Any Cooking Going on Around Here?

So no new exciting dinners lately... sort of sticking with the old standbys (roasted chicken, chicken tenders, ribs, black beans, etc.) but we have tried out a couple new recipes that are worth mentioning:

Scintillating Sangria
From TheCitySisters.com (http://www.thecitysisters.com/entertaining/scintillating-sangria)
1 12-oz can frozen lime concentrate
1 12-oz can frozen orange concentrate
1 bottle Cabernet
2 liter bottle grapefruit soda

Mix the first 3 ingredients well and put in freezer. When ready to serve, pour in pitcher and add the grapefruit soda. Surprisingly tasty.


Corn, Tomato, and Avocado Salad
This has been a staple in our house for a couple of years. It is such a great summer salad, great for pot-lucks, surprisingly fresh tasting (one of those dishes that the sum of the parts tastes better than you'd expect from the list of ingredients)
2 cups fresh grilled corn
1 diced avocado
1 pint halved cherry tomatoes (or a couple chopped up larger tomatoes works just fine)
1/2 cup finely diced red onion
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

2 T olive oil
1 T lime juice
1/2 tsp lime zest (just grate the zest from one lime)
1/4 tsp salt

Combine corn through cilantro in a large bowl. Mix olive oil, lime juice, salt and zest in a small bowl. Add to corn, avocado, tomato mixture. Serve.


Fruit on the Bottom Baked Oatmeal
From Pioneer Woman's Tasty Kitchen

1 1/2 cups fresh fruit (thinly sliced if something like apples, etc.) (I use 2 cups)
1/2 cups milk
2/3 cups maple syrup
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup butter, divided
2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
2 1/2 tsps baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
4 T raw sugar
1/3 cup sliced almonds (I've left these out many times and it works fine without them)

Preheat oven to 350. Melt butter, pour 1/4 cup into the bottom of a 9-inch square baking dish. Arrange sliced fruit on top of the butter and sprinkle with 2 T raw sugar. Set aside. (When I've made with berries of any sort, I've not put in the melted butter and I've added some cinnamon sugar)

In a medium bowl, mix together milk, maple syrup, eggs, remaining butter and vanilla.

In a large bowl, whisk together oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix well. Pour over the fruit and smooth the top. Sprinkle with almonds and remaining 2 T raw sugar.

Bake at 350 for 40 to 50 minutes or until browned on top and fruit is bubbly. Allow to cool slightly. Serve with milk, cream or vanilla sauce.

July 4th

Okay, so not a lot of exciting cooking going on around here... the most exciting thing lately (if you want stretch things by calling it exciting!) was our block party for July 4th. Each family was supposed to bring something to grill and then a side dish to share. Our family and the family next door were hosting the event so I planned to bring a little extra.

We brought our favorite ribs:
They are Brown Sugar and Bourbon Ribs from Epicurious.com

Basting sauce
1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1/2 cup apple butter
1/4 cup bourbon whiskey
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons apple cider
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard Ribs
1 tablespoon coarse kosher salt
1 tablespoon (packed) golden brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 2- to 2 1/4-pound racks baby back pork ribs
1 large onion, sliced
1 cinnamon stick, broken in half
6 thin rounds peeled fresh ginger
1 1/4 cups apple cider

For basting sauce:Whisk all ingredients in medium bowl to blend.

For ribs:Mix first 7 ingredients in small bowl. Using small sharp knife, loosen membrane from underside of each rib rack and pull off (or score membrane). Rub 1 tablespoon seasoning mix into each side of each rib rack. Place ribs in large roasting pan. Cover and chill at least 6 hours and up to 1 day.

Preheat oven to 325°F. Lift ribs from pan. Scatter onion, cinnamon stick, and ginger in pan. Pour in cider. Return ribs, meat side down, to pan; cover pan with foil. Roast ribs until meat is tender and begins to pull away from bones, about 2 hours. Uncover; cool at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours.

Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Grill ribs until heated through and slightly charred, about 5 minutes per side. Brush generously on all sides with basting sauce. Grill until sauce becomes sticky glaze, about 3 minutes longer per side. Transfer rib racks to cutting board. Cut racks between bones into individual ribs. Arrange on platter and serve, passing remaining sauce separately.

We also brought one of my favorite summer side dishes:
Corn, Avocado and Tomato Salad (I don't recall where I got this recipe but it is definitely a keeper and works best when you use fresh in-season ingredients)

Place 2 cups cooked corn in a large bowl. Add 1 diced avocado (1/2-inch pieces), 1 pint halved cherry tomatoes, and ½ cup finely diced red onion. In a separate bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, ½ teaspoon lime zest, ¼ cup chopped cilantro, ¼ teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Stir the vinaigrette into the salad and serve.

I also sliced up a watermelon and using a star cookie cutter, cut a bunch of star-shaped pieces and put them on a platter. Relatively easy but adds a really nice touch.

Lastly, we made red, white and blue striped Jello and using the small star cookie cutter, cut those into star shapes. Hardest part of that was the cutting into the shapes and getting them onto the platter cleanly. For the middle white layer, I found a recipe on line to take plain gelatin and mix it with water and a can of condensed milk.

Not Cooking Much?!

I realized by my lack of posts, I really haven't been cooking this month. I did make another batch of the black beans, the butternut squash gnocchi, and skirt steak. Otherwise, nothing new. How boring! I guess I need to get a little more motivated...

A couple simple dinners

Last night, I marinated a package of TJ's chicken tenders in a mixtures of fresh lemon, lime and orange juice, olive oil, salt, and fresh chopped rosemary, parsley and oregano. I let it marinate at room temp for about an hour and then had J BBQ it on the grill. Turned out great. Our side dishes were fresh steamed French green beans (so happy they are back in season!) and roasted BN squash.

Tonight, our neighbors emailed late in the afternoon and asked us over for dinner. I had already made the cuban black bean crock pot recipe and asked if they wanted to plan dinner around that and we'd just bring the beans. They made some Mexican rice, some fresh guac, shredded cheese, blue corn chips, and some fresh corn on the cobb. It all went really well together.

Salmon Tacos

Tonight we grilled fresh salmon and made salmon tacos. I made homemade flour tortillas (an easy recipe I found which is 2 cups flour, 1 1/2 tsps baking powder, 1 tsp salt and 2 tsp vegetable oil. Add 3/4 cup warm milk and let the Kitchen-aid run on knead for a good 2 -3 minutes. Let sit in covered bowl for 20 minutes; separate into 8 or so balls and let sit (covered) another 10 minutes. Roll thin and then grill or fry in a cast iron pan. We tried grilling them for the first time and it was great - at least in terms of ease. They seemed a little heavier than when I've cooked them inside on the cast iron pan.

I added a marinade for the salmon (olive oil, lime juice, cumin, honey, chili pepper, apple cider vinegar) - it was okay. Not sure I'd do the same thing again - didn't really add anything.

I also made a sauce of yogurt, mayo, lime juice, cumin, cayenne pepper and fresh cilantro. It was okay; again, not great.

And of course guacamole - mmmm. Can't go wrong with guac.

Served the tacos with left over kale salad. For desert we had fresh watermelon.

Salmon, Kale Salad, and Roasted Potatoes

After our (one-day) camping trip, we had a lovely dinner at home. It was BBQ'd salmon, kale salad and roasted potatoes.

Salmon - start with some really good fresh salmon, a little bit of salt and seasonings, and BBQ on the grill.

Roasted Potatoes - slice up some potatoes, some olive oil, salt, fresh oregano and rosemary. Roast in a 350 degree oven until soft but also

Kale Salad - a favorite recipe for our house.http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Lacinato-Kale-and-Ricotta-Salata-Salad-236940

Only change we make is to not add the black pepper.

Lacinato Kale and Ricotta Salata Salad

3/4 to 1 pound lacinato kale (also called Tuscan kale) or tender regular kale, stems and center ribs discarded

2 tablespoons finely chopped shallot

1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

4 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 ounces coarsely grated ricotta salata (1 cup)

Working in batches, cut kale crosswise into very thin slices.

Whisk together shallot, lemon juice, salt, and pepper in a small bowl, then add oil in a slow stream, whisking until combined well.

Toss kale and ricotta salata in a large bowl with enough dressing to coat well, then season with salt and pepper.

The Usual

There is a running joke with my neighbors that they guess roasted chicken when asked what I'll be having for dinner and be correct pretty much every time. That is definitely my fall back dish. Last night, we had roasted chicken (whole chicken stuffed with lemon and salt, roasted at 425 for first 20 minutes and then 400 until it reaches the right temp), roasted butternut squash, and steamed broccoli. For dessert the boys had fresh cherries, peaches and strawberries and we all shared some left over cookies from Sunday.