Hot Chocolate Reviews

Steve and I both gave each other new brands of hot chocolate to try for Christmas. I gave him a can of Schokinag's Mint Chocolate and he gave me a bag of Chocolat Vitale - European Style. Both of these were a change from the normal powdered hot chocolate's that we're all used to, but are rather composed of very small bits of chocolate. For the Schokinag you melt the chocolate in your mug first and then stir in the milk and for the the Chocolat Vitale you do the opposite. While both were delicious we both preferred the Chocolat Vitale. Both are expensive (about $10 for a decent sized can) and available at Whole Foods.

What's for Breakfast?

My husband told me I should expand my blog...so I am. I will no longer limit myself to the arduous question of "What's for dinner?", but also "What's for breakfast?"

Our favorite breakfast lately is steel-cut oatmeal - also known as pin-head or Irish Oatmeal. Steel-cut oats are oats that are chopped up into bits instead of smashed flat like classic oatmeal. They produce a hot cereal with a pleasing texture. You can pay way too much for these in one of those fancy tins or Bob's Red Mill, available nationally I think, sells a packet for a good price. The best option is to buy it from the bulk foods section. The best price around me is at PCC at $1.21/lb and that's organic to boot!

To cook for one person - place 1/3 cups oats, 1 cup water and 1/8 tsp salt in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and then reduce to low for about 10 minutes stirring occassionally. The cereal is done when all the water is absorbed and the cereal just starts to want to stick to the bottom of the pot. For 2 adults and 2 kids *(who don't eat a lot), go for 1 cup of oats, 3 cups water and 1/4 tsp salt.

Steve likes his with a touch of cream, dried cherries and turbinado sugar. I like just cream and brown sugar. Natalie likes her's loaded with golden raisins....in fact she likes anything loaded with golden raisins.....

Let me know what you think! If you have leftover cereal, save it in the fridge and email me for a recipe for crackers or bread that will use it up!

This is not your Grandmother's Beef Stroganoff....

Unless of course, she made excellent beef stronganoff...

This recipe (that I put together from several others on Epicurious.com) is divine. No starchy sour cream sauce, no tough meat etc. - just flavor infused tender beef and mushrooms. While this may take a little longer than other stronganoff recipes you've seen, it's worth it, don't try to cheat and combine steps. The layering of the flavors in the sauce are the key to this dinner. I've included directions about how to get a side veggie and the noodles all done at the same time. Let me know what you think.

Beef Stroganoff

1 ½ lbs thinly sliced tender beef (flat iron steak is great)
Salt & pepper
2T olive oil
2 T butter
1 shallot
6 oz sliced mushrooms (crimini)
1 c beef broth
2 T sherry
¾ c cream
2 T chopped parsely
Salt & Pepper

1 large package egg noodles
Frozen peas or canned green beans or whatever

1. Thinly slice, pat dry and lightly salt and pepper the beef
2. Heat oil (2T) in saute pan, brown meat – remove from pan,set aside
3. Melt butter (2T), add shallot, cook till tender (2 minutes is good)
4. Add mushrooms, cook ‘till all liquid (it will come out of the mushrooms) is gone (about 12 minutes)
5. Add broth (1 cup) and sherry (2T), cook until almost all evaporated (about 14 minutes)
6. Start water boiling for egg noodles and pop a bowl of peas or green beans into the microwave, but don’t cook yet
7. Add cream (3/4 cup), any accumulated meat juice, cook for 2 minutes to thicken.
8. Press Go on the microwave, set the table.
9. Taste for salt and pepper, adjust. Stir in parsley and meat.
10. Serve over egg noodles

Mounds of Meatballs

This recipe is origanally from a cookbook for kids by Emeril, I believe. But since I call my sister-in-law Kristi each time I find I have lost this recipe, I call these Kristi's Meatballs. Because they are baked and not fried, they gain points for health and easiness. Cook the spaghetti while the meatballs bake and warm up a jar of sauce (unless you're an overachiever and feel compelled to make both the sauce and the meatballs from scratch on the same night). A bagged salad rounds out the meal.

Krisit's Meatballs

1/2 lb lean ground beef
1/2 lb mild or hot italian sausage (what you prefer)
2 eggs
1/2 c. bread crumbs
2 T chopped parsley (flat-leaf/Italian, not the curly stuff)
1 T chopped onion (dry onion flakes is an easy option here)
1/2 c. good quality Parmesan (no Kraft in the green bottle that is 5 years old please)
1 clove chopped garlic
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg (grating your own nutmeg yet? It's worth it!)
1/2 T salt

Mush everything together in a big bowl. Your clean hands are the best tool for the job. Form into balls about 1 - 1 1/2" in diameter and place on baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 or until golden.

Yum.

Chicken Pot Pie Like Never Before

Okay, so this recipe for Chicken and Vegetable Pot Pies with Cream Cheese Crust will never appear in "Cooking Light" but man is it good! The cream cheese in the crust makes is an easy dough to work with and roll out and transfer to the pie. Save yourself the trouble of roasting the chicken if you want and just buy a rotisserie chicken (from Costco, the best bird by far!).

Also - no need to put it into indivdual dishes unless you already have cute dishes like this and want too.

Heirloom Tomatoes: A Taste to Be Treasured

Stop your grocery cart! Put back those hard red tasteless tomatoes! You don't have to succumb to the evil plot of your megamart bioengineers. Get yourself down to a farmers market or natural foods store (I can get them at Trader Joe's) and check out one of Mother Nature's true gifts of summer: the heirloom tomato!! Bred for taste and not for it's ability to ship well like the ones you've been buying for years at the megamart, heirloom tomatoes come in red, orange, yellow, green and even like this one pictured here - almost purple? Serve them sliced dressed simply with salt and pepper and maybe a drizzle of high quality extra virgin olive oil (no vinegar though. The specimens we've had lately are more acidic than the hard bred ones we've been used to) and then let the ooing and ahhing begin.

Sweet-Potato Hash with Bacon

I made this Sweet-Potato Hash with Bacon as an experiment for Thanksgiving last year. I knew it was good, real good, when I put it on the table, but my older brother was just about in tears over it. While this dish isn't going to win any awards for health because of the bacon, it will win you the love of all to whom you serve it.