Concoctions from a wanna-be chef

How big is your app-etite?

2009-12-07T20:14:00.006-07:00

Well, it’s been awhile since I’ve blogged, but between work, home improvement projects and houseguests, I haven’t taken time to sit down at my computer. Actually, now that I jumped on the iPhone bandwagon, I find myself logging on to my MacBook less and less.

Which brings me to the subject of this post, the iPhone has changed the way I interact with food…with a single touch of the screen, I can access recipes, calorie counters, restaurant finders, grocery list organizers and much more.

I actually just counted how many apps I have that deal with food/beverages and I’m a little shocked, but here are some of my faves:

AllRecipes. You have to check out the DinnerSpinner! Choose the dish type, ingredients and prep time, then spin to find all of the choices that fit your criteria. Feeling brave? Simply shake the phone for a totally random combination.

Hello Vino. Want to know which wine goes with guacamole? Having a hard time choosing an appropriate vintage for a gift or a sporting event? How about some nice food pairings to impress your guests? This app can do all of those things and then some; it’s your secret sommelier!

Whole Foods. Another great source for recipes, but in addition to letting narrowing results by course and category, you can also search for special diets (gluten free, vegan, low sodium…you get the idea). I also LOVE using the “items on hand” search function, where you can enter several ingredients you have in your pantry, and it will bring up a variety of results.

Well, I could go on about the wonders of my mobile device, but all this blogging is making me hungry…what to make? What to make?

It’s getting chili

2009-10-27T16:05:00.006-07:00

Fall is upon us, and one of my favorite things about the weather cooling off is making a batch of warm, comforting soup or chili.

Another great thing about soup is that you almost always have enough left over for a couple extra meals, AND the leftovers usually taste even better the second or third time around.

I’m going to share with you a chicken chili recipe that I came up with for Super Bowl Sunday a few years back. The recipe varies almost every time I make it, depending on what we have on hand, so feel free to add or omit any ingredients to make the recipe your own.

1 pound chicken breasts
2 14-ounce cans low-sodium chicken broth
1 large bell pepper (any color)
1 jalapeno
2 cloves garlic
1 cup frozen sweet corn (optional)
2 cans fire-roasted tomatoes
2 cans black beans (or 1 can of black beans and one cup of lentils)
1/2 cup fire-roasted green chilies
Cumin
Paprika
Black Pepper
Chipotle powder (try Mrs. Dash)
1 packet taco seasoning
Shredded jack and cheddar cheese (for topping)
Finely chopped cilantro (for topping)

Directions Place chicken, broth and tomatoes in a slow cooker. Cook on high until the chicken easily falls apart, shred with a fork. Sauté garlic, bell pepper, green chilies and jalapeno until tender, add to slow cooker. Add corn, beans, and seasonings to pot and continue to cook for another 1-2 hours.

Suggestions: Top with shredded cheese, cilantro, sour cream and corn chips.

Bubble-07

2009-10-22T16:34:00.004-07:00

What would a blog about concoctions be without a few drink recipes thrown in the mix?

After wine, vodka is my drink of choice and I’m partial to vodkas with flavor infusions. Have you noticed how many flavors of vodka are out there these days?

It's available in just about any flavor you can imagine, from basic fruit flavors to more interesting infusions like chocolate, sweet tea, root beer, pepper….even bacon (but, that’s a whole other post). My favorite new flavor is bubble gum.

I recently picked up a bottle of Three Olives Bubble for a bachelorette party, and it was a huge hit! We mixed it with diet 7-up and made Bubble 07s. I wish I could take credit for the name, but the brilliant people at Three Olives came up with it. Check out some other bubble gum vodka concoctions here.

Don't spill the beans

2009-08-27T19:35:00.005-07:00

As you can probably tell from some of my previous posts, I have beans on the brain lately. I don’t know where the current obsession stemmed from, and to be perfectly honest, I’ve only been able to choke beans down for the last few years.

The other day, I found myself perusing one of my new favorite recipe sources, Whole Foods, and searched for recipes containing beans or legumes. Much to my surprise, one of the first recipes that popped up was for brownies. I was intrigued.

Turns out, you can substitute pureed black beans for the flour! Be still my heart, I love finding ways to rationalize eating dessert!

Last night, I whipped up a batch and was pleasantly surprised. I was a little worried by the thin consistency of the batter, but it baked up into super-moist, fudgy brownies. You seriously cannot smell, see or taste any traces of the beans. I’m in love.

I can’t wait to test these brownies out on some unsuspecting house guests…but, please don’t spill the beans on my secret ingredient!

The musical fruit

2009-08-27T19:19:00.003-07:00

I’ve grown to love many foods that I once detested—fish, broccoli and cauliflower…just to name a few. I’ve reformed from my past life as a picky eater and now enjoy a plethora of good-for-you foods, including beans. In fact, I’m now a bean fanatic—lentil beans in particular.

Another find from Self’s 20 superfoods for weight loss, lentils are full of both fiber AND protein, which makes them a great meat alternative.

I bought a bag of lentils a couple months ago, after reading the article in Self, but the beans ended up sitting in my pantry because I had no idea what to do with them. After a quick search on the Internet, I found a couple tasty lentil recipes that I had to try.

My favorite recipe so far has been lentil bean tacos. Serve these up on whole wheat tortillas with reduced fat cheese and sour cream, and you’ll have all the great flavors of a Mexican meal, without all the grease. Talk about a win win!

This is yet again another recipe that is EXCELLENT reheated and re-purposed. One cup of lentils makes four servings. Change up the left over beans by putting them in a quesadilla or as a topping for nachos.

Do you have any great lentil recipes you’d like to share? Send them my way!

It’s all Greek to me!

2009-08-16T09:28:00.005-07:00

Lately I’ve been obsessed with all things Mediterranean—hummus, pita, feta, kabobs…you get the picture.

I can usually satisfy my cravings for hummus with a quick trip to Daphne’s or Pita Jungle, but I wanted to make a Mediterranean feast of my own.

The first order of business was marinating the chicken. I used a balsamic vinaigrette, some lemon juice, garlic powder and black pepper. I let this marinate for about two hours before throwing it on the grill.

While the chicken was soaking up all those delicious flavors, I got to work on my sides: hummus, lentils with quinoa and a Greek salad.

I went with a traditional hummus recipe that called for chickpeas (garbanzo beans), tahini, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil. I also added in some salt, pepper and red pepper flakes to spice it up.

Then I moved on to making the lentils and quinoa. Both were prepared according to package directions, and then mixed together with a lemon vinaigrette, salt and pepper.

For the Greek salad, I used romaine lettuce, cucumber, red bell pepper, feta cheese and toasted almonds.

It really was a great meal and there were PLENTY of leftovers to nosh on for the rest of the week. Opa!

Quin-whaaaat?

2009-08-10T20:07:00.005-07:00

Does anyone else ever watch Ellie Krieger’s Food Network show, Healthy Appetite? She is always whipping up healthy fare, and incorporating ingredients that tend to be on the unusual side. One ingredient that she frequently includes is Quinoa (pronounced Keen-Wah).

As a huge fan of grains, especially guilt-free grains, I was excited to learn that this superfood is an excellent source of both fiber and protein. In fact, it is considered to be a complete protein because it contains all eight essential amino acids. Self even calls it one of the 20 Superfoods for Weight Loss.

The best part? It actually TASTES good and is easy to prepare.

You can find quinoa at your local health-food store or Fresh and Easy. Here are a couple ideas to incorporate quinoa into your diet:

Use it in a stir-fry in place of rice
Eat it like oatmeal for breakfast; just add your favorite dried fruit or juice
Fill bell peppers with cheese, veggies, ground turkey and quinoa for delish stuffed peppers
Mix with lentils, veggies and a lemon vinaigrette for a Mediterranean-inspired salad
Use it instead of rice in cream of chicken soup

Don’t you love it when things are delicious AND good for you?

Use your melon

2009-07-03T07:50:00.007-07:00

Happy Fourth of July! Several foods remind me of this lovely holiday—hot dogs, hamburgers, flag cakes and of course—watermelon!

There are few people that don’t enjoy watermelon. I personally love the bright colors and the crisp refreshment I get when I bite into a slice. But even still, there always seems to be a lot of excess fruit when the gathering is over. I’ve put together a couple ideas to put your left-over melons to good use.

1. Smoothies—as a smoothie enthusiast, please trust me when I say that watermelon is an AMAZING ingredient. The flavor is subtle and incorporates well with the other fruit and the texture and juiciness is perfect for blending. Try this combination:

1 Cup watermelon, cubed
½ Cup frozen strawberries, sliced
½ Cup frozen blueberries
½ Cup frozen bananas, sliced
¼ - ½ Cup fruit juice

2. Watermelon popsicles (for adults)—I found this fun recipe from Giada De Laurentiis on the Food Network site. If there was ever an excuse to buy popsicle molds, I think this recipe might be it!

3. Watermelon salads—why should mangos be the go-to fruit in salads? Try cutting watermelon into ½-inch cubes and adding it to salads of spinach, watercress, goat cheese and toasted almonds. What a great combination of textures and flavors.

If you find yourself with lots of watermelon this summer, try one of the suggestions above or search for “watermelon recipes” on the Web. Happy Fourth of July!

Goodness gracious CAKE balls of fire!

2009-06-20T11:33:00.004-07:00

One of my dear friends, Cristy, has asked me to make one of the “cakes” for her wedding in October. She is going a non-traditional route and will serve Sprinkles Cupcakes along side my own cake balls. (Cake balls are bite-size portions of cake mixed with creamy frosting and coated with almond bark.)

I discovered cake balls when I was planning our housewarming party in November. I wanted a fun dessert that would be easy for our guests to pick up and pop in their mouths—No cutting, plates or utensils required! I wish I could take credit for this recipe, but I found it online. If you are going to try it, make sure to read the advice in the review section—the readers have great tips!

Cake balls are a little time consuming, but they can be made ahead of time and frozen.
(photo from allrecipes.com)