy cream, why not?)  ;)  Slightly sweet, creamy and comforting, like a softer, smoother cornbread.  Mmmmmm.

Mashed potatoes and gravy:

I mashed my local yellow potatoes with garlic, butter, buttermilk, chives, salt, and pepper.  They were so flavorful on their own, they almost didn't need gravy!  (I said this to John, and he replied, "no, no, no."  Ha!)  A big batch of mushroom gravy on the side -- 2 tbsp butter, 2 tbsp olive oil, plenty of sliced mushrooms, 1/4 cup flour, 2 tsp soy sauce, and 2 cups mushroom broth.  Simple and VERY delicious.  A perfect vegetarian gravy, in my opinion!

Caramelized Onion and Herb Stuffing:

This has been a repeat my last several Thanksgivings, for a couple of reasons . . . first, it is super-delicious and super-easy, but most importantly, no sage!  I don't care much for sage, especially in stuffing, and it's hard to find a recipe without it.  This recipe is a keeper for me!

Creamed Spinach Casserole:

A new recipe this year, and a good one -- both John and I love spinach, and this was a simple casserole to prepare in advance.  Rich but not heavy, and a beautiful burst of intense dark green on the plate!  (I switched out the traditional cheddar for white cheddar in my version, otherwise prepared the recipe as written.)

Nutloaf:

This may be the best vegetarian entree for holiday meals EVER.  Rich, filling, and "meaty," delicious on its own, smothered in gravy, dolloped with cranberry chutney, or leftover on a sandwich with ketchup.  :)

My plate:

And don't forget about dessert!

John requested pecan pie this year, and although it's not my favorite, I was happy to oblige.  I tried this recipe from Real Simple, and although I generally find pecan pie too sweet, both John and his roommate were happy gobbling down slices.  They reported it was lighter and less dense than many pecan pies they have had, and his roommate stated it was the best she's ever tried!  Score!

Hope you had a wonderful holiday and enjoyed some time off from work with important people.  Now, I better get started planning my Christmas cookie baking!  ;)

blog-worthy?

From the looks of this blog post, it would seem as though I didn't do much cooking over the weekend.  I promise we ate well, although not necessarily blog-worthy.  :)

Saturday night veggie burgers:

I really like the black bean burger recipe from Veganomicon, and we had 'em this weekend on toasted wholegrain buns with mayo, spinach, tomato, and some melted tilsit.  Roasted garden veggies (green beans, cherry tomatoes, and green onions,) and chips and guac on the side.

Sunday night soup:

I have been having good success focusing on one cookbook at a time when I do my meal planning, and this past weekend, it was Veganomicon.  The "Midsummer Corn Chowder" was a huge hit, with both John, myself, and his parents.  What's not to like, really -- it's basically a huge pot full of in-season produce!  Yum.

And a couple of baking projects . . .

First, I turned Pecan-Topped Pumpkin Bread into muffins:

I was really pleased with how this recipe turned out.  The only change I made to the original was subbing in half whole-wheat flour for some of the all-purpose, and I'd consider upping to even 3/4 whole-wheat next time, as well as reducing the amount of sugar called for.  However, these muffins are light and flavorful, without tasting too "healthy," you know?  They make great quick, portable snacks.

Second, I have been looking for more recipes lately that call for buttermilk, as I have been reculturing my own for a few weeks now.  Here's some Cinnamon Streusel Buttermilk Coffee Cake:

Not only is this recipe incredibly delicious, it's EASY.  You know how recipes that call for a streusel often require a lot of extra mixing and dirty bowls?  Not this recipe.  You make a base crumble with butter, flour, sugar, and some nutmeg, pull out a cup of it and add some nuts and cinnamon for the streusel, and add an egg, some buttermilk, and some leavening to the rest for the cake batter.  Easy!  I think I had this cake ready for the oven before it was preheated.  I might try baking it in a square pan next time, as I'm never a huge fan of springform pans.  (I just don't trust them not to leak.  Perhaps it's time to invest in a higher quality springform?  Eh.)

Busy week ahead . . . wish me luck!  Thankfully, I have plenty of leftovers.  :)

cookie girl

It was my turn to take treats to church choir rehearsal this past Wednesday; thankfully, we don't have to "feed" 50 people on our own -- one always has a "treat buddy." The goal for "treats" is to have a somewhat healthy snack, and a somewhat junky snack. :) You like how we think? I emailed my treat buddy over the weekend and said, "I'm planning on baking cookies -- you ok with covering the healthy option?"

I'm always the cookie girl. I think I've earned myself a reputation.



I ended up clearing a few holiday baking leftovers from my cupboards, and ended up with knock-your-socks-off oatmeal cookies. Here's my basic recipe, which I feel, is the BEST oatmeal cookie in the WORLD. And I'm not exaggerating.

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 cups rolled oats
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 to 1/2 tsp salt (depends on whether you used salted butter)
1 tsp baking soda
2 1/2 cups mix-ins

375 for 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the size of your cookies.

Sometimes, short, simple, and sweet is the way to go, would you agree? Take a basic base and add incredible stuff, (I used the scraps and crumbles from my holiday toffee, dark chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, chopped pecans, and unsweetened coconut this time,) and you get . . . heaven.

I think I need a cookie for breakfast today. ;)

It was a dark and stormy night . . .

. . . so I thought I'd bake some cookies:

Plain ol' CCCs with pecans. Nothing fancy, but sometimes that's OK. :)

P.S. The new oven seems to work fine, although I think it runs a little cool. Must pick up oven thermometer.

eats and treats

Hope you have been having a wonderful weekend! Dan and I really took it easy this weekend -- mostly hung out at home, did a little laundry, had a picnic and a hike at Lake Maria state park, etc. I spent plenty of time in the kitchen, of course!

Dinner last night was both speedy and delightful:

"Black-Eyed Peas with Spinach," from Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home, over cheesy grits, with a few slices of heirloom tomato on the side. Simple, nourishing, and fantastic! I added a few dashes of smoked paprika to the beans, which I didn't really detect in the finished dish, but it couldn't have hurt, right? The cheese grits were easy and amazing, and the sliced tomato added a fresh, bright note to the meal. Best part? I think this entire meal was on the table in less than 30 minutes! Wahoo!

I've REALLY been loving my Moosewood cookbooks lately. Example #2:

"Banana Cupcakes," from Moosewood Restaurant Simple Suppers, topped with chocolate cream cheese frosting. Oh yum! I had some leftover cream cheese frosting from the pumpkin muffins I made last weekend, and decided to melt a little semi-sweet chocolate and whip it into the leftovers -- ta-da! Amazing!!!!! Dan and I split one of these this afternoon, and they are GREAT. Dan mentioned the frosting tastes a little like chocolate pudding, and I loved the sweet, dense, comforting banana cupcake. I think the only thing that could possibly make this treat better would be the addition of peanut butter in some form . . . hmm . . . time to experiment! :)

Since you can't have cupcakes for breakfast, (well, technically you can, but you know,) I felt compelled to make a breakfast treat as well:

Now, we usually have granola, toast, or PBJ for breakfast, but every once in a while, it's lovely to look forward to a little pastry something first thing in the morning! AB in Five bake-a-long to the rescue! Crystal, Victoria, and I have been talking about starting the brioche dough, and I decided to take the plunge this weekend. Now, know this -- I will probably bake my way through the dough, and then wait a year while I work on losing all the weight that I will inevitably gain! (The dough recipe, which yields 4 to 5 pounds of dough, enough for 4 to 5 projects, calls for 3 sticks of butter and EIGHT eggs. Gasp!) Oh, but how delicious these "Sticky Pecan Caramel Rolls" are! Buttery, soft, light, with a wonderful, crisp-chewy caramel topping. Jeff and Zoe, how dare you make caramel rolls so EASY!

Thankfully, the dough freezes well, so I have appropriately-portioned chunks waiting patiently for us to detox from all of the saturated fat. :)

Sunday night is a great time for pizza!

Artisan Bread "Olive Oil Dough," topped with organic pizza sauce, mozzarella, and parmesan cheeses. The front slice also has red onion, green pepper, mushroom, green olive, oregano, and chili flakes. The back slice has roasted red peppers, dried tomatoes, spinach, artichoke hearts, and oregano. Side of green salad with apple, fennel, walnuts, bleu cheese, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil. A GREAT way to end the weekend, if you ask me!

The kitchen is still a mess, so I'm off. G'night!