Alton Brown is my cooking hero. He’s so smart and funny and he can cook like nobody’s business.
And isn’t he just so cute? All nerdy and cook-tastic! And you know you want him to make you a brined turkey.
Category Archives: Savory
Lentil and Cauliflower Curry
I love lentils.
Love is a word I use a lot on this blog. That makes sense I suppose, since I am sharing favorite recipes. Don’t think I love it all though. I don’t love everything. It’s likely I will never write about black licorice, okra, duck, blood sausage, raisins, oysters, or liver. Just so we’re clear.
Cauliflower is so versatile. It’s a low calorie filler that helps make this dish very hearty. And tasty, of course.
Breakfast Summer Rolls
It’s winter. I know this because we finally got some snow here in MI. It was lovely and now we can move on to summer. Spring is nice too but some summer heat is welcome now.
If I can’t have summer heat then I’ll make do with summer rolls. They are crisp and fresh and very adaptable.
These aren’t hard to make. HOWEVER, they will take you some time to put together. There are sort of a lot of steps here. . .ok not sort of. . . there are absolutely a lot of steps involved in making these. They are not speedy. But they aren’t hard. . .I know you can do it!
Mushroom Tacos
Sometimes my meal planning depends on what was on sale or what needs to be used up in my fridge. In this case it was a little of both. Mushrooms were super cheap at the grocery store and I bought 5 boxes so I had to figure out how to use some up.
Mushrooms really eat like meat. They are a good meat substitute and low calorie, too. My brother LOVES them. . . oh wait, no. . .he would rather eat a dirty sock than a mushroom. His wife loves them, though. So you know he has eaten his fair share of hidden fungus in the past 10+ years! (Forget you read that and stop scouring your oatmeal for mushrooms, J!)
Black Bean and Chipotle Chili
We love a good pot of chili. Nothing better on a cold Sunday afternoon. Throw in some shredded cheese and Fritos and Tim is a happy, happy man! Plain Greek yogurt and a tiny scatter of cheese on top for me.
This is my go to chili recipe. And actually I usually just make it by instinct. I just know what goes in to the pot. I had to measure everything and write it down in order to share it with you guys! A lot of my kitchen playing is like that, actually.
Kale, White Bean and Veggie Soup
It’s cold out. I need soup. Preferably something not laden with heavy cream and tons of cheese. So I thought I’d whip this up. I make this kale soup once or twice every winter. And every time I make it I wonder why I don’t make it more often. It’s quite yummy.
I’m over winter. I’m over the cold. We haven’t even had that much snow but since the holidays are over, winter should be over too. I much prefer the heat of summer. Living in Florida for years taught me the beauty of a nice hot day. I would much rather be laying in the sun sweating then freezing under a blanket in the house.
Middle Eastern Spiced Cauliflower, Quinoa and Chickpea Pilaf
Resolutions? What are yours? I am not one to make resolutions. No one sticks to them anyway, do they? And why do you have to choose the first of the year to start something new? Why can’t I decide on May 5th to stop my bad habit of choice or eat better or drink less or stop being a meanie? (I am a real meanie. . .ask around.)
A lot of people resolve to lose weight for the new year. I resolved to do that about halfway through 2011 and have lost an impressive 49 lbs so far! (It impresses me at least.) In the spirit of making sure the holiday eating doesn’t negate my new jeans size, I’d like to whip up a low calorie dinner for us. (Not to say I don’t still love to bake cakes and cookies and pies and bagels. I love it. And clearly I still do bake those things. A LOT. I just use my new found will power and sample a small piece and then send the rest away. My husband’s co-workers are frequent recipients of treats from my kitchen. You’re welcome, boys.)
New Year Day Good Luck Food
Not to rush you or anything, but I want to talk about 2012 today. New Years Eve is nice and all. . .but lets face it. . in the last few years I have rarely made it to midnight. My bed time is generally much earlier. And if I have a single glass of champagne. . . well, that just speeds up the likelihood I’ll be asleep ASAP.
New years day is when I like to shine. I make this meal every year. It’s tradition thanks to my dear friend, Rita.
Turducken
A quick note on Turducken.
We made one for Thanksgiving this year. It’s a cajun thing. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this Frankenstein monster of birds, it’s a Turkey stuffed with a duck stuffed with a chicken and the whole thing is stuffed with layers of cajun stuffing.
We ordered ours online. No place in Michigan sells Turducken. . imagine that.
It was an exciting thing to try on the first Thanksgiving we combined both my family and Tim’s family. We followed the package instructions but used an electric roaster instead of the oven.
It’s boneless except for the turkey legs and wings so you can cut through it in big slices. It was so fun to see the slices after we cut it. And it smelled delicious.
I thought the stuffing was great, the turkey was cooked perfectly. . .but the duck was awful! I am not duck fan. I think it flavored the chicken and that tasted like duck, too. Ewwww. Not for me. I actually spit a bite into my napkin! Discreetly and in a lady like fashion, of course. 😉
As fun as the Turducken was, I think it’ll be our last. It was an awesome novelty to experience once though! Maybe next year we’ll experiment with stuffing different kinds of meats. . .like a large fish with a small fish with some shrimp! HA!
Mushroom Risotto with Roasted Buttercup Squash
I love risotto. I have been making it for years. . the same basic recipe. It’s one of those things I learned to make really well and made over and over. It was one of the first things I ever made my husband when we were first dating. I’m pretty sure it was one of the things that made him first fall in love with me. After 6 years together it is still the dish he requests when I ask him what he is in the mood to eat. Some couples have a song, but I sort of think of risotto as our food. Unfortunately for him, after making it a zillion times, it is not usually my go to dish anymore. Sometimes I forget all about it for long stretches of time.
Sugar Coated Sarah 