Lights, Camera, Action!

14. April 2011 · 4 comments · Categories: Brunch, cooking, Dinner, food, recipes, Savory, Side dishes, vegetarian · Tags: , , ,

This past weekend I helped Nate out. Technically, I guess I was employed by him (he didn’t pay me for my services, but I’m just nice like that). You see, Nate went to NYU film school and has aspirations of being a writer/producer in film or tv. His jobs haven’t really given him the opportunity to do any writing, so to keep his creative juices flowing and build up a “reel” (as they call it in the entertainment world) he has been writing some short films just for fun. This weekend he has actually gathered some friends in the same industry into a crew to shoot this short- it included a camera guy, assistant camera guy, sound guy, Nate and me.

Nate was both the director and the actor…such a talented boyfriend I have! I told Nate he should do acting more often because he’s so funny…he makes the best faces and is so good at keep a straight face and not cracking up when he says something funny. I’m hopeless at that. He just has to give me one look and I burst into laughter.

I’m so excited because I got to be the person who slams the thing together (which Nate has told me is called a slate) and yells “take 3!”

But in addition, I was given the more important task of catering lunch for his crew. Since I was working on the set both of those days and had to make it ahead of time, it couldn’t be anything too fancy, but at the same time I didn’t want it to be ordinary.

I pulled out a few of my fave recipes for portability and came up with a menu for the two days of lunch I needed to provide. Day 1’s menu included our family favorite recipe for Chilled Chinese Noodles, a yummy Hoisin Chicken, and some fresh fruit salad with mint and lime. For dessert I made the secret recipe that I can’t give out yet because I’m entering it in the Pillsbury Bakeoff next week. This was my fifth batch and after much tweaking I think I finally have a winner…well let’s hope! Day 2 will recycle the chicken into one of my all-time favorites- Curried Chicken Salad, which i usually make low fat, along with hoagie rolls, leftover fruit and dessert. No crazy complex recipes, but definitely enough to satisfy some hungry men.

After watching these guys shoot for two days, I have a much greater appreciation for all that goes into film making. I could never be in that business though, because honestly, I lack the patience. Having to shoot the same scene 4 times is tedious. But I’m totally pysched to see the finished product :)

Below is the recipe for the Chilled Chinese Noodles that is, in my opinion, the best of the bunch. They’re all delicious though, or I wouldn’t put them on the blog. The rest of the recipes will be posted over the next week, so…

“Cut!”


Chilled Chinese Noodles
I have no idea where this recipe came from, but my mom’s been making it forever!

Print this recipe!

serves 8-10 hungry people, as a side dish

1 lb. angel hair pasta, cooked and drained
1/3-1/2 cup peanut oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
6 scallions, whites & green separated, chopped fine
1/2 cup soy sauce
4 Tbsp cider vinegar
2 Tbsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp pepper
4 cups mung bean sprouts (you can leave them out if you can’t find them, or add something similar)

Drizzle noodles with 2 Tbsp peanut oil, toss well.

In skillet, heat 6 Tbsp. peanut oil. Add garlic & whites of scallions. Stir on high 1 min. Remove from heat.

Stir in soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, pepper. Pour over noodles. Stir in sprouts and greens of s callions.

Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hrs.

 

Spring is here!- Carrot Orange Pudding Souffle

11. April 2011 · 11 comments · Categories: Baking, Brunch, cooking, food, recipes, Side dishes, vegetarian · Tags: , , , , , ,

Call me crazy, but I love cold weather. The first brisk day in autumn when I get to wear a sweater makes me the happiest girl. Sure, when the temps dip into the teens come winter, I try to avoid being outside for extended periods of time, but something about the frigid air is so refreshing.

But by mid-january, I’m kinda over all the layering. I’m over having to remember to take my scarf, hat, and gloves out the door every day (and freezing my face off on the days when I forget).  So when the weather hit the 50s the other day, I got a little giddy. I guess maybe I like spring more than I’d let on.

With the milder temperature days slowing creeping in, and the holidays approaching, I’ve been trying to come up with a recipe that just screams spring. I knew that in order to encompass this season completely, it had to be bright, fresh, warm, refreshing, light and airy. I wanted something that could be served at any spring holiday meal.

I was going to make something with squash but my mom told me that’s too wintry and suggested carrots. I knew right when she said it that I’d have to make some sort of carrot pudding/souffle.

The orange color is so bright it reminds me of all the beautiful flowers that start popping up at this time of year. I added a touch of orange zest and juice to give it a citrusy and fresh aroma.  The orange/carrot combo is a delicious one.

I wasn’t sure how it would turn out when it was in the oven, but as soon as I took it out I knew it was exactly what I wanted. Fluffy and delicious, it was everything I’d hoped.

I made this recipe with matzo meal instead of flour, and margarine instead of butter to be sure that it could translate well for Passover (not all recipes do), but obviously using flour and butter would work equally well, if not better and could be served for Easter brunch/dinner.


Carrot Orange Pudding Souffle
Recipe by Me

Print this recipe!

serves 6-8

1 3/4 lbs carrots, peeled and chopped
1 Tbsp fresh orange juice
1/2 cup margarine/butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
zest of 1 orange (about 1 Tbsp)
3 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp matzo meal/flour
Powdered sugar for garnish

Preheat oven to 350.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add carrots and cook til tender, about 30 min. Drain and transfer to a medium bowl. Mash with a potato masher or fork. Add orange juice and mix. Cool to room temp.

Using an electric mixer, beat margarine/butter til creamy. Beat in sugar and zest til blended. Add eggs and beat til blended and slightly more voluminous. Mixture may look curdled but that’s ok.

Add carrots to egg mixture and blend.

In a small bowl, combine salt, baking powder and matzo meal/flour. Stir completely to blend. Pour into a 2 quart baking dish.

Bake 1 hr 15 min or until top is golden brown. Best served at room temperature or cold. Dust with powdered sugar before serving if desired.

*Note, I double checked and baking powder IS kosher for Passover :)

 

A Delicious Hors D’Oeuvre: Spinach Balls

07. April 2011 · 6 comments · Categories: Appetizer, Baking, Brunch, cooking, food, recipes, Savory, vegetarian · Tags: , , ,

Note: I’m still working on another Passover recipe or two, so check back next  week!

When I was growing up, my mom used to have company over fairly often. Whether it was a casual dinner party, a holiday meal, or small catering job, there were certain foods that were her entertaining staples. One of her favorites was a pass-around spinach ball hors d’oevure, both because of its simplicity and its popularity.

My brother and I were usually given the task of rolling the mixture into balls before putting them in the oven, and then later arranging the cooked ones on a platter and sticking a decorative toothpick in each one for serving. I don’t think that there was ever a time during this process that my brother and I didn’t eat at least 2 spinach balls ourselves for every dozen we nicely arranged on the tray.

Whenever I smell them baking in the oven, I am instantly transported back to those special occasions. Start making these now and I bet they’ll soon be making memories for you as well.


Spinach Balls

Print this recipe!

Makes 32 pieces

6 eggs, beaten
2- 10 oz. pkg frozen cooked chopped spinach, thawed & well drained
2 medium onions, minced
1/2 cup fresh parmesan cheese, grated
1 1/2 sticks butter, melted
1/2 tsp or more salt, to taste
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp pepper
2 cups herb stuffing mix

Combine all but stuffing, mix well. Add stuffing, mix, and set aside for 1/2 hour.

Form heaping teaspoonfuls into balls. Bake at 350 for 20 min on a greased baking pan. Serve hot.

*Can be frozen raw
**I didn’t feel like rolling them ALL into balls, so I put about half in a small casserole dish and just cooked it for a little longer and it came out just as good, although a little greasier since the oil couldn’t run off anywhere. But if you get lazy, this is another option.

 

Savory Soda Bread a.k.a Giant Cheesy Biscuit!

28. March 2011 · 6 comments · Categories: Baking, Bread, Brunch, cooking, food, recipes, Savory, Side dishes, vegetarian · Tags: , ,
So I know I’m several weeks late for St. Patrick’s Day, but I was already late for Purim, so I was just trying to continue the trend.  Plus, since this recipe is very different from traditional soda bread anyway, it’s really just like a giant cheesy biscuit. The simplest of the simple to accompany any weeknight dinner.
This bread uses one bowl and you don’t even have to dirty your counter or get out your rolling pin!

Traditional soda bread contains sugar and usually raisins, but since I wanted it to go along with a savory dinner I wanted something a little different. I compared a bunch of recipes and kind of combined them all, plus added cheddar because everything’s better with a little cheese.

 


Cheesy Soda Bread
Recipe by Me

Print this recipe!

serves 4 people (or 1 Nate)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup milk, or as needed
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 egg

Preheat oven to 375. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a bowl, mix the flour, salt and baking soda until well combined. Add in milk, several tablespoons at a time, until the mixture forms a soft dough (add additional milk if too dry).

The dough will be sticky. Add cheddar cheese and mix until you can handle dough without it sticking too much to your hands. Knead dough in bowl until cheese is fully incorporated.

Roll dough into a ball, flatten slightly. Put on baking sheet and brush with beaten egg. Slice dough in half,  pressing knife at least halfway through the loaf, but not completely severing. Repeat in other direction, forming loaf into 4 equal quarters, still connected on the bottom.

Bake in preheated oven until golden brown, 50 min. or longer if needed.

 

Hamantashen! (filled shortbread cookies)

24. March 2011 · 12 comments · Categories: Baking, Brunch, cooking, Dessert, food · Tags: , , , ,

For those of you who don’t know, Hamantashen are Jewish cookies/pastries  recognizable by their three-cornered shape. The shape is achieved by folding in the sides of a circular piece of dough, with a filling placed in the center. They are traditionally eaten during the Jewish holiday of Purim (sorry this recipe is a little late, as Purim was on March 20th). Hamantaschen are made with many different fillings, including prunes, nut, poppy seed, date, apricot, apple, fruit preserves, cherry, chocolate, dulce de leche, halva, or even caramel or cheese.

Poppy seed, prune and jam are the most traditional of the fillings. In fact, I never even knew of those other combos, but Wikipedia informed me of them.

Wikipedia also taught me something else new…the singluar of hamantashen is actually hamantash. I think that’s a fact that few jews know, as you usually hear people say “I just ate a hamantashen.” Well, thanks Wikipedia!

These cookies are named as a reference to Haman, the villain of Purim, as described in the Book of Esther. In Hebrew school I always learned that they were shaped in a triangle because that is the shape of the hat that Haman wore. But in my research for this blog post, I found out that the pastries are actually supposed to resemble the “ears of Haman.” Personally, I think that hat story is better. Who wants to eat an ear?! Well, unless it’s an Elephant Ear ;)

I thought it would be fun to have my great (and oldest!) friend, Erica, bake these up with me. I’ve known her since I was just a wee 4 year old :) So the two of us baked up a storm this weekend and produced lots of Hamantashen, while chatting it up and having some girl time…in my opinion, the best way to bake!

*Please note that all cookies shown are Erica’s. She made hers nice and pretty  and didn’t get greedy with the fillings and overfill them like I did. Hers came out cute and attractive while mine were ugly and messy.

In making this recipe there are some tips I learned:

1. DO NOT OVERFILL the cookies. If you do, they will explode and all the filling will ooze out. I teaspoon should be plenty for attractive cookies. If you don’t care how pretty they are, then fill as much as you want, because they still taste good :)

2. Do not roll the dough too thin or the cookies will not keep shape as well. 1/4″ is the perfect thickness.

3. Make sure the rolled-out and cut dough is cold before you try to form the cookies or they will stick to your hands and not to themselves.

4. Make sure the cookies are cold and firm before putting in the oven. Put them in the freezer for at LEAST 20 min. If you don’t, the cookies will spread way too much in the oven and the filling will ooze out.

5. Cool thoroughly after removing from oven.

Now, without further ado, the recipe :)


Hamantashen

Adapted from the New York Times
Yields about 20 cookies

1 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 large egg yolks
8 ounces unsalted butter at room temperature, in small pieces
Grated zest of 1 lemon
2 1/4 cups all-purpose unbleached flour
Dash of salt
1 large egg, beaten, for the glaze
Various fillings: jam, chocolate chips, nutella, or anything your heart desires

1. Put the confectioners’ sugar and the egg yolks in a food processor and blend. Add butter and lemon zest and process to blend. Gradually add the flour and the salt, pulsing until it forms a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour or overnight. 2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 pastry sheets with parchment paper. 

3. Roll out the dough to 1/4-inch thickness. If dough is too soft at this stage, refrigerate rolled-out dough for 20 min or until firm.

4. Use a round cookie cutter or glass to cut 2.5-inch circles. Put a heaping teaspoon of the filling in the center of each, and press up the sides to form triangles. Brush the tops with beaten egg. Put trays of cookies in freezer for about 20 min or until very firm.

5. Remove cookies from freezer and bake until golden and dough is delicately firm all the way through, about 20 minutes. If trays are on different racks, switch them after about 10 minutes.

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