My ruminations on my life, my family, cooking, baking, and whatever else comes to mind
Week 6!
Check out the little friend on our front door this evening (my index finger shown for scale)! 🙂 We hear the little frogs all the time, and we see the tadpoles in the retaining pond, but this is the first time I’ve seen one of the mature frogs. I hope he finds the food he was looking for and gets back somewhere a bit wetter than our porch!
Update: I think this little guy is a Columbia Spotted Frog.
Another update: From the local zoo, these little guys might be the somewhat endangered Oregon Spotted Frogs.
Week 5 of my CSA!
Spaghetti Arrabbiata with Baby Shrimp
Chicken Noodle Soup – more uses for leftover chicken
Chicken Soft Tacos. Leftover chicken, 1 can Ro-Tel, 1 can refried beans, and my usual burrito spices plus chipotle chile powder all warmed in a skillet then served in soft taco sized tortillas
More beer roasted chicken
Banana “S’mores” – a banana halved lengthwise, topped with semisweet chocolate and marshmallows, and heated in a toaster oven to melt the chocolate and toast the marshmallows
Green chile chicken enchiladas using leftover chicken
Green salad and beer roasted chicken
Roasted asparagus and baby turnips, t-bone steak, and breaded zucchini
Teriyaki Chicken with Stir Fried Shiitake Mushrooms
Roasted pork tenderloin, roasted white button mushrooms, and asparagus
These easy one bowl brownies come together in no time flat. They’re chewy chocolatey goodness 🙂 These are modified from the one on the Hershey’s cocoa box.
One Bowl Brownies
Makes 16 brownies
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Stir together the butter, sugar, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Add the eggs and beat well with a wooden spoon. Add the flour, cocoa powder, baking power, and salt. Beat until blended and mostly smooth.
Spray an 8 inch by 8 inch glass pan with non-stick spray. Pour the batter into the pan and spread it evenly.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the brownies start to pull away from the sides of the pan. Cool the brownies completely on a wire rack. Slice into squares and serve.
Week 4 of my CSA!
Week 3 of my CSA!
These easy, slow roasted ribs are fall off the bone tender and flavorful. The dry rub is my own blend, sweet and smoky. I served these with some asparagus and green salad.
Oven Roasted Babyback Ribs
Serves 2
Dry Rub:
1 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp granulated sugar
2 tsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/8 tsp onion powder
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp chili powder (I use Gebhardt)
1 lb babyback pork ribs
Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
Pat dry rub generously over the whole rack of ribs. Wrap tightly in foil and place on a rimmed baking sheet, bone side down. Roast slowly for about 3 hours, until very tender. Open up the foil to expose the ribs. Turn on broiler and broil for 2 minutes to crisp up the crust.
Serve warm.
This recipe is inspired by one my friend Mary makes all the time. It’s easy and less finicky than a traditional stovetop jambalaya. This was a great dinner for a drizzly day. 🙂
Oven Baked Jambalaya
Serves 8
4 links chicken Italian sausage, about 12 oz
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, finely diced
1 medium green bell pepper, finely diced
3 stalks celery, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 15-oz can fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 6-oz can tomato paste
1 tbsp creole seasoning (I used Emeril’s Essence)
1 tbsp hot sauce (I used Frank’s Red Hot)
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
4 cups chicken broth (I use fat free, low sodium)
2 cups rice
1 lb peeled and deveined shrimp
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Slice the sausage into chunks and brown it well in a large skillet over medium heat. Remove the sausage to a bowl and set aside. Melt the butter in the skillet with the olive oil. Add the onion, pepper, and celery and cook until the onions are translucent and the peppers and celery are tender. Add the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, creole seasoning, hot sauce, and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to deglaze the pan and combine the vegetables and seasonings well. Pour the veggies into a deep 9″ x 13″ baking pan. Add the sausage, chicken stock, and rice, and stir to combine well. Cover pan tightly with foil.
Bake for 1.5 hours, or until the rice is tender, stirring halfway through and adding a cup of water if it looks like the rice needs it. Remove foil. Add the shrimp on top and bake for another 15 minutes, or until the shrimp are opaque and just cooked through. Stir the shrimp into the mix and serve hot.
