Kale with Dried Cherries

February 3, 2015 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

This is a little different take on kale; a little sweet and a little sour. Kale is rich in vitamins A, C and K. Some recipes refer to it as a super food. I used curly kale and dinosaur (Dino) kale in this recipe. Even people who aren’t sure about eating cooked greens might like this combination.

Ingredients:

4 cups of washed, torn kale leaves

2 T olive oil

1/2 cup minced red onion

2-3 cloves of garlic minced

1 T Dijon mustard

1 T granulated sugar

2 T cider vinegar

1 1/2 cups chicken stock

1/4 cup dried cherries

salt and pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet and sauté the onion and garlic over medium heat until the onion is softened but not browned.

Add the stock, vinegar, sugar, and dijon to the skillet and bring to a simmer.

Add the kale to the skillet, cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Uncover, add the cherries and simmer for 15 minutes or until the liquid is reduced by half.

I served this with chicken piccata and quinoa. But I think it would be an excellent side with any pork or poultry dishes.

Enjoy your greens!

Sweet n Sour Stuffed Cabbage

January 31, 2015January 31, 2015 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

Sweet n sour cabbage rolls, smashed new potatoes and homemade applesauce. It’s what was for dinner. I think my actual favorite thing about this dish is the cabbage and sauerkraut “gravy” that you cook the cabbage rolls in. I’m thinking that all of the leftovers would make an awesome pot of soup for the next day. This is another dish that I did in the pressure cooker but you could do this on the stovetop and finish it in the oven or even a crockpot and it would be every bit as good. What makes this recipe for cabbage rolls a little unique is the addition of sauerkraut And balsamic vinegar to the mix. See what you think.

Ingredients:

large head of green cabbage

1 pound or so of ground beef, pork or lamb

1 large sweet onion divided

salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

1 cup cooked long grain white or brown rice

1 large egg

fresh mint chopped

2 T canola oil

2 cups fresh (refrigerated) sauerkraut

1 can tomato sauce

1 pint stewed tomatoes

1/2 cup chicken broth or stock

2 T balsamic vinegar

3 T granulated sugar

Carefully separate the large outer leaves of the cabbage and dip each leaf in a pot of simmering, salted water to soften. This will make the cabbage leaves much easier to work with. Chop the remainder of the cabbage and set aside.

Combine the ground meat, rice, salt and pepper to taste, 1/2 cup of finely chopped onion, egg, and mint.

Mix well with your hands and shape into 7 or 8 “footballs”.

Put one of the ovals on the core end of the cabbage leaf. Begin rolling it up folding in the sides to make a neat package.

Put the cabbage rolls seam side down on a plate and set aside.

Heat the oil in the pressure cooker over medium heat. Rough chop the rest of the onion and add the onion and chopped cabbage to the hot oil. Sauté for a few minutes to soften.

Add the sauerkraut, tomatoes, tomato sauce, stock, vinegar and sugar and stir together. I didnt have fresh sauerkraut and substitued canned.

Arrange the cabbage rolls in the sauce. Lock the lid and cook on high pressure for 5 minutes. Release the pressure naturally.

Serve the cabbage rolls with some of the sauce.

NOTE: A cabbage roll is a savory entree that you can stuff with a variety of ingredients. Instead of rice you could use barley or quinoa. You can add mushrooms or other vegetables to the stuffing. Cabbage rolls are part of the traditional cuisine of many European and Balkan countries. In Finland they are known as kaalikääryle. I don’t ever remember eating these as a child but apparently in Finland cabbage rolls are baked in the oven and are brushed with dark syrup. The syrup glaze is made with bacon, dark corn syrup, and tomato paste. I may have to try that next time. And of course they served them with fresh lingonberries or lingonberry jam.

Coleslaw

January 25, 2015January 25, 2015 / featherheadlady / 1 Comment

This weekend we had an at-home fish fry with friends. They brought the walleye and fried it up and I made the sides. For me an essential side with fish is coleslaw. I also like coleslaw on my fish tacos. I have had some really awesome slaws and some very mediocre…or worse…slaws. I like my coleslaw to have crunch and to be a little tangy, a little bit sweet. It’s something that should be made a bit ahead so the flavors can marry. It even makes a great midnight snack, speaking from experience!

Ingredients:

10 cups, approximately, of shredded or finely chopped cabbage

1 cup of matchsticked carrots

1/2 cup of matchsticked radishes

1/2 cup of red onion chopped (more or less based on personal taste)

2/3 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup half n half

1/4 cup buttermilk

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 T white wine vinegar

2 T fresh lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

You can shred your own cabbage or purchase a bag of shredded cabbage (2# bag). Shred or use a mandolin to matchstick your radishes and carrots. Chop your onion.

Mix your vegetables together in a large bowl.

Whisk the remaining ingredients together and pour over the vegetables. Toss well and refrigerate. Mix a couple more times before serving.

Enjoy!

NOTE: Like any salad you can add or delete items. Just don’t delete the cabbage or it wouldn’t be coleslaw. According to NPR the term coleslaw came from the Dutch term koolsla… “kool” means cabbage and “sla” means salad. We anglicized kool into cole. While it’s best served cold, it’s coleslaw, not cold slaw.

Cabbage and Sausage Bake

January 17, 2015January 17, 2015 / featherheadlady / 1 Comment

We all like one pan dinners with simple, very basic ingredients. This is a hardy meal that makes a great supper on a cold winter night. Easy to prepare and only one pan to wash! Preheat the oven to 375.

Ingredients:

1 head of cabbage

dozen or so new potatoes

6 slices thick bacon

2 cups (one large) yellow onion sliced thin

Polish sausage, kielbasa or bratwurst

salt and pepper to taste

2 cups chicken stock

Dice the bacon and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes.

I did everything in my roaster. Thin slice the onion. I used a mandolin but I good knife will work fine. Add the onion to the bacon and drippings and cook over medium heat until the onion is tender.

Once the onions are tender set them aside and sear the sausages to brown them up a bit.

While the sausages are browning up wash your potatoes. Cut the cabbage in half, then into quarters. Core the cabbage and cut each quarter in half again.

Remove the browned sausage from the roaster and turn off the flame. Arrange the cabbage wedges in the roaster rounded side down.

Arrange the potatoes around the cabbage.

Add the browned sausage.

Add the onions and bacon as well as the drippings. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Pour the broth over everything and cover the pan tightly with foil.

Bake for 90 minutes. Let it sit covered for 15 minutes after you remove it from the oven before serving.

Serve with steamed fresh green beans or broccoli and some nice crusty bread. And, of course, some spicy mustard.

Cabbage and sausage bake. It’s what was for supper. My dad would have enjoyed sharing this supper with us.

NOTE: If you prefer a tomato taste substitute a can of diced or fire roasted tomatoes and one cup V-8 juice or tomato juice for the chicken stock.

Lemon and Garlic Chicken ala Pressure Cooker

January 6, 2015 / featherheadlady / 2 Comments

Can you imagine cooking an entire chicken in 15 minutes that is moist and fall off the bone tender and has a delicious sauce? It’s that easy in my electric pressure cooker. The beauty of this pressure cooker is that you can brown, boil, simmer and keep food warm. One pan to wash and it’s easy to clean. If you don’t have a pressure cooker you can surely prepare this recipe using a roaster in your oven. Use a meat thermometer to make sure your chicken reaches 165F. I used to be a little frightened of pressure cookers…some of you might be as well. Afraid it would start rocking on the stove and the top would blow off leaving dinner on the ceiling. Trust me, the new electric model is easy to use, safe, and not the least bit scary.

Though I love the combination of garlic and lemon I was a little concerned that the flavors might be too strong but they were not. The sauce had a nice citrus tang but was not overpowering. Good balance. I think you’ll like it.

Ingredients:

1 roasting chicken cut into pieces (I saved the back for broth)

kosher salt to taste

3 T canola or olive oil

5-6 cloves of garlic sliced

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1 tsp oregano

1/2 cup vermouth or dry white wine

1/2 cup lemon juice

1/2 cup chicken stock

Fresh parsley chopped

Generously salt chicken pieces and heat oil in the pressure cooker. Add the chicken, a few pieces at a time, and brown on both sides. Remove browned pieces to a platter. While your chicken is browning squeeze your lemons and slice your garlic.

Add the garlic, oregano and red pepper flakes to the hot oil and cook for about 1 minute until garlic becomes fragrant.

Add lemon juice, vermouth and stock to the pot and arrange the chicken in the liquid.

Lock the lid and cook at high pressure for 15 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally. Remove the chicken to a serving platter. Bring the sauce to a boil and stir in chopped parsley. If you wish you can thicken the juices with a little flour or corn starch. Pour the sauce over the chicken and serve.

While the chicken was cooking I decided to prepare some smashed cauliflower for a side. An easy, tasty side.

Ingredients:

1 large head cauliflower cleaned and cut up

3-4 garlic cloves (I know, no vampires in our house!)

1-2 cups chicken stock or broth

1/2 cup Romano cheese shredded

1/2 cup Le Gruyere cheese shredded

2-3 green onions thin sliced

salt and pepper (white pepper if you have it) to taste

2 T butter

Cook cauliflower and garlic cloves in the chicken broth until the cauliflower is fork tender. Drain off the broth holding a little back to add in while smashing. Add butter to the cauliflower and begin mashing with an ordinary potato masher until the consistency of mashed potatoes. Add some of the broth if necessary. Add the shredded cheese, salt and pepper to taste and green onions stirring well. This is one of my favorite sides!

I was always taught to use contrasting colors on your plate and white and white are a bit off putting. So I added a sizable sprig of parsley (good for getting rid of garlic breath after dinner) and some cranberry relish which I think is a must have for any poultry dish.

And then there was color.

Lemon and garlic chicken with smashed cauliflower. It’s what’s for dinner tonight. And tomorrow night.

NOTE: My lemons were particularly juicy and 2 of them made a little over 3/4 cup of juice. I put the extra juice in a small zip lock snack bag and freeze it for a time when I have no fresh lemons on hand.

And seriously, parsley IS a good breath freshener.

Spiral Veggie Pie

January 4, 2015 / featherheadlady / 2 Comments

A few weeks ago a friend posted a recipe for a veggie spiral that looked beautiful and challenging. I love making meatless dishes and decided to try a modified version of the recipe. In the making of this dish I decided I need a new mandolin. Mine didn’t seem to cut the veggies as thin as they should have been and I had to use a wide peeler for the sweet potatoes and carrots.

Preheat oven to 375.

Ingredients:

2-3 yellow squash

2-3 zucchini

2 small eggplants

2 carrots

2 sweet potatoes

4 oz cream cheese at room temperature

1/2 cup sour cream

2 T Dijon mustard

fresh sage leaves

salt and pepper

olive oil

single pie crust

Prepare your pie crust.

Using a mandolin (or wide peeler) thin slice the vegetables. Do not peel the vegetables; the skins add color to the dish.

Using a hand mixer beat cream cheese, sour cream, and Dijon mustard until smooth.

Spread cream cheese mixture in the pie shell. Sprinkle with chiffonaded sage leaves.

Begin rolling the veggies, skin side up, in a spiral alternating the colors. Continue until you reach the ends of the dish.

Drizzle with olive oil and season with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper.

Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes.

Cool for 5 minutes, slice and enjoy.

Great served with a salad and bread. It’s a beautiful dish in its own right that’s fun to prepare. A perfect vegetarian dish or a side for a meat dish.

Beef Short Ribs Asian Style

January 3, 2015 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

I’ve been on holiday, so to speak, but I’m back to cooking and baking and blogging!

Last year I asked for and received an electric pressure cooker for Christmas. Like a lot of kitchen appliances I used it a lot at first and hadn’t taken it out for awhile. While we were visiting our daughter and her boyfriend over Christmas they reminded me how awesome this electric pressure cooker is and I remembered why I asked for it in the first place. It was late and we hadn’t planned on what was for dinner that night. They took a soup bone out of the freezer…yes, the freezer… put the frozen bone, some vegetables, broth and spices into the pressure cooker and in less than an hour we had truly awesome, tasty soup. Just before serving they added some cooked kale and gnocchi and garnished the soup with Parmesan. How great to be able to prepare great food with complex flavors in no time at all when you’ve worked all day.

Sometimes we can learn things from our kids! When I came home the pressure cooker was put back in service.

Tonight I made beef short ribs Asian style with rice and stir fried vegetables. The pressure cooker is easy to use and makes the meat fall off the bone tender.

Ingredients:

Beef short ribs, approximately 3-4 pounds with bone in

kosher salt and course ground pepper to taste

3 T olive oil

5-6 garlic cloves minced

1 T fresh grated ginger

1/4 cup soy salt

1/4 cup hoisin sauce

1/4 cup catsup (or 2 T tomato paste)

1 1/2 cups beef broth

2 T cornstarch

1/4 cup water or broth

Heat 2 T of the olive oil in the pressure cooker. Generously salt and pepper the ribs, add to the pressure cooker and brown. Transfer them to a plate as they get done.

Heat the remaining 1 T of oil and add the garlic, ginger, soy sauce, hoisin, catsup, and broth to the pot.

Stir to blend. Return the browned meat to the pot. Lock the lid and cook at high pressure for 25 minutes.

Release the pressure naturally. Remove the lid tilting it away from you to avoid escaping steam. Skim off any excess fat from the top of the sauce. Bring the sauce to a boil. Whisk the 2 T of corn starch into the water or broth and add to the sauce stirring until it’s thickened. Cover and keep on the warm setting until ready to serve.

While the ribs are cooking prepare the rice of your choice (jasmine, brown, long grain white).

Choose some of your favorite vegetables and do a quick stir fry. I used carrots, celery, onion, red pepper, pea pods, and broccoli.

Heat 2 T olive or sesame oil in a wok or heavy skillet. Cook your vegetables until tender crisp.

Plate your food. First the rice topped with the vegetables and short ribs. Ladle the sauce over the dish. I garnished with green onion, basil, and sesame seeds.

Short ribs with rice, stir fried veggies, and a rich, tasty sauce. It’s what was for dinner tonight.

NOTE: When I buy ginger I peel it, cut it into several pieces and freeze it in zip lock bags. I always have fresh ginger and it grates easily when frozen.

Middle Eastern Vegetable Salad

November 3, 2014 / featherheadlady / 3 Comments

This is a favorite salad recipe that a good friend shared with me. It has so many flavors that I love…basil, mint, lemon, garlic. How can anything with those components not be good!! I have increased the “greens” in her recipe but other than that it remains as shared.

Salad Ingredients

10 scallions, white and light green parts thinly sliced

1 cup ripe cherry or grape tomatoes halved

1 cucumber seeded and diced

1 16-oz can of chickpeas rinsed and drained

1 cup fresh parsley

1 cup fresh mint

1 cup fresh basil leaves

1/2 cup lemon juice

1/2 cup olive oil

5-6 cloves of garlic minced

kosher salt and black pepper to taste

8 oz feta cheese in 1/2 inch dice

Wash all the herbs well. I like to use my salad spinner.

Remove all of the stems. I use a few pulses of my food processor to chop the herbs.

Diced the the cucumbers and halve the tomatoes. I used small salad cucumbers so I diced three of them.

Rinse and drain the chickpeas.

I had no green onions on hand so I diced some red onion. Either works well in this salad.

Combine all the minced herbs, vegetables and chickpeas in a large bowl. Mince the garlic, squeeze the lemons for 1/2 cup of juice, and measure out a half cup of olive oil. Whisk the lemon juice, olive oil and garlic together and pour over the salad. Gently toss to coat the vegetables. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Dice the feta cheese and toss in the salad.

This salad is perfect served with warm pita bread or on lettuce leaves. Or just sit down with a fork and a bowl and enjoy. I served it tonight as a side with sweet potatoes and smoked pork chops. It’s what was for dinner tonight.

Stuffed Baby Eggplant

October 8, 2014 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

I grew up up eating meals of meat, potatoes and bread. The basics. Vegetables included peas (canned), corn and green beans. NO purple vegetables on our table. But it’s a brave new world. I can’t think of a vegetable I don’t love now and, in fact, enjoy meals that include NO meat, potatoes or bread. Tonight purple vegetables were what’s for dinner.

3 T olive oil

3-4 small eggplants

1 large onion diced

1 fennel bulb diced

1 cup diced baby portabellas

5-6 cloves of garlic minced

1 pint (14.5 oz can) diced tomatoes

2 T capers

1/2 cup asiago cheese grated

fresh parsley

fresh basil

red pepper flakes to taste

salt and pepper

1 cup homemade bread crumbs

1 T butter

Preheat oven to 375.

With a sharp knife halve the eggplants and, leaving a quarter inch or so of meat, hollow out the inside. Heat 2 T olive oil in a heavy skillet over medium high heat. Sauté diced onion, fennel, mushrooms, eggplant and garlic until tender, 15-20 minutes.

Add tomatoes, pepper flakes, basil, capers and salt and pepper to taste. Continue cooking until the tomatoes have cooked down. Remove from the heat and stir in the shredded asiago.

In a food processor prepare bread crumbs. After the bread crumbs are done add fresh parsley and pulse to incorporate parsley. Heat 1 T of butter over medium heat and toast the breadcrumbs.

I used individual casseroles but you can use one large casserole dish. Splash the remaining T of olive oil on the eggplant halves, season with salt and pepper, fill with the vegetable/tomato mixture and top each with some of the toasted bread crumbs. Bake for 20 minutes.

Enjoy! This is perfect for lunch with a tossed salad. Or for a heartier meal serve with sausage and peppers. You could also add fresh spinach, diced celery, sweet bell pepper. Substitute diced pitted kalamata olives for the capers and feta cheese for the asiago.

TIP: I like to add fresh herbs and/or garlic to my bread crumbs. The herbs add great flavor and color to the bread crumbs. Add them in after the bread cubes have been thoroughly processed so they become incorporated but don’t lose their integrity.

Beef Short Ribs with Vegetables

September 27, 2014 / featherheadlady / 2 Comments

I don’t cook a great deal of beef but I get some excellent cuts from a local organic farm. And tonight the short ribs sounded good. Beef short ribs, it’s what’s for dinner.

5 or 6 short ribs trimmed of fat

Kosher salt and pepper

1/4 cup olive oil

1 fennel in a large dice (fronds, stems and core removed)

1 large onion in a large dice

2 large carrots sliced

3-4 stalks of celery in a large dice

3-4 cloves of garlic minced

2 T tomato paste

1 bottle dry red wine

rosemary and thyme

4 cups beef or mushroom broth

Put ribs on a cookie sheet lined with foil. Generously salt and pepper them and put in a 400 degree oven for 15-20 minutes.

Heat oil over medium high heat in a heavy Dutch oven. Add diced vegetables and cook over medium heat about 20 minutes stirring occasionally. Add minced garlic and cook 2 more minutes.

Pour in the bottle of wine and tomato paste. Cook over high heat until mixture is reduced by half…approximately 20-25 minutes.

Add salt and pepper and 1 tsp each of rosemary and thyme. Put the ribs in the Dutch oven with the veggies and wine reduction. Add 4 cups of broth and bring to a simmer. Cover and put in 300 degree oven for about two hours until ribs are tender.

Remove ribs to a platter and cook the veggies and broth over medium heat until reduced by half…about 20 minutes. Put the ribs back in and heat through.

We had mashed potatoes but you could serve them with buttered noodles or just a good crusty bread.

Since the oven was going to be on for 2 hours I decided to roast some beets. I peeled them and put them in a casserole dish lined with heavy duty foil. I put some olive oil and kosher salt on the beets, sealed the foil tight and roasted the beets. I love finishing them with balsamic vinegar. I put a cup of vinegar in a saucepan and simmered it until it was reduced by half. Before serving I slice the beets and drizzle the balsamic reduction over them. They are always excellent.

TIP: Recipes are always asking for a tablespoon or two of tomato paste. A little trick I learned a long time ago was to open one end of a can of tomato paste and put it in the freezer for an hour or two. Then I take it out, open the other end of the can, push the paste through and slice it into 4 or 5 slices. Put each slice into a little zip lock snack bag and freeze. When you need a tablespoon of tomato paste it’s ready for you!

The short ribs were excellent. Enjoy!

The Finnish Dish

Cooking in Michigan with Ruth

Veggies

Kale with Dried Cherries

Sweet n Sour Stuffed Cabbage

Coleslaw

Cabbage and Sausage Bake

Lemon and Garlic Chicken ala Pressure Cooker

Spiral Veggie Pie

Beef Short Ribs Asian Style

Middle Eastern Vegetable Salad

Stuffed Baby Eggplant

Beef Short Ribs with Vegetables