Archive for the 'Food For Thought' Category

Food For Thought – Hot Chocolate

I love hot chocolate in the winter, especially with a ton of marshmallows. While the store bought stuff is passable, when you’re desperate, it’s fairly easy to make your own.

Ingredients  

  • 2 teaspoons of cocoa
  • 2 teaspoons of sugar
  • 2 tablespoons of cream
  • 1 cup of milk
  • Marshmallows

Directions

Blend together cocoa, sugar, and cream until it forms a thick paste. Warm milk in a saucepan. Pour into a mug and mix with cocoa mixture. Add as many marshmallows as humanly possible.

Published on March 21, 2012 in Food For Thought. 0 Comments

Food For Thought – Breakfast Bowls

“Breakfast is a notoriously difficult meal to serve with a flourish.” -Clement Freud

Ingredients

  • 4 eggs
  • ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese

Biscuits

  • 1 cup of flour
  • 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ cup Crisco
  • ⅓ cup milk

Vegetable Hash

  • 1 small onion
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 2 cups spinach
  • 3 medium Roma tomatoes
  • 4 button mushrooms
  • 8 – 10 leaves of fresh basil
  • Olive oil
  • Salt and pepper

Directions

For the biscuits:

  • Heat oven to 450°F.
  • Mix together flour, baking powder and salt in large bowl. With a fork, cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add milk and mix until dough forms a sticky ball.
  • Roll or press dough to 1/2-inch thickness. Cut with floured 2-inch round cutter. Place on ungreased cookie sheet.
  • Bake 8 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown. Serve warm.

For the hash:

  • Dice garlic and onions and add to a saute pan. Saute for 6 minutes until onions are clear.
  • Quarter tomatoes and add to saute pan. Saute for 4 minutes.
  • Slice mushrooms and add to saute pan. Saute for 2 minutes.
  • Add spinach and basil.
  • Fry two eggs.
  • Break two two biscuits in half, place in the bottom of a bowl. Top with half of the vegetable hash. Add half of the shredded cheese and top with fried eggs.
Published on February 29, 2012 in Food For Thought. 0 Comments

Food For Thought – Tomatoes and Eggs

“Television is a golden goose that lays scrambled eggs; and it is futile and probably fatal to beat it for not laying caviar. Anyway, more people like scrambled eggs than caviar.” -Lee Loevinger

This is a traditional Chinese dish, very popular in Beijing but not found in many Chinese restaurants outside of China. It is extremely easy to make and very tasty.

Ingredients

  • 4 large eggs
  • 8 oz. fresh tomato (cut into thin wedges)
  • 1/2 teaspoon saltBowl of Tomatoes and Eggs
  • 2 teaspoons black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1 tablespoon fish sauce
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 cups rice, cooked

Directions

In a bowl, beat eggs with sesame oil, pepper, and salt.
In a large saute pan or wok, heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Add egg mixture and stir frequently, so that eggs form lumps. Once eggs are cooked, set aside. Wash out pan.
Add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil to pan and heat. Add tomatoes and stir frequently. After 3 minutes, add water and sugar. Cover and allow to cook for another 3 minutes. Add eggs and scallions and stir for 1 minute. Serve over rice.

Options

Stir fry mushrooms and leeks separately and add to the dish at the end.
Toss in a handful of peanuts at the end of the cooking process for some extra crunch.

Published on December 14, 2011 in Food For Thought. 0 Comments

Food For Thought – French Onion Soup

“Onion soup sustains. The process of making it is somewhat like the process of learning to love. It requires commitment, extraordinary effort, time, and will make you cry.” -Ronni Lundy

I tried this french onion soup recipe from Michael Ruhlman’s blog and it was amazing. You might remember Ruhlman from the Las Vegas episode of Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations. I changed the recipe slightly, to fit the ingredient’s that I had in the house.

Ingredients French Onion Soup

  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 6 lbs white onions, thinly sliced
  • ⅓ cup dry white wine
  • 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
  • 4 cups water
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 baguette
  • 2 cups shredded sharp cheese

Directions

In a large stock pot, melt the butter. Add the onions, salt them, and cook them on low heat until they turn an amber color, stirring occasionally. This takes about 67 million hours. I cooked the onions for 5 hours the night before and another two hours on the day I made the soup.

Slice the baguette into ½ inch thick slices and toast them at 100F for thirty minutes.

When the onions turn amber in color, add pepper, water, wine, and vinegar. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low.

In a oven-safe bowl, ladle a serving of soup, top with bread, and cover with cheese. Broil until did cheese is melted and serve immediately.

Options

If you don’t have bowls which are safe for broiling, you can place them in the oven and bake them at 350F until cheese is melted.

Try different kinds of onions for different flavors.

Published on November 2, 2011 in Food For Thought. 0 Comments

Food For Thought – Corn And Tomato Pie

Measure the corn of others with your own bushel.” -Yiddish Proverb

This is another great recipe I adapted from Closet Cooking. The sweetness of the corn and tomatoes is a great paring with the savory crust.

Ingredients

Filling

  • 3 ears of corn, boiled and removed from the cob
  • 5 Roma tomatoes, diced
  • 1/4 cup yogurt
  • 2 green onions, sliced
  • 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, grated
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • salt and pepper

Crust

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 3/4 teaspoons salt
  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 3/4 cup milk

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a large bowl, mix flour, baking powder, and salt. Add milk and butter and blend until it forms a sticky dough. Split dough in half and roll out on a heavily floured surface. Press one crust into a 9 inch round glass baking dish and set the other crust aside.

In another bowl, mix together the filling ingredients. Pour mixture into bottom crust and cover with other crust. With your fingers, press the edges of the top and bottom crust together. Use a knife to create slits in the top of the crust to allow steam to escape.

Bake for 35 minutes.

Options

Chopped bacon would be a nice addition, if you aren’t a vegetarian.

Try adding 1 teaspoon of dried dill to the crust.

Published on October 19, 2011 in Food For Thought. 0 Comments
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