greek-style tomato-zucchini fritters with fresh herbs

From 06/29/2011 (by Eye-Fi)

I heart these. They were downright delicious. Iris didn't appreciate the texture, I don't think, so out they came, but the others did well with it. Even Mike admitted they were pretty good, for tofu. It was the first time I've used the food processor for tofu, so that was exciting. I got to use our first garden yield- zucchini, too.


Ingredients:

1 lb firm tofu, squeezed to remove extra water (place a heavy dinner plate on top for 10 minutes or so), then crumbled
1/4 cup ground walnuts
2 cloves garlic, crushed
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp tomato juice
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt
fresh ground pepper
1/2 cup bread crumbs, plus 1/3 cup for coating
1 tbsp chopped fresh dill
1 tbsp chopped fresh mint
1/2 lb zucchini, grated and squeezed to remove excess water
1 lb seeded, finely chopped tomatoes, drained to remove extra liquid
Olive oil


directions:

Preheat the oven to 350F.
Blend the tofu, walnuts, garlic, lemon juice, tomato paste, oregano, salt, and pepper in a food processor until almost smooth. Taste and add more salt and pepper if you wish. Scrape into a large bowl and mix in the bread crumbs, dill, and mint — it should have the consistency of a thick cookie dough. (Add more breadcrumbs by the tablespoon if it’s not quite there). Fold in the zucchini and tomatoes.
Create golf-ball sized balls of the mixture, and drop into the bread crumbs and roll to coat. Flatten to about 1 inch thick.
Rub a large cookie sheet with olive oil, and as you complete each fritter, arrange so they do not touch. Spray with olive oil, then place in the oven and cook for 35 minutes, flipping once halfway through.


From Veganomicon.

chickpea-quinoa pilaf

Of course, when the youngins' saw this, they began to whine, "I don't like this!" Even Iris studied it curiously between her fingers before letting it drop to the floor. So I protested, "But you haven't even tried it." And after I made them try it, guess what? They liked it. All three of them. Jack even managed to down the the "onluns."

From 06/27/2011 (by Eye-Fi)

ingredients:

2 Tbsps olive oil
1 small yellow onion, chopped finely
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 Tbsp coriander seeds, crushed
several pinches freshly ground black pepper
1.2 tsp salf
1 Tbsp tomato paste
1 cup quinoa (uncooked)
2 cups cooked or 1 (15-oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed (I substituted northern beans, as I didn't have any chickpeas on hand)
2 cups vegetable broth or reconstituted bouillon

directions:

1 In small stockpot over med heat, saute the onions in olive oil for ~ min. Add garlic and saute for 2 min.
2 Add tomato paste, coriander, cumin, black pepper, and salt; saute for another min.
3 Add the quinoa and saute for 2 mins.
4. Add the chickpeas and broth; cover and bring to a boil. Once the mixture is boiling, lower heat to very low and cook for ~18 min, or until the quinoa has absorbed all the water; stir occasionally.
5. Fluff with a fork

From Veganomicon

banana butterfly birthday cupcakes

I made these dear cupcakes for Abigail's birthday, and they went over very well. They were fairly healthy, moist and all around yummy.

From 06/07/2011 (by Eye-Fi)

Going fast...

INGREDIENTS

cupcakes--

1/2 cup butter or margarine
3/4 cup caster sugar (I used raw cane sugar, ground up some in the food processor)
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 3 med. bananas)
1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/3 cup milk (I used soy milk)

icing--

100 g. reduced fat cream cheese (I used half a block of Neufchatel)
1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar
1-2 tsp, fresh orange juice
sprinkles for decorating
strawberries for decorating

1. preheat oven to 350. Grease muffin pan or line with muffin paper

2. Beat (with electric mixer) butter, sugar and vanilla until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing after each addition. Add banana. Beat until combined.

3. Sift flour and baking soda over banana mixture. Add milk. Using a large metal spoon, gently stir until combined. Distribute evenly into muffin pans. Bake for 18-22 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

4. To make cream cheese icing, combine cream cheese, sugar and oj with electric mixer until smooth. If too thick, add more oj. Spread frosting onto cupcakes, decorate with sprinkles and strawberries as butterfly wings and serve.

marinated salmon with mango-kiwi relish

I doubt anyone is as tired as I am of seeing Chicken Thigh Supper pop up on here week after week after week. It was good but not THAT good.

image via www.cookinglight.com

I plan on making this tomorrow for our fish Friday (recipe courtesy of Cooking Light Magazine circa March 2004)-- maybe with some sweet potato fries and some arugula salad (my new favorite). I love when it's time to cook for a new season! And I LOVE salmon.

Ingredients

Salmon:

• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets (about 1 inch thick)
• Cooking spray

Relish:

• 1/2 cup diced peeled mango
• 1/2 cup cubed peeled kiwifruit
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/4 cup fresh orange juice

Preparation

• To prepare salmon, combine first 4 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add fish to bag; seal. Marinate 10 minutes, turning occasionally.
• While fish marinates, heat grill pan or large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Remove fish from bag, discarding marinade. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add fish, and cook 5 minutes on each side or until the fish flakes easily when tested with a fork.
• While fish cooks, prepare the relish. Combine mango and the remaining ingredients. Serve over fish.
  

chicken thigh supper

I discovered a great new cookbook that I checked out from the library last week- Good Mood Food by Donal Skehan-- he looks like an Irish teen sensation, but he does know how to cook. Skimming through it, I kept thinking how good the food on every page looked. I have about ten bookmarked, as that's about how many slips of paper I pre-cut, and I thought that would at least keep me busy for a while. Last night, I made this dish, which was very savory. I pan-seared some spinach in the same pan, which was a nice touch, served with bread.

image via Good Mood Food Blog

From blog--

"This is a super dish for a big group of people, served with a tasty salad; it’s perfect for weekday entertaining. If you can’t get a hold of chicken thighs, you can use any other cuts as long as they’re on the bone. This gives the meat a really great flavour.

Serves 4
6–8 chicken thighs
200g pancetta, diced, or bacon bits
1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
75ml/3fl oz red wine
2 garlic cloves, sliced thinly
1 red onion, chopped in half moons
2 sprigs of rosemary
2 sprigs of thyme
2 teaspoons of English mustard powder
2 tablespoons of olive oil

In a large deep frying pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and brown the chicken and pancetta, until you get a nice colour on the thighs. Set aside on plate covered with kitchen paper.
In the same pan, add the rest of the oil and fry the garlic, onion, rosemary and thyme for 2 minutes. Sprinkle over the mustard powder and stir through.
Add the tinned tomatoes and red wine, and bring to the boil. Add the chicken and pancetta pieces back to the pan, turning the chicken pieces to coat.
Cover the pan and cook for 20 minutes over a low heat or until the chicken is cooked through. You may need to extend the cooking time depending on the size of the chicken thighs. I don’t add salt to this recipe as the pancetta can be quite salty, but make sure to taste it and add seasoning if needed.
Serve with a tasty salad and some hearty wholemeal bread."

banana sour cream pancakes

For the eve of Lent ("Fat Tuesday"), we indulged in Banana Sour Cream pancakes (found here) topped with Strawberries and whipped cream, and eggs. Those were some yummy pancakes- definitely a treat!

From 03/08/2011 (by Eye-Fi)

banana sour cream pancakes

Ingredients nocoupons

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon milk
• 2 extra-large eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
• Unsalted butter
• 2 ripe bananas, diced, plus extra for serving
• Pure maple syrup

Directions

Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the sour cream, milk, eggs, vanilla, and lemon zest. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones, mixing only until combined.

Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat until it bubbles. Ladle the pancake batter into the pan to make 3 or 4 pancakes. Distribute a rounded tablespoon of bananas on each pancake. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until bubbles appear on top and the underside is nicely browned. Flip the pancakes and then cook for another minute until browned. Wipe out the pan with a paper towel, add more butter to the pan, and continue cooking pancakes until all the batter is used. Serve with sliced bananas, butter and maple syrup.

toad in the hole

I found this recipe in a Williams-Sonoma magazine-- about the only thing I'll ever get out of one of those. But it looked divine, and it held up. When I told the kids the name, it got some eyes, but once we explained that what was in it was just things that they really like (i.e. kielbasa (which we used instead of sausage, since that's what we had on hand), eggs, orange peppers, spinach, etc.), they downed it fairly quickly. We had it with homemade oatmeal bread with strawberry jam, cantaloupe and OJ.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup milk
• 2 whole eggs plus 1 egg white
• 2 tsp. whole-grain mustard
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. salt, plus more, to taste
• 3 Tbs. plus 2 tsp. vegetable oil
• 1 lb. mild pork breakfast sausage links
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch strips
• 4 oz. spinach
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1/2 cup grated Gruyère cheese
• 2 Tbs. chopped fresh chives

Directions:

In a bowl, combine the milk, eggs, egg white and mustard. Using an immersion blender, blend until incorporated, about 1 minute. Add the flour and the 1 tsp. salt and blend for 30 to 60 seconds, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate the batter for 2 hours.

Preheat an oven to 425ºF.

In a 10-inch fry pan over medium heat, warm 1 tsp. of the oil. Add the sausages and brown on all sides, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Wipe out the pan with paper towels. Return the pan to medium heat and warm 1 tsp. of the oil. Add the bell pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to the plate with the sausage. In the same pan over medium heat, warm 1 Tbs. of the oil. Add the spinach, season with salt and pepper, and cook until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to the plate.

Pour the remaining 2 Tbs. oil into a 12-inch fry pan and place in the oven until the oil is hot and just smoking, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the batter from the refrigerator and stir in the cheese. Carefully remove the pan from the oven. Add the sausages, bell pepper and spinach to the pan, then pour in the batter. Return the pan to the oven and bake until the batter is puffy and golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes; do not open the oven door early as this will cause the toad in the hole to deflate. Garnish with the chives and serve immediately. Serves 4 to 6.

photo via Williams-Sonoma Kitchen.

chicken tortilla soup

From 01/31/2011 (by Eye-Fi)

The other day when I happened to be in Giant Eagle, samples of this were being given out. It was very good-- I took one of the recipe sheets. It would have been too spicy for the kids, so I just did away with the hot peppers and only added half of the chili powder, and it wasn't spicy at all. I probably could have added a little more, but the kids liked it. And Iris discovered avocados, which I served with the soup, along with tortilla chips and salsa.

From 01/31/2011 (by Eye-Fi)

Chicken tortilla soup

3 Thinly sliced boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 C chopped green onions
1 jalapeno pepper, diced (we skipped this and replaced it with 1/2 a red bell pepper)
1 pablano pepper, diced (we skipped this too)
2 TBSP canola oil
1 stick of butter (we used a cup of Smart Balance)
1/2 C flour
1/2 C shredded Mexican 4 cheese blend
1/2 C fat free Greek yogurt
4 C chicken broth
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
1 (14 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (7 oz) can fire roasted diced green chiles (we skipped this)
1 C frozen corn
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp chili powder (I used only 1 tsp)
salt, to taste

Directions--

Heat oil in large pan and saute chicken, onions and peppers, seasoning with 1/2 the cumin and chili powder.
While chicken is cooking, melt butter in large stock pot over med. heat. whisk in flour, and cook for 2-3 minutes. Slowly whisk in milk 1/4 C at a time, then the cheese, yogurt, and chicken broth, ensuring each ingredient is well incorporated before adding the next.
Stir in remaining ingredients including the cooked chicken, bring to simmer and serve.

potato kielbasa skillet

Even the kids, who usually reject all potatoes proclaimed that they liked this. I boiled the potatoes first because Mike likes his potatoes extra-soft.

potato kielbasa skillet

5 large potatoes, cut in bite sized chunks
1 lb kielbasa, sliced
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped green pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup broth
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese (I skipped this)

1. In dutch oven, brown potatoes, kielbasa, onion and peppers in oil.
2. Add seasonings and broth.
   
3. Bring to a boil.
4. Cover tightly and cook for 20 minutes on low, stirring occasionally.
5. Uncover and put cheese on top.
6. Simmer until cheese is melted.
   

baked turkey taquitos

(image: Bree via the creative mama)

We had these tonight, and they were definitely worth a mention here- healthy, easy to prepare, easy for the kids to pick up and eat, tasty. Plus, we got to have "apple-cados"- one of Gail's favorites.