No-yeast Cilantro Chickpea Flatbread

22. September 2011 · 48 comments · Categories: Appetizer, Baking, Bread, Brunch, Dinner, food, recipes, Savory, Side dishes, Uncategorized · Tags: , , ,

I’ve been on a flatbread kick lately. But not just any flatbread…flatbread that doesn’t require yeast, is quick to make, and has the delicious, doughy, flaky bread consistency.

Lucky for me I have a new food buddy who came to the rescue. I’ve recently reconnected with a friend from high school, Emily, who was living abroad in Paris for the last two years and just moved back to nyc.

It’s very exciting to have someone I can discuss food/cooking/recipes with :) I have a lot of other friends who like food, but liking food and knowing how to cook it are two very different things. Emily actually has a food blog as well that has some great recipes!

So when I told Emily about my flatbread dilemma, she provided me with two recipes, both based on the Indian roti bread. I kind of combined them into one puffy, flavorful masterpiece that I highly recommend. It goes extremely well with an Indian Spiced Chicken and Butternut Squash Stew that I will be posting in the next week.


Yeast-Free Cilantro Chickpea Flatbread
Adapted from Bon Appetit

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makes 8- four inch flatbreads

3/4  cup unbleached all purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 cup garbanzo bean flour
2 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
3/4 cup (or more) plain low-fat yogurt
Olive oil (for frying)

Combine first 6 ingredients into medium bowl. Whisk to mix. Stir in cilantro.

Add yogurt and stir with fork until small clumps form. Knead mixture in bowl just until dough holds together, adding more flour or yogurt by tablespoonfuls for soft and slightly sticky dough. Turn dough out onto floured surface. Knead just until smooth, about 1 minute. Divide dough into 8 equal pieces.

Roll each piece into ball, then roll each dough piece out on floured surface to 4 1/2-inch round. Brush large nonstick skillet generously with olive oil; heat over medium heat.

Working in batches, add 3 dough rounds to skillet; cook until golden brown and puffed, adjusting heat to medium-high as needed to brown evenly, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer flatbreads to platter; serve warm. 

A Recipe for the Last Weeks of Summer: Roasted Corn with Lime, Parmesan and Chili

12. September 2011 · 62 comments · Categories: Brunch, cooking, food, recipes, Savory, Side dishes, vegetarian · Tags: , , ,

I’ve had this recipe sitting in my blog drafts for a while now. But now that it’s September, and corn season is almost over, I figured I’d better get my butt in gear!

This, my friends, is one of the tastiest ways I’ve ever enjoyed corn. Now, I will say that I love a good ear of corn in the summer, and when it’s really good I like it simply steamed or grilled with a tad of butter and some salt. I almost hate to cut it off the cob and mix it with stuff, because then you can’t taste the delicious, sweet corn flavor.

Therefore my advice to you is to only make this when you happen to cook up some corn, nibble on it a bit, and find that it’s sub-par. This will prevent any bouts of “corn guilt.” So if you happen to have corn that’s starchy and bland, then this recipe will turn your corn disappointments around. Or, if you happen to live in a corn field and have ample corn at your disposal, then this will suit you as well.

Either way, you should definitely find a way to make this before September ends. It’s creamy, tangy, rich, fresh, and delicious and you will not be sorry…even if you happen to use the last of your good corn.


Roasted Corn with Lime, Parmesan and Chili
From food52(You can print this recipe from the food52 site :))

Serves 2

Ingredients:

3 medium ears corn
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon mayonnaise, at room temperature
1 tablespoon sour cream, at room temperature
¼ cup milk, at room temperature
Juice of 1 large lime, plus wedges for serving
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan
Generous pinch of cayenne

Heat the oven to 400 degrees.

Shuck the corn and cut the kernels from the cobs, tossing them in a bowl with the olive oil and plenty of salt and pepper.

Spread the kernels evenly on a large rimmed baking sheet and roast for 15 to 20 minutes, scraping and turning over the kernels once or twice, until they’re tender and lightly caramelized.

Put the corn back into the bowl and stir in the mayonnaise, sour cream, milk, lime juice, Parmesan and cayenne. Taste and adjust any of the flavorings, including salt and pepper, if necessary. (If the corn is at all sticky, just add some more milk.)

Serve immediately, with lime wedges, while still warm.

A Light and Tasty Treat: Cider Poached Pears

25. August 2011 · 28 comments · Categories: Brunch, cooking, Dessert, food, recipes · Tags: , , , ,

While Nate was enjoying his birthday cake leftovers for days, I was feeling kind of left out on the dessert-front. It’s not that Nate wouldn’t share his leftovers with me, it’s more that I didn’t think I needed to be eating such a high calorie dessert every night…at least until I start working out regularly again :(

But I’m the kind of person that needs a little something sweet after meals. I’m pretty sure I can thank my dad for that nasty little habit.

Anyway, I figured if I made a dessert on the heatlhy side, it would satisfy me plenty while Nate chowed down on cake.

As you know, I still have lots of cider in my fridge, so I thought I’d put it to good use. In my search for cider recipes, I came across one for Cider Poached Pears with a Yogurt sauce. I altered it slightly, based on ingredients I had available, and the result was totally delicious.

And the best part is that when Nate walked into the apartment, he said that it smelled “like cider.” What an awesome natural air freshener! And it even made it feel a little closer to fall :)


Cider-Poached Pears with Honey Yogurt Sauce
Adapted from Curtis Stone

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Serves 8

Ingredients:

2 cups apple cider (non-alcoholic!)
2 oranges, juice (approx 1 cup), one zested and one peeled, peels reserved
2 cinnamon sticks
1 vanilla pod, split lengthways
4 pears, peeled, halved and cores removed with Parisian scoop (melon baller)
1 containter 2% Greek yogurt
1 1/2 Tbsp honey
1/4 tsp cinammon or more as desired

Preparation:

Put first 3 ingredients in large pot. Scrape seeds out of vanilla bean and add seeds and bean to pot. Bring ingredients to a boil.

Add the pears and cook at a gentle simmer for 10-20 minutes or until a paring knife inserted into the pears meets a little resistance. Cooking time will be determined by the ripeness of the pears.

Remove from heat and allow pears to cool in the poaching liquid.

Once cool, remove pears from liquid and set aside.

Return poaching liquid to medium heat and reduce to a glaze.

In small bowl, combine yogurt, honey and cinnamon.

To serve, slice the pears in quarters from top to bottom, place in the center of four serving plates, spoon over some yogurt and drizzle with glaze.

When life gives you…

04. August 2011 · 26 comments · Categories: Baking, Bread, Breakfast, Brunch, Cake, cooking, food, recipes · Tags: , , , ,

…lemons brown bananas, make banana bread!

My mom recently decided to bestow 3 extremely brown bananas on me. I suppose not everyone would appreciate such a gesture, but I was ecstatic! It’s rare for me to remember to buy bananas, and even less likely for me to have ones ripe enough for a perfect banana bread.

If you’ve ever made banana bread with yellow bananas, you’re doing it wrong. Even ones heavily mottled with brown spots aren’t quite there. The best bananas for bread have to be brown and so soft that they’re falling apart. If you happen to have bananas in this state and don’t have time to be baking banana bread, remove the peel and put them in a ziploc in the freezer until you’re ready.


Please don’t forget to peel them before you freeze them. I made this mistake once, and that’s all it took. It’s literally impossible to remove the peel, and just messy after it defrosts. Trust me.

Anyway, I wanted to make some changes to my family’s absolute favorite banana bread recipe. I’m not one to alter perfection, but I had some buttermilk leftover from making baked chicken fingers, and didn’t want it to go to waste. I also, for some unknown reason, had the idea that I wanted to throw some polenta into the recipe to give it a little crunch.

When I first took the bread out of the oven and cut myself a slice, I wasn’t sure what to think. It wasn’t the bread I was used to, and I’m not big on change.

But when I had another taste the next day, I kind of liked the subtle, crunchier texture. I mean, it’s not the recipe from childhood, but that’s ok. I can always go back to the old recipe, but I think this one might stick around for a while.


Chocolate Chip Polenta Banana Bread

Recipe by Me

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Makes 1 loaf

1 cup sugar
1 egg
3 ripe bananas, mashed
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1 cup flour
1 cup polenta
1/2 cup light buttermilk
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325. Grease bottom of a loaf pan.

Mix together sugar and egg, by hand or with mixer. Mix in bananas, butter, and buttermilk.

In a small bowl, mix together flour, polenta, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add to banana mixture.

Stir in chocolate chips. Pour into loaf pan.

Bake 50-60 minutes til golden, and toothpick comes out clean.

A Cold Summer Meal- Tuna Pasta Salad

25. July 2011 · 24 comments · Categories: Brunch, cooking, Dinner, food, recipes, Savory · Tags: , , , , ,

I check out tons of blogs on a daily basis, both for enjoyment, and to get recipe inspiration. You can see the blogs I follow regularly under my Blogs I Follow Tab at the top of the page.

In my blog surfing, I often come across blogs I’ve never seen before that I absolutely love. Anyway, the other day I was doing my reading and stumbled upon a blog called Pass the Sushi and was immediately drawn to the Creamy Chicken and Pasta Salad recipe she had posted that she got from Food Network Magazine.


For some reason when I looked at it, I immediately got a craving for a tuna noodle pasta salad. I guess that’s the last time I’ve had small noodles like she used in a pasta salad. Also, I’m not a huge fan of chicken, or cooking it, so I thought canned tuna was the perfect alternative. 

I slightly altered the recipe to make it a little more tangy, and it totally hit the spot! It’s perfect for these hot summer nights when you just want something cold to eat.


Tuna Pasta Salad
Adapted Food Network magazine

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Serves 5-7

Ingredients:

10 ounces tubetti or other small tube-shaped pasta1 1/4 cups 2% Greek yogurt (or mix of 2% and 0%)
1/2 cup light mayo
1/4 cup water
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp dijon mustard
1/2 cup chopped fresh dill
1 Tbs chopped fresh chives or scallions
2 tsp salt
2 5-oz cans chunk light tuna in water, drained
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 English cucumber, quartered lengthwise, then each piece halved lengthwise again (i.e. cut into 1/8ths), then seeded and diced
Freshly ground black pepper
8 cups mesclun greens
1/3 cup dried cranberries

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook as the label directs. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking.

Meanwhile, whisk the yogurt, mayonnaise, 1/4 cup water, the vinegar, mustard, dill, chives, and salt in a medium bowl. Add the celery and cucumber to the dressing and gently stir to combine. Dump in the drained tuna, breaking up if there are big chunks, and stir to combine

Shake the excess water from the pasta and add it to the tuna salad. Season with pepper and toss. Serve over greens with cranberries sprinkled on top.

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