Baked Spiced Fish, Raw Kale Salad & Roasted Delicata Squash

We don’t have too many traditions in our family, but a puzzle at Christmas has been pretty consistent. This year, the puzzle was extremely appropriate.

For my last meal at home, we made an Indian baked spiced fish, raw kale salad and roasted maple delicata squash. Traditionally, I don’t love Indian food, but I may have to revisit that opinion because this recipe was delicious. And every other item in this dinner, for that matter. I don’t usually post every part of the menu, but tonight every part was deserving. *Fish recipe from Complete Indian Cooking.

Baked Spiced Fish

4 tablespoons oil
4 ounces shredded coconut
2 inch piece of fresh ginger, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 fresh jalapenos, seeded and chopped
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
4 tablespoons lemon juice (2 lemons)
2 pounds code or white fish steaks
salt

Heat oil in a pan, add the coconut, ginger, onion, chilies, garlic, jalapeno, and chili powder and fry gently until the onion is translucent. Add the cilantro, lemon juice, and salt to taste and simmer for 15 minutes, or until the coconut is soft.

Oil the bottom of a baking dish just large enough to hold the fish. Arrange the fish steaks side by side and pour over the spice mixture.  Bake in preheated oven at 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until the cod steaks are cooked through.

Roasted Maple Delicata Squash

2 delicata squashes, halved and scooped out
4 tablespoons maple syrup
4 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter

Add 1 tablespoon of maple syrup and brown sugar and 1/2 tablespoon butter to each squash half and place in a small pan. Pour 1 cup of water around the squash in the pan and bake at 400 for 1 hour.

Raw Kale and Citrus Salad

1 bunch kale, Chiffonade the leaves (thinly chopped)
2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
3 clementines, peeled, sectioned and halved
1 handful toasted pine nuts

1 lemon, juiced
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper

Combine first 4 ingredients in large bowl. Mix salad dressing together and dress salad 5-10 minutes before serving. * Recipe adapted from Lincoln restaurant in Portland, OR.

Chuck Roast with Potatoes & Rosemary

Belated Merry Christmas/Happy Hanukkah!

 

Mom and I started chopping up vegetables for this bad boy at 7:45am this morning. It cooks in the crockpot for 10 hours! The benefit to that was a wonderful smelling house all day, which was nice to come home to after some good post-Christmas shopping. Served with bakery fresh sourdough rye bread and a salad, it’s perfection. *Recipe from Betty Crocker’s Slow Cooker Cookbook.

Chuck Roast with Potatoes & Rosemary

1 pound red potatoes, cut into fourths
1 cup diced carrots
3-pound beef boneless chuck roast
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves (we left out)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 1/2 cups beef broth
*we added red wine too

Arrange potatoes and carrots in 3 1/2 to 6 quart slow cooker.

Trim excess fat from beef. Mix mustard, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper; spread evenly over beef. Place beef in cooker. Sprinkle onion over beef. Pour broth and wine over meat and vegetables. Cover and cook on low heat setting for 8 to 10 hours or until beef and vegetables are tender.

Remove beef and vegetables from cooker, using slotted spoon; serve in bowls with juices.

Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies

For most people, going home for the holidays means they get to hang out with their high school friends and be home just enough to see their family at meals and  open a present or two. Except, for those of us whose families move away from our high school towns, then family is about all we got. For me, that means a lot of time in the kitchen. These are actually the second batch of cookies I’ve made this week (I made Ranger Cookies on Wednesday). I’ve entered a vicious cycle of snacking, working out, snacking, guilt – and so goes the holiday season.

So, you might as well give in and bake some cookies. *Recipe from Two Tarts.

Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies

1 stick butter, at room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg yolk
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup raspberry preserves

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add vanilla, salt and egg yolk and beat until well combined. Add flour and mix until stiff dough forms. Roll it into a long rope that is about 3/4 inch in diameter and 12 inches long. Roll into wax paper and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes (or up to 3 days). Slice into 1/2 inch rounds, then roll into a ball. Set on ungreased cookie sheet and make thumbprint in cookie. Fill cookies with about 1/4 teaspoon preserves. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until very lightly browned. Let rest at least 5 minutes before moving to wire rack.

Kale, Sausage & Pasta Casserole

After almost 2 weeks of being sick - 2 doctors visits, 2 perforated eardrums and many pain killers later, I'm feeling basically back to normal. Since I can taste again, my normal eating habits are back too, and all just in time for my sister to come visit me! She has been touring around the city by herself while I've been at work the past few days, which is probably for the best since I don't actually read anything in museums nor have the patience for cold/crowds/public transportation. Tonight we cooked together at home and made an adapted version of this recipe that fit our tastes better.

On the side we had honey and lemon glazed carrots: carrots, butter, lemon juice and zest, honey all sautéed together.

Kale, Sausage & Pasta Casserole

1/2 pound wheat pasta
1 yellow onion, diced
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 bunch kale, chopped
2 Andouille sausages, cooked, casings removed and crumbled
14 ounces low fat cottage cheese
1/4 cup mozzarella
1/4 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Preheat oven to 350. Cook pasta until just al dente. Heat olive oil in a large skillet and add onions, cook 2-3 minutes then add garlic and cook about 1 minute. Add kale and cook about 5 minutes until wilted.

Add kale and onion mixture to pot of pasta, along with cheeses and sausage, and stir to combine. Spoon into a large, greased casserole dish and cover with breadcrumbs and Parmesan. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden.

Quinoa Cakes with Spicy Yogurt Sauce

My weekend in NYC was amazing. The most fun I’ve had, maybe ever. But surprise, surprise…I’m sick. Again. Two weeks later. Gotta pay to play, I guess. Luckily I was still able to taste dinner. I cut the recipe in half and made the sauce with yogurt instead of mayonnaise. The original recipe on Spoon Fork Bacon makes about 4 servings.

Quinoa Cakes with Spicy Yogurt Sauce

1 cup cooked quinoa
1/3-1/2 cup grated Fontina cheese
1 1/2 tablespoons flour
1 green onion, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons egg, beaten 
1 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt to taste

1/4 cup Greek yogurt
1 clove garlic, minced
1 to 2 teaspoons lemon juice
cayenne to taste preference
salt and pepper

Combine quinoa, cheese, flour, onion, egg, pepper and salt together. Heat oil in a skillet and drop scoop into pan and flatten. Cook about 4-5 minutes a side. Combine Greek yogurt and the rest of the ingredients together. Top cakes with yogurt sauce.

S’More Bars

Today I took the day off to prepare myself - mind, body and baked goods– for my trip to NYC this weekend. I had a feeling the ROI on an extra hour of sleep and work out would be worth it for the late nights ahead of me. Post work out, I made my favorite breakfast (which I have every morning) plain yogurt, banana slices, granola, scoop of peanut butter, little scoop pumpkin butter. I could eat it for every meal, honestly. Then, because I’ve been going through baking withdrawals, I made s’more bars to bring to Tonya, my host this weekend. Somewhere in this day I’ll also find time to paint my nails, pack my bag, whiten my teeth, shower for the night and make it to Union Station by 4:30. Good thing I took a me-day!

S’More Bars

1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 king-sized milk chocolate bars (or 6 ounces chocolate chips)
1 1/2 cups marshmallow creme/fluff (not marshmallows- they vanished)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light. Beat in egg and vanilla. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt. Add to butter mixture and mix at a low speed until combined.

Divide dough in half and press half of dough into an even layer on the bottom of the prepared pan. Place chocolate bars over dough. 2 king-sized Hershey’s bars should fit perfectly side by side, but break the chocolate (if necessary) to get it to fit in a single layer no more than 1/4 inch thick. Spread chocolate with marshmallow creme or fluff. Place remaining dough in a single layer on top of the fluff (most easily achieved by flattening the dough into small shingles and laying them together).

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

Quinoa & Kale Stuffed Acorn Squash

It' was BEAUTIFUL in DC today. 70, sunny, breezy…not exactly late November weather, but I’ll take it. Katie and I took advantage of the weather and went to Eastern Market for a little shopping. I came looking for earrings, and left with squash and kale. Shocking to no one, I’m sure. So, I surveyed my inventory and came up with this little recipe, while watching Miss Congeniality.

This baked acorn squash would have been fabulous with a drizzle of maple syrup, butter and a little cinnamon – but not this time.

Quinoa & Kale Stuffed Acorn Squash

1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed
1 cup vegetable broth plus 1/4 cup
1 acorn squash
1 tablespoon butter
1-2 tablespoon olive oil
large bunch kale, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
dashes of red wine vinegar
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/3 cup frozen broccoli pieces, thawed
1-2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon dried basil or tablespoon fresh
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
parmesan
bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 375. Slice acorn squash in half and scoop out seeds. Sprinkle salt, pepper and butter inside of the squash. Bake for 45 minutes or until tender. Meanwhile, cook the quinoa in vegetable broth until soft, about 15 minutes. Increase temperature to 400 degrees.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet and add onion. Once soft, add garlic and cook until fragrant. Add kale and remaining vegetable broth to pan and cover. Cook for 5 minutes, then uncover and sauté until liquid has evaporated. Add red wine vinegar, broccoli, quinoa, tomato paste and spices to pan with kale and mix.  Spoon mixture into squash and top with parmesan and bread crumbs. Bake for 5-7 minutes, or until top is browned.

Butternut Squash Soup

I never make soup. But here I am, banging out two soups in two days. Maybe I’ve changed my tune. This soup happens to be for the Thanksgiving. I will be in the presence of great cooks tomorrow, so this soup had to be good to stand up to the rest of the meal. It’s velvety, subtly sweet, and comforting. I will warn you that it took a good chunk of time to peel and chop the apples, onion and squash – other than that, it’s super easy. *This recipe is adapted from the Good Housekeeping cookbook.

Butternut Squash Soup

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 small onion
2 medium butternut squash-peeled, seeded, cut into 3/4 inch pieces
2 medium Fuji apples--peeled, cored and coarsely chopped
14 ounces Vegetable broth
1 and 1/2 cups water
1 teaspoons fresh thyme (or 1/4 teaspoon dried)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup half and half

In a 4-quart saucepan heat oil. Add onion and cook till tender . Stir in squash, apples, broth, water, thyme salt/pepper. Heat to boiling over high heat, reduce heat to a simmer, stirring often until squash is very tender about 25 minutes.

Spoon third of squash mixture into blender puree until smooth. Repeat with rest of soup. If you like some chunky pieces in the soup, reserve some of the soup. 

Return puree to pot. Stir in half and half and heat through, but don't boil. Makes about 9 cups.

Black Bean & Lentil Soup

I woke up Monday morning with a fever, sore throat and pounding headache…Happy Thanksgiving! But for some reason, I have not lost my appetite. Sitting at home has just given me more time to look up new recipes. I’ve had cans of black beans and lentils sitting around that needs to get used. It’s a hearty recipe that’s good for rainy days or sick days, or both like today in my case! *Recipe from Have Your Cake & Eat It Too.

Black Bean & Lentil Soup

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon paprika
4 cups vegetable broth
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/2 cup lentils
1 can black beans, rinsed, drained and partially smashed
1 lime
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
(garnish)
plain Greek yogurt
cheddar cheese

In a large pot, heat the olive oil and sauté the onion until soft. Add the chili powder, cumin, paprika, and garlic; sauté just 1 minute. Add vegetable or chicken broth and tomato paste; bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Add red lentils and cook until tender (about 25 minutes). Add black beans, lime juice, salt, and black pepper; cook five minutes and add water as needed to avoid soup becoming too thick. Top with garnishes.

Hot Cocoa (Coma) Cookies

I’m going to advise you to pour yourself a glass of milk before you continue reading.

Sundays have always lent themselves to baking for me. It’s a way to feel productive, while being indulgent at the same time. So these little suckers grabbed my attention on Pinterest this afternoon. (Are you as obsessed with Pinterest as I am?) There are a few things on that website that get me every time: low backed dresses, rustic cozy furniture and melting chocolate.

There is literally an entire bag of chocolate chips IN the cookies. Not to mention the chocolate pieces on top. Turns out this recipe makes 50 cookies. So, now some lucky friends are going to get a little cookie delivery tonight. *Recipe from Pip & Ebby.

Hot Cocoa Cookies

1 stick butter
12 ounces semisweet chocolate
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 ounces semisweet chocolate (bars)
marshmallows, halved

Melt butter and chocolate in a metal bowl over a pot of boiling water, then set aside to cool for 15 minutes. Combine flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix eggs, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Pour in the cooled chocolate and mix until combined. Add the flour mixture in two batches and cover and refrigerate dough for at least 1 hour.

***During this hour, I made a healthy dinner of baked red pepper jelly salmon over a spinach salad with carrots, green apple and goat cheese.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and spread out on pan covered with parchment paper. Bake for 12 minutes, then take out and top with a piece of chocolate and half a marshmallow. Then bake 3-4 more minutes.

If you’re giving these as a gift, instruct them to microwave the cookies 10 seconds before eating for best results.

In other news, I just saw a commercial for the NOW 40 CD. I remember purchasing the original NOW…I’m feeling incredibly old all of the sudden.

Roasted Garlic Mac & Cheese

Thanksgiving used to be one large meal eaten at my grandma’s house in southern California with my family. This year, I’m having multiple Thanksgiving meals on the opposite coast, one pot-luck style dinner at the home of 4 guy friends plus their 30 closest friends, the other at my used-to-be coworker’s uncles house in Maryland. I’m very thankful  to be included in each of these festive gatherings, but it’s funny how times have changed!

The best part of this change is that I am now responsible for making some of the food for these smorgasbord meals. I can’t say I’m the biggest fan of the traditional Thanksgiving food staples. They’re not bad – and oh, will I eat them – but they aren’t exceptionally exciting to me. How many casseroles can one meal sustain? So, when asked to make a little something for the pot-luck-Thanksgiving-keg-party last night, I tried a more original recipe. *Recipe adapted from Annie's Eats.

Roasted Garlic Mac & Cheese

1 head garlic
1 tsp. olive oil
16 oz. dry pasta
3 tbsp. unsalted butter
3 tbsp. all-purpose flour
3 cups milk
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
10 oz. white cheddar cheese, shredded
4 oz. crumbled garlic and herb boursin cheese, divided
Salt and pepper
1 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
Snipped chives, for garnish (optional)

To roast the garlic, preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Remove most of the outer paper skins from the head of garlic, leaving it intact.  Slice off the top portion of the head so that all of the cloves are exposed at the top, but the head is still intact.  Rub with a bit of olive oil.  Place the head of garlic on a piece of foil and loosely fold the foil up around the head of garlic to create a foil packet.  Bake for 45-60 minutes, or until the cloves are easily squeezed from the skins (be sure to let cool before handling!)  Squeeze all of the garlic out of the skins and smash with a fork to make a paste.

Increase the oven temperature to 400˚ F.  Bring a large pot of water to boil.  Cook the pasta until about 2 minutes shy of al dente according to the package directions.  Drain in a colander.  Return the pasta to the pot and set aside.  Meanwhile in a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium-high heat.  Whisk in the flour and the roasted garlic paste and cook, stirring constantly, until light golden, about 2 minutes.  Whisk in the milk and cayenne.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce comes to a low boil and thickens noticeably.  Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cheddar and about 3 ounces of the boursin.  Whisk until the cheese is completely melted.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Pour the sauce over the drained pasta and add parsley, toss to coat well.  Transfer to a lightly greased 2 quart baking dish and top with the remaining boursin.  Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the top is browned and the cheese is bubbling.  Let cool at least 5-10 minutes before serving. 

Fall Feast, part deux

Enough pumpkin recipes? Never enough! 

This was one of those recipes I'd starred a while ago, just waiting for the right opportunity to make it. Book club is the perfect time to fulfill many of my cooking wishlist items. And a fall feast theme, no less! You can pretty much wing this recipe as long as you taste as you go, you can't really mess it up. 

As for the rest of the feast, we had Trader Joe's butternut squash soup, toasted bread, TJ’s sweet potato pecan bites…and finally, TJ’s pumpkin soufflés.

Spiced Pumpkin Dip

1 Fage 0% fat yogurt cup (6 ounces)
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch pumpkin pie spice

Stir all together. Serve with apple slices (ideally Honey Crisp).

Chicken Sausage & Pumpkin Baked Pasta

In this house, we are all about pumpkin. Tonight I found a way to sneak pumpkin into my pasta, while Quin had pumpkin chocolate chip bread baking in the oven AND we split a Pumpkinhead beer as we cooked. Hat-trick o’ pumpkin! 

We gave our little kitchen a work out this evening.

I <3 making up recipes. You definitely have to be willing to fail once in a while, but luckily this was not one of those times.

Chicken Sausage & Pumpkin Baked Pasta

1/2 pound whole wheat pasta
1 spicy Italian chicken sausage, fully cooked, chopped
1 cup milk
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon flour
1/3 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup cottage cheese
1-2 ounces mozzarella cheese
dashes of nutmeg and paprika
salt and pepper
grated Parmesan
parsley

Preheat oven to 350. Boil pasta until al dente. Make a roux in a large skillet by melting butter then whisk in flour. Slowly pour in milk while whisking and keep whisking until thickened. Turn down heat to low and add cottage cheese, pumpkin, spices and mozzarella. Add in chicken sausage and cooked noodles. Pour into baking dish and top with Parmesan. Bake for 15 minutes. Top with parsley. 

Yumm pumpkin chocolate chip bread with a little plain yogurt and almond milk

Lemon Sardine Pasta

Don't be scared. 

Sardines get a bad name (I think because they're associated with anchovies which have their own stigma) but these little oily fishes are so freaking good for you. They have a bazillion grams of B12, Omega 3, vitamin D, etc. This is actually my first time cooking with sardines, but I had to get over my fear of the decapitated little fish because they're cheap and flavorful. We topped the finished product with a little marinara, and the combination of it all was very tasty.This recipe is a good baby step introduction to sardines, so see what you think. 

  Lemon Sardine Pasta

8 ounces whole-wheat fettuccine
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup fresh breadcrumbs (see Tip), preferably whole-wheat
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 3- to 4-ounce cans boneless, skinless sardines, preferably in tomato sauce, flaked (mine had bones and skin – you can’t tell the difference)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese
Dollop of marinara sauce (optional, but made it great)

(I cut the recipe in half since Quin and I were the only eaters) 

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta until just tender, 8 to 10 minutes or according to package directions. Drain.

Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons oil in a small nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant and sizzling but not brown, about 20 seconds. Transfer the garlic and oil to a large bowl.

Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in the pan over medium heat. Add breadcrumbs and cook, stirring, until crispy and golden brown, 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Whisk lemon juice, pepper and salt into the garlic oil. Add the pasta to the bowl along with sardines, parsley and Parmesan. Gently stir to combine. Serve sprinkled with the breadcrumbs.

--

Naturally, had to have something sweet after dinner so I made do with what I had at hand. Banana, pumpkin butter, chocolate chips, peanut butter, plain yogurt. I microwaved everything besides the yogurt for about 45 seconds. Topped it with yogurt.

Ahhhmazing!

Baked Salmon & Warm Goat Cheese Salad

Hope everyone had a lovely Tuesday. I was feeling a bit eager to get through the work day because of all the things to look forward to when I got home. A good work out, my painting, a delicious dinner, a new episode of Glee. So much to do, so little time!

I've long been a fan of Ina Garten's Warm Goat Cheese Salad with the breaded and fried goat cheese rounds. To make it a meal, I flaked a salmon fillet that I baked with salt, pepper, cayenne and lemon juice and put it on top of the salad. Dressed it up with a Dijon vinaigrette. 

On the side, I had homemade hummus and sweet potato chips I baked last night. Having a mandolin comes in handy! I just thinly sliced a sweet potato, drizzled the slices with olive oil, salt, pepper and paprika, then baked them at 450 for 20 minutes. 

Baked Salmon & Warm Goat Cheese Salad

     1 salmon fillet
     salt and pepper
     cayenne
     squeeze of lemon

     2 slices of goat cheese
     1 egg white
     bread crumbs
     olive oil

     spinach
     cucumber
     sugar snap peas
     carrot, ribbons
     avocado slices

     2 tablespoon olive oil
     1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
     1 teaspoon cider vinegar
     1 clove garlic, minced
     1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
     squeeze lemon juice
     salt and pepper
     (fresh dill would be great in this too)

Sprinkle salmon with juice, salt, pepper and cayenne. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large skillet heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Coat goat cheese slices with egg white and bread crumbs. Fry on each side for about 2 minutes, until bread crumbs are brown. Assemble and dress salad.

Healthy Living

I turned a page a few weeks ago to focus on what’s best for me. I kicked this off with a whole house cleaning. Since I’ve started running a lot more – with the plan to do an 8K in December. Seeing friends and branching out. Playing music loudly. Starting a new painting for my room. And now, eating healthfully. Though I consider myself a pretty healthy eater, my weakness is sugar. The three candy bowls at work don’t help. At all. So I’ve decided to kick that addiction, and have desserts when they’re actually worth it.

After a trip to Target and A.C. Moore, I threw everything but the kitchen sink into my salad. Spinach, sliced apple, sugar snap peas, red onion, cucumber, avocado, craisins, and feta topped with homemade vinaigrette. Carrots and celery with sunflower seed butter on the side.

As for the painting, I’m recreating Monet’s Water Lilies.

For dinner, I made a batch of hummus. It’s cheaper than buying it and it makes a ton.

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

1 16 ounce can garbanzo beans
Juice from one small lemon
2 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and pepper
3-4 large chunks roasted red peppers
2 tablespoons olive oil

Combine all ingredients except the olive oil in a food processor. Turn food processor on and stream in olive oil through the spout, blend until creamy. Taste to make sure it doesn’t need anything!

The hummus and veggie sticks accompanied the main dish, quinoa with vegetables and fried tofu in balsamic vinaigrette.

Red Quinoa with Tofu & Vegetables in Balsamic Dressing

1 cup red quinoa
2 ounces firm tofu, cubed
Garlic salt
Cayenne pepper
Basil flakes
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large carrot, grated to ribbons
Handful sugar snap peas, quartered
1/2 cucumber, sliced
Feta cheese
Balsamic vinaigrette
Salt and pepper
Avocado slices (if you happen to have it around)

In a small pot, add quinoa and 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil then cover and simmer for 15 minutes, or until water is absorbed.

In a skillet, heat olive oil and add tofu. Fry for 4-5 minutes, dusting with the garlic salt, cayenne pepper, basil flakes. salt and pepper to taste. Combine all the chopped vegetables, tofu and cooked quinoa in a bowl. Add feta and drizzle with balsamic vinaigrette. If it needs more punch, add a little balsamic vinegar. Top with avocado.

YUM.

Being self centered can actually feel pretty damn good.

Pumpkin Ravioli with Gorgonzola Sauce

If you've ever wanted to make pasta without really making pasta, this recipe is a must. It looks impressive - and tastes great - but isn't that difficult or expensive. Not to mention, you will be left with lots of leftover wanton wrappers which opens doors to homemade pot stickers, fried banana nutella wontons, dumpling soup...

I found this recipe on Cooking Lights website, so I'm pretty sure that means it's healthy. The only time consuming part is stuffing and sealing the wontons, and this recipe yields about 30 to 35 ravioli. And the gorgonzola cream sauce? I was scraping my plate clean (after both servings). 

Therefore, I'm going to make a strong suggestion that you just make it. To make it lighter just replace the sauce with Parmesan and olive oil like i did with these leftovers, it’s still fabulous.

Pumpkin Ravioli with Gorgonzola Sauce

1 1/4 cup canned pumpkin
2 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons fresh grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh sage (I used dried)
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
30ish round (I used square) wonton wrappers
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon flour
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup (2 ounces) crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
3 tablespoons chopped hazelnuts (optional)

Add pumpkin, breadcrumbs, Parmesan, salt, sage, pepper and nutmeg to a bowl and mix. One by one, spoon 2 teaspoons pumpkin mixture into the center of the wrapper. Brush the edges of the wrapper with a damp paper towel and fold in half, pressing edges firmly to create a triangle or half moon. Place on a large baking sheet sprinkled with cornstarch. Repeat with remaining wrappers. 

In a large pot of lightly boiling water, add ravioli in batches and cook for about 4 minutes or until done. Remove with slotted spoon and keep warm in serving bowls while the others cook. 

Meanwhile, make a roux by melting butter in a skillet and adding flour. Whisk flour and butter together for about a minute to cook out raw flour taste, then slowly add the milk while constantly whisking. Continue whisking for about 5 to 7 minutes, or until sauce starts to thicken (be patient!). Add the Gorgonzola and stir until melted. 

Fall Feast with Apple Tarts

What was supposed to be our book club meeting turned into a fall feast for two. I had planned to bring easy apple tarts and Molly had stocked up at Trader Joe's with crackers, cheeses, butternut squash soup, and wine. Tonight was much more my speed, especially since I had only scanned the SparkNotes once again... In my defense, I've read 1984 before, so I was hoping to pull from previous knowledge from 9th grade English.

I threw together the apple puff pastry desserts at Molly's and sat down to our spread.  

Friends are the cheapest therapy :)

Easy Apple Tarts

1 package puff pastry
2-3 granny smith apples, sliced thin
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 1/2 cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
lemon or orange zest
apricot jam, warmed

Roll out the puff pastry and cut into 2" squares - or use a fluted cutter - and place on lined baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes. While still warm, brush with warmed jam and let cool.

District Commons

I promise I'm not holding out on you, I just haven't been in the mood to cook the past few weeks (so unlike me). I realized that cooking all the time can make you very antisocial. So I decided to shake things up and make more of an effort to see friends during the week and make Monday through Thursday a little more exciting. This definitely hurts the wallet, but who knows how long I'll keep this up once it starts snowing outside.

(Image from website) Anywho, last night Evan and I met up with our friend Molly for dinner at District Commons - a new restaurant in Foggy Bottom. It has a very big city feel, an awesome bar (that actually has 99 bottles of beer on the wall!) and creative food. Not to mention, one of Evan and my favorite beers on draft: Speakeasy's Big Daddy IPA. We discovered it on our trip to San Fran and have searched for it since.

We ordered the Pig Board to share. Velvety prosciutto, marinated cherries, fresh butter and biscuits.

For dinner, I got the smoked salmon flatbread. A base of cool dill marscapone cheese, crumbled hard boiled egg, capers, red onion and chives. I ate it all.

In retrospect that may not have been the best idea, as I didn't feel too good afterwards. But it was a good night!