Corn and Cod (well, Flounder) Chowder

Our grocery store was out of Cod. In fact, it was out of almost all frozen fish. So, we were stuck with Flounder. I wasn’t too concerned since it was for a chowder, and it seemed to turn out just fine. The recipe for this delightful Corn and (fish) Chowder from Food and Wine was pretty easy, a bit of chopping, a bit of substitutions (half and half for cream, leek for celery) but it was really good. And I’m looking forward to leftovers.

And did you know that last Saturday was National Soup Sway Day? Neither did I. But any of you local readers up for a swap? I am….

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Quick: Chicken with Cherry Tomato Sauce

The January issue of Cooking Light is full of great recipes for Chicken Breasts. Which is good, because it’s a staple aroudn here. We made this one with a side of rice and sugar snap peas with sesame oil and sesame seeds. Not too bad….

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Quick Shrimp Curry

Sauteed Onions, a can of Lite Coconut Milk, a scoop of red curry paste, a splash of fish sauce, a dash of salt and a pound of shrimp. Yum.

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Cooky Book

It’s already December 14 and I haven’t even started my holiday baking. Augh! I’m so behind. Meanwhile, I thought I’d procrastinate even longer by showing you this great book that belonged to my Great Aunt. Every year she baked a traditional holiday cookie called BerlinerKranser.

Now that I have her Cooky Book I feel obligation and honored to bake a batch to share with the family. I’ll post a photo just as soon as I can get ’em done!

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Beef Randang

We made Cooking Light’s Beef Rendang this weekend. It was a nice change from the Turkey-stuffing-potatoes-cranberries we’ve been filling up on. It was a little tedious at first, but the long simmering time gave me plenty of time to clean up and relax before dinner time. The beef was very tender and we added some green peppers for some excitement. Next time I’ll add more peppers and probably mushrooms. It was full of flavor and had just the right amount of spice. Overall, it’s a keeper!

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Pumpkin Chocolate-Chip Cookies!

It snowed here this weekend. It was beautiful and we even sludged through it and made a rather large snowman. Then we came back in side and Daughter helped me bake some Pumpkin Chocolate-Chip Cookies. When I say help, I mean she moved her stool around in the kitchen and ate crackers as I measured and poured. She did love watching the mixer, which we both found fascinating. I’m a sucker for pumpkin and anything chocolate, so these cookies are amazing. The pumpkin is not overpowering, in fact, it’s very subtle, and really just adds a lovely texture to the cookie.

On a side note, sort of, most of these cookies landed in the freezer so I can bring them to my first Craft Sale on December 3rd! More details to follow, but it’s a Friday and the sale will be from 3-8pm, so mark your calendars and stay tuned for more information! There will be no obligation to buy anything, but if you show up you can have a cookie! Now, is that bribe, or what?

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Another Pantry Dinner

I was all set to whip up a quick Chicken Curry for dinner last night, when I opened my (newly organized) pantry and discovered I was out of Coconut Milk. Really? How on earth did I let that happen? So, I took a deep breathe, reached for a couple more cans and started in a different direction.

I started by sauteeing diced onions until they were soft, then added sliced green and red peppers. I sprinkled the Chicken Breasts with salt, pepper and cumin and added them to the onions and peppers. When the chicken was browned and I had flipped it over, I added those two cans. One of black beans, the other of diced tomatoes. I brought it all to a boil and let it simmer for 10 minutes. And then, dinner was served! We served it over leftover rice and topped it off with some store-bought salsa and a fresh Avocado. Easy and quick. Perfect for a week night.

Note on the diced onion… growing up my Mom never used fresh onion. Instead she kept a bag of frozen diced onion in the freezer and when she needed onion she just poured some out of the bag. I went a step further. Whenver I chop an onion and have leftovers, instead of letting it go bad in the crisper drawer and smell up the fridge, I put the extra chopped onion into a freezer bag and throw it in the freezer. Then on nights like tonight, I have the onion ready to go. No need to thaw, just throw it in the pan.

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Holiday Gift Idea #2

I love Ina. She’s so real. And she loves to use lots of cream and booze in her feed. Did I mention I love Ina?

Her newest book, Barefoot Contessa, How Easy Is That? is definitely on my wish list. Is it on yours?

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Carrot-Ginger Soup

When I was in Denver a few weeks ago Husband picked up some groceries and brought home a huge piece of fresh ginger. While I love ginger, and we use it regularly, there was no way we would be able to use up the whole piece before it went bad. I also knew I had a big bag of fresh carrots from the St. Paul Farmer’s Market, so I went online and found this recipe for Carrot-Ginger Soup. I made a double batch of it this morning so we would have lunch for the week and a few pints for the freezer. I also added a couple cups of leftover rice from another meal to make it a bit more substantial. The soup is good, really good. Simple with just enough tang coming from the ginger. I’ll actually look forward to lunch this week! Yippee!

Have you made any great soup this fall?

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Final Friday Five, BOO!

perfect halloween treat? (from bon appetite)

It’s time for the Final Friday Five again, and in honor of Halloween, I want to know your Favorite Halloween Candies! My favorites are, in no particular order, of course:

1. Almond Joy
2. Kit Kats
3. Butterfinger
4. Peanut M&Ms
5. York Peppermint Patties

Now it’s your turn. Leave a comment and list your top five favorites. I’ll also send a candy bar to anyone who can guess what my Daughter will be dressing up as for Halloween. If I’ve already told you, you’re disqualified.

(And yes, Jill, this time Red Vines is an appropriate answer).

Be Safe and have a Happy Halloween!

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