Saturday night – 05/30/2015

We celebrated Ted’s birthday this week with an extended group for our regular Saturday night gathering.

Menu
Chicken and Sausage Bake
Pasta with Pesto and Roasted Cauliflower
Tabouleh
Roasted Asparagus with Parmesan
Ted’s Focaccia

Tangerine Spice Cupcakes
Ice Cream Sandwiches

Two Bean Salad

The longer this salad is allowed to rest the more of the red wine vinegar and spices have a chance to flavor the beans.

Two Bean Salad
Servings: 8-10
Prep time: 10 minutes
Total time: 2 hours

Ingredients:

• 1 (29 oz.) can Goya Pinto Beans
• 1 (29 oz.) can Goya Small White Beans
• 1 yellow onion, diced (about 1 cup)
• 1 bunch parsley, rinsed, patted dry and chopped fine
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1tsp. Penzeys’ Mural of Flavor spice blend

(or 1/2 tsp black pepper and 1/2 tsp. ground coriander)

Directions:

1. Drain and thoroughly rinse the beans. Transfer to a large bowl and stir in the onion and parsley.
2. Combine the oil, vinegar and spice blend/pepper in a measuring cup. Vigorously mix with a fork to combine. Stir into the bean mixture.
3. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for ~2 hours or up to 24 hours. Stir periodically to distribute the dressing.

Notes:
Based on a One Bean Salad from Goya that I found on the back of a can of beans.

Use a red onion if you want a more pronounced onion flavor.

Mom’s 75th Birthday

My mom turned 75 this past week and the extended family gathered to celebrate this weekend with a cookout. It was great to see many of my aunts, uncles and cousins. A big thank you to my sister, brother and sister-in-law and Ted for helping to pull it all together.

Appetizers
Deviled Eggs
Cheese Puffs
Cheese & Crackers
Stuffed Mushrooms
Cocktail Kielbasa

Mains
Hot Dogs
Hamburgers
Veggie Patties
Pasta Salad
Potato Chips
Radish Slaw

Desserts
Boston Cream Pie
Gingersnaps
Banana Bread
Assorted Fruit

Saturday night – 05/16/2015

A month or two back I made Cook’s Illustrated’s “Lasagna Bolognese, Simplified” and love, love, loved the result. I thought most of what I loved about it was the meat sauce and so I set out to make that as part of a different meal. The meat sauce is good, though not quite as good as I recall it being with the lasagna. Others thought it was very tasty though.

Menu
Medium Shells, Tomato Sauce with Butter and Onion
Tomato Bolognese
Greens Beans and Chickpeas
Salad with Spring Greens, Roasted Red Peppers, Radishes, Lemon Vinaigrette
Ted’s Bread

Pricey Brownies with Vanilla Ice Cream

Shrimp Stir-Fry II

It takes longer to cook a pot of white rice than it does to make this dish. So start your rice and then take your time prepping your ingredients. Once the rice is cooked throw a clean towel between the pot and cover to absorb steam. Then spend 3-5 minutes cooking the shrimp.

Shrimp Stir-Fry II
Servings: 2
Prep time: 10 minutes
Total time: 13 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 tsp. dry sherry
• 1 tsp. soy sauce
• 3 Tbsp. coarsely chopped chives
• 1 clove garlic, minced (about 1 tsp.)
• 1 Tbsp. minced fresh ginger
• 1 tsp. plus 1 Tbsp. peanut oil, divided
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tsp. cornstarch
• 2 tsp. toasted sesame oil
• 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 tsp. granulated sugar
• kosher salt & black pepper

Directions:

1. Combine the sherry and soy sauce in a bowl; add shrimp and toss until coated with the liquid. Set aside for 10 minutes to marinate. Combine the chives, garlic, ginger and 1 tsp. peanut oil in a bowl; set aside. Mix water, sesame oil, Worcestershire, sugar and cornstarch together; set aside.
2. Put the remaining 1 Tbsp. peanut oil in a non-skillet and heat over high heat, 3-4 minutes. Add the shrimp in a single layer and sprinkle with a pinch of kosher salt. Cook, tossing frequently, for about 1 minute. Move the shrimp to the edge of the pan.
3. Add the chive mixture and press into a flat disk; cook until fragrant then toss/stir into shrimp.
4. Quickly remix the cornstarch mixture and add to the skillet. Mix in with the shrimp and cook until it thickens, 30-40 seconds.
5. Remove the pan from the heat and serve over rice. Add freshly ground black pepper and/or Sriracha sauce to taste.

Notes:
I try to buy already deveined shrimp because deveining shrimp is one of my least favorite kitchen tasks. Just remember that you are removing the vein on the outside curve of the shrimp, not the one that is on the inside curve. The outside one is the intestine, the inside one is just a regular blood vessel. For a nice visual on how to devein shrimp visit SimpleRecipes.com

Peanut Butter Cookies

My plans to make oatmeal cookies were foiled by not having any oatmeal. Thankfully there are always other types of cookies that can be made with most of the same ingredients.

Peanut Butter Cookies
Servings: 3 1/2 dozen cookies
Prep time: 5 minutes
Total time: 50 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
• 12 Tbsp. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/3 cup powdered sugar
• 1 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 egg plus 1 egg yolk

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder & soda and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
3. Combine the oil, peanut butter and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat for 1 minute at a low speed to combine and then another 2 minutes at high speed until smooth. Reduce speed to low, add sugars, beat until combined and then increase speed to high for 3-4 minutes until fluffy.
4. Add the egg and extra yolk and beat until combined.
5. Add the flour in 1/2 cup increments about 30 seconds apart until all the flour mixture has been mixed in. Rest the dough for 10 minutes.
6. Using a 1 Tbsp. measure scoop dough into balls and place on a cookie sheet. Use the tines of a fork to press into 3/8″ high cookies.
7. Bake one cookie sheet at a time for 9 minutes, rotating the cookie sheet 180°F half way through cooking.
8. Remove the tray and cool for 4-5 minutes before transferring cookies to a cooling rack. Store any cookies you resist eating in a sealed container for as long as they last.

Notes:
I was actually short on peanut butter as well (who stocks the pantry in this place anyway, oh ya, it’s me; doh). I had about 1/2 a cup of peanut butter so I made up the remaining 1/4 cup with cookie butter; specifically with Speculoos Cookie & Cocoa Swirl from Trader Joe’s. While evily delicious I’m glad I also finished that jar; it won’t be replaced. Evily delicious and attempting to lose some weight do not go well together.

Saturday night – 05/02/2015

Segundo de Mayo has about as much cultural significance as Cinco de Mayo in my household. With our cheese-lover/cheese-hater couple out of town this weekend I thought a nice dish of enchiladas would be tasty. The rest of the meal just rolls out from there. Plus Ted makes a killer guac.

Menu
Guacamole and chips
Cheese Enchiladas
Baked “Spanish” Rice
Two-bean Salad
Corn Bread

Peanut Butter Cookies

Lemon Squares

Photo by Danielle Tsi.

While I’m someone who could enjoy a chocolate based dessert every day of the week most chocolate baked goods are as colorful as mud. Luckily there are alternatives to chocolate (shocking, I know). Spring has been slow in coming and I needed some bright color in my life, stat. Enter the lemon square.

A lemon square is basically a shortbread cookie with lemon curd on top. Both are pretty easy to make and the result is a delicious sweet-sour combination.