http://chocolateandzucchini.com/archives/2008/11/wholesome_banana_chocolate_breakfast_bars.php
These are delicious! I'm sitting with a cup of tea and eating one right now. The recipe says that they are great for breakfast. I say it depends how you define breakfast. Maybe for second breakfast. They're vegan but they don't taste veganny. Also- not obnoxiously sweet. If you want them to be so, I suppose you could add some honey. Next time I make them, I may add marmalade to the mixture. Hmm.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Redeeming Myself with Orange Couscous
I found this recipe online about ten years ago and have been messing with it ever since. One of my favorite variations is to make it with quinoa instead of couscous, which makes it kosher for Passover. Also, if you use red inca couscous, which I got at Shaws supermarket, it's a really really pretty dish. I posted this meal on facebook September 14, 2008.
Here's the original:
http://www.recipesource.com/ethnic/africa/morocco/orange-nut-couscous1.html
Again, as with most of the recipes I like, you can make a lot of substitutions and it's still ok, or better. So, here's the recipe cut and pasted in, but with my commentary on substitutions.
1 tb Oil
1 c Coarsely chopped almonds (or any nuts but peanuts)
1 Onion, chopped (purple onions add nice color)
1/2 Green pepper, chopped (optional)
2 c Orange juice
2 Cinnamon sticks
5 Cloves, whole
1/4 ts Turmeric (watch out- dyes wooden utensils yellow)
1/4 ts Ground red pepper
1/4 ts Salt
1/4 ts Pepper
2 c Couscous (large pasta-like Israeli couscous is my favorite)
1/4 c Raisins (dried cranberry and apricot are delicious too!)
1/2 c Green onions,chopped
Heat oil in a large skillet and cook almonds until lightly toasted.
Add onions and green pepper; cook until soft. Add orange juice,
cinnamon sticks, cloves, and spices and bring to a boil. Quickly
stir in couscous and raisins, then cover and turn off heat. Let
stand 5 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed completely. Fluff with
a fork before serving. Sprinkle each portion with the green onions.
Sad Food
I'd like to think that even gourmet chefs have pathetic food days like this one. Here's the crap I've eaten today.
2 Ensure high protein shakes
1 clementine
1 banana
1 brownie from the school office
A frozen vegan meal that I put cheese on
Ugh. Funny dreams tonight.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Roman Holiday: Mint Pesto and Spinach No-meatballs
Facebook Status Report: January 2, 2009
I made this for the first time when faced with an overabundance of spinach. I was a long-time spinach-hater. I have found that the key is to make the spinach the backdrop ingredient- there for color, texture, and much-touted health benefits, but it's best when overpowered taste-wise by other delicious ingredients. Here, it's mint, feta, and (secret ingredient) a hint of cinnamon. This dinner is well-balanced with pasta, red wine, and the movie Roman Holiday.
Here are the original recipes:
http://www.razzledazzlerecipes.com/ethnic-recipes/greek/spinach-balls.htm
http://www.recipesource.com/side-dishes/pesto/00/rec0031.html
I kept the mint pesto recipe pretty much the same, but really improved the spinach balls by adding a generous handful of feta and a couple eggs to the batter. You can use frozen spinach, it's fine.
Fresh mint can get expensive. Farmer's Bounty in Davis sells big bags of it for a few dollars.
Eggplant Casserole
Eggplant Casserole: Facebook Status October 21, 2008
Eggplant casserole is my favorite. I invented this recipe when I was faced with too much eggplant. It's a one-bowl recipe and a crowd-pleaser. It's great with white bean soup and beer bread. The best part is, it's an incredibly flexible recipe. You can add in whatever veggies are in the fridge except probably carrots and potatos, which might cook too slowly and be awkwardly crunchy. I like to use feta cheese because it's low-fat, cheap at the local market, and it doesn't melt and get too gooey, and it adds a really nice mediterranean flavor and saltiness.
Why this is delicious: there's lots of soft, crunchy, salty cheese and veggies between layers of chewy eggplant. You can make it kosher for passover by substituting matza meal for the breadcrumbs, and vegetable substitutions are fine. Just play around with this recipe; anything is good.
1 eggplant
olive oil
1 zucchini, chopped
1 yellow squash, chopped
2-3 tomatos, chopped
chopped olives (optional)
1-2 cups feta
1/2 cup breadcrumbs (you can make these by toasting bread and crumbling it)
Rosemary, basil, oregano to taste (fresh or dry is fine)
salt and pepper to taste
9x13 pan
Spread 1tbsp olive oil over the bottom of the pan. Slice the eggplant thinly and lay half of it across the bottom of the pan. Top with a little more oil and a layer or breadcrumbs. In a separate bowl, mix chopped veggies, cheese, another tsp or so of oil, and herbs and spices. Pour veggie cheese mix over eggplant pan and put another layer of eggplant, oil, and crumbs over it to top it off.
Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Where I Love to Eat
Here's the top ten meals I've ever eaten. in no particular order. Forgive this self-indulgent post that I write while very, very hungry.
1. Sofra, Watertown MA
http://sofrabakery.com/
The Shakshuka, or eggs poached in tomato with pita crumbs, is outrageous and served in the classiest metal pan.
2. Blue Shirt Cafe, Somerville, MA
Mediterranean salad wrap and a chocolate mocha smoothie. My go-to lunch for when I'm too hungry to make a decision.
3. Blue Room, Cambridge MA
theblueroom.net
I had this watermelon, onion, and feta salad this summer with mint and olive oil dressing. It's probably not on the menu anymore because they rotate seasonally, but it lives on in my memory as being the strangest combination of foods that ever worked successfully.
4. Cafe Barada, Cambridge MA
http://www.cafebarada.net/
Labany and olive sandwich. Labany is a thick yogurt, not unlike sour cream at all. The sandwich is wrapped in pita and has lettuce and tomato.
5. Dali, Cambridge MA
I go through phases with Dali. It's the kind of place you don't need to go to more than a couple times a year because their menu never changes and it's really rich. But the richly decorated walls are worth the trip and the marinated olives are a meal in themselves.
6. Xinjiang Restaurant, Beijing, China
The most incredible eggplant I've ever had in my entire life. I will spend the rest of my life trying to figure out how it was both mushy and crunchy. I probably don't want to know.
7. Some alleyway, Xi'an, China
When I was "off the veggie wagon" on my trip, we had these lamb kebabs that were absolutely ridiculous. We got lost looking for the Muslim quarter and wandered down a back alley. We found a "restaurant"- some friendly looking people cooking in a small room. Mom, I hope you're not reading this. The small chunks of meat were served on bicycle spokes. I mentally checked the date of my last tetanus shot and chowed down. Fancy food be damned. This was amazing.
8. Paella, somewhere in Madrid
I used to go to this place on the corner and get paella with black rice. I'm not a big fan of seafood but it was delicious- salty, full of texture and flavor. I found out later it was black because of squid ink. Hmm.
9. Healthy Nasu Bowl, Tampopo, Porter Exchange Cambridge MA
Fried eggplant and tofu, chunky udon noodles, ubiquitous brown sauce, broccoli and carrots. Followed by an almond bubble tea at Tapicha.
10. Planet Salad, Veggie Planet Cambridge MA
The salad dressing is so good here it must be made with uncut heroin. The tofu croutons are tofu in its finest form, which is of course fried beyond recognition.
1. Sofra, Watertown MA
http://sofrabakery.com/
The Shakshuka, or eggs poached in tomato with pita crumbs, is outrageous and served in the classiest metal pan.
2. Blue Shirt Cafe, Somerville, MA
Mediterranean salad wrap and a chocolate mocha smoothie. My go-to lunch for when I'm too hungry to make a decision.
3. Blue Room, Cambridge MA
theblueroom.net
I had this watermelon, onion, and feta salad this summer with mint and olive oil dressing. It's probably not on the menu anymore because they rotate seasonally, but it lives on in my memory as being the strangest combination of foods that ever worked successfully.
4. Cafe Barada, Cambridge MA
http://www.cafebarada.net/
Labany and olive sandwich. Labany is a thick yogurt, not unlike sour cream at all. The sandwich is wrapped in pita and has lettuce and tomato.
5. Dali, Cambridge MA
I go through phases with Dali. It's the kind of place you don't need to go to more than a couple times a year because their menu never changes and it's really rich. But the richly decorated walls are worth the trip and the marinated olives are a meal in themselves.
6. Xinjiang Restaurant, Beijing, China
The most incredible eggplant I've ever had in my entire life. I will spend the rest of my life trying to figure out how it was both mushy and crunchy. I probably don't want to know.
7. Some alleyway, Xi'an, China
When I was "off the veggie wagon" on my trip, we had these lamb kebabs that were absolutely ridiculous. We got lost looking for the Muslim quarter and wandered down a back alley. We found a "restaurant"- some friendly looking people cooking in a small room. Mom, I hope you're not reading this. The small chunks of meat were served on bicycle spokes. I mentally checked the date of my last tetanus shot and chowed down. Fancy food be damned. This was amazing.
8. Paella, somewhere in Madrid
I used to go to this place on the corner and get paella with black rice. I'm not a big fan of seafood but it was delicious- salty, full of texture and flavor. I found out later it was black because of squid ink. Hmm.
9. Healthy Nasu Bowl, Tampopo, Porter Exchange Cambridge MA
Fried eggplant and tofu, chunky udon noodles, ubiquitous brown sauce, broccoli and carrots. Followed by an almond bubble tea at Tapicha.
10. Planet Salad, Veggie Planet Cambridge MA
The salad dressing is so good here it must be made with uncut heroin. The tofu croutons are tofu in its finest form, which is of course fried beyond recognition.
Winter White Bean Soup for Cousin Marilyn
My cousin Marilyn just asked me for this recipe, so here it is, with a few tweaks. Thanks to Matt and Melissa for getting us started with this! This bread is amazing with some crunchy sauteed veggie sausage and Jonah insists that real bacon would be great too. Just so you know.
Also, we usually make beer bread to go along with this. It's the easiest recipe! Takes about 5 minutes to make the dough, no rising necessary, then an hour or so to bake. We've adapted from here: http://www.recipezaar.com/Beer-Bread-73440, but for goodness sake, you really don't need a half cup of melted butter so you can leave it out if you want. Start it about 30 minutes before you start the soup so they're done at the same time.
THE BREAD
3 cups flour
1 bottle beer
1tbsp baking powder
few pinches sugar
few pinches salt
1 tbsp rosemary or any other spice like basil or oregano (optional)
1/2 cup cheese (optional)
Mix all together with spoon or hands. Grease loaf pan. Bake 45 minutes to an hour until brown and crusty. Serve warm. If you let it go stale it makes excellent breadcrumbs.
THE SOUP
2 cans white beans
4 cups broth (we used veggie boullion)
1 onion
1 tbsp dried rosemary
2 carrots
real or veggie sausage or bacon (optional)
Big saucepan
Big soup pot
stirring spoons
Blender or immersion blender
ladle
In the soup pot, chop and sautee veggies in a little olive oil. When they're soft, add broth and sautee a few more minutes. Add beans and rosemary and simmer for 10 more minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Not too much salt- canned beans are pretty salty to begin with. To thicken the soup and improve its consistency and richness, take about 1/2 the soup and put it in the blender for a smooth consistency. Add it back into the soup and serve.
Also, we usually make beer bread to go along with this. It's the easiest recipe! Takes about 5 minutes to make the dough, no rising necessary, then an hour or so to bake. We've adapted from here: http://www.recipezaar.com/Beer-Bread-73440, but for goodness sake, you really don't need a half cup of melted butter so you can leave it out if you want. Start it about 30 minutes before you start the soup so they're done at the same time.
THE BREAD
3 cups flour
1 bottle beer
1tbsp baking powder
few pinches sugar
few pinches salt
1 tbsp rosemary or any other spice like basil or oregano (optional)
1/2 cup cheese (optional)
Mix all together with spoon or hands. Grease loaf pan. Bake 45 minutes to an hour until brown and crusty. Serve warm. If you let it go stale it makes excellent breadcrumbs.
THE SOUP
2 cans white beans
4 cups broth (we used veggie boullion)
1 onion
1 tbsp dried rosemary
2 carrots
real or veggie sausage or bacon (optional)
Big saucepan
Big soup pot
stirring spoons
Blender or immersion blender
ladle
In the soup pot, chop and sautee veggies in a little olive oil. When they're soft, add broth and sautee a few more minutes. Add beans and rosemary and simmer for 10 more minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Not too much salt- canned beans are pretty salty to begin with. To thicken the soup and improve its consistency and richness, take about 1/2 the soup and put it in the blender for a smooth consistency. Add it back into the soup and serve.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Bubbles Away!!!
Is there anything better than a bubble tea? You eat, you drink, you chew...
So, I came up with the idea for a Bubble White Russian. I plan to implement this at Jonah's birthday party. Milk, kahlua, vodka, and bubbles. Does it get any more tasty?
Join us! Email me for details.
Obamacake!
I made this for my inauguration party. Thanks to everyone who scarfed it down! With friends like you, leftover cake is never a problem. : ) This was pretty easy and came out delicous!
1 box cake mix, prepared
1 package vanilla instant pudding
1 bottle red food coloring (you didn't want to know that's how much there was, did you?)
2 containers frosting
red and blue icing
Add the pudding mix and food coloring along with cake mix ingredients. Bake as directed in two round pans. Cut each into 2 layers and frost. Decorate and celebrate!
Spinach and Yogurt Dip
I served this dip on Tuesday night, and again Wednesday morning for leftovers at Rashi with lime tostitos. I adapted this and simplified it from a recipe for Turkish Borani Esfanaj, seen here:
http://www.recipesource.com/ethnic/africa/middle-east/persian/borani-esfanaj1.html
The original recipe would have probably been delicious too, but I was in a rush and didn't have time to measure out all the spices! I also put in more yogurt because I like a creamier dip, mint because it was there in the fridge, and feta because I like salt. I think that some olives might also be divine, but then I'd leave out the mint.
Here's how I did it:
1 package frozen spinach
2 cups thick greek yogurt (I used Fage, found at most supermarkets)
1 cup crumbled feta (really really cheap at McKinnon's market in Davis Square)
1 tablespoon lemon or lime juice (bottled is ok)
salt and pepper to taste
1-2 tbsp chopped fresh mint leaves (in the produce section or in bulk for cheaper at Farmer's Bounty, Davis Square)
http://www.recipesource.com/ethnic/africa/middle-east/persian/borani-esfanaj1.html
The original recipe would have probably been delicious too, but I was in a rush and didn't have time to measure out all the spices! I also put in more yogurt because I like a creamier dip, mint because it was there in the fridge, and feta because I like salt. I think that some olives might also be divine, but then I'd leave out the mint.
Here's how I did it:
1 package frozen spinach
2 cups thick greek yogurt (I used Fage, found at most supermarkets)
1 cup crumbled feta (really really cheap at McKinnon's market in Davis Square)
1 tablespoon lemon or lime juice (bottled is ok)
salt and pepper to taste
1-2 tbsp chopped fresh mint leaves (in the produce section or in bulk for cheaper at Farmer's Bounty, Davis Square)
Welcome to Smileyfood!
Due to popular demand, I'm starting a food blog with all of my facebook food post recipes. I'll try to include photos and/or sources for obscure ingredients whenever possible. Most of these recipes are vegetarian or vegan, but I'm sure that Jonah's recipe for ribs will make it onto here after his birthday party.
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