Steak Pinwheels

It was a crazy week and I was ready for a nice dinner on Friday.  I pulled out the rest of the high quality sirloin steak I'd purchased at Wild Oats for Christmas dinner and redid the pinwheels, with a few changes.  Mainly, I used blue cheese instead of feta.

The steps I followed:

1. Pounded the sirloin steak to a consistent thickness. 
2. Sauteed some onion, garlic, and spinach, just to wilting.
3. Salt and peppered the steak, topping it with the sauteed spinach and blue cheese.
4. Rolled the steak and used a toothpick to hold the pinwheel closed.
5. Heated oil at high heat and seared the outside of the pinwheel, stuck the pinwheel and pan in the oven at 400 degrees, until the middle temperature was about 125.  I let it sit covered for about 5-8 minutes and as you can see it came out perfectly. 
6. I was also roasting a potato, mushroom, cauliflower, and broccoli combination to go with the pinwheel.
7. A lovely salad of blueberries, shredded carrot, fresh lettuce, and toasted pecans pulled this meal together.

Sorry, the picture isn't the best as I didn't move it from the cutting board, but it shows the pinwheel well.

Yellow Split Pea Soup

Do you ever have those days where you are focused and just get things done?  That was today for me.  By noon I'd already had 3 meetings with 2 more for the afternoon, plus I'd really knocked out some things on the list!  In addition, I was cheerily, singing my own made up "delicious fishes" song in my head because of some NPR story on Striped Bass this morning.  Go on, just say it in your head a few times, delicious fishes...delicious fishes... delicious fishes.... 

So anyway, I was already heading into lunch happy, but man soup and grilled cheese makes me even happier!

I made a great Yellow Split Pea soup last night.  The peas didn't get as mushy as I would like, but that happens with split peas every so often, and the flavor was still outstanding.  Nothing special just peas, ham, onion, celery, carrots, thyme, 1/2 water and 1/2 chicken broth, but mmmmmmmm good!  And really how can you not enjoy eating a grilled cheese with fun grill marks on it?  I'm telling you, a panini maker is a toy well worth obtaining.

 Well the first night of Cake Decorating class flew by and we didn't even get to do much decorating! Part of that could be because I'm pretty sure I had a sugar high from just sitting in a room with that much frosting, but I learned a couple great tips and of course, I learned about a bunch of tools I really need!

1. It's always best to make your cake at least a day ahead and freeze it.  Then pull it out and let it defrost for a few hours before frosting.  The texture is much better and there are less crumbs to get caught up in your icing!
2. We learned a recipe for making icing stiff, medium and light.    Next week we have to show up with a cake and this frosting.  Joe is going to love this class!
3. We learned a cool way to make sure your frosting is really smooth - did you think I was going to pass on all the secrets?

This week we only had to bring cookies.  So of course, I was baking and cutting out cookies.  But, we only practiced how to use the star tip this week.  Next week, a frosted cake - I've already decided I'll make and bring a coconut cake to frost.  How cute is that little cowboy boot?  Yep, I had a little cutout cowboy too, but his fate was already sealed.....

Hearty Saturday Night Dinner Full of Flavor

Time has been flying by and the hubby was traveling last week.  All I really wanted on Saturday was a nice dinner with my Man.  Unfortunately, my headaches have been bad, so I only allowed myself a 1/4 glass of the lovely Zinfandel that Joe poured to go with the steak and I was a bit quiet.... but it was still a nice dinner together.

We stopped on the way back from Salt Lake City last week and bought some Buffalo, including these very nice Buffalo Sirloin steaks which Joe grilled.  To go with the steaks, first I cut up some sweet potatoes and made homemade sweet potato fries. 

I then combined some lovely flavors to make up a Corn, Poblano Pepper, and Millet side dish.  I didn't use whole millet, I cracked about 1/2 cup of whole millet in the food processor.  Sauteed a shallot and clove of garlic in some olive oil and added the millet and about 1 1/2 cup of chicken broth.  I let that simmer for about 8 minutes then added on top, 3/4 cup corn, 1 chopped roasted poblano pepper, about 1 T. of parsley, salt and pepper.  I let that continue simmering about 10 more minutes then added about 1/4 cup milk and some grated smoked Gruyere cheese.  Wow!  Now that smoked pepper flavor just popped.  It was creamy, almost like a risotto.

To round out the meal I needed a nice salad.  I used fresh lettuce greens from my little growing pot in the kitchen, topped with radish, apple, and blue cheese with a lovely red wine vinaigrette.  A tip, just a bit of good hearty mustard will really perk up any vinaigrette! 

What's up next?  Cake decorating class starts tomorrow!

Fun Indian Dishes

I've been wanting to play with some Indian dishes, but I've been leary to make them for Joe without testing ahead of time because he can't handle much heat.  The opportunity came up as a friend who enjoys many of the same foods I do, came over for dinner.  I really enjoyed the below dinner and there was some spice so I'll have tone it down before making it for Joe.  What I love about Indian food is the flavor and the tendency to have lots of vegetarian options.  I stuck with these vegetarian options for my meal.

First, the Aloo Gobi - Potato and Cauliflower Curry, was excellent.  I followed the recipe pretty closely and the flavor was excellent.

Second, I made the Curried Chickpea Stew with Brown Rice Pilaf from the January 2011 Cooking Light magazine.    The Chickpea Stew was really good.  I was out of a onion and used Shallot instead and I substituted ground cardomon for the cfardomon pods, but otherwise followed the recipe pretty closely.

Don't be afraid to try different dishes.  We cannot get Indian food here in Rock Springs, and these are dishes I would make again for those flavors.  In addition, after working through them they are dishes I can make any day of the week and feel more confident about working with these flavors. 

Healthy Cookies?

I have a secret.  Sometimes when I'm baking healthier versions of cookies and muffins, I think I tell people they are healthy so they will turn up their nose and there is more for me!   I really do prefer heartier grains and if some whole wheat, oats, and unrefined sugar are excuse enough for me to eat them, then that works for me.  I think Joe is on to me though, he'll eat any cookies I make no matter what I call them! 

Lately, I've had the goal to use up some of the grains I buy.  I am horrible - it's a weakness!  I stand in front of the Bob's Red Mill section and think, "Mmmm, that sounds good -  I might need that in the future".  So in organizing my cupboard I have some of the hot cereal mixes that I haven't been using for hot cereal.  I popped on the Bob's Red Mill website and, low and behold, there were recipes!  It's so convenient because you can search for recipes by the product you want to use.

Below you can find the Peanut Butter Oat Grain Cookies, featuring the 7 Grain Cereal.  They have a little crunch to them which is pleasant because other than that the cookies kind of melt in your mouth.  I used honey, I wasn't sure what they meant by fructose.  I don't think Joe ever gets as excited as when he comes into the kitchen to the site of cookies cooling.

This morning I whipped up a batch of High Fiber Scottish Oat Muffins featuring the Organic High Fiber Cereal mix to take on our weekend ski trip. There are so many good things in these muffins, including yogurt, dates, carrots and I added just a pinch of cloves and cardamon.  I also used unrefined sugar in place of brown sugar and they are tasty!

What to make next?

My Kitchen

I was standing in front of my cookbooks the other day and it occurred to me - there is a blog post here!  Of course, it was one of our normal blue sky days and it was hard to get good pictures!  The back wall of my kitchen is wonderful.  It has 2 garden windows perfect for sprouting seeds in March/April and a long set of black bakers shelves.  When we bought the house I knew immediately that was what I wanted to put there! But I have a dilemma...

You can see that the left shelves are taken up with what I refer to affectionately as toys.  I use them alot more when I can see them and remember them.  A good Saturday is often marked by how many kitchen toys I used!

 The shelves on the right are taken up by plants.  Trust me there are many more plants around the house helping me get rid of dust and acting as my ally in healthy air creation.

 But, the center is my favorite place.  All of these are cookbooks of various kinds.  I love them all, even those I haven't used.  I'm not much of a collector, but I will definitely have too many cookbooks someday.  The dilemma?  What do I get rid of, toys or plants, to fit more books!!!!

Springerle and Grandmas

One amazing thing about Christmas for me is it always brings my Gandma's back to me.  Not only the flavors of their baking, but the tools they used for baking and decoration surround me.  Luckily, our families have been very generous with Grandma items and recipes.  Joe's mom made the below binder and gave a copy to each child.  It has all the recipes they all remember from Grandma Heuermann.  I bet Marilyn wishes she'd waited for the age of the computer to do this, but then it wouldn't be nearly as special!  This project didn't just entail her copying Grandma's recipes, she had to watch them being cooked to even get them on paper!

 When Grandma Rebechek passed I was lucky enough to get some of her Christmas tree bulbs.  Most years they are on the tree, but this year the old, bulbs below became my table centerpiece in a silver dish that came from another Grandma (Heuermann?  Someone tell me for sure, as I didn't label them!).  The whole season it made me smile to look at it.

That brings us to Springerle, for those of you not with a German heritage, Springerle is a small anise flavored cookie.  When I asked Joe what he wanted me to make for Christmas this year, he mentioned these - in Grandma's cookbook, of course.  Luckily I read the recipe thoroughly before starting, not always my strong point, and Joe talked to his Mom about the cookie.  She sent a more detailed recipe and said, well you need a Springerle mold, of which she had two!  Bless her heart, she shipped me the below mold, with a note that this was Grandma Heuermann's mold and she remembers her using it as far back as she can remember.  Does it get any more special?!!?

These are just little square pillows of cookies, that get harder as the days go by, but I have it on good authority, they are excellent coffee dunking cookies.

 Springerle


Whisk together thoroughly:

3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 t baking powder

Beat on high speed until lightened in color

4 large eggs

Gradually add and beat until lightened in color, creamy, and thick enough that it drops in thick ribbons, about 3 minutes more:

1 2/3 cups of sugar

1 t of grated lemon zest

1 t anise extract

Stir in flour mixture until well blended and smooth.

Chill at least 1 hour.

Sprinkle a clean work surface with 1/4 cup of flour plus more when needed.  Knead in enough flour to firm the dough and make it manageable.

Divide the dough in half and place 1 portion in a sealable bag to keep from drying out.

Roll 1/4" thick lifting the dough and lightly dusting the work surface and rolling pin as necessary. Lightly dust the Springerle carved cookie mold with flour, tap off the excess.  You may have to be liberal with the flour to keep it from sticking depending on your mold.

Press on floured molds hard enough to make an imprint.  Cut the designs apart with a pastry wheel or a knife.  I used a pizza cutter.

With spatula transfer the cookies to lightly greased and floured cookie sheets about 1/2" apart.

Set the cookies aside 10 to 12 hours (overnight).  This is real, I even called Marilyn to double check.  I set them in a cool place, in my laundry room, covered with kitchen towels overnight.

Preheat oven 300 degrees. Place oven rack in the middle position

If desired sprinkle 2 to 3 T anise seeds on cookies.  The seeds didn't stick very well and I didn't want to mess the pictures up.  You may want to sprinkle them on the cookies sheet and set the cookies on top of them.

Bake 1 sheet at a time until the cookies are almost firm but not colored, 18 to 25 minutes. Transfer the cookies to racks to cool.

There you have it, I've tackled Spaetzl and Springerle, do you have any other German sp recipes I should be making?

Happy New Year

It's a new year and what does that mean resolutions!  There are many I could make such as:

1. Remembering everyone's birthday and getting them cards on-time.  Sorry all, I've tried that - not sure why it's so hard for me!
2. Losing 10 pounds - while the chart does say that is my ideal weight, I've found a weight I can maintain and I'm mostly happy with it.  That would just be alot of saying no, where's the fun there?
3. Learning how to knit, decorate cakes, and do all the things I'd like to do well.  Hmmm, if you know me you know I like to do things well - but really I'd be happy to just learn one of these things this year. 
4. Become organized and stay there, always following my system and never having stacks of paper on my desk.  Well this is a dream, but we all need dreams right?  That just really isn't me. 

So, I think I'll go with something that I know I already love and have faith I can do.  This isn't really a resolution, more of a continuous goal.  I want to continue eating more whole grains, vegetables and what would be considered whole foods.  That means also, always trying new grains.  My body is really happiest when these items are the majority of my intake.  Luckily, I love salads made from whole grains and vegetables and I like having them around for quick lunches.  So tonight I made the following salad.  I didn't follow a recipe, but I'll explain the process and you can make up your own salad anytime!  Doesn't it look bright and colorful and fresh?  That's the goal!

Christine's Wheat Berry Salad

First, pick a grain.  I've been wanting to use up the Hard Wheat Berries I had in the cupboard, but in future salads you'll see me using Quinoa, Millet, Bulgar, Barley and more!  Cook the grain as directed, the amount depends on how much salad you want.  I found that this grain was really cooked perfectly after about 1 1/2 hour.  Hmmm, this focus on grains and beans may mean I take seriously the idea of getting a pressure cooker!

Second, think about your vegetables.  These salads are a great way to use up vegetables in your fridge.  The main rule of thumb is to cut them up in the same size pieces. The more colorful, the healthier!  In this salad I have, the following:

• About 1/2 a finely chopped shallot
• 2 chopped scallions (white and green parts)
• 1/2 chopped green pepper
• 1/2 chopped red pepper
• some chopped green cabbage
• some chopped red cabbage - we always need more purple and blue vegetables!
• a good handful of chopped flat leaf parsley

Third, think about the dressing.  The rule I use is about 3 Tablespoons olive oil to 3 Tablespoons vinegar and other liquid.  So for example, I wanted this to taste fresh, so I used 3 Tablespoons olive oil, 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar, and 1 Tablespoon orange juice.  Lemon juice would have worked great but I didn't have it.  Also, if I had an orange, I would have added orange zest to this, especially with the parsley it would have gone well!  Add Salt and Pepper to taste.  In the future I am sure I'll use Balsamic Vinegar and I think I'll try a Tahini dressing sometime also. 

Fourth, do you need any fancy additions?  This salad would be great with the following:

• Feta cheese
• Toasted Walnuts (when I do this I'll use walnut oil in place of the olive oil)
• Beans or Edamame.  Your flavors would lead you to your bean.  If I added some cumin and maybe chili powder to this dressing, some black beans and cilantro, in place of parsley, would be a perfect addition.  The beans add protein also so you have a full lunch all in one container.
• Use your imagination and add your favorites!  Think about the foods you like, Greek - add some olives and pepperocini!  Mexican - break out that cilantro and cumin! Indian - cumin, coriander, and currys will get you there!

Good luck with your resolutions this year!