Posts Tagged ‘Recipes’

I shared one of my favorite wonderful wife tips with you in this post with Jacques Pépin’s Berry Crumble Recipe and since black raspberries are in season in my garden it’s the perfect time to share it again!

I made a few improvisations on the original recipe (which you’ll find below) by using only black raspberries from my garden, adding about 1/4 cup of chocolate chips and this time I used butter as Jacques suggests in his recipe, but I only used about 2 Tbl. instead of 5 Tbl.  (I mixed about 1 Tbl. of butter in with the granola and then put small pieces of butter on the top so it would melt into the top.)  Try this recipe and tell me what you think.  You can mix together the ingredients in about 15 minutes or less and I suggest you keep an eye on it when it’s in the oven because you may find it cooks in less than 35 minutes.

I made this raspberry crumble this morning.  I’ll reheat it a bit before serving tonight and add a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Here’s my original post with the recipe:

Jacques Pépin is one of my kitchen heroes.  He rocks.  His Fast Food My Way series on PBS is inspired with a message that delicious food doesn’t have to take a long time to make (my mantra!).  This is a recipe I tried a few weeks ago for the first time and it will definitely be a welcome addition to my repertoire.  As usual you will see I made a few subs, but that’s what being a wonderful wife is all about–sometimes you’ve gotta use what you’ve got!

Rhubarb and berry crumble–This recipe couldn’t be easier or more lovely.  The mint makes it pop.  With only 7 ingredients I think it’s good enough to serve in a restaurant.  Really.

You will need:  3/4 pound rhubarb, cut into 2-inch pieces (about 3 cups–which I found was about 2 really long stalks), 3/4 pound strawberries, 1/2 cup sugar, 3 Tablespoons flour, about 24 fresh peppermint or spearmint leaves, 1 cup granola (he suggests pecan granola, but I used a granola with coconut and sesame seeds from a local bakery), about 5 Tablespoons unsalted butter at room temp. (I used unrefined coconut oil which happened to be a room temp. and worked deliciously!!) and finally 1 cup sour cream or creme fraiche for serving (I skipped it and it was perfect.)

A little side note:  I used cherries instead of strawberries because I didn’t have any yet and I can imagine several tart fruits working well.  I am going to try it again with black raspberries that are bountiful in my garden right now…maybe with a little lemon in there…I’ll let you know how it turns out!

Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Put the rhubarb and berries in a bowl with 1/4 cup of the sugar, 2 Tablespoons of the flour, and the mint leaves.  Mix well and transfer to a 6-cup-capacity gratin dish or glass baking dish.

Put the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar and 2 T. flour, the granola and the butter or coconut oil in a small bowl and combine with your fingers (the fun part!) until crumbly and well mixed.  Sprinkle over the fruit.

Bake for about 35 minutes, or until the fruit is bubbling and the topping is browned.  Serve with sour cream or creme fraiche if you choose.

My mother-in-law just happened to stumble into a book store one day when Jacques was doing a signing.  She picked up a cookbook, had it signed and after learning of my admiration she gifted it to me.  My mother-in-law’s name is Sheri, but no doubt due to his French influence he wrote Cheri before correcting it.  He also drew some scallions around the inscription.  Did I mention he rocks?  You can check out a slideshow of some of Jacques artwork here.

Happy cooking!  I know you will enjoy this recipe.  If you try it, let me know how it turns out!

This Wonderful Wife Tip is inspired by Jacques Pepin, my personal cooking hero, and although he calls it a Peasant Soup it is a rich, satisfying meal.

If you have vegetable or chicken broth in your pantry you can pull this soup together very quickly–like maybe 30 min. from start to finish.  Water works perfectly fine if you don’t have broth on hand, but you’ll want to let it simmer longer so the total cooking time might be closer to an hour. It’s a great way to use up any veggies you have on hand and it’s a great way to use up wilted salad greens (add during the last 5 minutes or so).  You finish off this dish with freshly grated cheese and croutons so the soup is very forgiving!

Chop as many of the following as you have on hand (smaller pieces will cook more quickly):

1-2 carrots

1 small-medium onion

1 stalk of celery

1-2 cloves of garlic

A handful or two of salad greens (or any greens, really!)

Personal note:  I’ve made dinner with as little as 1 onion, 2 stalks of celery, some mesclun greens, 1 box of chicken broth, grated cheese and 2 slices of stale bread thanks to this soup so don’t hesitate to do it “bare bones” if you’re looking for a quick homemade meal.  You could even get away with serving just chicken or veggie broth with the bread and cheese, but I’m sure you’ve got something in your fridge that you can throw in here!

To make the soup:   Chop all of your vegetables before starting your saute.  Add about 1 Tbl. olive oil to a 2-3 quart soup pot and heat on low-medium heat for a minute or so.  Start by adding the onions–they should sizzle a bit when they hit the oil, saute them for a couple of minutes stirring often and then add the remaining vegetables until they are coated in oil adding the carrots first, then celery, but don’t add the garlic until you have already sauteed the other veggies for 5-7 minutes (just long enough so that they are nicely coated in oil and starting to soften) so it doesn’t turn brown or burn in the saute.  Add salt and pepper to the saute and if you want a little pinch of oregano or a dash of cayenne or alleppo pepper. 

Next, add a few cups of water or broth or a mix of the two to the pot–you’ll want to completely cover the vegetables with liquid plus another few cups depending on the number of veggies you used and the size of your pot so you can just eyeball this, but don’t worry ’cause it’s kinda foolproof.  I usually end up using about 6-8 cups of liquid and this is enough for two of us even if it cooks down a bit as it simmers.

Turn up the heat to high and put a lid on the pot until the soup comes to a boil and then promptly turn down the heat.  You’ll want a vigorous simmer with the lid slightly askew.  If you used a broth this soup is probably ready to eat after you let it simmer for 15 minutes as long as the veggies as soft enough for your liking.  If you use water, then I suggest you cook it down a little longer–say 30 min. to an hour–so the flavors develop a bit.  Taste it and taste it again.  Add salt and pepper as needed.

Make some croutons:  While the soup is simmering (you’ll want to keep an eye on it and stir it every 10-15 minutes) take a few slices of bread (I estimate 2 slices to serve 2 people) and lightly toast them to dry them out a bit in your oven or toaster.  Cut them up into a crouton size and if you want, just leave them on the counter while the soup cooks before you serve it up.

To Serve: Grate some cheddar cheese (or Gruyere or Jarlsberg if you prefer) into the bottom of a bowl–you can be generous, add a handful of croutons and ladle the warm soup over the top.  Mix it all around and enjoy the cheesy goodness with the soup soaked bread.  It is de-(wait for it…)-lish!

This is a picture of my heirloom carrot harvest last September.  Do you think I had enough of them?

Check out my very first Wonderful Wife Tip with another great soup recipe here.

The Superbowl is on Sunday evening and if there is one thing I have learned over the years it’s that my husband simply l-o-v-e-s football.  I didn’t grow up in a “football family” so this was all new to me at first.  Over the years I’ve learned a few football season survival tips…like when the clock says there are 2 minutes left in the game it will probably be about a half an hour before it’s actually over; if my husband is screaming “YES” and clapping his hands like a maniac that means the Patriots just scored; and if the score is 63 to 3 it’s not a big deal if I need to ask my husband to get up off the couch to help with something in our real life, however if it’s 10 to 7 in the fourth quarter he ain’t goin’ nowhere.

I think a Chili Recipe is an appropriate farewell to the football season and definitely a wonderful wife tip!  My chili is more of a stew-like dish than a slow cooked chili that simmers for half the day in a crock pot.  (I make this recipe about once a week in the winter and we have dinner for 2 nights.)  

You will need the following ingredients:

 1 or 1 ½ lbs. ground turkey (I use 99% lean)

 1 onion

1-2 cloves of garlic

2 carrots

1 can of black beans  (15-16 oz.)

1 can of cannellini beans

1 large can of crushed tomatoes  (28 oz.)

To make it super awesome you can also add 1-2 cups of corn and 1-2 bell peppers

Prep all of your ingredients–Chop up all the veggies to a ¼-½” size, drain and rinse the beans, open the can of tomatoes and the package of turkey meat.  (Seriously, open everything so you can just throw it together—it’s much easier that way!)

Take out a nice big ‘ol pot—you know, like the size you’d cook chili in!—and coat with 1 Tablespoon of olive oil.  Turn the heat to medium-low and sauté the onions for 1-2 minutes, add the carrots and sauté for another 5-7 minutes (add chopped peppers if you have them for the last couple of minutes of your sauté).  Add about 2-4 teaspoons of Aleppo or crushed red pepper, ½ tsp. of cumin (sometimes I use garam masala & coriander, too, but if you like to use chili powder then go ahead and use that) to coat the veggies, then add the garlic for the final minute or so.

Now that the veggies are softened and seasoned you can add the ground turkey and mix it in using a rubber spatula—you want it to cook part-way, but it doesn’t have to be cooked all the way through since you’ll be simmering it on the stove for up to 2 hours.

Add the beans and tomatoes, mix it up and add water to the pot until the meat and veggies are completely covered.  If you want you can also add 1/2 cup of red wine and 1/2 cup of brown rice at this point–fancy pants!

Cover and bring to a boil and then turn down to a vigorous simmer and leave the lid slightly askew to allow the steam to escape.  (If you are adding corn now’s the time.)  Stir every 10-15 minutes to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom of the pot (and if it does start to stick turn that heat down a bit!) and let simmer for about 1.5-2 hours until the liquid is absorbed and it has the consistency of, well, chili!

Taste it, add salt & pepper, add more red pepper spice if you’d like and then serve it up.  Top with some grated cheese, crack open a beer and enjoy!  (You could even root for your husband’s team while you’re at it!)

As a floral designer I have followed Martha Stewart for many years–it’s an occupational necessity after all!  Today’s wonderful wife tip is a recipe for roasted chicken with rosemary potatoes which is oh-so-simple and will knock your socks off.  Give it a try {click here for the recipe} and you’ll be a star in the kitchen with very little effort.

I made this recipe from the January 2011 issue of Martha Stewart Living for Christmas dinner with our families and made it again a week later for my husband for New Year’s.  The potatoes are so flavorful and as long as you don’t cut them too small they hold up well at the high oven temp of 450 degrees.  (The smaller you cut them the softer they’ll become so make sure they are bigger than bite-sized.)  I had never cooked a chicken at that high a temperature for an hour, but Martha knows her stuff; the suggested cooking time was right on.  The meat was juicy and seasoned quite nicely throughout.

Make this super simple chicken recipe for dinner this weekend and then, let your husband scrub the roasting pan.

I love simple recipes and this one is so easy you’ll have to try it the next time you make an omelet for weekend brunch or serve them up for dinner with a hearty soup.  Try these Quick Drop Biscuits with jam, butter or my personal favorite, herb butter. 

This recipe is from The Joy of Cooking and if you do any baking at all you’ll most likely have these ingredients on hand at all times which makes them a great last-minute addition to a meal.  They are simple enough to make for just the two of you and good enough to serve to a crowd.

After pre-heating the oven to 475 degrees whisk together in a large bowl:

1 ²/₃ cups all-purpose flour (I use whole wheat flour sometimes, too)

1 Tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

Whisk together in another bowl or in a liquid measuring cup:

²/₃ cup milk

¹/₃ cup vegetable oil (I use safflower oil, but you can use olive oil for savory dishes)

Add the liquid to the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until dry ingredients are moistened and the batter pulls away from the sides of the bowl.  It should be thick and sticky—not smooth.  Use a spoon to form whatever size biscuit you like and put them on a greased cooked sheet or line with parchment paper if you prefer.  (Joy of Cooking suggests doing walnut sized scoops, but I like to do mine bigger and I shape them with my hands.)  Bake for about 8 minutes until they are golden brown on the bottom and serve them hot.