Tis The Season

Hello Old Friends!

We've been cooking and baking up a storm but have failed at documenting all the goodies. I made a tasty and good looking dish the other night and thought I'd share.

Vegetarian Stew with Quinoa, Butternut Squash & Coconut Milk

Yield: Serves 4

From the kitchen of Cookin Canuck.

2/3 cup quinoa
1 1/3 cup water
Pinch of salt
2 cups diced (1/2-inch) butternut squash
2 tsp olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 tbsp minced fresh ginger
1/2 large jalapeno pepper, seeds & membranes removed, minced
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup lite coconut milk, stirred
1 can (14 oz.) petite diced tomatoes (with juices)
1 can (14 oz.) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 green onions, thinly sliced

In a medium saucepan, combine quinoa and water, and place over high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for approximately 20 minutes, or until all of the water is absorbed. Remove the quinoa from the heat, fluff with a fork and re-cover to keep warm.

In a medium or large saucepan, bring water to a boil. Add a pinch of salt and the cubed butternut squash. Cook until the squash is just tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water. Set aside.

In a large frying pan, heat olive oil oil over medium heat. Add onion and kosher salt and cook until the onions are turning brown, 7 to 8 minutes. Add ginger and minced jalapeno and cook for an additional 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add garlic. Cook for 1 more minute, stirring.

Add the lite coconut milk, diced tomatoes with juices, chickpeas and cooked butternut squash. Turn the mixture to medium-high and bring it to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the butternut squash is tender, stirring frequently, about 15 minutes.

Divide the quinoa between bowls and ladle the stew over top. Garnish with sliced green onions. Serve.

Baking

As far as holiday baking goes, we've been making a bunch of cookies: chocolate crackles (Martha Stewart's recipe is my favorite), sugar cut out cookies, white chocolate cherry shortbread, chocolate covered cherries and macaroons. Macaroons have become my thing.







We tried these pretzel, rolo, M&M candies for the first time this year (found on pinterest). Owen was able to do these without much help - it was great!




For Thanksgiving, I made these cranberry brie bites (also found on pinterest) and they were phenomenal.

I need to share the deliciousness!

We've had some tasty summer meals lately and I just don't have the time to properly document them in my blog like I used to. So, I'm going to try out an abbreviated format for the time being.

Scallops with Tomatillo Guacamole & Corn Salsa
the kitchn

Both Mike & I love scallops but rarely buy them because they're pricey. I decided to splurge and make this meal and it was so worth it! So delicious and easy, too! Both kids gobbled it up which shocked me. I will definitely make this again. And, I'll be making that tomatillo guacamole to go on tacos, too. I love tomatillos!


Ratatouille Bake
All Recipes
Tasty, easy, delicious. Owen said, "Mama did you make this? It's DELICIOUS!" Score!

Birthday Party Fun

Our daughter celebrated her first birthday last weekend! We whipped up some of our favorite foods for the occasion.

The Menu:
Ina Garten's Panzanella
Watermelon
Food Should Good Sweet Potato Chips
Grandma's Baked Beans (super secret recipe)
Sausages from Kramarczuk's: Curried Wild Rice Brat, Cherry Bomb Brat, and Mediterranean Lamb
Rainbow Cupcakes

Favorites

We enjoyed a few favorites in the past week: steak fajitas with greens, spring turnip salad, and radish sandwich. If we have a bunch of greens or peppers to use, we often turn to fajitas. The turnip salad is one of my favorite things and the radish sandwich is all about good butter (we used Hope butter this time). Yum!

Steak Fajitas with Green Garlic, Radish Greens, Onion, Spinach




Spring Turnip Salad



1 fresh, young bunch of turnips, stems discarded, greens well washed and sliced into thin ribbons (1/3 inch or less), roots trimmed, peeled, and cut into 3/4 inch chunks
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
Olive oil
Salt
1 tablespoon honey
Juice of 1 lime
1/4 cup plain yogurt or buttermilk
1/3 cup chopped fresh herbs, such as parsley, cilantro, and chives
1 cup cooked white beans
3 hard cooked eggs, peeled and sliced
4 strips bacon, cooked and chopped or crumbled
3 pieces of cornbread (your favorite recipe), cut into small cubes

At least a few hours in advance, toss the raw turnip greens with 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 2 tablespoons olive oil, and a big pinch of salt. Cover and refrigerate.

Put the turnip roots in a medium saucepan with an inch of water, a pinch of salt, and a splash of olive oil. Cover, bring to a boil, and boil hard, covered, until turning tender, about 5 minutes. Then remove the lid and continue to boil until tender enough to eat, a minute or two more. Drain if necessary and allow to cool.

Dissolve 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1 tablespoon honey in 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar and the lime juice. Whisk in 2 tablespoons olive oil. Stir in 1/4 cup plain yogurt or buttermilk and the chopped herbs. Taste and add salt, vinegar, or oil if necessary.

Dress the beans with 2 tablespoons of the yogurt dressing. Spread some greens on each plate and top with egg, beans, bacon, steamed turnips, and cornbread. Serve extra yogurt dressing on the side.


Radish Sandwich

Ono

Mike visited Hawaii with his family as a child (teenager?) and always talks about the delicious ono fish he had there. Coastal Seafood had ono on special last week so he had to get some. I agreed with him that's it's like fish steak. Delicious!

Grilled Ono with Tamarind Glaze and Grilled Yukina Savoy

Chives, chives and more chives.

We've been trying to find recipes that use a ton of chives because we have SO many this year! This recipe for Broccoli salad put them to good use.



Broccoli Salad with Bacon, Chives, and Tomato
Adapted from jamieoliver.com

2 heads of broccoli, about 1 1/2 pounds
4 slices thick-cut bacon, cut into matchsticks
2 roma tomatoes, halved, seeded and finely chopped
1 bunch fresh chives (15 to 20), finely chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced or pressed
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of salty water to boil. In the meantime, trim the woody end from the broccoli heads and break it up into small florets. Slice them into 1/4-inch thick pieces so they cook quickly and evenly. When the water comes to a boil, blanch the broccoli for 1-2 minutes, until they are starting to get tender but still have bite in the middle. Drain in a colander and spread out on a kitchen towel to steam dry, about 15 minutes.

In the meantime, cook the bacon in a large skillet with a splash of olive oil over medium-low heat until the fat renders into the pan and the bacon is crisp but still slightly chewy.

Drain the fat collected in the bacon pan into a bowl and add the garlic, dijon, and vinegar. Whisk well to combine into an emulsion, then add the olive oil slowly in a stream, whisking constantly. Season to taste with salt and pepper and taste also for acidity, adding more vinegar or oil if needed.

Toss the broccoli with the tomatos, bacon, and dressing. Top with chives and serve.

Pasta with Asparagus, Carrots and Broccoli

This pasta was so delicious - I think using high quality parmigiano-reggiano had something to do with it. Oh, and the cream and butter!



Adapted from Bottega Favorita by Frank Stitt.

1 teaspoon olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 heaping cup sliced spring onions
12 slender asparagus spears, tough bottoms discarded and cut into 2-inch pieces
Sliced carrots or other spring vegetables
Broccoli florets (or other vegetable... peas, etc.)
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 pound pasta
2/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or pecorino romano
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper


1. Heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, until very soft.

2. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of generously salted to a boil for the pasta. Bring a large sauce pan of water to a boil, add the asparagus, and cook for 1 minute. Add the broccoli and cook for 30 seconds, then drain. Add the asparagus and other vegetables to the onions, then stir in the cream. Set the pan aside while you cook the pasta.

3. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente. Drain and transfer to the pan with the onions.

4. Place the pan over high heat and cook, tossing, for 1 to 2 minutes, until the vegetables are hot. Add the chives abd 1/2 cup of the cheese, the lemon zest, and the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter and toss well to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

5. Serve in warm bowls, garnished with more mint and the remaining grated cheese