Berry Nutty and Crunchy Granola

OK, so the title is corny, but there's no corn in this granola! There is, however, tasty dried berries along with walnuts and sliced almonds.

Making granola is pretty freaking easy—I kind of can't get over how much money I've spent on granola in the past when I figured out what it cost me to make about 6 cups of this compared to the organic stuff I've bought before (and I used all organic ingredients).

Ingredients:

• 3 cups oats (regular, not quick cooking)
• 1 1/2 cups of nuts (as mentioned I used walnuts and sliced almonds, but you can use any combo you like)
• 1/2 cup of cranberry nectar or juice (you can also use apple juice or whatever fruit juice you prefer, just know it will likely add to the flavor of the granola.)
• 1/2 cup of maple syrup (agave and honey work, too)
• 1/4 cup coconut oil (butter or canola oil can work here, too)
• 1/2 TB vanilla extract
• 1/2 TB almond extract (alternatively, you can use 1 TB of one extract instead of both)
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
• 2 tsp (scant) ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cup dried berries (I used cranberries and blueberries)

After I gathered the ingredients, I began by  preheating the oven to 325°.  I then combined the oats and nuts in a large bowl. Next, to a small/medium saucepan I added the juice, syrup, coconut oil, extracts, salt, and cinnamon and put it over a medium/low flame. I heated the  mixture until the coconut oil was all melted and it seemed hot enough to melt the salt (almost simmering). Once it looked ready, I poured it over the oats and nuts and mixed it so they were will coated.


Once it was evenly coated. I spread the granola mixture out on a cookie sheet I lined with parchment paper.*

Before Baking

Then I baked the granola in the preheated oven for about 40 minutes—stirring every 15 minutes or so. Once I took it out of the oven it was a nice golden brown.

After Baking

I let the granola cool completely (that took about 20 minutes) and poured it into the bowl of an air-tight container where I added the dried berries. Putting the top on and shaking it for about 20 seconds mixed the berries into the granola nicely.

The next morning (and subsequent mornings, since) I had some with the addition of fresh blueberries and almond milk, and I have to say, it's pretty darn good. Just the right sweetness and the lovely toasted flavor of the oats and nuts with the sweet and tart flavor of the berries.

If you make it, keep in mind that the sweetness level may vary if you use a juice or sweetener that tends to be more or less sweet. For example if you use apple juice and agave, it's likely to be on the sweeter side (plus the berry flavor won't be there, but you could, for example, use dried apricots and apples in it instead of berries). And as long as you use gluten free oats, this recipe is gluten free too. :)

*Using parchment is highly recommended since it prevents the granola from sticking to the pan and you can pick up the paper and pour the granola into a container once it's cooled.

Rrrrrapid Hhhhuevos Rrrrancheros!

The other morning I woke up with a hankering for huevos rancheros. And aside from the ranchero sauce,  I had everything else needed.

Here's what I used:

1 can of black beans
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp dried oregano
Pinch (or two) of sea salt
2 eggs (I scrambled them, but your choice)
1/2 a pat of butter for cooking the eggs
2 small corn tortillas
Sprinkle of cheddar cheese
Salsa Verde
Red Salsa
Fresh cilantro

I began by cooking the beans (after rinsing them well--I always do this for all canned beans, even those canned without salt) with the spices (cumin through salt) on medium for about 10 minutes. While those were cooking, I scrambled the eggs and poured them in a nonstick pan with the butter melted.

Since eggs have a tendency to burn if I walk away from them, I finished cooking them and then moved on to heating up tortillas in a small frying pan. To save a step, I probably could have just zapped the tortillas in the microwave, but I find that they fall apart when I go to eat them any time I use the microwave... maybe it's just me.

Since the eggs were warm I decided to sprinkle some cheddar cheese on them and put the cover back on--letting the cheese melt while I got the tortillas ready. 

I put a large spoonful of the beans on each tortilla and then sprinkled some fresh cilantro on top of those.

Then I split the scrambled eggs up on each tortilla and dressed one with salsa verde (my new favorite is from Trader Joe's) and the other with Green Mountain Gringo salsa. And as you can see from the first photo, I garnished the plate with red grapes and carrots.

I realize this dish was hardly from scratch (and that my attempt at a Spanish sounding title could really use some work), but I think this quick huevos rancheros was quite tasty. Now, I could have gone ahead and made an actual ranchero sauce, and if I did, I'd likely make this one (though, i would substitute the green bell pepper for yellow or red since green bells don't agree with me).  However, in the interest of time, I decide to forgo the real deal and use two different kinds of salsa. For shame? I don't think so. I love both of those salsas and I'm willing to bet I still put more steps in the process of making theses than a certain food network star who thinks adding fresh cilantro to jarred sauce makes it "semi-homemade." Just saying...

Meatless (and Mexican) Mondays

I am a meat eater, but I mostly eat vegetarian--mainly because it's cheaper and tends to be easier to do so as a cook (i.e., it's a lot easier to mess up a piece of meat than a pot of pasta). Nowadays though, I try to make it a point to be meat free on Mondays--mainly for health reasons, but also for budget purposes. So I've been experimenting with more exciting vegetarian meals, and though I'm not a fan of green bell peppers (and they don't like me, either), I've always found that when a poblano is cooked, the flavor is mild and tasty. So last week I picked up some poblanos, which I decided to grill and stuff with beans, rice and corn.

Grilled and Stuffed Poblano Peppers

Ingredients
4 Poblano peppers
3/4 cup cooked brown rice
1/2 cup of black beans (I used refried)
1/4 cup of sweet corn kernels (canned or frozen)
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon Mexican oregano
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
a few grape tomatoes sliced (for garnish)
Oil for grill pan

Serves 4

I cut each of the poblano peppers in half (lengthwise), removed the seeds and washed them. Then I popped them onto a lightly oil grill pan. I left them on the pan (on a medium flame) until they had some nice grill marks and were softened.

In the meantime I made the "stuffing" by combining the rice, corn, beans and all the seasonings (chopped cilantro through garlic powder) so that everything seemed well mixed.

Once the peppers were ready, I let them cool for a few minutes and then stuffed each with about a half cup of the filling and placed them in a roasting pan. Then I sprinkled the cheese on top of each and garnished with slices of grape tomatoes.

I popped the peppers in the oven for approximately 35 minutes on 350° just so the peppers would be nicely warmed through and until the cheese was melted well (see top photo).

I decided to use a jarred mole sauce to top the peppers, but the sauce itself, which isn't bad, seemed like it needed something extra, so I doctored it up with some  raisins and smoked paprika. Any tasty Mexican sauce (salsa verde, enchilada sauce, etc.) would probably go well with these, but I did enjoy the rich flavor of the mole.

I served the peppers with chopped romaine lettuce and pea shoots and the mole sauce, and it was a lovely meal. I definitely think I'll add this into my rotation. I've even considered adding chopped spinach to the stuffing, just for a little more greens.

Eating More Kale

Lemony Kale and Walnut Pesto

Recently at the HWFC Cheese and Specialty department, where I work as a monger (well, kind of), we acquired a new product. It is a Lacinato kale and garlic pesto, and it's very good, but also very expensive. I read the ingredients and it seemed pretty straight forward. Since I've been doing my best to get more greens into my diet, I had a ton of kale in my house (regular curly kale, however) and set out to make my own. 

Before I started I did a "something" search for some basic recipes to see what other people out there have done to make a kale pesto--I wondered if people basically did the same thing as a basil pesto or if anyone had added some tricks (certain special ingredients, etc.). I found for the most part that it was more or less like a basil pesto, except in all the recipes the kale was blanched first. This makes complete sense to me because otherwise it might still be too tough to make the pesto smooth. Plus, since I have trouble digesting raw kale, I was happy to find this as the first step. 

What I used and did:

Ingredients

3-5 cups raw kale, stems removed and roughly chopped (then blanched)

3-4 cloves garlic

1 small shallot or half a medium one

1 lemon for juice and zest (all the juice and about a teaspoon of its zest)

1/2 cup toasted walnuts (more or less can be used depending on how creamy you want the pesto)

1/2 cup of Parmigiano Reggiano

1 cup (more or less) of good extra virgin olive oil

After removing any tough stems left on the kale, I blanched it in boiling water for about one to two minutes. On top of softening the kale, blanching gave it a really nice bright green color. 

After the couple minutes in the hot water, I moved the kale to a bowl of ice water to stop it from cooking too much (and losing some of its nutrients to the water). 

While I let the kale cool off in the cold water,  I gathered all the other ingredients: walnuts (which I toasted), a lemon (for juice and zest), 4 cloves garlic, half a shallot, and Parmigiano Reggiano. Oh, and olive oil, of course. 

After toasting the walnuts and letting them cool, I tossed them in the mini food processor and gave them a whirl for about 20 seconds. Then I added, the shallot and garlic and spun all of them together for another 10-15 seconds. 

Once those were all nicely ground up, I added the lemon juice and zest, and whirled it for a few seconds just to make sure it was all combined. 

I then drained the kale and patted it dry with a clean, lint-free towel and tossed it in the large food processor. After chopping it up nice and fine, I added the walnut mixture. 

I spun that together and then got ready to add the cheese.

I shredded the cheese then added it to the food processor and whirled it together, then I slowly added the olive oil. 

I think I may have used a little more walnuts than necessary because the mixture was extra creamy and thick, but it was still tasty. It wasn't quite as garlicky as the one from the coop (or as oily), but it had a nice lemony flavor making it taste very fresh. The yield was about a pint of pesto total. 

I brought over a half pint to my buddy's house for a picnic, and we served it with a very tasty cheese and homemade spelt crackers (she made). 

I think everyone liked it because it was all gone before we had dinner. :)

A Breakfast Treat

(Hazelnut Butter/Nuttella stuffed French Toast)

So a usual breakfast for me is toast or rice cakes with peanut butter and fruit (usually berries of some kind and a banana). It's typical because it's easy and I can even take it on the go if necessary.

This breakfast I'm about to tell you about is anything but typical, and, I will say, it was pretty freaking tasty, too.

One weekend morning when I had more time for breakfast (it was really brunch by the time I got around to making and eating it), I was wanting something a little different. I realized I had all the makings for french toast, but no maple syrup... which was ok, but not ideal. So instead this is what I came up with.

I started with two pieces of delicious multigrain bread and filled them with chocolate hazelnut butter (I had Justin's because it was a good deal at the market, but, of course, Nutella would be just fine and equally delicious).

Then in a shallow bowl, I cracked an egg, added some cinnamon, a splash of milk, and a dash of almond extract, and whisked it all together.

I tossed the sandwich in the egg mixture.

I heated a pan on medium heat and added a little butter and oil.

And then browned both sides of the sandwich, making sure it was on the stove long enough so the filling would be hot. 

In the meantime, I also concocted a raspberry syrup recipe. I combined about a cup or less of frozen raspberries and a half cup of honey and popped it in the microwave for about 2-3 minutes on 50% power.

And, wow, this was beyond my ordinary breakfast. Just look at that.

No really, look at it.

I don't know if you get what I am saying, look at it!

Well, what was even better than its looks was what it tasted like. I fully enjoyed every bite. And if you make this, I'm pretty certain you will too (unless you don't like french toast, nutella, or raspberries).

And We're Back... with a Chicken Dish

I disappeared there for a little while; sorry if you stopped by looking for some good little tips or recipes these last few months. But I'm sure you know how it is, life gets in the way of living sometimes.

It's Vidalia onion season and, as a big fan of French onion soup, I bought a few pounds of the onions with the intention of making some soup. Fortunately, the weather around here has been (mostly) really nice, and hot soup hasn't really been something I've been craving. Instead I decided to go ahead and use some of the base ingredients from the French onion soup recipe I use, and make a dish with chicken and kale as well (giving the healthy protein and greens that tasty sweet and savory onion flavor).

I haven't come up with the right name for it, so any suggestions for a name are welcome.

Ingredients
1 Tb olive oil
1/2 Tb butter (or smart balance, etc.)
1 tsp chopped chives
3 cloves of garlic (crushed)
4 (about a lb or more) Vidalia (or other sweet) onions, sliced into rings
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp (or cube) of bouillon (I used vegetable, but chicken or beef would be fine.)
2-3 cups chopped/ripped kale
3/4 cup of wine (dry red, dry white, or sherry)
2 dashes of Worcestershire sauce
1/2 dash of Tamari (soy sauce)
2-4 thin (sliced or pounded) chicken breasts
black pepper

I began with sauteing three crushed cloves of garlic and a teaspoon of chives in a half tablespoon of butter and a tablespoon of olive oil in a large frying pan. Once the garlic was fragrant, I added four small to medium-sized onions sliced into rings.

Once the onions started to brown a bit I added about a teaspoon of dried thyme, and then began adding the kale, which I ripped into small pieces (no stems). As the kale began to turn bright green, I added about half a cup of white wine and about two tablespoons of red.* I let the wine reduce and then added some vegetable bouillon and about a half a cup of water.

To make this recipe easier on me, this is when I turned off the heat and moved everything into the crock pot. I added a couple dashes of Worcestershire sauce, a half dash of Tamari, and a sprinkle of pepper to the onions and greens.

When I initially thought up this recipe I had intended to brown the chicken before putting it into the crock pot, but I spaced on that step when I was making it. Nevertheless, I placed two thinly sliced chicken breast on top of the greens and onions in the pot and set the pot to low.   About an hour into the slow cooking I moved the chicken to the bottom of the pot (with the onions and greens on top of it).

As it cooked in the crock pot, the aroma was wonderful. Since the chicken was pounded thinly, I let it cook for 2.5 hours on low, and that was plenty of time--if you use more or thicker chicken you may want to add an hour or so.

The point of the crock pot was to try to ensure the chicken would be moist and absorb the flavors nicely. I am happy to say it was a successful plan. It was a very flavorful dish and the bitterness of the kale helped balance the sweetness of the onions, and both went very well with the chicken. The dish was somewhat reminiscent of chicken Marsala. So one thing that seemed to be missing, for both texture and flavor, was mushrooms. It also lacked color, so I might add some cut up carrots to make it more visually appealing. To make it even more like onion soup, I might even consider sprinkling some grated gruyere cheese over it...

I know you can't see the chicken, but it's there under all the kale and onions.

I served it over brown rice, but I think mashed potatoes would have been even better, because a gravy could be made out of the sauce left in the pot.

So, I was mostly pleased with this dish, but next time I make it, I may try using sherry wine (instead of the red and white), adding mushrooms and carrots, and serving it with mashed potatoes. :)

*I typically use only red wine when I make my French onion soup, but I figured with the chicken, white might be a little more complementary. Also, typically most recipes call for sherry wine when making French onion soup and use beef stock--but the version I make is vegetarian and I've always found that the red wine gives the kind richness beef stock would normally add.

Not Jerking Around...

I've had Jamaican jerk chicken before and I used to really like it, but due to my inflammatory digestive disease  I can no longer eat highly spiced (heat) foods, so it's not something I've really thought about eating in the last few years.

Recently, however, one of my favorite food blogs posted a recipe for jerk chicken wings so I gave them a try.

Holy crud were they good. 

Wings

I think that the chicken wings came from high-quality chickens made a difference, but the marinade had such a wonderful sweet and savory jerk flavor, I devoured them. Additionally, the method by which they're roasted--first for 15 minutes at 400° then for 15 more minutes (for blackening) at 500°--cooked them to perfection: crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside. In the past I've cooked wings in the oven and they don't end up crispy, but the method used by Comfy Belly was perfect--even if it did set off the smoke detectors in my apartment.

My stand-by taste-tester Andrea said that they were the best homemade chicken wings she's ever had.

A few night's later I was having some folks over for dinner, so I decided to make them again, and this time I also added some chicken legs to the marinade to roast along with the wings--the legs are cheaper and meatier and I figured they'd serve as a more solid "meal" star. I cooked the legs for about 25-30 minutes on 400° first, then for the 15 minutes on 500°.

Legs

To go along with the chicken I also made my standard cabbage slaw (just sliced cabbage with a simple vinaigrette made from apple cider vinegar, crushed garlic, Dijon mustard, salt and pepper, and good olive oil) and roasted potatoes.

Slaw to accompany the jerk.

I sliced the potatoes prior to roasting them so that they could be seasoned inside and out--slicing them just so they are still connected at the bottom, then tossing them in olive oil and sprinkling them with tasty seasoning. I used Montreal steak seasoning, but any seasoning you prefer will do.

Taters

It was a very tasty meal indeed, and one that will likely be in my regular rotation because it's also incredibly simple.

Think next time I make it, I might add some carrots to
the slaw to bring more color to this dish.

 
I served aged red Zinfandel with the meal (when I had company), but I think beer accompanies it better ...perhaps a Red Stripe. ;)