Maple Roasted Brussel Sprouts

Back in 2008, watching an NCIS dvd, with commentary, I heard the actor, David McCallum, who portrays Ducky, the medical examiner, talk about roasting Brussel sprouts in this way. I felt intrigued.. and despite never having liked the vegetable, I gave it a try. They were so good, not the smelly, mushy sprouts of my childhood, but delicious, slightly sweet. Now they're a regular, and not just at the holidays.

2 lbs brussel sprouts
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 tbsp maple syrup
sea salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 425ºF.
Wash sprouts and remove yellowed and discolored leaves, and slice in half. In a large bowl, whisk together oil and syrup ’til emulsified, then pour in the sprouts. Using your hands rub oil/syrup mixture over all sides of the sprouts until they are completely coated. Spoon the sprouts into a roasting pan, making sure to leave any extra oil/syrup in the bowl. Sprinkle with several good grinds of sea salt & black pepper. Bake in oven between 20 to 30 minutes, until they are caramelized (checking occasionally after 20 minutes. You can also insert a thin sharp knife in and if it inserts easily they are done).

Larb

I read about this Thai

salad in 2008, or '09, and adapted it.. it originally called for grinding a type of rice down to a powder, to use as a thickener, I opted for corn starch. It also called for galangal, which is comparable to ginger. I added in carrots because I felt they complimented the dish. 

Serves 4 - 6, depending on appetites

1 tsp corn starch
3 tbsp lime juice
1/2 cup chicken stock
3 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 medium red onion, minced
1 stalk lemon grass, bottom portion minced, or 1 tsp lemon zest
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1 cup julienned carrot, optional
1/4 cup mint, chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped, optional
1 tsp powdered ginger
1 lb ground pork, or turkey or chicken
lettuce leaves
2 cups sticky rice (optional)

Poach ground meat of your choice in the broth in a skillet on medium heat, stirring frequently breaking the meat down so it's crumbly and it is cooked through. Add juice, fish sauce, veggies, herbs and seasonings. Stir well for a few minutes so flavors combine. Sprinkle 1 tsp of corn starch and stir well. The corn starch is intended to give a bit of body to the remaining liquid so it coats the mixture, keeping it looking moist and coated with the liquid. Remove from heat and serve, with lettuce leaves alone or include cooked sticky rice.

Vertigo

Prior to last September, I only associated the word "vertigo" with the Hitchcock film, starring Jimmy Stewart and Kim Novak... and then got out of bed one morning, and I felt the room spin as though I was in a barrel. For a bit over a week, I was at the mercy of this condition.. even simple movements like bending, tilting my head, laying down on my back set it off.

Slowly but surely it lessened, and I felt like my old self, but it came back after Christmas. That time it passed after a few days. It reoccurred in January, and my doctor prescribed a medication similar to dramamine, meclizine, that while knocking me out, lessened the symptoms. The vertigo disappeared that time within a week, but in February, it returned with a vengeance, and didn't respond to the medication any longer... which was disheartening, because each recurrence disrupted my ability to get things done...  you don't realise how important the little movements we all take for granted are. Since February, it has come and gone and when each time it returned, it was worse.

I was sent to an ENT, and given a few tests that showed I had meniere's disease.. essentially, a few of the calcium particles we all have in our inner ear that help us balance, got loose.. which cause the dizziness and spinning. I've been getting physical therapy, which has really helped, and I've been vertigo free for almost a week now... and really feel that I will beat this thing. The exercises really help lessen and stave off the bouts of vertigo.

Lazy Daisy Coconut Oatmeal Cake

Anyone else remember the Lazy Daisy cake? My mom made it quite regularly in the '70s. Basically an easy to throw together vanilla snack cake, with a scrumptious brown sugar coconut topping. Tonight while blog hopping, I stopped off at Serious Eats, and found this new take on the Lazy Daisy, an inspired choice of an oatmeal cake base, taken from the pages of a new cookbook, One Bowl Baking by Yvonne Ruperti http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2014/04/one-bowl-oatmeal-cake.html I plan on making this over the weekend, but I couldn't resist sharing it here tonight.

Ingredients

    For Cake:
    1 cup rolled oats
    3/4 cup boiling water
    1/2 cup milk
    1/2 plus 1/8 teaspoon salt
    8 tablespoons (4 ounces) unsalted butter, very soft
    1 3/4 cup (12 1/4 ounces) packed light brown sugar
    2 teaspoons vanilla extract
    2 large eggs
    1/2 cup shredded sweetened coconut
    1 1/4 cups (6 1/4 ounces) all purpose flour
    1 teaspoon baking soda
    1 teaspoon cinnamon
    
    For Topping:
    6 tablespoons (3 ounces) unsalted butter, very soft
    3/4 cup (5 1/4 ounces) packed light brown sugar
    3 tablespoons milk
    2 cups shredded sweetened coconut
    1 cup walnuts (or pecans), chopped

Procedures

    1 Combine oats, boiling water, and milk; let sit 20 minutes. Adjust oven rack to upper and lower middle position and preheat to 350°F. Grease 9- by 9-inch pan.

    2 Add salt, butter, sugar, and vanilla to oat mixture and stir to combine. Stir in eggs and coconut. Add flour, baking soda, and cinnamon to bowl, then stir until completely combined. Pour into prepared pan and bake on middle rack until just set, about 30 minutes.

    3 While cake is baking, mix topping in same unwashed bowl: toss butter, brown sugar, milk, coconut, and nuts to form moist crumbs.

    4 As soon as cake is baked, remove from oven and spread topping over the top. Return pan to oven and increase heat to broil. Briefly heat until topping melts and coconut is lightly toasted, about 1 minute. Transfer pan to wire rack to cool.

Baked Cauliflower and Cheese Casserole

This is another family favorite, the kids at first didn't even suspect they were eating their nemesis, the evil cauliflower :) If you'd rather use less dairy, you can substitute stock for some of the milk. If you're tempted to cut out the cream replace it with milk.

1 large head of cauliflower, cut into 5 to 6 cups of
florets
5 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
3 cups milk
1 cup of heavy cream
1 1/2 cups of cheddar cheese, either shredded or diced I use an 8 oz package of Sargentos Extra Sharp Cheddar
1/2 tsp dry mustard, like Colman's, but you could use 1 tsp of prepared mustard
1/4 tsp nutmeg
3/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the florets and return to a boil, for 2 minutes, you just want to blanch them. Strain, then cut florets into halves or quarters, you want a uniform size.

In a large saucepan, melt 4 of the tbsp of  butter. Sprinkle the flour over the butter and cook 2 to 3 minutes on medium heat, whisking until a roux forms. Add the milk and whisk until the roux dissolves into the milk. Cook sauce on medium-low heat until it starts to thicken. Add heavy cream, mustard, nutmeg, salt, and pepper, and then start adding the cheese, a small handful at a time, stirring until each addition has melted in. Once it's thoroughly combined, turn off heat and stir well. You want a smooth sauce, not thick and pastey.

In small pan melt remaining 1 tbsp butter and then mix in to the panko bread crumbs until the butter is  thoroughly absorbed. Mix in Parmesan cheese.

Butter a 3 quart casserole, then pour in cauliflower, then pour the cheese sauce over that til cauliflower is covered. Sprinkle the crumb/Parmesan mixture over top, and bake in oven for 35 to 40 minutes, and crumb topping is toasty and brown.

Hot Cross Buns My Daughter Made For Easter Breakfast

Makes 12 buns

Dough
3 cups flour
2 tsp breadmaker yeast
1/4 cup superfine sugar
2-3 tsp mixed spice (cinammon, nutmeg, allspice)
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup currants or raisins
1 cup warm milk
2 tbsp butter
1 egg

Flour paste for the cross
1/2 cup plain flour
1/3 cup water

Glaze
1/3 cup water
2 tbsp orange marmalade

Heat the milk gently in a saucepan over medium heat until milk is warm enough to melt the butter. Melt the butter in the warm milk.

Measure and mix all the dry ingredients flour, breadmaker yeast, sugar, spice, salt and dried fruits together. Add the warm milk mixture and the egg to the flour mix and mix until dough comes together. Use floured hands to finish mixing to form a soft dough.

Knead the dough for 10 minutes or until the dough is smooth. At this stage, add more flour if the dough is too wet, or add more water if the dough is too dry.

Place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Set the bowl in a warm, draught-free place (I put it in my oven) for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until dough doubles in size. After proofing, punch the dough down to expel the air, and divide into 12 even portions.

Line a large baking tray with baking paper. Shape each portion into a ball and place in the lined tray about 1 1/2 inches apart. Set the tray aside in a draft free place for 30 minutes for its final rising.

In the meantime, preheat the oven to 400 degrees and make the flour paste by mixing the flour and water in a bowl until smooth. Add more water if paste is too thick. Spoon into a ziplock bag and snip off a corner of the bag. Pipe flour paste over tops of buns to form crosses.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes until the buns are done. When they're
ready, the buns will sound hollow when tapped on the bottom. Make the glaze by dissolving the marmalade in hot water. Brush the tops of the buns with the glaze while the buns are still warm. The buns are best when fresh out of the oven. You can freeze some, unglazed for later.

Bowtie Pasta with Lamb, Eggplant and Yogurt Sauce

I got this recipe from my friend, Diane, after sampling it when I stopped by to borrow a pan. It's her adaptation of a recipe she saw in the NY Times, that's based on the flavors of a Turkish dumpling dish. She said, the version in the paper called for 6 tbsp of butter, but she cut it down to 2. It's absolutely delicious. She uses zucchini, because her husband hates eggplant. I include her instructions if you wish to use zucchini too.

Serves 2 to 3

1 large eggplant, about 1 pound, cut in 1/2 inch cubes, *can also sub zucchini
5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp kosher or coarse sea salt, more to taste
3 large garlic cloves, minced
1 large shallot, minced
1 lb ground lamb
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes, more to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 1/2 tbsp chopped fresh mint *
1/2 pound bowtie pasta
2 tbsp unsalted butter
2/3 cup (1, 6 oz container) of  plain Greek yogurt

* Because zucchini has a high water content, if you substitute it for the eggplant, you need to salt out the extra water from the vegetable, otherwise instead of roasting it will turn to mush. Use 1 1/2 lbs zucchini, cut into 1 inch chunks. Sprinkle the zucchini chunks with salt and lay on a double thickness of paper toweling to drain, for 15 minutes. Before coating with oil to roast be sure to blot  off any residual moisture that hasn't drained off the top of the zucchini chunks with dry paper toweling.
* Diane says if she hasn't any fresh mint, she'll cut open a mint (not peppermint) teabag and use 1 tsp of the dried mint

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Bring a pot of water to boil for pasta. Toss eggplant (or zucchini) with 4 tbsp oil and a large pinch of salt. Spread on a baking sheet (lined with foil to save clean up), making sure there is room between pieces, and roast until crisp and brown, 15 to 20 minutes (keep an eye on it). When done, set aside.

In a large skillet, heat remaining tbsp oil. Add 2 minced garlic cloves and the shallot and sauté until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add lamb, 1/2 tsp salt, red pepper flakes and black pepper to taste. Sauté until lamb is no longer pink, about 5 minutes, drain the rendered fat. Stir in mint and cook for another 2 minutes. Stir eggplant into lamb. Remove from heat.

Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, melt butter until it turns golden brown and smells nutty, watching carefully so it doesn't burn, about 2 to 3 minutes. In a small bowl, stir together yogurt, remaining garlic and a pinch of salt, then stir in melted butter.

Drain pasta well, then toss in lamb-eggplant mixture, then yogurt sauce, then spoon onto serving platter. Sprinkle with more mint if you wish. Serve immediately.

Soba Noodles with Peanut-Citrus Sauce

A fantastic go to recipe, adapted only slightly from the blog Orangette. You can add lots of veggies and kids still love it. I've been making this since 2009, and any leftovers are devoured by the next day. Sorry for the less than attractive picture.

Serves 4, or more

For the sauce:
3/4 cup peanut butter, I use Teddie brand natural peanut butter, unsalted, or almond or cashew butter
3 tsp. soy sauce
2 cloves pressed garlic
1 cup fresh lime juice
1 tsp sriracha, or more to taste
1 tsp chili garlic sauce, or more to taste
4 tsp olive oil
5 tsp cool water

For the noodles:
10oz soba noodles
4 red radishes, large shreds (I use a food processor)
3 carrots, large shreds
1/4 of a raw cabbage, shredded, or 3 stalks of celery, sliced thinly on bias
You can add snow peas, edamame, whatever you have, you think will work
Green onion, cucumber, cilantro, chopped peanut or sesame seeds for a garnish

First, make the sauce. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl, and whisk to blend well. It may look clumpy and funny at first, but keep whisking. It will come together into a smooth, light brown sauce. Taste, and adjust to your liking, before adding more sriracha or chili garlic sauce. If it seems too thick, thin with another tsp of water. Set aside. It's not difficult to whisk this together with a fork, it just takes a few minutes, but your food processor can do the job as well.

Meanwhile, put a large pot of water over high heat, and set a colander in the sink. When the water boils, add the soba noodles, and simmer gently they’re fragile, so don’t boil them hard – until they are al dente, that's roughly 3 minutes. They cook fast, so be careful. Do not overcook.

Drain the noodles into the colander in the sink. Then, immediately, wash them in cool water. Turn on the faucet and, using your hands, pick up small handfuls of soba and separate them between your fingers, taking care that each noodle is rinsed. It helps to remove any starchy residues and keeps the noodles from clumping.

Shake any excess water from the noodles, and turn them into the bowl of sauce. Using two forks, gently toss until the noodles are evenly coated. Add the radishes, carrots, cabbage, etc, toss and serve, topped whatever garnish you prefer.

Coffee Granita

Coffee granita is simple, inexpensive, and a great dessert whether after a fancy meal, or a backyard barbecue. I came up with this recipe back in the late '80s after being served a coffee granita after a meal at a restaurant, and was impressed with the fact that it was delicious and refreshing. I decided to start experimenting with leftover coffee, and then started making other granitas, with pureed fruit, fresh or canned, like peaches. I'd puree a can of cling peaches, freeze the puree (with the vanilla, but no sugar), exactly the way I did the coffee mixture. Then serve with a drizzle of raspberry sauce, calling it Peach Melba granita.

Coffee Granita

Makes 4, 1/2 cup or 3, 3/4 cup servings

2 cups lukewarm strong black coffee
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
small 1/2 pinch of salt
optional, 2 tbsp Kahlua or other coffee liquor

Combine all ingredients and stir until sugar melts. Pour mixture into 1 quart sized rectangular Tupperware or other freezer safe plastic container, cover and place in freezer for half an hour. (Mixture should only come about 1/4 to 1/2 inch up the side of the container.) Remove and using a fork, scrape any ice crystals that have formed on the side or bottom of the pan. Return to freezer and repeat scraping every 20 to 30 minutes for 2 to 3 hrs. Once mixture is thoroughly frozen, fluff with a fork and allow flakes to set again in the freezer for another half hour before serving. Spoon into glasses and top with whipped cream.

Minestone Soup

Serves 4

8 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1/3 lb prosciutto pieces
3 pints water
3 lbs vegetables, made up of of the following: carrots, celery, zucchini, cauliflower, potatoes, fresh peas, garlic, leeks, parsnips, summer squash, turnips
14 oz can borlotti/cranberry beans, drained and rinsed
2 small tomatoes, skinned and chopped
4 oz tubettini or ditilini pasta
Salt and pepper to taste
fresh basil leaves
4 tbsp grated parmesan

Firstly, the vegetable listing is just to give you an idea, use what you have. Heat the oil in a large saucepan. First fry the onion, then add the prosciutto pieces and the water, and let this simmer for an hour. During this time, clean the vegetables and chop into cubes.

Discard the prosciutto pieces and add the vegetables to the pan, along with the drained beans and continue to simmer. Add the tomatoes after a further 20 minutes. After 15 minutes, stir in the pasta. Cook for an additional 15-20 minutes, stirring every so often. Serve hot, sprinkled with basil and parmesan, and with a good crusty bread, like a loaf of ciabatta.

Buttermilk Coleslaw

This is great served with grilled meats, and sandwiches. It's easy to put together with the help of a food processor. Made it Sunday night, and it was ready to serve Monday evening for dinner. All I needed to do was pull out the leftovers of a pork shoulder that I'd shredded. Heat that with a little bit of sauce and I had pulled pork sandwiches to go with it.

Coleslaw with Buttermilk Dressing

Serves 6

1/2 head finely shredded green cabbage
1/2 finely shredded purple cabbage
2 large carrots, grated
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp good quality mayonnaise
1/2 cup buttermilk (I use Kate's Real Buttermilk I'm not compensated, just want to spread the word.)
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/2 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp brown sugar
½ tsp celery salt
1/2 tsp kosher salt

Whisk together the mayonnaise, mustard, brown sugar, vinegar, buttermilk, celery salt, kosher salt, and pepper in a large bowl.  Add the cabbages and carrots and toss to combine.  Cover and chill until serving time.

Trusting God in Suffering

Trusting God in Suffering

Written by Sister Lisa Doty on her blog, Nunspeak:

It seems that of late the Lord has sent a lot more prayer requests my way for
people suffering from serious illnesses and disease, particularly of advanced stages of cancer and lymphoma. I hold them in a particular place in my heart and in my daily prayer; perhaps because I have lost three loved ones to cancer. Perhaps because I also know the power of prayer in having members of my family who are cancer survivors. No matter what the illness, it places the family in the crucible of anguish and uncertainty; wanting to trust in God and hope in him, and at the same time, the waiting gives time for our fears and worries creep up to haunt our faith.

In these very moments where faith is attacked by the violent churning of doubt and questioning, our best defense is the simple utterance (perhaps it takes every drop of energy we have):

“Jesus, I trust in You!”

“Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests by made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 4:6-7

That one’s a bit long for me to remember verbatim, but I have memorized this shorter one from the Prophet Isaiah 26:3:

“You keep him in perfect peace, whose mind rests on You, because he trusts in You.”

Click here to read the rest of this insightful and profound piece.

Linguine alle Noci (Linguine with Walnut Sauce)

A recipe by Mario Batali, I found it while looking for something a bit different to serve for a New Year's eve dinner. It was an instant hit. It's a snap to make, and one of my family's favorite meatless meals.

Serves 6

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/2 cup toasted hard bread crumbs*
1 cup roughly chopped walnuts
1 tbsp hot red pepper flakes
1 pound linguine
1/2 cup roughly chopped Italian parsley
1/2 cup freshly grated pecorino romano

* Batali means homemade breadcrumbs. I toast 2 slices of wheat bread then reduce them to coarse crumbs in my food processor.

Bring 6 quarts of water to a boil and add 2 tbsp kosher salt. In a 14 to l6″ frying pan, heat the oil over medium heat till smoking. Add the garlic and cook until light golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Add half of
the bread crumbs, the walnuts, and pepper flakes and cook until lightly toasted, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Drop the pasta into the boiling water and cook according to the package instructions until 1 minute short of al dente. Just before draining the pasta, add 1/4 cup of the pasta cooking water to the pan with the walnut mixture. Drain the pasta in a colander and pour the pasta into the pan with the walnut mixture.

Place the pan over medium heat and continue cooking the pasta with the walnut mixture until the pasta is lightly dressed with the condiment, about 1 minute. Add the parsley and grated cheese, stir through. Pour into serving bowl, sprinkle with extra chopped walnuts, parsley and the remaining bread crumbs, and serve immediately

Homemade Fruit & Vegetable Wash

Those bottles of cleaners that you see in the produce dept of the grocery store to clean pesticide and wax residue off produce is an expensive option. However, you can easily make your own mixture for a fraction of the cost. You can halve the recipe if you need less.

You will need:

1 spray bottle (clean and never used with chemicals)
2 cups water
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp baking soda

Mix the ingredients in the spray bottle. The liquid will appear a bit foamy.

To clean fruits and vegetables, simply spray the liquid on the food. Let sit for 5 minutes. Rinse under cold, running water, using a soft scrub brush on the food if desired.

Removing Stubborn Adhesive Residue From Painted Wood

Whether it's masking tape used while painting walls and trim or duct tape, sometimes you're left with a sticky residue remaining. I've had several experiences with this, on painted wood, and you don't want to use a solvent.

Pour a small amount of vegetable, corn or olive oil into a bowl, using a wad of paper towels, blot the tape residue with oil. You want it well coated, but not dripping. Let it sit for 60 minutes. Wipe the wood with a clean white cloth to remove the residue and oil. If any residue remains, apply more oil and let it sit for 30 minutes more. Wipe with a clean white cloth, rubbing additional oil until no adhesive residue remains. Add a few squirts of grease-fighting dish detergent, I use regular, Dawn into a small basin of warm water. Dip a sponge or soft rag in the soapy water and wipe the olive oil residue off the surface. Rinse, then dry the painted wood surface with clean, soft cloth.