Tuna with Corn Cucumber Mint Relish

As my husband noted, this recipe was very summery. Too bad, the weather had taken a cold turn and it was 40 degrees and rainy outside. Ahhh Virginia weather, I give up!


1-2 lbs tuna (4 tuna steaks)
1 cucumber chopped
½ red pepper chopped
½ c. corn
¼ onion chopped
1 tbs mint chopped
¼ c. rice wine vinegar
Salt and pepper
Pinch of red pepper

Mix together and set aside for an hour. The longer the better though.

For the tuna, I seasoned it with salt and pepper and rubbed it with a bit of cut garlic. I heated about 2 tbs of olive oil and got it nice and hot. Then I laid the steak on and let it cook for about a minute on each side. At that point turn the heat down to medium and continue to cook for about 2 minutes each side (give or take on thickness and how done you like them).

Pork Loin with Apple Stuffing

This dish was made in honor of the arrival of one Ms. Verity Grace. Our neighbors (and good friends) had their very first wee one and she is just lovely. I decided to help by stocking the fridge and freezer with a bit of food.



3-5 lb pork loin

Stuffing

2 TBS oil
¼ c. onion
2 celery stalks
1 large tart apple (I used granny smith)
1 c. of raisins
½ tsp salt
2 tsp poultry seasoning
1 clove of garlic crushed
Pepper
1 cup of stock
6 pieces of whole wheat bread
1 egg

Sauce
½ c. maple syrup
6 tbs Dijon mustard
2tbs soy sauce

Heat oven to 400.

For the sauce combine all ingredients, mix until well blended and set aside.

For the stuffing, heat the oil and add celery, apple and onion and sauté for 5 minutes until soft.
Add raisins, salt, poultry seasoning, garlic, pepper and stock and bring to a boil.
Break bread into pieces and add to mixture until all the stock is absorbed (you may need a piece or two more or less. Add a piece at a time until you all liquid is absorbed but it is not dry). The bread should be mushy.
Take the stuffing off the heat and let cool.
Filet open the pork tenderloin. Salt and pepper it.

Once the stuffing has cooled a bit, add the egg. Lay the stuffing in the middle and roll. Secure with butcher string (I found out after I started I did NOT have butcher string so I had to toothpick it with this.)

Put the loin in a roasting pan and cover with roughly 1/3 of the sauce. Put in the oven and bake covered for 15 minutes.

Reduce heat to 350 and add another 1/3 of the sauce to the meat, recover and bake another 20 minutes.
Add the final 1/3 uncover the meat and bake another 15-20 until done.
Let meat set 10-15 minutes before cutting into.

Mushroom Chicken

2 tbs butter
1 tbs olive oil
1 onion sliced
3 large chicken breast bone in skin on (3.5 lb)
4 tbs of flour
4 c. chicken broth
2 c. of quartered mushrooms
1 c. dry white wine
2 tbs marjoram
1 Turkish bay leaf
½ c Greek yogurt or sour cream

I could not have been more pleased with the way this came out. It was creamy and earthy and wonderful (if I do say so myself!) I, have a love affair with Greek yogurt. It allows me to have all the yummy goodness of sour cream with ¼ of the fat and calories. My husband, who I can’t get to eat anything that is adjacent to light and healthy loves it and told me I could stop buying sour cream. For those of you that hate mushrooms (and I know you odd things are out there) you could omit them and substitute peppers or potatoes. I used bone in/skin on chicken. I think keeping the skin on made this a very rich and wonderful dish, but I think you could easily (and I did) take the skin off the chicken and eat the meat without it, I just recommend cooking with it.

Add butter and olive oil to stock pot or Dutch-oven and melt butter.
Add the onion and sauté over medium heat for about 10 minutes.
Salt and pepper chicken (I also used a little onion salt) and lay on bottom of pot.
Sprinkle with 4 tbs of flour then add 4 cup of chicken broth and bring to a boil.
Once boiling reduce to simmer and simmer for 20 minutes. Add 1 cup of dry white wine, mushrooms, bay leaf and 2 tablespoons of marjoram and simmer for 40 minutes.
Take about ½-1 cup of hot liquid and add to your yogurt or sour cream, stir, and then put the mixture back into the pot. Doing this keeps the milk from curdling.
Heat for 5 more minutes and serve.

For those of you doing weight watchers this would be about 9 points per breast the best I can tell (they don’t give you a raw, bone in skin on choice??) . I served this with mashed potatoes that I put skim milk and about 3 tbs of greek yogurt in and it was great and about 1.5 per ½ c. serving.

Salmon over Turnip Greens

I served the greens and salmon over mashed potatoes. Yesterday Joel wasn’t feel well and I hadn’t planned anything for dinner. So I just took the leftover greens and broth, warmed it in a pan and tossed with with some past and parm. It was quite good.



Normally, I am not a fan of cooking vegetables too much. This is a bit different. I cook them until they a totally soft and limp…almost soupy. Also I use a micro planer to grate my garlic. I like it better than a garlic press but you could to that as well but you might want to add an extra clove.

Turnip Greens

3tb olive oil
4 cloves garlic grated
1 lb turnip green cleaned and chopped
1tsp sugar
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup white wine
Salt and pepper to taste


Sautee the garlic in the oil for 2 minutes. Add ½ the turnip greens a bit at a time and turn to coat. Add chicken stock and wine. Add the rest of turnip greens. Add sugar and cook until very soft. Salt and pepper to taste.

1 lb salmon
Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
¼ tsp lemon rind


Cut the salmon into 4 pieces. Coat each piece with a touch of olive oil. Salt an pepper each piece. In skillet heat about 2 tbs olive oil and get it hot. Add salmon and turn heat down to medium. Cook on first side for 2 minutes. Flip and cook another minute to two. Remove from pan.

Plate about 1/3 cup of mashed potatoes. Put turnip green on top with several tablespoons of the liquid from the pan and place salmon on top. Finish with a couple of passes on the zester of fresh lemon rind.

Hungarian Chicken

I am calling this Hungarian Chicken, for lack of a better idea of what to call it. This is how this came into being. It is cold here, and I think to myself, “Hungarian!” I mill it about in my head and finally decided on Chicken Paprika. So at the market I pick up a green pepper. When I got home I look up some recipes, none had green pepper and all called for split chicken breast and I just had boneless/skinless. What?? So what does any good blooded girl do? I called my mom. She said, “No, you are thinking of that pork recipe.” Shoot, she was right…but I had chicken defrosted. Hence the experiment began.

1 package of egg noodles
1 tbs oil
1 onion
1.5 lbs chicken cubed
3 tbs flour
3 cups chicken broth
1 c. white wine
1 green pepper sliced
2 tbs paprika (Hungarian sweet)
1 C. full fat Greek yogurt or sour cream





Sautee onion and chicken for 5 minutes.

Sprinkle 3 tbs flour over mixture and stir to coat.

Add 3 cup chicken broth and 1 tsp thyme and simmer for 20 minutes.

Add pepper to taste, paprika, 1 cup of dry white wine (preferably not a chardonnay) and sliced green pepper and simmer for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile prepare egg noodles.

Turn the burner down. Scoop the yogurt (or sour cream if you want) into a bowl. Add to the yogurt about ½ of the hot sauce from the pan and stir and then add the yogurt mixture to the pan with the chicken and green pepper. Add the hot liquid to the yogurt fist and than adding that mixture to the pan should prevent you from getting a lumpy or grainy texture from the yogurt curdling.


Sever over noodles and enjoy.

Turkey Soup

Okay, how could I not give you some recipes for turkey leftovers. More are on the way. This was my grandmothers soup and it is my favorite soup. It is great with leftover chicken as well.
1.5-2 c. chicken or turkey meat
1 onion chopped
3 celery stalks chopped
2 carrots diced
1tsp salt and pepper
2 qts water
6 bullion cubs
1 can cream corn
1 cup green beans
1 egg
1 cup flour
¼ tsp salt
Sesame oil (optional)
You want about 1..5-2 cups of meat. What I did was cover the turkey carcass with bullion and simmer for an hour. I then pulled the carcass out and ran under cool water and picked it clean. If you need to, add more meat. Add meat, carrots, celery, onion and salt and pepper back to bullion and simmer for one hour. Add your can of cream of corn and you green beans (I use frozen you could use fresh). Bring back to a boil. Meanwhile work 1 egg into 1 cup of flour and a quarter teaspoon of salt. The mixture will be mealy and dry. Scatter this mixture into the soup, cover pot an boil for 10 more minutes. Serve.
This is a very traditional down home sort of soup, however my parents added sesame oil one day to their bowl. The results were amazing. You only need a drop or two, but give it a try if you like sesame, you love it.

Special note: today's post is by my good friend and fellow blogstress, Swestie. She writes about things that inspire her. Check out her blog here. Today, I'm also posting on her blog about how I was inspired to start cooking. I hope you enjoy the switch! Don't forget to let us know what you think! Heeerrrrreeee's Swestie!

Recently, I indulged my taste buds in some banana pudding at a restaurant here in Richmond. This restaurant is known for it ever-changing repertoire of comfort foods, and the banana pudding I ordered there did not disappoint.

Served individually in shallow dishes, the sweet, gooey lusciousness is layered over a crumbly crust, topped by a layer of ever-so-thinly-sliced bananas, fanned over the top and caramelized to crisp, delicate perfection. The caramelization creates such a rich note to the already decadent dessert. Eating the pudding, slowly… mindfully… one immorally delicious bite after another… is the meaning of pleasure in the first degree.

So I decided to try to recreate it… with a recipe from Weight Watchers, no less. Now the WW recipe called for the recipe to be layered into one large dish, creating servings for 12 (only four points per serving!), and one of the layers was “whipped topping” (love the taste, hate the idea). So I modified the recipe to serve the pudding in individual ramekins, without whipped topping, WITH the caramelized goodness on top. Here’s how I did it.



Ingredients:
1/3 cup of all-purpose flour
¾ cup of sugar, plus a little bit extra for caramelization
¼ teaspoon of salt
2 egg yolks, lightly beaten
2 ½ cups of 1% low-fat milk
3 tablespoons of butter, divided
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
36 Reduced Fat Nilla Wafers
5 ripe bananas
10 individual ramekins

Crush the Nilla Wavers and distribute evenly between the ramekins.

Combine flour, sugar and salt in a 3-quart saucepan.

Combine egg yolks and milk; stir with a whisk. Gradually add egg mixture to dry ingredients, stirring well. Add 2 tablespoons butter. Cook over medium heat until thick and bubbly (about 10 minutes), stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and add remaining 1 tablespoon butter and vanilla, stirring until butter melts.

Pour this mixture into the ramekins.

Layer the pudding with bananas sliced very thinly.

Cover and chill in the fridge until ready to serve.

When you are ready to serve, layer the top again with very thinly sliced bananas, fanned over the top of the pudding. Sprinkle the top with sugar, and place in a HOT broiler for 3-3 ½ minutes (watch this – don’t want it to burn). Or, if you have one of those kitchen blow torch things, put it to good use, the best way you know how… I’m not so fancy.

If you MUST have the “whipped topping” add it now… or for an even richer taste sensation, use real whipped cream…

Now impress and astound your friends and family with delicious, home-baked - yet easy and slightly fancy – goodness, right in your own home. (5 WW points/serving, the way I fixed it.)

Chicken Cacciatore Pasta

1.5 lb pasta
1-1.5 green pepper depending on size, sliced
2 small yellow onions halved and sliced
2lbs chicken cut up into small pieces
1 large can of crushed tomato
1 large can of petite diced tomato
3 TBS olive oil
3 TBS Italian Seasoning
Pinch of sugar
1 tbs garlic
Salt and pepper
Add olive oil to stock pot and turn burner to medium. Add onion and sauté in pot for 2 minutes. Add both can of tomatoes and Italian Seasoning, pinch of sugar and garlic. Bring to a boil. Add the chicken, reduce heat and simmer on low for 1 hours or until the chicken is very tender. Add green peppers and simmer another hour. Adjust salt and pepper.
Meanwhile put pasta on. Once pasta is done, add on ladle of pasta water to pasta sauce . Drain pasta, take sauce off heat, toss and serve.

Lemon Rosemary Chicken

1.5 lb split chicken breast
¼ c. lemon juice
¼ olive or lemon infuse olive oil
1 tsp lemon rind
1tbs chopped rosemary
¼ greek yogurt (or sour cream or regular plain yogurt)
2 tsp general purpose seasoning (greek, lemon pepper)

Heat oven to 375. Heavily salt and pepper chicken and bake covered for 35 minutes. Meanwhile whisk together lemon juice, rind, oil, rosemary, yogurt, and general seasoning. After 30 minutes increase temperature to 400. Cover chicken with marinade and put chicken uncovered back in to bake. Bake for 15-20 more minutes or until done.

This would be great with pork or fish.

Green Tomato Pasta

Tis that time of year again. Green tomato season! So here is another attempt at using up those green tomatoes. Not bad!
1/2 lb pasta
5 medium green tomatoes chopped
1 small onion diced
¼ lb chopped pancetta (you can get this at Trader Joes!!)
1 c. marinated artichoke heats
1 tbs olive oil
1 tbs lemon zest
Salt and pepper to taste
Pinch of red pepper

Sauté tomatoes, onions and pancetta in olive oil for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile boil the pasta. When pasta is almost done, take one ladle full of the water and add it to sauce. Add artichokes and seasoning. Sauté for about 5 minutes or until sauce thickened a bit. Add lemons zest and cook one more minute. Drain pasta, toss immediately and serve.

Pasta Ceviche

Okay this really isn’t ceviche... at all, but it was the best way I could describe the flavor of the dish. I used crab and scallop pieces but shrimp and a whitefish would be really good too. I have to confess this was ENTIRELY my husband idea, I just was the short order cook here. It was soooo wonderfully good. Just a hint of spice, sweet from the seafood, and a little tart from the lime. Whooo-hoo!! Now you know one little reason I love my husband so much!!

¼ red onion
2 TBS butter
1 TBS olive oil
1 c. white wine
1 red bell pepper minced
1 TBS garlic
½ lb crab
½ lb scallop
1 c. cilantro leaves
1 lime
Salt/ pepper and a pinch of red pepper

Melt butter and oil and add onion. Sautee for 3 minutes wine. Cook until reduced until about half. Add peepers and let cook 2 minutes. Meanwhile boil pasta. When pasta is done, but before your drain, add one ladle of the starchy water to the sauce mixtures (Thank you Follow The Cook http://followthecook.blogspot.com/ !!). After you add pasta water, add garlic, crab scallop and salt and pepper. Cook for about 3-4 just until scallops are done. Remove entirely from heat. Squeeze the juice of one lime into the sauce. Plate pasta and top with fresh cilantro and…EJOY!!

Chocolate Chili

Okay, this past week we were sick. I know summer is not exactly chili weather but when I am sick I want comfort food. My husband made this and it was good. This is a VERY meaty chili (did I tell you my husband made it?) however, you can swap about a can a chili beans per half a pound of meat.
2 pounds lean ground beef
2 medium onions
2 28 oz. can of petite diced tomatoes
4 15oz cans of kidney beans
1 tsp pepper
1 TBS minced garlic (or more if you like)
3 TBS chili powder (we used hot Mexican)
2 TBS cumin
3 TBS soy sauce
3 TBS coco powder
Sautee onions for 2 minutes add beef and season with salt and pepper. Cook beef until done. In stock pot add remaining ingredients and cook for 30 minutes. Taste. One note about the soy, soy is a great way to salt a dish and add a richness at the same time. However, add a tablespoon at a time, too much and it will taste like a bad fusion dish. If you don’t have coco powder but do have a very dark chocolate add a bit of it instead. It will give a rich full flavor. Adjust seasonings to taste and preferred heat level.

Cashew Butterscotch Cookie

These are my husbands favorite. When I feel like being especially nice to my HH (hot hubby), about once a year, I make these. I have to admit they are pretty durn good!

2 ¼ c all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1tsp salt
1 cup of butter
1 cup brown sugar
½ c. granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 large eggs
1 and ¼ C. butterscotch morsels
1 c. Cashew

Preheat oven to 350. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl.. In a separate bowl, beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract until creamy. Add egg. Gradually add flour mixture. Stir in morsels and cashews. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto baking sheets that are un-greased.
One of the keys (thanks Sondra of this tip!!) to baking a cookie that is not hard as a rock in a day is to undercook the cookie a bit. So check the cookies in about 9 minutes and see how they look then keep a very close eye on them. They should look like they just started to brown but are still gooey. Pull them out. If you have never under-baked. Do a test batch of about 5 cookies to see.