.bread bowls.

..okay, so i am really sorry i have been neglecting my posting! i really have been cooking every tuesday night, it's just that i have been too busy to find the time to post..so get ready for a bunch of posts! anyways, getting back on track, a few tuesdays ago i wanted to try making bread bowls! and surprisingly they actually turned out really well! i made one of my favorite soups to go in it, Gypsy Soup!

the soup in the bread bowl.

Recipes:

Bread Bowls

Ingredients:

2 (.25 ounces) packages active dry yeast

2-1/2c. warm water

2tsp. salt

2Tbsp. vegetable oil

7c. all-purpose flour

1Tbsp. cornmeal

1 egg white

1Tbsp. water

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.

2 Add salt, oil, and 4 cups flour to the yeast mixture; beat well. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well with an electric mixer at medium speed after each addition.

3. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 6 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes.

4. Punch dough down, and divide into 8 equal portions. Shape each portion into a 4 inch round loaf. Place loaves on lightly greased baking sheets sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover and let rise in a warm place, free from drafts, until doubled in bulk, about 35 minutes.

5. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a small bowl, beat together egg white and 1 tablespoon water; lightly brush the loaves with half of this egg wash.

6. Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Brush with reaming egg mixture, and bake 10 to 15 minutes more or until golden. Cool on wire racks.

7. To make bowls: Cut a 1/2 inch thick slice from the top of each loaf; scoop out centers leaving 3/4-inch-thick shells. Fill bread bowls with hot soup and serve immediately.

Gypsy Soup

Ingredients:

4Tbsp. olive oil

2c. chopped onion

1/2c. chopped celery

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2c. peeled, diced sweet potatoes

2tsp. paprika

1tsp. basil

1tsp.salt

Pinch of cinnamon

Pinch of cayenne pepper

1 bay leaf

3c. chicken broth

1T. soy sauce

1tsp. turmeric

1-1/2c. chickpeas

1c. chopped tomato

1/2c. chopped green pepper

Directions:

    Heat olive oil. Saute onion, garlic, celery, and sweet potatoes for 5 minutes. Season with paprika, turmeric, basil, salt, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, and bay leaf. Blend, and then add broth and soy sauce. Simmer 15 minutes. Add tomatoes, chickpeas and green peppers to soup. Simmer 10 minutes more. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. 

Cooking for a Jockey

... at the beginning of december my brother Jesse came home for the holidays! this year he moved out to kentucky to go to jockey school. one of the important things that it takes to be a jockey is being the perfect weight. a jockey his age should weigh 115 with the saddle. so he has to be constantly keeping track of how many calories he consumes. he tries to only eat 1,300 calories a day. so when tuesday night came around i tried to make something that was nutritious and did not have a lot of calories. i made Baja Stir-Fry with rice, apples, and a fresh garden salad.

this is his plate. there are 388 calories on it.

this a picture of his calorie counter on his phone. this is how he keeps track of how many calories he has taken in.

Jesse riding his horse Ellie, jockey style

Jesse riding on the race track in Kentucky

...Jesse has his own blog about his experience of trying to become a jockey. he posts about once a week. it's pretty interesting to get an insight into a jockey's lifestyle. this is the site to his blog http://myracetothekentuckyderby.blogspot.com/

Baja Stir-Fry

Ingredients:

1/4 cup fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (1-pound) chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided
2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
1/2 red onion, cut into wedges
1/2 cup julienne-cut yellow bell pepper
1/2 cup julienne-cut green bell pepper
1/2 cup julienne-cut red bell pepper
1/2 jalapeño pepper, minced
10 cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
Directions: 
1 Combine first 4 ingredients.
2. Sprinkle pork with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper; toss. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon canola oil; swirl. Add pork, and cook for 3 minutes, browning on all sides. Remove pork from pan; keep warm.
3. Heat pan over high heat, add remaining 1 tablespoon canola oil, and swirl to coat. Add onion, and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add the bell peppers and jalapeño; stir-fry for 1 minute. Return pork to pan, and stir-fry for 1 minute. Stir in broth mixture, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, and bring to a boil. Remove from heat, and stir in tomatoes. Sprinkle with cilantro.
Nutrition Information:
Calories 221; Fat 9.8g(sat 1.3g. mono 5.3g, poly 2.5g); Protein 25g; Carb 7.4; Fiber 1.9g; Chol 74,g; Iron 1.6mg; Sodium 536mg; Calc 22mg 



 

a chicken pot pie.

... i was craving a chicken pot pie last tuesday night, so i went to my go to place to find a recipe, all recipes. it is seriously one of my favorite sites to get recipes from. i picked one of the more popular ones that they had and it turned out to be as good as the reviews. Instead of using store-bought pie crust i made my own from scratch. I also made the baked apples that i made earlier with my crispy pork to go with it.

before i baked it.

all done.

and the apples.

THE recipe:

Chicken Potpie

Ingredients:

1c. diced, peeled potatoes

3/4c. and 2Tbsp. sliced carrots

1/3c. chopped onion

1/2c. butter or margarine

1/2c. all-purpose flour

1tsp. salt

1/2tsp. thyme

1/4tsp. pepper

1-1/2c.  chicken broth

3/4c. milk

2c. cubed cooked chicken

1/2c. frozen peas

1/2c. frozen corn

9" double crust pie.

Directions:

1.Place potatoes and carrots in a large saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 8-10 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain and set aside. In a large skillet, saute onion in butter until tender. Stir in the flour, salt, thyme and pepper until blended. Gradually stir in broth and milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Add the chicken, peas, corn, potatoes and carrots; remove from the heat. 

2.Line a 9-in. pie plates with bottom pastry; trim even with edge of plate. Fill pastry shell with chicken mixture. Roll out remaining pastry to fit top of pie. Cut slits or decorative cutouts in pastry. Place over filling; trim, seal and flute edges.

3.Bake  potpie at 425 degrees F for 35-40 minutes or until crust is lightly browned. Let stand for 15 minutes before cutting. 

 

pretzel bread and soup!

...last tuesday night it was freezing outside and i thought it would be the perfect night for soup! and it was a great chance to try out this new recipe i found for spinach tortellini soup. i also made some pretzel bread to go with it which is delicious! and it actually tasted like a real pretzel.

Pretzel Rolls
the dough:
7-1/2c. all-purpose flour
1tsp. salt
3 Tbsp.  canola oil
2 tsp. active dry yeast
1-1/2c. milk, slightly warmed
1c. water, slightly warmed
Coarse sea salt for sprinkling
the bath:
7c. water
1 Tbsp. salt
4Tbsp. baking soda

In a small container, mix yeast with warmed milk and let rest for 10 minutes.

Whisk flour and teaspoon of salt in a large bowl.

Add canola oil and warmed water to yeast mixture.

Pour mixture into bowl with flour.

Knead in the bowl until dough is very smooth.

Cover the bowl with a dish towel and let rise for one hour.

Punch down dough and knead in bowl for one minute.

Cut dough into 15 pieces.

Form balls by pulling the dough under.

Place on well-greased surface. Let the dough balls rise for 15 minutes.

While the dough balls are rising, preheat the oven to 400 degrees and get the pretzel bath ready.

In a large pot, bring water, salt, and baking soda to a rolling boil.

Plunge three dough balls into the water and let them "poach" for 1 minute on each side.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer them to a well-greased baking sheet.

 With a serrated knife, cute 2-3 lines across each roll and sprinkle with coarse sea salt. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until pretzels are a rich brown*

*these are best eaten the same day they are made.

and of course the soup!

Spinach Tortellini Soup

Ingredients:

3 small red potatoes, peeled and cubed

2 medium carrots, sliced

1 celery rib, chopped

2 Tbsp. plus 1-1/2tsp. chicken bouillon granules

2 qt. water

3 c. cubed and cooked chicken

1 pkg. (10 oz.) spinach, chopped

1tsp. dried parsley flakes

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/4 tsp.salt

2 pkg. (9oz. each) refrigerated tortellini

1 small onion

Directions: 

1. In a dutch oven combine the potatoes, carrots, celery, onion, bouillon, and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat: cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

2. Stir in the chicken, spinach, parsley, garlic powder, oregano, pepper, and salt: return to a boil. Add tortellini; cook uncovered, for 7-9 minutes or until tortellini is tender.

Mexican:)

... mexican food is one of my favorite types of food right alongside italian. last tuesday night i made enchiladas with spanish rice. and mexican cupcakes! the enchiladas were very easy and a lot of fun to make. for the spanish rice recipe i used my grammy's recipe, which i have never tried making myself; but it was very delicious and i think i will most definitely be making it again soon! and the cupcakes were amazing, too.

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cupcakes
With: Cinnamon Butter Cream Frosting

Ingredients above, plus 1 c. of boiling water, hence the tea kettle.

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 standard cupcake pans with liners, or coat with non-stick cooking spray. 

In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to mix together the sugar, eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla, until blended.

2. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.

 Gradually add to the sugar mixture, until the mixture begins to come together.

Very slowly add the boiling water, and blend until the mixture is smooth.

Ladle or scoop the batter into the cupcake tins, filling 3/4 full.

Bake the cupcakes for 15-18 min. until a toothpick inserted into the center of each one comes out clean.

Cool the cupcakes in their pans on wire racks until cooled.
And for the frosting!

the ingredients: 

In a bowl with an electric mixer, stir the sugar, to aerate it.

Add the butter, vanilla, cinnamon, and 1 tablespoon milk, and beat on high speed until the frosting is spreading consistency. If the frosting is stiff, add a few more drops of milk, beating after each addition. Frost the cooled cupcakes.

and voila!

Now for the enchiladas

and the spanish rice!

the recipes:

Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken breast  
2 cups (8 ounces) pre-shredded reduced-fat 4-cheese Mexican blend cheese  
1 2/3 cups plain low-fat yogurt  
1/3 cup butter, melted  
1/4 cup chopped onion  
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper  
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed reduced-fat, reduced-sodium cream of chicken soup (such as Healthy Request), undiluted
1 (4.5-ounce) can chopped green chiles, drained
8 (8-inch) flour tortillas  
1 tablespoon canola oil  
Cooking spray  
1/2 cup (2 ounces) finely shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese  
1/4 cup chopped green onions 
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Combine first 9 ingredients in a large bowl. Remove 1 cup chicken mixture; set mixture aside.
3. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Working with 1 tortilla at a time, brush oil over both sides of tortilla. Add tortilla to pan; cook 5 seconds on each side or until toasted and soft. Remove from pan; arrange 1/2 cup chicken mixture down center of tortilla. Roll jelly-roll style; place filled tortilla, seam side down, in a 13 x 9–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Repeat procedure with remaining 7 tortillas, remaining oil, and remaining chicken mixture. Spread reserved 1 cup chicken mixture evenly over enchiladas. Cover and bake at 350° for 20 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle evenly with cheddar cheese and green onions; bake an additional 5 minutes or until cheese melts. 
 Spanish Rice
Ingredients: 
1-1/2c. raw long grain rice
1/2c. olive oil
1-1/2c. tomato juice
1-1/2c. water
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1-1/2tsp/ salt
Directions: 
Saute raw rice in oil until golden brown. place in crock pot with all remaining ingredients. Stir well. Cover and cook on low for 4 to 6 hours. (High 2-3 hours)
 

famers' market pizza and triple chocolate cake?? yes, please!

...last tuesday night i had the pleasure of cooking for the Hodel family. my parents were gone for the week so they had the pleasure of watching out for me:) it's a good thing they came over so i could have someone to cook for; otherwise this post would probably be how to cook a frozen pizza to perfection. i made a triple chocolate cake for them and a farmers' market pizza. i love pizzas that don't have a sauce and just rely on the the veggies to give it the flavor.

the pizza....halfway gone. i forgot to take a picture of it before serving it.

and the cake.

..so i decided to make a short little video of me making the cake.  it was a lot of fun to make. enjoy!

Recipes:

Local Farmers' Market Pizza

Hands on time: 32 min.

Total time: 60 min.

 Ingredients:

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups thinly sliced onion
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
2 cups thinly sliced red bell pepper
5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 cup fresh corn kernels (about 2 ears)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 (16-ounce) refrigerated fresh pizza crust dough
Cooking spray
5 ounces thinly sliced fresh mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup (1 1/2 ounces) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/3 cup fresh basil leaves
 Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425°. Position an oven rack in the next to lowest setting. Place a 16-inch pizza pan on the rack.
2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil to pan, and swirl to coat. Add 2 cups onion and thyme to pan; cook for 3 minutes or until the onion is tender, stirring occasionally. Add bell pepper and garlic to pan; cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add corn, salt, and black pepper to pan; cook for 1 minute or until thoroughly heated.
3. Roll dough into a 16-inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Remove pan from oven. Coat the pan with cooking spray. Place dough on pan. Arrange mozzarella slices evenly over dough. Spread the corn mixture evenly over cheese, and top with Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Bake at 425° for 23 minutes. Arrange tomatoes evenly over pizza; bake an additional 5 minutes or until crust is browned. Remove from oven; sprinkle with basil. Cut into 6 slices.
 
SIDE NOTE: due to the limited grocery store that is closest to me, i was not able to use the parmigiano - reggiano cheese

Triple Chocolate Cake
 Ingredients:
Cake:
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa, divided
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
Cooking spray
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
6 tablespoons butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 large egg whites
1/2 cup fat-free sour cream
8 ounces cake flour (about 2 cups)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Filling:
1/3 cup fat-free milk
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Dash of salt
4 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped
3/4 cup frozen fat-free whipped topping, thawed
Glaze:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
3 tablespoons fat-free milk
2 teaspoons butter
1/8 teaspoon instant espresso granules
Dash of salt
1 ounce bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. To prepare cake, combine 1 cup boiling water and 1/2 cup cocoa. Add 2 ounces bittersweet chocolate; stir until smooth. Cool to room temperature. Coat 2 (8-inch) round metal cake pans with cooking spray; line bottoms of pans with wax paper. Coat wax paper with cooking spray; dust pans with remaining 1 tablespoon cocoa.
3. Place 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar, 6 tablespoons butter, and 1 teaspoon vanilla in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed 1 minute. Add egg whites, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add sour cream; beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add flour mixture and cocoa mixture alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture; beat just until combined.
4. Divide batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs clinging. Cool 10 minutes in pans on wire racks. Remove from pans; cool on wire racks. Discard wax paper.
5. To prepare filling, combine 1/3 cup milk and the next 3 ingredients (through dash of salt) in a saucepan over medium-low heat; bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Cook 1 minute or until thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add milk chocolate, stirring until smooth. Pour into bowl. Cover and chill. Uncover; fold in whipped topping.
6. To prepare glaze, combine powdered sugar and remaining ingredients in a saucepan over low heat. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Place 1 cake layer on a plate. Spread filling over cake, leaving a 1/4-inch border. Top with remaining layer. Drizzle glaze over top of cake, spreading it out over edges. 

Crispy Pork Medallions and Pumpkin Pie

..i love pumpkin. it is seriously one of my favorite foods. like once my mom made some pumpkin bread and i ate practically one whole loaf all by myself in one night. i just can't ever get enough of it. so one day when i was searching the web i came across this recipe for a double layer pumpkin pie, and i just had to try it! and i loved it! it was so good. i also made these crispy pork medallions. it was very easy and fast to make, and i got to use something new: panko, which is a type of Japanese breadcrumb. i had never used panko before but i was really glad i tried it. it was perfect; it was soft but still had a great crunch to it. i also made roasted root vegetables to go with the pork. and i cooked them in a broiler pan, which i had never used before. it was a night of new and delicious things.

the pork.

the vegtables.

 all dished up.

and the double layer pumpkin pie!

Recipes:

Double Layer Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients:

(1) 8" graham cracker pie crust

4oz. creme cheese softened

1T. evaporated milk chilled

1T. granulated sugar

1 1/2 c. frozen whipped topping thawed

1 c. evaporate milk chiled

(2) pkgs. of vanilla instant pudding (3.4 oz. each)

1 can (15 0z.) pure pumpkin

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

Directions:

Combine cream cheese, 1 tablespoon of evaporated milk and sugar in large bowl with wire whisk until smooth. Gently stir in whipped topping. Spread on bottom of pie crust.

Pour 1 cup of evaporated milk into bowl. add pudding mixes. Beat with wire whisk for 1 minute. Stir in pumpkin and spices with wire whisk until well mixed. Spread over cream cheese layer.

Refrigerate for 4 hours or until set. Garnish with additional whipped topping, if desired.

Crispy Pork Medallions

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 (1-pound) pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut into 8 medallions
1/2 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Directions: 
1. Preheat oven to 450°.
2. Rub mustard evenly over pork medallions. Combine panko, thyme, parsley, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Dredge pork in panko mixture. Heat a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add pork; sauté 2 minutes or until golden brown. Turn pork. Place skillet in oven; bake at 450° for 8 minutes or until pork reaches 145°. Let stand 3 minutes.



Roasted Root Vegetables
Ingredients:
8 ounces quartered small red potatoes
2 thinly sliced carrots
2 thinly sliced parsnips
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
Directions:
Preheat oven to 450°. Combine potatoes, carrots, and parsnips in a medium bowl. Add olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic; toss well to coat. Arrange vegetable mixture on a rack placed in a broiler pan. Bake at 450° for 28 minutes, stirring after 10 minutes.

Grilled Chicken:)

...so i grilled for the first time all by myself! and turns out i love to grill now. i was just in chicago recently and went on this food tour and one of the stops was at a spice shop. it turned out to be my favorite stop in the whole tour. it was so much fun to go around the store and taste all the different spices, which sounds kinda weird because i would have never pictured tasting spices straight up but it was actually really fun.

 the shop.

i bought the awesome italian dressing seasoning there

 

 i marinated my chicken in this for about 10 hours.

        after 10 hours i turned the grill on and i made a garden salad and cooked up some butter potatoes.

thanks to my awesome sous chef joseph, the master of chopping and dicing, i had help making the salad and potatoes!

                                              grilling! i was so nervous i was going to burn the chicken!

                          drum roll please .............(dadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadad)

 grilled chicken that is actually NOT burnt or underdone! now that i am not so scared of grilling i think i will start grilling all the time instead of making my dad do it for me. oh yes and the thanks go to him for teaching me how to grill.