Monthly Archives: July 2010

Monday’s dinner

26 Monday Jul 2010

Posted by in zuchinni lasagne

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Last night’s dinner

This was ok but it wasn’t amazing. I think that because it was cooked on the stovetop that I missed a crunchy topping to it. Not quite sure why else this wasn’t fabulous but I’ll work on it.

Tonight’s dinner

Tonight, I’m making lasagne which is going to be a bit of an experiment as I’ve made a big batch of the yogurt cheese to replace ricotta. Hopefully this will not be too tangy. I’m also going to change the noodles for strips of zucchinni. Fingers crossed.

I’m making mine in a deep pie plate.

First layer; 3/4 cup bolognese sauce (if you want it to be veggie add some ground veggie round-without the noodles though you are going to need that extra oomph to hold everything together. I’m using beef)

Second layer; length wise strips of zucchini (I’ve got two fairly small ones that I’ve sliced the same thickness as noodles)

Third layer; one carton of ricotta that has pepper, pinch nutmeg, salt, chili flakes, oregano, chopped peppers, chopped onions and a clove of garlic mixed into it. In the fridge, I’ve drained a 500 gram carton of goat’s yogurt in a coffee filter for the night to substitue for the ricotta.

Fourth layer; 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Fifth layer; zuchinni slices

Sixth layer; bolognese sauce

Seventh layer; 1 cup of shredded mozzarella (if you love cheese then add even more)

Bake for 3/4 of an hour at 350 (put a cookie sheet under it as you don’t want to have to clean your oven after this).

You can do all of this in the morning or even the night before.

Cover with with more cheese and rebake for 3/4 of an hour. Let sit for a few minutes before you slice it.

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Sunday’s dinner

25 Sunday Jul 2010

Posted by in fruit slump

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Last night’s dinner

This is the world’s most boring picture of one of the nicest chickens I’ve had in a very long time. I didn’t tell Stephen what we were having but instead had hime go and smell the dish. His reaction was “Hey! This is Swiss Chalet chicken”. It is so true. I honestly didn’t think that this recipe was going to work but it even created a chalet style sauce in the pot. This will be on my list of things to make when I go back to work. It took about thirty seconds to throw in the pot and then looked after itself. Don’t forget to start your meat off from frozen to have a terrifically moist bird. I put the dish on high from the beginning and it cooked for 6.5 hours.

Tonight’s dinner

The fridge had a bunch of tasty leftovers and salad to be snacked on so we’ll be at those. This doesn’t mean there won’t be room for dessert though and I have a variety of fruit that needs some treatment (I’m not just going to use nectarines and blueberries). I’ll be making…

http://www.chow.com/recipes/11008-nectarine-and-blueberry-slump

For the dumplings:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons yellow cornmeal (fine or medium ground)
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
3/4 cup half-and-half
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled

For the filling:
5 medium nectarines, pitted and cut into eighths (about 4 cups)
3 cups blueberries (about 1 1/2 pints)
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
INSTRUCTIONS
For the dumplings:
Stir together flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, salt, and ground ginger in a large mixing bowl to combine, and break up any lumps. Mix half-and-half and melted butter together in a small bowl until evenly combined. Pour half-and-half mixture over flour mixture and stir until just combined (dough will resemble a cornbread batter). Set aside.

For the filling:
In another large bowl, gently fold nectarines, blueberries, sugar, and lemon juice together then transfer to a large straight-sided skillet. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until fruit starts to release some of its juice, about 6 minutes.
Drop eight large dollops of batter over fruit mixture and reduce heat to medium low. Simmer, covered, until dumplings are cooked through and juices are bubbling, about 20 to 30 minutes.
Remove the lid and continue cooking until dumplings are springy to the touch and no longer sticky, about 5 minutes more. Serve warm, drizzled with heavy cream.

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Saturday’s dinner

24 Saturday Jul 2010

Posted by in rotisserie style slowcooker chicken

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Last night’s dinner (actually Thursday’s)

Here is the table with my gorgeous copper pot full of mussells.

The unattractive chocolate loaf in all its glory. The spelt flour let the cake have a nice nutty flavour and the brown sugar made a great crust on the top.

Tonight’s dinner

Back to 100% humidity and I’m torn between turning the air conditioner on or bbq’ing. We’ll be having chicken tonight regardless as I need some to make a batch of food for the bobo.

What I really want is one of those rotisserie chickens that you get from the grocery store but I have really nice chickens in the freezer and want to use them up so…

http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2008/10/crockpot-rotisserie-style-chicken.html

1 whole chicken, skinned (4-5 pounds)
–2 tsp kosher salt (if you’d like it as salty as the ones in the store, add another 1 tsp.)
–1 tsp paprika
–1 tsp onion powder
–1/2 tsp dried thyme
–1 tsp Italian seasoning
–1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
–1/2 tsp black pepper
–pinch of chili pepper (probably not necessary)

–4 whole garlic cloves (optional)
–1 yellow onion, quartered (optional)

The Directions.

I used a 6 quart crockpot for a 5 pound bird. It fit nicely.

Skin the chicken and get rid of the neck and other stuff from the cavity. This takes a while, and is gross. Keep small children away so you don’t freak out about salmonella. I skin whole chickens because I hate the idea of the chicken fat simmering all day in the crock—it also looks disgusting when the chicken is cooked because it’s all slimy and icky.

I get it that I’m weird. If chicken skin makes you happy, then by all means, ignore me.

In a bowl, combine all of dried spices. Rub the spice mixture all over the bird, inside and out. Plop the bird breast-side down into the crockpot.

If desired, shove 4 whole garlic cloves and a quartered onion inside the bird.

Do not add water.

Cover and cook on high for 4-5 hours, or on low for 8. The meat is done when it is fully cooked and has reached desired tenderness. The longer you cook it, the more tender the meat.

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Thursday’s dinner

22 Thursday Jul 2010

Posted by in berry cheesecake, freshly pickled beets, greens, ugly chocolate cake

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Last night’s dinner

This was Stephen’s second plate-he is also known as my food stylist 🙂

We paired the lamb with beets, tomatoes and feta and greens.

Beets: Boil the beets with a star anise and a couple of cloves until just tender and then cool under the tap. I don’t bother to peel the beets this time of year as the skins are so thin. Slice the beets into 1/4 inch chunks and place in a bowl of vinegar, honey and cloves. Let sit for however long you have.

Greens: Steam the greens and pea pods in a bit of salted water until just tender. Drain off any water and stirfry with a bit of butter. At the last second toss in a small handful of freshly chopped mint.

Dessert was cheesecake. I made it the same way as the mojita cheesecake but used crushed lady fingers as the base and instead of mint in the mix I added a bit of orange essence and some blackberries (about 1 cup) that were mashed roughly with a fork and drained of some of their juice. YUMMMMM…thank goodness we have neighbours who took the rest of this dessert or I would have been in the middle of the night finishing it off.

Tonight’s dinner

We take Peter to the airport for 7:00 tonight and I want him to have something with lots of protein but still be light. A bit bowl of mussells is going to fit the bill. I tried to talk everyone into trying the mussells in a coconut and lemongrass broth but I’ve been over-ruled and we’re going for our usual white wine sauce.

For dessert though I have a special treat. I’m making ugly chocolate cake. This is another recipe from Heidi over at 101cookbooks. She based this recipe on Nigella Lawson’s chocolate loaf cake from “How to be a domestic goddess”. I’ve made that recipe quite a few times and so I was anxious to try Heidi’s take on it. Accept that this cake will fall in the middle and not look pretty. It just does. It’s not you. This cake makes up for its appearance with a big taste. I hope this is as good as Nigella’s who really is my eating icon.

Chocolate Loaf Cake

If you are having a hard time tracking down Muscovado sugar, dark brown sugar is a reasonable substitute.
zest of one lemon
1 1/4 cups / 5 oz / 145 g spelt flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1 cup / 8 oz / 225g unsalted butter
1 2/3 cups / 7.5 oz / 215 g v. loosely packed dark Muscovado sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 oz / 115 g bittersweet chocolate, barely melted
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons boiling water
another 1/3 cup / 1.5 oz / 45 g Muscovado sugar (optional)
Preheat oven to 375F / 190C with a rack in the center. Butter a 9×5-inch (23 x 13-cm) loaf pan and line with parchment paper. You have to line the pan if you ever want to get this cake out of it. Sprinkle with the lemon zest and set aside.
Combine the flour baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
Cream the butter until light and feathery, either with a wooden spoon or with an electric mixer. Beat in the sugar. Then add the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl a couple times along the way. Add the vanilla, then fold in the melted (and now slightly cooled) chocolate, stirring until just barely combined. Now stir in 1/3 of the flour mixture, then 1/3 of the water, alternating until all the flour and water has been incorporated into what seems like an impossibly thing batter. Go with it. Pour into the prepared pan, place on a rimmed baking sheet (just in case there’s an overflow), and bake for 30 minutes. Turn the oven down to 325F / 165C and continue to cook for another 15-18 minutes. The cake isn’t going to test done like other cakes, but as long as your oven temp is accurate, you should be fine. Here’s an optional step – sprinkle the top of the cake with 1/3 cup of Muscovado sugar and place under a low-broiler for about a minute, or just until the sugar melts (do not walk away from the cake while it is under the broiler! It can burn in a flash)…
Place the loaf pan on a rack, let cool completely, and enjoy the next day.
Makes 8 – 10 slices.

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