Archives for March 2015

Greek Lamb Shells

March 25, 2015 by Ginger Leave a Comment

Greek Lamb Shells

Have you heard the song by Meghan Trainor “It’s All About That Bass”? I love the beat and the chorus “I’m all ’bout that bass, ’bout that bass, no treble” but I don’t sing it like that, no for me it goes something like this, “It’s all ’bout the sauce, ’bout the sauce, nothing else”. That’s why I love this recipe for Greek Lamb Shells so much, they’re delicious, but the Tzatziki sauce knocks it out of the park.

Here’s what you’ll need for the Lamb shells:

Container of Vegetable Stock
16 oz ground lamb
7 oz Feta (we use a sheep/goat combination brand by Mt. Vikos)
10 oz chopped spinach (we use the frozen option, just thaw and squeeze out the water)
1 small shallot finely chopped
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp salt
dash of granulated garlic
Box of large pasta shells

Tzatziki:
1 small container Goat Yogurt
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
3 or 4 large fresh Basil leaves, chopped fine
1/2 tablespoon Shallot, chopped fine
Juice of 1/2 Lemon
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 or 2 cloves of Garlic, chopped fine, if you want

For the Tzatziki, combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and let it sit in the refrigerator for an hour to a day or two to let the flavors combine.

In a skillet cook the lamb until done. Drain off most of the oil, and put the lamb into a bowl. Into the skillet cook your shallot until translucent, then add the spinach. Stir for a few minutes to separate the spinach then add the meat back into the skillet. Add all the herbs/spices/salt and stir the mixture well. Turn off the heat and set the skillet aside to cool.

While it’s cooling, heat a pot of water to boiling and add the pasta. You’ll cook the pasta to almost al dente, the shells will finish cooking in the oven. It’s also time to get your oven pre-heating to 400 degrees F.

Just before the shells are ready add your feta to the meat mixture stirring well.

Pour the shells into a strainer and run cold water over the shells. This will stop the cooking process AND you won’t burn your fingers when you stuff them with the meat.

Now for the fun part.. into a baking dish pour enough of the vegetable stock to cover the bottom, maybe 1/4 inch or so, then stuff the shells and place them (opening side up) into the dish. Cover with tin foil and bake about 30 mins.

Serve with Tzatziki Sauce and pecorino cheese.

Chai Pumpkin Cookies with Kahlua Frosting

March 19, 2015 by Ginger Leave a Comment

Chai Pumpkin Cookies

I’d like to be able to say that these cookies are healthy – think of all that pumpkin! It’s a fruit for cryin’ out loud! But alas, these cookies are only delicious, I can’t claim they are healthy. No matter though, grab a cup of coffee, or a steaming cup of Earl Grey and enjoy!

For the cookies:

1. Begin by setting your oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In an electric mixer whip the following until it’s “light and airy”:
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup softened unsalted butter

3. To the mixture combine well:
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 beaten egg
1 tsp vanilla

4. The dry ingredients are next, combine these together and then add the dry mixture to your bowl and mix well:
2 Tablespoons Chai Powder (I use David Rio’s Tiger Spice Chai purchased at World Market)
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt

Spoon generous tablespoons onto a baking sheet (I use nonstick baking mats in mine) and bake for 10 mins. These cookies don’t really spread out, but remain pretty much in the “footprint” you put them in. You’ll know they are done when the cookie gets a golden brown appearance on it’s edges.

As they are cooling it’s time to make the Kahlua frosting:

In a saucepan over medium heat, bring 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar and 3 Tablespoons of butter to boil. I recommend bringing it up to boil slowly, but stir constantly, you don’t want the sugar to burn in your pan. Once it’s bubbling begin to take note of the hot mixture, it will begin to get very thick, remove from heat. This should only take about 30 seconds or so after the boil (at least on my stove). Set the saucepan aside and let the mixture cool (about 10 mins).

Now add 2 Tablespoons of Kahlua and 1/4 cup of milk. Stir well, eventually the sugar will incorporate evenly into the mixture. At this point you’ll need to add powdered sugar until the frosting gets thick enough to almost spread. Using your 1/2 cup measure add 1/2 cup of powdered sugar, mix and then add more as needed. I use about 2 cups worth of powdered sugar to get the right consistency.

To frost the cookies place a small dollop on top of the cookie and it should still have enough viscosity to gently spread out over the top of the cookie with the help of gravity.

This recipe is modified from a wonderful recipe found on the Pillsbury website.

White Chocolate Snickerdoodles

March 11, 2015 by Ginger Leave a Comment

White Chocolate Snickerdoodles

This recipe begins 40 years ago. I know because in 2nd grade I signed the inside cover of the book. In the 70’s my elementary school participated in the Scholastic Book Club and I was always excited to choose and receive my new books. This particular book had a recipe a month and May (Peanut Butter) and October (Snickerdoodles) were my favorite. Jump forward in time where a chance encounter brought me face to face with a person who not only bought the same book while in elementary school but whose favorite recipe was in October. Of course we married and are cooking happily ever after – what cookies have joined together let no man put asunder!

Tonight, Snickerdoodles are hooking up with some colorful white chocolate Easter candy for a match made in heaven…or your kitchen.

For the dough:
1/2 cup softened butter (room temperature is fine)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1-1/4 flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup white chocolate Easter candy (such as M&M’s)

Cream the first two ingredients together then add the egg and mix well. Into another bowl combine sift together the dry ingredients (except the candy). Now add half the dry mixture to the wet and mix well, then add the remaining mixture, and mix well. Carefully fold in the candy and gently incorporate into the dough. Pour out the dough onto a sheet of parchment paper and carefully fold it closed (basically wrap it up). Set in the refrigerator to chill for an hour.

After tidying the kitchen, heat your oven to 400 degrees F and prepare a cookie sheet with either a baking mat or a sheet of parchment paper. When the oven is ready mix the coating in a bowl:

1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
1 Tablespoon cinnamon

Roll balls of cookie dough (about an inch in diameter or so) and then coat in the sugar/cinnamon mixture. Place on cookie sheet careful to leave space for the cookies to spread out.

They took about 10 minutes in my oven. Keep a watch around the edges, even with the cinnamon you will see a distinct light crust forming on the bottom – they’re done! Let cool and serve with milk.

Do It Yourself Chicken Soup

March 4, 2015 by Dan Leave a Comment

Chicken Soup

Simple meals can be the best meals. Tonight’s recipe is really a canvas upon which your guests, or family, can create their own masterpiece. By providing hot stock and a selection of ingredients it allows for more time at the table enjoying lively conversation and togetherness. No meal is truly complete unless it can be shared with those you care about, and that my friend is nourishment for the spirit!

For this dish you’ll need:

Chicken stock (2 boxes, 3 if you are feeding more than 4 or are really hungry)
One box of your favorite pasta
Whatever vegetables look good or you are growing in your garden (We used Sweat Potato, Turnip, Brussel Sprouts, Broccoli, Carrot and Mushrooms)
Chicken (a roasted chicken from the grocery store works great)
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
Green Onion
Parsely

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Cut your vegetables into bite sized or smaller pieces, toss with Olive Oil, Salt and Pepper. Place on a cookie sheet and roast 20-30 minutes (longer for bigger pieces) or until they begin to brown and get soft.

While the vegetables are roasting place one box of chicken stock in a large pot, add at least an equal amount of water and bring to a boil. Add the noodles and cook until tender. (You may need to add water while they cook, just keep an eye on the level of your liquid). Cooking in the stock will give the noodles some flavor of their own!

Place your remaining boxes of stock in a pot and heat to boiling, reduce the heat and keep simmering until the rest of your ingredients are ready.

While everything is cooking, strip the meat off of your chicken and cut into bite sized pieces. You can separate white and dark meat if that is important to your guests and simple enough to do!

Once everything is cooked, place the vegetables and chicken on a plate or in separate bowls, as you prefer. Place the noodles in a large bowl. Now for the fun part. Put all of the ingredients out on the table. Let your diners assemble their soup and add the stock. Top with green onion and or parsley.

Enjoy.

Time saving idea…

March 2, 2015 by Ginger Leave a Comment

One of my pet peeves when cooking was always forgetting simple substitutions and measurements. How many teaspoons in a tablespoon? Ounces in 2/3 cup? What can I substitute for butter? So a year ago I created a chart of the measurements and substitutions that I needed to always remember in my culinary adventures. Tonight I thought I’d share this with you as a time saving tool if your memory is in the same boat as mine.

I made this chart to fit INSIDE the cabinet door of my spice shelf, the go-to door when I’m cooking. Since I taped it on the inside it’s like my secret, nobody knows it’s in there. <maniacal laughter ensues>

I’m providing you the master Power Point file so you can customize the slide to fit YOUR cabinet if you want one too. Mine is approximately 24.5″ high and 14″ wide. Your cabinets might have different dimensions. Because this is an editable master file, you can remove or replace substitutions, such as my substitutions for dairy, eggs and wheat.

Unless you are blessed with your own wide media poster printer, there should be a retailer in your town that can print the chart for you. Mine is printed on semi gloss poster paper (so thicker like card stock).

The inside of your cabinet door quietly announces it’s unused potential each time you open it. Consider blackboard paint, for a clever place to write your grocery list; or some sheet metal to hang magnetic spice holders. Be creative – it’s your kitchen!

Food substitutions PowerPoint slide