Sunday, January 30, 2011

Random Food Adventures

So I don't do much blog-blogging. I just like to share recipes I've found, modified, or created. But, there are some things I'd like to share that don't particularly have a recipe, or I'm unwilling to share. First of all:
My roommate and I had make baked goods for the tenants in the other 5 apartments in our complex. This time, we made white and chocolate almond bark covered mini pretzels, ms. field's blue ribbon chocolate chip cookies, and some coconut macaroons (not made by us unfortunately). I will eventually remake and post the chocolate chip cookie recipe, but the thing is our crappy hand mixer died at the beginning of this adventure, so I couldn't properly cream the butter and sugars, and it killed the texture. I'm bringing a new one back up to the apt. this weekend (I was at home to watch the KU vs K-state basketball game at Allen field house on KU campus. EXCELLENT times). If I'm a very lucky girl, one of my friends who lives in the dorm will decide to bring up her kitchen aide and let me host the baby. I'd take very good care of it... We'll see. Anyhow, some of the people we were going to deliver baked goods to were not at home. Thus, my roomie came up with this excellent ransom note. : ) It reads:
ATTENTION :
WE ARE HOLDING YOUR BAKED GOODS HOSTAGE. IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO SEE THEM DEVOURED BY TERRIFYING SPACE MONKEYS, MEET US AT APARTMENT SIX. COME ALONE, THE PASSWORD IS SWORDFISH.

Next thing on the list: Kaiser rolls from "The Bread Baker's Apprentice". I'm quite pleased with myself. This was many days in the making. I'm not going to share the recipe (for some reason I have more regard for the sanctity of things in books), but just know it was super awesome, with very nice, explicit instructions. As I said, though, it takes many days. The bread base takes starting and overnight, then the rolls themselves take all day to do the steps, which go something like (do x, wait 45 mins, do x, wait 2 hours, do x, wait 2 hours, do x, wait 20 mins, do x, wait 45 mins, do x, wait 20 mins, cook for 30 mins)


Below: Quite possibly one of the best food blog pictures I've yet to take.


White Bean Soup


White Bean Soup

Ingredients:
bag of white beans, cooked (i used navy beans)
6 cups of broth (I used 6 cups water and 3 vegetable bullion cubes)
diced sauteed onion,
salt
pepper
rosemary

Instructions:
1. Bring broth to a boil in a large enough pot to hold everything.
2. Add everything to broth, and return to a boil.
3. Blend soup until desired consistency (whether hand blender or traditional blender).
4. Reheat in pot until desired heat, not bringing it back to a boil.





Oven Shish Kabobs




Oven Shish Kabobs
Adapted from suite101

Ingredients:
1 block tofu
1 onion
18 pineapple chunks
1 bell pepper
skewers (metal or wooden)

Marinade Ingredients:
2 t. curry powder
1 t. srirachi sauce
1 t. salt
1 t. ground pepper
1/2 onion diced
2 T. lime juice
2 t. brown sugar
1 T. soy sauce

Instructions:
1. Drain and cut tofu block into 9 even pieces. Press tofu by wrapping in a paper towel, setting on a plate with a lip, setting another plate on top of, and then setting something heavy on top of that plate. Leave for at least an hour.
2. Combine all marinade ingredients, mixing as well as possible. Pour off water that left tofu, and place in container with a lid where all tofu can sit on the bottom. Cover tofu with marinade, put lid on the container, and let it marinate overnight in the fridge(flip once half way through if possible).
3. Preheat oven to 425 F.
4. Chop into 1"x1" chunks the onion and pepper.
5. On a skewer, place your onion, pepper, pineapple, and tofu chunks. Make sure nothing is touching, and hopefully all pieces should be about the same size.
6. Place on baking sheet, and bake in the oven until the vegetables are cripsy on the edges (15 mins or so).

Apple Dessert Pizza

My brother came up for the weekend, and I asked him if he wanted pizza. He said yes, and we went to the local pizzaria. While there, he wanted a slice of dessert pizza. $2.50 a slice! Outraged and unwilling to pay such fees, I told him, I will make you a dessert pizza. And here it is. : D

Turned out deliciously. Took the leftovers to a party the evening I made it and it got good reviews.


Apple Dessert Pizza
from cooks.com

Ingredients:
2 9-inch pie crusts, uncooked
6 or so apples
1 cup sugar, divided
3/4 cup flour
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t nutmeg
1/2 cup butter

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Roll out pie pastry into a circle to fit on a pie pan.
3. Core apples, and cut into thin slices (1/4" thick or so). Layer on top of pastry.
4. Combine half sugar with the cinnamon and nutmeg, and pour evenly over apples.
5. Combine flour, remaining sugar, and butter. Mix together until a nice grainy paste is formed.
6. Layer as evenly as possible on top of the apples.
7. Bake for 40 minutes making sure not to burn the dough on top.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Stuffed Peppers


This is one of my classic recipes, and I've been making it for years. Deliciousness!


Look at the shiny-ness of that Walmart pepper. You just know it's covered in wax.



Stuffed Bell Peppers with Rice, Tomatoes, and Vegetarian Sausage Crumbles

Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked rice
2 large bell peppers
1/2 cup morning star italian sausage crumbles
3 oz. tomato paste
1/4 cup prepared tomato sauce
shredded cheese for sprinkling (I used a cheddar mix)
1 T. olive oil

Instructions:
1. Place rice and 1.5 cups water into a sauce pan, place over high heat. When it comes to a boil, immediately turn down to low heat, and cover with a lid. Cook for 15 mins.
2. Preheat oven to 375 F, and heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.
3. Saute the it sausage crumbles until desired texture (either just warmed up, or crispy)
4. Combine cooked rice, crumbles, tomato paste, and tomato sauce.
5. Cut the peppers in half length-wise, cut out stem, and remove seeds and the white edging to make a nice hollow opening.
6. Using a regular sized spoon, stuff the peppers as much as possible. You will probably have some of the rice mixture left over.
7. Place peppers on a baking sheet or pizza pan, and top the peppers with cheese, making sure to clean up any spilled cheese from the pan.
8. Bake for 40 minutes in oven.

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies


Deliciousness in disk-form. My personal taste is that they need to be more chocolaty, but still these are worth making.

Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies
recipe from neighbor

Ingredients:
1 - 8 oz. brick cream cheese, room temp.
1 stick butter, room temp.
1 egg
1 t. vanilla
1 bx moist chocolate cake mix
confectioner's sugar, for dusting

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. In a large bowl, cream cream cheese and butter with electric mixer until smooth. Beat in egg, then vanilla, then cake mix.
3. Cover and refridgerate for two hours.
4. Roll chilled batter into T. size balls, and roll in confectioner's sugar. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 12 mins.
Note: The cookies will remain soft and "gooey".