Lots of good stuff on the menu this week... I figured I should cook a few good meals as next week will be crazy as I have another night of parent-teacher conferences on Weds, and then Thurs we have an early morning flight for a much needed short family vacation... which means I will only be cooking Sun-Tues.
Sunday: Curried Coconut Chicken (made in crock pot), rice & garlic naan
Monday: Butternut squash risotto (except I'm using campbell's v8 soup instead of a butternut squash), salad & garlic bread
Tuesday: Vegetarian Chili & golden sweet onion corn bread (recipe from Fresh Home magazine)
Wednesday: Homemade pierogies and Apple Chardonnay Chicken sausages (Trader Joe's)
Thursday: Parent Teacher conferences... meaning I won't get home til 8pm. Grant will probably make himself a breakfast burrito
Friday: homemade pizza & salad
Saturday: our cul-de-sac is having a Progressive dinner... and we are one of three families making appetizers... not sure what yet!
Jump over to http://orgjunkie.com/2011/02/menu-plan-monday-feb-21st.html for more menu planning ideas!
Monday, February 21, 2011
Monday, February 14, 2011
Tarte aux fraises
Tarte aux fraises... [tart oh frehz] This, my friends, is the dessert I live for. A combination of a crunchy yet soft crust, a light vanilla custard, fresh strawberries and a yummy glaze to top it all off. What's not to like? And so many food groups too... fruit, dairy, grains, n'est-ce pas?
Here is my first ever photographed tarte aux fraises experience. Summer 2006 in the city of Avignon, France. They were in the middle of a canicule (heat wave), hence the frizzy hair and lack of make-up. I had quite a few tarte aux fraises that summer... but also a lot of ice cream. Since we're talking about desserts, I think it's fair to throw in my opinion that I would like the USA to start serving ice cream with one of those cookies in it, like they do in France. I would also like to add that despite my ridiculous consumption of pastries and ice cream, I managed to come back to the states even skinnier. I think I'll save those stories for another post. 
I did not return to France again until 2010, and when I did, I indulged. Multiple times.
One of my cooking projects this summer will be to make my own tarte aux fraises, but I will need tarte pans as well as good strawberries. And I'm a little intimidated by the whole glaze thing... I had a French professor in college who came in one day carrying two tarte aux fraises and after our puzzled looks (this was not the norm), explained "I'm working on perfecting my glaze." Only a true Frenchman is comfortable enough in his masculinity to make such a statement in a room full of college students. Ever since then, I've always assumed the glaze process must be très compliqué.
Until summer, I will be forever thankful for La Chatelaine, a wonderful French bakery not far from where I live. I convinced my husband to take me there for Valentine's Day, and after some delicious boeuf bourguignon, you know what I ordered for dessert...
Délicieux.
Here is my first ever photographed tarte aux fraises experience. Summer 2006 in the city of Avignon, France. They were in the middle of a canicule (heat wave), hence the frizzy hair and lack of make-up. I had quite a few tarte aux fraises that summer... but also a lot of ice cream. Since we're talking about desserts, I think it's fair to throw in my opinion that I would like the USA to start serving ice cream with one of those cookies in it, like they do in France. I would also like to add that despite my ridiculous consumption of pastries and ice cream, I managed to come back to the states even skinnier. I think I'll save those stories for another post. 
I did not return to France again until 2010, and when I did, I indulged. Multiple times.
One of my cooking projects this summer will be to make my own tarte aux fraises, but I will need tarte pans as well as good strawberries. And I'm a little intimidated by the whole glaze thing... I had a French professor in college who came in one day carrying two tarte aux fraises and after our puzzled looks (this was not the norm), explained "I'm working on perfecting my glaze." Only a true Frenchman is comfortable enough in his masculinity to make such a statement in a room full of college students. Ever since then, I've always assumed the glaze process must be très compliqué.
Until summer, I will be forever thankful for La Chatelaine, a wonderful French bakery not far from where I live. I convinced my husband to take me there for Valentine's Day, and after some delicious boeuf bourguignon, you know what I ordered for dessert...
Délicieux.
Menu Plan Monday 2/14
As much as I LOVE having a meal plan each week, please know that sometimes stuff happens. Plans change, I make too much food, or we have leftovers from a night out. Our plans changed last weekend so one of our meals simply got bumped to this week, which made planning easier. We went out Friday night and had just a little bit left over- not even enough for a full meal. My most amazing husband, took a sarcastic suggestion of mine seriously and made me a lovely dinner of tapas while I sat on the couch grading on Saturday night. The time we spend watching clips (we don't have cable) of the food network on their app and on you tube sure has paid off. It started with frites from La Chatelaine, followed by panko-crusted fried white sharp cheddar from TJs, followed by crostini with warm goat cheese (chevre!) and a scallion confit (thanks Brooke & Linds), and the leftovers of my boeuf bourguinon. That meal was unplanned, but amazing... sometimes there is nothing better than having someone cook, serve, and clean up dinner while you sit in front of a fire, drink in hand, grading papers... ok perhaps minus that last part.
Here's this week's game plan:
Sunday: My version of Martha Stewart's Mac & Cheese (meaning I use whatever cheese is on hand, and penne... she does have good tips on only cooking the pasta 2-3 min and letting it cook the rest of the way in the oven... keeps it al dente. Plus the cayenne pepper, nutmeg & pepper combo is awesome) & broccoli
Monday: tomato basil veggie burgers (morningstar) & brown rice w/ spinach & tomatoes
Tuesday: enchiladas, mexican rice, jicama with lime juice & chili powder
Wednesday: whole wheat breakfast burritos, hashbrowns, grapefruit
Thursday: BBQ pork tenderloin (in freezer), sweet potato gnocchi(thank you trader joe's!)
Friday: Penne with homemade sauce, italian sausage & peppers... made this a few weeks ago and it was so good I'm making it again.
Saturday: leftovers
go to http://orgjunkie.com/2011/02/menu-plan-monday-feb-14th-giveaway.html for more menu planning ideas!
Here's this week's game plan:
Sunday: My version of Martha Stewart's Mac & Cheese (meaning I use whatever cheese is on hand, and penne... she does have good tips on only cooking the pasta 2-3 min and letting it cook the rest of the way in the oven... keeps it al dente. Plus the cayenne pepper, nutmeg & pepper combo is awesome) & broccoli
Monday: tomato basil veggie burgers (morningstar) & brown rice w/ spinach & tomatoes
Tuesday: enchiladas, mexican rice, jicama with lime juice & chili powder
Wednesday: whole wheat breakfast burritos, hashbrowns, grapefruit
Thursday: BBQ pork tenderloin (in freezer), sweet potato gnocchi(thank you trader joe's!)
Friday: Penne with homemade sauce, italian sausage & peppers... made this a few weeks ago and it was so good I'm making it again.
Saturday: leftovers
go to http://orgjunkie.com/2011/02/menu-plan-monday-feb-14th-giveaway.html for more menu planning ideas!
Monday, February 7, 2011
Menu Plan Monday 2/7
There is a lot going on this week, so convenience was a main goal in this week's meal plan. As always, I will cook as if we were a family of 6 and not two, so that we can eat leftovers almost every day for lunch. I'm also attempting another jicama dish because I bought two the other week... and jicama is just really fun to say. Jicama. Jicama. Jicama.
Sunday: White Chicken Chili (I don't use jalapenos, use at least 6 cups of broth so it's more soup-like and cut waaaay back on the cayenne)
Monday: cheese ravioli, salad & garlic bread
Tuesday: Lentil Sausage Soup (I'm not making the homemade stock.), hummus & pitas
Wednesday: chicken sandwiches & noodles
Thursday: Potstickers (thank you Trader Joes for your bag for $3!) , brown rice & peas
Friday: Valentine's Day dinner date at one of my favorite french restaurants!!
Saturday: enchiladas, mexican rice, jicama with lime juice & chili powder (apparently that's how they eat it in Mexico?)
Visit http://orgjunkie.com/2011/02/menu-plan-monday-feb-7th.html for more menu plan ideas!
Sunday: White Chicken Chili (I don't use jalapenos, use at least 6 cups of broth so it's more soup-like and cut waaaay back on the cayenne)
Monday: cheese ravioli, salad & garlic bread
Tuesday: Lentil Sausage Soup (I'm not making the homemade stock.), hummus & pitas
Wednesday: chicken sandwiches & noodles
Thursday: Potstickers (thank you Trader Joes for your bag for $3!) , brown rice & peas
Friday: Valentine's Day dinner date at one of my favorite french restaurants!!
Saturday: enchiladas, mexican rice, jicama with lime juice & chili powder (apparently that's how they eat it in Mexico?)
Visit http://orgjunkie.com/2011/02/menu-plan-monday-feb-7th.html for more menu plan ideas!
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Pissaladière
This is snow day (well... wind & ice day) #2 for us and I am going a bit stir crazy. So of course I figured a cooking project would keep me occupied for a little while. So I decided to make my first pissaladière, a type of pizza without cheese or sauce.
When I was a college student, I spent two summers living in France. The first time I lived in the city of Dijon, which is in Bourgogne (Burgandy... known for good wine and good food, such as boeuf bourguinon and coq au vin) and the second time in the city of Avignon, which is a small town in Provence. Provence is known for its lavender, sunflowers, sunny weather, herbes de provence, and the list goes on. I love everything about Provence, including the fact that it is super close to the Mediterranean Sea. Both of those summers, I made weekend trips to Nice, a city I first visited as a high school student. Nice is probably my favorite "beach town" in the world. Nice actually used to be part of Italy, so you have amazing Italian-influenced food and architecture, plus great shopping, music, and of course, the beautiful Mediterranean. Before I went to the beach, I would wander through Vieux Nice (old Nice) to grab a picnic lunch. I always saw the pissaladière, but never bought one.
Most likely because the three traditional ingredients are onions (yum), anchovies & olives (not so much on the last two). Here's a pic of one little part of Vieux Nice:
Today, I made my own pissaladière with what I like on it... which would be solely the onions. The verdict: it was delicious. I followed Ina Garten's recipe from my Barefoot in Paris cookbook for the dough (but I cut it in half), but then just kinda did my own thing with the rest. I cut four onions in half and then sliced the half and put them in a pan with some EVOO. I added in some salt, pepper and thyme (didn't measure, just put it in there). I cooked them on low for about 15 minutes and then added in a few cloves of minced garlic.
I probably cooked them for around 30 minutes until they looked like this:
I rolled out the dough, put the onions on top and brushed the "crust" with some more olive oil...
And baked at 450 degrees for 15 minutes. C'est tout.
C'était délicieux. You wouldn't even know the anchovies & olives were missing.
When I was a college student, I spent two summers living in France. The first time I lived in the city of Dijon, which is in Bourgogne (Burgandy... known for good wine and good food, such as boeuf bourguinon and coq au vin) and the second time in the city of Avignon, which is a small town in Provence. Provence is known for its lavender, sunflowers, sunny weather, herbes de provence, and the list goes on. I love everything about Provence, including the fact that it is super close to the Mediterranean Sea. Both of those summers, I made weekend trips to Nice, a city I first visited as a high school student. Nice is probably my favorite "beach town" in the world. Nice actually used to be part of Italy, so you have amazing Italian-influenced food and architecture, plus great shopping, music, and of course, the beautiful Mediterranean. Before I went to the beach, I would wander through Vieux Nice (old Nice) to grab a picnic lunch. I always saw the pissaladière, but never bought one.
Most likely because the three traditional ingredients are onions (yum), anchovies & olives (not so much on the last two). Here's a pic of one little part of Vieux Nice:
Today, I made my own pissaladière with what I like on it... which would be solely the onions. The verdict: it was delicious. I followed Ina Garten's recipe from my Barefoot in Paris cookbook for the dough (but I cut it in half), but then just kinda did my own thing with the rest. I cut four onions in half and then sliced the half and put them in a pan with some EVOO. I added in some salt, pepper and thyme (didn't measure, just put it in there). I cooked them on low for about 15 minutes and then added in a few cloves of minced garlic.
I probably cooked them for around 30 minutes until they looked like this:
I rolled out the dough, put the onions on top and brushed the "crust" with some more olive oil... 
And baked at 450 degrees for 15 minutes. C'est tout. 
C'était délicieux. You wouldn't even know the anchovies & olives were missing.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Cinnamon Roll Sugar Cookies
Maybe I'm boring, but my favorite cookie in the world is a nice, soft sugar cookie, with sugar or a little icing on the top. When I was in college, I think I was the only person who went to the football games just to get a "cookie on a stick" with my meal plan.
Last winter, I saw a recipe on Picky Palate, an awesome food blog, for Cinnamon Roll Sugar Cookies and by the end of the week, I had made them. Delicious. Sugar cookie base + butter + brown sugar + cinnamon = goodness. They were a lot of work, so I did not make them again until this year, when my friend Stacey reminded me about them.
The recipe is fairly easy but the process of rolling and slicing takes some practice. The first roll I made did not roll up or slice very well. This happened last time too, and I wanted to cry. Fortunately, my friend April was over helping me this time, and she was reading the recipe much more carefully than I was and she realized you need to roll away from you, and that made all the difference... as did not rolling the dough out too think or trying to spread on butter that was not soft enough. I still have a lot to learn about baking.
Here are what the cookies looked like fresh out of the oven:
I may have eaten one or two... or three before I got around to icing them, but when I did, here was the finished product:
Last winter, I saw a recipe on Picky Palate, an awesome food blog, for Cinnamon Roll Sugar Cookies and by the end of the week, I had made them. Delicious. Sugar cookie base + butter + brown sugar + cinnamon = goodness. They were a lot of work, so I did not make them again until this year, when my friend Stacey reminded me about them.
The recipe is fairly easy but the process of rolling and slicing takes some practice. The first roll I made did not roll up or slice very well. This happened last time too, and I wanted to cry. Fortunately, my friend April was over helping me this time, and she was reading the recipe much more carefully than I was and she realized you need to roll away from you, and that made all the difference... as did not rolling the dough out too think or trying to spread on butter that was not soft enough. I still have a lot to learn about baking.
Here are what the cookies looked like fresh out of the oven:
I may have eaten one or two... or three before I got around to icing them, but when I did, here was the finished product:
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