Slacker

I've been totally slacking on this blog, as well as on my SB blog. Which means not only have I not been dieting, but I have not been cooking or at least not photographing any quality meals.

For Easter, I made a delicious meal which I posted about in my LJ, but to recap (since it was the last time I made a truly fabulous meal):

Appetizers:

Deviled Eggs

Shrimp Mousse Dip with Tasty Crackers



Main Course:

Greek Salad

Braised Leg of Lamb w. Date-Nut Haroset

Moroccan Carrot Salad

Couscous

Broiled Asparagus


Dessert:

Creme Brulee Cheesecake

Coffee & Tea

For the centerpieces, I made little nests out of Chinese noodles and melted butterscotch chips, which I filled with jelly beans. (I thought I had the pic for this here, but I guess it's at home - I'll try to edit it in later...)


I came across this recipe today and I'm excited to make it once people start giving me rhubarb which I have no idea what to do with:

RHUBARB SPONGE PUDDING
from Bon Appetit May 2007

This moist cake is perfect with unsweetened, softly whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

1 1/3 pounds rhubarb, cut into 1-inch lengths (about 5 cups)
1/3 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
2 tablespoons water

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup sugar
7 tablespoons butter, room temperature
2 large eggs
6 1/2 tablespoons whole milk
Softly whipped cream

Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter 11x7x2-inch baking dish. Place rhubarb pieces in baking dish in even layer. Scatter brown sugar over and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons water.

Whisk flour and baking powder in small bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat sugar and butter in large bowl until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well between additions. Fold in flour mixture in 3 additions alternately with milk in 2 additions, mixing just to blend after each addition. Spoon batter over rhubarb, smoothing top to cover.

Bake dessert until top is golden brown and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Cool at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hour. Serve warm with softly whipped cream.


Also I just printed out the Santa Fe Calabacitas recipe from, uh, last year's post(!!!) and am going to pick up the ingredients in a few minutes when I hit the store. Tonight's dinner, while not very exciting, is going to be tasty: tilapia, steamed broccoli, and mac and cheese.

Batinjaan zalud (Eggplant & Tomato Dip)

Batinjaar Zalud
(Eggplant & Tomato Dip)



1 large (about 1-1/2 pounds) eggplant
3 Tablespoons olive oil
One 8-ounce can tomato sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, seeded and chopped
1 Tablespoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup red wine vinegar


Dice eggplant, discarding ends. In a large frying pan, heat oil over medium heat and add eggplant, tomato sauce, garlic, onion, green pepper, cumin, cayenne pepper, sugar, salt, and vinegar. Cook covered over medium-low heat for 20 minutes. Uncover and boil mixture over medium-high heat, stirring until reduced to about 3 cups.
Cover and chill at least 2 hours. Serve with flatbread.

FREEZES WELL.
Makes: 3+ cups
adapted from a recipe on www.virtualcities.com

Santa Fe Calabacitas

Santa Fe Calabacitas

This casserole is adapted from a class the author took at the Santa Fe School of Cooking in New Mexico.
In many Santa Fe homes, 'calabacitas' - a traditional dish of the Pueblo Indians of the Southwest - is made as a one-dish casserole by baking it and adding chicken or beef. This one was adapted to include lean pork sausage and to finish up in the oven.



INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup finely chopped onion
2-4 cloves of garlic, minced
5 cups diced summer squash
2 cups corn kernels, fresh or frozen
1 "tube" reduced-fat pork sausage

6 scallions, chopped (3/4 cup)
1 chopped hot red chile, roasted, with skin removed (wear gloves when handling chiles)
1+ cup diced ripe Roma (plum) tomatoes
1/2 cup firmly packed coarsely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 grated Jack cheese (optional) or cream (also optional)
1/2 teaspoon salt
black pepper

1. Heat 2 tablespoonos of the oil in a large skillet and saute the onion for about 4 minutes over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and saute 2 minutes longer.

2. In a separate pan, cook sausage, allowing it to crumble.

2. Add the squash and zucchini and saute 5 minuts longer, until softened.

3. Add the sausage along with the corn, scallions, chiles and salt & pepper and saute 3 minutes longer.

4. Stir in the tomatoes, cilantro, and cheese/cream (if desired) and heat through, about 5 minutes. (I transferred to an oven-safe baking pan and heated for these last 5 minutes or so at 375 - I think it was just an extra step.)

Serve hot or warm.
Yield: 8-10 side servings or 3-4 meals.

Grade: A 

Still full from this weekend

By popular demand, recipes for the goodies I made this weekend.
... now let me think...

BRUSCHETTA
(cherry) tomatoes, halved
olive oil
dash of raspberry vinegar
minced gahlic
salt & pepper
crumbled feta

Mix all of these together and let sit, refrigerated, at least an hour. Serve warm or cold, spooned on slices of toasted french bread.

SQUASH & RED ONION FLATBREAD - see 2 entries below


What else did I make? Can't remember!

Zucchini & Red Onion Flatbread

We ate a lot this weekend. A LOT.

J and I tried last night to list off everything we consumed this weekend on our camping trip, and even after listing off at least 5 different meats, 5 different sweets, and a whole shopping list worth of veggies, I know we didn't cover everything. A weekend of food, drink, song, and much much happiness in the woods with my nuggets.

This was a big hit: Cheesy Zucchini and Red Onion Flatbread
(from Bon Appetit, August 2006)
Click once on recipe to open it larger, twice to really zoom in....



For those who were on the camping trip, I made mine with yellow squash (tastes the same), more onion, and less cheese (for 2 recipes I used one of those little round "loaves" of chevre with garlic & herbs). AWESOME reheated on the grill! * Note: made again including some thinly sliced tomatoes - good addition! *