 Like many of you, I've been glued to the Olympics for the past week. I love the watching the competitions but I've also been drawn to the interviews with the athletes. Their stories are inspiring and inspirational. "Do what you love" - seems to be the common theme among these elite athletes. So I'm going to take some advice from these Olympic competitors and get to doing what I love - cooking.  I whipped up some coconut shrimp and chicken for our Olympic viewing party tonight and they were so very good. The coconut shrimp was INCREDIBLE and the chicken wasn't too shabby either. I would give this recipe a gold medal.  Coconut Chicken and Shrimp 1 cup flour 1 cup lime flavored seltzer 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon pepper 1 1/4 cups sweetened coconut 1 1/4 cups panko 1 pound shrimp 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
 Heat oil in skillet. Fry a few pieces at a time, until golden brown. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Serve.
 I served my coconut shrimp and chicken over brown rice.  I don't fry food very often so these coconut shrimp and chicken were a real treat. I am sure that I could have baked these in the oven but I just love the golden color and crunchy coating on these beautiful little morsels. If you're a fan of coconut shrimp - you absolutely need to try this recipe. You will NOT regret it.
Ciao
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 It's no secret that I love pumpkin. Pumpkin muffins, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, you name it. If it's got pumpkin in it - I love it. I love pumpkins so much in fact, that I try and model my life after a pumpkin.
I'm kidding of course but I do have mad love for the pumpkin. I might be the only person in the world that's still baking pumpkin recipes in the middle of February. If you've got a pumpkin fascination like me, you'll understand and you will NOT want to wait until Fall to make these Mini Pumpkin and Pear Stratas. They are REALLY good.  Mini Pumpkin and Pear Stratas 1 1/2 cups whole milk yogurt 1 cup pumpkin 1/4 cup brown sugar 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1/2 teaspoon salt 5 eggs 1 french bread loaf, cut into 2 inch pieces 2 cups chopped bartlett pears 3/4 cups dried cranberries 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar
Bake 25 minutes at 375. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pan.  Sift powdered sugar over tops before serving.
 I put my batch of stratas together the night before I wanted to serve them. I filled the muffin tins, covered it with plastic wrap and then tucked them in my refrigerator overnight. When I got up in the morning, I popped the pan into the oven and we were were enjoying these piping hot pumpkin stratas in no time. There's no shame in enjoying pumpkin recipes in February - right? #pumpkinallyearlong
Ciao!  Ben and I are so excited about the start of the Olympics that we threw an opening ceremony party for ourselves tonight. I considered making something Korean in honor of the host country but then reconsidered when I realized that I have very limited knowledge of Korean cooking. (Note to self: Learn how to cook Korean food.) I made chicken wings instead. ;)  I'm digging this healthier version of the traditional fried chicken wing. These cornflake crusted baked wings are just and juicy and delicious as their fried counterparts without all the extra grease. The simple dipping sauce is a great compliment to the wings and also doubles as a yummy vegetable dip.  Salt and Vinegar Chicken Wings 1 pound chicken wings 1 cup buttermilk 1 Tablespoon malt vinegar 1 1/2 cups crushed cornflakes 2 Tablespoons cornmeal 1 teaspoon garlic powder 3/4 teaspoon paprika 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup mayonnaise 1/2 teaspoon dried dill 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 1 clove garlic, minced
Sprinkle chicken with salt. Serve with dipping sauce.
 Let the 2018 Winter Olympics begin. What's your favorite winter Olympic sport to watch? I like them all but I'm super excited to watch the bobsledding. I'm pretty sure if I hadn't decided to become a chef, I could have been and Olympic bobsledder. Never mind the fact that I don't like cold weather or anything fast. Guess I'll stick to cheffing - for now.
Ciao!  I'm feeling the love this week. Valentine's Day is less than a week away and I've spend the last couple of afternoons trying to get Valentine treats ready to put in the mail. With both kids away at school, I've tried to force myself to plan for holidays early to allow time for the care packages to be delivered. Somehow though, I always end up scrambling to get holiday treats together and packing them into boxes while they're still hot so I can get them to the post office.  Valentine's Day baking is in full swing in my house this week. Everything and anything that lands on my counter this week, will eventually get covered in chocolate and dusted with heart shaped sprinkles. These chocolate frosted cookies are the perfect decadent treat for Valentine's Day. The chocolate frosting is so rich and decadent and is the perfect compliment to the crumbly shortbread cookie.  Chocolate Frosted Cookies 2 cups cake flour 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 8 Tablespoons butter, softened 3/4 cup sugar 1 egg white 1 1/2 Tablespoons heavy cream 2 teaspoons vanilla Frosting 3 cups milk chocolate chips 1 1/4 cups heavy cream 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 2/3 cups cocoa powder 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
Microwave chocolate chips, cream and salt until melted. Whisk cocoa, vanilla and sugar into chocolate.  Spoon 2 T. frosting on the flat side of each cookie. Let cookies to sit at room temperature for 3 hours to allow frosting to set.
Dressing these cookies up for Valentine's Day is easy. A few juicy red raspberries or some heart sprinkles can really transform these cookies into a Valentine's Day delight.   Just in case you were curious (Or you're one of my children who are expecting a care package) these cookies are NOT going to be in the Valentine boxes. I wasn't sure exactly how to pack these in the mail so kiddos - if you want to sample these cookies - you're going to have to come home. :)
Ciao!  Do you live in a house divided? You know what I mean --- vegetarians and carnivores that are co-habitating? As a part time vegetarian who lives with a very devoted meat eater I can attest to the fact that it can be difficult to make meals that are pleasing to both of us. This loaded vegetarian tortilla soup is perfect for vegetarians (obviously) and with the simple addition of some shredded rotisserie chicken - it quickly becomes a meal that Ben loves as well.
Loaded Vegetarian Tortilla Soup 2 teaspoons olive oil 1 onion, diced 1 poblano pepper, diced 3-4 garlic cloves, minced 1 serrano pepper, diced 1/2 teaspoon oregano 1/2 teaspoon cumin 1/2 teaspoon ground chipolte chili pepper 14 ounce can fire roasted tomatoes 3 cups vegetable broth 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained 3/4 cup frozen corn kernels 1 Tablespoon oil 2 corn tortillas, cut into thin strips
Add tomatoes and broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes. Add beans and corn. 
Divide among 4 bowls. Top with avocado and add a few tortilla strips to each bowl. Add a squeeze of lime juice and serve.  Add a few handfuls of shredded rotisserie chicken to the remainder of the soup if you like.  Ladle into bowls and serve with sliced avocado and tortilla strips.   It never fails that we have 3 or 4 days of cold weather in a row so I plan a soup night and suddenly the temperatures spike into the 60's. Seriously, if I start craving warmer weather and sunshine, all I need to do is make a giant pot of soup. Even though we ate this soup with the door open to cool down the kitchen, it was delicious. This recipe is definitely worth a second look.
Ciao! |
