Gettin' Fancy

Last week's dinner menu was more written for the adults than for the kids.  And it's good to do that sometimes.

Two meals stood out:

The chicken and polenta dish looked good enough to offer at a restaurant!  It was delicious to boot....I used to dislike polenta. But now that I know that there's other ways to have it other than a sliced tube at the grocery store, I'm more likely to eat it.  "Tube-y" polenta tastes firm and weird.  This stuff reminded me of mashed potatoes.

And this right here?  Seared scallops over lemony zucchini risotto.  I know, really fancied for a Tuesday night!  Best scallops I've had in a long time.  And this risotto rules, too.  I ate the leftover risotto for breakfast the next two days, with a fried egg on top.  Awesome.

Itty Bitty Pies

I have fond memories of Hostess Apple pies.  You know, the sugary apple pie deliciousness that came two per waxed paper package.  (I'm pretty sure that they had blueberry and lemon pies too, but yuck!)  When I saw "hand pies" on Pinterest, I immediately thought of Hostess pies.  I think Hostess ones were fried though, and obviously not as good as fresh-made, right?

Though pie-like, I wouldn't quite call these pie.  Brian and I have been calling them "Apple Pie Cookies."  They are pretty fantastic and in a word, dangerous.  I'd make them again for sure.  Here's the recipe:  Apple Hand Pies.  I found it on Pinterest and take no claim for it.

 All of the necessary ingredients

 Refrigerated, pre-made piecrust.  This mama doesn't mess around making her own.

 Sean helping by "inspecting the biscuit cutter."

 What makes these little pies special?  A little dollop of caramel sauce in each one.

The finished product.  There WAS four on here, but Brian really wanted one.

An Apple a Day

Three-day weekends are good for cooking.  So far I've made applesauce this weekend, and overnight apple oatmeal.

The applesauce was my standard fare.  Recipe courtesy of The Joy of Cooking, aka "The Bible."  We've been using this recipe for years, and the only difference this year was using a food processor instead of a food mill.  What ease!

the overnight apple oatmeal is a thing to behold!  One must put it together kind of late in the evening, in order for it to be ready at breakfast.  I peeled and diced 4 apples earlier, and sprinkled them wit vitamin C powder so they didn't turn brown.  (you can find this with the canning supplies.)  You layer the ingredients and then the recipe warns you, DO NOT STIR.  I was skeptical but obeyed its command.  And this morning I was rewarded for my patience with the scent of apple-goodness when I staggered into the kitchen to make coffee.  (I'm kind of a mess in the morning."  This was extremely tasty.  And luckily it makes a lot, so leftovers for the week!  The only critique tat Brian had is that it's heavy on the cinnamon.  I love cinnamon though, but maybe next time I'll adjust it a little.

Next up...apple hand pies.  And then I still have more apples, so who knows.

Weekend Warriors

What a weekend in our kitchen.

First, let's talk about this pizza for Saturday lunch.  I had no idea that ricotta, arugula and caramelized onion would make such fantastic pizza toppings.  Unfortunately, you can't reheat pizza with arugula on top, because it wilts.  So we had to eat it all, tough break.

I made stuff for our freezer.  Three freezer bags of ratatouille, and this time I salted the eggplant slices first a la Alton Brown.  It definitely got some of the moisture out, making the finished product less "mushy."  It'll go great with a starch and a little grated Parmesan later.

Then it was time for a magic trick....turning a $4.23 whole chicken into two meals and then boiling the carcass for chicken stock.  (Thank you, rapidly approaching "sell-by" dates!)  And honestly, it didn't take very long.  I just sauteed some aromatics (in this case a whole sliced onion, a couple of carrots and some celery ribs) and added the carcass, covered with water and let it boil for an hour.  I'll strain the fat off the top tonight and put it in the freezer for some delightful chicken soup at a later date.

Now, I've got some overripe bananas to turn into muffins, and yesterday we went apple picking.   Thinking about what to make!  

Deep Freeze

When we first moved to our current home, we decided to buy a chest freezer.  Considering that the freezer in the kitchen is kind of small, this has been really helpful.  Until I opened it up last week and found it to be mostly empty, save for some cookies, a loaf or two of quickbreads and some chicken wings that I am almost certain made the move two years ago.

The freezer is empty and Winter Is Coming.

Well, perhaps winter isn't coming today.  I mean, it's only October.  But perhaps it's time to "realize the dream" of actually filling the freezer with meals.

I've always been one of those types that realizes that keeping ready-made food in the freezer is a good idea.  That the concept of bringing up a meal and defrosting it for dinner, therefore not having to really "Cook" that night but still having a great meal, is a huge time-saver.  I'm just not quite good at putting it into action.  And I really want to be one of those people.

So last weekend, I made meatballs, enough for two meals.  And I froze all of them.  This weekend we're having a roast chicken that I scored for just $4.23!  (hooray for approaching expiration dates.)  After we have a lovely meal paired with cornbread and vegetable sides, I am going to boil the carcass and make chicken stock for a future soup date.

As for the rest?  I'm already combing Pinterest for ideas.  This is my "Year of the Freezer."

New Cookbook in the House!

Last week was Brian's birthday and Will picked out a new cookbook for his gift.  Since  Dad is a big fan of the Food Network show "Chopped" why not a cookbook from that show?  He loved it and we tried two recipes this weekend.

The first was a warm banana pudding with caramel sauce.  I love that I'm married to someone who, on a Saturday night will spontaneously decide to make treats from scratch.  :)  Let me tell you, it smelled incredible.  The taste was good too, though it felt weird to be eating pudding that hadn't "set."  And if you are eating hot banana and caramel topping, watch out!  My tongue and throat are still slightly scorched. 

Next up was grilled chicken sandwiches for lunch, with a parsley pesto spread.  I had a ton of parsley to use up on the deck so this recipe seemed like a no-brainer.  I'd never had anything other than basil pesto, and clearly I've been missing out!  This also had a great way of toasting the bun using an egg white instead of butter or just dry in the toaster oven. 

This cookbook has a lot of potential.  And obviously,  since I've marked it up, it's here to stay. 

Eggs Aren't Just For Breakfast....

...they can make for a pretty tasty lunch, too.  I come home for lunch most days and reheat leftovers.  No leftovers in the fridge....and neither pb+j nor canned soup looked appetizing.  This was quick and delicious paired up with some leftover grilled potatoes.  Add a small chocolate milk and the latest Webs catalog and it's a very fine lunch indeed!