May 17th, 2011

*These pictures are on my borrowed Canon from friend after her photography class.*

My mom kindly purchased me a subscription to Cook's Illustrated Magazine.  It’s a completely different look to a food magazine.  It’s black and white and has way more copy than pictures.  It’s also very scientific.  Now my least favorite subject in school was science and I’m a huge fan of the magazine.  I think because it’s about food, I find it interesting.  They have TONS of tips and also will give ample detail upon arriving at a recipe and the test kitchen back story on ingredients, amounts, and technique.  I came upon this recipe:

I love broccoli cheese soup and have made it many times, but it’s never quite the same as in restaurants (and yes, I know in restaurants it’s probably all the cream, cheese, and butter than makes it delicious).  Cooks Illustrated tried to come up with a yummy, yet healthy version and nailed it.

I served it with garlic parmesan crostinis.

Here’s the recipe (you can’t get their recipes online without signing up for a trial subscription, those tricky Cook’s Illustrated people.  Wonder if they have a swimsuit issue, that could get interesting?)

Broccoli-Cheese Soup

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 pounds broccoli, florets roughly chopped into 1 inch pieces including stems

1 medium onion, roughly chopped, about 1 cup

2 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed (2 teaspoons)

1 1/2 tsp dry mustard powder

Pinch Cayenne pepper

Table salt

3-4 cups of water

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups low sodium chicken or veggie broth

2 loosely packed cups of baby spinach

3/4 cup of sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

3/4 cup parmesan cheese

1. Heat butter in large dutch oven over medium high heat.  When foaming asides, add broccoli, onion, garlic, dry mustard, cayenne, and 1 tsp salt.  Cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 6 minutes.  Add 1 cup water and baking soda.  Bring to simmer, cover, cook until broccoli is very soft, about 20 minutes, stirring once during cooking.

2. Add broth and 2 cups of water and increase heat to medium-high.  When mixture begins to simmer, stir in spinach and cook until wilted, about 1 minute.  Transfer half of soup to blender, add cheddar and parmesan, and process until smooth, about 1 minute.  Transfer soup to medium bowl and repeat with remaining soup.   Return soup to dutch over, place over medium heat and bring to a simmer.  Adjust consistency of soup with up to 1 cup of water.  Seasonn to taste with salt and pepper.  Serve, passing extra parmesan separately.

(I skipped the whole transferring to blender thing and used my immersion blender, then added the cheese)

May 16th, 2011

I’ve talked about this before, but Trent loves buffalo chicken wings.  So I make buffalo inspired dishes for him.  Tonight was buffalo chicken salad.  So, so easy!

Chicken roasted in the oven smotheds with bottled buffalo wing sauce, cool a bit, and dice into good sized chunks.

Blue cheese crumbles with mixture of equal parts light may, light sour cream, and a splash of water to get to the consistency you like.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Toss with mixed greens (or whatever lettuce you like), chopped chives, carrots, celery, and cucumber.  Done!  I love this salad!

Speaking of Buffalo Chicken, my recipe for Buffalo Chicken Blue Cheese Stuffed Meatloaf landed itself in the St Louis Post Dispatch.  I felt quite fancy, they interviewed me and also sent a photographer to the house to take a picture of the meatloaf.  I had to make the recipe and have it ready for its photo shoot.  I gave it a nice facial and made sure it was well hydrated for its debut.

So there she is in all her glory!  This was the picture they published with the article.  There was also a picture of me, but it’s absolutely cringe worthy.  I really really do not like that picture.  But I have moved past it because it was taken in March and I have decided I do not look like that now that it’s May and all. 

Here’s the link to the article by Pat Eby:

St Louis Post Dispatch's May 4th What's Cooking Article

Just divert your eyes from the photo, it might blind you.

May 15th, 2011

In a couple of weeks, Trent and I are going to New Orleans with a group of friends.  We used to go once a year, but that hasn’t happened once we all started families.  I’m so excited, but also scared at the amount of to do’s and events that need to be done in order to make it all happen.  Until then I can still think New Orleans thoughts and anticipate New Orleans cuisine.  Trent loves 2 New Orleans inspired sandwiches, shrimp po’ boy and the muffaletta.  A muffaletta in a sandwich of all kinds of italian meats, provolone cheese, with an olive spread served hot and oozy.  They look something like this:

It is sinfully delicious.  Not a huge fan of the sinful part knowing bathing suit season is almost upon us.  So I decided to make a veggie muffaletta.

I roasted mushrooms, onions, and zucchini.  Then I made the olive spread by throwing pitted green marinated olives with a jar of hot Giardiniera pickled vegetables in a mini food processor.  I then assembled and put in my panini maker.

It always happens, I have a bag of french fries with 10 fries in it.  So I baked those with a bag of sweet potato fries too.  Now I have a bag of sweet potato fries with 10 fries left in it.  I need to break that vicious cycle.

Now I know what you’re thinking.  Wow, Jenny’s pictures on this post look so nice!  Yep, you’re thinking that.  And if you’re not, go back and look at the pictures and just start thinking that to make me feel good.  Now I know what you’re thinking.  What has changed to make such a difference in photo quality?  Well, let me tell you.  The day before I took a Photography Workshop given by my dear friend, Elizabeth.  She was test running the workshop on a couple of us lucky guinea pigs.  Then she let me play with her fancy DSLR camera for a couple days post class to practice.  Now all I can think about is replacing my 3 year old half broken Sony Cybershot point and shoot for a DSLR.  It’s like wearing payless shoes after a night of sporting Jimmy Choos.  I’ve tasted the good life and have 3 days of fun photos to prove it.  Here’s info on the workshop:

http://outsidetheboxphotographyworkshop.blogspot.com/

May 9th, 2011

It was 8:00 am and I just got Lauren onto her bus for Kindergarten.  I turned on the computer and sat down.  Within seconds there was a knock at our door, a loud knock.  I had a feeling it was about our missing dog, Elson.  I looked out the window and saw a police car.  Sydney was playing nearby and I was hoping I could keep myself in check if it was bad news.  I was prepared for bad news since Elson was missing for a week now, blind, and not blessed in the brains department.  Here’s how it went down:

Policewoman: Do you have a missing dog?

Me: Yes….

PW: Has he been missing since this morning?

Me: No, he’s been gone for a week, did you find him?

PW: A week? Yes, he’s right up the street.

Me: Is he……okay?

PW: Yes, a man is standing on the corner with him.

Me: You mean he’s completely fine?

PW: Yes, you want to go get him?

Me: Like he’s not hurt or anything?  He’s blind.

PW: (Laughing) We figured that out.  Soooo, do you want to go get him?

Me: I’ll have to walk up with my 3 year old, so you’re telling me it’s okay for her to see the dog, he’s not bleeding or anything?

PW: No, he’s fine.

Me: Sydney, get your shoes on, we’re going to get Elson!

Sydney: Yay, Elson is back!  Jumping the fence is a no no.

Me to PW: He’s a grey and brown blue heeler, that’s the dog you have?

PW: Yes, just go to the corner and I’ll meet you there.

So apparently Elson was walking down a four lane road a block from our house.  The cars all stopped and Elson started bumping into the stopped cars.  It was then apparent to the drivers he was blind.  One lady called the police and an older man had his dog in the car with him and a leash.  So he used his leash to walk Elson to the side of the road so the other cars could go on their way.  The police came and saw our address on his collar and drove to our house.  He looked just like he did the day he jumped the fence, except a little thinner.  So this blind dog that is fairly high maintenance in our household and has much difficulty maneuvering around without bumping into things was able to survive a week in the world and come back absolutely fine.  I was over the moon and completely shocked.  To this day I’m still shocked and constantly wonder what in the world he was up to.  Our theory is he lived in these woods by our house and that’s why nobody noticed him and then this morning he wandered his way out into the neighborhood.  Thankfully, the weather the week he was gone wasn’t too extreme.  I took him home, gave the man his leash back, profusely thanked him for his help, and lead Elson into the house.  He bumped into a couple things, I gave him some food and water, he licked the floor under where the girls chairs are in the kitchen (a highly performed routine), went to the living room, plopped down, and took a big ol’ nap.

Just last night, Trent and I were talking about how crazy it is we got the dog back.  Yesterday I came home to trash all over the laundry room floor because Elson knocked down a full trash can and went to town chewing things up, I cleaned it up thankful he was home safe to be a little stinker.

May 4th, 2011

I love Cooking Light and if I’m using a recipe, 80% of the time it’s inspired by Cooking Light.  Many of their recipes going into my recipe binder and are repeated.  Last March there was a recipe for Jerk rubbed Catfish with Spicy Slaw and I loved it.  You can put it together under 20 minutes and tastes great.  I even blogged about it before and sometimes make just the slaw for a side dish.  I normally substitute whatever mild fish has a good price for the catfish, today it was tilapia. 

For the rice, I boil it in chicken stock with granulated garlic, salt, and a pat of butter.  The girls THANKFULLY love it and Lauren loves tilapia, sans the jerk seasoning. 

When I was making this meal I remember being especially sad.  This was on a Wednesday and on that Monday our 10 year old blind dog, Elson, jumped the fence and went missing.   We live next to 2 busy streets and an area of land that has never been developed with multiple creeks.  I was shocked we hadn’t heard from anyone who spotted him.  He had a collar with our address, microchip, and we filed multiple reports with all the recommended agencies.  He’s a very gentle dog, but lets just say he wasn’t blessed in the brains department and being blind has just highlighted that exponentially.  Many people call Elson our big hot mess dog, appropriately so.  But he’s our dog and I was worried and missed him.  Thankfully the story has a happy (and very Elson-like comical) ending.  Stay tuned! 

To get a full appreciation of why we were so worried, here’s a peak into our life with Elson.  We went to the Ozarks in December for an extended weekend and our friend, Ryan, took care of Elson at our house.  He posted a video on facebook highlighting his trials and tribulations with Elson.  I could seriously have a blog dedicated to just Elson stories and I think people would think it was fiction. 

May 2nd, 2011

I go grocery shopping on Thursdays.  On Wednesday I plan a week’s worth of meals.  Normally it’s anywhere from 4-6 dinners, depending what we are doing that week.  Once the garden starts producing veggies I change my game plan a little because “you never know what you’re going to get” (that was me channeling a Forrest Gump impression).  I stock up on pantry stables like rice, pasta, beans, capers, olives, artichoke hearts, tuna, anchovies (yes, I love anchovies), polenta, good breads, etc to come up with something incorporating whatever is springing up in the garden.  Our lettuces are doing fantastic this spring, but our arugula is starting to seed and be eaten by some pests, so I need to use it before it’s not usable.  Well that and I love arugula.

I checked the pantry for good arugula pairings.

Bingo! Tuna, navy beans, and bucatini! 

I harvested arugula and lots of chives.

I sautéed the beans and tuna in some chicken stock with lots of garlic, lemon rind, salt, and pepper.   I boiled the pasta, reserved a little pasta water, drained, and combined the chopped up greens.

Once they hit the heat, they shrink up to nothing.  So a lot goes a little ways.  Once the greens are wilted, I add the tuna and beans mixture, and add more ground pepper.  This time I didn’t need to add extra pasta water to loosen up the pasta, the water from the greens and chicken stock did the trick, but it’s always good to reserve a little just in case.

I absolutely love cooking like this, very mellow and easy.  It gets even better when the tomatoes, zucchini, and eggplant arrive, unlimited options.  Grocery shopping in the garden is so much more fun than Shop and Save!

April 29th, 2011

It was Friday and mother nature decided to finally be kind to the St. Louis area.  She’s sure been in a mood this spring.  Puts a new spin on the saying “If momma ain’t happy, nobody is happy.”  Well today both Mother Nature and I were happy.  I couldn’t wait for Lauren to get off the bus, lunch done, and head out.  Destination: Botanical Gardens.  I wanted to spend as much time as the girls would let me in the home garden display, check out the herb sale, feed the fish, and explore the new extreme treehouse exhibit.  It was a fantastic afternoon!  The girls ran around so much we stopped at Sassafras Cafe and enjoyed brownies and juice on their patio to refuel. 

After our fun outing, I needed to stop at Di Gregorio's Market for some polenta.  When we got there, I decided to get a couple items at the deli.  Then I decided to grab a basket and shop the aisles.  They were giving out samples of sharp asiago cheese and Lauren loved it, so got some of that too.  20 minutes later we were in the car with a bag of goodies…..but I completely forgot to get the polenta. 

We had reservations at Roberto's Trattoria.  It’s our family favorite “fancy” neighborhood restaurant.

The girls picked out their dresses.  Sydney’s dress is actually a hand me down from their cousin, Elizabeth.  Lauren wore it the last 2 years and now it’s Sydney’s.  At the Storklady Spring Consignment Sale I found the exact dress in 5T for Lauren.  I couldn’t believe it since Elizabeth is 10 and it’s a 4T, so the dress is at least 6 years old. 

Lauren photography!

At Roberto’s the girls split the Bolognese pasta and Trent and I each get a salad, then split their filet with a porchini sauce.  The girls love their bread and Trent, Lauren, and I love their calamari to start.

So, for the first time, Lauren asked what calamari was made out of.  The question had me flash back to when I was a server at the Wolfgang Puck’s at the St. Louis Art Museum.  I had a table come in and it was a mom, her 3 kids, her elderly mother, and her elderly mother’s even more elderly sister.  She pulled me aside when she got her group settled at the table and looked frazzled.  She said “Look, make sure I get the bill, when I order the calamari I’m going to call it “french fries,” and when I order a coke, bring me jack and coke.”  She had three “cokes” and left not looking as frazzled.  So I was debating how to answer Lauren’s question because I wanted her to still like calamari.  While I was debating if I was going to go the “french fry” route, Trent immediately said “Octopus, no wait, squid, which is a tiny octopus.”  Lauren said “oh” and kept on eating.  Crisis avoided.

So far best Friday of the year!

April 27th, 2011

April showers bring May flowers AND May vegetables (but that doesn’t rhyme…).  In mid March I put in the onion and potato sets, lettuce seeds, and green pea seeds and waited.

Green peas are blooming.  I tried 2 kinds of peas, ones that require a trellis and ones that can just go crazy trellis free.  The trellis free plants are by far winning.

My first broccoli.  This is actually a vegetable the girls will eat, so I’m thrilled it’s taking off.

The lettuce.

This Italian girl loves her some arugula (and apparently some pesky bug too)!

I plan to harvest the potatoes when my father in law is in town.  They are one of his favorite home grown treats.

Last year I had a disappointing onion production and am hoping to redeem myself in 2011.

The girls are loving that garden season is back.  Their favorite thing is to run back and forth on this stone path by the garden and play.  Today was playing Wizard of Oz.  One of them was Dorothy and the other the Wicked Witch and they ran from each other.  Very intricate. 

For dinner I decided to do an oven meal, which means I put a protein, vegetables, and starch I have on hand in the oven and roast it.  Hopefully I can figure out a way it goes together on a plate in a non manic way.

I also had a PERFECT avocado and wanted to use it before it went south on me.  So I made my southwest salad.  I normally use (roasted) corn, avocado, broken up tortilla chips, chives, cilantro, and dressing of equal parts bbq sauce and ranch.  If I don’t have an avocado, I’ll put canned black beans in it instead.  I served that with southwest roasted chicken and crostini.  For the chicken I put the skinless breasts on a baking sheet with a drizzle of olive oil, salt, pepper, chili powder, and cumin.  All easy and all yummy.  Now I need to use up all my store bought mixed greens so I can harvest lettuce in the garden.  ‘Tis the season!