Fork You: Craisin Sauce
You’re making a roast bird with all the fixings. Potatoes, stuffing, gravy, whatever vegetable your family associates with a chicken or turkey dinner… and you forgot the cranberry sauce. Or, you disdain cranberry sauce from a can. Either way, you don’t have time to get to the store, or your store was out of fresh cranberries. You’re forced to turn to… Craisins.
I had an overabundance of Craisins in my cupboard after misinterpreting a cookie recipe, and though they are delicious to snack on, they also make — surprisingly — great cranberry sauce, with just a few minor steps.
Craisin Sauce
- 2 c. craisins
- juice and zest of 1 orange
- 1/4 c honey
Boil a few cups of water in a saucepan on the stove. Remove from heat, add craisins, and cover. After half an hour, drain and return plumped craisins to saucepan. Add orange juice, zest and honey, and simmer until desired texture. Serve chilled or warm.
Fork You: Butternut Quinoa Pilaf (Pie)
This recipe comes from Martha Stewart, who calls this a pie, but admits in her recipe that it’s really more of a pilaf, so let’s just call a spade a spade here, shall we? I upped the cheese quotient a bit, because I was unsure whether I would like the dish and wanted to give my tastebuds something to grab onto.
I have never worked with quinoa before, and I’m not a huge fan of butternut squash, so I was very tentative about this recipe, but it turned out to be so good that my mom and I both would have happily devoured it before molding and baking it in the pie plate.
Butternut Quinoa Pilaf
- 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 butternut squash (about 1 1/2 pounds), peeled, halved crosswise, and seeded
- 5 fresh sage leaves, plus 2 tsp finely chopped sage
- 1/2 onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice (about 3/4 cup)
- 2 garlic clove, minced
- 1 c quinoa
- 2 c chicken stock
- 1/3 c Parmesan cheese, finely grated
- 1 tsp coarse salt
- 1/8 tsp freshly ground pepper
- Vegetable oil, cooking spray
Fork You: Tahini-Free Hummus
Last week, I was wrestling with a pretty nasty cold. In addition to taking lots of vitamins C & D, and echinacea, I decided to supplement with garlic. To do this in an agreeable manner, I decided to make hummus… but I didn’t want to go to the store just to get tahini, so I substituted in a bit of sesame oil. I did my research first, of course, and found out that if you add too much, it makes it taste kind of peanut butter-y, which might be a good thing, but might not, so be sure to add it a little at a time, and taste it!
I added a TON of extra garlic, so mine was so spicy that it almost had a horseradish-y spice to it, but you can add more or less according to your own discretion. It’s possible to make hummus without tahini entirely, but if you like the sesame flavor, this is a good alternative, and if you make a lot of Asian food, like I tend to, you may already have it on hand.
Tahini-Free Hummus
- 1 can drained chick pea
- 6 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
- juice of 1 lemon
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 tbsp Sesame Oil
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp cumin
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- water to thin (or reserved liquid from chickpeas)
In the food processor, whiz together the garlic and olive oil. Add the drained chickpeas and begin to combine. Add in lemon juice, salt and spices. Add water or reserved liquid until the hummus reaches the desired consistency. Add sesame oil slowly, tasting every once in a while. (You may use more or less than 1 tablespoon.)
Fork You: Stuffed Shells with Spinach & Sautéed Mushrooms
So a couple of weeks ago, a friend of mine went out foraging (he’s a very fascinating character, and does this because he likes to, not because he needs to) and came back with some black trumpet mushrooms, which he then put into some stuffed shells. This made me want to make stuffed shells even more than I already did (they’re a family favorite) but I had never put mushrooms into mine. Usually, I will make them with no extras, but sometimes I will add spinach and/or sausage to the ricotta filling. This time, I decided, I was going to add mushrooms.
Boy, am I glad I did. They were delicious, and I hardly cared that it was a vegetarian dish! Obviously, this dish could be made with manicotti, or layered as lasagna just as easily, but I find I like to use a different pasta each time I make it, just to keep it from getting stale. Manicotti will be next in the rotation, and I think it’ll be a meat lover’s dish, to regain my cred with the non-veg contingent, especially the menfolk.
Forgive my ultra-classy paper plate. I was more concerned with getting them into my mouth as quickly as possible than plating them nicely.
Stuffed Shells with Spinach & Sautéed Mushrooms
- 1 box large shell pasta
- 1 2-lb container of ricotta cheese
- 3 large eggs
- 1 c grated parmesan
- 1 can chopped spinach, drained (or use frozen)
- 1 basket white button mushrooms, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- olive oil
- 1 c sour cream
- 2 cans or jars of your favorite pasta sauce
- 1 lb shredded mozzarella (I also added some Monterey jack, just because I had some leftover and didn’t want it going green in the fridge.)
In a pot of salted water, boil the pasta until tender. Drain and submerge in icy water to prevent overcooking or sticking. Preheat oven to 350°F. In a saute pan, heat oil and garlic until fragrant. Add mushrooms and sauté until reduced in size. Remove and cool. In a large mixing bowl, combine ricotta, eggs, parmesan, spinach and sour cream. Add cooled mushrooms and mix well. Pour one can of sauce into the bottom of a large baking dish. Spoon filling into shells and place in sauce. When the pan is full, or you run out of filling, pour the other can of sauce over the shells and top with shredded mozzarella. Bake about 45 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.
Fork This: The Cilantro Divide
Most foods that people dislike, they’re just kind of “meh” about, but there are a few comestibles that spring to mind that almost exclusively inspire one of two polar opposite reactions. Either you love it or you hate it, no middle ground, no “well… I guess it’s okay.”
One is Miracle Whip (I am a MW hater, I confess. It tastes too sweet. Ick.) One is Moxie, a Maine beverage that boasts a number of “firsts” in the beverage industry and has its own festival. (Love this stuff!!!) One is cilantro.
If you’re not a fan, you’re in good company: Julia Child couldn’t stand the stuff. People who like it think it adds a fresh, green taste to their recipes. People who dislike it think it tastes like soap.
Here’s why. (Not a new article, certainly, but still an interesting read.)
Fork You: Espresso Cheesecake
I have a confession. Before this week, I had never made cheesecake before. After procuring a springform pan the week before, I was excited to try it out. My best friend Rose and I planned a pizza-and-cheesecake night for Sunday, and her mom sent me home with a pound of cream cheese. The result was deliciousness! The photographs weren’t fabulous, because I took them when it was dark, and when I went back to take some in the daylight, my leftovers were mysteriously nibbled.
Hey! That actually looks like a real cheesecake!
Espresso Cheesecake
- 2 cups chocolate wafer cookies or Oreos, processed until very fine
- 1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
- 1 1/4 pounds cream cheese, softened
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup fresh (not brewed) espresso grounds, finely ground
- 3 large eggs plus 1 egg yolk
- 1 cup brewed coffee
- 1 tablespoon instant espresso dissolved into the coffee
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
Preheat oven to 350°F. Place the cookies in a small bowl, drizzle the butter over them, and stir, making sure the crumbs are evenly coated with butter. (You might not use all the butter, but that’s okay! I used it all, and ended up having to put a cookie tray under the pan to catch all the extra that dripped from the bottom of the pan.) Press this mixture into the bottom and up the sides of an ungreased 9-inch spring-form pan. Bake in the center of the oven for 5 minutes. Remove, set aside to cool to room temperature and lower the oven temperature to 200°F.
Place the cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and, with the whisk attachment, beat on high until smooth. Add the espresso grounds and mix until incorporated. Add the eggs one at a time, beating until each is completely incorporated. Add the egg yolk. Add the coffee mixture, vanilla, and flour. Mix until smooth and all ingredients are well incorporated.
Pour the filling into the cooled crust and bake in the center of the oven for about three or four hours. Shake the pan lightly to test for doneness; if it wobbles in the middle, it’s probably not done yet. Cool it slowly — getting impatient like me and sticking it in the freezer to chill will result in the cracks you see above! Unmold the cheesecake and refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 3 hours before serving. (We skipped this step and went straight to the eating, but it’s recommended.)
Fork You: Tapioca Pudding
I… have a love-hate relationship with tapioca pudding. I either love it… or I hate it. Its texture is odd, so unless the flavor is there and perfect, well… there are better things to put in one’s mouth. Now that I’ve thoroughly abused some ellipses, on to the recipe. This comes straight from my favorite Food Network chef, Alton Brown, and it’s made in my favorite kitchen gadget, the crock pot.
Tapioca Pudding
- 1/2 c pearl tapioca
- 2 c cold water
- 2 1/2 c whole milk
- 1/2 c heavy cream
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/3 c sugar
- 1 lemon, zested
- Pinch salt
Soak the tapioca overnight in the water. Drain and add to crock pot, along with milk, cream and salt. Cook on high for two hours, stirring occasionally. Whisk together yolk and sugar and slowly temper with tapioca mixture until you’ve added about a cup. Add back to the crock pot, along with zest, mix well and cook for an additional fifteen minutes. Remove to a bowl and cover surface with plastic wrap. Cool at room temperature for an hour, then refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.
Fork You: Spicy Creamed Corn
I love creamed corn. I would eat it from the can if it were socially acceptable for a grown woman to do so, but I also like adding a little spice to it, by way of red pepper flakes. It’s a trick my sister used to use on whole kernel corn; I hear she got it from Rachael Ray, but I try not to hold it against her, and it’s actually a good tip regardless.
As we hold onto the last threads of summer and find new ways to enjoy the harvest’s bounty, I thought I’d try adding a kick to some fresh, homemade creamed corn. Though I’ve yet to sit through an episode of Pat and Gina Neely’s show without feeling like I should excuse myself from the room and give them some privacy (but it’s my goddamned living room, you pervs!) their recipe for creamed corn was very straightforward, contained no random, excessive ingredients that I couldn’t figure out the purpose of, and was easily adaptable to my ends.
It was sweet and creamy with a little bit of a kick. To make a more classic creamed corn (and by more classic I mean less spicy!) leave out the red pepper flakes. Simple as that.
Spicy Creamed Corn
- 8 ears corn, husked and cut from cob (don’t forget to scrape the cobs with the back of your knife!)
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp red pepper flakes
- 1 c heavy cream
- 1/2 c cold water
- 2 tbsp bacon grease
- 1 tbsp butter
Mix together flour, sugar, salt and pepper, and red pepper flakes. Pour over corn and toss. Heat bacon grease in a large skillet until melted. Add corn mixture, then cream and water. Cook about half an hour, until corn has cooked through and become creamy. Add butter before serving.
Fork This: Avocados!
Yes, I know they’re Hass avocados, and somebody conveniently placed a sticker over the H, but I am imagining myself picking through the discount produce bin at the grocery store and exclaiming, “Damn! Those are some ripe-ass avocados!” And then making a fuckton of guacamole.
Source: epicwtfs
Fork This: This video is awesome and really creative!
(via gastrogirl)
Source: onefinedae.typepad.com
